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Hours after news broke that special counsel Robert Mueller had impaneled a grand jury in the Justice Departments investigation into Russian election interference, Donald Trump took the stage at a campaign-style rally in West Virginia to dismiss the scandal. The Russian story is a total fabrication, it is just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics, the president said, surrounded by a sea of red and white Make America Great Again hats. Thats all it is.

But while Trumps jokes about Russian infiltration (Are there any Russians here?) drew boisterous cheers from Thursday nights crowd, few on Capitol Hill are laughing. Earlier this week, Trump was effectively forced to sign a veto-proof bill leveling new sanctions against Russia and limiting his ability to lift thema stunning rebuke of the White House and its Republican president. Meanwhile, a growing bipartisan group of senators are moving to protect Muellers investigation from Trump, who has signaled that he might fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions in order to curtail the F.B.I. probe.

Last week, Chuck Grassley, the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that he would not schedule hearings to confirm a replacement for Sessions if Trump were to dismiss the former Alabama senator from his post at the Justice Department. Now, amid concerns that Trump would try to make a recess appointment later this month, circumventing the Senate confirmation process, leaders in both parties have put their foot down. We have some tools in our toolbox to stymie such action. Were ready to use every single one of them, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said. On Thursday, the Senate confirmed that it will hold a series of pro-forma sessionsbrief meetings that will occur every three daysthat will prevent the president from making any appointments during the August recess.

As Muellers investigation accelerates and expands, probing Trumps personal finances and business tieswhat the president has described as a red line for his familysenators have introduced two bipartisan bills that would prevent the president from ordering the firing of Mueller arbitrarily and without cause. One proposalfrom Republican Thom Tillis and Democrat Chris Coonswould allow any fired special counsel to contest their dismissal in court, after which point a three-judge panel would have two weeks to determine whether it was warranted. The other proposalco-authored by Republican Lindsey Graham and Democrat Corey Bookerwould delay any firing until after a three-judge panel determined whether there was cause.

The Mueller situation really gave rise to our thinking about how we can address this, address the current situation, Tillis told The Washington Post, adding that his bill would provide a great opportunity, in perpetuity, for us to be able to communicate to the American people that actions were appropriateor if not, then not. And while it is assumed that Trump would push back on any legislation that would curtail his authority to fire the special counsel, Coons told the Post that there is a broader bipartisan concern that the president may take inappropriate action to interfere with the ongoing, important work of Bob Mueller, and said, if the president were to fire the special counsel, the Senate might promptly take action to reappoint him.

The emerging bipartisan effort represents a remarkable vote of no confidence in Trumps ability to weather the F.B.I. investigation without attempting to obstruct justice. And it suggests that Republicans, who long defended the indefensible on Trumps behalf, may have found their own red line. Perhaps most important, the shifting tone on Capitol Hill comes as the presidents popularity has continued to sag, threatening the partys hold on Congress. Six months into his term, Trump has no substantive legislative accomplishments to speak of and his approval rating is as low as 36 percent. And while Trump has retained the support of his Fox News base, the G.O.P.s various health-care bills were all widely unpopular. Another recent poll found that 64 percent of voters believe Mueller will conduct a fair investigation into whether Trumps campaign colluded with the Russian government.

Republicans used to be afraid of Trump. Now, theyre mostly ignoring him. The administrations ham-handed attempts to coerce Senators Dean Heller and Lisa Murkowski to vote yes on Obamacare repeal were met with sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers. And Trumps threats in the aftermath of the failed health-care vote last week fell on deaf ears. If thats what he wants to do, he ought to just do it, Senator Bob Corker said of Trumps call to stop insurance payments to members of Congress. [As] probably hes learned over the last couple of weeks, threats dont really go over particularly well. My advice would be to either do it or dont do it.

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As Mueller Closes In, Republicans Turn Away from Trump - Vanity Fair

Congress sank to a 10% approval rating in a new Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday, with roughly five in six Americans saying they disapprove of the country's legislative body. This compares to an 18% approval rating in March.

And if you're searching for the main reason behind the drop, look no further than Republican voters.

Back in January and March, more than one in three Republicans said they had positive views of Congress, which is controlled by the GOP in both chambers.

