Niels Lesniewski
@nielslesniewski.bsky.social
Author of CQ Senate, contributor to Roll Call's At the Races. Chief correspondent at CQ & Roll Call. Currently working while you should be asleep.
It's actually cloture on the motion to proceed.
I don't usually ask this directly, but if you're a reader of my Monday CQ Senate newsletter, please reach out. Would be great to hear from you all with the Senate being in session every week!
I don't usually ask this directly, but if you're a reader of my Monday CQ Senate newsletter, please reach out. Would be great to hear from you all with the Senate being in session every week!
Live look at my desk. Yes, the Senate's still in session.
Shutdown continues, so I'm back on the front page.
So I needed to start using this platform again now, too?
My father was one of those small town New England characters that everybody knew, and we were reminded of that when people got together to remember him this weekend.
Ironically, if FBOP were to reopen Alcatraz as a working prison, who's to say it wouldn't be a minimum security camp for white collar/Silicon Valley fraud offenders.
Peering into the future: senators may get to vote on terminating an international film production national emergency.
Yes, I am a member of the WHCA. No, I don't have strong views on the dinner. As I have said publicly, privately, everywhere: I do think there should be more transparency about the costs associated with covering the White House (and how that may vary between types of outlets).
I just now got around to watching Sen. Warren on Squawk on the Street. Yeah, Congress could stop those national emergencies. May be not likely, would need a big majority. But ... they could.
Folks, at 9:20 pm ET on Sunday, it is way way too early to know what the White House guidance will be regarding tariffs as of the opening bell on Monday. (And yes, that might be part of the problem)
Fun week for the expedited procedures crowd* rollcall.com/2025/03/31/t... *I use the term "crowd" loosely
This week: Senate to vote on tariff ‘emergency’ ahead of possible budget vote-a-rama - Roll Call
Senators are expected to take a vote this week designed to stop tariffs on imports from Canada, before the focus turns to the budget.
rollcall.com
The situations are completely different, but that's two administrations in a row with rather wild "wait, what?" SecDef stories.
After midnight ET, the President of the United States is purporting to void the pardons of his predecessor.
I'm old enough to remember when one approach on votes like this one might be just to not filibuster. Is there any further debate? Hearing none, then the question occurs on passage of the bill.
Education Secretary McMahon is not hiding what she's trying to do. rollcall.com/2025/03/12/e...
With mass layoffs, McMahon and Trump begin mission to end Education Department - Roll Call
Education Secretary Linda McMahon said Tuesday that large-scale staffing cuts at her department are a step toward ending its operations.
rollcall.com
Fox's Peter Doocy's question today at the White House about whether folks are shorting the Dow, reminds me of the old Kodak Pharmaceuticals story. rollcall.com/2020/08/04/w...
Warren asks SEC about insider trading in Trump’s Kodak pharmaceuticals announcement - Roll Call
Sen. Elizabeth Warren is asking the SEC to look into possible insider trading related to the recent pharmaceutical move by Kodak.
rollcall.com
President Trump, in a late night Truth post, says "I’m going to buy a brand new Tesla tomorrow morning as a show of confidence and support for Elon Musk, a truly great American."
Our transcript of President Trump's speech tonight is here: rollcall.com/factbase/tru...
Roll Call Factba.se - Speech: Donald Trump Addresses a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol - March 4, 2025
Full transcript of Donald J. Trump: Speech: Donald Trump Addresses a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol - March 4, 2025
rollcall.com
Been a long week or so, but I wanted to share father's obituary www.legacy.com/us/obituarie...
Paul Lesniewski Obituary (2025) - Westerly, RI - Gaffney-Dolan Funeral Home - Westerly
View Paul Lesniewski's obituary, send flowers and sign the guestbook.
legacy.com
Anyway, a budget resolution is still not a bill. And it still doesn't actually "do" the things that the eventual reconciliation bill might do.
Reading the latest OMB and OPM guidance on RIFs, mark your calendar for March 13, the day before the current CR expires. Some sense of timing.
Oh, yeah, friendly reminder that you don't "pass a budget"
On that "five things" email, OPM now says: "At Counsel’s direction, in order to comport with the Presidential Records Act, the Executive Office of the President is exempted from this exercise."
I welcome tips and reader feedback, especially for the Monday newsletter, in a variety of places. That includes Signal.
