Speaker Mike Johnson may have squeezed out a pair of legislative wins Wednesday, but his headaches are far from over as the legislative deals made now face snarls in the Senate.
After a chaotic, all-day vote series on the House floor, lawmakers approved a budget framework setting up a path to fund immigration enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security, which has been shut down for more than two months. They also passed a three-year extension of government spy powers known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
Here’s where those measures now stand, as well as the farm bill that still remains on the House’s agenda as lawmakers try to wrap up before a weeklong recess:
— DHS FUNDING: House Republicans unlocked the first step to a party-line process to fund immigration enforcement after a debate-saturated five-hour long vote late Wednesday.
The question now is whether GOP leaders will attempt to clear a Senate-passed bill funding the rest of DHS Thursday under expedited procedure, as the measure is expected to pass with bipartisan support. GOP leaders earlier this week set up the procedural path that would allow the fast-tracked method of voting Thursday, but their plan is still unclear.
“I don’t trust anything right now. I have no idea what’s gonna pass. It’s so weird,” Republican Rep. Mike Simpson said about the Senate-passed DHS funding bill.
— FISA FIGHT AHEAD: After weeks of infighting, House members finally passed a three-year FISA reauthorization coupled with language to permanently ban the Federal Reserve from issuing a digital currency. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has already publicly warned Johnson that that currency provision garnered the measure “dead on arrival” across the Capitol.
Thune said Wednesday night Senate GOP leaders were preparing their own 45 day punt of the spy law, which is due to expire Thursday night, putting the new deadline in mid-June. But that plan faces some Democratic opposition, and Thune will need buy-in from all 100 senators to schedule an immediate vote and send the measure back to the House with just hours before the law expires.
— FARM BILL FIASCO: GOP leaders aim to vote on the farm bill and amendments to the measure Thursday after starting debate late Wednesday night.
Much of Wednesday was consumed by intraparty battles over the Johnson-backed plan to attach language to the bill allowing for the year-round sale of E15 ethanol-gasoline blend. But after hours of debate, a side agreement emerged that would involve decoupling the ethanol provision from the farm bill when the House returns from recess in May — and holding a standalone vote allowing E15 year-round sales, six people tell POLITICO.
Notably, Johnson and GOP leaders told Republican hard-liners Wednesday their protests against the bill were unnecessary, as the House version of the farm bill is expected to stall in the Senate, according to four other people involved in the talks.
What else we’re watching:
—MAXWELL’S EX-BOYFRIEND ON THE HILL: Ted Waitt, the businessman and philanthropist who brought Ghislaine Maxwell to Chelsea Clinton’s wedding, is set to appear before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Thursday. He could provide key details about the only convicted co-conspirator in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme, Maxwell, who was also once Waitt’s romantic partner.
— TILLIS NOT DONE WITH TRUMP NOMINEES: Sen. Thom Tillis is urging those around the president to take his latest ultimatum seriously — that he won’t confirm for attorney general anyone who excuses the events of Jan. 6, 2021. Tillis has major leverage as a member of the Judiciary Committee, where Republicans have a one-vote advantage and he can exercise an effective veto.
Meredith Lee Hill, Jordain Carney and Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.
