Heard on the Hill
What we're hearing from people we trust on and around the Hill
TEARS AT ENR? Sen. Martin Heinrich (D., N.M.) raised eyebrows at an Energy and Natural Resources hearing on October 29th when he started crying while talking about President Donald Trump renovating the East Wing of the White House. A Senate source told us that this was “truly bizarre behavior. Senator Heinrich should be embarrassed.”
INSTANT BEST SELLER: Rep. Elise Stefanik (R., N.Y.) released a new book called Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of the Academic and Moral Rot at America’s Elite Universities. The move comes as Stefanik is virtually tied with controversial Gov. Kathy Hochul (D., N.Y.) in polls of a potential 2026 matchup. Stefanik tied her findings to how New York City is poised to elect an open anti-Semite as its next mayor. “If you look at the rise of an anti-Semite socialist, Zohran Mamdani, you cannot have that without a direct line from these poisoned Ivy League schools, leading directly to this moral rot that is currently manifesting in what’s playing out in the mayor’s race in New York City.”
IRS WASTE CONTROVERSY: Vance Ginn, the senior economist for Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), published a piece at the Washington Examiner arguing the IRS’s deeply controversial Direct File program should be terminated. A Senate source told us that “when it comes to tax issues, ATR is trusted on the Hill. So it’s no surprise Ginn’s piece has made the rounds. Republicans want the Biden IRS Direct File scam gone.”
PRESSURE IS ON: The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), along with 30 state manufacturing associations, wrote to House and Senate leadership urging them to reopen the government. “With each passing day, the American people suffer new losses, and businesses remain stuck in neutral. It is time to move forward and allow the federal government to get back to work for Americans and their communities.”
SUPER COMPUTER: Eli Lilly and Company announced this week that it is building the most powerful AI supercomputer in the pharmaceutical industry.
SWOON FOR THUNE CAUCUS: The Washington Reporter can now exclusively confirm that Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.) now knows about the legendary “Swoon for Thune” Caucus. That, and more, is in our latest interview with him.
IN MEMORIAM: The Embassy of Israel hosted a Memorial Service for the people murdered by Palestinian terrorists on October 7th, 2023, hostages killed in Gaza, and IDF forces killed in combat. The service featured remarks from Ambassador Yechiel Leiter who spoke of his personal loss in the form of his son, Moshe, who was killed in action. Highlighting the memorial was a fireside chat between Reverend Johnnie Moore and Terry Kassel in which Moore described the commitment of the Evangelical community to partnering with Israel and Jewish communities around the world. When Kassel asked about the state of young evangelicals’ support for Israel, Moore suggested that the support is there, and it’s solid, but that more regular interactions between young Christians and young Jews will go a long way to strengthen those bonds into the future.