| | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus | Presented by Plan B One-Step® | With assists from POLITICO’s Congress team
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The U.S. Capitol building is seen in Washington, D.C., Sept. 30, 2024. (Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images) | AP | CONGRESS GONE, DRAMA CARRIES ON The world doesn’t stop turning just because it’s recess. Both chambers raced out of town last week, but their potential to-do list is piling up beyond what was an already-ambitious agenda for the post-election lame duck session. Since Congress left town, Israeli forces assassinated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon, Iran launched a ballistic missile attack against Israel in retaliation, and Hurricane Helene devastated portions of six states. Here’s where things stand on the congressional front: HURRICANE HELENE: As the floodwaters recede the full extent of the storm’s impact is still revealing itself, but lawmakers in affected areas are already pressing for action.
- Senate ask: The senators from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and Virginia called on Congress to pass emergency funding — even if it means reconvening before Election Day. The damage, they wrote, is expected to tally in the tens of billions of dollars. Today, they got some backup from a colleague seeking to lead Senate Republicans next year: Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) wrote “it is clear the devastation will require Congress to act promptly and significantly.”
- Ag ask: In a separate bipartisan plea, 33 lawmakers from both chambers called for special relief for the agricultural sector, which suffered “catastrophic losses” in the storm: “To prevent deep and lasting economic damage to the agricultural industry in the southeastern United States, it is imperative that Congress make appropriations as soon as possible upon the completion of damage assessments to fully fund unmet agricultural disaster relief needs in our states and across the nation.”
- Others: Even before Helene struck, lawmakers elsewhere were pressing for additional funding to cover disasters earlier in the year. Senators from Hawaii, Louisiana, Vermont, Mississippi, North Carolina and Alaska called on Senate leaders and appropriators to boost funding for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund and the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program.
- Current status: The stopgap spending bill passed last week extends FEMA’s current funding level of $20 billion, which leaders say is enough in the short term. And figuring out just how much aid will be needed could take weeks still. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told Fox this morning that it will take “30 days or more” to assess the damage, adding, “Congress will have to address it.” But he did not commit to bringing members back early.
CRISIS IN THE MIDDLE EAST: In the wake of Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Israel, which the U.S. helped intercept, lawmakers have delivered broad condemnations of the largely unsuccessful strike, along with plenty of finger-pointing: Republicans accuse President Joe Biden of emboldening Iran, while Democrats point to Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018. But a handful of Republicans want swift congressional action. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) are among those arguing that Congress should reconvene and force the Biden administration to enforce sanctions against Iran and resupply Israel’s weapons stores. “Congress should consider returning to Washington to pass a supplemental package to provide Israel with adequate funding for Iron Dome and David’s Sling, ensuring they have the tools they need to defend themselves,” Lawler posted on social media, while Graham called for “an overwhelming response” to the attack on Israel — including strikes on Iranian oil facilities. REALITY CHECK: Whether or not Congress returns from recess early — something we’d still classify as highly unlikely — the issues they are aiming to squeeze into November and December are mounting. Not only will Congress have to figure out government funding by mid-December, it will also be pressed to pass the annual defense authorization bill by the end of the year and renew the farm bill, which expired earlier this week as negotiators struggle to bridge numerous divides over the five-year legislation. — Katherine Tully-McManus with help from Anthony Adragna GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday, Oct. 2, where we feel like Skeptical Orphan Annie: We’re told the sun will come out tomorrow. Allegedly.
