Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he stands by comments he made in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol that former presidents, including Donald Trump, are "not immune" from criminal prosecution.  "Face the Nation" moderator and chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Brennan asked McConnell if he still believes former presidents are not completely immune from prosecution, as he said in early 2021 a little over a month after rioters who supported former President Trump stormed the Capitol.  Transcript: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on "Face th ..read more

BOSTON – State revenue receipts are running behind projections, prompting short-term budget cuts and hiring freezes. But in an interview with WBZ-TV, Senate President Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) says the moment does not call for major changes in state spending plans. "Now is not the time to take our foot off the pedal in economic development and housing and lowering the cost of college and other things if we want to continue being a leader with our innovation economy," Spilka said. "I believe that we need to keep investing in our strengths, which are our people, our residents." Massachusetts migr ..read more

For years, they've been three of the handful of states that decided presidential elections. In the summer of 2020, amid the COVID pandemic and lockdown debates, sizable majorities in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania rated state economies badly. Incumbent President Donald Trump trailed in polls, and ultimately, the three close contests were won by challenger Joe Biden. Four years on, some things haven't changed. We have the same two candidates locked in close — effectively even — races. And there are still negative views of the economy that now, as then, weigh on the 2024 incumbent, Presid ..read more

WBZ-TV political analyst Jon Keller talks to Massachusetts Sen. President Karen Spilka ..read more

WBZ-TV political analyst Jon Keller talks to Massachusetts Sen. President Karen Spilka ..read more

The Biden administration said Friday it would again delay a decision on a regulation aiming to ban menthol-flavored cigarettes, citing the "historic attention" and "immense amount of feedback" on the controversial proposal by the Food and Drug Administration.  "This rule has garnered historic attention and the public comment period has yielded an immense amount of feedback, including from various elements of the civil rights and criminal justice movement," Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. The White House had already overshot a previous self-imposed d ..read more

Washington — President Biden signaled for the first time publicly that he is willing to debate former President Donald Trump, his presumptive Republican opponent, ahead of November's general election. Asked during an hour-long interview on Howard Stern's show on SiriusXM if he would debate his rival, Mr. Biden replied, "I am, somewhere. I don't know when. I am happy to debate him." Mr. Biden said in March that his commitment to a debate with Trump "depends on his behavior." Asked about a debate during a trip to Nevada in February, Mr. Biden said, "If I were him, I'd want him to debate me, too ..read more

QUINCY - Quincy City Council President Ian Cain is the second Republican to seek his party's nomination to run against Sen. Elizabeth Warren this fall. "I'm running to usher in the next generation of leadership, where leaders focus on embracing the innovation economy and the new digital world," Cain said in a video release. What's the difference between Deaton and Cain? He joins Swansea attorney John Deaton in the field, who told WBZ-TV in his first Boston TV interview that he's running "because the country's in crisis, illegal immigration, debt crisis, opioid crisis." Deaton, who found fame d ..read more

Quincy City Council President Ian Cain and Swansea attorney John Deaton are seeking the Republican nomination to run against Sen. Elizabeth Warren. WBZ-TV's Jon Keller reports ..read more

TikTok users could soon find that the popular social media service is either under new ownership or, although it wouldn't happen immediately, outright banned in the U.S. The Senate late Tuesday passed a broad legislative package that delivers $95 billion in foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies. The bill also includes a provision that could lead to a ban on TikTok in the U.S. if the popular platform's Chinese owner doesn't sell its stake within a year. The House has already approved the measure. In a statement following its passage, President Biden said he will sign the bill Wed ..read more