More than a dozen House Democrats joined with the chamber’s Republicans in backing a resolution slamming the Biden administration for its handling of the southern border in a floor vote Wednesday.

The non-binding resolution, which passed 225-187, “denounces the Biden administration’s open-borders policies” and “condemns the national security and public safety crisis” it says results from them. It was sponsored by Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas).

Fourteen House Democrats supported the resolution:

Colin Allred (Texas)
Yadira Caraveo (Colo.)
Angie Craig (Minn.)
Henry Cuellar (Texas)
Donald Davis (N.C.)
Jared Golden (Maine)
Vicente Gonzalez (Texas)
Greg Landsman (Ohio)
Susie Lee (Nev.)
Jared Moskowitz (Fla.)
Wiley Nickel (N.C.)
Mary Peltola (Alaska)
Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Wash.)
Eric Sorensen (Ill.)

Speaker Mike Johnson’s indicated that his position on a border deal has not changed after a Wednesday meeting with President Joe Biden and other congressional leaders about Ukraine and a national security supplemental bill.

“We must have change at the border,” Johnson said. He added that House Republicans “understand the necessity about Ukraine funding” but that the “status quo is unacceptable.”

Johnson’s remarks show a continued hardline position on tying Ukraine funding to border restrictions. He also said he was not wedded strictly to the name of any bill being attached, a nod to the fact that many House Republicans want the deal to closely mimic the conservative border bill H.R. 2, but said the elements in any deal “have to be meaningful.”

“We need the questions answered about the strategy, the endgame,” Johnson told reporters of Ukraine. And he added: “We must insist that the border be the top priority.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday brushed back Speaker Mike Johnson’s concerns about a potential bipartisan border deal tied to Ukraine funding, as Senate leaders projected renewed confidence that their negotiators are close to an accord.

Ahead of a meeting at the White House with congressional leaders, Johnson continued to tout the House GOP’s hardline border plan while questioning Senate talks that will fall far short of his members’ demands. McConnell acknowledged that he wasn’t sure what Johnson might do with a Senate-passed border bill — but made clear that would not affect the Senate’s path forward.

“It’s not unusual for the House and Senate to be in a different place on an issue,” McConnell told reporters. “The supplemental in the Senate is designed to actually pass … we can only deal with what’s before us in the Senate.”

McConnell said it’s his “assumption” that the Senate will take up the legislation next week. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wouldn’t commit to that timeline for the proposal to pair new border and immigration restrictions with $100 billion in foreign aid, but said there was a better-than-even chance that the Senate would pass a bill: “For the first time, I’m optimistic.”

Taken together, the two leaders’ comments are the clearest sign that the Senate is going to try to push past Johnson’s reluctance to endorse their long-in-the-works agreement. Johnson and House conservatives may still stop a massive foreign aid and immigration deal in its tracks, but the Senate appears resolved to take a laborious gamble on the lower chamber.

Senators and the Biden administration have spent more than two months negotiating, staying in Washington over the holidays while the rest of Congress went home. There is no deal yet, though, despite the rosy tone Wednesday from Schumer and McConnell.

“There are still multiple issues outstanding. None of them are insurmountable. It is possible to vote next week,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), one of the three principal negotiators. “We’ve blown through every artificial deadline on these talks and negotiations, so I’m maybe a little more sanguine about our ability to wrap this up.”

Earlier Wednesday, Johnson made the case for more oversight of aid to Kyiv and said that “we need to know that Ukraine would not be another Afghanistan.”

Asked about that remark, McConnell touted progress for women and terrorist suppression while the U.S. military maintained a presence in Afghanistan. He and other hawkish Republicans argue that cutting off funding to Ukraine sends a bad message to America’s foreign adversaries, just as leaving Afghanistan did.

“My view — may be different from others — was that Afghanistan was a big success. And that [by] withdrawing from Afghanistan we sent a message to Putin, for example, that maybe we were pulling back from international responsibility,” McConnell said.

In response to House Republicans who argue a border deal would help President Joe Biden and that Republicans should wait until after the presidential election, McConnell said a unified GOP government “would not be able to get a single Democratic vote” to pass potential changes to asylum laws, presidential parole power and expulsion authority.

“This is a unique opportunity to accomplish something in divided government,” McConnell said. “That we wouldn’t have a unified government.”

Nancy Mace’s former top aide is weighing a primary challenge to the South Carolina Republican, setting up what could be one of the campaign season’s most bitter intra-party clashes.

Dan Hanlon, who served as chief of staff to Mace until late last month, is meeting with potential donors and potential people for his team as he weighs running against her, according to two Republicans with direct knowledge who spoke on condition of anonymity. Hanlon became Mace’s chief in 2022, rising quickly to the top spot in her Hill office after serving in the Trump administration for four years.

