Trump seeks to rewrite Biden-era rules of the road

It’s Monday. We’re still feeling the lingering effects of the nor’easter in the D.C. area, so it’s a good day to be inside.

College sports overhaul nears Senate finish line

Programming note : Hello! We are Elliott Davis and Steff Danielle Thomas filling in for Cate. Please send your tips, comments and story ideas to edavis@thehill.com or sthomas@thehill.com .

The Associated Press | Rebecca Blackwell

The Trump administration on Monday officially rolled back Biden-era fuel efficiency standards for cars, cutting its predecessor’s 2031 goal for the nation’s fleet by an average of about 15 miles per gallon.

The Hill’s Rachel Frazin reports that opponents of the move argue it will push car owners to spend more on gas amid already high prices, but the administration says vehicles will be cheaper by about $1,300 on average as a result of the updated standards. Over the weekend, President Trump touted his action, saying it was a “BIG DAY FOR AMERICAN AUTO WORKERS AND CAR BUYERS!”

What this means: Former President Biden’s rules were part of his administration’s goal of driving a shift from gas-powered to electric vehicle (EV) usage in the U.S., which Trump in his Truth Social post described as a “ridiculous EV Mandate.” Upon returning to the White House, Trump also signed an executive order that revoked a nonbinding goal set by Biden that EVs make up half of new cars sold by 2030.

Secretary Pete weighs in: Biden’s Transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg , wrote on social platform X that Trump lowering the standards “will accelerate what he has already been doing: handing the clean tech future to China and forcing Americans to pay more at the pump.”

The U.S. and China have agreed to cut tariffs on a total of $60 billion worth of goods, the latest announcement out of Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s summit in Washington last week.

The agreement was part of an eight-point consensus reached at the conclusion of Xi’s three-day visit. The two nations also extended their broader trade truce from Nov. 10 to Jan. 10 and set talks to discuss AI’s risks and benefits amid a recent spree of doomsday warnings by the technology’s researchers.

What is covered?: Products covered by the “30-by-30” agreement include fireworks, kitchenware, bed and table linens, artificial flowers, sleeping bags and billiard balls, according to a White House list .

(And magicians rejoice: Accessories for tricks and practical jokes are also on the list.)

The president is scheduled to make an announcement at 2 p.m. EDT in the Oval Office.

An administration official told NewsNation the president will reveal plans to build a $15 billion steel plant in Iowa, which would be the largest in U.S. history.

The plan comes after several Hawkeye State lawmakers called for an end to the Iran conflict, citing its impact on the economy.

Speaking of the Iran war, the conflict hit the seven-month mark on Monday after Trump rejected an Iranian ceasefire proposal over the weekend.

The seven-day proposal would have reopened the Strait of Hormuz and resumed talks over Iran’s nuclear program. But after he said no to the Islamic State’s negotiators, the president told Axios in a phone interview Sunday that he still expects more talks to occur with them this week.

Two top Iranian officials — President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi — made appearances on Sunday morning news programs, with Araghchi saying on NBC News’s “Meet the Press” that his country is “ fully prepared ” for the war to resume if Trump orders strikes on Iran after the midterm elections.

Why the midterms? The foreign minister’s comment could be in reference to Trump’s prediction earlier this month that the war will end “immediately after the election.”

➤ SENATORS COOL ON POTENTIAL ARMY CHIEF:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ’s front-runner to replace former Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is running into some turbulence on Capitol Hill.

Sean Parnell , Hegseth’s senior adviser and chief Pentagon spokesperson, is seeing opposition from Democrats and hesitation from key Republicans in his quest to helm the military branch.

The math: One congressional aide recently told The Hill that Parnell lacks enough support to advance out of the Senate Armed Services Committee should Trump officially nominate him to the post.

The White House, however, believes some skeptical senators could ultimately come around.

Congress is taking another swing at cleaning up the “Wild West” of college sports.

The Senate is expected to hold a final vote Monday on the Protect College Sports Act, a bipartisan bill from Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) that would set nationwide rules for how college athletes get paid, transfer and compete.

What’s in it?: Athletes would get a federal right to make money from their name, image and likeness, while agent fees would be capped at 5 percent. The bill also guarantees scholarships for 10 years after eligibility and provides medical coverage for Division I athletes.

The NCAA would score long-sought antitrust protections, but that’s also sparked opposition from the NAACP, Congressional Black Caucus and labor groups.

The scoreboard : The bill advanced 74-24 in the upper chamber of Congress earlier this month.

If it clears the Senate, its next — and potentially tougher — test is the House.

🔎 Insiders can read last week’s Keeping Score from The Hill’s Dominick Mastrangelo for a refresher. The latest newsletter focuses on the sports betting industry .

The Supreme Court’s liberal justices have spent plenty of time dissenting lately, but they’re seeing some progress on one front as a new term gets underway.

Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson say the court is increasingly explaining its decisions on emergency appeals — a shift they’ve been pushing for.

A busy docket: The Trump administration has already filed 41 emergency applications, asking the justices to quickly revive pieces of his agenda.

The explanations haven’t stopped the liberals from disagreeing with the court’s conservative majority. But the once-murky list is getting a bit less shadowy .

📺 Taxpayer-funded TV ads promoting Trump are drawing fresh scrutiny just weeks before the midterms. Former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter says the spots could amount to an “impeachable offense,” while the White House insists they are not campaign ads.

📹 The White House TV pool is getting back to business this week, with major networks resuming their regular rotations. CNN, however, could still face hurdles covering Trump after being blocked from Air Force One over the weekend.

🗳️ Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) holds a double-digit lead over ex-Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley in the Tar Heel State’s closely watched Senate race, according to a new AARP poll. The gap comes after both Trump and Vice President Vance rallied voters in the state on behalf of the GOP hopeful earlier this month.

💻 Nvidia is rolling out a new security system aimed at keeping AI agents from going rogue. The platform puts guardrails on what agents can access and do — and can quarantine suspicious ones in milliseconds.

🪙 The Trump family’s sprawling crypto empire is looming over efforts to get a major crypto bill through Congress. The Clarity Act, which would outline how digital assets are regulated and which agencies oversee them, failed to advance in the Senate last week. Insiders can read more from The Hill’s Julia Shapero here.

The New York Times : Trump Brought Venezuelan Gold to the U.S., but Refiners Won’t Touch It

The Wall Street Journal : Senate Investigation Finds Rampant Use of Tether’s Stablecoin by Iranian Regime

Politico : UK voters believe Burnham can win the next election

ProPublica : Two Years After Hurricane Helene, People Are Still Allowed to Live in Harm’s Way

The House is out and Senate is in. President Trump is in Washington. (All times EDT)

1:30 p.m.: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks on air traffic control modernization.

2 p.m.: The president makes an announcement on Iowa steel from Oval Office.

3:30 p.m.: Trump participates in a print interview.

🤗 Celebrate : Today is National Good Neighbor Day . * Insert State Farm Joke Here * In all seriousness, please give your neighbors a wave, a smile, a phone call to catch up or a nice fall treat.

🚀 Around the world : Elon Musk ’s SpaceX sent its Starship into orbit for the first time Monday, with the massive spacecraft aiming to circle Earth six times in a major test of its capabilities.

Nothing like those fall temps lately. The breeze (minus the rain) has made me happier than a dachshund puppy running through the grass.

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