This week: Congress seeks to clinch spending deal

Lawmakers are aiming to strike a deal this week to avert a government shutdown on Oct. 1 and secure funding to combat the Zika virus.

If all goes according to plan, the House and Senate would likely adjourn early and leave Washington until after the Nov. 8 elections.

That’s only if negotiators reach a goal of unveiling compromise legislation by Monday to give time for both chambers to pass it by the end of the week.

{mosads}The House and Senate are officially scheduled to be in session next week, but lawmakers in both parties are eager to depart Capitol Hill as soon as possible so they can return to the campaign trail. 

The upper chamber will start work on the short-term spending bill on Monday evening, with senators scheduled to take a procedural vote on a House-passed bill that will be the vehicle for the continuing resolution. The measure is expected to last through Dec. 9 to give time for a longer-term deal in the lame-duck session.

The move comes after an initial vote, expected to take place last week, slipped to Monday with senators still working to resolve a myriad of policy fights, including money to combat the Zika virus. 

Democrats have pledged to block any spending measure that includes restrictions on funding for Planned Parenthood clinics in Puerto Rico as part of the funding package to combat the spread of the Zika virus.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) expressed optimism that they were close to a deal that would provide $1.1 billion to fight the mosquito-borne virus, which can cause birth defects in the newborns of pregnant women who contract the disease.

“I think that [Republicans] realize that they’ve got to get rid of political riders on that,” he said. “I think that is … going in that direction, with [Majority Leader Mitch] McConnell behind it.”

But conservatives have also dug in on the Planned Parenthood fight, arguing that Democrats are trying to create an “earmark” for the family-planning group. 

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is also doubling down on his efforts to get a rider included in the government funding bill that would block the transfer of management of the internet to an international body. 

Cruz, along with 10 other Senate Republicans, released a joint statement Friday, urging Democrats to work with them on an agreement to delay the transfer, which is slated to take place next month. 

Though GOP leadership said that Cruz’s push is still part of the talks on the continuing resolution, his effort has gotten pushback from Senate Democrats who want it dropped from negotiations. 

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said Democrats are opposed to Cruz’s provision, while Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called the effort an “attempt to slow down” the funding bill. 

Supporters of the Export-Import Bank are also trying to include a provision to temporarily reduce the number of Ex-Im board members needed for a quorum, allowing the agency to make loans above $10 million. 

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) warned that whether or not the provision is included would likely determine how he votes on the CR. 

The fight is the latest stalemate over the Ex-Im Bank after lawmakers from both parties won a months-long fight to reauthorize the bank late last year. The bank has gone more than a year without being able to take action on larger deals.

The move toward including the financial rider is getting pushback from conservative lawmakers — including Sen. Richard Shelby, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee — and outside conservative groups like the Koch-backed Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce and Americans for Prosperity. 

IRS commissioner impeachment

House Republicans managed to avoid a messy floor fight last week over impeaching IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. But there’s uncertainty as to whether the détente with members of the hard-right Freedom Caucus will last long.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) made an agreement with Freedom Caucus Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) to schedule a hearing with Koskinen this week in exchange for holding off a vote on a “privileged resolution” that would have triggered an up-or-down vote on impeachment. 

Koskinen is slated to testify before the panel on Wednesday at 10 a.m. to discuss the articles of impeachment filed against him. He was previously invited to appear before the Judiciary Committee in May, but declined to attend. 

Despite the accord, Freedom Caucus member Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) told reporters on Thursday that he still intends to force a vote on the measure. Huelskamp, a frequent leadership agitator, lost his primary to a GOP establishment-backed challenger last month and has little to lose personally by plowing ahead anyway.

“Members have all rights afforded to them under the rules,” another Freedom Caucus member told The Hill.

House GOP leaders have been wary of voting to impeach Koskinen, given that the chamber has only voted one other time in history to impeach a Cabinet-level official. That was Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876.

