There are 11 days until government funding expires.
There’s a lot to run down about this week, the next-to-last in the legislative year. There are a ton of lingering issues that need to get wrapped up by Dec. 20, with two big packages dominating the debate — the annual defense policy bill and the CR aimed at funding the federal government until March. Both of these will carry several ancillary policies, including a farm bill extension and disaster aid. There’s also a late push on a children’s online safety bill from Elon Musk. And, several of President-elect Donald Trump’s controversial Cabinet nominees will be making the rounds in the Senate.
Let’s get into it.
NDAA. House and Senate leadership released the annual defense authorization bill on Saturday. You can read the 1,800-plus-page bill here.
The House Rules Committee will meet this evening to prep the NDAA for floor action. Speaker Mike Johnson’s first challenge is getting the measure through the Rules Committee, which is controlled by hardline conservatives from the House Freedom Caucus.
If the Rules Committee can’t approve a rule, Johnson will have to take the NDAA to the floor under suspension, which requires a two-thirds majority vote. GOP and Democratic leaders should be able to get the bill over the finish line but they’ll face some serious headwinds from rank-and-file Democrats, who take umbrage with language dealing with transgender children and blocking IVF expansion for military service families. So getting 290 votes isn’t a given.
CR. There’s no deal yet on government funding. Both sides are playing it close to the vest, which means they’re serious about getting an agreement. We still expect a CR running until at least mid-March. Anything longer risks running up against mandatory spending cuts under the 2023 Fiscal Responsibility Act.
Language overhauling rules dealing with outbound investment in China fell out of the NDAA because of last-minute snags. But it seems like the Four Corners have varying levels of interest in squeezing this into the CR. We’ll see if Trump weighs in against this. He may not want legislation dealing with China ending up in a bill that President Joe Biden will sign.
KOSA. On Saturday, Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) announced they’d negotiated a new version of the Kids Online Safety Act with Musk. The Senate overwhelmingly passed KOSA in a 91-3 vote this summer, but it has stalled in the House.
The latest version pulls back on the emotional and mental harms for children that the proposed legislation had previously tried to counteract. It also deemphasizes the role of the Federal Trade Commission. Donald Trump Jr. then jumped in on Sunday to give the full MAGA boost, calling on the House to pass KOSA “ASAP.”
But the changes — and public support from Trump world figures — haven’t moved the needle with House GOP leadership, who remain opposed to the legislation. Critics also say they continue to have free speech concerns over KOSA, while Republicans are once again reluctant to hand Biden a win on his way out of office.
Reconciliation. Stephen Miller, who’ll be Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy, voiced support for incoming Senate GOP Leader John Thune’s two-step strategy on reconciliation. During a Sunday appearance on Fox News, Miller said both border security and taxes will go under the fast-track process but suggested the Senate could first pass a border funding package by the end of January or early February. Miller said it would be the “biggest domestic policy win in at least 50 years.” As we’ve reported, Thune developed this strategy in consultation with Trump’s team.
Top House and Senate Republicans have clashed over this idea. House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) has argued Hill Republicans should also include taxes in the first reconciliation package, with some GOP leaders worried they might not get a second chance.
But if Trump puts his weight behind the border-first strategy and is eager for a quick win on a top campaign issue, House Republicans may have no choice but to fall in line.
Nomination meetings. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said she’ll meet again this week with Pete Hegseth, Trump’s embattled nominee to lead the Department of Defense. Ernst, who has come under intense pressure from the right to back Hegseth, also said she believes Hegseth deserves to have a confirmation hearing — a sign his nomination is still alive, at least for now.
Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii), Trump’s controversial pick to be the director of national intelligence, will begin her meetings with senators today. After the upheaval in Syria over the weekend, expect Gabbard’s views on the now-fallen regime of Bashar al-Assad to come under even heavier scrutiny. Her meetings today will be with GOP Sens. James Lankford (Okla.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Mike Rounds (S.D.). And Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is meeting with Kash Patel, Trump’s pick to run the FBI.
Committee organization. The House Republican Steering Committee will begin meeting this week to decide contested committee chairmanships. The Democratic Steering and Policy Committee will meet on Tuesday to consider ranking members for exclusive committees, as well as the Budget panel.
