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Toula Vlahou

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Congress is due to return from August recess on Sept. 9.  (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Congress returns for a bleak fall session

By Katherine Tully-McManus, Micaela Rodríguez, Niels Lesniewski, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted September 6, 2019 at 11:05am
Dan McCready, the Democratic candidate in North Carolina’s 9th District, campaigns in Pembroke, N.C., on Aug. 10. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

In our podcast, we’re gone to Carolina

By Jason Dick, Micaela Rodríguez, Nathan L. Gonzales, Simone Pathé and Toula Vlahou
Posted September 4, 2019 at 11:24am
Barriers at the Rio Grande Valley sector of the border. (Photo by Jinitzail Hernández/CQ Roll Call)

Friction over diverted disaster aid ahead of Hurricane Dorian

By David Lerman, Evan Campbell, Tanvi Misra and Toula Vlahou
Posted September 3, 2019 at 10:28am
People gather at a makeshift memorial honoring victims outside Walmart, near the scene of a mass shooting which left at least 22 people dead, on August 7, 2019, in El Paso, Texas. A 21-year-old white male suspect remains in custody in El Paso which sits along the U.S.-Mexico border. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Democrats weighing new gun legislation in wake of mass shootings

By Lindsey McPherson, Micaela Rodríguez, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted August 30, 2019 at 5:04pm
Google is under pressure to change its corporate culture. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images file photo)

Google under pressure from Congress, activists, shareholders

By Laura Weiss, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted August 16, 2019 at 11:17am
A demonstrator holds a sign on the East Front of the Capitol during the student-led March for Our Lives rally on Pennsylvania Avenue to call for action to prevent gun violence in March 2018. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

What lawmakers can do about gun violence, and helping black families save ancestral lands

By Ellyn Ferguson, Micaela Rodríguez and Toula Vlahou
Posted August 9, 2019 at 9:21am
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.,  announces at an Aug. 1, 2019 press conference that Senate Democrats will push to repeal a Treasury Department and IRS rule, which goes into effect Aug. 11, 2019. (Caroline Brehman/CQ Roll Call)

Two tax battles await Congress in September

By David Lerman, Peter Cohn and Toula Vlahou
Posted August 5, 2019 at 3:28pm
Boxes containing President Donald Trump’s budget request for fiscal year 2019 are unpacked by staff in the House Budget Committee hearing room on Monday morning, Feb. 12, 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

What the two-year budget deal means for federal spending

By David Lerman, Meredith Roaten, Micaela Rodríguez, Paul M. Krawzak and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 29, 2019 at 4:06pm
Signage for 5G technology is displayed at the Intel booth during CES 2018 at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)

Why the US is behind in the 5G race

By Gopal Ratnam, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 26, 2019 at 11:12am
The Trump administration has has made clear that the Pentagon is boosting its cyber operations — both defensive and, increasingly, offensive. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Did the Pentagon weaponize ticks?

By John M. Donnelly, Micaela Rodríguez, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 19, 2019 at 3:03pm
Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid speaks with CQ Roll Call about Nevada politics, the presidential race and baseball in his office at the Bellagio in Las Vegas on July 2. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Harry Reid in winter: Still grappling, and dabbling, in politics

By Jason Dick, Niels Lesniewski and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 10, 2019 at 11:35am
President Donald Trump announced that no new tariffs will be imposed on Chinese imports during the U.S.-China trade talks. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Assessing the trade talks with China

By Ellyn Ferguson, Mark Bocchetti and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 5, 2019 at 12:24pm
“Mike Wallace Is Here” documents the career of the legendary journalist — as well as his role in creating the political and news world we live in now. (Bryan Bedder/Getty Images file photo)

‘Mike Wallace Is Here’ shows how we got here

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 3, 2019 at 12:05pm
Rep. Tom Graves, R-Ga., succeeded in passing a Motion to Recommit that supported sanctions against Iran. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Financial Services bill loaded with hot-button issues may signal trouble ahead

By David Lerman, Jim Saksa and Toula Vlahou
Posted July 1, 2019 at 11:31am
Protesters hold signs at a rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, which on June 27, 2019 blocked a citizenship question from being added to the 2020 census. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

How the GOP won by losing on census citizenship question

By Michael Macagnone, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 28, 2019 at 2:12pm
The GOP primary runoff in North Carolina’s 3rd District has become somewhat of a proxy war between House Freedom Caucus leaders Mark Meadows, left, and Jim Jordan, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Field notes from a North Carolina runoff and a reparations hearing

