Congressional & Capitol Hill News

The Daily Signal delivers comprehensive congressional news with reporting and conservative commentary on House and Senate activities, legislative priorities, committee investigations, leadership battles, and the fight for conservative policy in both chambers of Congress.
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    • Opinion

    Congress Could Soon Face a Budget Fight. Here’s How Lawmakers Can Rein in Spending.

    Two thousand seventy-five dollars. That’s every American’s personal share of the fiscal year 2017 budget deficit. The total deficit? Six hundred sixty-six billion dollars. It’s the American people who are on the hook for Congress’ incessant spending appetite. The good news, though, is that Congress has a chance to address deficits and overspending as we…
    Romina Boccia
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    • Opinion

    A Tale of 2 Tax Bills: Comparing the House, Senate Reform Plans

    Last week, the House GOP released the first concrete details on how Republicans plan to update the federal tax code. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provides tax relief to many Americans and has the potential to facilitate real economic growth through important business tax reforms. While the House proposal as a whole is certainly…
    Adam Michel
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    • News

    How the Senate Tax Plan Differs From the House Legislation

    Senate Republicans released a tax plan Thursday distinct from the House plan in that it delays the corporate tax cut until 2019, but would slightly cut the top individual rate and keeps the status quo in the number of brackets. The Senate Finance Committee proposal goes a step further than the House plan, released a…
    Fred Lucas
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    • News

    Why This State Lawmaker Wants the State and Local Tax Deduction Repealed

    Repealing the state and local tax deduction on federal income taxes is critical to boosting the economy, a state lawmaker from Pennsylvania says. “I think if you look at the general principle of tax reform, it is not for more spending in government. It is actually to incentivize our economy and grow our economy,”  state…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • Opinion

    Progressives Are Engaging in Impeachment Fan Fiction

    Liberal billionaire Tom Steyer recently announced that he will be spending about $10 million on an ad campaign for Congress to impeach President Donald Trump. On top of the violation of many progressive policy goals, Steyer said that Trump should be removed from office because “people in Congress and his own administration know that this…
    Jarrett Stepman
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    • News

    Washington State Schools Might Adopt Planned Parenthood Sex Ed Program

    Washington state public schools are considering adopting a Planned Parenthood sex education program that already operates in four other states and is looking to go national. The Human Growth and Development Citizen Advisory Committee for Spokane, Washington, is considering using the abortion giant’s “Get Real” program, which will head to the school board as well…
    Grace Carr
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    • Opinion

    The Senate Voted to Protect Banks, but It’s Actually a Win for You

    January marked the start of the first serious effort at federal deregulation in decades. Yet the massive pile of Dodd-Frank rules has remained largely untouched—until last week. On Tuesday night, the Senate exercised its power under the Congressional Review Act to repeal Dodd-Frank’s controversial arbitration rule, which would have banned many financial consumers from using…
    Norbert Michel
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    • News

    George Washington’s Church Is Going to Rip Out His Memorial

    The Virginia church that George Washington attended for two decades plans to tear out a memorial to the nation’s first president because the plaque could make some worshipers feel “unsafe or unwelcome.” Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia, where Washington became a founding member in 1773, will remove his memorial and a similar one to Robert…
    Will Racke
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    • News

    McConnell Readies Senate Confirmation Votes for 4 Appeals Judges

    Senate Republicans are heading into four votes this week to confirm appeals court judges. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell served notice late last week that the Senate will consider four of President Donald Trump’s nominees to federal circuit courts, the powerful appeals panels that give the final word on the overwhelming majority of cases in U.S….
    Kevin Daley
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    • News

    Citing Tax Reform, Nominations, Sen. David Perdue Explains His Push for 24/7 Senate Schedule

    This is a transcript of an interview Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., gave The Daily Signal on Tuesday.  Rachel Del Guidice: Hello, everyone, and welcome to The Daily Signal’s Facebook Live. I’m Rachel del Guidice and I am joined today by Sen. David Perdue from the great state of Georgia. Senator, thank you for joining us…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • News

