Page 5 - Us Senate

Senate holds late vote on GOP tax cuts, spending plan key to Trump agenda

Senators dived into a contentious late night or all-night debate Friday over a Republican budget plan that's central to President Donald Trump's agenda for trillions of dollars in tax breaks and boosts to border security and defense spending, all while slashing other government spending. It could not have come at a more difficult political moment. The US economy is churning over Trump's vast tariff scheme sent stocks plummeting, and experts are warning of soaring costs for consumers at home and threats of a potential recession. Even some Republicans have expressed concerns. But GOP leaders with a nod from Trump are determined to march ahead, pushing past a hardened line of opposition from Democrats, who are unified as they decry tax breaks for the wealthy at the expense of federal programs Americans rely on. Approval, expected by Saturday morning, would give Republicans the chance in coming months to muscle a tax cut bill through both chambers of Congress, just as they did in ...

US Senators brings bill to limit Trump's tariff power, needs Cong approval

Congress would need to pass a joint resolution of approval on the new tariff within 60 days. Otherwise all new tariffs on imports would expire

Senate rebukes Trump's Canada tariffs as some Republicans vote to block it

The Senate passed a resolution Wednesday night that would thwart President Donald Trump's ability to impose tariffs on Canada, delivering him a rare rebuke just hours after the president unveiled sweeping plans to clamp down on international trade. The Senate resolution, passed by a 51-48 vote tally, would end Trump's emergency declaration on fentanyl that underpins tariffs on Canada. Trump earlier Wednesday announced orders -- his so-called Liberation Day -- to impose import taxes on a slew of international trading partners, though Canadian imports for now were spared from new taxes. The Senate's legislation ultimately has little chance of passing the Republican-controlled House and being signed by Trump, but it showed the limits of Republican support for Trump's vision of remaking the U.S. economy by restricting free trade. Many economists are warning that the plan could cause an economic contraction, and GOP senators are already watching with unease as Trump upends the United ...

Cory Booker's 25 hr speech breaks Senate record, but it's not a filibuster

US Senator Cory Booker set a record with a 25-hour speech criticising Trump and Musk's policies. Though lengthy, it wasn't a filibuster, unlike Strom Thurmond's 1957 speech against civil rights

GOP senators push ahead on Trump's tax cuts package, delay key decisions

Senate Republicans said they are pushing ahead on President Donald Trump'sbig bill of tax breaks and spending cuts this week, even though they're punting some of the most difficult decisions including the costs and how to pay for the multitrillion-dollar package until later. The Senate GOP's budget framework would be the companion to the House Republicans' $4.5 trillion tax cuts package that also calls for slashing some $2 trillion from health care and other programs. If the Senate can move the blueprint forward, it edges Trump's allies on Capitol Hill closer to a compromise setting the stage for a final product in the weeks ahead. Obviously we are hopeful this week we can get a budget resolution on the floor that will unlock the process, said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. And so we are continuing to move forward with that. While big differences remain, Republicans face increasing political pressure to deliver on what is expected to be Trump's signature domestic policy

Senate confirms Matt Whitaker as Donald Trump's ambassador to Nato

The Senate confirmed Matt Whitaker late Tuesday as President Donald Trump's US ambassador to NATO, a crucial emissary to the Western alliance at a time of growing concern about the American commitment abroad. Whitaker, who had served in Trump's first administration at the Justice Department, brings a law enforcement background rather than deep foreign policy or national security ties. He was confirmed by the Senate on a vote of 52-45. During a confirmation hearing, Whitaker assured senators that the Trump administration's commitment to the military alliance was ironclad. Trump has long been skeptical, and often hostile, toward the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which was formed by the US and other countries in the aftermath of World War II as a deterrent to potential aggression from what was then the Soviet Union. The US commitment has been called into question due to Trump's sharp criticism of European allies and his eagerness to build ties with Russian President Vladimir Put

