GOP senators raise red flags over House’s ambitious Trump legislative package

May 14, 2025May 14, 2025 health care, News, Senate

An ambitious House bill to cut taxes by hundreds of billions of dollars and pay for part of it by slashing Medicaid spending faces a rocky path in the Senate, where Republican lawmakers warn the changes to the safety net program could hurt rural hospitals and reduce benefits for their constituents.

Republican senators are also raising red flags about the House plan’s phase-out of renewable energy tax credits and what they’re calling an inadequate attempt to reduce the ballo...

Hawley warns GOP Medicaid cuts are ‘morally wrong and politically suicidal’

May 12, 2025May 12, 2025 health care, medicaid, News, Senate

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is warning against his own party’s push to slash Medicaid spending, just hours after House Republicans released legislation that could save billions of dollars and make millions of people lose health insurance coverage.

Hawley wrote in an op-ed published Monday in The New York Times that paying for President Trump’s domestic agenda by slashing health care for the working poor “is both morally wrong and politically suicidal.”
...

Is Ted Cruz running again? Texas carves out unique lane in Trump’s GOP

April 18, 2025April 17, 2025 News, Senate

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who finished in second place to President Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, has distinguished himself from MAGA World by declaring his skepticism of long-term tariffs, remaining a hawk on Russia and coming out against proposals to tax the rich.

By calling out tariffs as “taxes on American consumers” and sticking to his view that Russia poses a serious threat to U.S. interests, Cruz may be laying the groundwork to run against Trump’s he...

Senate GOP divided over House demands for spending cuts

April 11, 2025April 11, 2025 News, Senate

Senate Republicans are deeply divided over demands by House conservatives to cut at least $1.5 trillion, and possibly more, from the federal budget over the next decade, putting Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) in a tough position.

Thune acknowledged to reporters Thursday that his Senate GOP colleagues are divided over how much to cut from the federal budget to offset the cost of extending President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and other Trump priorities.

The Hill

Read More

Senate confirms Oz as head of CMS along party lines

April 3, 2025April 3, 2025 health care, medicaid, Medicare, News, Senate

The Senate has confirmed Mehmet Oz as administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), making him the head of Medicaid at a time where its funding is at risk of being severely cut.

The Senate voted 53-45 along party lines to confirm Oz.

The heart-surgeon-turned-celebrity-physician faced intense questioning by Democrats in the Senate Finance Committee. Oz often dodged providing specific answers, providing generalities.

The fo...

Senate Republicans eye budget resolution vote this week with reduced spending cuts

April 2, 2025April 2, 2025 News, Senate

Senate Republicans are hoping to vote on a budget resolution this week that would pave the way for President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” encompassing tax cuts, border security and energy extraction.

Senators say the resolution calls for far fewer budget cuts to offset the cost of desired tax cuts than the analogous bill passed in February by the House, setting up a fight between the chambers about how much the legislation could add to the deficit.

The House and Sen...

Senate Republicans eye budget resolution vote this week with reduced spending cuts

April 2, 2025April 2, 2025 News, Senate

Senate Republicans are hoping to vote on a budget resolution this week that would pave the way for President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” encompassing tax cuts, border security and energy extraction.

Senators say the resolution calls for far fewer budget cuts to offset the cost of desired tax cuts than the analogous bill passed in February by the House, setting up a fight between the chambers about how much the legislation could add to the deficit.

The House and Sen...

Booker sets record for longest Senate speech in history

April 1, 2025April 2, 2025 News, Senate

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. ...

Where does Booker’s marathon floor speech rank among longest in Senate history?

April 1, 2025April 1, 2025 News, Senate, Trump administration

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

April 1, 2025April 1, 2025 News, Senate, Trump administration

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.

The Hill

Read More