CQPolitics.com - Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) has long epitomized a safely entrenched incumbent.

Reuters - A Republican senator who held up action earlier this month on a bill to renew jobless benefits faced more criticism on Wednesday for blocking approval of President Barack Obama's nominee to be U.S. ambassador to the World Trade Organization.

CQPolitics.com - Rep. Bill Delahunt's (D-Mass.) decision to retire at the end of his current term offers a rare opportunity for Republicans to win a House seat in one of the country's bluest of blue states.

The Christian Science Monitor - Jack Hatch shook his head in frustration as he prepared to wade into yet another partisan brawl over healthcare. The Democratic Iowa state senator was co-chairing a 2007 special commission hearing on the subject in Mason City, and his GOP colleagues were carping about how an overly bureaucratic “Hillarycare”-style plan would be proposed for their state.

CQPolitics.com - Democratic Sen. Charles E. Schumer said Wednesday he and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham are getting real close to a deal on a comprehensive immigration overhaul.

CQPolitics.com - House Minority Leader John A. Boehner said Wednesday that GOP members will consider imposing a unilateral moratorium on earmark requests this year, in a bid to trump newly announced Democratic limits on member-directed spending.

Democrats are tying the fate of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul to a fast-track process that will make the bill tough for Republicans to derail in the Senate. But GOP lawmakers will still be able to force votes and make arguments that could give them ammunition for November's congressional elections.

CQPolitics.com - The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, facing a tough political environment and the prospect of defending dozens of competitive seats, will announce today the first round of candidates selected for the Red to Blue program that targets GOP-held districts.

Legislation to give additional months of unemployment benefits to people who have been out of a job for more than half a year has won key GOP support that means it will soon pass the Senate.

Reuters - Members of the Senate Banking Committee drafting financial reform have about reached a balance on the controversial consumer watchdog proposal, Republican Senator Bob Corker said on Tuesday, indicating a bipartisan deal could be reached soon.