Good afternoon! Congress focused on defense and intelligence matters this week before the House adjourned for its scheduled week-long recess Thursday afternoon. Lawmakers in both chambers advanced defense bills and attempted to pass legislation to reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. President Trump signed the budget reconciliation bill to fund immigration and customs enforcement agencies and reported progress toward a deal to end the war with Iran. The president nominated U.S. District Attorney Jay Clayton to be Director of National Intelligence Thursday afternoon.
WHITE HOUSE
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President Trump announced Thursday his intention to nominate Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and former Securities and Exchange Commission chair, to be the Director of National Intelligence. His nomination is intended to resolve the impasse to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). House and Senate Democrats, as well as some Republicans, refused to support reauthorization unless the president nominated someone other than current Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, citing his lack of intelligence experience. The Senate Intelligence Committee will hold Clayton’s confirmation hearing on Wednesday, June 17. The nomination came too late in the week for either chamber to reconsider reauthorization before leaving Washington.
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President Trump signed the immigration enforcement reconciliation bill on Wednesday. allocating approximately $70 billion through the end of his term. The provides $70 billion to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol through the end of his term. As reconciliation legislation, it only needed 51, versus the usual 60, votes to pass the Senate. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was the only Republican to vote in opposition.
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President Trump on Monday nominated Todd Blanche. Balance is currently serving as acting Attorney General. Blanche, a former personal defense attorney for President Trump, has led the Justice Department since President Trump removed Pam Bondi from the post in April. Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) called Blanche well-qualified and said the committee’s review is underway. The committee’s current 12-10 margin means a single Republican defection could deadlock the vote, and several Republicans, including Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), have stated they remain undecided. The Judiciary Committee intends to hold a confirmation hearing before the July 4th recess.
- Efforts to end the war between the United States and Iran advanced this week but remain unresolved, as both governments publicly disagreed on the terms. President Trump announced Thursday that a deal had been reached and could be signed within days, while Iran stated it had not made a final decision and accused Washington of introducing new demands. The disagreement became public on Friday when President Trump said Iranian state media’s account of the agreement did not match the negotiated terms. Iran’s foreign minister indicated a deal was closer than ever. Israel’s continued military attacks against Lebanon remains a key obstacle, with Iran seeking Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon as part of any agreement. Both the U.S. and Iran have said details will be released only after the text is finalized.
SENATE
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The Senate Armed Services Committee approved its version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act in a closed session this week. The legislation would authorize approximately $1.15 trillion for defense programs and policy. Committee Chairman Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) confirmed the committee’s work was complete, though no vote breakdown or bill text was released. The full Senate is expected to consider the measure in the coming weeks.
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said Wednesday that the prospects for a defense-focused budget reconciliation bill are uncertain. Thune said he was “not ruling it out” but that any package would have to include spending cuts as offsets and assemble elements capable of passing both chambers.
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The Senate failed to pass bills on Thursday that would have extended authorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. One bill would have extended the program for one week, the other would have provided a three-week extension. Section 702 allows U.S. intelligence agencies to surveil targets abroad without a warrant, a process which sometimes captures communications with Americans. Some lawmakers in both parties want to put safeguards on how that material is searched.
HOUSE
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The House also failed to pass legislation to extend the reauthorization of Section 702 Thursday. The House is not scheduled to return to Washington until June 23.
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The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee advanced the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) Defense funding bill Thursday. The bill, approved in a closed-door markup, allocates about $1.072 trillion and includes a tiered pay raise of up to 7% for the lowest-ranking troops.
- The House Appropriations Committee approved its FY27 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill, Monday. The bill provides $189.3 billion in discretionary spending, about $5.6 billion lower than FY26 levels.
