The federal government employs more than 2 million civilian employees and 1.4 million active duty military service members who do not get paid during a government shutdown. But members of Congress, who make $174,000 a year, continue receiving their regular salary.  That’s because Congress members’ compensation is written directly into the Constitution.  Congressional leadership earns…

A new Monmouth University poll found that a plurality of Americans, 43%,  would blame congressional Republicans if there’s a government shutdown. Additionally the poll found that 27% would blame President Biden while 21% would blame congressional Democrats.  Respondents said they want Congress members to compromise in order to avoid a shutdown rather than stick to…

New Jersey junior Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., called on senior Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., to step down in the wake of an indictment on bribery and corruption charges. Booker said he found the allegations to be specific and disturbing, and added that stepping down is best for the people of New Jersey.  “Stepping down is not…

Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., made his first public remarks since being indicted on federal bribery and corruption charges. Menendez said he believes he’ll be exonerated and remain New Jersey’s senior senator.  Menendez is accused of accepting bribes in exchange for using his Senate seat to help associates and friends. According to the indictment, federal agents…

Calls for Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) to resign have grown since being indicted on federal charges of bribery on Friday, Sept. 22. The indictment accused Menendez and his wife, Nadine Menendez, of participating in a “years-long” bribery scheme with three New Jersey businessmen. Since the indictment, members from both political parties have called for Menendez…

Efforts to approve military and government funding are at a standstill in Congress. The House failed to approve the rules for debate on a bill to fund the military twice — lawmakers didn’t even get to the final vote.  A small group of the chamber’s most conservative Republicans banned together to stop the bill from…

The Senate approved three key military nominees that had been held up by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., in overwhelmingly bipartisan votes. That means Gen. Eric Smith is the new Marine Corps commandant, Gen. Randy George is now chief of staff of the Army, and Air Force Gen. Charles Brown will become chairman of the Joint…

The Senate voted to confirm Gen. Charles Q. Brown to replace Gen. Mark Milley as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on On Wednesday, Sept. 21. This comes as hundreds of military promotions have been blocked by freshman Sen. Tommy Tuberville (AL-R) over the Pentagon’s abortion policy. Gen. Milley’s four-year term as chairman…

The Biden administration is granting temporary legal status to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan migrants. And Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit Washington D.C. as Congress debates more funding for Ukraine. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Sept. 21, 2023. White House granting temporary legal status to nearly 500,000 Venezuelan migrants The Biden administration is offering…

According to NASA, an asteroid that passes by every six years could collide with Earth years from now. The asteroid, dubbed Bennu, was first discovered by scientists in 1999, when the flying space rock had its first documented close call with Earth. Since its discovery, Bennu has had three other close calls with Earth, in…