Hello readers and welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele here, USA TODAY's congressional correspondent. It's Tuesday, and we've got big SCOTUS news, a missing congressman's return and USA TODAY's sit-down interview last night with House Speaker Mike Johnson. Let's get into it.
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The final day of the Supreme Court term brought one last deluge of legal news. The big highlights:
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With that, the justices will be off for their summer recess.
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Senate Democrats fume over special ed changes |
Senate Democrats are demanding that Education Secretary Linda McMahon stop moving special education programs outside of her agency.
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In a letter sent today and obtained first by USA TODAY, they denounced her decision to shift two offices that help students with disabilities to the Health and Human Services Department and the Justice Department.
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"The administration’s actions fly in the face of what Congress has required, directly undermine every child’s right to a quality public education in this country, and must be immediately reversed," they wrote to McMahon.
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The letter likely won't change anything. But Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, told me last week that he expects a measure to stop some of the changes to gain Republican support. He secured a committee vote in July on an amendment preventing the HHS transfer.
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USA TODAY sits down with Mike Johnson |
Johnson told USA TODAY on Monday night that he pushed Trump to sign the housing bill.
Josh Morgan, USA TODAY
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I was in the room yesterday at the Capitol as my colleague Francesca Chambers sat down with House Speaker Mike Johnson for an exclusive interview. He was fresh off a two-hour sit-down at the White House with Trump.
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Among other news, Johnson told Fran that the landmark housing bill Congress approved last week would become law with or without a presidential signature.
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"He won't veto the bill," Johnson said. "We already know that. He'll either allow it to just go into law, or he'll put his signature on it and take partial ownership, and I hope he does the latter."
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Stay tuned for more of our team coverage of the interview.
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Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.
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Rep. Tom Kean Jr. hadn't voted since March, refusing for months to clarify why he'd been gone. He missed more than 140 roll call votes.
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Lawmakers in the House now have to navigate big differences with the Senate's efforts.
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In an interview with USA TODAY, House Speaker Mike Johnson said he was certain Trump wouldn't veto a landmark housing bill, ensuring it'll become law.
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