Washington Today

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says there is an opportunity for a "big deal" between the U.S. and China to "rebalance" on trade and make China less dependent on manufacturing exports; Treasury Secretary also calling for the International Monetary Fund to focus on its core missions of economic stability and development and less on things like climate change; Supreme Court hears a case about whether fuel producers can sue the EPA over its letting California impose more stringent vehicle emission standards than federal standards to transition from gas to electric car; President Trump accuses Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of 'inflammatory statements' that 'would do nothing but prolong' the war with Russia, after Zelensky said his country cannot recognize Russian control of Crimea; Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick at the annual Holocaust Days of Remembrance ceremony in Washington says the President will always stand by Israel and the Jewish people; Vice President JD Vance speaks about being one of the final public officials to meet with Pope Francis before he died; Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Minority Whip, says he will not run for reelection in 2026, retiring after 44 years of service in the U.S. House and Senate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Supreme Court hears a case on whether parents can object on freedom of religion grounds to their children having to be part of a public school curriculum that includes with LGBTQ+ characters; Education Secretary Linda McMahon responds to Harvard University's lawsuit against the Trump Administration, which has withheld billions of dollars in grants; International Monetary Fund cuts economic growth projections for the U.S., China and most of the world in the face of trade disputes launched by President Trump's tariffs; Vice President JD Vance in India says progress is being made on a U.S.-India trade deal to avoid tariffs; Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announces the intent to ban petroleum-based food dyes; Earth Day messages from EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump and others on death of Pope Francis; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth calls the New York Times story claiming he shared sensitive military attack information in a second unsecure chat on the Signal App 'anonymous smears'; four House Democrats travel to El Salvador to call for the release and return to the U.S. deported accused gang member Kilmar Abrego Garcia; Supreme Court hears a case challenging a task force in the Health & Human Services Dept that decided want preventive health services must be covered by private insurance under the Affordable Care Act; Stocks fall again over concerns about tariffs and President Trump today demanding the Federal Reserve cut interest rates immediately, calling Fed Chair Jerome Powell a 'loser; former President Clinton at a ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of the deadly Oklahoma City terrorist bombing calls for national unity that follows the 'Oklahoma Standard'. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First: a conversation with Axios Senior Political reporter Alex Isenstadt about his new book "Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power." Then we speak with Lingling Wei, chief China correspondent for the Wall Street Journal -- about the brewing trade war between the U.S. and China and the impact of retaliatory tariffs. Plus: with TAX DAY earlier this week – a discussion about tax fairness and future of the Trump tax cuts with Pete Sepp of the National Taxpayers Union and David Kass of Americans for Tax Fairness Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) returns to the U.S. after meeting Kilmar Abrego Garcia in a El Salvadorian prison, as President Trump again calls Garcia a violent gang member who deserved to be deported; Dr. Mehmet Oz is sworn in as CMS Administrator, pledging to deliver great care to the American people, but warning that involves facing some truths, including healthcare spending is growing faster than the economy and that is unsustainable; Secretary of State Marco Rubio says U.S. may be ready to "move on" from efforts to reach a Russia-Ukraine war peace deal if there is not progress in the coming days; Vice President JD Vance is in Rome meeting with the Italian PM and attending Good Friday services at The Vatican. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mass shooting at Florida State University in Tallahassee; President Donald Trump meets Italian PM Georgia Meloni at the White House to discuss trade and tariffs;President Trump is asked about his social media post that Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell's "termination cannot come fast enough", after the Fed Chair said that larger than expected tariffs may cause difficult economic conditions that do not warrant interest rate cuts; President Trump's tariffs are dominating the Canadian national elections debate. We will talk about the state of that race with Reuters Canadian Correspondent David Ljunggren (27); Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) says he tried to visit Kilmar Abrego Garcia in the El Salvador prison he was deported to from the U.S., but was denied; Supreme Court says it will hear oral argument next month in a case challenging President Trump’s executive order to end 14th Amendment birthright citizenship for the children of people in the U.S. illegally; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attends Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Myer's reenlistment into the U.S. Marines. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says President Donald Trump's tariff increases are larger "significantly larger than anticipated" and "same is likely to be true of the economic effects, which will include higher inflation and slower growth"; Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) announces the first lawsuit against the Trump Administration over tariffs, challenging the President's use of emergency declarations as the legal basis; Attorney General Pam Bondi announces a federal lawsuit against the state of Maine for not complying with the President's Executive Order banning transgender athletes in girl's and women's sports; Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said the increase in autism rates in children is evidence of an epidemic, contradicting the finding of a CDC study that pointed to increased awareness and better diagnosis; federal judge James Boasberg finds “probable cause exists” to hold Trump administration officials in criminal contempt for violating his orders to stop the use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members; Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) travels to El Salvador to try to free Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was deported there, accused of being a gang member; President Trump has ordered the military into a new, enhanced role on border security, turning a narrow strip of land running along the U.S.