ROYAL VISIT: The planned visit by King Charles III and Queen Camilla to Washington, D.C., is going ahead this week despite the shooting, with the royals set to arrive in the U.S. today.
“Following discussions on both sides of the Atlantic through the day, and acting on advice of Government, we can confirm the State Visit by Their Majesties will proceed as planned,” a spokesperson for Buckingham Palace said in a statement Sunday.
A British government source told The Hill that the security procedures surrounding the king and queen’s visit were under review ahead of their arrival. They are set to start their trip in D.C. but also visit Virginia and New York City later in the week.
Charles is expected to deliver an address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, followed by a state dinner at the White House.
His visit comes at a time of tension between the U.S. and the United Kingdom, as Trump has slammed U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer in recent weeks for his refusal to assist U.S. operations against Iran and in efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The Hill’s Sarakshi Rai and Julia Manchester report the U.K. will strive to smooth over its “special relationship” with the U.S. when Charles visits. Trump has only had praise for the king before, and he told the BBC that he believes the visit could “absolutely” help improve relations between the U.S. and U.K. governments.
Charles is also set to visit under the shadow of the controversies surrounding Jeffrey Epstein, who associated with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince who has been stripped of his royal title over his ties to the late convicted sex offender, The Hill’s Sophie Brams reports.
▪ The New York Times: What to know about the state visit.
▪ Politico: Trip proceeding despite security concerns.
‘HELL WEEK’: Lawmakers are bracing for a jam-packed week on Capitol Hill as they try to get key pieces of legislation passed before heading out of town for recess next week.
The most pressing item is an extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which is set to expire on Thursday. The provision, which allows the federal government to conduct surveillance on foreigners abroad without obtaining a warrant, already was extended 10 days from its initial deadline last week.
Hard-line conservatives are insisting on reforms to the language to increase privacy protections for Americans, creating difficulties for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
Johnson will need support from almost his entire conference to get the bill through a procedural vote, but members of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus have voiced opposition to the draft text of the bill.
House Republicans will also try to pass a budget blueprint for a bill to fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol, another necessary step to end the DHS shutdown. The blueprint passed through the Senate late last week.
But House conservatives want a more wide-ranging bill than the one the Senate sent to the lower chamber, leaving clear obstacles in its path.
Read more about what to expect from the busy week in Congress from The Hill’s Sudiksha Kochi here.
▪ The Hill: House Dem leader says Trump impeachment not a priority.
▪ The Hill: Bipartisan senators release bill pushing back on Russia sanctions relief.
FORWARD MOMENTUM: Kevin Warsh’s nomination to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve appears to be on track for confirmation after the DOJ ended its investigation into the agency and its current head, Jerome Powell.
Tillis, who had vowed to hold up Fed nominees in protest of the DOJ investigation, said Sunday he would support Warsh’s nomination after receiving “assurances” from the department that the probe was closed.
“I have been clear from the start: the U.S. Attorney’s Office criminal investigation into Chair Powell was a serious threat to the Fed’s independence, and it needed to end before I could support Kevin Warsh’s confirmation,” he said in a post on X.
Tillis’s comment came after Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, announced Friday that the DOJ investigation into the renovations taking place at the Fed’s headquarters and Powell’s testimony about it before Congress had concluded. She said she asked the agency’s inspector general to investigate instead.
Tillis’s support should get Warsh’s nomination through the Senate Banking Committee and to the Senate floor for a vote of the full chamber. He had significant power to block the nomination given the committee’s narrow 13-11 GOP majority.
The DOJ investigation closed after bipartisan pushback from lawmakers.
▪ The Economist: Will Warsh Trumpify the Fed?
▪ The Associated Press: Don’t count on rate cuts yet.
TRYING AGAIN: Pakistan is trying to revive talks between the U.S. and Iran after Trump canceled plans over the weekend for a second round of in-person negotiations between the two countries.
A regional official involved in the mediation efforts told The Associated Press that Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the U.S. and Iran, but Iran is insisting the U.S. end its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz before entering a new round of talks.
U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, were set to travel to Islamabad for negotiations on Saturday, but Trump told them not to go after Iranian officials refused to meet. Iran had previously signaled it would only communicate through Pakistan.
“If they want to talk, all they have to do is call!!!” Trump said about Iran on Truth Social on Saturday in announcing he canceled Witkoff and Kushner’s trip.
Axios's Barak Ravid reported Trump is expected to hold a Situation Room meeting with his national security and foreign policy team Monday afternoon to discuss the stalemate in negotiations and potential options for next steps in the war.
That comes as Iran has sent the U.S. a new proposal to reopen the strait and end the war, postponing negotiations on Iran's nuclear program until a later stage, Axios reported.
▪ NBC News: Iran caused extensive damage to U.S. military bases.
▪ Time: Civilians killed in the war.
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