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He has again stepped down as chairman of the Foreign Affairs panel, as per Senate Democratic caucus rules, but has otherwise made clear that he’s not going anywhere. Political Cartoons View All 1182 ImagesThe calls for his resignation are in sharp contrast, though, to his first case. It also puts increased pressure on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other Democratic leaders who have so far stopped short of recommending that Menendez step down. Booker said it is a “mistake” for Menendez to say that stepping down would be unfair as the case has not been tried. Also calling for Menendez to step down on Monday were Democratic Sens.

Persons: — Democratic Sen, Cory Booker, Sen, Bob Menendez, ”, Menendez, Nadine, ” Menendez, Chuck Schumer, Booker, ” Booker, Democratic Sens, Tammy Baldwin of, Jon Tester, Montana, Jacky Rosen of, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Michael Bennet of Colorado, Martin Heinrich of, John Fetterman of, Peter Welch of, Sherrod Brown of, Phil Murphy Organizations: WASHINGTON, — Democratic, New, New Jersey Democrat, Democratic, Foreign Relations Committee, Foreign Affairs, Hudson, College’s, clubby Senate, New Jersey Gov Locations: New Jersey, Egypt, Jersey, Hudson County, Union City, clubby, Jerseyans, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Peter Welch of Vermont, Sherrod Brown of Ohio

☆ Biden's labor secretary pick may not have the votes. She also may not need them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Liz Brown-Kaiser | Sahil Kapur | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The Senate is stalled on President Joe Biden's pick for secretary of labor, Julie Su, and Democrats face a conundrum on how to proceed. But Su, who currently serves as the acting labor secretary, could just keep running the department anyway. Federal law places no limits on how long Su can serve as acting labor secretary without being confirmed. He said he wants a voice for "both labor and industry" in the labor secretary role. Any Senator who voted to confirm Secretary [Marty] Walsh should vote to confirm Acting Secretary Su, too.

Persons: Julie Su, Joe Biden's, Su, Biden, Sen, Bernie Sanders, Kyrsten Sinema, Jon Tester, Joe Manchin, pushback, there's, Mazie Hirono, haven't, She's, she'll, she's, Mark Kelly, John Hickenlooper, I'm, Su aren't, Tester, you've, Manchin, Bill Cassidy of, Sinema, Tammy Duckworth, Marty, Walsh, We're, Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren of, Chuck Schumer Organizations: Health, Education, Labor, Capitol, Labor Department —, Pensions, Su's, Democrats, HELP, Su's Democratic, White, Department, Democratic Locations: Washington, American, Sens, Hawaii, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts

☆ Senate Democrats pressure PayPal, Venmo, Cash App over fraud protections
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats on Thursday urged PayPal and Cash App to better protect users of their peer-to-peer payment applications from fraud. The letters were sent to PayPal president and CEO Dan Shulman and Cash App CEO Brian Grassadonia. PayPal, Venmo and Cash App did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC. Cash App transactions also brought in over $203 billion in inflows among 51 million monthly users as of December 2022, according to a Block annual report. The letter is part of an ongoing inquiry into P2P platform consumer safety spearheaded by Warren over the past several years.

Persons: Sen, Sherrod Brown of, Massachusetts Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Rhode Island Sen, Jack Reed, Jack Reed and New Jersey Sen, Bob Menendez, Dan Shulman, Cash, Brian Grassadonia, PayPal's, Warren, Menendez, Reed Organizations: PayPal, Massachusetts, Block, CNBC, Pew Research Center Locations: WASHINGTON, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Rhode Island, Jack Reed and New Jersey

☆ Dozens of Democrats defend CFPB at Supreme Court as case threatens its existence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — Over 140 current and former Democratic lawmakers filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court on Monday to defend the country's leading consumer protection agency from challenges to its regulatory authority. Brown chairs the Senate Banking Committee while Waters is the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee. The Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments in the case in February, four months after a federal appeals court panel unanimously ruled that the CFPB's funding method was unconstitutional. The Biden administration appealed the 5th Circuit's decision to the Supreme Court, but a final decision could be delayed until June 2024 to hear other arguments in the case. In the brief, lawmakers said succinctly that "the judgment should be reversed."

