GOP drama on both sides of the Capitol

IN THIS EDITION

FISA and reconciliation trip up Republicans

Utah House Dem hopeful mocked sexual assault, Mormons

Vault: Treasury quietly asks private credit firms for data

What we’re watching

CLF, AAN raise $56M-plus in Q1

THE TOP

FISA and reconciliation trip up Republicans

Happy Wednesday morning.

Republicans on both sides of the Capitol are struggling this morning: House Republicans on FISA and Senate Republicans on reconciliation.

The House Rules Committee voted along party lines late Tuesday night to move ahead with a clean, 18-month renewal of a key surveillance authority. FISA Section 702 is expiring on April 20.

The White House and Speaker Mike Johnson are pushing hard for the extension, with a floor fight set for today. It’s going to be tight.

Democrats on the Rules Committee blasted Republicans for considering the FISA measure under a closed rule with no amendments.

Democrats unsuccessfully sought to make in order an amendment from Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and other conservatives adding warrant requirements to the surveillance law. An identical proposal failed dramatically 212-212 in April 2024 during a prior FISA floor fight.

Three GOP members of the Rules Committee who supported the provision then — Republican Reps. Chip Roy (Texas), Ralph Norman (S.C.) and Morgan Griffith (Va.) — weren’t present for the committee vote after participating earlier in the hearing.

“I can’t believe you’re doing this,” said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), ranking member of the Rules Committee. “This is wrong.”

So can the House pass this rule? There’s some buzz GOP leaders may try to amend the rule on the floor. We’ll see this afternoon.

If Republican leaders can’t pass the rule, Johnson needs an off ramp. We asked him Tuesday night if he’d be open to extending FISA for 12 months instead of 18 months. Johnson said he’s focused on reauthorizing the program and isn’t worried about the length of the authorization.

Johnson can try to bring this bill up under suspension of the rules, but Democrats would need to vote en masse for the measure. That seems extremely unlikely at this point.

Rep. Gregory Meeks (N.Y.), top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, is leaning toward supporting a clean FISA extension after working with Rep. Jim Himes (Conn.), the top Intelligence Committee Democrat. Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, said he’s “undecided” but “deeply concerned” about giving President Donald Trump more power.

Some conservatives appear dug in against any clean FISA extension. Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chair of the House Freedom Caucus, predicted that “if it’s clean,” the rule will go down today. Harris said he had no plans to meet with Trump on the issue.

“I know the White House position. I disagree with it,” Harris said.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe — a former House member — will attend the GOP Conference meeting today to help sell the extension.

Reconciliation latest. Across the Capitol, Senate Majority Leader John Thune is betting that his conference will eventually get behind a narrow reconciliation effort to fund ICE and Border Patrol by giving them no other choice.

Thune has Trump’s backing as he resists a push by many Senate Republicans to expand the bill’s scope, insisting this will over-complicate and slow down the process.

But a wide range of House Republicans — who are already conditioning re-opening the Department of Homeland Security on the Senate’s reconciliation progress — blasted Thune’s approach.

House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) warned that pots of money for ICE and Border Patrol “aren’t really popular things” with Americans.

“If you’re going to pass a reconciliation bill, it needs to be one that addresses the concerns of the American people, and affordability is the concern I hear more than anything,” Smith told us.

Other Republicans are skeptical that a third reconciliation effort for other GOP priorities will actually materialize, so they don’t want this opportunity to go to waste.

And some deficit hawks say they may want offsets for ICE and Border Patrol funding, although GOP leaders’ argument that appropriations bills are never paid for has been mostly convincing for these members.

Thune is already facing internal backlash from GOP senators along similar lines. Some Republican senators, such as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), want to use reconciliation to combat the GOP’s increasingly grim outlook for the midterms.

This is what Thune has to navigate as he seeks to pass a budget resolution — the first step in the process — as soon as next week. That will require support from at least 50 of the 53 GOP senators.

Even if Senate Republicans can keep the budget blueprint “skinny,” Johnson will need to decide whether that’s enough to finally hold a vote on the Senate-passed bill to reopen the rest of DHS. It’s been two weeks since Johnson caved to Thune and said he’d move to pass the Senate bill. Johnson’s delay has left Senate GOP leaders dumbfounded.

So if Johnson’s conference isn’t satisfied with the Senate’s reconciliation path, that throws into question the rest of the department’s funding.

