Congress Races to Finish Legislation To-Do List by Year-End
WASHINGTON—Congress is racing against the clock to complete a series of must-pass pieces of legislation, with Democrats also pushing to finish their roughly $2 trillion social and climate policy legislation by the end of the year.
The scramble is coming as President Biden confronts low polling numbers and high inflation, and as Democrats are increasingly worried about their ability to retain the majority in the House in the midterms next year. Lawmakers are under pressure to pass the bills ahead of contentious campaigning that will start in earnest in coming months.
Congress is expected to focus this week on the defense policy bill known as the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, which was held up in the Senate last week over provisions regarding Russia and China. Instead of the Senate passing its own bill, a compromise bill—negotiated by leadership in the House and Senate—is expected to come to the House for a vote as early as this week.
The defense bill sets priorities and policy for the fiscal year, which began in October. The bill’s failure to pass would prevent service members from receiving hazard pay; delay military construction projects in the U.S. and around the world; and remove authorization from the military to support allies in the fight against terrorism, according to a GOP aide on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/congress-races-to-finish-legislation-to-do-list-by-year-end/ar-AARuFk7