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Biden on Trump victory: ‘The will of the people always prevails’

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President Joe Biden praised Vice President Kamala Harris for running “an inspiring campaign” and called on the country to unite behind a fair election during his first public remarks since President-elect Donald Trump’s victory.

“The will of the people always prevails,” Biden told a group of his staffers, Cabinet members and some family members in the Rose Garden Thursday. He added, “I’ve said many times: You can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t love your neighbor only when you agree.”

Biden, who spoke to Trump Wednesday to congratulate him on his victory and invite him to a White House meeting, commended Harris as having “a backbone like a ramrod” amid her decisive loss.

The president is already facing heat from fellow Democrats who blame him for not stepping aside from his reelection campaign soon enough, squandering Harris’ chances at winning.

But Biden praised his legacy as leaving behind “the strongest economy in the world” and called on members of his administration to “make every day count” before passing the torch in a peaceful transfer of power.

He also repeated his call for Americans to “bring down the temperature” amid deep political divisions.

“Setbacks are unavoidable, but giving up is unforgivable,” Biden stressed, adding, “We’re going to be OK, but we need to stay engaged.”

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Congress

Senate Finance Republicans to huddle with Trump on taxes

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Senate Finance Committee Republicans will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday to discuss the path forward for crafting legislation to enact broad swaths of the administration’s domestic agenda.

“The president has invited us to join him tomorrow at the White House,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, who sits on the panel, told reporters Wednesday.

One Republican granted anonymity to discuss the agenda for a private meeting said one topic of the conversation will be on whether to use the so-called current policy baseline to extend Trump’s 2017 tax cuts. That accounting method would make it appear as though extending those tax cuts costs nothing. But it’s a controversial tactic among fiscal conservatives who worry that leadership is using it to hide the cost of the party-line bill they want to pass through budget reconciliation — and reduce the need for steep spending cuts to finance that bill.

The meeting also will focus on larger tax policy priorities, the Republican said. Senate Republicans, after initially favoring a two-track approach through reconciliation that would front-load border security, defense and energy policies in one bill before focusing on tax cuts in the next, are now moving towards embracing the House GOP’s approach, which would roll those policies with tax cuts into a single piece of legislation.

Leaders of both chambers are expected to discuss how to resolve differences between their budget resolutions in the coming weeks. The House and Senate each needs to pass the same resolution before the reconciliation process can begin in earnest.

Republican members of the House Ways and Means Committee are holding another all-day meeting Wednesday to determine what will go into the tax portion of the reconciliation bill. The tax writers kicked off deliberations on Monday with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

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Senate Democrats take stock of their shutdown pickle

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Senate Democrats are grappling with whether or not to support a House GOP funding patch less than three days before a possible government shutdown.

With 52 Republicans expected to back the House-passed stopgap, eight Democrats would need to help advance it to a final Senate vote. So far only one — Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania — has indicated he’ll support it. Other key swing voters are on the fence.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) told reporters Wednesday that he remains undecided on the seven-month funding bill, which passed the House mostly along party lines Tuesday. Asked when he would make a decision, he quipped he’d make up his mind before the end of the Senate vote on the bill, which hasn’t yet been scheduled.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) also didn’t rule out voting for the bill during a brief interview but said that he’s in talks with leadership about trying to get amendment votes to make changes to the legislation.

“We need to try to get some amendments to make it better,” he said.

The lingering indecision comes as Senate Democrats plan to meet Wednesday afternoon for a closed-door lunch where they are expected to discuss their strategy ahead of the Friday midnight shutdown deadline. They face growing pressure from the left flank of their party to oppose the House bill, but it’s not clear any Plan B could pass in time to avoid a shutdown. House GOP leaders adjourned the chamber Tuesday night, with members not due to return to Washington until March 24.

Democrats are privately wrestling with a politically treacherous choice: They don’t want to be blamed for a shutdown and typically eschew brinkmanship politics. And while they don’t want to risk further empowering President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk as they slash the federal government, some within the caucus are worried that allowing a government shutdown would only play into the two men’s hands.

One Senate Democrat said Wednesday he will not help pass the bill.

“I do not want to shut down our government, I want to improve it, streamline it and ensure it delivers services our communities need,” Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware said in a statement.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), meanwhile, joined a chorus of progressives publicly urging Senate Democrats to unite against the bill. She made clear that their opposition should include the 60-vote threshold procedural vote for breaking a filibuster.

“People aren’t going to be tricked with procedural games. They know exactly what is going on,” she wrote in an online post.

Meanwhile, Senate Republicans made it clear on Wednesday that they are gearing up to blame Democrats — and specifically Minority Leader Chuck Schumer — if there is a shutdown. Democrats have tried to put the onus on Republicans to come up with a funding plan that could pass both chambers given that they control Congress and the White House.

“We’re about to find out whether Senate Democrats care more about the American people or putting on a dramatic act for their base. Let’s hope we can avoid the Schumer Shut Down,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), the No. 3 Senate Republican, wrote as part of a series of tweets on government funding.

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Johnson pledges House probe into Tesla threats

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Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday said Congress will probe “domestic terrorism” attacks targeting the Tesla car brand after vehicles and storefronts were vandalized.

“Congress will investigate the sources of these attacks and help the DOJ & FBI ensure those responsible are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Johnson said in a post on X.

Johnson’s announcement is the latest attempt by Republican leaders to rally around Department of Government Efficiency head Elon Musk after Tesla’s stock price took a dive in recent days and the company faced a wave of attacks and heated demonstrations. Trump said this week he would buy a Tesla in support of Musk.

Johnson did not explain what committees would be empowered to lead the investigations. Spokespeople for Johnson and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.

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