THE LINEUP

• McIver’s legal fight enters its next phase

• Clyburn backs Supreme Court expansion to 13 justices

• Senate Republicans target mifepristone access

• Talarico goes negative on Paxton for the first time

THE BIG STORY

👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you.

Rep. LaMonica McIver is weighing how far to take her fight to stop the federal criminal case against her from reaching trial after an appeals court dealt the New Jersey Democrat a major setback last week.

Her options include asking the same three-judge panel of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider its decision, seeking review from the full appeals court or petitioning the Supreme Court to intervene before a trial occurs.

The options aren’t mutually exclusive, McIver attorney Paul Fishman told reporters last week, and her legal team has not decided which path to pursue.

“We are not afraid to try this case,” Fishman said. But he argued the pretrial fight is about more than whether McIver is ultimately convicted. It is also about protecting members of Congress “who could be targeted by this administration for speaking out, for conducting oversight of the executive branch.”

McIver is making a similar argument to her colleagues.

She said she is grateful to House Democrats who have publicly defended her and helped raise money for her legal expenses. But she wants colleagues who have been quieter to recognize what she views as the broader institutional stakes of her prosecution.

“I hope that other colleagues who haven’t been as vocal or haven’t been as supportive, that they understand that this is about our collective as members of Congress all together,” McIver told Once Upon a Hill. “They should give a damn about what is happening to me. If it can happen to me, definitely it can happen to either one of them.”

Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.), a fellow Congressional Black Caucus member close to McIver, said the congresswoman needs more support.

“I see her. CBC sees her. Her district sees her. Black women see her,” Kamlager-Dove told Once Upon a Hill. “It is obvious that this administration really sees her. And she needs more allies.”

McIver also views her prosecution within a broader pattern of Trump administration actions targeting Black Americans, particularly Black women.

“We have been literally on Trump’s number-one hit list,” she said. “I’m just one of the ones on his list and one of the first ones.”

McIver, 40, has represented New Jersey’s 10th District since September 2024, when she won a special election to succeed the late Rep. Donald Payne Jr. The Newark native is the first Black woman to represent the district and serves on the House Homeland Security Committee, which oversees the Department of Homeland Security and ICE.

The case stems from McIver’s May 2025 oversight inspection of Delaney Hall, an immigration detention facility in Newark that sits in her district. McIver was there with two other lawmakers when federal authorities moved to arrest Newark Mayor Ras Baraka outside the facility.

Prosecutors allege McIver made physical contact with federal officers during the ensuing altercation. She faces three counts of forcibly impeding or interfering with federal officers. The maximum penalty is 17 years if she’s convicted.

McIver sought to have the charges dismissed on several grounds, including that her conduct was protected by the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause. The Third Circuit upheld a lower court’s rejection of that argument for two counts but sent a broader third count back for the district court to determine whether it includes protected legislative activity.

The appeals court also declined to consider before trial McIver’s claims of selective and vindictive prosecution. Judge Thomas Ambro partially dissented, arguing in part that the court should have allowed further examination of whether the prosecution was retaliatory.

McIver’s lawyers ordinarily have 14 days to seek rehearing, Fishman said, although the deadline can be extended. The district court has scheduled a Sept. 15 status conference to address the remanded count and other issues.

For now, McIver says she has no intention of allowing the case to deter the oversight work that brought her to Delaney Hall in the first place.

“I’m not going to be intimidated out of doing my job,” she said.

The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

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THE POWERS THAT BE

Trump calls on FCC to punish Kristen Welker: Relatedly, President Trump called on FCC Chair Brendan Carr to take action against Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker after she described his record of Republican primary endorsements as producing “mixed results.” Trump disputed the characterization, claiming a 99% success rate and saying Welker “will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment.” Minutes earlier, Trump declared “FCC TO THE RESCUE!” while complaining about unfavorable media polling. FWIW, the FCC licenses individual TV stations, not national networks or journalists. But as I reported earlier this month, Carr has previously threatened regulatory consequences against broadcasters over alleged news distortion.

Clyburn backs Supreme Court expansion to 13 justices: Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) called for expanding the Supreme Court from nine justices to 13, telling NBC’s Meet the Press he wants to see “a baker’s dozen” on the high court. The endorsement puts the former House majority whip behind one of the most aggressive proposals for overhauling the court as Democrats debate how to respond to its conservative majority. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) reiterated his call for “dramatic Supreme Court reform” as recently as this weekend but stopped short of endorsing court expansion or another specific proposal. The House, meanwhile, is scheduled to vote this week on a proposed constitutional amendment from Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) that would permanently set the court at nine justices.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

THE POLICY DESK

Senate Republicans target mifepristone access: Senate HELP Committee Republicans released a report last Thursday pressing the FDA to tighten restrictions on mifepristone following a months-long investigation led by Chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.) into the drug’s three FDA-approved sponsors. The report challenges existing safety requirements and scrutinizes manufacturers’ oversight of prescribers and pharmacies, despite decades of evidence establishing mifepristone as safe and effective. The Guttmacher Institute, an abortion-rights research organization, accused Republicans of relying on “junk science and false claims” to build political pressure for new restrictions as the FDA conducts its own safety review of the medication.

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THE TRAIL

El-Sayed to hit the road (and Rogers over Trump): Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed will join state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and Detroit leaders Monday to knock Republican Mike Rogers as he campaigns with Vice President JD Vance, part of an effort to tie Rogers to President Trump’s economic and trade policies. The event comes as El-Sayed launches his “It Shouldn’t Be This Hard” tour, a series of town halls across Michigan beginning Thursday focused on affordability and health care while contrasting his accessibility to voters with what his campaign describes as Rogers’ avoidance of debates and interviews.

Talarico goes negative on Paxton for the first time: Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico launched his first negative ad of the general election on Saturday, attacking Republican Ken Paxton as “the most corrupt politician in Texas.” The 30-second spot targets Paxton’s personal wealth, real-estate holdings and 2023 impeachment while tying those attacks to the cost of housing, health care and overtime pay. The ad debuted during TCU’s season opener against North Carolina and will air statewide as part of Talarico’s eight-figure advertising campaign.

Vindman puts $250K behind Democratic Senate candidates: Alex Vindman announced on Friday a $250,000 investment in the DSCC and Democratic Senate candidates in nine states: Mary Peltola in Alaska, Josh Turek in Iowa, Troy Jackson in Maine, Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, Dan Osborn in Nebraska, Chris Pappas in New Hampshire, Roy Cooper in North Carolina, Sherrod Brown in Ohio and Charles Booker in Kentucky. The spending comes after Vindman lost Florida’s Democratic Senate primary to state Rep. Angie Nixon earlier this month. He has since invested $400,000 in the Florida Democratic Party to support candidates up and down the ballot, including Nixon, and says additional investments are coming.

Since Congress Nerd Daily is still on summer break for one more week, here’s something a little different for your Sunday reading.

A Media Operator recently profiled me and Once Upon a Hill, including the nearly yearlong process of becoming the first journalist publishing on Substack to receive a congressional press credential, how that access changed my reporting and what I’ve learned building an independent newsroom from scratch.

One detail from the piece made me especially proud: The congressional press gallery told AMO that a handful of other Substack publishers have since been credentialed.

I’m proud to have been first. I’m even prouder I wasn’t the last.

Read the full profile →

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THE LINEUP

• What four years of the IRA taught Democrats

• Jeffries keeps his distance from the left’s agenda

• House Dems take ICE oversight to Maine

• Florida Dems face tests of ideology and representation

THE LEAD

👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you.

Programming note: Congress Nerd Daily is on summer break this week, so there will be no Monday-through-Thursday editions. I’ll be back in your inbox next Sunday with another look at the week ahead before Daily returns the week of Aug. 30, when the House comes back from its August recess. Enjoy the break—and what’s left of summer.

The IRA, four years later: Former President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law four years ago today, capping a yearlong Democratic effort to turn unified control of Washington into a sweeping rewrite of the social safety net and clean-energy economy.

What reached Biden’s desk was considerably smaller than what House Democrats passed nine months earlier under the Build Back Better banner. But the IRA still represented the largest federal investment to combat climate change in U.S. history, empowered Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices for the first time and extended enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies.

1461 days, another presidential administration and a Republican rollback later, the law’s legacy is coming into clearer focus. Here are four lessons from what Democrats enacted, what they left behind and what happened next.

1. The IRA became more about health care and climate than inflation.

Inflation was running near four-decade highs when Democrats passed the bill, and then-Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia—an indispensable vote in a 50-50 Senate—had spent months warning that additional federal spending could make matters worse.

But the law’s most durable consequences have been elsewhere. The IRA made Medicare a prescription-drug price negotiator, capped beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket drug spending and limited insulin costs for Medicare patients. It extended enhanced ACA premium assistance and poured hundreds of billions of dollars into clean energy, manufacturing and emissions reductions.

Four years later, the law is more consequential as a health, climate and industrial-policy measure than as the anti-inflation legislation its name advertised.

2. The IRA’s major policies have had very different staying power.

The law provided nearly $80 billion over a decade to rebuild the IRS after years of budget cuts. Congress began clawing back that funding before Republicans regained unified control, and by fiscal year 2026, nearly $54 billion of the original $79.4 billion had been rescinded. (The rollback began under divided government, with Congress rescinding $21.6 billion in 2023 and 2024 before Republicans regained unified control.)

The GOP went further after returning to power. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed by President Donald Trump last year, accelerated the expiration of tax credits for electric vehicles, residential clean energy and home efficiency improvements while restricting other incentives.

Those rollbacks came after the IRA had already driven billions of dollars in private clean-energy investment. Some investment has continued; other projects have been delayed or canceled as federal policy changed.

The result offers Democrats evidence of how quickly federal policy can influence private investment—and how quickly a subsequent Congress can rewrite the policy behind it.

3. Democrats haven’t abandoned Build Back Better.

House Democrats passed the Build Back Better Act in November 2021 with universal pre-K, child-care subsidies, an expanded Child Tax Credit, housing investments, expanded home care and other policies designed to lower household costs.

Manchin rejected the House package, while then-Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona separately resisted pieces of Democrats’ tax agenda. Months of negotiations eventually produced the narrower agreement that became the IRA.

But many of the ideas left behind never disappeared from Democratic politics. Four years later, Democrats confronting an affordability crisis are again proposing ways to lower housing, child-care and health-care costs, expand family tax benefits and use federal policy to relieve household expenses. The details have changed, but parts of Build Back Better’s economic argument survived its legislative defeat.

4. The IRA could shape Democrats’ next governing agenda.

Democrats would not enter their next period of unified government where they stood in 2021. Medicare can already negotiate prices for certain prescription drugs. The party has seen the effects of using the tax code to encourage private investment on a massive scale—and which policies Republicans targeted when they regained power.

Meanwhile, affordability policies Democrats couldn’t get through the Senate remain part of the party’s conversation about what governing should look like the next time it controls Washington.

That doesn’t mean a future Democratic Congress would dust off the House-passed Build Back Better Act. The party, economy and political environment have changed.

But the problems that animated it haven’t gone anywhere. The unfinished question isn’t simply whether the IRA worked. It’s what Democrats learned from the pieces that did—and whether their next majority will return for the ones they left behind.

🔓 The Sunday edition is free. But if you want Once Upon a Hill in your inbox each evening, upgrade your subscription for full access to every edition and the complete archive. Whether you’re taking the votes, writing the bills, running the campaigns, shaping the message or trying to influence any of the above, Congress Nerd Daily helps you see around corners before everyone else catches up.

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THE POWERS THAT BE

Jeffries keeps his distance from the left’s agenda: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) used an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press this morning to resist being drawn into his party’s ideological fights, declining to say Democratic Socialists don’t belong in the party even as he distanced himself from several of the left’s signature policies. Jeffries said he does not support the DSA agenda but acknowledged socialist candidates who win in November will join what he expects to be a “broad” caucus alongside progressives, New Dems and Blue Dogs. Pressed on what that caucus might do in the majority, Jeffries backed dramatically reforming ICE but stopped short of committing to a vote to abolish the agency, said he does not currently support Medicare for All, and left broader Supreme Court reforms beyond an ethics code to Judiciary Democrats. Instead, he repeatedly returned to the ground on which he wants House Democrats fighting the midterms: affordability, health care and holding the Trump administration accountable.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

THE POLICY DESK

House Dems take ICE oversight to Maine: House Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) and Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Troy Carter (D-La.) and Val Hoyle (D-Ore.) will hold a shadow hearing tomorrow morning in Biddeford, Maine, to examine ICE’s use of force following the July 13 killing of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero. The lawmakers will hear from Durán Guerrero’s family attorney, Biddeford Mayor Liam LaFountain and immigrant-rights advocates about the circumstances surrounding his death and the broader impact of ICE operations in Maine.

Warren targets presidential bank conflicts: Senate Banking Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and nine colleagues will introduce legislation barring presidents, vice presidents, their immediate families and other senior federal officials from owning or controlling banks or obtaining key regulatory approvals for financial institutions they control. The bill comes after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency approved a national bank charter for World Liberty Financial, the Trump family-linked crypto company. It would also require federal banking regulators to review approvals issued since Jan. 20, 2025, and terminate those granted while a covered official owned or controlled the applicant. “This is the most brazen act of self-dealing our financial system has ever seen,” Warren said.

Massachusetts Dems inspect ICE detention facility: Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Jim McGovern and Stephen Lynch conducted an unannounced oversight visit Friday at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility, the only Massachusetts facility holding civil immigration detainees long-term. The lawmakers said they met detainees who described inadequate food, drinking water and medical care and called for greater accountability and changes to ICE detention and enforcement practices. Pressley and McGovern renewed their calls to abolish ICE, while Lynch said lawmakers should continue using their authority to conduct unannounced inspections and oppose agency funding absent reforms, including body cameras, a ban on masks and new use-of-force standards.

