DES MOINES, Iowa —

Iowa Republicans have scheduled the party's presidential nominating caucuses for Jan. 15, 2024, putting the first votes of the next election a little more than six months away.

The Iowa Republican Party's state central committee voted unanimously Saturday to hold the leadoff contests on the third Monday in January — on the Martin Luther King Jr. Day federal holiday.

Though Republican presidential candidates have been campaigning in Iowa since last winter, there has been some uncertainty about when the traditional leadoff contests would be held. That is partly due to the Democratic National Committee's reshuffling of its calendar and dropping Iowa as its first contest.

The GOP date is earlier by several weeks than the past three Iowa caucuses, though not as early as 2008, when they were held just three days into the new year.

Caucuses, unlike primary elections, are contests planned, financed and carried out by the parties, not state election officials. The Iowa announcement Saturday allows New Hampshire, which has not set a primary election date yet, to protect its first-in-the-nation status, which is codified in state law that requires that contest to be held at least seven days ahead of any other primary.

Last month, South Carolina Republicans adopted Feb. 24 as the date for the traditional first Southern primary, leaving plenty of time for Nevada to schedule its Republican caucuses without crowding New Hampshire.

"We remain committed to maintaining Iowa's cherished first-in-the-nation caucuses, and look forward to holding a historic caucus in the coming months and defeating Joe Biden come November 2024," Iowa Republican Party Chairman Jeff Kaufmann said in a statement.

Saturday's decision could have implications for both parties because Iowa Democrats had been waiting on the state's Republican Party to set its caucus date as they try to adjust to new DNC rules on the order of the 2024 presidential primary.

Iowa Democrats have proposed holding a caucus on the same day as the state's Republicans and allowing participants to vote for president via mail-in ballot. But Iowa Democrats have said they may not immediately release the results.

That could allow the state party to still hold the first-in-the-nation caucus without defying a new primary calendar endorsed by President Joe Biden and approved by the DNC that calls for South Carolina to replace Iowa in the leadoff spot and kick off primary voting on Feb. 3.

Dan Cox, a far-right state legislator endorsed by former President Donald Trump, won the Republican primary for Maryland governor on Tuesday, defeating a moderate rival backed by outgoing Gov. Larry Hogan.Cox will face the winner of the Democratic primary in the November general election. The top Democratic candidates include former U.S. Labor Secretary and Democratic Party chair Tom Perez, bestselling author Wes Moore and state Comptroller Peter Franchot.Despite being a win for Trump, Cox's victory over former Hogan Cabinet member Kelly Schulz could be a blow to Republican chances to hold on to the seat in November. Hogan, who was prohibited from running for a third consecutive term, was a rare two-term Republican governor in a heavily Democratic state, and he had endorsed Schulz as the successor to his bipartisan style of leadership.The Republican primary was viewed as a proxy battle between Trump and Hogan, who offered vastly different visions of the party's future as they consider 2024 campaigns for the White House. Hogan, one of Trump's most prominent GOP critics, urged the party to move on from his divisive brand of politics, while Trump spent much of his post-presidency lifting candidates who embrace his election lies.Cox has said President Joe Biden's victory shouldn't have been certified, called former Vice President Mike Pence a "traitor" and sought unsuccessfully to impeach Hogan for his pandemic policies.Democrats, too, saw Cox as an easier opponent in a general election, with the Democratic National Committee plowing more than $1 million behind an ad intended to boost Cox in the Republican primary.

NEW YORK (AP) — Two people have pleaded guilty in a scheme to peddle a diary and other items belonging to President Joe Biden’s daughter to the conservative group Project Veritas for $40,000, prosecutors said Thursday.

The two, both from Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property, Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams' office said.

While authorities didn’t identify Biden, the type of property stolen or the organization that paid, the details of the investigation have been public for months.

Ashley Biden stored the diary, tax records, a digital device with family photos and a cellphone in September 2020 in a Delray Beach, Florida, home where one of the defendants was living at the time, prosecutors said in a release.

They said the woman stole the items and got in touch with the other defendant, a man who contacted Project Veritas, which asked for photos of the material and then paid for the two to bring it to New York.

Project Veritas staffers met with the two in New York and dispatched them back to Florida to retrieve more of Ashley Biden’s items from the home, which they did and turned the material over to a local Project Veritas worker who brought it to New York, prosecutors said.

The activist group, which considers itself a news organization, paid the two $20,000 apiece, prosecutors said.

Project Veritas has said it received the diary from “tipsters” who said it had been abandoned in a room. The activist group said it turned the journal over to law enforcement and never did anything illegal.

Founder James O’Keefe has said that Project Veritas ultimately did not publish information from the diary because it could not confirm it belonged to Ashley Biden.

Project Veritas is best known for conducting hidden camera stings that have embarrassed news outlets, labor organizations and Democratic politicians.

WASHINGTON —

Video above: Nancy Pelosi speaks about attack on her husband

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to address her plans with colleagues on Thursday in the wake of Democrats narrowly losing control of the House to Republicans in the midterm elections.

Pelosi’s decision to either seek another term as the Democratic leader or to step aside has been widely anticipated. It would come after the party was able to halt an expected Republican wave in the House and Senate but also in the aftermath of a brutal attack on her husband, Paul, late last month in their San Francisco home.

“The Speaker plans to address her future plans tomorrow to her colleagues. Stay tuned,” Pelosi's spokesman Drew Hammill tweeted late Wednesday. He did not provide additional information about the time or location of the announcement.

The speaker “has been overwhelmed by calls from colleagues, friends and supporters,” Hammill said, and noted that she had spent Wednesday evening monitoring election returns in the final states where ballots were still being counted.

The California Democrat, who rose to become the nation’s first woman to wield the speaker’s gavel, is a pivotal figure in U.S. politics.

By announcing her decision, Pelosi could launch a domino effect in House Democratic leadership ahead of internal party elections next month as Democrats reorganize for their new role as the minority party in the new Congress.

Pelosi’s leadership team, with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Democratic Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina, has long moved as a triumvirate. Hoyer and Clyburn are also making decisions about their futures.

All now in their 80s, the three House Democratic leaders have faced restless colleagues eager for them to step aside and allow a new generation to take charge.

Democrats Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and Rep. Pete Aguilar of California have similarly moved as a trio at times, all working toward leadership roles themselves.

First elected to the House in 1987, Pelosi has long been ridiculed by Republicans as a San Francisco liberal while steadily rising as a skilled legislator and fundraising powerhouse. Her own Democratic colleagues have intermittently appreciated but also feared Pelosi’s powerful brand of leadership.

Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected House speaker on a historic post-midnight 15th ballot early Saturday, overcoming holdouts from his own ranks and floor tensions boiling over after a chaotic week that tested the new GOP majority’s ability to govern.

After four days of grueling ballots, McCarthy flipped more than a dozen conservative holdouts to become supporters, including the chairman of the chamber’s Freedom Caucus, leaving him just a few shy of seizing the gavel for the new Congress.

As the House resumed for the late night session McCarthy had been on the cusp of victory in the 14th round but he fell one vote short.

He strode to the back of the chamber to confront Matt Gaetz, sitting with Lauren Boebert and other holdouts. Fingers were pointed, words exchanged and violence apparently just averted.

At one point, Republican Mike Rogers of Alabama started to charge toward Gaetz before another Republican, Richard Hudson, physically pulled him back.

“Stay civil!” someone shouted.

Republicans quickly moved to adjourn, but then McCarthy rushed forward to switch his vote to remain in session as colleagues chanted “One more time!”

The few Republican holdouts began voting present as well, dropping the tally he needed to finally seize the gavel in what was heading toward a dramatic finish on the fourth long day of a grueling standoff that has shown the strengths and fragility American democracy.

McCarthy had declared to reporters earlier in the day that he believed “we’ll have the votes to finish this once and for all.”

The day's stunning turn of events came after McCarthy agreed to many of the detractors' demands -- including the reinstatement of a longstanding House rule that would allow any single member to call a vote to oust him from office.

Even if McCarthy is able to secure the votes he needs, he will emerge as a weakened speaker, having given away some powers and constantly under the threat of being booted by his detractors.

But he could also be emboldened as a survivor of one of the more brutal fights for the gavel in U.S. history. Not since the Civil War era has a speaker's vote dragged through so many rounds of voting.

The showdown that has stymied the new Congress came against the backdrop of the second anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which shook the country when a mob of then-President Donald Trump’s supporters tried to stop Congress from certifying the Republican’s 2020 election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden.

At a Capitol event on Friday, some lawmakers, mostly Democrats, observed a moment of silence and praised officers who helped protect Congress on that day. And at the White House, Biden handed out medals to officers and others who fought the attackers.

“America is a land of laws, not chaos,” he said.

At the afternoon speaker's vote, a number of Republicans tiring of the spectacle temporarily walked out when one of McCarthy's most ardent challengers railed against the GOP leader.

Contours of a deal with conservative holdouts who have been blocking McCarthy's rise emerged after three dismal days and 11 failed votes in an intraparty standoff unseen in modern times.

And an upbeat McCarthy told reporters as he arrived at the Capitol, “We’re going to make progress. We’re going to shock you.”

One significant former holdout, Republican Scott Perry, chairman of the conservative Freedom Caucus who had been a leader of Trump's efforts to challenge the 2020 election, tweeted after his switched vote for McCarthy: “We're at a turning point.”

Another Republican holdout, Byron Donalds of Florida, who was repeatedly nominated as an alternative candidate for speaker, switched on Friday, too, voting for McCarthy.

Trump may have played a role in swaying the holdouts. Donalds said he had spoken to the former president who had been urging Republicans to wrap up their public dispute the day before.

As Rep. Mike Garcia nominated McCarthy for Friday, he also thanked the U.S. Capitol Police who were given a standing ovation for protecting lawmakers and the legislative seat of democracy on Jan. 6.

But in nominating the Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat Jim Clyburn recalled the horror of that day and told his colleagues: “The eyes of the country are on us today,” he said.

