The House is set to rebuke Donald Trump’s signature economic policy Wednesday following Speaker Mike Johnson’s failure late last night to contain GOP unrest over the administration’s trade war.
The chamber will vote on a resolution offered by Democratic Rep. Gregory Meeks (N.Y.) to overturn the president’s Canadian tariffs. It comes after GOP Reps. Kevin Kiley of California, Don Bacon of Nebraska and Thomas Massie of Kentucky sided with Democrats to tank a procedural rule, which contained a provision GOP leaders have relied upon for months to prevent members from voting to undermine Trump’s trade agenda.
“I don’t think that the House should be limiting the authority of members and enlarging the power of leadership at the expense of our members,” Kiley told POLITICO.
Now the House will vote Wednesday afternoon on the Meeks resolution. And thanks to a combination of Johnson’s razor-thin majority, Democratic unity and expected Republican defections, that measure is expected to be approved — it’s only a question of, by how much.
Besides Kiley, Bacon and Massie, keep an eye on Republican Reps. Dan Newhouse (Wash.) and Zach Nunn (Iowa), who held out on voting for the rule Tuesday night before eventually folding. Newhouse in particular was subject to a full-court press on the House floor from House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Majority Whip Tom Emmer. Reps. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) and Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.) have also been uneasy about the tariffs.
No longer held back, Democrats can and likely will continue to force votes on other resolutions to overturn Trump’s tariffs on goods from Mexico and Brazil, following the example of senators who have successfully voted across party lines to curb the administration’s trade activities.
“What we want to show is that really this should be a bipartisan issue,” Meeks told reporters Tuesday. “The American people are watching to see what we do in this issue.”
What else we’re watching:
— DHS negotiations: Senate Majority Leader John Thune took the first procedural step Tuesday toward allowing the Senate to vote on another DHS funding punt. But Democratic support will be necessary to get a continuing resolution for the agency over the finish line. A DHS shutdown at the end of the week is near certain, with no deal in sight.
— Schumer seeks Venezuela probe: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) are rolling out legislation Wednesday that would direct the Government Accountability Office to investigate the Trump administration’s handling of proceedings from Venezuelan oil sales. Their bill, shared first with POLITICO, would require GAO to launch the audit within 30 days and report its findings to Congress within 90 days of completion.
— Bondi in the hot seat: Attorney General Pam Bondi will testify before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday as the Department of Justice faces scrutiny over its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, prosecution of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and response to the fatal shootings by federal agents of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota.
Calen Razor, James Bikales and Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.
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