But now, that's plummeted to just 14% of Republican voters who give Congress a thumbs up.

The new numbers come after a high-profile effort to repeal and replace Obamacare barely squeaked through the House and failed in a dramatic late-night vote in the Senate.

Congress's overall 10% approval is the lowest for Congress in Quinnipiac's history of data back to 2003. Using Gallup data beyond that, it's the lowest for Congress in data back to 1974.

(Congress did reach a 9% approval rating in Gallup polling in November 2013 in the wake of a two-week government shutdown.)

And to make matters worse, Republicans were Congress's most supportive group. The low numbers stretch across every demographic division -- only 12% of nonwhites, 12% of people under 35 years old, 11% of men, 10% of people over 65 years old, 9% of women and 9% of whites approve.

Support for Congress among independents has also bottomed out, falling from 18% in January to just 8% now. Democrats have remained essentially stable in the single digits.

The poll does point to some reasons why: Four in five voters say they disapprove of the way the congressional GOP is handling health care -- including three in five Republican voters and three in four whites without a college degree.

Indeed, a whopping 92 percent of Republicans say the GOP should repeal some or all of Obamacare, but the latest attempt to do so went down in flames.

Quinnipiac's poll showed Trump's approval falling to its lowest level yet at 33% - still more than double the number who approve of Congress -- and bolstered by 76% of Republican voters.

Historical trends show that, even though broad majorities disapprove of Congress, more people do tend to support their own individual member of Congress. So the low disapproval numbers do not necessarily translate to any particular outcome at the ballot box. (The most recent Gallup numbers from 2014 show 54% of Americans approved of their own representative in Congress, even though Congress overall had just a 14% approval rating.)

The Quinnipiac University poll of 1,125 registered voters was conducted from July 27 to August 1. It has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points among all voters and 7.1 points among Republican voters.

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Even Republicans don't like Congress anymore - CNN

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justices decision to leave the Democratic Party to become a Republican means the GOP now controls all levers of government in 26 states across the country, a high-water mark in recent years.

Justice is set to make his announcementThursdaynight, during a rally with President Trump in Huntington. W.Va. He will become the first sitting Democratic governor to switch to the GOP since Buddy Roemer, the governor of Louisiana, in 1991.

Justice will become the 34th Republican governor in America. Republicans control both chambers of the state Legislature in West Virginia.

Republicans also hold the governorship and both state legislative chambers in Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida and New Hampshire.

Nebraskas unicameral legislature is ostensibly nonpartisan, but is controlled by Republicans in practice.

Democrats hold just 15 governorships and control all three levers of government in only six states: Oregon, California, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Delaware.

Republicans control both chambers of the state legislature in Montana, Louisiana, North Carolina, Virginia and Pennsylvania, states run by Democratic governors. Democrats hold both legislative chambers in Nevada, New Mexico, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont, all states run by Republican governors.

Just five states have divided legislatures, and chambers in three of those states Washington, New York and Alaska are governed by bipartisan coalitions.

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Republicans will completely control 26 states - The Hill

Its not surprising to find an Arizona Republican smack in the middle of a poke-in-the-eye dust-up with the powerful. The only surprise these days is that the Republican in question isnt John McCain.

McCain is in a fight of his own, having cast the final blow against the healthcare plan crafted by his fellow Senate Republicans and President Trump. In his home state, references to that vote prompt a shoulder shrug and a common Arizona refrain: Just McCain being McCain.

The newest set-to, however, involves the states junior Republican senator, Jeff Flake, a first-termer who may have blasted a big hole in his reelection campaign next year by publishing a book.

And not just any book. A book that swiped its name from one published a generation ago by Arizonas revered veteran Sen. Barry Goldwater: Conscience of a Conservative. A book that vented about the Republican Party and what he calls his colleagues abdication of their responsibility to stand up against the partys embattled president.

Republicans are in denial about Trumps erratic executive branch, Flake wrote, saying that the partys unnerving silence would be as if Noah had watched the flood rising and decided to focus on other things. At a certain point, if one is being honest, the flood becomes the thing that is most worthy of attention, he wrote. At a certain point, it might be time to build an ark.

For Arizonans, that has set up a question: Will the president, who famously punches back when hit, seek revenge on Flake by summoning a Senate challenger?

