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Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ugly Texas primary threatens GOP efforts to defend Senate
Republicans are increasingly concerned that a bitter Senate primary in Texas next year could make it harder to defend their majority in the upper chamber. Earlier this week, the Senate Leadership Fund rolled out a poll showing Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) trailing Attorney General Ken Paxton by 16 points. But in a hypothetical general election poll, Paxton loses by 1 point to former Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), who is considering a run. Cornyn and his allies argue that if Paxton wins the GOP nomination, Republicans will be forced to allocate more resources as the party seeks to defend and expand its majority in the Senate. 'The main concern is that nobody wants to spend a bunch of money in Texas where we should be able to win a race,' Cornyn told The Hill, noting the recent poll showing Paxton down against Allred. 'That would be the first time since 1994 that a Democrat could win, so we're not going to let that happen,' the senator added. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, has set a goal of netting Republicans 55 seats in the midterms next year, targeting Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire and defending Republican seats in Maine, North Carolina and Ohio. Many Republicans argue that the possibility of a Paxton nomination throws a wrench into that plan. 'I just hate seeing internecine warfare in my state that's going to cost a lot of money and will take away from other Senate races where we have a chance of winning, and I think that's the general sentiment,' said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who served as Cornyn's deputy attorney general in Texas when Cornyn was attorney general there. Cornyn's allies argue the dynamics of the race will change, noting the campaign has time to close the gap in polling. 'They need to reintroduce the senator to voters because he hasn't been on the ballot in six years,' said one national Republican operative. 'Voters don't know Ken Paxton for what he is.' And Cornyn's team has begun to throw attacks toward Paxton, rolling out a digital video and accusing the attorney general of approving $7.1 million in grants that have gone to liberal groups. Paxton, a figure in the state's rising far-right conservative wing, is seen by many in Washington as a controversial figure with a lengthy history of legal troubles, including now-dropped securities fraud charges, corruption allegations and an impeachment by the Texas state House. It would not be the first time in recent history where Republicans lost a Senate seat in a deep-red state following a contentious primary. It was only eight years ago when former Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) narrowly defeated Republican Roy Moore in Alabama in a special election in 2017 following a GOP primary runoff. Moore had faced a number of sexual misconduct allegations during the off-year election. Some Republicans point to losses by other ultra-conservative candidates, like Kari Lake, who lost to now-Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) in the more purple state of Arizona. But Paxton's allies argue Republicans should pump the breaks on the narrative that the attorney general is a lost cause in a general election and would funnel resources away from other races. 'A Senate race in Texas is a $100 million race. It doesn't matter who's on the ballot,' said a senior adviser to Paxton's campaign, citing Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-Texas) 2012 primary against then-Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R). 'No one makes that same claim about Ted Cruz,' the adviser said. Cruz defeated Dewhurst in the primary, despite Dewhurst outspending Cruz and having the backing of the state's GOP establishment. Cornyn has already seen some warning signs from the Republican grassroots over the past few years. In 2022, the senator helped lead the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which address gun control and school safety, through Congress after the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Cornyn was later booed at the Texas GOP convention that year, and the Collin County GOP voted to censure him. While Cornyn and the Texas GOP appeared to have since moved on, with the state party's Chair Abraham George praising Cornyn this month as 'an ally' to the party, many Republicans say it could be too late. '[The grassroots] booed him off the stage in 2022 for giving away their Second Amendment rights to the Biden administration, and those feelings haven't changed, and it comes out clear in that polling,' Paxton's adviser said. Allred, who worked with Cornyn on the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act when he was in the House, criticized his state's senior senator in an interview with journalist Tara Palmeri this week. 'I know John Cornyn, and I know what he actually believes, and I know that he has in many ways, I think, abandoned a lot of that because after all of these years in the Senate and after all of this time if office, he's decided that the most important thing isn't sticking to what he actually believes and representing Texas to the best of his ability and to his own values, but it's just to get reelected again.' Allred also hit Paxton, calling the attorney general 'uniquely harmful to our state, to our reputation and who would be ineffective as a senator.' An unnamed GOP strategist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and does not believe Cornyn can win the primary, described the situation in Texas as a catch-22 for Republicans, noting what they said was Paxton's weakness among the state's general electorate. 