Latest news with #JohnHoeven
Politico
4 days ago
- Business
- Politico
Schumer calls for Vought to be canned
Senate Republicans are planning to put their first government spending bills on the floor as soon as next week, setting up a key test ahead of a blockbuster fall funding fight. GOP lawmakers are discussing packaging together up to four bills, though the size of that package could shrink if including a certain bill could threaten to bog down the chamber's ability to pass it. Leaders could, for instance, decide against including the fiscal 2026 bill to fund the departments of Commerce and Justice, which has been plagued by intraparty squabbling over an amendment that would bar funds for relocating FBI headquarters. 'I hope we get a four-bill package pulled together and get to the floor next week,' said Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), a leadership ally and member of the Appropriations Committee, adding that he believes there is a 'good chance' that this will happen. Senate Majority Leader John Thune hasn't made a decision about whether or not to start moving the first government funding bill on the floor next week, but wants to get one funding package across the finish line before the chamber leaves for the August recess that is scheduled to begin in early August. Asked about next week's schedule, Thune indicated to reporters that, in addition to confirming more of President Donald Trump's nominees, Republicans are looking at either getting the ball rolling on the annual defense authorization bill or moving government funding legislation. In addition to the measure to fund Commerce and Justice, the Senate Appropriations Committee has approved three other bills funding the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Agriculture and the legislative branch. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) has stressed wanting to focus on moving bipartisan funding bills and has a good relationship with Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the panel. Thune, on Thursday, also said that 'we plan to move approps bills that will have cooperation from the Democrats.' Collins on Thursday told reporters it was up to Thune about how to proceed but that she would like to see the first so-called minibus of spending measures on the floor before August recess. Still, Congress is expected to need a short-term funding patch to keep the government open past the end of September. And Democrats are actively worried that Senate Republicans will be pressured by the administration and the House to set aside the appropriations process and either fund the government entirely through stopgap measures and pass more party-line spending cuts like those included in the rescissions bill the Senate advanced early Thursday morning. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Appropriations Committee, acknowledged that an appropriations package could come to the floor as soon as next week, but suggested it was largely a waste of time. 'There is no approps process, it's as dead as Jimmy Hoffa,' Kennedy said. 'The Appropriations Committee has been a pointless exercise for a while, everybody knows that. Nobody wants to admit it.' Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.
Politico
4 days ago
- Business
- Politico
Senate GOP prepares to move first funding package
Senate Republicans are planning to put their first government spending bills on the floor as soon as next week, setting up a key test ahead of a blockbuster fall funding fight. GOP lawmakers are discussing packaging together up to four bills, though the size of that package could shrink if including a certain bill could threaten to bog down the chamber's ability to pass it. Leaders could, for instance, decide against including the fiscal 2026 bill to fund the departments of Commerce and Justice, which has been plagued by intraparty squabbling over an amendment that would bar funds for relocating FBI headquarters. 'I hope we get a four-bill package pulled together and get to the floor next week,' said Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), a leadership ally and member of the Appropriations Committee, adding that he believes there is a 'good chance' that this will happen. Senate Majority Leader John Thune hasn't made a decision about whether or not to start moving the first government funding bill on the floor next week, but wants to get one funding package across the finish line before the chamber leaves for the August recess that is scheduled to begin in early August. Asked about next week's schedule, Thune indicated to reporters that, in addition to confirming more of President Donald Trump's nominees, Republicans are looking at either getting the ball rolling on the annual defense authorization bill or moving government funding legislation. In addition to the measure to fund Commerce and Justice, the Senate Appropriations Committee has approved three other bills funding the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Agriculture and the legislative branch. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) has stressed wanting to focus on moving bipartisan funding bills and has a good relationship with Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the panel. Thune, on Thursday, also said that 'we plan to move approps bills that will have cooperation from the Democrats.' Collins on Thursday told reporters it was up to Thune about how to proceed but that she would like to see the first so-called minibus of spending measures on the floor before August recess. Still, Congress is expected to need a short-term funding patch to keep the government open past the end of September. And Democrats are actively worried that Senate Republicans will be pressured by the administration and the House to set aside the appropriations process and either fund the government entirely through stopgap measures and pass more party-line spending cuts like those included in the rescissions bill the Senate advanced early Thursday morning. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Appropriations Committee, acknowledged that an appropriations package could come to the floor as soon as next week, but suggested it was largely a waste of time. 'There is no approps process, it's as dead as Jimmy Hoffa,' Kennedy said. 'The Appropriations Committee has been a pointless exercise for a while, everybody knows that. Nobody wants to admit it.' Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.
