Welcome to the online edition of From The Politics Desk, an evening newsletter that provides the latest reports and analysis from the NBC News Politics team’s White House, Capitol Hill and Campaign Trail.
Happy Monday! It’s another shutdown week in Washington. There’s an updated version of where things stand ahead of the government’s funding deadline on Friday. Furthermore, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Voldimia Zelenki head to Saudi Arabia, Alexander Smith examines how the country has become an unexpected diplomatic force.
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– Adam Walner
Two big questions looming in the fight for shutdown
If you’ve heard this, stop me: Congress is competing to avoid government shutdown days from funding deadlines.
Speaker Mike Johnson released the Stop Gap bill over the weekend to maintain government lighting until the end of September. The measures that Democrats have not been involved in craft include increased military spending and reduced de-evacuation, such as Sahil Kapur, Scott Wong and Frank Thorp V Report.
It must pass the GOP-led home and the Senate and sign the law by President Donald Trump by midnight Friday.
There are two main questions that will determine whether that will become a reality or not.
Can Johnson unite House Republicans? Johnson has been keeping an eye on Tuesday’s vote in the House of Representatives in an ongoing resolution, saying he relies solely on Republican support.
It’s a tall order for the home, where Republicans make up a majority of 218-214. This means that Johnson can afford one asylum, assuming that all Democrats are against the bill and all members are in attendance. And he could have lost one vote already. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has made it clear that he does not support the StopGap bill.
The challenge for Johnson is to keep other conservative fiscal Hawks in the fold and keep Republicans who like to boost their defense spending significantly. Johnson has an important voice in his corner, as he did during the speaker’s race and budget resolution vote.
Some House Democrats could support the bill and give Johnson more room to breathe, but Chamber of Commerce party leaders are against the measure.
Will Senate Democrats vote for it? If the bill manages to get out of the house, then the pressure will fall into Senate Democrats.
Republicans have a majority of 53-47 in the Senate, so Democrats will need help crossing the 60-vote threshold. And like in the House, Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, has already said he’s voting against it.
Democrats are demanding guardrails in attempts to cut federal spending by Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk, who are under pressure from their bases to stand up to power more forcefully.
StopGap’s funding bill is one of the few major laws in GOP-controlled Washington this year with some leverage. But even if you vote for the measure and allow it to be shut down, even if it arises under the Republican trilogy, it could cause even more pain for those who rely on the federal workforce and government services.
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Things you need to know from today’s President Trump
The major stock index tanked on Monday and continued its steam-collected sale last week as investors fell to zero last week in the prospect of a major collapse of US growth amid a shaking job market. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents deported fewer migrants than they did under the Biden administration in February, according to ICE data obtained by NBC News, which has not been previously reported. Approximately 80,000 Health and Human Services employees received emails Friday night to provide a voluntary acquisition. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expanding research into vaccine-autism links, although such links have been widely exposed. Top Trump advisors have begun scoping potential sites at the Presidential Library in South Florida.
Ahead of the Rubio-Zelenskyy Summit, Saudi Arabia has emerged as an unlikely global power broker
Alexander Smith
Saudi Arabia will hold a key summit between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Voldi Zelensky on Tuesday.
It is another soft power coup for a country that has deliberately cultivated its reputation as a diplomatic go. Whether hosting American officials for negotiations to end the Ukrainian war, discussing talks about the future of Gaza, or rolling out the red carpet for Trump’s first foreign trip, Saudi Arabia has appeared in recent years as an unlikely global power broker.
Less than five years later, the then-president hopeful Joe Biden calls the kingdom “pariah,” saying that, even after significant reforms, the authoritarian Gulf state still has a “bad” human rights record.
Tuesday’s summit is about to transform Saudi Arabia’s image from a deeply conservative, oil-rich theocratic theocracy that killed US-based Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashogji in 2018, into a regional giant based on diplomacy, business, tourism, entertainment and sports.
Trump revealed last week that his first foreign visit of his second term was to Saudi Arabia, just as during his first administration. So, he said in return, Saudi Arabia agreed to invest a jackpot amount in American companies. This time it’s $1 trillion.
The relationship raises questions about the Riyadh and the Trump family. Sen. Ron Wyden, former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, raised “clear conflict of interest concerns” last year about a $2 billion investment in funds run by Saudi Arabian son-in-law Jared Kushner.
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Details of the Russian Crane War: Courtney Cube, Kristen Welker and Carol E. Lee report that Trump told aides that the mineral trade between the US and Ukraine is not sufficient to resume aid and sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
Trump wants guarantees that Zelensky is willing to make concessions in peace talks with Russia, including abandoning his territory. And he hopes Zelensky moves towards an election in Ukraine and resigns as perhaps the leader of his country.
today’s other top stories
Who is amy Gleeson? The White House said healthcare technician Amy Gleason is acting doge manager, but her role in the department is still unknown. Read More → 💲Millionaire Battle Royale: Musk and liberal megadonors like George Soros have poured millions of dollars into next month’s Wisconsin Supreme Court race, their first major battlefield election since 2024. Read more → 🏈We love sports and don’t care who knows. The New York Times explores the potential that the 2028 Democratic presidential candidate has been discussing sports fandom as the party appears to infiltrate male voters. Read more →
For now, it’s all from the political desk. Today’s newsletter was compiled by Adam Wollner and Bridget Bowman.
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