June 2026
Immigration budget bill off to a slow start in Senate
A GOP reconciliation bill for immigration enforcement survived its first key test Thursday as the Senate kicked off its amendment “vote-a-rama” amid bipartisan anger over a Justice Department “anti-weaponization” fund. On a 49-50 vote, the Senate rejected a procedural motion by Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., to send the bill back to the Judiciary […]
At the Races: Tricks of the trade
Welcome to At the Races! Each week we bring you news and analysis from the CQ Roll Call campaign team. Know someone who’d like to get this newsletter? They can subscribe here. By Daniela Altimari and Mary Ellen McIntire Democrats are sounding the alarm on mystery super PACs with ties to Republicans that are meddling in Democratic primaries. […]
You can’t always get what you want, politics edition
Jason Dick and Nathan Gonzales talk about “Super Junesday,” with its reality-TV-infused results in California, missing persons intrigue in New Jersey and the dusting of GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson, among many, many results. Show Notes:
Trump backs Senate’s version of college athletics bill
President Donald Trump on Thursday broke his silence over competing bills that would implement major changes to college sports, backing a bipartisan Senate measure and calling for the House and Senate to come together and send him legislation to sign this summer. In a social media post, Trump backed the Senate’s bill, primarily drafted by […]
Booker, Cassidy back legal challenge to ‘anti-weaponization’ fund
Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., filed a court brief Thursday supporting a lawsuit seeking to block implementation of the Trump administration’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund. The bipartisan brief was filed as the Senate voted on a measure to fund immigration enforcement, and where senators on both sides of the aisle have sought […]
Activities around the 250th highlight America’s disunity
One month from America’s 250th birthday, events and celebrations to commemorate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence are as fragmented as the nation’s politics and culture in 2026. President Donald Trump’s plans for a concert affiliated with the Great American State Fair in the weeks leading up to July 4 have been replaced by […]
The GOP push to ‘love thy neighbor’
When Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles posted Tuesday that “homosexuality has no place in America,” it wasn’t the first time he declared a certain group of people didn’t belong in the U.S. The difference this time: His fellow Republicans called him out, publicly. “Saying that homosexuals have no place in America is idiotic, but it’s also […]
Another one bites the dust
South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson was the early favorite in the state’s gubernatorial race, but in the run-up to Tuesday’s primary, a poll found his edge eroding. The four-term Republican wound up finishing third, behind Gov. Larry Rhoden, who filled the vacancy left by former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and businessman Toby Doeden, a […]
‘Tough lessons’: House braces for Rayburn renovation
As one lengthy renovation on the Capitol campus comes to an end, another one is about to begin — and lawmakers are hoping it won’t come with the same blown deadlines and cost overruns. Members pressed Architect of the Capitol Thomas Austin on how to use lessons from the Cannon House Office Building renewal project […]
Consent questions raised at data privacy bill hearing
Data privacy legislation put forward by House Republicans is friendly to businesses, Republicans and Democrats agree; whether or not that’s a good thing depends on which side of the aisle members sit on. Republicans say the legislation would provide clarity for businesses and uniform protections for consumers around the country. Democrats say the bill would […]