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Senate leadership is facing bipartisan pushback over one option floated for raising the country’s debt ceiling: tying it to a sweeping defense bill, The Hill reported. The path has potential benefits. By tying a deeply partisan debt limit fight to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which typically passes with wide bipartisan support, leadership takes two items off of Congress's packed year-end to-do list ahead of a Dec. 15 deadline for taking action on the borrowing limit. But the idea is already setting off alarm bells on both sides of the Capitol. Both House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who agree on little these days, are warning that a defense bill that includes a debt ceiling hike would struggle to clear their chamber. “We’ve told the Senate that. That’s the reality. Those are the numbers,” Hoyer said. Hoyer confirmed the option has been discussed by Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) but added, “We don’t think it’s the best option because we’re not sure we can do it. And we have to pass the debt limit.”

Congress yesterday gave final approval to legislation to keep the government funded through mid-February, after Republicans dropped a threat to force a shutdown over the Biden administration’s vaccine mandates, the New York Times reported. With less than 36 hours before funding was set to lapse, lawmakers raced to unite behind a deal that would keep the government open through Feb. 18 and provide $7 billion for the care and resettlement of Afghan refugees. The House voted 221 to 212 to approve the measure, with just one Republican, Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, joining Democrats in support. The Senate then cleared the bill on a 69-to-28 vote, sending it to President Biden’s desk for his signature. Nineteen Republicans joined all 50 Democrats in supporting the measure. The action came after senators voted down an amendment to bar funding to carry out Biden’s vaccine mandates for tens of millions of American workers, including many in the private sector.

A group of House Democrats, some of whom are expected to face challenging reelection races next year, on Thursday called for the chamber to take up legislation to address supply chain disruptions amid concerns from Americans about inflation, The Hill reported. "As our constituents gather for the holiday season, it is imperative Congress acts to address the needs of the nation through additional action to specifically address the supply chain and resulting higher prices experienced by families across the country," the lawmakers said in a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). More than 20 House Democrats signed the letter, including Reps. Cindy Axne (Iowa), Susie Lee (Nev.) and Susan Wild (Pa.). The House Democrats said that the bipartisan infrastructure law President Biden signed last month and the social spending and climate package that Democrats are hoping to enact this year will help to address inflation concerns. But the lawmakers also want the House to take up a number of other bills aimed at addressing issues impacting ports, trucking, ocean shipping and manufacturing.

The federal government could be heading for a temporary shutdown, with Republicans poised to stall a must-pass funding bill in their effort to force a debate in Congress on rolling back the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates for some workers, the Associated Press reported. Conservative Republicans in the House and Senate who are opposed to Biden’s vaccine rules want Congress to take a hardline stand against the mandated shots, even if it means shutting down federal offices over the weekend. But not all Republicans are on board. One GOP senator after another left a private lunch meeting Wednesday voicing concern they will be blamed for even a short stoppage of the federal government that will not play well with the public. Friday is a government funding deadline and the Republican objections — particularly in the Senate, where any single senator can hold up proceedings to stall a vote — could delay passage of legislation needed to keep federal operations running.

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday said that he will bring President Biden's spending bill to the Senate floor once the parliamentarian finishes reviewing it and that it is his "goal" to pass the roughly $2 trillion bill by the end of the year, The Hill reported. "Once this necessary work is completed with the parliamentarian, I will bring the president's Build Back Better legislation to the floor so we can pass it as soon as possible and send it to the president's desk," Schumer said from the Senate floor. "Our goal continues to be to get this done before Christmas," he added. Schumer's comments come after the House passed the climate and social spending bill before a weeks-long Thanksgiving break. But the bill faces hurdles in the Senate, where Democrats' 50-seat majority leaves them with no room for error and needing total unity plus Vice President Harris in the chair to break a tie in order to both start debate on the bill and pass it. Lawmakers are facing an end-of-year crunch, with a backed-up legislative to-do list including funding the government, raising the debt ceiling and passing a mammoth defense bill that is currently stuck in limbo because of a stalemate on voting on potential changes.

A congressional subcommittee aimed at investigating financial fraud during the pandemic broadened its probe into online lending this week to include two of the most prominent processors of coronavirus assistance, USA Today reported. Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, sent letters to Blueacorn and Womply yesterday requesting information about fraud prevention. Both emerged as major players that fused tech and financing to speed up lending through the government’s Paycheck Protection Program. Womply had no lending experience before COVID-19 and Blueacorn did not exist, yet together the companies captured more than $3 billion in fees – eclipsing their direct competitors. The startups are not banks but worked as middlemen, marketing to struggling businesses and quickly approving loans with partner banks, backed by the Small Business Administration. The companies make their money through a government-paid fee for facilitating the loans. “Unfortunately, many of these fees may have been earned by processing fraudulent or ineligible loan applications,” Clyburn wrote in his letter requesting a trove of internal compliance documents, including “emails, chat room logs and transcripts, direct electronic messages and minutes” that discussed financial crimes. Womply worked with 17 lenders and processed 1.4 million loans totaling more than $20 billion of the government’s $800 billion program. Blueacorn processed at least $14 billion in loans, according to Clyburn.

Congress took a major step yesterday toward enacting bipartisan legislation that would require McKinsey & Co. and other firms and professionals steering Puerto Rico through bankruptcy to disclose potential conflicts of interest, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. A Senate committee with jurisdiction over Puerto Rico passed a bill to require lawyers, accountants, consultants and other professionals hired by Puerto Rico to disclose connections they have with the U.S. territory, its creditors or others employed to work on the debt restructuring. A companion version of the disclosure bill unanimously passed the House in February. Prior versions of the legislation had stalled in the same Senate committee. Lawmakers first proposed imposing the disclosure rules for Puerto Rico’s advisers in 2019 following media reports about potential conflicts of interest involving consulting giant McKinsey, a top adviser to the oversight board supervising Puerto Rico’s finances. McKinsey has also worked as an adviser in large corporate bankruptcy cases. The New York Times in 2018 reported McKinsey owned at least $20 million in Puerto Rico public debt through an investment affiliate while advising the oversight board. A Wall Street Journal investigation found McKinsey routinely disclosed far fewer names and descriptions of connections than other advisers working on corporate bankruptcies and that its investment unit held undisclosed financial stakes that gave it a direct interest in the outcome of bankruptcy cases it worked on. Following the press reports, the oversight board hired a law firm to investigate potential conflicts involving McKinsey, concluding in a 2019 report that it had mitigated potential conflicts because it “effectively walled off” its consulting business from its investment unit. The new disclosure requirements passed by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee mirror rules that are already imposed on advisers working on corporate bankruptcies. Advisers hired by a bankrupt company are required to publicly disclose connections they have to the debtor, creditors or other parties so that a judge, the U.S. Justice Department or others involved in a chapter 11 case can ensure advice they give isn’t tainted by a potential financial conflict.