Stories

Browse major news stories and see what officials have said.

Sep 27, 2026· Updated

Eight Weeks Out, House Democrats Say Out Loud What a Majority Would Do — Raskin Says a Third Trump Impeachment Is "Not a Taboo With Us" but "Not a Panacea," and Jason Crow Says He Would Start With the Pentagon

On Sunday, September 6, 2026, with the midterms eight weeks away, the House Democrats who would run the investigative committees in a new majority described their plans on the record for the first time. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee and the lead impeachment manager in both of Trump's prior Senate trials, told NBC's "Meet the Press" that the president has "undoubtedly" committed impeachable offenses in his second term and that a third impeachment would be "a critical tool in the toolbox for constitutional self-defense" — while insisting "it's not a fetish with us" and that health care and "ending the lawlessness" rank higher. Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), who sits on Armed Services and Intelligence, told Fox News he would "start on the Department of Defense" because "our service members are being put at tremendous risk," and would not rule out impeachment of Trump or his appointees, calling it "one of several tools." Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the ranking member on Oversight, named his first two targets: "Trump family corruption" and "the Jeffrey Epstein investigation." House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has repeatedly declined to be pinned down on impeachment. The remarks give Republicans a concrete campaign argument and mark the clearest public accounting yet of what Democratic oversight would look like in 2027.

“Don't be impeaching anybody. Let's just get back to work. … I would rather move the ball forward and to the benefit of the American people.”
Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) · Sep 27, 2026

Texas Lets an ICE Agent Charged With Four Felonies in Minnesota Walk Out of Jail Rather Than Extradite Him — and Minnesota’s Attorney General Says Greg Abbott Has Turned Texas Into "a Sanctuary State for Accused Felons"

On Jan. 14, 2026, during Operation Metro Surge, ICE agent Christian Castro fired his gun through the closed front door of a north Minneapolis duplex and hit Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan immigrant, in the leg. Castro told investigators the men inside had assaulted him with a broom and a snow shovel; surveillance footage contradicted that account, and the assault charges filed against the two men were dropped. A Hennepin County judge found probable cause that Castro committed four counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime. He was arrested by the Texas Rangers on May 29 and held in the Carrizalez-Rucker jail in Cameron County. A governor's warrant for Castro's extradition sat on Gov. Greg Abbott's desk from June 3 forward, unsigned. Abbott said he had "serious doubts" Castro qualified as a fugitive under the Extradition Clause. Attorney General Keith Ellison sued Abbott on Aug. 18 to compel him to sign it. On Aug. 26 U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. ruled the suit was not ripe and declined to intervene; Abbott answered Ellison on social media that "you guys are such bad lawyers." Texas law bars holding an extradition subject more than 90 days, and at 7 a.m. on Aug. 27 the Cameron County sheriff released Castro. DHS said he had been suspended without pay pending a federal investigation. The standoff is the first time in this administration that two states have gone to federal court against each other over whether one must hand over a federal immigration officer to face state criminal charges — a fight over the Constitution's Extradition Clause with an accused shooter now at liberty and Minnesota's case stalled.

“I've said all along that Christian Castro would face justice in Minnesota. And now that he's finally turned himself in in Texas, he soon will.”
Keith Ellison (D-MN) · Sep 3, 2026

The House Censures Chuck Edwards 413-2 After the Ethics Committee Finds Two Years of "Persistent Unprofessional and Inappropriate Conduct" Toward Two Young Female Staffers — and He Calls the Investigation "a Russian Show Trial"

On September 1, 2026, the House voted 413-2 to censure Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC), the first time the Ethics Committee has recommended a censure since 2010. The only two no votes were Edwards himself and Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), who said he would not vote to censure Edwards while House Republicans had declined to censure Del. Stacey Plaskett over her contacts with Jeffrey Epstein. The bipartisan Ethics Committee found substantial evidence that Edwards violated the chamber's prohibition on sexual harassment through "persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct towards two young female staffers" over roughly two years — deeply personal late-night text messages, poetry, one-on-one dinners and trips, and a stream of gifts that included jewelry, guns, shoes, a KitchenAid mixer and a robotic vacuum. The panel stopped short of finding a quid pro quo, resting instead on a hostile work environment, and wrote that Edwards had "refused to acknowledge the reality of the power imbalance between a Member of Congress and young staffers." Edwards had already abandoned his re-election bid on August 5, after the committee recommended censure. He nonetheless fought the vote, circulating a twenty-page letter to colleagues and using his floor time to argue the findings did not amount to harassment. After the vote he stood in the well of the House while Speaker Mike Johnson read the resolution aloud, and told reporters on his way out that the investigation was "very much akin to a Russian show trial." All thirteen of Edwards's North Carolina colleagues voted to censure him. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM), who chairs the Democratic Women's Caucus, argued censure was far too light a penalty and called for rules changes stripping committee assignments or allowing expulsion; she and Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL), her Republican Women's Caucus counterpart, have been drafting a bipartisan overhaul of how the House handles sexual misconduct.

“I am imperfect. I have made mistakes. But I do not believe I committed sexual harassment, and the factual findings of this investigation do not justify branding me as though I did.”
Charles (Chuck) Edwards (R-NC) · Sep 1, 2026

Two Fatal ICE Shootings in Houston and Maine Trigger Senate Demands for Body Cameras and Vetting Answers

Two people were killed by federal immigration officers in July 2026, neither of whom was the target of the operation that killed them. On July 7, ICE officers shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national, during a traffic stop in Houston as he was on his way to work. On July 13, officers shot and killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian national, in his car near his home in Biddeford, Maine, after ICE attempted a vehicle stop; DHS said the officer fired "fearing for public safety," while Sen. Angus King's office said Durán Guerrero was not the target of the warrant. The Associated Press subsequently reported that the ICE officer who fired in Maine, David Brouillette, had a documented history of serious mental health problems and violent behavior toward family members recorded in family court files. On July 20, Sen. Angus King (I-ME) led a letter signed by 38 Democratic senators demanding that DHS explain its vetting and training of new agents and its vehicle pursuit policies, and calling for body cameras to be issued to all officers. ICE subsequently pulled back on vehicle stops. At least 10 people have died in encounters with immigration agents since the start of the administration's crackdown.

“It's for our safety and the public safety, too.”
Markwayne Mullin (R) · Sep 1, 2026

Democrats Introduce Bill to Block Trump From Collecting Federal Settlements

On April 15, 2026, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Rep. Jamie Raskin, and Rep. Dave Min introduced the Ban Presidential Plunder of Taxpayer Funds Act (S.4299), a bill to bar the President, Vice President, and their immediate family members from collecting settlement payments from the federal government while in office. The bill was a direct response to Trump's $10 billion IRS lawsuit and a prior $230 million DOJ settlement demand — and anticipated the deal that would produce the $1.7B Anti-Weaponization Fund a month later. The bill has no path forward with Republicans controlling both chambers.

“While American families are getting flattened by skyrocketing costs, Donald Trump is trying to snatch up billions of taxpayer dollars to line his own pockets and settle personal scores. My bill will close the loopholes that enable this apparent corruption and ban Trump — and all future Presidents and Vice Presidents — from abusing their power and stealing Americans' hard-earned money.”
Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) · Apr 15, 2026