US slaps sanctions on companies tied to Nord Stream 2 in bid to squeeze Russia
The U.S. on Wednesday issued fresh sanctions against several Russian-linked entities and individuals involved in the building of Nord Stream 2, the massive undersea gas pipeline linking Russia to Germany. The State Department said it has re-imposed financial penalties against entities and individuals involved in the construction of Nord Stream 2, including project operator, Nord Stream 2 AG, and a Russian-based insurer that worked with companies involved in the pipeline’s construction. Others included in the sanctions were a Russian-owned maritime rescue service, a Russian-based water transport logistics company, and more than a dozen vessel owners that were either formerly under sanctions designations or were being sanctioned for the first time. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters Wednesday that the U.S. remains opposed to Nord Stream 2 as well as any efforts to revive it. ‘WRONG-HEADED’: ENERGY INDUSTRY LEADERS BLAST BIDEN ADMIN REPORT ON NATURAL GAS EXPORTS Officials also cited Russia’s ongoing efforts to weaponize its energy resources, including throttling its piped gas supplies to Europe shortly after the start of its war in Ukraine in 2022. “We’re going to continue to work and ensure that Russia is never able to weaponize its energy resources and its energy positioning for political gain,” Patel said of the new sanctions. News of the new sanctions designations comes after both the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines linking Russia to Europe were hit by a series of explosions in late September 2022. To date, no one has taken responsibility for the blasts, which U.S. and other Western leaders have described as an act of potential “sabotage.” Russia has dismissed suggestions that it would blow up its own pipeline, with Russian President Vladimir Putin describing such a move as “idiotic.” PENTAGON ANNOUNCES NEW COUNTER-DRONE STRATEGY AS UNMANNED ATTACKS ON US INTERESTS SKYROCKET Though neither pipeline was operational at the time, both lines were filled with gas under pressure. Prior to Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Nord Stream 1 pipeline had supplied roughly 35% of the European Union’s total Russian gas imports before Moscow halted supplies indefinitely citing “maintenance” needs. Nord Stream 2 was expected to double that capacity. In the years since Russia’s war in Ukraine began, the EU has scrambled to offset its reliance on Russian energy supplies, including by purchasing more liquefied natural gas from the U.S. and other suppliers, by devoting more resources toward nuclear power and by building more regasification terminals, among other things.
Five more migrants detained in Aurora, Colorado, home invasion possibly linked to brutal Venezuelan gang
Police in Aurora, Colorado, have detained five more migrants in an armed home invasion and kidnapping that occurred early Tuesday morning. This brings to 19 the number of migrants detained in the incident, which involved two victims being beaten, bound and kidnapped in a Denver suburb A spokesperson for ICE told Fox News Digital 16 of those in custody have been identified as Venezuelan nationals in the U.S. without authorization and “are suspected of being members or associates of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.” Tren de Aragua, or TdA, is a violent international criminal group that has been terrorizing Aurora residents for over a year. TREN DE ARAGUA ARE IDEOLOGICAL TERRORISTS DISGUISED AS A STREET GANG WARNS FORMER MILITARY OFFICER The ICE official said the 16 suspects “will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings or hearings before an immigration judge.” Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain said Tuesday the home invasion was “without question a gang incident.” However, Joe Moylan, a representative for the Aurora Police Department, told Fox News Digital police are still working to identify the suspects and have not yet been able to officially confirm whether the incident was gang-related. Police were called to an Aurora housing complex, The Edge at Lowry Apartments, just before 2:30 a.m. Tuesday in response to a reported armed home invasion in which victims were assaulted and taken to another apartment in the same complex. COLORADO VIDEO SHOWS TREN DE ARAGUA GANG BEATING APARTMENT COMPLEX WORKER IN EXTORTION BID, COMPANY SAYS One of the victims, a man, sustained a stab wound but is expected to survive. Both victims are still at a hospital for treatment. Moylan said Aurora police served an additional warrant at the apartment complex late Tuesday afternoon, resulting in their taking in the five additional migrants for questioning. He said police are working in conjunction with federal authorities, including Homeland Security Investigators who are helping to identify everyone involved. Moylan said the Aurora police chief will likely address the incident further in another press conference once more details are confirmed. BLUE STATE FACES SPIKE IN MIGRANT SEX CRIMES AS TOP CITY PLEDGES RESISTANCE TO TRUMP DEPORTATIONS CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Roger Hudson, a city council member in nearby Castle Pines, Colorado, who has had contact with the apartment owner, told Fox News Digital most people in the area believe Tren de Aragua is behind the incident. In recent months, the gang has only become “more powerful, more dangerous and more desperate,” he said. Hudson bashed the sanctuary policies passed by Colorado and the City of Denver, which he said have made it more difficult for state and local law enforcement to protect Coloradans from the likes of TdA. “These policies make all of our communities less safe,” he said. “This is lawlessness in the West, and you can’t have that. That’s not who we are as a country. That’s not who we are as a state.”
