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On a Saturday night in Lewiston, Maine, in the fall 0f 1973, a first-term Republican was seeking a moment of refuge from congressional duties. But during the intermission of the hockey game Rep. William Cohen was watching, a local reporter showed up to ask about the resignation of the United States attorney general. After realizing the news was true, Cohen also realized something else: that his life in Congress, and the nations history, were about to take a sharp turn.

I knew at that moment that this was going to be one of the most serious challenges I, and the nation, would ever face, Cohen recalled of Richard M. Nixons Saturday Night Massacre in an interview this week.

Long before he became the secretary of defense, well before his 18 years in the Senate, Cohen was a 33-year-old freshman on the House Judiciary Committee grappling with the impeachment of President Richard M. Nixon. Cohen believes that todays members of Congress must dedicate themselves in similar fashion to the task of learning what happened in the 2016 election and whether any crimes, or high crimes, were committed by Donald Trumps campaign with Russian operatives.

You have a higher duty, said Cohen, who was one of just seven Republicans to cast votes supporting Nixons impeachment. Just follow the facts.

As a senator in the late 1980s, Cohen served on the committee that investigated the Iran-contra scandal, co-authoring a book, Men of Zeal, with his fellow senator from Maine, George Mitchell (D), who also served on the panel.

One of their lessons, rejecting an idea some are calling for today, was that it was a mistake to create a select Iran-contra committee with members of the House and Senate. They come from very different cultures and traditions, Cohen said.

Mitchell and Cohen discovered the power of the cult of personality in the infancy of cable news coverage of major congressional investigations. Their star witness, Oliver North, the National Security Council aide who helped orchestrate arms sales to Iran, turned himself into a conservative icon with testimony that was built on showmanship.

With Oliver North, Cohen and Mitchell wrote, television had a torrid love affair.

How dangerous are the cracks emerging in Trumps wall of support?

Fast forward 30 years, when a different personality rode his love affair with mass communications, from cable TV to social media, all the way to the White House. The single biggest difference between the Nixon impeachment and todays environment, according to Cohen, is how social media has devalued major TV personalities and news organizations in delivering important messages to the public.

We still believed in Uncle Walter, Cohen said, referring to the legendary CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite. That no longer exists. The Twitter world has changed that, and the president has changed that.

The three-term senator from Maine, who now runs an international lobbying and consulting firm, believes it is too soon to talk about an impeachment trial for Trump. He said that the special counsel appointment of Robert S. Mueller III was critical because the former FBI director has such credibility among Republicans and Democrats giving Mueller a dual role of leading the investigation and also reassuring the public that it is a credible probe.

(Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

Cohen backed several other Republicans in last years GOP primary and eventually endorsed Democrat Hillary Clinton, refusing to support Trump the moment he attacked the war-hero credentials of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) early in the campaign. Cohen served in McCains and his wife Cindys wedding party.

Surviving West Wing constitutional crises often requires major course corrections sometimes on policy, sometimes on personnel, sometimes both. Before the Iran-contra hearings began in 1987, President Ronald Reagan delivered a prime-time speech admitting some mistakes. He also orchestrated a major staff shake-up.

Reagan made changes and he accepted responsibility, Cohen said.

Todays investigations are rooted in the House and Senate intelligence committees, panels that were created in Watergates wake. There were early signs of sharp partisanship, but each panel remains optimistic about meeting the challenge.

There are members in both parties and both houses who will follow the facts. Right now we dont know where the facts are going to lead, said Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), a longtime friend of Cohen. King was a Democratic staffer in the Senate during Watergate and now serves on the Intelligence Committee.

I dont think you can say that things have changed so much that there arent thoughtful, serious, responsible people. There are such people, he said.

Believe it or not, Senates Russia investigation is moving faster than its Watergate counterpart 44 years ago

Cohen recalls key impeachment meetings as if they took place last month. The fight over securing the secret tapes of Nixons White House discussions served as his breaking point. A senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee asked for a show of hands who would join their partisan stand opposing Democratic requests for a letter demanding the full tapes.

I left the room, Cohen said.

