Today, President Biden will deliver an address at the first White House conference on hunger since 1969, when President Richard M. Nixon pulled together a similar gathering. Administration officials say they have secured $8 billion in public- and private-sector commitments toward helping provide more food and better nutrition by 2030. The speaking program includes administration officials and members of Congress, as well as José Andrés, the chef and founder of World Central Kitchen.
On Capitol Hill, the Senate moved a step closer Tuesday to avoiding a partial government shutdown after removing a controversial energy project permitting provision pushed by Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.). Lawmakers are scrambling to pass a stopgap funding measure by Friday before leaving town.
Your daily dashboard
10 a.m. Eastern: Biden delivers remarks at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. Watch live here.
11 a.m. Eastern: Biden delivers remarks at the White House to celebrate the Americans With Disabilities Act. Watch live here.
12:30 p.m. Eastern: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre briefs reporters. Watch live here.
7 p.m. Eastern: Biden participates in a Democratic Governors Association reception in Washington.
Got a question about politics? Submit it here. After 3 p.m. weekdays, return to this space and we’ll address what’s on the mind of readers.
09:14 AM: Noted: The role played by the Capitol Police in escorting a crystal flute to Lizzo
The Capitol Police, whose primary duty is protecting members of Congress, is touting another mission carried out Tuesday night: escorting a flute to a Lizzo concert.
The 200-year-old crystal flute, which is housed in the Library of Congress, was gifted to President James Madison in the early 1800s.
Over the weekend, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden invited the Grammy-award-winning singer, who was scheduled to be in Washington this week for a concert, to drop by to play some of the flutes in the library’s collection.
Lizzo did so on Monday, and on Tuesday she played the Madison flute while in concert at the Capital One Arena in Washington.
“Last night our officers helped safely escort President James Madison’s 1813 crystal flute to the @lizzo concert for the @librarycongress,” the Capitol Police tweeted on Wednesday morning, adding: “You never know what you’re going to see with the U.S. Capitol Police!”
Late Tuesday night, the Library of Congress tweeted that the flute was back “safe & sound back at the Library now” and thanked the Capitol Police.
08:52 AM: The latest: House GOP leaders urge ‘NO’ vote on bill to keep government open
If the House votes this week to avert a partial government shutdown, it won’t be at the urging of the chamber’s Republican leadership.
“Leadership recommends a NO vote,” reads a memo from the GOP whip office that is circulating among members as they return to Washington on Wednesday.
Part of the reasoning: The stopgap measure under consideration was crafted without sufficient negotiation with leading Republicans “on pressing issues relating to our government funding priorities, including runaway inflation, the supply chain crisis, the border crisis, or the opioid deaths associated with drugs like fentanyl coming across our open southern border,” the memo says.
Specifically, the House GOP leadership takes issue with the inclusion of $1.8 billion for a program that provides social services to refugees while, the memo says, the bill “provides no additional money for border security or our Customs and Border Protection officers.”
GOP leaders are also objecting to the length of the stopgap measure, which expires Dec. 16, “setting up another shutdown showdown,” according to the memo.
The Senate appears poised to move forward on the stopgap measure as early as Wednesday, but more likely Thursday, with bipartisan support.
08:19 AM: Analysis: Biden didn’t share the real reason Medicare premiums are lower
With the midterm elections just six weeks away, President Bidenvowed Tuesday to lower seniors’ health costs in a Rose Garden speech. He pledged to protect Medicare against perceived Republican threats and pointed to Democrats’ new law allowing the federal health program to negotiate drug prices for the first time.
“And this morning, we got even more good news,” Biden said, pointing to a decrease in Medicare premiums for doctor visits. “For years, that fee has gone up. Now, for the first time in more than a decade, it’s going to go down.”
Writing in The Health 202, The Post’s Rachel Roubein says the reality is more complicated than that election-year sound bite. Per Rachel:
You can read Rachel’s full analysis here.
07:57 AM: Analysis: What is the Electoral Count Act, and why does Congress want to change it?
A year and a half after the attack on the U.S. Capitol, Congress has passed no legislation to prevent it from happening again. But it could be close.