Newsom removes college degree requirement for 30K state government jobs
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that he plans to double the number of state jobs that will no longer require a college degree — joining states like Minnesota, Virginia and Pennsylvania, which have already dropped degree requirements for most public jobs. Newsom unveiled his Master Plan for Career Education framework on Monday, which included eliminating the college degree requirement for 30,000 jobs in the state. The Democratic governor plans to double the number by removing the requirement for an additional 30,000 in the coming years in an overall effort to “help Californians translate their skills and knowledge into real progress toward a degree or career.” “Every Californian deserves the opportunity to build real-life skills and pursue a fulfilling career — including those that don’t require college degrees,” Newsom said in a statement. “California is working to ensure that every person has what they need to get a well-paying, long-lasting job so we can build an economy for the future that supports all families.” ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP LAUNCHES SIX-FIGURE AD BUY AGAINST NEWSOM’S ‘CLIMATE LEADERSHIP’ The framework also includes plans to establish “Career Passports” for citizens that will create a digital record of their skills and abilities for job applications. Veterans will also see new benefits, with the plan allowing them to gain college credit for their military experience. EPA GRANTS CALIFORNIA PERMISSION TO BAN GAS CAR SALES BY 2035 Reducing the emphasis on needing a college degree to secure a career has been endorsed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a close ally of President-elect Donald Trump. Musk recently stated that he believes “the value of a college education is somewhat overweighted.” “Too many people spend four years, accumulate a ton of debt and often don’t have useful skills that they can apply afterwards. I have a lot of respect for people who work with their hands, and we need electricians and plumbers and carpenters and that’s a lot more important than having incremental political science majors,” Musk said while on the campaign trail for Trump. “I think we should not have this idea that in order to be successful you need a four-year college degree.” Newsom’s framework was released just months after a report found that the majority of students at for-profit colleges never graduate, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. The report found that only 36% of students graduate in four years at California State University, while 62% graduate within six years. The elimination of college degree requirements for state jobs has received bipartisan support in recent years. Maryland, under Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, became the first state in the nation to eliminate degree requirements for most state jobs in 2022, setting the stage for more than a dozen other states to follow in his footsteps with similar orders. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro issued an executive order in 2023 to establish that 92% of state government jobs would no longer require a college degree, a move that received praise from Republican state lawmakers who said the decision was “a step in the right direction.” Additionally, the 2024 GOP platform framework, released during the presidential campaign cycle, stated that “Republicans will support the creation of additional, drastically more affordable alternatives to a traditional four-year college degree.”
