SENATE UPDATE: Conservatives Take on the Deep State, the DC Establishment, Criminal Aliens, and Big Porn

Last Week

The Senate passed four resolutions to rescind regulations proposed by former President Joe Biden:

• An EPA rule that would have added new emissions standards for tire manufacturers (55-45);

• A Treasury Department rule that would have wrapped U.S. banks in even more red tape (52-47);

• An illegal FCC rule that would have allowed schools and libraries to use federal classroom funding to create WiFi hotspots for children to surf the internet without parental supervision (50-38);

• A National Park Service rule that barred off-road vehicle owners from recreating at Glen Canyon in Utah (50-43).

The Senate also confirmed Frank Bisignano to be the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration.

Finally, on Thursday, several Senate Democrats sabotaged bipartisan stablecoin legislation that they had previously supported in committee. Nothing changed in the bill — they simply wanted to stick it to President Trump. And Democrats wonder why their party is sinking to record-low public approval ratings.

Conservative Spotlight

RON JOHNSON — Last week, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate’s investigations subcommittee, called on the National Archives to release all evidence of the Biden Administration pressuring law enforcement agencies to investigate President Donald Trump. The weaponization of the Deep State remains one of the biggest issues in Washington. Thankfully, Sen. Johnson isn’t letting this go away.

TOMMY TUBERVILLE — Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) joined with several other Republican Senators to introduce the “Justice for American Victims of Illegal Aliens Act.” The bill would codify in law President Trump’s executive order calling for the death penalty for illegal immigrants convicted of murder.

ERIC SCHMITT — Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) continues to cement his reputation as a thought leader in the MAGA movement. He recently gave a clear, powerful speech contrasting the previous Administration’s “America Last” approach with President Trump’s sweeping reform agenda. You can read highlights or watch the whole speech here.

MIKE LEE — Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced potentially historic legislation last week to crack down on internet pornography. The “Interstate Obscenity Definition Act” would clarify in federal law that, in Lee’s words, “obscenity is not protected by the First Amendment.” It would allow states to finally start prosecuting peddlers of explicit online content.

This Week

The Senate has one vote scheduled for today. It will consider the nomination of political columnist and former Fox News contributor Monica Crowley as the State Department's Chief of Protocol.

Several other nominations have been teed up for votes this week, too:

• Reed Rubinstein to be Legal Adviser of the Department of State;

• Troy Meink to be Secretary of the Air Force;

• James Danly to be Deputy Secretary of Energy;

• Katharine MacGregor to be Deputy Secretary of the Interior; and

• Michael Rigas to be Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources.

The big story in Congress this week will be House Republicans’ continuing work on President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” Negotiations are ongoing about how to secure the border, preserve the 2017 tax cuts, cut spending, and boost domestic energy production. The goal remains to pass the bill through the House by Memorial Day.

Finally, SCF offers our congratulations to our Catholic members on the election of Pope Leo XIV. The former Cardinal Robert Prevost is not only an American but also a longtime Republican primary voter in his home state of Illinois! We can’t confirm that Leo checked conservative endorsements before voting — but we also can’t confirm that he didn’t!

Have a great and blessed week. Keep the faith, and stay in the fight.

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