Despite recent testimony by witnesses before the House Intelligence Committee that backed allegations President Donald Trump engaged in a quid pro quo to pressure a foreign country to investigate a possible political opponent in exchange for U.S. military aid, Republicans haven’t backed down from defending their party’s leader. Some of the president’s biggest allies on Capitol Hill have made it clear that Wednesday’s hearing, which will feature four legal experts and focus on the impeachment process, will be filled with spectacle and arguments over procedure....

North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Walker joined several fiscal hawks including Kentucky Senator Rand Paul in calling Trump’s “real compromise” on the budget a “huge mistake.” Walker tweeted a GIF of the psychopathic Joker character from 2008’s The Dark Knight pouring gasoline out on a tower of money before setting all of the cash on fire: “Budget Deal,” Walker quipped. The deal between Senate and House leaders announced Monday would suspend the debt ceiling and allow more federal government borrowing until July 31, 2021—months after the upcoming presidential election....

Gonzalez, a former NFL player representing a district near Cleveland, voted along with nine other House Republicans to impeach Trump following the riot. He frequently criticizes the GOP embrace of Trump’s claims the 2020 presidential election was stolen. On CNN Sunday, Gonzalez criticized Trump on both ethical and political grounds. He said he does not trust the former president, while also calling him an “enormous political loser” who led the Republican Party “into a ditch....

GOP negotiator Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina set a “June or bust” goal on reaching a deal on revamping policing practices and holding officers accountable over misconduct. President Joe Biden initially set a deadline for lawmakers on May 25, the date when George Floyd, who is Black, died after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin put a knee to his neck in 2020. “It’s just nailing down the final details, and there are a couple of red lines for our guys,” Thune told reporters about the stalling of reaching a deal....

Murkowski, who has previously been critical of the partisan nature of the House impeachment inquiry, is now taking on McConnell and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham for both claiming there would be “total coordination” between the U.S. Senate and President Donald Trump over his own impeachment trial. The Alaska GOP senator told the local Anchorage KTUU-TV news station this week that McConnell’s comments have further “confused” the impeachment process and made it appear Republican senators are completely on the side of Trump’s defense....

The Florida senator urged his party to focus on showing voters that “Republicans are the party of working-class Americans, a party that reaches out to people of all races and creeds, and a party that fights for equal opportunity for all.” He continued by using Trump’s election victory in Florida as an example of how Republicans can appeal to a diverse range of working-class Americans. “Republicans have built a multi-ethnic, working-class coalition of Florida voters who don’t like big government, don’t like socialism and just want the opportunity to live their lives in freedom and peace,” he wrote....

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told reporters on Thursday that the proposal for stimulus checks is the “exact same provision as last time.” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to release additional details about the package on Thursday. Under the CARES Act, individuals with an adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less were given $1,200, with $2,400 allocated for joint filers earning under $150,000. Additional payments of $500 for each child under 17 were also allocated....

His family said the big day will include fishing, cake, barbecue and a Red Wings game on television. MORE: Bolts clinch playoff berth | NHL Draft breakdown | Sabres’ infatuation with McDavid Howe, who played right wing for the Red Wings from 1946-71, will receive another round of stem cell treatment in Mexico in June, which is credited to saving his life after a series of strokes last fall....

Huckabee’s fortitude is, on the one hand, admirable. But for voters in Iowa, it may also hint at a troubling, Bush-like stubborn streak–a refusal to admit when he’s wrong and make course corrections when the facts on the ground demand them. Case in point: Huckabee, who proclaims himself a patriot, outright refused even a single forkful of the fair’s proudest culinary achievement: the sublime Hot Beef Sundae. This siren song of mashed potatoes smothered with chipped beef, cheese and gravy is so deeply, Americanly delicious that just one bite is enough to make all who taste it place their hands on their hearts and spontaneously recite the National Anthem....

The most prominent exponent of the theory behind the latter hope—i.e., the notion that governing forces radicals to become more reasonable—is, ironically, none other than George W. Bush. It was that conviction that led Bush to insist in December 2005 that the Palestinians go ahead with elections, though Palestinians and Israelis warned him Hamas could win. Bush argued that it would be good for Hamas to govern and be held accountable to the people....

