Tipsheet: GOP praises, Dems question tax-cut boost in paychecks

View in your browser     GOP praises, Dems question tax-cut boost in paychecks By Naomi Jagoda   Taxpayers are starting to see bigger paychecks as a result of the new tax law, which Republicans hope will pay off for them in the midterm elections. Democrats warn that Republicans may be overpromising, and have expressed concerns that a number of taxpayers expecting refunds may instead end up owing the IRS money next year. Read the full story here     EPA chief’s questions about climate science draw new scrutiny By Timothy Cama Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Scott Pruitt is getting bolder in questioning climate change. Read the full story here     Rand Paul revels in role of Senate troublemaker By Alexander Bolton   Rand Paul seems to revel in frustrating fellow members of the Senate — and that makes his blatant disregard for the chamber’s chummy protocols even more infuriating to them. Read the full story here       White House aide who resigned after abuse allegations denies claims, says he was victim By Rebecca Savransky A second White House staffer who abruptly resigned this week after allegations of past domestic abuse has denied the claims, asserting he was the victim of the abuse. Read the full story here     Gillibrand: If Trump wants due process, we'll have hearings on allegations against him By Jacqueline Thomsen Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) went after President Trump on Saturday for his tweet questioning a lack of "due process" in abuse claims, saying that Congress could hold hearings about sexual misconduct allegations against him if he wanted due process. Read the full story here     Railroad agency chief abruptly resigns over employment record scrutiny By John Bowden The acting head of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has resigned after it was reported that he was simultaneously working for a media consulting firm. Read the full story here     Explained: How the secret spy court really works By Katie Bo Williams The allegations of surveillance abuse raised by House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) hinge on a 1978 law that governs surveillance for the purposes of foreign intelligence. Read the full story here     What is obstruction of justice? By Lydia Wheeler Special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into whether President Trump’s campaign colluded with Russia to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election has expanded to whether Trump himself obstructed justice.  Read the full story here     Trump: ‘Republicans want to fix DACA far more than the Democrats do’ By Max Greenwood President Trump claimed Saturday that Republican lawmakers are far more eager to address protections for young immigrants than Democrats, accusing them of seizing on the issue for political gain. Read the full story here     Jeanine Pirro has discussed book rebutting 'Fire and Fury' with Trump: report By Max Greenwood Fox News host Jeanine Pirro has talked with President Trump about the possibility of a book that would be aimed at countering New York media writer Michael Wolff's "Fire and Fury." Read the full story here     The winning path forward for Democrats is bipartisanship By Douglas Schoen OPINION | The Democrats are playing blame game politics, using every opportunity to grab attention and position themselves to appear morally superior to the Republicans.  Read the full story here     Let's not wait for a crippling cyberattack before we strengthen the grid By Michael Curley OPINION | “Grid emergency” is not a household term. At least, not yet. A grid emergency is an event that threatens to shut down all electric power in a specific area, which could be a few states or the entire country. Read the full story here     The New York Times: GOP squirms as Trump veers off script with abuse remarks By Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns President Trump’s approval ratings have been nudging upward and his party’s political standing is improving, but the president’s unceasing habit of making inflammatory and insensitive remarks is galvanizing opposition against him — especially from women — that could smother Republican momentum going into the midterm campaign. Read the full story here     The Associated Press: White House response to abuse claims shines light on victims’ fears By Juliet Linderman When Jennifer Willoughby and Colbie Holderness stepped forward to tell the story of how they were physically, verbally and emotionally abused by their ex-husband, who had since become a top White House aide, President Donald Trump had nothing but good things to say about the man they had accused of domestic violence. Read the full story here     Reuters: Trump says Democratic memo on Russia is 'very political,' needs redactions By Reuters staff A classified memo by congressional Democrats related to investigations of Russian influence in the 2016 U.S. presidential election is “very political and long” and must be “heavily redacted” before it could be released, President Donald Trump said on Twitter on Saturday. Read the full story here     The Washington Post: In fun-house mirrors of Trump White House, disarray can look like victory By Marc Fisher   For a president who often sees himself as standing tall against powerful forces that only want him to fail, things were looking up. The tax cuts were selling well, he had gotten credit for a pretty good State of the Union address, employment numbers were good, and his approval rating was improving. Read the full story here     CNN: Senator seeking admin records on Trump's sale of Palm Beach mansion to Russian By Katelyn Polantz and Marshall Cohen   A senator is asking the Treasury Department to turn over records of a lucrative real estate sale Donald Trump made to a Russian billionaire as the Senate Finance Committee looks into Trump's ties to Russians. Read the full story here         Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for The Hill Tipsheet       Forward this Tipsheet     You might like         Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.