While National Newswatch does not keep an archive of external articles for longer than 6 months, we do keep all articles written by contributors who post directly to our site. Here you will find all of the contributed and linked external articles from Kevin Freking, The Associated Press.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump signed a roughly $1.2 trillion government funding bill Tuesday that ends the partial federal shutdown that began over the weekend and sets the stage for an intense debate in Congress over Homeland Security funding.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Tuesday passed a roughly $1.2 trillion spending package to end the partial government shutdown, sending the measure to President Donald Trump while setting the stage for an intense debate in Congress over Homeland Security funding.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Tuesday passed a roughly $1.2 trillion spending package to end the partial government shutdown, sending the measure to President Donald Trump and setting the stage for a debate in Congress over Homeland Security funding.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A bill to end a partial government shutdown is nearing final passage in the House after narrowly clearing a critical procedural hurdle Tuesday afternoon.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson's ability to carry out President Donald Trump's "play call" for funding the government will be put to the test on Tuesday as the House votes on a bill to end the partial shutdown.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson's ability to carry out President Donald Trump's "play call" for funding the government will be put to the test on Tuesday as the House holds a procedural vote on a bill to end the partial shutdown.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson's ability to carry out President Donald Trump's "play call" for funding the government will be put to the test Tuesday as the House holds a procedural vote on a bill to end the partial shutdown.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress is halfway home in approving government funding for the current budget year that began Oct. 1 after the Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a three-bill package.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House passed a bipartisan package of three spending bills on Thursday that would fund parts of the federal government through September, demonstrating the eagerness of lawmakers to avoid another government shutdown near the end of the month.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House refused Thursday to override President Donald Trump's veto of two low-profile bills as Republicans stuck with the president despite their prior support for the measures.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans will consider a rare rebuke of President Donald Trump with House votes Thursday to override his vetoes of two low-profile bills that were considered noncontroversial when they passed Congress.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The longest government shutdown in history has come to an end, with almost no one happy with the final result.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The longest government shutdown in history could conclude as soon as today, Day 43, with almost no one happy with the final result.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Trump administration is rejecting the idea of using roughly $5 billion in contingency funds to keep food aid flowing into November amid the government shutdown, according to a Department of Agriculture memo that surfaced Friday. States temporarily covering the cost of benefits next month will not be reimbursed, the memo says.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The first week is the easy one. The pressure to resolve the federal shutdown will gradually build as the shutdown enters its second week -- and as government workers miss paychecks and important programs run out of money.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Political leaders in Washington are spending considerable energy blaming the other party for what could be an extended government shutdown, and that effort includes shaping the narrative for next year's elections.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington is bracing for what could be a prolonged federal shutdown after lawmakers deadlocked and missed the deadline for funding the government.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington is just hours away from yet another federal government shutdown, with prospects looking rather bleak for a last-minute compromise in Congress to avoid federal closures beginning at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The threat of a government shutdown has become a recurring event in Washington, though most of the time lawmakers and the president are able to head it off. This time, however, prospects for a last-minute compromise look rather bleak.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate rejected competing measures on Friday to fund federal agencies for a few weeks when the new budget year begins on Oct. 1, increasing prospects for a partial government shutdown on that date.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Friday passed a short-term spending bill to extend government funding for seven weeks and avoid a partial government shutdown on Oct. 1, but prospects looked dimmer in the Senate, where the two parties show no signs of budging on the matter.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican and Democratic lawmakers show no signs of budging as the House takes up a bill Friday to avert a partial government shutdown in less than two weeks.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Lawmakers have left Washington for the annual August recess, but a few weeks of relative quiet on the U.S. Capitol grounds can't mask the partisan tensions that are brewing on government funding and President Donald Trump's nominees. It could make for a momentous September.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump signed a bill Thursday canceling about $9 billion that had been approved for public broadcasting and foreign aid as Republicans look to lock in cuts to programs targeted by the White House's Department of Government Efficiency.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump's tax and spending law will add $3.4 trillion to federal deficits through 2034, the Congressional Budget Office reported Monday, a slight increase in the projection that takes into account the final tweaks that Republicans made before getting the legislation over the finish line.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Republicans on Tuesday advanced President Donald Trump's request to cancel some $9 billion in previously approved spending, overcoming concerns about what the rescissions could mean for impoverished people around the globe and for public radio and television stations in their home states.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Republicans worked Tuesday to slightly scale back President Donald Trump's request to cancel $9.4 billion in previously approved spending as they tried to build momentum for the package before a key test vote.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Republicans were exploring changes Tuesday to President Donald Trump's request to cancel $9.4 billion in previously approved spending targeted by his Department of Government Efficiency, signaling potential difficulties ahead of an important test vote.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican efforts to loosen regulations on gun silencers and short-barreled rifles and shotguns have been dealt a big setback with the Senate parliamentarian advising that the proposal would need to clear a 60-vote threshold if included in their big tax and immigration bill.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Senate panel challenged on a bipartisan basis the merits of cancelling billions of dollars in spending for foreign aid and public media as part of a contentious hearing Wednesday examining the White House's request for the cuts.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A small government office with some 275 employees has found itself caught in the political crossfire as Congress debates President Donald Trump's "one big beautiful bill."