He called the chairman, Peter Rodino (D-N.J.), and began negotiating with Democrats, culminating in a meeting with two southern conservative Democrats and a handful of Republicans.

They formed the critical bloc that would determine Nixons fate. Over coffee and bagels, Rep. Walter Flowers (D-Ala.) told the group they needed to shake things up and not leave until they settled on which articles of impeachment they would support.

Two articles won the backing of the group, the two that passed on 27-to-11 votes in committee in late July 1974. Less than two weeks later, Nixon resigned.

Throughout 1974, conservatives in northern Maine backed away from Cohen as a traitor, making his general election against a Democrat who had been a prisoner of war in Vietnam seem like a lost cause. I started to get lots of hate mail, he said, believing his career would likely end after a single term. I was planning on not coming back.

Once Nixon resigned, Republicans rallied around Cohen, as did most independents. He won in a landslide and went on to the Senate in 1979 and the Pentagon in 1997.

While others have lost faith entirely in Congress, Cohen still has faith in people like King. Theyll do the right thing.

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Echoes of 1973: One longtime Republican lawmaker recalls the challenge of bucking his own party's president - Washington Post

Sen. Lamar Alexander has found himself in an uncommon position for most Republicans this year: Trying to save the shaky insurance markets created by the 2010 health care lawbefore attending to a major overhaul of the law.

The opinions of the Tennessees senior senator carry significant weight among his colleagues. He is a close confidant of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and also chairs the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

And while Alexander has been a near constant critic of former President Barack Obamas signature domestic achievement, he is now one of the leading voices in the chamber for saving it, at least for 2018 and 2019.

We might have to do some things and authorize some things in those two years that we wouldnt do long-term, he saidlast week. And then in 2020, we would hope to have our long-term solution for the people that dont have the insurance.

Republicans are employing a budget tool known as reconciliation to push forward legislation to repeal large portions of the law. The method requires only a simple majority to pass the Senate. That means the GOP, which holds 52 seats in the chamber, can advancethe measure with only Republican support. The House passed its own repeal bill earlier this month in a narrow 217-213 vote.

But now, Alexander is trying to sell his colleagues on a two-step process that includes using the fiscal 2017 reconciliation instructions to pass short-term market stabilization measures, effectively delaying any major repeal efforts. He recognizes, however, that obtaining support for such an approach could be an uphill battle.

Theres a strong bias towards taking both steps at the one time because the urgency of what might happen in 2018 and 2019 gives us an incentive to pass the long-term plan, too, he said. We need to do something immediately to help the 2018 and 19, but I hope its connected to a long-term solution.

A GOP aide said this years reconciliation measure is being looked at for several purposes outside of strictly repealing the health care law, including stabilizing the insurance markets and putting Medicaid on a budget.

Such a move would have a dramatic impact on the GOPs legislative agenda and could be a tough sell among some members of the conference. Passing a package of stabilization measures would require Republicans to essentially support, at least in the short term, a law members spent the past seven years criticizing. It could also make a tax overhaul, the next major legislative item on the GOP agenda, more difficult and push some substantial work on health care until an election year, a notoriously difficult time for passing major legislation.

Some members, however, expressed early support forthe proposal.

It sounds like a pretty decent idea. If we are going to lower premiums, we better start soon, Louisiana GOP Sen. Bill Cassidysaid. Its more important to get it right than to get it sooner, so I just want to get it right because theres a lot of lives at stake.

Several GOP members said they would need to see more details on what exactly would be proposed.

Hes looking for ideas that make the transition work. So the idea is to transition from what we have to repeal and replace, North Dakota Sen. John Hoevensaid. Were working on a number of different ways to make transition.

The topic has come up during semiweeklymeetings of a health care working group initially charged with writing the bill. GOP lawmakers leaving a meeting last week said the group was looking at legislative solutions, as well as actions that can be taken unilaterally by the executive branch.

This is merely a short-term stabilization. Weve got to do that because those markets are collapsing, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnsonsaid. Then, I think, weve got to take a look at what the long term is.

Johnson has been discussing a two-part strategy of stabilize and repeal as well.

