Congress

Capitol agenda: Congress confronts Venezuela fallout

Published

6 months ago

January 5, 2026

Venezuela will dominate the congressional agenda this week, with Republicans lacking a unified vision on what happens next after the capture of Nicolás Maduro and the Senate poised to vote to limit further attacks without lawmaker approval.

— Briefings incoming: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Dan Caine will brief top lawmakers on this weekend’s Venezuela attack at 5:30 p.m. Monday.

The members receiving the briefing include the top four congressional leaders as well as senior House and Senate members of the Intelligence, Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Foreign Relations committees.

Trump himself will speak to House Republicans Tuesday at their annual retreat at the Kennedy Center.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer are also working to schedule an all-senators briefing as soon as mid-week, according to two people granted anonymity.

— The big question: Who will ‘run’ Venezuela? Republicans have largely rallied behind the administration’s capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. But there’s some daylight between them when it comes to what happens next — and some emerging distrust with the administration.

Trump, at least initially, praised Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez — now the country’s acting leader — as someone he could work with. His comments were at odds with the wishes of Florida Republican lawmakers who prefer Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. Trump dismissed her as not having the “support” or “respect” to lead the country. Other Republicans including Rep. Bill Huizenga of Michigan and Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana are calling on Trump to look to Edmundo González, who many nations consider the rightful winner of Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election.

Behind the scenes, some Republicans are entering the week, as many Democrats are saying publicly, feeling misled by Rubio and the others in the administration about what the endgame has been for Venezuela. Lawmakers have generally trusted Rubio, their former colleague, but the Venezuela attack is straining the relationship.

Rubio on Sunday was vague on the administration’s transition plans for Venezuela. Instead of outlining Trump’s pledge to “run” the country, he said the U.S. is not occupying Venezuela and is instead implementing a “quarantine that allows us to exert tremendous leverage over what happens next.”

— The war powers vote: Despite some bipartisan misgivings, it doesn’t yet appear there will be a groundswell of GOP opposition to Trump’s move if the Senate votes this week on whether to limit further military action in Venezuela without congressional approval. A November vote on the issue garnered support from just two Republicans, Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska).

House Democrats in a private meeting Sunday discussed how they could force Speaker Mike Johnson to hold a vote on war powers, according to three people granted anonymity. House Republicans in December narrowly defeated a resolution to block military action in Venezuela, with Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) breaking with their party to support it.

Massie’s aggressive rebuke of the weekend attack is opening a new front in his primary as he faces off against Trump-backed challenger and former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein.

What else we’re watching:

— Shutdown vibes not so bad: House leaders are hoping to put a three-bill funding package on the floor Thursday covering Commerce-Justice-Science, Interior-Environment and Energy-Water. If the House passes it with Democratic support, it could also become a vehicle for a stop-gap continuing resolution in the Senate.

— Health care action: House Democrats will move as soon as Wednesday to force a vote on extending expired Affordable Care Act subsidies for three years, according to three people granted anonymity to discuss internal planning. The House could pass the bill by Thursday but it’s on track to die in the Senate.

Jordain Carney, Meredith Lee Hill, Nicholas Wu, Lisa Kashinsky and Mia McCarthy contributed to this report.

Congress

Johnson says he will send housing bill to Trump on Monday

Published

9 hours ago

June 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

House Speaker Mike Johsnon said he plans to send President Donald Trump a bipartisan housing bill Monday, just days after the president abruptly canceled a signing ceremony for the legislation after Congress failed to pass his elections security act.

Speaking with Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” Johnson said the 21st Century ROAD To Housing Act is a Republican priority for lowering costs for Americans.

“I’m going to send the bill over to him on Monday, and it will become law,” the Louisiana Republican told host Maria Bartiromo. “I certainly want him to take the biggest, boldest marker that he has and do that big Trump signature proudly on that legislation because we’re delivering for the people, and that’s what he wants to do.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Johnson’s remarks.

The bill is the product of almost a year of back-and-forth between all four congressional corners and aims to increase affordability by boosting housing supply and home ownership. It passed both chambers of Congress with wide bipartisan support.

Trump was scheduled to sign the bill into law last week but canceled the ceremony “until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency.”

Trump’s SAVE America Act would require voters to present a photo ID at the ballot box and effectively end mail-in voting. Trump has also said he would like the bill to include prohibitions on transgender athletes competing. But Republican leaders have repeatedly indicated the legislation does not have enough votes to pass.

