The House and Senate will both be in session today after the week-long Thanksgiving recess to begin the final sprint before the end of the 117th Congress. The House and Senate face a laundry list of legislative items before the year’s end, ranging from a must-pass bill to keep federal agencies operating and the National Defense Authorization Act to a plan to reform how Congress counts electoral votes. Other items Congress hopes to consider are the Respect for Marriage Act, COVID-19 and Ukraine assistance, and potentially legislation to avert a rail strike amid stalled contract talks between rail workers’ unions and railroads and a December 9th strike deadline looming.
With negotiators making little progress on government funding and a December 16th deadline approaching, Democrats in Congress are moving forward writing their own omnibus funding bill ahead of a potential shutdown next month. The majority party is currently working on the fiscal 2023 spending package without Republican support, though lawmakers are including Republican priorities in the measure in hopes of eventually winning bipartisan support. Current funding is set to expire December 16th, though Democratic leadership is considering a one-week stopgap extension to buy more time for an agreement on full-year funding. The new December 23rd deadline would bring Congress up against the holidays, providing an extra incentive for lawmakers to wrap up their work for the year especially with enough bipartisan priorities included to pass both chambers and be signed into law. Without explicit Republican backing and input, however, that plan would likely face significant resistance. While Democrats previously put forward their own, partisan bills in both the House and Senate, top negotiators have yet to agree on the top-line funding levels that would open the door to truly bipartisan legislation and Democrats will need at least ten Republicans to pass any spending measure in the Senate. On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, (D-New York), said the Senate would turn to government funding after it passes the Respect for Marriage Act and he stressed that he will seek a full-year omnibus rather than a longer-term continuing resolution. The push for a longer-term stopgap spending measure to delay negotiations on the omnibus until Republicans control the House next year is being led by Senators Rick Scott (R-Florida), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) signaled to colleagues before the election that he favored passing an omnibus spending package before the end of the year, but that was before Senate Republicans fell well short of expectations on Election Day, fueling conservative calls for new Republican leadership. McConnell will want to hear from fellow Republican senators at lunch meetings this week before deciding whether to agree to an omnibus spending package, which would likely include tens of billions of dollars in military and economic aid for Ukraine, a top McConnell priority.
For today, the Senate reconvened at 12:00 P.M. and is expected to vote on the Respect for Marriage Act, which codifies federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriages. Senators are moving forward with the vote Tuesday afternoon after securing essential Republican support during a procedural vote on Monday. With bipartisan support, the legislation is expected to clear the Senate Tuesday, then head back to the House where it is expected to be passed quickly and sent to the president’s desk to be signed into law. The bill would require that all states recognize same-sex and interracial marriages performed in any other state. It does not require that states individually allow these marriages to be performed. The measure also recognizes these marriages for consideration of federal benefits such as Medicare and Social Security. Earlier this month, 12 Republicans joined 50 Democrats in a vote that ended debate on the measure, avoiding a filibuster, and permitting the legislation to advance toward a final vote in the chamber.
The House will convene at 2:00 P.M. and is expected to take up eighteen bills under suspension of the Rules.
Adam S. Olsen, Washington, D.C.
