<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">CapicheCapiche CEO, Austin Smith</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>This week, the startup company, <a href="https://capiche.com/">Capiche</a> (pronounced kuh-peesh), launched in the hopes of bringing more transparency to the <keyword id="6356323" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="enterprise">enterprise</keyword> software industry and changing how businesses get their information about SaaS pricing. </li><li>"The more information we can share [about pricing], I think it will help nudge the industry towards fairer and more transparent policies," Austin Smith, Capiche founder and CEO, told Business Insider in a recent interview. </li><li>Smith likens his vision for Capiche to what the job review site, <a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/index.htm">Glassdoor</a>, created for job seekers -shedding light on company culture and average wages. </li><li>Smith said that so far, in-depth, stories have proven to be more useful than trying to aggregate pricing data into charts and graphs since normalizing the data for SaaS products can be extremely difficult.</li><li>Within eight hours of its website going live on Tuesday, Smith said, already 300 people had submitted pricing stories. </li><li>Capiche raised a $450,000 angel round, which closed this June, with participation from the likes of Inside.com CEO and serial angel investor Jason Calacanis and HubSpot cofounder and CTO Dharmesh Shah. </li><li>"I think there's clearly a flywheel that can happen here," Smith said. "People like to share this stuff." </li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prime?module=article&amp;area=summary">Click here for more BI Prime stories</a>.</li></ul>Pricing for enterprise software is notoriously opaque.Instead of listing their prices online, most software-as-a-service (or, SaaS) companies will simply say, "Call us." And unfortunately, that approach - which on the outset, may seem more personal - has created some major problems. This week, the startup company, <a href="https://capiche.com/">Capiche</a> (pronounced kah-peesh), launched in the hopes of bringing more transparency to the enterprise software industry and changing how businesses get their information about SaaS pricing. "The pricing for most SaaS products that's done over sales calls comes down to, 'How much can we get out of this customer?' It's not just, 'Here's what we charge,'" Austin Smith, Capiche founder and CEO, told Business Insider in a recent interview. "The more information we can share [about pricing], I think it will help nudge the industry towards fairer and more transparent policies." To start, Capiche will focus on collecting reviews, or what Smith calls "pricing stories," from its users about their sales experiences with particular SaaS companies, especially regarding information about costs. Smith likens his vision for Capiche to what the job review site, <a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/index.htm">Glassdoor</a>, created for job seekers. "Before Glassdoor was around, it was really, really hard to know, "Is this offer I have in front of me good?" Smith said. "Now anyone across pretty much any company can see - Am I getting paid the right amount and how does that compare with other people in my industry?" Smith said that so far, in-depth, stories have proven to be more useful than trying to aggregate pricing data into charts and graphs since normalizing the data for SaaS products can be extremely difficult. Two companies that are using <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/salesforce">Salesforce</a>, for example, will rarely have the exact same add-on features enabled, and so comparing what each is paying would be like comparing "apples to oranges," Smith said. Instead, pricing stories give businesses a sense for what others are paying, while offering helpful insights. Already, one user shared that by simply calling and speaking to a sales rep at the email marketing company Sendgrid, they were offered $250 off per month compared to the self-serve price available online. Also, they said, by "holding out" until the end of the month to sign a contract, their Sendgrid sales rep offered them an additional $250 off per month to help close the deal. In the end, the user said they were able to get their Sendgrid pricing down from $2,000 to $1,500 per month for a company that sends five million emails per month.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">CapicheCapiche lets businesses share stories about what they pay for SaaS software so others can know if they're getting a fair price.</div></div></div>Popular software review sites - like <a href="https://www.g2.com/">G2</a> and <a href="https://www.capterra.com/">Capterra</a> - exist today, though Smith said those sites often charge companies to make their landing pages look snazzier and rank higher. As a result, it's not always the best or most popular products that users will see, but those who paid review sites the most money. Smith said he hasn't decided on a definite monetization strategy for Capiche, but it will likely not include SaaS companies paying for placement. Also, Smith said, reviewers for sites today are often incentivized by things like Visa or Amazon gift cards in exchange for writing about a product. With Capiche, Smith hopes he can create more of a "community" of experts who leave reviews on their own accord. In fact, to access the information on Capiche today, users need to submit their own reviews for at least three products they currently use. Within eight hours of its website going live on Tuesday, Smith said, 300 people had submitted pricing stories. "I think there's clearly a flywheel that can happen here," Smith said. "People like to share this stuff." <h2>"Obviously there's a pricing problem"</h2>For the longtime entrepreneur - who was previously the president of <a href="https://inside.com/">Inside.com</a>, an email newsletter company - trying to figure out the best pricing for enterprise software has been a major pain point for him over the years. It's also an issue he's seen first hand for other startup founders."I see it all the time on VC listserves where someone will send a question to the other founders in a portfolio and say, 'What's everyone else paying for Salesforce?'" Smith said. "And then, people are really happy to share it." Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pitch-deck-for-corporate-gifting-startup-alyce-series-a-2019-8" data-analytics-position="1">Here's the pitch deck that helped this Boston-based entrepreneur raise over $11 million to help sales reps form better relationships with clients through gifts</a>To help finance his early endeavors with Capiche, Smith raised a $450,000 angel round, which closed this June, with participation from the likes of Inside.com CEO and serial angel investor Jason Calacanis, HubSpot cofounder and CTO Dharmesh Shah, and Half Court Ventures partner Rob May. "When consumers have to make a considered purchase they do a lot of research online," Calacanis told Business Insider, regarding the reasons he decided to invest in Capiche. "If you're going to travel or buy a car or pick a college, anything that's super considered, where you're investing a lot of time or money, you're going to want to make a good decision." Calacanis said there are other review sites out there, like Capterra, but none are taking Capiche's approach of in-depth reviews, focused on price. And pricing, he says, is one of the leading considerations when companies are considering a new SaaS product. "You need only look at the Google searches," Calacanis said, in reference to typing in popular SaaS products like Slack or Salesforce or Zendesk into Google. Pricing, he said, is typically at the top of the list of suggested searches. "People want to understand the pricing," Calacanis said. "Obviously there's a pricing problem." <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mexico-buy-legal-gun-store-2015-8">Mexico has just one store where you can legally buy a gun and it's located on a heavily-guarded military base</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

This startup wants to turn the cloud software business on its head with a new site that encourages customers to share how much they're paying

