Stop Biden’s tax hikes!

Allow me to be blunt. Tax hikes are coming. It's not a matter of if they will arrive. It's a matter of when and how much...

Sponsored Message Below, please find a special message from one of our advertisers, National Taxpayers Union. Robert B,  Allow me to be blunt. Tax hikes are coming. It’s not a matter of if they will arrive. It’s a matter of when and how much... President Joe Biden and his allies in Congress are bent on repealing our historic 2017 tax cuts. Despite the media’s spin, you and I know the real story about these reforms.They simplified the tax code and created a booming economy by generating millions of new jobs.  Repealing the 2017 tax cuts would be a terrible hardship to the American people while our economy is still struggling to recover, and so many businesses just can’t find their footing.  Unfortunately, that’s not all the bad news…  The Biden Administration and legislators are working to pass trillions more in spending bills. They’re intended to “stimulate” the economy but after the trillions that have already been approved over the past year, spending more money out of an empty pocket will move us ever-closer to bankruptcy.  Here’s how we can stop both wasteful spending and unnecessary tax hikes: I want to introduce you to an organization who helped pass the historic 2017 tax cuts - The National Taxpayers Union (NTU). Every single day, NTU’s team is on the front lines as our country’s top defense against tax increases and wasteful spending. The National Taxpayers Union is CRITICAL for conservatives to have any chance of stopping more big-government schemes.  Here are some of NTU’s tremendous accomplishments and why I support them: NTU was a critical ally in the 2017 tax cuts that created millions of jobs and increased wages. They lobbied Congress day and night to help pass it. NTU was a key player when President Reagan enacted the 1986 tax code overhaul. But NTU isn’t focused only in Washington, DC. NTU has defeated tax hikes at all levels of government - from your home, to your phone bill, and even the gasoline in your car. The National Taxpayers Union is the longest serving organization fighting for taxpayers. But they haven’t slowed down over the years. They led the years-long campaign to permanently protect your Internet service from discriminatory taxes during Democratic and Republican control of Congress.  And as I mentioned they helped both President Ronald Reagan and President Trump enact historic tax reform! Robert B, I spoke with NTU’s president Pete Sepp. I told him I would personally help NTU raise $50,000 in the next 48 hours. This support will go directly to stopping wasteful spending and tax hikes.  Can you please rush your support today and donate $20.21, $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000 or any amount you can generously afford? Click here to donate or use a link below >>>  Donate $10 >>> Donate $20.21 >>> Donate $50 >>> Donate $100 >>> Donate $250 >> Donate $500 >>> Donate $1,000 >>> Donate Any Amount >>> NTU has a plan to STOP tax hikes from President Biden and his Congressional allies. Here’s how: FIRST: NTU’s respected and experienced staff will reach out and meet every Congressional member. NTU will give each member considering a vote for wasteful spending and tax hikes the information they need to show the economic cost. They will stand up and speak out for YOU on Capitol Hill. SECOND: NTU will make sure constituents hear about tax hikes. NTU has an extensive plan for advertising plans in key districts. THIRD: NTU will publish articles shared by the press, go on talk radio, and appear on TV to make sure everyone knows how their member of Congress is voting.  Nothing in politics moves unless it is PUSHED. Informing constituents and getting them to contact their representatives is one of the most effective ways to stop the tax hikes. Robert B, the last time the Left controlled Congress and the Presidency, America got stuck with Obamacare. Let’s not allow bad policy and legislation to hurt millions of Americans again.  I am only one voice in Congress. With your help today, you can make sure the voices of millions of Americans are heard.  Please help me reach this goal of $50,000. Select an amount below and rush your support today. Donate $10 >>> Donate $20.21 >>> Donate $50 >>> Donate $100 >>> Donate $250 >> Donate $500 >>> Donate $1,000 >>> Donate Any Amount >>> Thank you, Robert B.  Mike Lee P.S. I hope you can immediately respond to this email.  President Biden and Congress are looking to spend TRILLIONS and create new taxes that will ultimately harm the middle class and small businesses.  The National Taxpayers Union is preparing to fight back but your help is needed. Please click here to help fight back and chip in $10, $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000 or whatever you can afford.  Thank you.   Paid for by National Taxpayers Union Copyright © 2021 Conservative Review. All rights reserved.   This email was sent by: Conservative Review  8275 S. Eastern Ave, Ste 200-245 Las Vegas, Nevada 89123 USA   The advertiser may collect personal information based on your interaction with this email. Please read the advertiser's privacy policy for more information.   Privacy Policy | Manage Your Preferences | Unsubscribe   To view this email as a webpage, go here.

