The Senate is expected to begin voting this morning on a bill to fund ICE and the Border Patrol.
Trump is touting the progress of the restoration of the reflecting pool outside the Lincoln Memorial as he continues to try to make his mark on the nation’s capital. The National Capital Planning Commission is scheduled to discuss the president’s plan for what he calls a “triumphal arch” but a veterans group is suing to stop construction, arguing it would block the view of nearby landmarks. NBC News’ Gabe Gutierrez reports for “TODAY.”
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent at a congressional hearing whether the IRS has recommended “any taxpayer be granted immunity from an audit for their taxes” during Bessent’s time as secretary.
Bessent declined to answer, pointing to ongoing litigation.
Doggett pressed him again, asking whether the Treasury Department ordinarily offers taxpayer audit immunity.
Trump and his family and businesses were granted immunity by his administration from government claims related to their taxes as part of their settlement in his lawsuit against the IRS following the leak of their tax returns several years ago.
Bessent declined to answer Doggett’s question.
A re-arraignment has been scheduled for former national security adviser John Bolton in federal court in Maryland on June 26, an indication he may be changing his plea.
Bolton already pleaded not guilty last year to eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of unlawful retention of that information.
He faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine per count, and three years of special release.
Betting activity by disgraced former Rep. George Santos on the prediction market Kalshi has been flagged to federal authorities, according to two sources familiar with the investigation.
Kalshi alerted the Justice Department about bets Santos placed regarding his attendance at Trump’s State of the Union address in February, according to the sources, who were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The prediction market company also alerted officials at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, according to one of the sources.
Santos, 37, told his millions of followers on X that he planned to attend the speech — one of many events drawing online bettors at the time.
“I’m gonna be in the gallery,” he saiin a video on X.
Read the full story here.
Trump is expected to announce today that his administration will pour about $700 million into coal projects, according to a White House official.
It comes as the administration tries to tackle rising energy costs amid the Iran war.
Trump is expected to announce he’s using the Defense Production Act for some of the funding, according to the White House official. Lawmakers and governors from coal-rich states, including Wyoming and West Virginia, have been invited to the White House today for the 3 p.m. event.
This was first reported by Bloomberg.
Trump injected fresh uncertainty over the status and future of the “anti-weaponization” fund today, a day after acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department would no longer pursue the $1.8 billion fund, which has sparked bipartisan blowback.
Asked in the Oval Office whether the fund was dead or just on hold, Trump responded: “I’d have to ask the lawyers. I don’t know.”
“The weaponization fund, as far as I’m concerned, was a beautiful thing,” he told reporters. “I love it. I think it’s so important.”
Read the full story here
Trump criticized a group of Republicans who sided with Democrats yesterday to pass an Iran war powers resolution, which would call for the president to seek congressional approval for any future military action against Iran.
The measure does not require Trump to end a war, but it showed lawmakers’ disapproval of the administration’s actions.
“Yesterday, in a meaningless vote, the House voted, 4 bad Republicans and all of the Dumocrats, to limit my War Powers, right in the middle of my final negotiations to end the War with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “Who would do such an unpatriotic thing.”
Trump accused the Democrats of preferring “our Country fail than give me another, of many, victories.”
“The four Republicans, that’s a whole other story — They’re GRANDSTANDERS! They should be ashamed of themselves,” he added.
The four Republicans who voted for the resolution were Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Tom Barrett of Michigan and Warren Davidson of Ohio.
The House voted yesterday to advance legislation to provide aid to Ukraine, setting up a final passage vote today.
The vote took place under a “discharge petition,” a parliamentary tool that allows members to force votes on legislation so long as a majority of the House signs on to the measure. The maneuver is used to advance legislation that House majority leadership does not want to put to a vote.
Six Republicans and independent Rep. Kevin Kiley of California joined Democrats in the 218-204 vote. The measure, the Ukraine Support Act, is sponsored by Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee. It would establish a reconstruction fund for Ukraine and impose additional penalties on Russia, among other provisions.
The bill is expected to pass in the House, but it would have an uphill battle in the Senate, where 60 votes are needed to advance most bills. Republicans hold a 53-47 advantage in the chamber.
Senate Democrats are telegraphing the kinds of amendments they plan to force votes on during the vote-a-rama today, saying the first amendment they will introduce is related to the Justice Department’s so-called ‘anti-weaponization’ fund.
Democrats will also focus on the IRS settlement with Trump that led to the proposed fund as well as oversight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a Schumer spokesperson said.
“Vote after vote, they’ll put Republicans on record: Will Republicans stand for American families, or will they enable Trump’s corruption?” the spokesperson said.
The House offered a rare rebuke to Trump yesterday, passing a Democratic-led measure to end his war with Iran over objections from Republican leadership.
It was one of two Democratic-led measures opposed by the White House that advanced in the House.
The Iran war powers resolution, offered by Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, had been heading for a vote before the GOP-led House left for its Memorial Day recess May 21. But it was abruptly pulled from the floor when it appeared that too many Republicans were absent to defeat it.
The measure passed in a 215-208, with four Republicans joining all Democrats in voting yes.
Read the full story here.
California’s crowded, protracted gubernatorial primary remains too early to call this morning with more than half of the expected vote counted, according to NBC News’ Decision Desk.
Three main candidates — former Fox News host Steve Hilton, a Republican, and two Democrats, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and billionaire activist Tom Steyer — are competing for two spots in the general election, with the candidate in fourth place, Republican Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, running well behind.
Read the full story here.
The Senate is expected to begin voting on amendments this morning to a bill that would fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol.
Senators can offer an unlimited number of amendments, known as a vote-a-rama, and it’s unclear how long the voting will take.
Most of the amendments are expected to come from Democratic senators. The amendment process will culminate with a vote to pass the bill, which would then go to the House for consideration.
Trump will nominate his acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, to be the country’s permanent top prosecutor today, he said at a private event at the White House yesterday evening.
Dan Scavino, the White House deputy chief of staff, posted a video last night of Trump announcing Blanche’s nomination as he spoke in the Rose Garden.
Read the full story here.
NBC News
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