Big Decisions

Supreme Court Hands Trump a Historic Win in Immunity Case

By Yuval Rosenberg

Welcome to July! It’s only the first of the month, but we’ve already got fireworks going off in the nation’s capital, where the Supreme Court handed down a landmark 6-3 ruling , decided along...
Factbox: What happens in a U.S. government shutdown?

By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker and Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker, Reuters

In shutdowns, nonessential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep...
Delaware Sues Opioid Manufacturers, Distributors Over Epidemic

By Nate Raymond, Reuters

(Reuters) - Delaware on Friday became the latest state to file a lawsuit accusing corporations of helping fuel the national opioid epidemic, suing a wide range of companies involved in making,...
Trump Tries to Sell Tax Reform to Democrats

By David Morgan, Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump intensified his efforts to sell Democrats on his tax reform plan on Wednesday even as Senate Republicans edged closer to passing a budget measure that...
Trump's drug czar nominee withdraws from consideration

By Sarah N. Lynch and Makini Brice, Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. lawmaker who was President Donald Trump's pick for drug czar withdrew on Tuesday after a report he spearheaded a bill that hurt the government's ability to crack down...

Senate Republicans Gain Crucial Support for Budget Vital to Tax Reform

By David Morgan, Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republicans on Monday gained crucial support for a vote on a budget resolution that is vital to President Donald Trump's hopes of signing sweeping tax reform...
U.S. consumer finance agency expected to punish Equifax: lawyers

By Reuters and Patrick Rucker

By Lisa Lambert and Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. consumer finance watchdog agency is expected to punish Equifax for its cyber breach with the wide-ranging powers it has used with...
U.S. incomes, poverty rate bounce back to pre-recession levels in 2016

By Reuters

By Susan Heavey WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. poverty rate fell for the second straight year in 2016 while median income rose to an all-time high of $59,000 as the economy made up ground lost...
No Talk of Ousting Speaker Ryan, Key Conservative Says

By Reuters

Many Republicans are unhappy with the deal President Donald Trump reached last week with Democratic leaders to raise the government's debt ceiling and allow it to continue financing federal spending...
Congress sends Trump disaster aid, debt limit increase

By Richard Cowan and Amanda Becker, Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill to provide disaster aid, extend the debt ceiling and fund the federal government for three months on Friday, delivering on...

Trouble with Our Armed Drones in Yemen

By Mark Hosenball and Phil Stewart and Matt Spetalnick, Reuters

The United States is facing increasing difficulty acquiring intelligence needed to run its stealth drone program in Yemen , undermining a campaign against the most lethal branch of al Qaeda after...
Why a $1 Trillion D.C. Spending Spree Is Just What America Needs

By David Dayen

At the beginning of a new congressional session, virtually every elected official presents a legislative agenda. Usually these efforts fall victim to gridlock, but they almost always situate...
Defying Veto Threat, Senate Passes Keystone Bill

By PAUL KANE, The Washington Post

The Senate approved legislation Thursday mandating construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, setting the stage for a veto showdown with President Obama. In a 62-to-36 vote, 53...
Obama’s New Tax Plan: So Much for Middle Class Economics

By Rob Garver

President Obama talked up “middle class economics” in his State of the Union, but an analysis of his tax proposals suggests the benefits of his plan to redistribute wealth among U.S. earners bypasses...
Lawmakers Took 1,912 Trips Last Year on Someone Else’s Dime

By Eric Pianin

There was a time when members of Congress could see the world on the taxpayer’s dime or at the expense of lobbyists and other special interests who were seeking to influence legislation. Members of...

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