Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for September 23, 2025:
Democrats look to win House seat in Arizona tonight.
White House says it wants a ‘clean’ CR.
Mace takes aim at fellow GOP lawmaker.
IMMIGRATION.
Migrant crossings remain at very low levels along the southwest border - but
new figures
show Border Patrol immigration 'encounters' ticked up slightly in August. After dropping to a record low of 7,824 people in July, the feds say that number bounced back up to 9,740 in August.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST.
Even with that slight increase, the illegal immigration numbers remain far below where they were during the Biden Administration. Just look at these figures to remind yourself of the change that's occurred. For example, in August 2023 - it was 232,963 people.
WARNING.
I do want to remind everyone of what happened on illegal immigration during the first Trump Administration. At the beginning, the number of people crossing the border dropped dramatically. And then, it slowly increased to levels which were much higher than under President Obama. Just something to think about.
SPECIAL
. Illegal immigration is certainly one of the key issues as voters in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District go to the polls today to fill the seat of the late Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ). Democrats are heavily favored to hold this seat - and keep it in the family with Grijalva’s daughter, former Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva. She faces Republican Daniel Butierez.
BORDER.
This district stretches across much of southern Arizona, from Yuma in the west to the Douglas border crossing southeast of Tucson. Illegal immigration has been an issue with Grijalva criticizing ICE immigration raids - but it’s not likely to tip this election to the GOP side.
NUMBERS.
The House is currently at 219 Republicans and 213 Democrats. One vacant seat in Texas - likely to go to the Democrats - will be filled on November 4. A GOP seat in Tennessee won't have a final election until December 2. If there are no upsets by then, the House should be 220-215 for the Republicans.
HOMAN.
Democrats in Congress on Monday called for Congressional hearings about the actions of Trump border czar Tom Homan - to probe whether he accepted cash bribes from undercover FBI agents. That came as the White House specifically denied that Homan took any money.
BRIEFING.
"Mr. Holman never took the $50,000," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at a Monday briefing. "He did absolutely nothing wrong, and he is a brave public servant," she added.
MISSIVE.
In a letter to House Homeland Security Committee chair Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Democrats pressed for a chance to question Homan. "No cover ups," Democrats said yesterday. You can read their letter
at this link
.
WHAT'S NEXT.
The original reporting on this story is very precise in saying that Homan is on tape getting $50,000 cash in a paper bag. The White House is very specifically saying that never happened. Look for Democrats to keep pressing on this.
COFFEE TAXES.
A bipartisan group of House members have unveiled a bill to do away with President Trump's tariffs on coffee. "Families across America are feeling the cost of higher coffee prices, which are already up 21 percent," said Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE).
TARIFFS.
The plan would return coffee tariffs back to the point they were at before Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office. In other words - back to zero. "Our commonsense, bipartisan bill will cut this senseless tax that you’re paying every day," said Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH).
NERD NOTE.
As is often the case, it isn't just as simple as filing a bill which says, 'No coffee tariffs.' Instead, you must get very specific about what shouldn't be hit with an import duty. This is from the bill:
“(b) COFFEE PRODUCT. — An article described in this subsection is any of the following:
(1) Coffee, whether or not roasted or decaffeinated.
(2) Coffee husks and skins.
(3) Coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion.”
PROCEDURAL NERD NOTE.
Of course, we know from last week that Republicans have blocked all votes on tariffs until January 31, 2026. So how is this bill getting to the floor? It probably isn’t anytime soon. But I do think it’s an issue that people easily understand - especially if you drink coffee.
STOPGAP.
The White House on Monday gave no hint that President Trump wants to cut some kind of government funding deal with Democrats. "We want a clean funding extension to keep the government open," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
CR.
"That's all we're advocating for. A simple, clean budget extension, a straightforward, responsible solution to keep the government open to November 21 and allow the full year appropriations process to move forward," Leavitt told reporters.
CONGRESS.
Last Friday, the House passed that 7-week funding extension, but it was defeated in the Senate. Lawmakers are not at work this week - and even if they were - I'm not sure anything would get done. The Senate returns next Monday for votes.
LEGISLATIVE CHICKEN.
