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THE LINEUP
Two Democrats rescue Johnson’s agenda
U.S. launches a new round of strikes inside Iran
Hayes eyes Education and Workforce post
Warren presses Trump housing officials
HMP expands its fall ad offensive
THE BIG STORY
👋🏾 HI, HEY, HELLO! Welcome back to Congress Nerd Daily. I hope today was everything for you.
Two House Democrats rescued Speaker Mike Johnson’s agenda this afternoon after they cast the decisive votes on a procedural motion that otherwise would have failed and blindsided Democratic leadership in the process.
Reps. Jared Golden of Maine and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington joined Republicans to advance the rule 210–208. Five Republicans opposed it, along with every other Democrat.
Without Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez, the rule would have deadlocked 208–208 and failed.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) told Once Upon a Hill after the vote that he received no warning from the two Democrats.
“We’re going to have a conversation about it all,” Jeffries said when asked for his reaction. “And until that point, you know, I have nothing to say at this point.”
A conversation with whom?
“Everyone involved.”
Asked whether Golden or Gluesenkamp Perez gave him a heads-up beforehand, Jeffries said: “I didn’t get a heads-up. You’ll have to talk to Katherine.”
House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) did not stop to answer questions after the vote. When I approached her as she began walking out of the cloakroom, she turned around and left the floor through another door.
The episode exposed an unusual fissure within the House Democratic Caucus just nine weeks before the midterm elections. Democratic leaders generally do not whip votes on rules, the procedural resolutions that govern floor debate. But the minority almost universally opposes the majority’s rules rather than supplying the votes needed to keep its legislative agenda moving.
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) underscored how extraordinary she considered Tuesday’s vote.
“Voting for the rule is something that I, as Speaker, we never — we didn’t even consider that anybody would do that,” Pelosi told reporters. “We never had that problem. So I’m disappointed that they did that.”
Privately, the reaction among Democrats was even sharper.
“They are not team players,” one House Democrat told me after the vote. “I wonder why they even caucus with us.”
A senior House Democratic aide was similarly furious: “I’m just so pissed off. Why would you ever help the Republicans with a rule? It makes no sense.”
Golden had a direct policy interest in the package. The rule provides for consideration of legislation he introduced with Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York to extend through 2035 a congressional pause that effectively protects the American lobster and Jonah crab fisheries from new federal regulations intended to reduce risks to the endangered North Atlantic right whale.
But Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez also helped clear the way for votes some of their Democratic colleagues would rather avoid...
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THE CURRENTS
⟿ U.S. launches a new round of strikes inside Iran: U.S. Central Command said American forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets around the Strait of Hormuz, citing recent attempted attacks on commercial shipping and U.S. troops. President Donald Trump called the strikes justified and threatened a substantially stronger response if Tehran retaliates. The renewed campaign puts the administration’s legal authority and war strategy back at the center of congressional scrutiny six months into the conflict. It is also increasingly an economic story: oil prices surged again today as markets priced greater risk to Gulf shipping.
⟿ Another Fed governor opens the door to a September rate hike: Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr said this morning he would support raising interest rates if incoming data fail to show inflation moving convincingly toward the Fed’s 2 percent target. The next Fed meeting is Sept. 15–16. The possibility of a hike is becoming materially harder for the White House to dismiss as the sole posture Chair Kevin Warsh adopted during his recent Jackson Hole speech. Higher rates would feed directly into mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and housing affordability during the final two months of the midterm campaign.
⟿ Federal judge strikes down New York’s $75B climate-superfund law: Chief U.S. District Judge Brenda Sannes ruled that New York cannot enforce its 2024 law requiring major fossil-fuel producers to pay $75 billion over 25 years toward climate-resilience costs. She concluded the measure was preempted by the federal Clean Air Act and exceeded the state’s authority over interstate and international emissions.
THE POWERS THAT BE
Hayes eyes Education and Workforce post: Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.) plans to run to lead Democrats on the House Education and Workforce Committee next Congress, according to a source familiar with her plans, setting up a potential contest with Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-Va.), who is expected to seek the post again. Hayes is focused for now on winning reelection but plans to pitch colleagues afterward on a more assertive committee that advances ambitious education policy (potentially including reversals of education provisions in Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act), aggressively investigates the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Education Department, and prioritizes member retention. The former educator, named National Teacher of the Year in 2016, was elected to Congress two years later as the first Black woman to represent the state.
THE POLICY DESK
Warren presses Trump housing officials: Senate Banking Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) demanded HUD Secretary Scott Turner and FHFA Director Bill Pulte explain what their agencies are doing to curb Wall Street ownership of housing, arguing they have instead made it easier for institutional investors to compete with homebuyers. Warren pointed to both Trump’s January executive order and the bipartisan ROAD to Housing Act, which restricts large investors from buying additional single-family homes, and requested answers by Sept. 14.
THE TRAIL
HMP expands its fall ad offensive: House Majority PAC launched new television, digital and Spanish-language radio ads across six battleground districts in Arizona, California, Colorado, Ohio and Texas, targeting Republicans over Medicaid cuts, tariffs, corruption and personal conduct. The Democratic super PAC’s latest wave hits Juan Ciscomani, David Valadao, Gabe Evans, Derek Merrin, Monica De La Cruz and Eric Flores as the fight for the House enters its final stretch.