Blogs – FOX News Radio: Recent Episodes
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02/18/2019 Following a national emergency declaration, President Trump’s search for border wall funding will run outside the appropriations process in Congress. Fox’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “Speaker Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. House and Senate border security conferees crafted a $49 billion package for the Department of Homeland Security. Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution dictates that “No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in Consequence of Appropriations made by law.” That is, unless the White House uses what’s called “transfer authority.” There are 12 individual spending bills. There’s “Account A” and “Account B” in the DHS measure. The administration may decide it needs more money for a priority in Account B. So, it wants to “reprogram” the money from Account A to Account B. Such a maneuver is allowed. But the gambit entails a sign-off by the top members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. What President Trump wants to do is to go around Congress without a blessing. This tactic starts to test the Constitutional limits of Article I, Section 9, granting Congress the authority to spend money how it sees fit. Moreover, each program has supporters in Congress. And lawmakers will likely howl if the President touches their programs robbing Peter to pay Paul With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/15/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram takes a closer look at how another partial government shutdown was averted on today’s “Speaker’s Lobby”: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. It was extraordinary that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on the Senate floor on behalf of the President, his intention to sign the spending bill and that Mr. Trump would declare a national emergency. Remember that McConnell felt burned back in December. McConnell had indications from the White House that the President would sign the interim spending package to avoid a government shutdown before Christmas. The Senate passed the bill. Then the President balked. McConnell’s favorite expression is that “there’s no education in the second kick of a mule.” No fool he, McConnell made sure he locked the President in, announcing Mr. Trump’s intentions publicly on the floor. That would bind the President to stand by his word. Also, consider the vote in the House, with 428 members voting, the magic number was 215. Democrats scored 213 yeas. In other words, they only needed the assistance of two Republicans to pass the bill. Otherwise, Democrats could have done it on their own. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn leaned on House Minority Whip Steve Scalise to provide 70 Republican ayes. Scalise delivered 87. But consider how low that number could have been from Republicans had there NOT been a guarantee from the President? With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
02/14/2019 The “Green New Deal” could get a vote in the Senate. FOX’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell opposes the Green New Deal and dislikes show votes. But in this case, McConnell wants to show where Democrats stand on the proposal by Democratic New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. McConnell’s putting the plan on the floor to get everyone on the record. But this vote is all about politics and the 2020 Senate Democratic presidential hopefuls. McConnell’s wants aim the Green New Deal back at Democrats running for President. Republicans could highlight Democrats who support the idea portraying them as dangerous. And if Democrats flee the Green New Deal, Republicans would undercut the package as lacking Democratic support. But there’s risk for Republicans too. Such a vote would force Republicans like Cory Gardner of Colorado and Susan Collins of Maine to weigh in as well. Both face challenging re-election bids next year. Two years ago, Republicans tried to pin down Democratic senators on how they’d vote on Bernie Sanders’ Medicare for all plan. However, the effort backfired. The vote was zero yeas and 57 nays. That’s because all Democrats avoided taking a position they voting present. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/13/2019 There may be a deal on border security. FOX’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. What changed to get lawmakers to forge an agreement on border security? Senior members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees stared into the abyss and saw the very real prospects of a second government shutdown. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby confided that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told him to “get it done.” Senate Republicans were particularly worried about a second shutdown. Moreover, there was nearly a jailbreak of Senate Republicans jumping ship and voting to end the first shutdown a few weeks ago. McConnell was trying to protect the President from GOP defections and simultaneously protect Republican senators who feared they would be blamed for backing the President with a losing cause. So, the sides were willing to deal. The scramble is now on to forge the ideas into concrete legislation. House Democrats just implemented their new, hard 72 hour rule which requires the text of legislation be posted a full three days before voting. But such a provision can be waived. It is nearly a foregone conclusion that House Democrats will ignore that provision so they can move the bill expeditiously this week and send it to the Senate. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/11/2019 Congress has to act quickly to prevent another government shutdown. FOX’s Chad Pergram has more with “The Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Lawmakers have until Friday night at 11:59:59 PM Eastern time to forge an agreement to avoid another government shutdown. There are two major concerns. The first one is time. The House of Representatives has a firm, 72 hour rule where they have to post the text of a bill before members can vote on a package. Then, there are worries that even if there is an accord, President Trump won’t sign the measure. Mr. Trump has gone back on his word before. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby had a positive meeting with the President late last week. But everyone wonders if the President will renege as he did in December with the stopgap spending bill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell felt burned. Generally lawmakers are optimistic, but one senior source said there were more pessimistic than they had been. Besides President Trump’s signature, the other lynchpin to a deal is House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Lawmakers at the margins, hard left or hard right, probably wouldn’t support the deal. They either vehemently oppose the wall, or want a wall. But there is a big sweet spot in the middle, A coalition of Democrats and Republicans. And Pelosi knows that a vote for border security is good for her freshmen members. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/08/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram looks into the timing of a letter from Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to the House Judiciary Committee on today’s “Speaker’s Lobby”: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. There was some curious timing regarding a letter from Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to the House Judiciary Committee. The letter declared Whitaker wouldn’t appear before the panel, unless members withdrew a subpoena, compelling his testimony. Keep in mind, Whitaker was willing to appear without the subpoena. The House Judiciary Committee prepared the subpoena, at the same time the Senate Judiciary Committee was supposed to vote to send the nomination of William Barr to become Attorney General to the floor shortly after 10 am Thursday. But Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham delayed the committee vote until just before 1 pm. The House Committee approved the subpoena. A few hours later, the Senate Committee voted to send Barr’s nomination to the floor. The latter move all but made Barr’s nomination a fait accompli on the floor next week. Just after the Senate panel voted on Barr, Whitaker fired off the letter letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler. Whitaker indicated he would not appear unless Nadler withdrew the subpoena. Fox is told the timing played out like this, so the administration knew that Barr was on a glide path to succeed Whitaker next week. And that could preclude Whitaker from potentially testifying. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
02/07/2019 Accusations of racism are embroiling the Democrat party in Virginia. FOX’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Want to talk about President Trump and race? Republican Iowa Congressman Steve King? Democratic Virginia Governor Ralph Northam? Democratic Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring? Democrats have long enjoyed a better standing at the polls when it comes to minorities and most ethnic groups. So it’s easy politics for Democrats to go to the mat when President Trump or Steve King says things which are controversial. It’s another when there are issues with Ralph Northam. By the same token, Republicans see the electoral-demographic Armageddon which awaits them at the ballot box in the coming years. Republicans must make inroads with minority voters. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy came out swinging last month about King. Democrats endeavor to contrast themselves with President Trump and King and some of the things they’ve said about race. But storm clouds engulfing Northam hamstring Democrats when they attempt to portray themselves as progressive on race issues and more aligned with minority voters. Both parties often revel in schadenfreude when a figure of the opposite party commits a major gaffe or utters something flat-out offensive. But neither side is truly absolved from these transgressions. And try as they might, neither party can claim a higher moral ground in these debates. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/05/2019 Montana Lawmakers want to increase the penalties for assaulting a reporter. FOX’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. There is an old adage in politics, that it’s best to not cross people who buy ink by the barrel. Republican Montana Congressman Greg Gianforte is best known for grabbing a hold of Ben Jacobs, a reporter for the Guardian newspaper, and slamming him into the ground and breaking Jacob’s glasses the night before a Gianforte’s special election win in 2017. Gianforte was convicted of assault, fined nearly $400, and sentenced to 40 hours of community service. He’s required to take anger management training. So, Democrats in the Montana state legislature are now trolling Gianforte. Montana State Representative Tom Woods introduced the “Protect the Free Press Act. Woods’ bill ups the penalty for assaulting a journalist from the maximum of $500 to $5000 dollars. It also requires a one year jail term. Woods introduced the measure as the Montana legislature is meeting for the first time since Gianforte’s assault on Jacobs. The legislature only assembles for a few months every other year. Gianforte is considering a gubernatorial bid in 2020. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. FOX News.
02/04/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram tells us about the New York Congresswoman who gets a lot of attention these days in “The Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Freshman Democratic New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is one of the most recognizable figures in politics. She shocked the political world last year, upsetting longtime New York Democrat Joe Crowley in the primary. Crowley had an inside track to become House Speaker or Democratic Leader. Today, people know more about Ocasio-Cortez than anyone ever knew about Crowley despite his two decades in Congress. It’s too early to assess Ocasio-Cortez’s staying power. Is she a game changer? Ask in a few years. America’s political coastline is flecked with the jetsam of flashes-in-the-pan, one-hit-wonders, and sundry political flameouts. And while Ocasio-Cortez is the star now, there is one certainty in politics offered up by the Eagles in their song “New Kid in Town” With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
02/01/2019 Lawmakers began working to avoid yet another government shutdown. Fox’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “The Speaker’s Lobby” … I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. House and Senate members are now meeting in a conference committee to try to avert a government shutdown and forge an agreement on border security. We’ve heard rattling around about the inclusion of DACA or immigration reform to help foster an accord. But Fox is told there is simply not enough time to mess with those nettlesome issues in this conference committee. A senior Congress source tells Fox quote…”Taking a complex issue which caused a 35 day shutdown and then combining it with another complex issue like immigration which the sides have never been able to agree on and resolving it magically here just won’t happen.. The most significant issue which could derail an agreement: Time. February 15th is the concrete deadline to fund the government. But in fact the true deadline is Sunday February 10th. That’s because the House now requires a full 72 hours before considering legislation. That would give the House just enough time to turn the bill around and pass it quickly, observing the three-day marker. Keep in mind, the measure must still go to the Senate. Time could snatch defeat from the jaws of victory here. “I’m not expecting a lot from this conference committee,” said one senior source. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/31/2019 Lawmakers began working to avoid yet another government shutdown. FOX’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “The Speaker’s Lobby” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. The linchpin to avoiding another government shutdown in mid-February is a House/Senate conference committee on border security. Either the sides work out a deal or there is a serious risk of a government shutdown again in a few weeks. A conference committee is a bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers appointed by leadership because of their expertise or areas of jurisdiction on a given issue, based on committee assignments. Here’s what prompts a conference committee: the House and Senate approve similar, but different versions of legislation. In other words, the House has a Poodle and the Senate has a Labrador Retriever. Both are canines. Put them together and you get a Labradoodle. But it’s still a dog. The key is similar but different bills from the House and Senate. The House can’t offer up a Homeland Security Appropriations bill and the Senate comes over with legislation about tribal fishing rights from the Committee on Indian Affairs. It could be like the House producing horse and the Senate coming up with cow. They don’t mix. But if both the House and Senate produce a dog breed, then they can go to a conference committee. The final legislation is a conference report, which the House and Senate must both again pass and send to the President for signature. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/30/2019 There might be some silver linings after the dark cloud of the government shutdown. FOX’s Chad Pergram with more in today’s “The Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. It is said that crises like the government shutdown sometimes create the opportunity to forge landmark agreements. Such was the case with the mid-1990s in the deadlock between President Clinton and House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Shutdowns sparked a major deal on federal spending and prompted welfare reform. The Administration and many Republicans think there are fissures in the Democratic ranks when it comes to border security or a wall. Consider the fact that Democrats now control the House because they won seats with moderate to conservative Democrats in battleground districts. Championing a wall is good politics for these members. But here’s the problem. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The government shutdown and stare down with President Trump only emboldened Democrats. It solidified the standing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with Democrats who were skeptical of her. The freshman House Democratic class is full of disruptors and upstarts, ready to crash the system. Rather than turning their attention on Pelosi and other “institutional problems,” the newcomers directed their ire on the President. The shutdown helped Pelosi keep Democrats together and channel energies against Mr. Trump. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/29/2019 The government has reopened, but for how long? FOX’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “The Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Does anyone really think we won’t be back here in three weeks, trying to avert another crisis and fund the government? If Mr. Trump agreed to re-open the government after achieving nothing and Republicans started taking the blame, why does the President think the matrix changes in mid-February? Democrats gave nothing. They have very little to lose in the next round. “I can’t imagine that (President Trump) is in any stronger position than he was” said Republican Florida Congressman Francis Rooney on FOX. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi lifted a trade of DACA for a wall off the table. What really could Democrats exchange? Comprehensive immigration reform? House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told FOX Democrats want to complete a DACA fix and approve comprehensive immigration reform. But Hoyer noted the conference committee doesn’t have to untangle those issues now. The Maryland Democrat said Congress can address them later. There’s a reason the government shut down in the fall of 1995 during an epic standoff between President Bill Clinton and House Speaker Newt Gingrich re-opened later, and then shut down again. The sides thought they were on a track to resolve their issues. But they weren’t. History could repeat itself. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/28/2019 Now that a record 35 day government shutdown is over, Congress has less than three weeks to come up with a new bill on border security. FOX’s Chad Pergram with today’s “The Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. What caused the tipping point to force a re-opening of the government? The two failed procedural Senate votes on a GOP and a Democratic spending plan. FOX is told that the White House was watching closely to see how many Republicans defected and voted for the Democratic package. One source noted that the administration didn’t read too much into the yea vote for the Democratic plan by Republican Utah Senator Mitt Romney, as he is perceived to be “an irritant.” However, one source tells FOX “it was almost a jailbreak.” Six Republicans crossed party lines to vote the Democratic plan. “(President Trump) will take short-term pain from the right-wing,” predicted one Republican source. “But he will be judged on the final product.” So, does the government again shut down again in three weeks? Consider one of the favorite expressions of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. “There is no education in the second kick of a mule.” By the same token, one Republican told FOX that if Democrats offer zero dollars for the wall at the beginning of talks and zero dollars at the end it’s not a negotiation. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/25/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram says the partial government shutdown has finally gotten real on today’s “Speaker’s Lobby”: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. We thought the government shutdown would get “real” after the first weekend back in December. Then we thought it would get it would get real after Christmas. Then we thought it would get real after New Year’s. Then we thought it would get real after the new Congress started. Then we thought it would get real after Democrats tapped Nancy Pelosi as House Speaker. And then we thought it would get real after government workers missed their first paycheck. Now federal workers are missing their second paycheck. And the shutdown is in fact, real. Something very important happened in the Senate Thursday to help in the government shutdown. And it’s counter-intuitive. The Senate failed, not once, but twice, to advance President Trump’s plan to end the shutdown and a Democratic effort to end the shutdown as well. Everyone knew what the result was before the vote. But you don’t schedule side by side votes like this in the Senate unless you know both plans will fail. So both failed, showing the Senate math doesn’t work. And now, the sides are talking. After five weeks, the government shutdown finally got real on Capitol Hill. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/24/2019 President Trump said he will not give his State of the Union address until the government shutdown ends following House Speaker Pelosi’s refusal to let the president use the House floor as a venue. Fox’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says President Trump isn’t invited to give his State of the Union message at the Capitol on January 29th. And the President can’t just roll up to the Capitol and demand to speak. For each state of the Union speech, the House and Senate approve a concurrent resolution. It authorizes the President to address both bodies during a Joint Session of Congress in the House chamber. Pelosi says the House won’t consider such a resolution until the government is open. But there is a House rule which allows the President to come to the House chamber if he wishes. House Rule IV states that “the hall of the house shall be used only for the legislative business of the House and for caucus and conference meetings of its Members, except when the House agrees to take part in any ceremonies to be observed therein.” Lawmakers are permitted in the House chamber as well as cabinet secretaries, foreign dignitaries and various Congressional officials such as the Architect of the Capitol and the Librarian of Congress. And the President of the United States. The President may not address the House without the adoption of the Concurrent resolution. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/23/2019 It is unclear if President Trump will give his State of the Union address next week. Fox’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Nothing will happen for State of the Union at the Capitol, unless both the House and Senate approve a Concurrent Resolution for a Joint Session of Congress in the House chamber on January 29th. The resolution authorizes use of the House chamber for the speech and permits the President to address Congress. Usually these resolutions are a fait accompli. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi invited the President, and then suggested they pick another date once the shutdown is resolved. Certainly it’s within Pelosi’s prerogative to rescind her invitation. But frankly, she doesn’t have to do anything. If the House and/or Senate don’t approve a concurrent resolution for the speech then, then the gig is up. Even if the measure were to move through the House, the resolution is subject to not one but two filibusters in the Senate. Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution allows the President to convene either chamber of Congress “on extraordinary occasions.” President Harry Truman called on Congress to meet in 1947 and 1948. But just because the President can do it, doesn’t mean he has the right to speak in the House chamber. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/22/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram discusses whether or not President Trump will deliver a State of the Union address on today’s Speaker’s Lobby: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. We’re not 100 percent sure yet whether President Trump will journey to Capitol Hill on January 29th to deliver his State of the Union message. That’s after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote to Mr. Trump, suggesting they delay the affair until the government’s was open. And then the President fired back, canceling her planned trip to visit troops in Afghanistan. One senior Congressional source involved in planning told Fox, “We are standing by to stand by.” Perhaps the only one who does know, it Nostra-Romo, CBS football color man Tony Romo, who seems prescient enough to predict every play on the field about 20 seconds before it happens. But if the State of the Union does happen, this State of the Union is likely to be the Super Bowl of politics. There has never been a more anticipated State of the Union speech than this one. There are now worries about the shutdown impacting the Super Bowl itself. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn brought up the issue in a meeting with other Democrats this past week. More than 100 million Americans regularly view the Super Bowl each winter. But if contretemps lingers between the President and the Speaker, this year’s State of the Union speech may rival the Super Bowl in the Nielsen ratings. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/19/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram breaks down the spread that was laid out for the national champion Clemson Tigers and what one New York Congressman is saying the president should have served on today’s ‘Speaker’s Lobby’: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. President Trump laid out quite a fast food spread for the national champion Clemson Tigers recently. With the government shutdown, the White House couldn’t cook for the team. So the President picked up the tab himself and served it all on silver platters, mid lit candelabra. It was a smorgasbord of Wendy’s. McDonald’s. Burger King. Pizza from Dominos. But absent from the White House fare? White Castle cheeseburgers. Republican New York Congressman Pete King took issue with the President, serving the Clemson players everything but sliders from White Castle. King declared it was “bad enough” that the President hosted Clemson at the White House, especially after they decimated Notre Dame in the semi-final game. King earned his law degree from Notre Dame. King blistered the President, saying, “As a fellow Queens guy, the President has to know that White Castle cheeseburgers are a gourmet’s delight.” King says that the White Castle on Queens Boulevard at 43rd Street..is practically a “Five Star” restaurant.” King claims that Mr. Trump missed a chance to “educate those guys from the South on what Queens sophisticates considered such a favorite delicacy.” With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/18/2019 FOX’s Chad Pergram discusses the charter bus full of Democratic Congressmen that was forced to turn around on Thursday on today’s “Speaker’s Lobby”: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. A group of Democratic members of Congress were trying make it to Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington, to talk to troops in Afghanistan. But they first had to board a US Air Force bus, across the the street from the Capitol, accompanied by a US Capitol Police escort… But as lawmakers went to board the bus, President Trump fired off a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The President called the trip a “public relations event” and directed the military against flying Pelosi and other Democratic lawmakers. Members of Congress sat on the bus as a fury of phone calls rattled around Washington between Capitol security officials, the Pentagon and the White House. The bus finally left, simply driving from the House office buildings, and back to the Capitol plaza. That’s where the lawmakers disembarked after a very short trip around Capitol Hill. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/17/2019 Will President Trump deliver the State of the Union on Jan. 29th? FOX’s Chad Pergram looks back at the history of the address in today’s ‘Speaker’s Lobby’: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. For State of the Union, Congress and news crews convert the House chamber into a massive sound stage for the biggest speech of the year, with all three branches of government packed into the same place. The Constitution says the President shall..from time to time, give Congress information on the State of the Union. The speech wasn’t requires. President George Washington delivered the address in person in New York. But Thomas Jefferson put a stop to that. It said that Jefferson was too shy to give speeches. And for the next 112 years, presidents submitted a written report to Congress. President Woodrow Wilson rejuvenated the practice of an in-person address, journeying to Capitol Hill. After FDR’s 1934 speech was the first broadcast on radio. Harry Truman’s 1947 speech, the first on television. President Lyndon Johnson delivered the first address in prime time in 1965. The State of the Union address is organic and that means change is inevitable. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/16/2019 Lawmakers are having a hard time compromising lately. Fox’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. The whole thing is built on compromise. The 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia produced a spate of compromises between delegates to forge the U.S. Constitution. There were compromises about allocation of House members versus the size of the Senate. They compromised, so the House was based on population. But every state, big or small has equal representation in the Senate. Then there’s the electoral college. Delegates to the Constitutional Convention differed as to whether voters should directly elect the President. Yet others worried some voters wouldn’t be wise enough to choose. Instead, they settled on a compromise. Citizens would cast their ballots for electors and then the electoral college would actually pick the President. So here we are, well into the fourth week of the longest government shutdown in history. No end in sight. If this is ever going to end, President Trump, alongside Congressional Democrats and Republicans, must compromise. The only way they can reach a compromise is with negotiation. There can be no compromise right now, because there is no negotiation. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/15/2019 Iowa Republican Congressman Steve King faces criticism for his comments on white supremacy and nationalism. However, Congress is split on how to respond. Fox’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Republican Iowa Congressman Steve King served on three committees in the previous Congress. The Agriculture Committee, the Small Business Committee, and the Judiciary Committee. But no more. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy is stripping King of his committee assignments after King expressed support for white supremacy and white nationalism. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn introduced a resolution of disapproval for King. But Democratic Illinois Congressman Bobby Rush wants to go a step further. He says the resolution is just a quote, ”slap on the wrist.” There are three formal modes of discipline in the House: reprimand, censure and expulsion. Rush wants the House to censure King. Rush says King quote, “doesn’t need to be warned. He needs to be punished for his racism. He has done this repeatedly over the years. I am tired of it.” The House has only censured 23 members in history. The last was former Democratic New York Congressman Charlie Rangel in the fall of 2010. King contends he’s done nothing wrong and says his remarks were quote, ”mischaracterized.” With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/14/2019 A new Congress means new committees. FOX’s Chad Pergram explains in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. It’s not unique for a new House majority to change the names of committees and subcommittees. Everyone knows about the spate of inquiries to be led by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler. A quest for the President’s tax returns by Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal. But how about House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel? Engel’s assembling a panel on oversight and investigations too. FOX is told there’s more interest in investigations than terrorism these days. Specifically the Trump Administration. The new panel will probe how the administration handled whistle blowers in the diplomatic community. It’s not rare to have such oversight panels. The Homeland Security, Natural Resources Committee, Science, Armed Services, Financial Services and Veterans Affairs Committees all feature oversight subcommittees. “What’s in a name?” asked William Shakespeare. When it comes to the names of committees on Capitol Hill, everything. And to determine the differences in priorities between Democrats and Republicans, look no further than the names of their Congressional committees. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/11/2019 Day 21 of the partial government shutdown, FOX’s Chad Pergram focuses on trying to get a deal done on today’s “Speaker’s Lobby”: I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. You never quite know who might be the key player to orchestrate the next big deal in Washington. Republican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham has long worked behind the scenes to try to engineer a bipartisan deal with fellow Senators to end the government shutdown. Among ideas Graham floated: more money for the border wall and then a DACA fix alongside other immigration proposals. Graham told Fox Thursday that he was working on a possible deal unilaterally because House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had “dealt herself out. She is a non-player.” Graham huddled earlier this week with Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin and then other GOP Senators like Susan Collins of Maine and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee. And then, the hammer fell. The President intervened, personally killing any efforts by the South Carolina Republican at a larger deal. Graham then declared, “I’ve never been more depressed about moving forward.” Graham said he supported Mr. Trump’s efforts to declare a national emergency to get the wall. “I hope it works,” said Graham. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, FOX News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/10/2019 Fox’s Chad Pergram talks about the freshman class of lawmakers in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. House Republicans relished a sideshow created when Democratic freshman Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib stole headlines about the government shutdown, she claimed House Democrats will impeach the President. Only, Tlaib used a much more vulgar term that that. Republicans liked the fact that Tlaib’s remark may help them define freshman Democrats. Many have heard of Democratic New York freshman Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She’s presented unvarnished liberalism. A push for a “new green deal” and higher taxes. That may work in the Bronx and other leftist bastions. But does the public know much about moderate freshmen Democrats who won in November? South Carolina’s Joe Cunningham? Utah’s Ben McAdams or Jared Golden from Maine? They all secured hard-fought wins in battleground districts. But you can bet that when it comes to the freshmen, people have heard of Ocasio-Cortez and now Tlaib. Their politics may resonate in Democratic strongholds. But the casual observer may perceive that the entire freshman Democratic class is full of nothing but borderline socialists and those who cuss out the President. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/09/2019 It was a raucous start to the 116th Congress. Fox’s Chad Pergram reports from today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. The 116th Congress began with prayer. It ended in profanity. Democratic Missouri Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, an ordained Methodist minister, opened the new Congress with a prayer from the House dais. He beseeched the House to “attempt to become architects of a kinder nation.” By nightfall, Democratic Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlai Tlaib captured more headlines than even fellow freshman New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Tlaib called the President of the United States a blankety-blank. Tlaib’s broadside against the President upset Cleaver. “There’s a fever among some that we need to impeach the President,” said Cleaver. The Missouri Democrat observed that Mr. Trump’s own harsh rhetoric “has created a new kind of climate in Washington.” He added that if Washington is to “heal the open sores infecting the entire country,” lawmakers will “have to rise above.” Otherwise, Cleaver says, “This makes the sore nastier and increases the likelihood of contagion.” And Cleaver worries that Tlaib may think that talk like that is okay in Congress. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/08/2019 Fox’s Chad Pergram talks about the latest freshman class of lawmakers in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. Congratulations, new members of the House and Senate. You are no longer Washington outsiders. You are now incumbents. Are you part of the “swamp?” The “deep state?” The “establishment?” Unclear. But you are most certainly now “inside the Beltway.” Most who come to Washington contend they won’t “go native.” There’s merit in that. But consider this quotation from Katharine Graham, the longtime publisher of the Washington Post: “When it comes to Washington, most people tend to think first of politics. But Washington is also a geographic and physical place. It is, for instance, one of the few cities in the world where you can talk endlessly about trees.” The House is host to a prodigiously large class. Such big classes are prone to greenhorn mistakes. Everything from minor stumbles to major scandals. And it’s hard for freshmen to get attention. Especially those not named New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. One surefire way to garner press? Just hours after you’re sworn-in, use a profane pronoun when referring to the President of the United States. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.
01/04/2019 California taking center stage in the House. Fox’s Chad Pergram has more in today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. It was a California kind of day on Capitol Hill to mark the first day of the new Congress. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California..defeated House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calfornia..for the top job in the House. McCarthy then introduced Pelosi and presented his Calfironia colleague with the gavel. They both spoke about President Reagan..a former California Governor..in their remarks. As Calfifornia Democrats escorted Pelosi into the House chamber..California Congressmen Juan Vargas, Mark Takano and Lou Correa all sang “California Here I Come.” On hand to see Pelosi retiun to the Speakership…Crooner Tony Bennett..best known for singing about Pelosi’s adopted hometown. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram, Fox News. Follow Chad on Twitter: @ChadPergram
01/03/2019 How will the Democrats run things after they take control of the House today? Fox’s Chad Pergram has today’s “Speaker’s Lobby.” I’m Chad Pergram with the Speaker’s Lobby. The House must approve new rules at the start of each Congress. This is a contrast to the Senate which operates on a set of “standing” rules and precedents, which rarely change. Democrats have some mew rules in store. The Education and Workforce Committee is now known as the Education and Labor Committee. When Republicans ran the House, they made a big deal of what they often described inaccurately as a “3 day rule” for legislation to be available before it was up for a vote. But the GOP provision was really a PARTS of 3 days rule. Democrats will require most bills be posted a solid 72 hours before hitting the floor. The House has barred members from wearing hats in the chamber since the early 19th Century. But the new House rule allows head wear for religious reasons. The House will still ban Democratic Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson from wearing her signature cowboy hat on the floor. It’s just a fashion statement. Minnesota’s Ilhan Omar, one of two freshmen Muslim female members, will be permitted to don a hijab or scarf. With the Speaker’s Lobby, Chad Pergram. Fox News.