House lawmakers return to Washington with a stopgap funding bill atop
the list of priorities
[September 01, 2026]
By KEVIN FREKING
WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers returned to Washington on Monday with
a short to-do list after five weeks back in their home districts. The
first order of business is most likely a vote on a stopgap spending bill
designed to keep the federal government fully funded through early
December, removing the possibility of a shutdown before the midterm
elections.
With election season getting underway, votes are also expected on
measures designed to amplify the GOP's messaging strategy going into
November, most notably a resolution condemning socialism. Republicans
are trying to tie the Democratic Party in general to the democratic
socialist candidates who have succeeded this year in running for office.
“The first thing is we’ve got to make sure this government gets funded
and we don’t have another Democratic shutdown," Speaker Mike Johnson
told reporters as he prepared to open the chamber for business. The
funding vote will most likely take place Tuesday.
One significant item that did not make its way onto the House schedule
this week is a Senate-passed bill that imposes sanctions on key segments
of the Russian economy and allows President Donald Trump to impose steep
tariffs on goods imported from countries that buy the vast majority of
Russian oil and gas. The effort led by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham aims
to deprive Russian President Vladimir Putin of revenue used to finance
the war against Ukraine.
The bill passed 86-11 in the Senate. House passage would send the bill
to Trump's desk for his signature. However, some key House Democrats
oppose the bill. Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said the legislation
risks providing Trump and his administration with new sanction and
tariff authorities that “we believe they will abuse.”
“I have serious concerns with the legislation,” he told reporters.
The return to Washington also brings a renewed focus on improper
behavior by lawmakers as the House will have its first chance to act on
a recommendation from the House Ethics Committee to censure Rep. Chuck
Edwards, R-N.C., for engaging in persistent unprofessional and
inappropriate conduct toward two young female aides in his congressional
office.
Edwards implores colleagues to reject censure vote
Edwards has disputed the committee’s conclusion that he failed to adhere
to the spirit of the rules prohibiting sexual harassment and unwanted
advances toward House staffers. He points to the committee’s conclusion
that found no evidence he “engaged in sexual activity or explicitly
propositioned any individual under his employ.”
Edwards said he was not asking lawmakers to approve of every gift,
compliment or social interaction, but to distinguish between conduct
that someone might find unconventional and conduct that actually
establishes sexual harassment.
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The U.S. Capitol is seen from the Washington Monument in Washington,
Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“Individual acts that were not themselves prohibited were gathered
together, assigned the most damaging possible interpretation, and
then used collectively to support a conclusion far more serious than
the underlying evidence," Edwards wrote in a letter to colleagues
first reported by NOTUS.
The committee said Edwards provided the two staffers with lavish and
recurrent gifts, made comments regarding their dress and appearance,
invited them to intimate dinners and vacations, sent notes regarding
his effusive affection and invited them to other activities as a way
to spend time together.
A vote to censure registers the House’s deep disapproval of a
lawmaker’s conduct that does not meet the threshold for expulsion.
Edwards dropped his reelection plans after the committee's report
came out.
Lawmakers are working to avoid another shutdown
The short-term funding bill underwent some significant changes in
the Senate, which made it more palatable for Democrats. It delays a
proposed rule from the Office of Management and Budget that would
give political appointees more power over the distribution of
federal grants. It also includes language to ensure the
administration can't transfer funds to the Border Patrol.
But a provision that delays for one month a federal ban on
intoxicating hemp THC products has prompted criticism from many GOP
lawmakers. As a result, GOP leaders will likely place the bill on a
fast-track process that avoids a separate procedural vote, bypassing
any Republican efforts to block or stall the legislation. Suspension
bills require a two-thirds vote to pass, meaning a significant
number from both parties need to support the measure for it to pass
and advance to Trump's desk.
Lawmakers are anxious to avoid the possibility of a shutdown as
voters weigh their options going into November. The funding bill
passed by a 90-6 vote in the Senate, showing that lawmakers from
both political parties want to avoid a repeat of the two historic
shutdowns that occurred this past year.
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