Happy Thursday and welcome back to On The Money. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.
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THE BIG DEAL–Trump signs short-term spending bill to avert shutdown: President TrumpDonald John TrumpApple CEO Tim Cook promises to fight for DACA, user privacy DOJ urges Supreme Court to side with Trump in ongoing legal battle over tax returns Giuliani associate willing to inform Congress of meeting between Nunes and former Ukrainian official: report MORE on Thursday signed a funding stopgap measure just hours ahead of a shutdown deadline, extending funding levels from the last fiscal year until Dec. 20.
The measure, which passed in the Senate earlier Thursday and in the House on Tuesday, bought Congressional negotiators an additional four weeks to hammer out a deal on how to spend the agreed $1.37 trillion for the 2020 fiscal year, which began Oct. 1, and tackle thorny issues including Trump’s request to fund a border wall.
But behind the scenes, appropriators are far from sure they will be able to work out a deal in time, with many raising concerns that an additional stopgap measure could be necessary ahead of Christmas. The Hill’s Niv Elis tells us about the road ahead here.
LEADING THE DAY
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Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019: Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiDemocrats set to open new chapter in impeachment Trump says drug importation plan coming ‘soon’ GOP senator opposes quick dismissal of Trump articles of impeachment MORE (D-Calif.) on Thursday cast doubt on the possibility of passing an updated North American trade deal by the end of 2019, a departure from her previous characterization of the deal as “imminent.”
“I’m not even sure if we came to an agreement today that it would be enough time to finish,” she said, referencing an end-of-year timeline many had hoped for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
U.S. Trade Representative Robert LighthizerRobert (Bob) Emmet LighthizerPelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 Pelosi sounds hopeful on new NAFTA deal despite tensions with White House On The Money: Economy adds 164K jobs in July | Trump signs two-year budget deal, but border showdown looms | US, EU strike deal on beef exports MORE met with Pelosi and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard NealRichard Edmund NealThe Hill’s Morning Report — Schiff: Clear evidence of a quid pro quo On The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Democrats press Trump officials over drop in ObamaCare signups amid website problems MORE (D-Mass.) later on Thursday, but a final deal remained out of reach. The Hill’s Niv Elis fills us in here.
What comes next: Neal said that of five outstanding issues, they had reached an agreement on roughly half of them and would continue negotiations next week. He remained hopeful, however, that the deal could be finalized and signed into law before the New Year.
GOP not happy: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthyKevin Owen McCarthyThe Hill’s Morning Report — Schiff: Clear evidence of a quid pro quo On The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns McCarthy blasts Pelosi on USMCA MORE (R-Calif.) took a swipe at Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for casting doubt on whether the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will pass before the end of the year, accusing the California Democrat of prioritizing impeachment over the updated North American trade deal.
California high court strikes down state law targeting Trump tax returns: California’s highest state court on Thursday struck down a law that would have required President Trump to hand over his tax returns as a condition to appearing on the state’s ballot for the Republican primary.
In a unanimous ruling, the California Supreme Court held that key portions of the Presidential Tax Transparency and Accountability Act, signed in July, violated the state’s constitution.
The law also requires gubernatorial candidates to disclose their tax returns for ballot access, but the California justices did not address that portion of the law. The Hill’s John Kruzel and Naomi Jagoda explain the ruling here.
And there were developments in the two tax return cases the Supreme Court is weighing whether to take up.
Read more: Manhattan DA asks Supreme Court to let them enforce subpoena for Trump tax returns
Read more: House Dems urge Supreme Court to allow subpoena for Trump’s financial records
Legislation on Libra: A pair of lawmakers on Thursday introduced legislation that would place stringent government oversight on Facebook’s incoming digital currency and similar projects.
