Congress returned to Washington on Monday after the July 4 recess, with Republicans facing narrower margins following the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and the continued absence of Sen. Mitch McConnell, as the Senate prepares for major confirmation hearings and other high-stakes work.
Senate Republicans began the week with a complicated political and legislative calendar after the sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, and as Sen. Mitch McConnell remains out. (knkx.org)
Among the immediate items on the Senate’s schedule is a Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing for Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general. Graham’s death complicates the near-term path for the hearing and related committee work because Graham was a member of the Judiciary Committee. (knkx.org)
A separate confirmation hearing is also expected this week for Walter “Jay” Clayton III, Trump’s nominee to serve as director of national intelligence, who is slated to appear before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. (intelligence.senate.gov)
In addition, two Supreme Court justices are slated to appear for rare testimony tied to the annual appropriations process, and lawmakers face continued questions about the U.S. role in the Iran war, including funding and oversight. (knkx.org)
Graham’s death also reshapes the outlook for policy work he had been closely involved in. NPR reported that Graham, who chaired the Senate Budget Committee and played an influential role in foreign policy debates, told reporters at a Friday press conference that the White House had signed off on a Russia sanctions bill. (knkx.org)
Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, a Republican, told NPR that he and other lawmakers want to rename the Russia sanctions measure in Graham’s honor and begin moving it this week. (knkx.org)
South Carolina is also now moving to fill Graham’s Senate seat. Gov. Henry McMaster announced that Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, will serve as his temporary replacement, with election steps governed by state law. (apnews.com)
The week’s agenda also includes renewed debate over Trump’s voting proposal, the SAVE America Act. On NBC’s "Meet the Press," Trump said the bill came up in a conversation with Graham just hours before the senator died, while Graham was returning to the United States from a trip to Ukraine. (knkx.org)
