作者： root

Iran war has some Republicans worried their chances of keeping the House are slipping away

2026-04-16T08:00:55.187Z / CNN

Iran war has some Republicans worried their chances of keeping the House are slipping away

By Adam Cancryn

PUBLISHED Apr 16, 2026, 4:00 AM ET

Smoke rises following a strike, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, on April 1.

Majid Asgaripour/Wana News Agency/Reuters

The White House had long circled Tax Day as the unofficial start to a critical midterm campaign meant to highlight how much money the administration was putting back in voters’ pockets.

Then President Donald Trump launched a costly war in Iran, sent gas prices soaring and singlehandedly upended months of careful political planning — raising the odds of an electoral wipeout that could cost Republicans control of Congress.

Now, Trump officials are scrambling to salvage their strategy on the fly, hoping they can still convince skeptical Americans that they’re doing better under Trump than before.The White House has also sought new ideas for taking on rising prices, such as accusing gas station operators of seizing on the war to gouge consumers at the pump.

But seven months out from midterm elections, many Republicans privately concede their standing is deteriorating and chances of holding the House are slipping away. Any possibility of averting sweeping losses in the House — and possibly even the Senate — in November rests first on Trump quickly extracting himself from Iran, a task he’s clearly struggling mightily to accomplish.

“We need to get on offense. We need a message,” said one Trump adviser. “But right now, everything’s on hold until the war’s over.”

The darkening outlook for the Republican Party is far from what Trump and his top advisers envisioned only a few months ago, when they’d coalesced around a plan to pivot sharply toward affordability as the midterms drew closer. And it underscores the significant damage that Trump has done to his party’s chances by abruptly plunging the US into a war with Iran with no clear way out.

The conflict’s ripple effects over the last seven weeks may have negated nearly all the economic progress that the GOP planned to run on, more than a half-dozen Republicans told CNN — including strides made toward lowering gas prices, easing inflation and bolstering Americans’ sense of financial security.

US Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks alongside House Republican leadership during a news conference on the steps of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, April 15. Johnson held the press conference to discuss Working Families Tax Cuts on Tax Day.

Heather Diehl/Getty Images

Trump, who senior aides once vowed would hit the road nearly every week to tout accomplishments and boost down-ballot candidates, has instead remained largely tethered to Washington and focused on foreign affairs. When he travels to Nevada on Thursday, it will mark his first swing-state rally in more than a month. (GOP operatives still believe he will significantly ramp up his travel for House and Senate candidates this fall.)

The president will also arrive in Las Vegas at the weakest point in his political career, with recent polls putting his approval rating near historic lows amid voter anger over the economy and the war.

“There’s direct correlation between presidential job approval and the party’s midterm performance. It’s not much more complicated than that,” said GOP pollster Whit Ayres. “They’re frustrated and unhappy, and that’s been the case for some time, but it’s especially the case now.”

In a statement, White House spokesman Kush Desai argued that Trump’s economic policies would benefit Americans over the long term, arguing that his accomplishments “go beyond a one-time tax refund check.”

“Tens of millions of working-class Americans have more money in their pockets thanks to President Trump’s signature provisions,” he said, adding that the agenda is “laying the groundwork for more historic success.”

Congressional GOP leaders insist they’re not panicking either, arguing that doomsday scenarios where they could lose both the House and Senate aren’t yet materializing — and that Republicans still hold a fundraising advantage that could grow even larger if Trump deploys the massive war chest he controls through his MAGA Inc. super PAC.

The situation has nevertheless fanned fears across other parts of the GOP that a wider swath of seats in both the House, and possibly the Senate, could now be in play — already an acute anxiety given a series of brutal recent special election performances.

The US Capitol building is seen from the base of the Washington Monument during sunset on March 9, in Washington, DC.

Samuel Corum/Sipa USA/AP/File

In recent weeks, some frustrated Republican lawmakers have privately vented concerns that the White House is underestimating the sheer scale of the challenge created by the war, two people familiar with the discussions said. It’s unclear whether those complaints have reached Trump directly.

“At a certain point, there’s going to have to be a message shift from the administration if (the war) doesn’t look like it’s something we can just get out of,” one GOP campaign operative said.

Still, that worry hasn’t yet translated into any major shift in approach — in large part because Trump’s repeated assertions that the fight is nearly over have kept his party in a holding pattern. The war has already dragged past the president’s original estimate of four to six weeks, and Trump’s embrace of a two-week ceasefire has done nothing to relieve the economic pain.

In a meeting of Senate Republicans earlier this week, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina urged his colleagues to amplify the average $250-per-month in extra take-home pay that Americans are estimated to see in their tax refund from Trump’s policies, presenting internal polling that showed key voting blocs were “overwhelmingly motivated by cost-of-living concerns,” according to a copy obtained by CNN.

“Everything gets more complicated the longer this goes on because there’s more uncertainty,” said a GOP campaign operative. “But we can’t deviate from the plan because then everything will fall apart.”

There’s at least one source of comfort for Trump’s orbit: political advisers closely tracking the war’s impact on public opinion are seeing little improvement in voters’ views of the Democratic Party, even as they’ve soured on the GOP. That’s given them some hope that voters unhappy with the current conditions might still be persuaded to turn out for Republicans if they see improvements in November, two people familiar with the internal discussions said.

