Latest news with #OneBigBeautiful
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Unpacking rumor that Stephen Miller's wife, Katie, left him for Elon Musk
In late May and early June 2025, rumors swirled that the wife of White House adviser Stephen Miller, Katie Miller, had left him for tech magnate Elon Musk, who until then had served as the new U.S. Department of Government Efficiency's public face. Some internet users even suggested that the affair had started with Stephen Miller's consent in an arrangement some described as a "throuple." For example, user @ on Bluesky relayed these claims: (Bluesky user @ The post read: Oh I am not sh**posting, folks. Stephen Miller, his wife, and Elon are widely rumored to be a throuple. Now Miller's wife is leaving the Trump team to be with Musk & LITERALLY PER THE NEW YORK TIMES Stephen is angrily subtweeting Musk. They actually put it in the paper of record that he was mad The post on Bluesky had received 7,600 likes and 3,200 reshares as of this writing. The same rumor appeared several times on Bluesky, but also on X, where the official account of the Democratic National Committee tagged Miller in its post of a single empty chair in a supposed hotel room in reaction to rumors that Miller's wife had left government to work for Musk in the private sector (archived): The empty chair represented a meme known as the "cuck chair," a chair on which someone supposedly sits while they watch their spouse have sex with someone else. This post had amassed 2.1 million views and 32,000 likes as of this writing, further spreading the unsubstantiated claim that Miller had cheated on her husband with Musk. Snopes has reached out to the Miller couple and Musk, seeking details. However, because we were not able to confirm or disprove the story, we have left it unrated. The rumor started as Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of SpaceX, announced his departure from DOGE. Bluesky user Snyder (to whom we have reached out for comment and await a reply) referenced a New York Times story published on May 28, 2025, which indeed referenced Miller criticizing Musk on X without naming him. Miller posted on X (archived) in response to Musk lambasting the "One Big Beautiful" budget bill the U.S. House of Representatives had voted on, which experts, including analysts at the Tax Foundation, said would cause the budget deficit to balloon. The article read: However, Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, shot back at Mr. Musk on social media without naming him. Mr. Miller asserted that the bill would reduce the deficit — despite multiple independent analyses saying otherwise — and noted that the cuts made by Mr. Musk's team were unrelated to the spending bill. Lower down in the thread on Bluesky, Snyder linked to a story published on Feb. 27, 2025, in Wired, which Snyder said "strongly implied throupledom." The story explained that while Stephen Miller had assumed the position of White House deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser, his wife had been appointed as "top communications official at DOGE," directly with Musk. Citing an anonymous Republican source, the story went on to suggest that this had been by design: The Millers are seen inside Trumpworld as glorified babysitters for Musk, tasked with ensuring he stays within bounds, insofar as that's possible. "He gets a lot of grace," the first Republican said of Musk. "Many people aren't nervous, because Stephen Miller is deeply involved. And Katie." This Republican compared Musk to a preteen child. However, the Wired story implied more salacious suspicions about the relationship between the Millers and Musk without making them explicit: Musk's relationship with the Millers has become a subject of great intrigue in Washington as DOGE continues to wreak havoc on the federal government. Little is known about how often they interact outside of work and how the relationship grew over the late stages of the campaign into the transition. "If you can find out anything about Stephen Miller's social life, I don't wanna know the answer," says a longtime Republican operative who knows the couple personally. Given the anonymous sourcing, Snopes was unable to independently verify Wired's reporting. We have reached out to Snyder on Bluesky asking if the user heard the rumor independently. However, on May 28, 2025, a CNN report that Katie Miller had left DOGE to work for Musk full time gave new life to claims that the relationship between Musk and the pair was more complicated than it seemed. Citing three unnamed sources, CNN said Miller was now helping arrange interviews for Musk. Snopes was unable to independently verify CNN's reporting because it was based on anonymous sources. Though several internet users took it to mean that she had left her husband, with whom she shares three children, the reality is that Katie Miller had the status of "special government employee," which precluded her working more than 130 days per year for the U.S. government. As such, she would have had to leave government work regardless of which job she took on after her stint at DOGE. While she did not confirm the story, she had reshared on X one post by Musk regarding his departure from the government, as well as a screen capture of one of his quotes about DOGE, suggesting she may indeed be working as his spokeswoman. Two days later, on May 30, 2025, Musk stood in the White House Oval Office, speaking to the press alongside U.S. President Donald Trump about his return to the private sector. Musk appeared with a bruise around his right eye. While Musk said