HUFFPOST - GOP Lawmaker Backtracks After 'Ditto'ing Comment On Hakeem Jeffries' 'Cotton-Picking Hands'
“Extremists who endorse disgusting, vile and racist language are pathetic,” a spokesperson for Hakeem Jeffries said.
AXIOS (Andrew Solender) - Democratic calls grow for GOP Rep. Jen Kiggans to resign
Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) is facing growing calls from Democrats to resign over what they say is her agreement with a radio host's derogatory comments about House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). Why it matters: The firestorm comes as Kiggans, who has denied any wrongdoing, is running for reelection in one of the most hotly contested battleground districts in the country. - More than a dozen House Democrats — including Jeffries' top two lieutenants — had called for Kiggans to resign as of Tuesday afternoon, with others vowing to unseat her in November either way. - Kiggans said in a post on X : "The radio host should not have used that language and I do not -and did not - condone it. It was obvious to anyone listening that I…
NYTIMES (Reid J. Epstein and Nick Corasaniti) - Jen Kiggans, Virginia Republican, Faces Uproar Over Radio Host’s Racist Remark About Jeffries
Representative Jen Kiggans, a Republican in a tough re-election fight, faced criticism after she agreed with comments by a local radio host that included a racist line about Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader.
AXIOS (Andrew Solender) - Key House Republican faces calls from Democrats to resign over radio interview
Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) is facing calls to resign from Democratic colleagues who say she expressed agreement with a radio host's remark that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) should get his "cotton-picking hands off of Virginia." Why it matters: Kiggans, who denied agreeing with or condoning the language, is facing one of the most hotly contested reelection battles in the country. - "First they gutted the Voting Rights Act. Now they are using brazenly racist language to attack Black leaders," House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) said in a post on X , calling for Kiggans to "immediately apologize and resign." - Rep. Greg Meeks (D-N.Y.), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus PAC and a close ally of Jeffries,…
AXIOS (Andrew Solender) - The invisible leaders: 2026 election ads blast Trump and AOC, ignore Johnson and Jeffries
Expect to see much more of President Trump , New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in midterm ads this year than House Speaker Mike Johnson or Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, strategists in both parties tell Axios. Why it matters: Billions of dollars will collectively be spent to elect Johnson or Jeffries as House speaker, but you probably won't even be able to tell by just watching the ads meant to achieve that goal. - Neither congressional leader inspires the kind of partisan animosity that makes a politician the ideal attack ad bogeyman, according to party strategists working on House races. - Instead, Trump likely will feature heavily in Democrats' attack ads, while Mamdani, AOC, former Speaker Nancy…
AXIOS (Hans Nichols) - Panicked Democrats scramble to offset back-to-back-to-back redistricting blows
Republican chances of keeping the House are surging, as panicked Democrats scramble to offset back-to-back-to-back redistricting blows. Why it matters: Democrats feel good about their midterms affordability message . But they're nervous about the math for retaking the House now that Republicans appear (for now) to have won this year's redistricting wars. - And they are wondering why the party spent $65 million on a losing effort. - "F*****ck!!" one House Democrat texted Axios' Andrew Solender after Virginia's Supreme Court invalidated the state's new congressional maps. - House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) vowed to pursue "all options to overturn this shocking decision." Zoom in: Depression dominated Democrats' public…