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Chamber of Commerce Makes Bipartisanship Part of Its Scorecard

A small push on Thursday to narrow the Capitol's partisan breech could have some lasting significance given its unlikely source: the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, traditionally the most influential lobbying force for the Republican establishment.

The chamber said it will start considering bipartisanship and collaborative legislating, not just a pro-business voting record, when deciding its endorsements for Congress. The group will make each of those characteristics count for 10 percent on its annual scorecards, which have had enormous influence in steering campaign contributions toward incumbents with the top numbers.


"This new approach reflects our belief that many of Washington's troubles — including dysfunction, division, and incivility — could be helped by rebuilding the political center and restoring responsible governing," the chamber's president, Thomas Donahue, said in announcing the first change to the scorecard system in four decades. "Lawmakers should be rewarded for reaching across the aisle, not punished."

To this point, the chamber has spent overwhelmingly on Republican candidates and endorsed them almost exclusively. It has only endorsed two Democrats this decade, and both lost: Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas in 2010, when she was defeated for a third term, and veteran Connecticut politician Mary Glassman in 2018, when she lost an open-seat primary to Jahana Hayes, now a freshman House member.

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Stronger Winds Threaten Further Destruction In Fire-Ravaged Southern California

Firefighters from the Los Angeles County Fire Department stand vigilant as they battle wildfires in Los Angeles while several blazes continue to tear through the region on January 10, 2025.

(Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Stronger Winds Threaten Further Destruction In Fire-Ravaged Southern California

Since the fires ignited in and around Los Angeles, many residents have returned to their neighborhoods, which are still smoldering, despite the ongoing threat of new fires and the prevailing unrest in the nation's second-largest city. For some, this marked their first opportunity to witness the extent of the devastation as the region, home to 13 million people, faces the significant challenge of recovery and rebuilding.

Fire officials are concerned over strengthening winds this week as Investigators are exploring various potential ignition sources for the large fires that have resulted in at least 16 fatalities and the destruction of thousands of homes and businesses.

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Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Government Debt Ceiling - Capitol, Congress and Senate - Budget Package

Getty Images//Stock Photo

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

On January 20, 2025, at the moment he takes the oath of office, President Trump will find himself between a rock and a hard place. The rock is the nature of his job, that he must carry out the laws of the land, including the spending of money on Congressionally approved programs. Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution establishes one of the President’s core responsibilities – “He shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.”

The hard place is that on January 1, 2025, the 2023 suspension of the debt ceiling law expired. The ceiling is now 31.4 trillion dollars, while the debt is over 36 trillion. Trump 47 will be the first President to be constrained by the debt ceiling on day one. Starting January 1 and continuing from January 20, absent some action by Congress, every dollar spent will add a fraction of a dollar to the national debt, putting the President further and further out of compliance with the debt ceiling law.

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