<ul class="summary-list"><li>House Democrats advanced a budget bill Wednesday without any Republican support.</li><li>President Joe Biden met with Democrats earlier, and they reiterated their intent to move swiftly.</li><li>"There's agreement, universal agreement we must go big and bold," Sen. Chuck Schumer said.</li></ul>House Democrats on Wednesday approved a measure to advance President Joe Biden's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/joe-biden-stimulus-plan-details-checks-congress-direct-payments-unemployment-2021-1">$1.9 trillion coronavirus spending package</a>.The vote to approve the budget resolution passed 218-212 with no Republican support. Two Democratic lawmakers opposed it.The passage sets the stage for the Senate to take up the same piece of legislation later this week. It's a step in the reconciliation process, a maneuver that opens special procedures in the Senate that allow bills to pass with a simple majority vote.Once the pair of bills are approved, committees in each chamber can begin drafting legislation around Biden's rescue plan. Before the vote, Democrats said it was critical to pass the resolution at a fraught moment during the pandemic with hardship on the rise and daily infection rates still at extremely high levels.Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia, the chair of the Joint Economic Committee, commended the bill and said it would "set us on a path to defeating the virus and providing urgent relief for millions of Americans."But Republicans assailed the measure and said it undercut Biden's promises to govern as a bipartisan dealmaker. Most are staunchly opposed to spending $2 trillion after lawmakers approved $4 trillion in emergency spending last year.Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri, the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee, said Democrats "apparently now need a more one-sided approach, one which is much more partisan and bends the rules to radicalize this Congress and the policies it produces."A group of 10 Senate Republicans unveiled <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/10-senate-republicans-unveil-618-billion-stimulus-plan-direct-payments-2021-2">a $618 billion coronavirus relief plan</a> earlier this week. But Democrats roundly lambasted it as insufficient to address the worsening toll of the pandemic.On Wednesday, Biden met with Democratic senators in the White House to discuss his proposed relief package. It includes provisions such as a fresh wave of $1,400 stimulus checks, $400 federal unemployment benefits, funds to support vaccine distribution, and aid for states and cities."There's agreement, universal agreement we must go big and bold," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said after the meeting in the Oval Office. They doubled down on their goal to act swiftly and said they would still try to get Republican votes."I think we'll get some Republicans," Biden said.There are signs the president is open to adjusting some components of the relief package without shrinking its large price tag. Biden told House Democrats earlier Wednesday he was <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-democrats-negotiating-stimulus-check-income-thresholds-2021-2">willing to negotiate</a> the threshold of stimulus checks in his plan.The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, also said the administration was receptive to tightening eligibility for a third federal payment."Further targeting means not the size of the check - it means the income level of people who receive the check," she said at a press conference. "That's something that is under discussion."Democrats are in the early stages of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/democrats-new-stimulus-check-plan-cuts-number-of-eligible-people-2021-2">drafting a plan</a> in which only individuals earning $50,000 and below qualify for a full $1,400 check, along with couples making $100,000 and under.Still, some Democrats are urging the White House against scaling back the eligibility of Americans for a third federal payment. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, argued the relief checks served a critical role lifting many people out of poverty and helping them make ends meet."I understand the desire to ensure those most in need receive checks, but families who received the first two checks will be counting on a third check to pay the bills," he said in a statement to Insider.Democrats face significant hurdles to fashion Biden's proposal into law. Every Democratic senator must be in favor of the package given their narrow majority in the chamber, setting up a razor-thin margin of error. They control the evenly divided Senate only because Vice President Kamala Harris casts the tiebreaking vote.The support of Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a conservative Democrat, will be critical. In an MSNBC interview, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/senator-joe-manchin-19-trillion-stimulus-bipartisan-input-covid-video-2021-2">he expressed support</a> for the price of Biden's rescue package."If it's $1.9 trillion, so be it. If it's a little smaller than that and we find a targeted need, then that's what we're going to do," Manchin said. "But I want it to be bipartisan. If they think we're going to throw all caution to the wind and just shove it down people's throats, that's not going to happen."

House Democrats voted to circumvent Republicans and start passing Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus package on their own

WHIP COUNT: Here's which members of the House voted for and against impeaching Trump

