On The Money: House, Senate at odds over border bills | Senate Democrats want details on tech probes | Commerce blacklists five Chinese tech groups

by Sylvan Lane - 06/21/19 4:44 PM ET

Happy Friday and welcome back to On The Money, where we’d advise you to check with your airline if you’re flying this weekend. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

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THE BIG DEAL–House Dems at odds with Senate in $4.5 billion border bill: House Democrats on Friday unveiled a $4.5 billion bill to deal with the growing crisis on the southern border, but took a few decidedly different approaches than were included in a compromise bill passed in the Senate earlier this week.

Like the Senate bill, the House bill would provide hundreds of millions of dollars for processing facilities, food, water and medical supplies for migrants being held along the southern border.

But the House bill also includes a slew of restrictions on how funds can and cannot be used, including conditions for how children should be treated, reporting and oversight requirements and reinstating aid to Central American countries that the Trump administration had cut off.

The context: The feud comes as President Trump reportedly prepares to round up thousands of undocumented immigrants for deportation in 10 U.S. cities this weekend, a move sure to invoke outrage among Democrats and immigrant rights groups.

“Given the Trump Administration’s history of abuses, Congress cannot and will not provide them with a blank check to continue its immoral and dangerous immigration policies,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), who chairs the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education.

The Hill’s Niv Elis takes us inside the battle here.

LEADING THE DAY

US Soccer, women’s national team tentatively agree to mediation over pay: A tentative deal has reportedly been reached between 28 players on the U.S. women’s soccer team and the U.S. Soccer Federation.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that the two parties have tentatively agreed to seek mediation over the players’ claims of pay inequalities, which were alleged in a lawsuit filed in March.

A spokeswoman for the 28 women suing the organization said that they hoped the mediation offer from the U.S. Soccer Federation was “genuine,” calling the prospect of pay equity with the men’s team “truly remarkable.”

Senate Democrats press regulators over reported tech investigations: A group of Democratic senators is demanding answers from the government’s antitrust enforcers about their oversight of the nation’s tech giants after a string of media reports alluded to investigations into companies like Google and Amazon.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) led a group of her colleagues in letters to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice on Friday, asking for information about the reported probes beyond what had been leaked to the media.

“When we saw the recent press reports of potential U.S. investigations into these matters, we were encouraged, but also somewhat troubled that such inquiries were not already well underway,” the letter reads.

“But given the silence of the FTC and the Justice Department, the truth is that we still do not know if these investigations have actually been initiated and neither do the American people.” The Hill’s Harper Neidig has more here.

What happened: Earlier this month, a string of news reports detailed an agreement between the two agencies to divide the responsibilities for antitrust oversight of Silicon Valley, with the FTC reportedly taking the lead on any probes into Facebook and Amazon and the Justice Department handling Apple and Google.

The stories came after months of political pressure from Congress, which has become increasingly frustrated with data privacy scandals and concerned over Big Tech’s potentially anticompetitive effects on the economy.

And the leaks coincided with the House Judiciary Committee’s announcement of a wide-ranging antitrust investigation into Silicon Valley’s giants.

It’s still unclear whether the pressure has actually pushed regulators into opening investigations into tech giants or what aspects of their businesses would be under scrutiny.

ON TAP NEXT WEEK

Monday:

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) holds a symposium on the “abusiveness standard” in consumer financial products and services, 9 a.m.

Tuesday:

The Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should be designated as systemically important financial institutions, 10 a.m.

A House Financial Services subcommittee holds a hearing entitled “Diverse Asset Managers: Challenges, Solutions and Opportunities for Inclusion,” 10 a.m.

A House Ways and Means subcommittee holds a hearing on the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, 10 a.m.

The House Financial Services Committee’s Task Force on Financial Technology holds a hearing entitled “Overseeing the Fintech Revolution: Domestic and International Perspectives on Fintech Regulation,” 2 p.m.

A House Ways and Means subcommittee holds a hearing on Mexico’s labor reform laws as they relate to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). 2 p.m.

Wednesday:

The House Financial Services Committee Task Force on Artificial Intelligence holds a hearing on AI and the financial services industry, 10 a.m.

The House Financial Services Committee holds a markup, legislation to be announced, 12:30 p.m.

Thursday:

The Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, 10 a.m.

GOOD TO KNOW

Vice President Pence will delay a speech detailing the administration’s policies toward China until after the Group of 20 (G-20) summit, an administration official confirmed Friday. The decision comes as Trump eyes a trade deal with Beijing.

The Commerce Department added five Chinese technology groups to its “entity” list on Friday, blacklisting the organizations from buying components from U.S. companies unless they get a waiver.

The House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday advanced Democratic legislation to extend expired and expiring tax breaks and to expand tax credits that benefit workers and families.

ODDS AND ENDS

The parent company of the United States’s two largest manufacturers of Bibles say President Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods could lead to a noticeable price increase on the Christian holy text.

Four more states have joined the lawsuit from attorneys general seeking to block the $26 billion T-Mobile-Sprint merger, bringing the number of states opposing the deal to 14.

RECAP THE WEEK WITH ON THE MONEY