Senate vote to reverse Trump's tariffs on Canada tests Republican support

With President Donald Trump's so-called Liberation Day of tariff implementation fast approaching, Senate Democrats are putting Republican support for some of those plans to the test by forcing a vote to nullify the emergency declaration that underpins the tariffs on Canada. Republicans have watched with some unease as the president's attempts to remake global trade have sent the stock market downward, but they have so far stood by Trump's on-again-off-again threats to levy taxes on imported goods. Even as the resolution from Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia offered them a potential off-ramp to the tariffs levied on Canadian imports, Republican leaders were trying to keep senators in line by focusing on fentanyl that comes into the US over its northern border. It was yet another example of how Trump is not only reorienting global economics, but upending his party's longtime support for ideas like free trade. I really relish giving my Republican colleagues the chance to not just

Cory Booker's attack on Donald Trump sets record as longest Senate speech

Although Booker's speech ended shortly after 8 p.m. and was not a filibuster, its attention signaled that Democrats are already focusing on the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential race

Donald Trump backs budget fix to restore DC funds, urges House to pass it

President Donald Trump is pushing the House of Representatives to pass a measure that would prevent immediate financial disaster for the District of Columbia even as he continues to level harsh criticism at the city and its leaders. In a Friday morning post on Truth Social, he wrote, The House should take up the D.C. funding fix' that the Senate has passed, and get it done IMMEDIATELY. It's the first direct public indication from the Republican president that he supports efforts to restore a USD 1.1 billion hole in the district's budget, and it's a major boost for Democratic Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser's campaign to reverse a legislative change that she says would devastate the capital city. Earlier this month, the House passed a federal government funding bill that would force the district's government to revert to its 2024 budget parameters, effectively cutting USD 1.1 billion from its budget midway through the financial year. Bowser spearheaded an intense congressional lobbyi

There was no classified information: Gabbard on Yemen strikes chat leaks

During a hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard firmly denied that the messages contained classified info

US Senate confirms Jay Bhattacharya, Marty Makary for top US health posts

Senate voted 53-47 along party lines to confirm Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford University health economist and physician, to lead the National Institutes of Health

US Senate to question intelligence officials after war plans leak

The Trump administration's top intelligence officials face Congress this week to offer their first testimony in office about the threats facing the United States and tackle urgent questions about the security breach that unfolded when war plans were mistakenly leaked to a journalist. FBI Director Kash Patel, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard are among the witnesses who will appear Tuesday before the Senate Intelligence Committee and Wednesday before the House Intelligence Committee in back-to-back hearings. Tuesday's hearing will take place one day after news broke that several top national security officials in the Republican administration, including Ratcliffe and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, texted war plans for military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic. The text chain contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in ...

Senate approves funding bill just before shutdown deadline, sends to Trump

The Senate passed a six-month spending bill on Friday hours before a government shutdown, overcoming sharp Democratic opposition to the measure and sending it to President Donald Trump to be signed into law. The essentially party-line vote, 54-46, reflected gnawing Democratic angst over how to confront the Trump administration as its Department of Government Efficiency fires federal workers and dismantles operations. Democrats argued over whether to fight even risking a shutdown and fumed that Republicans drafted a measure that included little of their input, shortchanging health care, housing and other priorities. But in the end, enough of the Democratic senators decided a government shutdown would be even worse, and backed Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's strategy to allow the bill to come forward. "A shutdown will allow DOGE to shift into overdrive," Schumer said. "Donald Trump and Elon Musk would be free to destroy vital government services at a much faster ...

