Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley laced into Donald Trump in a speech laying out her economic plan on Friday, faulting the former president for “reckless spending.”

“Joe Biden is proving reckless spending is the road to socialism. But he’s not the only culprit,” the former South Carolina governor said in a speech in New Hampshire, which focused on tax cuts and reducing spending. “Joe Biden, Donald Trump and Barack Obama added more to our national debt than the previous 42 presidents combined.”

In unveiling her so-called Freedom Plan, Haley said she will aim to eliminate the federal gas tax, reduce income tax rates, make small-business tax relief permanent, reduce spending to pre-pandemic levels, mandate zero-based budgeting and cut green energy subsidies.

Haley’s economic policy speech — and her dig at Trump — comes less than a week ahead of the second GOP primary debate, where Trump will once again be absent from the stage.

As "shutdown looms" becomes standard fare for headline writers across Washington, lawmakers are already saying they shouldn’t be paid during a government shutdown, given that funding the federal government is one of the primary jobs of Congress.

But the Department of Treasury is obligated, constitutionally, to pay members in full due to a clause in the 27th Amendment that blocks officials from “varying the compensation for the services of the Senators & Representatives” between elections.

Lawmakers are eager to demonstrate accountability by calling for Congress to not get paid if they fail to avoid a government shutdown.

Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) have a proposal to to skirt the 27th Amendment problem by getting the House Chief Administrative Officer, who issues members' paychecks, to hold them until the end of the 118th Congress. The CAO’s office said it is looking into the matter.

In the midst of chaos and tension among House Republicans over spending bills, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) praised former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in a Thursday interview on CNN.

When asked by CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins if current Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will make it through the tumult “with his job intact,” the Tennessee lawmaker said he is unsure. Burchett then went on to praise Pelosi’s work as Speaker and her leadership skills.

“I don’t agree with her ever, hardly on anything,” Burchett said. “But she was pretty successful.”

Burchett also said that despite having political disagreements with Pelosi, the two House members are friends. He said they have family members with similar names, and Pelosi often asks about his daughter, who was injured last year in an incident with a horse.

ROBERT MENENDEZ, the defendant, is the senior U.S. Senator from the State of New Jersey. From at least 2018 up to and including in or about 2022, MENENDEZ and his wife, NADINE MENENDEZ, a/k/a "Nadine Arslanian," the defendant, engaged in a corrupt relationship with three New Jersey associates and businessmen- -WAEL HANA, a/k/a "Will Hana," JOSE URIBE, and FRED DAIBES, the defendants in which MENENDEZ and NADINE MENENDEZ agreed to and did accept hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes in exchange for using MENENDEZ's power and influence as a Senator to seek to protect and enrich HANA, URIBE, and DAIBES and to benefit the Arab Republic of Egypt. Those bribes included cash, gold, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job, a luxury vehicle, and other things of value.

This corrupt relationship resulted in ROBERT MENENDEZ, the defendant, promising to take and taking a series of official acts and breaches of official duty in exchange for bribes that benefitted him both directly, and indirectly through NADINE MENENDEZ, a/k/a "Nadine Arslanian," the defendant. First, MENENDEZ promised to and did use his influence and power and breach his official duty in ways that benefited the Government of Egypt and WAEL HANA, a/k/a "Will Hana," the defendant, an Egyptian-American businessman, among others. Among other actions, MENENDEZ provided sensitive U.S. Government information and took other steps that secretly aided the Government of Egypt. MENENDEZ also improperly advised and pressured an official at the United States Department of Agriculture for the purpose of protecting a business monopoly granted to HANA by Egypt and used in part to fund the bribes being paid to MENENDEZ through NADINE MENENDEZ. Second, MENENDEZ promised to and did use his influence and power and breach his official duty to seek to disrupt a criminal investigation and prosecution undertaken by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office related to JOSE URIBE, the defendant, and his associates. Third, MENENDEZ promised to and did use his influence and power and breach his official duty to recommend that the President nominate an individual as U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey who MENENDEZ believed could be influenced by MENENDEZ with respect to the federal criminal prosecution of FRED DAIBES, the defendant, and to seek to disrupt that same prosecution.

