👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Daily. I hope today was everything for you. The midterms are in 22 days.
Reminder: Tonight’s Congress Nerd Daily is free for all readers, replacing my usual Sunday edition, which didn’t publish yesterday in observance of Indigenous Peoples Day. My regular publishing schedule and paywall will resume tomorrow evening.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Homeland Security Investigations agents searched the Washington-area home of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) this morning in an extraordinary federal enforcement action involving a sitting Democratic lawmaker three weeks before the midterm elections. The Justice Department confirmed agents executed a judicially authorized search warrant but has not disclosed the investigation’s focus or announced charges. Vice President JD Vance said in May that the administration would investigate longstanding immigration-fraud allegations against Omar, which she has denied. There is no official confirmation that the search is connected to those allegations.
Omar said she was unharmed and accused the administration of attempting to “target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.” She also used the raid to solicit political contributions in a fundraising email distributed by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, asking supporters to split donations between her campaign and the progressive group to help fight what she called President Donald Trump’s “abuse of power.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) called the raid “deeply disturbing,” demanded transparency and pledged accountability for what they described as an abuse of federal power. Other Democrats cast the search as part of a broader pattern of targeting Black women, citing the federal prosecution of Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) and cases involving Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Speaking of McIver, she asked the full Third Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday to reconsider an August ruling that allowed federal criminal charges against her to proceed. The charges stem from a May 2025 confrontation with federal officers during an oversight visit to an ICE detention facility in Newark. McIver argues the prosecution threatens Congress’s constitutional oversight authority and could chill lawmakers’ scrutiny of the executive branch. “Members of Congress have a right to do oversight even, and especially, when the administration does not like what they find,” she said. McIver faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted.
VIEW FROM THE HILL
A disagreement over what Democrats owe their party—and what the party owes them—is exposing tensions between progressives and the Democratic establishment in the final weeks before the midterm elections.
The dispute has gained new significance since the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added Tennessee Democrat Justin J. Pearson to its Red to Blue program last week, after progressives called for greater support of candidates aligned with their wing of the party. The designation came as some Democrats have privately expressed frustration with colleagues who expect institutional support but haven’t fulfilled their financial obligations to the committee.
“We should pay dues. Some of the far-left progressives don’t pay, and now that Pearson has been added, it’s like, see, that’s what dues are for,” one Democratic lawmaker told me. “I personally don’t think people should get anything if they expect others to do the heavy lifting.”
The lawmaker, granted anonymity to speak candidly about internal party dynamics, also questioned whether some progressives were committed to the party’s broader success, arguing that their priorities focused more on gaining influence within the Democratic coalition than on building it.
But the DCCC’s own financial records paint a more complicated picture.
According to a copy of the committee’s August dues report obtained by Once Upon a Hill, Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) had contributed $265,000 toward a $260,000 goal, while former chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) had paid $192,500 toward a $190,000 target. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) had contributed $280,000 toward her $275,000 obligation.
Other prominent progressives were considerably further behind. Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Summer Lee (D-Pa.) had made no dues payments toward their respective goals as of August, while Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) had paid $100,000 of her $190,000 obligation.
The figures scramble any suggestion that progressives are uniformly unwilling to support the party’s campaign operation. They also don’t establish why individual members have fallen short or whether additional payments have been made since August.
When asked about the issue last month, Jeffries pushed back on the characterization of a dues crisis, saying the DCCC had broken records for member contributions over the previous two election cycles.
The top House Democrat also emphasized that members defending competitive seats are not expected to pay dues because their responsibility is to hold their districts. That includes several members of the Congressional Black Caucus, whose representation has expanded into districts where Black voters are not the majority.
He pointed to the DCCC’s partnership with the CBC’s political arm as part of the effort to grow Black representation in the House.
Jeffries was also asked about the lack of Black candidates from Red to Blue, which he largely attributed to the primary process and the limited number of candidates who entered competitive races.
“There are a couple of emerging opportunities in places throughout the South that we’re closely monitoring,” he said.
Five days later, the DCCC added Pearson and Arkansas Democrat Chris Jones to Red to Blue, making them the first two Black candidates selected for the program this cycle.
In announcing Pearson’s selection, DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.) accused Tennessee Republicans of attempting to silence Black voters through redistricting and praised Pearson as a proven advocate for his community.