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THE TRAIL

Florida Dems face tests of ideology and representation: Florida Democrats will vote on Tuesday in several House primaries that could offer another measure of where the party is heading. The sharpest fight may be in the safely blue 20th District, where Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is running to represent a seat Black Democrats have fought to preserve as a center of Black political representation after Republican redistricting made her current district considerably more difficult for Democrats. Local Black Democratic leaders have opposed her move, while Elijah Manley, Dale Holness, Luther Campbell and former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick are competing to keep the seat under Black representation. In the 25th, Rep. Jared Moskowitz faces democratic socialist Oliver Larkin in a test of whether the left’s recent primary momentum can extend into a more competitive district, while Democrats will also choose among seven candidates to succeed retiring Frederica Wilson in the safely blue 24th.

DCCC puts a price tag on its affordability message: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched a new website that lets voters calculate how much prices for everyday groceries have increased and share a personalized “receipt” by text or social media, the latest effort by House Democrats to make affordability central to their closing argument ahead of the midterms. The committee is branding the increases the “House Republican Price Hike” and tying higher prices for staples including ground beef, coffee and bread to GOP control of Washington. The launch comes as Democrats seek to capitalize on persistent voter concerns about the cost of living, with annual inflation reaching 3.4% in July.

Dems lock in their 2028 primary map: The Democratic National Committee voted at its summer meeting in Austin on Saturday to approve six states for its 2028 presidential primary early window, putting South Carolina first on Jan. 22, followed by Nevada on Feb. 1, New Hampshire on Feb. 8, New Mexico on Feb. 15, Michigan on Feb. 22 and Virginia on Feb. 29. The calendar, previously recommended by the party’s Rules and Bylaws Committee, significantly expands the racial and geographic diversity of the early-state electorate while placing the battlegrounds of Nevada and Michigan prominently in the nominating process. DNC Chair Ken Martin said the calendar would “truly represent our party and our values” while helping produce a nominee prepared to retake the White House.

THE LINEUP

• Senate Republicans left themselves a September squeeze

• Netanyahu rejects Trump-backed Gaza plan

• Cortez Masto targets construction worker suicide

• Dems face two more Midwest tests

• South Carolina GOP to pick Graham successor

THE LEAD

👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you.

A Capitol Hill vacuum legend dies: RIP to Beth, the beloved nearly 50-year-old Hoover vacuum cleaner owned by 92-year-old Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who became an unlikely social media star thanks to Grassley’s annual holiday posts. In a eulogy on X, Grassley announced that Beth had finally broken down after dangerous electrical sparks signaled the end. Need proof Beth had a fan base? She even earned a New York Times obituary.

Case easily turns back progressive challenge: Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii) defeated state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole by more than 20 points in Saturday’s Democratic primary, a decisive win for the 73-year-old Blue Dog co-chair over a younger progressive challenger who argued the safely Democratic district needed generational change. Case leaned on his seniority and perch on the House Appropriations Committee to make the case that his experience translates into influence and federal resources for Hawaii. The result offers a counterpoint to recent progressive victories elsewhere: Democratic voters may be hungry for change, but Case showed that incumbency and an argument centered on delivering for the district can still be potent defenses against an ideological challenge.

Senate GOP’s September legislative squeeze: Senate Republicans left Washington on Saturday morning having checked several major items off their pre-recess list.

They passed a Russia sanctions package, confirmed 74 of President Donald Trump’s nominees and Todd Blanche as attorney general, and approved a stopgap spending bill to keep the government funded through Dec. 11.

But some of the hardest work remains unfinished.

Republicans postponed votes on a budget resolution needed to unlock a third reconciliation package, the CLARITY Act to regulate cryptocurrency markets and the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act. All three are expected back on the agenda when senators return Sept. 14, leaving GOP leaders to navigate unresolved policy and political disputes during an abbreviated pre-midterm stretch when floor time will be increasingly scarce.

The budget resolution may be the most consequential punt.

Senate Republicans spent roughly two hours Friday discussing the measure before deciding they could not be certain it would pass.

“There was concern whether or not I could actually pass the budget resolution tonight,” Senate Budget Committee Chair Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) told reporters after the meeting.

Johnson said senators also questioned whether the $60 billion proposal in the House-passed blueprint provided enough money for the military. Republican senators then spoke with Trump, who agreed they should forgo a Friday vote and spend the coming weeks developing what Johnson called “a better budget reconciliation bill.”

That decision buys Republicans time to resolve their differences, but it also concentrates the risk.

The resolution would set the parameters for a third reconciliation bill Republicans want to use to increase defense spending, assist farmers hurt by Trump’s tariffs and trade war and fund voter-ID provisions associated with the SAVE America Act. Any Senate changes to the House-passed resolution would require another House vote before committees could finish writing the underlying legislation.

Republicans also left the CLARITY Act unfinished amid disputes over illicit-finance protections and ethics restrictions governing public officials’ crypto holdings. The Senate is expected to hold a test vote Sept. 15 on beginning debate.

The Protect College Sports Act faces its own coalition-management problem. The bipartisan legislation would establish a national framework for college athletics and name, image and likeness rules. Still, supporters have yet to assemble the votes needed to move it through the Senate due to opposition from the Congressional Black Caucus and organized labor and conservatives who feel like the legislation preempts state laws in more than half of the country that ban trans athletes from participating in women’s sports. Leaders nevertheless expect to revisit the measure next month.

The September pileup matters because Republicans have traded one deadline for several overlapping ones.

Senators return with only weeks before lawmakers turn increasingly toward the November midterms (Congress is scheduled to be out of session all of October). The crypto and college-sports bills require bipartisan cooperation. Reconciliation requires Republicans to keep their own conference together. And the Senate still has nominations and other legislative business competing for limited floor time.

Republicans insist the unfinished business is delayed, not dead. Johnson said the conference and Trump were aligned on continuing the reconciliation effort and would work through August and September to assemble a stronger package.

But Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) was unusually candid about another piece of the GOP agenda that remains unresolved: the SAVE America Act.

“Would it have been better if we had passed the SAVE America [Act] already? Absolutely,” Lee said. “Would it be better if we had the votes right now to pass it? Yes.”

Republicans, he added, “for a variety of reasons, don’t have the wherewithal [or] capacity right now.”

The extra negotiating time could help Republicans find the votes they were missing on Friday. But September leaves little margin for another delay.