Without a speaker, the chamber is unable swear in members and begin its 2023-24 session, a sign of the difficulty ahead for the new Republican majority as it tries to govern.

Electing a speaker is normally an easy, joyous task for a party that has just won majority control. But not this time: About 200 Republicans have been stymied by 20 far-right colleagues who said he’s not conservative enough.

The disorganized start to the new Congress pointed to difficulties ahead with Republicans now in control of the House, much the way that some past Republican speakers, including John Boehner, had trouble leading a rebellious right flank. The result: government shutdowns, standoffs and Boehner’s early retirement when conservatives threatened to oust him.

The agreement McCarthy presented to the holdouts from the Freedom Caucus and others centers around rules changes they have been seeking for months. Those changes would shrink the power of the speaker’s office and give rank-and-file lawmakers more influence in drafting and passing legislation.

At the core of the emerging deal is the reinstatement of a House rule that would allow a single lawmaker to make a motion to “vacate the chair,” essentially calling a vote to oust the speaker. McCarthy had resisted allowing a return to the longstanding rule that former Speaker Nancy Pelosi had done away with, because it had been held over the head of past Republican Speaker Boehner. But it appears McCarthy had no other choice.

Other wins for the holdouts are more obscure and include provisions in the proposed deal to expand the number of seats available on the House Rules Committee, to mandate 72 hours for bills to be posted before votes and to promise to try for a constitutional amendment that would impose federal limits on the number of terms a person could serve in the House and Senate.

What started as a political novelty, the first time since 1923 a nominee had not won the gavel on the first vote, has devolved into a bitter Republican Party feud and deepening potential crisis.

Before Friday's ballots, Democratic leader Jeffries of New York had won the most votes on every ballot but also remained short of a majority. McCarthy ran second, gaining no ground.

The longest fight for the gavel started in late 1855 and dragged on for two months, with 133 ballots, during debates over slavery in the run-up to the Civil War.

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AP writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Kevin Freking and video journalists Nathan Ellgren and Mike Pesoli contributed to this report.

Related video above: Hakeem Jeffries blasts GOP over House Speaker debacle

Electing the House speaker may have been the easy part. Now House Republicans will try to govern.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy passed his first tests late Monday as the Republicans approved their rules package for governing House operations, typically a routine step on Day One that stretched into the second week of the new majority. It was approved 220-213, a party-line vote with one Republican opposed.

Next, the House Republicans easily passed their first bill — legislation to cut funding that is supposed to bolster the Internal Revenue Service. The Republicans' IRS bill ran into a snag ahead of votes because the budget office announced that rather than save money, it would add $114 billion to the federal deficit. The measure flew through on another party-line vote, 218-210, though it has almost no chance of passage in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

It was an effective start to what could otherwise be a new era of potentially crisis governing. House Republicans are expected to be lurching from one standoff to the next after last week's raucous speaker's race that showcased the challenges ahead as McCarthy confronts a rebellious majority as well as the limits of President Joe Biden's remaining agenda on Capitol Hill.

With sky-high ambitions for a hard-right conservative agenda but only a narrow hold on the majority, which enables just a few holdouts to halt proceedings, the Republicans are rushing headlong into an uncertain, volatile start of the new session. They want to investigate Biden, slash federal spending and beef up competition with China.

But first McCarthy, backed by former President Donald Trump, needs to show the Republican majority can keep up with basics of governing.

“You know, it’s a little more difficult when you go into a majority and maybe the margins aren’t high,” McCarthy acknowledged after winning the speaker's vote. “Having the disruption now really built the trust with one another and learned how to work together.”

But McCarthy himself announced Monday evening's final vote tally on the IRS bill to applause from his side of the aisle. “Promises made. Promises kept,” he said in a statement.

As McCarthy gaveled open the House on Monday as the new speaker, the Republicans launched debate on the Rules package, a hard-fought 55-page document that McCarthy negotiated with conservative holdouts to win over their votes to make him House speaker.

Central to the package is the provision the conservative Freedom Caucus wanted that reinstates a longstanding rule that allows any one lawmaker make a motion to “vacate the chair” — a vote to oust the speaker. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi had done away with the rule when Democrats took charge in 2019 because conservatives had held it over past Republican speakers as a threat.

Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., said the rules are about “getting back to the basics.”

But that's not the only change. There are other provisions the conservatives extracted from McCarthy that weaken the power of the speaker's office and turn over more control of the legislative business to rank-and-file lawmakers, particularly those far-right lawmakers who won concessions.

The Republicans are allowing more Freedom Caucus lawmakers on the Rules committee that shapes legislative debates. Those members promise more open and free-flowing debates and are insisting on 72 hours to read legislation ahead of votes.

But it's an open question whether the changes being approved will make the House more transparent in its operations or grind it to a halt, as happened last week when McCarthy battled through four days and 14 failed ballots before finally winning the speaker's gavel.

Many Republicans defended the standoff over the speaker's gavel, which was finally resolved in the post-midnight hours of Saturday morning on the narrowest of votes — one of the longest speaker's race showdowns in U.S. history.

“A little temporary conflict is necessary in this town in order to stop this town from rolling over the American people,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said over the weekend on CNN.

On Monday, Roy praised the new rules he helped craft, saying he could file a motion “right now” to demand a vote on the speaker — as it has been through much of House history.

But heading into Monday evening's voting on the rules package, at least two other Republicans raised objections about the backroom deals McCarthy had cut, leaving it unclear if there would be enough GOP support for passage. In the end, only Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas voted against.

Democrats decried the new rules as caving to the demands of the far-right aligned with Trump's Make American Great Again agenda.

“These rules are not a serious attempt at governing,” said Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the Rules Committee. Rather, he said, it's a “ransom note from far right.”

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., focused his criticism on the GOP's so-called Holman Rule, which would allow Congress to rescind the pay of individual federal employees: “This is no way to govern."

McCarthy commands a slim 222-seat Republican majority, which means on any given vote he can only lose four GOP detractors or the legislation will fail, if all Democrats are opposed.

The new rules are making McCarthy's job even tougher. For example, Republicans are doing away with the proxy voting that Democrats under former Speaker Nancy Pelosi put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. That means McCarthy must demand greater attendance and participation on every vote with almost no absences allowed for family emergencies or other circumstances.

“Members of Congress have to show up and work again,” said Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La.

With the Senate still narrowly held by Democrats, the divided Congress could still be a time of bipartisan deal-making. Monday saw a group of Republican and Democratic senators head to the southern U.S. border with Mexico as they try to develop an immigration overhaul to curb the flow of migrants.

But more often a split Congress produces gridlock.

The Republicans have been here before, just over a decade ago, when the tea party class swept to the majority in 2011, booting Pelosi from the speaker's office and rushing into an era of hardball politics that shut down the government and threatened a federal debt default.

McCarthy was a key player in those battles, having recruited the tea party class when he was the House GOP's campaign chairman. He tried and failed to take over for Republican John Boehner in 2015 when the beleaguered House speaker abruptly retired rather than face a potential vote by conservatives on his ouster.

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Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Hope Yen contributed to this report.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is expected to launch a Republican presidential campaign next week in New Hampshire.Christie, who also ran in 2016, is planning to make the announcement at a town hall Tuesday evening at Saint Anselm College's New Hampshire Institute of Politics, according to a person familiar with his thinking who spoke on condition of anonymity to confirm Christie's plans.The timing, which was first reported by Axios, comes after several longtime Christie advisers started a super political action committee to support his expected candidacy.The Associated Press had previously reported that Christie was expected to enter the race "imminently."Christie has cast himself as the only potential candidate willing to aggressively take on former President Donald Trump, the current front-runner for the nomination. Christie, a former federal prosecutor, was a longtime friend and adviser to Trump, but broke with Trump over his refusal to accept the results of the 2020 election. Christie has since emerged as a leading and vocal critic of the former president.Christie, who is currently polling at the bottom of the pack, dropped out of the 2016 presidential race a day after finishing sixth in New Hampshire's primary.In addition to Trump, Christie would be joining a GOP field that includes Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and biotech entrepreneur and "anti-woke" activist Vivek Ramaswamy.North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is expected to announce his candidacy on June 7, according to two GOP operatives. And former Vice President Mike Pence is also expected to launch a campaign soon.Allies believe that Christie, who has been working as an ABC News analyst, has a unique ability to communicate. They say his candidacy could help prevent a repeat of 2016, when Trump's rivals largely refrained from directly attacking the New York businessman, wrongly assuming he would implode on his own.Christie has also said repeatedly that he will not run if he does not see a path to victory. "I'm not a paid assassin," he recently told Politico.While Christie is expected to spend much of his time in early-voting New Hampshire, as he did in 2016, advisers believe the path to the nomination runs through Trump and they envision an unconventional, national campaign for Christie with a focus on garnering media attention and directly engaging with Trump.

NEW YORK —

The historic indictment of former President Donald Trump thrust the 2024 presidential election into uncharted territory, raising the remarkable prospect that the leading contender for the Republican nomination will seek the White House while also facing trial for criminal charges in New York.

In an acknowledgment of the sway the former president holds with the voters who will decide the GOP contest next year, those eyeing a primary challenge to Trump were quick to criticize the indictment. Without naming Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called the move "un-American." Former Vice President Mike Pence, whose life was threatened after Trump incited an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, told CNN the charges were "outrageous."

Video above: Former Vice President Mike Pence was among the lawmakers from both sides of the aisle who reacted to the indictment.

That posture speaks to the short-term incentives for Republicans to avoid anything that might antagonize Trump's loyal base. But the indictment raises profound questions for the GOP's future, particularly as Trump faces the possibility of additional charges soon in Atlanta and Washington. While that might galvanize his supporters, the turmoil could threaten the GOP's standing in the very swing-state suburbs that have abandoned the party in three successive elections, eroding its grip on the White House, Congress and key governorships.

