Budget Battles
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Has Trump Already Lost His Iron Grip on the GOP?
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House Votes to Dodge Shutdown, Ditching Trump Demand
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Trump-Approved Spending Plan Goes Down in Flames
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Trump Blows Up Johnson’s Bipartisan Spending Deal
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Republicans Fume Over ‘Dumpster Fire’ Funding Bill
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Congress Struggles to Reach Deal to Avert Government Shutdown
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GOP Hardliners Say Border Bill Should Come Before Tax Cuts
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One More Try? Why Obamacare Repeal Is on the Horizon Again
By Rob GarverThe effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, which many assumed was dead or at least in a state of suspended animation for the foreseeable future, may be showing some stirring of life...
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Trump Takes on a Powerful Leader, but This Time It’s on Capitol Hill
By Rob GarverPresident Trump was obviously angry. The target of his ire was a man who has been aggravating him for a long time by ignoring his demands, refusing to work through the president’s chosen...
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Heads Up: Health Care Is Still in Trouble
By Rob GarverThe issue of the US health insurance system was taken off the front burner with the evident failure of the Republican effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. But while it may not be in...
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Here’s How Trump Could Get Democrats’ Help on Tax Reform
By Rob GarverThe Trump administration has been reaching out to ‘Blue Dog’ Democrats to talk about possible areas of agreement on tax reform.
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Congress Is Constructing a Wall, All Right. But It’s Built Around Trump
By Rob GarverLike a body’s immune system trying to wall off an abscess, the institutions of the federal government seem to be coming together to block, or at least limit, the influence of the president on the...
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The US Spends Billions on Cybersecurity — but No One Is Sure Exactly How Much
By Eric PianinThere is no universally accepted definition of what cybersecurity actually means. Moreover, the public and even lawmakers don’t have a clue as to how much the government is actually spending overall...
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How Could the VA Make $5.5 Billion in Improper Payments Last Year?
By Eric PianinSen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri has been on a tear recently in going after government fraud and waste. The ranking Democrat on the Senate’s chief oversight committee and a former state auditor in...
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Congress Just Handed Trump Bragging Rights on Expanded GI Education Benefits
By Eric PianinFor a chief executive preparing to leave town on a 17-day summer vacation after suffering a humiliating setback on health care reform, President Trump will be able to claim some bragging rights when...
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Top GOP Conservative: We Won’t Play Around With the Debt Ceiling
By Rob GarverWhen it comes to the perennial fight to raise the federal debt ceiling, it’s usually best to assume that the struggle to give the Treasury Department clearance to actually pay the debts that the...
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Why Republicans Are Going It Alone on Tax Cuts
By Eric PianinRepublicans made it clear on Tuesday that despite their debacle in pressing for health care reform without any Democratic assistance, they would again go their own way in drafting and passing major...
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Is Your Tax Info Safe? Watchdog Says IRS Is Still Vulnerable to Cyber Hackers
By Eric PianinDespite some improvements, the Internal Revenue Service’s oversight and protection of sensitive tax collection documents and data continues to pose a threat to the government and U.S. taxpayers,...
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What a Waste—Senate Health Care Debate Squanders Time and Millions for Nothing
By Rob Garver and Eric PianinFor Republican leaders in the Senate, watching their first two attempts to pass a health care bill this week fail badly in floor votes must have been extra painful as they plainly knew in advance...
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Democrats Have One Big Idea in Their ‘Better Deal’ That Should Worry the GOP
Democrats intended to make a stronger connection with average Americans with their new 2018 election slogan. Instead, they may have just made them nostalgic – and hungry. Slogans aside, one key part...
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How the Republican Drive to Boost Defense Spending Could Backfire Big Time
By Eric PianinThe House is on the verge of approving a massive, $790 billion spending bill for defense, military construction and veterans’ programs that is $72 billion above the legal caps imposed by the 2011...
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'Skinny Repeal’ of ACA Likely to Leave Everyone Wanting More
By Rob GarverThe Senate’s Republican leadership has added yet another option to the complicated menu of Affordable Care Act repeal and replacement measures that may be considered as alternatives to the House-...