March 14

This week in MORE POWER:

Staving Off the Shutdown
Remembering Raúl Grijalva
Innovation Nation
Leading Labor
Pandemic Fraud Pinch

Staving Off the Shutdown

The House passed a bill earlier this week to keep the government funded through Sept. 30, 2025. The vote was tight: 217 to 213. All Republicans except Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) voted for it, while all Democrats except Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) voted against it. The bill would mostly maintain current funding levels but make a few key changes: it would increase defense spending by $6 billion while cutting nondefense spending by $13 billion. Democrats argue it gives President Trump too much power to direct funds without congressional oversight. They say they would prefer a “cleaner” one-month extension at current funding levels. Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said Trump should have the freedom to direct funds as he sees fit, and that Republicans won’t stand in his way. Additionally, many Republicans want to buy themselves more time to complete the federal budget, and this bill will give them six months.

The Senate is now considering the bill, where it needs Senate Democrats’ support to pass. Few democrats have expressed that they will support it, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is one of them, which outraged many House Democrats who believe that they held the line just for Schumer to concede.

Remembering Raúl Grijalva

The late Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) passed away on Thursday. Grijalva had been a representative for the state of Arizona since 2002, where he consistently advocated for environmental justice policy. He chaired the Natural Resources Committee from 2015 to 2019, co-chaired the Congressional Progressive Caucus from 2009 to 2019, and was a senior member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

With the passing of the late Rep. Sylvester Turner last week and now Grijalva this week, Democrats’ hold on the House has narrowed to 213 seats, compared to Republicans’ 218 seats. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs is expected to announce the timing of a special election to fill Grijalva’s seat in the coming days.

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Innovation Nation

The House passed the bipartisan Emerging Innovative Border Technologies Act this week, which aims to ensure border security implements the latest technology to improve border security. The bill would do so by requiring U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to create a plan for using new technologies like AI, automation, and sensors to improve border security. This plan would have to outline goals, timelines, privacy impacts, and how CBP can adopt these technologies. CBP would then have to share the plan with Congress within 180 days. This bill is headed to the Senate.

Leading Labor

The Senate confirmed Lori Chavez-DeRemer as secretary of labor on Monday. Unlike most of President Trump’s nominees, Chavez-DeRemer faced opposition from both parties. Three Republican senators — Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) — voted against her, while 17 Democrats voted in her favor. Chavez-DeRemer was controversial among Republicans because she co-sponsored the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, a pro-labor-union bill, while in Congress. Republicans generally oppose pro-union legislation, whereas most Democrats support it, which explains the 17 Democratic votes despite Chavez-DeRemer being a Republican.

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Pandemic Fraud Pinch

The House passed the Pandemic Unemployment Fraud Enforcement Act. This bill would extend the time limit to prosecute fraud related to COVID-19 unemployment insurance. The Government Accountability Office estimates that unemployment insurance fraud cost the government $100-$135 billion; supporters say this bill would make sure that the government is able to recover some of those funds.

The time to prosecute these cases is currently set to run out on March 27, 2025, so this bill must pass the Senate and be signed into law before the deadline passes. The bill is going to the Senate now.