he owed his black eye to his son, whom he said he had instructed to punch him, the internet once again lit up with speculation (archived): The post had gained 2.7 million views and 41,000 likes as of this writing. Snopes reached out to the Millers as well as Musk asking them to provide further details. We will update this report should they respond. "'Big Beautiful Bill' House GOP Tax Plan: Preliminary Details and Analysis." Tax Foundation, 13 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. "Elon Musk Bids Farewell to White House but Says Doge Will Continue." BBC, 29 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Hamilton, Phillip. "Cuck Chair." Know Your Meme, 15 Nov. 2022, Accessed 2 June 2025. Klein, Betsy, et al. "May 28, 2025 - Donald Trump Presidency News." CNN, 28 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Lahut, Jake. "Elon Musk's Takeover Is Being Aided by a Trumpworld Power Couple." WIRED, 27 Feb. 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Pager, Tyler, et al. "Elon Musk, Distanced from Trump, Says He's Exiting Washington and DOGE." The New York Times, 29 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Pogue, David, and Joe Walsh. "Elon Musk Says He's 'Disappointed' by Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' and What It Means for DOGE." CBS News, 28 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Siddiqui, Faiz, and Frances Vinall. "Musk Explains His Black Eye, Says He Told Son X to Punch Him." The Washington Post, 31 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. "Summary of Government Ethics Rules for Special Government Employees." 27 Aug. 2014, Accessed 2 June 2025.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Trump does not suffer Congress when it comes to his prized tariffs
When it comes to cutting taxes or paying for mass deportations, Donald Trump is happy to work with Congress. But if the issue is his prized and disruptive tariff policy, the president has made clear that he has no time for legislative wrangling. Trump underscored his sentiment towards Congress after a US trade court this week briefly put a stop to his controversial policy of placing levies on a wide range of countries, before a different court reversed that decision while legal proceedings continue. 'The horrific decision stated that I would have to get the approval of Congress for these tariffs. In other words, hundreds of politicians would sit around DC for weeks, and even months, trying to come to a conclusion as to what to charge other Countries that are treating us unfairly. If allowed to stand, this would completely destroy Presidential Power – the Presidency would never be the same!' the president wrote on Truth Social. The statement served to put Congress in its place, even though its Republican leaders have shown Trump great deference since taking office. The Senate has approved just about every official he has nominated, no matter how controversial, while the House of Representatives last week overcame substantial differences within the GOP conference to pass the 'One Big Beautiful' bill containing Trump's tax and spending priorities. Related: China has 'totally violated' its trade agreement with the US, says Trump If there's one place where there is daylight to be found between Trump and his Republican allies, it's his tariff polices. Even avowed supporters of the president have raised their eyebrows at his on-again, off-again imposition of levies on the countries from which US consumers buy their goods and factories source their inputs, and Republican leaders have gone to great lengths to thwart their attempts to do something about them. Which might be why Trump struck out on his own, and hoped the courts would back him up. So far they have not. The US court of international trade, which ruled to block Trump's tariffs on Wednesday, was very clear it believed his policies 'exceed any authority granted to the president'. The matter may ultimately come down to the views of the supreme court, where Trump appointed half of the six-justice conservative supermajority during his first term. Jack Goldsmith, a Harvard Law School professor, said the case is likely to present a test of how the supreme court views the 'major questions doctrine' (MQD), which argues clear congressional authority is needed for agencies to carry out any regulations of national importance, in light of Trump's tariffs moves. The doctrine was used to defang regulators last year when the court overturned the Chevron decision, limiting regulators' powers and arguing they had overstepped their authority. The supreme court may not be minded to accept the major questions doctrine when it comes to the commander in chief, wrote Goldsmith in his newsletter Executive Function. 'It is an open question whether the MQD applies to congressional authorizations to the president. Every Supreme Court decision involving the MQD has involved agency action, and lower courts are split on whether the MQD applies to presidential authorizations,' he said. For Congress's beleaguered Democrats, this week's court intervention, however fleeting, provided grist for the case they've been trying to make to voters ever since Trump took office, which is that he is trying to act like the sort of monarch America was founded on rejecting. 'This is why the framers gave Congress constitutional power over trade and tariffs,' said Suzan DelBene, a Washington state House Democrat who has proposed one of many bills to block Trump's tariffs. 'The court spoke decisively in defense of our democracy and against a president attempting to be king.'
