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The article focuses on tax-cut bills in the U.S. that extended the cuts for individuals and businesses scheduled to expire in several years. This change, along with the addition of a $5 billion tax increase on large oil companies, drew protest from other committee Republicans who supported the package and the House bill also excludes business tax cuts for Gulf Coast rebuilding, which is part of the Senate package. A little discussion has also been provided on some other bills like Defense Bill that Calls for Reports on Iraq, USA PATRIOT Act, and Pension Reform Bill and views of famous lawyer Samuel A. Alito on these bills.

The article presents information on some recent political developments in the U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley was forced to postpone a November 10 markup of his $60 billion tax-cut reconciliation package after moderate Senator Olympia Snowe refused to back it. The Senate at press time on November 10 was moving toward passage of the long-delayed fiscal 2006 Defense authorization bill. The House Ways and Means Committee on November 9 adopted a major overhaul of the nation's pension laws, moving the legislation closer to a House floor vote.

This article focuses on the efforts of the U.S. government to help New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Gulf Coast recover from hurricane Katrina. Now that U.S. President George W. Bush has put expensive new initiatives on the table to help the affected area, committees might come to the fore in the first week of October 2005 as the U.S. Congress begins to draft legislation on those and other proposals. According to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, chairmen are working with ranking members to finish conversations so they can forward appropriate, well-thought-out Katrina legislation to himself and the minority leader for possible Senate action.

The article reports that the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee will begin anticipated hearings on the nomination of John Roberts to be the next chief justice of the Supreme Court on September 12, 2005. Those hearings will open in the ornate and historic Caucus Room of the Senate Russell Office Building, with opening statements expected to take up the session. Committee members plan to question Roberts and hear from other witnesses during the remainder of the week. Republicans hope Roberts is confirmed in time for the October 3, 2005 start of the court term.

The article presents news related to the U.S. politics. The officials of the U.S. administration under President George W. Bush, announced on January 25, 2005 that the president will ask the Congress for approximately $ 80 billion in additional funds to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The supplemental funding request will be submitted to Congress shortly after President Bush presents his fiscal 2006 budget proposal on February 7, 2005. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the federal government will run a $368 billion budget deficit in fiscal year 2005, an improvement over fiscal 2004, when the deficit was $412 billion.

The U.S. Senate will begin a two-week debate over Medicare reform legislation, from June 16, 2003, as it takes up the bill establishing a new prescription drug benefit that emerged from the Senate Finance Committee. Meanwhile, the two House committees that share jurisdiction over Medicare, will mark up their own reform plans in June 2003. Beyond Medicare, two major issues are headed for House-Senate negotiations, a tax measure extending the child tax credit and legislation reauthorizing federal aviation programs.

Negotiations leading up to the introduction of Medicare prescription drug legislation are expected to dominate the agenda in the U.S. Congress session of the week starting June 2, 2003. In the Senate, Democrats could filibuster a Medicare bill, requiring 60 votes for passage— but an aide said no decisions had been made about whether they would do so. The Senate is basing its work on the “tripartisan” bill from 2002, while the House is likely to adopt legislation that includes aspects of the version it passed in 2002. The Senate will resume consideration of the energy bill on February 6, 2003 and will continue on the bill until the prescription drug bill is ready for floor action. The Senate Banking Committee will hear testimony on legislation to reauthorize the Defense Production Act, which allows presidents to rush the procurement of military supplies and equipment in times of war or national emergency.

Summarizes the legislative activities scheduled to be held in the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives after the spring recess of 2003. Preparation of members of the House and the Senate for passing budget resolutions for financial year 2003 supplemental and 2004; Attempts of moderate and conservative members to write an expensive highway bill; List of legislative activities expected in the second week of April 2003.

Discusses various activities in the U.S. House which are related to the ongoing U.S.-Iraq war, in 2003. Issues ignored by Senators while focusing on the war; Views of various Senators on the possible economic condition of the U.S. after the war; Impact of the war on proposed legislative bills and policies.

Reports on speculation over the fiscal year 2003 (FY03) $74.7 million supplemental spending bill and fiscal year 2004 budget resolution, to be introduced in the U.S. House in February 2003. Objections raised by Senators against the FY03 bill; Proposed difficulties in implementation of the bill; Plans of the U.S. congressional tax advisers on including tax deduction package in the budget resolution.

Focuses on the economic issues to be faced by the U.S. Congress, as of March 24, 2003. Possibility of a request for supplemental spending by U.S. President George W. Bush; Purpose for which the supplemental spending will be proposed; Reauthorization of child nutrition programs.

Focuses on the debate over fiscal year 2004 budget resolutions proposed by House Budget Chairman Jim Nussle in the U.S. Congress. Plans of Senate Democrats to offer amendments to the tax-cut package proposed by President George W. Bush; Concerns of Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas on dividend taxation; Details of legislative activities expected in the third week of March 2003.

