Senate Breaks for August After Nominations Stalemate

Both chambers are picking up on the work they left off before last week’s recess, with the Senate working through the remaining confirmations for President Trump’s Cabinet and the House targeting executive branch regulations. Wilbur Ross’ confirmation as Secretary of Commerce starts action in the Senate, and given that a cloture vote for his nomination […]

The week will bring a sense of déjà vu to Washington as the House lines up another series of resolutions taking aim at Obama-era agency regulations and the Senate plods through the confirmation process for more of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees. Under the powers of the Congressional Review Act, the House plans votes to walk […]

Democrats are using every tool at their disposal to prevent the one Cabinet nominee who has attracted some Republican opposition – Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos – from being confirmed on the Senate floor. The minority party kept the upper chamber in session throughout the night in an attempt to convince one additional Republican to […]

Despite efforts from Democrats to slow down the process, the Senate is moving forward on confirming President Trump’s Cabinet nominees, starting with a final vote on Betsy DeVos’ nomination to be Education Secretary scheduled for Monday. The upper chamber successfully invoked cloture on DeVos’ confirmation this morning on a 52-48 party-line vote. However, Republican Sens. […]

One of President Trump’s most controversial selections for his Cabinet is – Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos – due to hit the Senate floor today, with another contentious pick, Attorney General nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), next in line for floor consideration. DeVos will be first because Republicans want to make sure that Sessions – […]

Lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill today to a busy legislative schedule as well as a chaotic political environment due to the fallout from President Trump’s executive order issued on Friday suspending the nation’s refugee program and temporarily barring visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said over the weekend that […]

The Senate made its opening move in the repeal process of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) yesterday, voting 51-48 to begin fifty hours of debate on a budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 3) that will direct relevant committees to craft a budget reconciliation bill including the language necessary to dismantle the 2010 health care reform […]

The legislative text for a continuing resolution (CR) is expected to be released today as Congressional leaders stay on track to break for the year by the end of the week. The stopgap is likely to extend into mid-April in order to provide lawmakers with enough time to consider and approve President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet […]

Government funding expires on Friday and lawmakers will spend the week deciding exactly what will be included in a stopgap spending bill that is expected to fund the government through the first few months of Donald Trump’s presidency. According to incoming Appropriations Committee Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), the continuing resolution (CR) is likely to have […]

A long-awaited vote on the medical innovation measure known as the 21st Century Cures Act is on the agenda for the lower chamber today. The package, which will be included on an unrelated legislative vehicle (H.R. 34), aims to address opioid addiction, improve mental health programs, make changes to Medicare, and invest significantly in health […]

Legislative action returns to Capitol Hill today as the House and Senate reconvene for the final stretch of the 114th Congress. While spending legislation and a medical innovation package await on the horizon, the House will vote today on a criminal justice bill (S. 2577) that would reauthorize grants for DNA evidence analysis and reduce […]

After passing bills related to aircraft sales to Iran (H.R. 5711) and midnight rules (H.R. 5982), the lower chamber departed Washington for the Thanksgiving holiday next week. The Senate will hold a pro forma session today and no votes are expected in the chamber until after the Thanksgiving holiday. Both chambers will return to Washington […]