After 100 days full of fits and starts, President Trump is barreling into the second phase of his presidency focused on attempting to secure big victories that have eluded him on the economic pillars of his agenda. 

With an eye toward keeping his core promise of creating jobs and ramping up economic growth, Trump has fixated on tax reform as the next undertaking of his administration — an opportunity for him to land a first major legislative victory after repeated failures to pass a health-care package.

Sweeping tax reform has been a front-of-mind issue for President Trump, who has taken an interest in the minute details of proposals under consideration by his administration. Aides are also being pressured to front-load the effort with the goal — already delayed — of having a bill approved before the end of this year. 

The prospect that he could do something not accomplished since President Ronald Reagan passed a comprehensive tax reform package in 1986 is especially appealing to Trump. The effort took Reagan some 500 days at one of the high points of his power — the beginning of his second term. Trump, White House aides and outside advisers said, is buoyed by the prospect of accomplishing it in the first year of his first term.

Humbled by their failure on health care, White House aides say they have taken a lesson from the experience and plan to take the lead on the tax-reform effort — including a Trump-led push to build public and stakeholder support for a plan. The bill will be guided by the principles laid out Wednesday in a single-page document that outlined the president’s plan to slash rates and consolidate tax brackets for most taxpayers, aides said.

View Graphic Tallying President Trump’s first 100 days

“There’s a coming together and a real growth going on inside with the senior staff,” said Larry Kudlow, a former Trump economic adviser who met with administration officials at the White House this week. “They’re getting their sea legs.”

By and large, the approach is being welcomed by congressional Republicans, who were burned after the White House seemed to only halfheartedly back the House-led effort to pass the American Health Care Act, which aimed to dramatically scale back President Barack Obama’s signature health-care law.

[‘I was all set to terminate:’ Inside Trump’s sudden shift on NAFTA]

Trump administration officials are expected to spend the next six weeks soliciting feedback on the tax proposal and fine-tuning their approach. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is slated to appear Monday at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California, where he plans to make the administration’s case for the emerging tax reform package, followed by multiple television appearances later in the day. Trump may also hit the road to boost the plan, the White House said, though his schedule has not been confirmed.

The White House began communicating with members of the House Ways and Means Committee this weekend and will begin holding meetings with advocacy groups and lawmakers about the proposal this week. The aim now is to spend most of the summer refining the text of a bill, which could be voted on by the fall.

“I think Trump clearly needs to have a couple of legislative victories and put some points on the board when it comes to legislation that’s signed, sealed and delivered,” said Stephen Moore, a former Trump campaign economic adviser. “Trump is going to be judged on three things: did he keep his promises to voters; did he revive this economy; and did he get out of this low growth rut.”

The centrality of Trump’s economic agenda to his success as president has crystallized in recent days, after yet another immigration-related effort — an executive order cracking down on “sanctuary cities” that do not let local authorities enforce federal immigration laws — was halted by a federal judge. 

The White House fired out a defiant message accusing the judicial system of having “the blood of dead Americans on their hands” while Trump threatened to break up the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld a lower court’s ruling halting another executive order banning immigration from six predominantly Muslim countries. But privately, immigration issues and Trump’s promised border wall have receded behind more pressing economic concerns, though the appearance of a public brawl with “activist” federal judges remains an important rallying cry for the president’s base of supporters.

Meanwhile, a White House riven by strife and internal disputes remains divided on tenets of the president’s agenda, including the approach to taxes. Some of Trump’s populist advisers remain skeptical of a tax plan that includes large cuts for wealthy earners, and have pushed Trump to focus on keeping his promises to working-class voters.

[Wonkblog: If Trump has a tax plan, his advisers can’t agree on what it is]

But people close to the White House say there is a noticeable difference in the approach on taxes, compared with health care, in part because new forces — Mnuchin and Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council — are taking the lead on the effort. The more proactive, planned approach to addressing taxes is also reflective of a change in strategy from a maturing administration, observers say.

A number of Capitol Hill Republicans say that Trump and his administration are improving and beginning to grasp the complexities of running the federal government.

“I think part of it is there is a learning curve there, no question,” said Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), a moderate Republican who has been critical of Trump at times.

Dent cited early “stumbles” — including Trump’s tweets about the size of his Inauguration Day crowd and accusations that the Obama administration spied on him during the campaign — as indications that he is not surrounded by capable aides.

“I think they tried to do a great deal very quickly, and they haven’t been properly staffed up,” he said. 

But the next few months will not get any easier for Trump. With Republicans in control of Congress, they set the agenda and have few opportunities to pass partisan priorities before turning to several complicated subjects that require bipartisan action.

