Tag: Steven Mnuchin

IG finds Treasury handled House request for Trump tax returns properly

The Hill logoThe Treasury Department’s inspector general office found that the department “properly” processed House Democrats’ request for President Trump‘s tax returns when it refused to turn over the documents to the Ways and Means Committee.

In a memo, the IG also said it found Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin’s supervision of the process to be consistent with its rules.

The memo said it found Treasury’s receipt, processing and responses to the request and subpoenas from House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) “to be consistent with Treasury’s general process for handling Congressional correspondence.” Continue reading.

Mnuchin says he thinks US businesses could reopen in May

The Hill logoTreasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday that he thought the United States could reopen the economy during the month of May. 

“I do,” Mnuchin told CNBC host Jim Cramer in a phone interview on Thursday morning in response to a direct question about whether the country could be “open for business” in the month of May.

“I think as soon as the president feels comfortable with the medical issues, we are making everything necessary that American companies and American workers can be open for business and that they have the liquidity to operate their business in the interim,” Mnuchin continued. Continue reading.

Treasury’s Mnuchin seeks additional $250 billion to replenish small-business coronavirus program

Washington Post logoDevelopment comes amid surging demand for loans under rescue bill

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday asked congressional leaders to swiftly commit an additional $250 billion to replenish the new $349 billion small-business coronavirus program that is being overwhelmed by surging demand.

President Trump said banks have processed $70 billion in taxpayer-backed loans for 250,000 small businesses since Friday, as companies seek emergency help to deal with the enormous business disruption caused by the pandemic.

He did not say, though, how many of those loans have been approved or how many firms have received any of the money. And his data suggests the program has reached a small fraction of U.S. companies: There are 30 million small businesses in the United States that employ 60 million people. Continue reading.

Mnuchin emerges as key asset in Trump’s war against coronavirus

The Hill logoTreasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has taken on an outsized role in the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus, serving as a key conduit between President Trump and Congress. 

Mnuchin has helped shepherd through two massive legislative packages aimed at helping address the public health crisis and the ensuing economic fallout, engaging constantly with Democratic leaders despite the considerable partisan divide that has plagued Washington.

“We had had Secretary Mnuchin and Mr. Mulvaney and others, and I think both Republicans and Democrats made it very clear the person they wanted to talk to with was Secretary Mnuchin,” said Senate Appropriations Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), referencing Trump’s outgoing acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney. Continue reading.

How the $2 trillion deal came together — and nearly fell apart

Inside McConnell, Schumer and Mnuchin’s race to rescue the economy.

It was going to cost $1 trillion.

Late on March 16, five days after the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus a pandemic, Larry Kudlow — the one-time cable news talker turned top economic advisor to President Donald Trump — was in the Senate’s historic Mansfield room, telling a group of senior GOP senators something they didn’t want to hear.

The U.S. economy was going to need a lot of help — and fast. Americans faced dire consequences if Congress didn’t act quickly, warned Kudlow, alongside Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, acting Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought and White House Legislative Affairs Director Eric Ueland. The senators were stunned and dismayed. Continue reading.

House Passes Bipartisan Pandemic Relief Bill Overnight

With an overwhelming bipartisan majority, the House of Representatives approved coronavirus relief legislation early Saturday morning. The bill provides tens of billions of dollars for free testing, paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, and other measures to assist those affected by the pandemic.

Following two days of negotiations between Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin — and much carping from House and Senate Republicans as well as President Trump — the 363-40 vote occurred just before 1 a.m. ET. According to the Washington Post, Pelosi and Mnuchin spoke by phone 13 times on Friday to clinch the relief agreement.

Trump then tweeted his endorsement of the bill, presumably ensuring Republican support as it goes to the Senate. Continue reading.

Pelosi, Trump strike deal on coronavirus response package

The Hill logoSpeaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and President Trump have struck a deal on a multibillion-dollar stimulus package aimed at assisting millions of Americans directly hurt by the coronavirus outbreak.

Pelosi announced the deal on Friday evening after days of roller-coaster negotiations that put the outcome in doubt, as the nation’s leaders raced to ease public anxiety and stabilize volatile markets. Trump said on Twitter that he looked forward to signing the legislation.

“I have directed the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations that will provide flexibility so that in no way will Small Businesses be hurt. I encourage all Republicans and Democrats to come together and VOTE YES!” Trump wrote in a series of tweets. Continue reading.

Trump urged Mnuchin to pressure Fed’s Powell on economic stimulus in explosive tirade about coronavirus

Washington Post logoPresident Trump, in an explosive tirade Monday, urged Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to encourage Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell to do more to stimulate the economy, three officials familiar with the exchange said, revealing the president’s mounting fury as his administration struggles to corral economic fallout from the novel coronavirus.

Trump has frequently complained about the Fed in public for at least two years, but his latest effort to pressure Mnuchin to privately push for action has not been previously reported.

During that tense Monday meeting in the Oval Office, Trump fumed that Powell never should have been appointed and is damaging the nation and his presidency. Continue reading.

Add to list ‘This is not a bailout’: Mnuchin defends Trump plan to rescue firms affected by coronavirus

Washington Post logoWhite House faces questions about why it is seeking to offer some firms emergency assistance but not others

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Wednesday defended the Trump administration’s plan to provide targeted emergency assistance for specific industries hurt by the coronavirus fallout, denying that White House proposals amount to a “bailout” despite mounting scrutiny about whether powerful firms are being singled out for assistance.

Speaking to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, Mnuchin said the White House could act to provide assistance to the travel, cruise and hotel industries, which have been hammered by cancellations and a drop-off in bookings because of traveler concerns.

The White House is considering providing low- or no-interest loans for affected companies and could defer taxes for them until a later date, multiple senior administration officials said. The situation is evolving rapidly. The White House is also considering offering low- or no-interest loans to oil and gas producers that have been hit by plummeting oil prices, officials said. Continue reading.

Steve Mnuchin admits Trump’s budget cuts Social Security even as president claims he is ‘not touching’ the program

AlterNet logoDuring a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin—using euphemistic language Democratic lawmakers described as “Washington-speak“—admitted that President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2021 budget proposal would cut Social Security days after the president insisted he is “not touching” the program.

Pressed by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) on the budget’s call for tens of billions in cuts to Social Security over the next decade, Mnuchin said, “I believe it’s not a cut, it’s a reduction in the rate of increase. And it’s not to the benefits of people on Social Security.”

“If that is not a cut, then I would love to talk to you about what it is this administration values and what they see, how these groups and important individuals in our communities are being affected,” responded Cortez Masto. “My concern is this administration says one thing, but their actions are just the opposite.” Continue reading.