Congress: The Senate & The House

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Unafraid of Repercussions

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During a Senate subcommittee hearing today, Democrats tried a variety of avenues to pin down FBI Director Kash Patel on reports about the bureau—about politicization of law enforcement as well as his personal conduct—but it was a simple question from Senator Chris Van Hollen at the end that produced the most telling response.

“Do you know that it is a crime to lie to Congress?” the Maryland Democrat asked.

Patel scowled and loudly reshuffled papers at his table. “I have not lied to Congress,” he said. He accused the senator of lying. He refused to look up. But as Van Hollen noted, Patel repeatedly sidestepped the actual question.

“The director of the FBI apparently does not want to answer the question about whether or not it’s a crime to lie to Congress, and I find that extremely troubling,” Van Hollen said. “You are a disgrace, Mr. Director.”

The exchange was a fiery end to a hearing that began with a bizarre exchange between Van Hollen and Patel but drifted into an odd stasis in the middle. The hearing, which also featured the leaders of the Drug Enforcement Agency, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, might otherwise have been a drab budget discussion, except that it was also senators’ first chance to question Patel on a series of recent press reports.

In mid-April, my colleague Sarah Fitzpatrick reported on concerns inside the Trump administration about what FBI sources described as excessive drinking and unexplained absences. (In a follow-up story, Fitzpatrick also reported on the personalized bourbon bottles Patel has handed out as gifts.) Patel has denied the allegations in Fitzpatrick’s initial story and sued Fitzpatrick and The Atlantic for defamation, demanding $250 million; MS NOW also reported last week that Fitzpatrick was the focus of an FBI criminal-leak investigation, a development the FBI rejects as “completely false.” Earlier this spring, several outlets also reported that Patel had fired agents from a task force that monitored threats from Iran—just days before the Trump administration launched a war against Iran—because they’d been involved in an investigation into the president’s alleged removal of classified documents to Mar-a-Lago. (Patel has denied these reports, saying that the agents were fired for unspecified violations of “ethical obligations.”)

“Director Patel, I don’t care one bit about your private life, and I don’t give a damn about what you do on your own time and on your own dime unless and until it interferes with your public responsibilities,” Van Hollen said in his opening statement. The allegations, if true, “demonstrate a gross dereliction of your duty,” he said.

The director responded with vitriol and scorn. “The only person that was slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar with a convicted gangbanging rapist was you,” Patel said. The director appeared to be referring to a visit that Van Hollen made to El Salvador, where he met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an imprisoned immigrant whom the administration acknowledged it had mistakenly deported. (He has since been returned to the United States, though the administration is now trying to deport him to Liberia.) Photos of the meeting released by the Salvadoran government showed glasses on a table with salt rims and cherries, but Van Hollen has said no one was drinking alcohol. The reference to “a convicted gangbanging rapist” is nonsensical; Abrego Garcia has been indicted for human smuggling (he has pleaded not guilty), but no evidence shows that he has ever been convicted of rape.

Other Democrats followed up with questions of their own. When Senator Chris Coons asked about the cost of Patel’s trip to Milan during the Olympics, when he was taped chugging beer in a locker room with the U.S. hockey team, Patel just didn’t answer. Coons also inquired about the firing of agents, but Patel said he didn’t believe the reporting. “Do you disagree that there were 10 Iran specialists dismissed right before the war began?” a perplexed Coons asked. “Yes,” Patel said. When Senator Patty Murray cited figures showing that FBI agents had been reassigned to immigration enforcement, Patel categorically denied that, too.

Committee Republicans, meanwhile, mostly opted to ignore the reports altogether, although Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana plied Patel with softballs such as “Is it important that you go out there and travel and talk to our line agents and try to maintain morale?”