The White House abruptly abandoned a push for border-wall funding this week, allowing lawmakers to strike a deal to temporarily keep the government open another week. And next week, congressional leaders believe that funds specifically for the border wall will not be part of a longer-term spending deal that lawmakers in both parties must pass by Friday to keep the lights on through the end of the fiscal year in September. 

Then, both parties can shift back to Trump’s top priorities — revamping the nation’s health-care and tax systems, and confirming nominees to fill out his administration. The White House also hopes to pass an infrastructure bill this year but acknowledged that it likely would have to wait until after tax reform.

Administration officials expressed confidence that the House would vote on a revised health-care bill in the coming week, but already the focus of their efforts has shifted to taxes. “It’s helpful, but it’s not essential,” a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said of the health measure.

[The winners and losers since Inauguration Day]

By necessity, Congress cannot share the White House’s single-minded focus on taxes.

A slew of other routine issues, but still pressing ones, are coming up on the congressional docket before the end of the year. Congress will have to decide whether to reauthorize a Veterans Affairs health-care program established in the wake of scandals across the agency. A Food and Drug Administration program that charges fees to drug companies seeking approval of new products expires by August. The Federal Aviation Administration needs to be reauthorized by September — as does the nation’s flood-insurance program.

There also is work to be done on the annual defense-policy bill — influenced this year by the ongoing showdowns with North Korea, Russia and Syria — a must-pass piece of legislation that is often used as a way to pass other unrelated items. And the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1, but lawmakers in both parties warned in recent days that the House and Senate have not started working on a new budget plan.

Asked whether there is a plan to pass a budget for the next fiscal year, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said, “I’m sure there is, I just haven’t detected it.”

On foreign policy, the House is expected to approve new sanctions on North Korea next week, while others are pushing to impose fresh penalties on Russia for meddling in the U.S. election. Trump is also set to make his first international trip to Europe in May, an opportunity for him to soothe anxieties across the Atlantic about his administration.

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who declined to endorse Trump’s candidacy last year, warned that Trump probably faces tough decisions on immigration policy. Across the country, temporary legal protections established by the Obama administration for millions of children of undocumented immigrants — known as “dreamers” — is set to begin expiring in the coming months.

[Trump’s executive orders are signed with fanfare — but they deliver little punch]

“It’s unclear whether some are actually allowed to renew or are afraid to renew or afraid to come forward,” Flake said of those given consideration under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Also unclear is what Trump will do about them, since policy decisions beyond prioritizing the enforcement of the deportation of criminal undocumented immigrants remain frozen.

“The president has said that he has a big heart and he’ll fix this. We don’t know what that means,” Flake said. “I think that’s an area where he’ll have to come back to Congress” for approval. When he does, Flake warned, debate on the issue could quickly expand to touch on other aspects of immigration policy — potentially forcing Trump to take firm positions on a controversial subject.

Meanwhile, Democrats are warning Trump that bipartisanship may be the only way to govern effectively. 

“Look, you’ve had experience for 100 days,” said House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), as if he were speaking directly to Trump. “Your party is a divided party — you found that out. Some things you thought you were going to be able to do you haven’t been able to do, not because of Democratic opposition but Republican division.

He added: “That ought to tell you that on important, must-do issues, you’re well-advised on a bipartisan basis to get those done.”

Damian Paletta and Sean Sullivan contributed to this report.

[‘We are not fake news’: At a Trump-free correspondents’ dinner, White House press has its say.]

There was also competition: Comedian Samantha Bee hosted her “Not the White House Correspondents’ Dinner” Saturday afternoon in Washington, which also attracted an audience of celebrities and journalists.

In the president’s absence, the dinner refocused on the values of a free press. Association president Jeff Mason pointedly declared, “We are not fake news. We are not failing news organizations. And we are not the enemy of the American people.” Comedian Hasan Minhaj headlined the event, taking shots at the administration, and, of course, members of the media.

See our full coverage below.

Hasan Minhaj: “Don Rickles died just so you wouldn’t ask him to do this gig”

During his monologue, comedian and “The Daily Show” correspondent Hasan Minhaj said that he was explicitly told not to go after the absent President Trump or the administration – but if true, he certainly ignored the marching order. ( White House Correspondents’ Association president Jeff Mason could be heard saying off-screen, “You were not told that.”)

“I would say it’s an honor to be here, but that would be an alternative fact. No one wanted to do this, so of course it lands in the hands of an immigrant. No one wanted this gig,” said Minhaj. “Don Rickles died just so you wouldn’t ask him to do this gig.”

There were jokes about Russia: “The leader of our country is not here. That’s because he lives in Moscow, it’s a very long flight.” Jokes about how the press should hope Trump keeps golfing: “The longer you keep him distracted, the longer we’re not at war with North Korea.” Jokes about how it’s a good thing Trump didn’t attend the dinner: “He’s done far too much bombing this month.”

He also took some shots at the Trump administration, including Sean Spicer, whose “go-to move when you ask him a tough question is denying the Holocaust.” And Mike Pence, who wasn’t there because there were women in attendance who were ovulating. “Good job ladies, because of you, we couldn’t hang out with Mike Pence,” he said, mouthing “thank you.” He noted that Jeff Sessions RSVP’d “no,” which is “his second-favorite ‘n’ word.”

[The rise and fall — or maybe rebirth? — of the White House correspondents’ dinner]

There were also the requisite jokes about the media – how CNN calls everything “breaking news”; how if he bombs his monologue, MSNBC’s Brian Williams will say he did a stunning job; how Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly’s $25 million exit package is the “only package he won’t force a woman to touch.”

Toward the end, Minhaj’s tone changed – he reflected on the surreal feeling of the entire evening (“I feel like I’m a tribute in ‘The Hunger Games,’ and if this goes poorly, Steve Bannon gets to eat me.”) and turned serious, marveling that because we live in a democracy, a first generation Indian-American Muslim can get on the White House correspondents’ dinner stage and make fun of the president.

“Even the president is not beyond the reach of the First Amendment. But the president didn’t show up because Donald Trump doesn’t care about free speech,” Minhaj said. “The man who tweets everything that enters his head refuses to acknowledges the amendment that allows him to do it.”

He said that in all likelihood, in a few hours, “Donald Trump will be tweeting about how bad Nicki Minaj bombed at this dinner.”

“That’s his right,” Minhaj said. “And I’m proud that all of us are here tonight to defend that right, even if the man in the White House never would.”

“Mr. President, the media is not fake news.”

The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner had a message for President Trump, and it came from Bob Woodward: “Mr. President, the media is not fake news.”

Woodward and Carl Bernstein took the stage at the more subdued event, trading journalism lessons they learned from each other over the years — and addressing the current state of their profession.

Here was one of those lessons, from Bernstein: “Almost inevitably, unreasonable government secrecy is the enemy, and usually the giveaway about what the real story might be. And when lying is combined with secrecy, there’s usually a pretty good road map in front of us.”

And one, from Woodward: “Journalists should not have a dog in the political fight except to find that best obtainable version of the truth.” Another, after a retelling of some of the key moments from the pair’s Watergate reporting:”very aggressive reporting is often necessary.”

Trump’s absence was a constant yet mostly implicit thread through the evening’s first speeches. There was a reading of the text of the First Amendment. WHCA President Jeff Mason made sure to say the event was “sold out” in his opening remarks. There was lot of talk of threats to a free press, both abroad and at home.

Others were more overt: Alec Baldwin, in his Trump costume from SNL, gave an extremely brief word of encouragement via video (“keep up the good work”). And there was this line from Mason in his opening speech, directly addressing the way the sitting president speaks about the media: “We are not fake news, We are not failing news organizations, and we are not the enemy of the American people.” That line got a standing ovation.

Bob Woodward, left, Carl Bernstein, center, and White House Correspondents’ Association President Jeff Mason during the White House Correspondents’ dinner. (EPA/ASTRID RIECKEN)

[How cable news juggled Trump’s rally and the White House correspondents’ dinner]

Actual journalists at the parties seemed to be pleased by the lack of celebrity overload, anyway. “These are people I actually know and want to talk to,” said one newspaper reporter. “No more making awkward small talk with the B-list celebrities.”

It’s worth noting that the pre-dinner events were not completely devoid of celebrities. Matthew Modine was spotted. And Kathrine Herzer, who plays the daughter on “Madame Secretary,” was pretty excited about one encounter before the dinner.

“I was like, ‘Oh my God, I have to get my picture taken with Madeleine Albright,’” she said. “It was really cool to meet her.”

But don’t be fooled: when we said this year was “different,” we really, really meant it. The hallways were empty throughout the Hilton, compared to previous years. If this were any other year, you’d have to fight your way through the intersections pictured here:

The hallways inside the Washington Hilton before the White House correspondents’ dinner. (Maura Judkis/The Washington Post)

Red carpet at White House correspondents’ dinner

We’re at the White House correspondents’ dinner where guests are starting to arrive on the red carpet. One notable exception: President Trump will skip tonight’s event. Tonight will be the first time since 1981 that the U.S. president has not attended.

Posted by Washington Post on Saturday, April 29, 2017

“We have a whole table of fact checkers” at Samantha Bee’s “Not the White House Correspondents’ Dinner”

Hours before the official correspondents’ dinner began, Samantha Bee’s “Full Frontal” team kicked off an alternative event at DAR Constitution Hall: “Not the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Bee had touted her event as a place where “journalists and non-irritating celebrities from around the world” could mingle, in order to pay homage to a free and functional press.

[Samantha Bee got Will Ferrell to roast Donald Trump — in character as George W. Bush]

“We thought it behooved us to throw a party for people who don’t normally have parties thrown for them,” Bee told the Washington Post in an interview on the event’s red carpet earlier this afternoon (the “dinner” taped this afternoon; it will air tonight at 10 p.m. on TBS.)

“We have a whole table of fact checkers,” Bee added. “We’re so excited that they’re here.”

Our colleagues have a run-down from the actual “dinner“; the red carpet gave a good preview of Bee’s plans — and who was there to see it.

“Tonight is going to be a different kind of night,” said CNN’s Dana Bash, who is attending both of Saturday’s big events. “Why wouldn’t we have something that is equally different, like Samantha Bee?”

“Our role is to drink and celebrate with all the amazing journalists, who are doing great work in this terrifying time,” Tegan Quin of indie pop duo Tegan and Sara told the Washington Post.

Later, actor Matthew Modine spoke to reporters about how he felt humor could change politics. “Sean Spicer’s learned a lot about humor at his expense, and why it’s important to tell the truth,” he quipped.

Ana Gasteyer, who played Hillary Clinton during her time on SNL, said it was “very hard to go through a day without thinking about how thoughtful and insightful a leader she would have been.”
Gasteyer is a D.C. native, but some attendees less familiar with the District had some observations about what makes us, uh, special. When the Washington Post Facebook Live team asked “Full Frontal” correspondent and comedian Ashley Nicole Black what’s different about DC — maybe nerd capital of the country — from LA or New York, she responded: “Everyone in DC walks like ‘I am so important.’ Going to get a sandwich they are like ‘You know who is going to get a sandwich!’ I’ve never seen that in any other city.”

Attendees were no doubt expecting to hear plenty of jokes at the expense of President Trump. But the biggest surprise of the night came with surprise guest Will Ferrell, who reprised his infamous George W. Bush impersonation to roast Trump. “How do you like me now?” he said to a roaring audience.

Red carpet at Samantha Bee’s “Not the White House Corresponden…

We’re on the red carpet at Samantha Bee’s “Not the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” The late-night host will tape a show that will air tonight as an episode of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee.

Posted by Washington Post on Saturday, April 29, 2017

A more muted party scene on Friday night

Several big-spending out-of-town companies that had, in recent years, thrown some of the more lavish parties (People magazine, Google, the New Yorker, Vanity Fair) took a pass on Washington this year.

Yes, there were still plenty of parties happening this weekend, but instead of gift bags and humble brags, now you get a lecture.

“We’re going to kick off the proceedings with me talking,” Cenk Uygur of the Young Turks announced at Voto Latino’s cocktail reception Friday. Much talk of the importance of a free press followed. Meanwhile, CNN’s White House correspondent Jim Acosta, whom President Trump berated as “fake news” at a January presser, qualified as a celebrity, taking time to pose for photos with a group of fans.

[This year’s White House correspondents’ dinner weekend is really putting the ‘nerd’ back in ‘nerd prom’]

Across town, at Atlantic Media owner David Bradley’s home in Massachusetts Avenue Heights, the VIPs were senators, titans of industry and even a Trump Cabinet secretary — Gen. Jim Mattis, who mingled in a bipartisan and high-powered room with the likes of Richard Branson, Rajiv Shah, Susan Rice, Rep. Edward R. Royce and Sens. Heidi Heitkamp and Susan Collins.

A party hosted by Capitol File, which in previous years filled up with “Scandal” and “House of Cards” stars, was instead decorated with actual White House correspondents. Meanwhile, the celebrity arts-advocacy group the Creative Coalition easily had the highest density of Hollywood, with a collection of well-liked TV actors (Chad Lowe, Tim Daly, Alyssa Milano) but few who planned to attend the dinner Saturday night.

The United Talent Agency, which represents Samantha Bee and several broadcast news luminaries, threw a shindig at Georgetown’s posh Fiola Mare that drew actor (and former White House staffer) Kal Penn and Senator (and former bit-part player in “The Dark Knight”) Patrick J. Leahy.

By Saturday morning, when a cohort of well-connected Washingtonians hosted their annual Garden Brunch, in the Georgetown backyard of hotelier and Democratic fundraiser Connie Milstein, it was clear that this was the year that Washington took back the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.

Foreign policy wonk-about-town Steve Clemons, already in his tux, was air-kissing D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, as former protocol chief Capricia Marshall and Reps. Darrell Issa and Debbie Dingell mingled nearby. There were no Kardashians in a several-hour radius. White House reporter April Ryan was the star being asked to pose for selfies at the buffet.

“This is the way it used to be,” said veteran PR woman Janet Donovan. “Way back when.”

Staff writers Emily Heil, Maura Judkis, Ellen McCarthy, Manuel Roig-Franzia and Roxanne Roberts contributed to this report.