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Here's The Far-Left's Plan To Take Over Every Federal Court Over Republican Objection

Progressives have long advocated packing the Supreme Court, but a recent plan proposed by far-left judicial activists calls on Senate Democrats to add hundreds of new federal judges to the lower courts through the procedural tactic of reconciliation.

Yale Law School professor Samuel Moyn and Take Back the Court director Aaron Belkin sent a memo March 29 to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other top Senate Democrats in favor of expanding federal appellate and district courts through reconciliation.

Reconciliation is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to pass legislation affecting the budget — including taxation and spending measures — with only a simple majority and no filibuster option.

Senate Democrats previously used reconciliation to pass the COVID-19 relief package in early March without a single Republican vote. Democrats are reportedly considering reconciliation once again to push through President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan. (RELATED: Senator Admits Democrats Will Use Procedural Tactic To Pass Infrastructure Bill Without Republicans)

One hurdle court-packing advocates must overcome is the Byrd rule. Proposed by the late Sen. Robert Byrd in 1985, the rule was formally incorporated into the Congressional Budget Act in 1990 with the intention of preventing senators from abusing reconciliation by adding "extraneous" issues into budget-related legislation.

The Byrd rule grants the Senate parliamentarian, a strictly nonpartisan official, authority to determine whether measures in a reconciliation bill satisfy the six criteria imposed by the rule. A statutory measure expanding the federal courts would specifically have to pass the "merely incidental" standard.

The "merely incidental" standard upholds that non-budget measures can not be included in reconciliation if they do not have a direct impact on the budget, or if its impact is "merely incidental" and not an intended effect of the measure, according to a Heritage Foundation legal analysis of the Byrd rule.

Determining whether a non-budget item meets the standard is often difficult because the Byrd rule does not specify what "merely incidental" means and its interpretation has historically varied depending on the Senate parliamentarian, the Heritage Foundation noted.

The standard was notably used to strike down a proposal to repeal Obamacare's individual mandate when Republicans considered tax reform in 2017, according to The Washington Post. The Senate parliamentarian determined that eliminating the individual mandate was "merely incidental" as it did not intentionally affect the budget.

Instead of eliminating the individual mandate outright, Senate Republicans changed the penalty for violation to zero. This change affected the federal government's tax policy, thus satisfying the "merely incidental" standard, while still effectively ending the individual mandate.

Moyn and Belkin argued in their memo to Senate Democrats that adding 250 lower court judges satisfies the "merely incidental" standard because the proposal would cost an estimated $209 million to $382 million in mandatory government spending, based on data from the United States Courts' congressional budget request for 2021.

It is unclear if current Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough would support the radical proposal. She notably struck down a $15 federal minimum wage proposal from the COVID-19 relief package last month under the Byrd rule. (RELATED: Liberals Call On Biden Administration To Overrule Senate Parliamentarian, Put $15 Minimum Wage In Relief Package)

