Congress

Kevin Hassett returning as an economic adviser for second Trump administration

Published

2 years ago

November 27, 2024

Kevin Hassett is heading back to the White House as an economic adviser.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Hassett will be director of the National Economic Council, a role that puts him in charge of executing the higher tariffs and tax cuts promised during the campaign.

Hassett, whose appointment was expected, served as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers for two years during Trump’s first term.

He’s likely to play a key part in coordinating policies and strategies across the government, starting with helping to negotiate serving an extension to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

“Together, we will renew and improve our record Tax Cuts, and ensure that we have Fair Trade with Countries that have taken advantage of the United States in the past,” Trump said in the announcement.

The NEC is part of the executive office of the president, and the director does not need to be confirmed by the Senate.

Congress

Blanche vote could be postponed, Cornyn says

Published

2 hours ago

July 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

A crucial committee vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general could be postponed, Sen. John Cornyn said Tuesday, amid a struggle over changing a settlement agreement Blanche brokered between President Donald Trump and the IRS.

Cornyn (R-Texas) said a delay in the planned Senate Judiciary Committee vote Thursday is “being discussed but hopefully … won’t be necessary” as he pushes for ironclad modifications to the IRS settlement that created a $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” and immunized Trump from tax audits.

“If there’s not enough votes to confirm him, then Senator Grassley might decide to postpone it. But I don’t think that’s the No. 1 goal right now,” Cornyn said, referring to Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa).

Cornyn said he had discussed the idea of postponement with other senators but not directly with Grassley. A spokesperson for Grassley did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cornyn and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who has also been undecided on Blanche’s nomination, have significant leverage. Due to blanket Democratic opposition, it would take only one Republican “no” to effectively kill Blanche’s nomination.

Cornyn and his staff have been talking to the Justice Department about modifying the settlement, and the senator insists he wants the changes in writing.

“They know what they need to do,” Cornyn said Tuesday about DOJ. “They just don’t want to do it.”

Congress

It’s Newt (and Russ and James)

Published

3 hours ago

July 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Senate Republicans will hear from White House budget director Russ Vought and President Donald Trump’s top legislative aide, James Braid, at their weekly Wednesday lunch. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich will also attend, according to a person granted anonymity to disclose private scheduling.

The visit from Vought and Braid comes as GOP senators struggle to coalesce behind a budget blueprint for a new $95 billion party-line spending bill that is backed by the White House.

Congress

Kids’ safety advocates draw red lines for Senate online safety package

Published

5 hours ago

July 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

A coalition of 60 child safety groups is urging top lawmakers on the Senate Commerce Committee to take up robust online safety legislation in a markup tentatively expected next week.

In a letter sent Monday and shared first with Blue Light News, the bloc demanded that committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and ranking member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) only consider legislation with a “duty of care” standard that would require tech companies to mitigate harms they know their platforms cause children.

When the House passed a kids’ online safety package last month, it did not include the provision — an omission that the groups said neutered the bill and “would not actually make kids safer online.”

“This approach would immunize platforms from accountability for the design choices, such as engagement-maximizing feeds, autoplay, and algorithmic amplification, that drive documented harms to young people,” wrote the signers, which include Common Sense Media, Design It For Us, ParentsTogether Action and the Young People’s Alliance.

They also asked the senators not to preempt state artificial intelligence laws and to instead follow the House’s model, in which states could craft regulations stricter than the federal standard.

“Families who have lost children to online harms have spent years telling their stories to this Congress,” the coalition wrote. “And with each day Congress fails to act, more children are being harmed and are dying.”

Last week, Cruz and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), who has been negotiating a safety-focused legislative package with the White House, met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office. Trump did not commit to throwing his political weight behind her effort after Cruz said it did not have enough support to clear the chamber.

Meanwhile, Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) introduced the Digital Age Assurance Act on Thursday. Modeled after a similar California bill, it would require operating system providers such as Apple and Google to collect users’ ages in an effort to ensure that children see only age-appropriate content online.

Cruz and Cantwell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.