Gridlock ahead as Congress reconvenes

WASHINGTON – Congress increasingly is being defined by what it’s not doing this election year.

The Senate returns this week with a strong majority of Republicans saying no to any consideration of President Barack Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court. No hearings, no vote and, for some lawmakers, not even a meeting with federal appeals court Judge Merrick Garland.

Republicans, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., insist that the decision on filling the court vacancy rests with the next president after voters have their say in November’s election.

A bipartisan bill to aid Flint, Michigan, where the city’s residents are struggling with lead-contaminated water, is being blocked by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who wants to ensure that the money is paid for without adding to the deficit. The dispute has snagged a far-reaching measure on energy.

In the House, where lawmakers return from their break April 12, conservative opposition probably will make it impossible to pass a budget, in what would be a major embarrassment for Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.

A look at some of the issues in limbo:

Spending

It’s been years since Congress approved each of the annual appropriations bills – the 12 measures that fund the budgets of agencies and departments. The new normal is an all-encompassing bill at the end of the year. Republican leaders such as McConnell want to get the process back on track, and the Senate Appropriations Committee is expected to start the week of April 11.

It’ll be a test for the Senate, and pitfalls await, including potential fights over immigration, environmental regulations, gun rights and display of the Confederate flag.

In the House, GOP leaders are still trying to win approval of a broader budget plan that’s usually a precursor to action on the spending bills. Chances are slim. It’s not clear what the path forward on the appropriations bills will be.

Criminal justice

Advocates for a criminal justice overhaul are hoping Congress will move legislation in both chambers before the summer, though the effort has run into roadblocks in the Senate.

The GOP caucus is split over a bipartisan bill that would give judges the discretion to impose lesser sentences than federal mandatory minimums and eliminate mandatory life sentences for three-time, nonviolent drug offenders.

Some conservatives say the bill could release violent offenders from prison. Senators are now rewriting parts of the bill, but even with the expected changes, it’s unclear whether McConnell will choose to move forward.

The fight over Garland

Garland plans to meet with 11 senators in the week ahead, including two Republicans. Democrats are maintaining election-year pressure on the GOP for blocking the usual Senate committee hearings and vote on a high court nominee.

Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and John Boozman, R-Ark., are set to sit down with Garland on Tuesday. Collins is one of just two Republicans out of 54 who are open to hearings and a vote on Garland; Boozman is up for re-election this year. Eager to keep the fight in the news, Democrats say there might be 50 more Garland meetings with senators in the coming weeks, and they plan repeated Senate floor speeches on the issue.

Garland has met with just one Republican: Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk. He is embroiled in a difficult re-election fight and has said the Senate should provide “rational, adult, open-minded consideration” of Garland, an Illinois native.