Politico
09-07-2025
- Business
- Politico
Senate Republicans talk tweaks to Trump's funding cut package
Republican senators spent their weekly lunch Wednesday discussing tweaks they want to make to the White House's request to claw back $9.4 billion in congressionally approved funding. Broad pushback inside the Senate GOP conference against cutting public media and global health funds, as described by several attendees, is the latest sign Republicans will have to make changes to the administration's rescissions package if they hope to pass it. 'Just by listening to the conversations — one, members still need to understand it better,' Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) said in a brief interview after the closed-door Republican lunch. He added, 'I think we will get it passed, but in all likelihood it will be modified.' Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said, 'I just heard a lot of concerns raised in this meeting just now. People have a lot of stuff they want changed.' Areas of concern and possible changes raised during the lunch touched on multiple parts of the package. Some Republican senators want to protect their public media outlets back home from the aggressive funding cuts being sought by the White House, while others have concerns about slashing global AIDS funding and other international health funds. Republicans also sought clarity in the meeting about proposed reductions to food aid to other countries. Senate GOP leaders can lose three Republicans on the rescissions package and still let Vice President JD Vance break a tie. So far, they are being careful not to overpromise that they currently have the votes to get the bill across the finish line. Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) told reporters, 'we're going to continue working through the process and you'll see the voting next week.' They don't have much time to negotiate: Congress has until the end of the day on July 18 to get the legislation to President Donald Trump's desk, or the rescissions request expires, forcing the administration to spend the money as Congress originally intended. And assuming the Senate does make changes, it would bounce the legislation back to the House for a final vote. Senate leaders are gambling that their counterparts across the Capitol will just swallow those revisions. The lengthy discussion at the Senate lunch Wednesday was the first conference-wide discussion Republicans have had about the White House's rescissions request since they returned to Washington from a brief July Fourth recess. As part of the meeting, Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) and Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) both delivered presentations on the package. Schmitt, according to Hoeven, is sponsoring the rescissions bill in the Senate, while Collins is one of the chief skeptics who has openly pledged to push for major changes. Other Republicans agitating for amendments include Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, along with Sens. Mike Rounds of South Dakota and Jerry Moran of Kansas. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) said in a brief interview that lawmakers inside the room still had some questions about the proposed funding cuts, and that Schmitt promised he would seek answers from White House budget director Russ Vought. 'Eric did a great job. Susan did a great job,' said Britt. 'I think they really laid it out there and showed a commitment to continuing to work together to get the answers that people needed and ensure that we had those moving forward.' Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
North Dakota congressional delegation touts GOP megabill as win for oil, coal
North Dakota Sen. John Hoeven, left, speaks during a press conference next to Sen. Kevin Cramer and U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak at the North Dakota Petroleum Council in Bismarck on July 7, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) North Dakota's congressional delegation emphasized the elimination of tax credits for solar and wind projects as part of the federal reconciliation package will be a huge win for coal, gas and oil producers. The bill was signed into law by President Donald Trump during a White House ceremony on July 4. During a Monday press conference touting the 'big, beautiful' bill at North Dakota Petroleum Council offices in Bismarck, North Dakota Sens. John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer, and U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak, all Republicans, took turns at the microphone praising the Republican tax bill and how it will help North Dakotans, the energy grid and the country. 'It's baseload for the good of the grid, for the stability of the grid. We need 24/7 and that means big, beautiful coal,' Hoeven said. 'Here in North Dakota, we're a big, big part of it. We're an energy powerhouse for this country and we intend to do more.' Cramer said the U.S. needed to change its energy policy otherwise artificial intelligence data centers, crypto mining and other quantum computing industries would find homes in other countries. He also said the country has been subsidizing wind and solar energy sources for about 35 years and those sources are still not able to 'stand on its own merit.' On the Fourth of July, Trump signs his 'big, beautiful bill' into law 'We've actually diminished the reliability of our grid by putting intermittent … electricity on that grid,' Cramer said. 