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans narrowly got their budget plan over the finish line. Now comes the hard part.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House passed legislation Wednesday mostly along party lines that limits the authority of federal district judges to issue nationwide orders, as Republicans react to several court rulings against the Trump administration.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate finds itself on Friday in a familiar position, working to avoid a partial government shutdown with just hours to spare as Democrats confront two painful options: allowing passage of a bill they believe gives President Donald Trump vast discretion on spending decisions or voting no and letting a funding lapse ensue.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans unveiled a spending bill Saturday that would keep federal agencies funded through Sept. 30, pushing ahead with a go-it-alone strategy that seems certain to spark a major confrontation with Democrats over the contours of government spending.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans are looking to do what, for them, is almost unheard of --- approving government funding on their terms with little help from Democrats.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Thursday voted to censure an unrepentant Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, for disrupting President Donald Trump's address to Congress.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House is expected to vote on censuring an unrepentant Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, on Thursday for his outburst during President Donald Trump's address to Congress.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Majority Leader John Thune teed up a vote this week on a budget plan that sets the stage for a massive boost in defense and border security spending, and leaves a looming tax cut fight for later this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Before President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress can enact much of their legislative agenda, they have to deal with some unfinished business -- completing work on the current budget year's spending bills. It's a task that by all accounts is not going well.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Joe Biden secured the 235th judicial confirmation of his presidency Friday, an accomplishment that exceeds his predecessor's total by one after Democrats put extra emphasis on the federal courts following Donald Trump's far-reaching first term, when he filled three seats on the Supreme Court.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Joe Biden is expected to secure the 235th judicial confirmation of his presidency as soon as Friday, an accomplishment that exceeds his predecessor's total by one after Democrats put extra emphasis on the federal courts following Donald Trump's far-reaching first term when he filled three seats to the Supreme Court.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional leaders have unveiled a stopgap spending bill that will keep the federal government funded through March 14 and provide more than $100 billion in emergency aid to help states and local communities recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton and other natural disasters.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional leaders are nearing the unveiling of a spending agreement that will keep the federal government funded through March 14 and provide more than $100 billion in emergency aid to help states and local communities recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and other natural disasters.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- What was once a bipartisan effort to expand by 66 the number of federal district judgeships across the country passed the House of Representatives on Thursday, though prospects for becoming law are murky after Republicans opted to bring the measure to the floor only after President-elect Donald Trump had won a second term.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Wednesday passed a $895 billion measure that authorizes a 1% increase in defense spending this fiscal year and would give a double-digit pay raise to about half of the enlisted service members in the military.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- National defense would see a 1% increase in spending this fiscal year under a Pentagon policy bill that also gives a double-digit pay raise to about half of the enlisted service members in the military.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans teed up a vote this week on bipartisan legislation to gradually expand by 66 the number of federal judgeships across the country. Democrats, though, are having second thoughts now that President-elect Donald Trump has won a second term.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate won't hold votes on four of President Joe Biden's appellate court nominees as part of a deal with Republicans to allow for speedier consideration of other judicial nominations and bring Biden within striking distance of the 234 total judicial confirmations that occurred during President-elect Donald Trump's first term.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency told lawmakers Tuesday she has encouraged the agency's inspector general to review whether an employee was acting alone when directing workers helping hurricane victims not to go to homes with yards signs supporting President-elect Donald Trump
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Keeping the federal government open. Providing more disaster aid. Passing a defense policy bill. And for Senate Democrats, confirming more judges.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- One is the longest-serving woman in congressional history. The other is dean of the Republican delegation from California and the chairman of a subcommittee responsible for Pentagon spending. Together, they have more than seven decades of experience serving in Congress.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- In some of the closest House races in the country, Democratic candidates are leaning into an issue that Republicans have made a centerpiece of their efforts to expand their majority -- immigration.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Speaker Mike Johnson laid out on Tuesday a policy agenda should Republicans take the majority next year that extends the tax cuts approved when Donald Trump was president, reduces the size of the federal workforce and gives parents more choice on where they can send their children to school.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Democrats looking to preserve their Senate majority in the face of a difficult election cycle announced Thursday they were making a "multi-million dollar investment" in television advertising in Texas and Florida races with the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee saying he's "very confident there's going to be more coming."
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress on Wednesday passed a temporary measure that keeps government agencies funded into December, avoiding a shutdown for now while punting final spending decisions until after the Nov. 5 election.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House has passed a temporary measure that would keep federal agencies funded when the new fiscal year begins next Tuesday while punting final spending decisions for the next budget year until after the Nov. 5 election.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congressional leaders announced an agreement Sunday on a short-term spending bill that will fund federal agencies for about three months, averting a possible partial government shutdown when the new budget year begins Oct. 1 and pushing final decisions until after the November election.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Wednesday rejected Speaker Mike Johnson's proposal that would have linked temporary funding for the federal government with a mandate that states require proof of citizenship when people register to vote.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Wednesday rejected Speaker Mike Johnson's proposal that would have linked temporary funding for the federal government with a mandate that states require proof of citizenship when people register to vote.