Younger Senators Eye Gavels in 2025: What to Know in Washington

Departing Veteran Senators Create Openings for Junior Members

Departures of several veteran senators next year will leave the chamber with less experience, creating opportunities for junior members to step up to lead committees and better push their priorities.

The average tenure of a senator will drop to below 11 years next January, according to a BGOV analysis of senatorial seniority. That roughly matches the average seniority of senators during the Trump administration but falls short of the longevity of senators during Joe Biden’s current term, according to the Congressional Research Service.

• Read the BGOV OnPoint: Committee Chair Shuffle for the 119th Congress

The coming shift will allow senators, now in their second or third terms, to have a better shot at serving as chair or ranking member of congressional panels and more muscle to move legislation. It comes at a precarious time. GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) is stepping down and control of the White House and Congress hangs in the balance, leaving less experienced senators to navigate a highly polarized Capitol Hill.

“It’s a real brain drain,” said retiring Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), the chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee who is stepping down after four terms. Read More

BIDEN’S SCHEDULE

• 6:15 p.m. — President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will host the White House Congressional Picnic.

CONGRESS’ AGENDA

• The House meets at 9 a.m. to vote on sanctioning the International Criminal Court in response to any prosecution of the US or allies and and amendments to the Milcon-VA bill.
• Senators convene at 10 a.m. to resume consideration of the nomination of Christopher T. Hanson to be a Member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
• For the full detailed agenda, read BGOV’s Congress Tracker

More From BGOV’s Reporters

House Democrats drew a line around former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci, trying to separate him from the Republican-led congressional investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

• The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, led by Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio), has spent a year probing Covid’s origins and circling toward yesterday’s hearing with Fauci, who retired from his senior post at the National Institutes of Health in 2022.
• Republicans say Fauci failed to properly oversee federal funding to support virology research and may have been party to efforts to skirt federal record-keeping. “The office you directed, and those serving under your leadership, chose to flout the law,” Wenstrup said. Read More

Anthony Fauci at the Capitol yesterday. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Also Happening on the Hill

UnitedHealth Hack Fuels Bids to Shield Americans’ Medical Data

Cyberattacks compromising the health information of millions of Americans are prompting Congress and the Biden administration to take action to better protect highly sensitive personal data that’s profitable for hackers.

Warren Wants DOJ to Intervene in For-Profit Hospital Bankruptcy

Elizabeth Warren and two other Democratic senators are urging the Justice Department to seek the appointment of an independent fiduciary to take over the bankruptcy of the largest private for-profit hospital operator in the US.

Republican Labor Board Nominee Brings Quiet Power to Major Cases

President Joe Biden’s nominee for a Republican spot on the National Labor Relations Board, Joshua Ditelberg, may be the most prominent labor attorney you’ve never heard of.

Biden to Crack Down on Migrants by Slashing Asylum Claims

President Biden will sign an executive order today that would halt certain asylum claims at the US-Mexico border until crossings fall dramatically, a sweeping bid to address one of his biggest liabilities ahead of the election.

The order would effectively block new asylum claims by migrants who cross the border until levels drop by about two-thirds of where they stand today, according to people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity to detail the plans.

• The measure would kick in once levels hit roughly 2,500 crossings per day between ports of entry. US authorities recorded about 4,300 encounters per day in April with undocumented migrants between ports of entry, the most recent data available. Read More

In Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum had only a few hours to enjoy the victory that will make her the country’s first female president before her US counterpart, in a congratulatory call yesterday, reminded her how difficult the new gig will be. Read More

People, Politics, and Probes

Trump Georgia Appeal Set for Oct. 4, Dooming Pre-Vote Trial

Arguments on Donald Trump’s appeal to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willisfrom the Georgia election-interference case have been tentatively set for Oct. 4, making a trial before the US presidential election on Nov. 5 virtually impossible.

Trump’s Persecution Claims Get Amplified by US Rivals Abroad

After Donald Trump’s felony conviction last week, commentators in China and Russia wasted little time in trumpeting the failure of American democracy.

Trump Rakes in $141 Million in May, Aided by Guilty Verdict

Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee raised $141 million in May, according to his campaign, a fundraising total boosted by a surge in contributions after a New York jury found him guilty in a criminal trial involving hush-money charges.

New Jersey’s Menendez Files to Run as Independent While on Trial

New Jersey Democrat Bob Menendez filed to run for reelection as an independent on Monday, a move that could be costly for Democrats trying to hold on to what has been a safe Senate seat.

TikTok Gets New General Counsel Amid Fight With US Government

TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance Ltd., has appointed former Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. executive John Rogovin as new global general counsel.

Biden Treasury Official to Join Capitol Tax Lobby Shop

Tom West, who worked in the Treasury Department in the Biden, Obama and Trump administrations, will join Capitol Tax Partners as a partner in August, the lobbying firm said Monday.

To contact the reporters on this story: Brandon Lee in Washington at blee@bgov.com; Jeannie Baumann in Washington at jbaumann@bloombergindustry.com

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Kayla Sharpe at ksharpe@bloombergindustry.com; Giuseppe Macri at gmacri@bgov.com