U.S. Senate News
This section focuses on the upper chamber of Congress, from major policy debates to confirmation hearings. The Daily Signal provides a conservative look at Senate priorities.
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- Opinion
Can the President Adjourn Congress and Make Appointments Without Senate Confirmation?
President Donald Trump expressed frustration Wednesday that the Senate has not confirmed his pending nominees to various posts. “The current practice of leaving town while conducting phony pro forma sessions is a dereliction of duty that the American people cannot afford during this crisis,” Trump told reporters. The president warned that if the House does…Hans von Spakovsky -
- Opinion
Senators’ Images as Insider Traders Erode Public Trust in Rule of Law
Four senators came under fire last week for making financially advantageous stock trades after receiving information about the then-approaching coronavirus pandemic. The optics of that are terrible. While the country faced an unprecedented situation, those senators executed trades for their own gain while simultaneously seeking to quiet public fears. Reactions from across the political spectrum…Zack Smith -
- Opinion
How Congress Can Help Retirees Amid Market Turmoil
Stocks have plunged in recent weeks. The S&P 500 is down about 27% from its high on Feb. 19 but still hasn’t dropped to the levels of late May 2019. This means anyone with a retirement account or other investments likely has taken a significant hit. Assuming they don’t need that money in the short…Rachel Greszler -
- Opinion
Congress Shouldn’t Put This Conservation Spending on Autopilot
Buyers (aka taxpayers), beware: The Land and Water Conservation Fund is not what you might think. Some on Capitol Hill have floated the idea of fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund permanently. In Washington budget-speak, that means creating a new autopilot mandatory program. Congress created the conservation fund in 1964 to “assist in…Katie Tubb -
- Opinion
Senate Continues to Obstruct Trump’s Capable Nominees
If you don’t believe our government is complex and inefficient, just ask presidential appointees navigating the Senate confirmation process. Under our constitutional framework, the president hires the people he wants to run the executive branch, many of whom require Senate confirmation. This includes about 1,200 of the most senior employees, such as ambassadors or Cabinet…Thomas Spoehr -
- Opinion
This Senate Measure Would Restrict Health Care Choices and Raise Premiums
The Senate is expected to vote soon on a resolution aimed at curbing the president’s efforts to reduce health care premiums and expand insurance options for Americans. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., authored the resolution, which would curtail an administration initiative that was the driving force behind the first-ever reduction in average Obamacare premiums: the authority…Doug Badger -
- Opinion
Here Are Key Differences House and Senate Need to Resolve in National Defense Authorization Act
The leaders of the Armed Services committees of the House and the Senate met Thursday to formally start negotiations on a bicameral version of the National Defense Authorization Act under a conference committee process. There are substantial differences between the Senate and House versions of the bill that need to be hammered out to create…Frederico Bartels -
- News
Senate Republicans Tell Supreme Court Not to Be Swayed by Democrats’ Court-Packing Threats
Senate Republicans urged the Supreme Court not to be intimidated after Democratic lawmakers warned that its decision in a pending Second Amendment case could inflame the liberal push to restructure the court. Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island filed an amicus (or “friend of the court”) brief on Aug. 12 in a challenge to New York…Kevin Daley -
- News
Democratic Senator Faces Ethics Complaint After Warning Justices About Court-Packing
Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island has attracted an ethics complaint and vigorous criticism from conservatives after raising the prospect of court-packing in a new legal filing before the Supreme Court. Depending on one’s perspective, Whitehouse’s extraordinary brief is either a cogent indictment of the court’s seemingly partisan valence or particularly blunt strong-arming of the nation’s…Kevin Daley -
- Opinion
Senate Resolution Cautions Against Federal Bailout of Fiscally Irresponsible States