Trump advisers have urged Republicans to play up the contrast between the two parties’ platforms as a result, arguing that lawmakers should promote their own policies while also casting themselves as bulwarks against Democrats’ ability to advance a far more progressive agenda.

“That’s the question: Who’s gonna be in charge?” the Trump adviser said. “The best thing we have going for us is that the Democrats are worse.”

There’s another major argument the GOP will soon debut, too. If Republicans fail to protect their majorities in Congress, they’ll argue, Trump will face the threat of yet another impeachment battle — a message they believe will be crucial to turning out the MAGA most faithful, according to multiple Republicans involved in congressional campaigns.

Still, with the war ongoing and key costs rising, though, there’s broad acknowledgment that attacking Democrats only amounts to a partial argument from the party that controls the White House and Congress.

In the meantime, Trump officials have sought fresh ways for blunting the blowback over gas prices, including publicly taking gas station operators to task for failing to quickly lower their prices whenever the broader price of oil declines, the Trump adviser said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hinted at that jawboning tactic on Wednesday, warning that the administration would be “watching the gas stations.” Yet during that same appearance, he conceded that prior assurances that prices would return to pre-war levels by summer were too rosy, and that the timing was now “going to be up to how the negotiations go” with Iran.

“They were counting on the tax refunds to power the economy and to have inflation under control, and on both fronts, they have some concerns,” said Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the right-leaning American Action Forum and a longtime GOP economic adviser.

As for Trump, simply getting him back on the road and holding rallies this week amount to a solid first step, Republicans said. After Nevada, he’s slated to make another stop in Arizona Friday.

But there’s little guarantee he’ll end up on message once he gets there. On Monday, the White House staged an encounter between Trump and a DoorDash delivery driver meant to promote his largely popular “no tax on tips” policy.

But any attention the tax provision may have gotten was soon swamped by Trump’s off-the-cuff decision to expound on the blockade he’d just imposed on Iran and try to explain away a controversial late night social media post depicting him as a Jesus-like figure.

“Naval blockades and the president’s divinity,” Holtz-Eakin said afterward. “Not exactly what they had planned.”

Sarah Ferris and Alayna Treene contributed to this report.

Trump hits key battlegrounds to sell tax cuts, boost GOP ahead of midterms

April 16, 2026 5:00am EDT / Fox News

President will visit Nevada, Arizona to tout One Big Beautiful Bill tax cuts

By Paul Steinhauser Fox News

President Donald Trump is heading this week to two crucial swing states in this year’s midterm elections to highlight the tax cuts that Republicans in Congress passed, and which he signed into law, last year.

He will visit Nevada on Thursday and Arizona on Friday. The stops follow Wednesday’s deadline for Americans to file their taxes with the IRS.

Trump’s western swing comes as the GOP works to protect its razor-thin House and slim Senate majorities in the midterms, when the party in power typically faces political headwinds and loses congressional seats. The GOP also faces a challenging political climate fueled by persistent inflation, rising gas prices tied to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran, and the president’s low approval ratings.

But Republicans have for weeks spotlighted the tax cuts, which they insist will give them a political boost with voters in the midterms.

TRUMP HITS THE ROAD TO SELL ECONOMIC WINS, AS REPUBLICANS BRACE FOR HIGH-STAKES MIDTERM SHOWDOWN

President Donald Trump signs sweeping spending and tax legislation, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, during a picnic with military families to mark Independence Day at the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 4, 2025.(Reuters/Ken Cedeno)

In an interview Wednesday on FOX Business’ “Mornings with Maria,” Trump touted the tax cuts, telling host Maria Bartiromo that “the refunds are really significant, and it makes it less complicated to do your tax return. Much less complicated.”

“People are getting refunds of $5,000, $8,000, $11,000 that they had no idea they were getting. It’s turned out to be better, as good or better than I said it would,” the president emphasized.

The tax cuts were a key component of Republicans’ massive domestic policy measure, which passed almost entirely along party lines in the GOP-controlled House and Senate.

FIRST ON FOX: GOP TAKES AIM AT DEMOCRATS FOR OPPOSING TRUMP TAX CUTS

The law, originally titled the One Big Beautiful Bill Act but rebranded as the Working Families Tax Cuts, is stuffed full of Trump’s 2024 campaign trail promises and second-term priorities, including extending the president’s signature 2017 tax cuts and eliminating taxes on tips and overtime pay.

President Donald Trump smiled as he arrived at the lectern during a “No Tax on Tips” initiative visit at Il Toro E La Capra on Aug. 23, 2024, in Las Vegas during his presidential campaign.(Daniel Jacobi II/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Trump will spotlight the tax cuts on Thursday at a roundtable discussion at the AC Hotel in Las Vegas. The city, a popular entertainment and gaming mecca, has an outsized population of service industry workers who rely on tips and overtime pay.

EXCLUSIVE: HOUSE REPUBLICANS TARGET ‘VULNERABLE’ DEMOCRATS FOR VOTING AGAINST TAX CUTS

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president on Friday will deliver remarks at a Turning Point USA event at Dream City Church in Phoenix.

“You’ll hear a lot from the president about how his policies have benefited the American people,” Leavitt said.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393151809112

Democrats have criticized the tax cuts, arguing they disproportionately benefit the wealthy and corporations.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

“Donald Trump promised Americans lower prices, lower taxes, and bigger refunds, and what have they gotten instead? Massive tax breaks for Trump and his wealthy friends, a reckless trade war that has hiked prices, and a deadly and costly taxpayer-funded war with Iran,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin argued in a statement.

