Tag: Ron Wyden

Wyden renews wealth tax push after billionaires’ returns leak

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Members of both parties express concern over unauthorized disclosure to ProPublica; IRS chief says agency is investigating

The top Senate tax writers expressed concern Tuesday about the unauthorized disclosure of taxpayer information in a ProPublica report examining more than 15 years’ worth of tax returns for the country’s wealthiest individuals, but they drew different conclusions about how the disclosure should influence their legislative efforts.

Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said the report’s findings that America’s wealthiest billionaires paid little in income taxes underscored the need for legislation that would require them to pay their “fair share.”

But Finance ranking member Michael D. Crapo, R-Idaho, focused more on the leak of the tax returns, saying it adds to his concerns that the administration’s proposal to require banks to report more taxpayer financial information to the IRS could compromise Americans’ privacy. Continue reading.

Senator: Treasury Dept. email accounts compromised in hack

WASHINGTON — Dozens of email accounts at the Treasury Department were compromised in a massive breach of U.S. government agencies being blamed on Russia, with hackers breaking into systems used by the department’s highest-ranking officials, a senator said Monday after being briefed on the matter.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., provided new details of the hack following a briefing to Senate Finance Committee staff by the IRS and Treasury Department. 

Wyden said that though there is no indication that taxpayer data was compromised, the hack “appears to be significant,” including through the compromise of dozens of email accounts and access to the Departmental Offices division of the Treasury Department, which the senator said was home to its highest-ranking officials. In addition, the breach appears to involve the theft of encryption keys from U.S. government servers, Wyden said. Continue reading.

Senate Democrats urge White House to quickly nominate new inspector general for coronavirus programs

Washington Post logoPresident Trump on Friday took a step that could weaken an inspector general’s independence, but Democrats said strong oversight is needed to ensure accountability

Three senior Senate Democrats are asking Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to honor the terms of a new coronavirus law that establishes independent oversight to monitor the Trump administration’s handling of a $500 billion funding program, according to a copy of a letter obtained by The Washington Post.

Shortly after enacting the law on Friday, President Trump took a step to curb the program’s oversight, kicking off a battle between Congress and the White House over how the law would be implemented and scrutinized.

Mnuchin brokered many of the terms of the spending deal with Democrats last week, and in their letter to him they expressed alarm about Trump’s immediate signing statement, which some interpreted as an attempt to weaken the reporting requirements of a new inspector general. The letter, signed by Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), also said Trump must “without delay” nominate the new inspector general to oversee and probe the funding. Continue reading.

Senate Democrats vow to keep pushing for more funds for mail-in voting

The Hill logoSens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) vowed on Thursday to keep pushing for additional funding for states to boost their mail-in voting efforts in the midst of the coronavirus crisis. 

The pledge by Klobuchar and Wyden comes a day after the Senate unanimously approved a $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill that included $400 million for states to enhance mail-in voting and other efforts to keep elections stable despite the ongoing pandemic.

For the two senators, and for other election advocates, the funding level fell woefully short of the $2 billion they had pressed the Senate to include for elections earlier this week.  Continue reading.

FEC reviewing whether NRA accepted illegal Russian donations in 2016: report

The following article by Josh Delk was posted on the Hill website March 17, 2018:

Credit: Getty Images

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) has reportedly opened a preliminary probe into whether the National Rifle Association (NRA) took illegal contributions from Russian entities aimed at benefiting President Trump‘s 2016 campaign.

The review was triggered in part after the American Democracy Legal Fund (ADLF), a liberal advocacy group, filed an FEC complaint urging the commission to probe whether money from foreign nationals was aimed at helping the Trump campaign, Politico reports.

The NRA and its lobbying arm spent $30 million in the 2016 election to support Trump. A spokesman for the gun rights group declined to comment to Politico about the FEC probe. Continue reading “FEC reviewing whether NRA accepted illegal Russian donations in 2016: report”

Wyden Wants Details on NRA Links to Russian Bank Official

The following article by Griffin Connolly was posted on the Roll Call website February 2, 2018:

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., requested documents linking a Russian central banker to the NRA. Credit: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

Sen. Ron Wyden has questions for the National Rifle Association.

The Oregon Democrat requested any documents showing financial links between the organization and Russia, The Associated Press reported Friday.

Wyden’s request comes after reports last month that the gun lobbying titan may have received money from a top Russian central bank official during the 2016 presidential election.

The FBI is investigating any ties the NRA might have to Alexander Torshin, the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank and a close associate of President Vladimir Putin, a number of outlets reported last month. Continue reading “Wyden Wants Details on NRA Links to Russian Bank Official”