Latest news with #R-Ky
Axios
29-07-2025
- Business
- Axios
Hawley's stock trading ban sparks drama with White House
Sen. Josh Hawley' s (R-Mo.) stock trading ban is turning into a GOP headache — with White House lawyers raising alarm ahead of a committee vote on Wednesday, Axios has learned. Why it matters: In order to move forward, the bill may now include the president and vice president, in addition to Congressional members, in its ban on certain investments. Hawley needs Democratic support to get the bill through the committee vote set for Wednesday due to opposition from Chair Rand Paul (R-Ky), at a minimum. So he agreed to include language that would subject the president and vice president to the ban, according to multiple sources familiar with the negotiations. The White House's Office of Legal Affairs caught wind — and started pushing back, sources tell us. Zoom in: Hawley's Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments (PELOSI) Act bans members of Congress from trading or holding individual stocks. President Trump has expressed openness to supporting such a bill in the past. A similar bipartisan bill passed the committee last year, which also would have forced the president and VP to divest from certain investments. It's this language from last year's bill that is expected to replace the PELOSI Act ahead of the committee markup — though negotiations are still in flux. In response to White House pushback, Hawley also plans to make the ban effective only at the start of a member's or elected official's next term, per a source familiar with the plans. The intrigue: Paul reiterated to Axios that he is opposed to the legislation, saying it could prevent people like Trump from being president and add another hurdle for people considering running for office.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Elon Musk indicates he'll donate to Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican who has been excoriated by Trump
Business tycoon Elon Musk indicated that he will donate to Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky. Massie, a fiscal hawk who was one of the two House Republicans who voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that cleared the House of Representatives in May, also labeled President Donald Trump's strikes against Iran last month as "not Constitutional." "Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame! And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth," Musk declared in a post on X. Former Rep. Justin Amash replied by urging Musk to back Massie. "Please support @RepThomasMassie. The establishment is working to primary him because he's a genuine fiscal conservative and opposes the Big, Bloated Scam," Amash wrote. "I will," Musk replied. Read On The Fox News App Elon Musk Says Us Is Ruled By 'Porky Pig Party' As Trump Defends His Vision Against Former Ally's Criticism Musk also responded to an individual who wrote, "I donated again to @RepThomasMassie's re-election campaign. Who's next?" "Me," Musk answered. In a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning, Massie said, "Elon's purchase of Twitter and cultivation of the X platform for free speech has already helped my cause immensely. It's allowed me to bypass conventional media to refute the lies of both political parties and to provide transparency about how Congress works and what's actually inside of the bills we vote on. "Exposing the worst parts of the Big Beautiful Bill and reasserting Congressional War Powers has recently earned me the ire of the swamp and a fight for my re-election, but my re-election isn't really about either of those issues specifically," Massie continued. "It's a referendum on whether members of Congress can think and act independently based on what's best for the country, or whether all members of congress must be reduced to rubber stamps for their respective political parties and swampy special interests. "I'm extremely thankful to have Elon Musk's financial assistance to continue my mission as an independent voice in Congress for my constituents," the congressman concluded. Targeted By Trump, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie Hauls In Campaign Cash Trump excoriated Massie in a June 22 Truth Social post, calling him a "pathetic LOSER" and declaring "we will have a wonderful American Patriot running against him in the Republican Primary, and I'll be out in Kentucky campaigning really hard." Trump also targeted Massie in Truth Social posts on June 23 and 24. But the House Republican has been hauling in campaign cash. Thomas Massie Says He Feels 'Misled' By Trump After Iran Strikes: 'He's Engaged In War' "My campaign is fueled by the grassroots donors on this map; 3,417 of you donated $308,665 last week. Thank you!" Massie declared in a Monday post on his campaign account on article source: Elon Musk indicates he'll donate to Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican who has been excoriated by Trump
NBC News
15-06-2025
- Business
- NBC News
Sen. Rand Paul says he's 'not an absolute no' on Trump's agenda bill
WASHINGTON — Sen. Rand Paul, a leading Republican critic of the sweeping Trump agenda bill, said during an interview on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that he told President Donald Trump that he is "not an absolute no" on the package. "I talked to the President last evening after the parade, and we're trying to get to a better place in our conversations," said Paul, R-Ky. "And I've let him know that I'm not an absolute no." 'I don't have as much trouble with the tax cuts. I think there should be more spending cuts, but if they want my vote, they'll have to negotiate,' Paul said, noting he did not want to vote to raise the debt ceiling by trillions of dollars. Republicans are working to pass the bill through a budget process called reconciliation, which allows them to pass the bill with a simple majority. Republicans have 53 seats in the Senate, meaning they can only afford to lose three votes if Vice President JD Vance is brought in to break a tie. Several Republican senators, however, have raised concerns about the bill's impact on the national debt and Medicaid, throwing the bill's future into question. Paul has been sharply critical of the Trump-backed 'Big Beautiful Bill' because it is projected to increase the national deficit by about $2.4 trillion over 10 years, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The senator said last week that he had been "uninvited" to a White House picnic typically attended by lawmakers and their families. Paul said that he believed the White House was trying to "punish" him, calling the move "petty vindictiveness." Trump later posted to Truth Social, saying that "of course" Paul was invited to the picnic. The reconciliation package as it stands would increase the debt ceiling. Lawmakers are also running up against a deadline this summer to avoid the U.S. defaulting on its debt. The Treasury Department has asked Congress to raise the debt ceiling by mid-July to avoid default. Asked what it would take for Paul to vote for the bill, the senator said, "separate out the debt ceiling and have a separate vote on it." Paul, a fiscal hawk, has said that while the "debt ceiling has to go up," he wants the ceiling to increase a few months at a time, "and then we should have a renewed debate about the debt." The GOP-led package that passed through the House aims to raise the debt ceiling by $4 trillion ahead of a mid-July deadline. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the package would add $2.4 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years. Trump, however, has called for abolishing the debt limit, saying in a post last month that it "should be entirely scrapped to prevent an Economic catastrophe." It's one of the rare areas that the president has found common ground with liberal lawmakers like Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who has been a vocal proponent of abolishing the limit. Trump said that the debt limit was "too devastating to be put in the hands of political people that may want to use it despite the horrendous effect it could have on our Country and, indirectly, even the World." Paul also addressed Sen. Alex Padilla's detainment in California last week, when the California Democrat was forcibly removed from a press conference after trying to question Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said that Padilla should be censured for his behavior during the press conference — a measure that Paul opposed. "I'm not for censuring. I think that's crazy," Paul said. Paul said that he thought the situation "could have ended without the handcuffs," but added that he did not think there could be a "get out of jail free" for "rushing the stage." Video of the incident shared with NBC News does not show Padilla "rushing" toward Noem. Instead, the senator identified himself and tried to ask a question as several men pushed him out of the room. The video did not show the moments leading up to Padilla's question.