Martin charged that “Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ stole from nursing homes, rural hospitals, and hungry families to give a windfall to the ultra-rich.” And he claimed “Americans are seeing lower-than-promised refunds hit their bank accounts that won’t even cover the higher costs Trump has forced them to shoulder.”

Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast.

伊朗暂停石化产品出口 直至另行通知

2026年4月16日 17:54 / 联合早报

4月4日，社交媒体视频的截图显示，位于伊朗胡齐斯坦省马赫沙赫尔县的马赫沙赫尔石化区遭到袭击后，浓烟滚滚升起。 （路透社）

据伊朗媒体报道，由于以色列袭击多个石化中心导致生产中断，伊朗已暂停所有石化产品出口，以优先保障国内供应并防止原材料短缺。

伊朗报纸《经济世界》星期四（4月16日）报道，这项指令由伊朗国家石化公司负责下游行业的高级官员于星期四发布，要求石化企业暂停出口，直至另行通知。

路透社报道，此次出口禁令的主要目的是稳定国内市场，确保在近期袭击造成损失后，各行业的原材料供应充足。

尽管全球价格上涨，但伊朗国内石化产品及相关产品的价格仍维持在冲突前的水平。官员说，这些措施将继续实施，以支持当地产业和消费者。

近几周，以色列袭击了阿萨卢耶（Asaluyeh）和马赫沙赫尔（Mahshahr）的主要石化生产中心，袭击目标包括为石化厂提供原料的公用事业公司，导致生产中断。

延伸阅读

以军空袭伊朗能源重镇 斩断逾八成石化出口
伊朗西南部石化中心遇袭 以色列多地因伊朗打击受损

本周，美国军方开始封锁伊朗港口的进出船只交通，此举旨在削减伊朗的出口收入，并在伊朗和美国外交官考虑举行第二轮和平谈判之际，向德黑兰施压。

据法尔斯通讯社报道，伊朗每年出口约2900万吨石化产品，价值130亿美元（165亿2600万新元）。

伊朗暂停石化产品出口 直至另行通知

2026年4月16日 17:54 / 联合早报

伊朗暂停石化产品出口 直至另行通知

4月4日，社交媒体视频的截图显示，位于伊朗胡齐斯坦省马赫沙赫尔县的马赫沙赫尔石化区遭到袭击后，浓烟滚滚升起。 （路透社）

据伊朗媒体报道，由于以色列袭击多个石化中心导致生产中断，伊朗已暂停所有石化产品出口，以优先保障国内供应并防止原材料短缺。

伊朗报纸《经济世界》星期四（4月16日）报道，这项指令由伊朗国家石化公司负责下游行业的高级官员于星期四发布，要求石化企业暂停出口，直至另行通知。

路透社报道，此次出口禁令的主要目的是稳定国内市场，确保在近期袭击造成损失后，各行业的原材料供应充足。

尽管全球价格上涨，但伊朗国内石化产品及相关产品的价格仍维持在冲突前的水平。官员说，这些措施将继续实施，以支持当地产业和消费者。

近几周，以色列袭击了阿萨卢耶（Asaluyeh）和马赫沙赫尔（Mahshahr）的主要石化生产中心，袭击目标包括为石化厂提供原料的公用事业公司，导致生产中断。

延伸阅读

以军空袭伊朗能源重镇 斩断逾八成石化出口
伊朗西南部石化中心遇袭 以色列多地因伊朗打击受损

本周，美国军方开始封锁伊朗港口的进出船只交通，此举旨在削减伊朗的出口收入，并在伊朗和美国外交官考虑举行第二轮和平谈判之际，向德黑兰施压。

据法尔斯通讯社报道，伊朗每年出口约2900万吨石化产品，价值130亿美元（165亿2600万新元）。

Exclusive: Beatings, restraints and isolation: Allegations of abuse at a migrant children’s shelter trigger federal review

2026-04-16T09:00:55.312Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/16/politics/migrant-children-shelter-abuse-allegations

A facility in New York that housed migrant children faces allegations of physical abuse, including placing some children in isolation in a so-called “red room,” according to multiple sources who spoke with CNN about what’s unfolded at the shelter.

The accounts from federal sources and child welfare experts describe a heavy-handed approach to punishment for potential behavioral issues in recent years, prompting an internal review by the Health and Human Services Department’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), which is charged with the care of migrant children, according to two of the sources.

The shelter, called the Children’s Village, has multiple locations across New York serving kids, including US citizens, though the abuse allegations stem from their treatment of migrant children at the Dobbs Ferry location. The Children’s Village has served unaccompanied migrant children since 2004.

Children were allegedly beaten by a “special” unit, akin to a security team, including at times, out of the view of cameras. They were also allegedly held in restraints for several minutes, beyond protocol in place to ensure safety. Children were also involuntarily taken to a room as punishment, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The federal government has long funded shelters, like the Children’s Village to care for migrant children who crossed the US-Mexico border alone — or more recently, been swept up in an interior immigration enforcement operation — until they can be reunited with a US-based sponsor, like a parent.