Here are all of the Republican elected officials backing Trump's 2024 campaign

Hello everyone! Welcome to this weekly roundup of Business Insider stories from co-Editor in Chief Matt Turner. <a href="http://newsletter.businessinsider.com/join/4np/insider-weekly">Subscribe here to get this newsletter in your inbox every Sunday.</a>Read on for more on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yelp-sales-tactics-insiders-say-sales-reps-misleading-aggressive-2020-10">Yelp insiders describing misleading sales tactics</a>, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vista-equity-partners-tension-robert-smith-brian-sheth-exit-taxes-2020-10">a messy exit at Vista Equity Partners</a>, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/skift-employees-say-ceo-rafat-ali-acted-unprofessionally-towards-women-2020-10">employees at travel media company Skift speaking out</a>. Hello!Polls this morning show Joe Biden leading President Donald Trump in the final few days of the race for the White House, with a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/president-trump-trails-joe-biden-by-10-points-nationally-in-final-days-of-election-11604239200?mod=hp_lead_pos1">WSJ/NBC poll</a> showing Biden up by 10 points among voters nationally, and a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/01/us/politics/biden-trump-poll-florida-pennsylvania-wisconsin.html">New York Times/Sienna poll</a> showing Biden ahead in four key swing states. You can get the latest news ahead of the election <a href="https://www.insider.com/">right here</a>. Here's what's trending on Insider right now:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/democrats-fear-lame-duck-trump-biden-transition-midnight-rules-2020-10">Inside the Democrats' operation to fight back against Trump going scorched-earth in a Biden transition</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kimberly-guilfoyle-don-jr-president-trump-fox-news-2020-10">How Kimberly Guilfoyle groomed boyfriend Don Jr. into a political powerhouse and turned herself into a conservative star</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiffany-donald-trump-relationship-career-2020-10">Tiffany and the Trumps: Insiders describe how the president's younger daughter has charted what they say is a distant relationship with her father and come to terms with America's most divisive last name</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/journalists-reporters-donating-money-democrats-biden-bernie-aoc-trump-politics-2020-10">Meet 39 journalists who made political contributions. They're among dozens who've together given at least $110,000 mostly to 2020 Democrats, including Biden, Bernie, and AOC.</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-biden-election-stocks-options-rise-whale-trade-bull-spread-2020-10">Traders are buzzing about a mysterious market whale that's placing massive bets on stocks skyrocketing post-election</a></li></ul><h2><keyword id="86061" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Yelp">Yelp</keyword> insiders describe misleading sales tactics</h2>From Rob Price:Current and former Yelp employees said they have felt pressured by the company to use misleading sales tactics.Business Insider spoke to 21 current or former Yelp workers about the company's hyper-aggressive approach to sales and its high-pressure corporate culture. Some sources said they knowingly sold to small business owners who they didn't think understood what they were buying, saw colleagues act in misleading ways, and regularly heard complaints from business owners about unexpected bills.Since the pandemic closed Yelp's offices, sales calls largely haven't been recorded, prompting concerns about sales reps' conduct without oversight.In a statement, Yelp said that it requires "employees to behave in a professional manner and to follow our policies and procedures," and takes disciplinary action against workers who are unethical.Read the full story here:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yelp-sales-tactics-insiders-say-sales-reps-misleading-aggressive-2020-10">Aggressive and misleading sales tactics by Yelp employees knowingly prey on small businesses during the pandemic, insiders say</a></li></ul><h2>A messy exit at Vista Equity Partners</h2><div type="image" title="robert f smith brian sheth" height="3000" width="4000" msid="78986471" hostid="261"></div>From Dakin Campbell and Casey Sullivan:Vista Equity Partners founder Robert Smith and president Brian Sheth are locked in negotiations over Sheth's exit from the private-equity firm after Smith's admission to years of tax evasion, according to people familiar with their relationship.The two have worked together at Vista for more than two decades, turning Vista into a private-equity powerhouse. But once Smith made it clear to Sheth that he intended to remain at the firm despite signing a non-prosecution agreement that would publicly detail his past behavior, the younger man began to explore an exit, according to two people familiar with the negotiations. Sheth believes that with Smith at the helm, Vista will struggle to attract new money, one of the people said. He has also come to believe that Smith misled him and others at Vista about the seriousness of the government's action, adding to a breakdown in their relationship, the person said.Now, advisors for both men and Vista stakeholder Dyal Capital Partners are looking to hammer out an exit deal.Read the full story here;<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vista-equity-partners-tension-robert-smith-brian-sheth-exit-taxes-2020-10">Inside Vista Equity Partners, where a top exec is negotiating a messy exit and questions over the future loom large</a></li></ul><h2>Skift employees speak out</h2><div type="image" title="skift toxic workplace culture 2x1" height="1200" width="2400" msid="78986473" hostid="261"></div>From Madeline Stone:Business Insider spoke with three current and 13 former employees of Skift, the travel-media company founded by Rafat Ali and Jason Clampet in 2012.Many of them said there were times when women felt uncomfortable and mistreated in the workplace.They said Ali was an unpredictable leader who would at times take out his frustration on employees, particularly women.In May, Skift settled a lawsuit brought by its former vice president of marketing, who alleged that she experienced gender-based harassment, bullying, and discrimination during her time at the company.A Skift representative said: "When you look at the data, it's clear that Skift is actually an anti-racist company. We're also anti-sexist. And anti-ageist. And anti-privilege."Read the full story here:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/skift-employees-say-ceo-rafat-ali-acted-unprofessionally-towards-women-2020-10">Skift was praised as a progressive startup that could disrupt travel media. But some former employees say the company's mercurial CEO acted unprofessionally and took out frustration disproportionately on women of color.</a></li></ul><h2>ICYMI: Exxon slashes jobs</h2>From Benji JonesExxon on Thursday said it would cut as many as 1,900 jobs in the US, according to a presentation seen by Business Insider.The oil giant plans to reduce its global workforce by 15% by the end of 2022. That amounts to 14,000 contractor and employee roles.The US cuts will be both voluntary and involuntary, largely affecting workers at Exxon's campus in Houston and office in Hughes Landing, Texas.Read the full story here:<ul><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/oil-giant-exxon-to-cut-workers-layoffs-after-strategic-review-2020-10">Exxon is slashing its global workforce by 15%, and up to 1,900 US workers could lose their jobs. Here's a detailed timeline and a look at which roles will be cut.</a></li></ul><h2>An invitation: How to control your money</h2>Following discussions about <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/smart-money-moves-during-pandemic-financial-planning-2020-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">planning</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/smart-investors-tips-personal-finance-professionals-2020-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investing</a>, the Master Your Money Live Digital Bootcamp series continues with "How to control your money so it doesn't control you," on Tuesday, November 17 at noon ET.The event will focus on strategies for thriving financially and is part of Business Insider's Master Your Money Live Digital Bootcamp series, presented by Fidelity.<a href="https://event.on24.com/eventRegistration/eventRegistrationServlet?partnerref=editorial_newsletter_inclusion&amp;referrer=&amp;eventid=2707741&amp;sessionid=1&amp;key=273DA4F507E2B9CDC08656C8F330858C&amp;regTag=F330858C&amp;regTag=">Register here. </a>Here are some headlines from the past week you might have missed. — Matt<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/top-talent-managers-for-micro-influencers-instagram-youtube-tiktok-2020-10">15 top talent managers helping micro influencers land brand deals and grow their businesses on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/dominos-pizza-to-drop-agency-crispin-after-13-years-2020-10">Domino's Pizza plans to drop its ad agency of 13 years in what would be a big hit to holding company MDC Partners</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-24-hottest-edtech-startups-in-europe-according-to-investors-2020-10">These are the 24 hottest edtech startups in Europe, according to the VCs backing them through COVID-19</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-volatility-expert-warns-of-crash-shares-trading-strategy-2020-10">The founder of a volatility-hedging program that gained 3,700% in the March crash says 'the opportunity is ripe' for another chaotic market event — and shares how investors can take advantage of it</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/quibi-execs-free-agents-to-hire-content-marketing-ads-2020-10">Quibi poached top talent from Netflix, Snap, and Hulu. Meet 9 leaders and content execs who are now free agents as the startup winds down.</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wework-members-late-rent-collections-revenue-arbitration-eviction-tenants-coworking-2020-10">WeWork is demanding overdue rent from hundreds of small businesses and threatening to send them to collections agencies if they don't pay up</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jpmorgan-kristin-lemkau-shaping-wealth-management-ambitions-recruitment-diversity-tech-2020-10">How JPMorgan's Kristin Lemkau is planning to turbocharge the firm's $500 billion wealth business, from a rebrand and ramping up advisor training to new tech</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nordstrom-says-workers-need-pay-it-back-for-health-insurance-2020-10">Nordstrom covered health insurance for furloughed workers. Now it wants them to pay it back as Americans' savings are dwindling to $0.</a>

Yelp insiders describe aggressive and misleading sales tactics as employees prey on small businesses during the pandemic

Democrats projected to retain their House majority but lose key seats to Republicans

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOaEGQzFaPg">Screenshot - YouTube</a></div></div></div><ul><li>Pro-Trump vloggers Diamond &amp; Silk testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday about allegations of bias and suppression from tech companies like Facebook.</li><li>The hearing quickly devolved into shouting matches and suggestions that the duo could have committed perjury.</li></ul>WASHINGTON - The Trump-supporting video bloggers <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/diamond-and-silk-facebook-censorship-testimony-2018-4">Diamond &amp; Silk</a>, whose real names are Lynnette Hardaway and Rochelle Richardson, testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday about accusations of bias against and suppression of conservatives by large tech companies.When Hardaway and Richardson came under scrutiny from lawmakers, the hearing quickly got out of hand.At first, ranking Democrats on the committee like Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Zoe Lofgren, avoided questioning Hardaway and Richardson, opting for probing the other witness, who represented trade associations for journalists and tech companies.<h2>The hearing was full of fireworks</h2>A shouting match ensued when Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson questioned Hardaway and Richardson. Hardaway and Richardson exclaimed that they were being "censored" by Facebook, which limits their reach on the platform."Rather than diamonds, you're seeking money from Facebook," Johnson said to Hardaway."This is a stupid and ridiculous hearing," said California Rep. Ted Lieu.The hearing regularly showcased Democrats asking Richardson and Hardaway about their practices and theories, to which they responded by shouting and interrupting. At multiple points throughout the hearing, Democrats and Republicans on the committee could be seen laughing, rolling their eyes, and shaking their heads in disbelief.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Joe PerticoneReps. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.).</div></div></div><h2>Dispute over FEC records</h2>The chaos continued when Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Democrat, asked Hardaway whether the duo had ever been paid by the Donald Trump campaign. Hardaway unequivocally said they have never been paid by the Trump campaign. But Federal Elections Commission <a href="http://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/forms/C00580100/1133930/sb/ALL/4">records</a> show they were paid $1,274.94 in November of 2016 for "field consulting."Jackson Lee wanted to continue probing the panel, but her allotted time had expired. She continued to press on while Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert, who was standing in for the chairman, banged his gavel and told the committee to move on.But Rep. Hakeem Jeffries brought the topic back up, making a point that Hardaway and Richardson could be subject to perjury charges."So I'm just trying to figure out, who is lying here?" Jeffries said. "Is it the Trump campaign or is someone not telling the truth?"Richardson said, "Nobody is lying" and attempted to explain the campaign payments."Actually this was for because we was asked to join the women for Trump tour back in 2016," Richardson said. "And Ms. Lara Trump asked that our airline tickets be refunded back to us because we paid for those tickets when we went from New York to Ohio."Their claim was essentially that the FEC or the Trump campaign made a mistake in the finalization of the post-campaign report.A spokesperson for the FEC told Business Insider that "the information and data available through campaign finance reports on FEC.gov originate from the filing committee."<h2>Labeled "very liberal" by Facebook</h2>Hardaway and Richardson regularly said they were labeled "very liberal" by Facebook, despite being ardent supporters of President Donald Trump and the Republican agenda.A conflicting component of that claim is that Facebook does not manually label pages. The classification of pages are based on users' behavior on Facebook, such as what pages they like and with which they engage.In addition, Hardaway and Richardson <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/meet-the-black-women-defending-trumps-record-on-race-w441709">said</a> they were lifelong Democrats until the 2016 North Carolina primary, when they switched parties to support Trump.After the hearing concluded, several members of Congress posed for photos with Hardaway and Richardson, including Missouri Republican Jason Smith, who was not on the committee but sat in the audience to watch them."A thorn between two roses," Smith said as he posed between the duo. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/violent-video-games-ban-mass-shooting-shootings-2018-3">Stop blaming violent video games for mass shootings</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Pro-Trump vloggers Diamond & Silk testified before Congress - and it got out of hand fast

