Johnson faces moment of truth on Ukraine

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is facing a moment of truth on Ukraine aid this week as he prepares to make a decision on how to address long-requested assistance for the embattled U.S. ally — a question that has bedeviled his tenure in the top House job, and one that could spark a challenge to his gavel.

Johnson for months has said the House would consider foreign aid in due time, pushing back the timeline — and putting off consideration of the politically prickly issue — for other must-pass matters, like government funding. But the Speaker narrowed in on a schedule last weekend, announcing that the House would consider Ukraine aid “right after” the two-week Easter recess.

With the lower chamber set to reconvene Tuesday, all eyes are on Johnson to see what play call he makes as officials in the U.S. and abroad sound the alarm about Ukraine’s depleting resources amid its war against Russia — and as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) threatens to force a vote on his ouster.

Also this week, the House is set to send the articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate, officially forcing the upper chamber to take up the matter. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is expected to quickly move to dismiss the charges, avoiding a full trial.

And both chambers are staring down an April 19 deadline to reauthorize the U.S.’s warrantless surveillance powers, which has sparked a bitter debate on Capitol Hill — especially in the House. Chatter will also abound about federal funding to rebuild the Baltimore bridge that collapsed last week, as lawmakers await a supplemental request from the Biden administration.

Johnson eyes Ukraine aid as Greene dangles ouster threat

Attention will be focused on Johnson this week as officials in Washington and Kyiv await the Speaker’s plan for moving long-stalled Ukraine aid, which he vowed to do “right after” the current recess — a period that officially comes to a close on Tuesday.

The waiting game comes as Johnson is facing increased pressure from Greene, who filed a motion to vacate against the Speaker last month and has sharpened her rhetoric against the Louisiana Republican in recent days — especially when it comes to the looming vote on aid for Ukraine.

Asked by CNN last week if moving aid for Ukraine would spark a vote on Johnson’s ouster, Greene was coy, but she signaled in no uncertain terms that such a move would be dangerous for the Speaker.

“I’m not saying I have a red line or a trigger, and I’m not saying I don’t have a red line or trigger. And I think that’s just where I’m at right now. But I’m going to tell you right now: Funding Ukraine is probably one of the most egregious things that he can do,” Greene said.

Johnson, to be sure, has not disclosed his plan to address the White House’s foreign aid request — which includes funding for Ukraine, Israel and Indo-Pacific allies — leaving a number of questions unanswered as the chamber heads into the hot-button issue. But he floated some details during an interview with Fox News’ Trey Gowdy last week, which he called “important innovations.”

The Speaker brought the REPO Act, which allows the U.S. to use seized frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine; he mentioned making the assistance for Kyiv in the form of a loan; and he discussed tacking on a provision that would block the Biden administration’s freeze of new permits for liquified natural gas exports.

While Democrats have expressed an openness to the loan idea, some liberals are sounding off on the energy provision, which could make matters more difficult for Johnson. On the other side of the aisle, a number of Republicans are still demanding that any aid for Ukraine be paired with border security policy, even after members of the House GOP conference rejected the Senate’s bipartisan border bill.

But even as the path forward appears murky, and Greene continues to dangle her motion to vacate, some lawmakers are brushing off the idea that Johnson’s job is in jeopardy.

“I don’t think he’s at any risk,” House Intelligence Committee Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio) told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday when asked if Johnson should be worried about Greene’s motion to vacate threat.

“I think that what people have been referring to is the chaos caucus, those individuals who are seeking attention for themselves and trying to stop all of the important work in Congress, are now seen as merely disruptive,” he added.

Senate to receive Mayorkas impeachment articles

The House impeachment managers are scheduled to deliver the Mayorkas articles to the Senate Wednesday, officially kicking off what is expected to be a speedy process in the upper chamber.

Schumer told senators in a “dear colleague” letter Friday that members will be sworn in as jurors for the trial the day after the articles are presented, and Senate President Pro Tempore Patty Murray (D-Wash.) will preside over the chamber.

