Washington Reporter Sen. Bill Cassidy scores a key endorsement, Rep. Andy
Harris explains how Democrats cost Maryland millions in rural health, and more!

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January 8th, 2026

In this edition


[1] INTERVIEW: Rep. Rick Crawford on Venezuela: "Cuba will be fairly closely
following"
[2] Heard on the Hill
[3] EXCLUSIVE: How Tulsi Gabbard reformed the ODNI in 2025
[4] EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Bill Cassidy scores major pro-life endorsement
[5] SCOOP: Inside Doug Burgum's 2025 effort to unleash American energy
[6] SCOOP: Sen. Tom Cotton sets historic pace on confirmations with latest
Trump IC pick
[7] SCOOP: Sean Duffy marks first year with wins on infrastructure, cheaper
vehicles, and safety
[8] SCOOP: Donald Trump, Tim Scott kick 2026 off focusing on affordability and
lower housing costs
[9] SCOOP: Rep. Vince Fong wants "fiscal responsibility" for California's
high-speed rail project after state drops lawsuit over federal funding
[10] OPINIONATED: Rep. Andy Harris on how Democrats cost Maryland millions of
dollars in rural health care by politicizing SNAP
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[1] INTERVIEW: Rep. Rick Crawford on Venezuela: "Cuba will be fairly closely
following"
By: Matthew Foldi

It's been a good week for Rep. Rick Crawford (R., Ark.), who for years has
sought to prioritize the Western Hemisphere in American foreign policy, given
the recent arrest and extradition of Venezuela's socialist leader Nicolás
Maduro and his wife.

Now, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee told the Washington
Reporter in an exclusive interview, he hopes reforms in Cuba are next.

"To me, this is all music to my ears," Crawford told the Reporter. "I am
thrilled to see that the president has made this a priority. As chairman of the
Intel Committee, when I came in a year ago, I said that this is going to be my
priority. And I was very delighted to see that the president shared that view.
We have stood up a Western Hemisphere action cell on the Intel Committee that
is focused on keeping our eyes on this problem set in the Western Hemisphere."

"It's important that we show not only our allies in the hemisphere but
countries around the world that we are going to be present and that we're going
to do everything we can to support our allies in whatever way that is
necessary," Crawford, an Army veteran, added. "And the president supported
that; we got a favorable outcome in terms of what you're seeing politically
taking place in the hemisphere right now is a strong rebuke of communism….We're
seeing exactly how they feel about communism, because it's being roundly
rebuked, from Peru to Chile to Argentina to Honduras most recently. I expect
we'll see the same thing in Colombia, and we're seeing it in Venezuela."

