UPDATE: Donald Trump Takes Office as the 47th US President

To fight Trump's funding freezes, states propose a new gambit: Withholding federal payments

The novel and untested approach — so far introduced in Connecticut, Maryland, New York and Wisconsin — would essentially allow states to withhold federal payments if lawmakers determine the federal government is delinquent in funding owed to them. Democrats in Washington state said they are in the process of drafting a similar measure.

By Adam Edelman
June 29, 2025


250627-trump-ch-1446-7457f2.jpg

President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday.
 
To fight Trump's funding freezes, states propose a new gambit: Withholding federal payments

The novel and untested approach — so far introduced in Connecticut, Maryland, New York and Wisconsin — would essentially allow states to withhold federal payments if lawmakers determine the federal government is delinquent in funding owed to them. Democrats in Washington state said they are in the process of drafting a similar measure.

By Adam Edelman
June 29, 2025


250627-trump-ch-1446-7457f2.jpg

President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday.
Oh shit
 

Democrats Blocked as Senate GOP Gives Lindsey Graham ‘Sole Authority’ to Judge Legality of Trump’s Megabill​


"In a dramatic power move, Senate Republicans have handed Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) the exclusive right to decide whether Donald Trump’s massive new spending and tax bill follows federal budget laws. This decision effectively blocks Democrats from challenging the bill’s legality.

Senator Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), who was presiding over the Senate, ruled that the chair of the Senate Budget Committee—Graham—has “sole authority” to determine if any part of the 940-page “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” breaks the 1974 Congressional Budget Act or other budget rules.


Hagerty declared that “the presiding chair must rely on determinations made by the Budget Committee” when judging the bill’s budget impact. Since Graham leads that committee, his word is final. Unless Graham says a budget rule is broken, no objections will be allowed."

Despite the objections, the Senate voted along party lines to uphold Hagerty’s ruling, 53-47, giving Graham full control over whether budget rules apply to the bill.
 
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