'Ken Paxton is probably the only Republican in the state you could put on the ballot that would for sure put this seat at great risk,' the strategist said. '9-out-of-10 panic is where you should be,' the strategist said, when asked how worried Republicans are about losing the seat. 'This is a five alarm fire.' But that panic does not appear to have hit the state's conservative grassroots yet. 'Many donors have those concerns, many operatives have those concerns, but for the grassroots activists and the voters they are looking at the race saying the Republican nominee is going to win, and so we're going to back the candidate that is most aligned with our values and for a lot of people it's going to be John Cornyn and for a lot of people it's going to Ken Paxton,' said Texas GOP strategist Brendan Steinhauser, who served as Cornyn's 2014 campaign manager but is unaffiliated in this race. Meanwhile, there is still another Republican who could impact the race if he were to jump in. Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) is mulling a run and has talked to the White House about the possibility of launching a bid, according to a source familiar. The same Senate Leadership Fund poll showed Hunt pulling in 19 percent in a three-way race with Cornyn and Paxton. In a head-to-head match-up with Allred, Hunt leads by 4 points. 'I think it's pretty cool, right?' Hunt told The Hill when asked about the poll. The congressman said he is 'keeping all options open.' 'Full disclosure, I love my district,' he added. 'I'm in an excellent place. When you're sitting on pocket aces, it makes it pretty easy to make a decision, but let's see how the whole thing pans out.' One of the biggest unknown factors in the race is whether President Trump endorses. Paxton is seen as fitting the MAGA brand and is personally liked by Trump, while Cornyn, despite criticizing Trump in the past, has championed his agenda in the Senate. Earlier this month, Cornyn's office rolled out a memo showing the senator voting with Trump 'over 99 percent of the time.' A report from The Wall Street Journal this week demonstrated that the White House is not afraid to get involved in Senate primaries. The publication reported that members of the president's team pointed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to polling conducted by veteran GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio showing the congresswoman losing by nearly 20 points to incumbent Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff (D). 'The White House is in an unfortunate position there but the fact that the White House hasn't endorsed Cornyn already speaks volumes,' the unnamed GOP strategist said. 'Cornyn can't win a primary and Paxton puts the seat at risk. That's a horrific outcome for the White House and for the president and quite frankly for the vice president because on their watch, they don't need Texas falling into Democrat hands,' the strategist said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
17-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Ugly Texas primary threatens GOP efforts to defend Senate
Republicans are increasingly concerned that a bitter Senate primary in Texas next year could make it harder to defend their majority in the upper chamber. Earlier this week, the Senate Leadership Fund rolled out a poll showing Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) trailing Attorney General Ken Paxton by 16 points. But in a hypothetical general election poll, Paxton loses by 1 point to former Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), who is considering a run. Cornyn and his allies argue that if Paxton wins the GOP nomination, Republicans will be forced to allocate more resources as the party seeks to defend and expand its majority in the Senate. 'The main concern is that nobody wants to spend a bunch of money in Texas where we should be able to win a race,' Cornyn told The Hill, noting the recent poll showing Paxton down against Allred. 'That would be the first time since 1994 that a Democrat could win, so we're not going to let that happen,' the senator added. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, has set a goal of netting Republicans 55 seats in the midterms next year, targeting Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire and defending Republican seats in Maine, North Carolina and Ohio. Many Republicans argue that the possibility of a Paxton nomination throws a wrench into that plan. 'I just hate seeing internecine warfare in my state that's going to cost a lot of money and will take away from other Senate races where we have a chance of winning, and I think that's the general sentiment,' said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who served as Cornyn's deputy attorney general in Texas when Cornyn was attorney general there. Cornyn's allies argue the dynamics of the race will change, noting the campaign has time to close the gap in polling. 'They need to reintroduce the senator to voters because he hasn't been on the ballot in six years,' said one national Republican operative. 'Voters don't know Ken Paxton for what he is.' And Cornyn's team has begun to throw attacks toward Paxton, rolling out a digital video and accusing the attorney general of approving $7.1 million in grants that have gone to liberal groups. Paxton, a figure in the state's rising far-right conservative wing, is seen by many in Washington as a controversial figure with a lengthy history of legal troubles, including now-dropped securities fraud charges, corruption allegations and an impeachment by the Texas state House. It would not be the first time in recent history where Republicans lost a Senate seat in a deep-red state following a contentious primary. It was only eight years ago when former Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) narrowly defeated Republican Roy Moore in Alabama in a special election in 2017 following a GOP primary runoff. Moore had faced a number of sexual misconduct allegations during the off-year election. Some Republicans point to losses by other ultra-conservative candidates, like Kari Lake, who lost to now-Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) in the more purple state of Arizona. But Paxton's allies argue Republicans should pump the breaks on the narrative that the attorney general is a lost cause in a general election and would funnel resources away from other races. 