Congress Closes Out 2024
Congress returns to Washington this week following the 2024 election, where Republicans flipped the Senate and the White House and potentially held the House of Representatives depending on yet-to-be-called races.
Lawmakers will begin their lame-duck session to pass a series of must-pass legislation and take up nominations of both the outgoing Biden Administration and the incoming Trump Administration.
Government funding expires on December 20th, at which time lawmakers must either reach a full funding agreement or pass another stopgap measure. Members may close out FY25 funding to give President-elect Trump a clean slate by addressing expiring tax measures and immigration policy.
The biannual Farm Bill must also be passed before key federal agriculture programs expire. With Republicans flipping the Senate, Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) will become the Chamber’s Agriculture Committee chairman, while his Democratic counterpart has yet to be named following the retirement of Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI).
The annual National Defense Authorization (NDAA) has also yet to be passed, although it frequently enjoys bipartisan support amongst lawmakers. Disaster aid is also a bipartisan priority for Members following recent natural disasters such as Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which ravaged several states.
In the Senate, lawmakers may choose to confirm judges in the waning days of the 118th Congress, although President-elect Trump has said he prefers the Chamber to wait until he is inaugurated on January 20th. Meanwhile, President-elect Trump has nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to be his UN Ambassador, which will require Senate confirmation.
Senate Republicans will also need to elect a new leader to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY). The leading contenders are Sens. John Thune (R-SD), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Rick Scott (FL). Meanwhile, in the House, the leadership on both sides is expected to remain the same, with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (R-NY) staying in their posts.
