Congress

Senate Democratic moderates say they want to work with GOP on tax cuts

Published

1 year ago

January 10, 2025

A group of eleven moderate Senate Democrats say they want to work with Republicans on addressing the GOP’s expiring tax cuts and raising the debt ceiling.

In a new letter to Republicanleaders, they say they are willing to cut spending, protect family-oriented tax policies, have “competitive” rates on businesses — and that they can provide enough votes to allow Republicans to overcome a filibuster in the Senate without having to resort to so-called reconciliation.

The lawmakers say they’re otherwise worried Republicans will tack the $4 trillion cost of extending their tax cuts onto the deficit, which will increase interest rates for everyone, something nonpartisan budget forecasters have recently warned about.

“We understand that the Senate Republican conference is likely to use the budget reconciliation process to address these expirations,” said the letter, put together by Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.) and Mark Warner (Va.), both of whom sit on the tax committee. “While we respect the majority’s right to do so under Senate rules, we believe a better outcome can be achieved by working in a bipartisan manner to reform the tax code and address our growing national debt through responsible spending reforms.”

“We believe a fully deficit-financed, partisan effort could risk raising costs for families, driving up interest rates for Americans looking to purchase a home, and increasing borrowing costs for American businesses and consumers.”

Republicans appear unlikely to take them up on the offer, though it presents a potential answer to many of the jams they now face.

The GOP is deeply divided over the cost of renewing their tax cuts, not to mention scads of individual provisions like the $10,000 limit on state and local tax deductions, and are sure to have a difficult time raising the debt limit. Some have never voted to increase the legal cap on government borrowing.

Republicans have struggled to even agree on scheduling, with weeks of debate over whether they should take up immigration first or combine it with their tax plans.

Tax debates are typically highly contentious, but there was a surprising outbreak of bipartisanship last year when House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and then-Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) agreed on a plan to expand breaks for parents and businesses. It was overwhelmingly approved by the House before later dying in the Senate.

No Democrats voted for Republicans’ original 2017 tax cuts, much of which are now due to expire at the end of this year. Rolling them over is projected to cost some $400 billion per year, and the price tag has become a major issue given the government is already running $2 trillion deficits.

The prospect of a bipartisan tax plan would raise a whole different set of challenges though, with the two sides likely to clash over issues like how much to charge businesses and high earners. The moderates signing the letter would also likely take heat from fellow Democrats who are opposed to the tax cuts and would be happy to see them expire.

The lawmakers said they can work with Republicans on business-related provisions.

“Good faith negotiations can ensure the permanence of a competitive tax code for American businesses with reasonable effective tax rates and competitive treatment of capital and R&D expenses, as well as a rational international tax regime,” they wrote.

“While there will certainly be challenges to finding bipartisan agreement on certain issues, we believe addressing the growing deficit and reducing unnecessary spending can serve as a basis for good faith bipartisan negotiation.”

The letter was also signed by Sens. Raphael Warnock (Ga.), Tim Kaine (Va.), John Hickenlooper (Colo.), Mark Kelly (Ariz.), Gary Peters (Mich.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.), Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Elissa Slotkin (Mich.) and Jon Ossoff (Ga.).

Congress

House Oversight requests Alan Dershowitz testify in Epstein probe

Published

20 hours ago

June 12, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The House Oversight Committee requested that Alan Dershowitz, the lawyer who once represented Jeffery Epstein, testify as part of its investigation into the federal government’s handling of the Epstein files.

The interview is tentatively slated for 10 a.m. on July 9, with a video and transcript of the testimony being released “as expeditiously as practical,” Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) wrote in a letter to Dershowitz on Friday.

“Due to public reporting, documents released by the Department of Justice, documents obtained by the Committee, and your former role as Mr. Epstein’s attorney, the Committee believes you have information that will assist in its investigation,” Comer wrote.

Comer told reporters on Wednesday that he wanted to hear from Dershowitz, who helped Epstein secure a controversial plea deal in his 2008 sex abuse case.

“I’m looking forward to testifying,” Dershowitz wrote in a text message to Blue Light News on Friday, adding that he is “trying to adjust my schedule” for July 9.

Congress

Cornyn tells Mike Lee to lay off John Thune

Published

22 hours ago

June 12, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Sen. John Cornyn isn’t a card-carrying member of the Senate GOP’s growing YOLO caucus. But with less than seven months left in office after losing his primary, the Texas Republican appears to be feeling newly free to speak his mind.

