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US House Tag

Rep. Tim Murphy (R-PA) has received praise and endorsements from pro-life and pro-family groups since he came into Congress in 2003. But Murphy announced he will not seek re-election after texts leaked between him and the woman he was having an affair with revealed that he urged her to have an abortion during a pregnancy scare.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that bans abortions after 20 weeks, mostly along party lines. Three Democrats voted yes while two Republicans voted no. Now the bill heads to the senate where it may die since it needs 60 votes to pass. The GOP only holds a two seat majority.

The Democrats have decided to use the GOP's attempts to repeal Obamacare to their advantage in 2018. From The Hill:
“I think the message is really simple here: As long as Republicans control Congress, your health care is on the chopping block,” said Tyler Law, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), House Democrats’ campaign arm.
One problem: The GOP has shown that despite having control of Congress, they have not been able to repeal Obamacare.

Roger Stone, an ally of and unofficial campaign adviser of President Trump, testified Tuesday in a closed hearing of the House Intelligence Committee.  Though Stone requested an open hearing, it was at the Committee's insistence that the interview be closed. This is the latest in the efforts of Congress to root out alleged collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign and/or Trump associates. Stone was called to testify because he had a private Twitter conversation with infamous hacker Guccifer 2.0.

Virginia police reports show that three Muslim women have told authorities that Imran Awan, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz's former IT aide in the middle of the House network scandal, allegedly abused them. The Daily Caller reported:
Officers found one of the women bloodied and she told them she “just wanted to leave,” while the second said she felt like a “slave,” according to Fairfax County Police reports obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation Investigative Group. A third woman claimed she was being kept “in captivity.”

Authorities decided to ban Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz's (D-FL) IT aide Imran Awan from the House network due to a secret server. From The Daily Caller:
Now-indicted former congressional IT aide Imran Awan allegedly routed data from numerous House Democrats to a secret server. Police grew suspicious and requested a copy of the server early this year, but they were provided with an elaborate falsified image designed to hide the massive violations. The falsified image is what ultimately triggered their ban from the House network Feb. 2, according to a senior House official with direct knowledge of the investigation.

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives passed amendments to stop the Department of Justice's civil asset forfeiture program, which Attorney General Jeff Sessions introduced in July. The amendments received support from those within the House Freedom Caucus and some of the biggest liberals in Congress.

The Washington Examiner reported that Hina Alvi, the former Democrat IT aide that fled to Pakistan after coming under a federal investigation, has struck a deal with authorities and will return to the states. Alvi is married to Imran Awan. Both of them worked as IT aides to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL). Authorities arrested Awan on bank fraud charges at Dulles airport in July.

Ready for another bombshell in the case of a former IT aide to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)? Turns out that Imran Awan still has an active email account connected to Rep. André Carson (D-IN), even though he's been banned from the network since the Capital police named him in an investigation concerning stolen equipment and breaching the House IT system.

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) spoke to CNBC today about financial situations that Congress will face once lawmakers return from their recess. In the interview, Ryan expressed the same views on the debt ceiling as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY):
 the Wisconsin Republican told CNBC from a Boeing factory in Washington state, where he was promoting tax reform.

A grand jury has indicted Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz's former IT aide Imran Awan on four counts. The indictment includes his wife Hina Alvi, who escaped to Pakistan with their daughters earlier this year. Authorities arrested Awan at Dulles airport in July, where he planned to fly to Pakistan after he wired almost $300,000 to the country.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) shocked the country last year when he said he planned to step down from his seat. Now those in his GOP-dominated district will hit the polls on Tuesday to determine the GOP candidate for the special election, who will probably have no problem winning next November. Who will win tomorrow? The GOP establishment has backed a candidate "with a Democratic past" while two other candidates have received backing "from national GOP heavy-hitters." Massive money donations from outside super PACs have also helped narrow the lead from the establishment pick.

The last 14 months or so have not been kind to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. First the DNC had emails leaked, which led to her losing her position as chairwoman. Then she caught fire when she kept IT aide Imran Awan on her payroll even after the FBI placed him under an investigation for stealing equipment and breaching the House IT system. She didn't fire him until officials arrested him on bank fraud charges. Now her party wants nothing to do with her. Some members spoke to Politico and put their names on their statements.

Republicans have suggested that Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz should testify to explain why she kept IT aide Imran Awan on her payroll after he became a subject of an FBI investigation in March. Wasserman Schultz did not fire Awan until last week when authorities arrested him at Dulles Airport on bank fraud charges. The Capital Police placed Awan along with his wife and two brothers under investigation months ago for breaching House IT systems and stealing equipment. Other House lawmakers fired the four, but Wasserman Schultz kept Awan on payroll.

Desperation and panic have shown up in the Democrat Party today. Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, told The Hill that the party will not withhold funds from Democrat pro-life candidates:
“There is not a litmus test for Democratic candidates,” said Luján, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman. “As we look at candidates across the country, you need to make sure you have candidates that fit the district, that can win in these districts across America.”

After failing to do anything with Obamacare, Congress has gone on recess without addressing the debt ceiling. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has warned Congress to address the debt ceiling for the past seven months and do something before recess. Mnuchin said the government needs to raise the debt ceiling before September 29 or it will run out of money to pay the bills.