Holdups snag the spending bill

With only two weeks before Congress’ August recess and a lot left to accomplish, let’s check in on the three big priorities that the House and Senate want to get done — and who is standing in their way.

Federal Aviation Administration: This agency’s reauthorization is set to hit the House floor this week — but as Huddle first reported Thursday, there are some lingering question marks on the GOP side of the aisle. Chief among those is the debate over whether to allocate more space for long-haul flights at Reagan National Airport.

Who’s in the way? Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), whose San Antonio-area district would benefit from more nonstop flights to the D.C. area, is leading the charge on more slots at Reagan. And Roy sits on the powerful House Rules Committee, giving him influence over any amendments taken up to the FAA bill. We’ll be watching for how this plays out during today’s Rules committee hearing.

Spending: House GOP leaders are racing to complete a couple of less-controversial agency spending bills before recess, not to mention the slated expiration of government funding on Sept. 30.

The Rules panel is set to meet next week to tee up floor action on two fiscal 2024 measures: One would fund the FDA and the Agriculture Department, the other going to military construction and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Two sources close to the process said that Republicans hope to put the bills on the House floor during the last week of the month, before recess starts, but that timeline could very much slip.

Some Republicans have said privately they are skeptical, though, that the House GOP can clear these two measures — considered the least controversial out of this year’s spending bills — by August recess.

Over in the Senate, appropriators will be meeting Thursday on three of their less divisive spending bills, touching on transportation, housing, energy and the State Department.

Who’s in the way? The same crew that often is: Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s right flank. The two bills will again test McCarthy’s ability to unify his fractured conference on divisive spending issues. And as Sarah noted in a story earlier this week, House conservatives are creating an abortion-related holdup on the usually less-controversial bill that funds the Department of Veterans Affairs and military personnel.

Don’t forget, also, that House Republicans are taking up spending totals far below the levels set in last month’s bipartisan debt limit deal – and the Senate is going to use those debt-deal numbers. It all points to a bigger fight to come later this fall over how to reconcile those visions.

Defense: We expect the upper chamber to start debate on Tuesday on the must-pass annual defense policy bill, which it’s aiming to finish by August recess. Whatever passes the Senate will include no contentious abortion provision – unlike the House, which used its version to reverse Biden administration policy on reimbursing travel costs for service members seeking abortions.

Who’s in the way? Defense experts Connor O’Brien and Joe Gould are watching which Republicans push for a vote on that abortion policy (though it’s not going to get the 60 votes it would need to pass). The Senate also could see skirmishes on Ukraine aid, a new China competitiveness proposal and a submarine transfer pact between the U.S., UK and Australia.