EXCLUSIVE: The race to replace retiring Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, is gaining steam as another candidate has tossed his hat into the fold, the first since the senator said last week he wouldn’t run for re-election. Speaking with Fox News Digital, Roosevelt, Utah Mayor Rod Bird, Jr., a Republican, ripped Romney’s tenure in office, arguing the senator didn’t do what he said he would do when first elected in 2018.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, joked Monday that she would “wear a bikini” on the floor of the Senate following Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s, D-N.Y., directive that the body would no longer enforce a dress code for its members. Her comments were first reported by an NBC News reporter, but were confirmed by Fox News Digital.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., attacked a journalist who defended how he dresses, baffling social media users. The senator took a shot at Nate Silver, the founder of the data news site FiveThirtyEight, after Silver posted a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, defending Fetterman against people who criticize him over his outfits, which regularly consists of hoodies and gym shorts.

A stopgap spending deal struck between separate factions of the House GOP was splitting the Republican conference on Monday, with less than two weeks until the government funding deadline on Sept. 30. The conservative House Freedom Caucus and the more pragmatic Main Street Caucus released a short-term spending bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR), aimed at buying lawmakers more time to avoid a government shutdown.

The Biden administration proposed to block of thousands of acres from future oil drilling or mining in northern New Mexico in an effort to protect Native American lands. According to the Department of the Interior (DOI), the proposal would ban new mining claims and oil and gas development across more than 4,200 acres in Sandoval County, New Mexico, located north of Albuquerque. If finalized and implemented, the action would remain in place for up to 50 years.