Trump has spent four decades managing to skirt this type of legal jeopardy and expressed confidence again late Thursday, blaming the charges on "Thugs and Radical Left Monsters."

"THIS IS AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THE LIKES OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE," Trump wrote on his social media site.

Trump is "ready to fight," his attorney, Joe Tacopina, said on Fox News.

Trump is expected to surrender to authorities next week on charges connected to hush money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to women who alleged extramarital sexual encounters. For now, it remains unclear how the development will resonate with voters. Polls show Trump remains the undisputed frontrunner for the Republican nomination, and his standing has not faltered, even amid widespread reporting on the expected charges.

Trump's campaign and his allies have long hoped an indictment would serve as a rallying cry for his supporters, angering his "Make America Great Again" base, drawing small dollar donations and forcing Trump's potential rivals into the awkward position of having to defend him — or risk their wrath.

Indeed, Trump's campaign began fundraising off the news almost immediately after it broke, firing an email to supporters with the all-caps subject line "BREAKING: PRESIDENT TRUMP INDICTED."

At Trump's first rally of the 2024 campaign, held in Texas over the weekend, supporters expressed widespread disgust with the investigation and insisted the case wouldn't affect his chances.

"It's a joke," Patti Murphy, 63, of Fort Worth, Texas said. "It's just another way of them trying to get him out of their way."

Others in the crowd said their support for Trump had been waning since he left the White House, but the looming indictment made them more likely to support him in 2024 because they felt his anger had been justified.

Video below: Trump supporters gather at Mar-a-Lago after indictment

At the same time, there is little chance a criminal trial will help Trump in a general election, particularly with independents, who have grown tired of his constant chaos. That has provided an opening for alternatives like DeSantis, who are expected to paint themselves as champions of the former president's policies, but without all his baggage.

But there were no immediate signs the party was ready to use the indictment to move past him. Instead, Republicans, including members of Congress and Trump's rivals, rushed to his defense en masse. In addition to DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who has already declared her candidacy, blasted the indictment as "more about revenge than it is about justice." Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is mulling a run, accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of "undermining America's confidence in our legal system," while also sending a fundraising text off the news.

Trump, meanwhile, has tried to turn the public against the case. Early on March 18, amid reports that police in New York were preparing for a possible indictment, he fired off a message on his social media site in which he declared that he expected to be arrested within days.

While that never came to pass (and his aides made clear it had not been based on any inside information), Trump used the time to highlight the case's widely-discussed weaknesses and to attack Bragg with a barrage of deeply personal — and at times racist — attacks.

Trump also sought to project an air of strength. The night of his post, he traveled with aides to a college wrestling championship, where he spent hours greeting supporters and posing for photos. On the way home, the assembled entourage watched mixed martial arts cage fighting aboard his plane.

And last weekend, Trump held a rally in Waco, Texas, where he railed against the case in front of thousands of supporters.

People who have spoken with Trump in recent weeks have described him as both angry and unbothered about the prospect of charges. Freshman Republican Rep. Mark Alford of Missouri said Trump was "upbeat" at a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago the night before he warned of his arrest.

Indeed, Trump has at times appeared in denial about the gravity of the situation. He and his aides were caught off-guard by the news Thursday. And during the plane ride home from his Texas rally, Trump told reporters he believed the case had been dropped.

"I have no idea what's going to happen, but I can tell you that they have no case. So I think the case is — I think they've already dropped the case, from what I understand. I think it's been dropped," he said.

Still, Trump responded with anger when pressed, even as he insisted he was not frustrated.

Video below: The indictment in New York is from one of three known investigations linked to Donald Trump

Beyond the Manhattan case, Trump is facing several other investigations, including a Georgia inquiry into his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election and a federal probe into his alleged mishandling of classified documents.

It remains unclear how the public might respond if Trump ends up facing charges in additional cases, particularly if some lead to convictions and others are dismissed.

An indictment — or even a conviction — would not bar Trump from running for president or serving as the Republican nominee.

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Associated Press writers Paul Weber in Waco, Texas, and Lisa Mascaro in Orlando contributed to this report.

WASHINGTON —

Addressing a concerned nation and anxious world, President Joe Biden vowed in his first State of the Union address Tuesday night to check Russian aggression in Ukraine, tame soaring U.S. inflation and deal with the fading but still dangerous coronavirus.

Biden declared that he and all members of Congress, whatever their political differences, are joined “with an unwavering resolve that freedom will always triumph over tyranny.” He asked the lawmakers crowding the House chamber to stand and salute the Ukrainians as he began his speech. They stood and cheered.

It was a notable show of unity after a long year of bitter acrimony between Biden’s Democratic coalition and the Republican opposition.

Biden’s 62-minute speech, which was split between attention to war abroad and worries at home — reflected the same balancing act he now faces in his presidency. He must marshal allied resolve against Russia’s aggression while tending to inflation, COVID-19 fatigue and sagging approval ratings heading into the midterm elections.

Biden highlighted the bravery of Ukrainian defenders and the commitment of a newly reinvigorated Western alliance that has worked to rearm the Ukrainian military and cripple Russia’s economy through sanctions. He warned of costs to the American economy, as well, but warned ominously that without consequences, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression wouldn’t be contained to Ukraine.

“Throughout our history we’ve learned this lesson – when dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos,” Biden said. “They keep moving. And, the costs and threats to America and the world keep rising.”

As Biden spoke, Russian forces were escalating their attacks in Ukraine, having bombarded the central square of country’s second-biggest city and Kyiv’s main TV tower, killing at least five people. The Babi Yar Holocaust memorial was also damaged.

Biden announced that the U.S. is following Canada and the European Union in banning Russian planes from its airspace in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine. He also said the Justice Department was launching a task force to go after crimes of Russian oligarchs, whom he called “corrupt leaders who have bilked billions of dollars off this violent regime.”

“We are coming for your ill-begotten gains,” he said, pledging that the U.S. and European allies were coming after their yachts, luxury apartments and private jets.

“Putin may circle Kyiv with tanks, but he will never gain the hearts and souls of the Ukrainian people," Biden said. "He will never extinguish their love of freedom. He will never weaken the resolve of the free world.”

Even before the Russian invasion sent energy costs skyrocketing, prices for American families had been rising, and the COVID-19 pandemic continues to hurt families and the country’s economy.

Biden outlined plans to address inflation by reinvesting in American manufacturing capacity, speeding supply chains and reducing the burden of childcare and eldercare on workers.

“Too many families are struggling to keep up with the bills,” Biden said. “Inflation is robbing them of the gains they might otherwise feel. I get it. That’s why my top priority is getting prices under control.”

Biden entered the House chamber without a mask, in a reflection of the declining coronavirus case counts and new federal guidance meant to nudge the public back to pre-pandemic activities. But the Capitol was newly fenced due to security concerns after last year’s insurrection.

Set against unease at home and danger abroad, the White House had conceived Tuesday night's speech as an opportunity to highlight the improving coronavirus outlook, rebrand Biden's domestic policy priorities and show a path to lower costs for families grappling with soaring inflation. But it took on new significance with last week's Russian invasion of Ukraine and nuclear saber-rattling by Putin.

As is customary, one Cabinet secretary, in this case Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, was kept in a secure location during the address, ready to take over the government in the event of a catastrophe.

In an interview with CNN and Reuters, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he urged Biden to deliver a strong and “useful” message about Russia’s invasion. In a show of unity, Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova joined First Lady Jill Biden in the gallery.

In a rare discordant moment, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado yelled out that Biden was to blame for the 13 service members who were killed during last August’s chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

“You put them in. Thirteen of them,” Boebert yelled as Biden mentioned his late son Beau, a veteran who died from brain cancer and served near toxic military burn pits, used extensively in Iraq and Afghanistan. Biden is pursuing legislation to help veterans suffering exposure and other injuries.

Rising energy prices as a result of Russia’s war in Ukraine risk exacerbating inflation in the U.S., which is already at the highest level in 40 years, eating into people's earnings and threatening the economic recovery from the pandemic. And while the crisis in Eastern Europe may have helped to cool partisan tensions in Washington, it didn't erase the political and cultural discord that is casting doubt on Biden’s ability to deliver.

A February AP-NORC poll found that more people disapproved than approved of how Biden is handling his job, 55% to 44%. That's down from a 60% favorable rating last July.

Ahead of the speech, White House officials acknowledged the mood of the country was “sour,” citing the lingering pandemic and inflation. Biden, used his remarks to highlight the progress from a year ago — with the majority of the U.S. population now vaccinated and millions more people at work — but also acknowledged that the job is not yet done, a recognition of American discontent.

“I have come to report on the state of the union,” Biden said. “And my report is this: The state of the union is strong—because you, the American people, are strong. We are stronger today than we were a year ago. And we will be stronger a year from now than we are today.”

Before Biden spoke, House Republicans said the word “crisis” describes the state of the union under Biden and Democrats — from an energy policy that lets Russia sell oil abroad to challenges at home over jobs and immigration.

“We’re going to push the president to do the right thing,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

At least a half dozen lawmakers, including Reps. Jamie Raskin and Pete Aguilar, both members of the committee investigating last year’s Capitol riot, and Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., had tested positive for COVID-19 and were not expected at the Capitol for the speech.

“Tonight, I can say we are moving forward safely, back to more normal routines,” Biden said, outlining his administration's plans to continue to combat COVID-19 and saying, “It’s time for Americans to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again.” He announced that people will be able to order another round of free tests from the government and that his administration was launching a “test to treat” initiative to provide free antiviral pills at pharmacies to those who test positive for the virus.

Where his speech to Congress last year saw the rollout of a massive social spending package, Biden this year largely repackaged past proposals in search of achievable measures he hopes can win bipartisan support in a bitterly divided Congress before the elections.

The president also highlighted investments in everything from internet broadband access to bridge construction from November’s $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law as an example of government reaching consensus and delivering change for the nation.

He also appealed to lawmakers to compromise on rival competitiveness bills that have passed the House and Senate, both meant to revitalize high-tech American manufacturing and supply chains in the face of growing geopolitical threats from China.