Beyond that, the majority leader has not yet indicated how he plans to handle the articles, though it is widely expected that he will quickly move to dismiss the charges so the chamber can proceed with legislative business.

A Senate GOP aide told The Hill that Schumer is expected to tee up a vote on a motion to dismiss or table the charges, both of which would require a simple majority vote.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) echoed that prediction in Kentucky last week, telling reporters that he does not think the Mayorkas impeachment proceedings will drag on in the chamber.

“Schumer will be able to file a motion to dismiss or to table. I expect he will do that. And the Democrats have a majority, so it may not go on very long. But my preference would be to actually have a trial. But I think the majority is likely to prevent that,” he said.

The House impeached Mayorkas in a narrow 214-213 vote in February, a feat that took two attempts after the first one failed on the floor. The chamber charged him with “willful and systemic refusal to comply with the law” and “breach of trust.”

The Department of Homeland Security has strongly objected to the GOP effort against Mayorkas, dubbing it a “baseless, unconstitutional impeachment.”

House eyes vote on FISA bill

The House this week is planning to consider legislation to reform the U.S.’s warrantless surveillance powers, bringing the contentious matter to the floor as lawmakers stare down an April 19 deadline to extend the authorities.

Johnson unveiled a compromise bill to extend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) on Friday, officially kicking off the latest effort to reform the spying powers. FISA’s Section 702 allows the government to spy on non-citizens located outside the U.S.

The legislation — titled the Reforming Intelligence and Surveillance Act — is similar to the proposal the House almost voted on in February, which would limit how agencies, such as the FBI, can review information on Americans that is swept up while looking into individuals abroad.

It does not, however, include a warrant requirement that several lawmakers — particularly those on the House Judiciary Committee — have been pushing for. Members on the House Intelligence Committee have raised concerns that such a warrant requirement would cause delays in the process that would hamper efforts by intelligence agents to respond to threats in real-time.

The disagreements between members on the Judiciary and Intelligence have plagued the fight over FISA for months, prompting a short-term extension of the surveillance powers in February.

In a “dear colleague” letter on Friday, Johnson urged members of his conference to rally around the bill, warning that inaction ahead of April 19 could prompt the Senate to move forward with a clean FISA extension.

“It is critically important that we succeed in passing these reforms next week because the April 19th expiration of FISA’s Section 702 authority is quickly approaching,” Johnson wrote. “If our bill fails, we will be faced with an impossible choice and can expect the Senate to jam us with a clean extension that includes no reforms at all. That is clearly an unacceptable option.”

Congress awaits request for Baltimore bridge

Attention this week will also be focused on federal funding for the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, which fell last month after being struck by a cargo ship.

President Biden has called on Congress to appropriate funds for the rebuilding effort, a stance that Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young reupped Friday.

“While we continue to assess those costs alongside our Federal and State partners, we are asking the Congress to join us in demonstrating our commitment to aid in recovery efforts by authorizing a 100 percent Federal cost share for rebuilding the bridge,” Young wrote in a letter to top lawmakers. “This authorization would be consistent with past catastrophic bridge collapses.”

The administration has not yet made a formal request to Congress for funding, and it remains unclear how much money the reconstruction effort will cost. Some estimates have put the figure at roughly $2 billion.

Biden’s plan for Congress to approve funds, however, could run into trouble on Capitol Hill, as some Republicans express opposition to using federal dollars for the rebuilding effort amid concerns over the ballooning deficit.

The House Freedom Caucus released an official position Friday that demanded a series of conditions for considering funding to reconstruct the bridge, including that the funding is “fully offset” and that the Biden administration first lifts its pause on approvals for natural gas export projects.

Schumer, for his part, called for bipartisan cooperation in the upper chamber to greenlight the federal funding.

“It will take bipartisan cooperation for the Senate to act quickly to help reopen the Port of Baltimore, a major artery for commerce, and rebuild the Key Bridge as quickly as possible,” he wrote in a letter to colleagues Friday.

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