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THE POWERS THAT BE

Netanyahu rejects Trump-backed Gaza plan: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel does not accept the 15-point ceasefire plan proposed by President Trump’s Board of Peace and would make no further withdrawal from Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed. The rejection exposes a key disagreement over sequencing: The Trump-backed framework links Israeli withdrawals to progress on disarmament, while Netanyahu is insisting Hamas surrender all its weapons first. Netanyahu said Israel is discussing the issue with the U.S. and that some American proposals are unacceptable, adding that his government is prepared to “stand our ground, even against our best friends when necessary.” The dispute tests whether Trump can persuade one of his closest allies to accept the terms of his Gaza peace initiative without jeopardizing the broader ceasefire.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

THE POLICY DESK

Cortez Masto targets construction worker suicide: Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced legislation directing the CDC to study suicide risk factors among construction workers—including financial stability, substance and alcohol use and access to health coverage and workplace benefits—to inform future prevention programs. The bill, cosponsored by five Senate Democrats, would also require HHS to recommend policies to Congress. Cortez Masto’s office says construction accounted for nearly one-fifth of suicides with a reported industry in 2023 despite employing about 7% of the U.S. workforce.

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THE TRAIL

Dems to face two more Midwest tests: Democratic voters in Minnesota and Wisconsin will head to the polls on Tuesday for a pair of primaries that could offer the clearest indication yet of whether Abdul El-Sayed’s upset victory in Michigan last week was an isolated result or part of a broader shift toward the party’s progressive wing.

In Minnesota, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and Rep. Angie Craig are the leading candidates to succeed retiring Sen. Tina Smith. Flanagan, the DFL-endorsed candidate, has consolidated support from progressives and much of organized labor, while Craig has pitched her record of repeatedly winning a competitive House district as evidence she is better positioned for a general election. The closing stretch has featured Flanagan attacking Craig over her vote for the Laken Riley Act and Craig tying Flanagan to fraud scandals under Gov. Tim Walz’s administration. Recent polling has shown Flanagan ahead, though surveys have varied considerably.

The stakes are similarly ideological in Wisconsin, where state Rep. Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist, enters Tuesday as the polling leader in the four-way Democratic primary to succeed retiring Gov. Tony Evers. Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley has emerged as Hong’s principal rival after briefly dropping out of the race last month and later reentering with Evers’s endorsement. Former Evers administration official Joel Brennan and state Sen. Kelda Roys round out the field.

Hong has argued Democrats can win the battleground state by expanding the electorate with an unabashedly progressive economic message. Crowley is making a more traditional electability case and has benefited from a late fundraising surge as Democratic establishment support consolidated around him. The winner is expected to face Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany in November.

Flanagan and Hong victories, coming less than a week after El-Sayed defeated Rep. Haley Stevens, would give progressives three major Upper Midwest primary wins in six days—and much stronger evidence that Democratic voters are rethinking what electability looks like heading into November.

SC GOP to pick Graham successor: Republicans in South Carolina will vote this Tuesday in a special Senate primary to choose their nominee to succeed the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, with appointed Sen. Darline Graham, Reps. Ralph Norman and Russell Fry, and former Gov. Mark Sanford among the nine candidates competing for the nomination.

President Trump and the NRSC are backing Graham, whom Gov. Henry McMaster appointed to temporarily fill her brother’s seat after his death last month. Graham has never previously run for elected office, making the primary an early test of whether Trump’s endorsement and the Graham name can consolidate a fractured Republican field around her.

A candidate must win more than 50 percent Tuesday to avoid an Aug. 25 runoff. If no one does, the top two finishers will advance, putting particular attention on Graham’s share of the vote and the contest among Norman, Fry and Sanford to emerge as her potential challenger. The Republican nominee will face Democrat Annie Andrews in November.

👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you. I’m wishing Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) a speedy recovery following her hospitalization after she was involved in a hit-and-run crash this morning.

THE LINEUP

• Senate unveils bipartisan plan to avert shutdown

• Trump says Iran deal framework emerging (again…)

• Blanche standoff persists

• Kids online safety markup on tap

• Max Miller digs in

THE LEAD

Senate appropriators unveiled a bipartisan continuing resolution this afternoon that would keep the government funded through Dec. 11, giving lawmakers their clearest path yet to avoiding a government shutdown while postponing the biggest spending decisions until after the November elections. The legislation sets up a key procedural vote tomorrow evening, when senators will decide whether to begin debating the stopgap measure.

The proposal largely delivers on Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s (R-S.D.) promise of a “clean” continuing resolution. Rather than using the must-pass legislation to advance sweeping policy priorities, negotiators assembled a temporary funding measure that largely extends current spending levels while pairing them with a limited package of targeted funding anomalies and expiring authorizations intended to keep agencies operating through the fall.

The Senate measure would replace the House-passed stopgap approved last month, extending the funding deadline one additional week—from Dec. 4 to Dec. 11—and expanding the package of bipartisan provisions needed to bridge Congress into the lame-duck session.

The legislation also amounts to an acknowledgment that Congress will once again miss its Sept. 30 deadline to fund the government through the regular appropriations process. Instead, leaders in both parties are focused on preventing a shutdown now and leaving the year’s biggest spending decisions for the lame-duck session after the election when voters will have weighed in on the balance of power in Washington.

The bill reflects weeks of bipartisan negotiations led by Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine), whose committee worked with Senate Democratic leaders and the White House Office of Management and Budget to determine which funding exceptions were necessary to prevent disruptions under a temporary spending bill.

Those exceptions, known as anomalies, have been among the most closely watched pieces of the negotiations.

Rather than opening the door to broad policy changes, the Senate proposal focuses primarily on keeping existing government operations on track. The bill includes targeted flexibility for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund, wildfire suppression efforts, the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program, Small Business Administration lending, Census preparations, NOAA weather satellite launches, Justice Department litigating divisions, FBI preparations for the 2028 Olympics, Navy shipbuilding, National Nuclear Security Administration projects, Essential Air Service and housing assistance programs, among other operational priorities.

The legislation also serves as a vehicle for extending a number of authorities that would otherwise expire this fall, including the Defense Production Act, surface transportation programs, veterans’ health and housing programs, cybersecurity authorities and the African Growth and Opportunity Act.

It includes one notable policy provision beyond the funding fixes as well. The bill would prevent OMB’s proposed overhaul of federal grants guidance from taking effect, preserving the current rules governing federal financial assistance. The provision drew bipartisan support, with Collins arguing the proposed rule could politicize grants and harm rural communities, families and biomedical research.

Notably absent are the kinds of partisan policy riders that often complicate stopgap funding fights.

Unlike the House, where Republicans approved their version largely along party lines, Senate Republicans need Democratic votes to clear the chamber’s 60-vote threshold. The result is a product that appears designed less to deliver ideological victories than to attract broad bipartisan support.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has repeatedly insisted that any continuing resolution must remain bipartisan and cannot become a vehicle for simply advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda. Monday’s cloture vote will provide the first public test of whether Democratic leaders believe the legislation meets that standard—or whether negotiators still have work to do before the Senate can move toward final passage.

If senators vote to advance the bill, attention will quickly shift from whether Congress can avoid a shutdown to a more consequential question of leverage, if any, either party gains from waiting until the lame duck to finish funding the government for the rest of fiscal 2027.