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[2]
Heard on the Hill

* PRESIDENT TRUMP'S HOUSING ANNOUNCEMENT: President Donald Trump's
announcement of a pending ban on "institutional ownership" of single family
homes made a splash on the Hill and on Wall Street. The two biggest firms
impacted by the move, Invitation Homes and Blackstone, saw adecline
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in their stock price. Congress responded quickly, with Rep. Steven Horsford
(D., Nev.), calling to pass his Housing Oversight and Mitigation Exploitation
(HOME) Act. Reps. Erin Houchin (R., Ind.) and Mike Flood (R., Neb.) have
legislation, the Affordable Housing Opportunities Made Easier through
Simplification (Affordable HOMES) Act that will hit the floor this week.
* TO INFINITY, AND BEYOND: 2025 was a huge year for NASA, and Bethany
Stevens, its press secretary, laid out some of the agency's major wins to the
Washington Reporter. "In 2025, we kept the space economy booming, advanced
science from the Sun to distant stars — and much more," she said. "We rounded
out the year with President Trump's nominee for NASA Administrator, Jared
Isaacman's, confirmation. This year, under his leadership, our Artemis II
astronauts will fly around the Moon, preparing for lunar landings and paving
the way to Mars."
* HISTORY MADE AT DHS: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is
celebrating its wins from 2025. Harry Fones, DHS's Principal Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Public Affairs, laid them out to theWashington Reporter. "2025
was a historic year for the Department of Homeland Security," Fones said.
"Thanks to the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Noem we had the most
secure border in American history, record shattering recruitment across
multiple agencies including a 120% manpower increase at ICE, got the worst of
the worst out of American communities, and we saved the taxpayer over $13
billion in waste. We are only going to continue to ramp up our work and
successes in 2026."
* CHEERS! Rep. James Comer (R., Ky.), the chairman of the House Oversight
Committee, exposed how the Biden administration worked with anti-alcohol
activists to subvert the Dietary Guidelines process when it comes to alcoholic
beverages. "The Committee's investigation uncovered evidence that the Biden
Administration's [Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of
Underage Drinking Alcohol Intake & Health Study] study was conducted in a
manner inconsistent with federal law and was wastefully duplicative, raising
outcome bias concerns. Comer's report also found that Biden-era "HHS documents
provided to the Committee show that the ICCPUD AIH study was deliberately
biased by 1) recruiting anti-alcohol advocates who wanted to promote that no
amount of alcohol consumption is safe by building upon previous research in
their 2023 ‘Canadian model' study and 2) hiding relevant AIH study information
from FOIA requestors and Congress."
* MAJOR QUARTER: Joe Mitchell, a former state legislator running to succeed
Rep. Ashley Hinson (R., Iowa) in a tossup district, raised almost $700,000 in
2025, his campaign told theWashington Reporter. Mitchell heads into the
election year with almost $600,000 cash on hand in the red-leaning district.
* HILL TAKEOVER: Consumers Research plastered the Hill with fliers for a new
site it is backing that targets the insurance company Chubb, which it calls the
"wokest insurance company." The campaign, which is complemented by a mobile
billboard driving around D.C., is targeting Chubb in part due to Chubb being
"at the tip of the spear in the fight to eliminate litigation finance, which is
one of the few tools that lets everyday Americans and small businesses stand up
to woke corporate giants," Consumers Research's Will Hild said to theWashington
Reporter. "By attacking litigation finance, Chubb is openly siding with
entrenched corporate power over consumer protection and working to rig the
legal system in its own favor," Hild added. "At the same time, Greenberg has
cultivated cozy relationships with Communist China, publicly arguing for a
softer line on Beijing while Chubb has invested billions linked to the Chinese
market and treated Xi Jinping as a partner rather than an adversary." Robert
O'Brien, a China hawk who served as National Security Advisor during President
Donald Trump's first term, pushed back on the criticisms of Chubb's ties to
China, saying that he's "worked with Evan Greenberg for several years now on
American relations with China. In my dealings with Evan, he has been a
proponent of U.S. interests in the region. Through its operations in China, his
company has contributed to shrinking the U.S. trade deficit."
* MAHA BACKUP: The Trump administration's rollout of a new food pyramid won
quick praise from experts in the industry, with one industry CEO calling the
reforms a "significant step toward recognizing that healthy, nutrient-dense
foods are key to addressing our nation's epidemic of diet-related chronic
disease and obesity." Lauren Driscoll, the founder and CEO of NourishedRx, said
that her "team is grateful to President Trump, HHS Secretary RFK Jr.,
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, CMS Administrator Dr. Oz, and Special
Advisor Calley Means for their leadership and commitment to use healthy food
and nutrition to make America healthy again…The Trump Administration's new
dietary guidelines reinforce what we know to be true: when people have access
to nutritious food, clear information, and the right tools, meaningful and
lasting improvements in health are possible."
* SETTING THE MAP: The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), led
by Sen. Tim Scott (R., S.C.), scored a series of recruitment coups as the GOP
looks to expand its majority in 2026. Top recruits include Mike Rogers in
Michigan, John Sununu in New Hampshire, Ashley Hinson in Iowa, and Michael
Whatley in North Carolina. The GOP is also eager to watch messy Democratic
primaries play out in states like Michigan, Maine, Minnesota, Texas, and Iowa.
The committee also raised $80 million, which is almost $12 million more than it
raised in the same period during the 2024 cycle — 99 percent of its donations
are less than $200.

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[3] EXCLUSIVE: How Tulsi Gabbard reformed the ODNI in 2025
By: Matthew Foldi

It was a "bad year for the Deep State" in 2025, and a good one for the
Director of National Intelligence's (DNI) efforts to bolster department-wide
transparency, counterterrorism, the effort to dismantle Diversity, Equity, and
Inclusion (DEI), and more, a DNI spokesperson told theWashington Reporter.