The article focuses on the forthcoming debates between the U.S. House and Senate Budget committees on budget resolutions for FY04. Republicans also will continue pushing for action on a variety of tax cut and tax relief initiatives — including one for soldiers yanked from consideration last week as a result of the inclusion of special interest tax breaks. Meanwhile, the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee completes a series of hearings on the president's economic growth plan and turns to writing its version of the measure. Republican leaders pulled the bill from the floor last after whip counts showed opposition to a number of unrelated tax breaks included in the bill that benefited narrow interests.

Reports on the resumption of the business of the U.S. House to discuss matters related to President George W. Bush's nomination of Miguel Estrada to the U.S. appellate bench. Acceleration of the proposed $ 695 billion tax cut plan of the President; Commitment of the administration to legislate the proposal; Debate on the legislation to prohibit child pornography; Issues related to military base closures.

Focuses on reactions of an organization known as K Street Crowd on the claims made by U.S. House legislators about the legislative agenda of the Grand Old Party (GOP). Selection of employees by the legislators for their own office; Relationship between former GOP Conference chairman and the organization; Views of the legislators on the relationship between U.S. House majority whip Roy Blunt and the organization.

Reports on efforts of several U.S. Representatives to get an approval for their projects which are scheduled for implementation in 2003. Competition between the Democrats and Republicans over federal funding for their projects; Number of spending bills that are marked by the Senate Appropriations Committee; Comments of House appropriators on Senate funding levels.

Reports on legislative bills under discussion in the U.S. Congress on the first anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States. Bills related to immigration reforms and Homeland Security Department; Business group's concern over terrorism reinsurance bill; Debate over Port and Maritime Security Act and Energy bill.

Reports on the scramble among U.S. Republican and Democratic legislators for assignments in the 108th Congress when it convenes on January 2003. Committees highly sought by legislative members; Factors helping members secure seats in a choice panel; Names of retiring representatives; Plan to appoint Hispanic members to the panel.

Reports the role of Web site to offer extensive background on Enron's history and company's business practices in the U.S. Conflicts of interest; Determination of retirement security; Identification of the Executive Paywatch section.

Reports the national debate over trade policy in the U.S. Impact of trade issue on a significant number of political races; Views of legislators on the policy; Announcement of a National Emergency Grant for the district of Mississippi.

Reports the accession of business lobbyists to the inclusion of health benefits for displaced workers in the trade bill in the U.S. Emphasis on the need for bipartisanship; Dispute over the structuring of the health care component of the trade bill; Preference for the Republican tax credit strategy by the National Association of Manufacturers.

Reports the consequences of the collapse of Enron Corp. on legislation on political campaign finance in the U.S. Legislation of pension reform; Reform on accounting standards; Solutions to employee retirement plans.

Reports national interest in the allowance of liquor advertisements by NBC. Difficulty of differentiation between liquor and beer advertisements; Attempts of NBC to discourage underaged drinkers with the advertisement; Calls for other television stations.

Focuses on the economic strategy of President George W. Bush during the State of the Nation address in the U.S. Emphasis on employment; Extension of unemployment benefits as an economic stimulus; Proposal for the retirement plans of employees.

Focuses on issues about the proposed trade bill in the United States. Support of George W. Bush, American president, on the legislation; Position of political parties on the trade bill; Provisions of the bill.

Focuses on the intensive preparation campaign of the supporters of presidential trade negotiating authority in the United States. Support for the controversial trade bill; Strategy to communicate the importance of trade; Plan of the Bush administration to weigh into the trade debate publicly.

Focuses on the issues concerning the Doha agreement for global trade talks in the United States. Consistency of the agreement with George W. Bush administration's pledge to protect trade law; Approvals and disapprovals of the Doha agreement; Possibility of a presidential trade negotiating authority.

Reports the bipartisan conflict over judicial nomination among Senators in the United States. Impact of the conflict on the FY02 appropriation bill; Assertion of the Senate Republicans on the reason for the delay of the judicial nominee; Progress in the FY02 bill.

Reports on the collaboration between Treasury Secretary O'Neill and Senate Republicans for the economic stimulus fragmentation in the United States. Details on economic stimulus issues; Cost estimates of economic stimulus; Reaction of the opposition party to the stimulus package.

Reports on the implications of Vermont Senator James Jeffords' decision to leave from the United States Republican Party to become an independent. Enabling of the Democratic Party to brightline its differences with the Republican Party; How the political implications of the switch are most immediate for Democratic incumbents.

