Members of the National Guard patrol Washington, D.C., on Aug. 27. Photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters
It’s Tuesday, the traditional day for elections and for our pause-and-consider newsletter on politics and policy. We think of it as a mini-magazine in your inbox.
A LOOK AHEAD AT A MESSY MONTH FOR CONGRESS
By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews
Correspondent
The first day back from August recess in Washington is usually a good one at the U.S. Capitol. Staff has been lawmaker-free for a month, able to get more work done and exist in a relatively sharp-elbow-free environment.
Members of Congress have been home, some facing angry constituents, but also, they have been away from the glare of most cameralights and the questions of journalists.
That is about to change dramatically. In the next few weeks, Congress will face a barrage of messy issues and the opportunity to make them more or less so.
In the spirit of clarity and simplicity, here is a brief look at three key things to watch.
Potential government shutdown
Congress and President Donald Trump have until Sept. 30 to keep most of the government funded. But they need Democrats’ help to get any spending bill — even a temporary continuation of current funding — past the Senate’s 60-vote threshold.
Democrats are under a great deal of pressure to show they can stand up to Trump and force him to back down on some of his funding cuts, federal worker cuts, national guard deployments, immigration raids and other actions.
As a result, it is not clear what can pass. Democrats are demanding that Republicans make some concessions (though they’re not saying what they exactly want yet). And Republicans, especially Trump, have shown zero interest in that.
National Guard deployments
Watch the clip in the player above.
The president continues to indicate he wants to deploy National Guard troops to more cities, including Chicago. He repeated his intentions to send troops there during a news conference Tuesday.
Republicans in Congress are pointing to the D.C. deployment as a success. Democrats and some D.C residents are decrying it as an invented crisis.
Meantime, many Democrats in the Illinois delegation sent the president a letter opposing any such action in Chicago.
They called the actions, “unlawful, unconstitutional, and unacceptable” and wrote bluntly, “there is no emergency in Chicago that warrants the President of the United States deploying the military.”
A reminder: There is a libertarian wing of the Republican Party. Those members especially may face tough questions about the president’s actions if he moves troops to other cities.
The Epstein files
In the midst of all of this, the Justice Department continues to send parts — but not all — of its Epstein files to the House Oversight Committee for review.
But there is public pressure, some within the Republican Party, for more.
The multimillionaire charged with sex crimes was known to be connected with a wide range of powerful and famous people, including Trump. The two men had a falling-out and there is no evidence of wrongdoing by Trump.
But Trump recently admitted that he knew Epstein recruited young women and girls, including at least one victim, from his staff at Mar-a-Lago.
On Wednesday, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., are holding a news conference with several survivors of Epstein’s abuse.
The two lawmakers are trying to force through a bill to release all of the files. That is gathering signatures now and will be closely watched.
One Big Question: What is the White House saying about Trump’s threat to extend the federal takeover to Chicago? NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter discuss.
A Closer Look: After a U.S. federal judge blocked the deportation flights of unaccompanied minors to Guatemala, an immigrant advocate explains what makes this case stand out.
In six months, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has lost nearly half its budget and thousands of employees. The agency is caught in a political struggle as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. moves to reshape the nation’svaccine policies.
Several CDC leaders resigned last week after the White House ousted the agency’s new director, Susan Monarez.
Dr. Richard Besser, who was acting CDC director during the Obama administration, said the agency was broken, but didn’t think it was beyond repair. He said this moment requires Congress stepping up “and saying that this is not a good thing for our nation.”
“It is a dangerous situation that will affect every part of our country,” he told PBS News Weekend’s Ali Rogin. “Rural communities across America will be hit very hard by this decimation of our public health system. And we need our elected officials to say this is not what we want to see for America.”
Mark Your Calendars: On Thursday, RFK Jr. will testify on Trump's health care agenda before the Senate Finance Committee. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. EDT.
THIS WEEK’S TRIVIA QUESTION
By Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the U.S. Space Command will have a new home.
The headquarters for the smallest U.S. military branch will be moved from Colorado to Alabama, reversing a Biden-era decision to keep Space Command in Colorado Springs.
The chosen location is Huntsville, Alabama, a city with a deep history of rocket development and testing, and whose decadesold nickname nods to its role in building rockets that put the first U.S. satellite into orbit and helped the first astronauts land on the moon.
Our question: What is Huntsville’s zippy nickname? (Hint: Don’t overthink it.)
Send your answers to [email protected] or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.
Last week, we asked: What financial crisis primarily led to the creation of the Fed?
The answer: The Panic of 1907. The Fed was created in 1913 after a series of financial crises, including the Panic of 1907, which was prompted by a failed attempt by a group of businessmen to manipulate the price of the United Copper Company’s stock. This led to a series of bank runs and a national sense of instability.
Congratulations to our winners: Paul Taylor and Peter M. Blankfield!
Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.
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