Highlights from June 27, 2025
- WAR POWERS RESOLUTION FAILS: The Senate voted against a war powers resolution, 47-53, that would have mandated congressional consent for additional military action in Iran. The measure was introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat.
- TRADE TALKS WITH CANADA END: President Donald Trump halted trade discussions with Canada due to a tech company tax imposed by the northern U.S. neighbor.
- TRUMP APPLAUDS BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP RULING: Trump spoke to reporters at the White House to praise the Supreme Court for curbing national injunctions on his effort to end automatic birthright citizenship. The high court also issued an opinion this morning backing parents who sought to opt their children out of LGBTQ-themed books in elementary schools.
- SENATE SNAGS: Republican senators are scrambling after the chamber's parliamentarian ruled against several health care-related provisions in the Trump-backed domestic policy bill that lawmakers are trying to pass by July Fourth.
Senate Republicans eye weekend votes on Trump’s massive bill as tensions run high
Senate Republican leaders are hoping to start voting on their massive domestic policy bill tomorrow, even as major pieces of it have yet to be finalized.
GOP senators held a lengthy lunch meeting today with House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, as the process grows messy and acrimonious, with a host of conflicting demands persisting within the party. Still, Republican leaders put members on notice that Senate votes were imminent.
“My expectation is: At some point tomorrow we’ll be ready to go,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said after today's meeting, although he wouldn’t say whether he has the 51 votes needed to begin debate.
“We’ll find out tomorrow,” Thune said, as Republicans race toward a self-imposed July 4 deadline to send the bill to Trump’s desk.
Nebraska Republican Don Bacon will not seek re-election to Congress
Rep. Don Bacon, a centrist Republican who represents a key battleground district in Nebraska, is planning to announce his retirement from Congress, according to two sources familiar with the situation.
He is expected to make a formal announcement as soon as next week, when the House is poised to vote on Trump’s sweeping legislation dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill.”
Bacon did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday night.
Virginia Democrats target Trump in race to replace Gerry Connolly in Congress
Democrats vying to succeed the late Rep. Gerry Connolly in a deep-blue northern Virginia district are zeroing in on one issue: who can best take on Trump.
In his announcement video, former Connolly chief of staff and Fairfax County Supervisor James Walkinshaw said Trump officials threatened to throw him in jail, referring to letters sent to local officials in so-called sanctuary jurisdictions last December that threatened jail time for supporting and enforcing sanctuary laws.
State Sen. Stella Pekarsky’s launch video touts her Greek heritage, which she said helps her “stand up to Donald Trump.” And state Del. Irene Shin said Democrats are running the “same old tired plays” while Trump is “dismembering and defunding our government.”
Trump has played a key role in the race as Democrats go on the offensive over his mass deportation program and Department of Government Efficiency initiative to cut the size of the federal government — in a district full of federal workers, where then-Vice President Kamala Harris beat Trump by 34 points last fall.
War powers resolution fails to pass in the Senate
The Senate today voted against a war powers resolution that would've required congressional approval before further military action in Iran, roughly a week after the U.S. bombed nuclear sites there. The vote was 47-53.
The resolution, introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., both affirmed that Congress has the sole power to declare war, as outlined in the Constitution, and barred Trump from taking any military action against Iran without congressional authorization, aside from defending the country against imminent attacks.
“There is no war without a declaration of Congress,” Kaine said on the Senate floor today. “The president, as commander in chief, can defend the United States against imminent attacks, but there was no such imminent threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program, as the president’s own national security advisor testified to Congress shortly before this strike.”
Support for the resolution among Democrats grew this week as many criticized Trump for skirting Congress as he authorized military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last weekend. Some framed the strikes as the start of a potential war.
Republicans opposed the resolution, several maintaining their view that Trump has the authority to pursue certain military actions, like the recent strikes on Iran, without congressional authorization, though noting Trump would need the support of Congress to declare war, which he has not.
“[Trump] is the civilian in charge of the military, and it’s his decision to use military force,” Sen. Lindsey Graham said. “This country cannot be put in a legal state of war unless the Congress decides to do that. But to suggest that means the commander in chief can’t do anything without our approval, makes all of us commander in chiefs.”
