Comer: ‘Next phase’ of impeachment inquiry will be public hearing
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Congressional leaders struck a government funding deal Wednesday on half a dozen annual spending bills alongside a stopgap that pushes two shutdown deadlines later into March, according to a senior leadership aide.
Top lawmakers closed out negotiations on the Agriculture-FDA, Energy-Water, Military Construction-VA, Transportation-HUD, Interior-Environment and Commerce-Justice-Science bills, assigning all of those a deadline of March 8. Leaders hope to release text by this weekend and clear the spending bills next week, funding those agencies through September.
The rest of the fiscal 2024 measures, including more contentious bills that would fund the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security and the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education, will get a new deadline of March 22.
Negotiating the second tranche of spending bills before that deadline will be the true test of whether Speaker Mike Johnson and other congressional leaders can work together to fully fund the government, already five months into the fiscal year. The deal, which negates the risk of a government shutdown just as President Joe Biden is set to deliver his State of the Union address, is the final product of weeks of bipartisan, bicameral negotiations, as well as intense sparring over policy provisions. It follows the funding framework struck by Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer last month.
Both chambers only have a couple days to pass the stopgap before a partial government shutdown kicks in on Saturday. And there’s still a few hiccups on that point: Johnson will almost certainly need help from Democrats to pass the measure in the House, and all 100 senators will have to agree to speed up debate to move the stopgap through the upper chamber before the March 1 deadline.
If Congress manages to meet its funding deadlines this time, appropriators will have to immediately pivot to the next slate of spending bills for the new fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1. Biden is set to unveil his fiscal 2025 budget request on March 11.
Senior appropriators, deeply frustrated by the partisan feuding over government funding that has consumed the better part of a year, said Wednesday that they’re ready to wrap up this chaotic cycle.
“Look, there’s no reason this shit couldn’t have been done by the end of September,” said Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who oversees the defense spending bill. “We’re five and a half months into [the fiscal year] … Nearly six months in and we’re still talking about whether I’m confident or not about whether it’s going to be done? We need to get this done.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), one of the upper chamber’s most notorious contrarians, has already signaled that he’s “open” to allowing a fast-tracked vote that would avert a partial government shutdown on Saturday.
Anthony Adragna contributed to this report.
Mitch McConnell’s exit as Senate GOP leader this fall officially kicks off a succession battle that has so far played out only in the backrooms of the Capitol.
The Kentucky Republican isn’t stepping aside until November, but three potential heirs have long loomed large in the Hill’s calculus. Somewhat confusingly, all three are white men named John: Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.), former whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) and GOP Conference Chair John Barrasso (R-Wyo.).
For the moment, very few GOP senators are declaring their preferred McConnell successor. Asked which of the “three Johns” he favors to become the next Republican leader, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) spoke for many on Wednesday by chuckling and replying only, “good question.”
“There’s a lot of people who want it, clearly. And the race has been underway for months. So now it’s gonna get really intense, I suspect,” said Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), a McConnell critic. He also said he had no preference at the moment: “I’m open to persuasion.”
Barrasso, unlike Cornyn and Thune, has yet to publicly confirm his interest in the top job. He said on Wednesday that “there’s a much more important election between now and then,” referring to the post-Election Day timing of the eventual vote on McConnell’s successor. “And that’s the election we need to take the presidency and the Senate and the House — and that’s where my focus is.”
Even so, the subtle differences between the “Three Johns,” as well as the potential entrance of a sleeper candidate or two, will make for a long leadership campaign season in the Senate. Here is a guide to how to tell the differences between the three, and which other players may enter the race over the next few months.
Thune
The low-key and affable South Dakotan, 63, almost passed on reelection in 2022 after Donald Trump suggested that Thune might draw a primary challenge in exchange for critical comments about efforts to overturn the former president’s 2020 election loss. But Trump never got too involved in Thune’s race, and the opportunity to eventually succeed McConnell was on the senator’s mind as he weighed his choice.
Since getting easily reelected, Thune made clear that Trump wasn’t his first choice for president by initially endorsing Tim Scott, then offering Trump soft support after the South Carolinian dropped out. Earlier this week, Thune formally backed the former president whose push to challenge the 2020 election.
Cornyn
The 72-year-old Texan is no less approachable than Thune in the halls of the Senate, but his style of politics runs a bit more bare-knuckled. Cornyn spend two election cycles chairing the National Republican Senatorial committee and held the GOP whip’s job for six years, giving him a clear view of McConnell’s challenges — so clear that he ended up staying at the leadership table even after term limits forced him to cede the No. 2 spot to Thune.
