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Republicans are scrambling to avoid stepping on the political landmine of proposed cuts to Medicare and other popular safety-net programs after President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump declares war on hardworking Americans with new budget request Avenatti found guilty in Nike extortion trial First, we'll neuter all the judges MORE in a recent interview said they could one day be on the chopping block.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellTrump declares war on hardworking Americans with new budget request The Hill's Morning Report AG Barr, GOP senators try to rein Trump in Overnight Health Care: Nevada union won't endorse before caucuses after 'Medicaid for All' scrap | McConnell tees up votes on two abortion bills | CDC confirms 15th US coronavirus case MORE (R-Ky.) announced Tuesday that he does not plan to put a budget resolution on the Senate floor, which could subject vulnerable GOP colleagues up for reelection this year to tough votes on Medicare and other issues.

Senate Budget Committee Chairman Mike EnziMichael (Mike) Bradley EnziLawmakers trade insults over Trump budget cuts Republicans scramble to avoid Medicare land mine McConnell will not bring budget resolution to the floor MORE (R-Wyo.) announced Monday that he doesnt plan to hold hearings on Trumps budget, which proposed new cuts to Medicaid and other domestic spending programs.

The upshot is that the Republican Party, which once prided itself as the party of fiscal discipline and regularly blasted Democrats when they controlled the Senate for not passing budget resolutions, is looking for other issues to talk about.

McConnell on Tuesday highlighted confirmation votes this week on five federal judicial nominees, including the 51st judge Trump has appointed to a federal appellate court.

Instead of putting a Republican budget blueprint on the Senate floor, McConnell said he will simply stick to the annual spending cap set by the bipartisan budget deal that Trump signed last year, which suspended the federal deficit limit through July 2021 and raised military and domestic spending by $320 billion over two years.

I cant imagine that we can reach an agreement on a budget with this particular House of Representatives, McConnell told reporters, referring to the ideological gulf between him and Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiChris Wallace: 'Just insane' Swalwell is talking impeaching Trump again The Hill's Morning Report AG Barr, GOP senators try to rein Trump in Trump extends emergency declaration at border MORE (D-Calif.).

Weve got the caps deal in place. We negotiated it last year. Its good for the second year, and well comply with that, he said.

House Democratic budgetary leaders earlier this year signaled they didnt expect to produce a budget either.

Still, the decision by McConnell underscores the sensitivity to the GOP of opening itself up to proposals to reduce the costs of Medicare or Social Security.

Trump told CNBC in an interview last month that cuts to entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid could be considered in the future to bring down the federal deficit, which is projected to exceed $1 trillion per year over the next decade.

The president vowed to cut the deficit in his presidential campaign but has seen annual deficits soar during his presidency. His new budget anticipates balancing in 15 years, but it leans on optimistic economic projections to get there.

Trump tried to walk back his statement about possible cuts to Medicare, but Democrats have seized on the issue signaling their intention to speak to voters about the threat of cuts if Republicans are in power in Washington.

McConnell said 2020 would be the third year in a row that the Senate has not passed a budget resolution just a day after Enzi said he would put together a budget resolution.

When Democrats controlled the chamber, McConnell vowed that Republicans would pass budget plans once they took over the majority.

The law requires us to pass a budget, he told reporters in 2012, calling it stunning that Democrats had gone 1,000 days in power without passing a budget.

Some members of McConnells conference are interested in having a discussion over how to curb the growth of entitlement programs. The deficit is now projected to hit $1.7 trillion in 2030.

This is a problem. Both Republicans and Democrats have a spending addiction. Nobody knows what to do. Democrats, remember, they werent doing budgets when they were in charge. Now Republicans arent either, said Sen. Rand PaulRandal (Rand) Howard PaulThe Hill's Morning Report AG Barr, GOP senators try to rein Trump in Overnight Defense: Senate votes to rein in Trump war powers on Iran | Pentagon shifting .8B to border wall | US, Taliban negotiate seven-day 'reduction in violence' The 8 Republicans who voted to curb Trump's Iran war powers MORE (R-Ky.), an outspoken fiscal conservative.

Really the meat of spending is entitlements. You got to have some guts to look at it, Paul added.

A fight over entitlements is a non-starter for most Republicans in an election year, however.

Senate Democratic Leader Charles SchumerCharles (Chuck) Ellis SchumerBarr to testify before House Judiciary panel Graham won't call Barr to testify over Roger Stone sentencing recommendation Roger Stone witness alleges Trump targeted prosecutors in 'vile smear job' MORE (N.Y.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) held a press conference Tuesday to attack Trumps budget plan, with both Democrats seizing on what they said were cuts to Medicare in the Trump budget.

The administration has proposed spending reductions to Medicare as part of the budget but says this would be done in a way that would not reduce benefits.

Pelosi said Trumps heartless budget proposes slashing a half a trillion from Medicare and from Medicaid $900 billion.

After he stood in front of the House and said Im protecting Medicare and Social Security, Pelosi added, referring to last weeks State of the Union address.

Trump declared before a joint session of Congress last week: We will always protect your Medicare and Social Security.

White House officials say Democrats are taking the proposed reforms to both Medicare and Medicaid out of context.

Despite what you hear from the other side, Medicare will grow at 6 percent under this budget, acting Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought told reporters Monday.

Reducing the cost of health care is not a cut, Vought said.

He argued that Medicaid will continue to grow at more than 3 percent per year on average, higher than the cost of inflation.

Republicans traditionally have lost fights with Democrats over government funding cuts.

At the Tuesday press conference, Pelosi highlighted the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicares statement that Trumps budget would leave seniors and other vulnerable citizens hungrier, sicker and poorer.

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Republicans scramble to avoid Medicare land mine | TheHill - The Hill

Republicans in the House and the Senate are introducing legislation that would block federal funds from states that allow illegal immigrants to obtain drivers licenses -- the latest move in an escalating fight over sanctuary laws.

The Stop Greenlighting Driver Licenses for Illegal Immigrants Act would block funds to sanctuary states -- which limit local cooperation with federal immigration authorities -- and those that give licenses to illegal immigrants. Specifically, it would halt Justice Department (DOJ) grants, in particular those awarded under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant,which is a top source of federal criminal justice funding for states.

NEW YORK SHERIFFS CALL OUT 'UNWISE' GREEN LIGHT LAW AS CUOMO MEETS TRUMP

The legislation is being introduced in the Senate by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. It is being co-sponsored by Sens. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.; Kevin Cramer, R-N.D.;Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.;Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.;Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Mike Rounds, R-S.D. Meanwhile, in the House, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., is introducing companion legislation. That bill is co-sponsored by 21 other members.

Tennesseans know all too well what can happen when illegal immigrants are granted driver licenses, Blackburn said in a statement. While Tennessee and many other states prohibit driver licenses for illegal aliens, a growing number of states are moving in the opposite direction and unleashing dangerous open borders policies. Immigrants must follow the proper federal process and obtain citizenship or lawful status before obtaining a state driver license.

In America, no one is above the law, she added.

ICE SUBPOENAS NY FOR INFO ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ACCUSED OF MURDER, AS SANCTUARY CITY FIGHT ESCALATES

Her office estimates that states that issued licenses to illegal immigrants received nearly $53 million from the program in fiscal year 2019.

The bicameral legislation comes amid a growing fight over sanctuary legislation. The Trump administration has been attempting to highlight attention to the dangers of the policy and has been shining light on cases whereby illegal immigrants have killed Americans.

The United States of America should be a sanctuary for law-abiding Americans, not criminal aliens, Trump said at his State of the Union address last week.

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The administration has also been caught up in a fight with New York over its Green Light Law that both gives drivers licenses to illegal immigrants and bans state Department of Motor Vehicles agencies from sharing information with federal immigration authorities.

The latter move led the Department of Homeland Security(DHS) last week to announce that it is suspending Global Entry and other Trusted Traveler Programs for New York residents, saying that the law makes DHS agencies unable to run the necessary security checks and risk assessments.

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Republicans introduce bill to pull funds from states that give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants - Fox News

Democrats late Wednesday released another set of revisions to their legislation to control greenhouse gas emissions in Oregon that would delay impacts for rural Oregon and require state government to study its own impact on emissions.

SALEM Lawmakers revealed on Wednesday changes to the plan to cut back on the states greenhouse gas emissions that would ease the impact on rural Oregon and adopt elements proposed by Timber Unity.

The revisions are part of the continuing effort of Democratic sponsors to drive a policy that has greater statewide acceptance.

The proposed revisions to Senate Bill 1530 incorporate requests from Republicans and Timber Unity, a grassroots organization that has been agitating against a cap and trade system. Republicans in the Senate fled the state over last years version of the bill.

The bill is slated for a work session in the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources at 3 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13.

The cap and trade program would set a limit on statewide carbon emissions and aims to reduce emissions over time.

Limits on emissions would apply to certain industries and major fuel importers. The policy would carve up the emissions limit into allowances that emitters can buy and sell on a market. The idea is that as emissions targets get lower, fewer allowances are available, and industry would improve pollution controls.

Opponents have criticized the plan for its potential impact on consumers and small businesses, particularly through higher fuel costs.

The amendments could change how fuel would be regulated under the program. It delays the impact on Curry and Coos counties, as well as the Bend and Klamath Falls metro areas, until 2028, six years later than for the Portland area.

And rather than 20 counties triggering a statewide adoption of limits on fuel importers, this amendment sets the trigger at 23 counties.

Under the amendment, a greater share of the revenue from transportation - 90% - would go to counties or metro areas that engaged in the program to use on emissions reduction and climate adaptation projects. The rest would go to the state Transportation Department for projects around the state.

The amendments would incorporate policy ideas from Sen. Alan Olsen, R-Canby, and Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale, who sit on the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources.

Olsens idea would make it easier for state agencies receiving money raised by the program to buy electric vehicles, and Findleys would streamline a state energy efficiency audit process for manufacturers that use a lot of energy but who face competition from areas that arent subject to emissions limits.

The amendment also includes policy ideas borrowed from Timber Unity. For example, it would direct the states parks department to conduct an annual tree planting day for local governments to sponsor planting trees in public spaces and it would direct the states main operations agency to study ways to account for the greenhouse gas emissions associated with transporting goods and services that state government buys.

The amendment aims to narrow the information about the program that is exempt from public disclosure just to trade secrets, which is already defined in the state public records law.

Reporter Claire Withycombe: [emailprotected] or 971-304-4148.

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New amendments to cap and trade bill borrow from Republicans, Timber Unity - Salem Reporter

Top Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee threatened to fracture a bipartisan investigation into Big Tech.

In a letter Monday, Reps. Doug Collins, R-Ga., the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, and Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wisc., the ranking member on the Antitrust Subcommittee, told Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., they "will not participate in an investigation with pre-conceived conclusions that America's large tech companies are inherently bad, cannot be allowed to exist in society, and must be broken up."

The letter followed comments Nadler made at a fundraising event Sunday. In a video from the event posted by Matt Stoller, a fellow at the Open Markets Institute and advocate for stronger antitrust enforcement, Nadler can be heard talking about "changing the distribution of power" and "breaking up all the large companies."

Politico reported that Nadler did not call specifically to break up the tech companies, but instead was speaking broadly about changes necessary to tackle the issue of concentrated market power.

Nadler retweeted the video on his Twitter account, saying, "Concentrated economic power is a threat to both our democracy and our free and open markets," adding that it's important Congress "act where appropriate to address this concern."

Nadler's statements raised alarms for Collins and Sensenbrenner, who said in the letter they "have warned from the start of the Subcommittee's work that this investigation must avoid pre-conceived conclusions. The conclusions you articulated this past weekend have only aggravated our concerns."

"America's leaders should not punish tech companies simply because those companies have succeeded that will hurt consumers and stifle innovation. Our online ecosystem is thriving and breaking up large tech companies simply because of their size isn't the answer," they wrote.

Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I., chairman of the Antitrust Subcommittee, who is leading the investigation of Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple, has said he hopes the effort will remain bipartisan as it enters the legislative phase. Unlike the investigations by the Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department, the House panel's probe will result in legislative proposals to reform the digital marketplace broadly, rather than impose an enforcement action.

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Top Republicans on House Judiciary Committee threaten to fracture investigation into Big Tech - CNBC

Insight must precede application. ~ Max Planck, Father of Quantum Physics

Quantum computing is no ordinary technology. It has attracted huge interest at the national level with funding from governments. Today, some of the biggest technology giants are working on the technology, investing substantial sums into research and development and collaborating with state agencies and corporates for various projects across industries.

Heres an overview of quantum computing as well as the players exploring this revolutionary technology, and ways to invest in it.

Understanding Quantum Computing

Lets begin with understanding quantum computing. While standard computers are built on classical bits, every quantum computer has a qubit or quantum bit as its building block. Thus, unlike a classical computer where information is stored as binary 0 or 1 using bits, a quantum computer harnesses the unique ability of subatomic participles in the form of a qubit which can exist in superposition of 0 and 1 at the same time.As a result, quantum computers can achieve higher information density and handle very complex operations at speeds exponentially higher than conventional computers while consuming much lessenergy.

It is believed that quantum computing will have a huge impact on areas such as logistics, military affairs, pharmaceuticals (drug design and discovery), aerospace (designing), utilities (nuclear fusion), financial modeling, chemicals (polymer design), Artificial Intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, fault detection, Big Data, and capital goods, especially digital manufacturing. The productivity gains by end users of quantum computing, in the form of both cost savings and revenue opportunities, are expected to surpass $450 billion annually.

It will be a slow build for the next few years: we anticipate value for end users in these sectors to reach a relatively modest $2 billion to $5 billion by 2024. But value will then increase rapidly as the technology and its commercial viability mature,reportsBCG.

The market for quantum computing isprojectedto reach $64.98 billion by 2030 from just $507.1 million in 2019, growing at aCAGR of 56.0%during the forecast period (20202030).According to aCIRestimate, revenue from quantum computing is pegged at $8 billion by 2027.

Which Nations Are Investing In Quantum Computing?

To gain the quantum advantage, China has been at the forefront of the technology. The first quantum satellite was launched by China in 2016. Apaperby The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) highlights how, China is positioning itself as a powerhouse in quantum science.

Understanding the strategic potential that quantum science holds, U.S., Germany, Russia, India and European Union have intensified efforts towards quantum computing. In the U.S., President Trumpestablishedthe National Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee in 2019 in accordance with the National Quantum Initiative Act, signed into law in late 2018, which authorizes $1.2 billion to be spent on the quantum science over the next five years.

The Indian government in its 2020 budget has announced a National Mission on Quantum Technologies & Applications with a total budgetoutlayof INR 8000 crore ($1.12 billion) for a period of five years while Europe has a 1 billioninitiativeproviding funding for the entire quantum value chain over the next ten years. In October 2019, the first prototype of a quantum computer waslaunchedin Russia while in Germany, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Europes leading organization for applied research,partneredwith IBM for advance research in the field of quantum computing.

The Companies Leading the Way

IBM has been one of the pioneers in the field of quantum computing. In January 2019, IBM (IBM)unveiledthe IBM Q System One, the world's first integrated universal approximatequantum computing system designed for scientific and commercial use. In September itopenedthe IBM quantum computation center in New York to expand its quantum computing systems for commercial and research activity. It has also recentlyinvestedin Cambridge Quantum Computing, which was one of the first startups to become a part of IBMs Q Network in 2018.

In October 2019, Google (GOOG,GOOGL) made anannouncementclaiming the achievement of "quantum supremacy."It published the results of this quantum supremacy experiment in theNaturearticle, Quantum Supremacy Using a Programmable Superconducting Processor.The term "quantum supremacy" wascoinedin 2012 by John Preskill. He wrote, one way to achieve quantum supremacy would be to run an algorithm on a quantum computer which solves a problem with a super-polynomial speedup relative to classical computers. The claim wascounteredby IBM.

Vancouver, Canada headquartered D-Wave is the worlds first commercial supplier of quantum computers and its systems are being used by organizations such as NEC, Volkswagen, DENSO, Lockheed Martin, USRA, USC, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.In February 2019, D-Waveannounceda preview of its next-generation quantum computing platform incorporating hardware, software and tools to accelerate and ease the delivery of quantum computing applications. In September 2019, itnamedits next-generation quantum system as Advantage, which will be available in the Leap quantum cloud service in mid-2020.In December 2019, the companysignedan agreement with NEC to accelerate commercial quantum computing.

Amazon (AMZN)introducedits service Amazon Braket in late 2019, which is designed to let its users get some hands-on experience with qubits and quantum circuits. It allows to build and test circuits in a simulated environment and then run them on an actual quantum computer.

Around the same time, Intel (INTC)unveileda first-of-its-kind cryogenic control chip code-named Horse Ridgethat will speed up development of full-stack quantum computing systems.

In addition, companies such as Microsoft (MSFT), Alibaba (BABA), Tencent (TCEHY), Nokia (NOK), Airbus, HP (HPQ), AT&T (T) Toshiba, Mitsubishi, SK Telecom, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Righetti, Biogen, Volkswagen and Amgen are researching and working on applications of quantum computing.

Final Word

Investors looking to invest in the technology can either look at individual stocks or consider Defiance Quantum ETF (QTUM) to take exposure to companies developing and applying quantum computing and other advanced technologies. Launched in April 2018, QTUM is a liquid, low-cost and efficient way to invest in the technology. The ETF tracks the BlueStar Quantum and Machine Learning Index, which tracks approximately 60 globally listed stocks across all market capitalizations.

While quantum computing is not mainstream yet, the quest to harness its potential is on, and the constant progress made is shrinking the gap between research labs and real-world applications.

Disclaimer: The author has no position in any stocks mentioned. Investors shouldconsider the above information not as a de facto recommendation, but as an idea for further consideration. The report has been carefully prepared, and any exclusions or errors in reporting are unintentional.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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Quantum Computing: How To Invest In It, And Which Companies Are Leading the Way? - Nasdaq