Government funding runs out one week from today, late on September 30 - as the calendar ticks over to October 1 and the new fiscal year. Neither side is blinking at this point. I still say it's advantage Trump and the White House.
HEALTH CARE.
Democrats are using this week’s Congressional break to hammer Republicans about one of their demands in the CR - renewing extra federal aid for 22 million Americans who get health insurance through the Obamacare exchanges. U.S. House Democrats from Virginia used a virtual news conference to make their case on Monday.
MESSAGE.
"We're talking about people in our districts, Democrat and Republican, healthy and sick, rich or poor. It doesn't matter," said Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA).
COVERAGE.
“The great irony is that so many of the people that are losing their health care and won't be able to afford their health care are living in districts represented by Republicans in Virginia,” said Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA).
COMBO.
Democrats not only are pressing for the renewal of expiring extra tax credits on the health exchanges, but also taking shots at the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ approved by the GOP earlier this year. They cited the closure of health clinics in Virginia as evidence that Medicaid cuts will mean health care cuts as well.
TRUMP-UN.
With Congress out, there will be more attention on President Trump's visit to the United Nations in New York today - as the U.N. kicks off its 80th U.N. General Assembly.
SPEECH.
"President Trump will deliver a major speech touting the renewal of American strength around the world, his historic accomplishments in just eight months, including the ending of seven global wars and conflicts," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
MORE.
"The President will also touch upon how globalist institutions have significantly decayed the world order," Leavitt told reporters, "and he will articulate his straightforward and constructive vision for the world."
FLASHBACK.
Any visit by President Trump to the United Nations instantly reminds me of what happened in 2018 - when Trump drew loud laughter in the U.N. General Assembly with this line: "In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country."
REACTION.
The official White House transcript then indicates "Laughter." In real time as it happened, Trump seemed genuinely puzzled. "Didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s okay," Trump added.
TRANSCRIPTS.
This is actually a good point to make a note of something else. The White House used to
routinely issue official transcripts
of any remarks by a President. But the Trump White House no longer does that.
WEB PAGE
. Instead of sending reporters a transcript or making one available to the public, the Trump White House now just posts video of his remarks. The same thing happens with the White House press briefings.
MRS. MACE OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
Lawmakers aren’t on Capitol Hill this week - but that’s not stopping a developing feud between Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) and one of her GOP colleagues. In recent days, Mace has turned her fire on a fellow Republican Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) - and she's not letting go.
STOLEN VALOR.
"This guy has been parading himself around as some sort of U.S. Army special ops covert Ranger sniper," Mace tweeted on Monday. "It’s not even remotely close. He was an ambulance driver mainly in the motor pool."
OMAR.
Why is Mace mad at Mills? He was the key vote to defeat her effort to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) last week on the House floor. It's clear that Mace is looking for payback, keeping up a steady stream of tweets attacking Mills about his military service. "He fabricated his resume," Mace said Monday.
FLORIDA.
Even if you ignore what Mills did or didn't do in the military, he has no shortage of possible ethics questions to deal with. And that was before he allegedly roughed up a woman at his apartment in Washington earlier this year.
DEFENSE.
On social media, Mills has been
actively defending himself
against Mace's charges, which have generated all sorts of extra online jabs. "I maintained my principles even knowing the social media barrage," Mills tweeted about his vote on Omar. "I stand by my words."
PRO FORMA.
With no legislative business on Capitol Hill this week, the House and Senate are meeting in very quick 'pro forma' sessions. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) had the honors on Monday morning as he gaveled in the Senate at 8:30 am.
CAPITOL SECURITY.
You can definitely tell that security is up a tick outside the U.S. Capitol in recent days. When I popped out of the building on Friday to check a Senate news conference about freedom of the press, there were multiple police officers armed with long guns standing around the event and next to regular tourists. It still just feels odd to see it.
MUSE OF HISTORY.
September 23, 1950. Working on a Sa
...
Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for September 23, 2025:
Democrats look to win House seat in Arizona tonight.
White House says it wants a ‘clean’ CR.
Mace takes aim at fellow GOP lawmaker.
IMMIGRATION.