Patel’s strategy of flat denials seemed to flummox Democrats. Only at the end did Van Hollen find some footing, noting that several statements Patel had made during the hearing were “provably false” and giving the director a chance to correct them. Patel declined—but he did offer some amendments. He allowed that some of the fired agents may have had Iran expertise, but denied they were Iran experts. He clarified that no FBI agents have been permanently reassigned to immigration. Patel’s evasive answers demonstrated his contempt for Congress and for oversight in general; surely he must realize that if Democrats regain control of Congress, they might produce formal charges of contempt too. But Patel seems unafraid of any repercussions and more interested in scoring partisan points that go viral.

Rarely if ever in the past have presidential appointees launched harsh personal attacks against members of Congress. In this administration, it’s routine. In one of the strangest moments of the hearing, Patel responded to Van Hollen’s questions about his drinking by claiming that a $7,000 bar expense could be found in the senator’s Federal Election Commission reports. Van Hollen said the tab was for a large party and noted that it had been paid for with private funds, and he challenged Patel to take the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, a screening tool for unhealthy drinking. Patel said he’d take the test if Van Hollen did, an offer the senator readily accepted. Who says Democrats and Republicans can’t agree on anything?

• The FBI director is MIA.
• Kash Patel’s personalized bourbon stash

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Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Consequences of GOP healthcare cuts are just beginning

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren argued Monday in Iowa that Democrats would be able to reverse some of the Medicaid funding cuts made by Republicans in 2025 if Democrats are able to win a majority in the U.S. Senate.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/05/11/repub/sen-elizabeth-warren-consequences-of-gop-healthcare-cuts-are-just-beginning/?

ps:Can't just promise that, because even with a majority of 1 or 2 doesn't guaranty anything!!

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FBI Director Kash Patel denies drinking allegations in heated Senate exchange In a budget hearing on Tuesday, Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen confronted Patel about a recent article in The Atlantic magazine that painted an unflattering portrait of his leadership of the FBI. Read more.

Why this matters: Patel, who has filed a $250 million lawsuit over the story, called the claims that he drinks excessively on the job and has been unreachable at times “unequivocally, categorically false.” The Atlantic has said it stands by its reporting and would vigorously defend against the “meritless lawsuit.”

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Republican senators say they need more detail on $1B White House security request   Appeals court spares Trump from paying $83 million defamation award to E. Jean Carroll — for now   In diplomacy, pomp and protocol matter, especially when Trump goes to China   Federal judge rules ICE in Colorado violated order limiting warrantless arrests

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‼️ Damage control on the Hill

Congress' sexual misconduct scandals are forcing House leaders into damage-control mode:

• House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced a bipartisan "partnership" today to overhaul how Congress handles misconduct cases.

‼️ Why it matters: It's a striking acknowledgment from the two top House leaders that the growing wave of allegations consuming Capitol Hill has become an institutional problem.

• Johnson and Jeffries designated the chairs of the Republican and Democratic women's caucuses — Reps. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) and Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) — to lead the effort.
• Ledger Fernández said the group wants to address the "procedural and cultural problems that have led to pervasive sexual misconduct on Capitol Hill."

📣 The intrigue: Johnson's decision to leave out the three most vocal lawmakers on the issue — Reps. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) — could cause problems for him.

• Boebert and Luna told us today that they have not been involved in the new effort.
• "Isn't it interesting that they don't want me to be on that since I'm very vocal on it? I don't care, I'm more effective off panels anyways," Luna said.
• "I'm sure at some point I will be involved in it," Boebert said.

🛑 Zoom in: The renewed scrutiny on the Hill intensified after two lawmakers — Reps. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) — resigned last month amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

• Swalwell also faces allegations of sexual assault, which he denies. Gonzales admitted to an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide.

Separately, we first reported today that a young female staffer whom Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) singled out for special attention told another person that she feared retaliation from the congressman.

• Edwards' conduct toward young female aides has prompted a House Ethics Committee investigation. He has denied wrongdoing.
• Johnson called the allegations against Edwards "serious" today and told reporters he had spoken with the lawmaker, who denied the accusations.
• "I am consistent, whether it's a Republican or a Democrat, a friend or foe, we have to allow due process to play out," Johnson said. "We cannot allow mere allegations to be a determining factor here, and that's why we have a House Ethics Committee."