Hanlon has until South Carolina’s March 30 filing deadline to decide on a run, though candidates usually need to get their operations up and running early if they want to be competitive, particularly against incumbents. Any primary challenge to Mace could get serious attention from the upper ranks of the House GOP, where some feelings are still bruised by her surprising vote to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) back in October.

“Hanlon has been pleased with how well the idea has been received and how many people are looking for a Mace alternative, both money people in D.C. and movers and shakers in S.C.,” one of the Republicans familiar with his decision-making said.

While primary challenges are nothing new on the Hill, it’s rare to see a member face a direct challenge from a top aide who departed weeks earlier. Hanlon is well-positioned to expose Mace’s weak points during a primary battle, given his high-level knowledge of her office. But if he runs, he’d also leave himself open to counter-attacks from her backers that he’s motivated by a grudge against his former employer.

A spokesperson for Mace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

GOP critics of Mace — particularly allies of McCarthy — are still looking for ways to unseat her after she joined seven other Republicans in voting to strip his gavel. Most of the other GOP lawmakers who moved to eject McCarthy were more predictable foes and members of the House Freedom Caucus.

Mace’s ejection vote also turned into an awkward moment for Hanlon, however. After the ouster vote, in early October, McCarthy blasted her on national television and claimed that he’d called Hanlon to ask “where have I not kept my word” when it came to Mace.

“[The] Chief of staff said, ‘You have kept your word, 100 percent,’” McCarthy said at the time. “Her chief of staff told all of us, we have kept every single one of our words. And he said he’s told her that too.”

Mace, for her part, has argued that she voted McCarthy out was because he wasn’t truthful with her.

Hanlon departed Mace’s office in early December after she had already moved to replace him as chief of staff, according to four people familiar with the matter.

Tensions spiked on his way out the door as Mace’s incoming chief of staff, Lorie Khatod, called the Capitol Police to the office as Hanlon returned to give back his keys and other office-related items, according to three people familiar with the matter.

One of the Republicans who confirmed Hanlon’s potential candidacy even predicted that other former Mace staffers would join his campaign, a signal of former aides’ growing alienation toward her.

Rep. Dean Phillips, the Minnesota Democrat mounting a long-shot challenge to President Joe Biden, drew sharp criticism from fellow Democrats in Congress after he removed language about diversity, equity and inclusion from his campaign website.

POLITICO reported on Tuesday night that Phillips scrubbed the language amid public criticism of DEI from one of his top donors.

Rep. Barbara Lee, a prominent progressive running for Senate in California, rebuked Phillips for the move, which she said she had not previously read about.

“I think that speaks volumes as to what his values are,” Lee said. Phillips has already angered some House Democratic colleagues with his decision to take on Biden.

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) was blunt: “I’m disappointed.” Beyer said Democrats should not allow themselves to be pressured by the right into “abandoning things we believe in, but he may have had a good reason.”

The donor who criticized the language, hedge fund investor Bill Ackman, previously called Phillips’ DEI language a “mistake” and said the candidate was “getting educated” about the topic. Phillips’ campaign confirmed on Tuesday that it replaced the DEI language with the phrase “Equity & Restorative Justice,” stating that DEI — a decades-old initiative in academia and government aimed at promoting fairer representation of groups that have faced historic discrimination — “now means such divergent things to different people.”

Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, posted on X implying that Ackman’s $1 million contribution to the Phillips effort led to the campaign dropping the DEI language.

A Phillips campaign spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Beyond Lee, other Democrats hadn’t directly seen the news of Phillips’ move but still took the opportunity to criticize him.

“The Democratic coalition is overwhelmingly women, people of color, LGBT communities,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). “I mean, if you don’t believe in championing them, then good luck.”

Up in New Hampshire, where Phillips’ has grounded his longshot presidential primary bid, some Democrats echoed those frustrations. Longtime Democratic operative Kathy Sullivan, who is helping to lead the write-in effort for Biden in the state, called Phillips’ moves “grotesque.”

But she didn’t expect it to translate into paid attack ads against Phillips in New Hampshire, given that “a lot of what we’re doing is set in stone now because of timing.”

“From our social media perspective, talking to friends and neighbors, it’s something I hope gets out there in a widespread manner,” she said. “Word-of-mouth is big in our state, since we’re a small state.”

Elena Schneider contributed.

Another speaker, another plead to House GOP lawmakers to unify — at least in public — and stop leaking the drama that plays out behind closed doors.

As usual, the request is proving ineffective.

Speaker Mike Johnson complained about members airing their grievances to the media at a private conference meeting Wednesday morning. Almost immediately, multiple members vented to reporters about Johnson’s spending strategy, as the speaker pushes to pass a short-term funding bill as soon as Thursday, the ongoing fight over border policy changes — and the leak squabble.