Biden attended late Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman’s lie in state
Former President Joe Biden paid his respects today to the late Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman at the Minnesota Capitol.
Hortman, who was a Democrat, is the first woman to lie in state at the Minnesota Capitol rotunda. She was killed this month along with her husband, Mark Hortman, at their home, in what officials have called a “politically motivated assassination." Authorities have charged Vance Boelter in connection with the Hortmans' deaths, and the injuries of Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman. Boelter has pleaded not guilty.
NBC News reported earlier today that former Vice President Kamala Harris was also expected to appear at the funeral services for the Hortmans, according to a source familiar with her plans.
Senate Democrats considering forcing clerks to read entire Republican megabill on Senate floor
Senate Democrats are considering forcing the Senate clerks to read the entire Republican megabill when it eventually comes to the Senate floor, a source familiar with their thinking tells NBC News, a delay tactic that could add hours to the process.
The move by Democrats mirrors what Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., did to Democrats when they passed a COVID relief package in 2021. Johnson forced the clerks to read the entire bill, a process that took 10 hours and 43 minutes to zip through the 628-page document.
The dilatory tactic can be used for any piece of legislation that is brought to the Senate floor, but typically the reading of a piece of legislation is waived by unanimous consent, meaning all 100 senators agree to skip it.
But if any one senator objects, the bill will have to be read in its entirety by the clerks (not the senators). It's unclear how many pages this bill will have, so it’s not yet possible to predict how long that would take.
The reading of the bill would happen after the Senate voted on the motion to proceed with the bill, the simple majority vote to start floor consideration of the bill. And then only after the reading would the up to 20 hours of debate begin.
Congress set to hand Trump billions to recruit more ICE agents
Trump is on the verge of getting billions of dollars from Congress to recruit and retain agents to carry out the mass deportation campaign that was one of the central promises of his campaign.
Trump has been on a roll in his efforts to combat illegal immigration and remove undocumented immigrants from the country, and both advocates and critics of his plans say that bolstering border security and interior enforcement will make it easier for him to execute on his vision.
The issue, a key tenet of his MAGA movement for a decade, helped him win back the White House in 2024. It remains his strongest issue, with 51% of adults approving of his handling of immigration and 49% disapproving, according to an NBC News Decision Desk poll powered by SurveyMonkey that was released this month.
At least two more Jan. 6 prosecutors fired by Pam Bondi
At least two federal prosecutors who previously worked Jan. 6 cases were fired by the Justice Department today, numerous former officials tell NBC News.
NBC News has seen a Notice of Removal from Federal Service for one of the prosecutors which was signed by Attorney General Pam Bondi. One of the fired prosecutors was based overseas.
While probationary employees who worked Jan. 6 cases had been fired and others who worked Jan. 6 cases were demoted, these are the first known firings of non-probationary prosecutors who worked Jan. 6 cases. Prosecutors who worked for Jack Smith were also fired in the early days of the administration.
Trump on canceled trade talks with Canada: 'We have such power over Canada'
During an event in the Oval Office, Trump spoke out against Canada after he announced earlier today that he was terminating trade talks with the nation because of their digital services tax on American tech companies.
"We have all the cards," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We have all —every single one. We don’t want to do anything bad, but they have, economically — we have such power over Canada."
The president added that he'd "rather not use" power over Canada,"but they did something with our tech companies today, trying to copy Europe."
Trump said the digital services tax, which has been in place since 2024 but hasn't collected payments until next week, is "not going to work out well."
"They were foolish to do it. So I said, we’re going to stop all negotiations with Canada right now until they straighten out their act," the president added.
Trump says a ceasefire in Gaza could come 'within the next week'
Asked in the Oval Office about the potential of a ceasefire deal between Israel and leaders in Gaza, Trump said that one could go into effect "within the next week."
"It’s a terrible situation," he said, adding, "We think within the next week we’re going to get a ceasefire."
The president also told reporters, "I just spoke with some of the people involved," but didn't specify who he spoke with.