This article focuses on the discussion of rebuilding Gulf Coast in the U.S., that has been devastated by Hurricane Katrina predicting the decimated city of New Orleans by U.S. President George W. Bush. In a primetime address from the city's historic French Quarter, President Bush said that the U.S. federal government would pick up the lion's share of the tab for fixing the region's public infrastructure, saying the country would embark on one of the largest reconstruction efforts the world has ever seen. President Bush also proposed a new Worker Recovery Accounts of up to $5,000 that evacuees could draw on for job training and education.

This article reports that U.S. House Ways and Means Chairman William Thomas and ranking member Charles Rangel, of New York., issued a joint statement and working shoulder-to-shoulder on hurricane relief. Senate Finance Chairman Charles Grassley knows he's going to need the sturdy protections of reconciliation later this year to address tax cuts, while Thomas can afford to ignore that question and devote himself to the bipartisan cause of restoring hope and sustenance to the people of the Gulf Coast. But many Democrats on Capitol Hill think Hurricane Katrina has changed more than the Gulf Coast landscape. They think the flood waters have soaked the GOP tax agenda, particularly the $70 billion reconciliation package Grassley was expected to use to extend the 2003 dividend and capital gains cuts as well as provide alternative minimum tax relief and other elements.

This article focuses on a study conducted by the U.S. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) which shows that a prominent GOP Social Security plan would vastly exacerbate the federal deficit while doing nothing to end the practice of funding other government programs from the Social Security trust fund. CBO said the plan to create voluntary individual "Growing Real Ownership for Workers" accounts out of the Social Security surplus, as proposed by Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Chairman Jim McCrery, Ways and Means member Clay Shaw and other GOP Ways and Means members, would increase federal outlays by more than $1 trillion between 2007 and 2021. But the study said the proposal would extend the Social Security program's solvency by 11 years, postponing the trust fund exhaustion date from 2052 to 2063.

The article reports that U.S. Senator Bill Frist might begin moving the first set of several targeted Gulf Coast disaster relief bills through the chamber as soon as today, while House GOP leaders begin to devise a long-term strategy to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Frist might take up either a modest tax bill the Finance Committee introduced late Tuesday night, or a regulatory package boosting the amount of available federal flood insurance and lifting work rules for recipients of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds.

The article reports that House and Senate Republicans shoved their tax cut agenda into the background as they focused on emergency legislation designed to assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina. But key Republicans still expect to act on $70 billion in tax cuts protected under reconciliation at some point in the coming weeks. The House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees have been operating under a September 23 deadline to produce tax cuts totaling $70 billion that would be protected from filibuster under reconciliation rules.

This article reports that business groups of the U.S. endorsed Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's decision to postpone this week's planned vote on estate tax repeal, canceling advertising plans and putting lobbying efforts on hold. Frist's office was not specific about when the estate tax bill might come to the floor, saying only it would be considered later in the fall. Jade West, senior vice president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors and a leader of the Tax Relief Coalition, said that the coalition was temporarily "standing down" its lobbying and advertising campaign.

Tax lobbyist Ken Kies says a popular misimpression is that Congress never passes tax bills in an election year. In other words, the tax code will be open for business in 2004. Despite concerns over mushrooming budget deficits, at least three tax-cut vehicles should be in play next year. First, K Street is largely resigned to the notion that the corporate tax bill designed to bring the U.S. into compliance with a World Trade Organization ruling still will be awaiting final dispensation. The second likely tax vehicle is the research and development tax credit, which expires June 30. Third, the administration of the U.S. President George W. Bush seems enamored of doing some type of bill aimed at the "investor class" and is likely to retool its proposal on lifetime savings accounts and retirement savings.

Amid the sobering polls and the bleak headlines on Iraq, a few U.S. GOP lobbyists are afraid of the contestant for Presidential candidate Howard Dean chasing them around Capitol Hill. "Business groups are followers, not leaders," said one GOP lobbyist. "I hope the White House isn't comforted that they're raising tons of money, or that they may get to face a weak opponent in Howard Dean." Questions about the President's ability to dominate the public discourse largely dissipated after Sept. 11, 2001.

A review of the fundraising reports for the first six months under the new McCain-Feingold law shows that PACs for business, labor and interest groups are raking in hard dollars at the same breakneck clip as the political parties and individual candidates. With the limit on personal contributions to candidates doubled under the new law to $2,000, some observers speculated that bigger checks for candidates would translate into less money for business and other interest groups' PACs. Kent Cooper of the nonpartisan PoliticalMoneyLine said the six-month results show "the volume has gone up" in terms of fundraising among trade associations and corporate PACs in the aftermath of McCain-Feingold.

