Democrats aim to pass bills protecting same-sex marriage

• Democrats are looking to [ass the bills protecting same-sex marriage rights.
• The Senate must adopt a temporary financing bill by Dec. 16 to keep federal agencies running until early next year.
• The House has already legalized same-sex marriage, and the Senate was expected to do so this week.

When Democrats return from the campaign trail on Monday, they intend to pass bills protecting same-sex marriage, defining their role in certifying presidential elections, and lifting the nation’s debt ceiling.

President Joe Biden’s party kept control of the Senate over the weekend, but the House is still up in the air as ballots are tabulated.

Before the next Congress is inaugurated on Jan. 3, during the ‘lame duck’ session, Democrats will attempt to maximize their present slim majorities in both chambers.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen both indicated that tackling the approaching debt ceiling will be a top priority during the session.

Some Republicans have threatened to use the next debt ceiling increase, likely in 2023, to pressure Biden. Yellen told the media that inaction would threaten America’s credit rating and financial markets.

Pelosi, who will lose her position as speaker if Republicans win the House, told the news reporters on Sunday to “do it now”

“My hope would be that we could get it done in the lame duck,” Pelosi stated. Again, the debt ceiling must be raised so that the full faith and credit of the United States are honored.

Biden told reporters over the weekend that he would wait to discuss goals with the Republican leadership, adding that he would “take it slow.”

Also Read

Talks between Joe Biden and Xi lasts three hours

The high-stakes discussion between Vice President Biden and Chinese leader Xi has...

In the next weeks, Congress has a lengthy list of tasks to complete. It must adopt a temporary financing bill by Dec. 16 to keep federal agencies running until early next year or a measure to keep the lights on through Sept. 30. In the absence of one of these, partial government shutdowns would ensue.

The House has already legalized homosexual marriage, and the Senate was expected to do so this week. The law aims to prevent the Supreme Court from ending gay marriage rights, as conservative Justice Clarence Thomas suggested in June.

Another objective is a bipartisan bill altering how Congress certifies presidential elections to avoid a repeat of the violence on Jan. 6, 2021, when Trump supporters attacked the Capitol to stop senators from declaring Biden’s win.

Democratic leaders want to expedite energy project approvals and provide greater financial and military aid to Ukraine in its struggle against Russia.

Some Republicans have indicated reluctance to offer Ukraine additional financial assistance.

Progressive Democrats fear that speeding up the energy permitting process will encourage the flow of fossil fuels to market while Biden tries to mitigate climate change’s impact.

Biden has suggested that permitting reform should be incorporated into the National Defense Authorization Act, the annual bill that provides financing for the military and typically has bipartisan support.

Keeping the Senate majority for the next two years means Chuck Schumer will face less pressure to confirm as many of Biden’s federal judge nominees as possible before the end of the year.

The Senate is currently considering 57 judicial nominees, of which 25 have been approved by the Judiciary Committee and are awaiting action by the entire body.

The Senate has confirmed 84 of Biden’s judicial nominations, allowing him to maintain pace with Trump’s near-record number of appointments throughout four years.

Also Read

Joe Biden thinks re-election campaign plans, says White House

President Joe Biden intends to run for president again, says White House...