👀 The big picture: Congress is going through its biggest reckoning over workplace culture and sexual misconduct since the #MeToo movement rocked Capitol Hill in 2017 and 2018.

• Pressure has been building on congressional leaders to respond to accusations of sexual misconduct.
• The speaker told reporters last month he would lead the charge to overhaul reforms on how sexual harassment cases are handled in Congress.

🚔 The bottom line: "I didn't come to Congress to be the bedroom police," Boebert told us. "It's really frustrating that this stuff sucks up all the oxygen here."

— Kate Santaliz

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🥊 Rank-and-file strike back

Johnson got side-stepped yet again by his own members today on Ukraine aid and Russia sanctions.

• Two Republicans and newly independent Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-Calif.) gave Democrats the support they needed to force a vote.

Why it matters: It's the sixth time this Congress — and the eighth time during Johnson's speakership — that a discharge petition has reached 218 signatures.

• It may not be the last: Kiley launched his own petition to force a vote on banning mid-decade redistricting, as we first reported.
• Kiley signed a discharge petition filed last year by House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) to force a vote on the Ukraine Support Act.

Zoom out: Congressional leadership has long been able to keep a lid on discharge petitions — a tool used by the minority party as a last-ditch attempt to pass legislation majority leadership opposes.

• But members have gone rogue in the last year on bills to release the Epstein files, extend Affordable Care Act tax credits and allow proxy voting in the House.

The intrigue: Jeffries "has no plans to support" Kiley's petition, spokesperson Christie Stephenson told us.

• Stephenson told us Kiley's bill is "unserious" and "would supercharge partisan gerrymandering in red states while putting Democratic-led ones at a serious disadvantage."
• The bill is identical to one introduced by the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) in the last Congress, Kiley pointed out to us.

Yes, but: Several Democrats told us they would likely sign Kiley's discharge petition anyway, including Reps. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) and Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), both of whom have been the target of mid-decade redistricting this cycle.

• Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) "might" still sign on despite Jeffries' opposition, he told us.
• Rep. Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.), a potential target of redistricting in 2028, said he would "definitely give consideration to it. This is something that I think is an issue that we should be looking at carefully."

— Andrew Solender

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Republican resistance to Iran war grows in the Senate as Murkowski flips Senate Republicans on Wednesday again blocked Democratic legislation that would halt President Donald Trump’s war with Iran, but the number of GOP senators voting against the war grew. Read more.

Why this matters: Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted against the war for the first time since it began at the end of February. Two other Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky, also voted against the war, as they had done previously.   The legislation ultimately failed to advance 49-50, with Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania the only Democrat to oppose it. Yet the close tally reflected Republicans growing unease with Trump’s war, with high gas prices a concern as the November elections draw near.

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Senators approve withholding their own pay during government shutdowns

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators unanimously approved a resolution Thursday to withhold their pay during government shutdowns, an attempt to make federal closures financially painful for lawmakers after a string of record-breaking impasses in the past year.

https://apnews.com/article/senate-pay-shutdown-withhold-government-face16eac3196ad4c3bedf3d699be87f?

⛽️ Rare Senate GOP leader split

Senate Republicans are looking for an off-ramp on an issue that divides their leadership team: year-round ethanol sales.

• "We are probably going to have to make a tweak on the small refinery exemption, which we're working on," Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) told us.

⛽️ Why it matters: Public splits between Senate GOP leaders are rare. But few issues fracture Republicans like ethanol.

• Senate Majority Leader John Thune wants to kill two birds with one bill: increase corn prices for vulnerable senators, and increase the fuel supply to help lower gas prices.
• But he needs to deconflict with Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), his second-in-command.
• "I oppose the year-round E15 mandate," Barrasso said on the Senate floor today, referencing a gas blend of up to 15% ethanol. "I oppose it because it hurts small oil refineries and all of the people who work at them."

☑️ Between the lines: "We need to get E15 done," Thune said at an Agriculture Committee hearing on Tuesday.

