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US Senate Tag

Posted by Mary Chastain on January 08, 2018 28 Comments
While everyone is gushing over Oprah Winfrey, the Democrats in D.C. can hide the fact that they're holding the spending bill hostage over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program. Before Christmas, Congress passed a short term spending bill to keep the government running until January 19. The Democrats have made it clear they want full legalization of DACA recipients while Republicans have mentioned a wall and actual reforms to our immigration system.

Posted by Mary Chastain on January 02, 2018 35 Comments
Democrat Minnesota Senator Al Franken submitted his resignation later at 12PM CT to Governor Mark Dayton. Franken resigned after numerous females accused him of sexual misconduct, including groping and attempts to plant wet kisses on their mouths.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 26, 2017 61 Comments
The GOP now only holds a one seat majority in the Senate since Democrat Doug Jones defeated Republican Roy Moore, who faced numerous sexual misconduct allegations, in the Alabama Senate special election. That loss made the 2018 elections even more crucial for the GOP. Is it possible for the party to keep or even add to their majority? Or will Democrats pounce and take over? Politico listed these races as the ones to watch in the new year.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 19, 2017 20 Comments
The Senate Banking Committee has rejected President Donald Trump's nominee Scott Garrett to run the US Export-Import (EX-IM) Bank after two Republicans defected. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Sen. Mark Rounds (R-SD) sided with the Democrats, which has the bank that "boosts financing for U.S. exports by large and small companies" without a leader.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 18, 2017 33 Comments
Anyone else saw this coming? Yeah, me too. After a seventh female accused Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) of sexual misconduct, Democrat senators finally called for him to resign. The number skyrocketed after word got out that he would resign. On December 7, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) announced he would resign from the Senate after numerous females accused him of sexual misconduct. He didn't give an exact date, just said in the coming weeks. Now four senators have urged Franken to reconsider, including some who called for him to step down.

Posted by Miriam Elman on December 17, 2017 11 Comments
Last week the U.S. Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee concluded its hearings regarding the confirmation of Kenneth L. Marcus, President Trump’s pick for the position of Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights. We noted in a post back in October, when the White House first announced the nomination, that Marcus is extraordinarily qualified for the job and is an excellent pick for heading the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Trump appoints attorney who combats antisemitism to key civil rights post.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 15, 2017 11 Comments
The drama is almost over as the Republicans have unveiled their tax bill. They are also closer to victory since Sen. Bob Corker (TN) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) have decided to back the bill, leaving the Senate with only two undecided Republicans. From The New York Times:
On Friday, as Republicans released details about the final bill, it became clear that the agreement would provide deep and longstanding tax cuts for businesses, while providingslightly more generous tax breaks to low- and middle-income Americans byreducing some benefits for higher earners.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 15, 2017 5 Comments
Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), both of which said they would vote on the tax bill, have both come out as a yes for the bill only a hours before its scheduled to come out. The GOP now has zero senators declaring a no on the vote, but there are still a few undecided.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 14, 2017 19 Comments
The GOP's vision of passing a tax bill in the Senate is slowing fading as Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) has threatened to vote no on it unless the bill expands the child tax credit. From The Washington Post:
“I understand that this is a process of give and take, especially when there’s only a couple of us fighting for it, the leverage is lessened,” Rubio (R-Fla.) said Thursday in the Senate. “But given all the other changes made in the tax code leading into it, I can’t in good conscience support it unless we are able to increase [the child tax credit], and there’s ways to do it and we’ll be very reasonable about it.”

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 13, 2017 26 Comments
Last week, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) announced he will resign in the coming weeks after facing numerous sexual misconduct allegations. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton (D) has appointed Lt. Gov. Tina Smith (D) to take over Franken's seat whenever the senator does decide to step down.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 11, 2017 12 Comments
The GOP in Congress are no doubt desperate for a victory after the failed Obamacare repeal attempts, but that desperation could come back and bite them. They want to pass the tax bill before Christmas, but all the rushing and late nights have caused errors. From The Washington Post:
Questionable special-interest provisions have been stuffed in along the way, out of public view and in some cases literally in the dead of night. Drafting errors by exhausted staff are cropping up and need fixes, which must be tackled by congressional negotiators working to reconcile competing versions of the legislation passed separately by the House and the Senate.

Posted by Mary Chastain on December 07, 2017 23 Comments
*UPDATE* Senate has also passed the stopgap spending bill, sending it to President Donald Trump's desk. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a two-week spending bill that will beat the deadline of a government shutdown.
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