'A Senate race in Texas is a $100 million race. It doesn't matter who's on the ballot,' said a senior adviser to Paxton's campaign, citing Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-Texas) 2012 primary against then-Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R). 'No one makes that same claim about Ted Cruz,' the adviser said. Cruz defeated Dewhurst in the primary, despite Dewhurst outspending Cruz and having the backing of the state's GOP establishment. Cornyn has already seen some warning signs from the Republican grassroots over the past few years. In 2022, the senator helped lead the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which address gun control and school safety, through Congress after the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Cornyn was later booed at the Texas GOP convention that year, and the Collin County GOP voted to censure him. While Cornyn and the Texas GOP appeared to have since moved on, with the state party's Chair Abraham George praising Cornyn this month as 'an ally' to the party, many Republicans say it could be too late. '[The grassroots] booed him off the stage in 2022 for giving away their Second Amendment rights to the Biden administration, and those feelings haven't changed, and it comes out clear in that polling,' Paxton's adviser said. Allred, who worked with Cornyn on the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act when he was in the House, criticized his state's senior senator in an interview with journalist Tara Palmeri this week. 'I know John Cornyn, and I know what he actually believes, and I know that he has in many ways, I think, abandoned a lot of that because after all of these years in the Senate and after all of this time if office, he's decided that the most important thing isn't sticking to what he actually believes and representing Texas to the best of his ability and to his own values, but it's just to get reelected again.' Allred also hit Paxton, calling the attorney general 'uniquely harmful to our state, to our reputation and who would be ineffective as a senator.' An unnamed GOP strategist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and does not believe Cornyn can win the primary, described the situation in Texas as a catch-22 for Republicans, noting what they said was Paxton's weakness among the state's general electorate. 'Ken Paxton is probably the only Republican in the state you could put on the ballot that would for sure put this seat at great risk,' the strategist said. '9-out-of-10 panic is where you should be,' the strategist said, when asked how worried Republicans are about losing the seat. 'This is a five alarm fire.' But that panic does not appear to have hit the state's conservative grassroots yet. 'Many donors have those concerns, many operatives have those concerns, but for the grassroots activists and the voters they are looking at the race saying the Republican nominee is going to win, and so we're going to back the candidate that is most aligned with our values and for a lot of people it's going to be John Cornyn and for a lot of people it's going to Ken Paxton,' said Texas GOP strategist Brendan Steinhauser, who served as Cornyn's 2014 campaign manager but is unaffiliated in this race. Meanwhile, there is still another Republican who could impact the race if he were to jump in. Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) is mulling a run and has talked to the White House about the possibility of launching a bid, according to a source familiar. The same Senate Leadership Fund poll showed Hunt pulling in 19 percent in a three-way race with Cornyn and Paxton. In a head-to-head match-up with Allred, Hunt leads by 4 points. 'I think it's pretty cool, right?' Hunt told The Hill when asked about the poll. The congressman said he is 'keeping all options open.' 'Full disclosure, I love my district,' he added. 'I'm in an excellent place. When you're sitting on pocket aces, it makes it pretty easy to make a decision, but let's see how the whole thing pans out.' One of the biggest unknown factors in the race is whether President Trump endorses. Paxton is seen as fitting the MAGA brand and is personally liked by Trump, while Cornyn, despite criticizing Trump in the past, has championed his agenda in the Senate. Earlier this month, Cornyn's office rolled out a memo showing the senator voting with Trump 'over 99 percent of the time.' A report from The Wall Street Journal this week demonstrated that the White House is not afraid to get involved in Senate primaries. The publication reported that members of the president's team pointed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to polling conducted by veteran GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio showing the congresswoman losing by nearly 20 points to incumbent Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff (D). 'The White House is in an unfortunate position there but the fact that the White House hasn't endorsed Cornyn already speaks volumes,' the unnamed GOP strategist said. 'Cornyn can't win a primary and Paxton puts the seat at risk. That's a horrific outcome for the White House and for the president and quite frankly for the vice president because on their watch, they don't need Texas falling into Democrat hands,' the strategist said.