“I think the speaker’s been concerned about some loser in conference [that] is live-streaming or passing on to media what’s happening in conference as we try to discuss strategy. But I think I would turn the tables — I would just go totally transparent,” said Rep. Dan Bishop (R-N.C.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

Bishop urged Johnson to instead go scorched earth on the border, saying he should stake out how the conference can get a conservative win, such as on new border policies, then try to get every Republican to commit to fighting for it.

“And whoever won’t commit to it, [he should] let the American people know who that is,” Bishop said, recounting his message to reporters after the meeting.

It’s not the first time Johnson has made it clear the leaks are frustrating him. During a Sunday night press call, Johnson signaled he felt uncomfortable sharing further details of his spending plan, worried they’d be publicized amid negotiations with Senate Democrats. It’s an echo of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who would scold reporters for listening in and implore his own members to stop sharing such details.

It’s a further sign of the seemingly impossible problems in the House GOP. Johnson started leading the conference about three months ago, and conservative members were convinced he would bring in a new type of leadership and fight for their priorities. Instead, he’s facing near-identical headaches to McCarthy, including leaks and growing backlash from his right flank, plus added resentments from some members over McCarthy’s ouster.

The squabbling over leaks largely overshadowed talk of the funding deadline during Wednesday’s closed-door meeting, though Republicans acknowledge there’s still plenty of tension over that, too.

In further evidence of the near-constant bickering, Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) accused leadership of giving House Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good (R-Va.) more time at the mics.

“I go up there and I get a minute and I get gaveled out. How does that happen? How do you think other members feel when they see that he gets treated in a different way that’s special?” Miller said after the meeting.

Miller added that there should be consequences for those Republicans who voted to boot McCarthy or others who aren’t following conference rules, a nod to conservatives who have blocked floor action several times in recent months: “We need disciplinary action — removing committee assignments, cutting off access to fundraising or things of that nature and actually making them pay for their actions.”

Rep. Jeff Duncan won’t seek reelection in his solidly Republican district in western South Carolina, opening the seat he’s held since coming into Congress as part of the Tea Party wave of 2010.

“At some point in a career, one needs to step aside and allow others to bring fresh and abilities,” he wrote in a post to X, formerly known as Twitter. “I will not seek re-election to the US House of Representatives.”

Duncan is a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He said in September 2023 that his family was “dealing with a difficult and private moment” after his wife filed for divorce.

Rep. Tom Emmer, the No. 3 House Republican, raised nearly $2.5 million in the fourth quarter of last year, bringing his 2023 total to more than $10 million, according to fundraising numbers first provided to POLITICO.

The majority whip announced his year-end fundraising figures Wednesday as House Republicans gather for their weekly conference meeting. Almost half of this fundraising haul was given to the House GOP campaign arm or directly to members and candidates.

“America is counting on House Republicans to deliver the conservative policies the country needs to get back on track,” Emmer said in a statement. “I want to thank the hundreds of thousands of hardworking Americans who donated to our efforts. We must remain laser-focused on our mission of growing this majority.”

A former chair of House Republicans’ campaign arm, Emmer and other members of leadership know fundraising is not only an important part of efforts to keeping the GOP majority but also expected among the heads of the party.

Last cycle, Republicans won far fewer seats than they hoped, giving them a razor-thin majority that has defined the 118th Congress for ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his predecessor Mike Johnson.

Top House Democratic leaders endorsed Rep. Summer Lee’s reelection bid Wednesday, a strong show of support for the Pennsylvania Democrat as she faces competitive primary challenges potentially funded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

“We proudly endorse Summer Lee’s re-election campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives so she can help us take back the House majority, oppose the extreme MAGA Republican agenda and continue our tremendous progress for Pennsylvanians,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar said in a statement obtained by POLITICO.

Lee, a progressive allied with the “squad” of liberal lawmakers, weathered an onslaught of spending by the super PAC affiliated with AIPAC last cycle. In a statement, she thanked the leadership trio for their backing and said she would “look forward to continuing to work with them to protect abortion access, voting rights, and clean energy investments to serve the people of PA’s 12th Congressional District.”

The endorsements come amid persistent jitters on the left about AIPAC-backed primary challengers, which prompted top progressives to clamor for support from their leaders. Democratic leaders generally endorse incumbents against primary challenges in line with longstanding policy and have already lent their endorsement this cycle to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) amid her own primary challenges.

Lee is unlikely to confront a competitive general election in the deep-blue, Pittsburgh-area seat. But she, along with other progressive Democrats, earned the online ire of AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups for their outspoken criticism of the Israeli government as it ramped up its war in Gaza.

Lee has two Democratic challengers in the April primary: Edgewood Borough Council member Bhavini Patel and Laurie MacDonald, president and CEO of the Center for Victims. Both candidates have emphasized a more centrist bent in their campaigns, with Patel particularly critical of Lee’s record on Israel.