“Instead of relying on foreign supply chains – let’s make it in America,” Biden said.

As part of his pitch to voters, he also put a new emphasis on how proposals like extending the child tax credit and bringing down child care costs could bring relief to families as prices rise. He was said his climate change proposals would cut costs for lower- and middle-income families and create new jobs.

Biden called for lowering health care costs, pitching his plan to authorize Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, as well as an extension of more generous health insurance subsidies now temporarily available through the Affordable Care Act marketplaces where 14.5 million people get coverage.

He proposed initiatives on mental health that dovetail with growing bipartisan interest in Congress amid evidence that the pandemic has damaged the national psyche, and discussed new ways to improve access to health benefits for veterans sickened by exposure to the burning of waste during their service.

Biden also appealed for action on voting rights, which has failed to win GOP support. And as gun violence rises, he returned to calls to ban assault weapons, a blunt request he hadn’t made in months. He called to “fund the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities.”

In addition, Biden led Congress in a bipartisan tribute to retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and pressed the Senate to confirm federal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to be the first Black woman on the high court to replace him. He nominated her last week.

___

Associated Press writers Darlene Superville, Fatima Hussein, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Lisa Mascaro in Washington and Jason Dearen in New York contributed to this report.

Rep. Kathleen Rice of New York announced she will not run for reelection in this year's midterms.

Rice said she will remain focused on "protecting democracy" and serving her constituents for the remainder of her term.

"As I turn to the next chapter of my own personal and professional story, I do so with profound thanks to the community leaders, colleagues and staff who have lived our shared commitment to service with courage and humility," Rice said in a statement Tuesday.

Rice was first elected to Congress in 2014.

She is now the 30th Democrat who has announced plans to leave the House.

As President Biden faces declining poll numbers, the Democrats are expected to face an uphill battle in their attempt to keep control of the House.

Currently, Democrats control the House, the Senate and the presidency.

SALT LAKE CITY —

The Republican National Committee censured two GOP lawmakers on Friday for participating on the committee investigating the violent Jan. 6 insurrection and assailed the panel for leading a "persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse."

Related video above: Get the Facts: A timeline of Jan. 6, 2021

GOP officials took a voice vote to approve censuring Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger at the party's winter meeting in Salt Lake City. The censure was approved a day after an RNC subcommittee watered down a resolution that had recommended expelling the pair from the party.

The censure accuses Cheney and Kinzinger of "participating in a Democrat-led persecution."

RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel denied that the "legitimate political discourse" wording in the censure was referring to the violent attack on the Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump and said it had to do with other actions taken by the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. But the resolution drew no such distinction.

RNC members take issue with what they see as the overly broad subpoenas, including one for Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward. Ward, an osteopathic doctor, sued to block the subpoena and argues providing her phone records would compromise patients' privacy.

"What are you going for? What are you looking for? You should have a specific scope," said Pam Pollard, an RNC member from Oklahoma.

But GOP Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, who voted to convict Trump in both of his impeachment trials, excoriated his party for the censure.

"Shame falls on a party that would censure persons of conscience, who seek truth in the face of vitriol," he tweeted. "Honor attaches to Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for seeking truth even when doing so comes at great personal cost."

McDaniel is his niece.

McDaniel and her co-chair Tommy Hicks focused their remarks to RNC members on the 2022 midterms and key tenets of their platform — crime rates, parental rights over school curriculum choices and pandemic restrictions on businesses. Though they hardly mentioned the former president by name, Trump's sway among party officials was made evident by the censure and criticisms of the Commission on Presidential Debates.

Cheney, of Wyoming, and Kinzinger, of Illinois, are the only two Republicans on the House committee investigating the attack on the Capitol. Trump and other GOP members were incensed when Kinzinger and Cheney agreed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's invitation to join the Democratic-led House committee, giving the Jan. 6 panel a veneer of bipartisan credibility.

The most consequential element of the censure is a call for the party to no longer support Cheney and Kinzinger as Republicans.

The censure — combined with support from RNC members from Wyoming — allows the party to invoke a rule to back candidates other than Cheney. It sets in motion a way for the party to support Cheney's primary opponent, Harriet Hageman, who has been endorsed by Trump. Wyoming's primary is in August.

Cheney spokesman Jeremy Adler said in a statement that the move subverted the will of Wyoming voters.

"Frank Eathorne and the Republican National Committee are trying to assert their will and take away the voice of the people of Wyoming before a single vote has even been cast," he said, referring to the Wyoming GOP chair who co-sponsored the resolution.

Kinzinger is not running for reelection.

RNC members also voted in favor of a rule change that would prohibit their candidates from participating in debates organized by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

The institution has been a staple of presidential elections for three decades, but Republicans have decried the format as biased. After advancing on Friday, the rules change is expected to be completed when the RNC meets in summer.

Republicans object to past moderators they perceive as left-leaning and remarks about Trump made by commission co-chair Mike McCurry.

"Restoring faith in our elections means making sure our candidate can compete on a level playing field," McDaniel said in a speech on Friday.

"We are not walking away from debates, we are walking away from the Commission on Presidential Debates because it's a biased monopoly that does not serve the best interests of the American people," she added.

Even with a rules change, decisions about whether to participate in commission-sponsored debates will fall to the GOP's eventual 2024 nominee.

COLUMBUS, Ohio —

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Redistricting Commission failed for a second time on Saturday to reach the bipartisan consensus necessary to pass 10-year maps of state legislative districts based on 2020 census totals.

Despite being scolded by the state’s high court, the seven-member panel approved new maps along party lines in the face of a court-set Saturday deadline. That means the maps would again be good for just four years, rather than the 10 intended through the census-driven redistricting process.

In a strange twist, the commission returned and took its vote just as the Cincinnati Bengals were scoring a tie-breaking field goal as time expired to land their first AFC championship slot in 33 years.

The high court has reserved the right to review the new maps after voting rights and Democratic groups successfully challenged an earlier round of maps as an extreme partisan gerrymander.

Though the second round of boundaries got closer to the state’s 54% Republican to 46% Democratic partisan breakdown than the first set, they still created heavy GOP majorities in both the Ohio House and Ohio Senate: 57 Republican and 42 Democratic House seats and 20 Republican and 13 Democratic Senate seats. Many districts are so closely divided that they could be election toss-ups.

The first round of maps included 62 of 99 Ohio House seats that favored Republicans, or about 62%, and 23 of 33 Ohio Senate seats that favored the GOP, or nearly 70%.

House Democratic Leader-elect Allison Russo, who cast a no vote, called Saturday’s action shameful.

“Ultimately, this is not an issue of geography or technical inability to draw fair maps,” she said, on behalf of opponents. “It is a lack of political courage and a blatant disregard for the court’s order and the will of the Ohio voters.”

Republican Senate President Matt Huffman, who voted yes, said the maps “address” the court’s opinion.

“Commission members and their respective staff together worked tirelessly over the last week to produce a constitutional plan that no one else, including the Democrats’ highly compensated outside contractors, could produce, including a six figure payment to their main consultant,” said his spokesman, John Fortney.

That consultant, Chris Glassburn, endured hours of grilling on Saturday, particularly by Huffman — repeatedly offering to work cooperatively with the GOP on their concerns to bring the two parties’ proposals together.

“I believe we in our proposal have gone a long way to demonstrate it simply is not necessary to gerrymander or do dramatically strange things to achieve the proportionality as outlined in the Supreme Court,” he said.

Republicans defended their own maps of districts as the only ones that abided by all the elements of the Ohio Constitution, pointing to the fact that they did deliver Democrats more seats than the previous plan.

The two parties failed to come together despite extensive behind-the-scenes negotiations. Panelists said those talks took place between the staffs of commissioners of both parties for nearly all 10 of the days since the court’s ruling. The transparency was a distinct change from the last time in September, when three Republican statewide officials on the panel said GOP lawmakers largely shut them out of backroom map-making deliberations.

Senate Finance Director Ray DiRossi helped lead Republican map-drawing efforts. He repeatedly declined to provide specific evidence of what exactly prevented the GOP from attempting to get closer to the state’s 54% Republican-46% Democratic political divide with its maps.

“We have done nothing but attempt for the last nine-and-a-half days,” he said. “Every ounce of our effort, collectively and individually, and all of the other staff have been towards complying with the court rulings. Everything we’ve done has done that, so my life for the last nine-and-a-half days would be my evidence.”

Ohio is using a new redistricting process for this first time this year for both legislative and congressional maps established through statewide ballot issues in 2015 and 2018 that received overwhelming voter support were left with little choice.

Challenges to President Joe Biden's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private employers will be consolidated in the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, a panel dominated by judges appointed by Republicans.

The Cincinnati-based court was selected Tuesday in a random drawing using ping-pong balls, a process employed when challenges to certain federal agency actions are filed in multiple courts.

The selection could be good news for those challenging the administration's vaccine requirement, which includes officials in 27 Republican-led states, employers and several conservative and business organizations. They argue the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration does not have the authority to impose the mandate.

The challenges, along with some from unions that said the vaccine mandate didn't go far enough, were made this month in 12 circuit courts. Under an arcane system, it was up to the clerk of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict litigation to select a ping-pong ball from a bin to choose where the cases would be heard.

It was a favorable outcome for Republicans. Eleven of the 16 full-time judges in the 6th Circuit were appointed by Republican presidents. Accounting for one of the Republican-appointed judges, Helene White, who often sides with judges appointed by Democrats and adding senior judges who are semi-retired but still hear cases, the split is 19-9 in favor of Republicans. Six of the full-time judges were appointed by former President Donald Trump.

Another court where a majority of judges were nominated by Republicans, the New Orleans-based 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, issued a ruling that put the mandate on hold.

It's not clear whether the court that will hear the case will act as the 5th Circuit did and side quickly with the Republican challengers. But legal experts have become increasingly concerned in recent years about the politicization of both federal and state courts, raising questions about whether justice is fairly administered or dispensed through a partisan lens.

