Reporter's Notebook: Senate Republicans scrap early exit from Washington as midterm stakes soar

Senate Republicans scrapped plans to leave Washington early ahead of the midterms, choosing instead to stay in session amid a political calculation tied to affordability concerns. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters "Odds are we plan on being here next week" after GOP senators raised the idea at their weekly lunch. Leadership was wary of finishing the session by passing a bill regulating money in college athletics and adjourning, seeing that as an awkward way to close out before the election given how much affordability worries voters, according to Fox News.

The decision followed the House's own pre-recess move: before leaving for the midterms, it passed the Ratepayer Protection Act by a lopsided 417-3 vote. That bill would shift the cost of utility bill increases caused by data centers onto the tech companies running them, addressing a concern House Republicans felt was tied directly to affordability. Senator Jon Husted, R-Ohio, one of the most vulnerable Republicans on this fall's ballot and a longtime supporter of data centers, tried to get the Senate to pass the House measure immediately by unanimous consent on the floor. Senator Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., objected, blocking the request.

The episode illustrates how closely Senate scheduling decisions are now tracking midterm political pressures, with Republicans eager to show voters they are responding to rising costs rather than simply heading home to campaign. One Senate aide likened the chamber's shifting schedule to a cat chasing a laser pointer's beam of light.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Fox News’s reporting. Read the full story at Fox News →