The Hill's Morning Report — Congress is running out of time for big fiscal deal
The clock is running out for Congress to fund the government and avoid a shutdown by Friday at midnight. With the holidays fast approaching, lawmakers are facing a familiar time crunch on two must-pass bills — an omnibus government funding bill and the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Of the two bills, the NDAA is one step closer to passage. Its record $858 billion in spending priorities cleared the House on Thursday. The omnibus spending bill, however, is a differen
Read MoreBehind-the-scenes hunt builds for McCarthy Speaker alternative
Searches for a Speaker alternative to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) are slowly building momentum as he faces opposition that threatens to sink his bid. On one side, McCarthy’s fiercest detractors are teasing that there are people interested in being a viable GOP consensus substitute for the current minority leader. On the other, members say preliminary conversations are happening among Republicans and Democrats about a possible contingency candidate if McCarthy cannot win the gavel after multiple ballots in the new GOP-majority House next month. Neither
Read MoreJan. 6 panels eyes new beginning with DOJ as partner in Trump probe
The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol is increasingly turning to the Department of Justice as a potential partner for carrying out its mission once the panel sunsets. The two investigative teams have at times been at odds over the last year and a half, with the panel rebuffing a request from the Department of Justice (DOJ) to share transcripts of its interviews in May. But as it stares down an end-of-the-year deadline, the committee’s tune is changing toward something reminiscent of a high school yearbook: Let’s keep
Read MoreTrump says he turned down deal to release Paul Whelan
Former President Trump on Sunday said he turned down a deal to release former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who’s been detained by Moscow since 2018, in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout during his time in the White House. “I turned down a deal with Russia for a one on one swap of the so-called Merchant of Death for Paul Whelan. I wouldn’t have made the deal for a hundred people in exchange for someone that has killed untold numbers of people with his arms deals,” Trump
Read MoreTrump, Biden fortunes shift dramatically post-midterms
It’s a tale of two men vying for the 2024 presidential election. President Biden hasn’t officially announced another White House bid, but his informal reelection rollout is in motion — and things have generally been going his way since the midterms gave Democrats a lift. Biden managed to have the best first-term performance in the midterms of any president since Republican President George W. Bush, who saw his party gain seats in the House and Senate that cycle in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Biden didn’t quite do
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