Opponents of drug reimportation legislation are mobilizing on several fronts in advance of an expected tight vote in the U.S. House next week, as of July 18, 2003. The Seniors Coalition, an organization that is aligned with the pharmaceutical industry and other business groups, has launched a nationwide radio and print advertising campaign against the reimportation bill. A spokesman for the Seniors Coalition declined to specify the number of House districts in which these advertisements are running, although he acknowledged that advertisements running on a radio station in Baltimore in Maryland, are aimed at Representatives Wayne Gilchrest and Roscoe Bartlett, both Republicans from Maryland.

In spite of having at least four presidential candidates from its ranks and 19 seats to defend, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman (DSCC) Jon Corzine of New Jersey is optimistic about Senate Democrats' chances in the 2004 elections for one reason, the faltering economy. While Republicans say their efforts to cut taxes will ultimately entice businesses to spend more capital and create more jobs, Corzine disagreed. Corzine said the DSCC would focus on strengthening business relationships not only with lobbyists but with company chief executive officers, who sometimes see issues differently than their Washington representatives.

Perhaps because of a 330 billion dollar tax deduction, there seems to be a little extra money floating around as the U.S. Congress prepares to address an international tax measure. The legislation, necessitated by World Trade Organization rulings against the foreign sales corporation and the extraterritorial income tax regimes, initially was seen as having little revenue impact.

A congressional staff delegation of the United States compared notes on the concerns and hopes for a Central American free trade area (CAFTA) with local government officials, labor leaders and business executives. The emerging CAFTA deal has been sharply criticized by U.S. labor groups and seven senior democrats in the U.S. House of Representative. Officials from the U.S. Department of Labor predict a CAFTA deal will face a much rougher reception in the U.S. Congress than either the Chile or Singapore agreements that are to be considered in later 2003.

The article reports on the controversy between technology persons and Tax Relief Coalition the tax package introduced in the U.S. House. Bonus depreciation was not on U.S. President George W. Bush's wish list when he proposed a $726 billion package in early 2003. But language increasing to 50 percent the first-year write-off for big purchases popped up in House Ways and Means Chairman Thomas' bill, much to the delight of the technology community and various manufacturers &mdash.

K Street support for the Senate tax cut bill is threatening to give away, as horrified business leaders recoil at provisions for a dividend tax break they describe as paltry and at billions of dollars in “offsetting ”revenue increases, many targeting corporations. The legislation, marked up by the U.S. Senate Finance Committee on Thursday May 08, 2003 evening, calls for $433 billion in tax cuts, balanced by about $85 billion in offsets to keep the net figure within the $350 billion limit agreed to in a deal between Senate leaders and GOP moderates. The limit is short of the $550 billion allowed by the House and less than half the $726 billion proposed by U.S. President George W. Bush.The Tax Relief Coalition, the vast business umbrella group supporting President Bush's tax cut proposals, put out a carefully worded statement Thursday night warning that the Senate bill would raise taxes and fail to spur economic growth.

The article reports that the U.S. Presidential adviser, Karl Rove, in a meeting with business leaders has said that the President would continue its attempt to eliminate double taxation on dividends and demand a final tax cut package costing between $550 billion and $726 billion, as of April 17, 2003. Participants of the meeting said Rove was adamant that a House-Senate conference can produce a tax cut of $550 billion or more. Other administration officials have told their business community allies that the dividends proposal and the rest of the President's tax plan could fit into a $550 billion package. Meanwhile, the Tax Relief Coalition which had suspended its advertising campaign in support of the president's plan at the start of the war in Iraq has resumed radio ads targeting senators in states such as Nebraska, Maine, Ohio, Louisiana and Indiana. As part of the business community's campaign, the American Forest and Paper Association is running print ads in Maine thanking GOP Senator Susan Collins for supporting the president's tax proposal and pointedly omitting any mention of fellow GOP Senator Olympia Snowe, who helped force the Senate to accept a budget resolution that protects only $350 billion in tax cuts.

The U.S. steel industry and its congressional allies stated the difficulty of trying to alter the executive order of U.S. President George W. Bush regarding the imposition of tariffs on steel imports. However, Lewis Leibowitz states that the domestic steel industry's gradual recuperation in 2001, the precarious economic condition of the U.S. manufacturing sector as a whole, and a different political dynamic will persuade President Bush to ease off the sanctions.

Focuses on the strategy adopted by U.S. tax cut advocates towards the passage of economic growth plan proposed by U.S. President George W. Bush in the budget. Issues discussed by Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley and ranking member Max Baucus in their meeting; Lobbying efforts by business-based Tax Relief Coalition; Plans of Senator Gordon Smith to introduce accelerated depreciation bill.

Reports on the plans of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee to mark up the economic growth plan proposed by U.S. President George W. Bush following the week that ends on March 22, 2003. Prediction of the consequences following the plan's mark up by the committee's chairman Thomas Daschle; Possibility of a bill's approval related to taxation of armed forces in the House.