Some rank-and-file Republicans don’t think the charges against Koskinen – that he wasn’t forthcoming with Congress about documents regarding the agency’s scrutiny of conservative nonprofits in 2012 – merit impeachment. At the same time, they don’t want to give the appearance less than two months before Election Day of voting to defend an agency reviled by the GOP base.

Even so, it’s unclear the resolution could pass if Huelskamp or any other member calls it up for a floor vote.

Centrist Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) teamed up with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) last week to ensure they had the votes to table the resolution if it came up on the floor. A Hoyer aide expressed confidence to The Hill that their coalition would be able to defeat the measure if Huelskamp forces a vote this week.

Iran

Two measures aimed at attacking the Obama administration’s policies toward Iran are on tap for House consideration this week.

A bill authored by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) would prohibit any future cash payments to Iran in response to the Obama administration’s transfer of $400 million to the country.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Obama administration organized an airlift of $400 million in cash to Iran in timing that coincided with the release of four American prisoners.

Critics have raised questions of whether it amounted to a secret “ransom” payment for the prisoners in violation of U.S. policy. But the Obama administration maintains it had previously announced the payment, which is part of a settlement over an arms deal made before the 1979 revolution, in January.

A State Department spokesman explained that U.S. decided to withhold the already-promised payment delivery as leverage to make sure Iran upheld its part of a prisoner release deal.

President Obama said in a press conference last month that the payment was made in cash because the U.S. doesn’t have a banking relationship with Iran, leaving the government without options like sending a check or electronically wiring the money. 

The House is also expected to consider legislation requiring the Treasury Department to publicly report on the assets of senior Iranian political and military officials.

9/11 victims bill

Congress is heading for a veto showdown with President Obama over legislation that would allow the families of 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia in U.S. courts. 

Obama has until Friday to veto the bill, known as the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, though the White House has given no indication of when he’ll send the veto message to Congress. 

Supporters of the legislation remain bullish that they have the two-thirds support necessary to overturn the president’s veto, a first for the Obama administration. 

“It passed by voice [vote] in both chambers,” said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). “We’re all on the record supporting it. So I think at this point, it’s a heavy lift for the president to get his veto sustained.” 

The legislation, which was spearheaded by Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), passed through the Senate by unanimous consent and the House by a voice vote. 

But the president has pledged to continue to try to win supporters over to his side to kill the bill as top lawmakers said last week they are pressing for changes to the legislation. 

Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), said they have concerns about the potential political fallout from the legislation. 

“Let’s face it, our alleged drone attacks have killed civilians in Pakistan. Our alleged drone attacks have killed civilians in Afghanistan, and I think once you begin opening the door for these type of activities it can be very problematic,” Corker said. 

The bill’s sponsors previously made changes to the legislation before it passed the Senate because of concerns from lawmakers, including Graham. 

The two GOP senators floated waiting until the lame duck to take up the veto, which could give lawmakers and the administration months to try to find a compromise. 

They likely face an uphill battle, with Senate leadership indicating this week they still support the legislation. 

Cornyn—the Senate’s No. 2 Republican—repeatedly closed the door to further changes, predicting that the Senate will stay in Washington until it votes on overriding the veto. 

“How do you compromise on something that passed unanimously in both houses?” he asked. 

Saudi Arabia arms sale

The Senate is also expected to take a vote on blocking a $1.15 billion sale of military equipment to Saudi Arabia. 

Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced a joint resolution of disapproval earlier this month that, if passed, would undercut a planned sale of tanks and related equipment. 

The State Department approved the sale last month. A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Iran-backed Shiite rebels in Yemen, but lawmakers are concerned the equipment will be used in missions that kill civilians and worsen the country’s humanitarian crisis. 

Despite the Senate’s limited schedule, an aide for Paul said they were expecting to get a vote this week, though it’s unclear if they will have enough support to block the sale. 

Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), the top members of the Foreign Relations Committee, both said this week that they will not support the resolution. 

A similar push by Paul to block a sale of arms to Pakistan fell short, garnering 24 votes. 

Scott Wong contributed.