Cornyn’s conservative bona fides haven’t stopped him from supporting the occasional big-ticket bipartisan deal, and in 2022, he even shepherded through a gun safety measure with Democrats. He endorsed Trump formally last month though he has acknowledged that a return to office for the former president is “not without its challenges.”
Barrasso
The 71-year-old Wyoming Republican, if he ultimately enters the race to succeed McConnell as expected, would serve as the most vocally pro-Trump and conservative of the Three Johns. He was the first of the trio to endorse Trump, followed by Cornyn and most recently, Thune. That could win him favor from conservatives in the long run.
His current role as conference chair has allowed him to give a wide swath of colleagues speaking roles in lengthy press conferences, just one way he has tried to ingratiate himself and ease his path up the leadership ladder. If he passes on the leader race, he could end up seeking the whip job.
He is also the only one of the “three Johns” that is actually up for reelection this year, but he’s expected to coast to victory.
The wild cards
The Three Johns have a head start in the succession race, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be the only candidates to replace McConnell. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), after quipping that his favorite leader hopeful was simply “John,” suggested that other hopefuls may enter.
Chief among them, and floated directly by Hawley, is the Florida Republican who lost overwhelmingly to McConnell after the 2022 midterms: Rick Scott. Asked Wednesday about his plans, the vocally pro-Trump Floridian didn’t rule out running.
Now is a time to honor the current leader’s legacy, “and I’ll make my case” at a later moment, Rick Scott said, adding that for now he’s focused on his fall reelection effort.
There could also be additional GOP leader hopefuls who emerge over the next few months. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told POLITICO on Wednesday that he expects as many as eight to 10 candidates to enter the race.
One name to keep an eye on: NRSC Chair Steve Daines (R-Mont.), an early Trump backer who, if he impresses with his performance on behalf of the party’s Senate candidates this fall, could get talked about as a potential future leader.
Burgess Everett contributed to this report.
A group of Senate Democrats are urging Israel’s top diplomat to the U.S. to take additional steps to ensure humanitarian aid can reach Palestinians in Gaza amid the ongoing conflict.
“There are concrete and realistic steps Israel can take to accelerate aid delivery and safety for aid workers,” the lawmakers, led by Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), wrote in a letter first obtained by POLITICO.
Their letter specifically requests that Israel improve deconfliction mechanisms, establish humanitarian aid access points in Gaza, offer a plan for repairing critical infrastructure in Gaza and expand deliveries of aid.
Signatories include Welch, Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.), and Sens. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
A stopgap government funding bill is on track for release as early as Wednesday, possibly alongside a final deal on new versions of at least some of the dozen annual spending measures.
To head off a partial shutdown just after midnight Saturday morning, lawmakers have been discussing pushing off the approaching deadline to March 8 to buy time to finalize bill text for the four funding bills that are set to expire this week. At the same time, they are also considering a punt to March 22 — the scheduled start of Congress’ Easter recess — for at least some of the other eight measures, according to three people familiar with the negotiations who were granted anonymity to speak candidly.
But the length of certain bills’ extenstions might change, since some of the eight funding bills currently set to expire next week are also close to being finalized.
The measure that funds the Interior Department and the EPA is “ready to go,” according to Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the top Republican in charge of that measure in the Senate.
Murkowski said negotiators are “just literally minutes away from being able to resolve” final disputes over the Interior bill. She added that dealmakers worked through disagreements about close to 130 policy stipulations House Republicans included in their version of that measure, “some of which were really quite problematic.”
The funding bill for the departments of Commerce and Justice, as well as science programs, is also close to being finalized, according to Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), who chairs the funding panel in charge of that legislation. “We’ve agreed on almost everything in it,” Shaheen said in a brief interview late Tuesday night.
Top lawmakers are making “very good progress” in funding negotiations, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday on the floor. He asked senators to “stay flexible and be ready to act” to head off a partial government shutdown at week’s end.
“We are very close to getting it done,” Schumer said. “I’m hopeful that the four leaders can reach this agreement very soon so we can not only avoid a shutdown on Friday, but get closer to finishing the appropriations process altogether.”
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said Wednesday that he sees “a path” to passing the first four bills currently set to expire after March 1, which would fund the departments of Agriculture, Energy, Veterans Affairs and Transportation, among others.
Three of those measures have been “pretty carefully vetted” in the Senate, going through an amendment process when the upper chamber passed its own small funding package last fall, he said.
“I think there’s a path to getting that first tranche down,” Thune said. “The second tranche is obviously more complicated and maybe needs more time.”
Jennifer Haberkorn contributed to this report.
GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale will seek reelection to the House, he announced in a statement Wednesday.
Rosendale launched a Senate campaign earlier this month, only to drop it after less than a week following former President Donald Trump’s endorsement of his primary opponent, Tim Sheehy.