Over the last year, the Trump administration has made it harder for parents and guardians to retrieve their children from government custody and directed federal agents to ask migrant teens whether they want to voluntarily depart the country.

Issues at the Children’s Village, however, appear to pre-date the Trump administration — and persisted in recent months.

CNN relied on multiple sources, including internal federal agency documents, as well as child welfare experts, current and former HHS officials, and sources familiar with the Children’s Village to document the allegations levied against the shelter.

In a statement to CNN, a spokesperson for the Children’s Village said: “We have zero tolerance for any form of punishment.”

“All teens in our care deserve the highest level of care, support, and professionalism from every adult responsible for their well-being. Allegations of employee misconduct are deeply distressing, and if received, we make an immediate report to the authorities. We will take all necessary steps to ensure that any staff member found to have engaged in misconduct is addressed appropriately and without hesitation,” the spokesperson added.

The shelter, which has housed hundreds of migrant children aged 12 and up over the years, stopped receiving kids in late January — and those who were in their care have been moved elsewhere — over “significant child welfare concerns,” according to an internal HHS document reviewed by CNN.

One teen who was transferred to another facility recalled spending four days alone in what he described as a “red room” with a red light and no door, according to an account shared with a shelter clinician in early January and reviewed by CNN .

Over those four days, the teen said he didn’t bathe and was only provided bread for food. The boy said the room was located near the shelter’s security staff office, so personnel could monitor him while he was confined to the room.

The teen also recalled a so-called “special” unit that would swoop in when fights occurred or restraints were required. He said he was thrown to the floor and hit, as well as placed in restraints, nearly two dozen times.

In a statement to CNN, HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said the Office of Refugee Resettlement “takes all allegations of misconduct involving children in its care extremely seriously.”

“Upon receiving an allegation related to this facility, ORR acted immediately to transfer all unaccompanied children to other locations and referred the matter to the appropriate federal investigative authorities. The safety and well-being of children in ORR care is a top priority, and any credible concerns are addressed swiftly and thoroughly,” Nixon added.

According to child welfare experts, multiple teens housed in the facility have shared similar experiences about the “special” unit. Concerns over that team’s response — which allegedly involved physical abuse — were raised to New York authorities in recent years, two sources said.

Unaccompanied minors who crossed the Southern border may soon lose critical legal service

3:40 • Source: CNN

A source familiar with the Children’s Village said that the shelter received minors last year with acute behavioral issues from other ORR providers, and they sometimes required physical interventions, arguing that it was for their safety and that of others. The same source said that as of late 2025, external monitors that reviewed one of the Children’s Village immigrant programs reported that kids felt safe and secure.

The shelter has program staff who work with children and supervise them and separately security staff who roam the campus and are called in if there’s a fight or altercation or if a child is behaving in an aggressive manner. The allegations shared with CNN were primarily against the security staff, also referred to as the “special” team.

Other children were also held in what kids called the “red room,” but was known among staff as the “crisis room,” and held there for hours as punishment for behavior, according to another source familiar with Children’s Village.

New York regulations allow for so-called “de-escalation rooms” to “assist in calming a child’s escalating behavior” but not as a form of punishment. A child needs to consent in order to be placed in a de-escalation room. Sources say the “red room” at the Children’s Village was not voluntary.

Sources described the “red room,” as it was informally known, as a tight space that got its name from the red floor and red carpet lining the walls. There is a singular overhead light and no door. There is nothing else in the room.

“It sounds like real abuse,” one of the sources said. “If a kid was subjected to that in their home, not allowed to shower, kept in a confined space for that long, they’d be considered to be in an abusive situation.”

Neha Desai, managing director of Children’s Human Rights & Dignity at the National Center for Youth Law, told CNN her team spoke with children at Children’s Village in 2019 who also reported alleged abuse, physical restraints and use of a “red room.”

“One youth described a ‘special unit’ of men who came in when children were ‘behaving badly.’ The youth told us he saw the men in this unit throwing children against the wall,” she said, adding that another boy described “being physically restrained by the ‘special unit’” and taken to the “red room.”

Complaints have been submitted with the New York State Justice Center over conditions at the Children’s Village in recent years, according to child welfare experts. Some of the teens who had been housed at the facility have been contacted by authorities with the Justice Center in recent weeks, according to those experts .

One of the sources familiar with the Children’s Village similarly told CNN that as a form of oversight, the shelter reports allegations of staff misconduct toward kids to ORR and the New York State Justice Center.

The New York State Justice Center, which receives reports of abuse and neglect, declined to comment specifically on what reports its received but told CNN in a statement that “The Children’s Village is within the Justice Center’s jurisdiction,” but that “specific information on investigation findings would require” a record request.

CNN also submitted a record request.

Founded in 1851, the Children’s Village provides services for children in need in New York as well as migrant children who arrived in the US without a guardian, according to its website.

The facility offers standard care for migrant children, including a therapeutic group home for children struggling with mental health, as well as a category known as heightened supervision, which also includes teenage boys whose history, like a previous run in with law enforcement, or current behavior requires additional supervision by staff.

The Dobbs Ferry location is laid out like a campus with dozens of cottages serving a variety of programs and children, including US citizen kids. The campus includes a recreation center, a medical clinic, a chapel and a school. There are 18 cottages assigned to migrant children and around 17 cottages assigned for US citizen kids who may be there for a number of reasons, including kids in foster care and those needing a secure residential setting given their history, according to the source familiar with the Children’s Village.

