The Republican-led Senate has rejected the latest Democratic attempt to halt President Donald Trump's war in Iran. The Senate on Wednesday turned aside a resolution that would require the U.S. to withdraw forces from the conflict until Congress authorizes further action. It was the fourth time this year the Senate has voted to cede its war powers to Trump in a conflict that Democrats say is illegal and unjustified. Republicans say they will keep faith in Trump's wartime leadership, for now, citing Iran's nuclear capabilities and the high stakes of withdrawal. But GOP lawmakers are also anxious for the conflict to end.

Democrats voted to block legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security and several other agencies Thursday as they continued to negotiate with Republicans and the White House on new restrictions for President Donald Trump's surge of immigration enforcement. Thursday's test vote came as Democrats have threatened a partial government shutdown when money runs out on Friday. But Trump said just ahead of the vote that "we don't want a shutdown" and the two sides were discussing a possible agreement to separate Homeland Security funding from the rest of the legislation and fund it for a short time.

House lawmakers are making a long-awaited return to potentially end the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history. Speaker Mike Johnson is predicting that the House later Wednesday will pass the bill to reopen the government and send it to President Donald Trump's desk for his signature. The large majority of Democrats are expected to vote against the bill because it doesn't extend Affordable Care Act tax credits. Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said Democrats can't support an effort to "gut the health care of the American people."

As the federal government shutdown enters a second week, there's no discernible endgame in sight. While no negotiations, at least publicly, are underway, quiet talks are emerging. This comes amid signs of political discomfort. Federal worker union leaders are pushing Congress to do its job. Military troops are preparing to go without paychecks. Flight delays are happening nationwide. The Republicans who have majority control in Congress believe they have the upper hand politically, as they fend off Democratic demands to quickly fund health insurance subsidies as part of any plan to end the shutdown. But Democrats are also dug in, convinced that Americans are on their side in the fight to prevent the looming health care price spikes.

President Donald Trump has told House Speaker Mike Johnson he won't be spending $4.9 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid, effectively cutting the budget without going through the legislative branch. The Republican president is using what's known as a pocket rescission — when a president submits a request to Congress to not spend approved funds toward the end of the fiscal year, so Congress cannot act on the request in a 45-day time frame and the money goes unspent as a result. It's the first time in nearly 50 years a president has used one. Trump's move has drawn backlash in the Senate. The fiscal year draws to a close at the end of September.

The House has approved President Donald Trump's request to claw back about $9 billion for public broadcasting and foreign aid. Democrats argued that the Republican administration's animus toward foreign aid programs would hurt America's standing in the world and create a vacuum for China to fill. The White House argued that the cuts best served the taxpayer and would incentivize other nations to do more to address humanitarian crises. The cancellation of $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcast represents the full amount it is due to receive during the next two budget years. Some lawmakers voiced concern about what the cuts could mean for local public stations in their state.

Senate Republicans are working to slightly scale back President Donald Trump's request to cancel $9.4 billion in previously approved spending. The changes are designed to build momentum for the package before a key test vote on Tuesday. The amended package will remove proposed cuts to a program known as PEPFAR that is credited with saving millions of lives since its creation under then-President George W. Bush to combat HIV/AIDS. Trump is looking to claw back money for foreign aid programs targeted by his Department of Government Efficiency and for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The change to save the PEPFAR funding will preserve about $400 million that the administration had sought to cancel.

Senators are hunkering down to consider proposed amendments to President Donald Trump's big bill of tax breaks and spending cuts. The grind is expected to take all day Monday in what's called a vote-a-rama and could churn into the night. Senate Majority Leader John Thune acknowledges final action could slip. The White House says it's counting on Republican lawmakers to "get the job done." With Democrats united against the Republican president's legislation, they are proposing dozens of changes, all likely to fail. Republicans are racing to meet Trump's Fourth of July deadline to pass the bill. The House is being called back to session for votes as soon as Wednesday, if the Senate can pass the bill.

The Senate has narrowly voted to confirm Kash Patel as as President Donald Trump's FBI director. The 51-49 vote Thursday puts the Trump loyalist atop the nation's premier federal law enforcement agency despite Democrats' doubts about his qualifications and concerns he'll do Trump's bidding and go after the Republican president's adversaries. Patel has fiercely criticized an agency that's now gripped by turmoil. Trump's Justice Department has forced out a group of senior FBI officials and made a highly unusual demand for the names of thousands of agents who participated in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

No longer in charge, Sen. Mitch McConnell has been speaking his mind. The long-serving former Republican leader rejected President Donald Trump's more high-profile Cabinet nominees. The Kentucky senator voted against Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead Health and Human Services. McConnell says those Trump picks failed to show they were qualified to lead. This is McConnell testing the strength but also the limits of his influence in the Senate. Few other Republicans joined McConnell, leaving him often on his own, with Democrats, unable to stop the Republican president's choices. Trump calls McConnell "bitter" and "not equipped mentally."