September 23, 2024
In this edition
A strong national defense is essential to protecting our American way of life.
Veterans On Duty continues the fight back at home, advocating for military and national security policies that will keep America safe, strong, and free. |
In our latest edition, we have an interview with Rep. Darrell Issa, a piece about conservatives panning Kamala Harris’s inroads with Goldman Sachs, an exclusive poll on just how unpopular vehicle mileage taxes are in southern California, and more.
| [1] | Exclusive: Rep. Darrell Issa on Kamala Harris, Afghanistan, patent reform, and sanctuary cities
By: Matthew Foldi
Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif), a top Congressional watchdog, found his latest calling supporting Gold Star families after 13 U.S. servicemembers were killed by a suicide bomber during Joe Biden’s disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal; which he discussed, along with his bills on sanctuary cities and patent reform, in an exclusive interview with the Washington Reporter.
Following the Afghanistan withdrawal, Issa helped spring one of the Gold Star family members from jail after a senseless arrest, hosted several Gold Star families at a nationally-televised town hall, defended one of the group’s organizers from media hit pieces, and more.
Click HERE to read more from Rep. Darrell Issa about patent reform, foreign policy, and his oversight on our debacle in Afghanistan.
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[2] |
House and Senate updates:
Upcoming House Hearings that caught our eye:
On Tuesday: - Financial Services Committee: the leadership of the Securities and Exchange Commission is testifying at an oversight hearing.
On Wednesday: - Judiciary Committee: holding a hearing on the weaponization of government.
On Thursday: - Trump assassination task force: holding a hearing on the “Secret Service’s reliance on state and local law enforcement.”
- Oversight Committee: holding a hearing on the “Biden-Harris cover-up” on Medicare.
Senate:
On Tuesday: - Judiciary Committee: holding a hearing on “the Supreme Court's immunity decision.”
- HELP Committee: holding a hearing on “Novo Nordisk's high prices for Ozempic and Wegovy for patients with diabetes and obesity.”
- Finance Committee: holding a hearing on examining “women's health care.”
On Wednesday: - Banking Committee: Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler is testifying at an oversight hearing.
- Budget Committee: holding a hearing on “economic risks from housing unaffordability, focusing on the costs of inaction.”
- HELP Committee: holding a hearing on “preparing workers for AI.”
| | | [3] | Heard on the Hill
What we're hearing from people we trust on and around the Hill – please send us more tips!
- Gensler week: The chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission is testifying in front of both the Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday. Expect strong criticism from R’s for Gensler’s anti-crypto policies and his demands for massive data from financial firms.
- Huizenga slams Gensler: Rep. Bill Huizenga (R., Mich.), who is running to chair the Financial Services Committee next Congress, told the Washington Reporter: “Under Chair Gensler’s stewardship, the SEC has continually steered into uncharted waters only to be course corrected time and again in federal court. Despite Chair Gensler’s repeated rhetoric, I am looking forward to hearing from the full commission regarding recent actions by the SEC.”
- Second crack at Crenshaw: Joining Gensler in Tuesday’s hearing is SEC commissioner Caroline Crenshaw, who has faced withering criticism from Republicans for her hostility to digital assets and prioritization of ESG disclosure requirements for public companies. The hearing is another opportunity for Republicans to get her on the record on these hot button issues before she faces any Senate confirmation vote.
- Uyeda opportunity: Republican SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda recently unloaded on Gensler in a Fox Business interview; Uyeda is a potential candidate to chair the commission in a Trump administration, industry sources told the Reporter.
- Pharma patent reform: The Reporter’s sources tell us to expect bipartisan cooperation on legislation that cracks down on alleged patent abuse by drug manufacturers, as the legislation is reported to “score well by CBO so we need the savers.”
- Florida man: President Donald Trump is hosting another fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago next month, per an invitation obtained by the Reporter.
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[4] |
Exclusive: Poll: Vehicle mileage tax in California garners 8 percent support in Southern California district
By: Matthew Foldi
A now-shelved proposal by a regional California transit authority to track and tax drivers on a per-mile basis only garnered eight percent support, according to a poll that Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif.) commissioned.
The poll, first reported by the Washington Reporter, was commissioned in Issa’s San Diego district. In order to ensure that southern California does not ever see such a proposal enacted, Issa rolled out the “No Track No Tax Act” that would “ban mileage taxes and eliminate mileage trackers.” His poll, which interviewed almost 3,000 of his constituents, found 94.4 percent support for his measure.
With Vice President Kamala Harris, a former California senator likely to easily win the Golden State, down-ballot Republicans are focusing on defeating some of the state’s most progressive policies.
Click HERE to learn more about how policies from California Democrats are giving down ballot Republicans ammo to win in November.
| | | [5] | Kamala Harris’s Goldman Sachs support
By: Matthew Foldi
Goldmans Sachs has said that “Donald Trump’s plan would make the economy worse,” Vice President Kamala Harris claimed during her recent presidential debate against Donald Trump. Harris’s embrace of Goldman Sachs, and vice versa, didn’t arise out of a vacuum, industry sources told the Washington Reporter.
A House Republican operative noted to the Reporter that “Goldman Sachs has carried water for Kamala Harris, who has destroyed our economy and caused 40 year high inflation. Not to mention, it continues to push radical ESG policies. Republicans do not trust Goldman Sachs. Period.”
David Solomon, Goldman’s CEO, pushed back on Harris’s claim after the debate, saying that “the difference between the sets of policies that they've put forward is about two-tenths of 1 percent.”
Click HERE to read more about the Hill’s backlash to Goldman Sachs’s inroads with Kamala Harris’s campaign.
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A strong national defense is essential to protecting our American way of life.
