A group of House Republicans huddled with President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday afternoon to reach a resolution for the “one big, beautiful bill.” Included in the meeting, which came one day after Trump visited Capitol Hill to advocate for the legislation, were House GOP leaders as well as members of the conservative Freedom Caucus who are pushing for more extensive spending cuts in exchange for their support. With a slim House majority and near-certain Democrat opposition, Republicans can likely afford only a few defectors to send the bill to the Senate. “The meeting was productive and moved the ball in the right direction. The President reiterated how critical it is for the country to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill as quickly as possible,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. Upon returning to the U.S. Capitol, House GOP leaders conveyed to the media they still planned to move forward with the package, with the introduction of a so-called manager’s amendment in the Rules Committee that is expected to include last-minute changes meant to placate holdouts. A vote could happen tonight otherwise or tomorrow morning. The bill, which is progressing through Congress via the reconciliation process, aims to provide funding for Trump’s domestic priorities, retain the 2017 tax cuts, raise the debt limit, and more. It has a multitude of provisions, including “No Tax On Tips” and reforms to Medicaid. One significant point of contention has been the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap. GOP lawmakers from high-tax blue states protested the $30,000 ceiling originally proposed in the legislation, but a deal was reportedly struck to lift the ceiling to $40,000. However, the SALT bargain threatens to alienate other Republicans. Rep. John Rose (R-TN), who is running for governor of Tennessee, announced in a Wednesday afternoon post on X that he would vote “no” on the bill in its current form. He added in another post: “Raising the SALT deduction is a bailout for Democrat Governors — paid for by red states with low taxes. Tennesseans should not foot the bill for New York and California’s mismanagement.”

'Precursor to confiscation'

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought at a press conference Wednesday evening to refute rumors of a fracturing relationship with the U.S.   In the wake of President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East last week, Netanyahu insisted that warming relations between the U.S. and Arab nations won’t harm U.S.-Israel relations, The Times of Israel reported.   “Let me give you some details that perhaps haven’t been made public,” Netanyahu said, according to a translation of his remarks from The Times of Israel. “A few days ago … I spoke on the phone with President Donald Trump. And he said to me, literally: ‘Bibi, I want you to know—I have absolute commitment to you. I have absolute commitment to the state of Israel.’”  Netanyahu also recounted a recent call with Vice President JD Vance, saying, “He said to me … ‘Listen, don’t pay attention to all this fake news about this rupture between us … . It’s all spin. This isn’t the truth. You know it’s not true, and I’m telling you, from our side, it’s not true.’”   The Israeli prime minister said Trump’s meetings in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates might serve Israel’s interests by causing more Arab nations to normalize relations with the Jewish state through signing onto the Abraham Accords.   “I’ve always wanted to expand the circle of peace, to extend a hand to our friends and push back the sword of our enemies,” Netanyahu said. “I’m very determined in this, and I’m focused on it.”  Netanyahu’s comments come as the Israeli leader is under pressure from Britain, Canada, and France to stop its aggressive military campaign in Gaza.   “We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable,” a joint statement issued Monday from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Canada reads.   “We call on the Israeli government to stop its military operations in Gaza and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza,” the statement continues.   Israel launched Operation Gideon’s Chariots over the weekend. Under the new campaign, the Israel Defense Forces will not retreat from any area its troops gain control of, but will maintain control of conquered territory.    The post Israeli’s Netanyahu Seeks to Dispel Rumors of Strained Relations With US appeared first on The Daily Signal.

