WASHINGTON—The United States Congress abruptly suspended all legislative business Tuesday and will not reconvene until at least early June, a move leadership described as essential to recovering from the unprecedented strain of briefly attempting to govern.
The Senate adjourned first, with Majority Leader John Thune telling reporters the decision followed a “frank assessment of our capacity to endure any further decision-making this quarter.” House Speaker Mike Johnson canceled a scheduled White House meeting and informed members they were free to leave town immediately.
At issue was a growing pile of demands from Captain Comb-Over that Republican lawmakers found increasingly difficult to pretend to support in public. Chief among them was a $1 billion line item for a “Golden Ballroom” renovation at a former president’s private club, which the Senate parliamentarian had already rejected as ineligible for the reconciliation process. The administration then submitted a revised $1.776 billion fund for January 6 defendants, a package that included an IRS audit waiver for the the former president Organization and its principals.
During a nearly two-hour session with Senate Republicans, acting Attorney General Todd Blanch was described by attendees as “audibly insistent” about the slush fund’s necessity. “He made clear that the president expects full loyalty on this matter, and several of our members just stared at the carpet until the screaming stopped,” said one senator who requested anonymity to describe the carpet-staring portion of the meeting.
“We determined that the most responsible course was to stop having votes until the vibes improve,” a caucus spokesperson explained, adding that the recess would give members “adequate time to remember why they ran for office, and then forget again.”
House Democrats called the shutdown a dereliction of duty but acknowledged that watching Republicans flee the building was “a useful recruiting tool” for the midterms. Representative Seth Magaziner of Rhode Island noted that his party planned to release an affordability agenda within months. “People deserve a government that actually shows up,” Magaziner said. “The fact that we have to say that out loud tells you everything.”
