More Ukraine woes in the House as the government nears a shutdown

To understand the challenge Speaker Kevin McCarthy will have in getting any solution to avoid a government shutdown past his conference this week or weekend, look no further than what happened Wednesday night on Ukraine aid.

A bipartisan group in the House had previously defeated amendment pushes to remove Ukraine aid from the annual defense spending legislation — albeit with considerable GOP support. Yet the Rules Committee still convened an emergency meeting Wednesday to remove $300 million in aid from the defense bill and make it a separate measure.

“Trumpism is alive and well here, because you’re trying to overturn another vote,” Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), the top Democrat on Rules, said at the meeting.

Also worth watching today: House Republicans are circulating a new memo on their scope of the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, our Jordain Carney reported, saying it “will span the time of Joe Biden’s Vice Presidency to the present, including his time out of office.” The House Oversight Committee holds a first hearing on the basis of the inquiry Thursday at 10 a.m.

All eyes will be on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer again as Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is expected to address his Democratic colleagues. More than half of Democrats — and now the bulk of leadership other than Schumer — have called for Menendez to resign amid his federal indictment on bribery and corruption charges.

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