Latest news with #Mullin
New York Post
3 days ago
- General
- New York Post
Education Secretary Linda McMahon stumbles on softball question during budget hearing
US Education Secretary Linda McMahon was tripped up several times during a Senate budget hearing on Tuesday, including when she awkwardly whiffed softball questions from Republican lawmakers. During the hearing, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) teed up McMahon with a simple question to tout the changes she's made to the department, only for her to stumble when she failed to answer correctly. 'What were we ranked in reading and math in 1979?' Mullin asked. 'I'm sorry, what?' McMahon replied. 3 Education Secretary Linda McMahon testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday. Getty Images 'What were we ranked, nationally, in math and reading in 1979?' he repeated. 'We were very, very low on the totem pole,' the education secretary asserted. 'We were No. 1 in 1979,' the Oklahoma senator corrected. 'Oh, in 1979. I'm sorry. OK,' McMahon responded quickly, cutting off Mullin. 3 Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) pointed out an error in McMahon's math twice during the hearing. Jack Gruber-USA TODAY via Imagn Images 'In 1979, we were ranked No.1. Today, in reading, we are ranked 36th. In mathematics, we're ranked 28th,' Mullin said as he attempted to point to the education department's past failures. The gaffe wasn't isolated, as McMahon also found herself confused when Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) asserted that the government had been spending $1.5 billion a year, for 10 years, on federal grant programs for disadvantaged students. Kennedy claimed the math added up to more than a trillion dollars, to no objections from McMahon, who appeared to have trouble doing the math herself when asked to clarify by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI). 3 McMahon whiffed on softball questions presented by Republican lawmakers during the hearing. Getty Images 'Madam secretary, I'm not a great mathematician, but I think you were talking about a trillion dollars?' he said. 'I believe 1.5 billion times 10 is $15 billion. That's a little bit off from a trillion dollars.' 'I think the budget cuts $1.2 billion,' McMahon replied. 'Well, 1.2, that would be $12 billion, not a trillion dollars,' Reed said, noting that the math still doesn't add up. 'OK,' McMahon replied. The exchange was only the latest gaffe from the education secretary, with McMahon making headlines after she repeatedly referred to artificial intelligence as 'A 1' — rather than AI — during a conference in April.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Speaker Johnson launches sales mission as ‘big, beautiful bill' hits the Senate
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is on a sales mission for the 'big, beautiful bill' full of President Trump's legislative priorities, defending its contents amid a wave of criticism from his party about the depth of spending cuts, significance of Medicaid changes and the rollback of green-energy tax credits. Johnson said in multiple interviews that he sent a 'long text message' to Elon Musk vouching for the bill after the billionaire tech mogul said he was disappointed with the legislation, complaining that it undermines the cost-cutting work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), his brainchild. The Speaker has also gone on a cable news blitz, pushing back on concerns Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) are voicing about the deficit impact of the bill, tearing into the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office's math, and arguing that the benefits of the package outweigh its shortcomings. And now, Speaker Johnson is looking to ease concerns of conservatives by promising to quickly stage a vote on a bill that would claw back billions of dollars in federal funding — reflecting some of the cuts DOGE has made — and signaling there may be more to come after the 'one big, beautiful bill' gets to the president's desk. 'This is not the only reconciliation bill,' Johnson said Sunday on NBC's 'Meet the Press.' 'We're going to have a second budget reconciliation bill that follows after this, and we're beginning next week the appropriations process, which is the spending bills for government.' The full-court press comes as the bill is making its debut in the Senate, where Republicans say they plan to make changes to the sprawling package, threatening to erode the delicate support for the legislation in the narrow House GOP majority. Johnson has publicly and privately urged his upper chamber colleagues to keep their alterations minimal. At least on one issue, the Senate appears to be listening. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a former House member who has acted as a liaison between the two chambers, told The Hill last week that he does not expect the Senate to change the $40,000 state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap in the bill, which had emerged as a major sticking point in the House. 'I don't think we can change that,' Mullin said. 'I don't think you can drop it. I think if you go below $40,000, I think it causes issues.' SALT had been one of the biggest questions heading into the Senate's turn with the bill. While quadrupling the deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 was a central priority for moderate House Republicans from high-tax blue states like New York, New Jersey and California, the issue has no GOP advocates in the Senate — a dynamic those in the upper chamber openly recognized. As of now, the House is winning the argument. 