Latest news with #DarrellIssa
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GOP budget plan, dubbed the ‘Big, Beautiful Bill,' ignites debate on debt and financial stability
(FOX 5/KUSI) — The Republican budget plan, dubbed the 'big, beautiful bil,l' passed the House of Representatives by a single vote. The 1,000-page, multi-trillion-dollar budget proposes deep cuts to services and tax cuts across the board, but economists fear the GOP and Trump's tax plan stacks even more debt onto future generations. 'When you factor the spending cuts, we will be adding $3.2 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years,' said Professor Alan Gin from the Knauss School of Business at USD. Gin has been digging through the Warton School of Business's analysis of the bill, and he worries the interest payments could threaten the stability of the US financial system. 'So far, we've been able to get loans to cover the excess. The worry is will people keep funding us then to continue the deficit spending,' Gin said. 'They are taking away people's health care and they are taking people's food,' said Congressman Mike Levin, who represents California's 49th District. FOX 5/KUSI reached out to a supporter of the bill, Republican Congressman Darrell Issa, but he was unable to comment. Levin voted against the bill, along with every Democrat in the House. 'The president ran on populism, he ran on no cuts to Medicaid and Medicare, and that's the exact opposite of what's happening. We are seeing massive cuts and it's going to benefit his rich donors,' said Levin. Levin said the bill is unlike any other he has ever seen during his time in the House. Now, the Senate will consider the bill. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Don't make immigrants pay just to enter a visa lottery
The House Judiciary Committee unveiled a budget bill last month containing a provision designed, much like poll taxes, to undermine access to the Diversity Visa Program and disproportionately impact immigrants of color. Further, the proposed provision weaponizes the program so that our U.S. government can fleece vulnerable people primarily from the Global South — and particularly from Africa. This is personal for me for multiple reasons. I run an immigration law firm that represents Diversity Visa selectees. Some of my amazing paralegals are themselves former Diversity Visa selectees. On top of that, I am a candidate for Congress in the seat currently held by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), a member of this misguided committee. Issa's committee wants to charge Diversity Visa entrants at least $250 to enter the lottery. If each of the 20 million qualified entries received for the fiscal 2025 program were accompanied by $250, the U.S. could raise $5 billion. While that new revenue might sound great to a teenager working for DOGE, it does not account for those from whom the funds would come: some of the poorest people on earth. This is wrong. I once had a client, a single African woman who was selected but did not have the money for the medical exam, much less the Diversity Visa application fee. Her parents did not want her to lose the opportunity, and so they sold the land on which they had planned to build a home just to pay for the medical exam and $330 application so she could attend the immigrant visa interview. It is easy to forget that many people in this world have incomes of $12 per week, which comes to about $600 per year. The 'get in line' crowd always omits how few and narrow paths there are to immigrate to the U.S., and how relatively expensive those paths already are. The Diversity Visa program has led to a broader mix of nationalities represented in the U.S. immigrant population, creating a nation better equipped to understand and relate to the diversity of the world. Under the program, the U.S. issues visas specifically for immigrants who are natives of countries and regions from which fewer than 50,000 immigrants came to the U.S. over the previous five years. The program is responsible for the largest percentage of African and Black immigration to the U.S. The luckiest of the selectees are granted immigrant visas and granted admission to enter the U.S, automatically becoming lawful permanent residents who may live and work in the country indefinitely. Hopeful immigrants must submit entries each fall; they find out whether they 'won' by checking the State Department's website. Diversity Visa entrants for fiscal 2026 just recently got their results; with just shy of 20 million entrants this year, an entrant for 2026 had less than a 0.025 percent chance to be selected. From there, due to overselection, only about half of those selected are issued visas. It is in that context that we cannot, ethically or morally, ask the poorest families on earth to spend $250 — nearly half their annual income — just for a negligible chance to be selected in the program. This would essentially constitute mass fraud. Immigration policy should be used as diplomatic tool to show other countries how great and fair good government can be. Instead, House Judiciary Committee Republicans are choosing to use immigration policy as a weapon to inflict harm on our country's credibility and reputation. The U.S. is better than this. I pray that Americans stand up and say no to these misguided proposals. Curtis Morrison is a California-based immigration attorney and candidate for Congress in California's 48th Congressional District. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Don't make immigrants pay just to enter a visa lottery
