Evening Report — Same old song: Shutdown blues 🎵

by Elizabeth Crisp - 03/08/24 3:59 PM ET

Evening Report

Shutdown looms (again) as Senate debates spending

The Senate spent much of Friday — a rare Friday for the chamber — trying to finalize a crucial spending package to avert a partial government shutdown that the GOP-controlled House passed days ago so it can be sent to President Biden‘s desk by the midnight deadline.

Senators started the day optimistic, but concerns have grown as the day has stretched on.

“It’s gotten a little complicated, unfortunately,” Sen. John Thune (S.D.), the No. 2 Republican in the upper chamber, told reporters Friday afternoon. “We’ll have hopefully in the next couple of hours, I think an understanding of how this is going to how we’re going to finish this. But right now they’re blocking amendment votes.”

The Senate advanced the package over a procedural hurdle Friday in a 63-35 vote. But final passage has been held up in the ongoing debate.

The 1,050-page package calls for more than $450 billion for the departments of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Interior, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Commerce and Energy.

Sen. Susan Collins (Maine), the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, warned lawmakers to “stop playing with fire.”

“If we do not act at midnight, tonight, we will have a partial government shutdown,” Collins said on the Senate floor. “It will affect the Department of Agriculture. It will impair the work of the Food and Drug Administration. It will prevent military construction projects going forward.”

The next spending deadline is March 22 to stop a larger shutdown with more consequence that includes funding for the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security.

CATCH UP QUICK

📱 Former President Trump has signaled his opposition to efforts that could ban TikTok in the U.S., despite his previous support for banning the social media app and lawmakers’ national security concerns.
🎒 The families of the Robb Elementary School shooting victims are fuming over a new report that defends the actions of law enforcement on May 24, 2022, when 19 students and two teachers were killed.
🛸 UFO, no: A new Pentagon report says there is “no evidence” the government or any private companies have accessed extraterrestrial technology, nor are there any confirmed sightings of UFOs having alien origin, contradicting a whistleblower.

NEW THIS AFTERNOON

Trump tightens grip on RNC with handpicked leaders

Former President Trump‘s influence over the Republican National Committee (RNC) has strengthened — RNC officials elected his handpicked leaders Friday with just eight months to go until Election Day.

Trump ally Michael Whatley and Lara Trump, the former president’s daughter-in-law, will serve as RNC chair and co-chair, respectively.

Former chair Ronna McDaniel stepped down from the post, saying she would defer to the presumptive Republican presidential nominee’s wishes after butting heads with Trump since his loss in the 2020 race.

Whatley, a former chairman of the North Carolina GOP and general counsel to the RNC, told officials at their meeting in Houston that the RNC “will be focused like a laser on getting out the vote and protecting the ballot.”

“In less than eight months, we are going to determine the fate of not only the United States but of the entire world,” he said.

Lara Trump will be tasked with heading up fundraising efforts.

“We’ve got to play the game a little bit differently. We have to encourage people to do things like early voting,” she said. (The Hill)

CAMPAIGN 2024

Biden reelection campaign ramps up with more travel, ads

President Biden and Vice President Harris are hitting the road.

They plan to travel to every battleground state in March as their reelection campaign ramps up.

Biden gave a passionate State of the Union address Thursday to kick the campaign into gear with its “I’m on Board” Month of Action.

He’s will be in Pennsylvania on Friday and Georgia on Saturday.

Biden will then travel to New Hampshire on Monday, Wisconsin on Wednesday and Michigan on Thursday, according to the campaign.

Other efforts include a massive ad buy, events across the country featuring surrogates, and volunteer and staff expansions in battleground states.

The Hill’s Alex Gangitano has more details.

📺 SUNDAY SHOWS

FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Rep. Katie Britt (R-Ala.).
NBC “Meet the Press”: Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
MSNBC “The Sunday Show”: Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas).
ABC “This Week”: Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.).
CBS “Face the Nation”: Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.).
CNN “State of the Union”: Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).
NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: Rep. Tony Gonzalez (R-Texas).

IN OTHER NEWS

Biden’s spirited, unconventional State of the Union draws response

A lot was riding on President Biden‘s State of the Union (SOTU) address Thursday — his last such speech before the November election. And the response was mostly positive, but here are some highlights The Hill caught that you may have missed:

“5 times Biden went off script during SOTU.”
📸 “Photos: Loudest political fashion statements at SOTU.”
“Dem lawmaker: Biden lingered because he’s usually kept ‘in a bubble.’”
“Biden on hot mic: ‘Come-to-Jesus meeting’ with Netanyahu on the way.”
“Biden campaign co-chair: Using term ‘illegal’ was ‘small mistake.’”
“Jeffries to Republicans calling Biden speech too political: ‘Get lost; you’re a joke.’”

And as for the responses to Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala): “Britt roasted on social media for actorly SOTU response.”

Trump posts $91M bond as he appeals defamation verdict

Former President Trump has posted a roughly $91 million bond as he appeals the recent verdict in writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuit.

A judge this week rejected Trump’s attempt to delay payment or reduce the amount. With his bond posted Friday, Trump is now seeking to halt enforcement of the judgment as he mounts his appeal, which was also filed Friday. (The Hill)

OP-EDS IN THE HILL

“It’s been over 100 years — just how long are we supposed to wait for the Equal Rights Amendment?” writes Alyssa Milano, actor, producer, author and activist.

“Let’s stop wasting time on the Daylight Saving Time debate,” writes Sheldon H. Jacobson of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.