🔓 The Sunday edition is free. But if you want Once Upon a Hill in your inbox each evening, upgrade your subscription for full access to every edition and the complete archive. Whether you’re taking the votes, writing the bills, running the campaigns, shaping the message or trying to influence any of the above, Congress Nerd Daily helps you see around corners before everyone else catches up.

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THE POWERS THAT BE

Trump says Iran deal framework emerging: President Trump said he called off a planned military strike against Iran after what he described as requests from Iran and other Middle Eastern countries to allow negotiations to continue, claiming on Truth Social that the “perimeters of a deal” have been agreed to. Trump said the framework would include the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and “an end to Iran’s nuclear threat,” adding that Israel supports the effort, but neither the administration nor the governments of Iran and Israel had publicly released details confirming the proposed agreement as of Sunday afternoon.

Blanche’s nomination remains in jeopardy: President Trump doubled down on his push to confirm Todd Blanche as attorney general, threatening to keep him on as acting attorney general while reviving his call for a $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund if retiring Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) continue blocking the nomination. Tillis, who acknowledged Blanche is qualified to serve, warned that Trump’s renewed insistence on the fund—which he said lacks support from most Senate Republicans—has put the nomination at risk ahead of Tuesday’s rescheduled Judiciary Committee meeting, where Republicans need unanimous support to advance Blanche.

New spy chief: Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte said he’ll hand the reins to Senate-confirmed Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton on Monday, nearly a week after the Senate approved Clayton’s nomination in a party-line vote. The transition ends Pulte’s brief and often controversial tenure atop the nation’s intelligence community and installs Trump’s permanent pick to oversee the country’s 18 intelligence agencies.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

THE POLICY DESK

College sports push: The Big Ten and SEC have thrown their support behind the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act, giving Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and bill sponsors fresh momentum as they press for a floor vote before lawmakers leave for the August recess. Backers argue the legislation would establish a national framework for college athletics and curb the growing legal uncertainty surrounding NIL, athlete compensation and eligibility, while supporters say the endorsement from the country’s two most powerful athletic conferences signals broad institutional backing for congressional action.

Kids online safety markup on tap: Senate Commerce will take up a sweeping package of bipartisan legislation on Wednesday morning aimed at tightening safeguards for children online, including measures on social media, AI chatbots, age verification and AI-powered toys. The bills reflect Congress’ accelerating push to establish national guardrails for how technology companies design products for minors, even as lawmakers continue to wrestle with where to draw the line between protecting children and preserving privacy, free expression and innovation.

Johnson’s Medicaid agenda: Senate Budget Chair Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) will use his first hearing with the gavel to spotlight Medicaid in a clear indication that overhauling the safety-net program will remain a top priority for one of the Senate GOP’s most outspoken advocates for entitlement reform and spending cuts. With witnesses from conservative policy groups expected to focus on program integrity, eligibility standards and long-term costs, the hearing offers an early look at the arguments Republicans are likely to make as they prepare for the next round of budget and health care negotiations with the House and White House.

AI pricing under scrutiny: A Senate Judiciary subcommittee will examine whether artificial intelligence is enabling companies to charge consumers different prices for the same goods and services, putting a spotlight on growing concerns over algorithmic pricing and digital surveillance in the marketplace. The hearing reflects rising bipartisan interest in whether existing antitrust and consumer protection laws are equipped to police AI-powered pricing tools that critics warn could reduce competition, erode privacy and drive up costs.

Social Security spotlight: The Senate Finance Committee will examine competing approaches to shoring up Social Security’s long-term finances, kicking off what could become one of Congress’ biggest fiscal debates even if major legislation remains politically out of reach this year. With the trust fund projected to face automatic benefit cuts in the coming years absent congressional action, the hearing offers an early look at the ideas lawmakers hope will shape the next bipartisan conversation on the program’s future.

Worth watching: Elsewhere on Capitol Hill, senators will explore how greater competition could lower prescription drug costs, examine how the rapid growth of prediction markets is affecting tribal communities, hear from experts on expanding access to capital for Main Street businesses, review efforts to combat global scam operations targeting Americans and receive a closed-door briefing on the ongoing war in Sudan. Another Senate Judiciary subcommittee will also hold a hearing on the Muslim Brotherhood’s presence in America, as part of the Republican majority’s continued focus on national security and domestic extremism.

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THE TRAIL

Miller digs in: Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) said he’s staying in the race despite a public call from Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio)—his former father-in-law—to end his reelection bid, releasing a roughly 20-minute video on X and a cache of documents he says disprove allegations of domestic violence and child abuse made by Moreno’s daughter, Emily Moreno. The extraordinary split between two prominent Ohio Republicans comes just days before the deadline for Republicans to replace Miller on the November ballot. Miller accused Moreno of caving to political pressure while insisting, “I’m not getting out of this race, and I’m winning in November.”

Michigan’s moment: Democrats will decide one of the year’s highest-profile primaries on Tuesday between Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) and former Wayne County health director Abdul El-Sayed as the party’s establishment and progressive wings battle for the Senate nomination in a race that has drawn enormous outside spending and national attention. Beyond determining who faces Republicans this fall, the result will offer fresh clues about which message—and which faction—is resonating most with Democratic primary voters heading into the midterms. Voters will also head to the polls this week in Virginia, Kansas, Missouri, Washington, Tennessee and Hawaii, continuing a busy August stretch that will help shape the November midterm map.

👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you.

FIRST THINGS FIRST: The House has begun its five-week August recess, but the Senate still has two weeks to answer a familiar question: How much can it realistically accomplish before Washington empties for the summer?

The biggest floor vote this week will be procedural. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) has set up a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to a House-passed bipartisan tax bill that Republicans plan to use as the legislative vehicle for a Russia sanctions package championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Whether supporters can assemble the 60 votes needed to begin debate will be the clearest test yet of the sanctions bill’s viability following Graham’s death.

The week will also be shaped by services honoring Graham, beginning on Tuesday in the U.S. Capitol before moving to the Washington National Cathedral and then returning to South Carolina on Wednesday.

Beyond sanctions, Senate leaders are juggling a crowded agenda. Appropriators are trying to negotiate a bipartisan continuing resolution that could fund the government through the November midterm elections, while the chamber is expected to take up Jay Clayton’s nomination to serve as director of national intelligence with a vote to limit debate on the matter scheduled for Monday evening.

Lawmakers are also seeking time agreements to consider the bipartisan Clarity Act and the Protect College Sports Act, two complex measures that will require weeks of floor time to process without unanimous consent to expedite debate.

Beyond the floor, several Senate committees will tackle major policy and personnel fights before senators head home.

Anthony Fauci, the former chief medical advisor to former President Joe Biden, returns to Capitol Hill on Wednesday for testimony before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, while the HELP Committee examines artificial intelligence’s impact on the workforce and the Aging Committee explores how deepfakes, chatbots and other AI tools are fueling scams targeting older Americans.