Rand Paul blocks bill responding to drone sightings: Shouldn’t rush to grant ‘sweeping surveillance powers’
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., blocked a Senate bill Wednesday that would have authorized resources for state and local authorities to track drones that have mystified residents across New Jersey and the Northeast in recent weeks. Paul objected to the passage of the bill, citing his long-standing concerns over expanding governmental powers. “This body must not rush to grant sweeping surveillance powers without proper consideration and debate by the committees of jurisdiction,” he said. ‘DRONE’ SIGHTINGS IN THE NORTHEAST SPARK ‘UNFOUNDED’ PANIC, SAYS EXPERT Paul said the bill would “expand federal authority to intercept communications and disrupt drone activity – powers that raise serious concerns for Americans’ privacy, civil liberties, and Fourth Amendment protections against unwarranted search and seizure.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sought to speed a bipartisan bill through the Senate by seeking unanimous consent on the floor before it was blocked by Paul. “The people in New York and New Jersey have a lot of questions, and they’re not getting good enough answers,” said Schumer. “The utter confusion surrounding these drone sightings shows that the feds can’t respond all on their own.” NJ DRONE SIGHTINGS COULD BE A ‘CLASSIFIED EXERCISE’: FORMER CIA OFFICER In addition to giving local authorities the ability to track drones, the proposed legislation would expand some federal agencies’ authority to start a pilot program to allow states and local authorities to disrupt, disable or seize a drone without prior consent of the operator. The drone sightings across the Northeast have worried some local and state officials, but the Biden administration has said the drones don’t appear to be a sign of foreign interference or a public safety threat. However, they have not determined who is responsible for them. President-elect Trump last week called for the administration to release information on the drones or shoot them down. Paul, who has often called for limiting governmental powers, said he objected to the bill because it wasn’t clear that urgent action was needed. “We’re being told that this legislation is urgent, that it is needed to address an imminent drone threat,” he said. “Yet the government itself admits no such threat exists.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
MAGAvenue: Lawmakers prep legislation to name several heartland highways after Trump
Multiple Missouri lawmakers are reportedly preparing legislation to name several highways after President-elect Trump in the new year. The most expansive reported bill would bestow Trump’s name on carriageways of the Missouri state highway system not yet designated otherwise before next August, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. That bill, from state Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, however, exempts roadways in counties encompassing St. Louis, Columbia and Kansas City, the paper reported. Coleman previously floated a bill to rename a portion of Interstate 55 in her district the “Donald J. Trump Highway” in 2021, but the effort failed in the Republican-majority legislature. TRUMP PICKS BILLY LONG TO LEAD IRS Under both the defunct and current proposals, MoDOT would erect and maintain the commemorative signage, but private donations would foot the bill for the signs. A separate proposal from state Sen. Nick Schroer, R-St. Charles, would designate a portion of MO Route D west of St. Louis the “President Donald J. Trump Highway.” “It’s time to Make Missouri Roads Great Again,” Schroer said in a social media post announcing his bill. The post included an inset of Trump doing his viral “Y.M.C.A.” dance on the shoulder of a freeway beside a “President Donald J. Trump Highway” sign. Attempts to reach both Schroer and Coleman for further comment were unsuccessful. FLASHBACK: TRUMP SPEAKS TO SUPPORTERS IN MISSOURI Fox News Digital also reached out to Missouri Senate President Pro-Tempore Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia. In announcing her 2021 bill, Coleman said Trump deserved the honor for “strengthening Missouri’s economy, defending our values, and making America great again during his historic first term.” Missouri lawmakers have also tried to commemorate other national conservatives, including the late radio host Rush Limbaugh – who was born and raised in Cape Girardeau. Language to commemorate Jan. 12 as “Rush Limbaugh Day” did not make it to the final text of a 2021 designations bill, according to the Columbia Missourian. Trump’s name has made it onto a handful of highways outside the Show-Me State, including in some politically-unfriendly areas. In 2019, a man “adopted” portions of Burke Lake Road and Fairfax County Rte. 620 in the deep-blue Washington, D.C., suburb of Springfield, Virginia, in Trump’s name. The man also successfully had the incoming president’s name festooned on VDOT adopt-a-highway signage on heavily-trafficked Ox Road in nearby Lorton, according to the Washingtonian. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In 2021, Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt signed legislation designating a 20-mile stretch of U.S. 287 in the state’s panhandle after Trump. Meanwhile, Hialeah, Florida, Mayor Esteban Bovo joined Trump at a 2023 rally in the Miami suburb and offered him a commemorative sign after an avenue near a casino in the city was renamed Donald J. Trump Avenue. In Trump’s home state, a controversial 430-acre tract of parkland also bears his name. Donald J. Trump State Park in Putnam Valley came into being in 2006 after he donated the parcel to New York state. After Trump was unable to successfully develop a golf course on the site due to town permit roadblocks and the like, he passed the land on to Albany after originally purchasing it in two pieces in 1998 for about $2.5 million. Donald J. Trump State Park soon fell into disrepair and remains largely unmaintained. New York Democrats have attempted to pass legislation stripping Trump’s name from the park, including a 2019 bid to rename it after the woman killed during the 2017 Charlottesville riot. After Trump’s May conviction in his hush-money trial, New York state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal told The New York Times he hopes it “primes the pump” to restart talks to rename the park. Hoylman-Sigal, a Democrat, indicated he has visited the park and has seen “some improvements” since Trump gifted it to the Pataki administration.
