Government shutdown looms as Congress returns after monthlong August recess

Congressional Republicans scored a massive win this summer when they passed President Donald Trump s tax and spending cuts without a single Democratic vote But as they return to Washington this fall after a monthlong August recess they will have to find a way to work with Democrats or around them as a establishment shutdown looms The annual spending battle will dominate the September agenda along with a workable effort by Senate Republicans to change their chamber s rules to thwart Democratic stalling tactics on nominations The Senate is also debating whether to move forward on provision that would slap steep tariffs on selected of Russia s trading partners as the U S presses Russian President Vladimir Putin on Ukraine In the House Republicans will continue their investigations of former President Joe Biden while Speaker Mike Johnson navigates a split in his conference over whether the Trump administration should release more files in the Jeffrey Epstein analysis A look at what Congress will be doing as lawmakers return from the August break The priority is to keep the leadership open The largest part urgent task for Congress is to avoid a ruling body shutdown on Sept when federal funding runs out And it s so far unclear if Republicans and Democrats will be able to agree on how to do that Congress will have to pass a short-term spending measure to keep the ruling body funded for a sparse weeks or months while they try to finish the full-year package But Republicans will need Democratic votes to pass an extension and Democrats will want essential concessions Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer s vote with Republicans to avoid a shutdown in March prompted furious backlash within his party The Trump administration s efforts to claw back previously approved spending could also complicate the negotiations Republicans passed measure this summer that rescinded about billion in foreign aid and citizens broadcasting funds and Trump notified Congress again on Friday that he will block billion in congressionally approved foreign aid Democrats have warned that such efforts could tank the broader negotiations Trump is rooting for a shutdown Sen Chris Murphy D-Conn posted on social media Friday Senate nominations fight looms Senators are expected to return to Washington right where they left off in early August fighting over Trump s nominees Exasperated Republicans fled Washington for the month after making little headway with Senate Democrats over their nominations blockade which has forced delays in confirmations and angered Trump as numerous of his administration s positions remain unfilled Republican leaders called it quits after a rare Saturday session that ended with a breakdown in bipartisan negotiations and Trump posting on social media that Chuck Schumer could GO TO HELL Republicans now say they re ready to try and change Senate rules to get around the Democratic delays and they are expected to spend the next several weeks discussing how that might work Stiffer Russia sanctions are sought Republican Sen Lindsey Graham of South Carolina one of Trump s closest congressional allies has pushed the president for months to aid his sweeping bipartisan sanctions bill that would impose steep tariffs on countries that are fueling Russia s invasion of Ukraine by buying its oil gas uranium and other exports The ordinance has the backing of senators but Trump has yet to endorse it and Republican leaders have so far explained they won t move without him Graham has stepped up his calls after Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelenskyy last month in hopes of a peace deal Since then Russia has continued to step up attacks on Ukraine If we don t have this thing moving in the right direction by the time we get back then I think that plan B demands to kick in Graham noted of his bill in an interview with The Associated Press last month Senate panel awaits RFK Jr appearance Healthcare and Human System Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr will appear before the Senate Finance Committee to discuss his healthcare care agenda on Thursday less than a week after he ousted Susan Monarez as director of the Centers for Ailment Control and Prevention Several other top agents also resigned in protest Kennedy has tried to advance anti-vaccine policies that are contradicted by decades of scientific research Monarez s lawyers mentioned she refused to rubber-stamp unscientific reckless directives and fire dedicated robustness experts Louisiana Sen Bill Cassidy the Republican chairman of the panel that oversees the CDC and a member of the Finance Committee has called on the CDC to delay a meeting of outside experts who make recommendations on the use of vaccines until Congress can look into the issue A House divided over Epstein The House left Washington in July in the midst of disagreements among Republicans about whether they should force President Donald Trump s administration to release more information on the sex trafficking research into the late Jeffrey Epstein The pressure for more disclosure could only get more intense when lawmakers return Democratic Rep Ro Khanna of California and Republican Rep Thomas Massie of Kentucky are pushing the House to take up their bill to force the Justice Department to release its scrutiny They are planning a news conference joined by Epstein casualties The House Oversight Committee is also probing the issue Democrats are eager to keep pressing on the Epstein files especially after the Trump administration reneged on pledges for transparency The matter for years has been the subject of online conspiracy theories and speculation about who may have been involved or aware of the wealthy financier s abuse GOP focuses on Biden s mental fitness in office The House Oversight Committee will return from August recess with a slate of interviews lined up as part of its examination into former President Joe Biden s mental state while in office The committee has already conducted interviews and depositions with nearly a dozen former top Biden aides and members of the president s inner circle The Republican-led committee will hear from former top Biden staffers in September like Jeff Zients Biden s final White House chief of staff Karine Jean-Pierre the former White House press secretary and Andrew Bates a top press aide Oversight Chair James Comer R-Ky has noted masses hearings and a full summary can be expected sometime in the fall A stock trading ban is weighed Congress has discussed proposals for years to keep lawmakers from engaging in trading individual stocks nodding to the idea that there s a feasible conflict of interest when they are often privy to information and decisions that can dramatically move markets That push is now gaining momentum A Senate committee has approved law from GOP Sen Josh Hawley of Missouri that would also extend the prohibition on stock trading to future presidents and vice presidents while notably exempting Trump In the House several members are putting forward proposals and even threatening to maneuver around the GOP leadership to force a vote Still there is plenty of resistance to the idea including from a multitude of wealthy lawmakers who reap dividends from their portfolios Associated Press writers Matt Brown and Joey Cappelletti contributed to this analysis Source