Big Numbers
Some of the new administration’s spending cuts have been high-profile and loud, such as the $9 billion foreign aid rescission. Jack Fitzpatrick reports on the minority party’s new accounting, which concludes that quieter cuts added up to much bigger sums.
The largest pots of blocked money, according to an estimate released today by top House and Senate Appropriations Committee Democrats, include $96.7 billion in grants administered by FEMA.
Their count also includes $42.5 billion in broadband funds and $39.7 billion in transportation grants, both far exceeding the foreign aid cuts. Read More about the Democrats’ estimate, dig deeper into the appropriations state of play in this morning’s BGOV Budget, and get up to speed on the big picture with this video.
See Also:
- Lawmakers Gird for Shutdown in Feud With Trump’s Budget Director
- White House Seeks Stopgap Funds Into 2026 in Rift with Congress
Union Crossroads
Out of 14,000 Patent and Trademark Office employees, just 26 review patents for potential security concerns, according to their workers’ union.
Yet Trump ended union protections for thousands, not dozens, by placing them in the same exempt-from-collective-bargaining category as national security agencies, including the CIA and FBI.
Altogether, Trump has stripped organizing rights from workers at more than 40 agencies, touching two-thirds of the federal workforce. The lawsuits filed in response will decide how wide that national security shield is for a White House determined to remake the federal workforce, Ian Kullgren, Parker Purifoy, and Aruni Soni report. Read More
Not a Love Fest
President Donald Trump was met with a mix of boos and cheers when he appeared several times before the crowd yesterday at the US Open men’s final. His presence caused security delays that made many fans miss the start of the match, The Associated Press reports. The president attended as a guest of Rolex.
Eye on Tariffs
Small businesses challenging Trump’s new tariffs are “suffering severe economic hardships as a result of the price increases and supply chain interruptions,” according to a US Supreme Court filing.
The Trump administration and the businesses both are asking the justices for extra-speedy action in a case with extremely high stakes.
A ruling that Trump exceeded his authority in imposing tariffs would cut the current average US effective tariff rate of 16.3% by at least half and could force the US to refund tens of billions of dollars, according to Bloomberg Economics analyst Chris Kennedy. It also could upend the preliminary trade deals Trump has struck with some countries. Read More
And if a friend slaps you, what do you do? For India, hit by the US with a 50% tariff, the answer at the moment is to stick with friendly trading partner Russia.
India has been the largest buyer of Russian seaborne crude oil since the war on Ukraine led other nations to pull away. India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the country will continue buying Russian oil.
As for Russia, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on NBC’s Meet the Press that the US and Europe are discussing a new round of sanctions and secondary tariffs on Russia. The idea is that a Russian economic “collapse” might bring Vladimir Putin to peace talks with Ukraine. “We are prepared to increase pressure on Russia, but we need our partners in Europe to follow,” he said.
See Also:
- EU Weighs New Sanctions on Russia to Hit Banks and Oil Trade
- China Exports to US Slump 33% But Trade Surplus Heads for Record
How Well Do You Know Washington -- Shifting Map Edition
You already know that Missouri’s trying to follow the partisan lead of Texas with a quickie realignment of congressional districts, and that California’s asking voters for permission to do the same.
What’s the total number of states that could have new US House maps before the 2026 primaries?
A) Four
B) Five
C) Seven
D) Nine
Scroll down for the answer.
Dynamic to Watch
Frustrated by slow-walking tactics that have denied quick confirmation votes for 145 committee-approved nominees, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he’s ready for a rule change — but didn’t say when.
“Expect us to move forward with a plan that would enable us to clear the backlog of nominees,” Thune (R-S.D.) said last week, blaming Democratic delays on “Trump derangement syndrome.”
When debate on each nominee takes up two hours of floor time, senators quickly run out of patience for being in Washington on any given week. Sen. John Barasso (R-Wyo.) said consensus is forming around a plan to allow an unlimited number of nominations for lower-level jobs to be packaged together for a single roll call vote. He also said the rules wouldn’t change for cabinet or appellate court positions. Read More
Did You Ace the Quiz?
Give yourself a star if you selected Option D. House members and hopefuls in as many as nine states could end up having to introduce themselves to different sets of voters than the ones who chose the current lineup of representation. Read More from Jonathan Tamari and Greg Giroux.
Before You Go
Enforcement Action: Federal immigration agents conducted raids across Boston and nearby communities over the weekend, arresting dozens of people. The Justice Department also sued the city and its mayor. Trump, who has deployed National Guard troops and federal law enforcement officers to Washington, has also threatened repeatedly to send forces into Chicago. Read More
War and Peace: If you’ve been by the White House in the past 40 years, you surely noticed the peace vigil that stood since 1981. Volunteer Philipos Melaku-Bello told The Associated Press that the Park Police removed it yesterday. And fyi, the Pentagon’s online information has migrated to www.war.gov.
“SAY NO TO RFK LOSER”: USA Today reports on JFK’s grandson, who’s eyeing the congressional seat of Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), and his comments about a cousin — RFK’s son.
Add Us to Your Inbox
Sign up here to get Starting Line for free every weekday morning.
To contact the reporter on this story:
To contact the editors responsible for this story: