Search the Roll Call archive by keyword, date, Congress, section, or tags.
House and Senate leaders like to brag about their respective chambers’ progress on passing spending bills but not one has won final passage, CQ budget and appropriations reporter Kellie Mejdrich says. She unpacks the reasons behind the bottleneck that now includes a new hurdle:President Trump’s freeze on federal workers’ wages.  Show Notes: Road Ahead: […]
July 24, 1998 changed everything on Capitol Hill. The shooting and ensuing deaths of two Capitol Police officers left a scar on the close-knit community and began a ramping up of hardened security around the legislative branch that continues today. Roll Call Senior Editor David Hawkings covered the event, and Roll Call multimedia reporter Thomas […]
Republican lawmakers and President Donald Trump are mulling going back to the 2018 omnibus and cutting programs already funded by the spending bill in a possible effort to assuage their political base, says CQ budget editor Peter Cohn. He explains the steps lawmakers would need to take to make that happen. Roll Call  Show […]
CQ trade reporter Ellyn Ferguson and defense reporter John M. Donnelly spell out the risks posed by President Donald Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and his agreement to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.  Show Notes: Ignoring GOP Pleas, Trump Sets Tariffs In Motion Â
Adm. Michael S. Rogers, the head of U.S. Cyber Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee this week that the Defense Department believes Russia will target state election systems, which tally votes, during the 2018 election. But CQ cybersecurity reporter Gopal Ratnam says that neither Congress, nor the Trump administration, has done anything to help […]
Bob Bixby, executive director of The Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan group that encourages fiscal responsibility in Washington, explains how the adoption of the deficit-busting budget deal could affect the overall economy and why cutting entitlements may pose a problem for the GOP. RollCall Show Notes: Which House Members Voted Against Their Leadership on the Budget […]
The end of filibusters, changes in other Hill customs and subcontracting nominations to conservative groups – all have combined to make Senate judicial confirmations much more about "consent" than "advice," CQ legal affairs reporter Todd Ruger explains.  Show Notes: Senate Republicans Steamroll Judicial Process Supreme Court Hops Into Case About a Frog and Property […]
President Trump says he wants a $1.5 trillion to rebuild America’s roads, bridges and other infrastructure, but differences over how to pay for it could prevent his ambitious plan from getting off the ground. CQ transportation reporter Jacob Fischler and budget editor Peter Cohn explain. RollCall Show Notes: Trump Ups Infrastructure Spending Goal, but Offers […]
CQ appropriations reporter Jennifer Shutt talks about the various hurdles lawmakers will need to overcome to prevent another government shutdown. Â Â Â Â Â
Senate Democrats are seeing red. Of the 26 Democrats facing the voters in November, 10 of them are running in states President Donald Trump won in 2016, and five of those are in states the president won handily. Roll Call political reporters Simone Pathé and Bridget Bowman discuss the Democrats’ dynamics in a closely divided Senate, […]
CQ Budget Tracker Editor David Lerman has the latest on the government shutdown and why Senate lawmakers are at an impasse. RollCall  Show Notes: White House Not Shooting Down Possible Shutdown-Ending Deal Senate Adjourns, Ensures Government Shutdown on Monday Â
 President Donald Trump is taking his time reshaping his trade policies, says CQ Roll Call’s trade reporter Ellyn Ferguson. She provides valuable insight on where things stand with the president’s campaign pledges to rip up NAFTA and officially label China as a currency manipulator — neither of which has happened.  Show Notes:  […]
Former FBI Director Robert Mueller is now leading the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and the special counsel’s work will likely eclipse four concurrent congressional investigations, says CQ Roll Call’s Todd Ruger and Niels Lesniewski. They provide the latest political and legal developments on the rapidly expanding probe.   Show Notes: […]
President Donald Trump wants to invest $1 trillion into the nation’s crumbling roads, bridges, tunnels and airports, as well as into drinking water, electric and telecommunications systems, says CQ Roll Call’s transportation reporter Jacob Fischler. But the hurdle to that ambitious agenda is finding the money. Fischler and transportation editor Randy Walerius discuss what role […]
CQ foreign policy reporter Rachel Oswald and defense editor Patrick B. Pexton discuss the turmoil at the State Department and what Congress can do about it.  RollCall  Show Notes: Report: State’s Tillerson Could Be Replaced by CIA’s Pompeo Tillerson Doesn’t Deny Calling Trump a ‘Moron’   Â
 Catch-up here on what is happening with President Donald Trump’s illegal immigration crackdown and plan to build a border wall, including its price tag. The project will involve taking private property and at least $15 billion taxpayer dollars, says CQ Roll Call’s national security reporter Gopal Ratnam. The wall was a cornerstone of Trump’s […]
Foiled in Congress, President Donald Trump made far-reaching changes to the 2010 health care law that could make insurance more affordable for some, while dramatically raising costs for others, says CQ Health Editor Rebecca Adams. She explains how Trump’s moves could affect the insurance marketplace. Roll Call Show Notes: ‘Call me,’ Trump Tells Democrats After […]
The U.S., Mexico and Canada started renegotiating the trade deal that candidate Donald Trump said had to be torn up or renegotiated. Lawmakers want him to first do no harm.  Roll Call  Show Notes: Trump Says ‘Obstructionist Democrats’ Undermining National Security Trump: Country Being ‘Ripped Apart’ Over Confederate Monuments Trump Hits Lindsey Graham […]
Capitol Hill will likely hear from three key figures in the Russia investigation this week, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, his son, Donald Trump Jr., and his former campaign manager, Paul Manafort. CQ Legal Affairs Reporter Todd Ruger previews what figure to be blockbuster hearings. fillgap Show Notes: New FBI Director Expected to Be Confirmed […]
Lawmakers are debating legislation that would put air traffic control into private hands, provide protections to airline passengers and regulate drones, says CQ’s transportation reporter Jacob Fischler. He and transportation editor Randy Walerius explain what’s at stake. loading… Show Notes: Panel Rebukes United, Other Airlines Over Passenger Treatment Senator Plots Bill to Prevent a Repeat […]