WASHINGTON — As Congress took a major step towards a massive tax overhaul on Thursday — with no help from Connecticut’s Democratic lawmakers — the future of the popular 401(k) retirement plan was in question. Key GOP lawmakers want to offset some of their proposed tax cuts by limiting the maximum pre-tax contribution to workplace saving plans such as the 401(k). That could make big changes in they way Americans save for retirement.
Congress
Posted inJustice, Politics
Murphy calls fellow lawmakers ‘cowards’ on gun control after Las Vegas shooting
Updated at 7:30 p.m.
Connecticut Democrats were among the first to renew calls for Congress to act on gun control after a mass shooting in Las Vegas late Sunday left at least 59 dead and more than 500 wounded.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Trump tax plan would help CT businesses, but eliminate many personal tax breaks
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s tax plan, which he unveiled in Indiana Wednesday, would aid affluent individuals in Connecticut and lower the corporate income tax rate paid by many businesses in the state. But its impact on the state’s middle- and lower-income filers is unclear, in part because the tax plan would eliminate a number of popular deductions.
Posted inJustice, Politics
CT ‘dreamers’ warily watch Congress on DACA legislation
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has boosted the chance for permanent protection from deportation for 10,000 undocumented youth in Connecticut, but those youth are still wary because their future depends on a fractured Congress.
Posted inNews
A Connecticut ‘dreamer,’ committed to the fight, will not return to the shadows
Lucas Codognolla was born in Brazil, grew up as an average American child in Connecticut and is a UConn grad. But President Donald Trump has put his future and that of other undocumented young people in this country on shaky ground. In this Sunday conversation, we talk to him about how he’s handling the end of DACA, a program that has shielded 800,000 undocumented youth from deportation.
Posted inPolitics
CT senators will support Harvey aid, despite Texans’ opposition to Sandy relief
WASHINGTON — The need for a robust federal response to Hurricane Harvey has reopened old wounds about the contentious and drawn-out fight five years ago for a relief bill for Superstorm Sandy victims. Connecticut’s senators, who joined their colleagues from New York and New Jersey in fighting for the aid, say they are ready to bury the hatchet and help Texas Republicans who opposed Sandy funding.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Congress under deadline pressure to renew health plan for 17,000 CT children
WASHINGTON — When Congress returns for its break next week it will decide whether to renew a health care program that covers 17,000 Connecticut children under 19. If it doesn’t, Connecticut will be among the first states to feel the impact.
Posted inHealth
New Obamacare replacement plan would hurt CT, report says
WASHINGTON – A proposal by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy to replace the Affordable Care Act would increase the number of uninsured nationwide, cut Medicaid and have a particularly costly impact on Connecticut and a handful of other states, a new study says.
Posted inPolitics
DeLauro fights political winds with book making case for social safety net
WASHINGTON — Three years ago, veteran Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro felt compelled to do one of the few things she had never done before – write a book. The result is “The Least Among Us: Waging the Battle for the Vulnerable,” a smooth read about her fight to protect the social safety net and her battles with both Republicans and Democrats who disagreed with her position or her approach. We talk to her about it in this week’s Sunday conversation.
Posted inPolitics
Q Poll: Support of Senate health care bill at 16 percent
WASHINGTON — Only 16 percent of American voters approve of a Senate health care bill that would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, a new Quinnipiac University poll said.
Posted inJustice, Politics
Blumenthal, Democrats sue to force Trump to disclose foreign deals
WASHINGTON — Sen. Richard Blumenthal wants a federal court in Washington, D.C., to compel President Donald Trump to ask Congress for permission when he benefits from business dealings with foreign governments. The lawsuit is based on the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which requires the nation’s presidents to clear any gift or payment from a foreign leader with Congress.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Trump budget would rip CT safety net for poor
Updated at 9:35 p.m.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s first budget, to be released in detail Tuesday, would cut Medicaid funding to Connecticut and eliminate other programs state residents rely upon to try to make ends meet, such as one that helps low-income people heat their homes. Many of the proposed cuts will meet resistance from Congress.
Posted inPolitics
This time, Newtown bike riders rolling away from Congress
WASHINGTON — With Donald Trump in the White House and a GOP lock on Congress, the 26 bike riders who roll hundreds of miles every year from Newtown to the U.S. Capitol to honor those slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School decided to change course. Instead of riding to Congress, they were riding away from it Thursday and toward where they believe their message has more resonance.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers: Trump must ask Congress for authority for Syria campaign
WASHINGTON — As they did when President Obama took action against ISIS in Syria, Connecticut’s Democratic lawmakers are calling for President Donald Trump to seek Congress’approval before taking any further military action against Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad. But Congress isn’t likely to take action.
Posted inPolitics
Courtney to Malloy: Use HUD funds to help fix crumbling foundations
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s budget would eliminate a housing grant program that pays for projects in nearly two dozen Connecticut towns – and Rep. Joe Courtney wants the Malloy administration to also use it to help residents with crumbling foundations before the money disappears.