There were around 50 migrant children or fewer at the facility over the last year. The Children’s Village can accommodate 187 migrant children.

According to ORR, heightened supervision facilities “maintain stricter security measures than a shelter, include close staff supervision, and extra support.” The allegations about the treatment of teenage boys at the Children’s Village appear to largely be about their time in the heightened supervision facility.

The kids at the facility are a mix of those who arrived at the US-Mexico border alone or as a result of an interior enforcement action where their sponsor was detained without them — a phenomenon that has happened more frequently under the Trump administration’s latest crackdown.

The kids have usually experienced a type of trauma and are in custody for a prolonged period.

“They might be acting out for a variety of reasons and sometimes staff will interpret it as threatening when in fact it could be mental health issues or frustration about their situation,” a former Health and Human Services official told CNN.

“You start with a fraught position where it’s not even clear that some of the kids in those facilities should be in them and the more closed nature of it could create potential problems,” they added.

Mark Greenberg, a former senior Health and Human Services official, said there are a set of core requirements that should apply to all child migrant facilities.

“They have behavior management strategies, that they’re trauma informed, that they don’t use or threaten corporal punishment. That they do not use seclusion, except on an emergency basis and only that they don’t use personal restraints except on an emergency basis,” he said.

Greenberg noted that any allegations of physical abuse are particularly concerning.

“There should not be beatings under any circumstances. That’s clear and not going to vary on the nature of the facility,” Greenberg added. “This sounds extreme and deeply disturbing and not something that’s supposed to happen,” Greenberg said of the Children’s Village allegations.

ORR funds 171 facilities and programs across 24 states for the care of unaccompanied children until they can be placed with a so-called sponsor, like a parent or relative. The facilities are not designed for long-term stays, but amid a spate of new restrictions that have made it harder for kids to be released to sponsors, children are remaining in custody for weeks, if not months.

There were 2,173 migrant children in HHS custody in March, according to the latest available federal figures. The average length of stay at a facility in fiscal year 2025 was 117 days, according to federal data, up threefold from the year prior.

A 2019 HHS inspector general report stated the Children’s Village received $16.7 million in federal funds for the care and placement of nearly 500 children when the HHS conducted its review.

That report, which was part of a broader review of ORR facilities, found “potentially harmful conditions,” like unsanitary conditions in some bathrooms and accessibility to harmful cleaning products, and concerns over the use of federal funds. The Children’s Village disagreed with many of the findings in the inspector general’s report but agreed to take corrective actions.

An ad-hoc monitoring visit conducted in January by federal officials revealed “significant child welfare concerns” that were elevated to ORR, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The visit was prompted by an unaccompanied minor who, after being moved to another placement, reported abuse.

The Office of Refugee Resettlement officials launched a project to assess the scope of incidents at the facility, according to an HHS official.

“As part of its oversight work, ORR can run checks of significant incident reports to figure out how frequently a situation has happened and at which providers. It would be situation dependent, but certainly that would be done when there was a complaint about a specific provider,” said Jen Smyers, a former ORR deputy director who served under former President Joe Biden.

As Iran war drives up fuel prices, states are hesitant to suspend gas taxes. Here’s why.

April 16, 2026 / 6:00 AM EDT / CBS News

Washington— As fallout from the war with Iran keeps fuel prices high, few states are making moves to suspend their gas and diesel taxes.

Tax policy experts say suspending the state and federal motor fuel taxes wouldn’t be as effective in lowering prices at the pump as one might think, and could come at a cost to the roads and bridges that drivers depend on.

The average state gas tax is 32.6 cents per gallon, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The average gas price in the U.S. on Wednesday was $4.11, according to AAA, and 51% of respondents in a recent CBS News poll said gas prices have posed a financial hardship or been financially difficult for them.

Only a few states have taken steps to mitigate their motor fuel taxes since the conflict in the Middle East began. Georgia became the first state to suspend its motor fuel tax last month, with Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signing a 60-day suspension on the state’s 33-cent-per-gallon gas tax and 37-cent-per-gallon diesel tax. On April 8, Indiana’s Republican Gov. Mike Braun issued an executive order for a 30-day suspension of that state’s 7% gasoline sales tax. And Utah temporarily reduced its state fuel tax, but only by 6 cents on the gallon, bringing its state gas tax to 32 cents on the gallon for the remainder of 2026.

Kemp, who signed the gas tax suspension as a part of a bill sending state income tax refunds back to taxpayers, said he was proud to “deliver meaningful tax relief” to Georgians. Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns said the gas tax suspension would save drivers “nearly $400 million over the next 60 days.”

But most states have been hesitant to suspend their taxes, even as drivers are feeling more pain at the pump. The federal government isn’t making moves to suspend the federal 18.4-cent gas tax or 24.3-cent diesel tax either, which would require an act of Congress.

Lawmakers and governors have good reasons for being reluctant, tax policy experts said.

“The bottom line is it’s an expensive gimmick,” said Carl Davis, research director at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. “If the goal is to get tax cuts into the hands of working-class, middle-class drivers, it’s mostly going to miss the mark.”

Appearing on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” earlier this month, Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore declined multiple opportunities to say he’s open to suspending the state’s 47-cent-per-gallon gas tax. He argued the real problem is the war and the uncertainty it brings, and said he expects gas prices to remain elevated once the war ends.