On Thursday, the Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination to serve as attorney general, the HELP Committee will consider Keith Sonderling’s nomination for labor secretary and the Commerce Committee will examine the next generation of intelligent networks designed to create self-optimizing communications systems.

Hovering over the Senate’s final two weeks before recess is President Donald Trump’s fresh demand that lawmakers adopt the House-passed budget resolution to unlock a third reconciliation bill for military funding, farm aid and election grants tied to the SAVE America Act’s voter ID requirements.

Thune has repeatedly said the votes are not there and has indicated he does not plan to bring the resolution to the floor before senators leave Washington. That all but guarantees Trump’s pressure campaign will continue, adding another layer of tension between the White House and Senate Republicans as Thune tries to steer the chamber toward bipartisan wins on sanctions, government funding and other major priorities before the August break.

THE LINEUP

• How House Democrats plan to sell their vision for an Affordable America

• Senate Dems press Pentagon on Iran casualty reporting

• Bipartisan bill targets tax filing scams

• Jackson officially wins Maine nod

THE LEAD

Today marks 100 days until Election Day and House Democrats are kicking off a five-week campaign designed to persuade voters they’re not only ready to replace Republicans this fall but prepared to govern once the new Congress starts in January.

Internal messaging guidance obtained by Once Upon a Hill shows the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee has spent the past month building a district work period around “Fighting for an Affordable America,” the affordability-focused tagline first reported in Congress Nerd last Thursday.

The effort asks lawmakers to organize nearly every public appearance during the August recess around three messages: lowering the cost of groceries, gas and housing; delivering affordable health care for every American; and “holding the crooks accountable.”

The guidance, distributed to members on Friday under the banner of DPCC Chair Debbie Dingell (Mich.), describes the next 100 days as House Democrats’ “final sprint” and tells lawmakers the recess is “a time to prove that House Democrats are meeting the moment.”

The DPCC has been developing the rollout for the past several weeks. The entire August break will revolve around the new messaging framework, with individual days highlighting issues such as Medicaid, Social Security, voting rights and attacks on women and diverse communities, while broader weeks of action reinforce the overarching affordability message.

The internal guidance reflects a notable refinement in House Democrats’ messaging.

For much of the past year, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other Democratic leaders have emphasized lowering costs, fixing the nation’s “broken health care system” and cleaning up corruption. The new framework keeps affordability at its center while sharpening the latter two messages into promises of “affordable health care for every American” and “hold the crooks accountable.”

A source familiar with the matter declined to explain precisely how Democrats landed on the new corruption language but said “‘crooks’ is widely applicable and ‘accountable’ delivers the accountability people want in comparison with the blatant Trump administration corruption from top to bottom.”

Jeffries repeatedly previewed the new language during his final Capitol press conference last week before lawmakers left Washington.

“We’re committed to a country that provides affordable health care for every American, and we also are committed as Democrats to hold the crooks accountable, who’ve been robbing the American people blind, and that includes a whole lot of folks in this town and folks across the country.”

Pressed later to define that third pillar, Jeffries argued Democrats intend to use a future House majority to investigate what he called “the most corrupt administration in American history,” while contrasting Republican perceived focus on billionaires and mega corporations with Democrats’ populist economic message.

Jeffries appeared this afternoon in Pennsylvania’s 7th congressional district alongside Gov. Josh Shapiro and Democratic nominee Bob Brooks, the president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, as Democrats look to unseat Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-Pa.), one of the nation’s most competitive House races this cycle.

The messaging push coincides with a broader party-wide effort to frame affordability as the defining issue of the fall campaign.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released a memo this morning arguing the political environment continues moving in Democrats’ favor as Republicans defend rising costs, tariffs and last year’s unpopular One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The committee also launched a new digital advertising campaign targeting voters in battleground districts across the country with messages tying vulnerable House Republicans to higher everyday costs.

Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee marked the campaign’s 100-day milestone with more than 425 organizing events across 42 states and four territories this weekend, including canvasses, voter registration drives and community events designed to reach voters before the fall stretch.

Senate Democrats are embracing a similar argument.

“One hundred days out from Election Day, Senate Democrats are well-positioned to win the majority, with multiple paths to get there,” Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.) said in a statement. “Over the next 100 days, Democrats will tirelessly make our case in every battleground state – and come November, voters will elect a Democratic Senate majority that delivers real results and puts the American people first.”

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THE POWERS THAT BE

Senate Dems press Pentagon on Iran casualty reporting: Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and 11 Senate Democrats demanded a full accounting of every U.S. service member killed, wounded or injured during Operation Epic Fury, citing discrepancies between the Pentagon’s public casualty figures and official statements that they say have obscured the war’s human toll. In a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and senior military leaders, the lawmakers requested answers by Thursday on casualty totals, traumatic brain injuries, undisclosed attacks in Jordan and the military’s mass-casualty response capabilities.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

THE POLICY DESK

Dems target foreign money loophole: Sen. Kelly, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) introduced legislation to bar U.S. companies that are majority-owned or controlled by foreign entities from spending unlimited sums in American elections, arguing current campaign finance law has failed to keep pace with the globalization of corporate ownership. The proposal comes as foreign ownership of U.S. stocks has grown from roughly 4% in 1986 to about 40% today, a shift the lawmakers say has created a loophole that undermines the longstanding prohibition on foreign nationals influencing federal elections while preserving the rights of Americans living in the United States to make political contributions.

Pressley unveils maternal health package: Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) introduced the MOMMIES Act, a sweeping proposal to expand Medicaid coverage and improve access to postpartum, reproductive and community-based care as Democrats seek to reverse the nation’s rising maternal mortality rate and narrow persistent racial disparities in pregnancy-related deaths. Pressley also introduced the Justice for Incarcerated Moms Act, which would discourage the shackling of pregnant people in custody, expand maternal health services in prisons and jails, support alternatives to incarceration for pregnant individuals and primary caregivers, and launch the first comprehensive federal study of maternal and infant health among incarcerated people.

Bipartisan bill targets tax filing scams: Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) introduced bipartisan legislation to strengthen the IRS’s electronic filing system by preventing scammers from using stolen Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFINs) to file fraudulent tax returns and steal sensitive taxpayer information. The SECURE Tax Filing Act would require tax software providers to verify that participating tax professionals are using legitimate EFINs before they can access the IRS e-filing system, closing a loophole lawmakers say has enabled identity theft and tax refund fraud.

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THE TRAIL

SC stays first as DNC expands early map: The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee voted on Friday to recommend a six-state early presidential primary calendar for 2028, keeping South Carolina first, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Michigan and Virginia—a lineup that elevates Black, Latino, labor and suburban voters at the outset of what is expected to be a wide-open nomination fight. The proposal still requires approval from the full DNC next month, but it offers an early glimpse at how party leaders want future candidates to prove they can assemble the coalition Democrats need to win back the White House.

