A Republican plan to automatically trigger tax increases or spending cuts if revenue falls short has been shot down.
"It doesn't look like the trigger is going to work, according to the parliamentarian," Sen. John Cornyn told reporters, according to Politico.
Why it matters: A trigger was the way Republicans were going to get members worried about the deficit to back the tax bill. Now Republicans need to find hundreds of billions of dollars to make deficit hawks happy or the bill might die — and many Republicans don't like any other ideas to raise taxes.
Authorities say that a man threatened New York Republican congressman Rep. John Katko and his family over his stance on net neutrality.
The details: NewYorkUpstate.com reports that the federal government has charged Patrick Angelo, 28, over a threatening message authorities say he left for Rep. John Katko. He allegedly said that "if you don't support net neutrality, I will find you and your family and I will kill... you ... all. Do you understand? I will literally find all ... of ... you and your progeny and t- just wipe you from the face of the earth."
President Donald Trump plans to donate his third-quarter salary to the Department of Health and Human Services to help combat the opioid epidemic, Acting Sec. Eric Hargan said at a White House press briefing today.Don't forget: Trump made battling the nation's opioid crisis one of his administration's key initiatives. This also comes a month after he declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency. He previously donated part of his salary to the National Parks Service.
Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said, "When the president loses confidence in someone, they will no longer serve in the capacity they're in," asked whether President Trump has confidence in Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. "I don't believe there was a tipping point" between Trump and Tillerson, she added. "He's here."
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has been citing a report that he says, once released, will show the GOP tax plan will pay for itself with economic growth. But that report doesn't exist, according to an economist in the Treasury office supposedly drafting models on the impact, the NYT reports.
Why it matters: Senators are aiming to pass their version of the tax bill today or tomorrow, and the question of whether economic growth can account for the tax cuts and avoid ballooning the deficit is at the heart of policy negotiations to win over holdouts on the bill. It's throwing some Republicans for a spin who are opposed to the mechanism that could be added to the bill to account for potential lack of economic growth.
He's here. Rex is here. President Trump's response when asked in the Oval Office if he wants Rex Tillerson to remain as Secretary of State
Another development: Tillerson had been scheduled to deliver remarks at a World AIDS Day event at 3:45 p.m. this afternoon, but his appearance was canceled before he headed to the White House.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn and House Speaker Paul Ryan all called for Rep. John Conyers to resign today.
Why it matters: Pelosi and Clyburn previously stood up for Conyers, but the continued allegations against Conyers have motivated House leadership to increase their pressure in calling for his resignation.
Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), 88, has been hospitalized for reported stress-related illness, per CBS Detroit. Family spokesperson Sam Riddle confirmed that Conyers is seeking treatment at a local hospital.
Why it matters: Several women, including two ex-staffers, have accused the congressman of sexual harassment. Conyers has since stepped down from his role as ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee while an ethics investigation takes place.
A spokesman for U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May condemned President Trump's decision Wednesday to retweet anti-Muslim hate videos from British far-right leader Jayda Fransen, stating that U.K. citizens "overwhelmingly reject" the prejudiced rhetoric of the far-right.
It is wrong for the president to have done this.— Office of the U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May
Republicans are starting to argue against the fiscal trigger being added to the Senate GOP tax plan to appease concerns from members — including Sens. Bob Corker, James Lankford and Todd Young — who don't want to blow up the deficit as a result of overhauling America's tax code.
Why it matters: An effort to win over some holdouts on the tax plan is alienating other lawmakers on both the House and Senate side, potentially jeopardizing plans for a vote tomorrow in the upper chamber. The GOP can only afford to lose two votes, but it's still unclear whether concerned members would actually vote against a bill that includes the trigger.
Amid swirling allegations of sexual misconduct against Michigan Rep. John Conyers, the Congressional Black Caucus' members and staffers are scrambling over how to have him exit without disregarding his legacy, BuzzFeed News reports. Conyers, 88, has denied all the allegations.
Why it matters: Conyers is a veteran, a leading figure in the civil rights movement and the House's longest-serving member. He is well regarded in the black community and a founding member of the CBC, which advocates for black causes.
Former energy executive Don Blankenship, who recently spent a year in California prison for "conspiring to willfully violate mine safety standards," will run for West Virginia's U.S. Senate seat as a Republican, per the local ABC affiliate in Charleston, West Virginia.
The intrigue: Blankenship was released from prison just six months ago, and according to USA Today investigative reporter Brad Heath, isn't allowed to leave Nevada without permission from a judge or probate officer until May because he's on federal supervision.
House Speaker Paul Ryan addressed the series of sexual harassment allegations that have been plaguing Congress, and announced that the House will hold a hearing on the (taxpayer-funded) harassment settlements next week. Congress is introducing legislation this week to mandate sexual harassment training.
Key quote: "Sexual harassment has no place in any workforce, let alone in Congress," said Ryan. "We cannot and we will not tolerate that kind of behavior."
U.S. GDP expanded at a 3.3% annual rate in its third quarter — the fastest rate since 2014, outpacing the expected 3.2% rate.
Why it matters: This growth was mostly due to more business investment in inventories, not consumer spending. Some economists give partial credit to President Trump's tax reform plan, according to CNBC, which calls for a lower corporate rate of 20%.
Alex Azar heads to the Senate HELP Committee today for the first hearing on his way to confirmation as the next secretary of the Health and Human Services Department. HELP won't formally report his nomination to the full Senate, but he's sure to face aggressive questioning today from Democrats.