By Clyde McGrady, Jason Dick, Simone Pathé and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 26, 2019 at 3:57pm
Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., who wants to extend fully refundable child tax credit to lower-income households, has long complained that the GOP's quick passage of the 2017 tax overhaul led to errors. (Caroline Brehman/CQ Roll Call)

The Democrats’ tax package explained

By David Lerman, Doug Sword and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 24, 2019 at 3:39pm
Senate Armed Services Chairman James M. Inhofe and ranking member Jack Reed have a warm relationship that enables them to move bipartisan legislation, something Inhofe discusses in the latest Political Theater podcast. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

James Inhofe and the art of the bipartisan joke

By Jason Dick, Niels Lesniewski and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 19, 2019 at 2:39pm
Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., referred to some GOP colleagues as "sex starved males" on the House floor, setting off a brief spat. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Abortion threatens congressional impasse on funding

By Sandhya Raman, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 14, 2019 at 1:07pm
Beto O’Rourke’s campaign for Senate in Texas provided plenty of fodder, warts and all, for David Modigliani’s ‘Running with Beto’ documentary on HBO. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

‘Running with Beto’: The offstage version of Beto O’Rourke

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 12, 2019 at 12:08pm
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., says he'd like to have all 12 spending bills done by the end of June. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Democrats’ Spending Bill Strategy

By David Lerman, Jennifer Shutt and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 10, 2019 at 12:17pm
Former Navy Secretary Raymond Mabus, Jr., urges Congress to address climate change. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Trump denies climate change as his Pentagon prepares for it

By Benjamin J. Hulac, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 7, 2019 at 9:44am
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has his own way of doing things, to the consternation of his political foes. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Why the Grim Reaper thing works for Mitch McConnell

By Jason Dick, Niels Lesniewski and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 5, 2019 at 6:27pm
Keith Hall, the former director of the Congressional Budget Office, wants Congress to deal with the rising deficit and faulted the process Republicans followed to repeal Obamacare. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Ex-CBO director knocks GOP on Obamacare and Congress for rising deficits

By David Lerman, Paul M. Krawzak and Toula Vlahou
Posted June 3, 2019 at 3:23pm
Speaker Nancy Pelosi has cautioned her caucus that rushing into starting impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump could derail the party’s agenda in the House. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Here’s what House Democrats are saying about impeaching Trump

By Shawn Zeller, Simone Pathé and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 24, 2019 at 10:45am
Air Force One arrives with President Donald Trump for a rally in Montoursville, Pa., on May 20. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Get used to talking about Pennsylvania

By Jason Dick, John T. Bennett, Simone Pathé and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 22, 2019 at 5:47pm
U.S. Marine Corps F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters from Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla. fly off the coast of Northwest Fla. May 15, 2013, off the coast of Northwest Florida. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen/Released)

Taliban money and fighter jets at issue in Pentagon’s $690 billion bill

By David Lerman, John M. Donnelly and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 20, 2019 at 1:41pm
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence (L) shakes hands with Carlos Vecchio (3rd L), a representative of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, outside the West Wing of the White House after a meeting January 29, 2019, in Washington, DC. The Trump Administration has imposed sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil company in order to put pressure on President Nicolas Maduro to give up his power and step down. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Lawmakers seek solutions in Venezuela, Iran

By Rachel Oswald, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 17, 2019 at 3:04pm
The Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, center left, with Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil-rights protesters in the 1960s.(Courtesy O’Malley Creadon Productions)

Movie night: The Catholic priest who shepherded civil rights

By Mike Magner and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 14, 2019 at 4:28pm
U.S. and Chinese flags on a table during a meeting of military leaders in 2014. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi will meet on Saturday in Japan as the U.S. leader tries to revive trade talks and a tariff battle. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Mikki L. Sprenkle/Released)

Higher tariffs on Chinese goods spark call for Congress to intervene

By Ellyn Ferguson, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 10, 2019 at 7:20am
The Washington Monument can be seen as traffic travels over the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge April 13, 2015. The bridge is one of 61,000 bridges across America that the Department of Transportation said were structurally deficient and in need of repair. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Why Trump, Chuck and Nancy face huge hurdles in infrastructure spending plan

By David Lerman, Peter Cohn and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 6, 2019 at 12:51pm
Former Vice President Joe Biden has been trashing the Republican tax cuts, but the jobs report throws a wrench in his plans, Winston writes. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Why Democrats haven’t passed a minimum wage bill

By Lindsey McPherson, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 3, 2019 at 1:21pm
Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Kamala Harris, D-Calif., both candidates for the 2020 presidential race, got their chance to question Attorney General William Barr about the Mueller report. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