Allison Orr Larsen, a professor at William & Mary Law School, coauthored a study published this year that found growing partisanship in federal judicial decisions. For decades, the study found that rulings on cases in which all judges in a circuit weighed in generally were not decided along party lines based on the presidents who appointed the judges.

“We did see a concerning spike starting in 2018 that led us to wring our hands,” Larsen said in an interview.

The increasing partisanship in a branch of government that is supposed to be blind to partisan politics was seen in judges appointed by presidents of both parties, but Larsen said it's not clear why that was or whether it will last.

Some of the federal courts moved to the right when Donald Trump was president and Republicans controlled the U.S. Senate, which confirms judicial nominees. Trump appointed 54 judges to the circuit courts, which are one step below the U.S. Supreme Court, including filling one seat twice. That represents nearly 30% of the seats on the circuit courts, where cases are most often considered by three-judge panels.

Trump's appointees flipped the 11th Circuit in the South to Republican control and expanded the GOP-appointed majorities in the 5th, 6th and 8th Circuits in the Midwest and South. Biden's three appointees switched the New York-based 2nd Circuit to Democratic control.

Republican state attorneys general and conservative groups mostly filed their challenges in circuit courts dominated by conservative judges, while the unions went to circuits with more judges nominated by Democratic presidents.

In all, 34 objections have been filed in all 11 regional circuits plus the one for the District of Columbia. That’s where the ping-pong balls came in to play.

Under federal law, cases challenging federal agency actions get consolidated upon the agency's request if they are filed in multiple circuit courts. Each circuit where a challenge is filed within the first 10 days of the agency taking action has an equal chance of being selected.

It was up to the judicial panel's clerk, John W. Nichols, to select a ping-pong ball from a bin, according to a Tuesday court filing by the panel. The office denied a request by The Associated Press to allow media access to the drawing.

Previously this year, the lottery had been used to assign just two cases. One involved fallout from a National Labor Relations Board ruling on an anti-union Twitter message by Tesla founder Elon Musk where objectors filed in two circuits. The other was over orders from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in which objectors filed in three.

The employer vaccine mandate is higher profile and further reaching. It calls for businesses with more than 100 workers to require employees to be vaccinated by Jan. 4 or wear masks and be tested weekly for COVID-19. Exemptions are provided for religious reasons and for those who work at home or only outdoors.

Because it's an unusual rule from the workplace safety agency, there is no consensus among lawyers on how the challenges will go. OSHA has issued just 10 emergency rules in the half century since it was formed. Of the six challenged in court, only one survived intact.

The Biden administration has insisted it’s on strong legal footing. It also has the backing of the American Medical Association, which filed papers in support of the mandate.

“The AMA’s extensive review of the medical literature demonstrates that COVID-19 vaccines authorized or approved by FDA are safe and effective, and the widespread use of those vaccines is the best way to keep COVID-19 from spreading within workplaces,” the group said in its filing.

Among those challenging the rule is a consortium of construction contractors. They say they want their workers vaccinated, but that a requirement only on larger companies is just pushing vaccine-hesitant workers to take jobs with companies that have fewer than 100 employees.

“Crafting an unworkable rule that will do little to get construction workers vaccinated is an approach that is not only wrong, but likely counterproductive,” said Scott Casabona, president of Signatory Wall and Ceiling Contractors Alliance.

Officials with the workplace safety agency say they’re considering extending the mandate to smaller employers.

A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit extended the stay of the OSHA rule in an opinion released last Friday, expressing skepticism that the agency had authority to implement the vaccine requirement. The 6th Circuit could modify, revoke or extend the stay.

It had not yet been determined which judges from the 6th Circuit will be on a three-judge panel to hear the case or whether it will be considered by all the judges.

The U.S. Department of Justice declined to comment on the selection of the court.

___

Mulvihill reported from Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Associated Press writer Mark Sherman in Washington, D.C., contributed to this article.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Democrats are pushing Congress’ biggest coronavirus relief bill yet toward expected House passage Friday.

The measure is a $3 trillion behemoth that liberal lawmakers say a beleaguered country badly needs. Most Republicans oppose it say it's simply a bloated election-year Democratic wish list.

The bill, called “The HEROES Act,” would pump almost $1 trillion to states and local governments, renew $1,200 cash payments for individuals, and extend a $600 weekly supplemental federal unemployment benefit.

The package also includes another round of stimulus payments, offering $1,200 in direct cash aid to individuals and up to $6,000 per household.

The bill would also provide about $75 billion more in funding for virus testing, contact tracing and treatment.

Another $200 billion would be set aside for a "Heroes Fund" which would provide hazard pay for essential workers, such as front-line health care employees.

The package also includes a $25 billion bailout for the U.S. Postal Service.

Additionally, a provision in the bill would provide up to $10,000 in student loan forgiveness for federal and private student loan borrowers.

Democratic leaders were pressing ahead Friday despite grumbling from moderates about the measure’s massive price tag and progressives who wanted bolder steps, like money to cover workers’ salaries.

As is, the bill will never pass the GOP-run Senate or get President Donald Trump's signature.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has already said the 1,815 measure is Democrats' opening offer in what is expected to lead to bipartisan negotiations.

GARLAND, Texas —

Tea party firebrand Allen West, a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor of Texas, said Saturday that he has received monoclonal antibody injections after being diagnosed with COVID-19 pneumonia.

The antibodies are used to treat those in the early stages of a coronavirus infection.

"My chest X-rays do show COVID pneumonia, not serious. I am probably going to be admitted to the hospital," West wrote. "There's a concern about my oxygen saturation levels, which are at 89 and they should be at 95."

He also said his wife, Angela West, also tested positive and has received monoclonal antibodies. According to his Twitter account, Allen West did not get vaccinated against the virus, but his wife did.

Allen West on Thursday said he had attended a "packed house" Mission Generation Annual Gala & Fundraiser in Seabrook, Texas. On Saturday he tweeted that he is "suspending in-person events until receiving an all-clear indication."

West is a former Texas Republican Party chair and Florida congressman. He announced in July that he would challenge Republican Gov. Greg Abbot, who is running for a third term and has been endorsed by Donald Trump.

West's announcement came a month after he resigned as chair of the Republican Party of Texas.

West won a U.S. House seat in Florida in 2010 and quickly became a tea party favorite and lightning rod, at one point accusing Democrats of having as many as 80 communists in their House caucus. He failed to win reelection in 2012.

He later moved to Texas and largely stayed out of the spotlight until running for chairman of the state GOP party last year.

West then began criticizing Republicans as much as Democrats, calling the GOP speaker of the Texas House a "traitor" for working across the aisle, then leading a protest outside Abbott's mansion over coronavirus restrictions.

In October 2020, West took part in a protest outside Abbot's home, criticizing the Republican governor's executive orders — including a statewide mask mandate and lockdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic. Those restrictions are no longer in place.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A petition seeking the impeachment of Kentucky’s attorney general was filed Friday by three grand jurors who criticized his handling of an investigation into Breonna Taylor’s shooting death by police.

The petition’s allegations against Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron include breach of public trust and failure to comply with his duties as the state’s chief law enforcement official. They do not accuse him of any crimes, but impeachment is not considered a criminal proceeding.

The petition is the latest in a flurry of tit-for-tat efforts to impeach Kentucky elected officials. Four Kentucky citizens recently petitioned the state House of Representatives to impeach Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear for executive actions he took in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and the matter was assigned to a House committee for review.

Beshear’s actions had been upheld by the state Supreme Court, and the governor says there are “zero grounds” for his removal.

Kentucky law requires impeachment petitions to be referred to a House committee but does not require any further action. Under the state’s constitution, the House possesses the sole power of impeachment. An impeachment trial is held in the state Senate, with a conviction requiring the support of two-thirds of the senators present.

The petition against Cameron, signed by a handful of Kentuckians, was submitted to the overwhelmingly Republican Kentucky House. Cameron is a close ally of U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and is seen as a rising GOP star.

Cameron’s office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

The petition’s signers include an attorney who did so on behalf of three grand jurors who have accused Cameron of misleading the public when describing the grand jury proceedings.

Cameron was the special prosecutor who investigated the actions of the Louisville police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Taylor during a warrant search last year. The investigation culminated in a grand jury ruling that did not charge any of the officers in the Black woman’s death. The shooting sparked protests in Louisville alongside national protests over racial injustice and police misconduct.

The petition is the latest seeking the ouster of prominent Kentucky officeholders. Another petition is seeking the ouster of Republican state Rep. Robert Goforth for an incident in which he allegedly tried to strangle a woman. Goforth, a former gubernatorial candidate, pleaded not guilty after his indictment on charges of strangulation and assault. The case is pending.

The petition against Cameron revives allegations raised anonymously by the three grand jurors. It accuses him of deceiving the public regarding his handling of the investigation into Taylor’s death.

Cameron had said in a widely viewed news conference that the grand jury had agreed that the officers who shot Taylor were justified because they were fired at by Taylor’s boyfriend. Officers fired 32 rounds into the home, five of which struck Taylor.

The three grand jurors said they did not agree and wanted to explore criminal charges, but said they were denied because Cameron’s prosecutors believed none of those charges would stick.

The impeachment petition was signed on their behalf by their Louisville attorney, Kevin Glogower.

“The grand jurors did not choose this battle,” Glogower said in a statement Friday. “This battle chose them. These are randomly selected citizens who were compelled to sit on a grand jury and were terribly misused by the most powerful law enforcement official in Kentucky.”

___

Lovan reported from Louisville, Kentucky.

They were there to "Stop the Steal" and to keep the president they revered in office, yet records show that some of the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol did not vote in the very election they were protesting.

One was Donovan Crowl, an ex-Marine who charged toward a Capitol entrance in paramilitary garb on Jan. 6 as the Pro-Trump crowd chanted "who's our president?"

