House Republicans cleared the way for consideration of a key spy power sought by President Donald Trump — as well as the farm bill and the blueprint for funding immigration enforcement agencies that remain shuttered amid the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown.
It’s a major victory for Speaker Mike Johnson, whose chamber has been in a state of paralysis as lawmakers worked through Monday night and all Tuesday to reach an agreement with hard-liners to advance the three legislative priorities.
Lawmakers adopted the procedural measure Wednesday, 216-210, after fierce opposition from several members of the GOP conference over various issues related to the farm bill and Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, which will expire Thursday. Leaders spent over two hours on the floor flipping votes and wooing holdouts.
GOP leaders have been locked over the past week in intense negotiations with members who wanted to amend the program — which allows the government to surveil foreigners outside the U.S. without a warrant — to include guardrails on the warrantless surveillance of American citizens.
Many hard-liners have also been demanding a permanent ban on the Federal Reserve issuing a digital currency be added to any reauthorization. GOP leaders acceded to that demand, agreeing to combine the Section 702 extension with the digital currency ban upon passage. But the gambit is unlikely to survive in the Senate, where the issue has long been stalled.
“That’s not happening,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said in an interview about linking the two matters.
The successful procedural vote will also allow lawmakers to proceed to consideration of the latest farm bill — which would be the first blanket reauthorization of agriculture programs since 2018 — which GOP leaders hope to pass with help from several Democrats.
Some hard-liners are upset over GOP leadership’s plan to tack legislation onto the farm bill that would allow for year-round sales of the fuel blend known as E15 at the insistence of farm-state Republicans. Fiscal hawks balked at estimates showing it would cost $1 billion.
Republican leaders separately agreed to allow a floor vote on an amendment from Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) that would remove a prohibition on states creating pesticide labeling laws that differ from EPA guidance — a major priority of health-focused Trump supporters.
Finally, the procedural vote sets up consideration of the fiscal blueprint the Senate adopted last week that would allow Congress to craft a budget reconciliation package addressing funding only for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol, rather than a wider range of conservative priorities.
Republican leaders and the Trump administration insist the GOP needs to advance the Senate’s product without changes in order to quickly reopen the Department of Homeland Security, which has been shut down since Feb. 14.
As with the farm bill, however, grumbling within the ranks remains, particularly among conservatives who want to expand the scope of the budget resolution to include other items on the GOP policy wishlist.
Jordain Carney contributed to this report.
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