From the fox studios in new york city, this is maria bartiromos wall street. Maria happy weekend to all. Welcome to the program that analyzes the week that was and helps position you for the week ahead. Im maria bartiromo. Taxes are front and center on capitol hill as we near if april 15th on monday. Republicans are fighting to keep the trump tax cuts in place that are set to expire next year. House ways and Means Committee chairman jason smith warning the removal of these cuts will hit the middle class hard. Congress must act soon to prevent what will be the largest tax hike in history on workers, families, farmers can and Small Businesses. Middle income if earners will be hit the hardest. We will see even more closed for business signs up. Maria if the law is not extended, americans can expect to pay anywhere between 14 more in personal if taxes. Democrats continue to claim that the 2017 cuts only benefit the wealthy. The life cycle of this governing goes as follows cut taxes for special interests, top 1 and then take away basic benefits for middle income america. Democrats, we saw the Corporate Tax cut giveaway for what it was, a tam scam. Maria and while the democrats claim that they are looking out for the middle class, were getting a few watchdog report which shows 63 of the irs recent add awed debts targeted taxpayers are with an income of less than 200,000 a year. Joining me now isous ways and Means Committee member, florida congressman greg steube. Congressman, good to see you. Yeah, good do see you. Maria your reaction. Yeah. This weekend we had a hearing that went through all these issues and how important these tax cuts are. We had two Small Business owners that talked about how detrimental to their businesses if these tax cuts are to expire next year. It would have, they would have to cut employees, they would have to make sizable they wouldnt be able to invest in capital, make sizable reductions in all the type of purchases that they make to be successful. Its like a 43 increase on taxes on Small Businesses, ask and that means jobs, maria. People work for these Small Businesses, and if these tax cuts dont get reauthorized and get reinstituted, a 43 tax increase on a Small Business means people are going to lose their jobs, and theyre not going to be as successful and be able to hire people and increase investment in their businesses. Maria yeah. And whats with all these audits for people making 200,000 orless . Yeah. And we said that, republicans said that when joe biden pushed through the 80,000 new irs workers, we knew that they were going to go after Small Businesses, we knew they were going to go after a low and middle income people, and now youre seeing the result of that. And we tried to carve some of that back, but the expendture was already made when the democrats had control, and here we are. Maria oh, wow. Just out on friday the Biden Administration announced new details on their mans to cancel additional student the loan debt. The president now is looking to wipe out nearly 7. 5 billion more. That brings the grand total of student Debt Forgiveness to 153 billion. Florida, one of the 18 states suing biden over this latest bailout plan. Heres how Governor Ron Desantis responded earlier in the week. What hes proposing illegally, he doesnt have the authority to do it, is to basically say, you know, if youre a truck driver, you didnt go to college, you dont have student debt, sorry, youre going to have to pony up to pay the student loan of somebody, you know, who maybe got a degree in sociology or something and is not gainfully employed and cant afford the loans. Maria congressman, how does the president get away with canceling all of this Student Loan Debt bespite the despite the Supreme Court deeming it unconstitutional . Yeah. This is a complete election ploy to try to get young people to try to vote for them. They know its completely unconstitutional because the last attempt they had a9 this, the Supreme Court said it was unconstitutional. Its completely unconstitutional and, thankfully, we have states and our attorney general in the state of florida filing a lawsuit on florida behalf because states have to start standing up against the complete up unconstitutional a actions of this administering. And im glad to administration. And im glad to see that floridas doing that. Well be successful in the end, but i think the hope of the Biden Administration is not before they dole out billions of dollars to people for, quoteunquote, student loan forgiveness. Its completely unconstitutional, it completely usurps the congressional mandate where congress, if that is to be the law of the land, thats something that should pass congress. He knows that even democrats arent going to vote for that a because its so controversial. And yet theyre its not stopping them from attempting to dole out billions of dollars in Student Loan Debt repayment if despite the fact that they know its unconstitutional. Maria well, in an environment where we still have hotter than expected inflation. We had the Consumer Price index can out earlier in the week showing that prices are still elevated, you know . Go buy steak, up 28 yearoveryear. Bread up 20 plus percent. This is all because of all of the stimulus, if this student loan Debt Forgiveness is just more stimulus. So 7 trillion later we still have inflation where it is, do you think the administration or your colleagues understand the impact of all of this stimulus on the debt, now 36 trillion . Yeah, the democrats certainly dont. They think that continuing the spending and giving these hand handouts to people will encourage them to vote for them in the upcoming november election. But if you look at the numbers, ive only been in congress