| | | | A message from Plan B One-Step®: Plan B is a backup birth control option that is used to help prevent unintended pregnancy after unprotected intercourse, a contraceptive failure, or sexual assault. Its proven safety, efficacy, and mode of action is supported by a large body of clinical studies and scientific literature, all of which support that Plan B does not impact the implantation of a fertilized egg. Explore the evidence. | | | DEMS PUT UP DOUBLE COMMAS Candidates are starting to self-report their third quarter fundraising hauls as the 2024 campaign enters its final stretch — and some Democratic candidates are bringing in just insane amounts of cash. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), battling to hold his seat in one of the most closely-watched Senate races in the country against Republican Bernie Moreno, reported raising an astounding $30.6 million in the third quarter, according to The Vindicator — a record for an Ohio Senate race. He isn’t alone in collecting an eye-popping total: Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), battling to succeed retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) in the swing state of Michigan against former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), brought in $18 million over the same three-month period, according to The Detroit News. Cash, of course, isn’t a guarantee of success. Jaime Harrison raised a shocking $57 million in the final full quarter of his unsuccessful 2020 bid to take down Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), while then-Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) hauled in $38 million in the third quarter of 2018 as he eventually lost narrowly to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Meanwhile, $2 million quarterly hauls that used to be solid work for Senate candidates are now becoming the norm among House challengers. Among the early reporting candidates topping that benchmark are Democrats Derek Tran of California ($2 million), Dave Min of California ($2 million); Rep. Pat Ryan of New York ($2.1 million), Sue Altman of New Jersey ($2.1 million) and Janelle Stelson of Pennsylvania ($2.7 million). — Anthony Adragna KTM’s CAMPUS CORNER There’s a new tool helping chiefs of staff and staff directors across the Hill figure out how much to pay their teams, drawing on a trove of House salary data. Early users say it could be a game-changer for senior leaders trying to hire — and keep — talented staffers. Inside Congress got an exclusive look at SalarySense, an interactive platform conceptualized by the House Modernization Committee and built by the House’s Chief Administrative Office in partnership with the House Administration Committee. “Fundamentally, it's a recruitment and retention tool for chiefs and offices and committees to try to make sure that we're being as competitive as we possibly can,” a senior staffer with the House Administration Modernization subcommittee told Inside Congress. It’s meant to be used as an additional factor beyond performance, education level and expertise in setting worker pay. Managers can filter anonymized salary data from House personal offices and committee staffs to see what the going rate is for different roles. The real-time payroll data is sortable by title, state delegation, party and more. SalarySense was first made available to a bipartisan trial group of about 20 chiefs of staff who gave feedback before the CAO tweaked it and launched it for use by all chiefs and staff directors. More upgrades are expected as more data becomes available. — Katherine Tully-McManus
| | | | A message from Plan B One-Step®:   | | | | | Tons of Tammy: The Tammy Caucus has convened in Wisconsin, and Tammy Baldwin won the endorsement of the state’s Farm Bureau Federation — which hasn’t gone to a Democrat in decades. John Fetterman and Bob Casey got Tim Walz and Amy Klobuchar to (separately) weigh in on the Wawa vs. Sheetz debate. A congressman, Mike Collins, yassified JD Vance. QUICK LINKS Race is tied for Colorado’s 8th Congressional District in new poll, from Phil Rankin in KDVR Rep. Brittany Pettersen wants Congress to change rules and make it easier for members to be parents and do their jobs, from Caitlyn Kim at Colorado Public Radio Colorado Senator returns to New Hampshire to launch Democratic voter canvass, from Marissa Barrett in WMUR The Hawaii Senator Who Faced Down Racism and Ableism—And Killed Nazis, from Julia Métraux in Mother Jones George Santos Says J.D. Vance Doesn't Wear Eyeliner, Just Has Luscious Lashes, from TMZ TRANSITIONS Send us your job hops! TOMORROW IN CONGRESS The Senate and House are out. THURSDAY AROUND THE HILL Looking like a quiet one.
| | WEDNESDAY’S ANSWER: Annie Coulson was the first to correctly answer that the Peanut Brigade was the name of the network of grassroots volunteers who supported Jimmy Carter’s 1976 presidential campaign from its early days. TODAY’S QUESTION from Annie: How was seniority decided between Georgia Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock when they were sworn in? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@politico.com. GET INSIDE CONGRESS emailed to your phone each evening.
| | | | A message from Plan B One-Step®: Plan B works by temporarily delaying ovulation (the release of an egg from the ovary).
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