New York Times
10-05-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Trump, Raking In Cash, Expands His Power in the G.O.P. Money World
President Trump is harnessing the Republican Party's all-encompassing deference to him to exert even greater control over the G.O.P. big-money world, which had long been one of the party's final remaining redoubts of Trump skepticism. For years, the super PACs allied with House and Senate Republicans have been some of the most powerful and independent fiefs in American politics, raising and spending hundreds of millions of dollars in each election. But even though Mr. Trump is in his second term and cannot run again, he is quickly bringing them inside his sphere of influence — a sign that his dominance over the party could endure well into the future. Both super PACs, the Congressional Leadership Fund and the Senate Leadership Fund, have new leaders this year, and they are working closer than ever with the White House, overhauling their boards of directors and installing veteran Trump strategists in senior positions. At the same time, Mr. Trump's super PAC, MAGA Inc., and its allied nonprofit group have already amassed roughly $400 million since the 2024 election, according to two people briefed on the fund-raising who insisted on anonymity to discuss the organization's finances. That sum is without precedent so early in an election cycle, especially for a termed-out president. The Trump super PAC is expected to play a major role in the midterm elections, scrambling the usual flow of cash and encroaching on the traditional dominion of the congressional super PACs. The changes — both in personnel and financial firepower — amount to a fundamental reordering of Republican finance, and an extraordinary expansion of Mr. Trump's already overwhelming sway. Interviews with senior Republicans allied with leaders on Capitol Hill reveal private fears about a power imbalance if the G.O.P.'s top super PACs are weakened and overly submissive to Mr. Trump. The concerns are especially acute in the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson owes his post largely to Mr. Trump. His allies fear not only for their independence but also for how this will play out when the president's personal resentments and agenda are at odds with the political priorities of the Republican leaders of the chambers, dividing the G.O.P. and potentially delivering an edge to Democrats. Some Republicans say that a hand-in-glove relationship between Capitol Hill and the White House is simply good politics, and that bringing Mr. Trump's allies inside the tent is far more strategic than having the president wreak havoc from afar. Republican strategists involved in the midterm elections agree that the party must motivate Trump supporters to turn out even when he is not on the ballot. 'Political alignment in a midterm is an absolute necessity,' said Josh Holmes, who played a key role advising the Senate Leadership Fund when Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was the majority leader. 'I worry a lot less about whose bank account looks bigger than I do about the alignment.' An Influx of Trump Allies Big changes are happening at the Congressional Leadership Fund, the main outside group working to elect Republicans to the House. The new president of the super PAC and its allied nonprofit group, Chris Winkelman, is actively soliciting Mr. Trump's team for collaboration. One of the president's top advisers in 2024, Chris LaCivita, is now a senior adviser to the group in addition to helping steer MAGA Inc. The House super PAC is also adding at least three new people to its board of directors, including Andy Surabian, a top political adviser to Vice President JD Vance and Donald Trump Jr., and Richard Walters, a top strategist at the Republican National Committee during the elder Mr. Trump's first term and his 2024 campaign. The additions, which also include Matt Brooks, the chief executive of the pro-Trump Republican Jewish Coalition, have not been previously reported. 'We are actively seeking these people out because they are good at what they do,' Mr. Winkelman said in an interview. 'This is what a unified government among political professionals is supposed to look like.' Trump allies are arriving on the Senate side, too. The new executive director of the Senate Leadership Fund and its allied nonprofit group, Alex Latcham, was an official on the Trump 2024 campaign. He said his group would 'work closely with President Trump to ensure the Democrats' radical vision for America never becomes reality.' The Senate super PAC is replacing its entire board of directors. It is not clear what the board's makeup will be, though its new chair is former Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado, who is close to some major donors. Other members are expected to be allies of Senator John Thune, the new majority leader. One Thune confidant, Johnny DeStefano, who served in the first Trump administration, has joined the S.L.F. board and already serves on the C.L.F. board. While the super PACs are guided largely — though not directly — by the party's leader in each chamber, the changes to the groups' boards are significant for their symbolism. Visions