Ron Wyden

It becomes a Schumer shutdown at this point

Republicans are using terms such as “money laundering” and “discrimination” to make their case.

Last year, the IRS Martinsburg site was “viewed as a high priority.” Now, under the Trump administration, it's “functionally obsolete.”The post It’s Tax Season — The Perfect Time for Trump to Sell This “Critical” IRS Computing Center appeared first on The Intercept.

A Democratic boycott is developing ahead of President Trump's address to Congress on Tuesday, Axios has learned.Why it matters: Democratic leaders have asked lawmakers to show up to the speech with people affected by DOGE and Trump's federal funding freeze.Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), one of the most senior Democrats in the Senate, will not attend Trump's speech on Tuesday, Axios has learnedNeither will Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who will instead host an online town hall.The big picture: Democrats on Capitol Hill are split on how to best handle Trump's first big address to Congress of his second term.They have a guest list that they hope will showcase what they argue are the harms of Trump's first month in office. But other Democrats told us last week that they saw no reason to participate in the speech. Go deeper: Fuming Democrats struggle with Trump speech strategy

Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced that the upper chamber will move forward with a vote on a budget proposal focused on border security, defense and energy.

If successful, Musk and his group would have access to millions of tightly controlled files that include taxpayer information, bank records and other sensitive records.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the NIH research funding cuts, but OHSU doctors and leaders say the cuts would damage research projects and force cutbacks.

President Donald Trump, along with co-President Elon Musk and his DOGE minions, is reportedly planning to lay off thousands of Internal Revenue Service agents. And guess which ones? The tax collectors who work to make sure that the wealthy pay their fair share.The Washington Post reports that, at least initially, Musk and Trump are looking to cut around 9,000 new agents. This would jibe with similar reports that DOGE is targeting news hires with fewer legal labor protections, including hundreds of workers at the National Cancer Institute.”My office is hearing that DOGE is now at the IRS. That means Musk's henchmen are in a position to dig through a trove of data about every taxpayer in America. And if your refund is delayed, they could very well be the reason,” Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon posted on X the day before this announcement.And not only is the IRS being downsized, but there are also plans to turn the department’s agents into deportation police. Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem asked the Treasury Department to deputize IRS investigators for this very purpose.The GOP and its billionaire donor overlords have been trying to decimate the IRS for years. House Republicans like Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Chip Roy of Texas have tried to attack IRS workers with threats of Oversight Committee hearings and the stripping away of civil service protections.Under the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, the IRS received more money than it had in years. That funding came with a mandate to modernize systems and to go after the uber-wealthy corporations and individuals who frequently exploit loopholes, leveraging their resources to get out of paying even the most meager rates. Last year, the agency reported that it had successfully collected more than $1 billion from wealthy tax cheats. In January, as the GOP-led Congress threatened to cut its funding, the IRS announced that it had brought in an additional $360 million from wealthy tax dodgers.In recent days, many have wondered how Musk’s Tesla, which has boasted billions in profit since 2020, paid 0% in taxes in 2024, 1.4% in 2023, and 0% in 2022—yet is valued at more than $1 trillion.Musk famously moved his homes and Tesla operation from California to Texas, which allowed him to dodge an estimated $2.4 billion in taxes on profits he generated for years in California.

President Trump supercharged his overhaul of government agencies this week that included a fresh round of a widespread firings. Trump signed an order this week indicating agency heads initiate large scale “reductions in force,” also known as RIFs, as part of implementing initiatives spearheaded by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The order targets [...]

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) makes the announcement on social media.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department’s Office of Inspector General on Friday said it was launching an audit of the security controls for the federal government’s payment system, after Democratic senators raised red flags about the access provided to Trump aide Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency team.

Last week, the Senate Finance Committee voted along party lines to advance Kennedy to a full Senate floor vote, which could happen this week.

Letter writers discuss Elon Musk's DOGE actions, taking over Greenland, and Donald Trump's executive orders.

The United States should be a 'country of producers,' says Jamieson Greer.

An attempt to identify and explain some of the biggest things that happened each week, and draw attention to some that have been overlooked.

Some Republicans have long urged Treasury to choose which bills to pay when the debt ceiling gets close to being breached. Elon Musk’s DOGE could let them do it.

