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Former President Donald J. Trump, the front-runner for the Republican nomination, has repeatedly attacked central elements of the Inflation Reduction Act, including tax credits for purchasing electric vehicles. “Otherwise it’s all going to be on the chopping block.”The Inflation Reduction Act contains various tax credits and other subsidies to incentivize companies to deploy more clean energy projects. It also includes tax breaks for consumers to offset the cost of electric vehicles, heat pumps and other energy-efficient appliances. That could cut the number of eligible vehicles, potentially hindering progress toward the Biden administration’s goal of having electric vehicles make up half of new car sales by 2030. The estimated cost of the Inflation Reduction Act’s energy incentives has effectively doubled since it passed, largely because forecasters believe the legislation will be more popular than they originally expected.

Persons: Biden, Donald J, Trump, “ We’ve, Frank Pallone Jr, Thomas Pyle, ’, Pyle, Kevin Book, Sean Rayford, ” Mr, John Ketchum, Ketchum, “ It’s, Mr, Sasha Mackler, David Carroll, we’ve, Carroll, T.J . Kirkpatrick, ” Michael Kikukawa, Lori Esposito Murray, Ms, Murray, Jeanna Smialek Organizations: Republican, Democratic, Company, Biden, House Energy, Commerce, American Energy Alliance, ClearView Energy Partners, The New York Times, NextEra Energy, Republicans, Center, Engie, White, Economic Development, Conference Board, “ Locations: States, China, New Hampshire, America, Indiana, Texas, Irvine , Calif

☆ A bipartisan group of lawmakers' plan to boost the child tax credit for parents would help 'hundreds of thousands of kids get out of poverty,' a top economic official says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed boosting the child tax credit for parents. The White House told BI that Biden is committed to fighting "for the full expanded Child Tax Credit." AdvertisementA bipartisan proposal to boost the child tax credit for parents appears like it might be on track to get the White House's stamp of approval. "We're very supportive of expanding the child tax credit," Bernstein said. "So, helping hundreds of thousands of kids get out of poverty, reaching 16 million kids with a more fair child tax credit, that sounds like a really smart idea to us."

Persons: Jared Bernstein, Biden, —, Ron Wyden, Jason Smith, Poppy Harlow, White, Bernstein, Joe Biden, hasn't, it's, Michael Kikukawa, Wyden, Smith's, Kikukawa, Democratic Sen, Sherrod Brown, GOP Sen, Mike Crapo Organizations: White House, Service, Democratic, Republican, Tax Relief, American Families and Workers, White House Council, Economic Advisers, American, Budget, Child, GOP

☆ Chuck Schumer and Elizabeth Warren want FTC to probe blockbuster Exxon, Chevron mergers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and nearly two dozen other Democrats are demanding federal regulators probe the mega takeovers inked last month by ExxonMobil and Chevron. Exxon, already America’s biggest oil company, reached a deal in October to buy rival Pioneer Natural Resources for $60 billion. In the letter, the Senate Democrats argue past mergers that helped create Exxon and Chevron “enabled anticompetitive coordination” that hurt consumers by limiting supply of oil. “The oil-and-gas industry is still dominated by a handful of corporate giants, led by the top-two players Exxon and Chevron. The Senate Democrats note that Pioneer owns more drilling acreage than any other Permian producer and Exxon is also a top producer there.

Persons: Chuck Schumer, Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Hess, Schumer, Sens, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar, Exxon, White, Michael Kikukawa, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Federal Trade Commission, Oil, Exxon, Natural Resources, FTC, Democrats, CNN Locations: New York, Chevron, Warren

Murphy said Orsted was facing the same supply chain, inflation and other challenges that competitors in the offshore wind industry face. The decision was the latest in a series of setbacks for the offshore wind industry in the northeast. A handful of other offshore wind projects have been canceled. And New Jersey still has several other offshore wind projects in various stages of development, with four new proposals submitted in August alone. The White House in statement Tuesday night noted that in just the past week several investments in offshore wind had been made.