'In the Senate, we don't have any dog in the fight, right. Zero,' Mullin said. 'But in the House, it does, and I don't think it's a do-or-die on our side.' While the SALT question may be adjudicated, the Senate still has to make decisions on a host of high-stakes issues, including whether to beef up spending cuts, water down Medicaid changes or minimize the rollback of green-energy tax credits — any of which could derail the House's tenuous equilibrium. Mullin, for his part, said the entire Republican trifecta has been closely coordinating throughout the process. 'We've been talking together the whole time,' he said. 'So the House and the Senate and the White House have been talking this whole time together, so I don't see there being a huge difference between us.' But to keep the trains on the track in the House, Johnson will have to continue his messaging blitz and put out any fires that arise as the Senate parses the package's particulars. It is a role shift for Johnson, who spent months in closed-door meetings corralling the fractious House Republican Conference around the behemoth bill — culminating in a through-the-night saga on the House floor to pass it out of the chamber as fast as possible after securing the support it needed. But while Johnson met his Memorial Day deadline to pass the bill out of the House after last-minute negotiations, the rest of the Republican ecosystem is not yet on board with its contents — or up to speed on what made the cut and what did not. That's led to Johnson's blitz being as much of an education campaign as it is an advocacy mission. 'This is not a spending bill. This is a reconciliation package. It is reconciling the budget,' Johnson said on 'Meet the Press.' 'We're beginning next week the appropriations process, which is the spending bills for government. And you're going to see a lot of the DOGE cuts and a lot of this new fiscal restraint reflected in what Congress does next,' Johnson said. 'So stay tuned, this is not the end-all, be-all.' In a show of that commitment, Johnson has pledged to swiftly act on a package from the White House expected to hit Congress this week that would mark the first codification of DOGE cuts — action that the outraged conservative base had been clamoring for. The $9.4 billion rescission package would claw back spending from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, as well as from the largely-dismantled U.S. Agency for International Development. And as for those pesky budget projections forecasting the bill adds trillions to the national debt over a decade, Johnson argues the budget scorers don't adequately assess the impact of economic growth spurred by the tax cut extension or other Trump policies. 'The president's extraordinary policies are producing great things for the country. The tariff policy that was so controversial in the beginning is having an extraordinary effect on the U.S. economy,' Johnson said, in contrast to numerous analysts who say the tariffs will damage economic growth. Despite the looming fights in the Senate, Johnson remains confident that the party will meet its self-imposed deadline of enacting the package by July 4 — betting he will be able to pull another rabbit out of his hat. 'They've always discounted us,' Johnson said Sunday. 'I mean, I said I would do it out of the House before Memorial Day, and I was laughed at when I said that back early part of the year. But we beat it by four days, OK? We're going to get this done, the sooner the better.' 'Because all these extraordinary benefits that we're talking about have to happen as soon as possible,' he added. And I'm convinced that the Senate will do it, do the right thing, send it back to us. We're going to get it to the president's desk, and we're all going to have a glorious celebration on Independence Day, by July Fourth when he gets this signed into law.' Al Weaver contributed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
3 days ago
- Business
- The Hill
Speaker Johnson launches sales mission as ‘big, beautiful bill' hits the Senate
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is on a sales mission for the 'big, beautiful bill' full of President Trump's legislative priorities, defending its contents amid a wave of criticism from his party about the depth of spending cuts, significance of Medicaid changes and the rollback of green-energy tax credits. Johnson said in multiple interviews that he sent a 'long text message' to Elon Musk vouching for the bill after the billionaire tech mogul said he was disappointed with the legislation, complaining that it undermines the cost-cutting work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), his brainchild. The Speaker has also gone on a cable news blitz, pushing back on concerns Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) are voicing about the deficit impact of the bill, tearing into the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office's math, and arguing that the benefits of the package outweigh its shortcomings. And now, Speaker Johnson is looking to ease concerns of conservatives by promising to quickly stage a vote on a bill that would claw back billions of dollars in federal funding — reflecting some of the cuts DOGE has made — and signaling there may be more to come after the 'one big, beautiful bill' gets to the president's desk. 