The latest clap-back came Thursday night and the early hours of Friday morning, when Cornyn called a conservative influencer a “grifter” and told Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) on social media to stop publicly blaming fellow Republicans — including Senate Majority Leader John Thune — for the fact that the GOP elections bill doesn’t have support to pass inside the party.

“You don’t have the votes” for the SAVE America Act, Cornyn posted on X. “@LeaderJohnThune can’t change that. It is math.”

He was directing his comments at Lee, who had just penned a post telling Thune, “let’s do this!”

Cornyn continued, “Try focusing on Democrats instead of Republicans. Republican on Republican attacks are hurting our chances to win the majority in November.”

Lee responded to ask, “on what planet is this an attack on Republicans?” and appeared to suggest a staffer was tweeting on Cornyn’s behalf: “Once my friend John Cornyn realizes that you’re saying this in his name—whoever you are—I don’t think he’ll be happy with you.”

Cornyn, however, is known for posting himself on his social media accounts in a chamber where many Senate accounts are run solely by staff. And he’s been making it clear all week that he will push back on Trump and his party when he thinks it’s needed.

In multiple conversations with reporters in the Capitol, Cornyn said that Republicans need to “stop the circular firing squad.” And he added that he won’t intentionally be “a thorn in [Trump’s] side,” but he’s also “not going to go out of my way to try to appease him.”

“I want him to succeed, I want the Republican Party to succeed, I want the country to succeed,” Cornyn said this week. “But on a case-by-case basis, when I think there’s been overreach or just a bad idea, I’m not going to hesitate to weigh in.”

The four-term senator’s comments come after he lost his primary last month to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who Trump endorsed in the final days of the runoff.

Cornyn said in an interview with The New York Times that he was not a “wounded bear” but that he believed Trump’s insistence on “slavish adherence” was going to backfire for Republicans in the midterms and result in “the most miserable two years of his life” if Democrats flip the House or Senate.

“I think it is going to be a pretty bumpy ride for the next seven months,” Cornyn said.

Congress

Capitol agenda: What Schumer told us about AI

Published

1 day ago

June 12, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Chuck Schumer wants Congress to pass AI legislation. But he’s casting doubt on it happening this year.

“In this Congress, it’s hard,” the Senate minority leader said in an interview Thursday.

Schumer’s reality check isn’t a complete door-slam. But it underscores the steep climb lawmakers face to bridge a slew of intra-party and inter-chamber divides about what Washington’s approach should be toward the emerging opportunities and risks from the rapidly developing technology.

The problems are multi-pronged.

The White House, whose posture toward AI has shifted dramatically in recent weeks, is angling to enact legislation that would preempt state laws in favor of a national standard. Most recently, administration officials have been exploring a plan to attach preemption legislation to bills designed to shore up kids’ safety online. But there are issues — House Republicans aren’t in love with the Senate GOP’s kid safety bills and Senate Majority Leader John Thune has warned that many senators have concerns “about not trampling states’ rights in the process.”

Democrats aren’t unified on what to do next, with the public broadly skeptical about AI.

Some House and Senate Democrats are leery of state preemption and want to wait until next year to tackle AI, when they might be in power. Opposition from key Democrats is a major factor derailing an attempt by Reps. Lori Trahan and Jay Obernolte to strike a deal on legislation that would set nationwide safety and transparency rules while restricting state action. And Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have proposed a moratorium on AI data centers pending stricter government oversight.

Schumer is striking a balanced tone on how to proceed, arguing that there are “tremendous benefits” from AI but that “we also have to have guardrails.”

“We should get something done on AI, and it’s … got to be balanced — keep innovation strong, but have guardrails to prevent the dangers,” he said. “That’s a hard needle to thread, but I would very much like to see that get done the sooner the better.”

What else we’re watching:

— FISA LAPSE, CLAYTON NOMINATION: Thune is vowing to move “fairly quickly” to confirm Jay Clayton as director of national intelligence, with the FISA Section 702 spy authority set to lapse at midnight thanks to a stalemate between Democrats and the White House over the position.

— GOP ADVANCES BIG DEFENSE BOOST — Republicans have taken the first steps toward granting President Donald Trump’s request for the largest budget ever for the Pentagon. Senate Armed Services members on Thursday approved a draft of their annual defense authorization bill outlining priorities for $1.14 trillion in defense spending next year. The House Appropriations defense subcommittee advanced $1.1 trillion in fiscal 2027 funding for the Defense Department in a closed-door markup.

Calen Razor and Connor O’Brien contributed reporting.