No holds Barr as Democrats grill attorney general

By Jason Dick, Niels Lesniewski and Toula Vlahou
Posted May 1, 2019 at 6:12pm
Political Theater host Jason Dick discusses the documentary "Knock Down the House" with director Rachel Lears, middle, and Amy Vilela. (Nathan Ouellette/CQ Roll Call)

Movie Night: “Knock Down the House”

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted April 30, 2019 at 5:58pm
President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence arrive to the Capitol to attend the Senate Republican policy luncheons on Jan. 9, 2019. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

The GOP’s 2020 agenda, or lack thereof

By Jonathan Miller, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted April 26, 2019 at 2:34pm
Former Vice President Joe Biden, right, and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., left, (seen here at a swearing-in ceremony in the Capitol's Old Senate Chamber, January 03, 2017, with Harris' husband Douglas Emhoff) are vying for the Democratic presidential nomination. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Why a crowded 2020 ‘knife fight’ is good for Democrats

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted April 24, 2019 at 2:05pm
Setting sun hits the U.S. Capitol dome. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

How Congress helps companies hire foreign workers over Americans

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted April 5, 2019 at 3:28pm
Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Dean Phillips, D-Minn., attend a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing  on Feb. 13, 2019. Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call

Two Takes on Rep. Omar, Democrats and Israel

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted March 8, 2019 at 3:44pm
Protesters rally in the Hart Senate Office Building atrium in support of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford as she testifies on the sexual assault by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, Thursday Sept. 27, 2018. (Photo By Sarah Silbiger/CQ Roll Call)

#MeToo reconsidered: One feminist on equalizing campus sexual assault rules

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted February 8, 2019 at 12:13pm
Former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., talks about how to get things right out of the gate in your first year in Congress on Roll Call’s Political Theater podcast. (Thomas McKinless/CQ Roll Call).

Congress for newbies: practical advice from a pro

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted January 9, 2019 at 12:48pm
Chris Brummer (right), a Georgetown Law professor and faculty director of the Institute of International Economic Law, talks to the CQ on Congress podcast host Shawn Zeller (left) at CQ Roll Call's studio  Jan. 8, 2019. (Photo by Nathan Ouellette/CQ Roll Call)

EU to move first on crypto rules. Will US follow?

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted January 8, 2019 at 9:17pm
Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., walks up the House steps with his daughter Ellie for a vote in the Capitol on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2017. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Pelosi’s Concessions Will Change the Way Laws Are Made

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted December 7, 2018 at 2:18pm
Fox News chairman Roger Ailes walks with his wife Elizabeth Tilson as they leave the News Corp building, July 19, 2016 in New York City. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Roger Ailes ‘Was Never Sorry About Anything’

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted December 5, 2018 at 11:04am
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., leaves the CVC Auditorium during a break in the House Democrats’ organizational caucus meetings on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Pelosi Wins First Round Against Dissidents

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted November 30, 2018 at 1:01pm
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi takes the podium before speaking during an election watch party at the Hyatt Regency in Washington, D.C. Pelosi is seeking another bid for the speakership. (Zach Gibson/Getty Images)

Why Nancy Pelosi Won’t Back Down

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted November 16, 2018 at 9:47am
A 2013 congressional delegation trip to Azerbaijan has resulted in an indictment being handed down to the head of the nonprofit, whom the government alleges concealed the source of funding for the journey. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Committee Charged With Overhauling Budget Process Nears Deadline

By Jennifer Shutt and Toula Vlahou
Posted November 5, 2018 at 9:42am
Shannon Bream, host of Fox News @ Night, speaks with CQ Magazine Deputy Editor Shawn Zeller during a recording of the "CQ on Congress" podcast. (Photo by D.A. Banks/CQ Roll Call).

Fox News’ Shannon Bream on the Record

By D.A. Banks, Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted November 2, 2018 at 11:30am
Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate from Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke joins Willie Nelson on stage during his Turn out For Texas Rally, featuring a concert by Wille Nelson, in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Will the Lone Stars Align for Beto O’Rourke in Texas Senate Race?

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted October 17, 2018 at 2:58pm

Congressional Staffers Speak Out

By Shawn Zeller and Toula Vlahou
Posted October 12, 2018 at 3:02pm
Matt Bai, left, Jay Carson, center, and Jason Dick discuss “The Front Runner,” the film about Gary Hart that Bai and Carson co-wrote with director Jason Reitman. (Margaret Spencer/CQ Roll Call)

What ‘The Front Runner’ Says About Today’s Politics

By Jason Dick and Toula Vlahou
Posted October 10, 2018 at 10:22am