-Mexico border into a de facto military base. we will talk about it with Military-dot-com reporter Thomas Novelly. (38) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump suggests Harvard Univ lose its tax-exempt status after the school refuses to comply with Administration's demands, as the Trump Administration freeze frozen over $2 billion in grants and contracts to Harvard; On this Tax Day, House and Senate members talk about the future of federal tax cuts and spending cuts, and IRS budget and staff; interview with The Verge reporter Lauren Finer on the FTC's antitrust trial alleging Meta killed its competition when it bought Instagram and WhatsApp (21); another court hearing in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man deported to a prison in El Salvador; President Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff talks about his recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to reach a peace agreement to end the Russia-Ukraine war. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump and El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele met at the White House today….Both made clear that they have no plans to bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia--the Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador--back to the US…Their words come despite a Supreme Court ruling that the Trump administration must “facilitate” Abrego Garcia's return…President Trump also talked about tariffs, Russia's deadly attack on Ukraine yesterday, and the state of talks with Iran…We'll hear what he had to say about all of it and get reactions from two members of Maryland's congressional delegation coming up… With Congress in its Easter and Passover recess, Democrats continue to criss-cross the country speaking out on Trump administration policies…California congressman Ro Khanna was in Ohio today…and New Jersey Senator Cory Booker was in Arizona today…Both of them talked economic issues and possible cuts to Medicaid and other services in the Republican's budget…. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this weekend's episode, three segments from this past week's Washington Journal. First, we speak with Rahna Epting – executive director of the progressive group MOVE ON. We'll talk about what the so-called "resistance" movement looks like in the second Trump presidency. Then, a conversation with Erec Smith – a research fellow at the Cato Institute – and co-founder of the online platform "Free Black Thought." We'll talk about why he SUPPORTS Trump administration efforts to dismantle DEI programs. Plus, a deep dive into President Trump's executive order related to how federal elections are run. David Becker from the Center for Election Innovation and Research joins us for THAT discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Donald Trump has its annual physical exam at Walter Reed Medical Center, the first such exam of his second term; China raises tariffs against the United States to match the latest tariff increase against their goods from President Trump, who is still saying he expects this standoff to be resolved through negotiation; Consumer confidence falls in April, according to a new survey; We will talk about the markets and the economy one week into the imposition of tariffs with Gregg Robb, senior reporter with MarketWatch; federal judge orders the Justice Dept to give daily updates on efforts to return to the U.S. Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was wrongly deported to El Salvador; National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy talks about the investigation into Thursday helicopter crash into the Hudson River in New York City, killing all six people on board; U.S. Senate confirms Gen. Dan 'Razin' Caine to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in an overnight vote; Ukraine Defense Contact Group meets at NATO HQ in Brussels, led to Germany and the United Kingdom, with U.S. Def Sec Pete Hegseth participating virtually; congratulations from Members of Congress who represent the universities whose men's and women's basketball teams won this year's NCAA March Madness tournaments. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House Republicans pass Senate version of the Budget Resolution, overcoming initial reluctance from some conservatives who said the Senate bill did not cut federal spending enough; President Trump at a Cabinet meeting on his tariffs policies says, “there’ll be a transition cost and transition problems" but “we think we’re in very good shape.” Elon Musk, head of the Dept of Government Efficiency, attends the Cabinet meeting with an update on expected savings from federal spending cuts this year; House passes a bill requiring proof of U.S. citizenship to vote; State Department on the release of prisoner exchange with Russia that has released a Russian-American ballerina convicted of treason for supporting Ukraine; Senate committee hearing on Daylight Saving Time and whether the twice-a-year clock switching should end. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump pauses reciprocal tariffs for 90 days, raises tariffs on China to 125%; House debates and votes on the Senate version of the Budget Resolution; Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem meets with family of victims of crimes committed by migrants in the U.S. illegally; wife of a Maryland man illegally deported to El Salvador meets with Members of Congress and pleads for his return; former Facebook employee, now a whistleblower, testifies before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Facebook's alleged dealings with the Chinese Communist Party; NASA Administrator nominee Jared Isaacman appears before the Senate Commerce Committee. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