LIVE on “The Tony Kinnett Cast” at 7 p.m. EDT: President Donald Trump delivers an incredibly potent diplomatic punch to the racially discriminatory government of South Africa, ending the age of America’s bootlicking on the world stage. Democrats and legacy media intensify their infighting, with Jake Tapper of CNN and Alex Thompson of Axios trying to escape a sinking ship—and the angrier political and media officials trying to block the path to the lifeboats. Representative John James, R-Mich., joins us to discuss the “Big, Beautiful Bill” and the embarrassing behavior of Michigan Democrats in front of the country. Subscribe to “The Tony Kinnett Cast” and never miss an episode. “The Tony Kinnett Cast” is a product of The Daily Signal, produced by Nick Alvarado, Daniel Elmore, Allison Lemons, and Lou Scataglia. The post WATCH: Trump Hits South African President with Receipts appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Hunter Biden and Jake Tapper Are None Too Fond of One Another

Last Time I Checked, 50% Was Still An F

Speaking Tuesday night on NewsNation’s On Balance, Original Sin co-author and Axios reporter Alex Thompson told host Leland Vittert that, in his reporting for this bestselling book about the cognitive decline of President Joe Biden and its cover-up, one Biden administration source remarked to him they were shocked how compliant the press were of their lies about Biden’s mental state. Thompson revealed this in response to a question from Vittert if “people in his inner circle...were...surprised by how complicit the media” were in this cover-up.     “[I]t was interesting. I had one conversation with someone — this was after the election while we were reporting this book and — and this person said, listen, yes, we deserve blame for X, Y Z. We were hiding him. We were — but this person also sort of got in my face and they said, listen, the media deserve some blame, too. Like, we were sort of amazed at some of the stuff we were able to spin reporters on,” Thompson explained. Vittert couldn’t believe it and started laughing, remarking they must have felt “like the bank robber complaining the safe wasn’t locked or something.” Thompson revealed even more about this conversation and the Biden official was allegedly shocked (in what Thompson painted as an almost embarrassed way) that the press behaved this poorly in failing to do their jobs: They’re just like, you guys — you guys should not have believed us so easily and I thought that was, like, a really interesting, but I also think that’s true. I think — I think the media in a lot of ways just was not skeptical enough and did not remember the lesson that they do it to different degrees, but every White House lies. Immediately prior to this moment, Vittert had stated the obvious “there’s reason to be suspicious about the timing of the cancer diagnosis” and wondered on a somewhat related note if “there’s still a lot of things you guys didn’t find.” Thompson didn’t flinch in saying he feels that way despite having “been covering the age issue for years” and, despite that and the book, “I see it as sort of a first draft, not the final draft” as both he and Tapper “already have more reporting that’s not in this book that we are still reporting out that we hope to include in future editions.” Vittert remarked that Thompson has become a hot guest and has only now received his due as his “reporting is proving to be accurate and important,” but it’s thanks to Biden no longer being in office. “When Joe Biden was in office, it was pretty easy to book you about your reporting especially want to talk about the short stairs to Air Force One, the sneakers, the 10-to-2 work hours all these things you are reporting. Nobody was willing to put it on TV because they want to talk about it,” he added. Following Thompson thanking him for doing so when “a lot of people weren’t,” Vittert asked a question we’d ask if we had the chance to interview Tapper and Thompson: “How much of this coverup conspiracy, whatever you all want to call it was made possible by a complicit media?” Thompson gave the correct answer, but in limited time: “Certainly, the media fell short and the biggest example of that is — if the media was on top of this, then Biden’s debate performance should not have been such a shock to so many people.” To see the relevant NewsNation transcript from May 20, click “expand.” NewsNation’s On Balance with Leland Vittert May 20, 2025 9:13 p.m. Eastern LELAND VITTERT: So, let’s just assume that there’s reason to be suspicious about the timing of the cancer diagnosis —  ALEX THOMPSON: Mmhmm. VITTERT: — statements. It’s clear there’s still a lot of things you guys didn’t find.  