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Lucas JacksonThen-President-elect Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during a USA Thank You Tour event in Mobile, Alabama, U.S., December 17, 2016.</div></div></div>A bill introduced by Alabama Rep. Mike Rogers earlier this month calls on the US to "terminate" its membership in the United Nations (UN) and effectively sever all ties with the organization.The legislation, titled the "<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/193/">American Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2017</a>," was proposed on January 3. It is co-sponsored by a handful of conservative-leaning lawmakers, including North Carolina Rep. Walter B. Jones, Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, Missouri Rep. Jason Smith, Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, Tennessee Rep. John Duncan, Jr., and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz. The offices of the congressmen did not immediately respond to requests for comment.The bill proposes barring the US from committing funds or troops to UN peacekeeping operations worldwide, and stipulates that the UN must vacate property owned by the United States government. It would repeal the 1973 Environment Program Participation Act, strip UN employees of diplomatic immunity in the United States, and repeal the US' membership and participation in the World Health Organization.The bill's language is strong, and it's an extreme longshot to garner the necessary support to pass the House and move on to the Senate. Rogers tried, unsuccessfully, to pass a similar bill in 2015."I suspect foreign governments will be more interested in what the administration does with regard to the UN," said Stephen Biddle, adjunct senior fellow for defense policy at the Council on Foreign Relations and professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University."This proposal doesn't strike me as something that's likely to rise above the noise," Biddle added, "but it does play into the administration's narrative about opposing multilateral institutions and withdrawing from global leadership roles."<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Andrew KellyUnited States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power addresses media following a United Nations Security Council vote on December 19, 2016.</div></div></div>President Donald Trump <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">has characterized</a> the UN as "just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time" and promised that relations between the US and the UN "will be different" during his presidency.Trump's criticism of the organization came after the UN Security Council passed a resolution in late December calling on Israel to halt building settlements on occupied Palestinian land. Trump, along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urged the US to vote against the resolution, which was sponsored by Egypt. But the US ultimately abstained, and the resolution passed.Many Republican lawmakers have slammed the UN for having an "anti-Israel" bias that aims to isolate and weaken the Jewish state. Arizona Sen. John McCain said that the UN vote marked "another shameful chapter in the bizarre anti-Israel history of the United Nations." House Speaker Paul Ryan called the vote "<a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerRyan/status/812383260974137344">absolutely shameful</a>" and vowed that "our unified Republican government" would work to reverse the resolution.Few, if any, mainstream Republican lawmakers have gone as far as to advocate for a full withdrawal of the US from the UN. In 2015, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul <a href="http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/01/14/rand_paul_says_hed_be_happy_to_dissolve_the_un_125260.html">said he thought he'd be "happy to dissolve"</a> the United Nations, because he "dislike[s] paying for something that two-bit Third World countries with no freedom attack us and complain about the United States."But some have said they would support defunding the organization, which <a href="http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/three-billion-and-counting-us-taxpayers-will-fund-lions-share-un">received </a><a href="http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/three-billion-and-counting-us-taxpayers-will-fund-lions-share-un">$594 million</a> - roughly 22% of its total budget - from the US in 2016. In early January, <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/paulmcleod/republicans-are-readying-a-push-to-defund-the-united-nations?utm_term=.vuAzmw19K#.op1EPMWJx">BuzzFeed reported</a> that the House Freedom Caucus was drafting a bill, proposed by South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, to sever financial ties with the organization. Republican Sens. Tom Cotton, John McCain, and Ted Cruz said that they would support the initiative."I anticipate this vote will create a backlash in Congress against the United Nations," Graham <a href="http://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=5BD4E916-0077-43B7-AAB9-44B21FFD41CD">said in a statement </a>shortly after the Israel resolution passed. "The United Nations will regret this vote and I hope the Obama administration will realize the massive mistake they made on their way out of the door."Nikki Haley, Trump's pick to replace Samantha Power as the US ambassador to the UN, said during her Senate confirmation hearing last week that the UN is a body that is "often at odds with American national interests," and called the US' decision to abstain from the Israel vote "a terrible mistake." Still, she said that while the US should reexamine its "disproportionate" financial contribution to the UN, she doesn't think there should be "a slash and burn" of the US' support for the organization."I want to bring back faith in the UN," Haley said. "I want to show that we can be a strong voice at the UN. I want to show that we can make progress and have action at the UN." <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/artists-wont-perform-donald-trump-inauguration-president-elect-kiss-rkelly-moby-celine-dion-garth-brooks-2017-1">Here are all the musicians who declined to perform at Trump's inauguration so far</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="BjNjJ3ODE6JwrxSs6WXXSQ8bCVZqSVI5" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

A bill has already been introduced in Congress to remove the US from the United Nations

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Tasos Katopodis/Getty ImagesThe House Judiciary Committee sent letters to 81 individuals and organizations on Monday as it launches its investigation into President Donald Trump.</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>The House Judiciary Committee has begun an investigation into President Donald Trump, his associates, and entities connected to them.</li><li>The committee's chairman, Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, has sent letters to 81 people, organizations, and companies requesting documents connected to the investigation.</li><li>The committee would be the entity ultimately responsible for impeachment proceedings against the president.</li></ul>The House Judiciary Committee launched a sweeping investigation this week into President Donald Trump's inner circle, businesses, and political dealings, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/judiciary-committee-documents-trump-obstruction-probe-2019-3">sending document requests to 81 people and entities</a> linked to the president. The committee, led by Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, will <a href="https://nadler.house.gov/press-release/house-judiciary-committee-unveils-investigation-threats-against-rule-law">focus on three primary issues</a>: if Trump obstructed justice by interfering in criminal investigations; public corruption including potential violations like violating campaign and financial reporting laws; and abuses of power ranging from attacks on the press to misusing presidential authority and pardoning power. The document probe comes after Michael Cohen, Trump's former longtime lawyer, implicated the president and his associates in a dramatic hearing last week before the House Oversight and Reform Committee. Many of the names he dropped, including Trump Organization Executive Vice President Donald Trump Jr., Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, and Trump executive assistant Rhona Graff, were included on Monday's list.Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/judiciary-committee-documents-trump-obstruction-probe-2019-3" data-analytics-position="1">In an 'investigative blitz,' the House Judiciary Committee requested documents from 81 people and entities tied to Trump»</a>Others on the list indicate the breadth of the committee's investigation, from people and agencies associated with the Trump campaign, the Trump foundation, the White House, the Justice Department, Trump's inaugural committee, the Trump organization, and dozens of the president's closest aides and campaign officials. Several people on the list also have ties to the ongoing Russia investigation.The committee would be the entity responsible for beginning impeachment proceedings against Trump."Impeachment is a long way down the road," Nadler told <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-19-rep-jerrold-nadler-rep-kevin/story?id=61428738">ABC news on Sunday</a>. "But we're going to initiate proper investigations."The White House blasted the investigations in a statement on Monday, calling the probe "disgraceful and abusive.""The Democrats are more interested in pathetic political games and catering to a radical, leftist base than on producing results for our citizens," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said. "The Democrats are not after the truth, they are after the President."Similarly, Trump weighed in on the requests via Twitter."The Dems are obstructing justice and will not get anything done," Trump said. "A big, fat, fishing expedition desperately in search of a crime, when in fact the real crime is what the Dems are doing, and have done!"Here is a look at the 81 people, organizations, and companies connected to the investigation:<ol><li>Alan Garten, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/profiles/people/20563354-alan-garten">chief legal officer</a> of the Trump Organization</li><li>Alexander Nix, former CEO of Cambridge Analytica</li><li>Allen Weisselberg, CFO of the Trump Organization</li><li>American Media Inc., media company that publishes the National Enquirer</li><li>Anatoli Samochornov, a translator who reportedly <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-else-was-in-the-room-when-trump-jr-met-with-the-russian-lawyer-2017-7">attended the 2016 Trump Tower meeting</a></li><li>Andrew Intrater, head of investment firm Columbus Nova, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/michael-cohen-reportedly-met-russian-oligarch-viktor-vekselberg-3-times-2018-5">cousin of Viktor Vekselberg</a>, and donor to the Trump Inaugural committee</li><li>Annie Donaldson, former White House deputy counsel</li><li>Brad Parscale, digital media director of Trump's 2016 campaign and campaign manager of 2020 Trump campaign</li><li>Brittany Kaiser, former business development director at Cambridge Analytica</li><li>Cambridge Analytica, a political data firm hired by the Trump campaign</li><li>Carter Page, former Trump campaign adviser</li><li>Columbus Nova, US-based investment firm run by Andrew Intrater, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/michael-cohen-reportedly-met-russian-oligarch-viktor-vekselberg-3-times-2018-5">paid Michael Cohen in consulting fees</a> following the 2016 election</li><li>Concord Management and Consulting, a Russian consulting firm, indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller for allegedly conspiring to interfere in the 2016 US presidential election </li><li>Corey Lewandowski, former Trump campaign manager</li><li>David Pecker, chairman and CEO of American Media Inc.</li><li>Department of Justice</li><li>Don McGahn, former White House counsel</li><li>Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, a trust <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-can-quietly-draw-money-from-trust-whenever-he-wants-new-documents-show/2017/04/03/7f4c0002-187c-11e7-9887-1a5314b56a08_story.html?utm_term=.7009fb595d81">created to hold Trump's assets </a>during his presidency</li><li>Donald Trump Jr., the president's son</li><li>Dylan Howard, chief content officer at American Media Inc.</li><li>Eric Trump, the president's son</li><li>Erik Prince, security consultant and founder of Blackwater</li><li>Federal Bureau of Investigation</li><li>Felix Sater, Russian-born businessman who worked as a middleman between the Trump Organization and Russian interests</li><li>Flynn Intel Group, a lobbying group created by Michael Flynn, Trump's former National Security adviser</li><li>General Services Administration</li><li>George Nader, political adviser to the United Arab Emirates <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/george-nader-mueller-seychelles-erik-prince-trump-russia-2018-3">with ties to several Trump associates</a></li><li>George Papadopoulos, former Trump campaign aide who <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/george-papadopoulos-sentenced-14-days-jail-mueller-russia-2018-9">pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI</a></li><li>Hope Hicks, former White House communications director, Trump campaign press secretary, and Trump Organization employee</li><li>Irakly Kaveladze, a businessman who <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-eighth-person-at-trump-jrs-russia-meeting-identified-irakly-kaveladze-2017-7">attended the 2016 Trump Tower meeting</a> with Donald Trump Jr.</li><li>Jared Kushner, a real estate developer and the president's son-in-law</li><li>Jason Maloni, former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's spokesman</li><li>Jay Sekulow, a personal lawyer for Trump</li><li>Jeff Sessions, former Attorney General in the Trump administration</li><li>Jerome Corsi, far-right political commentator and associate of Roger Stone</li><li>John Szobocsan, a business associate of <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/late-gop-activist-peter-w-smith-met-with-former-trump-adviser-michael-flynn-in-2015-sources-say-1539196064">late GOP activist Peter W. Smith</a>. Smith independently tried to obtain Hillary Clinton's emails from hackers. </li><li>Julian Assange, publisher of Wikileaks</li><li>Julian David Wheatland, director of Cambridge Analytica's parent company,<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cambridge-analytica-founder-says-no-rebranding-new-name-2018-5"> SCL Group</a></li><li>Keith Davidson, former attorney for Stormy Daniels</li><li>KT McFarland, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kt-mcfarland-withdraws-nomination-singapore-2018-2">former deputy national security adviser under Michael Flynn</a></li><li>Mark Corallo, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-new-trump-lawyer-in-russia-probe-yet-to-be-hired-2018-3">former spokesman for Trump's private legal team </a>who allegedly quit over concerns the president obstructed justice</li><li>Matt Tait, a cybersecurity researcher <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mueller-trump-russia-matt-tait-michael-flynn-investigation-2017-10">recruited to vet hacked Hillary Clinton emails</a></li><li>Matthew Calamari, executive vice president and chief operating officer at the Trump Organization. Trump <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/02/28/matthew-calamari-went-viral-after-cohen-hearing-hes-real-he-loves-trump/?utm_term=.5f263e5ed420">originally hired Calamari as his bodyguard</a> after seeing him at a US Open tennis tournament in 1981.</li><li>Michael Caputo, former Trump campaign aide</li><li>Michael Cohen, former personal attorney and fixer for Trump</li><li>Michael Flynn, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-michael-flynn-guilty-plea-2017-12">Trump's former National Security adviser</a></li><li>Michael Flynn Jr., son of Trump's former National Security adviser Michael Flynn and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/michael-flynn-jr-subject-trump-russia-investigation-2017-9">his father's chief of staff at the Flynn Intel Group</a></li><li>Paul Erickson, Republican operative who <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/maria-butina-russian-agent-boyfriend-charged-fraud-2019-2">dated alleged Russian spy Maria Butina</a></li><li>Paul Manafort, former Trump campaign chairman who was convicted of various charges including <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/paul-manafort-lawyers-sentencing-memo-accuses-mueller-misinformation-2019-3">tax and bank fraud</a></li><li>Peter Smith estate, late GOP activist who independently tried to obtain Hillary Clinton's emails from hackers during the 2016 campaign</li><li>Randy Credico, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/roger-stone-randy-credico-text-messages-wikileaks-2018-11">left wing radio host and associate of Roger Stone </a>who Stone claimed was his channel to WikiLeaks</li><li>Reince Priebus, former White House chief of staff</li><li>Rhona Graff, Trump's longtime assistant at the Trump Organization</li><li>Rinat Akhmetshin, Russian-American lobbyist and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-jr-lobbyist-rinat-akhmetshin-russia-ties-2017-8">former Soviet military intelligence officer</a> who was present at the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-else-was-in-the-room-when-trump-jr-met-with-the-russian-lawyer-2017-7">Trump Tower meeting</a> in June 2016</li><li>Rob Goldstone, music publicist who <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rob-goldstone-amazing-social-media-trump-russia-2017-7">helped arrange the Trump Tower meeting</a></li><li>Roger Stone, GOP political strategist and one of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-roger-stone-why-is-fbi-investigating-him-2017-3">Trump's most loyal true believers</a>. Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted Stone with one count of obstruction, five counts of false statements, and one count of witness tampering</li><li>Ronald Lieberman, executive vice president for management and development at the Trump Organization</li><li>Sam Nunberg, former Trump campaign adviser</li><li>SCL Group Limited, parent company of Cambridge Analytica </li><li>Sean Spicer, former White House press secretary</li><li>Sheri Dillon, Trump's personal attorney who House Democrats have alleged <a href="http://fortune.com/2019/02/15/trump-cohen-affairs-hush-payments-lawyers-elijah-cummings/">provided false information</a> about Trump's involvement in hush payments to Michael Cohen during the 2016 campaign</li><li>Stefan Passantino, former White House counsel who <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/28/nyregion/allen-weisselberg-facts-history.html">now advises the Trump Organization on how to deal with House investigations</a></li><li>Steve Bannon, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/whats-next-for-steve-bannon-trump-breitbart-2018-1">former White House chief strategist</a> and executive chairman of Breitbart <keyword id="6355005" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="news">News</keyword></li><li>Ted Malloch, an American academic with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mueller-subpoenas-ted-malloch-to-testify-in-the-russia-probe-2018-3">ties to Republican strategist Roger Stone and Brexit leader Nigel Farage</a></li><li>The White House</li><li>Trump Campaign</li><li>Trump Foundation, private charitable organization <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-dissolves-trump-foundation-charity-amid-new-york-lawsuit-2018-12">dissolved amid a lawsuit</a> from the New York Attorney General concerning its finances</li><li>Trump Organization, a portfolio of business entities including <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-the-trump-organization-2016-12">real estate, hotels, golf courses, and investments in clothing and other products</a></li><li>Trump Transition, the 2016-2017 presidential transition team</li><li>Viktor Vekselberg, Russian oligarch with ties to the Kremlin who <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/25/us/politics/michael-cohen-viktor-vekselberg-trump-tower.html">met with Michael Cohen</a></li><li>Wikileaks, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wikileaks-deleted-tweet-fire-and-fury-text-trump-russia-2018-1">a whistleblowing group</a> founded by Julian Assange that leaked emails from the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-story-of-how-russians-hacked-the-democrats-emails-2017-11">Democratic National Committee</a> and from Hillary Clinton's campaign manager, John Podesta </li><li>58th Presidential Inaugural Committee, Trump's inaugural committee that has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-inaugural-committee-subpoena-dc-attorney-general-2019-2">come under scrutiny for alleged improper spending</a> of some of its record $107 million in donations</li><li>Christopher Bancroft Burnham, former Deutsche Bank executive who served on Trump's State Department transition team</li><li>Frontier Services Group, a security training company co-founded by Erik Prince</li><li>J.D. Gordon, Trump campaign aide who interacted with alleged Russian spy Maria Butina</li><li>Kushner Companies, Jared Kushner's firm</li><li>National Rifle Association, gun-rights lobbying group that <a href="https://www.thetrace.org/2018/12/trump-nra-campaign-coordination/">spent millions to help elect Trump</a></li><li>Rick Gates, former deputy to Paul Manafort who is now <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-rick-gates-bio-photo-indicted-trump-russia-probe-manafort-2017-10">a cooperating witness</a> in the special counsel investigation</li><li>Tom Barrack, chairman of Trump's inaugural committee</li><li>Tom Bossert, former <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tom-bossert-fired-homeland-security-adviser-2018-4">Trump administration homeland security adviser</a></li><li>Tony Fabrizio, Republican pollster and Trump campaign adviser</li></ol> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/michael-cohen-trump-explosive-claims-house-oversight-committee-2019-2">'He is a racist. He is a conman.' Michael Cohen's most explosive claims about Trump in his blockbuster hearing</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Here are the 81 people and organizations that the House Judiciary Committee asked for documents as part of its investigation into Trump

