The Rich Zeoli Show- Hour 1:

• On Tuesday, a special election was held in New York’s 3rd District to fill former U.S. Representative George Santos’ vacant Congressional seat. Democrat Tom Suozzi defeated Republican candidate Mazi Pilip 54% to 46%. Nate Cohn of The New York Times writes: “Millions were spent on campaign advertisements, with Democrats outspending Republicans by a wide margin. And unlike with most special elections, Democrats nominated a fairly well-known candidate. Mr. Suozzi, who retired ahead of the 2022 election, had a strong electoral track record, having beaten Mr. Santos here by more than 12 points in 2020… There was even a big snowstorm on Tuesday that may have dampened Republican Election Day turnout (Democrats voted more by mail).” Could this special election be indicative of what will happen during the 2024 presidential election? Cohn continues: “Last week, a Siena College poll…found Mr. Biden running a full nine percentage points behind Mr. Suozzi and trailing Donald J. Trump in the district.” Last year, Santos became the sixth congressman in U.S. history to be expelled from the House of Representatives. The House voted 311 to 114 in favor of removing him following numerous allegations of lying about his background and a 23-count indictment that includes allegations he “repeatedly, without authorization” charged donor credit cards—depositing funds into his own bank account. Though, he has not yet been found guilty of any crimes. The Republican majority in the House will shrink—219 to 213 with 3 vacancies. You can read Cohn’s article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/14/upshot/special-election-democrats-new-york.html
• Tracey Tully and Benjamin Weiser of The New York Times write: “A luxury Mercedes-Benz, gold bars, exercise equipment and stacks of cash featured prominently in a federal indictment that charged Senator Robert Menendez with accepting a sordid array of bribes. Now, prosecutors say a diamond engagement ring for the senator’s future wife, Nadine Menendez, was also part of the elaborate bribery scheme — and a source of infighting between co-defendants who are expected to stand trial together in May. Wael Hana, a longtime friend of Ms. Menendez’s who is also charged in the alleged conspiracy, attempted to cheat her out of the full value of the ring, according to court documents filed late Monday by prosecutors in Manhattan.” You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/13/nyregion/menendez-bribes-ring.html
• Karoun Demirjian of The New York Times writes: “The Senate passed a long-awaited foreign aid package for Ukraine and Israel early Tuesday morning, delivering a bipartisan endorsement of the legislation after months of negotiations, dire battlefield warnings and political mudslinging. But the measure faced a buzz saw of opposition in the House, where Republican resistance threatened to kill it. The 70-to-29 vote reflected a critical mass of support in Congress for the $95 billion emergency aid legislation and for continuing to arm Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression. The measure would provide an additional $60.1 billion for Kyiv—which would bring the total U.S. investment in the war effort to more than $170 billion—as well as $14.1 billion for Israel’s war against Hamas and almost $10 billion for humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones, including Palestinians in Gaza.” But will Speaker of the House Mike Johnson hold a vote on the bill in the Republican-controlled House? Demirkian explains: “Mr. Johnson controls the floor and right-wing lawmakers have shown a willingness to block legislation they oppose from even coming up for a vote. Still, if proponents can muster enough support from Democrats and mainstream and national security-minded Republicans willing to buck [Donald] Trump and the far right, they could steer around the opposition through a maneuver known as a discharge petition. That allows lawmakers to force legislation to the floor if they can gather the signatures of a majority of the House—218 members—calling for the action.” You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/12/us/politics/senate-ukraine-aid.html
• Lee Habeeb— Newsweek Columnist & Vice President of Content at Salem Media Group—joins The Rich Zeoli Show to discuss his latest article, “The Forgotten Man: A 1883 Speech Might Explain the Rise of Trump.” You can read the full article here: https://www.newsweek.com/forgotten-man-1883-speech-might-explain-rise-trump-1867929