The bill from Reps. Sylvia GarciaSylvia GarciaHillicon Valley: Senators ask Trump to halt Huawei licenses | Warren criticizes Zuckerberg over secret dinner with Trump | Senior DHS cyber official to leave | Dems offer bill on Libra oversight On The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Lawmakers introduce bill to ‘protect’ consumers from Facebook’s digital currency MORE (D-Texas) and Lance GoodenLance GoodenHillicon Valley: Senators ask Trump to halt Huawei licenses | Warren criticizes Zuckerberg over secret dinner with Trump | Senior DHS cyber official to leave | Dems offer bill on Libra oversight On The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Lawmakers introduce bill to ‘protect’ consumers from Facebook’s digital currency MORE (R-Texas) would place the Libra digital coin squarely under the Securities and Exchange Commission’s jurisdiction, a move that would subject the cryptocurrency to a set of extensive and well-established regulations.
Facebook has denied that the Libra coin is a security. But lawmakers have struggled to understand how to classify the ambitious Libra project because the U.S. government has not yet defined which federal agencies will be in charge of regulating cryptocurrencies.
More from The Hill’s Emily Birnbaum on the bill here.
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Wasserman Schultz makes bid for House Appropriations Committee gavel: Florida Democrat Debbie Wasserman SchultzDeborah (Debbie) Wasserman SchultzOn The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Wasserman Schultz makes bid for House Appropriations Committee gavel Overnight Defense: Erdoğan gets earful from GOP senators | Amazon to challenge Pentagon cloud contract decision in court | Lawmakers under pressure to pass benefits fix for military families MORE on Thursday threw her hat in the ring to become the next chair of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.
In October, the committee’s current chairwoman Rep. Nita LoweyNita Sue LoweyOn The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Wasserman Schultz makes bid for House Appropriations Committee gavel Trump signs short-term spending bill to avert shutdown MORE (D-N.Y.), 82, announced that she would retire at the end of the term, leaving open a race for one of the most coveted gavels in the Congress.
Expect a fight: Wasserman Schultz, who chairs the appropriations subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, will face stiff competition.
Rep. Marcy KapturMarcia (Marcy) Carolyn KapturOn The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Wasserman Schultz makes bid for House Appropriations Committee gavel The National World War II Memorial is a grateful remembrance — don’t let it fall apart MORE (D-Ohio), the longest-serving female House member, has seniority on the committee, while Rep. Rosa DeLauroRosa Luisa DeLauroOn The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Wasserman Schultz makes bid for House Appropriations Committee gavel House Democrat asks USDA to halt payouts to Brazilian meatpacker under federal probe MORE (D-Conn.), an ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) who heads the subcommittee covering the largest non-defense spending bill, has also said she will seek the position. More from Niv here.
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GOOD TO KNOW
- Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala Devi HarrisSanders gets endorsement of rideshare drivers guild Warren adds Ayanna Pressley as campaign co-chair The Hill’s Campaign Report: Impeachment looms large over Democratic debate MORE (D-Calif.) and Rep. Maxine WatersMaxine Moore WatersOn The Money: Trump signs short-term spending bill to avoid shutdown | Pelosi casts doubt on USMCA deal in 2019 | California high court strikes down law targeting Trump tax returns Harris, Waters release 0 billion affordable housing bill Congress extends flood insurance program for 13th time since 2017 MORE (D-Calif.) introduced a bill Thursday to invest more than $102 billion in federal programs to reduce the national shortage of affordable housing.
- A top Democratic congresswoman on Thursday asked the Agriculture Department (USDA) to investigate and retract tens of millions of dollars in federal contracts with a Brazilian meatpacking company facing federal corruption charges.
ODDS AND ENDS
- The House Energy and Commerce committee announced a probe into Live Nation and other top online ticket sale companies on Thursday.
- A group of senators from both parties on Thursday urged the Trump administration to stop issuing licenses for U.S. companies to do business with Chinese telecom giant Huawei, warning that even limited business with Huawei could pose a national security risk.
- Office-sharing company WeWork announced Thursday it is laying off about 2,400 employees worldwide, as the company looks to cut costs and stabilize its business model.
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