Federal authorities later identified Crowl, 50, as a member of a self-styled militia organization in his home state of Ohio and affiliated with the extremist group the Oath Keepers. His mother told CNN that he previously told her "they were going to overtake the government if they...tried to take Trump's presidency from him." She said he had become increasingly angry during the Obama administration and that she was aware of his support for former President Donald Trump.

Despite these apparent pro-Trump views, a county election official in Ohio told CNN that he registered in 2013 but "never voted nor responded to any of our confirmation notices to keep him registered," so he was remov ed from the voter rolls at the end of 2020 and the state said he was not registered in Ohio. A county clerk in Illinois, where Crowl was once registered, also confirmed he was not an active voter anywhere in the state.

Crowl was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of destruction of government property and conspiracy for allegedly coordinating with others to plan their attack. He remains in custody after a judge said, "The suggestion to release him to a residence with nine firearms is a non-starter." In an interview cited by the government, Crowl told the New Yorker that he had peaceful intentions and claimed he had protected the police. Crowl's attorney did not provide a comment about his client's voting record.

Many involved in the insurrection professed to be motivated by patriotism, falsely declaring that Trump was the rightful winner of the election. Yet at least eight of the people who are now facing criminal charges for their involvement in the events at the Capitol did not vote in the November 2020 presidential election, according to an analysis of voting records from the states where protestors were arrested and those states where public records show they have lived. They came from states around the country and ranged in age from 21 to 65.

To determine who voted in November, CNN obtained voting records for more than 80 of the initial arrestees. Most voted in the presidential election, and while many were registered Republicans, a handful were registered as Democrats in those jurisdictions that provided party information — though who someone votes for is not publicly disclosed. Public access to voter history records varies by state, and CNN was unable to view the records of some of those charged.

Among those who didn't vote were a 65-year-old Georgia man who, according to government documents, was found in his van with a fully-loaded pistol and ammunition, and a Louisiana man who publicly bragged about spending nearly two hours inside the Capitol after attending Trump's "Stop the Steal" rally. Another was a 21-year-old woman from Missouri who prosecutors say shared a video on Snapchat that showed her parading around with a piece of a wooden sign from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office. And a Florida man previously convicted of attempted murder who was accused by the government of refusing to leave the Capitol likely did not have the option to cast a ballot because of his unpaid court fines.

Jessica Stern, a Boston University professor who has spent around 30 years researching extremists, said that while she hasn't spoken with the individuals involved in the events at the Capitol, from her interviews with other violent extremists, she believes a number of factors could have been at play. They could have believed the system was rigged, as the "Stop the Steal" movement claims, in which case there would be no point in voting. They could be more attracted to the theater, violence or attention they would get from a demonstration like the one at the Capitol than to actually achieving their purported goal — in this case, different election results.

Stern speculated that it was a combination of these reasons, adding that feelings of anger and humiliation often draw people to extremist groups and violence. She said that for someone to actually cast a vote, "you would have to believe in the ethic of voting more than you thought it was a waste of time...and see it as a moral imperative. You have to believe the system works for everyone, that it's for the good of the country."

Jack Griffith, a 25-year-old from Tennessee, trumpeted his arrival in Washington DC with a Facebook post saying, "THE CAVALRY IS COMING!!!!," using the hashtag "#MAGA," according to court documents. Shortly after leaving the Capitol on Jan. 6, he posted a message of disappointment. "I hate to be that guy, but The New World Order beat us," he wrote. "Trump was our greatest champion, and it still wasn't enough. He tried his very best. He did so much, but he's only one man...I even helped stormed(sic) the capitol today, but it only made things worse...Why, God? Why? WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN US? Unless...Trump still has a plan?"

These online missives describing his participation in the Capitol siege were later used by the Department of Justice to build a criminal case against him. Griffith faces a number of charges, including violent entry or disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

Election data from Tennessee and Alabama, where public records show Griffith had lived, showed that he had voted in the 2016 and 2018 elections but not the 2020 presidential election. The public defender who initially represented him declined to comment. Another attorney listed as representing him now did not respond to requests for comment.

Court records detail how University of Kentucky senior Gracyn Courtright posted a series of images on Instagram showing herself marching with a large American flag and another with her arms raised in triumph outside the Capitol, with the caption, "can't wait to tell my grandkids I was here." Later, she posted a photo of herself in a belly baring shirt with the caption, "Infamy is just as good as fame. Either way I end up more known. XOXO."

Courtright, who was charged with crimes including knowingly entering a restricted building, was also identified on surveillance footage lugging a congressional "Members Only" sign around the Capitol, according to court records. "idk what treason is," she wrote in a conversation shared with the FBI by a tipster, who had confronted the college student in a series of Instagram messages. Courtright is not registered in Kentucky, where she attends school, according to election officials. She is registered in her home state of West Virginia, but records show she did not vote in the 2020 election. Her attorney told CNN that Courtright did not dispute the fact that she did not vote in the election but declined further comment.

In a string of social media posts he shared straight from the Capitol, Edward Jacob Lang of New York portrayed himself as ready for a revolution. "1776 has commenced," he wrote in one that was cited by the government, showing him standing on the steps of the Capitol. "I was the leader of Liberty today. Arrest me. You are on the wrong side of history," read another. After leaving the Capitol, he continued to encourage followers to join the "patriot movement" with him. "GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH," he posted.

Federal prosecutors said that video footage from Jan. 6 shows Lang attempting to attack police officers with a baseball bat, donning a gas mask and riot shield. He now faces a variety of federal charges, including assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers or employees, civil disorder and violent entry. A recent ProPublica story also revealed how Lang had used the online messaging app Telegram in an attempt to radicalize "normies" and convince them to join local militia groups — encouraging people in the days after the Capitol riot to stock up on guns and prepare for war.

Though state records show that Lang is registered to vote and had participated in a couple of past elections, county and state officials confirmed to CNN that he did not vote in the November election. Lang's attorney said in a statement that Lang claimed from jail that he submitted an absentee ballot, saying, "Mr. Lang has always represented himself as a Libertarian...He is not a devout Trump supporter, but believes that those taking office will not uphold citizens' First and Second Amendment rights."

New York law requires absentee ballots to be postmarked by election day and received within the following week in order to be counted. When asked about Lang's claim that he sent in an absentee ballot, the Sullivan County Board of Elections directed CNN to file an open records request in order to receive any information. The request had not been responded to before the time of publishing.

Lang's attorney also said the 25-year-old was a "naive, impressionable young man" who had been provoked by Trump's rhetoric. He cited Sen. Mitch McConnell's statement that "the mob was fed lies" and said he hoped that Lang and others would not be considered guilty "due solely to their associations, beliefs and presence."

Related video: McConnell points finger at President Trump in Capitol riot

A man who identified himself with the name of Lang's father refused to talk with a reporter, saying, "We hate CNN. We're pro-Trump, goodbye." In a statement to a local newspaper, Lang's father attributed his son's actions at the Capitol to "a substance abuse problem."

Arie Perliger, a professor at University of Massachusetts Lowell who specializes in right-wing domestic terror, said that he was not surprised to hear some of the rioters had not voted, particularly militia members like Crowl, since militia membership is often rooted in a distrust of government. Still, he said he was concerned that it could reflect a growing erosion of faith in the American democratic process, which is a "risk we need to think about."

"When we see that significant ideological groups are stopping participating in the Democratic process, that may mean they are looking for other ways to participate, and those other ways could be more violent," said Perliger, who oversees a database of right-wing extremist acts of violence in the United States. "We should be concerned if we see a growing number of ideological groups are reducing their involvement in electoral politics."

CLEVELAND — For Strongsville, Ohio, GOP President Shannon Burns, last month's vote of Republican Congressman Anthony Gonzalez to impeach former President Donald Trump was a betrayal.

"That was a defining moment for Strongsville GOP and I don't think that there's any coming back from it,” Burns said.

The group voted unanimously to call for the resignation of Gonzalez. Burns likened the former Ohio State Buckeye's vote to being in the middle of a game against Michigan “and saying hold on and he runs in the locker room and Nancy Pelosi hands him a Michigan jersey and he comes back out and plays for the other team for the rest of the game."

The Strongsville GOP has also started an online petition calling on Gonzalez to resign the post he was elected to in 2018 when Rep. Jim Renacci left to run for the U.S. Senate.

Gonzalez will no doubt face a primary challenge next year. On Monday, Politico highlighted the move back to Northeast Ohio for Former Trump White House aide Max Miller to get ready for a primary run against Gonzalez. Miller is the grandson of the late Sam Miller, Cleveland philanthropist and longtime political power broker who passed away in 2019.

Burns said he's heard from several potential primary challengers but believes Miller, who he worked with in the White House, is best positioned to gain the president's backing.

"From my interactions with Max Miller with the president which there were several, he is a great friend to the president and I wouldn't be surprised to see the president come out and support Max and if the president were to get involved I don't think that we could find ourselves with a complicated primary at all,” Burns said.

Gonzalez, who has declined multiple interview requests on the subject, said in a podcast with The Dispatch that his vote was one of conscience and one that history will ultimately judge.

"You have to love your country and you have to adhere to your oath more strongly than you do your job,” Gonzalez said. “Yes in the short run maybe you lose your seat, maybe you don't get to come back but in the long arc of history I believe it was the right vote and I believe it sends the right message."

This article was written by John Kosich for WEWS.

Video above: McConnell slams Trump moments after acquitting him

Less than a month after excoriating Donald Trump in a blistering floor speech, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday that he would “absolutely” support the former president again if he secured the Republican nomination in 2024.

The Kentucky Republican told Fox News that there's still “a lot to happen between now" and the next presidential election.

“I've got at least four members that I think are planning on running for president, plus governors and others,” McConnell said. “There's no incumbent. Should be a wide open race.”

But when directly asked if he would support Trump again were he to win the nomination, McConnell responded: “The nominee of the party? Absolutely.”

McConnell's remarks underscore an awkward balancing act he sought to maintain since Trump lost the election, reflecting the reality that McConnell’s own path back to power in the Senate hinges on enthusiasm from a party base that still ardently supports Trump.

McConnell's comments precede an annual gathering of conservative activists that this year is expected to showcase Trump's vise-grip hold on the GOP base.

Trump, along with most other leading 2024 presidential prospects, is set to address the Conservative Political Action Conference, which will be held in Orlando this year because of coronavirus restrictions. McConnell, a regular at the annual conference, will not be on the program following his condemnation of Trump.

Shortly after voting to acquit Trump at his second impeachment trial, McConnell delivered a scalding denunciation of Trump from the Senate floor, calling him “morally responsible” for the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. In turn, an angry Trump blistered McConnell as a “dour, sullen and unsmiling political hack.”

The 36-year Senate veteran had an expedient relationship with Trump while he was in office. He made a habit of saying little about many of Trump’s outrageous comments.

But together they secured key Senate victories, such as the 2017 tax cuts and the confirmations of three Supreme Court justices and more than 200 other federal judges.

Their relationship soured after Trump’s denial of his Nov. 3 defeat and relentless efforts to reverse the voters’ verdict with his baseless claims that Democrats fraudulently stole the election.

It deteriorated further last month, after Republicans lost Senate control with two Georgia runoff defeats they blamed on Trump, followed by the attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters. The day of the riot, McConnell railed against “thugs, mobs, or threats” and described the attack as “this failed insurrection.”

Still, McConnell likes to pride himself on playing the “long game,” which was the title of his 2016 memoir. And his comments on Thursday may yet prove prescient.

Recently, Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, a longtime Trump opponent, predicted the former president would win the nomination if he ran again.

“I don't know if he'll run in 2024 or not, but if he does, I'm pretty sure he will win the nomination,” Romney said during an online forum hosted by The New York Times.

CNN —

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell committed on Monday that Senate Republicans will support GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski's reelection bid in 2022 despite former President Donald Trump advocating that the GOP "get rid of" the 17 Republicans in Congress who voted against him during his second impeachment.

Of the seven Senate Republicans who voted to convict Trump of inciting a deadly riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, Alaska's Murkowski is the only one facing voters in the midterm election next year in a state Trump won by about 10 points last year.

"Absolutely," McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, replied when asked by CNN if the National Republican Senatorial Committee would back Murkowski even after Trump extolled to the Conservative Political Action Conference his desire for political revenge against his critics.

Related video: Trump names Republican impeachment supporters

Asked if he was worried the former President's considerable influence could make it harder for Murkowski to win reelection, McConnell responded firmly: "No."

Trump's attacks on Republican incumbents are another example of the sharp divide between the establishment wing of the party, represented by people like Murkowski and McConnell, and the Trump wing.

Trump also targeted the 10 GOP House members who had voted to impeach him in January.

On Monday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was silent when asked by CNN if he agreed with Trump that members who voted to impeach him should be primaried and purged from the party.

WASHINGTON —

Bleary-eyed lawmakers worked through a mountain of amendments Saturday before the Senate passed a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill that President Joe Biden and Democrats say is crucial for hoisting the country out of the pandemic.

The Senate commenced a dreaded “vote-a-thon” — a continuous series of votes on amendments — shortly before midnight Friday, and by midmorning Saturday had dispensed with over two dozen.

The Senate's 50-49 vote for final passage midday Saturday means the modestly revamped bill can be sent back to the House, and then to Biden this coming week for his signature.

The Senate had been in session since 9 a.m. EST Friday. Its work on the bill proved to be a test of both lawmakers' physical stamina and Democrats' ability to pass legislation backed by every senator in the party. The chamber is divided 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris' tiebreaking vote their only edge, and Republicans were arrayed against the legislation.

Overnight, the Senate was like an experiment in the best techniques for staying awake. Several lawmakers appeared to rest their eyes or doze at their desks, often burying their faces in their hands. At one point, Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, at 48 one of the younger senators, trotted into the chamber and did a prolonged stretch.

The huge package — its total spending is nearly one-tenth the size of the entire U.S. economy — is Biden's biggest early priority. It stands as his formula for addressing the deadly virus and a limping economy, twin crises that have afflicted the country for a year.

The bill includes direct payments of up to $1,400 for most Americans, extended emergency unemployment benefits, and lots of spending for COVID-19 vaccines and testing, states and cities, schools and ailing industries, along with tax breaks to help lower-earning people, families with children and consumers buying health insurance.

But the measure was delayed repeatedly as Democrats struck deals and made eleventh-hour changes aimed at balancing demands by their competing moderate and progressive factions.

The lengthy standoffs underscored the headaches confronting party leaders over the next two years — and tensions within the party — as they try moving their agenda through the Congress with their slender majorities.

The measure followed five earlier ones totaling about $4 trillion that Congress enacted since last spring and comes amid signs of a potential turnaround. Vaccine supplies are growing, deaths and caseloads have eased but remain frighteningly high, and hiring was surprisingly strong last month, though the economy remains 10 million jobs smaller than its pre-pandemic levels.

“Without a rescue plan, these gains are going to slow,” Biden said Friday. “We can’t afford one step forward and two steps backwards. We need to beat the virus, provide essential relief, and build an inclusive recovery.”

But Republicans opposed the bill as a wasteful gift to Democrats' liberal allies that ignores indications of improvement.

“Democrats inherited a tide that was already turning," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Work on the bill ground to a halt Friday after a deal among Democrats on extending emergency jobless benefits seemed to collapse. But nearly 12 hours later, top Democrats and West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, perhaps the chamber's most conservative Democrat, said they had a deal and the Senate approved it on a party-line 50-49 vote.

Under their compromise, $300 weekly emergency unemployment checks — on top of regular state benefits — will be renewed, with a final payment made Oct. 6. There will also be tax breaks on some of those payments, helping people the pandemic abruptly tossed out of jobs and risked tax penalties on the benefits.

The House's COVID-19 relief bill, largely similar to the Senate measure, provided $400 weekly benefits through August. The current $300 per week payments expire March 14, and Democrats want to have the bill on Biden's desk by then to avert a lapse.

Manchin and Republicans have asserted that higher jobless benefits discourage people from returning to work, a rationale most Democrats and many economists reject.

Manchin is a kingmaker in the 50-50 Senate, but Democrats cannot tilt too far center to win his vote without endangering progressive support in the House, where they have a mere 10-vote edge.

That agreement wasn't the only move that helped cement support from party moderates.

The Senate voted on Friday to eject a House-approved boost in the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, a major defeat for progressives. Eight Democrats opposed the increase, suggesting that Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and other progressives vowing to continue the effort in coming months will face a difficult fight.

In one of many late deals, party leaders restricted eligibility for the $1,400 stimulus checks that will go to most Americans. That amount would be gradually reduced until, under the Senate bill, it reaches zero for people earning $80,000 and couples making $160,000. Those amounts were higher in the House version.

Most of the overnight and morning amendments were by Republicans and were defeated. Many amendments were either attempts to force Democrats to cast politically awkward votes or for Republicans to demonstrate their zeal for issues that appeal to GOP voters.

These included defeated efforts to bar the bill's education funds from going to schools closed for the pandemic that don't reopen their doors, or from schools that let transgender students born male to participate in female sports. One amendment would have blocked aid to so-called sanctuary cities, where local authorities balk at helping federal officials round up immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.

Friday's gridlock over unemployment benefits gridlock wasn't the first delay on the relief package. On Thursday Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., forced the chamber's clerks to read aloud the entire 628-page relief bill, an exhausting task that took staffers 10 hours and 44 minutes and ended shortly after 2 a.m. EST Friday.

Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Kevin Freking contributed to this report.

As the delta variant surges across the country, the calls for Americans to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are growing louder —  and more Republicans are joining in. 

"I would encourage people to get the vaccine. I have high confidence in it. I got it myself," said House Republican Whip Steve Scalise. 

"This is not complicated; 97% of the people who are in the hospital now for COVID are unvaccinated. So if there's anybody out there willing to listen: Get vaccinated," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell earlier this week. 

Nationwide, vaccination rates among conservatives have lagged behind liberals, and that includes members of Congress.

While 100% of Democrats on the Hill say they’ve been vaccinated, it's unclear how many Republicans can say the same. And there have been several breakout cases among vaccinated Capitol employees, including one lawmaker. 

High-profile conservative media personalities have also made appeals to their viewers in recent days.

"And it absolutely makes sense for many Americans to get vaccinated. I believe in science. I believe in the science of vaccination," said Fox News host Sean Hannity. 

But not all Republicans are putting the same emphasis on their vaccine message. During a Thursday press conference, a group of Republican doctors spent more time focused on the origins of the virus, and they stopped short of issuing a full-throated recommendation for everyone to get vaccinated.   

"Vaccine is a medicine. And just like any other medicine, there are side effects and this is a personal decision. This is not a mandate. This should not come down from the government saying you have to have something because there can be some side effects," said Rep. Greg Murphy.

House Republican Whip Steve Scalise, who had COVID-19, just got his first vaccine dose on July 18.

"I had done the antibody test months ago, and it tested positive for the antibodies. And clearly that gives you protection, but with the delta variant I felt I wanted that extra level of protection," said Scalise. 

CDC data shows nearly 162 million Americans are fully vaccinated. But that's only about 57% of people over 12 years old — the population that's eligible to get the vaccine.

Many of the states with the lowest vaccination rates are the ones currently experiencing the highest levels of community spread.   

This story originally reported by Stephanie Liebergen on Newsy.com.

WASHINGTON —

The bipartisan infrastructure deal senators brokered with President Joe Biden is hanging precariously ahead of a crucial Wednesday test vote as they struggle over how to pay for nearly $1 trillion in public works spending.

Tensions were rising as Republicans prepared to mount a filibuster over what they see as a rushed and misguided process. With Biden preparing to hit the road to rally support for his big infrastructure ideas — including some $3.5 trillion in a follow-up bill — restless Democrats say it's time to at least start debate on this first phase of his proposals.

