The Scoop
Republicans are running into a sudden new problem after punting on their immigration enforcement bill: time.
It’s not clear how Republicans will handle opposition to the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund when they return in June; some think they may need to rethink how the bill is devised given its exposure to amendments that will touch on the controversial fund.
“I think it’s salvageable,” argued Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. “Reconciliation is way too important to not do.”
It’s one problem on a longer list of challenges that the GOP has dwindling floor time to address.
The Senate is scheduled to be in just eight weeks until the August recess, then just three weeks in the fall before the midterms, while the House will be in for 10 weeks ahead of the election.
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This is the time in an election cycle when congressional leaders must decide what’s doable before the November vote — and what’s not. And “there’s a lot right sitting out there,” Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford, the No. 5 GOP senator, told Semafor.
There are some things Republicans say are a must: The GOP sees the party-line immigration bill as vital given Democratic opposition to funding ICE and Border Patrol. What’s more, Congress needs to extend expiring surveillance powers by June 12, avoid an October government shutdown, and deal with mounting Iran war powers resolutions.
There are also ongoing negotiations over cryptocurrency and housing legislation, as well as growing support for lowering insulin prices and dealing with college sports name, image, and likeness rules. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, told Semafor she’s “still talking” about a college sports bill with Chair Ted Cruz, R-Texas, but isn’t yet as “optimistic” as him. “I think he’s saying that because the House” pulled their bill, she said.
There’s more to navigate: Lawmakers are still trying to pass surface transportation and farm bills before they expire in September — and the Senate still needs to figure out how to address the House-passed year-round E15 sales bill.