Why Congressman Don Beyer Is Surprised Rep. Gowdy Is Stepping Down
In a surprise announcement on his Twitter account, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) announced that he would not seek re-election this November. "It's remarkable," Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) says. He notes that Gowdy likely would have survived the "wave" of Democrat wins in the 2018 midterms.
Congressman Beyer also shares his reaction to President Trump's State of the Union address. He says the president has proven on numerous occasions that you can't believe the words he reads off of a teleprompter.
Immigration was one of the focal points of President Trump's speech. Rep. Beyer invited Jessica Chilin-Hernandez as his guest. She came to the U.S. from El Salvador with temporary protected status in 2001, but her status was revoked just a few weeks ago by President Trump. Rep. Beyer says that decision was "arbitrary" and needs to be fixed.
Almost four dozen Venezuelan workers who had temporary protected status have been put on leave by Disney after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip them of legal protections.
American businesses that rely on Chinese goods are reacting with muted relief after the U.S. and China agreed to pause their exorbitant tariffs on each other’s products for 90 days. Many companies delayed or canceled orders after President Donald Trump last month put a 145% tariff on items made in China. Importers still face relatively high tariffs, however, as well as uncertainty over what will happen in the coming weeks and months. The temporary truce was announced as retailers and their suppliers are looking to finalize their plans and orders for the holiday shopping season. They’re concerned a mad scramble to get goods onto ships will lead to bottlenecks and increased shipping costs.
The Trump administration announced a trade deal with the United Kingdom Thursday in grandiose terms, but with only limited details about what it achieves.