Congress got one step closer this week to funding immigration enforcement for the rest of President Donald Trump\u2019s term, while House lawmakers dealt with more ethics fallout and wrangled behind closed doors over a key surveillance authority.<\/p>\n
But the path forward once again depends on whether Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., can whip votes within his own party.<\/p>\n
Skinny reconciliation<\/p>\n
The Senate in the wee hours Thursday morning narrowly adopted<\/a> a GOP-written budget resolution, 50-48, marking the first move toward providing roughly $70 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol.<\/p>\n \u201cRepublicans are going to deliver for you,\u201d said Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., as the GOP looks to sidestep a funding standoff with Democrats over guardrails at the agencies by relying on the reconciliation process<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Once the budget resolution is adopted in both chambers, more detailed work can begin. While Johnson is readying it for the floor<\/a> next week, some House Republicans are trying to tap the brakes. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, for one, said he wants to see a resolution with a broader scope.\u00a0<\/p>\n Those holdouts could be a headache for Johnson, who won\u2019t be able to rely on any Democratic votes and is working with a slim GOP majority.\u00a0<\/p>\n FISA feud<\/p>\n Behind the scenes, Johnson also tried to straighten out support for extending section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The controversial spy authority<\/a> is facing an April 30 deadline, as some Republicans demand privacy safeguards.<\/p>\n While new bill text<\/a> released by GOP leaders Thursday seems to fall short of some of the privacy hawks\u2019 demands, the Rules Committee is scheduled Monday to prep it for floor consideration.<\/p>\n Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters on Wednesday that the House had until the end of this work week to \u201ccome together behind something\u201d and if not, the Senate is ready to lead and \u201cprepared to move here.\u201d<\/p>\n As a back-up plan, Thune on Thursday filed cloture on a three-year clean extension.<\/p>\n House drama<\/p>\n House Republicans\u2019 razor-thin margin did get a little more wiggle room this week.<\/p>\n Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., resigned Tuesday<\/a> before the House Ethics Committee was set to consider what punishment she should face for numerous ethics violations related to campaign funds.\u00a0<\/p>\n Her announcement capped a wave of recent departures, after Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, resigned over unrelated allegations.\u00a0<\/p>\n The ethics uproar may not be over, as Reps. Cory Mills, R-Fla., and Nancy Mace, R-S.C., continue an online feud over alleged misdeeds. Mace has said she intends to call up a resolution soon aimed at expelling Mills.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, House leadership announced Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., had died<\/a>. The 12-term congressman was 80.\u00a0<\/p>\n House Democrats now have 212 members, giving Republicans a bit more leeway on party-line bills.<\/p>\n Betting on Banking\u00a0<\/p>\n Thune rubber-stamped a plan to try to help get Kevin Warsh<\/a> confirmed as Federal Reserve chairman, promising \u201caccountability.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Thune said Wednesday the Senate Banking Committee will probe a Federal Reserve headquarters construction project that has run over budget, while the Department of Justice conducts its own investigation. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., has described the DOJ actions as a pressure campaign on the Fed\u2019s current chairman, Jerome Powell.<\/p>\n During a Tuesday hearing, Tillis reiterated<\/a> that he would not vote to advance Warsh\u2019s nomination as long as the DOJ probe continues, even though he sees Warsh as qualified.\u00a0<\/p>\n