Jackson officially wins Maine nod: Maine Democrats officially selected former state Senate President Troy Jackson as their U.S. Senate nominee on Saturday, moving quickly to unify the party after Graham Platner withdrew from the race amid allegations of sexual assault, which he has denied. Jackson now heads into one of the country’s most closely watched Senate contests against five-term Republican Sen. Susan Collins, giving Democrats a fresh start in a race that could help determine control of the chamber.

👋🏾 Hi, hey, hello! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Sunday. I hope your weekend was everything for you. This is the last week the House will be in session before the August recess.

THE LINEUP

• Obama posts become new flashpoint in Michigan House primary

• Two U.S. service members killed, unidentified remains recovered in Jordan

• House GOP agenda lookahead

• Committee hearing preview

THE LEAD

Previously unreported archived social media posts show Democratic congressional candidate William Lawrence repeatedly criticizing former President Barack Obama, adding a new dimension to an escalating intraparty dispute over the progressive candidate in one of Democrats’ top House pickup opportunities.

The posts, made between November 2020 and October 2021, surfaced as Lawrence faces mounting criticism over past comments about Black Democratic leaders ahead of Michigan’s Aug. 4 Democratic primary to challenge Rep. Tom Barrett (R-Mich.) in the battleground 7th Congressional District.

Lawrence wrote in one November 2020 post, “I’m here for all the disgusted Obama memoir reviews. In spite of it all, I still want to love the man. But goddamn, what a missed opportunity.”

Nearly a year later, Lawrence described Obama’s legacy as one of “cowardice and betrayal.” In another post, he called Obama’s Cabinet a “murderers’ row” of “neoliberals.”

The archived posts expand on reporting published last week by HuffPost, which highlighted earlier comments in which Lawrence described Black U.S. political leaders as a “pillar” of the “capitalist, imperialist” American establishment whose support for Democratic leadership “defangs the white left.”

The controversy has quickly become a flashpoint in a nationally watched Democratic primary that could help determine control of the House next year.

“William Lawrence cannot be trusted to advocate for Black Americans. We need real allies in Congress,” CBCPAC spokesperson Chris Taylor told me in a statement. “William Lawrence is a weak division peddler who spit on the legacy of Black civil rights leaders, mocked President Obama’s service, and ran an ill-conceived effort that handed Michigan to Donald Trump in 2024.”

Taylor added that Democratic voters “should reject him and vote for anyone else.” Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink and former Navy SEAL Matt Maasdam are also vying for the Democratic nomination.

Rolling Sea Action Fund, a CBCPAC-aligned organization, launched an advertising campaign last week urging Democratic primary voters to reject Lawrence.

The political fallout has extended beyond outside groups.

Sen. Elissa Slotkin, who represented the district before winning election to the Senate in 2024 and has typically stayed out of Michigan Democratic primaries, endorsed Maasdam in the race. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has called Lawrence’s previously reported comments “deeply disturbing,” while CBC leaders have publicly condemned them.

At the same time, Lawrence has continued to receive support from the party’s progressive wing.

He is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC and Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who joined Sanders, El-Sayed and Lawrence at a campaign rally in Lansing this afternoon, has declined to endorse in the House primary despite appearing at the event.

Lawrence’s campaign did not respond to multiple requests for comment, including after I shared the archived posts and extended my deadline for a response. Slotkin’s political operation did not respond to a request for comment and an Ocasio-Cortez campaign spokesperson could not be reached before publication.

However, Lawrence responded publicly last week to criticism over previously reported comments about Black Democratic leaders.

He said those remarks were taken “out of context and weaponized by my political opponents,” called his wording “clumsy,” and said he regretted his choice of words. He wrote that the comments did not reflect his beliefs and said Black Americans “are and have been at the forefront of the fight to realize the very best American ideals of freedom and justice for all.”

The race has emerged as one of the country’s most closely watched Democratic primaries, with establishment Democrats warning that a divisive contest could complicate the party’s effort to unseat Barrett in a district viewed as critical to winning back the House majority.

War in Iran latest: Democrats are expected to intensify their criticism of the war in Iran after two U.S. service members were killed in Jordan over the weekend. U.S. Central Command this afternoon said that forces recovered unidentified remains at the attack site that are undergoing examination to determine whether they belong to the missing servicemember.

Separately, the military said another U.S. servicemember was killed and a second was injured Saturday in northern Iraq during the controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian one-way attack drone. Officials are withholding the identities of the dead and missing pending notification of their families.

The U.S. launched another round of strikes against Iran on Saturday, saying the operation was intended to retaliate against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for the attack and degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Security concerns in Jordan: The U.S. Embassy in Jordan said this morning that Jordanian authorities had evacuated the international airport and seaport in Aqaba and advised Americans to avoid travel to military bases in the country. (The State Department ordered the departure of non-emergency U.S. personnel and eligible family members from the region in early March because of deteriorating security conditions.)

Jordanian officials, however, disputed the embassy’s account. A government spokesperson said no security threats had been recorded in recent hours and that both the airport and seaport in Aqaba were operating normally.

The State Department said the security environment remains complex and warned that heightened regional tensions could lead to further escalation.

“U.S. diplomatic facilities, including outside the Middle East, have been targeted,” the department said. “Groups supportive of Iran may target other U.S. interests overseas or locations associated with the United States and/or Americans throughout the world.”

Trump seeks to expand Russia sanctions bill: President Trump also injected a new wrinkle into the Senate’s bipartisan Russia sanctions legislation, urging congressional Republicans to broaden the measure to include Iran.

“That’s what Lindsey wanted to do,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who reached an agreement with the White House on the legislation the day before his death earlier this month. “And it was going to happen. IMPORTANT!!!”

As introduced, the bill would dramatically expand U.S. sanctions on Russia by imposing sweeping financial, energy and trade restrictions on the Russian government, its military, oligarchs and foreign entities supporting Moscow’s war in Ukraine. It would also impose steep tariffs on countries that continue to purchase Russian oil or natural gas or that help Russia evade sanctions.

It remains unclear whether Trump’s call to fold Iran into the legislation will strengthen or complicate the bipartisan coalition of more than 60 senators backing the bill.

NDAA: Adam Smith (D-Wash.) is expected to oppose the $1.15 trillion 2027 National Defense Authorization Act this week in what would mark a notable break for the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee and reflects Democratic caucus’s concerns over Republicans’ defense spending plans and expected culture-war amendments that could erode the bipartisan coalition that has traditionally carried the annual NDAA.

“Our country faces threats and DoD has modernization needs, but I cannot and do not support meeting these needs by making massive cuts to critically important domestic programs and slashing taxes,” Smith said in a statement. “Based on the rule that failed on the House floor two weeks ago, the bill is likely to be loaded up with toxic amendments that continue the right-wing culture war assault on the LGBTQ+ community and preempts State and local laws under the guise of military readiness.”

