Feb 18, 2020

Good morning from Washington, D.C.! Last week, our analysts took a fine-tooth comb through President Trump's budget proposal for 2021. Have a look to see what parts we applaud and what parts leave something to be desired. Our foreign policy and Asian affairs experts released a landmark report on how the United States should respond to China’s rise; be sure to take a look at their recommendations. And while the Trump administration continues to appoint judges to fill vacancies in the federal judiciary, obstructionists in the Senate are holding up the process out of their dislike of Trump. Our legal expert Thomas Jipping lays out the situation.

Trump Budget Cuts Size of Federal Government, but Bolder Reforms Needed
President Trump released his budget proposal for the 2021 fiscal year to Congress last week. The administration is calling for reforms that would significantly cut federal spending, prioritize national defense, and reduce the federal bureaucracy. “President Trump’s budget takes many important steps to curtail wasteful government spending, maintain successful pro-growth policy, sustain a strong national defense, and fund key constitutional priorities,” says Romina Boccia, director of Heritage’s Grover M. Hermann Center for the Federal Budget. Unfortunately, Boccia and Justin Bogie, a senior policy analyst in the Grover M. Hermann Center, say that bolder reforms are needed. Rush Limbaugh cited Bogie’s commentary agreeing that now is the time for Trump to get serious about Washington’s spending addiction. Find out what’s in Trump’s new budget and listen to Limbaugh discuss Heritage’s recommendations.

Special Report: The Growing Threat From China
Heritage has released a special report assessing Beijing’s power and the rising threat from China. “The most persistent and consequential foreign policy challenge that will confront the United States for the next several decades will be the People’s Republic of China,” write Heritage experts Dean Cheng, Walter Lohman, James Carafano, and Riley Walters. “We at The Heritage Foundation have the utmost respect for the Chinese people and their rich history and culture that have played an immensely formative role in the development of the world. Our issue is not with the Chinese people but with the Communist dictatorship that oppresses them and threatens the well-being of nations across the globe.” Read the new special report to learn how America can successfully respond to China.

Senate Democrats Continue to Block Trump’s Judicial Nominees
The Senate recently confirmed President Trump’s 51st appeals court judge, but obstruction games continue, according to Thomas Jipping, deputy director of Heritage’s Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. “In my opinion, [Senate] Democrats have been creating conflicts by objecting to nominees more than they would otherwise because it’s Trump,” Jipping told Bloomberg Law. Jipping says that Democratic members have forced the Senate to take separate votes to end debate on more judicial and executive branch nominations than in the previous 72 years combined. Heritage has an interactive tool to help monitor the judicial appointment process, including both presidential nominations and Senate confirmations. The Judicial Appointment Tracker provides both current data for the Trump administration and comparative data for the previous five presidents on six key components of the process. Browse the tracker to monitor and evaluate the process for appointing judges to the federal bench.

Here are highlights from media outlets like Fox News, Fox Business, and CNBC featuring Heritage experts. This week, they touched on hot topics like the economy, China, socialism, health care and more. Watch the video.