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image">REUTERS/John Sommers II</div></div></div>Idaho's 2nd Congressional District was supposed to be a proxy battle to set the tone for the establishment vs. grassroots Republican fight of the 2014 midterm elections.
In the end, it hardly ended up being a battle - like many of the intra-party fights across the country. 
Incumbent U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, who was running for a ninth term, crushed his Tea Party-aligned challenger, local attorney Bryan Smith. Simpson garnered almost 62% of the vote to Smith's 38.3%.
The race was a costly one in which groups backing both candidates spent hundreds of thousands of dollars. But in the last few weeks leading up to the Idaho primary, the Club for Growth - the major group backing Smith - quietly shifted resources away from Idaho and into the Nebraska Senate race. 
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has already had success backing a number of establishment candidates, kept pouring into the race on Simpson's behalf. Over the last month, it ran an ad in Idaho featuring the endorsement of former GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
"This race was a top priority for the Chamber to engage early and locally to support Simpson and highlight his record," said Rob Engstrom, the senior vice president and national political director of the Chamber. "We will continue to stand with him."
Across the rest of the country, the story was the same. In three key Republican battles to determine the party's Senate nominees, establishment-aligned candidates prevailed:
<ul>
<li>Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mitch-mcconnell-matt-bevin-results-wins-alison-lundergan-grimes-2014-5" target="_blank">made quick work of Matt Bevin in Kentucky</a>, grabbing about 60% of the Republican vote.</li>
<li>In Georgia, businessman David Perdue and the Chamber-backed U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston advanced to a GOP runoff. U.S. Reps. Paul Broun and Phil Gingrey, the race's two most flamboyant, conservative Republicans, didn't come close. Not even the Sarah Palin-backed Karen Handel made the runoff.</li>
<li>In Oregon, despite a late-breaking scandal that made national headlines over the final few days of the race, neurosurgeon Monica Wehby dispatched of conservative challenger and state Rep. Jason Conger, 50.7-37.1.</li>
</ul>
Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz argued Tuesday night that the results were not indicative of the Tea Party's decline. Rather, she said they proved conservative challengers had successfully pushed the party to the right.
"Even the candidates purportedly backed by the establishment have been pulled so far to the right that it is a distinction without a difference. The civil war in the Republican Party is over and the Tea Party won," Wasserman Schultz said in a statement.
But in each primary, the GOP's general-election chances improved - including a win <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/gop-senate-odds-thom-tillis-election-2014-5" target="_blank">for the establishment in North Carolina two weeks ago</a>. Thus far, the party has avoided nominating any of the "Todd Akin 2.0" candidates insiders feared would hamper their chances at retaking control of the Senate. They need to swing six seats to do so, a goal that looks increasingly attainable.
For Democrats, it might be time to panic.
"Election results last night were pretty much as expected - the GOP has crushed the Tea Party, and the Democrats can no longer count on running against right wing 'exotics,'" said Greg Valliere, the chief political strategist at Potomac Research Group.
The party establishment wasn't shy in gloating about its big win Tuesday night. Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/steve-stockman-campaign-texas-senate-primary-john-cornyn-2014-3" target="_blank">faced a disastrous primary challenge earlier this year</a>, tweeted back at an online activist who said the conservative movement's "only mistake" was not running grassroots Republican Katrina Pierson against Cornyn:
<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image">Twitter/@JohnCornyn</div></div></div>