    Conservative Lawmakers List Main Goals for Tax Reform

    Conservative lawmakers said any tax reform plan needs to benefit the middle class and begin to address the national debt. “Let’s just focus on designing a tax code that does those three things: allows families to keep more of their money, simplifies a totally cumbersome and ridiculous code, and one that will foster and promote…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • News

    Conservative Lawmakers Oppose Bill to ‘Bail Out Insurance Companies’

    Conservative lawmakers say they oppose the Alexander-Murray health care legislation because it would bail out health insurance companies. The congressmen discussed the issue Tuesday at the monthly Conversations With Conservatives panel on Capitol Hill. The health care legislation was introduced by Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., after multiple attempts by Senate Republicans…
    Casey Ryan
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    • News

    GOP Senator and Former CEO Warns: ‘Important’ to Do Tax Reform in 2017, Not Later

    If Congress doesn’t pass tax reform, there could be significant economic consequences, a leading senator and business leader said Tuesday. “We are doing things differently with this bill than we did on the health care bill that ended up in disaster, so I feel like we’ve got a shot at getting it done this year….
    Fred Lucas
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    • Opinion

    Senate Budget a Major Step Toward Tax Reform, but Falls Short on Spending Reforms

    The Senate passed its fiscal year 2018 budget resolution late Thursday night, paving the way for potentially the most comprehensive tax reform package in decades. The proposal is a significant step toward implementing the president and Congress’ tax reform agenda. However, it fails to make significant cuts to federal spending—an important piece of the puzzle…
    Justin Bogie
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    • News

    In 1986, Most Senate Democrats Voted for Tax Reform

    More than 30 Senate Democrats voted for President Ronald Reagan’s Tax Reform Act of 1986—including one still in office today—and conservatives say Democrats today have no reason to vote against a similar tax reform package now before Congress. “If I hear any more Democrats talking about ‘the bottom rate is going up,’ I’ll remind them…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • News

    11 GOP Senators Ask for 24/7 Schedule to Accomplish Trump’s Agenda

    Eleven GOP senators wrote a letter asking Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to extend the chamber’s work hours to a 24/7 schedule “ to advance the president’s agenda.” “1,200 nominations are subject to Senate confirmation,” said Caroline Vanvick, deputy communications director to Sen. David Perdue, one of the signers of the letter, in an email…
    Ian Snively
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    • News

    3 Senators Talk Next Steps on Health Care

    As two Senate lawmakers float yet another plan to fix problems with Obamacare, another wants to revisit legislation that he says would more substantially repeal the health care law. “Actually, we could have more coverage under Graham-Cassidy than under the status quo,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said Wednesday at an event hosted by online media…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • News

    Citing National Debt, Need for Reform, 69 GOP Lawmakers Vote Against Disaster Relief Bill

    Sixty-nine Republican lawmakers voted against a $36.5 billion bill for disaster relief, citing concerns about the growing national debt and the lack of reforms for the National Flood Insurance Program. “I voted to provide more money for emergency hurricane relief a few weeks ago, and I’m happy to provide additional aid for Puerto Rico in…
    Rachel del Guidice
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    • News

    House Lawmakers Push Legislation to ‘Stop the Spread of Catastrophic Wildfires’

    Some House lawmakers are calling for a change in policy to help prevent wildfires. “Active forest management is needed to stop the spread of catastrophic wildfires,” Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., said in a recent statement. “Irreplaceable natural resources and human lives are at stake, and we must focus on the immediate solutions available. It is time…
    Ian Snively
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    • Opinion

    6 Takeaways From the Senate Budget Proposal

    Last week, the Senate Budget Committee released its long-awaited fiscal year 2018 budget resolution. The purpose of such a resolution is twofold. First, as a visionary document, it lays out the policy priorities of the majority party. And second, it is a necessary step in invoking reconciliation, a powerful tool in the hands of senators….
    Justin Bogie
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