Miami Herald
30-05-2025
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Elon Musk, Tesla make a defiant move
While billionaire Elon Musk has been involved with President Donald Trump in the past, never has the relationship between them seemed as chummy as it did this year. During Trump's first presidential term, Musk served on multiple Trump advisory councils, but resigned after Trump announced he intended to pull America out of the Paris Climate Accords. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter Despite that clash, it seemed as if Musk had gotten over it by the time January 2025 rolled around. It was then that Musk formally entered service with Trump for his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project, which he claims has saved $175 billion dollars, per the official website. Related: Mark Cuban has a bold offer for Elon Musk Musk paid quite a price for his work with DOGE, however. Spending a few months away from Tesla resulted in both public criticism and plummeting revenue for the famed EV company. During its Q1 earnings call, Tesla reported a whopping 71% drop in profit, causing the stock to plummet in response. Since then, Musk has promised to fully refocus on Tesla, but many watching his moves are not convinced he can save the ailing EV company. On top of all that, there have been signs over the last few days that despite seeming like besties for the first half of 2025, Musk may be souring on the friendship with President Trump. Image source:On May 28 at 11:29 p.m., the Tesla Energy X account sent out a tweet directly addressing President Trump's plans to end the EV energy tax credits as outlined in his "One Big Beautiful" bill currently in the hands of the Senate. "Abruptly ending the energy tax credits would threaten America's energy independence and the reliability of our grid - we urge the Senate to enact legislation with a sensible wind-down of 25D and 48e," the tweet reads. "This will ensure continued speedy deployment of over 60 GW capacity per year to support AI and domestic manufacturing growth." Related: Elon Musk has surprising message on Big Beautiful Bill income tax cuts The message's timing is of interest, as Musk also expressed disagreement with Trump publicly for the first time in clips from a "CBS Sunday Morning" interview, which will be aired in its entirety on June 1. "I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful. But I don't know if it could be both," Musk said. "I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing." Musk also formally ended his work as a special government employee on May 28, sending a tweet the same day to formally thank Trump and forecast the future of DOGE. "As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending. The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government," it read. Related: Veteran hedge fund manager sounds alarm on Tesla's stock The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Miami Herald
28-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Social Security income tax deduction faces a growing threat
As the Trump administration pushes its "One Big Beautiful" bill along in its journey from the House to the Senate, it's attracted quite a bit of scrutiny. The legislation covers a wide range of issues: ending taxes on tips and overtime pay, extending and expanding existing tax cuts, increasing the child tax credit, barring Medicaid from funding Planned Parenthood and more. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter While some Republicans agree with some of what's laid out in the bill, others are not so eager, especially since it would increase the deficit by $3.8 trillion by 2034, according to a preliminary analysis from the Congressional Budget Office. Another thing the bill addresses is a promise President Trump made on the campaign trail: eliminating federal income taxes on Social Security benefits for seniors. Related: Dave Ramsey has blunt words on Social Security, 401(k)s While he was not able to deliver on that promise due to legislative constraints, the One Big Beautiful bill does address the issue in another way. Were it to pass the Senate, the bill would change the way married couples 65 years of age and older do tax deductions, raising the standard deduction to $35,200, with an additional $8,000 "senior bonus" deduction. "This expanded deduction is designed to provide financial relief to older taxpayers and would be available to those who take the standard deduction and those who itemize," said TheStreet's Senior Retirement Editor Robert Powell. However, the deduction may have a challenge ahead in passing the Senate. While the House seemed fairly quick to pass Trump's bill, new comments from Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., make it clear that passing the Senate is going to be an entirely different story. Johnson said he thinks there are "enough" Republicans to "stop the process" in order to prioritize stronger reductions in spending and the national deficit, per an interview with CNN during "State of the Union." More Social Security: Social Security income tax deduction clears crucial hurdleDave Ramsey has blunt words on social security, 401(k)sShark Tank's Levon O'Leary warns Americans on Social Security problem Johnson also said he believes congressional Republicans should go over the bill with great care, referring to Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as a example for how it should be reviewed "line by line." The senator has openly criticized the trillion-dollar increase the bill would add to the deficit, calling it "mortgaging our children's future." Johnson is not the only senator to express reservations about the bill. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., also called the current spending cuts in the bill "wimpy and anemic" in an interview on "Fox News Sunday." "I would still support the bill even with wimpy and anemic cuts if they weren't going to explode the debt," Paul said."The problem is the math doesn't add up." Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has also spoken against the bill in its current form, saying the Senate will "basically write its own version of the bill." One thing Hawley said he opposed was the bill's proposed Medicaid cuts, which would rescind health coverage for about 8.6 million people. "I just want to make sure that there are no Medicaid benefit cuts," Hawley said. Related: Tony Robbins sends strong message on Social Security, 401(k)s The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Miami Herald