The Post’s Amber Phillips and Adrian Blanco note that a group of Democrats and Republicans is recommending new limits to Congress’s and the vice president’s roles in declaring the presidential winner. Per our colleagues:
You can read a full analysis from Amber and Adrian about the larger push here.
Our colleague Amy B Wang has more on the latest related activity in the Senate here.
07:25 AM: On our radar: Stock trading bill unveiled, faces uncertain future
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (R-Calif.) late Tuesday unveiled a bill to prevent insider trading by members of Congress and eliminate conflicts of interest.
The long-awaited legislation had a rough birth and has an uncertain future, The Post’s Leigh Ann Caldwell and Theodoric Meyer write in The Early 202. Per our colleagues:
The most popular and interesting stories of the day to keep you in the know. In your inbox, every day.
You can read The Early 202 in full here.
07:00 AM: Analysis: Senate GOP, liberal Dems find common cause in sinking Manchin’s bill
Congress is on a glide path to avoid a partial government shutdown — and there are still three days to spare before the deadline.
But the relatively drama-free funding debate did claim one casualty: the energy project permitting bill of Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), The Post’s Leigh Ann Caldwell and Theodoric Meyer write.
Per our colleagues:
You can read the full analysis here.
06:45 AM: On our radar: White House hosts conference on hunger with $8 billion in commitments
President Biden on Wednesday is hosting the first White House summit in nearly a half-century dedicated to combating hunger, with administration officials saying they have secured $8 billion in public- and private-sector commitments toward helping provide more food and better nutrition by 2030.
The Post’s Matt Viser reports that Biden is planning to speak at the conference, which will also feature several members of Congress — including Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.), as well as Reps. Rosa L. DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) — and several Cabinet officials. It will also include José Andrés, the chef and founder of World Central Kitchen, and New York Mayor Eric Adams (D).
Per Matt:
You can read the full story here.
06:40 AM: Noted: Trump weighed bombing drug labs in Mexico, according to new book
As president, Donald Trump weighed bombing drug labs in Mexico after one of his leading public health officials came into the Oval Office, wearing a dress uniform, and said such facilities should be handled by putting “lead to target” to stop the flow of illicit substances across the border into the United States.
The Post’s Josh Dawsey has details:
The 607-page book, which has long been awaited by many of Trump’s aides, is set to be published Tuesday. A copy was obtained by The Washington Post. The book details unusual and erratic interactions between Trump and world leaders, members of Congress, as well as his aides, along with behind-the-scenes accounts of his time as a businessman.
You can read Josh’s full story here.
06:36 AM: On our radar: Solomon Islands rejects Biden’s Pacific outreach ahead of White House summit
American efforts to rally Pacific island leaders at a White House summit this week were dealt a blow when the Solomon Islands said it would not endorse a joint declaration that the Biden administration plans to unveil.
The Post’s Michael E. Miller writes that as President Biden prepared to host the leaders of a dozen Pacific countries on Wednesday and Thursday in a first-of-its-kind gathering, the Solomon Islands sent a diplomatic note to other nations in the region saying there was no consensus on the issues and that it needed “time to reflect” on the declaration.
Per our colleague:
You can read the full story here.
06:34 AM: The latest: White House says it’s pushing to allow Puerto Rico fuel shipment
White House officials are pushing federal agencies to quickly approve a legal waiver allowing Puerto Rico to receive a shipment of diesel fuel that is being held off the island’s coast, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The Post’s Jeff Stein and Toluse Olorunnipa report that as Puerto Rico reels from Hurricane Fiona and the administration faces continued blowback over the issue, President Biden is personally tracking the matter and supports granting the waiver, according to the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to reflect private discussions.
Per our colleagues:
You can read the full story here.
John Wagner is a national reporter on The Post’s new breaking political news team. He previously covered the Trump White House. During the 2016 presidential election, he focused on the Democratic campaigns of Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley. He also chronicled Maryland government for more than a decade.
Mariana Alfaro is a reporter for The Washington Post’s breaking political news team. The El Salvador native joined The Post in 2019 as a researcher for the Daily 202, our flagship politics newsletter. Before that, Mariana interned at the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Insider, and The Texas Tribune.
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