Crash Diet for Tax Enforcement
Congress is heading for a decision on putting more trust in technology to handle tax enforcement.
That goal’s part of the reason the first draft of one of the fiscal 2026 spending bills is written with a reduction of more than 40% for IRS enforcement.
The text released ahead of today’s subcommittee markup would allot $9.5 billion for the IRS, down from the current appropriation of $12.3 billion. The bill also seeks to put the brakes on development of a free electronic return-filing service. That would go in the opposite direction of the Direct File pilot program instituted by Democrats. Read More from Chris Cioffi and Erin Slowey and check out Congress Tracker for a fuller look of what’s happening on Capitol Hill.
If He Could Turn Back Time
You already know that President Donald Trump doesn’t like the new names given to military bases that for decades honored men who fought the US in the Civil War. He also doesn’t like the new names of sports teams that decided to change their own directions.
Trump’s threatening to block an NFL stadium plan for DC because he wants the local team to stop calling itself the Washington Commanders.
“I may put a restriction on them that if they don’t change the name back to the original ‘Washington Redskins,’ and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, ‘Washington Commanders,’” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “I won’t make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington.”
The federal government does have a role in the stadium situation. The Commanders plan to build on property that was the team’s home for roughly three decades, until 1996 — the old RFK Stadium. That land has been managed by the US National Park Service. Read More
How Well Do You Know Washington — Wardrobe Edition
Move over, seersucker. You have sartorial competition. This week brings another dress-this-way day, organized by Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) and Wesley Hunt (R-Texas). Look for them Wednesday afternoon at a group photo shoot on the Capitol steps.
What are lawmakers and staffers being asked to wear?
A) Bow ties
B) College team jerseys
C) Colorful socks
D) Sneakers
Scroll down for the answer.
Eye on the Economy
Online job postings are worth watching for signs of how well the US eonomy’s doing. Lately, those signs have been pessimistic.
Bloomberg’s Georgia Hall reports on labor market data showing that since March, employers each month have removed more job listings than they’ve posted. Meanwhile, the number of employees at temporary staffing agencies has declined steadily in the last three years, government data show.
And companies in the business of connecting job-seekers with employers are having problems of their own, in part because of competition from artificial intelligence, according to one bankruptcy filing. Read More
On the Tariff Front
Less than two weeks remain until Trump’s Aug. 1 trade-deal deadline. “I am confident we’ll get a deal done,” US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on CBS’s Face the Nation. “I think all these key countries will figure out it is better to open their markets to the United States of America than to pay a significant tariff.”
Lutnick said he spoke yesterday with European trade negotiators.
Meanwhile, European Union envoys are set to meet as early as this week to nail down a plan in case the talks don’t produce an agreement. The bloc has already approved potential tariffs on €21 billion of US goods including bourbon and Boeing aircraft, that could be implemented quickly. Additional options include restrictions on public procurement contracts and export controls — moves that would risk an even wider transatlantic trade rift. Read More
See Also:
China Trade
Some of Trump’s fellow Republicans object to the decision to let Nvidia Corp. resume shipments of its H20 artificial intelligence chips to China. In a letter to Lunick, the head of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party said Beijing’s military capabilities would benefit, as would its capacity to compete with the US in artificial technology.
“We must not allow US companies to sell these vital artificial intelligence assets to Chinese entities,” wrote Chairman John Moolenaar (R-Mich.).
Administration officials have argued that Washington should keep China’s AI development dependent on US providers. It’s also part of an effort to secure access to rare-earth minerals from China. Read More
See Also: China Stops US Commerce Employee From Leaving, Reports Say
Did You Ace the Quiz?
The correct response is D. Wednesday is the 3rd annual Sneaker Day on Capitol Hill, the announcement of which deserves bonus points for inviting people to put their best foot forward to “help restore the sole of Congress.”
Hat tip: Maeve Sheehey
Before You Go
Epstein and Health Puncture Trump’s Armor: As Trump gears up for a trip to the UK at the end of this week to finalize a trade deal, attention has turned to his health and the Wall Street Journal’s report on a suggestive birthday greeting to Jeffrey Epstein. Josh Wingrove examines a rollercoaster week that could have ended on a high note from the signing of a stablecoin bill, but didn’t.
Money Pit: The cost of renovating and expanding the historic 1937 building that houses the Federal Reserve, plus an adjacent 1931 federal building, has increased more than 30% since 2023. It’s become a target for Trump and others who’d like a regime change but don’t have performance grounds to oust Chair Jerome Powell. Reasons for the bigger-than-planned expenses include the increase in the price of structural steel just before construction began, delays as the project awaited signoff from oversight boards, and foundation work in the former swamp that was so difficult that contractors responsible for the job received a 2025 award for “excellence in the face of adversity” from a building trades association. Read More
Why Trump Fallout Matters to Musk: On paper, Elon Musk has a net worth of about $360 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. But he’s also cash poor, dependent in large part on the stock price of Tesla and on his continued ability to raise almost limitless sums of money from supportive investors. With Tesla’s stock price falling, Musk’s companies are financially intertwined, making serious damage difficult to contain. And there are many more weapons Trump could deploy against Musk’s business interests, were he so motivated. Read More
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