LET’S TALK TAXES — The Supreme Court could throw a wrench in Democrats’ big dreams for taxing the rich and upend longstanding parts of the tax code when they take up a case next session on Congressional authority to levy taxes. Arguments won’t be heard until the fall and a decision is probably a year off, but just the prospect of a big tax decision out of the court is already invigorating tax talk on Capitol Hill – yes, even during recess. The challenge to a piece of the 2017 Trump-era tax law, if successful, could open the door for big corporations to get refunds for what they paid in one-time taxes on their overseas profits. But it could also welcome legal challenges to other parts of the established tax code. It may also drive the court to define “income,” which the justices have been loath to do. Democratic angst: If the case is decided in favor of the petitioners (the Moores of Moore v. United States), it could kill Democrats' most ambitious tax proposals, from a wealth tax to President Joe Biden’s proposal for an annual minimum tax on wealthy Americans, based in part on their unrealized capital gains. “The petitioners in Moore are hoping the Supreme Court will toss out a Ninth Circuit ruling along with potentially decades of settled tax law and bipartisan agreement on Congressional authority, all for the benefit of the ultra-wealthy,” Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in a statement. “If the Republicans on the Supreme Court take the petitioners’ side, they’d be handing a massive windfall to multinational corporations and could potentially lock in a right for billionaires to opt out of paying anything remotely close to a fair share in taxes.” Wyden also takes umbridge because he anticipates any ensuing legal challenges to the tax code would come from “well funded special interests.” Also, don’t be surprised to hear Democrats continually hammering conservatives justices ties to billionaires. 2024 tax tangles: Looking ahead to next year, when the court will decide the case, the decision would drop in the homestretch of the 2024 election and just a few months before much of the GOP’s sweeping Trump-era tax breaks are set to expire in 2025. As Sarah and Burgess dove into earlier this month, the winner of next year’s election will earn the right to dramatically shape the nation’s tax code, and having this SCOTUS decision looming will only energize each party’s stances. In the meantime… The House GOP is trying to get some tax action in the pipeline, even if it has no future in the Democrat-controlled Senate. In July, House Republicans are aiming to bring their big tax bill to the floor, which would undo recent restrictions on several business tax breaks, temporarily expand the standard deduction and revive tax incentives for businesses that have lapsed under the 2017 GOP tax law. It is an ambitious swing, but just a fraction of what they hope to accomplish on taxes if they are able to secure the White House and the Senate next year. GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Tuesday, June 27, where we’ve got our tickets for the Congressional Women’s Softball Game, do you? IT’S TIME TO WAKE UP — In a conversation with Burgess, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) talks about putting the Senate into another gear, taking big bipartisan legislative swings on a wide range of policy issues. That’s a contrast to much of this year, which has been vote after vote on judges and scarce legislation — besides GOP bills to kill Biden administration regulations. “There are a bunch of Republicans in the Senate who want to work with us,” Schumer said in an interview. There are bipartisan bills on rail safety and cannabis banking in the pipeline alongside must-pass measures including spending, the farm bill, aviation reauthorization and NDAA. “We’ll try to get as many [bills] done as we can. Legislating in the Senate with the rules we have is not easy, right? But if you push ahead, we’re going to get some good things done,” Schumer said. FIRST IN HUDDLE: AN ARIZONA PICK — EMILYs List is launching its first challenger endorsement of the 2024 cycle, backing Kirsten Engel in Arizona’s 6th Congressional District against incumbent Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.). The race is a rematch – Engel came close in 2022, but fell short. “Kirsten Engel knows what it takes to stand up to anti-choice extremism and fight for the rights of Arizonans — she did it in the state House and state Senate, and now, she’s running to continue that work in Congress. Engel has also been a leader in the critical efforts to reverse the impacts of climate change and help make our schools the best they can be. She’s never backed down in the face of challenges from radical Republicans,” said EMILYs List President Laphonza Butler in a statement. MEET ME IN MONTANA — Republican Tim Sheehy is launching a Senate bid in Montana, challenging incumbent Sen. John Tester (D-Mont.) and setting up a potential primary battle with Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.), who Tester defeated to win reelection in 2018. Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL, aims to oust Tester, who is the only Democrat holding statewide office in Big Sky Country. The Montana senate race will be one of the most-watched in the 2024 cycle, and the interest is dialed up even more with Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) leading Senate Republicans’ campaign arm. Daines will be backing Sheehy, the Wall Street Journal reported. CAPITOL HILL TECH SUPPORT — The House is launching — and reigning in — fresh tech to help staffers do their jobs. Discovering eDiscovery: The House is now making available a chamber-wide eDiscovery platform for committees and others to utilize in investigations and other work. The move was recommended during the 117th Congress to update and strengthen legislative branch oversight efforts (chalk up another win for the Modernization Committee, and implementation by the Modernization Subcommittee led by Reps. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.) and Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.)). The new software acquisition aims to allow staff to tease out valuable information from large tranches of documents more efficiently and speed processing, review and organization of records. Privacy with Plus: A memo from House Chief Administrative Officer Catherine Szpindor urged House offices utilizing ChatGPT artificial intelligence to only use the $20 Chat GPT Plus version. “The Plus version of the product incorporates important privacy features that are necessary to protect House data,” the CAO said. The memo also outlined limitations and conditions on use of ChatGPT within the House, including using it only for "research and evaluation only." Szpindor warned that House offices are "not authorized to incorporate it into regular workflow." She also warned against pasting “any blocks of text that have not already been made public." She also urged offices to enable privacy settings, which are disabled by default, to "ensure that your history is not preserved and your interactions are not incorporated back into the large language model." MAKING A BREAK FOR THE BORDER — Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) was in El Paso, Texas, visiting border facilities Monday, a trip by the indicted New York Republicans that must have required court approval. One condition of his release on $500,000 bond was a ban on travel outside New York and Washington without seeking permission from the court. Santos also surrendered his passport. “I am here on full compliance, and I am here legally,” Santos told reporters at the Hyatt Place El Paso Airport hotel.
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