of Trouble Ahead The fact that Mr. Trump's super PAC could dwarf those of congressional leaders looms large. The president, of course, has always played a big role in down-ballot races, freely endorsing 2022 midterm candidates in ways that frustrated some senior Republicans. But he was not a big factor financially. The Congressional Leadership Fund spent about $260 million that cycle, and the Senate Leadership Fund spent $290 million, while Mr. Trump's group laid out just $19 million. So far, early in the 2026 election cycle, Republicans say, there are few signs of outright conflict between Mr. Trump's operation and those of Capitol Hill Republicans. But in private conversations among themselves, some Republicans say they can see foresee trouble. The top concern is if MAGA Inc. starts spending its war chest against someone like Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, one of the most vulnerable Republican incumbents in 2026. This week, Mr. Tillis announced that he would not support Ed Martin, Mr. Trump's nominee for United States attorney for Washington, because of his work defending the rioters who stormed the Capitol in 2021. The move forced the White House to pull the nomination. The incentives for Mr. Trump, who prizes loyalty and is not up for re-election, could easily diverge from the aims of the Senate super PAC, which generally tries to support more moderate nominees and pursues a principal goal of re-electing incumbents, Republicans say. In private conversations, Mr. Winkelman has expressed concern about his super PAC being outmuscled by Mr. Trump's groups, according to three people who have discussed the matter with him. Mr. Winkelman denied expressing that sentiment. 'This isn't true,' he said in a statement, adding that the Trump team was invested in holding the House majority. 'We'd be stupid not to welcome more money and more wins,' he said. Unprecedented Fund-Raising Never before has a term-limited president amassed so much fund-raising power. The only other second-term president in the super PAC era to have such a group was President Barack Obama after 2012. But his super PAC, Priorities USA, effectively went dormant for the 2014 midterms. Mr. Trump made a different decision. He has headlined at least six fund-raisers for MAGA Inc. since he was elected in November, with the price tag for a seat reaching as high as $1.5 million for an event with cryptocurrency executives that he attended on Monday in the Washington area. Plenty of the money that Mr. Trump is raising comes from corporate interests eager for better access to him. Mr. Trump's allies say, essentially, that he is raising the money because he can. But it is hard to ignore that the gusher of cash coincides with his repeated comments about a constitutionally prohibited third term. MAGA Inc. officials did not respond to requests for comment. Even some of the people helping him raise money are privately confused why doing so is such a priority, though Mr. Trump is said to be far more aware of the importance of keeping control of Congress than he was in his first term. Mr. Trump also now has the support of the world's richest man, Elon Musk, who has signaled that he wants to donate at least $100 million more to the president's political operation. 'Cannibalization' Concerns So far, the Trump political groups have mostly laid low as they vacuum up money. But on Friday, the nonprofit arm, Securing American Greatness, began buying television ads to promote the president's tax plan. Some Republicans worry about 'cannibalization,' or the House and Senate super PACs struggling because donors and corporations are sending their limited resources to Mr. Trump's groups. Mr. Thune is keeping up an aggressive fund-raising schedule. This month, the Senate Leadership Fund hosted a donor event on the sidelines of a Formula 1 race in Miami. Still, some candidates, uneasy about the new funding landscape, are considering starting their own outside groups. Some people close to Mr. Tillis, for instance, are uncertain about how much financial backup he will receive from Mr. Thune, especially if Mr. Trump goes after the North Carolina senator. Mr. Tillis is in the process of setting up his own outside groups for the race, according to two people briefed on the matter. The move is intended to simply give him more ways to raise money, but it would also inevitably offer him more financial autonomy. Jordan Shaw, a strategist for Mr. Tillis, said that the campaign had 'all the confidence in the world in S.L.F., MAGA Inc. and the entire Republican ecosystem.' MAGA Inc. itself has brought in one notable new adviser: Chris Buskirk, who leads an influential group of donors called the Rockbridge Network and is close to Mr. Vance. His role at the super PAC, which is previously unreported, could help the vice president down the line. Mr. LaCivita, meanwhile, is not only involved in MAGA Inc. and the House G.O.P. super PAC. He was quietly added recently to the board of Data Trust, a Republican firm — adding to his overlapping roles that place him in the middle of the billionaire world.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hiltzik: Can Trump's billionaire backers pull him back from the tariff cliff?