• "That solves a couple of important problems, one of which is demand for corn in this country."
• A Senate leadership aide acknowledged there's a geographic split in the Senate but told us passing the bill is a priority.

🚜 Zoom in: After the House passed a standalone E15 bill last night, senators immediately began discussing potential revisions — and possible legislative vehicles.

• "Sen. [John] Boozman [R-Ark.] would like to include it in the Farm Bill. That'd be one option," Hoeven told us.

🛢️ The big picture: For all of Barrasso's opposition, he made it clear that his main concern is small refiners.

• 🌽 But corn-state lawmakers and candidates need a political win, GOP strategists tell us.
• That includes Sens. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), as well as Rep. Ashley Hinson, the likely GOP Senate nominee in Iowa.

🐄 The other side: Some Republicans oppose government support for ethanol on ideological grounds.

• "I'm not a real fan," Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said. "I like corn as food."

— Hans Nichols

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‼️ Johnson's razor edge

House Speaker Mike Johnson is out of wiggle room to stop Democrats on war powers votes.

• Today's vote failed in a tie after Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) voted with Republicans. There are now three Republican "yes" votes on war powers.

➕ Why it matters: Democrats expect a missing member to return for votes next week, while Republicans are waiting in limbo on Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-N.J.), who hasn't voted in two months.

🔎 Zoom in: Johnson was pressed today on Kean's whereabouts.

• "I have spoken to him," Johnson told reporters today about Kean, "about two weeks ago."
• Kean is recovering from a "personal health condition," his chief of staff told reporters.
• His return doesn't seem imminent: He backed out of a local New Jersey breakfast event on May 28, the New York Times reported today, and organizers wished him a fast recovery.

🔙 The other side: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has his own missing lawmaker.

• Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) told Jeffries she'll be back on Wednesday, we learned today from Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones. He spoke with Wilson, who has missed votes for a month, this afternoon.
• "You've got to come. The numbers are too small," Jeffries told Wilson during their call, referring to the House's extremely narrow vote margin, a senior House Democrat and another source familiar with the discussion told us.
• The 83-year-old Wilson has told allies she will run for reelection after rumors swirled about a possible retirement.

— Justin Green, Andrew Solender and Marc Caputo

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🚨 New Ethics lifelines

The beleaguered House Ethics Committee is pleading for more resources amid its toughest stretch in years — and leaders say they're eager to help.

🚔 Why it matters: Pressure is growing on Congress to prove it can self-police on lawmaker misconduct. The 10-member Ethics Committee can't keep up.

• The panel's investigations can sometimes take years to issue formal reports or disciplinary recommendations.
• Ethics has investigated 20 cases of sexual misconduct since 2017, but in many instances, members resigned before the panel released its findings.

Zoom in: Two lawmakers resigned last month amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

• Another two are under Ethics investigations for alleged sexual harassment and sexual misconduct. Reps. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) and Cory Mills (R-Fla.) both deny wrongdoing.

💰 Between the lines: House Ethics Chair Michael Guest (R-Miss.) told us last month that his committee needs more resources to "move matters more quickly."

• One specific ask: Guest wants a conversation with party leaders about bringing the Office of Congressional Conduct under the House Ethics umbrella, giving the committee access to its staff.

🚨 Speaker Mike Johnson told us today: "That committee is very busy right now."

• "We'll dedicate whatever resources are necessary to ensure the House Ethics Committee does its job as it should," Johnson told us.
• "There's lots of allegations flying around, so we'll make sure that they have everything they need to get the job done," he added.

⏩ The big picture: Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced a bipartisan "partnership" on Wednesday to overhaul how Congress handles misconduct cases.

• The two top leaders tapped the chairs of the Republican and Democratic women's caucuses — Reps. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) and Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) — to lead the effort.
• Cammack told us in an interview today: "We all are in agreement, Ethics moves too slow, and I would agree that Chairman Guest has the right idea that they are under-resourced, and that limits their ability to move quickly with these investigations."
• The task force will hold its first meeting next Friday to start discussing possible reforms. Cammack said she hopes to get reforms done before the midterms.

