It’s Tuesday, the traditional day for elections and for our pause-and-consider newsletter on politics and policy. We think of it as a mini-magazine in your inbox.
IS CONGRESS AT A TURNING POINT WITH TRUMP?
By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews
Correspondent
Foaming throughout the political zeitgeist is a big, thick bubble of a question: Is this a turning point in Trump 2.0?
The killing of ICE nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis as he was pinned down and shot by federal officers has sparked anger and dominated political thought since it happened Saturday.
We don’t know where things will stand a week (or really a day) from now. But let’s look at what congressional actions — largely by Democrats — are in the conversation.
1. A partial shutdown looms
Watch the segment in the player above.
No one has worked harder to get Congress functioning recently than appropriators. They managed to work across the aisle and agree on compromise bills for every agency. And all of those have passed the House.
But. One final group of funding bills still needs to pass the Senate. And in that group is the funding for the Department of Homeland Security. The plan was to pass them this week.
But. To get over the Senate’s 60-vote procedural hurdle, the bills need seven Democrats to vote yes.
The Senate has two options. Republicans can allow the DHS funding to be separated out, clearing the path for the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services and others to be funded.
Or, Republicans can insist the bills stay together, strongly risking that Democrats will block them and trigger a shutdown of those agencies.
One note: ICE is the department least likely to be affected by a shutdown. In Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Republicans gave ICE a surge of $75 billion dollars. That’s enough to operate for years without more funding from Congress.
When will we know? In the next day or two. The funding deadline is Friday. But any deal to avoid a shutdown needs to emerge before then.
2. Impeach DHS Secretary Kristi Noem
Any member of the House of Representatives can introduce and force a vote on impeachment of a Cabinet official or president at any time.
Earlier this month, Illinois Democratic Rep. Robin Kelly introduced impeachment articles against Noem, but did not force a vote. The idea was debated and controversial with some in the Democratic Caucus at that point.
And now, following Pretti’s killing, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is pushing for Noem to resign or, he says, Democrats will push impeachment.
Currently, the House is 218 Republicans to 214 Democrats. But another Democrat should be elected next week in a Texas special election. When that person is installed, it will be 218 to 215.
If every Democrat voted to impeach Noem (not guaranteed), two Republicans would need to join them to impeach her.
And they would do that knowing that the votes are almost certainly not there in the Senate to remove her.
Thus, it would be a symbolic effort. But an important one to both parties.
3. Pass a separate bill about ICE
In general, Republicans want neither impeachment or a partial shutdown.
On the Hill, several of them – including Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Katie Britt, R-Ala. – are working behind the scenes to try to come up with a Plan C.
What is Plan C? Separate legislation to rein in or express boundaries for ICE.
Initially, Republicans offered the idea that Trump could issue clear executive orders to address concerns. But after talking with a range of sources, it is clear Democrats will not trust the White House to act.
But if there is separate legislation, what could be in it that would both address Democratic concerns and also win over enough House Republicans to pass there?
This is a tough needle to thread. But it may be the one to watch.
Unfortunately, needle threading often takes time. And time is running out.
Friday feels far away in terms of weather shifts. A snowstorm could come. Or melt.
But in terms of Congress, it is nearly upon us.
More on politics from our coverage:
Watch: White House shifts its response to the Alex Pretti shooting after bipartisan outrage.
One Big Question: Is the Trump administration losing support over how it’s handling immigration enforcement? NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter discuss.
‘YOU CAN’T WALK IN WITH GUNS,’ TRUMP SAYS AFTER PRETTI KILLING
Watch the clip in the player above.
By Liz Landers, @ElizLanders
White House Correspondent
Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he did not think Alex Pretti, the second U.S. citizen to be killed by federal forces in Minnesota this month, was acting as an assassin.
"You can't have guns. You can't walk in with guns," the president said in response to a question from PBS News' Liz Landers, reiterating a talking point from the administration that Pretti should not have brought a legally carried handgun to the scene. It’s a position that has infuriated gun rights advocates.
The president's response amounted to a softening of his administration's tone on the Jan. 24 shooting, after several of his top aides, including White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, described Pretti as a threat to federal agents.
Following Pretti's death, gun rights groups have released statements, saying that it's legal to carry firearms during protests or while exercising First Amendment rights.
Landers asked Trump about the Second Amendment, which protects the right to keep and bear arms.
Read: A second U.S. citizen was killed by federal forces in Minneapolis. Here's what we know.
‘We’re Being Terrorized’: What Mainers are seeing as ICE launches its operation in the state.
Perspectives: Border Patrol agents are “untrained and unskilled” for policing in urban areas, ex-CBP head says.
THE 'ANTIDOTE' TO POLITICAL EXHAUSTION
Watch the clip in the player above. Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
By Steff Staples
Associate Social Media Producer/Editor
What's the best way to deal with political fatigue?
Instead of retreating from the deluge of negative news, sociologist Tressie McMillan Cottom recommends getting more involved.
"We are getting so much passive information, and we have so few opportunities to act," she told PBS News' Geoff Bennett. "We are tired then, not from doing too much, but from doing too little."
"The more time you spend doing something ... the less exhausted you are by the onslaught of information that really wins when it can convince you that the only thing you can do is watch what is happening to you," she added.
Cottom, a MacArthur Fellow and New York Times columnist, spoke with Bennett for PBS News' podcast, "Settle In."
THIS WEEK’S TRIVIA QUESTION
By Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital
Marco Rubio is wearing many hats.
President Donald Trump recently announced the U.S. bid to host the 2035 World Expo in Miami — and that Rubio, his secretary of state, would lead that effort.
The assignment adds to Rubio’s ever-expanding to-do list, which is already heavy with a number of foreign policy concerns. They include the U.S. capture of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro, the topic of a Senate hearing featuring Rubio on Wednesday.
Rubio took on another major role — acting national security adviser — when Mike Waltz left his post after accidentally adding a reporter to a Signal group chat discussing a U.S. military strike in Yemen.
With that added responsibility, Rubio became the first person in decades to lead the State Department while also serving as the president’s national security adviser.
Our question: Who was the last person to hold both of these key roles at the same time?
Send your answers to [email protected] or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.
Last week, we asked: Who was the first American to win any Nobel Prize?
The answer: Theodore Roosevelt. In 1906, the 26th U.S. president received the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in ending the conflict between Japan and Russia, a decision that was met with controversy. A proponent of “Big Stick” diplomacy, Roosevelt wasn’t a pacifist.
Congratulations to our winners: Sarah Bornstein and Dan Browning!
Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.
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