Persons: Orsted, Biden, Mads Nipper, ” Nipper, Phil Murphy, Murphy, “, ”, Republicans —, Jeff Tittel, ” Michael Kikukawa, White, Wayne Parry Organizations: CITY, New, New Jersey Gov, Democratic, Republicans, Sierra Club, Dominion Energy, Dominion, Shell, EDF Renewables Locations: N.J, Danish, New Jersey, United States, Connecticut, Rhode Island, East, New York, Massachusetts, Spanish, Virginia, Virginia Beach, U.S, Atlantic Shores, EDF Renewables North America, www.twitter.com

☆ U.S. national debt hits $33 trillion for the first time
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — The national debt of the U.S. reached a historic milestone by passing $33 trillion for the first time, less than two weeks before the federal government faces a potential shutdown over a lack of funding authorization. A roughly 50% increase in federal spending between fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2021 contributed to the debt topping $33 trillion, the department said. Tax cuts, stimulus programs and decreased tax revenue as a result of widespread unemployment during the Covid-19 pandemic were factors in driving government borrowing to new heights. The issue of the debt is at the center of a standstill in Congress over a spending bill that would sustain the government until the next funding cycle. Congress has until Sept. 30 to pass a spending bill.

Persons: WASHINGTON —, Joe Biden's, Donald, Michael Kikukawa, Kikukawa Organizations: U.S . Department of, Treasury, Washington , D.C, WASHINGTON, U.S, Treasury Department, University of Pennsylvania, Republicans, Sunday, NBC, Democrat, CNBC, Congressional, White House Locations: Washington ,

☆ Biden’s offshore wind target slipping out of reach as projects struggle
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The 2030 target, unveiled shortly after Biden took office, is central to Biden's broader plan to decarbonize the U.S. economy by 2050. The energy research firm expects 21 GW of offshore wind along U.S. shores in 2030, breaking 30 GW by 2032. Still, offshore wind developers including Orsted have said the IRA’s subsidies are insufficient for projects to thrive in the current environment, and are lobbying the administration for additional concessions. The nation currently has just two pilot-scale offshore wind farms capable of producing 42 megawatts of electricity. Stephanie McClellan, executive director of the offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward, said making sure the first fleet of projects succeeds was more important than a particular timeline.

Persons: Brian Snyder, Joe Biden’s, Biden, Kris Ohleth, It's, Samantha Woodworth, Wood Mackenzie, Michael Brown, France's, it's, Kelly Penot, Rousseau, Orsted, Michael Kikukawa, Samah Shaiq, Shaiq, Doreen Harris, NYSERDA, Elizabeth Mahony, Stephanie McClellan, Nichola Groom, David Gregorio Our Organizations: REUTERS, BP, Shell, Companies, Developers, Ocean Winds, Reuters, Biden, U.S . Department of Energy, DOE, New York State Energy Research, Development Authority, New York State Department of Public Service, Equinor, Orsted . Massachusetts Department of Energy, Office of Energy, Environmental Affairs, New, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, Thomson Locations: Rhode, U.S, North American, Massachusetts, Gulf of Mexico, Europe, Asia, China, United Kingdom, New Jersey, New York, Orsted .

☆ Democrats want to make the minimum wage $17 an hour and give nearly 28 million workers a raise
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Sen. Bernie Sanders, alongside other progressives, is again trying to raise the federal minimum wage. He's introducing legislation to bring the federal minimum to $17 by 2028; currently, it's $7.25. However, past attempts to raise the minimum wage have been stymied by Republicans and moderate Democrats. Under the latest version of the Raise the Wage Act, the federal minimum would climb to $17 by 2028. "The President shares Congressional Democrats' commitment to put workers first and supports increasing the minimum wage.

Persons: Sen, Bernie Sanders, Sanders, Michael Douglas, Gordon Gekko, Hakeem Jeffries, It's, Democrats —, Biden, Michael Kikukawa, Pramila Jayapal, Jayapal, Frances Holmes, Holmes Organizations: Republicans, Service, Democratic, Senate, Democrats, Institute, Workers, National Employment Law, Congress, White, Congressional Progressive Caucus, Oxfam America, Busch Locations: Wall, Silicon, St Louis , Missouri

☆ FTC chair defends tenure as lawmakers battle over consumer agency's impact
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Diane Bartz | David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Representative Kevin Kiley, Republican from California, asked Khan about the cases that the agency had lost. “We fight hard when we believe there was a law violation, and unfortunately things don’t always go our way,” responded Khan. The agency also lost a fight to stop Facebook parent Meta Platforms from buying VR content maker Within Unlimited. Democrats on the committee sought to defend Khan, occasionally joined by Republicans on the panel including Rep. Ken Buck. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, a Republican, however, worried about investors in small businesses losing their exit strategies.