💸 Democrats signaled that their party would make revitalizing the Ethics Committee a top priority if they win back control of the House in November.

• Jeffries "would ask members on the committee, Democrats and Republicans, what they need to do the job and he would try to give them the resources to do the job," said Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), the chair of the House Democratic caucus.
• Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations subcommittee that doles out funding to the legislative branch, told us he "would give them more resources."

👎 The other side: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), one of the loudest voices demanding accountability in Congress, told us she doesn't support giving Ethics more resources.

• "I think that they can do plenty of work that just requires them to actually sit down and make that a priority," she said.
• "I did it for free. I was more effective and didn't have to wait six years."

— Kate Santaliz and Andrew Solender

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‼️ Powerboard: GOP "yes" votes on war powers

Data: Senate and House roll call votes; Chart: Kathleen Hunter/Axios

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💰 GOP to crypto: Show me the money

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

Republicans have delivered major wins for the crypto industry in Washington — and they're increasingly frustrated that its biggest political spender isn't stepping up for them in the midterms, Axios' Alex Isenstadt reports. Why it matters: Crypto now commands the biggest political war chest of any industry in America — and how it deploys that cash could help decide the November elections. 👀 Friction point: The pro-crypto Fairshake super PAC has a massive $165 million. But the group — which receives the bulk of its funding from Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange — has yet to announce which races it will target. That has infuriated Republicans who have promoted pro-crypto legislation, including the CLARITY Act, which would define how digital assets are regulated. Republicans on Thursday advanced the bill out of the Senate Banking Committee, with all 13 GOP members voting in favor. Democrats, who're more skeptical of the industry, opposed it 9-2. 🐘 Behind the scenes: Some Republicans think the industry may be hedging its bets in case Democrats take power. Others speculate it doesn't want to alienate Democrats who will be key to passing pro-crypto legislation. Keep reading.

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🔥 Thune plowing ahead

Republican senators are putting Majority Leader John Thune on notice that finding 50 GOP votes for a $72 billion reconciliation package will be a heavy lift this week.

⚠️ Why it matters: Thune has two problems — substance and rushed timing.

• Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) started the week by emailing the entire GOP conference to say he will oppose the budget reconciliation bill in its current form, we scooped today.
• He's especially opposed to $1 billion for security related to President Trump's East Wing ballroom project and the Secret Service.

📣 Zoom in: Tillis is not alone.

• "I support his initiative," Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said of Tillis. Murkowski doesn't like "these arbitrary deadlines that are set by the president just because he wants something."
• "I don't like things being shoved down my throat either," Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) told us after saying he doesn't "necessarily disagree" with Tillis.
• "We literally have not had a discussion in terms of some of these added items, and that's something we should have," Johnson added.

🔥 State of play: Thune, who can lose up to three Republican votes, is plowing ahead anyway, saying he's planning a Thursday vote to "strike while the iron is hot."

• The Senate parliamentarian knocked out the first version of Secret Service funding, which includes $220 million for security upgrades to the East Wing.
• "We're trying to sort all that out and figure out how we can land the plane," Thune told reporters this afternoon.
• "Part of that involves the parliamentarian, and part of it involves the need to get 50 votes here in the Senate, and then 218 in the House."

Between the lines: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who lost his primary election Saturday after being accused of disloyalty to Trump, indicated today that he would not thwart the GOP agenda simply because he lost.

• "I'm going to do what's good for my country and my state," he told reporters.

⏩ The bottom line: Some senators, including those who want to change the language around the Secret Service funding, think the Senate will act this week.

• "I think we'll move this week," said Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.).
• "I'm going to have an amendment to pay for the ballr — for the security funding. You guys call it ballroom funding, but only a small portion of it goes to the ballroom, and it's also security," he said.