'This is not the only reconciliation bill,' Johnson said Sunday on NBC's 'Meet the Press.' 'We're going to have a second budget reconciliation bill that follows after this, and we're beginning next week the appropriations process, which is the spending bills for government.' The full-court press comes as the bill is making its debut in the Senate, where Republicans say they plan to make changes to the sprawling package, threatening to erode the delicate support for the legislation in the narrow House GOP majority. Johnson has publicly and privately urged his upper chamber colleagues to keep their alterations minimal. At least on one issue, the Senate appears to be listening. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a former House member who has acted as a liaison between the two chambers, told The Hill last week that he does not expect the Senate to change the $40,000 state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap in the bill, which had emerged as a major sticking point in the House. 'I don't think we can change that,' Mullin said. 'I don't think you can drop it. I think if you go below $40,000, I think it causes issues.' SALT had been one of the biggest questions heading into the Senate's turn with the bill. While quadrupling the deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 was a central priority for moderate House Republicans from high-tax blue states like New York, New Jersey and California, the issue has no GOP advocates in the Senate — a dynamic those in the upper chamber openly recognized. As of now, the House is winning the argument. 'In the Senate, we don't have any dog in the fight, right. Zero,' Mullin said. 'But in the House, it does, and I don't think it's a do-or-die on our side.' While the SALT question may be adjudicated, the Senate still has to make decisions on a host of high-stakes issues, including whether to beef up spending cuts, water down Medicaid changes or minimize the rollback of green-energy tax credits — any of which could derail the House's tenuous equilibrium. Mullin, for his part, said the entire Republican trifecta has been closely coordinating throughout the process. 'We've been talking together the whole time,' he said. 'So the House and the Senate and the White House have been talking this whole time together, so I don't see there being a huge difference between us.' But to keep the trains on the track in the House, Johnson will have to continue his messaging blitz and put out any fires that arise as the Senate parses the package's particulars. It is a role shift for Johnson, who spent months in closed-door meetings corralling the fractious House Republican Conference around the behemoth bill — culminating in a through-the-night saga on the House floor to pass it out of the chamber as fast as possible after securing the support it needed. But while Johnson met his Memorial Day deadline to pass the bill out of the House after last-minute negotiations, the rest of the Republican ecosystem is not yet on board with its contents — or up to speed on what made the cut and what did not. That's led to Johnson's blitz being as much of an education campaign as it is an advocacy mission. 'This is not a spending bill. This is a reconciliation package. It is reconciling the budget,' Johnson said on 'Meet the Press.' 'We're beginning next week the appropriations process, which is the spending bills for government. And you're going to see a lot of the DOGE cuts and a lot of this new fiscal restraint reflected in what Congress does next,' Johnson said. 'So stay tuned, this is not the end-all, be-all.' In a show of that commitment, Johnson has pledged to swiftly act on a package from the White House expected to hit Congress this week that would mark the first codification of DOGE cuts — action that the outraged conservative base had been clamoring for. The $9.4 billion rescission package would claw back spending from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, as well as from the largely-dismantled U.S. Agency for International Development. And as for those pesky budget projections forecasting the bill adds trillions to the national debt over a decade, Johnson argues the budget scorers don't adequately assess the impact of economic growth spurred by the tax cut extension or other Trump policies. 'The president's extraordinary policies are producing great things for the country. The tariff policy that was so controversial in the beginning is having an extraordinary effect on the U.S. economy,' Johnson said, in contrast to numerous analysts who say the tariffs will damage economic growth. Despite the looming fights in the Senate, Johnson remains confident that the party will meet its self-imposed deadline of enacting the package by July 4 — betting he will be able to pull another rabbit out of his hat. 'They've always discounted us,' Johnson said Sunday. 'I mean, I said I would do it out of the House before Memorial Day, and I was laughed at when I said that back early part of the year. But we beat it by four days, OK? We're going to get this done, the sooner the better.' 'Because all these extraordinary benefits that we're talking about have to happen as soon as possible,' he added. And I'm convinced that the Senate will do it, do the right thing, send it back to us. We're going to get it to the president's desk, and we're all going to have a glorious celebration on Independence Day, by July Fourth when he gets this signed into law.' Al Weaver contributed.