Russia says Uzbek man confesses to assassination of general
Russian authorities have detained an Uzbek suspect in the killing of Lt. Gen Igor Kirillov in a bombing in Moscow. Russia says the suspect said Ukraine’s intelligence offered him $100,000 to carry out the assassination. Russia is calling this hit a terrorist act. Adblock test (Why?)
Mexico’s Sergio Perez leaves Red Bull F1 team but no replacement named
Perez departs the team after a poor season in 2024 where he failed to help Red Bull win the Constructors’ championship. Red Bull Racing announced that Mexican driver Sergio Perez has departed the Formula One team after four seasons. Perez, 34, joined Red Bull in 2021 and helped the team earn two constructors’ titles and completed a drivers’ standing one-two with four-time world champion teammate Max Verstappen in 2023. “I would like to thank Checo [Perez] for all he has done for Oracle Red Bull Racing over the past four seasons,” Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said in a statement on Wednesday. “From the moment he joined in 2021, he proved himself to be an extraordinary team player, helping us to two Constructors’ titles and to our first 1-2 finish in the Drivers’ championship. “While Checo will not race for the team next season, he will always be an extremely popular team member and a treasured part of our history. Thank you, Checo.” Perez won five Grands Prix in Red Bull colours, including a victory at the Monaco GP and a double in Azerbaijan. However, his form dipped in the 2024 season leading to rumours about his future in the team. Advertisement He came eighth in the drivers’ standings as Red Bull surrendered their team title to McLaren with a third-place finish. “I’m incredibly grateful for the past four years with Oracle Red Bull Racing and for the opportunity to race with such an amazing team,” Perez said. “Driving for Red Bull has been an unforgettable experience and I’ll always cherish the successes we achieved together. “A big thank you to every person in the team … I wish you all the best for the future. “It has also been an honour to race alongside Max as a teammate all these years and to share in our success.” Red Bull added in their statement that “announcements regarding the team’s full 2025 line-up will be made in due course.” New Zealander Liam Lawson is considered the favourite to replace Perez. Sergio Perez of Mexico driving the (11) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 on track during practice before the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina Circuit on December 6, 2024, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates [Joe Portlock/Getty Images] Adblock test (Why?)