Smith’s opposition comes days after Senate Democrats took the extraordinary step of blocking debate on the chamber’s NDAA over President Trump’s handling of the war in Iran, underscoring how one of Congress’s most bipartisan annual bills is becoming increasingly entangled in broader fights over national security, defense spending and Republican policy riders.

Government funding: House Republican leaders are expected to bring a clean continuing resolution to the floor this week that would keep the government funded through Dec. 4, an unusually early attempt to avoid a Sept. 30 shutdown while buying negotiators more time to finish the FY2027 appropriations process.

“Republicans are going to be unable to move any continuing resolution without the support of House and Senate Democrats,” Jeffries told reporters last week. “And if they take a my-way-or-the-highway approach, we’ve seen how that worked out in the past.

If the measure clears the House, Republicans are likely to argue they have already acted to prevent a shutdown, potentially shifting pressure onto Democrats if the bill stalls or funding lapses this fall. The stopgap would come as Congress remains well behind schedule on annual spending bills, with lawmakers facing another packed agenda before the August recess.

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ON THE FLOOR

House rule bills: While the NDAA, continuing resolution and reconciliation budget resolution will dominate floor attention, the House Rules Committee will meet tomorrow afternoon to prepare for floor consideration several lower-profile measures and an ethics bill that’s likely to spark partisan debate, which is where we’ll start.

The Stop Insider Trading Act would bar members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children from purchasing individual stocks while in office and require advance public notice before selling covered securities. It is aimed at restoring public trust in Congress, though Democrats are expected to argue the bill falls short by exempting the president, vice president and Supreme Court justices from the trading restrictions.

Polling consistently shows bipartisan majorities believe lawmakers shouldn’t be allowed to trade individual stocks while making policy that can affect financial markets. Leadership in both parties has long resisted bringing a ban to the floor.

But Republicans are trying to seize the mantle on ethics. For years, rank-and-file Democrats largely drove the push for a congressional stock trading ban. By bringing the bill up now, House Republicans can argue they’re responding to public frustration with Washington—even though the proposal is narrower than many Democrats and outside watchdogs prefer.

Members who have campaigned on banning congressional stock trading will have to decide whether supporting an incomplete bill is better than opposing it in hopes of a broader ban. Expect some Democrats to vote yes while criticizing the bill as insufficient, rather than rejecting it outright.

Lawmakers are also scheduled to vote on the Main Street Capital Access Act, a banking reform package intended to expand access to credit by easing regulatory burdens on community banks and encouraging new bank formation, and the Removing Barriers to Work for Disabled Americans Act, which would extend the Social Security Administration’s authority to test pilot programs that help disability beneficiaries enter or reenter the workforce without changing SSDI eligibility or benefit levels.

Suspensions: The House will also consider a broad bipartisan package of suspension bills spanning health care, biomedical research, government oversight and science policy.

Among the most notable measures are bills to permanently authorize the NIH’s INCLUDE Project for Down syndrome research and IMPROVE maternal health initiative, reauthorize programs supporting ALS therapies, Alzheimer’s and dementia provider training, traumatic brain injury research, school-based health centers, stem cell transplantation and the dental workforce, and expand Medicare access to ultralightweight wheelchairs.

Government reform measures would require public disclosure of billions of dollars in previously opaque federal contracting agreements, strengthen whistleblower protections for federal contractors, increase oversight of megaprojects that run years behind schedule or billions over budget, modernize technology procurement and tighten accountability for health care providers participating in the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act. Lawmakers will also vote on legislation to strengthen biosecurity standards for synthetic DNA purchases and accelerate next-generation geothermal energy research.

Senate: The Senate is expected to continue processing judicial nominees and other executive branch nominations this week, with GOP leaders also weighing whether to bring up additional privileged legislation or nominations as they determine the path forward on Reconciliation 3.0 and the Trump administration’s supplemental funding request.

But the floor schedule remains unusually fluid as senators travel between Washington and South Carolina for memorial services honoring Sen. Graham on Tuesday and Wednesday. Attendance could complicate the timing of votes and other floor business, particularly if Republicans need near-full attendance to advance closely contested nominations.

📬 The best stories often start with a conversation. If you’ve got insight, context or something others are missing, my inbox is open. Send me tips, scoops or just say hi: michael@onceuponahill.com.

COMMITTEE WATCH

Monday: The week begins with a pair of evening markups. The House Energy and Commerce Committee will consider a sprawling package of 29 bipartisan bills covering health care, AI-driven electricity demand, energy infrastructure, public safety and efforts to combat illicit drugs, while the House Intelligence Committee will mark up the annual Intelligence Authorization Act, which sets funding levels, legal authorities and congressional oversight for the U.S. intelligence community.

Tuesday: The busiest day of the week features several hearings and markups with broad political implications. The Senate Appropriations Committee will examine the Trump administration’s $87.6 billion emergency supplemental funding request for defense, Iran operations and other priorities. The House Judiciary Committee will mark up a bill that House conservatives say would codify President Trump’s border security policies into law, while the House Intelligence Committee will assess emerging national security threats 25 years after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Elsewhere, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on Haiti’s terrorist gangs, the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets and Rural Development will examine consumer protections in sports prediction markets, the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency will scrutinize the Smithsonian over allegations it has reshaped historical narratives and the House Administration Subcommittee on Modernization and Innovation will explore ways to improve public access to legislative data and information.

Wednesday: The House Appropriations Committee will hold a hearing on proposals to reform the government shutdown process, including testimony from Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) and former Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young. Later, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight will examine conditions at New Jersey’s Delaney Hall ICE detention center.

Friday: The House Education and Workforce Committee will conclude the week with a field hearing in Augusta, Georgia, on how artificial intelligence is creating opportunities across America’s workforce.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

The House is moving again: After two weeks of paralysis, Speaker Mike Johnson finally broke a conservative revolt and got the House floor moving again—but only after cutting another deal on the SAVE America Act and holding the day’s first vote open for 40 minutes. (FWIW, Johnson had to pull a veterans’ benefits bill to avoid another floor embarrassment two days later though.)I also explained how a private Dear Colleague letter from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries amounts to his clearest public roadmap yet for resetting the Democratic Party’s approach to U.S. support for Israel after the current security agreement expires. Read more →

Democrats’ election strategy enters a new phase: Ahead of the sixth anniversary of John Lewis’s death, Democratic lawmakers, voting-rights leaders and faith organizers used a Capitol Hill gathering to launch what they hope will become the party’s next major election-protection push ahead of the 2026 midterms. I also reported on how the event foreshadowed Democrats’ response to President Trump’s renewed focus on election conspiracies and the SAVE America Act, including a new 100-day mobilization campaign culminating in 1,000 marches to the polls. Read more →

In my latest COURIER column: As millennials and Gen Z candidates increasingly seek higher office, their decade-old social media posts are becoming a new form of opposition research. Drawing on my interviews with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Maxwell Frost, I examined why both Democrats believe the ultimate judgment belongs to voters—not consultants, operatives or political media. Read the column →

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