News Coverage
You paid for tariffs — but you won’t get a slice of tariff refunds
The government is on the hook to refund $134 billion - and counting - worth of tariff revenue collected from President Donald Trump’s most sweeping tariffs, which were rendered illegal by the Supreme Court last week. How much of that will consumers, who paid for steep tariffs via higher prices, get back? Almost certainly nothing. … Read the full story … Continue Reading
February 23, 2026
Some Senate Dems Ask GAO to Investigate ED Dismantling
As Education Department staff working on higher education grant programs are starting to move their work to the Department of Labor, a group of mostly Senate Democrats wants a government watchdog to investigate the agreements that outsourced those programs. The Education Department first reached an agreement with Labor in May to transfer the career and technical education and learning grants. And then ED followed up in November with several with more agreements that outsourced the … Continue Reading
February 23, 2026
Morning Education: FIRST IN WEEKLY ED
The Education Department acknowledged it's weighing the sale of the student loan portfolio, but said it has "not taken any final actions or made final decisions," in a letter sent to lawmakers this month. POLITICO broke the news in October that the department was exploring selling the portfolio. In response, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), and about 40 other lawmakers wrote a letter urging the department to cease any efforts to sell … Continue Reading
February 20, 2026
Lawmakers press DOJ on Compass-Anywhere Real Estate merger review
Federal lawmakers are urging the Department of Justice (DOJ) to take a closer look at the closed $1.6 billion merger deal between Compass and Anywhere Real Estate. The effort is being led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) with 16 other Democrats as co-signers. In a letter sent Thursday night and obtained exclusively by HousingWire, the lawmakers press Attorney General Pam Bondi for details about the DOJ's antitrust review of the merger between Compass and … Continue Reading
February 19, 2026
Sens. Warren and Sanders ask congressional watchdog to investigate dismantling Department of Education
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are petitioning the Government Accountability Office to investigate the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education. In a letter first obtained by ABC News, the two senators call for nonpartisan congressional watchdog to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the department winding down its functions and transferring offices to other agencies. … Read the full … Continue Reading
February 19, 2026
Democrats in Congress press National Park Service on Trump ballroom donors
If at first you're stonewalled by the Trump administration, try, try again. That's the approach Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Robert Garcia of California appear to be taking in trying to exercise oversight over President Trump's $400 million ballroom project. … Read the full story … Continue Reading
February 19, 2026
Trump's plan to 'deprioritize' student-loan oversight has lawmakers worried about how your servicer is performing
Curious how your student-loan servicer is performing? You might be out of luck — for now. When asked by Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren for data on their performances, the major student-loan servicers delivered nearly identical responses — exclusively reviewed by Business Insider — that referred the lawmaker back to the Department of Education's Federal Student Aid office. … Read the full story … Continue Reading
February 18, 2026
Workplace Inspections by OSHA Dropped Over a Six-Month Period of 2025
New data about the federal agency responsible for workplace safety suggests a substantial drop in inspections in the months after President Trump returned to office last year. The internal data from the Labor Department raises concerns about the government’s ability to police workplaces and protect U.S. workers. The data, which was released by Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, shows a 20 percent decrease in work site inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health … Continue Reading
February 18, 2026
Workplace Inspections by OSHA Dropped Over a Six-Month Period of 2025
New data about the federal agency responsible for workplace safety suggests a substantial drop in inspections in the months after President Trump returned to office last year. The internal data from the Labor Department raises concerns about the government’s ability to police workplaces and protect U.S. workers. The data, which was released by Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, shows a 20 percent decrease in work site inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health … Continue Reading
February 18, 2026
Democratic lawmakers ask watchdogs to probe whether former lobbyists serving in Trump administration violated ethics rules
Four Democratic members of Congress are asking the top internal watchdogs at 16 different federal agencies to investigate whether former lobbyists appointed by the Trump administration may have violated ethics rules to benefit their own former clients. Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Andy Kim of New Jersey and Reps. Pat Ryan of New York and Deborah Ross of North Carolina wrote to the inspectors general to raise concerns about a variety of former lobbyists-turned-government … Continue Reading
February 13, 2026
Warren, Markey say Trump’s policies cost state $8.6 billion in clean energy funding and more than 16,000 jobs