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders would not rule out that possibility when asked about it Wednesday.

Im not sure about any potential funding of a campaign, she said. But I think that Sen. Flake would serve his constituents much better if he was less focused on writing a book and attacking the president, and [more on] passing legislation.

In Arizona, Republican strategists believe that Trump has the power to engineer Flakes defeat, particularly if he were to clear the field to a single challenger and vouch for that person to his network of supporters.

If he did get involved, the money would not be an issue, said one Republican strategist. Like several others, he spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid being caught in a dicey internal party fight.

Typically, presidents back away from primary battles to focus on the opposing party. The entire mechanics of a political party are set up to protect its incumbents. Attempting to overthrow Flake would put the president at odds with the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which is working to preserve the partys narrow margin in the Senate.

But when the president is Trump, nothing is typical.

It would seem to be a break in form if the president, himself, did something like that, but he has certainly shown a willingness to buck certain positions, said Constantin Querard, a GOP consultant in Phoenix.

Were the president to put his imprimatur on a candidate, it would set up a roaring battle between the ascendant Trump wing of the Republican Party and a senator who has more or less been an establishment conservative, particularly when it comes to fiscal matters.

One problem for Flake is that hes not necessarily seen that way within the state party.

Flake has long been suspect among Trump Republicans for his membership in the Gang of 8, the group of senators who worked to craft an immigration reform bill in 2013 that included a path to citizenship for those in the country without proper papers. While McCain also has had moderate leanings on that topic, Arizona often has rewarded political figures who vehemently favor harsher strategies.

Flake drew further suspicion when he sided with President Obamas effort to liberalize relations with Cuba; Trump has since taken steps to partially reverse those policies. And Flake was open about his opposition to Trump during last years campaign.

Theres also the matter of Flakes demeanor, a softer approach that doesnt quite mesh with the rougher tones favored by Republicans in the era of Trump.

Jeff Flake is just not the street fighter that McCain is, said one Arizona strategist to say nothing of Trump.

Flakes defenders note that he has voted to support Trumps positions 93.5% of the time, according to a calculation by FiveThirtyEight.com.

That reflects shared conservative views on a number of topics. But its not as strong as it might seem: By FiveThirtyEights accounting, Flake is 41st among the 52 Republican senators when it comes to voting Trumps way. Or, as some in Arizona put it, more or less a moderate by todays calculations.

Polling shows Flakes relative weakness in the state. A survey released in July by Morning Consult showed that Flake was underwater in Arizona compared to Trump.

Overall, 50% of Arizonans backed Trump, compared with 45% who did not. Only 36% favored Flake, while 42% did not. Among Republicans the bulk of next Augusts primary voters Trump was favored by 84%, and Flake by 51%.

But polls a year in advance of an election are notoriously iffy; McCain was thought to be endangered for part of his 2016 reelection campaign, but he won the primary by more than 12 points en route to reelection to his sixth term. Its also impossible to know Trumps trajectory between now and then; if his presidency remains highly troubled, Flakes criticism may be seen in a more charitable light.

For now, Arizonans are mulling the shape of the Senate field. McCains primary opponent, former state Sen. Kelli Ward, has announced she will challenge Flake. Two other Republicans, state Treasurer Jeff DeWit and former GOP chairman Robert Graham, also are considering the race.

Both have ties to Trump DeWit served as the Trump campaigns chief operating officer and they appear to have agreed that only one will run. But multiple challengers say, Ward and one of those pondering the race, or unknown others would shift the advantage to Flake by splitting the opposition vote.

McCains recent brain cancer diagnosis may further complicated the decision-making. While his seat normally would not be open until 2022, McCains illness has raised the odds of an earlier open seat that might strike some candidates as a better option.

All of that leaves Flakes fate or at least the contours of his reelection campaign uncomfortably in the hands of Trump, the president who Flake asserts in his confessional has made the government dysfunctional at the highest levels.

Arizona pollster Mike Noble said that if Ward remains Flakes only opponent, hell cruise to easy reelection.

A vendetta causes more harm than good, he said, adding that Trumps got bigger fish to fry: Russia, North Korea.

Whatever shape the conflict takes as the primary nears, it strikes some as pointless given Flakes conservative voting record.