I dont think we are going to be able to come to a conclusion quickly enough to stabilize these markets, he said Tuesday, acknowledging the tricky politics of shoring up the exchanges created by a law the GOP has excoriated for years. The way you sell it to members is [to] get the reality out on the table, that premiums arent going up because of Republicans. Premiums are going up because Obamacare is collapsing these markets.

While Alexander did not provide many specifics on what exactly he would propose as part of the stabilization efforts, he suggested funding in 2018 and 2019 the laws so-called cost-sharing subsidies, which help lower out-of-pocket costs for lower income individuals, as an initial step.

The Trump administration on Monday asked for another 90-day delay in a case brought by the House of Representatives in 2014 against the Obama administration that questioned the constitutionality of those payments. Insurance companies have expressed their dismay at the lack of clarity regarding the payments, which they need to understand in order to formulate insurance policies.

Alexander has also been pushing a bill he sponsored along with fellow Tennessee RepublicanBob Corkerthat would allow individuals in counties with no insurer on the individual market to use the laws tax credits on noncompliant plans.

Erin Mershon contributed to this report.

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Republican Senator Seeks to Save Obamacare Before Dismantling It - Roll Call

Former Miami Dade School Board member Raquel Regalado announced her candidacy for outgoing Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinensseat in Florida's 27th Congressional District in 2018.

Ros-Lehtinen announced she would not seek re-electionlast month, creating an opening for Democrats to pick up a seat in a district that voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton in 2016.

But Regalado, who calls herself a compassionate Republican, told the Miami Herald she thinks she is the type of moderate who could hold onto the district.

I think the majority of people believe it will be better to have a Republican in the room than a Democrat out in the hall, Regalado said.

Regalado campaigned for Democratic candidate Alex Sink for governor in 2010 as opposed to Republican Gov. Rick Scott, and neither shenor her father voted for President Donald Trump.

Im a moderate voice and Im not shying away from that,she said.

Regalado is the daughter of Miami Mayor Tomas Pedro Regalado and has two children on the autism spectrum.

We need to find jobs and opportunities for autistic adults after the age of 22, and I can do that work in Washington, she said.

So far Miami Dade Commissioner Bruno Barriero is the only other Republican to announce his candidacy, but Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera is also a potential candidate.

Democratic candidates include businessman Scott Fuhrman, who lost to Ros-Lehtinen last year, Michael A. Hepburn, Mark Anthony Person, and Miami Beach CommissionerKristen Rosen Gonzalez.

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'Compassionate Republican' Announces Run for Ros-Lehtinen's Seat - Roll Call

BY LINDSEY MCPHERSON AND JOE WILLIAMS

Republican leaders are applying a lesson learned from health care to the tax overhaul debate: build consensus before releasing a bill.

Its no secret that the House, Senate and White House are not on the same page on a tax overhaul. But GOP leaders are now more openly acknowledging those divisions as they work toward a goal of a unified plan.

Theres been a commitment thats made to try and come up with one bill, which would be helpful, said Illinois Rep. Peter Roskam, the chairman of the Ways and Means Tax Policy Subcommittee. He saidthe goal is for the House tax-writing panel to produce a bill the White House and Senate can both support: Thats really what were driving towards.

While Republicans have pushed for a repeal of the 2010 health care law for seven years, for many members, an overhaul of the tax code has been a dream for longer than that. But the major divisions between the two chambers and the White House could impede progress on President Donald Trump and Speaker Paul D. Ryans top domestic policy priority.

To that end, the timeline for a tax overhaul has already slipped from a goal of by August to the end of 2017. It is unlikely a tax package would be taken up until Congress resolves the effort to repeal and replace the health care law, a continuously moving target.

Lawmakers in both chambers have even cautioned that a tax overhaul could slip into 2018. Should that happen, the GOP faces the possibility of trying to push a major policy initiative in a critical election year.

One of the major roadblocks is the border adjustment tax, or BAT,a key component of the House plan. The BAT, which, as proposed, would impose a 20 percent tax on imports but exempt exports, is among the topics tobe debated during the Ways and Means Committees tax hearing Tuesday on increasing U.S. competitiveness and preventing jobs from moving overseas.