Veterans On Duty continues the fight back at home, advocating for military and national security policies that will keep America safe, strong, and free. |
| [6] | FTC facing lawsuit and criticism over its handling of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs)
By: Matthew Foldi
President Joe Biden’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is facing a lawsuit and heavy criticism from conservatives over the commission’s years-long aggressive action against pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). The FTC continued its actions against PBMs with a lawsuit over insulin prices announced on Friday.
The FTC’s handling of PBMs is only the latest issue where the Lina Khan-controlled FTC has led to legal challenges for the Biden-Harris administration.
The FTC announced an inquiry into PBMs — the companies that are hired by employers and health insurance plans to negotiate with pharmaceutical manufacturers for lower drug costs — in 2022. Health care experts considered the FTC’s action against PBMs unusual because it was a reversal of a decades-long stance by the FTC that PBMs lead to lower drug costs.
Click HERE to read more about the latest legal headaches that FTC Chair Lina Khan is causing the Biden-Harris administration.
| | | | [7] | Op-ed: Derrick Anderson: The southern border has gone from bad to worse, and that’ll hurt my home congressional district
By: Derrick Anderson
I recently had the opportunity to go down to the southern border, specifically Cochise County in Arizona. It reminded me of some of the places I’ve been during my 6 tours overseas, and that’s not a compliment.
In fact, what you see on the news is nothing compared to what’s actually going on down on the border.
I’m running for Congress, and my opponent’s name is Yevgeny Vindman. Some community groups hosted a forum the other night and my opponent — who won’t actually debate — was there.
Click HERE to read more from Derrick Anderson about what he learned from his recent trip to the southern border, and how illegal immigration affects districts around America.
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[8] |
Op-ed: Isabel Soto: Americans can’t afford for telehealth options to expire
By: Isabel Soto
Americans are not as sharply divided as we might think, especially when it comes to addressing the rising costs of health care.
Congress isn’t that divided either, and it has moved forward a bipartisan solution to driving down costs and ensuring access to care.
Millions of Americans rely on telehealth to get the care they need. It is crucial for treating mental health and ensuring access in rural and underserved communities. But telehealth isn’t just for those who otherwise lack access. All Americans are taking advantage of its availability. One in four adults have used telehealth in the last month, and nearly four out of five intend to use it in the future.
But this access could disappear in January if Congress doesn’t act soon.
Click HERE to read more from the LIBRE Initiative’s Isabel Soto on the importance of telehealth for Americans. | | | [9] | Op-ed: Tom Hebert: The United States Trade Representative’s election season stunt
By: Tom Hebert
When faced with the choice of standing up for American companies or colluding with foreign governments to undermine American companies, the Biden-Harris administration has consistently chosen the latter.
The United States Trade Representative’s (USTR) new trade dispute with Canada is a pathetic attempt to paper over the Biden-Harris administration’s failure to stand up for American economic interests abroad. If USTR head Katherine Tai were serious about discouraging foreign freeloading on American success, she would not have waited until three months before the November election to respond.
In a Labor Day weekend news dump, Tai announced that she will request a consultation with Canada under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) about Canada’s discriminatory digital service tax (DST) against American companies. Canada’s DST will siphon more than $5.3 billion from American companies over five years. At least seven other countries have DSTs that target American companies, draining the U.S. tax base and having a ripple effect on hundreds of thousands of American workers and small businesses.
Click HERE to read more from Americans for Tax Reform’s Tom Hebert about the United States Trade Representative’s election year stunt.
| | | | | | | [10] | Op-ed: Sarah Hunt and Amelia Powers Gardner: Americans’ views of AI policy are rare opportunity for bipartisan action now
By: Sarah Hunt and Amelia Powers Gardner
As the United States prepares for the upcoming November election, partisan divisions are hardening. However, according to recent Rainey Center polling, there is a rare bipartisan opportunity in tackling issues related to artificial intelligence (AI) policy: a majority of Americans agree that sensible regulation is needed.
In our polling, we found that 75 percent of respondents believe that AI advancement raises valid security concerns, demonstrating widespread concerns over potential risks. Notably, older voters and college-educated voters are most in alignment regarding their concerns about AI.
Click HERE to read more from Sarah Hunt and Amelia Powers Gardner about policymakers can hardness the potential of artificial intelligence. | |
| [11] | What we're reading
Forbes: ‘Keep Your Mouth Shut’: TikTok Whistleblower Claims Chinese Police Kidnapped And Threatened His Father, by Emily Baker-White.
Washington Free Beacon: 'Significant Confusion,' 'Lack of Supervision,' and 'Delayed Notification': IG Report Skewers State Department's Handling of Robert Malley Suspension, by Adam Kredo.
The Spectator: The academic legacy of Donald J. Harris, by Marc Oestreich.
New York Post: Cuomo personally altered report that lowballed COVID nursing-home deaths, emails show – contradicting his claim to Congress, by Vaughn Golden.
National Review: Hezbollah History Lesson, by Andrew McCarthy.
Washington Examiner: FEC finally rules ‘phantom’ left-wing group filed false financial disclosures in 2020, by Gabe Kaminsky.
CNN: Angela Alsobrooks improperly claimed tax deductions on DC, Maryland properties, records show, by Em Steck.
Washington Free Beacon: US Trade With Iran Jumped Last Year as Tehran Wreaked Havoc Across Middle East, State Department Report Shows, by Adam Kredo.
New York Post: Kamala Harris’ tax plan would cost nearly 800K jobs: analysis, by Josh Christenson.
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We created the Washington Reporter to give Republicans in Congress an outlet for insights to help you succeed, and to cover the toughest policy fights that don't get the attention they deserve. We hope you'll send us tips, story ideas, and feedback–and please subscribe.
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