DIVIDING LINE: House Democrats split almost perfectly evenly on a controversial proposal from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to cut off all U.S. aid to Israel, underscoring the sea change on the left in U.S. policy toward its key Middle East ally.
More than 100 Democrats voted for the measure, which easily failed with almost all Republicans and 98 Democrats in opposition. But the vote drove home massive divisions between Democrats that have widened amid Israel’s war in Gaza and proved decisive in multiple primaries this summer.
Ten Democrats voted present, while Massie was the only Republican to vote in favor.
The vote even split Democratic leadership, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (Calif.) voting against the proposal and Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.) voting for it. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also voted for the measure.
Massie made the proposal as an amendment to the fiscal 2027 funding bill for the State Department and national security.
Jeffries had written a letter to his fellow Democrats coming out against the amendment, arguing it was “overly broad” and would limit funds being used for initiatives like humanitarian aid, refugee resettlement, “peace-building” and U.S. Embassy operations.
But many Democrats, including Clark, broke with their leader.
Clark said she agreed the measure was too broad but that the “status quo is untenable.” She said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has failed to meet the standard for military aid.
“I will be voting yes, not because I agree with the entirety of the amendment, or the GOP’s cynical motivations for its consideration, but because I believe we must change course,” she said.
▪ The Hill: House passes State Department funding bill.
▪ The Hill: Democratic opposition to tariffs complicates Russia sanctions bill.
ROCKY ROAD: Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s bid to remain permanently in the top law enforcement post in the country is hanging in the balance after he faced tough questioning by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee at his confirmation hearing yesterday.
The Hill’s Rebecca Beitsch and Sarah Davis report that Blanche faced what one lawmaker described as more of a performance evaluation than a job interview when he returned to the committee for a second nomination hearing — more than a year after he was first confirmed as deputy attorney general.
Blanche faces an uncertain road ahead. During the acting attorney general’s questioning, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a lame duck who was ousted by a Trump-backed challenger, grilled Blanche on the creation of the $1.776 “anti-weaponization” fund and told reporters that he is not yet sold on supporting his confirmation.
Senate Judiciary will hold a second day of Blanche’s confirmation hearing today, hearing from witnesses speaking to his character and experience.
▪ The Hill: New York City Bar Association opposes Blanche nomination.
▪ The Hill: Blanche pressed on past role as Trump’s attorney.
HOT SEAT: Clayton faces a smoother path to confirmation, with senators anxious to replace acting DNI Bill Pulte, but Ossoff did his best to inflict maximum pain along the way.
Ossoff pressed Clayton on various issues, skewering him when the nominee refused to answer directly about who won the 2020 race.
“You refuse to answer a basic question about who won a presidential election, but you ask to lead America’s intelligence community. Isn’t it humiliating to be unable to answer this question, to have to indulge the president’s delusions?” Ossoff said.
The tense back-and-forth comes as Ossoff is running in a hotly contested race for reelection in Georgia as a Democratic incumbent in a state that Trump carried in 2024.
Clayton appears likely to receive approval from the GOP-controlled committee, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Clayton lost some Democratic support because of his answers Wednesday.
▪ The Hill: Democrats press Clayton with sharp questions.
▪ MS NOW: Ossoff predicts Trump speech as ‘pretext for abuse’ of power.
‘WHEREVER THEY ARE’: It’s unclear whether U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will continue with its reported pause on traffic stops after Trump pushed against the shift.
Multiple outlets reported that ICE directed its officers to temporarily pause such stops following two deadly shootings of migrants in Texas and Maine. But Trump said early Wednesday that the agency “CANNOT give up” one of its “most important and effective Crime Fighting tools.”
ICE didn’t directly confirm the pause, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin didn’t address it in a post on the social platform X.
“Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets. Illegal aliens will be arrested and deported wherever they are. If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW. As our officers carry out operations to enforce our nations laws,” Mullin wrote.
“We remind illegal aliens attempting to evade arrest is dangerous,” he added.
The shootings have spurred renewed scrutiny against the administration’s hard-line immigration policies.
▪ The Hill: House Democrats demand investigation ‘without interference.’
▪ Axios: The growing immigration enforcement death toll.
RECONCILIATION 3.0: House Republicans are making one final go at advancing a reconciliation package, unveiling a roughly $95 billion budget framework that would provide funding for defense, farm aid and states to implement voter ID requirements in elections.
The effort is likely Republicans’ last shot to use the budget mechanism — which allows for passage on a simple majority vote, bypassing a Democratic filibuster in the Senate — to advance their priorities while still holding the majority in both chambers before the midterms in November.
The House Budget Committee is scheduled today to mark up the bill, which serves as a blueprint for a more detailed reconciliation bill to follow.
“Republicans were sent to Washington on a mission to reverse the failed policies of the socialist Democrats and restore the greatness of America,” House Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) said in a statement, adding, “We will use every tool and resource at our disposal to govern our great nation and deliver on behalf of the freedom-loving people who gave us unified Republican leadership.”
▪ The Hill: What’s in the $95 billion reconciliation package framework.
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