☆ Lawmakers praise First Republic sale, but efforts to pass new bank rules are fizzling
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Christina Wilkie | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers who sit atop key banking committees praised the federal takeover of First Republic Bank on Monday, and held up the sale of its assets to JP Morgan Chase as a successful public-private collaboration to protect the U.S. financial system. His statement contrasted from the reaction of the Senate banking committee's chairman, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio. He did not directly respond to the federal intervention, choosing instead to direct his ire at the failed bank. "First Republic Bank's risky behavior, unique business model, and management failures led to significant problems, and it's clear we need stronger guardrails in place," Brown said in a statement. "We must make large banks more resilient against failure so that we protect financial stability and ensure competition in the long run."

☆ Norfolk Southern reports $387 million charge for the first quarter after East Palestine derailment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

General view of the site of the derailment of a train carrying hazardous waste, in East Palestine, Ohio, U.S., March 2, 2023. Norfolk Southern on Wednesday reported an initial $387 million charge associated with the company's East Palestine, Ohio, derailment in February, which spilled toxic chemicals into the environment. Norfolk Southern said income from railway operations for the quarter was $711 million, down 34% from the same period in 2022. Excluding the East Palestine derailment, income from railway operations was $1.1 billion, up 1% compared to the same period the year prior. Norfolk Southern did not announce estimates for further charges related to the East Palestine derailment.

☆ JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon warns banking crisis will be felt for ‘years to come’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —The banking crisis triggered by the recent collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank is not over yet and will ripple through the economy for years to come, said JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on Tuesday. He said that SVB’s high Interest rate exposure and large amount of uninsured deposits were already well-known to both regulators and to the marketplace at large. Current regulations, he argued, could actually lull banks into complacency without actually addressing real system-wide banking issues. Lawmakers in Congress, including Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, have suggested that new legislation meant to regulate banks is in the works. But, wrote Dimon, “the debate should not always be about more or less regulation but about what mix of regulations will keep America’s banking system the best in the world.”

☆ Senators unveil new rail safety bill in wake of toxic Ohio derailment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

John Fetterman and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Sherrod Brown of Ohio – would build on provisions of the bipartisan Railway Safety Act. Brown and his fellow senator from Ohio, Republican J.D. Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw endorsed parts of the bipartisan bill. The Feb. 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, released toxic chemicals into the environment. Shaw said Norfolk Southern would continue to support cleanup efforts in the area.

☆ Republican senators could be stuck in the minority 'for the rest of the decade' if GOP doesn't flip chamber in 2024, campaign chair warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The head of the Senate GOP's campaign arm spoke this week about the stakes of the 2024 Senate races. Sen. Steve Daines said his party could be in the minority for the "rest of the decade" if they don't win in 2024. "We either deliver a majority in '24, or we are in the minority as Republican Senate for the rest of the decade," said Daines. In addition to those states, the GOP has potential pick-up opportunities in swing states like Arizona, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Yet despite a general geographical advantage in the Senate, Republicans have struggled to attain a lasting majority.

☆ Senate GOP populists push Republican colleagues to back railway regulations, arguing 'their voters' are the most affected by disasters
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Vance, Hawley, and Rubio are touting a bill to enact new regulations on the rail industry. They're trying out a new argument for their Republican colleagues: these are your voters. Josh Hawley of Missouri, and Marco Rubio of Florida, are touting the Railway Safety Act of 2023. "When derailments occur, it is predominantly Republican voters—their voters—who bear the brunt and who rush to put out the fires." "Look, I think if the vote were held today, we'd get 65 votes in the Senate," he told Insider.

☆ Senate confirms Eric Garcetti as U.S. ambassador to India
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Sahil Kapur | Frank Thorp V | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Senate voted 52-42 on Wednesday to confirm former Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti to be the next U.S. ambassador to India. The long-delayed Garcetti nomination grew unusually contentious and sparked some last-minute drama. Several Democrats voted against advancing his nomination, but enough Republicans backed Garcetti to give the U.S. its first permanent ambassador to India under President Joe Biden, more than two years into his term. "The United States-India relationship is extremely important, and it's a very good thing we now have an ambassador," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said. But a group of Republicans voted yes and helped secure the necessary support, including Sens.

☆ Live updates: East Palestine, Ohio train derailment Senate hearing
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Chris Isidore | Aditi Sangal | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

In the lead-up to a Senate committee hearing on the toxic train derailment that spilled chemicals in the Ohio town of East Palestine last month, a bipartisan group of senators is introducing a new bill aimed at shoring up rail safety. The Railway Safety Act of 2023 will be introduced by Republican Sens. Vance of Ohio, Marco Rubio of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri, and Democratic Sens. It has a provision requiring “well-trained, two-person crews aboard every train.” And it boosts the maximum fines for rail carriers for wrongdoing. Data compiled by the nonprofit OpenSecrets show that Norfolk Southern, the company involved in the Ohio derailment, spent $1.8 million on federal lobbying last year.