Persons: Lina Khan, Lina M, Khan, Bill Nelson, Graeme Jennings, Activision Blizzard, Kevin Kiley, “, don’t, ”, ” Kiley, ” Khan, Darrell Issa, Trump, Ken Buck, Michael Kikukawa, Scott Fitzgerald, “ you’re, you’re, Black Knight, Jim Jordan, Elon, Jerry Nadler, Nadler Organizations: WASHINGTON, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Republican, Commerce, Science, NASA, Capitol, Committee, Microsoft, “, Activision, Facebook, Republicans, White House Press, Rep, Black, Horizon Therapeutics, Twitter, FTC, Democrat Locations: Washington , U.S, California, U.S

☆ Analysis: US debt-ceiling deal dooms Biden's revolutionary tax plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Barring an unlikely Democratic sweep of the White House and both chambers of Congress in 2024, major changes to the U.S. tax code are now seen as largely off the table until the end of 2025, when the 2017 individual tax cuts expire. TAX CHANGES ARE TOUGHBiden's unrealized campaign tax pledges illustrate the political difficulty of changing the U.S. tax code, barring a commanding majority in Congress. "House Republicans have successfully blocked every penny of President Biden’s tax hikes on families, farmers, and small businesses in the debt ceiling deal and protected the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act from repeal," said U.S. House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith. The Missouri Republican added that Americans want Congress to build on the Trump tax cuts "with more tax relief." Republicans will argue for making the 2017 individual tax cuts permanent, said John Gimigliano, KPMG's head of federal tax legislative and regulatory services.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Biden, That's, William McBride, Joe Manchin, Kyrsten Sinema, Jason Smith, Michael Kikukawa, Kikukawa, John Gimigliano, Gimigliano, Steve Rosenthal, Rosenthal, David Lawder, Heather Timmons, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Saturday, Revenue Service, Trump, White, Tax Foundation, Democratic, Republican, Republicans, IRS, House, The, The Missouri Republican, Economic Co, Congressional, Brookings Tax, Center, Thomson Locations: Washington, The Missouri

☆ Top Democrats say Biden should make this year’s ‘craziness’ the last debt limit fight ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Edward-Isaac Dovere | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Given the current math in the chamber, every senator in the Democratic Caucus would need to support such a change. The president’s focus, Kikukawa said, remains preventing default, and “other options are a question for another day.”Originally Boyle backed eliminating the debt limit entirely. She and Jeffries both pointed out that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had in 2011 supported a backdoor solution to that debt limit fight, which would have given then-President Barack Obama power to raise it on his own just that one time. Several swing district Democrats, though, told CNN that they were wary of supporting a change, calling the debt limit authority an important check on the presidency and on spending, despite their opposition to how it was used this time. This has been such a torturous experience for my Democratic colleagues that I hope they will not forget,” Boyle said.

Persons: Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer, couldn’t, West Virginia Sen, Joe Manchin, Arizona Sen, Kyrsten Sinema, Massachusetts Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Brendan Boyle –, Hakeem Jeffries, Pramila Jayapal, Nancy Pelosi, –, Boyle, “, ” Boyle, Biden, wasn’t, Michael Kikukawa, Kikukawa, ”, MAGA, ” Jeffries, he’s, ‘, ’ ” Warren, “ It’s, Warren, ” Warren, Steve Ricchetti, Pelosi, Schumer, Jeffries, Mitch McConnell, Barack Obama, ” Pelosi, ” Jayapal, Hawaii Sen, Brian Schatz, ’ ” Schatz, who’ve Organizations: CNN, Capitol, Democratic Caucus, West, Pennsylvania, White, Treasury Department, Senate, Congressional Progressive Caucus, SNAP, Democratic Locations: West Virginia, Arizona, Massachusetts, United States, Hawaii

Democrats were not as positive about a quick time frame, but the White House called the meetings "productive and direct." Republicans have refused to vote to lift the debt ceiling past its $31.3 trillion limit unless Biden and his Democrats agree to spending cuts in the federal budget. Going forward, the talks will be narrowed for more engagement between House Republicans and the White House, McCarthy said. White House adviser Steve Ricchetti and budget director Shalanda Young will lead discussions for the administration. "We can raise the debt ceiling if we limit what we're going to spend in the future," McCarthy told reporters.

