Congress Update is a daily digest of congressional news, policy and politics.
Senate leaders are trying to find a way to quickly pass three fiscal 2026 spending bills, breaking a multi-day impasse that has kept the first group of the year’s 12 annual appropriations bills from reaching the floor. Under the pending proposal, leaders would seek unanimous consent to bundle the Military Construction-VA, Agriculture-FDA and Commerce-Justice-Science measures into one package. A third bill to fund Congress itself could then be voted on separately. The move comes as current government funding expires Sept. 30 and lawmakers are heading into a lengthy August recess.
Congressional approval rating hits 23%
Republicans face rowdy town halls over big domestic policy law
The National Republican Congressional Committee has begun encouraging members to aggressively sell President Trump’s big domestic policy law at in-person town hall meetings during their August recess. In Wisconsin, Rep. Bryan Steil faced jeers and boos from an angry crowd. In Texas, voters backed a ballot measure to redraw congressional districts and the state’s all-Republican delegation may shrink.
Senate Democrats are exploring whether to offer a smaller batch of nominees for quick confirmation in exchange for other concessions from the White House in their continuing standoff over a partial government shutdown. Majority Leader John Thune says he has put top White House staffers into direct conversation with Schumer’s team as they look for a solution. But as of Friday evening, the senators had not reached an agreement and it appeared unlikely they’d be able to finish work before departing for their summer recess.
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