Congress is bracing for a politically bruising fall as lawmakers return to Washington on Tuesday, with massive fights upcoming on government funding, the Jeffrey Epstein files and President Donald Trump’s policing push.
After a summer of simmering tensions on Trump’s nationwide deportations, National Guard deployment in Washington, DC, and a string of high-profile firings, Democrats are ready to fight back.
And the minority party won’t have to wait long for its opportunity to spar with Trump. Republicans and Democrats are already entering a high-stakes funding standoff ahead of a September 30 funding deadline, which marks Congress’ first bout of bipartisan dealmaking in months. Already, Democrats are signaling they want new checks on Trump’s power and a rollback of the president’s signature domestic policy law, but White House officials say they’re in no mood to yield to those demands and expect Democrats to help keep the government open.
Before Congress hits that end of September deadline, though, Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune will be navigating plenty of other partisan battles.
On the House side, that includes a floor fight over the Jeffrey Epstein files that is likely to rankle House Republicans right as lawmakers return this week.