The House Judiciary Committee unveiled a budget bill last month containing a provision designed, much like poll taxes, to undermine access to the Diversity Visa Program and disproportionately impact immigrants of color. Further, the proposed provision weaponizes the program so that our U.S. government can fleece vulnerable people primarily from the Global South — and particularly from Africa. This is personal for me for multiple reasons. I run an immigration law firm that represents Diversity Visa selectees. Some of my amazing paralegals are themselves former Diversity Visa selectees. On top of that, I am a candidate for Congress in the seat currently held by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), a member of this misguided committee. Issa's committee wants to charge Diversity Visa entrants at least $250 to enter the lottery. If each of the 20 million qualified entries received for the fiscal 2025 program were accompanied by $250, the U.S. could raise $5 billion. While that new revenue might sound great to a teenager working for DOGE, it does not account for those from whom the funds would come: some of the poorest people on earth. This is wrong. I once had a client, a single African woman who was selected but did not have the money for the medical exam, much less the Diversity Visa application fee. Her parents did not want her to lose the opportunity, and so they sold the land on which they had planned to build a home just to pay for the medical exam and $330 application so she could attend the immigrant visa interview. It is easy to forget that many people in this world have incomes of $12 per week, which comes to about $600 per year. The 'get in line' crowd always omits how few and narrow paths there are to immigrate to the U.S., and how relatively expensive those paths already are. The Diversity Visa program has led to a broader mix of nationalities represented in the U.S. immigrant population, creating a nation better equipped to understand and relate to the diversity of the world. Under the program, the U.S. issues visas specifically for immigrants who are natives of countries and regions from which fewer than 50,000 immigrants came to the U.S. over the previous five years. The program is responsible for the largest percentage of African and Black immigration to the U.S. The luckiest of the selectees are granted immigrant visas and granted admission to enter the U.S, automatically becoming lawful permanent residents who may live and work in the country indefinitely. Hopeful immigrants must submit entries each fall; they find out whether they 'won' by checking the State Department's website. Diversity Visa entrants for fiscal 2026 just recently got their results; with just shy of 20 million entrants this year, an entrant for 2026 had less than a 0.025 percent chance to be selected. From there, due to overselection, only about half of those selected are issued visas. It is in that context that we cannot, ethically or morally, ask the poorest families on earth to spend $250 — nearly half their annual income — just for a negligible chance to be selected in the program. This would essentially constitute mass fraud. Immigration policy should be used as diplomatic tool to show other countries how great and fair good government can be. Instead, House Judiciary Committee Republicans are choosing to use immigration policy as a weapon to inflict harm on our country's credibility and reputation. The U.S. is better than this. I pray that Americans stand up and say no to these misguided proposals. Curtis Morrison is a California-based immigration attorney and candidate for Congress in California's 48th Congressional District.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Republicans struggle with Trump's mixed signals on 'big, beautiful bill'
It's hard enough to know what you want. It's even harder to know what others want. But what if what you want hinges on what somebody else wants…and they aren't sure what they want? Hence the conundrum now facing Congressional Republicans as they try to approve the "big, beautiful bill." GOPers are waiting for President Trump to push for very specific items to be in the bill – or fall by the wayside. Congressional Republicans are aligned closely with the President and willing to bend to his wishes. But it complicates things when Trump calls for what he termed a "tiny" tax increase for the super wealthy. Trump Says Tax Raises Are 'Good Politics,' Dismissing Gop Critics "People would love to do it. Rich people. I would love to do it, frankly. Giving us something up top in order to make people in the middle income and the lower income brackets [have] more. So, it's really a redistribution," said the president. Read On The Fox News App First, President Trump suggested a form of rations, limiting how many pencils kids need or how many dolls a little girl should have. That puzzled free marketeers in the GOP. Now, to use his phrase, "redistribution." You understand how much heartburn this gives capitalists in Congress. But what's worse is the mixed messaging. When writing on Truth Social about creating a higher tax bracket for the wealthy, the president muddled his instructions for lawmakers: "Republicans should probably not do it, but I'm OK if they do!!!" declared President Trump. Civil War Threatens Gop Over Millionaire Tax Hikes In Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' This exasperated Congressional Republicans who oppose raising any taxes – a long-held tenet of the Republican Party. In another political universe, taxing the wealthy would be – at best – a trial balloon. So, most Congressional Republicans decided it was time for this to pop. "No, we are not going to do tax increases," said Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., on Fox Business. "We don't want to raise taxes on anybody. I mean, we're about lowering taxes on Americans," said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on