“Band-Aids don’t fix potholes,” said Adam Hoffer, director of excise tax policy at the Tax Foundation. For drivers worried about high fuel prices, “this isn’t going to solve any of the problems,” he said.

Davis explained that gas taxes aren’t like a sales tax — suspending them won’t directly pass all of the savings to the consumer.

“The evidence suggests that with these short-term gas tax changes, some of the cut will get to drivers and some of it won’t,” Davis said. “Some of it will be retained along the way by the oil and fuel industries.”

A 2022 Penn Wharton study analyzing temporary fuel tax holidays in Maryland, Georgia and Connecticut found that drivers saw a chunk of the tax cut — but not all of it. In Maryland, 72% of the tax cut was passed on to consumers. In Georgia and Connecticut, the figure was 62% and 71% respectively. The rest was presumed to be absorbed by fuel wholesalers or distributors who pay the gas tax to the federal government. When the tax is suspended, they can choose to keep some of the money they’re saving rather than lowering prices at the pump.

Gas and diesel taxes are essentially a “user fee” for roadways, policy experts say — in other words, the people using the roads are the ones who pay the taxes and benefit from them. Without the taxes, it’s drivers who would ultimately see the downside. Road improvement projects could be placed on hold or significantly delayed. Potholes may go unfilled, Davis said, and drivers may have to make unplanned trips to the mechanic shop to fix their tires as a result.

“Gas taxes are the single most important way that states pay for transportation infrastructure, so when those taxes are suspended that takes a huge bite out of the funds states use to keep our bridges safe and our roads in good repair,” Davis said. “That’s not something drivers should be excited about.”

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimates the state of Georgia will lose about $399 million in revenue over its 60-day suspension, and that the bottom 60% of earners in Georgia will save only $13 a month.

“The gas tax is benefitting them very directly in the form of road maintenance, bridge repair, expansions of the transportation network and so on,” Davis said. “These things that the gas tax pays for are what make it possible to drive at all and have a safe, efficient, enjoyable drive.”

Many states are already drawing upon other revenue sources to fund road projects and can’t afford to get rid of the tax, Hoffer said. States may have to pull resources for roads from other areas, like school funding, Davis said.

“Most states aren’t able to fully fund their transportation systems with transportation user fees as it is,” he said.

“The system isn’t fully supporting itself right now,” Hoffer said, and suspending the gas tax “is only going to make that problem worse.”

Further, Davis said, state gas tax holidays also mean revenue is not collected from out-of-state drivers. States keeping an eye on their budgets aren’t keen to give up revenue to help passersby and commercial drivers.

With the exception of out-of-state travelers, these considerations with suspending state taxes are “mirrored almost exactly to the federal level as well,” Hoffer said. The federal gas tax money goes directly into the federal Highway Trust Fund, which, just like others, is gradually becoming underfunded, Hoffer said.

“I think that’s the reason why we’re not seeing a federal proposal at this time,” Hoffer said.

Former President Joe Biden proposed a federal gas tax holiday in 2022 when gas prices were high, but congressional Democrats dismissed the idea. During the financial crisis in spring 2008, then-candidate Barack Obama dismissed his rivals’ calls for a federal gas tax suspension.

“Well, let me tell you, this isn’t an idea designed to get you through the summer, it’s designed to get them through an election,” Obama said at the time.

Even if the taxes were suspended, their reinstatement could hit drivers at a bad time, and no one likes to see taxes go up again, Hoffer said.

“The timing could be really poor depending on how long the suspension lasts,” Hoffer said. “The really heavy summer travel season is ahead of us.”

Higher gas prices will likely be a longer-term issue. The EIA expects gas and diesel prices to remain higher than previously projected into 2027. In January, before the war with Iran began, the EIA anticipated national gas prices to average $2.95 per gallon in 2027. Now, it projects gas prices will be $3.46 per gallon on average in 2027.

“This is kind of a no-win policy, as much as opponents of the gas tax would like to see it go away,” Hoffer said.

以色列部长：以总理将与黎巴嫩总统通电话

2026年4月16日 18:39 / 联合早报

加姆利尔接受以色列陆军电台采访时说，以色列总理内坦亚胡（右）将首次与黎巴嫩总统奥恩（左）通话。 （法新社 / 路透社）

据以色列创新、科学与技术部长加姆利尔透露，以色列总理内坦亚胡定星期四（4月16日）与黎巴嫩总统奥恩通话。

法新社报道，加姆利尔（Gila Gamliel）为内坦亚胡所属利库德集团的成员。她在接受以色列陆军电台采访时说：“在两国对话彻底破裂多年之后，总理将首次与黎巴嫩总统通话。”

她补充道：“希望此举最终能为黎巴嫩带来繁荣昌盛。”

新华社引述巴基斯坦外交部发言人说，黎巴嫩是美伊停火谈判进程的一部分。过去两天，黎巴嫩和以色列关系出现好转迹象，令人欣慰。黎巴嫩局势缓和有利于推进停火谈判进程。

美国总统特朗普此前说，以色列和黎巴嫩的“领导人”将于星期四首次通话。

然而，一名黎巴嫩官方消息人士告诉法新社：“我们并不知晓任何与以色列方面的接触计划，也没有通过官方渠道获悉任何相关信息。”