The Reporter broke multiple stories about the DNI's work in 2025 — including
Director Tulsi Gabbard's declassification of the Obama administration's role in
surveilling Trump's 2016 campaign and prompting the Russia collusion
investigation, Gabbard's vision for ODNI 2.0, the addition of counternarcotics
to the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)'s portfolio, and more.

One of Gabbard's first reforms was to dismantle a DEI apparatus that a
spokesman said had overtaken many of the agency's priorities. Reforms Gabbard
took as part of ODNI 2.0 will save taxpayers almost $1 billion a year.

"In just eleven months under President Trump's and DNI Gabbard's leadership,
we've shattered the status quo, begun to restore trust in the Intelligence
Community, unveiled historic transformations with ODNI 2.0, deployed the U.S.
counterterrorism enterprise against terrorist gangs and cartels, exposed
bombshell evidence of the Russia Hoax, declassified half a million documents in
the public interest, and much more," a DNI spokesman told the Reporter. "Thanks
to President Trump, DNI Gabbard, and their commitment to putting the American
people first, we're working around the clock to end weaponized intelligence and
hold those who politicized it accountable."

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[4]
EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Bill Cassidy scores major pro-life endorsement
By: Matthew Foldi

One of America's leading pro-life organizations has announced its endorsement
of Sen. Bill Cassidy (R., La.) in his 2026 reelection bid, theWashington
Reporter can exclusively confirm.

"Senator Bill Cassidy's leadership on life is indispensable in Washington,"
the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America Candidate Fund said.

"Cassidy has led the fight for accountability on dangerous mail-order
abortion drugs that are endangering women, driving abortions higher and
undermining the laws of pro-life states like Louisiana," Marjorie Dannenfelser,
SBA Pro-Life America's president, said in her endorsement. "He has worked to
advance a health care alternative to Obamacare that stops the travesty of
taxpayers being forced to subsidize abortions. And when a whistleblower exposed
public school staff allegedly coercing students into abortions on taxpayers'
dime, as chairman of the Senate HELP Committee, he launched a federal
investigation."

Cassidy is also backed by leading Republicans like Senate Majority Leader
John Thune (R., S.D.), and he has been tying himself closely to President
Donald Trump; Cassidy previously told the Reporter that he and the president
are "totally in sync" on health care.

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[5] SCOOP: Inside Doug Burgum's 2025 effort to unleash American energy
By: Matthew Foldi

Secretary Doug Burgum's Department of Interior's busy agenda in 2025 included
efforts to complement the Trump administration's energy independence executive
orders, and to reconfigure pricing at America's National Parks to comport with
President Donald Trump's America First priorities.

"This past year, the Department of the Interior has fought each day to secure
big wins for the American people by unleashing American energy dominance,
ensuring our federal lands stay open for everyone to enjoy, and ending Biden's
bureaucratic red tape agenda that has been holding back our communities,"
Charlotte Taylor, the department's Deputy Communications Director, told the
Washington Reporter. "Secretary Burgum and the Interior team will never stop
delivering for hardworking American families and above all, we'll keep putting
America First."

The Interior Department is also announcing new oil and gas leases in the Gulf
of America; the department played a role in implementing Trump's executive
order that renamed the body of water at America's southern border as well as
reversing the Obama-era name change of Alaska's Mount McKinley.

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The App Store "Accountability" Act mandates sharing children's sensitive
information too broadly.

Americans need digital safety that respects parental rights and data privacy.

Tell Congress: Keep PARENTS in charge of how your child's data is handled.

Learn more at netchoice.org/keepappstoressafe
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[6] SCOOP: Sen. Tom Cotton sets historic pace on confirmations with latest
Trump IC pick
By: Matthew Foldi

Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.)'s latest confirmation of Joshua Simmons to serve
as the CIA's general counsel continues his track record of quickly facilitating
the confirmation of top officials who will serve in President Donald Trump's
intelligence community (IC). The Senate Intelligence Committee, which Cotton
chairs, has confirmed all of Trump's selected nominees, even amid efforts from
committee Democrats to delay and oppose the nominations. Cotton commends
"President Trump for nominating a strong slate of individuals to these
important national security roles," he told theWashington Reporter. "The world
is a dangerous place, and our adversaries have shown that they will not stand
by while the President's full national security team is put in place," Cotton
added. "I'm thankful for the hard work of my colleagues on the committee for
getting these nominees confirmed, and I look forward to continuing to refocus
our intelligence community on its core mission: stealing secrets to protect
Americans."