"It is not a fish or cut bait moment," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday, describing the procedural vote as just a first step to "get the ball rolling" as bipartisan talks progress.

Six months after Biden took office, his signature "Build Back Better" campaign promise is at a key moment that will test the presidency and his hopes for a new era of bipartisan cooperation in Washington.

White House aides and the bipartisan group of senators have huddled privately since Sunday trying to wrap up the deal, which would be a first phase of an eventual $4 trillion-plus package of domestic outlays — not just for roads and bridges, but foundations of everyday life including child care, family tax breaks, education and an expansion of Medicare for seniors.

Biden calls it a "blue-collar blueprint for building an American economy back." He asserted Tuesday that Americans are overwhelmingly in support of his plan and "that's the part that a lot of our friends on the other team kind of miss."

The other team begs to differ.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and some outside groups decry what they call Biden's "spending spree," and McConnell has said big spending is "the last thing American families need."

A core group of Republicans are interested in pursuing a more modest package of traditional highway and public works projects, about $600 billion in new funds, and say they just need more time to negotiate with their Democratic colleagues and the White House.

Senators from the bipartisan group emerged upbeat Tuesday from another late-night negotiating session with Biden aides at the Capitol, saying a deal was within reach and even a failed vote Wednesday would not be the end of the road.

Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana said the test vote Wednesday afternoon could be useful in helping to "advance and expedite" the process.

"We are so close," said Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana.

Biden has been in touch with both Democrats and Republicans for several days, and his outreach will continue "until he has both pieces of legislation on his desk to sign them into law," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.

While Biden proposes paying for his proposals with a tax hike on corporations and wealthy Americans who earn more than $400,000 a year, the bipartisan group has been working almost around the clock to figure out a compromise way to pay for its package, having dashed ideas for boosting the gas tax drivers pay at the pump or strengthening the Internal Revenue Service to go after tax scofflaws.

Instead, senators in the bipartisan group were considering rolling back a Trump-era rule on pharmaceutical rebates that could bring in some $170 billion to be used for infrastructure. They were also still haggling over public transit funds.

Ten Republicans would be needed in the evenly split Senate to join all 50 Democrats in reaching the 60-vote threshold required to advance the bill past a filibuster to formal consideration.

Republicans are reluctant to open debate as the bipartisan bill remains a work in progress.

At a private lunch meeting Tuesday, McConnell and others urged Republican senators to vote no, according to a person granted anonymity to discuss the session.

"We're not going to vote to proceed to a bill that doesn't exist yet," Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri said afterward.

Some senators want to delay the vote to Monday. "We're making progress, but we need more time," said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, one of the members of the bipartisan group.

By setting the vote now, Schumer is trying to nudge negotiations along, a strategy both parties have used before. If it fails Wednesday he can set another vote to proceed to the bill later.

Many Republicans are wary of moving ahead with the first, relatively slim package, fearing it will pave the way for the broader $3.5 trillion effort Democrats are preparing to pass on their own under special budget rules that only require 51 votes. Vice President Kamala Harris can break a tie.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been working to keep restless Democrats in her chamber in line, as rank-and-file lawmakers grow impatient with the sluggish Senate pace.

Liberal Democrats, in particular, are eager to make gains on Biden's priorities — with or without Republicans.

"Time's a-wasting, I want to get this work done," Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, told reporters Tuesday.

Jayapal warned against giving Republicans too much time to negotiate the deal away. "We have all the history in the world to show that this is what Republicans do time and time and time again," she said.

Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, dismissed the Senate's bipartisan effort as inadequate. He wants more robust spending on the transportation elements and said, "We want an opportunity to actually negotiate."

Democrat John Yarmuth of Kentucky, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, said if the bipartisan effort fails in the Senate, Democrats will simply include some of the infrastructure spending in the broader package they are compiling with Biden's other priorities.

Democrats hope to show progress on that bill before lawmakers leave Washington for their recess in August.

The legislative maneuvering marks a major test of Biden's ability to deliver on a massive package of economic promises and reforms he made during his campaign.

Biden is making the case that America needs to make up for lost time with fresh federal outlays to shore up its aging infrastructure and households struggling to recoup from a shifting economy and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The economy has come back to life as more Americans have gotten vaccinated and Biden's earlier $1.9 trillion relief package has coursed through the country. Employers have added an average of nearly 543,000 jobs a month since January, with Federal Reserve officials anticipating overall economic growth of roughly 7% this year that would be the highest since 1984. Yet there is also uncertainty as employers say they're struggling to find workers at the current pay levels and inflation concerns have yet to abate.

___

Associated Press writers Alan Fram, Darlene Superville and Josh Boak contributed to this report.

Related video: Arkansas governor ponders future in post-Trump GOP

Republican U.S. Sen. James Lankford would seem to have all the conservative credentials he'd need to coast to re-election in deep-red Oklahoma.

A devout Baptist, Lankford was the director of the nation’s largest Christian youth camp for more than a decade. He speaks out regularly against abortion and what he describes as excessive government spending. And his voting record in the Senate aligned with former President Donald Trump’s position nearly 90% of the time.

But like several other seemingly safe GOP incumbents, Lankford, who didn't even draw a primary opponent in 2016, finds himself under fierce attack by a challenger in his own party. The antagonist is a 29-year-old evangelical minister and political newcomer who managed to draw more than 2,000 people to a “Freedom Rally" headlined by Donald Trump's former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, at which Lankford was accused of being not conservative enough.

“When James (Lankford) certified the big lie, he joined the big lie," Jackson Lahmeyer told the raucous crowd in Norman, citing Lankford's failure to endorse Trump's false claims about the election outcome. “The 2020 presidential election — that was a stolen election and we will never, ever allow it to happen again.” The state's GOP chairman, John Bennett, has already endorsed Lahmeyer in the race.

Similar scenes are playing out in other red states where ultra right-wing challengers are tapping into anger among Republicans over Trump's election loss and coronavirus-related lockdowns. Some incumbents suddenly are scrambling to defend their right flank, heating up their own rhetoric on social media and ripping into President Joe Biden at every opportunity.

In Texas, GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, who faces a contested reelection primary next year, is pushing looser gun laws than he ever previously embraced and proposing unprecedented state actions, including promises to build more walls on the Mexican border.

“I think it’s unquestionably attributable to the aftermath of the 2020 election and the insurrection and former President Trump’s claims of voter fraud,” said Alan Abramowitz, a political science professor at Emory University in Atlanta.

Some conservative incumbents are obvious targets for right-wing challenges — notably U.S. Reps. Liz Cheney in Wyoming and Anthony Gonzalez in Ohio who voted to impeach Trump. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's offense was refusing to block Georgia's electoral votes from being awarded to Biden.

But with the 2022 election cycle approaching, the backlash is also touching even those who backed Trump consistently through countless controversies. Texas' Abbott echoed Trump's partisan positions and has banked $55 million in campaign funds, more than any sitting governor in history.

But he's drawn a challenge from Allen West, who until recently was the chairman of the Texas GOP. West, a tea party firebrand and former Florida congressman, has attacked Abbott's leadership after Democrats temporarily thwarted a GOP voting bill by decamping to Washington.

And he can draw a crowd. Last year, West led a boisterous rally outside the governor’s mansion to demand an end to coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

“We cannot sit around and continue to do nothing,” West told supporters in South Texas during one of his first campaign stops.

Actually winning a primary is probably more than many challengers, including West, can expect. But they can succeed in pushing the party farther to the right while also raising their own profiles as public figures.

Republican officeholders have faced challenges from the right in the past, but “Trump’s put a different name and spin to it" this time, said Pat McFerron, a Republican strategist and pollster in Oklahoma.

“As we become more self-selective with the media we consume, people find like-minded people in different social media channels and they think they’re in greater numbers than they are and feel they have an opportunity," he said.

In Arkansas, Republican U.S. Sen. John Boozman, a two-term incumbent, has drawn several GOP challengers, including the owner of a gun range that drew national attention for banning Muslims. Another is a former Arkansas Razorbacks football player whose campaign kickoff ad shows him firing an assault rifle and complaining that Democrats in Washington have been “taken over by radical socialists."

Boozman's opponents have criticized him for certifying the presidential election results. He may also draw fire because he is unusually mild-mannered for such a highly charged time. While he has historically focused on the state's agriculture industry and services for veterans, he now frequently mentions Trump in his campaign emails and even offered tickets to a Trump rally.

Republican officials in Idaho would usually be considered among the farthest right in the nation, but they, too, are under pressure. Anti-government activist Ammon Bundy has announced plans to challenge incumbent GOP Gov. Brad Little in 2022, and Bundy's People's Rights organization has been among those staging mask-burning rallies to protest coronavirus restrictions.

The anti-incumbent exposure can even be seen in lower state-level races in blue states. In one of Virginia’s most solidly red state House districts, an attorney who worked on the Trump campaign’s challenges defeated a seven-term incumbent in a June primary.

“I saw firsthand what happens when election integrity isn’t maintained,” challenger Wren Williams said in a campaign ad. Williams criticized Del. Charles Poindexter for failing to speak out against alleged voter fraud and defeated him by more than 25 points.

In Oklahoma, Lankford was jarred by the party chairman's endorsement of his opponent, which he said was an “unheard of" breach of traditional party neutrality.

In response, he’s quickly ramped up his criticism of Biden, hammering the president in particular on immigration.

“This is the problem,” Lankford said in a recent video from the Texas-Mexico border with immigrants being processed behind him. “This is the thing that Biden does not want you to see ... this is absolutely an open border situation.”

In the current political climate, it's hard for a Republican official to be safely conservative enough, said Abramowitz.

“You look at Sen. Lankford, there aren’t many Republican senators as conservative as him.”

___

Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Jeff Amy in Atlanta; Keith Ridler in Boise, Idaho; Paul Weber in Austin, Texas, and Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.