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On Politics

Thu Jul 23 2026

Zachary Schermele | Congressional Correspondent

@zachschermele

Hello readers. Welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele here, USA TODAY's congressional correspondent. It's Thursday, and it feels like school's out here at the Capitol as the House of Representatives prepares to leave town for the August recess. But buckle up: The Senate has two more busy weeks left...

Trump, Thune and patience

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt miffed Senate Republicans today when she said at the podium that President Trump's "patience is running out" about passing his voting restrictions bill. "He wants to see as much of the SAVE America Act passed as possible by the August recess," she said. "The House did its job. The Senate needs to do its job, too."

That criticism didn't sit well with Senate Majority Leader John Thune. "She or somebody else ought to get on the phone and get the votes, right?" he later told reporters. "So instead of pointing the finger at Republicans, they might think about going after the people who are stopping it on the floor, which is the Democrats. And if there are Republicans that they think are gettable, get on the phone. Let’s get them to yes." Others also did not mince words about the press secretary's very public jab. In the Senate basement, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, defended the majority leader, saying he had "1,000% confidence in Thune, and anybody in the White House who thinks he's not a good leader isn't qualified for their job."

Despite Leavitt's criticisms, Thune aides have told USA TODAY the pair talks and texts regularly. Trump still publicly backs the South Dakotan and has shifted the blame for stalling of his priorities on certain individual Republican senators he dislikes.

Jonathan Ernst, REUTERS

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Daily photo gallery: See the impact of Trump's White House helipad project on the South Lawn

Daylight over daylight saving time

I've been tracking a rift within the Senate GOP on another legislative effort that the president has publicly supported: making daylight saving time permanent. The House passed a bill to do that, but Thune has been bearish about whether it will come up for a vote.

•	Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, told me he has an "open mind" about it and thinks "it has a chance to pass."
•	Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, suggested to me he disagrees. "My best guess is there aren't votes to pass it," he said. "The impact generally is kids would be going to school, walking to the bus, in the dark."
•	Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, said in another brief interview that he shares the view of his state's other senator, Tom Cotton, who opposes the push. "It's hard to get things done when you have positions that split everybody," he said. "The easiest thing to do is leave them alone."

House-Senate Iran war divide

The House passed another largely symbolic resolution today to end the Iran war. A similar measure in the Senate, however, didn't survive, as a few key Republicans decided against bucking the White House. Sen. Tillis told me today he'd support a war powers resolution after Sept. 10, which he said is 60 days after the Trump administration first referred to the conflict publicly as a war.

Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com.