I’m told the DCCC and Pearson’s campaign have worked closely since the primary and his addition to Red to Blue reflects the strength of his candidacy. The committee also considers input from outside groups and talks with campaigns before making such decisions, though it remains unclear how much progressive advocacy influenced Pearson’s selection.
The DCCC continues to see opportunities to compete in Republican-held districts and views member dues as an important resource for those efforts, especially as the election approaches.
The competing perspectives underscore a larger disagreement within the Democratic coalition. Some members see paying dues as a fundamental obligation to the party’s collective electoral effort, while progressive advocates have pushed the campaign committee to recognize and invest in candidates who represent their political priorities.
But the committee’s financial records suggest the dividing line isn’t as simple as progressives demanding support and establishment Democrats paying for it. The question is whether those disagreements over money, influence and institutional responsibility can be reconciled as Democrats approach Election Day.
Trump returns to Ohio to stump for Husted: President Trump will rally in Youngstown this evening for Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio), who faces former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in one of the races that could determine control of the chamber. It will be Trump’s second Ohio campaign stop in 10 days, after Vice President Vance visited the state last week. Youngstown’s industrial working-class voters helped fuel Trump’s political rise, but Brown is trying to reclaim some of that support amid concerns about affordability, manufacturing jobs and the expansion of AI data centers. Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy is also expected to attend.
Craig to campaign for Flanagan after bruising primary: Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) will campaign this Saturday alongside Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who defeated her in Minnesota’s bitterly contested Democratic Senate primary in August. The race exposed divisions between the party’s moderate and progressive wings, particularly over immigration enforcement, with Flanagan attacking Craig’s vote for the Laken Riley Act. Now Craig is helping her former rival mobilize voters in the final weeks against Republican Michele Tafoya. The two will kick off a weekend of door-knocking in Craig’s suburban congressional district, where Flanagan’s campaign says Democrats have knocked on more than 1.9 million doors statewide this year.
Bipartisan senators challenge legality of Trump’s Russian diesel deal: Seven senators, including four Republicans, accused President Trump of violating a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports after his administration authorized Russian diesel shipments to ease soaring fuel prices. The group, led by Senate Foreign Relations Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), said the administration failed to consult Congress or provide the justification required by law. Republican Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Thom Tillis (N.C.) and John Curtis (Utah) joined Democrats Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) in demanding Trump reverse course. “The United States should not provide Putin with a financial lifeline while Russia continues to kill Ukrainian civilians,” they said.
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IN THE KNOW
— U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes ordered a 24-hour halt to tree removal at East Potomac Golf Course following a contentious hearing today. Approximately 500 trees were removed over the weekend despite her earlier instructions that the administration provide advance notice of major construction activity. National Park Service officials said the work followed a 2019 restoration plan predating Trump’s proposed renovation, but Reyes sharply criticized the Justice Department for failing to notify the court and said the temporary halt could be extended to 14 days. Read the AP’s courtroom reporting »
— Two taxpayer-funded advertisements promoting President Trump aired repeatedly after a federal judge’s Sunday evening deadline. The White House said the Department of Homeland Security did not receive the order in time to cancel the placements. Judge Jennifer Rochon blocked further spending from a $20 million DHS advertising purchase, finding challengers likely to succeed in arguing the campaign exceeded congressional appropriations and violated propaganda restrictions. Read more from the Washington Post » … Read Judge Rochon’s court order »
— A new analysis of preliminary USDA data finds 19.8 million households received SNAP benefits in June
, nearly 12% fewer than a year earlier. Arizona recorded a 49% decline in participating households, followed by Nevada at 28% and Oklahoma at 21%. Florida had the largest numerical drop, exceeding 293,000 households. Republicans’ 2025 reconciliation law expanded work requirements to adults ages 55–64 and tightened eligibility. States also began covering 75% of administrative costs on Oct. 1, with additional benefit-cost obligations approaching. The law cannot be blamed entirely for the enrollment decline. Read more from WLWT News 5 »
📬 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.
READ ALL ABOUT IT
“Donald Trump after the midterms” by David Remnick: “If the coming election does result in a blue wave, Trump will be faced with the fact of his diminishment. The rest of us will be faced with the wreckage.”
“What Hasan Piker believes” by Jonathan Chait: “He’s right to complain that a few provocative quotes do not capture his worldview.”
“Far-right election groups are now targeting nursing homes” by David Gilbert: “Inspired by new guidance from the Trump administration, right-wing election groups are targeting nursing homes, baselessly claiming that left-wing groups are stealing residents’ votes.”