Prime minister of Mauritius reopens talks with UK over Chagos Islands deal
Mauritius’s prime minister says he issued ‘counterproposals’ to UK over Chagos Islands deal. A historic deal for the United Kingdom to hand over control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius has been put into question after the African island country’s new prime minister issued “counterproposals”. The British government still plans to hand over control of the chain of 60-some islands to Mauritius under the condition that a strategic joint UK-US military base on the largest of the islands, Diego Garcia, would remain under British control for at least 99 years. Mauritius’s Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam, who took office last month, said on Tuesday that he was reopening negotiations because the current deal “would not produce the benefits that the nation could expect from such an agreement”. Ramgoolam told lawmakers in Mauritius’s parliament that his government “is still willing to conclude an agreement with the United Kingdom” and had submitted counterproposals. Britain’s minister for UK overseas territories, Stephen Doughty, said on Wednesday that he was confident the deal would be finalised and that it is “completely understandable” for the new Mauritian government to seek time to review the details. Advertisement “I am confident that we have agreed a good and fair deal that is in both sides’ interests,” he told lawmakers in the House of Commons. “It protects the base at proportionate cost. It has been supported across the national security architecture in the United States and by India.” The UK’s opposition Conservatives have accused the government of surrendering sovereignty over a British territory. US President Joe Biden praised the agreement as “historic”, emphasising its importance for the future of the US Navy base on Diego Garcia. However, supporters of US President-elect Donald Trump have criticised the deal. The base, which is home to about 2,500 American military personnel, has been described as “an all but indispensable platform” for security operations in the Middle East, South Asia and East Africa. The Chagos Islands have been under British control since 1814. In the 1960s and 1970s, Britain forcibly evicted nearly 2,000 locals to make way for the US military base, which played a pivotal role in US military operations in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. In 2008, the US also acknowledged that the base had been used for covert rendition flights of “terrorism” suspects. The displaced Chagossians have fought for years in British courts for the right to return to their homeland. Under the terms of the new agreement, they and their descendants would be allowed to return to the islands, though they would be excluded from Diego Garcia. Mauritius, an African nation located about 2,100 kilometres (1,300 miles) southwest of the Chagos Islands, lies off the eastern coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Advertisement Adblock test (Why?)
Johnson hit with possible speakership rivals as conservatives rebel over government funding plan
EXCLUSIVE: House GOP critics of how Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is handling government funding talks are already beginning to float names of possible challengers, people told Fox News Digital. Two GOP lawmakers told Fox News Digital that House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., were all mentioned in early talks about alternatives. A source close to Donalds told Fox News Digital in response, “At this time, the Congressman has not made any statements regarding the future of House leadership.” A spokesperson for Emmer told Fox News Digital, “Whip Emmer supports Speaker Johnson and is focused on doing the job he was elected to do.” Fox News Digital also reached out to Donalds, Jordan and Johnson’s offices for comment. MIKE JOHNSON WINS REPUBLICAN SUPPORT TO BE HOUSE SPEAKER AGAIN AFTER TRUMP ENDORSEMENT One of the lawmakers said they had not heard from any of the three, adding, “That would be suicidal.” But discussions about potential rivals to Johnson in the Jan. 3, 2025 House-wide speaker vote represent the latest warning shot from Republican lawmakers who are vehemently opposed to the short-term spending bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR). Congressional leaders released the text of their 1,547-page CR on Tuesday evening after last-minute negotiations delayed its original planned release Sunday. Since then, it’s seen fierce pushback from conservatives and House GOP hardliners, many of whom are frustrated at the unrelated policy riders attached to the legislation – rather than a “clean” extension of government funding. In addition to averting a partial government shutdown through March 14, the bill also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, plus more than $100 billion in disaster aid funding and measures to fund the rebuilding of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009. Multiple GOP lawmakers signaled Tuesday that Johnson could face a challenge to his leadership over the CR. DANIEL PENNY TO BE TAPPED FOR CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL BY HOUSE GOP LAWMAKER “The speaker definitely has some ‘no’ votes and some people considering their options,” a third House Republican granted anonymity to speak candidly told Fox News Digital on Tuesday. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., told Fox News Digital when asked if Johnson could see blowback on Jan. 3, “There’s always consequences.” When previously asked about any potential speakership challenges, Emmer, Jordan and Donalds have all said they back Johnson. A source close to Jordan told Fox News Digital that the Ohio Republican is “not interested in challenging Johnson.” But all three ran for House Speaker last year after ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted. Johnson ultimately won after a messy three-week fight. The Louisiana Republican, who Republicans chose unanimously to be their candidate for speaker last month, is also backed by President-elect Donald Trump, which is likely to keep a significant amount of backlash at bay. He’s also still expected to get a large share of GOP lawmakers to vote for his plan, with most in Congress in agreement that a partial government shutdown over the holidays would have a negative political and economic impact. But his CR plan is also under attack by members of Trump’s orbit – both Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy blasted the bill on Wednesday. “Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” Musk wrote on X. Johnson himself dismissed concerns about his job as the blowback began to build on Tuesday. “I’m not worried about the speaker vote,” he said. “We’re governing. Everybody knows we have difficult circumstances. We’re doing the very best we can under those circumstances.” The speaker and his allies have argued that they won the most they could while controlling one half of one third of government, and promised that Republicans would be in a better position to handle federal funding when the CR expires at the beginning of Trump’s term.
