Washington Federal Brief

Exit polling showed a backlash against Trump's immigration sweeps, especially in Texas, where Democrats won every statewide race and gained a majority...

As of Thursday evening, Democrat Scott Colom led Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith by about 1,800 votes out of roughly 952,000 cast, with thousands of mail-in and...

The administration's scorecard lists 127 promises it says were kept and claims the "most sweeping restoration" of American sovereignty. The headline...

ACF is trimming administrative rules on two fronts, though only one change is final.

• Child support: A final rule removes 25 regulatory sections,...

Gun-rights advocate Alan Gottlieb expects both a sales surge and new gun-control legislation after Democratic midterm gains.

• Sales spike: Gottlieb...

Incoming Democratic leaders are signaling an aggressive oversight push, though they emphasize different tools.

• Gavel and subpoenas: Rep. Teresa...

Democrats are positioned to control both chambers, but the election alone does not change the administration's alternative pay plan. The new...

Democrats won control of both chambers, and healthcare costs are a major concern, with average employer family premiums up 5% in a KFF survey....

Americans view eight of 12 federal agencies more favorably than unfavorably, according to a Pew survey fielded Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, 2026.

• Shared...

The order argues that many conditions affecting women have received less research and clinical attention, and lists areas needing more work, from...

A conservative columnist argues that divided government can act as a safeguard. Quoting Stan Evans, he says gridlock is the next best thing to having...

Democrats won control of both houses of Congress, with voter anger over high prices, corruption and data centers helping drive the results. Activists...

Federal agencies warn that hackers are targeting refrigeration systems, where tampering can spoil food and create fire hazards.

• Possible effects:...

Richard Neal won his 20th term with about 65% of the general election vote, a much wider margin than his closest-ever primary. As Democrats appeared...

The White House Council on Environmental Quality has updated its Categorical Exclusion Explorer, a searchable database of federal agencies' NEPA...

Rep. Jared Golden, writing in a reposted column, presents the Congressional Budget Reform Act of 2026 as a proposal to address debt and the budget...

Housing changes are expected after the midterms as Democrats gain control of both chambers, though several Senate and House races remain undecided....

In this interview from the Potomac Institute's own Regents in Conversation series, co-founder Tim Sample describes how the Institute emerged to...

Forty years after Reagan signed IRCA, one commentary argues its amnesty-for-enforcement deal was betrayed. The author says the problem was not the...

Overall turnout was high, the second-highest midterm rate since 1914 according to political scientist Michael McDonald. But the total alone hides how...