It's Monday. Can you believe it is *still* January? Oh, and Super Bowl LIX has been set! - Trump will appear at House Republicans' Florida retreat today.
- What's on their agenda?
- Explainer on the brief, almost-trade war between the U.S. and Colombia.
- Trump's three most controversial nominees are in the hot seat this week.
I'm Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what's coming up. Send tips & feedback to cmartel@thehill.com. Someone forward this to you? Sign up. |
Let's chat about this over some vitamin D: |
House Republicans have ditched the cold and are meeting near Miami — at where else but the Trump National Doral — for their annual strategy session. What's top of mind?: Republicans are debating what should be included in their highly anticipated reconciliation bill. They will soon have to come up with a topline number for this package. (Reminder: A reconciliation bill is a way for Republicans to avoid the filibuster. However, it can only involve proposals that affect spending or revenue levels..) No pressure, but: Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has said he wants to begin the reconciliation process during the week of Feb. 27, which would be an incredibly tight timeline. Plus: There's an upcoming government funding deadline on March 14. Oh, and they will likely have to deal with the debt limit this summer. Both issues are expected to be … challenging … to say the least. The main event: Trump will speak to the caucus this afternoon and then join them for dinner this evening. 💡 Why this matters: Republicans have a hefty task of keeping their caucus unified in how to juggle competing policy priorities. This is a three-day stretch for them to get on the same page. |
If you blinked, you may have missed an almost-trade war: |
So, since we last talked Friday, there was a brief specter of trade war between the U.S. and Colombia … I'll start from the beginning: The Trump administration has begun deporting undocumented immigrants using U.S. military planes. Colombia refused to accept planes that were carrying deported immigrants. Trump then responded by immediately slapping 25 percent tariffs on all Colombian goods coming into the U.S. and instituted a travel ban. Then Colombia fought back: Colombian President Gustavo Petro then matched Trump's tariffs, threatening to raise the fee on imports from the U.S. by 25 percent. What products this could affect in the U.S.: The prices of coffee, flowers, crude oil, bananas and avocados. (Flowers could have been an issue, considering we're only a few weeks out from Valentine's Day. 👀) By the end of the day: The U.S and Colombia came to an agreement by Sunday evening and ended the daylong feud. There are no tariffs implemented. 💡 For context: U.S.-Colombia trade is VERY important for Colombia but so-so for the U.S. "The United States is Colombia's largest trading partner, but Colombian products make up a relatively minor share of U.S. imports. Some Colombian products are much more exposed than others." The U.S. would likely feel some pain from the crude oil imports, but it wouldn't be catastrophic. (The New York Times) |
Trump purged independent watchdogs: |
President Trump fired more than a dozen inspectors general over the weekend, whose jobs were to root out abuse of power, fraud and waste. This is legally questionable: As The Washington Post pointed out, this may be a violation of federal law because the president is required to give a 30-day notice. Trump defended the decision: "It's a very common thing to do," Trump argued to reporters while traveling on Air Force One to Florida. Keep in mind: It's not unusual for a president to replace an inspector general, but this level of purge is unusual. It ruffled some feathers: Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) accused Trump of breaking the law. Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she didn't understand the president's rationale. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) defended his decision but conceded that Trump should have noticed Congress 30 days beforehand. |
Sooo, what's the plan here?: |
"Democrats are sounding the alarm over President Trump's move to freeze funding approved in two of former President Biden's signature laws," reports The Hill's Aris Folley and Rachel Frazin. What did Trump do?: "Trump issued an executive order pausing the disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law." The reaction: "Democrats say Trump's order appears to violate a law called the Impoundment Control Act (ICA), which lays out limits on how much power a president has to restrict funding approved by Congress. … Republicans, meanwhile, are dismissing the attacks, defending Trump's moves as within his powers as president while also noting plans to yank back some of the funding anyway." Read more: 'Trump's move to freeze Biden-approved funding draws howls from Democrats' |
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Let's hear from all of you at the same time: |
Republicans have stacked confirmation hearings for three of President Trump's most controversial nominees this week. 🟥 Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: Trump's nominee to be HHS secretary will appear Wednesday before the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on Thursday. His vaccine skepticism is a major point of contention. 🟥 Kash Patel: Trump's pick to head the FBI will field questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday. Patel's comments about the "deep state" have concerned some lawmakers about his goal to gut the FBI headquarters. 🟥 Tulsi Gabbard: Trump's controversial pick to be the director of national intelligence will testify Thursday before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Gabbard has the toughest path to confirmation over some controversial stances — specifically, comments she's made about the Russia-Ukraine war and her 2017 visit with former Syrian leader Bashar Assad. Keep in mind that she can't lose a single vote on the Intelligence Committee. Read more: 'Gabbard's path through Intelligence Committee narrows ahead of key hearing' | The Senate is expected to confirm Trump's Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent at 5:30 p.m. |
➤ TIDBIT — KRISTI NOEM LEFT VANCE WAITING: |
Newly confirmed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem showed up late for her swearing-in ceremony on Sunday. Vice President Vance waited for nearly half an hour before leaving. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas ended up doing the ceremony at his home. |
The U.S. stock market is concerned about China's AI: |
"Shares in major technology companies leading the artificial intelligence (AI) race took a tumble Monday morning amid investor concern about a new Chinese AI model with growing popularity," reports The Hill's Julia Shapero. Keep in mind: "The investor panic follows the release of a new AI model from Chinese startup DeepSeek. The model has quickly gained popularity in recent days, rising to the top of Apple's App Store and overtaking OpenAI's ChatGPT." |
🎂 Celebrate: Today is National Chocolate Cake Day! 🥩 Can we not find a more appetizing description than 'meat sticks?': The Wall Street Journal's Jennifer Williams reports on how shelf-stable meat sticks are having a resurgence. Don't think Slim Jim vibes. Think … Chomps. Read: 'America's $3 Billion Habit: Meat Sticks' 👔 Doug Emhoff's work situation: Former second gentleman Doug Emhoff is returning to his career as a private attorney. He joined Willkie Farr & Gallagher as a partner and will split his time between Los Angeles and New York. |
The House is out. The Senate is in. President Trump is in Miami. (all times Eastern) |
- 3 p.m.: Trump speaks at the House Republican Issues Conference in Doral, Fla. 💻 Livestream
- 5:30 p.m.: The Senate holds two votes, one to confirm Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent and another to end debate on Sean Duffy to be Transportation secretary. 📆 Today's agenda
- Tuesday: The Hill's Emily Brooks interviews Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) during a fireside chat at the House Republican retreat in Miami.
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