Don’t expect the typically strong smell of Thursday jet fumes in the halls of the Senate just yet.
Ideally, senators would be leaving town for a five-week recess after business Thursday, but a legislative pile-up and pressure from President Donald Trump has made that impossible.
All 100 senators still need to agree to a deal to speed up consideration of a measure to extend government funding through Dec. 11, a Russia sanctions bill, dozens of nominees including Todd Blanche and a bipartisan college athletics bill — an agenda that would otherwise take weeks to accomplish.
Republicans also need to make a decision about whether they’re going to attempt to take an initial step on a third party-line spending bill, which includes election security measures Trump is demanding.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Wednesday evening the vibes were “starting to pick up” in terms of a deal taking shape. But he cautioned on jet fumes:
“You’re not going to be smelling those anytime real soon. …We’ve obviously got, like I said, a stack of stuff to do,” he said.
While Thune hasn’t ruled out taking up a budget blueprint for the GOP bill, he said it was “hard to say at this point” if the votes were there.
However senators are eyeing an exit strategy to allow Republicans to leave town while giving Trump a small win by taking up his elections measure. With that option, Republicans would bring up legislation related to the SAVE America Act instead of advancing a budget resolution, three people granted anonymity to discuss internal discussions said.
Thune said it “remains to be seen” whether that’s enough for hard-liners who have threatened to oppose leaving town without a vote on it.
Also still in limbo is Trump’s attorney general pick Todd Blanche, who met Wednesday with GOP holdouts Sens. Bill Cassidy and Lisa Murkowski. Neither said afterward how they would vote on the nomination — and Blanche needs to secure at least one of their votes.
Government funding legislation is also stuck in the pile-up, with Republicans grappling with intraparty wrangling over hemp language. And an agreement to speed up consideration of the Russia sanctions measure is also in limbo as Democrats work through concerns in their ranks about it.
And Democrats are waiting for smoke signals from Republicans on whether they’ll force them to vote on cryptocurrency legislation that many of them currently oppose (more on that below). Dems are eager to avoid taking that vote ahead of the recess, potentially fueling tens of millions of dollars of campaign spending by industry allies.
What else we’re watching:
— JOHNSON BULLISH ON SPEAKERSHIP: Mike Johnson said he is planning to remain speaker if House Republicans hold onto the House — but didn’t weigh in on his future plans if Democrats flip the majority. “I don’t have to answer that question because we’re gonna win,” Johnson told Dasha Burns on Tuesday in an interview for POLITICO’s The Conversation. “I’m gonna remain speaker of the House,” he added. Johnson would face difficult political headwinds to stay on as minority leader if Democrats take back the chamber, but he dodged on the topic, reiterating his optimism.
— FARM BILL OUTLOOK DIMS: Agriculture ranking member Amy Klobuchar is signaling she’ll oppose the GOP-led farm bill up for a markup Thursday, likely scuttling chances it’ll advance. At issue is a provision to delay requirements that states pay for part of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Agriculture Chair John Boozman has offered a one-year delay while Democrats are asking for two years. The nutrition aid requirements were passed as part of the GOP’s megabill last summer. Boozman needs to win support from at least one Democrat to advance the bill out of committee given Sen. Mitch McConnell’s prolonged absence.
Jordain Carney, Mia McCarthy and Grace Yarrow contributed to this report.
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