PSW Weekly Round-Up - 4/6

Legislative Update

House. The House is in recess and does not plan to hold votes until it returns April 14. On April 28, King Charles III will address a joint meeting of Congress. The week of April 27 was originally intended to be a District Work Period, but the House will now be in session that week and instead will be in recess the first week of May.

Senate. The Senate will return from recess on April 13.

DHS Funding. After the House on March 27 rejected the Senate’s plan to fund all Homeland Security programs except for ICE and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) programs, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson came to an agreement on April 1 that the House would, indeed, concur with the Senate bill and that Republicans would provide funding for ICE and CBP through a party-line reconciliation bill. President Trump called on Congress to pass the reconciliation bill by June 1.

The next day, in a pro forma session with only Thune and one other Senator present, the Senate agreed to table the House’s proposal of a 60-day continuing resolution for DHS funding, thereby sending the Senate-passed proposal of DHS money without ICE and CBP back to the House. With the House not planning to take votes until the week of April 13, President Trump on April 3 signed an executive memorandum to pay DHS employees during the shutdown, which began Feb. 14. It is unclear when Speaker Johnson will move forward on the Senate bill given strong opposition from some in his party who are demanding that the reconciliation bill be considered first.

Reconciliation 2.0 and 3.0. Senate Majority Leader Thune says the reconciliation bill should be as narrow and focused as possible. If Republicans follow Thune’s advice and limit this second reconciliation measure to ICE and CBP, there is an opportunity for a third reconciliation bill later this year. The One Big Beautiful Bill was an FY 2025 reconciliation measure; the ICE/CBP bill would be using an FY 2026 budget resolution; and FY 2027 would still be available.

The Senate will reportedly move first on a budget resolution, and Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said April 2 he was planning two more reconciliation bills – one for ICE/CBP and another targeting fraud and dealing with voter reforms (presumably referring to provisions in the SAVE America Act).

There’s also the question of whether Congress will use reconciliation to provide more money for defense. While the White House wants to keep the second reconciliation bill focused on ICE and CBP, the President is also calling for Congress to approve $350 billion in defense spending through the reconciliation process rather than the regular appropriations process. Republicans are also eying reconciliation for approval of a supplemental spending bill for the Iran war. In addition, there is pressure to provide offsets for additional spending. Since there’s no guarantee that a third reconciliation bill can be enacted, some lawmakers will be pushing to include their priorities in the second bill.

Executive Action of Note

President Trump’s March 31 executive order on mail-in voting directs the Homeland Security Secretary, in coordination with the Social Security Administration, to compile a list of U.S. citizens eligible to vote in each state. The lists will then be sent to states at least 60 days before a federal election. The order directs the Postal Service to create new ballot envelopes with unique barcodes for tracking purposes and requires that ballots only be sent to voters on the approved list. The President’s order was immediately challenged in court by Democratic congressional leaders, Democratic attorneys general, and others.

• Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections - March 31, 2026
• Strengthening Actions Taken to Adjust Imports of Aluminum, Steel, and Copper Into the United States - April 2, 2026
• Adjusting Imports of Pharmaceuticals and Pharmaceutical Ingredients Into the United States - April 2, 2026
• Liberating the Department of Homeland Security From the Democrat-Caused Shutdown – April 3, 2026

Tariff Update

Pharmaceutical Tariffs. President Trump signed an executive proclamation April 2 to impose a 100% tariff on branded drugs, not generics, and their active ingredients. However, the tariffs won’t apply to companies that have struck “most-favored nation” deals to sell drugs in the U.S. at similar prices to other wealthy countries and have committed to manufacturing in the U.S. Companies that haven’t struck those deals but commit to manufacturing drugs in the U.S. will be subjected to a lower tariff rate of 20%. In addition, drugs from the European Union, Japan, South Korea, and Switzerland will face a 15% tariff while drugs from the United Kingdom will face a 10% tariff, which will then be reduced to zero under future trade agreements. The tariffs, which are being imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, will take effect in 120 days for large companies and 180 days for smaller ones.

Metal Tariffs. Also on April 2, the President issued a proclamation revising the current 50% tariffs on steel, aluminum, and copper. Effective April 6, the 50% tariff will be imposed on the “full value” of the imported metals paid by U.S. importers rather than on the exporter’s reported cost. The President also made changes to how tariffs are applied to so-called “derivative” products that contain some steel, aluminum, or copper. Those products that contain only a minor amount of metal (less than 15% by weight) will not be subject to a tariff other than the separate 10% global minimum tariff. Other derivative products will be subject to a 25% tariff on the entire value of the finished product.

Political Update

House Special Elections. Voters in Georgia’s 14^th Congressional District will vote tomorrow to fill the seat of former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who resigned in January. Republican Clay Fuller, a district attorney, is expected to prevail over Democrat Shawn Harris, a retired Army brigadier general. On April 16, a special election in New Jersey’s 11^th Congressional District will determine a winner in the race to succeed former Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.), who is now the state’s governor. Analilia Mejia, co-executive director of the Center for Popular Democracy, is the Democratic candidate while Joe Hathaway, who serves on the Randolph, N.J. Township Council and is a former mayor, is the Republican candidate.

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