Tag: Congressional Democrats

White House advisers to give President Trump policy options for coronavirus response, including paid sick leave

Washington Post logoCongressional Democrats are also pushing for a new legislative package to address fallout

White House advisers on Monday plan to present President Trump with a list of policy changes they hope could stem the economic fallout of the coronavirus, including paid sick leave and emergency help for small businesses, according to a senior administration official.

The talks have accelerated as congressional leaders said they are considering their own legislative remedies to address the economic turmoil. Congressional Democrats are discussing how to propose paid sick leave as part of new legislation, and a key Senate Republican is looking at changes to tax policy that could seek to address the heightened fears.

But many policy makers are now focused menu of options that advisers will offer Trump this afternoon when he returns from Florida. The list includes deferring taxes on specific industries hit by the coronavirus downturn, such as the hospitality and travel industries, as well as a “cashflow injection” for small businesses through the Small Business Administration.  Continue reading.

Democrats question Trump’s motives as Hurricane Dorian targets Florida

President’s decision to cancel Poland trip caught some aides off guard as polls turn bleak

President Donald Trump contends he canceled a diplomatic trip to Poland so he could monitor Hurricane Dorian as it churns toward Florida, but Democrats see political motives for the storm tracker in chief. And Trump started Friday clearly focused on other matters.

He claimed he was staying stateside “to ensure that all resources of the federal government are focused on the arriving storm,” and White House aides were eager to cast the president as laser-focused on the hurricane — even though his decision, yet again, caught some off guard.

One official earlier Thursday said Trump still planned to leave for Poland on Saturday and return on Monday, noting there is little any chief executive can do until a hurricane has passed. That official later said Trump’s decision came after a briefing with new information.

View the complete August 30 article by John T. Bennett on The Roll Call website here.

Democrats ramp up campaign to get Mueller to testify

House Democrats are ramping up their campaign to get Robert Mueller to testify despite the special counsel’s stated aim to avoid such an appearance on Capitol Hill.

Democrats negotiating for Mueller to come before several committees hope to avoid the antagonistic step of issuing a subpoena to compel his testimony, but they’re not ruling it out.

Plenty of unanswered questions remain about Mueller’s sweeping investigation, and Democrats want to hear from the special counsel.

View the complete May 30 article by Mike Lillis and Olivia Beavers on The Hill website here.

Dems go after Barr’s head

Democrats outraged over Attorney General William Barr’s handling of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report are increasing their fire, threatening to hold him in contempt and even suggesting they could seek his impeachment.

The cries for Barr’s head exploded on Thursday after the attorney general skipped a House hearing one day after his testimony before a Senate panel shed new light on his differences with Mueller, the ex-FBI chief who led a two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Democrats left an empty chair for Barr as they opened a hearing that would go nowhere. Afterward, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) led her press conference by accusing Barr of committing a crime.

View the complete May 2 article by Mike Lillis and Cristina Marco on The Hill website here.

House Democrats unveil their first bill in the majority: a sweeping anti-corruption proposal

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi approaches the microphones to speak to journalists during the Democratic caucus vote on the speaker’s nomination on November 28, 2018. Credit: Melina Mara, The Washington Post via Getty Images

Democrats will take up voting rights, campaign finance reform, and a lobbying crackdown — all in their first bill of the year.

House Democrats unveiled details of their first bill in the new Congress on Friday — a sweeping anti-corruption bill aimed at stamping out the influence of money in politics and expanding voting rights.

This is House Resolution 1 — the first thing House Democrats will tackle after the speaker’s vote in early January. To be clear, this legislation has little-to-no chance of passing the Republican-controlled Senate or being signed by President Donald Trump.

But by making anti-corruption their No. 1 priority, House Democrats are throwing down the gauntlet for Republicans. A vast majority of Americans want to get the influence of money out of politics, and want Congress to pass laws to do so, according to a 2018 Pew Research survey. Given Trump’s multitude of scandals, it looks bad for Republicans to be the party opposing campaign finance reform — especially going into 2020.

View the complete November 30 article by Ella Nilsen on the Vox.com website here.

Trump’s flirtation with firing Mueller inspires new demands from Democrats to protect the special counsel

The following article by Karoun Demirjian was posted on the Washington Post website January 26, 2018:

President Trump last June sought to fire special counsel Robert S. Mueller III but backed off after White House Counsel Donald F. McGahn threatened to resign. (Bastien Inzaurralde, Melissa Macaya/The Washington Post)

Congressional Democrats on Friday demanded that lawmakers act to protect special counsel Robert S. Mueller III after revelations President Trump sought to oust him last summer from overseeing the probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Several Democrats and one moderate Republican called for votes on Senate legislation that would prevent presidents from firing special counsels unless a panel of three federal judges agreed with the move, citing the revelations that Trump came close to pushing out Mueller last June. The president backed off only after White House Counsel Donald F. McGahn threatened to quit, according to two people familiar with the episode. Continue reading “Trump’s flirtation with firing Mueller inspires new demands from Democrats to protect the special counsel”

Democrats demand answers on why Trump administration banned words like “transgender” and “diversity

The following article by Emily C. Singer was posted on the Mic website December 19, 2017:

© Getty Images

Congressional Democrats are demanding answers after it was reported Friday that the Trump administration banned the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from using certain words in preparing its budget for the next fiscal year. The banned words include “transgender,” “diversity,” “fetus,” “evidence-based” and “science-based,” the Washington Postreported.

“We are incredibly concerned by this unconscionable restriction on agency communications and the message this sends regarding the critical health and scientific work of the department,” Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) wrote in a letter Monday to the acting secretary of Health and Human Services, which oversees the CDC. Continue reading “Democrats demand answers on why Trump administration banned words like “transgender” and “diversity”

Congressional Democrats to file emoluments lawsuit against Trump

The following article by Tom Hamburger and Karen Tumulty was posted on the Washington Post website June 14, 2017:

Nearly 200 Democratic members of Congress agreed to file a lawsuit Wednesday against President Trump alleging that by retaining interests in a global business empire he has violated constitutional restrictions on taking gifts and benefits from foreign leaders.

The lead senator filing the complaint in federal district court, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), said Tuesday that the lawsuit has already drawn more congressional plaintiffs — 196 — than any legal action previously taken against a president. No Republicans had joined in the lawsuit so far, although they will be invited to do so, Blumenthal said. Continue reading “Congressional Democrats to file emoluments lawsuit against Trump”