Congress Overrides Bush Veto

Congress may unite to hand him first override of his presidency

(NEWSER) - President Bush is gearing up for another battle with Congress, but his latest fray could result in the first overriding of one of his vetoes, the Washington Post reports. His rejection yesterday of the water resources bill, popular with Democrats and Republicans, is a gamble because it may endear him to fiscal conservatives but erode his authority on Capitol Hill. More»

New Dems from VA, NM, CO likely

(NEWSER) - The GOP's best case-scenario sees the party losing only three Senate seats this fall. Washington Post blogger Chris Cillizza runs down the races most likely to flip a vote:

10. Mississippi: Trent Lott replacement Roger Wicker has never been elected statewide, and Barack Obama's coattails should draw in the large black population.

9. Minnesota: Al Franken remains promising, but he's no sure thing, thanks to back taxes and Playboy bylines.

Prez will promote stimulus plan, Iraq war in tonight's talk

(NEWSER) - President Bush will slam Democratic spending in favor of his own multi-billion-dollar proposals in his last State of the Union speech, scheduled for 6 p.m. EST tonight. He plans to promote his $150 billion stimulus package, and reiterate the need to fight in Iraq—recently valued at another $108 billion—while demanding an $18 billion cut in domestic plans and threatening to veto bills that don't slash pork-barrel projects by 50%, Politico reports. More»

Rejection is first of presidency; Senate likely to follow suit

(NEWSER) - The House overrode a presidential veto tonight for the first time in the Bush administration, with 138 Republicans crossing party lines to support a $23 billion water-resources bill. The 361-54 vote was far more than the two-thirds needed to override, reflecting the popularity on both sides of the aisle of legislation loaded with pet projects, the Washington Post reports. The Senate is likely to pass its own override, possibly as soon as today. More»

Senators launch PR offensive in run-up to crucial vote

(NEWSER) - This week's debate over the immigration bill, which is headed for a nail-bitingly close Senate vote, started on the Sunday talk shows. The improbable coalition behind the legislation—which President Bush supports—faces a tough job, Jeff Sessions made clear. The Alabama Republican vowed to "use every effort to slow this process down and continue to hold up the bill." More»