Many of America's billionaires and millionaires thought they knew how they would profit from a second Trump term: There would be tax cuts and deregulation and an end to bothersome government investigations. In other words, a White House sedulously attuned to their interests. What they didn't count on, however, was a chaotic and nonsensical tariff policy that threatens to plunge their investment holdings into a bear market — or in some cases, has already done so — and to unravel the global economy in which they made all their money. What Trump unveiled Wednesday is stupid, wrong, arrogantly extreme, ignorant trade-wise and addressing a non-problem with misguided tools. Investment manager Ken Fisher Now, many of his erstwhile supporters among America's plutocrats are screaming for mercy. In interviews and social media postings, and in one case even via a federal lawsuit, they've been calling on him to roll back his tariff plans or at least to pause them for several months. Is he listening? So far, he hasn't indicated a change in strategy. Whether Trump is open to persuasion or his White House sits behind a figurative barrier against criticism, like the Coulomb barrier that repels protons from an atomic nucleus until they reach a high energy level, isn't known. Criticism of the tariffs by Trump's wealthier supporters has emerged as the investment markets continue to reel over Trump's tariff plans and his apparent resistance to moderating the levies or his anti-free-trade rhetoric. One can't pretend that Trump's backers haven't been speaking clearly. Let's listen in on the backlash from billionaires and the billionaire-adjacent. Among the most vociferous is Ken Langone, the co-founder of Home Depot. Langone, whose net worth is estimated at about $9.5 billion by Forbes, is a Trump backer whose political contributions have gone mostly to Republicans, including a $500,000 donation last year to the GOP's Senate Leadership Fund. In an interview with the Financial Times published Monday, Langone decried Trump's tariffs as too large, imposed too hastily, and based on an incoherent mathematical formula. Read more: Hiltzik: Yes, America absolutely should annex Greenland and Canada. Here's why Langone told the FT that he thought Trump was 'poorly advised.' He questioned the math used by the White House to calculate the "reciprocal tariffs" Trump announced on April 2. "I don't understand the goddamn formula," he said. 'I believe he's been poorly advised by his advisors about this trade situation — and the formula they're applying.' Focusing on how the formula produced a 42% tariff on goods from Vietnam, he called that figure "bulls—. ... Forty-six percent on Vietnam? Come on! You might as well tell them, 'Don't even bother calling.'' He also called the 34% tariff on China "too aggressive, too soon." He spoke before Trump threatened to add another 50% to tariffs on goods from China if it pursued plans to retaliate with higher tariffs on U.S. goods. Langone is not alone in questioning the April 2 formula. Because of a definitional error, according to economists Kevin Corinth and Stan Veuger of the conservative American Enterprise Institute, the formula yielded tariffs that are roughly four times too high. The proper rate for Vietnam, they calculated, should be 12.2%, not 46%. "The formula the administration relied on has no foundation in either economic theory or trade law," Corinth and Veuger wrote. "But if we are going to pretend that it is a sound basis for US trade policy, we should at least be allowed to expect that the relevant White House officials do their calculations carefully." Among others weighing in on the tariffs was Stanley Druckenmiller, a revered investment manager who once worked for progressive philanthropist George Soros, and was once the mentor and boss of Scott Bessant, Trump's treasury secretary. In the 2020 election, Druckenmiller contributed $250,000 to the GOP's Senate Leadership Fund. In an interview Sunday with CNBC that he later cited in a tweet on X, Druckenmiller said tariffs shouldn't exceed 10% to avoid triggering retaliatory tariffs by targeted countries. Trump's tariffs start at 10% and go higher from there. "What Trump unveiled Wednesday," tweeted billionaire investment manager Ken Fisher, who has contributed to Republicans and Democrats, "is stupid, wrong, arrogantly extreme, ignorant trade-wise and addressing a non-problem with misguided tools. ... On tariffs Trump is beyond the pale by a long shot." Fisher called the tariff formula "ridiculous" and predicted that "if GOP congress members don't get Trump's tariffs reigned in pretty quickly, the midterms ... will be a blood bath for them big time." Among the most vociferous critics of the tariffs has been billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who was one of Trump's most steadfast supporters during the presidential campaign and since the election. But he drew the line at the tariff announcement. Referring to the plan to begin imposing reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday, Ackman tweeted that if "on April 9th we launch economic nuclear war on every country in the world, business investment will grind to a halt, consumers will close their wallets and pocket books, and we will severely damage our reputation with the rest of the world that will take years and potentially decades to rehabilitate." He