Anything less would be tragic. Millions remain unemployed; more businesses are closing permanently; state and local governments have laid off one million workers in education. Yet, concerns in Congress among conservatives and moderates about the deficit remain a key sticking point. The federal budget deficit was $3.1 trillion in fiscal year 2020 and total U.S. debt is roughly equal to GDP—the first time that has happened since World War II....

Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia and chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2022 on September 21. The proposed 91-page legislation includes federal reforms that aim to boost energy supply and security, in turn positively affecting gas prices. As Politico reports, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is among Senate Republicans whipping against Manchin’s inclusion of the energy bill into a larger bill that if passed would give Ukraine more than $12 billion in emergency funding, among other things....

“It is suppression of speech.… You’re allowed to talk good or to praise one president, but you’re not allowed, when I was called to be part of this commission, to aid in economic and educational prosperity, and you make a positive comment, and all of a sudden it is not acceptable,” Robert Unanue, the CEO at Goya, said during an appearance on Fox News’ Fox & Friends. Unanue, who is of Spanish and Puerto Rican descent, was invited by Trump to the White House to watch as the president signed an executive order for the Hispanic Prosperity Initiative, which is a commission tasked with improving “access by Hispanic Americans to educational and economic opportunities,” according to the order....

However, one grandmother has tainted the arrival of her first grandson after demanding she be paid to look after the child. It’s a decision that has sparked widespread consternation online. The grandparent’s surprising response was documented in a post shared to U.K. parenting discussion forum Mumsnet by her daughter, writing under the handle Candyfloss11. According to the woman writing in the post, her mom had been living with her and her husband ever since the arrival of her 9-month-old son....

A video of the elderly man’s efforts first surfaced on Reddit after being shared by a user, posting as Bunzarelli, who claims to be his proud-as-punch grandson. His grandpa has given him another reason to be proud now after the video went viral, amassing over 39,700 upvotes to rank among the most popular postings on the site in December. In the clip, viewers are treated to a sped-up video of grandpa in action as he makes his way around the house, doing laps of the kitchen with the aid of his trusty walker....

“Forever in our hearts / Until we meet again / Cherished memories / Known as / Our brother, / Father, papa, uncle, / Friend, and cousin,” reads the engraving on one side of the headstone for Steven Paul Owens, according to KCCI-TV. However, because of how the words were spaced, the phrase “F**k Off” is spelled out vertically on the gravestone in an obscene acrostic. Those who are purchasing a headstone are encouraged to reach out to the cemetery to ask about the maximum allowed height of the headstone, the width and depth of the base of the stone that is allowed and if there are any restrictions on materials, according to Headstone Hub, a Boston-based headstone company and dealer....

Allen instinctively did this: Aminu was fine, if a bit stunned. Allen, the former Duke star, was charged with a Flagrant 1 foul. MORE: Twitter was also there for Allen vs. Trae Young in summer league The infraction did not go unnoticed on the internet. Allen was quickly trending on Twitter. A sample of the content: Allen came into the game averaging 4.2 points and 10.5 minutes in 23 games (one start) during his first NBA season....

" ‘X-Men’?!" The bureaucrat awoke with a jolt. “Who you gonna play?” “Wolverine?” “WOLVEREEEEEEEN!” “He screamed and made me sign an autograph,” Jackman recounts three months later, on the set of “X-Men,” a live-action movie based on the best-selling comic book in history. “I said, ‘It’s only an audition.’ He says, ‘I don’t care, man! I got friends with tattoos of Wolverine!’ " Tattoos will be the least of it....

Answer by Gus Fuldner, Green Bay Packers shareholder The ownership structure of the Packers is unique. The main purpose of community ownership is to ensure the team says in Green Bay. With a population of about 100,000, it is by far the smallest city in the U.S. with a major professional sports team. Despite this fact, the Packers are a very competitive team. Being a shareholder is really more about being a fan/supporter than anything else....

Because of last year’s flooding, the greens at The Old White are brand new bentgrass, which should be running fairly fast and smooth. I’m going to give an ever so slight bump to good long-term putters because of this, but you should not view it as a make-or-break statistic; rather, consider it more of a tiebreaker in close decisions. MORE DFS: Lineup Builder | Strategy Before we get into the picks, I urge you to give RotoQL’s DFS tools a try....