• Investing
  • Stock
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Portfolio Performance Today
Economy

Government shutdown, Epstein files, DC crime: Congress returns to mountain of drama

by September 3, 2025
by September 3, 2025

House and Senate lawmakers are returning to Washington from their home turfs to face a litany of critical battles in the coming weeks.

Tuesday marked the end of Congress’ annual August recess, and legislators are being met with several deadlines, ranging from averting a partial government shutdown to possibly extending President Donald Trump’s grip on D.C.’s police force.

Government funding

The House and Senate will overlap for just 14 days between Tuesday and the Sept. 30 government funding deadline, and no agreement has been reached yet on fiscal year (FY) 2026 spending priorities.

It’s likely that a stopgap extension of FY 2025 funding levels – called a continuing resolution (CR) – will be needed to avert a shutdown, which could have politically damaging consequences for Republicans while they control both Congress and the White House.

Democrats, unhappy with Republican efforts to rescind prior appropriated funds via the rescissions process, have signaled they’re ready to play hardball.

Any funding bill will need to pass through the Senate’s filibuster threshold, meaning Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., can only lose a handful of votes. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is still calling for a bipartisan process, but trust across the aisle is wearing thin.

A White House official told reporters on Friday they believe a clean CR, meaning without any changes or riders attached, would put Democrats in a difficult position and that rejecting one would pin the blame for a shutdown on the left.

Republicans themselves will have precious little room for error, however. Two special elections in safe blue seats between now and Sept. 30 are poised to shrink the House GOP majority from three seats to two.

Epstein files

A bipartisan effort to force a House-wide vote on releasing the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) records on Jeffrey Epstein is expected to move full-throttle this week, even as the DOJ has already agreed to hand a tranche of files over to the House Oversight Committee.

Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., are leading what’s known as a discharge petition, a mechanism for forcing a vote on legislation over the wishes of House leaders. That’s if the petition gets a majority of House lawmakers’ signatures.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., publicly condemned the effort in July, dismissing discharge petitions as a tool of the minority party and asserting that all Republicans were in favor of transparency in Epstein’s case.

Khanna told NBC News’ ‘Meet The Press’ over the weekend that the petition would go live on Sept. 2, and that he and Massie have more than enough commitments to force a vote.

DC police order

This week will also see the end of Trump’s 30-day hold over Washington, D.C.’s, police force, barring congressional action to extend it.

Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) last month as part of a wider effort to crack down on crime in the capital city. Under D.C.’s Home Rule Act, his authority over the local police can last 30 days unless Congress passes a joint resolution to extend it.

The president suggested in August, however, that he could bypass Congress on the issue if he declared a national emergency — a move that some Republicans are already on board with. Additionally, Trump’s deployment of federal troops into the District does not have a statutory end date.

It’s not clear yet which route will be taken, but a leadership aide told Fox News Digital last month that House leaders were working with the White House on a package of legislation addressing D.C. crime.

Trump’s nominees

Senate Republicans were unable to get a deal in place to advance dozens of low-level nominations before leaving Washington last month.

Currently, Trump has 145 nominees scheduled on the executive calendar with more expected to make their way through committee as lawmakers continue their workflow.

And Republicans are willing to go nuclear on Senate Democrats to get their nominees through. That would mean unilaterally changing the rules in the upper chamber without Democrats weighing in.

The Senate GOP is set to meet this week to discuss the proposed rule changes, which could include shortening the debate time for certain nominees, bundling nominees together into a package or skipping the cloture vote on some nominees altogether. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

previous post
Massie fires back after Johnson calls his Epstein records push ‘meaningless’
next post
Top Senate Republican ready to go nuclear, ‘roll over’ Democrats with rule change to confirm Trump nominees

Related Posts

Tariffs Rest on Distrust of Citizens

October 3, 2025

What I Saw in Milei’s Argentina

October 3, 2025

White House says federal layoffs could hit ‘thousands’...

October 3, 2025

Democrats refuse to budge over Obamacare fight as...

October 3, 2025

Johnson shuts door on negotiating shutdown deal as...

October 3, 2025

‘Real consequences’: Food aid, flood insurance, FEMA funds...

October 3, 2025

Trump must triple severely outdated nuke arsenal to...

October 3, 2025

FLASHBACK: James Comey urged officials to always prosecute...

October 3, 2025

The agency staff Vought might recommend cutting and...

October 3, 2025

Trump’s DOGE savings dwarfed by Medicare, Social Security...

October 3, 2025

Stay updated with the latest news, exclusive offers, and special promotions. Sign up now and be the first to know! As a member, you'll receive curated content, insider tips, and invitations to exclusive events. Don't miss out on being part of something special.

By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

Recent Posts

  • What I Saw in Milei’s Argentina

    October 3, 2025
  • Tariffs Rest on Distrust of Citizens

    October 3, 2025
  • Cyberattack halts Asahi production, disrupts Japan’s beer supply

    October 3, 2025
  • Europe markets open: Stoxx 600 rises 0.4%, extending its record-setting rally

    October 3, 2025
  • Bitcoin ETFs see over $600M in inflows as BTC price nears $120K

    October 3, 2025
  • Stockholm leads Europe in IPO activity with $6.8 billion raised

    October 3, 2025

Editors’ Picks

  • 1

    Meta executives eligible for 200% salary bonus under new pay structure

    February 21, 2025
  • 2

    Walmart earnings preview: What to expect before Thursday’s opening bell

    February 20, 2025
  • 3

    New FBI leader Kash Patel tapped to run ATF as acting director

    February 23, 2025
  • 4

    Cramer reveals a sub-sector of technology that can withstand Trump tariffs

    March 1, 2025
  • 5

    Anthropic’s newly released Claude 3.7 Sonnet can ‘think’ as long as the user wants before giving an answer

    February 25, 2025
  • 6

    Nvidia’s investment in SoundHound wasn’t all that significant after all

    March 1, 2025
  • 7

    Pop Mart reports 188% profit surge, plans aggressive global expansion

    March 26, 2025

Categories

  • Economy (2,770)
  • Editor's Pick (279)
  • Investing (185)
  • Stock (1,885)
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Copyright © 2025 Portfolioperformancetoday.com All Rights Reserved.

Portfolio Performance Today
  • Investing
  • Stock
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Portfolio Performance Today
  • Investing
  • Stock
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Copyright © 2025 Portfolioperformancetoday.com All Rights Reserved.

Read alsox

Unfinished Business: The budget cuts Musk couldn’t...

May 31, 2025

China’s AI Hype Echoes Mao’s ‘Satellite’ Era

July 25, 2025

Trump’s DOGE savings dwarfed by Medicare, Social...

October 3, 2025