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A Great Opportunity Society

March 29, 2021   About Tim Services Media Center Legislative Work Dear Friend, Welcome back to my Week in Review newsletter. In addition to these weekly updates, you can sign up to receive other issue-specific newsletters here. Also, please remember to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube for regular updates on how I am serving the people of South Carolina!   Reject Work Culture & Choose Opportunity Last week I penned an op-ed in the Washington Post, responding to criticism over my reaction to being called a “token” for Republicans. Unfortunately, these kinds of slurs are all too common from progressives who believe my skin color and conservative values are incompatible. In my op-ed, I described this kind of thinking as “woke supremacy,” a progressive conception of diversity that does not include diversity of thought. My hope for our nation is that we will reject woke culture (and all forms of discrimination) and instead strive to create a Great Opportunity Society, where the American Dream is accessible for all.  Click to read the op-ed  I also joined the popular Ruthless Podcast to discuss these ideas in greater depth. Throughout the interview, we touched on everything from the filibuster to the Democrats’ election bill to the values of the GOP, which I believe stands for the “Great Opportunity Party.” It was a conversation you won’t want to miss! Check it out here. Celebrating Great Women, Including My Mama To mark Women’s History Month, I released a new video series, in which several incredible South Carolina women speak about the lives of other inspiring South Carolina women who have changed our world for the better. You can find all the tribute videos on my YouTube playlist. Of course, I had to start things off with the best, strongest woman I know: my mama, Frances Scott. She worked long hours as a nurse’s assistant to care for my brother and me, and she never gave up – no matter how difficult we made it! Had it not been for her sacrifice, perseverance, and resilience, I would not be where I am today. Click to watch my interview with my mom Protecting our Seniors As more people have been immunized over the past few months, we’ve seen firsthand the power of vaccines to save lives and restore hope, particularly for our older population. That’s why my colleagues and I introduced the Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act. This bill would make sure that our nation’s seniors on Medicare have access to all CDC-recommended vaccines at no additional cost. As we recover from the pandemic, it is vital that our seniors have access to the COVID-19 vaccine and that data on their vaccination rates is made available. Last Thursday, I joined a bipartisan group of senators in asking President Biden to make that information public so our nation’s health care and legislation can better reflect seniors’ needs. Aging Americans have given so much to our country, and I am committed to ensuring they are taken care of. Sincerely, Lowcountry 2500 City Hall Lane 3rd Floor Suite North Charleston, SC 29406 Phone: (843) 727-4525 Fax: (855) 802-9355 Midlands 1901 Main Street Suite 1425 Columbia, SC 29201 Phone: (803) 771-6112 Fax: (855) 802-9355 Upstate 104 South Main Street Suite 803 Greenville, SC 29601 Phone: (864) 233-5366 Fax: (855) 802-9355 Washington, DC 104 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-6121 Toll Free: (855) 425-6324 Fax: (202) 228-5143                   Click here to open a plain text version of this email                Click here to forward this email              Click here to open this e-mail in its own browser window