Ryan and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady have been pushing the BAT hard, but its gained far more opponents than proponents on the Hill. And in a surprise admission last week, Ryan acknowledged that Republicans are discussing alternatives to the BAT.

You have to weigh alternatives off one another, the speakersaid, cautioning that those alternatives come with upsides and downsides.

On Monday evening, Brady met with Vice President Mike Pence on Capitol Hill, where the two discussed both health care and taxes. The Texas Republicandescribed the meetingas just good discussions about delivering on both this year.

Brady confirmed that the border adjustment tax was part of the discussion but declined to provide specifics.

Im not going to give a readout about all the discussion but, yeah, just very positive about all these key issues, hesaid. Roskam was also at the meeting.

Ryan reiterated his belief that the BAT is the smart way to go, arguing that it makes the tax code the most internationally competitive of any other version we are looking at.

His comments came just days after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell handicapped the Houses preference. In an interview with Bloomberg TV on May 16, the Kentucky Republicancalled the BAT controversial and said it probably wouldnt pass the Senate.

The way we are trying to go forward, the secretary of the Treasury, the speaker and myself, are trying to reach an agreement on a proposal that we can all agree to start with, McConnell said. We havent reached that agreement yet. But we will at some point.

Other Senate GOP leaders expressed similar viewsabout the BAT.

I certainly have a lot of respect for what they are trying to do, I just dont see it having a future here, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas said last week.

Brady suggested the Senate is behind the House in debating the alternatives and that when they catch up with the House, they will ultimately come around.

Everyone ought to look at the alternatives, the Texas Republican said. We certainly did in proposing this provision. And hands down the best way to level the playing field for American workers and products and stop American jobs from going overseas and reversing them and bringing those jobs back is a smart, well transitioned border adjustment tax.

The border adjustment proposal is estimated to raise roughly $1 trillion, and thus is a significant offset for the GOPs ambitious tax rate cuts. But along with raising red flags about the BAT, McConnell has also reinforced his position that the overhaul should not add to the federal deficit.

It will have to be revenue-neutral. We have a $21 trillion debt, the majority leadersaid in the Bloomberg TV interview.

McConnells view runs counter to recent comments made by Trump, who expressed openness to a tax rewrite that resulted in a short-term increase in the deficit.

It is OK, because it wont increase for long, he said in an interview with The Economist.

Trump was not clear about how long anoverhaul could lose revenue before it turnedinto a growth generator. But GOP leaders have been clear the legislation needs to be revenue-neutral to adhere to Senate budget reconciliation rules and still be counted as permanent tax law, versus temporary tax cuts.

Those arent mutually exclusive, Brady said of Trumps comments and his panels position. Tax reform thats permanent can be bold and can lose some revenues in those early years and recoup them through economic growth in that same 10-year period, as well as that second 10-year period, both of which allow us to make tax reform permanent. So I dont know that were necessarily far apart on that.

Although some of these topline issues have yet to be settled, Republicans do have some time to figure it out. Since the plan is to use the fiscal 2018 budget reconciliation process to advance a tax code rewrite, there is no pressure on Republicans to release a bill before both chambers pass and reconcile their budget resolutions with reconciliation instructions for the tax overhaul. That is not expected to occur until late June at the earliest.

Republicans have shied from imposing a self-imposed deadline for completing the tax bill, like they did initially with their health care overhaul. They are also aiming to have a more deliberate process for debate, with the Ways and Means Committee holding hearings on aspects of the plan the GOP laid out in its A Better Way campaign blueprint.

The committee has turned many Better Way ideas into legislative text but does not have a complete draft bill, Brady said. The panel has refined the blueprint and will continue to do so, especially in discussions with the White House, the Senate and stakeholders, he said.

The Ways and Means Committee does not have a timeline for completing hearings and releasing a bill, Brady and other panel members said.

Thats actually by design, according to Roskam. He cited two primary lessons learned from the health care debate: First is dont chase a false deadline. Second is driving toward consensus at the front end.

Think of it more in terms fruit ripening, the Illinois Republican added. When its ripe, its ripe. And until its ripe, its not ready. I do think. though, that 2017 is the year for tax reform, and if it doesnt happen in 2017, I think it becomes really elusive.

While the House formulates its plan, there is a growing realization among Senate aides that the chamber may have to carry the initiative given the opposition to several key areas of the House proposal.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, for example, met last week with the Senate Finance Committee and said the White House would not push for the BAT, according to an aide with knowledge of the discussion.

Members said after the meeting that Mnuchin expressed hope that Republicans and Democrats could find middle ground.

One of my most important takeaways was their interest in doing bipartisan tax reform, Cornyn said. So far, the Democrats have basically resisted anything and everything.

At the meeting, Senate Finance Democrats raised concerns to Mnuchin about proposals included in a one-page document released last month by the White House that they believe would predominantly benefit wealthier Americans, according to one aide.

That underscores a major barrier to bipartisan agreement. Republicans will likely seek to lower taxes for high-income earners as part of an across-the-board tax cut; Democrats are expected to push back against any plan that benefits the wealthy.

Trumps budget being released Tuesday is expected to include more details of his tax plan. Mnuchin will testify this week before both the Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees on the budget, hearings that will provide an early public look into how divided Republicans and Democrats are on taxes.

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Tax Overhaul Challenges Unified Republican Government - Roll Call

Litchfield delivered the victory to McLean (264 to 145) after the two candidates had swapped wins in their home wards, Morin taking Ward 9, McLean winning Ward 8.

The final unofficial results had McLean defeating Morin, 657-536, with two write-in votes.

Congratulations to Mark McLean on his special election victory! It was an honor campaigning with you - welcome back to Concord! Gov. Chris Sununu tweeted Tuesday just before 8 p.m.

The GOP chief executive was keynote speaker of a campaign fund-raiser for McLean in Litchfield two weeks ago.

The winner replaces longtime state Rep. Andre Martel, R-Manchester, who died last December, weeks after having been sworn in to a fifth term.

Were thrilled to see an A plus-rated House member and AFP pledge signer, Mark McLean, return to the New Hampshire House, said Americans For Prosperity State Director Greg Moore. Were glad to have one more great fighter for liberty back in the Legislature.

McLean had represented Ward 8 alone in the New Hampshire House but lost that seat last November to Manchester Republican Steve Vaillancourt.

Last March, Vaillancourt died following a sudden illness.

But Democrats got to celebrate as well Tuesday with Edith DesMarais winning a special election in the Carroll County town of Wolfeboro, traditionally a GOP stronghold.

According to unofficial returns, DesMarais edged Republican Matthew J. Planche, 811-755.

This special election was to replace Republican Harold Parker who resigned his seat before joining Sununus office staff.

Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley said DesMarais becomes the first candidate in the country to flip a federal or state legislative seat from red to blue since November. She is also the first Democrat ever elected to a House seat in Wolfeboro.

We are pleased to see that Democrats are showing up, working hard, and turning out with a renewed sense of purpose, House Democratic Leader Steve Shurtleff said in a statement.

As Democrats, we will continue to fight for every seat in every district of the state.

Last month, Manchester Republican McLean, 43 Forest Hill Way, had won the GOP primary handily over George Lambert of Litchfield, 145 to 37.

Democrat Morin, 281 Calef Road, captured the Democratic nomination, defeating Ryan Curran, 221 West Shore Avenue, 110 to 61.

This Hillsborough County District 44 seat includes Manchester Wards 8 and 9 and Litchfield.

Both political parties weighed in on this one, with Democrats clearly holding the edge.

The Committee to Elect House Democrats reported spending a total of $11,015 for mailers in this district for Morin and for DesMarais in Wolfeboro.

The New Hampshire Republican State Committee paid $705 to make voter identification phone calls for McLean and the Committee to Elect House Republicans gave $1,250 to McLeans campaign. The conservative New Hampshire Liberty Alliance kicked in another $200.

klandrigan@unionleader.com

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Manchester Republican wins back NH House seat; Democrat wins in GOP stronghold of Wolfeboro - The Union Leader