Daily Mirror
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Ryan Reynolds can hand Premier League ace perfect shirt number by selling star
Wrexham have been strongly linked with a move for Fulham captain Tom Cairney, and a potential departure for star striker Paul Mullin could give him his favourite shirt number Tom Cairney could be handed the perfect shirt number at Wrexham if the club's Hollywood owners allow their favourite player to leave. The Fulham captain has been strongly linked with a move to the Racecourse Ground after Wrexham's promotion to the Championship was confirmed last month. Reports have emerged that an approach has already been made by club officials, with the midfielder's contract due to expire at the end of June. Cairney has made 24 Premier League appearances for Fulham this season and scored in his team's 3-2 comeback win against Brentford on Sunday. While the 34-year-old has indicated he would ideally like to extend his stay at Craven Cottage, he could be handed his favourite shirt number to sweeten the deal if he does make the switch to North Wales. The two-cap Scottish international currently has the No.10 shirt at Fulham. That number is currently occupied by club talisman Paul Mullin at Wrexham. However, the 110-goal striker has recently been linked with a move to Wigan Athletic after falling out of favour in the Red Dragons' 2024/25 campaign in League One. Mullin is a firm favourite of Wrexham co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, having made a cameo in last year's blockbuster move Deadpool & Wolverine. But after falling down the pecking order under boss Phil Parkinson this term, it's been claimed the club could allow him to leave for free, despite having two years left on his contract. The Liverpudlian's absence from the teamsheet led to speculation of a falling out with Parkinson earlier this year, but the player himself branded the claims as "nonsense". Meanwhile, the manager has insisted that Mullin remains part of his plans. However, a parting of ways between Wrexham and Mullin is not as unlikely as it once appeared following the arrival of strikers Sam Smith and Jay Rodriguez during the January transfer window. And with regards to Cairney, director Shaun Harvey has hinted that the club's first summer signing could well be a free agent. Speaking on the Fearless in Devotion podcast, the ex-EFL chief executive said: "No doubt there's been lists prepared of players in each position for different divisions who we know are coming out of contract at the end of this season. "Do not be surprised if the first signings you see are players who are out of contract, and the reason for that is that they represent the best value. A player without a transfer fee usually ends up commanding more in wages, because guess what, everybody else is looking to try and do the same thing. "Phil picks them, along with his coaching staff and scouting staff, and ultimately, I tell them I'm not interested until they've narrowed it down to two." Cairney has twice helped Fulham secure promotion from the Championship, with Wrexham also aiming to reach the Premier League. The Welsh side have already signed several former Premier League veterans during their rise from the National League, helping them secure three consecutive promotions. Wrexham have already said goodbye to several players as Parkinson looks to strengthen his team. Former Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher was among those let go last week as the club looks to compete at the next level. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Sign up to our newsletter! Wrexham is the Game is great new way to get top-class coverage Wrexham AFC is the arguably the fastest-growing club in the world at the moment thanks to a certain Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. The Dragons have achieved two consecutive promotions and are cheered on by crowds from not only North Wales but also from all over the globe, thanks to the success of the Disney+ documentary 'Welcome to Wrexham'. But does it have a dedicated, quality source of information piped through to your inbox each week, free of ads but packed with informed opinion, analysis and even a little bit of fun each week? That's where Wrexham is the Game steps in... Available every Wednesday, it provides all the insights you need to be a top red. And for a limited time, a subscription to 'Wrexham is the Game' will cost fans just £15 for the first year.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What we know about claims Biden admin started negotiations for Boeing 747 from Qatar
