Congress returned to Washington on Monday for a five-week lame-duck session, with Republicans still holding the House, the Senate, and the White House until the new Democrat-controlled Congress is sworn in next year.
Republican hopes of finishing a big chunk of President Donald Trump’s agenda in the session are already deflating after the party’s election losses.
The one deadline that can’t be ignored is government funding. The stopgap spending law expires on December 11. Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) is pushing for a final party-line package and has argued that the Senate should remain in session.
“We can work on Mondays. We can work on Fridays. We can work on weekends,” he said.
In @PunchbowlNews AM
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) November 9, 2026
I interviewed @SteveScalise and @Jim_Jordan about the race for GOP leader.
SCALISE is emphasizing that he's the person best equipped to bring Republicans back into the majority, can visit swing districts, etc.
“We’ve got to start acting like a team if…
Another issue is President Donald Trump’s demand that the Senate pass the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent. Last week, he took to Truth Social to repeat his argument that Republicans should take the opportunity to pass the measure.
The Senate’s first order of business is permitting reform. The upper chamber is set to take its first procedural vote this week on a bipartisan bill to speed up construction of public projects by streamlining regulatory reviews.
Congress must also pass the National Defense Authorization Act. The House already passed its version in July. But the Senate failed to invoke cloture on its version before the midterm elections.
Under Joe Biden, America was in decline. Our border was wide open, families were getting crushed by inflation, and American energy was under attack.
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) November 3, 2026
We’ve come a LONG way since then. But we’re not finished. We continue fighting for a stronger, safer, more prosperous America! 🇺🇸
Nominations are also an issue. After the Democrats take control of the Senate, it’s unlikely they will allow any of Trump’s nominees to be confirmed. This means Republicans must get as many nominees through as possible.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) scheduled back-to-back nomination hearings set to start on Tuesday to accomplish this objective.
Republican leaders are set to jam the final weeks with judicial nominees, a top priority of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Grassley. Thune said he wants to pass another tranche of lower-tier nominees before year’s end, according to The Washington Sun.
Over the last two years, Senate Republicans have put up a strong record of accomplishment that’s created safer streets, more money in Americans’ pockets, and new opportunities for families and businesses to get ahead. After fighting Democrat obstruction at every turn, we…
— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) November 4, 2026
President Trump is also expected to push Republicans to address the debt ceiling before the next Congress takes over. Thune said this could happen during the lame duck session.
Democrats are already flexing their muscles. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told reporters that they will not impose a blanket hold on Trump’s judicial nominees, but he did urge Trump to advance better-qualified judges. Of course, what this means is that Democrats will impose a blanket hold on the president’s nominees, saying they are not “better-qualified.”
After this session is over, we probably won’t see much coming from Congress other than stalemates, investigations, impeachment proceedings, and other forms of political theater.