Federal authorities today unveiled stunning criminal corruption charges against Sen. BOB MENENDEZ (D-N.J.) and his wife, NADINE, which will immediately upend his political career and likely force him to step down as Senate Foreign Relations chair.

The allegations document corruption so brazen it looks like something out of a movie — or at least a bygone era of New Jersey politics — and with significant international implications. The Menendezes stand accused of taking large sums of money to sway American foreign policy more favorably toward Egypt and benefit three Jersey businessmen.

When law enforcement searched Menendez’s home, they turned up $480,000 in cash hidden away, $70,000 more in Nadine’s safe deposit box and $100,000 worth of gold bars — and yes, there are photos in the 39-page indictment, including one of bundles of cash found inside a Menendez-monogrammed jacket. In just one of many incredible details, prosecutors allege that Menendez returned from an Egypt trip in 2021 and searched online for “how much is one kilo of gold worth.” Authorities say Menendez also received payments on his mortgage and a luxury car as bribes.

The official charges for the couple are conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and conspiracy to commit extortion. The businessmen were also charged. All are set to appear in a Manhattan courtroom Wednesday and are, of course, innocent until proven guilty.

WASHINGTON, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday turned to a new strategy in a long-shot bid to prevent the fourth government shutdown in a decade, as time runs short ahead of a Sept. 30 deadline.

Republicans have so far failed to advance legislation that would keep the government running when the new fiscal year starts on Oct. 1.

Instead, they will prepare four separate spending bills, most of which reflect the deep cuts sought by the party's right flank. Those are certain to be rejected by the Democratic-controlled Senate, as they are far below spending levels outlined in a deal with Democratic President Joe Biden earlier this year.

If Congress does not agree on spending levels, many government activities, from financial oversight to civil litigation, would be curtailed.

The new transit option between Miami and Orlando is finally open.

What's happening: Brightline, the privately owned high-speed rail company, debuted its new route today after years of anticipation.

Why it matters: The company is trying to win over some of the more than 40 million people who make the trip between Miami and Orlando each year — with about 90% of them driving, the Associated Press reports.

How it works: The biodiesel trains travel up to 79 mph in urban areas, 110 mph in more rural areas and 125 mph through central Florida's farmland, per AP.

House Republican leaders are sending members home for the week amid deep divisions over funding the government ahead of the rapidly-approaching September 30 deadline, according to multiple GOP sources.

They had planned to be in session over the weekend to pass a stop-gap bill, but the decision to send members home shows they lack the votes to avoid a government shutdown. The move came after House Republicans dramatically bucked Speaker Kevin McCarthy and GOP leadership on a procedural vote over a Pentagon funding bill, with the members now not set to return to session until next week.

Thursday’s failed vote marks yet another blow to McCarthy as he faces a major leadership test and threats over his ouster, and Congress inches ever closer to a potential shutdown at the end of next week. The defense funding bill that was derailed by the vote typically garners widespread bipartisan support, a sign of how even usually uncontroversial issues have become mired down in Republican infighting.

With government funding set to expire at the end of next week, persistent opposition from a bloc of far-right conservatives has continued to thwart the House GOP leadership agenda, threatening to paralyze the House floor in the process.

Mike Sington
@MikeSington

Ex Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson reveals Trump almost never wore a mask during the pandemic because it would mess with his makeup: “When he looked at the straps of his mask, he saw they were covered in bronzer. He wasn’t happy about that. ‘Why did no one else tell me that? I’m not wearing this thing.’

The press would criticize him for not wearing a mask, not knowing that the depth of his vanity had caused him to reject masks – and then millions of his fans followed suit.” (The Guardian)