THOMPSON: Yeah. I mean, I — honestly in some ways, even though I’ve been covering the age issue for years, and I just wrote this book, in some ways, I still only see this is the — I see it as sort of a first draft, not the final draft. I still feel there’s plenty that we don’t know. And I mean, I think both Jake Tapper and I think of it as a continuing project going forward. We already have more reporting that’s not in this book that we are still reporting out that we hope to include in future editions. VITTERT: One of the things these days as you are about the hardest guy to book on TV and with good reason because reporting is proving to be accurate and important and also, Joe Biden’s out of office. When Joe Biden was in office, it was pretty easy to book you. THOMPSON: Sure. VITTERT: — about your reporting — THOMPSON: Sure. VITTERT: — especially want to talk about the short stairs to Air Force One, the sneakers, the 10-to-2 work hours all these things you are reporting. Nobody was willing to put it on TV because they want to talk about it. THOMPSON: A lot of people weren’t, but you were. VITTERT: Okay, well, thank you very much. That’s kind of what we do here. How much of this coverup conspiracy, whatever you all want to call it was made possible by a complicit media?  THOMPSON: Certainly, the media fell short and the biggest example of that is — if the media was on top of this, then Biden’s debate performance should not have been such a shock to so many people. VITTERT: May not have even happened, right? He may not even decided to run had the media been aggressive in its reporting. THOMPSON: Possible and you know, I think there — VITTERT: When you reporting this, did people in his inner circle, did those that you talk to acknowledge that the media — were they surprised by how complicit the media was?  THOMPSON: You know, it was interesting. I had one conversation with someone — this ws after the election while we were reporting this book and — and this person said, listen, yes, we deserve blame for X, Y Z. We were hiding him. We were — but this person also sort of got in my face and they said, listen, the media deserve some blame, too. Like, we were sort of amazed at some of the stuff we were able to spin — VITTERT: And get away with? THOMPSON: — reporters on. They — they — in some ways — VITTERT: They feel like the bank robber complaining — THOMPSON: — yeah. VITTERT: — the safe wasn’t locked — THOMPSON: Yeah, yeah. VITTERT: — or something? THOMPSON: They’re just like, you guys — you guys should not have believed us so easily and I thought that was, like, a really interesting, but I also think that’s true. I think — I think the media in a lot of ways just was not skeptical enough and did not remember the lesson that they do it to different degrees, but every White House lies. VITTERT: Fair enough.

On Tuesday night’s episode of CNN’s The Source with Kaitlan Collins, Jim Scuitto spoke with Laura Barron-Lopez of PBS NewsHour and Reuter’s Jim Mason, who called President Trump “authoritarian” and blamed the MAGA movement for fundamentally changing the Republican Party for the worst, simply over the Trump administration’s tariff policies. After a five minute conversation with Kevin O’Leary where the entrepreneur explained why Trump’s economic policy will actually bolster the economy and attract investors, Scuitto brought on his so-called “White House insiders” to discuss what these tariffs actually mean, undermining O’Leary’s entire interview and explanation as an investor of four decades.      The three keep referencing a sentence from a Truth Social post by the President, cutting up the lengthy post and reducing it only to one line, obviously taken out of context. The post warns large companies like Walmart to not attempt to cover VAT tax by charging consumers more for their products. The line “Walmart, eat the tax.” was continually taken out of context by both Barron-Lopez and Mason to imply that Trump is essentially telling the American people that they’re just going to have to suffer higher prices and to just get over it.  As if this is some sort of "let them eat cake” moment, Mason doesn’t miss an opportunity to call President Trump “authoritarian” and “populist”, as well as call into question Trump’s effectiveness as the President, accusing him of controlling the Republican Party by somehow intimidating anyone who disagrees with him: You could ask that question about so many policy issues with President Trump and the Republican Party. It's changed entirely. The party has changed entirely. The President has brought a populist aspect to– with, with MAGA– to the Republican Party and an authoritarian bent that has led to less dissent, full stop. The original Truth Social post actually was discouraging big companies who took advantage of Chinese manufacturing from raising prices on goods to earn a larger profit, and was telling Walmart and China to “eat the tariffs”, not American consumers, in fact quite the opposite: Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain. Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS  last year, far more than expected. Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, “EAT THE TARIFFS,” and not charge valued customers ANYTHING. I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!! Then, completely shifting, the three complained that the proposed trade deals were not coming from the Trump administration fast enough, and that there wasn’t any “meat on the bones” of what the President was saying. According to Barron-Lopez, “They’re repeatedly saying that- that the deals are around the corner, that there are a bunch of deals in the works that they're going to happen. But again, I think that that's a lot of rhetoric privately, publicly. And so far there hasn't been much meat on the bones.” She even huffed about a trade deal struck with one of America’s longest allies. “And you saw that they rolled out the deal or the agreement with the U.K. But again, it was not you know, the U.K. is not one of those major countries that I think people are waiting for a big trade deal,” she said. They, of course, failed to mention the specifics of the trade deal and dismiss it as miniscule, and dismiss how beneficial the UK deal is for American farmers and ranchers by expanding US agricultural trade into the United Kingdom, specifically for beef farmers, and has been praised by agricultural, beef, and dairy farmers’ associations across the country as a win for American farmers and their families. The left may not think there is much meat on the bones of these trade deals, but it seems like there will be plenty of American beef. The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read.  CNNs The Source with Kaitlan Collins May 20th 2025 9:35 PM EST (…) KEVIN O’LEARY: So you know, Trump– I understand what he's doing. And I must say something about this whole thing. If you're an investor like I am, you've got to get away from the noise and focus on the signal, because Trump is a very noisy guy. He's bombastic, but there's a signal in there somewhere, and he's adding a VAT tax to America. And I get it. Most economies are very successful with vat taxes of seven to 14 percent. So if he ends up at 10, we're right in the middle. JIM SCUITTO: But let me ask you a question; have you figured out what Trump's ultimate goal is? Because he said two things. One, he said about evening access out, right? You know, evening– evening the tariffs out. But he's also said he wants to return manufacturing to this country. He seems to have been mentioning that less lately. Right? Was that ever really the goal? O’LEARY: There are certain things we'll never manufacture here again. Toys for example – SCUITTO: Cloths. O’LEARY: - not a not a lot of value add building a doll out of plastic. But when we get into technology and DNA sequencing machines are being ripped off by China, and it's a complicated situation. Every single product in America that gets to a $5 million run rate gets ripped off by China and sold all over the world at a 40 percent to 30 percent discount. That's not okay. And we got to fix that problem because millions of American companies go out of business as a result of that. That's the signal in what Trump is doing. And I agree with him on that. The noise is, you know, you got to be careful as an investor. I don't shill for politicians, I shill for policy. As soon as he tells me what the policy is, I will adjust, as will millions of other investors. We're waiting for the policy. It's– it's erratic right now. No other administration has ever tried to negotiate 60 deals at once. I mean, that's something else, but 17 matter, and I expect to see some deals. China is a special thing. I want to fix China. So I am giving him, as far as I’m concerned, go get ‘em. SCUITTO: We will be watching closely. Kevin O’Leary, thanks so much. My White House insiders are back. So tell us, I mean, Laura, do you see the policy that Kevin O'Leary is looking for? Because certainly the tariff rates have swung back and forth quite dramatically in the span of weeks and sometimes days. LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: And no, I mean. If Mr. O'Leary can't find the policy, I'm not sure I can find the policy. But yeah, you know, the President has repeatedly tried to say that on one hand, he thinks that, you know, other countries should pay for the tariffs, that it's a tax on other countries, that it's not a tax on American consumers– SCUITTO: But clearly that’s not the case. BARRON-LOPEZ: –Right, that's not the case. Because then also this weekend with saying, “Walmart, eat the tax”, is essentially saying to American companies, I need you to do this. And there are a lot of companies that are saying, no, we're not going to. I mean, Home Depot has been in the past friendly to Trump and to his policies. They appeared to try to say very tepidly, look, we may not raise prices right now, but there are just some goods that we're not going to have altogether. So, but I think, the vast majority of companies and the majority of economists that you talk to will say that this is not sound policy, so far. SCUITTO: Jeff, when I hear a president direct companies to change their prices, that sounds to me like