Tax reform, perennially among the GOP's top priorities, has taken a back seat to other, more pressing priorities since an initial burst of interest caused by the Trump Administration's release of a one-page outline in April....more
Since President Trump's budget proposal was released last month, the budget and appropriations process has proceeded slowly, as Republican budget writers continue negotiations over how to approach modifying the 2011 Budget...more
On Tuesday, May 23, the White House released the President's fiscal year 2018 (FY18) budget, launching a contentious and consequential debate that is expected to last through the end of the fiscal year and possibly beyond....more
5/29/2017
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April saw the debate in Congress heat up as Justice Neil Gorsuch was confirmed for a seat on the Supreme Court, House Republicans suspended, restarted and then ultimately succeeded in their effort to repeal and replace the...more
Confirmations for key Trump Administration positions continue apace as 21 of the 22 cabinet-level nominees have now been confirmed by the Senate. This is in addition to the April 7 confirmation of Justice Neil Gorsuch to...more
On April 26, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council, presented the Trump Administration's tax reform proposal to the media. The proposal consisted of a one-page outline that...more
While the FY17 appropriations package dominated the headlines, the debate surrounding the FY18 budget has begun in the House and Senate Budget Committees. House Budget Chair Diane Black (R-TN) said the House Budget Committee...more
Over the past few weeks, it looked increasingly possible that Congress might fail to meet an April 28 deadline for adopting a fiscal year 2017 (FY17) appropriations package, potentially leading to a shutdown of the federal...more
On May 4, 2017, the House of Representatives succeeded in passing legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The American Health Care Act (AHCA) now moves to the Senate where its passage is far from...more
On Thursday, April 13, the Department of Health and Human Services finalized a long-awaited regulation intended to stabilize the Affordable Care Act (ACA) individual health insurance marketplace. The final rule tracks closely...more
All of Washington was watching as House Republicans failed to meet a self-imposed deadline to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The House Republican replacement proposal, the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which had...more
In his first comments after the decision to withdraw the AHCA from House consideration, President Trump told the assembled media, "I would say that we will probably start going very, very strongly for the big tax cuts and tax...more
On March 24, the AHCA, the House Republican plan to repeal and replace the ACA, was pulled from consideration at the last minute after Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) reportedly told President Trump the measure did not have the...more
Under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), Congress has a short 60 legislative day window to overturn regulations after they are finalized by the Administration. That window began to close on March 30, the final day to...more
On March 16, the Trump Administration released "America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again." The so-called "skinny budget," which includes proposed top-line spending numbers for the federal government, sets...more
Six months into FY17, House and Senate appropriators continue to work to resolve their differences and finalize spending levels for 11 of the 12 annual appropriations measures, having completed work only on the Military...more
As of April 5, the Senate has confirmed 22 of President Trump's 67 nominees to Senate confirmable positions. Of the 23 cabinet level positions, the Senate has confirmed 20 of the 23 positions, having not yet held votes for...more
The American Health Care Act (AHCA), the House Republican plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was pulled from consideration at the last minute after Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) reportedly told President...more
On Thursday, March 9, after two overnight markups (one lasting 18 hours and one more than 27 hours), the House Ways and Means Committee and House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 23 to 16 and 32 to 23, respectively, to...more
With President Donald Trump in the White House and Republican majorities in both the House and Senate, 2017 will see Republicans looking to undo much of President Obama's legacy and advance longstanding policy priorities....more
In addition to its other legislative priorities, the Senate has and will continue to move forward with confirmation hearings and votes for 1,212 of the roughly 4,000 presidential appointments in the federal government. Senate...more
Long near the top of the priority list, congressional Republicans now have an opportunity to move forward with tax reform. In fact, Republican leaders have committed to utilizing one of this year's two budget reconciliation...more
Medicare, like Medicaid, has long been a reform target of congressional Republicans who seek to bend the cost curve for the program that provides coverage for more than 50 million seniors at a cost of more than $500 billion...more
Of particular focus in the coming year will be Medicaid, the federal/state health care program for low-income Americans. The program, which cost the federal government $334 billion in FY15, is a frequent target of...more
The number one priority of Republican leaders in the House, the Senate and the White House, repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) remains at the very top of the political agenda. On Capitol Hill, Republicans have elected to...more