for six years, three terms. When i got elected, the department was 21 trillion. Were now over 34 trillion. We have programs that were spending more money on interest on the debt now than we are on defense spending. These are huge numbers, maria, that we have to get under control. Washington has a spending problem. I got elected to come out a here and fight against the spending in washington. The American People see that. And adding trillions more on the already inflationary if economy is the direction opposite of what we should be doing. We should be cutting spending. And if all of this is because of the decisions that the democrats made. The trillions that they have dumped on the economy has caused this inflationary environment that we are in and dumping more billions of dollars on Student Loan Repayment would further increase inflation. Maria and yet you all are now talking about another spending package sending money to ukraine. While still not securing the border. Fox has confirmed an Afghan National on the terrorist watch list is now in dhs custody after being caught and released twice while crossing into america. Dhs secretary Alejandro Mayorkas finally admitting this week that the situation at the border is a crisis, and at the same time joe biden is hinting an executive order to tighten up ports of entrity the by the entry by the end of april. A new report estimates health care for Illegal Migrants cost florida more than 500 million in just the last six months last year. So this is not just a National Security issue, this is an economic issue as well, congressman, isnt it . And its an economic issue at all levels of government. Its an economic issue at your local counties that are paying money, like in Sarasota County we have a hospital that gives gets 50 million in taxpayer dollars for needy e care. So if an illegal immigrant shows up at the e. R. At sarasota memorial hospital, theyre required under law to treat them, and all our tax dollars in Sarasota County are paying for that. Same at the state level, same at the federal level. So you have multiple levels of government that are spending money on this illegal Immigration Crisis. And its not just health care, its schools. I mean, these people show up that have children, they have children that they enter into the School System. The School System, by federal law, is not allowed to ask them if theyre here legally or not. So theyre entered into our School System which is a drain and a push on our School Boards and School Districts for more money to be able to spend on this. So to be able to try to calculate the millions and hundreds of well, its probably billions of dollars of taxpayer costs just in florida on this illegal Immigration Crisis on top of allowing terrorists into our country, on top of allowing criminals into our country. I had a constituent in my district that was raped by an illegal immigrant. This was all caused by the policies of joe biden and secretary mayorkas which is why we impeached secretary mayorkas in the house. Hopefully, the nat will move forward senate will move forward with a trial over there soon. Maria yeah. Were going to see if that happens this upcoming week. Congressman, great to see you this weekendful thank you, sir. Yeah, thank you. Maria greg steube in washington. Big banks kicking off the First Quarter earnings season with a bang. Kenny polcari on wha 3, 4 hey are you ready for me are you ready are you ready morikawa on 18. He is really boxed in here. Not a good spot. Off the comcast business van. Into the vending area. Oh, not the fries wheres the ball . Anybody see it . Oh wait, there it is back into play and. Aw no, its in the water. Wait a minute. Alligator. Are you kidding me . You got to be kidding me. Rolling towards the cup, and its in the hole what an impossible shot brought to you by comcast business. Maria and julio thought their life would never slow down. Then one day, it finally did. You were made to find inner peace. We were made to track flight prices to paradise. Is bad debt holding you back . The only limit is the sky its our time you dont want to miss it just a little bit louder its our time you dont want to miss it its your moment in the spotlight all your ambitions. All in one app. Low fixed rates. Borrow up to 100k. No fees required. Sofi. Get your money right®. More welcome back. Heres a look at where markets ended the week after new reports showed a hotter than expected inflation story. Consumer prices higher, Producer Prices climbing to an 11month high. But the a major banks wells fargo, jpmorgan and citigroup blew out expectations. All three kicking off the First Quarter earnings season with double beats on friday. Joining me now is Slatestone Wealth chief Market Strategist kenny polcari. Kenny, thank you so much for being here. Assess the week for us. You had hotter than expected inflation data, then you had good news for the banks and they still traded down initially. Right. [laughter] so i think the inflation data, i dont think, should be a surprise to anyone. Of weve been talking about it, weve been seeing it remains sticky. We saw the last two months the cpi and ppi both elevated. While one month doesnt make a trend, two months and three months begins to make a trend, and thats exactly what we saw. While we saw markets pull back, the minute they take it down 2. 