The Tea Party Got Clobbered Last Night

Pool/Getty ImagesPresident Trump.After a week of tumult and negative news, the protective Republican wall around President Donald Trump is starting to crack.Leading Republican politicians are becoming more vocal in their complaints, while networks are <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-cbs-struggling-to-find-republicans-to-defend-trump-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">struggling to find Republicans willing to go on-air</a> to defend the president.The cracks come after a trio of bombshells. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/james-comey-fired-fbi-trump-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The first was Trump's</a> controversial firing of FBI Director James Comey last week. He was let go while he was overseeing an investigation into potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials to swing the November presidential election in Trump's favor.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-revealed-highly-classified-information-to-the-russians-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Next were reports</a> on Monday that Trump had disclosed highly classified intelligence from an Islamic State-connected source - later revealed to be tied to Israel - with Russian diplomats during a recent Oval Office meeting.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-obstruction-of-justice-comey-memo-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The final eye-popper</a> was a Tuesday <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/16/us/politics/james-comey-trump-flynn-russia-investigation.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=span-ab-top-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">report</a> in The New York Times that said Comey kept memos of his meetings with Trump and documented one meeting in which the president reportedly said he hoped Comey would let go of the FBI's investigation into Michael Flynn, Trump's ousted national-security adviser. Legal experts outlined how that could lead to a "very strong case of obstruction of justice," the same charge that brought down former President Richard Nixon."We've seen this movie before," Sen. John McCain of Arizona <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-mccain-watergate-trump-comey-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said at a dinner</a> for the International Republican Institute on Tuesday. "It's reaching Watergate size and scale. This is not good for the country."Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, the Republican chairman of the House Oversight Committee, <a href="https://twitter.com/jasoninthehouse/status/864616135466950656" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tweeted Tuesday</a> night following news of the Comey memo that he has his "subpoena pen ready" to obtain any memos that may exist of Comey's conversations with Trump. He said <a href="https://twitter.com/KatyTurNBC/status/864618296334839808" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">of the latest</a> report: "On the surface that seems like an extraordinary use of influence to try to shut down an investigation being done by the FBI."AshLee Strong, the spokeswoman for House Speaker Paul Ryan, <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/16/politics/congress-reactions-trump-michael-flynn-memo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said it was</a> "appropriate for the House Oversight Committee to request this memo," citing a "need to have all the facts."Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesJason Chaffetz.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/house-oversight-committee-chair-on-comeys-memos-i-have-my-subpoena-pen-ready-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Chaffetz then sent a letter</a> to acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-obstruction-of-justice-comey-memo-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">asking for all</a> communications related to conversations between Comey and Trump.Then, speaking at his weekly news conference on Wednesday, Ryan said the situation "requires close examination," doubling-down on a need for "the facts.""We have an obligation to carry out our oversight no matter what party is in the White House," he said, adding that Chaffetz "appropriately requested the memo."The Wisconsin Republican said there were "a lot of unanswered questions," and that it was "obvious" there were people who want to "hurt" Trump."Now is the time to gather all of the pertinent information," he said.Asked about how he and his fellow House Republicans will be judged in the 2018 midterms, Ryan said he wanted people watching on TV to know that they're "busy fixing problems," and the Trump controversies are not all that is going on.Sen. Lindsey Graham said in a statement Wednesday morning that, while he does "not believe in trial by newspaper article or investigations based on anonymous sources," Congress must call on Comey to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee to "obtain a full understanding of what President Trump may or may not have done regarding the Russian investigation, including General Michael Flynn.""The sooner Mr. Comey testifies publicly before the Judiciary Committee, the better for our nation," the South Carolina Republican said. "For all practical purposes the political process will be ground to a halt by these allegations.""I will follow the facts - wherever they may lead," he added.REUTERS/Jim BourgLindsey Graham.Other Republicans, such as Reps. Mark Walker and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, expressed concerns at the Times report, with Walker <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/16/politics/congress-reactions-trump-michael-flynn-memo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">telling CNN</a> that "to act like it's not a concern would be remiss on my part," and McMorris Rodgers <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/16/politics/congress-reactions-trump-michael-flynn-memo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">saying</a> she thinks "the White House needs to be open and transparent about what's going on, too."Meanwhile, after the news broke, networks were struggling to get any Republican lawmakers on air to discuss the president.Charlie Rose said on CBS "This Morning" Wednesday that the network asked 20 Republican lawmakers and representatives at the White House to appear on air and all declined.Fox News anchor Bret Baier of "Special Report" <a href="https://twitter.com/sarahcwestwood/status/864611207545843713" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said Tuesday night</a> that the network could not get a GOP member on air to defend Trump for his program."We've tried tonight to get Republicans to come out and talk to us, and there are not Republicans willing to go on camera tonight as of yet," Baier on his Tuesday program.On the program that follows his - "The Story" with Martha MacCallum - Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho appeared on air to defend Trump, who won his state by more than 30 points.Additionally, the White House's own statement defending Trump went unsigned, with no member of the administration tying their name to it.But even before Wednesday, the tone of some statements began to sound more dire. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, a Trump backer who is leading the committee's Russia investigation, <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/tariniparti/exhausted-republicans-are-starting-to-get-fed-up-with-the?utm_term=.lcPZynD78#.lwdANeZzl" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">expressed frustration</a> that the White House was not getting back to him as he was trying to figure out what Trump had said in his meeting with the Russians."There need to be serious changes at the White House, immediately," Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/16/us/white-house-staff.html?rref=collection%2Fbyline%2Fmaggie-haberman&amp;action=click&amp;contentCollection=undefined&amp;region=stream&amp;module=stream_unit&amp;version=latest&amp;contentPlacement=1&amp;pgtype=collection&amp;_r=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">told the Times</a>.While Republicans such as Toomey, McCain, Graham, Ryan, and Chaffetz were not exactly Trump's biggest backers during the election, it has become clear that the tenor is starting to change.Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a onetime candidate to be Trump's running mate, <a href="https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/864237417968132101" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">told reporters</a> Monday <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-revealed-highly-classified-information-to-the-russians-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">that the White House</a> "has got to do something soon to bring itself under control and in order. It's got to happen.""Obviously they're in a downward spiral right now and they've got to figure out a way to come to grips with all that's happening," he added.<h3>More from Allan Smith:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/top-2020-democratic-candidates-vs-trump-poll-2017-5" rel="nofollow">POLL: Here's how top 2020 Democratic challengers stack up against Trump</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-obstruction-of-justice-comey-memo-2017-5" rel="nofollow">'A major scandal and abuse of power': Bombshell Comey memo could lead to a major escalation in the Trump-FBI saga</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/more-americans-believe-trump-stop-civil-war-andrew-jackson-2017-5" rel="nofollow">More Americans think Trump would have stopped the Civil War than think the same about Andrew Jackson</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ppp-polls-trump-comey-fbi-firing-2017-5" rel="nofollow">We now know a lot more on how Americans feel about Trump's controversial James Comey firing</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sally-yates-cnn-michael-flynn-trump-russia-2017-5" rel="nofollow">Sally Yates: There was 'certainly a criminal statute that was implicated by' Michael Flynn's conduct</a></li></ul> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/yale-history-professor-trumps-path-tyranny-unfolding-stop-politics-donald-us-constitution-democracy-2017-4">Yale history professor: Trump's path to tyranny is unfolding</a></h3> Please enable Javascript to watch this video

