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Evening Report

Wednesday, May 31

House set to vote on debt deal after Dems help overcome initial hurdle

Several dozen Democrats joined a majority of House Republicans to overcome a procedural hurdle on the compromise spending and debt limit bill negotiated by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

Fifty-two Democrats joined 189 Republicans on Wednesday to pass the rule governing debate over the bill, while 29 Republicans voted against it. A vote on the legislation itself is set for later tonight.

The Hill's Mike Lillis wrote that the rule vote "emerged as a potential pitfall in the race to pass the bipartisan debt-ceiling package[.]" Some detractors in the GOP saw the initial vote as a final opportunity to block the bill.

Lillis explained: "As a tradition, the minority party in the House has virtually always voted against the rules that establish the parameters of debate surrounding floor votes on bills, even if the minority party supports the underlying legislation."

Now, attention turns toward the vote on the bill itself, which is expected around 8:30 p.m. ET Wednesday.

More than 30 Republican House members have said they'll vote against the bill, along with at least a handful of progressive Democrats. The bill should have enough Democratic supporters to pass the House.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said the bill could pass the Senate as early as Thursday. He and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) have both endorsed the agreement.

Congressional leaders have been racing to pass the bill and send it to President Biden's desk for a signature by Monday — the day mostly recently forecast by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for when the U.S. would default on its debts without a limit increase.

Follow The Hill's live blog tonight here for all the latest

Welcome to Evening Report! I'm Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what's coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here.

CATCH UP QUICK

Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) will resign from Congress "after an orderly transition can be ensured," Stewart announced Wednesday, citing his wife's health issues.
Fifty-four percent of teachers said schools would be less safe if educators carried guns, while 20 percent said schools would be safer and 26 percent said it wouldn't impact safety, according to a RAND Corporation survey.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration proposed a rule requiring all new vehicles to include automatic emergency brakes.

NEW THIS AFTERNOON

GOP primary may have two more candidates next week:

The 2024 GOP presidential primary could soon have two more prominent candidates, with announcements from former Vice President Mike Pence and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie expected as soon as next week.

The Hill's Brett Samuels reported that a source familiar with the plans said Pence is likely to announce next week. Pence is doing a CNN town hall on June 7 (his 64th birthday), which will be held in Iowa. "The former vice president is expected to put much of his focus on Iowa, which hosts the first caucus on the GOP primary calendar," Samuels wrote.

Christie, who ran in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, is also expected to launch a 2024 White House bid next week, Axios first reported. On June 6, Christie is set to speak at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire, which will hold the first presidential primary next year.

CAMPAIGN

What '24 Republicans have said about the debt limit deal:

Several prominent Republicans running for president have spoken against the Biden-McCarthy debt limit deal currently being considered in Congress:

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis: "Prior to this deal … our country was careening towards bankruptcy. And after this deal, our country will still be careening towards bankruptcy."
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley: "Adding at least $4 trillion to America's $31 trillion national debt over two years without substantially cutting spending is no way to run our country's fiscal affairs." Haley's campaign added that "just five years ago Congressman Ron DeSantis voted for a debt increase deal and President Donald Trump signed it into law."
Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy: "I would absolutely vote against the debt ceiling deal. Reducing the IRS budget from $80 billion to $78 billion doesn't solve the essential problem of a corrupt administrative state – at the IRS or elsewhere."
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.): Scott said "the fact that the current deal allows for him [President Biden] to continue to spend however much he does with no limit is something that I can't support.

Former President Trump hasn't commented publicly on the deal reached this weekend, though he said on May 19 that Republicans "should not make a deal on the debt ceiling unless they get everything they want."

Pence, who hasn't yet declared a 2024 bid, said the deal "uses Washington smoke and mirror games to make small reforms while weakening our military at a time of increasing threats from foreign adversaries."

CEO Summit

Chief executives of United, Kroger and eBay join The Hill Live:

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby, eBay president and CEO Jamie Iannone and Kroger chairman and CEO Rodney McMullen, among others, joined The Hill's CEO summit Wednesday.

Click here to watch

IN OTHER NEWS

Sargassum seaweed may harbor flesh-eating bacteria

Researchers found that the sargassum seaweed washing up on some beaches in Florida could harbor flesh-eating bacteria, adding to the list of reasons to stay away from the seaweed. Read more here

Amazon employees walk out over climate issues

More than 1,800 Amazon employees had pledged to join a Wednesday walkout, almost half of whom work at the company's Seattle headquarters, according to Amazon Employees for Climate Justice.

Virginia cutting college degree requirement for most state jobs

Virginia is no longer requiring applicants for around 90 percent of state-classified jobs to have college degrees as of July.

PUNDIT CORNER

"Climate reparations? I already paid them" — Derek Hunter, host of the Derek Hunter Podcast and a former staffer for the late Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.). (Read here)

"For Republicans, anger is winning over logic again" — John Kenneth White, a professor of Politics at The Catholic University of America. (Read here)

⏲️ COUNTDOWN

524 days until the presidential election.

🗓 ON TAP TOMORROW

10 a.m.: The House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation holds a hearing called "Advances in AI: Views from Silicon Valley."