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[7] SCOOP: Sean Duffy marks first year with wins on infrastructure, cheaper
vehicles, and safety
By: Matthew Foldi

Secretary Sean Duffy's Department of Transportation (DOT) tackled everything
from wasteful spending to blue states handing out commercial drivers licenses
to illegal immigrants in 2025, all while securing Christmas bonuses for
thousands of Amtrak union employees.

For much of 2025, Duffy was the head of DOT and NASA's acting administrator.
Following Jared Isaacman's bipartisan confirmation as NASA administrator, Duffy
was able to resume his sole focus on running DOT, where, his team says, he's
saved taxpayers billions of dollars, including almost $10 billion in just his
first 100 days on the job.

One of Duffy's high-profile moves was a blow to hopeful presidential nominee
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D., Calif); Duffy investigated "California's train to
nowhere," a proposed high-speed rail system whose costs have ballooned and that
critics argue will never be completed. The DOT has simultaneously revitalized
moribund train stations across the country, including Union Station and Penn
Station.


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[8]
SCOOP: Donald Trump, Tim Scott kick 2026 off focusing on affordability and
lower housing costs
By: Matthew Foldi

President Donald Trump and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs Sen. Tim Scott (R., S.C.) kicked 2026 off by honing
in on affordability issues, specifically housing policy.

"People live in homes, not corporations," Trump said while announcing his
plans to restrict the ability of institutional investors to buy single-family
homes. Scott, who has led the Senate GOP's efforts to lower the cost of housing
by backing bipartisan legislation like the ROAD to Housing Act, commended
Trump's latest move.

"2026 must be the year we get housing affordability right for working
families," Scott said. "I welcome President Trump's desire to look for ways to
create more homeowners, especially first-time homeowners."

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[9] SCOOP: Rep. Vince Fong wants "fiscal responsibility" for California's
high-speed rail project after state drops lawsuit over federal funding
By: Matthew Foldi

California Democratic Attorney General, Rob Bonta, withdrew the state's
lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's effort to cut billions of
dollars of grants to the state's high-speed rail project — a move that is
welcome news for taxpayers, Rep. Vince Fong (R., Calif.), a Californian who
serves on the House's Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, told the
Washington Reporter.

"California's decision to withdraw its lawsuit over its high-speed rail
failure confirms what taxpayers have known for years: the project's
mismanagement is indefensible," Fong said. "What voters approved in 2008 bears
no resemblance to the original vision — a $33 billion rail system completed by
2020 has ballooned to more than $128 billion, with no viable funding plan, no
realistic completion date, and no accountability."

Republicans have for years argued that the rail proposal, promoted by Gov.
Gavin Newsom (D., Calif.), is an example of administrative failure. "After
billions wasted, repeated delays, and wildly unrealistic ridership projections,
the California High-Speed Rail Authority and Governor Newsom could not defend
their failures," Fong said. "It's time to shut down this boondoggle and
reinvest in real infrastructure and critical priorities that actually deliver
for Californians."

With leadership in Washington, D.C., including the Trump administration's
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy who has been a longtime opponent of the
high-speed rail, Fong is excited to see "fiscal responsibility" prioritized.

"I thank President Trump and Secretary Duffy for stepping in to protect
taxpayers and restore fiscal responsibility," he said.

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[10]
OPINIONATED


Op-Ed: Rep. Andy Harris: Maryland lost millions for rural healthcare by
putting SNAP politics over policy
By: Rep. Andy Harris

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore's (D) administration missed an opportunity to help
bring healthcare resources to rural Marylanders by failing to prioritize
Maryland's application for a piece of the $50 billion funding under the federal
Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP). Our rural communities stand to lose
millions in federal funding as a result.

Created as part of the 2025 Working Families Tax Cuts Act, the RHTP is a $50
billion federal grant program to be awarded to states to address the access to
healthcare and infrastructure crisis occurring in rural communities across the
U.S. This grant program equally distributes $25 billion to all states, but also
authorizes states to submit applications for a portion of the remaining $25
billion to pay for specific health and nutrition needs of rural communities.

The Trump administration has made a major commitment to strengthening rural
health care by delivering $168,180,838 to Maryland through the RHTP. This
funding will improve access to care and strengthen rural health care where
Marylanders need it most. However, Maryland's rural communities won't see the
full benefit they should.

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