Mike Johnson Re-elected as Speaker After Chaotic Vote Mike Johnson persuaded enough holdouts on the right to keep his post, but the vote reflected the steep challenge he faces in governing a slim and fractious majority.

TikTok and Government Clash in Last Round of Supreme Court Briefs The briefs, filed a week before oral arguments, offered sharply differing accounts of China’s influence over the site and the role of the First Amendment.

Ahead of Trump’s Inauguration and Jimmy Carter’s Funeral, D.C. Heightens Security Metropolitan Police say they will be ready for upcoming events at the Capitol.

Pelosi Returns to Congress After Hip Surgery, Without Her Signature Stilettos A recent fall on a marble staircase at a palace in Luxembourg required the former speaker to have emergency hip replacement surgery.

Treasury Dept. Hits Chinese Tech Company With Sanctions After Breach The agency imposed penalties on a company it blamed for supporting the Chinese hacking group Flax Typhoon in a 2022-23 infiltration.

These Are the Possible GOP Holdouts in the House Speaker Vote Only one Republican representative has confirmed that he will oppose Mike Johnson’s return as House speaker, but a few other conservatives have remained undecided.

Plea Hearing in Sept. 11 Case Postponed to Jan. 10 A judge cited winter weather and a federal holiday for Jimmy Carter’s funeral as reasons for the delay. Government lawyers may also try again to overturn the plea deal.

What to Know About the Process of Voting for House Speaker The speaker’s election happens even before newly elected representatives are sworn in, and must be resolved before anything else can be addressed.

This Tiny Fish’s Mistaken Identity Halted a Dam’s Construction Scientists say the snail darter, whose endangered species status delayed the building of a dam in Tennessee in the 1970s, is a genetic match of a different fish.

Will Matt Gaetz Participate in the House Speaker Vote? The Florida Republican, who resigned his House seat during his short-lived bid for attorney general, has publicly flirted with the idea of showing up in Congress on Friday.

The House begins voting in hours. Here’s what to know. The Louisiana Republican was unanimously nominated as his party’s candidate for speaker. But resistance among right-wing lawmakers and his slim majority have thrust his fate into doubt.

Eyeing Potential Bird Flu Outbreak, Biden Administration Ramps Up Preparedness The administration is committing an additional $306 million toward battling the virus, and will distribute the money before President-elect Donald J. Trump takes office.

John Thune Takes Charge in the Senate, Ushering in a New Leadership Era The affable traditional conservative from South Dakota is the first new chief of the Senate G.O.P. in nearly two decades. He will confront a challenge managing President-elect Donald J. Trump’s expectations.

‘The Last Republican’ Review: Sometimes Political Opposites Really Can Talk This film about Adam Kinzinger, the politician of the title, benefits from the involvement of the progressive filmmaker Steve Pink.

Biden Celebrates a Milestone on Judicial Confirmations After a Major Push by Democrats In remarks on Thursday, the president praised Senate Democrats for helping him confirm 235 federal judges, surpassing Donald J. Trump’s first-term total.

F.B.I. Offers New Details on Jan. 6 Pipe Bomb Suspect, Seeking Tips Four years later, the largest lingering mystery of the Capitol riot remains unsolved.

U.S. Weighs Ban on Chinese Drones, Citing National Security Concerns The Commerce Department requested that private companies comment on the implications of the rule by March. The final decision will fall to the Trump administration.

Trump’s Falsehoods Aside, China’s Influence Over Global Ports Raises Concerns The president-elect inaccurately said that Chinese soldiers operate the Panama Canal. But China’s strategic positions in shipping worry Washington officials.

Trump Falsely Suggested New Orleans Suspect Was an Immigrant The president-elect said on social media that he was right about fearing criminals on the other side of the border. Officials later identified the suspect as a U.S.-born citizen and Army veteran.

Officials Trying to Determine if New Orleans Suspect Had Ties to Terrorist Groups U.S. officials have warned that the conflict in Gaza and Lebanon could spill into the United States, most likely in the form of small radicalized groups acting on their own initiative or lone-wolf terrorists.