The US Congress has returned to Washington, DC, and bipartisan negotiations to produce the next significant federal coronavirus response legislation have officially begun. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, representing President Donald Trump, are scheduled to meet this afternoon on Capitol Hill with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and … Continue Reading
Coronavirus cases in the US are surging. States are closing bars and restaurants. States, local governments, schools and private enterprises are calling upon the federal government for aid, and the US Congress is preparing to craft bipartisan emergency legislation of US$1 trillion or more. It’s March 2020 all over again – only this time, legislators … Continue Reading
Senate Republican leaders have begun to lift the veil on their plans for the next coronavirus response package, acknowledging in a news conference Tuesday that they will support opening the coffers next month to provide another round of aid. The timetable set by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and other Senate GOP leaders means … Continue Reading
This report provides a snapshot of the US Executive Branch priorities via daily schedules and the prior day’s press releases. POTUS’ Schedule* *The US President (POTUS) and Vice President’s (VPOTUS) daily schedules are subject to change, as is the White House press briefing schedule. 11:45 a.m. EDT – THE PRESIDENT receives his intelligence briefing | … Continue Reading
COVID-19 is making a comeback in America this summer, complicating President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign and governors’ plans to reopen their economies. A wave of new hospitalizations around the country is threatening to dampen hopes for a quick economic recovery in the wake of this spring’s pandemic-related lockdown, giving new urgency to discussions among federal … Continue Reading
The Trump Administration appears divided on the question of what President Donald Trump’s priorities will be for the next significant federal COVID-19 response package. The Washington Post reports the president supports providing another round of “stimulus” payments to a broad range of US households to support growth by putting money directly into the hands of … Continue Reading
America’s top monetary policy official, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell, is urging the US Congress to extend the enhanced unemployment benefits approved this spring that are set to expire at the end of July, intensifying a policy debate that will be pivotal to the negotiations next month that will determine the next phase in … Continue Reading
A high-stakes summer is underway in America, where President Donald Trump and the nation’s governors are pushing forward with plans for reopening the nation’s economy even as many nervously eye health indicators that suggest the coronavirus may not be satisfactorily contained. In a vivid illustration of this tension, the Republican National Committee announced Thursday that … Continue Reading
US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who has been the lead domestic policy negotiator for President Donald Trump and his administration during the COVID-19 crisis, made clear in testimony Wednesday to congressional lawmakers that the White House believes passage of another major coronavirus response package will be necessary soon, notwithstanding a generally positive national jobs report … Continue Reading
The United States has experienced a sharp increase in the number of new reported cases of coronavirus over the past week, but Beltway media coverage and the policy debate in Washington this week are largely centered on the potential for action in both chambers of the US Congress on police reform legislation. Republicans, emboldened by … Continue Reading
The US Congress is moving urgently to formulate new legislation that goes to the heart of the current policy debate in America, and it has nothing to do with coronavirus. Instead, the focus of Congress’ current short-term agenda is police reform, calls for which have surged across the nation in the wake of the universally … Continue Reading
President Donald Trump issued an executive order (EO) Thursday directing federal agencies to streamline their permitting processes to allow for expedited movement on infrastructure projects as a means of contributing to a swift recovery of the American economy as states and US territories emerge from their coronavirus-driven lockdowns. The president’s order came as policymakers prepared … Continue Reading
As public protests against police brutality and racial disparity continued to dominate the national policy debate, pushing coronavirus-related news from the front pages, the US Senate has given its approval to legislation passed last week by the US House of Representatives making changes to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) created by the March 27 Coronavirus … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Set to Choose Path for CHOICE Act as Senate Holds Hearing on Community Banking This week, the House is set to vote on H.R. 10, the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017 (CHOICE Act). After a contentious markup in the House Financial Services Committee last month, the bill was favorably voted out of … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Pressing Forward with Tax Reform Prior to last week’s Memorial Day recess, both the House Ways & Means and Senate Finance Committees held hearings, which focused on the state of tax reform. First, in their hearings reviewing the President’s FY 2018 Budget Proposal, tax-writers focused on various issues, including: (1) the timing and … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Ways and Means Committee Kicks Off Tax Reform Efforts with First Public Hearings On Thursday, May 18, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing titled “How Tax Reform Will Grow Our Economy and Create Jobs.” The hearing – which is the first in what is expected to be a series of … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Banking to Host Secretary Mnuchin, Focus on Treasury This week, the Senate Banking Committee will consider the nominations of several individuals to fill key posts within the Treasury and Commerce Departments (see below for additional details). The Committee will also host Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to discuss an array of domestic and … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Tax-Writers Hold Two-Day Meeting on Tax Reform Today, Monday, May 1, House Ways and Means Committee Republicans will continue their two-day meeting to reach a consensus on tax reform – a task that comes amidst the release of the Trump Administration’s tax reform principles (discussed further below). As senior House tax-writer Devin … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity How About That Hearing?: The Tax Reform Saga Continues After speculation by some that the House Ways and Means Committee would hold the first hearing on its tax reform proposal this week, no such hearing was ultimately scheduled. That said, tax-writers are continuing to work to push forward their tax reform efforts. Our … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Brady May Be Open to “Significant Modifications” on BAT as the Trump Administration Takes More Active Role in the Tax Reform Debate As the health care reform debate continues to unfold, congressional tax-writers are preparing to move forward swiftly with their tax reform efforts. Though House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) has … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity The House With the 115th Congress entering month three, tax reform continues to be a focal point of the political debate in Washington. Intent to move forward with their tax reform “Blueprint” released in June 2016, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX), and other tax-writers have … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity FY 2017: House Passes Defense Appropriations Bill, What About the Rest? The House passed its $577.9 billion FY 2017 defense appropriations bill (H.R. 1301) last week by a vote of 371-48 which included a $6.8 billion increase in procurement funding above the Obama Administration’s budget request for the fiscal year. The chamber still … Continue Reading
Executive Branch Activity Trump’s FY 2018 “Skinny Budget” Expected Mid-March The Trump Administration is reporting it will release its FY 2018 budget proposal by mid-March, according to White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer. The proposal is expected to be a “skinny budget” and provide an outline of the President’s fiscal goals, while a more comprehensive … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity CHOICE Act 2.0 Could Be Weeks Away as GOP May Need to Resolve Differences While previous reports indicated that House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) was set to move on a revised version of the Financial CHOICE Act (CHOICE Act 2.0), his plan seems to have been met with delay. Though … Continue Reading
