House Approval of Protect Taiwan Act Raises Financial Stakes for Beijing, Analysts Say

The U.S. Capitol building in Washington on Feb. 4, 2026. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continues to escalate its military threats against Taiwan, the House of Representatives on Feb. 9 raised the economic stakes for Beijing. In a bipartisan vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the PROTECT Taiwan Act,

Billy Long calls Iceland ‘52nd state’ joke ‘totally inappropriate’

Former Rep. Billy Long apologized to lawmakers for a private joke he made to former House colleagues saying Iceland would be the “52nd state” with him as its governor. Appearing Thursday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, President Donald Trump’s pick to serve as ambassador to the Arctic nation moved to clean up a diplomatic

Trump State Dept. nominee says he won’t stop posting on social media

President Donald Trump’s nominee for a high-ranking State Department post told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday he will not stop making posts and statements as he waits for congressional confirmation. Members from both parties on the committee grilled Jeremy Carl, who the White House tapped to serve as assistant secretary of state for

Speaker Johnson: Not ‘appropriate’ for DOJ to track members Epstein files searches

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Thursday that it is not “appropriate” for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to track the searches of members of Congress viewing unredacted Jeffrey Epstein files, adding that he guessed any such surveillance was an “oversight.” “My understanding is that there are computers set up where the DOJ was allowing access…

GOP rep: ‘Why should you ban ICE from being at polling places?’

Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) on Thursday questioned why Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would be banned from polling places ahead of midterm elections. “Why should you ban ICE from being at polling places? Because illegals aren’t supposed to vote in this America,” Smith said during an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “I mean, like, it…

Nancy Mace on unredacted names in Epstein files: ‘You would be shocked’

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) on Wednesday said people would be “shocked” by the names that have been redacted from files tied to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that were publicly released on Jan. 30. Her comments come after lawmakers were given the opportunity to review the unredacted files in a reading room at the Department…