WASHINGTON — The Department of Government Efficiency, run by President Donald Trump’s billionaire adviser and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, has gained access to sensitive Treasury data including Social Security and Medicare customer payment systems, according to two people familiar with the situation.

Samoa’s top health official has denounced as “a complete lie” remarks that Robert F.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green wants Sen. John Curtis to vote against RFK Jr., Trump's HHS secretary nominee. Here's why.

Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency have been granted access to a sensitive Treasury Department payment system containing personal data of millions of Americans receiving tax refunds, Medicare, Social Security and other payments from the federal government.How Did This $6 Trillion Agency Fall Under Musk’s Purview? According to the New York Times, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent approved the access late Friday, which coincided with the resignation of David Lebryk, a career Treasury official who clashed with DOGE over the system. The Bureau of Fiscal Service, normally run by civil servants, processes over $6 trillion annually.Democrats Are FuriousSen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee sent a letter on Monday to Bessent demanding answers, calling Musk's "meddling” with a system that processes trillions in transactions "extraordinarily dangerous.""I am alarmed that as one of your first acts as Secretary, you appear to have handed over a ...Full story available on Benzinga.com

News comes after departure of Treasury's acting Deputy Secretary David Lebryk after more than 30 years of service.

Elon Musk and his cost-slashing allies are taking a hammer to the massive bureaucracy that staffs the U.S. government — and a scalpel to any senior officials who dare put up a fight.Why it matters: Musk isn't the only force driving the Trump administration's escalating purge of civil servants. But his fingerprints are everywhere, and his methods are unlike anything the federal government has ever seen.Zoom in: Musk and his lieutenants — many of them Silicon Valley transplants, some as young as 19 — have been tied to a series of high-profile departures and ousters at the top of key federal agencies.The Treasury Department's highest-ranking career official announced his retirement Friday after a dispute with Musk allies who sought access to a sensitive system for government payments, The Washington Post scooped.David Lebryk, who worked at Treasury for more than three decades, was one of a few career officials who control the Bureau of Fiscal Service's technical checkbook, which disburses trillions of dollars in spending."Truly a shocking move — Dave is a total apolitical professional who's been trusted by Treasury secretaries from both parties to maintain the critical financial plumbing of the U.S. govt," Biden Treasury official Mike Gwin tweeted in response to the news.By late Friday, Musk's allies at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) had been granted full access to the payment system by newly confirmed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, according to the New York Times."Career Treasury officials are breaking the law every hour of every day by approving payments that are fraudulent or do not match the funding laws passed by Congress," Musk claimed Saturday. "This needs to stop NOW!""I can think of no good reason why political operators who have demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law would need access to these sensitive, mission-critical systems," Senate Finance ranking member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote in a letter demanding answers from Bessent. Screenshot via XThe pattern repeated itself at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which Trump could be preparing to fold into the State Department — openly defying a congressional statute.A top HR official at USAID, which has become the epicenter of a vicious debate over foreign aid, was placed on administrative leave Thursday for trying to rescind a DOGE order purging career officials, the Post reports.On Saturday, two top security officials also were put on leave after trying to stop Musk allies from physically accessing USAID headquarters and personnel files, including classified information."USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die," Musk tweeted in response to reports of the confrontation.Behind the scenes: So far, the White House appears pleased with Musk's foray into the inner workings of the government, seeing his efforts as aligned with Trump's broader goals of disrupting D.C.'s status quo."Elon's top interest outside of DOGE is making sure the president's orders are acted upon," a senior White House official told Axios. "Elon is the ultimate command-and-control guy. He's making sure there's a sense of urgency in the agencies.""What Elon's doing is great because he's an innovative businessman bringing business innovation to bear in government. That's why he's here," the official added.But political risks are inherent in Musk's whirlwind takeover of federal agencies, especially when they intersect with his business interests.Democrats have accused Musk of pressuring former Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) head Mike Whitaker to resign Jan. 20 over $600,000 in fines the agency levied against Musk's SpaceX.Whitaker's departure left the FAA without a leader during Wednesday night's in-air collision near Reagan National Airport — the deadliest U.S. air disaster since 2001. Trump named Chris Rocheleau as FAA acting administrator the next day.The big picture: Musk hasn't slowed down since helping orchestrate last week's stunning offer of "deferred resignations" for 2 million federal workers, which came days after he visited the Office of Personnel Management.Musk allies installed at the OPM have locked career officials out of computer systems that contain the personal data of millions of federal workers, Reuters reported Friday.What we're watching: Musk paid a visit last week to what's likely to be his next target: the General Services Administration, which oversees thousands of government leases as part of its massive budget."Deleted," Musk responded bluntly to an X post highlighting the billions of dollars and thousands of federal workers under GSA's control.

