Page 5 - Us Senate

Charles Kushner, father of Trump's son-in-law, confirmed as envoy to France

The Senate has confirmed real estate developer Charles Kushner, the father of President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, to serve as ambassador to France. Charles Kushner was pardoned by Trump in December 2020 after pleading guilty years earlier to tax evasion and making illegal campaign donations. Prosecutors alleged that he hatched a scheme for revenge and intimidation after discovering his brother-in-law was cooperating with federal authorities in an investigation, hiring a prostitute and arranging to have the encounter recorded with a hidden camera and sent to his own sister, the man's wife. Kushner, who was confirmed 51-45, is the founder of Kushner Companies, a real estate firm. His son Jared is a former White House senior adviser to Trump who is married to Trump's eldest daughter, Ivanka. When he announced his intention to nominate Charles Kushner in November, Trump called him a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker. Charles Kushner will head to ...

Senate rejects resolution to block Trump's tariffs amid economic turmoil

Senate Republicans narrowly voted down a Democratic resolution Wednesday that would have blocked global tariffs announced by Donald Trump earlier this month, giving the president a modest win as lawmakers in both parties have remained skeptical of his trade agenda. Trump announced the far-reaching tariffs on nearly all US trading partners April 2 and then reversed himself a few days later after a market meltdown, suspending the import taxes for 90 days. Amid the uncertainty for both US consumers and businesses, the Commerce Department said Wednesday that the US economy shrank 0.3 per cent from January through March, the first drop in three years. The 49-49 vote came weeks after the Senate approved a resolution that would have have thwarted Trump's ability to impose tariffs on Canada. That measure passed 51-48 with the votes of four Republicans Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky. But McConnell who has been sharply

Republican proposal to hike tax on millionaires to generate $400 bn

Trump has indicated he is open to higher taxes on the wealthiest Americans, but not all Republicans are convinced it's a good idea

Senate confirms Dan Caine as Joint Chiefs of Staff chair in overnight vote

The Senate confirmed retired Air Force Lt Gen Dan Razin Caine to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Friday, filling the position almost two months after President Donald Trump fired his predecessor. Trump nominated Caine to become the top US military officer in February after abruptly firing Gen CQ Brown Jr, the second Black general to serve as chairman, as part of his administration's campaign to rid the military of leaders who support diversity and equity in the ranks. The Senate confirmed Caine 60-25 in an overnight vote before heading home for a two-week recess. Caine is a decorated F-16 combat pilot who served in leadership in multiple special operations commands, in some of the Pentagon's most classified programs and in the CIA. He does not meet prerequisites for the job set out in a 1986 law, such as being a combatant commander or service chief. But those requirements can be waived by the president if there is a determination that such action is necessary

After passing budget plan, hard part of lawmaking begins for Republicans

Republicans narrowly got their budget plan over the finish line. Now comes the hard part. The resolution adopted this week was only a first step that allows Republicans to draft legislation that they can push through Congress without Democratic support. Next, they begin crafting a final bill with enough spending cuts to satisfy those on the right while not jeopardizing the reelection prospects of more vulnerable lawmakers whose constituents rely on key safety net programs. With thin majorities in the House and Senate, Republicans can afford to lose hardly any votes from their side of the aisle as they draft legislation, giving every individual lawmaker leverage over the process. It's going to take all of us to get it done, said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. The road ahead is daunting. Republicans are determined to extend the individual tax cuts that were approved during President Donald Trump's first term before they expire at year's end. But they intend for the ...

US Senate confirms former Arkansas Guv Mike Huckabee as Israel ambassador

The Baptist minister expressed his gratitude to President Trump, saying, "I am Grateful to a great Donald Trump and look forward to serving!"

House GOP holdouts threaten Trump's budget, tax cut bill as votes delayed

Despite a shove from US President Donald Trump, House Republicans abruptly postponed a vote late Wednesday on their budget framework, unable to convince conservative GOP holdouts who had raised grave misgivings over allowing trillions of dollars in tax breaks without deeper spending cuts. Speaker Mike Johnson almost dared the Republican hardliners to defy Trump and risk upending what the president calls the big, beautiful bill", which is central to his agenda of tax cuts, mass deportations and a smaller federal government. In the end, he had to hit pause, but vowed to try again Thursday. Don't doubt us, Johnson said, after a more than hourlong huddle with GOP lawmakers. Just give us a little space to do our work. Pushing the budget framework forward would log another milestone for Johnson, who had set a deadline of the congressional spring break recess Thursday for advancing the resolution. A failed vote, particularly as the economy was convulsing over Trump's trade wars, would be a

Senate confirms Elbridge Colby as Pentagon policy chief despite GOP split

The Senate on Tuesday confirmed the appointment of Elbridge Colby to be the top policy adviser at the Pentagon, overcoming concerns that he has downplayed threats from Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin. The vote was 54-45, with Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky as the only Republican voting against him. Three Democrats voted for Colby. In a statement, McConnell said Colby's long public record suggests a willingness to discount the complexity of the challenges facing America, the critical value of our allies and partners. And McConnell said Colby's confirmation encourages isolationist perversions of peace through strength to continue apace at the highest levels of administration policymaking. Vice President JD Vance criticized McConnell in an X post, saying that the senator's no vote - like so much of the last few years of his career - is one of the great acts of political pettiness I've ever seen. Vance spoke at the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing early last month to

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 ...