5 to nearly 3 , all the buy the dip orers jump in because they think this is the opportunity which is actually, as you and i both know, not really the buy the dip opportunity. Thats when we see the market back off 8 or 10 , thats really buy the dip opportunity. But i wasnt surprised, i dont continue to be surprised. I think inflation is going to remain sticky, and so im not, im not surprised at what we saw at all. Now, the banks, on the other hand, weve talked about that a too. I expected them to be strong, they are. The big banks that you mentioned, jpmorgan, wells fargo, all better than expected but what do the traders do . Jpmorgan was up 15 year to date going into that report, and so even though they beat the number, you got the trader type locking in gains. Longterm investors, on that rt report i am not selling my jpmorgan, but i will use the pullback as an opportunity to strategically add if more. Maria i see. Okay, so well get morgan stanley, goldman sachs, bank of america reporting next week. The First Quarter reporting season is on. What kind of an earnings season are you expecting . So im not expecting earnings season to be weak at all. I think were going to continue to get that 7580 of the earnings beats on, you know, both the top and bottom line. And i think that the guy dance forward is going to remain cautious. I dont think its going to be so, so, so exciting and robust, but i dont think its going to be negative. So i actually think its going to be the earnings now thats going to power the next move higher and and less about what the feds next move is. Maria yeah, that was my next question, what about the fed. President biden is raising eyebrows when he said that he is sticking by his prediction that the Federal Reserve will cut Interest Rates before the end of the year, and he also went ahead and said but the rate cut might be delayed by a month or so. How does he know that . Right. Maria jim grant, i spoke with him, he is convinced that the fed is aligned with democrats going into the election. Watch this. I believe that the fed itself regards a potential second term of donald trump as a clear and present danger to the country. Maria uhhuh, so thats why its politically very much aligned with the democratic party. Maria i mean, imagine if President Trump said something about rate cuts. I mean, was President Biden on to something that he spoke with jay powell to know that its going to be a month delayed, or is he pressuring jay powell to make sure he cuts rates . Well, you know what . It might be a little bit of both. Im in grants camp. I actually do think that the fed thinks or views a Trump Presidency as a danger to the economy. I think thats what the feds view is, right . That may not be my view, but i think thats their view maria you know what, kenny . It might be that jay powell thinks its a danger to jay powell, because President Trump told me in an interview in february that he would not reappoint jay powell. [laughter] thats right. But jay powells there until 2026. At that point hes another one thats going to be 80 years old. At that point maybe its time to step back anyway. To your point, yes, maybe hes also trying to protect himself for a potential third term at the fed. Im not sure why hed want to stay another term at the fed after, you know, what hes been through, but thats a whole other conversation. One way or the other, i do think that its inpoint if inappropriate for the president to come out and say were going to get in this rate cut. While it may be pushed off a month, i fully expect it to come. Meanwhile, unless the data changes i dont see how the fed can convince everyone that its necessary to cut rates and stimulate the economy when our economy is functioning on all 12 cylinders and is doing a very fine job are even with rates at 5. 25 . Which, by the way, you and i know are historically normal. Maria yeah. Well, its hard to make a case for Interest Rate cuts when youve got inflation where it is still and oil prices where it is still as far as elevated, is the name. Exactly. And so thats why its going to be very difficult unless they manipulate the numbers somehow to show its fallen off the edge in the next two months and give them a reason to cut rates which i dont see how theyre going to do. Maria all right, kenny. Great to talk with you. Thanks so much. Thank you. Maria we will see you soon. Kenny polcari. Meanwhile, the tragic 2012 Aurora Movie Theater shooting inspiring one entrepreneur to take action leading to the creation of americas first biometric smart gun and landing him on the 30 unde [alarm beeping] amelia, turn off alarm. Amelia, weather. 70 degrees and sunny today. Amelia, unlock the door. Im afraid i cant do that, jen. Why not . Did you forget something . My protein shake. The future isnt scary, not investing in it is. Youre so dramatic amelia. Bye jen. 100 innovative companies, one etf. Before investing, carefully read and consider Fund Investment objectives, risks, charges expenses and more prospectus at invesco. Com. Rsv is out there. For those 60 years and older protect against rsv with arexvy. Arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. Arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. 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Their connection is unreal. And we could all unexperience this whole session. Okay, thats uncalled for. Maria welcome back. Surging crime across the country convincing more americans to purchase firearms for protection. Gun sales spiking in the final three months of 2023 up better than 4. 