— Hans Nichols

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Senate advances bill aimed at ending Iran war as Cassidy, after primary loss, flips to support

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate advanced legislation Tuesday that seeks to force President Donald Trump to withdraw from the Iran war, as a growing number of Republicans defied the president’s direction on a conflict that has spanned well over two months.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-iran-war-senate-bill-cassidy-fe89d2df981a79ac816722d0115d3080?

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🗡️ Senate revenge tour

Senate Majority Leader John Thune — and most of the GOP conference — was reeling today from President Trump's snap endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Why it matters: Thune called it Trump's "decision." But it's Thune's problem to pass Trump's agenda, with a trio of senators the president can no longer hurt.

• Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has been unbowed since announcing his retirement in July 2025 after clashes with Trump.
• Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) voted with Democrats today to advance an Iran war powers vote to debate.
• Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) has a runoff May 26 but will enter it with Trump backing someone else.

😓 Adding to Thune's degree of difficulty: a president sick of the Senate and its rules, and rank-and-file Republicans seething over Trump's knifing of Cornyn.

• "I don't understand. He [Paxton] is an ethically challenged individual," said Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine).
• "I'm supremely disappointed," Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said.

Driving the news: Trump's endorsement of Paxton came in the middle of his 10-day GOP revenge tour.

• Cassidy fell Saturday, failing to make the runoff in Louisiana's Senate primary.
• "Horrible Congressman Thomas Massie" (R-Ky.), as Trump called him, has his primary today.

What we're watching: The $72 billion reconciliation package will be the first test for the Senate's newly combustible environment.

• "I just came off the campaign trail. People love the president," Cassidy said. "But I can tell you, a billion dollars for the ballroom … that's not where their head is, and that's not where my head is."

Zoom out: Trump's relations with the Senate have sunk to new lows over his frustration with the Senate parliamentarian, Republicans' refusal to abolish the filibuster, and GOP handwringing over ballroom security funding.

• Thune pronouncing himself "not a big fan" of the new $1.76 billion Department of Justice "anti-weaponization" fund this morning could have been the final straw.

What they're saying: "He's done with the Senate bullsh*t and Thune and all of them. They can't deliver," said a Trump confidante.

• "The only reason the president was holding out for Cornyn was the SAVE Act," the confidante said. "And when that became a lost cause, it was 'Why the f*ck should I support this guy?'
• "[Trump] saw some polling this weekend.… The polling showed Paxton will win in November. It might have been Paxton's polling. But it's Texas," a Trump adviser said.

⚡️ Zoom in: GOP lawmakers have several must-pass bills in the next five months, followed by several nice-to-pass pieces of legislation.

• Trump is demanding money for ICE and Border Patrol before June 1. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act expires June 12. The farm bill needs to pass by Sept. 30.
• Republicans are working to pass a housing bill to lower costs and looking for 60 votes on a bill to provide market structure for cryptocurrency.
• A reconciliation 3.0 package is still being discussed — with varying degrees of earnestness and snickering — in both chambers.

🙀 The bottom line: Trump has always enforced GOP loyalty with raw fear, naked threats and decisive punishment.

• Now he'll learn whether fear loses its hold on lawmakers who have already lost — or are staring at defeat.

— Hans Nichols, Kate Santaliz, Marc Caputo and Alex Isenstadt

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☑️ Dems eye crackdown on AI slop

House Democrats are ready to be a buzzkill against the explosion of AI in campaign ads if they retake the House in November.

• "I have had a number of conversation with the AI community about the issue generally and about my bill to require disclosure of the use of AI in political ads," House Administration Committee ranking member Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.). told us.
• Morelle is House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' top lieutenant on election policy.

Why it matters: AI helps campaigns save on the often prohibitive cost of producing ads. But some are using the new technology to push the limits of negative campaigning.

• One "satirical" ad in Kentucky's 4th district accusing Massie of being in a "throuple" with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) includes phony, AI-generated videos of the three dining together, holding hands and checking into a hotel.
• Another ad in that race uses AI to depict Massie rival Ed Gallrein fleeing a Trump rally, changing his voter registration and abandoning Trump in a WWII-style foxhole — all without any apparent disclosure.