— Briana Reilly, Anthony Adragna, Andrew Desiderio, Laura Weiss and Jake Sherman

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PRIMARY PROBLEMS

Utah House Dem hopeful mocked sexual assault, Mormons

A top Democrat running for an open congressional seat in Utah has authored a slew of offensive posts on internet forums, denigrating Mormons and making crass jokes about women and sexual assault.

Here’s just a sampling of the posts written more than a decade ago by Utah state Sen. Nate Blouin:

– Blouin recommended buying a GoPro camera “for filming porn with your underage sister.”

– Blouin repeatedly referred to people as “cunts,” used the word “retarded” and threatened to “skull fuck” someone.

– Blouin described the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints as “a bunch of bigoted assholes” with an “ideology fostering ignorance and intolerance.”

– Blouin called Mormons the worst part of living in Utah and wrote that the “LDS church is DEFINITELY just a front for the largest US drug cartel.”

– Blouin said an LDS missionary visiting his house had inadvertently seen a pornographic image he was viewing.

– Blouin also said he “took a shit in the corner of an LDS church parking lot.”

Punchbowl News has screenshots of all these comments, which have not been previously reported.

In a statement, Blouin stressed he had changed and admitted he was “horrified to see my use of language toward women and about a faith that my family, friends, and millions of Utahns practice.”

Blouin, 36, is running for a newly created blue district based in Salt Lake City.

Here’s more of his response:

The posts were written between 2009 and 2015 on Reddit; Teton Gravity Research forum, a media company focused on outdoor sports; LetsRun.com, a track forum; and NewSchoolers.com, a ski forum. Blouin is an avid skier and New Hampshire native who moved to Utah in 2009. Blouin has said he worked odd jobs in customer service and skied frequently during that time.

A lot at stake. The shocking comments could prove a serious liability for Blouin in a district with a sizable population of Mormons. Residents in the area continue to grapple with tensions caused by transplants to the state who come for outdoor recreation but are not deeply religious.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC have endorsed Blouin, as have Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and CPC Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas).

Former Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams is Blouin’s main competition for the seat. McAdams is a more moderate Democrat and Blouin is running to McAdams’ left.

This isn’t the first time this cycle that Sanders and other top progressives have backed a candidate with a controversial past online presence. Maine Senate Democratic candidate Graham Platner apologized for offensive Reddit posts he made, including ones minimizing rape.

Blouin made a post praising a comedian who joked about a domestic violence incident between the artists Chris Brown and Rihanna. Blouin wrote the comedian “hit the nail on the head. pun intended.”

When a student athlete at Brigham Young University was charged with sexual battery, Blouin made light of the assault on LetsRun.com, writing: “good ol’ mormon kid. had to let out the pent up sexual frustration somehow.”

On that same thread, Blouin also lamented that people are “are too damn sensitive” and that “slapping girl’s asses as you run by … shouldn’t land you in jail or anything by any means.”

– Ally Mutnick

Vault: Treasury quietly asks private credit firms for data

First in the Vault. The Treasury Department has begun quietly asking private credit firms to submit information detailing their business models and ties to the regulated financial system, according to multiple sources familiar with the outreach.

The private credit sector has come under increasing strain in recent weeks, prompting investor heartburn and growing worry about systemic risks for the wider financial sector. Economic turbulence from the war in Iran has been a recent driver, but private credit has also been walloped by its exposure to the software industry as well as internal shakiness last fall.

The data requests from the Treasury Department, first reported here, mark a new phase in the Trump administration’s effort to understand and contain any damage from private credit’s wobbles.

A Treasury spokesperson said the department “routinely confers” with market participants and financial regulators about private credit.

Knock knock. Treasury personnel have been holding one-on-one meetings with private credit leaders for months. Now, the department’s Office of Capital Markets is leading the information-gathering effort and asking for written responses, according to two sources familiar with the process.

Treasury is asking select firms to provide information about their recent performance, as well as their relationships with banks and insurance firms, including reinsurance companies. The companies have also discussed overall liquidity risk and a proposed rule from the Department of Labor to open up 401(k) retirement accounts to alternative assets.

The sector’s top advocates in Washington are involved in the process. In a statement, American Investment Council CEO Will Dunham said: “Private credit funds are well-regulated entities that provide extensive, transparent data to both federal and state financial regulators. Our industry welcomes the opportunity to continue our conversation with regulators about a sector that is functioning as designed.”

The broader financial services industry continues to project confidence about private credit. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon dismissed the traditional financial system’s “systemic” exposure Tuesday morning.

