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MORNING REPORT

Thursday, May 23

by Alexis Simendinger & Kristina Karisch

Border bill, possible Netanyahu speech divide Congress

Tax returns, artificial intelligence and border security. Those are just some of the issues lawmakers are set to tackle in the coming weeks, as Congress checks items off the legislative bucket list ahead of their summer recess.

Meanwhile, House Republicans are plotting an ambitious schedule to pass all 12 annual government funding bills for fiscal 2025 by August, but negotiators say they are already off to a late start. GOP leadership unveiled the proposed plan at a conference meeting Wednesday, reports The Hill's Aris Folley, with aims to start in the House in early June.

If we don't hit any speed bumps it could work," Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chair of the funding subcommittee that oversees dollars for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said Wednesday. "But we usually hit speed bumps."

But first on the docket: the bipartisan Senate border bill, which failed to gain support in February, but is being put up for a new vote today by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). Though he supported the measure when it was first negotiated, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told President Biden Monday that Republicans plan to vote against it.

The White House response? Goading Senate Republicans to support the package they abandoned after former President Trump voiced his opposition.

"Senate Republicans will have another opportunity to decide whether they want to support the toughest, fairest border security agreement in decades or whether they will continue putting their partisan political interests ahead of the nation and security," a senior administration official told reporters Wednesday.

The blame game highlights the downward spiral the erstwhile deal has taken from an actionable piece of legislation early this year to a twice-doomed messaging bill with no chance of becoming law, writes The Hill's Rafael Bernal. In February, only four Republicans voted for the deal. Across the aisle, the measure raised the ire of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, a key immigration stakeholder that was visibly kept out of the negotiating room.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are already balking at the prospect of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressing a joint session of Congress, with liberal Democrats and progressives vowing a boycott. The conflict has been an ongoing headache for Biden and other Democratic leaders, write The Hill's Mike Lillis and Mychael Schnell, who are attempting to strike a delicate balance between supporting America's closest Middle Eastern ally and denouncing elements of Netanyahu's military strategy, which has resulted in more than 34,000 civilian deaths in Gaza.

"I boycotted his last visit. I certainly will not attend this one," said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), a Jewish Democrat who characterized Netanyahu as "a menace." "It's not going to help move us forward — it's a detriment. Should he come for any reason, in any venue, I am not going to be there."

CNN: Congressional Democrats are investigating whether leading U.S. oil companies have illegally colluded with one another and with OPEC to inflate prices at the pump.
Reuters: The House Foreign Affairs Committee voted to advance a bill that would make it easier for the Biden administration to restrict the export of artificial intelligence systems.

There's still some hope for bipartisanship — in the form of new legislation that would target presidents' tax returns, as well as any foreign payments, in a bid for increased transparency and an election-year push to curb foreign influence. The bill, introduced by House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), would require presidents and vice presidents to disclose their tax returns and any foreign payments made to them or their families in the two years prior to taking office, during their term in office and in the two years following (The Hill and ABC News).

Porter said that "by boosting transparency and requiring additional financial disclosures, Congress can shine a light on improper conduct in the Executive Branch — or be confident that none occurred."

3 THINGS TO KNOW TODAY

Good news for people hitting the road over what could be a record Memorial Day weekend of driving: Gas prices are lowering again. Also, flying will be messy this summer. Get ready.
Anger hurts organ function and health.
A court hearing in the Trump classified documents case became a shouting match in Florida Wednesday between the lawyers, and Judge Aileen Cannon wondered if the case is too complicated for jurors to understand. There is no trial date.

⚖️ Hunter Biden, who heads to trial June 3 in Delaware on felony gun charges, was granted a delay Wednesday until Sept. 5 for a separate trial on tax charges in California. The younger Biden's laptop will be at the center of the government's evidence while prosecuting him for purchasing a revolver in 2018 and allegedly lying on a government form about his drug use at the time. Biden owned the weapon for 11 days and never fired it, according to his legal team. He pleaded not guilty in October. "The defendant's laptop is real (it will be introduced as a trial exhibit) and it contains significant evidence of the defendant's guilt," prosecutors wrote in a Wednesday court filing. Lawyers for the president's son have said the laptop files were manipulated.

Leading the Day

© The Associated Press / Meg Kinnard | Former GOP presidential primary candidate Nikki Haley, pictured at a South Carolina rally in February, said Wednesday she plans to vote for former President Trump in November.

Politics

Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley plans to vote for Trump, a man she campaigned to defeat this year and a presumptive nominee she has said creates "chaos" wherever he goes. "Biden has been a catastrophe" on international affairs, securing the border and defending U.S. allies abroad, she said at a Hudson Institute event Wednesday while explaining her intended vote.

After Haley quit the primary race in March, allies predicted she would ultimately endorse Trump to avoid permanently alienating the GOP's hardcore base.

"I'm not looking for anything from him," Haley said in February.

Two big questions: What happens to Haley's supporters who backed her before and after she withdrew from the contest? And would Trump consider her to be his running mate? He has said no.

Some Senate Republicans who have been Trump detractors plan to skip the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this summer. GOP Sens. Mitt Romney (Utah), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Todd Young (Ind.) and Thom Tillis (N.C.) told The Hill they do not plan to attend the nominating event. Republican Sens. Mike Rounds (S.D.), Susan Collins (Maine), Bill Cassidy (La.) and Rand Paul (Ky.) indicated they are undecided. Of the group, Rounds and Tillis support Trump's third bid for the White House after holding out for months.

Trump has called Romney a "Democrat secret asset." Romney said the former president, whom he voted to convict during impeachment, had a "dangerous approach" in office and an authoritarian streak.

The former president has described Murkowski as a "RINO" — Republican in name only — who was "disloyal." Rounds made it clear he would vote for his party's presidential nominee this year as his preferred choice to Biden.

2024 ROUNDUP

Schumer is plowing ahead with some Senate "show votes" to counter GOP political messaging to try to construct a political shield around some vulnerable Democratic colleagues, The Hill's Alexander Bolton reports. Example: immigration and the border.
Trump is holding a campaign rally in the Bronx today, following appearances in New Jersey and Minnesota, suggesting his desire to compete for media attention in traditionally Democratic terrain by attracting large crowds and focusing on Black and Latino voters.
The Biden campaign is up today with a new TV ad ahead of Trump's Bronx rally to try to counter the former president's assertions of achievements and help for Black voters. Campaign outreach targets New York zip codes across digital platforms and the 30-second TV ad will air in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Macon, Ga., Milwaukee and Detroit, the campaign announced.
An Ohio ballot problem in the presidential race will be repaired by the courts or the Legislature, Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said this week. But lawmakers said Tuesday that it won't be the Legislature that irons things out. Here's the wrinkle: State law requires political parties to certify their candidates with the Secretary of State "on or before" 90 days prior to an election. But the Democratic National Convention, where Biden is expected to be nominated, won't take place until Aug. 22 — 75 days before the election. The president's campaign says it's confident Biden will be on the Ohio ballot.
Democrats are on alert about Trump's fundraising success last month. He outraised Biden. Was it a one-off or a trend?
The Cook Political Report, in collaboration with BSG and GS Strategy Group, is out this morning with its Swing State Project Survey of 3,969 voters in seven battleground states from May 6-13. Trump, who leads in all but Wisconsin in the poll, is getting a boost from voters concerned about their cost of living. Overall, Trump leads Biden in a head-to-head match-up 47 percent to 44 percent. In a hypothetical five-way ballot test that includes Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Green Party candidate Jill Stein and independent Cornel West, Trump opened a larger lead of 43 percent to Biden's 38 percent and 8 percent for Kennedy. Amy Walter and David Wasserman report their analyses here.

Where and When

The House will meet at 10 a.m.

The Senate will convene at 10 a.m.

The president will receive the President's Daily Brief at 8:30 a.m. Biden and first lady Jill Biden will greet Kenyan President William Ruto and first lady Rachel Ruto during an official arrival ceremony at 10 a.m. on the South Lawn. Biden will hold a bilateral meeting with Ruto in the Oval Office at 11 a.m. The two presidents will hold a press conference in the East Room at 12:30 p.m. The Bidens will host a state dinner for the visiting president and his delegation at 7:45 p.m.

Vice President Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff will join the president and first lady to greet Kenya's Ruto during a state arrival ceremony at the White House. Harris and Emhoff will attend the state dinner on the South Lawn.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is in Stresa, Italy, for meetings of Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank governors. She held a press conference this morning and will have a bilateral meeting with Minister of Economy and Finance Giancarlo Giorgetti of Italy, followed by a bilateral meeting with European Commissioner of Economy Paolo Gentiloni.

The first lady will host two events with Mrs. Ruto of Kenya, starting with a visit to the Advanced Technical Center to talk with students and instructors about nursing and cybersecurity careers. They will visit the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center at noon to hear about cancer screenings and patient care and support at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins.

Zoom In

HEALTH & WELL-BEING

A SECOND CASE OF BIRD FLU has been confirmed in humans, health officials said. A farmworker in Michigan was the second human to be infected with the current H5N1 bird flu virus, resulting in mild symptoms and a full recovery, according to state health officials. The virus has been circulating in dairy and poultry farms across the U.S. this spring, and the farmworker was in contact with dairy cattle presumed to be infected.

"The current health risk to the general public remains low," Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan's chief medical executive, said in a statement. "We have not seen signs of sustained human-to-human transmission at this point. This is exactly how public health is meant to work, in early detection and monitoring of new and emerging illnesses."

Federal health officials told reporters Wednesday the case was detected because they were looking for it and emphasized that farmworkers remain at elevated risk. As exposures increase, the risk of additional cases among humans increases, they said (The Hill and NBC News).

The New York Times: Meet the disease detectives trying to keep the world safe from bird flu.
The Hill: A growing portion of Americans are reporting daily and near-daily marijuana use, in numbers now higher than the share of daily and near-daily alcohol drinkers.
The Hill: The Biden administration said it has suspended the scientist at the heart of the lab leak theory of the origins of the coronavirus from all federal funding programs.

Elsewhere

INTERNATIONAL

CEASE-FIRE: Earlier this month, Egyptian intelligence officials quietly changed the terms of a cease-fire proposal that Israel had already signed off on, ultimately jeopardizing a deal that could have released Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and set a pathway to temporarily end the fighting in Gaza, CNN reports. The agreement that Hamas ended up announcing on May 6 was not what Qatari or U.S. officials believed had been submitted to Hamas for a potential final review. The changes made by Egyptian intelligence led to a wave of anger and recrimination among the mediators, and left the talks at an impasse.

"We were all duped," one source told CNN.

Egypt threatened to withdraw as a mediator in the talks Wednesday, with Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt's State Information Service, saying in a statement that "attempts to cast doubt and offend Egypt's mediation efforts… will only lead to further complications of the situation in Gaza and the entire region" (The Times of Israel).

"A DISTORTED STEP": Israel dismissed Norway, Spain and Ireland's announcement Wednesday that they would formally recognize a Palestinian state on May 28. The move is intended to pressure Israel to accept a political process to end its war with Hamas in Gaza. In response, Israel recalled its ambassadors to the three countries.

The Palestinian Authority, which administers the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and Hamas both welcomed the announcement. Israel announced it will not transfer much-needed funds to the Palestinian Authority in the wake of the countries' decision, threatening to push the Palestinian government into a deeper fiscal crisis (CBS News and The New York Times).

The Washington Post: Here are the countries that already recognize a Palestinian state.
The Wall Street Journal: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called a surprise summer election for July 4, a gamble as he tries to galvanize his Conservative Party as it trails the opposition.
Vox: "Everyone is absolutely terrified": Inside India's secret war on its American critics.

Opinion

Schumer's bipartisan immigration "deal" is a joke, by Sens. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), opinion contributors, The Hill.
The military is encroaching on Mexican democracy, by The Washington Post editorial board.

The Closer

Take Our Morning Report Quiz

And finally … It's Thursday, which means it's time for this week's Morning Report Quiz! Alert to Washington's continuing struggles with bureaucratic jargon, we're eager for some smart guesses tied to Swamp Speak.

Be sure to email your responses to asimendinger@thehill.com and kkarisch@thehill.com — please add "Quiz" to your subject line. Winners who submit correct answers will enjoy some richly deserved newsletter fame Friday.

The Hill freely admits overuse of the legislative shorthand term "permitting reform." What the heck is it?

Ethics changes suggested for Supreme Court justices
New requirements for medical marijuana dispensaries
Speedier federal approval for construction of big energy projects
S. tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles

The Center for Plain Language (there is such a thing) early this month announced its annual "ClearMark Awards," which recognize the best in plain-language communications. Which of these U.S. agencies won an award?

Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Government Accountability Office
All of the above

Which of these vice presidents promoted a monthly "No GobbledyGook" award for federal workers who turned jargon into plain language?

Dick Cheney ("deficits don't matter")
Al Gore ("lockbox")
Spiro Agnew ("nattering nabobs of negativism")
John Nance Garner ("bucket of warm spit")

In 2010, Congress passed and former President Obama signed the "Plain Writing Act." Goal: Eradicate confusing words and sentences in government documents and communications.