23-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Social Security income tax deduction clears critical hurdle
On the campaign trail, President Donald Trump pledged to eliminate federal income taxes on Social Security benefits for seniors. However, that promise went unfulfilled, largely due to legislative constraints. Social Security tax policy cannot be changed through budget reconciliation, and eliminating taxes on benefits would require stand-alone legislation – something Congress did not pass. Related: Secretary Bessent hints Social Security income tax changes are coming Taxes on Social Security benefits were first introduced under the Social Security Amendments of 1983, signed into law by President Ronald Reagan. The change took effect in 1984, making a portion of benefits subject to federal income tax. With the original promise off the table, Republicans pursued an alternative: increasing the standard deduction for older taxpayers. Under current law for 2025, married couples filing jointly receive a standard deduction of $30,000, plus an additional $3,200 for those age 65 and older. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter This week, the House of Representatives passed the "One Big Beautiful" bill, which aims to fulfill Trump's pledge in spirit, if not in substance. The bill would raise the standard deduction for married couples aged 65 and older filing jointly to $35,200, with an additional $8,000 "senior bonus" deduction. This expanded deduction is designed to provide financial relief to older taxpayers and would be available to those who take the standard deduction and those who itemize. Photo by Junior REIS on Unsplash Under current law, a significant portion of Social Security beneficiaries – about 56% – pay federal income taxes on their benefits. Whether benefits are taxed depends on your income level. If your income is below a certain threshold, none of your benefits are taxed. But once income exceeds those thresholds, up to 85% of benefits may become taxable. Related: Social Security income tax cuts may include a huge new deduction for retirees The key factor in determining tax liability on Social Security benefits is your provisional income, or what some call combined income, calculated as: Provisional income = adjusted gross income (AGI) + nontaxable interest + 50% of Social Security benefits Your AGI includes all taxable income – such as wages, pensions, dividends, capital gains, and withdrawals from traditional IRAs or 401(k)s. 2025 Federal Income Thresholds for Married Couples Filing Jointly: Below $32,000 in provisional income: No Social Security benefits are taxed.$32,000 to $44,000: Up to 50% of benefits may be $44,000: Up to 85% of benefits may be taxable. Projections from the Social Security Administration (SSA) show that an average of 56% of beneficiary families will owe federal income taxes on their benefits each year from 2015 through 2050. Among those families, the median portion of benefits subject to tax is expected to increase modestly – from about 11% in 2015 to 12% by 2025, and remain steady through mid-century. Generally, higher-income households bear the brunt of these taxes, while lower-income retirees typically owe little or nothing on their benefits. For context, the estimated average monthly Social Security retirement benefit in January 2025 was $1,976, according to the SSA. The maximum monthly benefit for a worker retiring at full retirement age in 2024 is $3,822. In total, 71.6 million Americans received Social Security benefits in 2023, with 5.8 million newly awarded benefits that year. Notably, 55% of adult beneficiaries were women. Related: How the IRS taxes Social Security income in retirement Offsetting income taxes on Social Security via an increased deduction appears to be the intention behind the recently passed House bill. While the bill doesn't repeal taxes on Social Security benefits-as President Trump once promised-it does aim to reduce the burden. Currently, the standard deduction for married couples filing jointly in 2025 is $30,000, plus an additional $3,200 for those aged 65 and older, totaling $33,200. Under the proposed legislation, that would rise to $32,000, plus $11,200 for seniors, for a new total of $43,200. According to Alex Durante, senior economist at the Tax Foundation, that $10,000 increase could significantly reduce – or eliminate – tax liability for many retirees. He noted that joint filers with provisional income below $32,000 already pay no tax on their benefits, while those between $32,000 and $44,000 pay tax on up to 50%, and those above $44,000 pay tax on up to 85%. Durante also pointed out that over the next four years, the standard deduction will increase by $6,000 for senior couples – $2,000 for all joint filers and an additional $4,000 for those aged 65 and older. Seniors who itemize can also claim the additional deduction, potentially raising their total deductions even further. Given that the median household income for seniors is about $50,000, this expanded deduction could substantially reduce or even eliminate federal tax liability on Social Security benefits for many. To illustrate the potential impact of the proposed legislation, we turned to Roger Pine, CEO and co-founder of Holistiplan, for a detailed analysis. He examined a hypothetical 65-year-old married couple filing jointly with $80,000 in gross income, including $40,000 in Social Security benefits. Under current law, with a standard deduction of $33,200, their taxable income would be $26,400, resulting in a federal income tax bill of $2,691. Under the proposed legislation, which would increase their standard deduction to $35,200 plus the $8,000 new senior bonus deduction, their taxable income would drop to $16,400, lowering their tax bill to $1,640. According to Pine's calculations, the proposed $2,000 increase to the standard deduction would save this hypothetical couple $240 in taxes. Then the $8,000 enhanced senior deduction would save an additional $811 in taxes, a total of $1,051 in savings across the two new deductions. In both scenarios, $19,600 of their Social Security benefits would be subject to tax, Pine found. The takeaway: While taxation of Social Security benefits isn't going away, raising the standard deduction could provide relief for retirees, particularly those hovering near the key income thresholds where benefits become taxable. Related: These are the most tax-friendly states if you work in retirement Got questions about retirement, email States with the Highest & Lowest Property Taxes The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
