The Senate parliamentarian dealt a big blow to Republicans’ plans to cut Medicaid as part of its “big, beautiful bill.” The move could jeopardize the July Fourth deadline set by Senate Majoirty Leader John Thune (R-S.D.).
Elizabeth MacDonough rejected a plan to cap states’ use of health care provider taxes to collect more federal Medicaid funding, a proposal that would have generated hundreds of billions of dollars in savings to offset the cost of making President Trump’s corporate tax cuts permanent, according to a Democratic summary of the parliamentarian’s ruling.
Earlier Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth summoned members of the media for a press conference on Thursday, during which he trashed their coverage of U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Neither Hegseth nor Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine presented new information supporting the administration’s contention that the strikes on three facilities “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program. Caine said the bombings were carried out exactly as planned, but noted the military does not “grade its own homework,” while Hegseth leaned on statements released Wednesday by National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard and CIA chief John Ratcliffe.
With only days left in its term, the Supreme Court will issue new rulings at 10 a.m. on Thursday. The outstanding opinions include one in the birthright citizenship case.
Catch up:
- Questions about success of Iran strikes spark fears on Capitol Hill
- The Memo: Trump fights to hold on to narrative of Iran win
Follow along here for updates on these stories and more.