Georgia bill may help Trump, others recover costs of election meddling case

Georgia's Senate passed a bill that could allow President Donald Trump and more than a dozen people to seek compensation for legal bills stemming from an attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. The bill passed unanimously by state legislators Thursday would enable compensation from counties for attorneys' fees and other legal costs in criminal cases in which a district attorney has been disqualified if the case gets dismissed, or compensation for the cost of arguing the district attorney should be disqualified. Trump and 18 co-defendants were indicted in Fulton County in August 2023. The accusations included asking Georgia's Republican secretary of state to find enough votes for Trump to win the battleground state, harassing an election worker and attempting to persuade Georgia lawmakers to ignore the will of voters and appoint a new slate of electoral college electors. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was disqualified from the election interference case

Democrats push House inquiry into Musk conflicts and DOGE firings

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee are introducing a pair of resolutions demanding the Trump administration turn over documents and information about billionaire adviser Elon Musk's potential conflicts of interest and the firings of federal workers, The Associated Press has learned. It's the most aggressive move yet by Democrats trying to confront President Donald Trump's actions. The top Democrat on the panel, Rep. Gerald Connolly of Virginia, and Rep. Rep. Kweisi Mfume of Maryland are leading the effort as the party mounts a resistance against the Trump-Musk dismantling of government. The resolutions of inquiry would launch investigations into Trump's Republican administration and Musk through the Oversight panel. If the Republican-led committee fails to act, which is likely, the Democrats could push the resolutions to a House floor vote in a matter of weeks. President Trump, Elon Musk, and the DOGE team have been on a rampage to purge the government of non-partisan public

Ex-defense chiefs ask congressional hearings on Trump firing top officials

Five former secretaries of defence are calling on Congress to hold immediate hearings on President Donald Trump's recent firings of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and several other senior military leaders, according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press. The five men - who represented Republican and Democratic administrations over the past three decades - said the dismissals were alarming, raised troubling questions about the administration's desire to politicise the military" and removed legal constraints on the president's power. Late last week, Trump fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr as chairman of the Joint Chiefs. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth followed that by firing Adm. Lisa Franchetti, chief of naval operations; Gen. Jim Slife, vice chief of the Air Force; and the judge advocates general for the military services. Hegseth has defended the firing of Brown, saying that other presidents made changes in military personnel and that Trump deserves to pick his own

US Senate confirms Trump trade chief Greer ahead of Canada, Mexico tariffs

The Senate has confirmed Jamieson Greer, a veteran of President Donald Trump's first-term economic battles with China, Mexico and Canada, to be America's top trade negotiator. As US trade representative, Greer will work with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, a billionaire financier, to oversee Trump's aggressive trade agenda. Greer's nomination cleared the Senate by a 56-43 vote on Wednesday. Trump is an enthusiastic supporter of taxes tariffs on foreign imports in an effort to protect US industry, raise revenue for the Treasury and coerce other countries into making concessions on issues ranging from trade to tax policy to immigration. The Republican president is planning to start taxing Canadian and Mexican imports at 25 per cent on March 4, a move that will disrupt North American commerce and blow up a 2020 trade deal that Trump himself negotiated. He also intends to impose "reciprocal' tariffs on foreign countries that have higher import taxes than the United States does. In

US Senate pulls all-nighter to push GOP budget amid Democrats' objections

Senators kept chugging through an all-night budget vote-a-rama, a crucial, if dreaded, step toward unleashing a USD 340 billion package President Donald Trump's team says it needs for mass deportations and security measures that top the Republican agenda. If ever there was a time to watch Congress in action, this might be it. Or not. Senators have been voting for hours, as late Thursday night turned into early Friday, on one amendment after another, largely from Democrats trying to halt the package. The result will be a final push by the Republicans to use their majority power to pass it on a party-line vote, likely by morning. What we're doing today is jumpstarting a process that will allow the Republican Party to meet President Trump's immigration agenda, Senate Budget Committee chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said while opening the debate. Graham said Trump's top immigration czar, Tom Homan, told senators that the administration's deportation operations are out of money and need mo

Republican senators push for border security bill without Trump's tax cuts

Senate Republicans are seeking to bypass Democratic opposition in that chamber and secure an early legislative win for Trump

US Senate approves Indian-origin Kash Patel's nomination as FBI Director

This came despite opposition from the Democrats, who warned that Patel, a staunch Republican, could use the agency to target the president's perceived political enemies