Republican officials Rob Collins, Phil Cox and Matt Walter all seemed pleased at a briefing for journalists about the GOP's midterm election prospects, as did former first lady Mamie Eisenhower. Frank James/NPR hide caption

The I-75 highway modernization project in Dayton, Ohio, in April 2014. Skip Peterson/AP hide caption

Georgia Republican senatorial candidates Rep. Jack Kingston of Savannah (left) and former Dollar General CEO David Perdue at a debate in May. David Tulis/AP hide caption

Florida Republican state Sen. Rene Garcia examines a map of proposed changes in congressional districts in January 2012. Chris O'Meara/AP hide caption

Speaking about the need for congressional action on immigration, President Obama told a crowd at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas, on Thursday that he would "love it if the Republicans did stuff too." Jack Plunkett/AP hide caption

Immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally stand in line for bus tickets after their release in June from a U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing facility in McAllen, Texas. Eric Gay/AP hide caption

Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., walks with Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, on Capitol Hill on June 4. J. Scott Applewhite/AP hide caption

Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran (center) may have scored the equivalent of a winning political touchdown in the Republican primary last month, but Chris McDaniel, who lost, still wants to see the replay. Rogelio V. Solis/AP hide caption

When it comes to the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby ruling, Georgia Democratic Senate candidate Michelle Nunn must navigate between her state's conservative electorate and her national party. David Goldman/AP hide caption

The House Ethics Committee dismayed government watchdogs by reducing disclosure requirements for privately paid trips taken by members of Congress. Matthias Schrader/AP hide caption

President Obama, accompanied by Vice President Biden in the White House Rose Garden, lashed out at House Republicans for stalling immigration legislation. Charles Dharapak/AP hide caption

House Republicans argue the illegality of executive action signings, like one in April 2014 in which President Obama acted to close the gender compensation gap among federal contractors. Susan Walsh/AP hide caption

Some voters are a lot more complicated than is commonly understood, a new Pew Research Center study suggests. In Denver, an election worker collects a mail-in ballot from a voter on Tuesday. Ed Andrieski/AP hide caption

The U.S. government-backed loans that help Boeing and other U.S. manufacturers sell abroad has opponents of renewing the Export-Import Bank's charter accusing it of crony capitalism. Elaine Thompson/AP hide caption

Polls give Chris McDaniel the advantage going into Tuesday's runoff for Mississippi's GOP Senate nomination. His 2-year-old son helped rally supporters in Madison, Miss., on Thursday. Rogelio V. Solis/AP hide caption

Sometimes, you just have to accept the inevitable. But there are a couple years left until the Democratic presidential nominee is officially chosen. Steven Senne/AP hide caption

Newly elected House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana (left) and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California speak to the media following the House Republican leadership elections on Thursday. Kevin Dietsch/UPI/Landov hide caption

Before talking about the situation in Iraq, President Obama bantered with (from left to right) Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker John Boehner, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP hide caption

During a visit to Pittsburgh Tuesday, President Obama comments on the capture of a Libyan militant suspected of the 2012 killings of four Americans in Benghazi. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP hide caption

Hillary Clinton promotes her new book, Hard Choices, in Chicago on Wednesday. The former senator and secretary of state had a lively and much-talked-about chat this week with Fresh Air's Terry Gross. Stacy Thacker/AP hide caption

Voters cast ballots Tuesday at a Mount Pleasant, S.C., polling place for the state's primary election. Bruce Smith/AP hide caption

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's loss in his district's primary is seen by many as the end of a chance at immigration overhaul any time soon. Charles Dharapak/AP hide caption

David Brat, who upset Virginia Rep. Eric Cantor in Tuesday's 7th Congressional District GOP primary, at a May 28 news conference at the Capitol in Richmond. Steve Helber/AP hide caption

Hillary Clinton at a book signing in New York. The former secretary of state has said that Benghazi joins a long list of tragedies during administrations of both parties. Bebeto Matthews/AP hide caption