☆ Norfolk Southern is giving over a thousand times more money to shareholders than to derailment victims
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The company spent $3.4 billion on share repurchases last year, and $3.1 billion in 2021, bringing its recent share repurchases to $6.5 billion. Billions to shareholdersIn March 2022, Norfolk Southern (NSC) announced a new $10 billion share repurchase plan. Norfolk Southern did not respond to questions Wednesday on whether it expects to change its share repurchase plans in the wake of the derailment. Other freight railroads are also reporting improving profits, and have joined Norfolk Southern in massive share repurchases. Like Norfolk Southern, both UP and CSX spent more on share repurchases than they did on total employee compensation.

☆ Biden, McConnell Kentucky event is a roadmap for White House under new Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Steve Holland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks during an event to tout the new Brent Spence Bridge over the Ohio River between Covington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio, near the bridge in Covington, Kentucky, U.S., January 4, 2023. That's the opposite of what the White House thinks voters want. In a stark sign of the Republican divisions that the White House hopes will work to their advantage, Trump endorsed McCarthy on Wednesday morning, while lobbing a racial slur at McConnell's wife. Biden and McConnell were joined by Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, former Ohio Senator Rob Portman, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. McConnell was among a handful of Republicans who voted for the infrastructure law while many House Republicans including McCarthy opposed it.

McConnell wants to get credit from voters in his home state of Kentucky for the spending project, while Biden wants to highlight the on-the-ground impacts of lawmakers working together. That's the opposite of what the White House thinks voters want. Democrats' unexpected success in the last midterms shows "the American people said very loudly and clearly they wanted us to come together and work for a common ground,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Wednesday. The two will be joined by Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, former Ohio Senator Rob Portman, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. McConnell, of Kentucky, was among a handful of Republicans who voted for the infrastructure law while many House Republicans including McCarthy opposed it.

☆ Democrats will be defending a slim Senate majority in 2024. Here's an early look at the states that will likely be in play for both political parties.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The 2024 Senate elections — which will run concurrent with the presidential race — are approaching. In 2024, 34 senators will be up for reelection: 20 Democrats, 11 Republicans, and three Independents. But Sinema's election itself is another matter; she has not yet announced whether she will run for reelection in 2024. He has not yet decided if he will run in 2024, but Republicans have been eyeing his seat for years. But he has done it before, winning in 2018 despite Republicans going all-out to defeat him.

☆ Child tax credit: Democratic lawmakers make last-ditch effort to enhance benefit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Buoyed by the steep drop in child poverty last year, a group of Democratic lawmakers and progressive advocates are pushing hard to restore at least part of the enhanced child tax credit that stabilized many families’ finances in 2021. GOP Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, a longtime advocate of the child tax credit, crafted an enhanced version earlier this year, along with fellow Republican Sens. The 2021 enhancementThe American Rescue Plan made three significant changes to the child tax credit for 2021. A reduction in child povertyThe expansion lifted 2.1 million children out of poverty in 2021, according to the Census Bureau. It helped drive child poverty to 5.2%, a drop of 46%, according to the bureau’s Supplemental Poverty Measure.

☆ Premarket: Oil stocks are pointing to higher gas prices to come
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Brutally high oil and gas prices were the talk of the town in 2022 and one of the largest contributing factors to sky-high inflation. Oil prices and energy stocks are closely interlinked — so this discrepancy is an odd one and could mean that lower gas prices may not be here to stay. What’s happening: The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil, the US benchmark, which is a large driver of gas prices, has fallen to its lowest level of the year this week — under $72 a barrel. But even though gas prices are falling, they’re still higher than they have been over the past few years. Exxon and Chevron are also speculating that crude prices will remain elevated and that demand will grow.

New York CNN —Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed crypto exchange FTX, has agreed to testify before the Senate Banking Committee next week as questions and confusion swirl about the collapse of his companies. One of the key questions prosecutors are likely to probe is whether FTX misappropriated customer funds when it made loans to Alameda. “I didn’t knowingly commingle funds,” he told The New York Times last week. The Times said the issue is part of a broadening inquiry into the collapse of FTX, and it’s not clear whether prosecutors have determined any wrongdoing by Bankman-Fried. In a statement to the paper, Bankman-Fried said he was “not aware of any market manipulation and certainly never intended to engage in market manipulation.”

