The U.S. Senate has voted 80-12 to elevate U.S. Magistrate Irma Carrillo Ramirez to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, reports Reuters. Ramirez will be that court’s first Latina judge and the fifth active Democratic appointee on a court dominated by 12 judges nominated by Republican presidents. The bipartisan vote reflected the support of Texas' two Republican senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz. Overall, the Senate has now confirmed 160 of Biden's judicial nominees.

In a historic vote, the U.S. House of Representatives today voted to expel New York Republican Rep. George Santos, making him only the sixth person ever to be expelled from that body. The final vote was 311 voting for expulsion, 114 against and two Republicans voting “present.” The Hill reports that Santos is facing federal indictment on 23 counts of wire fraud, identity theft and other campaign finance charges.

A Democratic-led U.S. Senate panel today voted along party lines to issue subpoenas for two conservatives accused of providing high-priced gifts to Supreme Court justices, reports Reuters. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-IL, the committee's chairman, said subpoenas for Harlan Crow and Leonard Leo were necessary in light of their refusal to voluntarily comply with the panel's previous requests for information, including itemized lists of all gifts, transportation and lodging provided to any justice. The Supreme Court announced a new ethics code Nov. 13.

U.S. Senate Republicans on Wednesday did not get enough votes to block a new Biden administration rule on an income-driven repayment plan for federal student loans. The resolution failed 49-50. The Tennessee Lookout reports that the resolution was introduced by Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, who argued the plan does not “forgive debt. It transfers the burden of $559 billion in federal student loans to the 87% of Americans who don’t have student loans, who chose not to go to college or already responsibly paid off their debts." The White House disagreed, saying in a statement, “This legislation would mean higher payments for student loan borrowers and would dramatically raise costs for graduates.”

The White House recently sent a supplemental funding request to Congress that includes $21 million in disaster relief funds for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). The agency reports this is the first time that such funding has been included in a disaster relief request. Following natural disasters, the LSC works with state partners to provide resources and information vital for communities to respond and recover. Among its initiatives, the agency hosts a Disaster Task Force and recently launched a new website designed to provide real-time disaster risk assessments, details on recent disasters, recovery guidance, connections to local aid organizations and comprehensive information for each disaster type. The group also recently featured a conversation about the role civil legal aid plays in recovery efforts in its podcast “Talk Justice.”

Earlier this week, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti joined 25 other state attorneys general in sending a letter to Congress requesting the passage of H.R. 1337, the Immigration Enforcement Partnership Act of 2023. If signed into law, the bill would grant state attorneys general the authority to enforce certain federal immigration laws. Read more about the issue or read the letter.

U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett is claiming that former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy elbowed him in the back with a “sucker punch” in a hallway on Capitol Hill as lawmakers approach another deadline to keep the government funded, Knox News reports. "You don't expect a guy who was, at one time, three steps away from the White House to hit you with a sucker punch," Burchett told Knox News. McCarthy denies the incident took place. The altercation happened while Burchett was speaking with NPR reporter Claudia Grisales. Grisales said on X, formerly known as Twitter, "I thought it was a joke, it was not." Burchett was one of the "Gaetz Eight" who successfully voted to oust McCarthy from the speakership last month.

Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn has teamed up with Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-New Mexico, on a bipartisan bill called the Mitigating Automated Internet Networks for (MAIN) Event Ticketing Act. The bill would create reporting requirements so that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is quickly made aware of online ticketing misconduct. Axios Nashville has more information.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security has awarded 19 grants statewide this year to improve security at religious institutions, including four recent grants for Jewish centers in Knoxville, WBIR reports. The funds are part of a $750,000 budget appropriation for the Houses of Worship Security Grant Program. Applicants are required to demonstrate the threat and vulnerability to their organization as well as how funding would address gaps and deficiencies in current programs and capabilities. The move comes as a number of governors are calling on Congress to increase funding for security at places of worship, the Associated Press reports. The governors say the funding is needed to address growing concerns about the safety of Jewish and Muslim communities amidst the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

The U.S. House of Representatives elected Rep. Mike Johnson, a Republican of Louisiana, as its new speaker today after multiple attempts over the past several weeks, the New York Times reports. Among the representatives vying for the top job earlier this week were Reps. Chuck Fleischmann and Mark Green. Fleischmann, who represents Tennessee’s Third Congressional District, dropped out after the first round of voting while Green, who represents the Seventh District, dropped out after the second. WKRN has that story.