JIM COOPER

Republicans are deciding whether to hold their presidential nominating convention in 2024 in Milwaukee, the largest Democratic stronghold in battleground Wisconsin, or in Nashville, Tennessee, a Democratic city in a GOP-controlled state.

The Democratic Party's brand is so toxic in some parts of rural America that liberals are removing bumper stickers and refusing to acknowledge their party affiliation publicly.

Voters in Nashville are facing the potential of congressional representation mostly at odds with their political views.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has approved a proposal to split fast-growing Nashville into multiple congressional seats, a move Democrats have warned will unfairly affect Black voters. Currently, Tennessee’s U.S. House delegation consists of seven Republicans and just two Democrats, whose districts center on Nashville and Memphis. Nashville's seat has largely remained intact for 200 years.

A new House staffer reportedly has a major country music connection, calling Faith Hill and Tim McGraw mom and dad.Maggie McGraw, the middle child of the country music couple's three daughters, is working in Rep. Jim Cooper's (D-Tenn.) office as a staff assistant and legislative correspondent. The retiring congressman's office didn't immediately return ITK's request for comment. LegiStorm was first to report the news on Friday.McGraw's famous...

Democratic Rep. Jim Cooper of Tennessee is retiring after more than 30 years in elected office.

The Pentagon is taking a rare look at whether it is properly prepared for an emergency in which the portable communications system nicknamed the “nuclear football," which always accompanies the president, is lost or stolen.

WASHINGTON – There's little doubt that Nancy Pelosi will be reelected House speaker when the new Congress convenes Sunday. It could take a high-wire act for her to get there, largely thanks to the pandemic. “Yeah, I do,” Pelosi told a reporter this week when asked if she had the votes wrapped up. Miller-Meeks is certain to vote against Pelosi to be speaker. “It’s extraordinarily tricky” for Pelosi, said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., an 18-year congressional veteran.

The Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville led to communications outages over hundreds of miles in the southern U.S., raising concerns about the vulnerability of U.S. networks. The blast seriously damaged a key AT&T network facility, an important hub that provides local wireless, internet and video service and connects to regional networks. AT&T customers lost service — phones, internet or video — across large parts of Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama. At some hospitals, electronic medical records, internet service or phones stopped working. It's not as if the physical vulnerability of communications networks comes as a surprise.

WASHINGTON – There's little doubt that Nancy Pelosi will be reelected House speaker when the new Congress convenes Sunday. It could take a high-wire act for her to get there, largely thanks to the pandemic. “Yeah, I do,” Pelosi told a reporter this week when asked if she had the votes wrapped up. Miller-Meeks is certain to vote against Pelosi to be speaker. “It’s extraordinarily tricky” for Pelosi, said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., an 18-year congressional veteran.