Biden sat down in the Oval Office with House of Representatives Speaker McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell. "We're just getting started," Biden told reporters just after 3 p.m. EDT (2000 GMT), before ushering them out the door so the meeting could begin. Biden is trying to reach a debt ceiling deal by June 1 to lift the threat of economic calamity. The White House announced Biden may be forced to skip a stop in Australia during an Asia trip due to the debt limit drama. "We can raise the debt ceiling if we limit what we're going to spend in the future," McCarthy told reporters.

☆ Tighter work requirements for welfare programs on table in debt ceiling talks - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Jarrett Renshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The federal SNAP program helped 41.2 million Americans pay for food and groceries in 2022, costing taxpayers $119.4 billion, according to government data. The TANF program helps fewer than a 1 million families and costs about $16.5 billion a year, federal data shows. "The President has also been clear that he will not accept policies that push Americans into poverty. He will evaluate whatever proposals Republicans bring to the table based on those principles," White House spokesman Michael Kikukawa said in an email on Tuesday. Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Heather Timmons and Doina Chiacu;Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - Democratic President Joe Biden and top congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy are expected to discuss new work requirements for benefits programs for low-income Americans during Tuesday's debt ceiling negotiations, sources familiar with the talks said. Expanding the work requirements has been a key demand of Republicans, who are also pushing for spending cuts in exchange for their votes to raise the debt limit. "We can raise the debt ceiling if we limit what we're going to spend in the future," McCarthy told reporters. The current deadlock has rattled investors, sending the cost of insuring exposure to U.S. government debt to record highs. 2 Senate Republican John Thune told reporters the talks appear to have "too many cooks."

☆ Fact Check-No evidence Karine Jean-Pierre was involved in a drunk driving accident in March 2023, posts use unrelated photos
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There is no evidence for claims that White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was involved in an accident for drunk driving in March 2023, despite posts retweeted at least 18,000 times. “DC METRO POLICE REFUSING TO RELEASE BODYCAM FOOTAGE OF KARINE JEAN-PIERRE ACCIDENT,” reads part of the text. White House spokesperson Michael Kikukawa said the claim “is not true.”Outlets (here ) (here) have reported that Jean-Pierre lives in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. DC Metro Police said there is no record of White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre being involved in an accident for drunk driving. The White House called the allegation false, and photos used to illustrate the claims show unrelated events.

☆ Republicans' plans to cut the budget could mean millions lost in back pay, more dangerous workplaces, and jobs sent overseas, the White House says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The White House is once again attacking the Freedom Caucus for its plan to cut spending. Per a fact sheet, the White House said the Caucus' plan would result in lost wages and harmful working conditions. Through cutting back on investigations and inspections, the White House estimates that the House Freedom Caucus' plans would cost 135,000 workers an average of $1,000 in back pay. Reversing spending in the Inflation Reduction Act – the cutting of which is one of the House Freedom Caucus' core tenets — would move millions of jobs for those projects overseas, the White House said. —House Freedom Caucus (@freedomcaucus) March 10, 2023Last week, the Freedom Caucus unveiled their broad plan to address the debt ceiling through major spending cuts.

☆ Republicans want to replace federal taxes with a flat sales tax. It'll either add trillions to the national deficit or you'll have to pay a lot more for everything.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Some Republicans want to abolish the IRS and replace most federal taxes with a flat sales tax. However, a report from Brookings finds that the sales tax at the currently proposed rate would add to the deficit. Buddy Carter, who introduced the legislation, said the US "doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem." "Our country doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. This is on top of the $3 trillion that Republicans want to add to the debt with tax giveaways to wealthy tax cheats, Big Pharma, big corporations, and other special interests.

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