Migrant crossings remain at very low levels along the southwest border - but
new figures
show Border Patrol immigration 'encounters' ticked up slightly in August. After dropping to a record low of 7,824 people in July, the feds say that number bounced back up to 9,740 in August.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST.
Even with that slight increase, the illegal immigration numbers remain far below where they were during the Biden Administration. Just look at these figures to remind yourself of the change that's occurred. For example, in August 2023 - it was 232,963 people.
WARNING.
I do want to remind everyone of what happened on illegal immigration during the first Trump Administration. At the beginning, the number of people crossing the border dropped dramatically. And then, it slowly increased to levels which were much higher than under President Obama. Just something to think about.
SPECIAL
. Illegal immigration is certainly one of the key issues as voters in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District go to the polls today to fill the seat of the late Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ). Democrats are heavily favored to hold this seat - and keep it in the family with Grijalva’s daughter, former Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva. She faces Republican Daniel Butierez.
BORDER.
This district stretches across much of southern Arizona, from Yuma in the west to the Douglas border crossing southeast of Tucson. Illegal immigration has been an issue with Grijalva criticizing ICE immigration raids - but it’s not likely to tip this election to the GOP side.
NUMBERS.
The House is currently at 219 Republicans and 213 Democrats. One vacant seat in Texas - likely to go to the Democrats - will be filled on November 4. A GOP seat in Tennessee won't have a final election until December 2. If there are no upsets by then, the House should be 220-215 for the Republicans.
HOMAN.
Democrats in Congress on Monday called for Congressional hearings about the actions of Trump border czar Tom Homan - to probe whether he accepted cash bribes from undercover FBI agents. That came as the White House specifically denied that Homan took any money.
BRIEFING.
"Mr. Holman never took the $50,000," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at a Monday briefing. "He did absolutely nothing wrong, and he is a brave public servant," she added.
MISSIVE.
In a letter to House Homeland Security Committee chair Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Democrats pressed for a chance to question Homan. "No cover ups," Democrats said yesterday. You can read their letter
at this link
.
WHAT'S NEXT.
The original reporting on this story is very precise in saying that Homan is on tape getting $50,000 cash in a paper bag. The White House is very specifically saying that never happened. Look for Democrats to keep pressing on this.
COFFEE TAXES.
A bipartisan group of House members have unveiled a bill to do away with President Trump's tariffs on coffee. "Families across America are feeling the cost of higher coffee prices, which are already up 21 percent," said Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE).
TARIFFS.
The plan would return coffee tariffs back to the point they were at before Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office. In other words - back to zero. "Our commonsense, bipartisan bill will cut this senseless tax that you’re paying every day," said Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH).
NERD NOTE.
As is often the case, it isn't just as simple as filing a bill which says, 'No coffee tariffs.' Instead, you must get very specific about what shouldn't be hit with an import duty. This is from the bill:
“(b) COFFEE PRODUCT. — An article described in this subsection is any of the following:
(1) Coffee, whether or not roasted or decaffeinated.
(2) Coffee husks and skins.
(3) Coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion.”
PROCEDURAL NERD NOTE.
Of course, we know from last week that Republicans have blocked all votes on tariffs until January 31, 2026. So how is this bill getting to the floor? It probably isn’t anytime soon. But I do think it’s an issue that people easily understand - especially if you drink coffee.
STOPGAP.
The White House on Monday gave no hint that President Trump wants to cut some kind of government funding deal with Democrats. "We want a clean funding extension to keep the government open," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
CR.
"That's all we're advocating for. A simple, clean budget extension, a straightforward, responsible solution to keep the government open to November 21 and allow the full year appropriations process to move forward," Leavitt told reporters.
CONGRESS.
Last Friday, the House passed that 7-week funding extension, but it was defeated in the Senate. Lawmakers are not at work this week - and even if they were - I'm not sure anything would get done. The Senate returns next Monday for votes.
LEGISLATIVE CHICKEN.
Government funding runs out one week from today, late on September 30 - as the calendar ticks over to October 1 and the new fiscal year. Neither side is blinking at this point. I still say it's advantage Trump and the White House.
HEALTH CARE.
