Both the House and Senate will be in session this week. However, the House still does not have a Speaker after the latest GOP nominee, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), failed to garner enough support for his bid last week and was voted out of the race. Now it appears that the Republicans are starting back at square one. Nine other members have announced their candidacy for Speaker, ranging from Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN), the third-ranking Republican in the House Conference, to lesser-known members. This signals that the process will continue to be drawn out, with no resolution in sight.

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC), the speaker pro tempore, has announced a speaker candidate forum for later Monday, with the official election process beginning Tuesday.

Meanwhile, last Friday, President Joe Biden sent to Congress a request for $106 billion in supplemental spending that packaged together aid for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, along with border security measures. Biden also plans to send another supplemental request covering natural disasters, access to high-speed internet, childcare, and wildland firefighter pay. Both supplemental requests will likely receive pushback from Republicans, including GOP House members who oppose further aid to Ukraine. 

The Administration

President Biden will host Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday and Wednesday at the White House for bilateral discussions. 

Senate Side

On Tuesday, the Senate will vote on the nomination of Michael Whitaker as head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA has been without a permanent administrator for more than a year and a half, and many Senators are hoping to quickly approve Whitaker before the current acting FAA chief steps down next week.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also agreed to hold a procedural vote this week on a Congressional Review Act resolution seeking to repeal a school lunch-related regulation that conditions receiving federal funding for school lunch programs upon accepting the Biden Administration interpretation of “sex” in Title IX to include “sexual orientation and gender identity.” The effort is being led by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS).

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