Fox. But President Trump's Republican Party is very different from the Reagan Republican Party. The GOP shifts to where Trump wants it. Just consider the approach to tariffs compared to free trade. Trump Pushes Tax Hikes For Wealthy As 'Big, Beautiful Bill' Deadline Looms President Trump broadened the party's base in the last election. The GOP is no longer dominated by big business, titans of commerce and the well-to-do. Part of the president's appeal was the blue-collar coalition he cobbled together. And his fundamental economic message on taxes resonated with millions of voters. That's why his top advisers say Trump is sticking to campaign promises. "President Trump has made it clear that he has his priorities, like no tax on tips. No tax on overtime. No tax on Social Security," said National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Fox. However, revenue generated from new taxes on the wealthy could help cover the cost of spending cuts. "We need to see what we need to do with the math to make sure that we are doing the country well fiscally and that we don't just add to the debt," said Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb. But Republicans are frustrated after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., shrank the size of the tax cuts and spending reductions. The tax breaks were supposed to be around $4.5 trillion at one point. They dwindled to $4 trillion. They were angling to lock in $2 trillion in tax cuts. They're scaled back to $1.5 trillion. 'Hard No': Millionaire Tax Hike Proposal Has House Republicans Divided "Republicans talk a big game in campaigns," lamented House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas. "If we're not able to bend the curve on mandatory spending, then we will send a very bad signal to the bond markets." But regardless of what's in the package, the White House is expecting Congressional Republicans to ultimately vote yes on the "big, beautiful bill." "The president has great political instincts. That's why he's back in the Oval Office," said White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt. But that's what Congressional Republicans found so vexing. The president may have great political instincts. But the marching orders were far from clear. Trump conceded that a tax hike may be controversial politically. Congressional Republicans suffer from political PTSD. They remember another Republican President who made one of the most famous political promises of all time. And then broke it. "No new taxes," intoned the late President George H.W. Bush in his address to a Joint Session of Congress in 1989. But Bush famously reversed himself as part of a 1990 budget pact. That was not necessarily the reason "Bush 41" lost reelection in 1992 to former President Clinton. And President Trump was sure enough to point that out on social media. Trump Slams Republican 'Grandstanders' Opposing Budget Bill, Predicts Massive Us Tax Increases If It Fails "The Radical Left Democrat Lunatics would go around screaming, 'Read my lips,' the fabled Quote by George Bush the Elder that is said to have cost him the Election. NO, Ross Perot cost him the Election!" wrote Trump. The "Perot Effect" certainly deprived George H.W. Bush of a second term more than breaking the "no new taxes" promise. But that doesn't mean that Republicans aren't skittish about voting for tax increases. And regardless, the legislative product that emerged from the Ways and Means Committee markup this week lacked the type of tax hike dangled by President Trump. That said, Congressional Republicans certainly have their opinions about what they think of the developing "big, beautiful bill." "A growing number of us, we don't want smoke and mirrors. We want real cuts," said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C. "$2 trillion (in cuts) is really a teardrop in the ocean." "You've got front-loaded tax [cuts]. Backloaded spending restraint," groused Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas. "Medicaid reforms and work requirements don't kick in for four years." "It'll be ironic and sad in a way that conservatives will be voting for the largest increase in the debt ceiling," mused Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. "I have a feeling it's going to be wimpy on the spending cuts and maybe a little wimpy on the taxes, too." So, at least some Republicans grasp what they want in the bill. And they're willing to take direction from the president. That's why clear direction from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. will be key next week as the House tries to pass the measure. Members will say they can't vote for the bill because it has this or excludes that. But they just might be able to vote yea if President Trump knows what he wants – and makes that clear to article source: Republicans struggle with Trump's mixed signals on 'big, beautiful bill'
Fox News
15-05-2025
- Business
- Fox News
Republicans struggle with Trump's mixed signals on 'big, beautiful bill'