'You have to have generation and generation that is available 15% of the time isn't going to build you many server farms.' Fedorchak, a former utility regulator, said about 95% of the new power generation hooked into the energy grid recently was from wind and solar projects. 'I wonder why? It's because we're telling them that's what we want with our production tax credits,' she said. 'They have to go away. It's absolutely essential for the reliability of our grid.' The reconciliation package also expands an existing 45Q tax credit used for carbon sequestration to include enhanced oil recovery. 'Now the incentive is not to put CO2 down a hole just for storage. Now the incentive is to produce oil and gas with it,' Hoeven said. 'We can lengthen the lives of our coal plants and work with oil and gas to maybe double what we've produced in the Bakken.' US House passes massive tax break and spending cut bill, sending it to Trump The bill is also expected to cut $186 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Hoeven said the program will now incentivize states to keep their SNAP error-payment rates below 6% to avoid paying for a portion of the program themselves. 'If you are a state that is 6% or less, you don't pick up any of the cost share,' Hoeven said. 'But the federal government is still saving money because you reduce that error rate. People who should be working and who are not, and are getting food stamps when they should not be getting them, they no longer get them. So the taxpayer still saves.' In 2022 and 2023, North Dakota's SNAP payment error rate was 9.5%, according to Legislative Council. The state has averaged a 5.4% error rate over the last 10 years. The analysis from the Legislative Council also projects that North Dakota will see increased costs to administer SNAP. Hoeven said North Dakota would need to pick up about $6 million per year in new administrative costs under the new cost share formula. In a statement released Sunday, state Rep. Lisa Finley-DeVille, D-Mandaree, said programs like Medicaid and SNAP helped her family as she raised five children on the Fort Berthold Reservation. She said Fedorchak, Hoeven and Cramer chose party loyalty and donor priorities over the health and dignity of North Dakotans. 'This bill is a betrayal of our values,' she said. 'It gives away trillions in tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy while gutting the basic lifelines that keep our elders, caregivers, and working families afloat — especially in tribal and rural communities.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Democrats pick fight over how GOP's SNAP change hits states
Republicans are defending recent legislation aimed at incentivizing states to fight erroneous payments through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — but Democrats are picking a fight over a last-minute change they argue encourages states to have higher error rates. Legislation passed out of the GOP-led Congress on Thursday that could see some states pay a share of benefit costs for SNAP, also known as the food stamps program, for the first time. The federal government currently covers the cost of benefits, but under the plan that's been tossed around by congressional Republicans over the past few months, some states would have to cover anywhere between 5 percent and 15 percent of the benefits costs if they have a payment error rate above 6 percent — which factors in over-and-underpayments. However, changes were made to the text that allowed delayed implementation for the cost-share requirements for states with the highest error rates shortly before its passage in the Senate this week. GOP leadership sought to lock down support from Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, whose state had the highest payment error rate in the country in fiscal year 2024. Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, said Republicans made the change to comply with chamber rules. 'You have to give those states time to adjust because about all they're going to do is get down to that midrange, and then they're still going to have to pay a penalty because they're so high,' he said. 'So, it's about giving states a fair chance to adjust.' Under the plan that was greenlit by Congress on Thursday, some states would begin contributing a share of benefit costs in fiscal year 2028, depending on their payment error rate. But the plan also allows for delayed implementation for two years for states with payment error rates if they reach around 13.34 percent or higher — an effort Republicans say is aimed at providing states like Alaska with much higher rates to bring them down. Hoeven said the GOP-led agriculture committee, which crafted the SNAP pitch, 'came up with a lot of proposals' trying to comply with restrictive rules governing a special process that Republicans used to approve the plan in the upper chamber without Democratic support. Under the rules, Hoeven said, 'they always said you got to give states time to adjust in order to meet the test.' Republicans say the overall proposal is aimed at incentivizing states to reduce erroneous payments. But Democrats have sharply criticized the plan, arguing it would encourage states with higher error rates to continue making erroneous payments. 'The most absurd example of the hypocrisy of the Republican bill: they have now proposed delaying SNAP cuts FOR TWO YEARS ONLY FOR STATES with the highest error rates just to bury their help for Alaska: AK, DC, FL, GA, MD, MA, NJ, NM, NY, OR. They are rewarding errors,' Sen. Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), top Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, wrote this week as she sounded off in a series of posts on X over the plan. In another swipe at the plan, Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote on X that he had to text his state's governor that 10 states with 'the MOST ERRORS in administering the program' are 'exempt from food assistance cuts,' at that Hawaii is not exempt because the governor has done 'good work in reducing the error rate by 15 percent.' The comments come as Democrats and advocates have argued the measure could lead to states having to cut benefits because of the shift in cost burden. Recent figures unveiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) showed Alaska's payment error rate hit 24.66 percent in fiscal year 2024. The national average was 10.93 percent. Murkowski said after the vote that she didn't 'like' the bill but sought to 'to take care of Alaska's interests.' But she also said she knew 'that, in many parts of the country, there are Americans that are not going to be advantaged by this bill.' 'I don't like the fact that we moved through an artificial deadline, an artificial timeline to produce something, to meet a deadline, rather than to actually try to produce the best bill for the country,' she said. 'But when I saw the direction that this is going, you can either say, 'I don't like it and not try to help my state,' or you can roll up your sleeves.' Republicans also criticized Democrats for challenging a previous GOP-crafted SNAP provision that sought to provide more targeted help to Alaska, as GOP leadership sought to win Murkowski's support for the bill, which ultimately passed the Senate in a tie-breaking vote. However, Democrats opposed previously proposed waivers for the noncontiguous states of Alaska and Hawaii, decrying 'special treatment.' In remarks on Wednesday, House Agriculture Chairman Glenn Thompson (R-Pa.) the Senate 'had to add something to get to address that challenge that Alaska has.' 'The goal is, from a functionality perspective, they need to get their error rate down as soon as possible, because when the time comes, and they have to start to pay, they don't want to be that high error rate that you're coming in now,' he said. 'In most states, Alaska would be a challenge, I think, but most states have been under 6 percent at one time in past years,' he said. However, he also wasn't 'crazy about' work requirements exemptions for some Indigenous populations in the Senate's version of Trump's megabill that didn't appear in the House bill, as Republicans seek to tighten work requirements. 'It's what the Senate had to do,' he said, though he noted that 'economic conditions are challenging on those sovereign lands and in high unemployment, high poverty.' It's unclear whether the carve-outs were the result of talks Alaska senators had with GOP leadership around SNAP in the days leading up to the Senate passage. The Hill has reached out to their offices for comment. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development said Alaska has 'one of the largest indigenous populations in the nation,' with Alaska Natives representing 17 percent of the state in 2010. At the same time, the Senate bill nixed temporary exemptions that had been preserved in the House bill for former foster youth, homeless individuals and veterans. Despite being preserved in the House plan, Thompson criticized the carve-outs, which were secured as part of a previous bipartisan deal in 2023. 'It cheats all those individuals from having access to that to us funding their SNAP Employment and career and technical education, because the whole goal here is to raise these people out of poverty if they're struggling in poverty, because that's how you qualify for SNAP,' he said. 'And the fact is, they were made ineligible for the really great benefits.' Other proposals in the party's SNAP plan seek to limit the federal government's ability to increase monthly benefits in the future, changes to work requirements and include a chunk of farm provisions. The plan comes as Republicans sought to find ways to generate north of $1 trillion in savings of federal dollars over the next decade as part of a major package that also advances President Trump's tax agenda, which is estimated to add trillions of dollars to the nation's deficits. Republicans say the proposed spending reductions, which are achieved also through changes to programs like Medicaid, are aimed at rooting out 'waste, fraud and abuse' in the federal government. But preliminary research released this week by the Urban Institute found that just the SNAP changes could affect about 22 million families, who researchers said could be at risk of 'losing some or all of their SNAP benefits' under the plan. Asked if last-minute changes to the plan to help other states and not his bothered him, Sen. Jim Justice ( who ultimately voted for the plan, told reporters this week, 'Yes and no.' 'But at the same time, I think they probably had more severe need and so I think it'll be fine,' Justice, a former governor, said Tuesday. 'If it's like any business deal that I've ever seen in my life, you know, the parties of a good business deal walk away after they get something done, and they walk away, and they're probably holding their nose a little bit, and they're probably regretting certain things and saying, 'Doggone, we didn't do good on this and that and everything,' That's a good deal.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
