Trump Ask Cabinet to Cut Next Year’s Budgets by 5 Percent
Dubbing it the ‘nickel plan,’ President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he’s asking every Cabinet secretary to cut their next-year’s budgets by 5 percent.
Congress
Heated U.S. congressional races on pace to break fundraising records
This year’s U.S. congressional campaign season is on pace to break fundraising records, driven in part by unprecedented hauls by at least five candidates from both major parties, according to a Reuters analysis of campaign finance disclosures.
US to enter trade talks with Japan, European Union, Britain
The Trump administration is formally notifying Congress that it plans to pursue trade agreements with the European Union, Japan and Britain.
House Dems to ‘ruthlessly’ open 5 Trump investigations if they win
President Trump is likely to face at least five new House investigations — plus a likely impeachment probe — if Democrats take the chamber in the fall elections and make Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi speaker.
Top 3% of U.S. Taxpayers Paid Majority of Income Taxes in 2016
Individual income taxes are the federal government’s single biggest revenue source. In fiscal year 2018, which ended Sept. 30, the individual income tax is expected to bring in roughly $1.7 trillion, or about half of all federal revenues, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Journalist’s disappearance hardens U.S. Congress stance on Saudi arms deals
The disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has hardened resistance in the U.S. Congress to selling weapons to Saudi Arabia, already a sore point for many lawmakers concerned about the humanitarian crisis created by Yemen’s civil war.
Trump says next summit with North Korea’s Kim to come after November U.S. elections
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would be held after U.S. congressional elections on Nov. 6.
Brazil’s evangelicals say far-right presidential candidate is answer to their prayers
On a visit to Israel two years ago, far-right Brazilian lawmaker Jair Bolsonaro leaned back into the River Jordan in a white robe to be baptized in the arms of a fellow congressman and evangelical pastor.
U.S. blacklists Russian entities tied to election meddling
The Trump administration on Thursday blacklisted 33 Russian individuals and entities, including a billionaire and several companies accused of interfering in American politics, limiting their ability to conduct business internationally.
US Congress votes $38 billion defense aid to Israel into law
A bipartisan bill that would cement the U.S. military aid to Israel into law has passed a major hurdle on Wednesday night.
House panel backs bill to make Trump tax cuts permanent
A Republican-led panel in the U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to make permanent individual tax cuts from President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax overhaul, a move widely seen as a partisan ploy to help Republican candidates in the Nov. 6 congressional elections.
Gingrich, Republicans float new Contract with America ahead of midterms
Republicans have poll-tested a Contract with America-style agenda to carry into the fall elections as they ponder whether they need to give voters a bolder plan for what they will do if they keep control of Congress.
House bill to delay or repeal parts of Obamacare would cost nearly $52B: CBO
A House bill to delay or repeal certain parts Obamacare would cost the federal government $51.6 billion over a decade, according to a new government analysis released Tuesday.
Trump to target foreign meddling in U.S. elections with sanctions order
President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order as soon as Wednesday that will slap sanctions on any foreign companies or people who interfere in U.S. elections, based on intelligence agency findings, two sources familiar with the matter said.
Trump broadens pressure on PA, closing its DC offices
The Trump administration ordered the closure of Palestine Liberation Organization offices in Washington on Monday, broadening its pressure campaign on Ramallah to return to peace talks with Israel.
Congress ready to call Trump’s bluff on shutdown threat
President Trump this week threatened to partially shut down the federal government unless it approves funding for his border wall, but lawmakers from both parties say that isn’t going to happen.
Capitol Hill probes on Trump, elections may factor in November vote
Congress returns this week from its August recess and while the House Intelligence Committee has wrapped up its probe, lawmakers still face big questions regarding the Russian-meddling scandal, threats to the U.S. electoral system, the uses and abuses of social media sites and fresh clashes between the White House and the Department of Justice.
Bruce Ohr named ‘half a dozen’ FBI, DOJ officials who knew about Trump dossier ties, GOP investigator says
Justice Department official Bruce Ohr gave lawmakers ‘a list of half a dozen’ senior FBI and DOJ officials who knew about his interactions with people tied to the Trump dossier, according to a GOP congressman.
Atheists Fail to Remove ‘In God We Trust’ From Money After Court Defeat, Call It ‘Utterly Revolting’
Atheists who failed to remove the national motto ‘In God We Trust’ from U.S. coins and bills following an appeals court defeat have called their loss ‘utterly revolting.’
Palestinian Leaders Bet Future on Trump Impeachment
Palestinian leaders are betting their future on President Donald Trump being impeached by Democrats following the mid-term elections, according to Arabic language comments by a senior Palestinian government leader who praised Special Counsel Robert Mueller for targeting Trump and his top allies.