It’s no secret Trump-era policies are draining investments and jobs away from the clean tech sector in Massachusetts and other states. Now there is a tally of the economic damage. A report from Senator Elizabeth Warren’s and Senator Ed Markey’s offices, released on Tuesday, shows that Massachusetts ranks second in lost or delayed clean energy jobs, behind Texas, and first in lost or delayed investments. The study estimates that 16,750 clean energy jobs and $8.6 billion in investments in … Continue Reading
February 13, 2026
Senators demand to know the IRS’ path forward following the end of Direct File
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Angus King, I-Maine, are opening an investigation into the Trump administration’s decision to end the Biden-era free online tax filing program, Direct File. They penned a letter to Scott Bessent, Treasury Secretary and acting IRS Commissioner, on Friday asking for more information about the IRS plan to double down on Free File, which relies on tax prep companies, in the absence of Direct File, which allowed users to file online directly with the … Continue Reading
February 13, 2026
Trump’s immigration agenda worsening childcare crisis, lawmakers warn
Democratic lawmakers, led by the senators Elizabeth Warren and Tammy Duckworth and the representative Mike Quigley, are demanding answers about how Donald Trump’s immigration policies are exacerbating childcare shortages and costs in the US. About 20% of the childcare workforce in the US are immigrants - and as high as 70% in some regions of the US - and Trump’s immigration policies could reduce the childcare workforce by an estimated 15%, according to a letter sent today by 48 lawmakers to … Continue Reading
February 12, 2026
AOC and Warren join forces in high-profile child care push ahead of midterms
As Republicans urge Americans to have more children but offer few supportive policies, Democrats believe reducing child care costs could be a winning message. An effort by Democratic lawmakers to lower snowballing child care costs has a new high-profile front woman: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. … Read the full story … Continue Reading
February 12, 2026
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons to introduce bill aimed at strengthening oversight of ICE and CBP
Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chris Coons of Delaware are introducing new legislation Thursday aimed at creating an independent watchdog commission to conduct oversight of federal immigration enforcement agencies. The bill, named the ICE Accountability Act, comes as Democrats seek reforms to rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection following two deadly shootings by federal agents last month during the administration's immigration … Continue Reading
February 11, 2026
DoD enters decades-long barracks lease as lawmaker warns privatization push lacks accountability tools
The Defense Department has locked itself into another decadeslong lease to privatize military barracks — expanding a housing model that has posed significant challenges for military family housing for decades. The move, a Senate lawmaker warns, will limit the Pentagon’s ability to change contract terms and hold private companies accountable for poor living conditions. Last year, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) pressed the Pentagon for details on its plan to privatize barracks, starting at … Continue Reading
February 11, 2026
Warren Renews Bill to Rein in Private Equity in Health Care
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) will reintroduce a bill cracking down on exploitative private equity practices in the health-care industry, with fellow Democrats as co-sponsors. The Corporate Crimes Against Health Care Act, which will be reintroduced Wednesday, would create new criminal and civil penalties for executives and owners of health-care firms if their financial management leads to patient harm or the collapse of the provider. … Read the full story … Continue Reading
February 10, 2026
Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley: A bipartisan Senate duo aims to break up "Big Medicine"
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley may not agree on much - she's a Democrat from Massachusetts who ran for president in 2020, and he's a Republican from Missouri who is a staunch ally of President Trump. But they're teaming up on legislation aimed at addressing a couple of the biggest political issues heading into the midterm elections: health care and affordability. Warren and Hawley are introducing a bill Tuesday to break up what they call "Big Medicine," focusing on health care … Continue Reading
February 09, 2026
Legality of Trump’s $400M in private funding for White House ballroom at issue
A federal judge is expected to soon rule on whether President Donald Trump’s planned $400 million White House ballroom project can proceed, zeroing in on whether the administration’s plan to rely on private donations allows it to bypass congressional approval. Trump has argued that the approach spares taxpayers the expense, but the dispute has instead highlighted a lack of transparency over how the project is being financed. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, congressional Democrats and … Continue Reading
February 05, 2026
Warren slams Kennedy’s 'disregard for child welfare' amid immigration crackdown
Expanding her probes into Trump administration policies, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., is demanding answers from Health and Human Service Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about the impact of federal immigration surges on children's health. In a letter to Kennedy first obtained by ABC News, Warren, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, and other congressional Democrats expressed concern that the health department is failing in its responsibility to protect the wellbeing of children. … Read the full story … Continue Reading