“You have to have very large losses in private credit before at least it looks like banks are going to get hit,” Dimon said.

Others are plenty nervous. John Ray III, the CEO of the once-beleaguered crypto exchange FTX, told Semafor Tuesday that mid-sized regional banks could be particularly at risk of a private credit wipeout.

— Brendan Pedersen

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What we’re watching

It’s the political moment Republicans have been waiting for: Tax Day.

The GOP has a chance today to tout larger tax refunds from the One Big Beautiful Bill, a crucial piece of the party’s midterm messaging. Democrats will be eager to counter that any refund means less because of rising costs, including gas prices.

Internal Revenue Service CEO Frank Bisignano will be in front of the Senate Finance Committee at 10 a.m. to update senators on the filing season.

There will be tax-focused events from both parties throughout the day. House GOP leaders and Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) will lead Republicans in a Tax Day news conference at 10 a.m. The House is planning to vote on a resolution touting the “Working Families Tax Cuts” and expressing support for “tax policies that support working families.” A group of GOP senators, led by Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), is holding a presser at 2:30 p.m.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is expected to lead a UC attempt on the floor for reviving Direct File. Senate Democrats are also planning to introduce a new IRS funding bill. Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.), the top Finance Democrat, is introducing proposals all week aimed at taxing the wealthy.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Speaker Mike Johnson are also planning to meet today.

Plus, it’s FEC filing day! All candidates must file their Q1 reports by midnight.

In other Senate action. Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark Meador will be at a 10 a.m. Senate Commerce Committee hearing that’s going to be closely watched by the tech world.

The Senate is expected to vote on Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s (D-Ill.) war powers resolution on Iran around 2 p.m., though the vote count is not expected to change. Senators will also vote on two resolutions from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to block arms sales to Israel.

House day ahead. House Democrats will hold their weekly caucus meeting. House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar and Vice Chair Ted Lieu will hold a press conference after at 11:30 a.m.

In the defense world, Reps. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) and Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) will head to the Pentagon this morning to meet with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other leading military officials on their $1.5 trillion budget request and upcoming supplemental.

Meanwhile, off the House floor. OMB Director Russ Vought will appear before the House Budget Committee at 10:15 a.m. on Trump’s FY2027 budget request. We laid out what to watch in our PM edition as Vought squares off with House Democrats.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will hold a press briefing at 1 p.m., featuring Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright will also testify on the administration’s budget at the House Appropriations Committee at 2 p.m.

First Lady Melania Trump will be on the Hill for a 2 p.m. closed-door roundtable on improvements to the foster care system with House Ways and Means Committee members.

— Laura Weiss, Ally Mutnick, Samantha Handler and Briana Reilly

MONEY MOVES

CLF, AAN raise $56M-plus in Q1

News: The Congressional Leadership Fund and its allied nonprofit American Action Network raised a record $56.6 million in the first quarter of 2026.

The two groups have raised a combined $192.6 million to date this cycle.

CLF, the super PAC backed by Speaker Mike Johnson, raised a record $38.1 million in Q1, including a $7.5 million transfer from AAN. CLF ended March with $91.4 million in the bank.

“CLF and AAN’s continued record-breaking success is due to the unwavering support of our donors,” CLF President Chris Winkelman said in a statement.

The Dems. House Democrats’ outside groups, House Majority PAC and House Majority Forward, raised more than their GOP counterparts. Those two groups brought in a combined $69 million.

The groups didn’t announce their cash on hand. HMP and HMF have raised $190 million cycle to date, slightly less than CLF and AAN.

Many Republican outside groups have far outraised Democratic ones. But House Democrats have been posting unusually strong fundraising this cycle.

– Ally Mutnick

AND THERE’S MORE

The Money Game. Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner raised over $4 million in Q1, with an average contribution of $26. That’s more than his opponent, Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who brought in $2.6 million. Neither Democrat has released their cash on hand totals, we’ll note.

Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) raised $930,000 in Q1, his largest ever fundraising quarter. Crow has $2.5 million on hand.

Democrat Ryan Crosswell raised $480,000 in Q1 for his run for Rep. Ryan Mackenzie’s (R-Pa.) seat and ended with $715,000 on hand.

On the air. Crosswell is going on air with his first TV ad, a 30-second bio spot that touts Crosswell’s decision to quit President Donald Trump’s Justice Department on ethical grounds. Crosswell is in a competitive Democratic primary with firefighter Bob Brooks.

– Max Cohen and Ally Mutnick