‘Evil terrorists’: House GOP border hawks rally around Trump’s deportation plan targeting ‘cartel thugs’
Members of the House Border Security Caucus pledged to back President-elect Trump and his border czar Tom Homan’s mass deportation plans and vowed to crack down on “particularly pernicious” sanctuary city policies protecting “evil terrorists” and “cartel thugs.” Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, decried the historic level of illegal immigration under the Biden administration and the subsequent dramatic rise in migrant crime and gang activity, including the violent Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua. He called for the rest of Congress to stand behind Trump’s border security plans, saying that “every single one of these cartel thugs and evil terrorists needs to be deported immediately.” ‘100% ON BOARD’: BORDER STATE OFFERS TRUMP MASSIVE PLOT OF LAND TO AID MASS DEPORTATION OPERATION “The American people can finally breathe a very big and deep sigh of relief,” said Babin. “The disastrous Biden administration is coming to an end and with that, that will be an end of open borders, asylum abuse, lawlessness, sanctuary cities – all these will end as well.” “But for us, as members of the House Border Security Conference,” Babin went on, “our job is just begun.” California Republican Rep. Tom McClintock also said congressional Republicans’ “first priority” must be passing the Secure the Border Act. He said this would “assure that future presidents cannot subvert the law as Biden has.” “President Trump proved that simply enforcing laws can produce secure borders,” he said. “But President Biden proved that a president intent on leaving our borders wide open can do so as well.” ‘PATTERN OF DISREGARD’: RED STATES SEEK COURT ACTION AGAINST BIDEN ADMIN’S ‘SHAMEFUL’ BORDER WALL DISPOSAL McClintock also said Congress needs to sanction sanctuary jurisdictions that are protecting criminal illegal immigrants from deportation. Texas Republican Rep. Michael Cloud backed this idea as well, saying that Republicans in Congress need to “steel our spine” to defund agencies and cities that serve as magnets to draw illegal immigrants into the country. “As Congress, we need to defund the wrong things. We need to stop sending these agencies’ money to do bad things. And that includes the magnet that continues to draw people here through wrong and illegal processes,” he said. “So, we will have to take the tough votes. We will have to do the job that’s required of us in Congress… to make sure that we make good on the promise that we have the American people.” BLUE STATE FACES SPIKE IN MIGRANT SEX CRIMES AS TOP CITY PLEDGES RESISTANCE TO TRUMP DEPORTATIONS Arizona Republican Rep. Andy Biggs called the sanctuary city issue “particularly pernicious.” He mentioned how his home state governor, Democrat Katie Hobbs, has pledged to resist Trump’s efforts to secure the border, saying she “unequivocally” “will not tolerate” the plan. Hobbs is one of several other Democratic leaders in over a dozen sanctuary states and dozens more sanctuary cities who have similarly pledged to resist the mass deportations. “The problem is this, when you prevent the arrest of a criminal, illegal alien, you prevent the safety of the community,” said Biggs. “When you ignore the law, the community is put at risk.” NEW YORK VOTERS WANT STATE TO SUPPORT TRUMP DEPORTATIONS, POLL FINDS Biggs said mayors and governors doubling down on sanctuary policies and pledging resistance are “going to find themselves in hot water,” and will likely face obstruction of justice and aiding and abetting criminal cartel charges. “The cartel knows that Donald Trump means business and Tom Homan means business,” he said. “And, hopefully, Congress means business.”