特朗普星期三在社交媒体贴文中写道：“两国（以黎）领导人已经很长时间没有对话了，大概有34年。明天就会实现。”特朗普没有提及细节。

黎巴嫩、以色列和美国星期二在华盛顿举行三方会谈，以黎同意将在双方商定的时间和地点正式启动两国直接谈判。以色列一直拒绝与黎巴嫩真主党直接谈判。

以色列部长：以总理将与黎巴嫩总统通电话

2026年4月16日 18:39 / 联合早报

加姆利尔接受以色列陆军电台采访时说，以色列总理内坦亚胡（右）将首次与黎巴嫩总统奥恩（左）通话。 （法新社 / 路透社）

据以色列创新、科学与技术部长加姆利尔透露，以色列总理内坦亚胡定星期四（4月16日）与黎巴嫩总统奥恩通话。

法新社报道，加姆利尔（Gila Gamliel）为内坦亚胡所属利库德集团的成员。她在接受以色列陆军电台采访时说：“在两国对话彻底破裂多年之后，总理将首次与黎巴嫩总统通话。”

她补充道：“希望此举最终能为黎巴嫩带来繁荣昌盛。”

新华社引述巴基斯坦外交部发言人说，黎巴嫩是美伊停火谈判进程的一部分。过去两天，黎巴嫩和以色列关系出现好转迹象，令人欣慰。黎巴嫩局势缓和有利于推进停火谈判进程。

美国总统特朗普此前说，以色列和黎巴嫩的“领导人”将于星期四首次通话。

然而，一名黎巴嫩官方消息人士告诉法新社：“我们并不知晓任何与以色列方面的接触计划，也没有通过官方渠道获悉任何相关信息。”

特朗普星期三在社交媒体贴文中写道：“两国（以黎）领导人已经很长时间没有对话了，大概有34年。明天就会实现。”特朗普没有提及细节。

黎巴嫩、以色列和美国星期二在华盛顿举行三方会谈，以黎同意将在双方商定的时间和地点正式启动两国直接谈判。以色列一直拒绝与黎巴嫩真主党直接谈判。

Anna Paulina Luna says she’s ‘very confident’ votes are there to expel Cherfilus-McCormick

2026-04-16T06:00:02-04:00 / Fox News

Cherfilus-McCormick told Fox News Digital she will not resign ahead of a looming expulsion vote

By Adam Pack, Fox News

Published April 16, 2026 6:00am EDT

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said she is “confident” that Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who is facing a pending criminal indictment, will be expelled by the House of Representatives as soon as next week.

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After leading the effort to force the resignation of former Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., one House Republican has her sights set on another target.

“I’m very confident that the votes to expel Sheila [Cherfilus-McCormick] are there,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital in an interview, referring to Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., who could face an expulsion vote as early as next week.

It takes a two-thirds majority to expel a member of Congress, and Luna said she has been contacted privately by both Republicans and Democrats who plan to vote to remove the embattled Florida Democrat.

“Democrats have voiced their frustrations with her and have stated that they will vote to expel her as well,” Luna said.

Rep. Eric Swalwell spoke during a press conference on committee assignments for the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 25, 2023, in Washington, D.C.(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

SWALWELL ANNOUNCES RESIGNATION FROM CONGRESS AFTER SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS TORPEDOED GUBERNATORIAL BID

House Democratic leadership has not yet weighed in on Cherfilus-McCormick’s fate, but a growing number of the Democratic caucus, from moderates to progressives, have backed her ouster.

The momentum for expulsion comes after a House ethics subcommittee found Cherfilus-McCormick guilty of more than two dozen ethics violations in March, including allegations related to stealing millions of disaster relief funds to finance her congressional run. She is also facing a separate federal criminal indictment that could result in more than 53 years in prison if convicted.

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., is expected to introduce a resolution to expel Cherfilus-McCormick after the House Ethics Committee issues its recommended sanction next week.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said the House of Representatives will vote to expel Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., if she does not resign.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images | Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Still, Cherfilus-McCormick told Fox News Digital on Tuesday that she would not resign despite the threat of removal.

“This is not the time to abandon the district, not when they too are fighting for their future,” said Cherfilus-McCormick, who is running for re-election.

Not every lawmaker, however, has been willing to risk the prospect of expulsion, which has only happened a handful of times in U.S. history.

Luna on Tuesday threatened to introduce a motion expelling Swalwell if he did not resign. Swalwell ultimately chose to quit on his own terms rather than face a rare chamber-wide expulsion vote.

“I was ready to make that expulsion. I had it ready to go,” Luna said. “And then his office contacted my office and let me know that his resignation would be coming in a few minutes before the deadline was for the expulsion [motion].”

Five women, including one former staffer, have so far accused Swalwell of sexual misconduct and rape. The California Democrat has denied any criminal wrongdoing and his attorney has vowed to vigorously contest the allegations.

ERIC SWALWELL WAS CABLE NEWS STAR FOR YEARS BEFORE RAPID FALL FROM GRACE

Members of Congress have traditionally been reluctant to pursue expulsion against colleagues who have not been criminally charged or found by the House Ethics Committee to have committed misconduct, but Luna argued that the serious allegations against Swalwell required a more aggressive approach.

“His resignation, obviously, was something that had to be done,” Luna said. “It was non-negotiable.”

