McConnell freezes -- and also flexes

Mark your legal calendars for Trump's trials. Plus: Justice Thomas' latest gift disclosures

View this email online Sept. 2, 2023 This week, we looked at McConnell's flex amid a recent  mid-press conference freeze. Plus, Giuliani is found liable -- and Congress is set to return. The Big Picture: McConnell Freezes -- And Also Flexes J. Scott Applewhite/AP Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn’t want you to focus on his health. The 81-year-old Kentucky Republican involuntarily froze in front of reporters this week. It was the second time he struggled to speak at a public event in the past five weeks. His aides downplayed the event and the Capitol physician cleared him for work.  But he faces a long to-do list in Washington: funding the government to avoid a shutdown, handling requests for emergency funding for disaster aid and the war in Ukraine, approving a farm bill, regulating AI, renewing a long-standing surveillance program and considering a backlog of nominees. All this while House Republicans are openly discussing impeachment proceedings for President Biden or members of his administration.  McConnell is under pressure from conservatives to reject funding levels that were set in an earlier agreement with the White House. House Republicans already passed a bill that would make major cuts to domestic spending in violation of that pact, a move that could seriously threaten a shutdown. The GOP leader this week tried to make clear that new spending cuts won’t fly in the Senate. But his message was almost completely overshadowed by the moment when he froze. “The speaker and the president reached an agreement, which I supported, in connection with raising the debt ceiling, to set the spending levels for next year,” McConnell said. “The House then turned around and passed spending levels that were below that level,” He said. “That’s not going to be replicated in the Senate.” It is the second time McConnell’s specific attempts to tamp down efforts led by House conservatives has been overshadowed by his health.  Back in July, McConnell was led away from a press conference in the Capitol after freezing for an extended period of time. When he returned, he was eventually asked if he thought there was merit in impeaching Biden. He was clear. “I said two years ago when we had not one but two impeachments that once we go down this path it incentivises the other side to do the same thing,” he said. “Impeachment ought to be rare rather than common. This is not good for the country to have repeated impeachment problems.” The long list of demands this month will test McConnell’s ability to keep stories about his health at bay. -- Kelsey Snell, NPR congressional correspondent Newsletter continues after sponsor message ICYMI: Top Stories Evan Vucci/AP Mark those legal calendars: Former President Trump’s federal trial on charges he interfered with the 2020 presidential election is slated to begin on March 4, 2024. The judge overseeing the case brushed aside the Trump attorneys’ arguments for a two-year delay. For those keeping track, a separate trial involving hush money payments in New York is scheduled for late March 2024, one in Florida on Trump’s handling of classified documents will begin May 20 and the Fulton County, Ga. case on election interference charges is still up in the air. Pentagon nominations in limbo: A months-long standoff has left three branches of the military operating without Senate-confirmed leaders, according to the Pentagon. Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville has been blocking military nominations over the Pentagon’s policy of reimbursing service members who travel to get reproductive care, including abortion. So far, 301 nominations have been affected, and that number could swell to 650 if Tuberville holds firm, the Pentagon said. Rudy Giuliani found liable: The former mayor of New York and Trump attorney was found liable of “defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress [and] civil conspiracy” over his false claims that two Georgia election workers were manipulating 2020 ballots. Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, both Black women, faced racist and violent threats after Giuliani’s targeting. What’s next in Georgia? It could be complicated. With former President Trump pleading not guilty to election interference charges there, the case may be entering its most frenzied period yet. As WABE’s Sam Gringlas reports, this is a case involving 19 co-defendants – one of whom happens to be running for president – pulling in many different directions.  Thomas sheds some light on luxury trips: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas filed his 2022 financial disclosure form this week, following scrutiny over his relationship with billionaire conservative donor Harlan Crow. The form provides information on private jet trips taken in 2022, but not the luxury vacations and other gifts Thomas received in previous years, reported earlier this year by ProPublica and other outlets. Those reports have spurred calls for a court-wide ethics code.  — Lexie Schapitl, NPR Politics producer You Count On NPR. NPR Counts On You.  Community support is the NPR Network's greatest strength and individuals like YOU make it possible. It's a key part that fuels our mission informing and engaging your community, your nation, your world.  It takes all of us. Help today.  Donate Now Going Deeper: Congress set to return Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images Lawmakers come back to work this week to face a full plate that includes funding the war in Ukraine, funding the government and responding to natural disasters as the House continues to investigate President Biden. They're all interconnected issues -- and ones that are causing House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to walk the tightrope that is guiding his caucus through the fall legislative session.  — Heidi Glenn, NPR digital editor The Shot: A healing surf session Claire Harbage/NPR Maui is still reeling from last month's destructive wildfires. But last weekend, families from hard-hit Lahaina and Kula found some peace doing something they love: surfing. Kids who lost their surfboards in the fire got to use loaners. After a moment of silence, they hit the water with professionals. Locals told NPR that they were grateful to be alive and glad for the distraction from what's been going on.  "What we thought we would do is just put some smiles on some faces and have a good time," big-wave surfer Paige Alms told NPR. "It's about stoking out the groms," she added in surfer slang (groms = young surfers). — Lexie Schapitl, NPR Politics producer Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from St. Louis Public Radio (edit station). What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprpolitics@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Daily News, Code Switch, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Politics emails. 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