The Department of Government Efficiency, led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, has reportedly gained access to the Treasury Department's payment system.

Facing more than a dozen questions about her views on NSA leaker Edward Snowden, Tulsi Gabbard held her ground.The post Tulsi Gabbard Refused to Back Down On Edward Snowden. It Could Tank Her Nomination. appeared first on The Intercept.

RFK Jr. is back on the Hill for a second day of testimony, this time before a different Senate committee, after a first round that was contentious but saw no GOP defections.

Kennedy said his goal, should he clear the nomination process, is to execute the president’s directive to “make America healthy again" and end a “chronic disease epidemic" by focusing on nutrition and healthier lifestyles. Kennedy stated flatly that he is not anti-vaccine.

The key takeaways from Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation hearing before senators to be Trump's health secretary, which touched on abortion and vaccines.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. scrambled to fend off tough questions about his record of anti-vaccine statements, food safety, abortion rights and government health programs as he started two days of Senate hearings on his bid to become President Trump’s Secretary...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., was pressed to clarify his views on vaccines, abortion and public health priorities in the first of two senate hearings as he tries to make the case to become President Donald Trump’s health secretary. Kennedy is...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was pressed to clarify his views on vaccines, abortion and public health priorities in the first of two senate hearings as he tries to make the case to become President Donald Trump’s health secretary.

After 40 years of C-SPAN, Flood, Wyden call on networks to broaden streaming access to C-SPAN.

Werfel’s term was not scheduled to end until 2027.

IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel says he intends to step down from his position on President-elect Donald Trump’s Inauguration Day.

The president-elect's proposed new agency was mocked because it duplicates what's already being done by other government agencies.

The creation of a new agency requires an act of Congress.

One of the most powerful parts of President Joe Biden’s signature climate law was designed to attract support from such a wide array of industries that it would be hard for Congress to repeal. Now, that theory is about to be tested.

Welcome to the December 2024 issue of “As the (Customs and Trade) World Turns,” our monthly newsletter where we compile essential updates from the customs and trade world over the past month. We bring you the most recent and significant insights in an accessible format, concluding with our main takeaways — aka “And the Fox Says...” — on what you need to know.This edition offers crucial insights for sectors such as Automotive, E-Commerce, Energy and Cleantech, Fashion and Retail, Manufacturing, and Technology, as well as for in-house counsel, compliance processionals, and importers.In this December 2024 edition, we cover:1. Trump’s trade team appointments signal a return to tariffs and protectionism.2. Forced labor enforcement expands with new UFLPA additions and global legislative efforts.3. Anticipated changes to the de minimis program could reshape import strategies.4. US steel industry lobbies for increased tariffs and trade protections.5. Upcoming USMCA review under... Read the complete article here...© 2024 ArentFox Schiff LLP

Sen. Tom Cotton was doubly — triply, quadruply — wrong when he said this week of proposed federal legislation protecting press freedoms: “The liberal media doesn’t deserve more protections.”

Tax collections announced Thursday include $1.3 billion from high-income taxpayers who did not pay overdue tax debts, $2.9 billion related to IRS Criminal Investigation work into crimes like drug trafficking and terrorist financing, and $475 million in proceeds from criminal and civil cases that came from to whistleblower information.

IRS leadership on Thursday announced that the agency has recovered $4.7 billion in back taxes and proceeds from a variety of crimes.

On Wednesday, Donald Trump nominated former Rep. Billy Long to chair the Internal Revenue Service, a Missouri Republican who tried to abolish the tax-collecting agency while serving in Congress.Long was a cosponsor of the Fair Tax Act, a bill that would abolish income taxes and instead implement a whopping 23% sales tax—a regressive tax that the Tax Policy Center said would lead to a tax increase on the middle class and a massive cut for the wealthiest Americans. The bill Long co-sponsored also sought to repeal the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, which gives Congress the power to create and collect income taxes, and ultimately would abolish the IRS entirely.