It's hard enough to know what you want. It's even harder to know what others want. But what if what you want hinges on what somebody else wants…and they aren't sure what they want? Hence the conundrum now facing Congressional Republicans as they try to approve the "big, beautiful bill." GOPers are waiting for President Trump to push for very specific items to be in the bill – or fall by the wayside. Congressional Republicans are aligned closely with the President and willing to bend to his wishes. But it complicates things when Trump calls for what he termed a "tiny" tax increase for the super wealthy. "People would love to do it. Rich people. I would love to do it, frankly. Giving us something up top in order to make people in the middle income and the lower income brackets [have] more. So, it's really a redistribution," said the president. First, President Trump suggested a form of rations, limiting how many pencils kids need or how many dolls a little girl should have. That puzzled free marketeers in the GOP. Now, to use his phrase, "redistribution." You understand how much heartburn this gives capitalists in Congress. But what's worse is the mixed messaging. When writing on Truth Social about creating a higher tax bracket for the wealthy, the president muddled his instructions for lawmakers: "Republicans should probably not do it, but I'm OK if they do!!!" declared President Trump. This exasperated Congressional Republicans who oppose raising any taxes – a long-held tenet of the Republican Party. In another political universe, taxing the wealthy would be – at best – a trial balloon. So, most Congressional Republicans decided it was time for this to pop. "No, we are not going to do tax increases," said Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., on Fox Business. "We don't want to raise taxes on anybody. I mean, we're about lowering taxes on Americans," said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on Fox. But President Trump's Republican Party is very different from the Reagan Republican Party. The GOP shifts to where Trump wants it. Just consider the approach to tariffs compared to free trade. President Trump broadened the party's base in the last election. The GOP is no longer dominated by big business, titans of commerce and the well-to-do. Part of the president's appeal was the blue-collar coalition he cobbled together. And his fundamental economic message on taxes resonated with millions of voters. That's why his top advisers say Trump is sticking to campaign promises. "President Trump has made it clear that he has his priorities, like no tax on tips. No tax on overtime. No tax on Social Security," said National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Fox. However, revenue generated from new taxes on the wealthy could help cover the cost of spending cuts. "We need to see what we need to do with the math to make sure that we are doing the country well fiscally and that we don't just add to the debt," said Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb. But Republicans are frustrated after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., shrank the size of the tax cuts and spending reductions. The tax breaks were supposed to be around $4.5 trillion at one point. They dwindled to $4 trillion. They were angling to lock in $2 trillion in tax cuts. They're scaled back to $1.5 trillion. "Republicans talk a big game in campaigns," lamented House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas. "If we're not able to bend the curve on mandatory spending, then we will send a very bad signal to the bond markets." But regardless of what's in the package, the White House is expecting Congressional Republicans to ultimately vote yes on the "big, beautiful bill." "The president has great political instincts. That's why he's back in the Oval Office," said White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt. But that's what Congressional Republicans found so vexing. The president may have great political instincts. But the marching orders were far from clear. Trump conceded that a tax hike may be controversial politically. Congressional Republicans suffer from political PTSD. They remember another Republican President who made one of the most famous political promises of all time. And then broke it. "No new taxes," intoned the late President George H.W. Bush in his address to a Joint Session of Congress in 1989. But Bush famously reversed himself as part of a 1990 budget pact. That was not necessarily the reason "Bush 41" lost reelection in 1992 to former President Clinton. And President Trump was sure enough to point that out on social media. "The Radical Left Democrat Lunatics would go around screaming, 'Read my lips,' the fabled Quote by George Bush the Elder that is said to have cost him the Election. NO, Ross Perot cost him the Election!" wrote Trump. The "Perot Effect" certainly deprived George H.W. Bush of a second term more than breaking the "no new taxes" promise. But that doesn't mean that Republicans aren't skittish about voting for tax increases. And regardless, the legislative product that emerged from the Ways and Means Committee markup this week lacked the type of tax hike dangled by President Trump. That said, Congressional Republicans certainly have their opinions about what they think of the developing "big, beautiful bill." "A growing number of us, we don't want smoke and mirrors. We want real cuts," said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C. "$2 trillion (in cuts) is really a teardrop in the ocean." "You've got front-loaded tax [cuts]. Backloaded spending restraint," groused Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas. "Medicaid reforms and work requirements don't kick in for four years." "It'll be ironic and sad in a way that conservatives will be voting for the largest increase in the debt ceiling," mused Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. "I have a feeling it's going to be wimpy on the spending cuts and maybe a little wimpy on the taxes, too." So, at least some Republicans grasp what they want in the bill. And they're willing to take direction from the president. That's why clear direction from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. will be key next week as the House tries to pass the measure. Members will say they can't vote for the bill because it has this or excludes that. But they just might be able to vote yea if President Trump knows what he wants – and makes that clear to lawmakers.