price controls. And I wonder, given Republican traditional Republican policy positions, why aren't Republicans up in arms about the pressure that Trump is applying to– well, a place like Walmart– one of America's biggest, most successful companies? JEFF MASON: You could ask that question about so many policy issues with President Trump and the Republican Party. It's changed entirely. The party has changed entirely. The President has brought a populist aspect to– with, with MAGA– to the Republican Party and an authoritarian bent that has led to less dissent, full stop. And we saw that in our discussion earlier about the tax bill. Why are they not challenging it? I don't know, there's lots of things that they're not challenging. That said, I think your– your question about telling companies to do this or that on prices. The companies don't have to listen. SCUITTO: And some are mentioning they’re not listening. Mr. O’Leary mentioned the trade deals. They have not come as fast as President Trump and his advisers said they would, right? They were supposedly just on the doorstep of so many of these. What do you hear from the White House? Are they saying that there is a lot of good news to come, or are they finding it's harder to get the other side to sign on the dotted line? BARRON-LOPEZ: They’re repeatedly saying that- that the deals are around the corner, that there are a bunch of deals in the works that they're going to happen. But again, I think that that's a lot of rhetoric privately, publicly. And so far there hasn't been much meat on the bones. And you saw that they rolled out the deal or the agreement with the UK. But again, it was not you know, the UK is not one of those major countries that I think people are waiting for a big trade deal. SCUITTO: And the UK happens to be one that we have a surplus with, right? MASON: What matters– SCUITTO: Difference in some of the other relationships. MASON: –I would just add that what matters is whether or not they extend that deadline. There was a self-imposed deadline, the 90 days, if they decide to make it longer, they can. SCUITTO: Jeff, Laura, thanks so much.

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In October 2023, former President Joe Biden sat down for an interview with special counsel Robert Hur, and what really happened during the interview has remained a mystery — until now. In the recently released audio tapes, which were obtained by Axios last week, the former president lost his train of thought repeatedly and failed to recall important details of his political and personal life. That included when his son died. The Biden administration had initially refused to release the audio tapes, claiming that they contained protected “law enforcement materials.” “I can’t handle the truth in this instance. That is very difficult to listen to any of that without becoming stark raving mad,” BlazeTV host Matthew Peterson tells co-host Jill Savage after listening to Biden stumble over the date of his son's passing. “And of course, the question here is why are these tapes finally being published now? Of course, not only does Axios’ Alex Thompson have a book to sell, but over the weekend, Biden’s team also announced on top of all of this, after the whole nation realizes for real, even the most normie normie, that he was obviously senile for a long time,” Peterson continues. “Now, we learn that he’s suffering from an aggressive form of prostate cancer, and the mainstream media is going to do what they do. They’re going to do the whole cover-up,” he adds. The cover-up of Biden’s declining mental and physical health now begs the question — who really was making all of the decisions? “I certainly have my suspicions,” Executive Director of the Oversight Project Mike Howell tells Peterson and Savage. “And one of the first people that Chairman Comer, when he announced they’re actually going to subpoena some individuals to come in to testify about it all, is Neera Tanden.” “She was the staff secretary, basically the one who controlled all the paper. Recall famously she comes from Soros' world,” he continues. “I think there’s going to be gradations of people, I don’t think it’s going to be one, I think it’s basically a committee of certain influences and special interests.” “I think Obama's world had a profound outsized impact on it,” he adds, noting that the autopen scandal his team broke wide open unfortunately only reinforces his belief that Biden was not behind his decisions. “Last summer we basically realized, ‘Hey, all these documents that Biden’s purporting to sign look a little goofy,’” Howell explains. “And so we pulled them all and figured out, ‘Oh, they’re using an autopen or at least two variations of an autopen for simply copying and pasting the same signature.’” Want more from 'Blaze News | The Mandate'?To enjoy more provocative opinions, expert analysis, and breaking stories you won’t see anywhere else, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.