1) he Senate is now back in session after the Thanksgiving holiday. The House returns in earnest Wednesday night. Congress has a to-do list before the holidays. But it’s unclear how much Congress can do – and how to do it.
2) There are things Congress HAS to do. And things Congress WANTS to do.
The ONLY thing Congress MUST do is approve a $1.4 trillion amalgamated spending package by December 11 to avoid a government shutdown.
The ONLY thing Congress MUST do is approve a $1.4 trillion amalgamated spending package by December 11 to avoid a government shutdown.
3) Appropriations committee chairs from both bodies have settled on a “topline” number of the spending package. But the details are far from resolved. The measure would drift into next year to give the incoming Biden Administration a running start.
4) But there are questions over veterans health issues and President Trump’s pet project: the border wall. A dispute over money for the border wall was at the root of the lengthy government shutdown two years ago. And no one is really sure what President Trump will sign.
5) “Excuse me if you’ve heard this one before…” But…yes, there are some behind-the-scenes efforts to jumpstart a coronavirus stimulus package. Yes, there will be COVID-19 related measures tucked into the big spending bill. But those items aren’t truly a “stimulus.”
6) They are simply appropriations reflecting priorities in the time of a pandemic. A coalition of Republican and Democratic senators are trying to forge some sort of a measure, focused on PPP and an extension of unemployment benefits.
7) But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) haven’t deviated from their positions in months. The White House isn’t engaged in any negotiations right now.
8) And, it’s unclear what anyone could cobble together which could pass BOTH the House and Senate – let alone earn the signature of the President.
Congress is also trying to wrap up the annual defense policy bill in December – a Congressional tradition dating back six decades.
Congress is also trying to wrap up the annual defense policy bill in December – a Congressional tradition dating back six decades.
9) But President Trump threatened a veto of the measure because it contains provisions renaming military facilities which are now associated with Confederates. Both the House and Senate approved their versions of the bill with veto-proof margins.
10) It takes a two-thirds margin of both chambers to override the President. President Trump has vetoed eight measures during his presidency. He’s never been overridden. But such a measure could be ripe for such an override.
11) Looming over the entire list is the specter of coronavirus. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the Senate’s President Pro Tempore returned to action today after a two-week quarantine and testing positive for coronavirus. But Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) tested positive.
12) And there are concerns about how long lawmakers can keep the right mixture of lawmakers healthy in order to pass key bills. McConnell has already canceled regular, daily, in-person strategy lunches for GOP senators – although many are surprised it’s taken this long.
13) Democrats have huddled virtually since March.
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