Luna also sharply criticized an atmosphere on Capitol Hill that she argued turned a blind eye to Swalwell’s alleged misconduct.

“From what we were hearing on the Hill, this was behavior that was known about for a while. But no one came forward to officially report it,” Luna said, calling the silence “disturbing.”

Luna predicted that additional sexual misconduct allegations would be made against Swalwell and said she turned over unreported information about Swalwell’s conduct to the FBI.

She also supported the expulsion of former Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, who resigned from the House on Tuesday to fend off a looming removal vote.

Former Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, resigned from Congress on April 14, 2026, after a looming expulsion vote threatened to forcibly remove him.(Getty)

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“I guess I took it on myself to act specifically in these cases because I got really frustrated. I’m up here to serve my constituents,” Luna said. “There’s a lot of people that are up here to do good on behalf of their districts,to actually make real change.”

“And when you are associated with and you accept people’s behavior that is unethical and immoral and illegal, it’s a poor reflection, not just on the institution, but it also taints the waters for everyone that serves with these people,” she continued.

House set to break with Trump, voting against ending deportation protections for Haitians

April 16, 2026 / 7:06 AM EDT / CBS News

By Caitlin Yilek Politics Reporter
Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.

Read Full Bio

Washington — The House is poised to deliver rare pushback on President Trump’s immigration policies in a vote Thursday on a bill to stop the administration from ending temporary deportation protections for Haitian nationals living in the U.S.

Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts spearheaded the effort to force a vote through a procedural tool known as a discharge petition. The tool — which has seen increasing success under the fractured House Republican majority — hit the 218-signature threshold it needed to bypass GOP leadership and bring the measure to the floor in late March.

Four Republicans — Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Mike Lawler of New York and Don Bacon of Nebraska — joined all Democrats in backing the discharge petition. In a procedural vote Wednesday, it also gained the support of Reps. Nicole Malliotakis of New York, Carlos Gimenez of Florida and Kevin Kiley of California, allowing the bill to proceed to the House floor.

The underlying bill, introduced last year by Democratic Rep. Laura Gillen of New York, would require the Department of Homeland Security to extend temporary protected status, or TPS, for Haitians until 2029. The bill was cosponsored by Lawler.

The bill mirrors one introduced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in 2019, when he was a Florida senator.

The vote comes as the Supreme Court is set to weigh in on the legal battle over the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back the temporary deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Haiti and Syria. A federal judge blocked the administration from revoking the legal protections for Haiti in February, one day before they were set to lapse, and an appeals court panel declined to freeze the lower court’s decision.

Congress created the temporary protected status system in 1990, which allows immigrants to temporarily live and work in the U.S. without fear of deportation if DHS decides their home country is unsafe due to armed conflict, environmental disasters or other extraordinary circumstances.

Haiti’s designation has been extended several times since 2010, when a devastating earthquake left more than 300,000 people dead. It was most recently extended in August 2024 for 18 months by the Biden administration, which cited economic, security, political and health crises afflicting the Caribbean nation. More than 330,000 Haitian nationals held the status as of last year, not including people who also hold green cards.

The Trump administration has sought to wind down protections for Haiti and several other countries, requiring Haitian nationals to leave the country unless they qualify for some other lawful immigration status. In a termination notice in November, the administration said Haiti’s designation “is contrary to the U.S. national interest.”

“The United States cannot call for bold change on the ground while signaling doubt from afar. Our immigration policy must align with our foreign policy vision of a secure, sovereign, and self-reliant Haiti and not a country that Haitian citizens continue to leave in large numbers to seek opportunities in the United States,” the notice said, while also acknowledging “the current situation in Haiti is concerning.”

Lawmakers said the Trump administration’s decision puts lives at risk.

“The stakes could not be higher,” Pressley said Wednesday at a news conference, calling the Trump administration’s decision “a death sentence.”

Gillen said it was “cruel to expect Haitians to be forced to return to these deadly, dangerous conditions.”

Lawler argued that “sending people back to Haiti to unsafe conditions when they are currently here lawfully, is unjust and unwise.”

“The State Department itself says that Haiti is unsafe for Americans to travel to, which is in complete contradiction with the Department of Homeland Security saying that it is safe for Haitian immigrants to return to,” said Lawler, a Republican whose New York district is one of the most closely contested seats in the House.

Pressley, a co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus, has for months been making the case to Republicans and some apprehensive Democrats to get them on board, according to a senior aide to the congresswoman. The aide said Pressley’s pitch has emphasized the negative economic impacts, particularly on the caregiving workforce, if more than 300,000 Haitians are forced to leave the U.S.

Pressley told CBS News on Wednesday she planned to continue having conversations with her Republican colleagues “up until the very minute” of the vote to try and secure their support. Some Republicans who did not sign the discharge petition had expressed interest, but weren’t willing to buck leadership and put their name on it, the aide said.

The legislation would still have to make it through the Senate, and it’s unclear how quickly the upper chamber would move on it. It also faces a veto from Mr. Trump, and a two-thirds majority is needed in both chambers to overcome his veto. The House was unwilling to override two vetoes earlier this year on legislation that passed unanimously.

Trump ending Biden-era migrant parole program

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/trump-ending-biden-era-parole-program-for-migrants-from-cuba-haiti-nicaragua-and-venezuela/

Trump ending Biden-era parole program for migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela

(02:39)