But he was undecided on whether or not he would seek reelection to his eastern Montana House seat. Several candidates have filed, believing Rosendale would run for Senate. It’s not clear if they would remain in the primary even if the incumbent ran again.
Among those already in the race: former Rep. Denny Rehberg, state Auditor Troy Downing, state Senate President Pro Tem Ken Bogner and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen.
Rosendale is one of the eight House members who voted to depose Kevin McCarthy from the speakership. McCarthy and his allies have sought to target those incumbents, so Rosendale could experience further turbulence choosing to run again in the House.
Senate GOP leaders, who lined up behind Sheehy, are ecstatic that he will have a clear shot at defeating Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.).
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is set to announce on Wednesday that he will not run for another term as leader, ending a record-setting run atop the GOP conference.
The Kentucky Republican has served as party leader since 2007, the longest stint in Senate history.
The leaders of 23 European parliaments are imploring Speaker Mike Johnson to take up and pass additional assistance for Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia.
“We believe that thanks to your personal leadership, the Congress will demonstrate historic bipartisan unity in support of the collective effort to assist Ukraine,” they wrote in an open letter. Supporting passage of further aid would “provide Ukraine with the necessary funds to continue its fight,” the leaders added.
The plea comes as Ukraine has repeatedly indicated it’s running low on ammunition amid the ongoing war with Russia. Senate lawmakers have passed a bill providing tens of billions in support for the country, but Johnson has not committed to bringing it up for a vote.
Johnson’s office said in response that “while Speaker Johnson believes we must confront Putin, and is exploring steps to effectively do so, as he said at the White House, his immediate priority is funding America’s government and avoiding a government shut down.”
Significant blocs of Republicans in both chambers are opposed to further aid to Ukraine.
Hunter Biden used his private Wednesday testimony before House investigators to deliver a blistering rebuke of Republicans’ investigation into his father, President Joe Biden.
The president’s son is meeting with members and aides on the House Oversight and Judiciary committees as part of Republicans’ sweeping impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden, which has largely focused on the business deals of his family.
In his opening statement, Hunter Biden tried to directly puncture the central premise of the House GOP’s monthslong probe. He said that his focus during what is expected to be an hourslong interview will be driving home “one uncontestable fact that should end the false premise of this inquiry: I did not involve my father in my business.”
“For more than a year, your Committees have hunted me in your partisan political pursuit of my dad. You have trafficked in innuendo, distortion, and sensationalism — all the while ignoring the clear and convincing evidence staring you in the face. You do not have evidence to support the baseless and MAGA-motivated conspiracies about my father because there isn’t any,” Hunter Biden said in his opening statement, according to a copy obtained by POLITICO.
His appearance behind closed doors results from months of public sparring between his team and House Republicans, who view him as a key witness in their investigation.
Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) first subpoenaed Hunter Biden for a private interview last year. That sparked weeks of barbs between Hunter Biden’s lawyers and House Republicans, culminating in the president’s son skipping his first closed-door deposition in December.
Instead, Hunter Biden spoke briefly to reporters outside of the Capitol and Republicans moved toward holding him in contempt of Congress— a vote that was only scrapped after they reached a deal to schedule his closed-door interview on Wednesday.
Even so, the interview may not provide House Republicans the boost they need as they struggle to get support within their own ranks for their effort to impeach President Joe Biden. Despite pressure from the right flank and the party’s base. Republicans estimate that dozens of their colleagues are so far unconvinced that investigators have shown evidence of a crime — a bar they need to meet in order to support impeachment.
“We have a lot of questions for Hunter Biden specifically revolving around the 100-plus suspicious activity reports he got, specifically around what some of his associates have testified that Joe Bieen communicated frequently with all of these shady characters,” Comer told reporters on Wednesday.
Hunter Biden’s testimony comes the week after Republicans met for hours with James Biden, his uncle and Joe Biden’s brother.
Republican investigators have compiled thousands of pages of bank and financial records and hundreds of hours of interviews with witnesses as they’ve hunted for evidence that would link actions Joe Biden took as president or vice president to his family’s business deals.
While they’ve turned up plenty of instances of Biden’s family members using their last name to try to bolster their own influence, in addition to poking holes in previous statements by Joe Biden and the White House, Republicans have not yet found any proverbial smoking gun.
Devon Archer, one previous associate of Hunter Biden’s, testified that he would put Joe Biden on speaker phone during dinners, or that the now-president stopped by dinners with business associates — but he also underscored that business wasn’t discussed in those moments. Rob Walker, another former Hunter Biden associate, told investigators that Joe Biden wasn’t involved in their business deals.
Even as he recounted how Joe Biden stopped by a lunch with business associates while out of political office in 2017, Walker characterized the appearance as exchanging “pleasantries.”