The Republican wall around Trump is starting to crack

Pool/Getty ImagesDonald Trump.Several legal experts said Tuesday that President Donald Trump could be subject to an obstruction of justice charge, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/16/us/politics/james-comey-trump-flynn-russia-investigation.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=span-ab-top-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">after The New York Times reported</a> on a memo in which former FBI Director James Comey wrote that Trump asked him to drop an investigation into Michael Flynn."Three words: obstruction of justice," CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said on air. "Telling the FBI director to close down an investigation of your senior campaign adviser for his activities during your campaign for president, if that's true, that's obstruction of justice."The Times reported that Trump asked Comey during a February meeting to shut down the FBI's investigation into Flynn, the now-ousted national security adviser. Comey announced at a March hearing that the bureau was investigating any potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.The Times cited a memo Comey wrote shortly after the meeting, which took place the day after Flynn's resignation. Comey wrote that Trump told him "I hope you can let this go," according to the Times.Trump fired Comey last week, and mentioned the investigation into Russia when explaining his rationale during an interview with NBC News' Lester Holt. However, Trump said he did not pressure Comey to end the Russia investigation. Trump also told Holt he received multiple personal assurances from Comey that he was not personally under investigation, and he <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-threatens-comey-with-tapes-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">later tweeted</a> that Comey "better hope that there are no 'tapes' of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!"The same day Comey was fired, <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/michael-flynn-targeted-by-grand-jury-subpoenas-sources-confirm/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a grand jury issued</a> the first subpoenas in that investigation, seeking business records of Flynn associates.AP Photo/Alex BrandonJames Comey.The White House responded to the Times report by suggesting that the story was "not a truthful or accurate portrayal of the conversation" between Trump and Comey. Additionally, the administration pointed to acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe's testimony from last week when he said Comey's firing had not interfered with any investigation."While the president has repeatedly expressed his view that General Flynn is a decent man who served and protected our country, the president has never asked Mr. Comey or anyone else to end any investigation, including any investigation involving General Flynn," the White House said in an unsigned statement. "The President has the utmost respect for our law enforcement agencies, and all investigations."But Toobin and others were quick to outline the effects of the potential bombshell memo, though a physical copy had yet to be seen by major media outlets."Why do you think Director Comey wrote a memo to the file about it?" Toobin said. "Because he was so appalled that a president of the United States would behave in this way. 'Close it down' is an instruction to stop investigating President Trump's campaign. ... If Comey was telling the truth, and obviously there is a dispute from the White House, if he's telling the truth, I don't know how anyone can see this comment as anything other than obstruction of justice."Richard Painter, a professor at the University of Minnesota who served as President George W. Bush's chief ethics lawyer from 2005 through 2007, told Business Insider there would be a strong case for an obstruction of justice charge."I believe obstruction of justice would be occurring if there were an express or implied threat to fire the FBI director if he did not drop the Flynn investigation or other parts of the Russia investigation," he said. "That's obstruction of justice. The president fired the FBI director."Painter called for immediate hearings in the House and Senate Judiciary Committees on whether Trump and his senior staff has committed "abuse of power."He also pointed to a New York Times report from last week that cited sources as saying Trump had asked Comey to pledge loyalty to him during a January dinner, a request to which Comey reportedly did not agree. He said the combination of asking the FBI director to drop the Flynn investigation, coupled with the loyalty pledge and that the Flynn investigation is tied to the broader Russia investigation, could make for "very strong case of obstruction of justice."Mario Tama/Getty ImagesMichael Flynn.Obstruction of justice was the charge that brought down President Richard Nixon, who resigned after Congress initiated impeachment proceedings. President Bill Clinton was also charged by Congress of obstruction of justice, but he was acquitted by the Senate after the House impeached him.Susan Hennessey, the managing editor of Lawfare and a former National Security Agency attorney, outlined what has to take place for this ordeal to "qualify" as an obstruction of justice charge."There are sort of three elements of the obstruction of justice charge here," she said on CNN. "The first is there has to be an investigation, and the individual has to know about it. On those two features, clearly Trump knew there was an investigation into Flynn. Clearly that investigation existed. It's the third part that becomes really difficult, and that's that you have to prove there was an improper purpose, a corrupt state of mind.""Now, notably, it doesn't matter if he had proper purposes as well," she said. "It's that if any part of Trump's intention here was to interfere with the investigation, that's going to qualify as obstruction."Many lawmakers were quick to suggest that obstruction of justice charges could be at play. Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said the matter would have to be further investigated. But he said that based on what he knows now, he thinks obstruction took place."This is an explosive allegation, and it appears like a textbook case of criminal obstruction of justice," he said in a statement. "We need to hear testimony immediately from Director Comey - in public."His counterpart, GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, chair of the oversight committee, <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/864616405450338304" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said the incident</a> "on the surface that seems like an extraordinary use of influence to try to shutdown an investigation being done by the FBI."Chaffetz <a href="https://twitter.com/jasoninthehouse/status/864616135466950656" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">also tweeted</a> that his committee will get the Comey memo "if it exists.""I need to see it sooner rather than later," he wrote. "I have my subpoena pen ready."<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/house-oversight-committee-chair-on-comeys-memos-i-have-my-subpoena-pen-ready-2017-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Utah Republican then sent a letter</a> to McCabe asking for all communications related to conversations between Comey and Trump by May 24.REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstJason Chaffetz.<a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSitRoom/status/864607914777993216" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sen. Angus King of Maine</a>, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, "reluctantly" said on CNN that the incident was justifiably an obstruction case."I say it with sadness and reluctance," he said. "This is not something I've advocated for or the word has not passed my lips in this whole tumultuous three or four months, but if indeed the president did try to tell the director of the FBI, who worked for him, that he should drop an investigation, whether it was Michael Flynn or whether it was some investigation that had nothing to do with Russia or politics or the election, that's a very serious matter."Taking a look at the developments over the course of Trump's presidency regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election and the subsequent investigations, Painter said the latest bombshell was just the most recent piece of the puzzle."I'm not going to say one thing is the biggest so far," he said. "It's all evidence of a major scandal and abuse of power."<h3>More from Allan Smith:</h3><ul><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/more-americans-believe-trump-stop-civil-war-andrew-jackson-2017-5" rel="nofollow">More Americans think Trump would have stopped the Civil War than think the same about Andrew Jackson</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ppp-polls-trump-comey-fbi-firing-2017-5" rel="nofollow">We now know a lot more on how Americans feel about Trump's controversial James Comey firing</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sally-yates-cnn-michael-flynn-trump-russia-2017-5" rel="nofollow">Sally Yates: There was 'certainly a criminal statute that was implicated by' Michael Flynn's conduct</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-revealed-highly-classified-information-to-the-russians-2017-5" rel="nofollow">Trump reportedly revealed highly classified information to the Russians last week that the US hasn't even 'shared with our own allies'</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/reporter-grills-sean-spicer-trump-tapes-2017-5" rel="nofollow">"Why won't you just explain whether or not there are recordings?': Reporter grills Spicer after he refused to say whether Trump is recording conversations</a></li></ul> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/watch-sally-yates-go-toe-to-toe-with-ted-cruz-over-immigration-ban-2017-5">Watch Sally Yates go toe to toe with Ted Cruz over Trump's immigration ban</a></h3> Please enable Javascript to watch this video

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