speaker of the House

(Newser) - The speaker of the Illinois House is starting impeachment proceedings against Rod Blagojevich, the Chicago Tribune reports. “We plan to proceed without delay,” said Mike Madigan, a longtime foe of the disgraced governor. Madigan has been considering proceedings against Blagojevich since before his recent corruption arrest, and says...

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi may wield her influence behind the scenes, but she is the most powerful woman in the history of US politics, Politico reports, and with recent Democratic gains in Congress, she's poised to have power few other speakers could match. Though she’s nice about it, “whatever Nancy...

(Newser) - Tuesday's votes were still being counted when House Democrats started wrangling over leadership positions, Politico reports. Henry Waxman has launched a challenge for chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee, aiming to take out John Dingell of Michigan, whose support is eroding. Says a lobbyist: "He has done...

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi spent 63% more in her first nine months as House speaker than Dennis Hastert did over the same period last year—including $16,000 on flowers, the Hill reports. Republicans said the $3 million figure gave the lie to Democrats’ promises of fiscal responsibility; Pelosi aides say the...