News: House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and a number of cardinals met privately Thursday with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, according to multiple sources.
The meeting comes as GOP congressional leaders struggle to make headway on the FY2026 spending bills. The CR that ended the grueling 43-day government shutdown expires on Jan. 30. House and Senate appropriators are now trying to put together a “minibus” package of bills running through the rest of the fiscal year.
Here’s Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.), the chair of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development subcommittee, who was part of the meeting:
In addition to Cole and Womack, the huddle included Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) and Ken Calvert (R-Calif.).
So far, House and Senate GOP leaders haven’t agreed on a topline funding level. Senate GOP conservatives also met privately with Senate Majority Leader John Thune Wednesday to air their complaints over the proposed spending bills.
And remember, there’s no bipartisan deal with Democrats yet on FY2026 spending levels.
The political fight over the expiring Obamacare premium subsidies has dominated Capitol Hill this week and will again next week, but the ongoing struggle over government funding is a real problem. Congress is expected to go home in two weeks, having done nothing to pass any of the nine outstanding bills, and huge policy differences remain.
We’re not saying there will be a shutdown in January. But the chances of that happening are not zero either.
New vaccine controversy. We’re getting initial reactions from Republicans to the federal vaccine advisory panel’s decision to scrap the long-standing recommendation that newborn babies receive the hepatitis B vaccine.
The move by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), whose members were all appointed by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is sparking widespread outrage by public-health groups. The hepatitis B vaccine has long been considered to be one of the most effective life-saving immunizations.
Some top Hill Republicans issued statements Friday standing by the vaccine and its effectiveness. That includes Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, a medical doctor who in September told Kennedy that he’s grown “deeply concerned” about the undermining of public confidence in vaccines.
“I support vaccines, including the hepatitis B vaccine,” Barrasso said in a statement in response to the ACIP decision. “As a doctor, I encourage all patients to consult with their healthcare provider about the best choice for their family.”
Senate HELP Committee Chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who voted to confirm Kennedy in part because of a promise not to overhaul the ACIP, said on Thursday that the panel is now “totally discredited.”
After Friday’s ACIP vote, Cassidy wrote on X that the hepatitis B vaccine is “safe and effective” and called the move a “mistake.” The Louisiana Republican also urged acting CDC Director Jim O’Neill not to sign off on the new guidance.
“Ending the recommendation for newborns makes it more likely the number of cases will begin to increase again,” Cassidy added. “This makes America sicker.”
At least one Republican, Sen. Ron Johnson (Wis.), praised the move, writing on X: “Science triumphs over insanity.” Johnson has long sought to undermine public confidence in vaccine effectiveness, most notably the Covid-19 vaccine.