State of play: AI-generated ads and videos have begun to proliferate in federal, state and even local elections across the country.

• The NRCC has used AI to create deepfake videos of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Texas state Rep. James Talarico reciting written comments.

The other side: A Democratic House candidate in upstate New York released an AI-generated video attacking Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) last July.

• Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas), who lost the Democratic Texas Senate nomination to Talarico in March, was accused of using AI to enhance a crowd in the closing shot of one of her ads.
• Jesse Jackson Jr., an unsuccessful House candidate in Illinois, used AI to enhance the voice of one of his endorsers, former Rep. Bobby Rush, whose vocal cords were damaged by throat cancer.

— Andrew Solender

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🛞 The wheels fall off

Congressional Republicans are countering President Trump's meddling in their primaries with a revenge tour of their own.

Why it matters: Politically, Trump had a successful week, picking winners and settling scores. Legislatively, it's turning into a disaster.

• 💣 He's on the edge of an Iran war rebuke: House Democrats are one step closer to finally getting a successful Iran war powers vote as their last holdout plans to flip and at least one Republican says they may follow suit.
• 💰 His "anti-weaponization" fund is taking heat: Republicans in both chambers put him on notice that the nearly $1.8 billion carveout will be subject to legislative scrutiny.
• 🕺 And the ballroom money is out (for now), but there's still an open question about whether any of the other funding for the Secret Service will survive.

🛑 Zoom in: The anti-weaponization fund is "kryptonite" for Republicans, and they are exploring ways to restrict — or regulate — it, according to one GOP senator.

• Questions about the fund — where the money is coming from and whom it can be paid to — were repeatedly raised during a closed-door Senate GOP lunch today.
• "There's going to be an attempt to address the questions that are out there on it," agrees Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.). He adds that the questions and potential amendments would be coming from "our side" rather than from Democrats.

🔪 In the House, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) says he will "try to kill" the fund.

• Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) says he will "likely" sign a discharge petition from Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) to force a vote to impose restrictions on the fund.

🤗 Between the lines: House Speaker Mike Johnson brushed aside concerns about party conformity today. He told reporters that lawmakers shouldn't be "trying to carve out their own lane and do something that's destructive."

• "You have to give up your personal preferences sometimes, because you're in a deliberative body," Johnson added.

👎 But Johnson's members are pushing back: "A yes-man mentality, it's not good for the president, it's not good for our party, not good for Congress," retiring Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) tells us.

• "We don't report to any party or any person here in D.C.," says Fitzpatrick, who was the target of barbs from Trump today over failing to be in lock-step.
• Fitzpatrick says he's not worried about Trump finding a primary challenger to run against him.
• "He should make his case and not threaten [Fitzpatrick]," Bacon tells us, about Trump.

⚡️ What's next: Senate GOP leaders are expected this evening to release the text of a roughly $70 billion package to fund ICE and Border Patrol for the next 3 1/2 years.

• "We're focused on a very narrow bill," Rounds says.
• Democrats are preparing amendments aimed at imposing restrictions on the "anti-weaponization" money — what they are calling a "slush fund."
• The vote-a-rama could begin as soon as tomorrow.

— Hans Nichols, Kate Santaliz and Andrew Solender

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Backlash to Trump’s $1.8B settlement fund delays GOP immigration bill

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans abruptly left Washington on Thursday without voting on a roughly $70 billion bill to fund immigration enforcement agencies, frustrated with the White House and at an impasse over whether to try to block a new $1.776 billion settlement fund to compensate Trump allies who believe they have been politically prosecuted.

https://apnews.com/article/congress-billion-ballroom-trump-funding-bill-republicans-d0b0d2ee59a95f6199d80998ab89d7e4?

ps:So pathetic!!!!!

