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
What It Takes for the Senate to Solve Our Disastrous Debt Crisis
The Congressional Budget Office’s latest long-term budget outlook, released this week, shows that the nation is still on an unsustainable budget path, with no improvement since CBO’s last long-term report. Without swift action to reverse the current course, the nation is headed toward a fiscal disaster. CBO projects that over the next 30 years, debt…Justin Bogie -
- Opinion
Senate Farm Bill Ignores Conservatives: It Is Bad on Food Stamps and Farm Subsidies
Why would any conservative support the current Senate farm bill? It’s a failure when it comes to food stamps and farm subsidies. This may come as a surprise to some, but the farm bill should really be called the food stamp bill. Food stamps account for about 70 percent of farm bill costs. The Senate…Daren Bakst -
- Opinion
Will the Senate Seize or Squander the Opportunity for Much-Needed Reform of the Farm Bill?
The Senate is expected to take up its farm bill this week, and if the Senate follows the House’s lead, there will be a relatively closed amendment process, making it impossible for legislators to reduce the waste and abuse in the farm subsidy system. In the House, agricultural special interests and the House Agriculture Committee…Daren Bakst -
- News
Conservative Lawmakers Offer Solution to Child Separations Without Amnesty
The chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus says he will continue to push for a solution to address concerns of separating illegal immigrant parents and children, even as one immigration bill failed to pass Thursday and a vote on a more moderate proposal is scheduled for next week. “If both of these bills fail,…Rachel del Guidice -
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Don’t Ignore the Grave Danger Unaccompanied Illegal Alien Children Face, Idaho Lawmaker Says
“If you were parents,” Rep. Rep. Raul Labrador asked Thursday, “would you send your child hundreds and hundreds of miles with [human] traffickers … that are evil people, that are doing harm to them during the trip?” “So, don’t just think about the kids in the detention facilities, think about all of the children [traveling to…Katherine Rohloff -
- News
GOP Senators Urge $15 Billion in Spending Rescissions as ‘Start’ on Debt Reduction
The Senate rejected an effort to $15 billion rescission bill on Wednesday with a 48-50 vote. A group of Republican senators led by Sen. Mike Lee of Utah called Tuesday for passage of the bill clawing back unspent funds that were identified by the White House earlier this year. The House narrowly passed the rescission measure…Fred Lucas -
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Conservative Lawmaker Launches Podcast to Explain What’s Going On in Congress
Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., has a big idea. On Friday, the conservative lawmaker planned to launch the first episode of his new weekly podcast series, “What’s the Biggs Idea.” Initially, the idea began as a radio show for his Arizona constituents geared toward opening up Congress so they could better understand what was happening in…Katherine Rohloff -
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GOP Lawmakers Pass $15 Billion Spending Rescission Package
The House of Representatives voted 210-206 Thursday night to claw back $15 billion in appropriated spending, making good on the lead of President Donald Trump, who submitted the rescission request last month. “The administration applauds today’s passage of H.R. 3, the Spending Cuts to Expired and Unnecessary Programs Act, in the U.S. House of Representatives and…Rachel del Guidice -
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Andrew McCabe Seeks Immunity for Senate Testimony
Andrew McCabe, the former deputy director of the FBI, is seeking immunity in order to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to documents released Tuesday. “This is a textbook case for granting use immunity,” Michael Bromwich, an attorney for McCabe, wrote Monday in a letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the chairman of the judiciary panel….Chuck Ross -
- Opinion
The Reason Liberal Lawmakers Are to Blame for High Gas Prices
With consumer confidence at a 17-year high and economic prospects looking relatively strong, congressional Democrats have taken to grousing about the gas pump as a midterm strategy. “These higher oil prices are translating directly to soaring gas prices,” declared Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, “something we know disproportionately hurts middle- and lower-income people.” If this…David Harsanyi -
- News
Republican Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Rescind $15 Billion in Spending
Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill that would claw back $15 billion in appropriated spending, following the lead of President Donald Trump, who submitted a rescission request earlier this month. “Yes, a $15 billion spending reduction is a drop in the bucket compared to a $15 trillion debt,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, said in a…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Q&A: Why Some GOP Lawmakers May Be Able to Force an Amnesty Vote
This is a lightly edited transcript of an interview on The Daily Signal podcast Monday. Since the interview was recorded, House GOP leadership announced there will be a vote on the Goodlatte-McCaul bill in June. Katrina Trinko: Immigration was supposed to be dead as an issue, but in recent weeks a number of Republicans have…Katrina Trinko -
- Opinion
Podcast: GOP Lawmakers Are Trying to Force a Vote on Amnesty Bill
Against the wishes of House GOP leadership, some Republican lawmakers are working with Democrats to force a vote on controversial immigration legislation. The Heritage Foundation’s Tommy Binion explains. Plus: Classical music can change people’s behavior—and public spaces are taking advantage of this.Katrina Trinko -
- News
16 Senate Republicans Urge Colleagues to Work Through August, Get Nominees Confirmed Faster
Sixteen Republican senators are asking their colleagues to pass a budget and confirm President Donald Trump’s nominees before the end of the fiscal year Sept. 30. “It is time to drain the swamp, and we can help do that by keeping the pumps running in August,” Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., said at a press conference…Rachel del Guidice -
- News
GOP Lawmakers Use Rare Procedural Tactic in Attempt to Vote on Amnesty Bill
A group of centrist Republicans in the U.S. House is trying to force a vote on an immigration bill to protect so-called “Dreamers” from deportation, much to the displeasure of conservatives and House GOP leadership. Using a procedural tactic know as a discharge petition, Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla., joined 17 other Republicans and one Democrat…Rachel del Guidice -
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2 Conservative Lawmakers Express Concern Farm Bill Hurts Taxpayers, Encourages Government Dependency
The 2018 farm bill does too much to artificially support the agricultural sector, according to two Republican lawmakers. “By subsidizing crops, subsidizing the insurance of these crops, we end up with surpluses of one commodity at the expense of a shortage of other crops that should have and could have and would have been planted…Rachel del Guidice -
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We Asked 16 Senators Advocating More Government-Run Health Care About Alfie Evans. None of Them Responded.
Sixteen liberal lawmakers who support a “Medicare for all” plan declined to respond to The Daily Signal on how they anticipate cases such as that of British toddler Alfie Evans should be handled in the United States. Alfie died Saturday morning at Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool, England, five days after the hospital followed government…Rachel del Guidice -
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Exclusive: Conservative Lawmakers’ Blueprint Would Trim Nondefense Spending, Balance Budget in 8 Years
House conservatives propose to cut nondefense spending and balance the federal budget within eight years in a blueprint released Wednesday. The document produced by the Republican Study Committee, the largest caucus of GOP lawmakers in the House, includes a long list of policy goals such as repealing Obamacare, restoring power to states, making tax cuts…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Liberal Senators’ Push to Investigate Sinclair Chilling Attempt to Silence Speech
Last year, the Sinclair Broadcast Group agreed to acquire the Tribune Media Company. Since then, the competitors of free-to-the-home broadcast television have been among the loudest voices crying “the sky is falling,” and the government—the Federal Communications Commission and Justice Department—should deny approval of the merger. This chorus has been joined by adversaries wishing to…Armstrong Williams -
- News
How 4 Big Comey Claims Stack Up to His Senate Testimony
Portions of former FBI Director James Comey’s new book on the end of his law enforcement career conflict with the facts as presented by the Trump administration, Comey’s recently fired top deputy, and both Republican and Democrat leaders. “My experience with Comey is [that he is] a patriotic, engaging, smart American who tried to find…Fred Lucas