Letters from Capitol Hill that Members of Congress have written and signed on to lately.
Procedural Rules and Ruses
Trump talks. Legislators listen. A simple premise shaping the early essence of the 119th Session.
Reasons for Congress taking orders from Trump are myriad, primary among those being job security stemming from the national mandate of a majority of voters in the most recent general election landing the Don back in the White House.
While a rule by fear and threat of primary election sabotage for insubordination is proving to be an effective way to demonstrate his leadership for early instatement of a legacy policy plan, Trump, too, in an early move revealed a trait alongside Congress’ evidenced willingness to comply - a softened side.
In a bit of a back-and-forth regarding a rules play known as reconciliation to avoid negotiating with the minority Democrats in the Senate, Trump softened his position and took back some words to say two packages to cover his policy and budget plan as an early act of his Presidency would be ok.
Contents of this “mega” package have yet to be revealed, but Trump has signaled he is aiming for one encompassing bill, including measures on the debt limit, tax policy, border security, energy, and defense.
A deviation from his previous position that ramming the prospective policy and budget package through the House and Senate via reconciliation in one, Thanos-sized bill was the only option, wishy-washy is hardly a characteristic the creator and producer of The Apprentice would ever want to exude.
This leads Proxenos to believe that, perhaps, the incoming President is quickly learning the depths and traps of congressional procedure to cause the change in tune.
An optional procedure to bring revenue and spending levels into conformity with the policies of a budget resolution, reconciliation is a potent budget enforcement tool available to Congress for enacting a large portion of the budget.
Essentially, budget reconciliation is a tempting tool used to implement major changes in budget policy. It works like this:
At the start of each Congress, or, at least by April 15 of a new Session, the House and Senate are required (supposed) to adopt at least one budget resolution, which takes the form of a concurrent resolution (CR).
Largely symbolic, the budget resolution serves as a congressional statement in broad terms regarding what it considered appropriate revenue, spending, and debt policies, and it is not sent to the President for his approval or veto.
The budget resolution also serves as a guide to consideration of legislation during the Session, like setting policies at agency and programmatic levels.
Created in 1974, this Congress, the Senate and House Budget Committees will be chaired by incoming Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX), respectively. These leaders have jurisdiction over budget resolutions and are responsible for monitoring their enforcement.
With some additional enforcement authorities, the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Congressional Budget Office are involved to provide cost estimates for proposed legislation.
Additionally, and arguably most importantly, reconciliation instructions are included in the budget resolution and offer a tempting means of eliminating the voting deliberation process, including the dreaded Senate filibuster.
Tied to arcane rules, consideration of reconciliation package instruction often take time. To balance this anticipated ticking factor, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said he is aiming to have the reconciliation instruction addressed by Feb.
Per the Constitution, all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House, but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments revenue measures required; thus, Republicans will have to decide if they’re doing one bill or two bills soon — at least in a preliminary way — to kick off the reconciliation process.
There is great power in rules and procedural manipulation - power that has produced crucial law to protect civil liberties and human rights, which wouldn’t have had a chance for consideration or passage otherwise.
Beyond procedure providing historical forums to bypass congressional congestion and obstinance to cooperation, the bite of its terms are sharp and strongly enforced, not to mention grounds for good, old fashioned gloating when attempts to manipulate them fail.
Outside of the policy provisions, the GOP is reportedly planning additionally to address the debt limit in consideration of a reconciliation play.
Raising the debt ceiling through reconciliation would minimize the need for negotiations with Democrats on provisions of a budget or policy package, but it would require a nearly unanimous vote among Republicans.
Considering some conservatives have consistently opposed debt-limit bills the contents of the rest of the reconciliation package would be critical, not to mention carry a requirement of being germane to be considered.
The reality on Senatorial bullying and the Upper Chamber’s rigid hierarchy is a topic for another post, but, if the deliberative body is a school yard, Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough is the principal, sheriff, judge, jury, and executioner in this Stanford Senate Experiment.
A good way to identify (and actively avoid) a true D.C. insider is if they know that a woman is really running the show in Washington. The arbiter and referee of procedure, MacDonough is considered a queen, and her throne is the dias ever-so-slightly elevated over the floor of the Senate.
Her parliamentarian counterpart in the House is running a show with its own pieces of importance; however, for Trump’s ambition to rely on reconciliation, unlike the good people of the House, MacDonough’s loyalty lies solely with her own legacy of approving or excluding amendments and methods for advancing legislation.
For some context, nothing is off limits to become a point of order for a lack of germaneness, not even if it’s the word on high from the Big Man or First Buddy Musk.
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Jan. 07 | Pomp and Farewell
Former President Jimmy Carter, who once banned the playing of “Hail to the Chief,” will be honored with three days of elaborate ceremonies in the nation’s capital set to begin today.
On the Floor
In the House, first and last votes are expected: 1:00 p.m.
H.R. 29 – Laken Riley Act (Sponsored by Rep. Collins / Judiciary Committee)
Senators convened at 11:00 a.m., with no business locked in.
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Jan. 03 | Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
Senator Thom Tillis and six of his Republican Senate colleagues recently sent a letter to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Director Steve Dettelbach, calling on him to suspend and refrain from issuing any further rulemaking and support the incoming Trump Administration.
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Jan. 03 | Unstable Grid Concerns from Congress for Ukraine
U.S. Representatives Sean Casten (IL-06), Kathy Castor (FL-14), and Deborah Ross (NC-02) sent a letter to Samantha Power, the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), urging USAID to support the deployment of electric grid enhancing technologies in Poland in order to increase reliable power delivery into Ukraine.
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