Some Republicans in Congress have proposed changing the budget reconciliation process to begin using a “current policy” baseline that ignores expirations under law, instead of the traditional “current law” baseline.
This would be a serious act of fiscal irresponsibility, making it easier for either party to circumvent important budgetary guardrails, thereby accelerating the growth of our national debt by many trillions for years to come.
Month: April 2025
Former Biden HHS secretary Becerra launches bid for California governor
Former Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra on Wednesday launched a bid for California governor, joining a growing field of candidates looking to replace term-limited Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).
“As AG I took on Trump – and won. As HHS Secretary, I took on Big Pharma — and won. It’s time to do it again for California," Becerra said in a post on social platform X announcing his campaign. "Let’s rebuild the California Dream for everyone."
Becerra previou...
The Memo: Inside Trump’s big gamble on tariffs
President Trump is set to take the biggest gamble of his second term on Wednesday, when he will announce a fresh round of tariffs.
Trump has dubbed Wednesday “Liberation Day,” suggesting that it will mark a watershed in what he sees as an effort to push back on trade imbalances.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a media briefing on Tuesday that Trump views it as “fundamentally unfair” that “too many foreign countries have their markets cl...
Booker sets record for longest Senate speech in history
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) on Tuesday set a new record for the longest floor speech in Senate history, having held the floor for 25 hours and 5 minutes to decry potential GOP spending cuts in their looming tax bill and policies put in place by the Trump administration.
Booker, the No. 4 member of Democratic leadership, wrapped up at 8:05 p.m. Tuesday, having started at 7 p.m. the previous day — topping the previous record of 24 hours and 18 minutes held by former Sen. ...
Thune backs Trump tariffs
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The White House’s mixed message on its tariff policy
The laws of economics can be frustratingly inconvenient, especially in Washington. To many lawmakers, the fundamental principles of economics are neither fundamental nor even principles: They are tools to be bent, warped, and manipulated or outright ignored in order to yield up the answers those lawmakers want.
So it is that Democrats love to argue that raising taxes on things automatically yields more tax revenue for the government. They would have you believe that...
Where does Booker’s marathon floor speech rank among longest in Senate history?
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) pulled an all-nighter and has delivered a marathon speech on the Senate floor looking to combat the Trump administration and its policies.
He's well on his way to breaking the record for longest speech, if he continues to deliver his remarks through the rest of the day.
Booker, a Democratic leader, rose to speak around 7 p.m. EDT on Monday and was still going as of around 2 p.m. EDT on Tuesday.
He will break the record if he contin...
Booker talks through the night in marathon floor speech to protest Trump
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) pulled an all-nighter, delivering a marathon speech on the Senate floor that lasted well into Tuesday morning in a push to combat the Trump administration’s policies.
Booker, a member of Democratic leadership, rose to speak around 7 p.m. EDT on Monday and was still going as of nearly 9 a.m. EDT on Tuesday as Democrats look to highlight actions by the administration and potential cuts that are being discussed for President Trump’s tax plan.
Senate parliamentarian could make or break Trump agenda
Senate Republicans are facing crunch time on a long-overdue budget resolution, which has divided their conference over the possibility of cutting Medicaid and adding language to increase the debt ceiling by as much as $5 trillion.
Whether they move on the bill this week could depend largely on a key ruling from Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has told colleagues that he wanted to get the budget to the floor this...