If youre the Trump administration, you dont like Jeff Flake but you need to work with Jeff Flake, Querard said. All of the ingredients were there for some sort of peace treaty.

But then came the book, or, as Querard calls it, the effort to poke your opponent in the eye literally for the point of poking him in the eye.

One thing defeats Jeff Flake for certain, he said, and that is if Trumps team blesses a solid opponent. Hes really gone out of his way to encourage them to come and get him.

For more on politics from Cathleen Decker

cathleen.decker@latimes.com

Twitter: @cathleendecker

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In Arizona, a potential showdown between a Republican senator and the Republican president - Los Angeles Times

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus at the state Capitol in April 2017. Straus opposes efforts by other powerful Republicans to pass a 'bathroom bill' that would affect transgender people. Martin do Nascimento/KUT hide caption

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus at the state Capitol in April 2017. Straus opposes efforts by other powerful Republicans to pass a 'bathroom bill' that would affect transgender people.

During this month-long special legislative session, Texas Republicans are hoping to pass several red meat campaign promises, such as a ban on transgender bathroom access. But in a state where every statewide elected official is Republican and the party controls the legislature, there's one Republican trying to slow those efforts.

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus had made himself enemy number one among the state's most conservative voters. His crime? Bipartisanship.

"I try to encourage cooperation. I try to encourage bipartisanship. I know that's not a very fashionable thing today," Straus said.

It's not just unfashionable, for some Republicans it's downright treasonous. When Straus focuses on bipartisan efforts, like a plan to increase public school funding, he's attacked by some for doing so at the expense of "real" conservative priorities.

"There's a growing number of conservatives in the House that don't understand why Speaker Straus is blocking a conservative agenda," said one critic, state Rep. Matt Schaefer.

The GOP divide

That line "blocking a conservative agenda" may sound familiar. From the Republican Senators who blocked a repeal of Obamacare to fights in Republicans state legislatures around the country, votes against the party line have brought a swift and often angry response. Straus has always said that if something doesn't come up for a vote in the Texas House, it's because the bill didn't have enough support. But, he admits he has blocked some legislation.

"I use the office and the authority that the members have given to me, on occasions, where I think it's necessary," Straus explained. "This bathroom bill is a perfect example of that."

The bill is also a perfect example of the divisions among Republicans and the business interests that have backed the GOP over the years. And in Texas, those business leaders, from local chambers of commerce to giants like IBM and ExxonMobil, want nothing to do with the bathroom bill.

That's because of what happened in North Carolina, where a similar bill led to consumer boycotts and prompted some companies to avoid investing in the state.

Straus quotes from a recent editorial from a North Carolina newspaper.

"Why would Texas after seeing the example in North Carolina want to walk headfirst into a giant cactus? I think it's a good question and I hope that we don't go there," Straus said.

But the governor, lieutenant governor, state Senate and some in the House do want to go there. Jim Henson, who directs the Texas Politics Project at UT-Austin, says that tug-o-war between activists and business groups shows up in Straus's record as speaker.

"What you see is an ability to balance what different factions of the Republican Party want," Henson said, "while acknowledging that some of the issues that he may not put at the top of his list, are at the top of Republican primary voters lists."

Straus points to opposition from business groups and law enforcement, when explaining why he's kept the bathroom bill from getting a vote. But those same groups opposed another bill that priority for Republicans that Straus did help pass this spring.

"The House delivered anti-illegal immigration and border security measures, that are their most important issues for primary Republican voters in Texas. Full Stop," Henson said.

Election backlash?

But right now it's all or nothing for the most conservatives Republicans. To them, passing an anti-sanctuary cities bill is great but unless Straus passes the bathroom bill, nothing else he's done matters. And Representative Schaefer says that's what voters will focus in primary elections in 2018.

"Are you with Lt. Governor Patrick and Gov. Abbott? Or are you with Joe Straus who's blocking a conservative agenda," Schaefer said. "He's really making it simple for people to understand."

Straus intends to run for re-election, and support in his Northern San Antonio House district remains strong. But if he returns to the House, Tea Party members and even the lieutenant governor, appear ready to support someone else for speaker.

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Texas Republican Bucks His Party To Block 'Bathroom Bill' - NPR