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried: US lawmakers want answers from FTX founder
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Lawmakers are demanding that Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed crypto exchange FTX, appear before the Senate Banking Committee next week over “significant unanswered questions ” surrounding the collapse of his companies. FTX was one of the biggest crypto exchanges in the world until last month, when it faced a sudden wave of customer withdrawals that it couldn’t cover. One of the key questions prosecutors are likely to probe is whether FTX misappropriated customer funds when it made loans to Alameda. The Times said the issue is part of a broadening inquiry into the collapse of FTX, and it’s not clear whether prosecutors have determined any wrongdoing by Bankman-Fried. In a statement to the paper, Bankman-Fried said he was “not aware of any market manipulation and certainly never intended to engage in market manipulation.”

☆ How an arcane 96-year-old law stopped the rail strike
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The Railway Labor Act was passed in 1926 as one of the very first labor laws in the nation. Because of the law, the House was able to vote Wednesday to impose unpopular contracts on four rail unions whose members have already rejected the terms, followed by a vote by the Senate vote late Thursday that did the same. The Railway Labor Act, passed in 1926, is the reason Congress could intervene this week to block a strike by freight railroad unions. But under the Railway Labor Act, management can fall back on hopes that Congress will give them the deal it wants. When he served in the Senate, Biden voted against an earlier effort to impose a contract on the rail unions to keep them on the job.

☆ Senate banking chief urges U.S. Treasury to secure new crypto rules
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Hannah Lang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A representation of virtual currency Bitcoin and U.S. One Dollar banknotes are seen in front of a stock graph in this illustration taken January 8, 2021. Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio also urged the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC), a U.S. regulatory panel comprising top financial regulators, to find ways to enhance crypto asset disclosures and bolster market integrity. FTX filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11 after traders pulled $6 billion from the platform in three days and rival exchange Binance abandoned a rescue deal, sending shock waves across the crypto market. In that report, regulators identified several gaps in the oversight of cryptocurrencies, including in the crypto spot market for tokens that are not securities. Reporting by Hannah Lang in Washington Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Any future tax breaks for big corporations must also come with restarting monthly checks to parents, 58 members of Congress say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In a letter, 58 members of Congress said any corporate tax breaks should be coupled with extended credits for families. The expanded Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit both drastically decreased poverty during the pandemic. However, monthly CTC checks to parents wound down last year amid disagreements in Congress. That includes bringing back more generous monthly Child Tax Credit checks and extending the expanded Earned Income Tax Credit, a suite of new tax measures that drastically reduced poverty after being included in President Joe Biden's initial stimulus package. However, Congress failed to renew the child tax credit when negotiations over the Build Back Better Act stalled, leaving some families struggling after the monthly checks ended in December 2021.

Jennifer Schulp, a director at the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, said the Republicans' unexpectedly tight margin of control in the House will not prompt them to tone down their rhetoric. 'REGULATORY EXUBERANCE'Patrick McHenry, a North Carolina Republican in line to lead the House Financial Services Committee in the new Congress, said in an emailed statement to Reuters before the election that Biden's administration "is pushing its agenda through financial regulators because they don’t have the votes to pass it in Congress." "Committee Republicans will work together to conduct appropriate oversight of activist regulators and market participants who have an outsized impact," McHenry said. "The appropriations process in the House will be a messaging exercise, and it's less worrisome since the Democrats will have the Senate," McGannon said. While those Senators will not be in the majority, House Republicans have also criticized companies on ESG-related matters.

☆ Republican takeover of U.S. Congress would mean tax fights are back
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( David Lawder | Gram Slattery | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Congressional Republicans' tax strategies and a Democratic White House could ultimately mean a status quo on rates, deductions and credits for the next two years, tax professionals and analysts say. TAX CUTS AND JOBS ACT"We want to make the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent, which will strengthen the economy," a senior House Republican aide told Reuters. That 2017 Republican-passed tax law slashed top-line tax rates on corporations, a permanent feature that Democrats failed to reverse with control of Congress over the last two years. AIMING AT THE IRSOther targets for Republican tax legislation include rolling back a new 15% domestic corporate minimum tax for large companies and $80 billion in new funding for the Internal Revenue Service in Biden's climate and healthcare law. It will be used to fill thousands of IRS positions coming empty due to retirements and budget cuts; Republicans have described the hires as an 'army' aimed at harassing taxpayers.

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