Democrats are using this week’s Congressional break to hammer Republicans about one of their demands in the CR - renewing extra federal aid for 22 million Americans who get health insurance through the Obamacare exchanges. U.S. House Democrats from Virginia used a virtual news conference to make their case on Monday.
MESSAGE.
"We're talking about people in our districts, Democrat and Republican, healthy and sick, rich or poor. It doesn't matter," said Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA).
COVERAGE.
“The great irony is that so many of the people that are losing their health care and won't be able to afford their health care are living in districts represented by Republicans in Virginia,” said Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA).
COMBO.
Democrats not only are pressing for the renewal of expiring extra tax credits on the health exchanges, but also taking shots at the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ approved by the GOP earlier this year. They cited the closure of health clinics in Virginia as evidence that Medicaid cuts will mean health care cuts as well.
TRUMP-UN.
With Congress out, there will be more attention on President Trump's visit to the United Nations in New York today - as the U.N. kicks off its 80th U.N. General Assembly.
SPEECH.
"President Trump will deliver a major speech touting the renewal of American strength around the world, his historic accomplishments in just eight months, including the ending of seven global wars and conflicts," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
MORE.
"The President will also touch upon how globalist institutions have significantly decayed the world order," Leavitt told reporters, "and he will articulate his straightforward and constructive vision for the world."
FLASHBACK.
Any visit by President Trump to the United Nations instantly reminds me of what happened in 2018 - when Trump drew loud laughter in the U.N. General Assembly with this line: "In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country."
REACTION.
The official White House transcript then indicates "Laughter." In real time as it happened, Trump seemed genuinely puzzled. "Didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s okay," Trump added.
TRANSCRIPTS.
This is actually a good point to make a note of something else. The White House used to
routinely issue official transcripts
of any remarks by a President. But the Trump White House no longer does that.
WEB PAGE
. Instead of sending reporters a transcript or making one available to the public, the Trump White House now just posts video of his remarks. The same thing happens with the White House press briefings.
MRS. MACE OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
Lawmakers aren’t on Capitol Hill this week - but that’s not stopping a developing feud between Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) and one of her GOP colleagues. In recent days, Mace has turned her fire on a fellow Republican Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) - and she's not letting go.
STOLEN VALOR.
"This guy has been parading himself around as some sort of U.S. Army special ops covert Ranger sniper," Mace tweeted on Monday. "It’s not even remotely close. He was an ambulance driver mainly in the motor pool."
OMAR.
Why is Mace mad at Mills? He was the key vote to defeat her effort to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) last week on the House floor. It's clear that Mace is looking for payback, keeping up a steady stream of tweets attacking Mills about his military service. "He fabricated his resume," Mace said Monday.
FLORIDA.
Even if you ignore what Mills did or didn't do in the military, he has no shortage of possible ethics questions to deal with. And that was before he allegedly roughed up a woman at his apartment in Washington earlier this year.
DEFENSE.
On social media, Mills has been
actively defending himself
against Mace's charges, which have generated all sorts of extra online jabs. "I maintained my principles even knowing the social media barrage," Mills tweeted about his vote on Omar. "I stand by my words."
PRO FORMA.
With no legislative business on Capitol Hill this week, the House and Senate are meeting in very quick 'pro forma' sessions. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) had the honors on Monday morning as he gaveled in the Senate at 8:30 am.
CAPITOL SECURITY.
You can definitely tell that security is up a tick outside the U.S. Capitol in recent days. When I popped out of the building on Friday to check a Senate news conference about freedom of the press, there were multiple police officers armed with long guns standing around the event and next to regular tourists. It still just feels odd to see it.
MUSE OF HISTORY.
September 23, 1950. Working on a Saturday, the House and Senate
voted to override
President Truman's veto of a bill requiring Communist organizations to register with the government. " Are we to decide to give our Government a security control bill against communism at home, or, by sustaining the President's veto, leave ourselves to continue to be the victims of the stealth and the conspiracies of Godless tyrannical Communists in America?" asked Sen. Karl Mundt (R-SD).
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House will next have votes in early October.
The Senate returns for legislative business on September 29.
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