The Morning: Five facts about gun violence

Among them: the filibuster is pro-gun.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story March 25, 2021 By David Leonhardt Good morning. We look at five key facts about gun violence — and the politics of the issue. A memorial in Boulder, Colo., for the victims of this week’s deadly shooting.Stephen Speranza for The New York Times ‘We know which laws work’ It’s a dismal ritual of American life: A mass shooting occurs — sometimes more than one, in quick succession. The country mourns the victims. And nothing changes. I expect the same will happen following the killings in Atlanta and Boulder, Colo. But it is still worth taking a few minutes to lay out the basic facts about gun violence. The key one is simply this: The scale of gun deaths in the United States is not inevitable. The country could reduce the death toll, perhaps substantially, if it chose to. 1. The toll approaches pancreatic cancer’s When gun violence is counted as a single category — spanning homicides, suicides and accidents — it kills about 40,000 Americans a year. That’s far behind the country’s biggest killers, like heart disease (about 650,000 annual deaths) or Alzheimer’s (about 125,000). But it is broadly comparable to the toll from many well-known causes of death, including an average flu season (35,000), vehicle accidents (39,000), breast cancer (42,000), liver disease (43,000) or pancreatic cancer (45,000). 2. More guns mean more deaths Republican members of Congress often claim otherwise. After the Boulder shootings, John Thune of South Dakota, the Senate’s second-ranking Republican, dismissed calls for restricting gun availability, saying, “There’s not a big appetite among our members to do things that would appear to be addressing it, but actually don’t do anything to fix the problem.” But there is overwhelming evidence that this country has a unique problem with gun violence, mostly because it has unique gun availability. By The New York Times | Sources: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, Small Arms Survey, World Bank It’s not just that every other high-income country in the world has many fewer guns and many fewer gun deaths. It’s also that U.S. states with fewer guns — like California, Illinois, Iowa and much of the Northeast — have fewer gun deaths. And when state or local governments have restricted gun access, deaths have often declined, Michael Siegel of Boston University’s School of Public Health says. “The main lesson that comes out of this research is that we know which laws work,” Siegel says. (Nicholas Kristof, the Times columnist, has written a good overview, called “How to Reduce Shootings.”) 3. Mass shootings aren’t the main problem They receive huge attention, for obvious reasons: They are horrific. But they are also not the primary source of gun violence. In 2019, for example, only about one out of every 400 gun deaths was the result of a mass shooting (defined as any attack with at least four deaths). More than half of gun deaths are from suicides, as Margot Sanger-Katz of The Times has noted. Still, many of the policies that experts say would reduce gun deaths — like requiring gun licenses and background checks — would likely affect both mass shootings and the larger problem. 4. Public opinion is complicated Yes, an overwhelming majority of Americans support many gun-regulation proposals — like background checks — that congressional Republicans have blocked. And, yes, the campaign donations of the National Rifle Association influence the debate. But the main reason that members of Congress feel comfortable blocking gun control is that most Americans don’t feel strongly enough about the issue to change their votes because of it. If Americans stopped voting for opponents of gun control, gun-control laws would pass very quickly. This country’s level of gun violence is as high as it is because many Americans have decided that they are OK with it. 5. The filibuster is pro-gun Gun control is yet another issue in which the filibuster helps Republican policy priorities and hurts Democratic priorities. On guns (as on climate change, taxes, Medicare access, the minimum wage, immigration and other issues), Republicans are happier with the status quo than Democrats. The filibuster — which requires 60 Senate votes to pass most bills, rather than a straight majority of 51 — protects the status quo. If Democrats were to change the filibuster, as many favor, it isn’t hard to imagine how a gun-control bill could become law this year. With the filibuster, it is almost impossible to imagine. The latest news: The White House is planning executive orders on gun control, including one to strengthen the background checks system. Less than two weeks before the shooting in Boulder, Colo., a court decided that the city could not enforce its ban on assault weapons. THE LATEST NEWS The Virus AstraZeneca released more data from its U.S. trial, reiterating that its Covid vaccine offered strong protection. The information strengthens the shot’s scientific case, but it might not repair the company’s embattled image. More than 40 states say they will meet President Biden’s goal of making every adult eligible for a vaccine by May 1. Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York arranged special access to government-run virus testing for his family members early in the pandemic, before widespread testing was available. Universities could substantially reduce their infection rates if they devoted half their testing resources to people in surrounding communities, a study found. The Olympic torch relay started in Japan, though questions linger about whether the Games should go ahead. Politics A father and daughter from Honduras at the border with Mexico in El Paso this month.Daniel Berehulak for The New York Times Biden appointed Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the response to the surge in migrants at the border, with a focus on improving conditions in Central American countries. The Senate held its first hearing on a major expansion of voting rights, and Republicans were adamant in their opposition. If Democrats want to pass the bill, they will almost certainly have to end the filibuster. In several Republican-controlled states, lawmakers are moving to wrest control of elections away from secretaries of state, governors and nonpartisan boards. The Upshot asked 10 prominent economists whether Biden’s pandemic relief bill could “overheat” the economy. Here’s what they said. Biden is holding his first official White House news conference today. Other Big Stories A ship wedged in the Suez Canal.Suez Canal Authority, via Associated Press A container ship nearly a quarter-mile long has been stuck in the Suez Canal in Egypt since Tuesday evening, blocking a vital shipping lane. Virginia abolished the death penalty, the first Southern state to do so. Last week’s deadly shooting in Atlanta highlights the story of two immigrant paths and exposes the wealth divide among people of Asian descent in the U.S. Federal prosecutors charged Victor Rivera, the former head of a network of homeless shelters in New York, with fraud and money laundering. Rivera was already under investigation after 10 women accused him of sexual assault or harassment. The Times tech reporter Kevin Roose wanted to get a better understanding of NFTs. His latest column is for sale. Opinions Could a “seatbelt safety” approach help reduce teen suicides? Pamela Morris of N.Y.U. asks in a Times Op-Ed. Republicans supported voting rights until they learned they do better when fewer people vote, Eleanor Clift writes in The Daily Beast. Jamelle Bouie, a Times columnist, disagrees: 2020 proved that the party can compete even in high-turnout elections, he argues. Republicans’ structural advantages in the Senate mean that abolishing the filibuster may deepen, not fix, minority rule, David French argues in Time magazine. Morning Reads Kermit the Frog’s “The Rainbow Connection” is now part of the National Recording Registry.Atlantic Timeless Tunes: The Library of Congress designated 25 recordings as “audio treasures worthy of preservation for all time.” Among the picks: a song by Kermit the Frog. Lives Lived: Jessica McClintock dressed generations of women in calico, lace and beribboned pastiches known as granny dresses. Her clients included Vanna White and a 27-year-old Hillary Rodham for her 1975 wedding to Bill Clinton. McClintock died at 90. If you’ve found this newsletter helpful, please consider subscribing to The New York Times — with this special offer. Your support makes our work possible. Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT ARTS AND IDEAS Ben Napier with the former tennis player Martina Navratilova on HGTV’s “Ben’s Workshop.”HGTV Can HGTV survive streaming? Over 26 years, HGTV has built an empire out of passive watching: While people fold their laundry or scroll through social media, they keep the network’s home-improvement shows on in the background. The only cable networks that have larger average audiences are CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. But the rise of streaming — which leads people to make more deliberate viewing decisions — presents a threat to the network. “HGTV is a splendid, crenellated house in a neighborhood built on quicksand and termite tunnels,” Ian Parker writes in The New Yorker. “The latest streaming-video subscriptions have been sold on the promise of content that is remarkable.” HGTV, as Parker notes, “is low-budget and unassuming.” In response, the network is trying to make splashy shows that are “special and different and intriguing,” one HGTV executive said, while still offering “comfort television.” Among the concepts discussed: a birdhouse-building competition; a show that mixes renovation and dating; and a program on which the rapper Lil Jon helps people remodel their homes, with the working title of “Torn Down for What.” HGTV is now part of the Discovery+ streaming platform, which is tiny compared with Netflix and Disney+. But HGTV’s value also lies in the size of its library, which includes hundreds of episodes of popular shows like “House Hunters” and “Fixer Upper.” For more: Discovery+ brings a cable-era way of watching TV to streaming. PLAY, WATCH, EAT What to Cook Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini Transform store-bought gnocchi by pan-frying them with tomatoes and mozzarella. What to Read “Francis Bacon: Revelations,” by Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan, offers a comprehensive account of the painter’s life. “Where Bacon went, a story followed,” Parul Sehgal writes in a review. What to Watch This week brings the series finale of “Superstore,” a delightful, smart sitcom about working-class life. Late Night The hosts discussed the ship in the Suez Canal. Now Time to Play The pangram from yesterday’s Spelling Bee was function. Here is today’s puzzle — or you can play online. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Frequent flier (five letters). If you’re in the mood to play more, find all our games here. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Priya Krishna, a food writer who previously worked at Bon Appétit, is joining The Times, where she will write and appear on NYT Cooking’s YouTube channel. You can see today’s print front page here. Today’s episode of “The Daily” is about the vaccine rollout. On “Sway,” Glennon Doyle discusses misogyny, the power of apologies and more. Lalena Fisher, Claire Moses, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Tom Wright-Piersanti and Sanam Yar contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. The Morning Briefing newsletter is now The Morning newsletter. You received this email because you signed up for the newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to The TimesGet The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018