5 for the same time a year earlier. But many households are also concerned about how to safely use and store these guns inside of their homes. One company out with a solution, americas first biometric smart gun. It can only be fired by preauthorized users identified by their fingerprints and facial recognition. Joining me right now is the the boss, biofire ceo and founder, ky khai columnar if. Thanks if for being here. Absolutely. Thanks for having me. Maria what an interesting idea. Tell me about the company and how biofire works. Yeah. So the biofire smart gun is a new kind of home defense firearm. Its one that has, as you said, fingerprint and facial Recognition Technology built into it such that the owner or the only people, the owner or that theyve chosen can actually use it. The owner enrolls people into the firearm. So its all a local. Theres no day databases or remote activity, it helps insure that other folks hay dont want getting access to that the firearm wont be able to while they still have full, unrestricted access. Maria i see. Now, there have been lots of failed attempts from other companies, other manufacturers to bring a reliable smart gun to the market. How have you done it . Absolutely. Ive been hard at work for over 12 years working on this. Youre probably saying, 12 years . I actually started when e was 15 as a project in high school. But these days we raised over 37 million from the top tech investors, and have been able to build an unprecedented Technical Team here in colorado thats been hard at work over the past couple years building this technology. We have many, many patents that have been filed and issued, and we fundamentally approach this in if a very different way that a allows us to actually produce a reliable, high quality product that gun owners like myself can trust. Maria and you talk about this being very specific to the home. You say it has a very specific purpose, a weapon that can be quickly accessed to defend against a home intruder. This is not something that youre going to carry around. Yeah. We wont stop you, but its a full sized, you know, traditional sized handgun, so it dealt would be challenging for most people to conceal carry. In general, weve found many gun owners are struggle with the challenges of when to make sure they appropriately and have safely secured their firearm, insuring their children dont get access to the it but also also have access to that in the very, very few, short seconds they might need to get access to it in a home defense emergency. Thats a problem that biofires solving because our technology is always hocked by default. You dont need to lock it or take any action, but it also instantly unlocks faster than the fastest gun safe. Maria thats amazing. You launched for are revegases for reservations about a year ago. Tell me about the early adopters. What are they saying . Its been tremendous. Weve got thousands of preorders. Weve got a ton of pokes that are waiting in line eagerly folks that are waiting in line eagerly. Were actually going to be shipping the first smart guns within the next few weeks to early customers, and thats a huge milestone for us. And and were excited to get to work at full filling this backlog now that were fully into production. Maria so tell me about the smart gun and the cost. What do people need to understand about this . Yeah. So its a retail price of 1499, and that includes both the smart gun as well as a smart dock that comes along with it that helps with configuration, training, other things like that. So definitely a premium price point as compared to a traditional firearm and compared to a glock or Something Like that. But given all the technology thats built into it and that peace of mind, weve actually had most customers asking why its not a higher price. We want it as accessible as possible. Maria and the ammunition . Just a standard. 9 mm, so you can use hollow point, fmj, traditional ammunition. Maria okay. Well, well be watching, kai, great idea. We will watch the story. Thanks very much for being here. Thanks for having me. Maria all right. Ive got one important thing you need to know about ahead of next week. Thats next. When enamel is gone, you cannot get it back. But you can repair it with pronamel repair. It penetrates deep into the tooth to actively repair acid weakened enamel. I recommend pronamel repair. With new pronamel repair mouthwash you can enhance that repair beyond brushing. They work great together. Students. Students of any age, from anywhere. Using our technology to power different ways of learning. So when minds grow, opportunities follow. Your shipping manager left to find themself. leaving you lost. You need to hire. I need indeed. Indeed you do. Indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. Visit indeed. Com hire it starts with a grill. But it becomes so much more. An extension of your home. Not just a weekend retreat, but an everyday getaway right in your backyard. Newage makes it possible with beautiful allweather cabinetry, grills and appliances that transform your backyard into a complete outdoor kitchen. Visit newageproducts. Com to book a free Design Consultation and create the Outdoor Living space youve always wanted. Go on, take the money and run maria welcome back. One thing you need to know about ahead of next week, the tax deadline is monday, and most people are not planning to take the money and run this year. A new survey from bankrate says only 1 in 5 americans will use their refund as fun money, splurging on things like vacation, clothes and other luxury. Items. The other 80 have more practical ideas for their extra cash. Over a quarter of people plan to put it into savings. 19 say that theyll use it to pay down debt. And round aring out the top five, the money will go to day to day expenses, the essentials followed by investing and home improvements. Well be following this on mornings with maria 69 a. M. Eastern weekdays right here on fox news, and ill see you over on the Fox News Channel sunday on sunday morning futures, live so is 0 a. M. Eastern. Ive got interviews with kentucky senator rand paul, John Ratcliffe and gw law professor jonathan turley. Join us hive on sunday, 10 a. M. Thatll do do it for fox business. Have a great next of the weekend, and and ill see you next time