The president-elect named former Rep. Billy Long as his choice to lead the Internal Revenue Service.

'Encryption is your friend,' CISA official Jeff Greene says.

Lori Chavez-DeRemer has a labor-friendly record that’s scaring Republicans but could win her Democratic support.

A House-passed bill to reform aspects of Social Security is lingering in the Senate as questions bubble up over its path forward. The House approved the bill — which would do away with rules backers say have led to unfair reductions in benefits for some who have worked in public service — by a wide [...]

A quartet of U.S. Senators from both sides of the aisle have introduced new legislation aimed at helping healthcare organizations weather the onslaught of ransomware and other cyberattacks.WHY IT MATTERSThe new bill, The Health Care Cybersecurity and Resiliency Act of 2024, was introduced by HELP Committee ranking member Dr. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, along with Sens. Mark Warner D-Virginia; John Cornyn, R-Texas; and Maggie Hassan, D-New Hampshire."This bipartisan legislation ensures health institutions can safeguard Americans’ health data against increasing cyber threats," said Cassidy in a press statement.All of those senators are members of a healthcare cybersecurity working group that was formed on Capitol Hill a year ago, and the provisions of this legislation arise from their discussions there.Among other requirements, the Cybersecurity and Resiliency Act would offer grants to healthcare organizations to help them shore up their ability to prevent and respond to cyberattacks, in addition to funding training to help foster cybersecurity best practices. In particular, the grants would be targeted at underserved communities, to help rural health clinics and other providers improve basic cyber hygiene, boost resilience and improve coordination with federal agencies.The bill also calls for better coordination between the Department of Health and Human Services and the Homeland Security department's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to better respond to healthcare's cybersecurity needs.On the policy front, the act would call for updates and modernization to existing regulations governing HIPAA covered entities – requiring them and their business associates to adhere to certain baseline standards and "use modern, up-to-date cybersecurity practices – and it would require the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to create and implement a cybersecurity incident response plan.THE LARGER TRENDCassidy, Warner, Cornyn and Hassan convened the Senate Health Care Cybersecurity Working Group in November 2023 in response to the "disturbing rise in cyberattacks" on healthcare organizations, as Cassidy said at the time, noting that a then record 89 million Americans had seen their health information breached in 2023 – twice as many as the year before.Those attacks cost $10 million per breach, on average. Worse, they can often disrupt care delivery for days or even weeks, posing significant risks to patient safety."Cyberattacks on our healthcare systems and organizations not only threaten personal and sensitive information, but can have life-and-death consequences with even the briefest period of interruption," said Warner. "I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation that strengthens our cybersecurity and better protects patients."Rural hospitals, under-resourced and understaffed, are particularly vulnerable. (The White House, along with Big Tech giants Google and Microsoft, have offered funding and expertise to help them.)As the ongoing scourge of healthcare cyberattacks reaches "epidemic proportions," federal leaders are advocating for increased public-private collaboration and layered defense approaches to help health systems strengthen and stabilize their security postures and improve their responsiveness.Meanwhile, other legislation has been proposed in response to the cybersecurity crisis. Earlier this fall, Warner, along with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, unveiled a separate Finance Committee bill, the Health Infrastructure Security and Accountability Act, which would also increase funding to rural and underserved hospitals to help them meet certain mandated cybersecurity protocols.ON THE RECORD "Cyberattacks in the healthcare sector can have a wide range of devastating consequences, from exposing private medical information to disrupting care in ERs – and it can be particularly difficult for medical providers in rural communities with fewer resources to prevent and respond to these attacks," said Hassan in a statement. "Our bipartisan working group came together to develop this legislation based on the most pressing needs for medical providers and patients, and I urge my colleagues to support it.""In an increasingly digital world, it is essential that Americans’ healthcare data is protected," added Cornyn. "This commonsense legislation would modernize our healthcare institutions’ cybersecurity practices, increase agency coordination, and provide tools for rural providers to prevent and respond to cyberattacks." Mike Miliard is executive editor of Healthcare IT NewsEmail the writer: [email protected] IT News is a HIMSS publication. Enterprise Taxonomy: Cybersecurity and PrivacySecurityLegislationComplianceHIPAAData and InformationPublic Policy

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden gave his stance on President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet picks so far and how the proposed tariffs would affect trade-dependent Oregon.