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Sagging poll ratings, soaring gas prices put GOP in a fix for keeping US House control

KANSAS CITY, Missouri — When Vice President JD Vance pitched voters on electing Republicans to Congress this November during a trip to a Kansas City manufacturing plant on Monday, he delivered the message while standing in a newly gerrymandered U.S. House district.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/05/22/repub/sagging-poll-ratings-soaring-gas-prices-put-gop-in-a-fix-for-keeping-us-house-control/?

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🗑️ House trashes tradition

Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios

House members in both parties are embracing the discharge petition like never before to sidestep House Speaker Mike Johnson. 🛟 Why it matters: Discharge petitions are meant to be a last resort to stop party leaders from blocking popular legislation. For 90 years, Congress averaged fewer than one successful discharge petition per Congress, with 37 reaching the critical threshold for signatures. But that's changed: 10 discharge petitions reached 218 signatures over the past two years alone. 👎 Zoom in: Republican leaders have long discouraged their members from signing onto Democratic-led petitions, but those pleas are increasingly falling on deaf ears. Johnson briefly floated changes to House rules last year to make it harder for discharge petitions to succeed. He said the tactic was "too common," with Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) saying he would "like to see a higher threshold for a lot of these motions." ⚡️ Driving the news: A discharge petition introduced by Rep. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.) hit 218 signatures on Wednesday. It will force a vote on legislation aimed at speeding up unionization negotiations. The petition was signed by 211 Democrats and seven Republicans, with Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Riley Moore (R-W.Va.) and Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) providing the final signatures. The turnaround was lightning-fast: Norcross introduced the petition on April 20, and the trio of Republicans signed it exactly a month later. ✍️ By the numbers: This is the eighth time in the 119th Congress that a discharge petition has reached the necessary 218 signatures to force a House vote. Two other petitions secured 218 signatures in 2024. Those 10 represent more than 20% of the successful discharge petitions since 1935, according to data compiled by Axios' Kate Santaliz. The 119th Congress has seen the most discharge petitions hit the necessary signature threshold of any congressional session since the tool was created in its modern form, according to Good Authority. The bottom line: The petitions have had a mixed record so far. Just one of the eight discharge petitions over the past year — the Epstein Files Transparency Act — has become law, with several others passing the House but languishing in the Senate. — Andrew Solender

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😤Republican blowback begins

Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios

House Republicans feel furious — but also vindicated — after a last-minute dispute between President Trump and Senate Republicans left ICE funding in limbo. ✍️ Why it matters: The failed Senate push is hardening House conservatives' distrust of their colleagues across the Capitol. "The Senate is pissing me off," Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) told us. "This is going on, what? Almost 100 days now." "Now they're playing games, talking about items that have nothing to do with that package," Donalds added. 🛑 Zoom in: House conservatives fiercely resisted the GOP's "two-track" strategy earlier this year that Senate Republicans boxed them into. Conservatives wanted to wait on funding the rest of the Department of Homeland Security until the reconciliation process was complete, arguing they could no longer trust the Senate to get it done. House Speaker Mike Johnson delayed the DHS measure for weeks amid the standoff. But he eventually moved ahead anyway — after assurances Senate Republicans would quickly deliver the border enforcement package. 💣 Those assurances blew up last week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune sent lawmakers home without a vote after senators objected to Trump's newly unveiled $1.776 billion "anti-weaponization fund." They'll likely miss Trump's June 1 deadline to pass ICE funding. 📣 What they're saying: "We didn't like it, and we didn't trust it, and we were very vocal about that," Rep. Clay Higgins (R-La.) told us of the two-track strategy. "We made a conscious decision to allow that move to go forward, but unfortunately, our concerns are being proven to be true," Higgins added. "I think everybody regrets that we ever let it get separated to begin with, because that's a concern, and it's a bad precedent, but nevertheless, we are where we are," Rep. Mark Harris (R-N.C.) told us. "I am angry that the Senate put us in that situation," Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) told us. "I think that the Senate failed us." 🤼 The bottom line: This anger won't be going anywhere. There's currently no clear path out of the Senate-versus-Trump deadlock. — Kate Santaliz