Most of the public was outraged when, during the financial crisis of 2008, Congress provided a massive financial bailout, including $70 billion of taxpayers’ money to insurance giant AIG and $80 billion to U.S. automakers General Motors, Chrysler, and GMAC. Even most politicians who voted in favor of the bailouts did so begrudgingly, in part…Rachel Greszler -
- Opinion
Senate Democrats Show What Real Confirmation Obstruction Looks Like
On March 13, 2012, then-Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., spoke on the Senate floor about the judicial confirmation process. He accused Republicans of applying “a different and unfair standard to President [Barack] Obama’s judicial nominees.” Today, Leahy and his fellow Democrats are demonstrating just what real obstruction looks like. Specifically, Leahy said that nominees…Thomas Jipping -
- Opinion
Senate Defense Spending Bill Shows Promise in Rebuilding the Military
Congress could do more to shore up the U.S. military, but at least both houses now acknowledge the need to increase spending to some degree. The final markup of the National Defense Authorization Act that the Senate passed on May 23 by a 25-2 margin shows progress toward rebuilding the military with considerable investments in…Frederico Bartels -
- News
Democrat Senator Reveals His Ties to the Knights of Columbus
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., may be causing eyes to roll or shocks of horror in his own party after he disclosed that he is, in fact, a member of the Knights of Columbus during a Wednesday judicial nomination hearing. In a Senate Judiciary Committee nomination hearing for U.S. District Court Judge Peter Phipps to serve…Carmel Kookogey -
- News
Senate Republicans Renew Earmark Ban and Make It Permanent
The Senate Republican Conference adopted an amendment Thursday, pushed by Sen. Ben Sasse, to retain the Senate’s ban on spending earmarks. “The last thing taxpayers need is for the same politicians who racked up a $22 trillion national debt to go on an earmark binge,” the Nebraska Republican said in a statement. Congress enacted a…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Senate Picks Up the Pace in Confirming New Judges
Senate Republicans used the so-called nuclear option April 3 to eliminate one of the Democrats’ tactics for slowing down the process for considering President Donald Trump’s nominees. In a column here at the time, I wrote that Republicans “need to seize this opportunity so that the government that Americans elected in 2016 can function as…Thomas Jipping -
- News
House Passes Equality Act
The House voted 236-173 Friday to pass Democrats’ Equality Act, pushed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “This is not about tolerance,” Pelosi said in a video posted to Twitter. “This is about respect for our LGBTQ communities, this is about taking pride.” “We won the fight in the House today, and we will continue…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
A Soldier-Turned-Senator Honors America’s Heroes in ‘Sacred Duty’
Before becoming a U.S. senator, Tom Cotton served his country in Iraq and Afghanistan. He earned a Bronze Star and was elected to Congress from Arkansas in 2012. Two years later, he defeated a two-term Democrat incumbent to become a 37-year-old senator. And now, in a new book called "Sacred Duty: A Soldier's Tour at…Robert B. Bluey -
- Opinion
The Peculiar Case of Alaskan Senators’ Support for the Jones Act
Things cost more in Alaska. A very expensive reason why is the century-old law known as the Jones Act. Section 27 of the act—named for Sen. Wesley Jones, R-Wash., who served in the Senate in the early part of the 20th century—requires that ships transporting goods between U.S. ports must be at least 75% U.S.-owned,…Patrick Tyrrell -
- News
Senate Confirms 3 to Board of Export-Import Bank, Reviving Agency
The Senate voted Wednesday to confirm three board members for the Export-Import Bank, reviving—over the objections of conservatives—a controversial federal agency that allows foreign countries to borrow taxpayer dollars. “The Export-Import Bank is corporate welfare, giving taxpayer subsidies to some of the largest, most politically connected companies in the U.S. and around the world,” Sen….Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
The Senate Has Confirmed Trump’s 100th Judge. Let’s Put That Number in Perspective.
Last week, the Senate confirmed the 100th federal judge nominated by President Donald Trump. That’s a nice, round number, and it might sound like a significant milestone, but let’s put that number in perspective. Trump achieved that mark ahead of some presidents, but behind others. In fact, the 849 days it took for Trump is…Thomas Jipping