Congressional leaders appeared taken aback by Trump’s signing cancellation, but Johnson on Sunday said he and the president have since met in the Oval Office to discuss the housing bill “in great detail.”

“We made a lot of promises to the voters, and we’re fulfilling those every single day of this Congress,” Johnson said. “This is a big part of that because this will increase the availability, the access to more housing, bring down cost, cut regulations, do the things we know are very important for that market. The president and I talked about that at length. Of course he wants to do those things.”

But if Trump does not sign the housing bill into law within the next few days, it would still become law unless he were to veto it. Congress also has the power to override a presidential veto.

Congress

Sen. Thom Tillis rails against Trump’s fixation on voting legislation

Published

10 hours ago

June 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Sen. Thom Tillis on Sunday expressed frustration with President Donald Trump’s continued fixation on passing the SAVE America Act.

In an interview with BLN’s “Face the Nation,” the retiring North Carolina Republican lamented “the impossible task” of implementing the requirements of the legislation ahead of November’s crucial midterms.

“Why are we doing more things to undermine our confidence in elections, rather than getting the strong message out that will win for Republicans this year?” Tillis said.

Rather than promoting the bill — which would require voters to present a photo ID at the ballot box and effectively end widespread mail-in voting — Tillis said Republicans should tell voters about “the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America” while accepting the current voting laws.

“Win by the good results that Republicans have produced and stop undermining the confidence in the elections,” said Tillis. “This is a bedrock of our 250-year history of success as the democracy that changed the world. Let’s not mess with that between now and November.”

Trump has said the SAVE America Act is his “No. 1 priority” ahead of midterms, going so far as to abruptly cancel a bill signing for major bipartisan legislation on housing affordability until Congress passes his elections bill. But many Democrats are staunchly against the bill, arguing it could disenfranchise millions of voters, and Republican leaders in Congress have repeatedly indicated it does not have the votes to pass.

Tillis co-sponsored the original SAVE America Act but has objected to Trump’s version of the legislation, which would also bar transgender athletes from women’s sports.

It’s not the first time Tillis has clashed with Trump.

Earlier this year, Tillis blocked Trump’s Fed chair nominee, Kevin Warsh, until the Justice Department dropped an investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. He has also spoken out against the Justice Department’s $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” calling it a “payout for punks.” And he has emerged as a fierce critic of Bill Pulte, Trump’s interim director of national intelligence.

“Let’s try and figure out a way to completely and finally end these distractions so that we can focus on the damage Democrats could do if they take the House, if they beat incumbent Republicans in the Senate. That’s what Republicans need to be talking about between now and November,” Tillis said Sunday.

Congress

Sen. Bill Cassidy on Trump: ‘Sometimes he acts as if Congress is merely an appendage’

Published

11 hours ago

June 28, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Sen. Bill Cassidy appeared to question President Donald Trump’s view of Congress, saying in an interview that he is not sure Trump grasps that Congress “is a separate body, separate from the presidency.”

“Sometimes he acts as if Congress is merely an appendage, and, frankly, sometimes Congress acts like it’s an appendage,” the Louisiana Republican said in a pre-taped interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation” that aired Sunday.

The latest criticism in a public clash between the two leaders, Cassidy also told host Margaret Brennan that he would be focused on affordability, including the cost of health care and groceries, if he were president.

“If I were president, I would be focused on those people that they have, my people, our people, us at the kitchen table. How do you make their life better? And that’s what I think the president should be focused on,” Cassidy said.

The relationship between Cassidy and Trump has been rocky for some time. Cassidy was one of only a handful of Republican leaders who voted to convict Trump for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

Trump and Cassidy recently clashed in a closed-door meeting between GOP leaders, with Cassidy admitting he raised his voice to “match” the president’s.

“The president said something negative about me. I received it as attempting to bully me from asking a question that I think the American people need to know, and I’m not going to be bullied,” Cassidy said at the time.

However, after receiving a special briefing from Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff, Cassidy changed his vote on a resolution designed to rein in Trump’s power to wage war against Iran.

“They said right now the negotiations are delicate, and they could collapse if they’re not nursed along in the appropriate way. I can accept that,” Cassidy said.

“That’s the reason they said for their kind of lack of being forthcoming. I can accept that, but my goal was to be briefed, to have the truth in order to make a decision for the benefit of my country, and that was satisfied.”

Still, Cassidy’s stance against Trump has cost him: After serving more than a decade in the Senate, Cassidy lost his campaign for renomination after Trump endorsed against him. Rep. Julia Letlow will be the Louisiana Republican Senate candidate this fall.