In mid-May 2025, claims (archived) circulated that the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden, who left office in January 2025, started negotiations with Qatar for the Boeing 747 plane the country offered to give to the U.S. Department of Defense in May 2025. News of the gift broke shortly before U.S. President Donald Trump embarked on a visit to Qatar and other Middle Eastern countries. One X user wrote: "So let me get this straight the plane that was a gift from Qatar was actually a conversation that was started a year ago by the Biden administration with the Qataris? You literally can't make this stuff up." The claims circulated alongside a video of U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., appearing on CNN's "The Lead" on May 14, 2025. During the appearance, Mullin said: "Here's what's interesting to me: What the media isn't telling you, what nobody is talking about, is the same 747 has been in negotiations for a year. The Biden administration is the one that started these conversations. It didn't start underneath the Trump administration." The claim was most popular on X (archived) but also appeared on Facebook (archived), Threads (archived) and TikTok (archived). However, it remained unclear whether Mullin's claim was true. Mullin didn't mention the Biden administration's involvement in discussions around the gifted plane in an interview the day before he appeared on "The Lead" or in a video (archived) posted on his X profile a few days after, which discussed the plane. A spokesperson from Mullin's office told Fox News Mullin learned of the alleged Biden administration involvement during a "recent conversation" with Qatari officials. Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani did not mention any Biden administration involvement with discussions during a recent interview with Fox News. We reached out to the Department of Defense and the Qatari Government Communications Center to ask if they could confirm Mullin's claim. The Department of Defense referred us to the White House, which we contacted to ask the same question. We will update this story if we receive a response. Seeing as the claim related to the Biden administration, we also reached out, through associated organizations, to former Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his deputy secretaries David Nordquist and Kathleen Hicks to ask if they could confirm whether discussions around Qatar's offer of a Boeing 747 to the Department of Defense started during their time in office. We reached out to Mullin's office to ask the senator to elaborate on how he backed his claim. We await replies to our queries. On May 18, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent repeated Mullin's claim on NBC's "Meet the Press" (time-code 25:12), referencing the senator's CNN interview. We reached out to the Treasury to ask how they knew Mullin's claim was true and await a reply. Mullin didn't clarify how he knew that negotiations for the Qatari-gifted Boeing 747 started under the Biden administration during his May 14 CNN appearance. Notably, when CNN quizzed several Oklahoma Republicans about reports of the gifted plane on May 13 — the day before Mullin appeared on "The Lead" — Mullin made no mention of his claim that negotiations started under Biden. In a video discussing Trump's trade deals on his tour of the Middle East and the Qatari plane offer posted to X on May 17, Mullin dismissed concerns about the U.S. receiving the plane but didn't repeat his May 14 claim. According to a spokesperson for Mullin's office cited in a Fox News report, Mullin learned about the Biden administration's involvement in the discussions around gifting the Boeing 747 after he was privy to "a recent conversation with the Qataris." Snopes has not independently verified this statement. That same report featured a Fox News interview with al-Thani, Qatar's prime minister. Al-Thani did not mention any Biden administration involvement with discussions around the proposal to gift the plane but did say that the proposal was part of a "cooperation" between Qatar and the U.S. Al-Thani also said (time code 03:30): "It's really unfair accusations for Qatar is trying to buy influence. Throughout the last 25 years or 30 years you will see — you will find Qatar always by the side of the U.S. in many areas, in many things." The U.S. Air Force signed a contract with Boeing in 2018, during Trump's first presidential term, to deliver two "presidential, mission ready aircraft" by 2024. According to a February 2025 New York Times report, Boeing was at least three years behind schedule. Trump said on Truth Social on May 12, 2025, that the plane from the Qataris would "replace, the 40 year old Air Force One, temporarily," indicating that it could be a holdover until Boeing delivers the contracted aircraft. Snopes previously reported that the Trump administration confirmed it received an offer from Qatar for a Boeing 747-8 for use as Air Force One. Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs. "Air Force Formalizes Air Force One Replacement Deal with Contract to Boeing." Air Force, 19 July 2018, Barrett, Morgan Rimmer, Manu Raju, Ted. "Some GOP Senators Express Misgivings over Qatari Jet, While Others Dismiss Concerns | CNN Politics." CNN, 13 May 2025, Creitz, Charles. "Republican Says Biden Started Controversial Negotiations for Backup Air Force One." Fox News, 16 May 2025, Lipton, Eric, et al. "A Frustrated Trump Wants His New Air Force One Planes Pronto." New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025, "May 18 — Mike Pence, Sec. Scott Bessent and Sen. Chris Murphy." NBC News, Accessed 19 May 2025. @realdonaldtrump. "So the Fact That the Department of Defense Is Getting a GIFT." Truth Social, 12 May 2025, @SenMullin. "The Weekly Wrap." X, 16 May 2025, The Lead With Jake Tapper : CNNW : May 14, 2025 3:00pm-4:00pm PDT. 14 May 2025. Internet Archive,