United State Trade Representatives Jamieson Greer defends President Donald Trump's tariffs before the Senate Finance Committee; President Trump joins coal miners at the White House to sign an Executive Order to increase mining, use and export of what he calls 'clean coal'; Speaker Mike Johnson says the House will go ahead this week with a vote on the Senate version of the Budget Resolution, even though some House Republicans do not support the relatively small spending cuts versus the a House-passed version; House implements a way for Members who are new parents to register how they would have voted when they miss votes (pairing), which Democrats say is a far cry from the original bipartisan proposal for true proxy voting; Attorney General Pam Bondi talks about the Supreme Court allowing the administration to use the 18th century Alien Enemies Act for deportations; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visits the Panama Canal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Financial markets continued their upheaval today after President Trump has doubled down on his tariffs. The S&P 500 was down 0.8% in late trading, following another volatile day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 563 points, or 1.5%...while the Nasdaq composite was 0.6% lower. This comes as a growing number of Republicans are signing onto bills that would give Congress more power over tariffs. Nebraska Republican Rep. Don Bacon introduced a bill today that would give Congress the authority to approve tariffs. In the Senate, six Republicans have signed onto a companion bill led by Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley and Commerce committee ranking member Maria Cantwell…That bill has prompted a veto threat from the White House. Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson publicly sticking by the tariff strategy Tariffs aren't the only issue dividing Congressional Republicans as the revised 2025 Republican Budget resolution is scheduled to hit the floor this week. This is the same bill the Senate approved in the wee hours on Saturday morning. At least three other Republicans have said they will oppose it on the House floor. That comes despite pressure from a Dear Colleague letter from House Republican leadership on Saturday and a private conference call on Sunday. And Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was at the White House today. It's his second visit since January. He said his country will eliminate the trade deficit and trade barriers with the US and that he hopes Israel can be a model for other countries to do the same. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this weekend's episode, three segments from this past week's Washington Journal. First, a discussion with Axios Senior Economics Reporter, Courtenay Brown, on the impact President Trump's tariffs will have on U.S. consumers. Then, Kirk Bado, editor of National Journal's "Hotline" discusses the results of yesterday's Wisconsin Supreme Court race and special elections in Florida. Finally, JFK historian Jefferson Morley discusses recently released information about the Kennedy assassination and why some Americans are still interested in it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says he expects President Donald Trump’s tariffs to raise inflation and lower growth but there is a “highly uncertain outlook” and it is "too soon to say" what the Fed will do with interest rates; Wall Street takes another big hit today; Senate debates the Republican budget blueprint with tax cuts, spending cuts, energy, border and defenses policies. Democrats are unified in their opposition. An all-night voting session expected tonight before final passage early Saturday; We get congressional reaction to the overnight firing by President Donald Trump of the head of the National Security Agency and his deputy; Secretary of State Marco Rubio is asked about the status of the Russia-Ukraine war ceasefire talks at the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels; former Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris gives her assessment of the Donald Trump Administration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump says his new tariff plan is “going very well” and “markets are going to boom, the stock is going to boom, the country is going to boom," as stock markets fall and foreign leaders pledge retaliatory action; U.S. Ambassador to China nominee David Perdue testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee about trade with China in light of the new tariffs; U.S. Senate starts work on the Budget Resolution, the legislative vehicle for enacting the republican agenda of tax cuts, spending cuts, border security, energy promotion and increased defense spending; Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a NATO foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels, saying the U.S. is still fully engaged with the national security alliance; two resolutions to block some U.S. arms sales to Israel fail in the U.S. Senate; New York City Mayor Eric Adams says he will run for reelection not as a Democrat, but as an independent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Donald Trump announces tariffs on what he is calling 'Liberation Day'; Senate to vote on overturning president's 'national emergency' on fentanyl used as legal basis for imposing tariffs on Canada; interview with CQ/Roll Call legal affairs reporter Michael Macagnone on Supreme Court case involving South Carolina barring Planned Parenthood from Medicaid if the organization provides abortion services (23); Republicans celebrate two wins in Congressional special elections in Florida, while Democrats are happy by a victory in a contest for Wisconsin State Supreme Court judge, where the losing candidate was heavily financed by billionaire Elon Musk; Education Secretary Linda McMahon meets with House Democrats about Trump Administration plans to close the Department and they both end up outside at the same news conference; special assistant to Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. explains the rationale for reducing that department's workforce by 20,000. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair nominee Lt. Gen Dan Caine (ret) tells the Senate Armed Services Committee he never wore a red MAGA hat as President Trump claims; Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) pushes his resolution to repeal the president's emergency declaration that has allowed his tariffs on Canadian goods, a day before the president will unveil more tariffs; Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) gives a marathon speech on the Senate floor to emphasize his opposition to President Trump's policies; Senate Republican version of Budget Reconciliation looks a little different than the House Republican version. We will talk about it with Wall Street reporter Richard Rubin (23); a handful of House Republicans join Democrats to vote down an House Republican leadership effort to block a vote on a resolution – from a House Republican – to allow proxy voting for Members of Congress who are new parents; First Lady Melania Trump speaks at the International Women of Courage Awards ceremony at the State Department; JFK movie director Oliver Stone calls for reopening the investigation into the assassination of former President Kennedy at today's House Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets hearing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices