Congress

Nervous Republicans weigh their options amid White House’s ballroom lobbying blitz

Published

5 months ago

May 15, 2026

President Donald Trump’s pet project is hanging by a thread.

The political risk of spending taxpayer dollars on parts of a new White House ballroom has unsettled congressional Republicans, who are questioning whether they can approve $1 billion in Secret Service security funding — even as officials from the agency, the Department of Homeland Security and the White House blanket Capitol Hill to make the case for its necessity amid growing threats.

Senate Republicans, including party leaders, are discussing making potential changes to the billion-dollar item as they deal with member concerns and wait for the chamber’s parliamentarian to rule on whether it can even be included in the GOP’s party-line immigration enforcement funding bill. No final decisions have been made, but options include reducing the amount of funding.

The discussions are centered on “how to get 50 votes in the Senate,” Majority Leader John Thune said in an interview about the security funding talks. “And then obviously what happens with the parliamentarian will have a lot to do with how that shakes out, too.”

Senate aides will meet with Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough Friday to litigate the portion of the legislation that includes the Secret Service funding, according to two people granted anonymity to disclose private scheduling. Senators generally defer to MacDonough’s interpretations of the “Byrd rule,” the restrictions governing what is permissible in a filibuster-skirting budget reconciliation bill.

Republicans across the Capitol are also keeping their powder dry until after the meeting, known in Hill parlance as a “Byrd bath.” MacDonough ruled Thursday other parts of the bill she had already reviewed did not pass muster, though GOP staff will try to rewrite them in the coming days to comply.

“We want to see what the Senate does, because they’ve … got the Byrd bath that they have to go through that is not a House process,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said. “Right now, I don’t think people are passing judgment because they don’t know what the final product is going to look like coming from the Senate.”

Scalise, asked about the alarm from some of his GOP members about the political optics of public funding for the ballroom, replied, “There’s a lot of meetings going on.”

“There’s a lot of those conversations, but we’re in the early stages, because we don’t know what the final product is going to look like,” he added.

Republican leaders are expressing confidence that MacDonough will approve the Secret Service provision, which directs the funding to “security adjustments and upgrades.” But some, including Senate Homeland Security Chair Rand Paul (R-Ky.), have predicted the language could come out and are waiting to see how she rules before they decide if they will support the bill.

Reconciliation rules dictate that all parts of the bill must have a direct impact on the federal budget, and they also must fall within the jurisdiction of committees that are specified in the budget framework Republicans approved last month. Democrats are expected to argue that the security provision should be removed because it steps into an active court battle and was drafted by the Judiciary Committee, which does not have jurisdiction over the White House construction project, according to a person granted anonymity to describe private strategy.

MacDonough could decide that the whole provision has to go, or she might target part of it, such as language referring specifically to the East Wing project.

Even if that language gets past MacDonough, GOP leaders in both chambers are facing unease — and in some cases, outright opposition — within their ranks that could threaten the security funding.

Several GOP senators want a more detailed breakdown of how the Secret Service will use the funding related to the East Wing project. The Judiciary Committee language specifies only that it can be used for “above-ground and below-ground security features” but not on “non-security elements.”

A document handed to GOP senators Tuesday specified no more than $220 million would go to the White House project and listed a few examples of how the funding could be used in relation to the project, such as for bulletproof glass. That failed to quell concerns.

“The White House is trying, I think, to get more details to it. But I think what’s become clear is you have security pieces for the East Wing, but you also have a lot of just additional add-ons for Secret Service,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).

Another GOP senator, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly, added: “You can’t just drop a round number on us and say, ‘We need a billion dollars.’”

Thune said part of the $1 billion is meant to address a “fairly long and pent-up demand” for additional resources for Secret Service separate from the East Wing-specific money. But those requests have sparked questions from Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) about why they aren’t going through the normal government funding process.

Under reconciliation rules, Republicans will be subject to unlimited amendment debate before they can pass the bill. Democrats are expected to offer a proposal to strike the $1 billion, which could succeed if four Republicans vote with all Democrats.

Asked if leaders had the votes to pass the bill with the ballroom-related language, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) noted two committees are scheduled to act on the bill next week before it goes to the floor.

“You’re asking what’s going to happen in a vote-a-rama Thursday night,” Barrasso said, referring to the amendment extravaganza, noting it was still “days away.”

The ballroom issue could come to a head earlier, when the Senate Budget Committee meets next week to prepare the bill for the floor. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), who sits on the panel, wants to lower the overall size of the immigration enforcement bill to offset the inclusion of the $1 billion security request.

If the funding survives the Senate, its approval in the House is hardly a sure thing. The prospect of taking a vote next week to green-light hundreds of millions of dollars for White House and ballroom security has alarmed several politically vulnerable Republicans.

“I haven’t committed one way or another until we get more of a further breakdown as to how it’s going to be allocated,” Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-Pa.) said in an interview Thursday.

In closed-door meetings earlier this week, House Republicans in at-risk seats pressed Secret Service Director Sean Curran and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin for more details on the $220 million White House portion of the security ask. Both men said that information would be forthcoming.

Bresnahan said he was still waiting to see an itemized list while also hinting that he is hoping the matter takes care of itself.

“This could easily be Byrded out,” he added, referring to MacDonough’s ruling.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), who warned earlier this week that the ballroom funding was “not happening” on the immigration bill, signaled Thursday he was heeding voters in his district by not backing down.

“They want DHS funded, they want ICE reforms, and they don’t want taxpayer funds going to a ballroom,” Fitzpatrick said.

But Trump and his deputies have successfully browbeat GOP lawmakers into line many times in the past, and the White House’s pressure campaign on the ballroom money is making some headway, according to six people involved in the conversations.

Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) initially voiced apprehension about the idea Tuesday, saying, “I don’t think it’s wise.” Hours later, after meeting with Mullin, Bacon softened his views, arguing it wasn’t “as much money” for the ballroom project as he thought.

Other House Republicans who are facing tough races are under immense pressure from the White House to approve the money and privately say they are likely to do so. One thing weighing on GOP lawmakers’ minds is the succession of assassination attempts targeting Trump and the overall rise in political violence.

“We know there’s an emerging, just radically different threat environment, even [versus] just five years ago,” said one. “And so we have to make sure that we have the appropriate resources across a full spectrum of infrastructure capabilities.”

Ali Bianco, Mia McCarthy, Jennifer Scholtes and Katherine Tully-McManus contributed to this report.

Congress

Capitol agenda: Some Republicans get bipartisan curious

Published

48 minutes ago

October 22, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Facing a blue wave, Republicans have found bipartisanship.

A new Blue Light News poll shows that 66% of Republican voters this midterm want a Democratic House to find common ground with President Donald Trump to pass legislation next year, assuming the party flips that chamber in November.

Democrats don’t seem sold on the unity vibe. Almost the same percentage of Democratic voters want their party to block Trump and GOP proposals they disagree with, even if that means fewer bills get passed.

The GOP’s team-player spirit is also showing up in Republicans’ campaign messaging too — far more than in previous cycles.

Across all House and Senate races, GOP candidates or outside groups backing them have run nearly 200 ads that mention bipartisanship, working across the aisle or “both sides,” according to a Blue Light News analysis of AdImpact data. That’s up more than 60% from 2024.

An ad from Michigan GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers says he’ll “bring both parties together” to lower prices. Iowa Rep. Zach Nunn told voters in an ad he is “one of the most bipartisan members of Congress.” And Arkansas Rep. French Hill is touting how the housing law he backed “passed with bipartisan support.”

The focus is a notable change from 2024. Back then, GOP candidates and groups ran more than 90 ads that promised to “stop Biden” or “stop Democrats.” That rhetoric is all but gone from GOP ads now.

Still, it remains to be seen if GOP lawmakers elected in November can collaborate with the different factions of the Democratic party that may be more — or less — willing to reach across the aisle.

Seventy-one percent of progressive voters, for example, indicated they would prefer Trump obstruction over finding common ground, compared to 57% of moderates, according to the polling. Progressives were also more likely to say Democrats’ highest priority if they retake the House should be doing everything they can to block Republicans’ agenda.

The one exception for Dems: affordability. Fifty-seven percent of Democratic midterm voters indicated they’d prefer the party do whatever it takes to pass legislation lowering the cost of living, even if it’d give the GOP a win — including 56% of progressive voters and 58% of moderates.

What else we’re watching:

— DEMS’ TREASURY TARGETS — Democrats are readying for a showdown with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent if they take back power in November. The Democrats who would lead the committees overseeing the Treasury Department and IRS are preparing to investigate Trump’s alleged self-enrichment schemes and efforts to dismantle regulatory agencies, according to people with direct knowledge of Democrats’ plans granted anonymity to describe them.

— WYDEN’S CLEAN ENERGY PLAN — Sen. Ron Wyden wants to bring back a clean energy tax credit program he says new data proves was wildly successful in helping keep down Americans’ energy expenses. The top Democrat on Senate Finance is releasing a report of IRS data, shared first with Blue Light News, showing $2.5 billion in direct payments made in the first two years of the Democrats’ 2022 climate law to cover electric school buses, rooftop solar, electric vehicles and more. Wyden said he would revive the solar and wind tax credits if given the chance to chair the panel again, plus boost what’s known as the Direct Pay Program, which schools and tax exempt entities can use on clean energy infrastructure.

Jessica Piper, Danny Nguyen, Michael Stratford and Kelsey Brugger contributed to this report.

Congress

Democrats are eyeing a John Fetterman challenge. Chris Deluzio is already laying the groundwork.

Published

4 hours ago

October 22, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

BEAVER FALLS, Pennsylvania — At a packed town hall in a deep-red Pennsylvania county, Tod Marion stood up to ask Democratic Rep. Chris Deluzio about his plans to make Congress an institution that no longer “embarrassed” him — one that might even make him “proud again.”

Deluzio, a 42-year-old father of four, called it a “big question” and launched into a lengthy speech about Washington’s failures to offer the younger generation the same social mobility afforded to older Americans like Marion, who identified himself as a husband of nearly 50 years and a believer in “liberty and justice for all.”

“I don’t just have small dreams for this country … and that requires us to, when we need to, to compromise and work together,” Deluzio said. “I stand my ground on core values, and where I’ve got to work with Republicans and House members and senators on delivering project funding, I do that. I think you need a representative who can do both of those things.”

It might as well have been a test run of his stump speech if Deluzio follows through on strong hints he’ll run for Senate in 2028 — against fellow Democratic incumbent John Fetterman, who he suggests has betrayed some of those core values.

“If I’m going to do it, I’m doing it to win, and I’m going to win,” Deluzio said in an interview with Blue Light News over a plate of greens and beans — a Pittsburgh staple — followed by pumpkin ravioli at Sarafino’s Restaurant, which he’s patronized since he was a teenager. He said he’s giving the matter “serious thought” and won’t make a decision until after the midterms.

Deluzio speaks during a town hall in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 17.

Deluzio campaigned with Fetterman in 2022, when both were seeking election to Congress. But he’s since grown more vocal in his criticism of the senator and has been essentially laying the groundwork for a challenge for months — taunting Fetterman in media interviews and social media posts, hammering him over and over again in particular for his embrace of President Donald Trump’s Iran war.

He has slammed Fetterman for his unwavering support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and accused him of not being up to the job of representing the fifth-largest state. As a U.S. Naval Academy graduate who served in Iraq, Deluzio said Fetterman’s endorsement of the war in Iran was the breaking point.

“We have a lot of pretty serious responsibilities, but deciding when and whether to send Americans to fight is one of the most solemn responsibilities we have, and he treats it like a video game,” Deluzio said.

Deluzio also called out Fetterman for other actions he said are “actively undermining” Democratic efforts in a crucial election year.

“He spoke at that [GOP midterm] convention. He’s on right-wing news constantly bashing the Democrats,” Deluzio said. “Democratic committee people, candidates, you name it — they’re bringing up on their own how mad they are at this guy.”

Deluzio is casting himself as someone who not only has a commitment to serve but a message that can resonate statewide. He’s touting his efforts to campaign for Democrats across the state while dishing out significant cash to help them get elected — more than $1.5 million, he said, and “a lot of that in Pennsylvania.”

“I look at the job I have in the Congress to represent the place that made me, represent three quarters of a million people. I don’t know, man — I still pinch myself that I get to do that,” he continued. “I cannot imagine somebody being a senator and just fucking blowing off the job, and you don’t do a public event for nearly a year. … That’s different than disagreements on votes.”

Deluzio is not the only Democrat weighing a primary challenge against Fetterman; others could include Philadelphia Rep. Brendan Boyle or Rep. Summer Lee, a Pittsburgh progressive. Another potential contender is Conor Lamb, a former House member whose failed primary campaign against Fetterman in 2022 paved the way for Deluzio’s election to the House that same year.

But Mike Mikus, a longtime Democratic operative in the state, said in an interview Deluzio could have a unique edge: Trump won Pennsylvania in 2024 as well as Beaver County, the latter by almost 60%. In Beaver County that same year, Deluzio outperformed Democrats running at the top of both presidential and Senate tickets. He also represents part of Allegheny County, which trends blue.

“The way you win statewide in Pennsylvania is, run up big numbers in the deep blue areas — Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Harrisburg — but you have to hit a baseline in the red counties. That’s how Biden won Pennsylvania,” Mikus said. “Deluzio has proven that he has that ability, because he’s done it in Beaver County.”

Fetterman, who has not announced whether he plans to run for reelection, did not respond to a request for comment about his intentions for 2028 or Deluzio’s criticisms.

Lamb declined to comment on his plans, while Boyle, in a statement, said he planned to “sit down and make a decision about 2028 based on where I think I can have the biggest impact on policy.” A spokesperson for Lee said her focus right now is entirely on delivering for her district.

Deluzio espouses a brand of lunch-pail, pro-labor politics that is similar to what Fetterman ran on in 2022. He touts his “vision to reindustrialize this country,” starting with the region he represents that was once anchored by the now-flailing steel industry.

“A lot of my district, especially Beaver County, lived through the consequences of really lousy, shitty trade deals that shipped away good manufacturing jobs for the promise of cheaper goods,” he said, adding that support for union work is “a big part of where the Democratic Party was and should be.”

He’s especially proud of securing an $184 million earmark to modernize the Montgomery Locks and Dam along the Ohio River, which is estimated to generate thousands of union jobs while bringing more than $100 million in annual economic growth to the region.

Deluzio also talks up his rail safety bill, which he introduced in response to the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio — just over the state line from Beaver County. In a win for unions, the legislation would require two people to operate a freight train, while also imposing new regulations for carrying particular hazardous materials. Trump endorsed the bill in May, and it could be signed into law as part of a bipartisan surface transportation package.

A railroad crossing is seen in Carnegie, Pennsylvania. Deluzio’s district is covered in railroad tracks, including those run by Norfolk Southern, the company responsible for the 2023 toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which affected Beaver County.

He garnered national headlines last year when he joined five fellow congressional Democrats with military and intelligence backgrounds in filming a video warning military personnel not to follow illegal orders from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Trump suggested the group be sentenced to death.

“Of course it was jarring,” Deluzio said of Trump’s response. “But not for a second did this guy intimidate me. Not for a second deter me from the duty that I was elected in this job to do.”

After he returned from Iraq in 2010, Deluzio attended and graduated from Georgetown Law, clerked for a federal judge and worked as a voting rights attorney at the Brennan Center for Justice. He then moved back to Pennsylvania in 2020 and worked on voting rights and election security at the University of Pittsburgh.

Marion, the constituent who asked Deluzio about congressional dysfunction at the Beaver Falls event, gave Deluzio credit for holding town halls while other lawmakers avoid public forums where they might get yelled at by voters, or worse.

“A lot of these guys aren’t really showing up,” said the registered Democrat from nearby Brighton Township.

Deluzio celebrates the opening of Etna Center for Community on Oct. 17. He secured $3 million in federal funds for the library and community center.

In between bites back at Sarafino’s, Deluzio spoke more about why he’d want to be in the Senate. The opportunity to vet federal judicial nominees is a “big deal,” he said, as is the chance to vote on treaties and shape the Cabinet — especially if Democrats win back the White House in 2028.

“Look, it’s a bigger perch to shape domestic policy … But ultimately, it’s about people around here. I’m proud of how much money I bring home,” he said. “I think I’ve led all House Democrats this year. I would do more of that if I were a senator.”

Congress

Scalise heads to Florida to boost several GOP candidates

Published

22 hours ago

October 21, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise is heading to Florida to boost a raft of Republicans as the House GOP campaign arm launches new spending across the ruby-red state.

Republicans are working to ensure they prevail in a series of tight Florida races after they redrew several districts in their favor. Several GOP incumbents have warned the party needs to do more to help put out fires across these areas. Scalise is just the latest Republican leader who is looking to shore up candidates in once-thought-to-be-safe red territory.

Scalise will hold a GOTV rally Thursday with Republican Dan Green who is challenging Democratic Rep. Darren Soto in central Florida’s 9th District, according to an invite obtained by Blue Light News. Soto should be toast from the GOP redistricting effort, but he’s still hauling in significant fundraising and Democrats say their internal polling shows a tight race.

Over on the Gulf Coast, the National Republican Congressional Committee is also launching its first coordinated ad spending for Rep. Anna Paulina Luna on Wednesday. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, GOP governor nominee Rep. Byron Donalds and Sen. Ashley Moody, who is also up for reelection, are appearing at a Saturday rally with Luna.

President Donald Trump won Luna’s district by 13 points and Democrats have tried and failed to target her before. But Republicans are warning the headwinds are stronger this year and forcing a tighter than expected race.

Republicans are also working to shore up key seats in South Florida. Scalise will be with GOP Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar in the Miami area Friday, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter, granted anonymity to share not yet public details. Salazar has raised alarm about Republican erosion with Hispanic voters in his district and other states over the Trump administration’s mass deportations.

Scalise will boost Ryan Elijah, the Republican who beat scandal-ridden Rep. Cory Mills in the primary in Florida’s 7th District, according to another person with direct knowledge of the matter, granted anonymity to speak candidly. The party feels better about the seat in recent weeks, especially more than they would have if Mills had won the GOP nomination.

The House Majority Leader will also hold events with Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast and Rep. Gus Bilirakis, according to the person.