Congress returns for final act before curtain rises on new Trump era By Reuters

By David Morgan and Bo Erickson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Democratic-led U.S. Senate and Republican Condo of Representatives return this week for a showdown over government spending, wretchedness reduction and defense policy sooner than President-elect Donald Trump ushers in a new generation of single-birthday celebration rule subsequent month.

Essentially the most well-known project for lawmakers over the following three weeks is to avert a pre-Christmas partial government shutdown by striking a bipartisan deal to fund federal companies previous Dec. 20, when a most modern stopgap spending measure is as a consequence of expire.

The debate will consist of a almost $100 billion emergency wretchedness reduction inquire of from President Joe Biden for areas of the U.S. Southeast hit by hurricanes Helene and Milton, and other communities struck by pure disasters.

Congress also faces a Jan. 1 time restrict for elevating the federal government’s debt ceiling, though lawmakers and aides sing that extraordinary measures employed by the Treasury Department are doubtless to extend the anticipated “X” date for default well into 2025.

Senate Democrats, who are entering their closing days in the bulk, and a few Republicans hope to enact an omnibus kit of annual spending funds that would possibly perhaps perhaps fund the government through fiscal year 2025, which ends on Sept. 30, pretty than a shorter-term continuing resolution, or “CR.”

“I silent retain out this hope that we would possibly perhaps perhaps additionally steer determined of a CR,” Senator Susan Collins, high Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, mentioned sooner than lawmakers left town sooner than the U.S. Thanksgiving vacation.

However Trump’s allies are pushing for a 3-month stopgap that supporters sing would allow their birthday celebration’s incoming political trifecta to dismantle most modern Democratic spending initiatives and policy priorities early in the brand new administration.

“We’ve made omnibus spending funds painful to vote for (advantage eyes on the Senate) … now we need to execute the educate,” Manual Chip Roy, a leading hardline conservative, mentioned on social media last week.

The Condo shouldn’t be anticipated to begin excessive work on government funding till the last of the session’s three weeks, with Speaker Mike Johnson expressing make stronger for a continuous resolution that would possibly perhaps perhaps streak into early subsequent year.

That approach also poses risks for Johnson’s slim 220-213 Republican majority, which failed to rush its have partisan terminate-gap measure in September and had to depend upon primarily Democratic votes to narrowly avert a shutdown weeks sooner than the Nov. 5 election.

FIRST 100 DAYS

This time, Republicans aim to expose greater solidarity sooner than gaining fleshy advantage an eye fixed on over fiscal 2025 funding early subsequent year.

However the stopgap methodology will also drain time and vitality away from Trump’s ambitious first-100-days agenda of tax cuts, vitality deregulation and border security.

Condo Republicans would possibly perhaps perhaps have a equally slim majority subsequent year and would possibly perhaps perhaps additionally see their margin of error shrink to a single seat for several months, with the departure of Matt Gaetz and two other Republicans who are online page to join the Trump administration.

The 100-day agenda of Trump’s first presidency ran aground in 2017 over a identical funding inquire, forcing him to withdraw his controversial blueprint to finance a wall alongside the U.S.-Mexico border to steer determined of a government shutdown that April.

However Republicans deem they are able to enact Trump’s agenda this time.

“There would possibly perhaps be no sunlight hours between their agenda and what they envision and what we envision for the Condo,” mentioned Johnson, who has been in shut contact with Trump.

Trump’s transition team didn’t acknowledge to a inquire of for comment.

The CR approach would possibly perhaps perhaps additionally advantage Johnson steer determined of the drawn-out January battle over the speakership Republicans skilled two years ago, as far-proper members of the Condo Freedom Caucus like Roy vehemently oppose an omnibus spending kit.

Hardline Republicans have been angered by Johnson’s willingness to work with Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on spending in the previous.

Top lawmakers have but to assert how they intend to contend with a Biden inquire of for emergency wretchedness reduction.

The pinnacle of the Exiguous Replace Administration not too prolonged ago testified to Congress that the company’s wretchedness mortgage program for owners, renters, and companies ran out of cash in October, leaving better than 60,000 mortgage applicants awaiting aid.

“Of us are determined for solutions, and advantage, and hope, and they also’re having a glimpse to Congress for action,” mentioned Senator Patty Murray, Democratic chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, “Each day we form not act, the costs grow.”

Aides mentioned a wretchedness reduction kit would doubtless be hooked up to a CR.

However the main aim for Congress this month is doubtless to be passage of the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, annual legislation that devices policy for the Defense Department, based on congressional aides. Floor votes would possibly perhaps perhaps additionally come as early as subsequent week, based on aides.