03.23.2026 - DC Download

Mar 23

Lawmakers are grappling with the ongoing war on Iran, including reports of an astronomical funding request that could soon hit Congress’ desk. Members of Congress are also digesting a Trump-backed proposal for AI regulation. Meanwhile, a two-week recess looms. Read on for more.

Progressive Playbook

“Tax the Rich and Make Life Affordable: Harms of OBBBA, and the Need for Progressive Tax Solutions”

Please join Progressive Caucus Action Fund, Americans for Tax Fairness, and Families Over Billionaires to discuss the stories and profiles of working people who will be worse off because of tax and other policy changes in OBBBA. The briefing will also discuss a NEW, proactive policy agenda of solutions to raise revenue to address these harms and shape an economy that works for everyone.

You can RSVP here.

House

House Floor

The House will vote on 15 suspension bills from the Committees on Education and Workforce and Transportation and Infrastructure. Suspension bills require a ⅔ majority to pass. For a list of all suspension bills being considered, click here.

This week the House will also consider the following bills, subject to a rule:

H.R. 5103 – Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Act of 2026 (Sponsored by Rep. McGuire (VA) / Oversight and Government Reform) This bill would create a commission regarding public safety and immigration enforcement in Washington, DC—an infringement upon the District’s home rule. This commission would be instructed, in part, to promote the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda within the District.

H.Res. 1128 – Expressing the support of the House of Representatives for the Department of Homeland Security (Sponsored by Rep. Mackenzie (PA) / Homeland Security) This resolution, introduced on Friday, expresses the House’s support for numerous agencies within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The resolution also criticizes partially funding the Department—seemingly referencing Democratic proposals to fund DHS, excluding ICE and Border Patrol.

H.R. 8029 – Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act (Sponsored by Rep. Ciscomani (AZ)– Appropriations) This bill would fund DHS, which has been shut down since mid-February due to Republicans’ refusal to enact any reforms after immigration officers murdered Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. Democrats have repeatedly proposed funding every DHS agency but ICE and Border Patrol as DHS funding negotiations continue.

H.R. 7084 – Defending American Property Abroad Act of 2026 (Sponsored by Rep. Pfluger (TX) – Transportation and Infrastructure) This bill allows the president to deny port entry to vessels that have called at U.S. ports confiscated by certain Western Hemisphere countries.

House Committee Highlights

A full list of this week’s hearings and markups can be found here. Notable hearings and markups include:

Wednesday Hearings

Member Day: Subcommittee on National Security (Committee on Appropriations)

Member Day: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development(Committee on Appropriations)

Thursday Hearings

Innovation at the Speed of Markets: How Regulators Keep Pace with Technology (Committee on Financial Services)

The Best Metric to Reverse the Curse: A 3% Deficit-to-GDP Path to Fiscal Sustainability (Committee on the Budget)

Member Day: Subcommittee on Homeland Security (Committee on Appropriations)

Member Day: Subcommittee on Agriculture (Committee on Appropriations)

Senate

Senate Floor

The Senate will continue debating the House Message with respect to S.1383, the legislative vehicle for the SAVE America Act. The bill’s backers claim it prevents non-citizens from registering to vote, but that is already illegal. In reality, the bill would make it significantly harder, if not impossible, for millions of eligible voters to register to vote.

More on this:

The SAVE Act Would Force Many Rural Americans To Drive Hours To Register To Vote (Center for American Progress)

Fact Sheet: The SAVE Act Threatens All Voters (Campaign Legal Center)

SAVE Act Would Undermine Voter Registration for All Americans (Brennan Center for Justice)

Noncitizen Voting Isn’t Affecting State or Federal Elections — Here’s Why(Brennan Center for Justice)

Nominations

The Senate this week has teed up votes on the following nominee:

Markwayne Mullin, to be Secretary of Homeland Security

Senate Committee Highlights

A full list of this week’s hearings and markups can be found here. Notable hearings and markups include:

Tuesday Hearings

Arms Control And Transforming International Security Functions At The State Department (Committee on Foreign Relations)

Wednesday Hearings

Social Security: A Discussion on the Facts and the Path Forward(Committee on the Budget)

Protecting American Citizenship II: Federalism, Sanctuary Cities, and the Rule of Law (Committee on the Judiciary)

ISSUES TO WATCH

What the Pentagon’s Iran war wishlist could pay for instead

Reporting indicates that the Pentagon will request $200 billion on top of its existing $1 trillion budget to fund the U.S.-Israel war on Iran. Congress would need to approve the new funds. The administration has not officially sent the request to Congress, meaning that figure is subject to change. The war has already killed more than 2,000 people across the region, including 13 U.S. servicemembers, and displacedmore than 3 million people.

Congressional Democrats and even some Republicans balked at the $200 billion figure, which dwarfs spending on countless programs that serve the American public. $200 billion could:

Fully fund school lunches for the next 10 years;
Fully fund Head Start early childhood education programs for more than two decades;
Fully fund LIHEAP home heating and cooling assistance for 50 years;
Extend health insurance premium assistance for 22 million Americans for more than seven years; and much more.

More on this:

Pentagon seeks over $200 billion in Iran war supplemental budget request (The Washington Post)

Trump Wants $200 Billion for Bombs. Here’s What That Could Buy Instead. (Mother Jones)

15 Things America Could Buy Instead of Spending $200 Billion More on Iran War (The Century Foundation)

Trump drops short-on-details AI plan

On Friday, the White House published its preferred National Policy Framework for regulating Artificial Intelligence (AI), including a call to pre-empt a wide variety of state AI laws. The three-page bullet list suggests few new requirements of AI developers, instead asking that they be allowed to experiment under relaxed rules known as “regulatory sandboxes,” such as in Sen. Ted Cruz’s SANDBOX Act. The White House framework asks Congress to codify the Ratepayer Protection Pledge, which calls on AI companies to protect residential ratepayers for increased electrical bills, while calling for streamlined federal permitting to speed data center construction and operation.

On Wednesday, Sen. Marsha Blackburn released her ”discussion draft”for a federal AI regulatory framework. The 291-page “TRUMP AMERICA AI Act” incorporates several standalone bills, including the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA); the GUARD Act, which requires age verification for using AI chatbots; and and the NO FAKES Act, which holds companies liable for unauthorized uses of a person’s voice or likeness.

It also:

Requires third-party audits of AI systems to prevent “viewpoint discrimination or discrimination based on political affiliation”;
Sunsets Section 230 of the Communications Act, which exempts online platforms from civil liability for user-generated content; and
Imposes a “duty of care” on AI developers.

Neither the Blackburn framework nor the White House version offer specific protections for workers, beyond suggesting enhancement workforce training and federal reporting on AI-related layoffs and other job market impacts.

More on this:

President Donald J. Trump Unveils National AI Legislative Framework(The White House)

White House releases Trump's national AI plan and framework (Axios)

White House Unveils A.I. Policy Aimed at Blocking State Laws (The New York Times)

Trump Releases ‘Disgraceful’ AI Framework to Serve Big Tech at Expense of Americans (Public Citizen)