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☀️AM: CONGRESS RETURNS TO A PERFECT STORM punchbowl.news/archive/31626-… With war raging in the Middle East, the Department of Homeland Security still shut down and a storm bearing down on the East Coast — again — Congress is returning to session today amid an array of problems, priorities and deadlines. The House has postponed its first votes until Tuesday afternoon due to the storm. Oil prices are near $100 per barrel, the Strait of Hormuz is closed and at least 13 U.S. service members have died in President Donald Trump’s war against Iran. More U.S. troops and ships are heading to the embattled region. Israel is threatening to occupy parts of Lebanon — again — while Trump is warning NATO countries of a “very bad” future if they don’t send warships to help reopen the vital Persian Gulf passage (Australia has already refused). Trump and senior administration officials are continuing their push against the mainstream media over negative coverage of the war, even threatening broadcast licenses. This tells you how the White House thinks the political side of the conflict is going, even as U.S. and Israeli bombs and missiles obliterate target after target inside Iran. On Capitol Hill, consider what lawmakers need to tackle in the coming weeks: — The White House, Pentagon and congressional leaders have already begun talks about a supplemental funding bill for the Iran war. We don’t expect any request to reach Capitol Hill this week, but the two sides — Hill Republicans and the White House — are trying to figure out how to pass it. We’ve had several sources suggest the package may carry a price tag of $100 billion or more. Lawmakers see this as potentially the last must-pass bill of the year and may try to attach their own costly proposals. Reconciliation is probably the best option for GOP leaders because there’s no chance that Democrats would allow anything to pass without a vote on ending the conflict or reining in Trump’s freedom to operate. But any new spending would have to be offset with cuts elsewhere. This package will become a huge political flashpoint over the next few weeks. — DHS has been shut down for 30 days, a disaster for its tens of thousands of unpaid employees and the country. Security lines are getting worse at airports nationally, although Trump on Saturday implored TSA agents to “GO TO WORK!” Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) has a confirmation hearing on Wednesday to be the next DHS secretary. — Section 702 of FISA expires on April 20, but Congress is only going to be in session for a fraction of the time between now and then. The debate roiling the House and Senate is whether to pass a clean extension of the surveillance law or try to enact reforms. The White House wants a clean extension. House Republicans listen to whatever Trump wants, although this is a unique cross-partisan issue. — Speaker Mike Johnson is going to have a tremendously difficult time conducting any business over the next few weeks — again. Several hardline Republicans say they won’t let Johnson pass anything unless there’s progress on the SAVE America Act. They’re taking the same line on Senate-passed bills. SAVE Act marathon. As soon as Tuesday, the Senate will kick off an unusual and messy floor process on the SAVE America Act that’s likely to last several days. It’s virtually certain to fail.

❗ Reuters reports that Deputy Secretary of Defense Feinberg is working on a $50 billion munitions supplemental. Could be released as soon as Friday, coinciding with a White House meeting with top defense executives. reuters.com/business/aeros…

General Running Air Force Reserve Wants Surplus F-15E Strike Eagles, New F-15EX Eagle IIs The chief of the Air Force Reserve Command wants to overturn the depressing trend of aircraft divestments without getting new planes to replace them. twz.com/uncategorized/…