Congress:1A New January to List of Pressing Matters.
An explanation of everything Congress needs to do in the new year but has been putting off.
Even if it wasn’t completely humiliating for the House’s declining Republican majority, it hasn’t been a very productive year for it.
After nearly a month of turmoil, the body deposed one speaker and elected a new one in 2023, passing historically little in the way of legislation and expelling its first member in over 20 years.
Congress:1A New January to List of Pressing Matters.
However, Congress did not pass a supplemental appropriations bill to continue funding Ukraine and Israel, nor did it reach an agreement on a long-term budget to keep the government operating.
Additionally, lawmakers must overcome their holiday inertia and take action because time and money are running out swiftly in the upcoming year to complete those priorities.
These are the four main queries regarding the January slate of Congress.
What precisely needs to be accomplished by Congress, and by when?
Maintaining the government’s operations will be Congress’s top priority. Congress approved two continuing resolutions, or CRs, in September and November of this year to avert impending government shutdowns, but time is running out once more.
As Li Zhou of Vox has previously reported, the government was funded in two parts during the November shutdown: partially through January 19 and the remainder through February 2. This unusual two-part structure was employed.
This implies that before funds run out in five government departments—transportation, housing, energy, agriculture, and veterans’ affairs—lawmakers will have just nine legislative days remaining.
Congress:1A New January to List of Pressing Matters.
A full-year CR will encounter bipartisan resistance in the Senate, creating a deadlock; additionally, there appears to be no consensus on funding levels in a new appropriations bill.
CNN reports that House Republican leadership is not particularly interested in taking a chance on another short-term funding fix.
Congress has one clear deadline to resolve the impasse: if it isn’t done by midnight on January 19, there will be a partial government shutdown, with more agencies following two weeks later in February.
Congress:1A New January to List of Pressing Matters.
However, there are other things that also need to be completed quickly: There is no deadline for the financing measures for Israel and Ukraine, but there is still strategic pressure to complete them quickly.
Both nations are engaged in an active war, and the Biden government has stated that this month it will run out of money for Ukraine.
While support for Israel is overwhelmingly supported by both parties despite the increasing number of civilian deaths and the terrible human suffering in Gaza, support for Ukraine has been eroding, especially among Republicans, as the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion draws near and there is little sign of military progress or an end in sight.
How in the world did Congress end up in this mess?
The House Republican majority is the primary cause of Congress’s current deadline predicament. An internal uprising removed former Speaker Kevin McCarthy from office in September 2023 after he negotiated the first of two CRs.
The group then debated several substitute Before selecting Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana as the current speaker, there were numerous speaker contenders.
“For the rest of the country, a fight over the speakership takes away from the work of passing a long-term funding deal, as well as negotiating the future of aid to Ukraine,” Vox’s Ellen Ioanes explained at the time.
Johnson had little time in his new chair to do more than kick the can down the road with November’s CR after that fight, which took 22 days to conclude. Moreover, the time that Johnson was given is rapidly running out.
Congress:1A New January to List of Pressing Matters.
Now, Johnson has the same majority that opposed McCarthy for reaching a compromise, with the exception of the seat that was left empty by the removal of former Representative George Santos (R-NY).
There will be more openings soon, including McCarthy’s, whose resignation is effective December 31. Further complicating negotiations is the fact that many of his most ardent supporters want far deeper spending cuts than would be acceptable to the White House or the Democratic majority in the Senate.
A few members of the far-right House Freedom Caucus had previously denounced Johnson’s prior CR, which was ultimately approved with a significantly higher percentage of Democratic votes. Johnson might have to do the same this time, but doing so could make him vulnerable to an impeachment a la McCarthy.
Why is it important that Congress is unable to approve a regular funding bill?
When compared to a partial government shutdown, continuing resolutions are frequently the lesser of two evils, and they can be genuinely
the Navy Chief of Operations Adm. Michael Gilday expressed unequivocally that the possible effects of a year-long CR would be “completely new territory that we have not dealt with before that will have significant impacts across our military.” A similar action could affect all branches of government.
The Pentagon cautioned similarly this month. According to a news release from the Defense Department, Adm. Christopher Grady stated that “continuing [resolutions] are not where we want to be” during a December gathering with the Atlantic Council. We require consistent and reliable funding.
What role does immigration play?
Immigration is one more item in the convoluted bundle of congressional priorities for January. Despite being widely regarded as one of the most unsolvable problems on Capitol Hill, congressional Republicans have
used the Biden administration’s request for increased funding for Ukraine as leverage and are hoping to obtain policy changes such as restrictions on asylum and accelerated deportations.
Although the precise details of such a bill are still unknown, its likelihood is increasing. The Biden administration is worried that the border poses a political risk, as Vox’s Andrew Prokop revealed this month.
As a result, a deal with Senate Republicans may be reached in the upcoming year.
A deal like this would connect funding for Ukraine with laws pertaining to immigration and border security.
Additionally, President Joe Biden has advocated for connecting aid to Israel and Ukraine, meaning that all three goals could advance simultaneously or not at all.
A bill on immigration that is bipartisan would be difficult for Democrats to support morally and politically. According to Prokop:
Reaching an agreement on immigration restrictions would represent a significant turnabout for the “in this house, we believe no human is illegal” faction.
It would dash the hopes of millions of people who, frequently after a perilous journey, came to the United States in search of a better life for themselves and their families.
Furthermore, it would spark a great deal of debate among left-leaning progressives and activists.
However, the White House believes that the urgency of the aid for Ukraine could still clear the way.
Despite denouncing congressional Republicans in a speech earlier this month for “playing chicken with our national security, holding Ukraine’s funding hostage to their extreme partisan border policies,” Biden further stated that “Putin’s position is undoubtedly strengthened by any disruption in our ability to supply Ukraine.”
In terms of authorization, we have exhausted our financial resources to accomplish that.
A bipartisan interest in Ukraine, Israel, and the border means a deal could still happen despite the House’s obstacles and the Senate’s failure to approve a previous package linking all three priorities in early December.
If so, it will become part of the government’s funding during what looks to be a busy January on Capitol Hill.
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