Senators return to Washington Monday to a three-week window for legislating before they depart until November \u2014 and internal splits on both sides of the aisle are threatening passage of legislation to impose new federal rules on an industry worth tens of billions of dollars.<\/p>\n

Schumer must decide if he wants to steer his members toward helping Republicans reach the 60-vote threshold on what could be the sweepiest bill the chamber passes before the midterms.<\/p>\n

Backing it would mean supporting top Commerce Democrat Maria Cantwell\u2019s efforts in crafting the bipartisan legislation that has taken months of painstaking negotiations with her counterpart, Chair Ted Cruz. But there are also plenty of downsides to promoting the bill \u2014 which has President Donald Trump\u2019s endorsement.<\/p>\n

One Democratic Senate aide with knowledge of the negotiations believes there\u2019s enough opposition within the party to tank the measure on the floor as a coalition of labor rights groups and the Congressional Black Caucus warn the bill is exploitative.<\/p>\n

\u201cA good number of Democratic offices aren\u2019t eager to tick off the AFL-CIO and NAACP, screw over college athletes and deliver Trump and Senate Republicans a major political win weeks before midterms,\u201d another Democratic Senate aide with knowledge of the negotiations said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBad policy. Terrible politics,\u201d the aide added.<\/p>\n

An aide for Schumer Tuesday did not say whether he supports the legislation. The spokesperson said Schumer \u201cknows Congress should act to bring clarity and certainty\u201d to the issues addressed in the measure, and that he\u2019s \u201ccontinuing to talk to members as the bill moves toward the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

But continued pushback from Democratic members like Sen. Chris Murphy and the CBC<\/u><\/a> \u2014 plus several labor<\/u><\/a>, civil rights<\/u><\/a> and athletes<\/u><\/a> organizations<\/u><\/a> \u2014 have thrown into question Democrats\u2019 support.<\/p>\n

Murphy, who has objected to the bill\u2019s silence on college athletes\u2019 employee status, has led the charge against the bill, refuting several posts from Cruz<\/u><\/a> on social media this week.<\/p>\n

Still, a lobbyist working on the bill, granted anonymity to discuss the dynamics, said they \u201ccould see Schumer letting [defectors] go their own way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI also suspect that [Dems\u2019] own tallies are probably showing that they can afford votes like that,\u201d the lobbyist said of Schumer.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Republicans are still working through their own divide on the bill: concerns over whether the legislation would pre-empt states\u2019 authority to block trans athletes from competing on women\u2019s sports teams.<\/p>\n

Trump last month encouraged Republicans not to stand<\/u><\/a> in the way of the measure over the issue after senators like Josh Hawley and Tommy Tuberville expressed hesitation.<\/p>\n

But even if the bill were to eke by in the Senate, a hefty amount of opposition in both parties is bound to create an uphill battle in the House, where Majority Leader Steve Scalise has been less than enthusiastic about the package.<\/p>\n

What else we\u2019re watching:\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\u2014 GOP HOPES DALLAS ENERGIZES TRUMP FANS: <\/b>Republicans are hoping the Trump-centric midterm convention kicking off in Dallas Wednesday reminds their base why they fell in love<\/u><\/a> with the president in the first place. The next 48 hours are geared in part toward turning out low-propensity voters who are loyal to Trump but tend to skip midterm elections. If they turn out, it won\u2019t be because these voters like a particular congressman but because of their affinity for the president.<\/p>\n

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\n \u2014 COLLINS DINGS WHITE HOUSE ON TARIFFS:\u00a0<\/b>Sen. Susan Collins says the White House doesn\u2019t understand how<\/a> its trade war with Canada is affecting Maine. The border-state senator facing a tough re-election bid told Blue Light News she has spoken with Vice President JD Vance and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer about the escalating tariffs between the two countries and encouraged them to re-open negotiations. Collins late Tuesday applauded the Trump administration’s tariff exemptions on road salt and cement, stating they were “two products crucial to Maine that would be severely affected.”
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\n \u00a0<\/b>
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\n Jacob Wendler, Alex Gangitano, Jessica Piper and Megan Messerly contributed to this report.<\/i>
\n \n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"