added, "What CEO and what board of directors will be comfortable making large, long-term, economic commitments in our country in the middle of an economic nuclear war? I don't know of one who will do so." He urged Trump to "call a time out." Business leaders have also begun speaking out. As I reported earlier, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, who earlier this year counseled Americans that Trump's plans for relatively modest tariff increases were no big deal — "Get over it," he advised — changed his tune in a his annual letter to JPM shareholders published Monday. There he observed that "the recent tariffs will likely increase inflation and are causing many to consider a greater probability of a recession.' Wilbur Ross, an investment banker who served as Commerce Secretary during Trump's first term, indicated that he was unnerved by the magnitude of the planned tariff hike. 'It's more severe than I would have expected,' he told the Financial Times. 'Particularly the way it is impacting Vietnam, China and Cambodia is more extreme than I would have thought.' He added, 'It's hard to deal with uncertainty. Fear of the unknown is the worst for people and we are in a period of extreme fear of the unknown.' Trump's tariff policy has exposed a serious rift within his inner circle, with conflict between his advisor Elon Musk and Peter Navarro, Trump's hard-line trade counselor, breaking into the open. Speaking on CNBC Monday — after Musk called for "a zero-tariff situation, effectively creating a free-trade zone between Europe and North America' — the opposite of Trump's approach — Navarro called Musk "not a car manufacturer" but a "car assembler," referring to Tesla, the electric vehicle maker Musk controls. Navarro's goal was to imply that Tesla is dependent on imported parts that would be subject to the new tariffs. Musk responded with tweets in which he called Navarro "truly a moron" and "dumber than a sack of bricks." The assertion that Tesla relies on imported parts, he wrote, is "demonstrably false." The Trump White House downplayed the conflict as a minor spat. "Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday. Another path of attack on Trump's tariffs was opened last week by the New Civil Liberties Alliance, a conservative legal group that has been funded by right-wing sources including the Koch network, the Linde and Harry Bradley Foundation and the Sarah Scaife Foundation. The Alliance filed a lawsuit last week asserting that the law Trump cited as giving him power to set tariffs — a power the constitution reserves for Congress — does not, in fact, provide that authority. Get the latest from Michael HiltzikCommentary on economics and more from a Pulitzer Prize me up. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Mitch McConnell using a wheelchair after falling down stairs at the Capitol
WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is "fine," his office said Wednesday after he was seen using a wheelchair following a fall at the Capitol. 'Senator McConnell is fine. The lingering effects of polio in his left leg will not disrupt his regular schedule of work," a McConnell spokesman said. McConnell, 82, had polio as a child. The spokesman added that McConnell is using a wheelchair 'purely as a precautionary measure.' Reporters witnessed McConnell falling down while walking down a small set of stairs leaving the Senate chamber on his way to a Republican caucus lunch. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., said he helped McConnell up after he fell while walking down the stairs from the Senate floor, telling reporters, 'I think he just slipped on the steps, I was right behind him and helped him get back up, and he walked on his own power to lunch.' McConnell initially exited the lunch on foot while he held onto the arm of his aid. NBC News spotted him returning to the lunchroom in a wheelchair shortly after. McConnell, who still serves in the Senate but stepped down as Senate Republican leader earlier this year, has experienced a wave of health challenges in recent years. The Kentucky senator fell in December at the Capitol following a weekly lunch with Senate Republicans, which resulted in him sustaining a minor cut to the face and a wrist sprain. In 2023, McConnell had several episodes in which he appeared to freeze — one happened during a news conference at the Capitol that July and another happened that August while speaking to reporters in Kentucky. During the episode in D.C., McConnell was silent for 19 seconds. Earlier that year, McConnell was hospitalized and treated for a concussion after tripping at a Washington, D.C. hotel following an event the McConnell-aligned super PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund. In 2019, McConnell fractured his shoulder after tripping and falling at his home in Kentucky. After the freezing incidents in 2023, some Republican lawmakers expressed concern about his overall health and wanted him to be more transparent about his situation. The top Republican, who now chairs the Senate Rules Committee, brushed off questions, however, about his health struggles. After the freezing incidents, he told reporters at the time that he had planned to finish his Senate term, which expires in 2027. He has not said whether he plans to run for re-election next year. This article was originally published on
