Summer in Washington, D.C. has been hot – both scorching temperatures outside to heated battles inside the Capitol building! Members of Congress are under pressure to act on “must-pass” bills such as government and defense funding as well as keep campaign promises they made to the American people. With time running out before the August recess and midterm elections, the restlessness of lawmakers in recent weeks has caused some bumps in the road to achieving these goals. Eagle Forum has been active in both supporting good measures and opposing the bad.
First, we won a victory by opposing a harmful program from being reauthorized! The House was considering a slew of small bills meant to give little victories for Members to campaign on over August recess. However, included on that list was the School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act (H.R. 8209), led by Democrat Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY). Eagle Forum has long opposed this program that sets up mental and physical health clinics in schools where kids can get “treated” without parental knowledge or consent. Children have been vaccinated, diagnosed with mental health conditions, and “counseled” in radical gender ideology all without their parents being informed. The bill would have reauthorized the $55 million grant program for an additional five years without any reforms. Eagle Forum informed House members that we opposed this bill, and it was ultimately pulled from the list of bills and did not receive a floor vote.
On the positive side, we supported, and the House passed, a bill that combines two important policies. The Stop Insider Trading Act (H.R. 7008) restricts federal elected officeholders from buying and selling stocks while in Congress. The American people have grown more suspicious of members of Congress who have profited off stock investments made after being briefed on sensitive information. They have amassed incredible wealth by having access to such non-public information. This is a bill that Republicans and Democrats alike have endorsed. Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) spoke on the House floor in favor, saying:
Last year alone, members made according to my count over 13,000 trades totaling over $600 million with 202 Representatives and 56 Senators trading. Both Republican and Democrat… I came here to serve. Service is about sacrifice. It’s not about what you can get, it’s about what you can give.
Because H.R. 7008 is a measure holding those in office accountable for their actions, Republicans decided to add another piece allowing for more transparency. Before going for a floor vote, language was attached to require all voters in federal elections to show photo identification to vote, even when using mail-in ballots. Both of these measures are wildly popular with the American people. This vote was a chance to show who truly supports integrity in elections. Eagle Forum endorsed the bill, and it passed on Wednesday by a vote of 232-198.
The House also moved two different government spending bills. The first was a continuing resolution (CR) that would simply extend current government funding levels until December 4th, 2026. (The federal fiscal year ends on September 30.) CRs are common in election years to avoid fights over controversial measures that could hurt members’ campaigns. This passed the House on Tuesday by a vote of 220-205, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has indicated that he will not take up the House-passed CR but will instead craft a Senate version that includes Democrat priorities.
The other bill is known as Reconciliation 3.0. The first iteration of reconciliation was the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act (also known as the Working Family Tax Cuts), and Reconciliation 2.0 was a narrow bill that funded only Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) since Democrats refused to do so in appropriations. We were promised that a Reconciliation 3.0 would include an extension of defunding Planned Parenthood, prohibitions of gender mutilation, additional tax cuts, and more. However, when the text of the budget resolution to kick off the process was released, those priorities were not included. In the last week, Eagle Forum met with Congressional and White House leaders, and attended a press conference with pro-life organizations asking Congress to defund Planned Parenthood. Eagle Forum President Kris Ullman wrote in an op-ed in the Washington Examiner that Congress can and should protect election integrity and unborn life in Reconciliation 3.0:
…Planned Parenthood is already spending $47 million to defeat Republicans regardless of whether Congress acts. Silence will not change that reality.
The greater political risk is sending more than 36 million pro-lifers the message that their priorities no longer matter. Republicans have shown remarkable determination in advancing election integrity. They should demonstrate that same resolve in ending taxpayer funding for the nation’s largest abortion provider. Congress does not have to choose between securing America’s elections and defending innocent human life. It can, and should, do both.
Instead, Reconciliation 3.0 includes $95 billion for agriculture, military, and election integrity without offsets (which will increase the deficit to $135 billion after interest). Keep in mind, this type of measure must be purely fiscal to pass the Senate, meaning no policy can be included. Even though some House Republicans are seeking to put the SAVE America Act (H.R. 7296) in this bill, policy measures such as requiring voter identification or proof of citizenship are likely to be stripped out by the Senate Parliamentarian based on Senate rules. To work around this rule, they have written into the resolution $10 billion in grants to the states to implement the policies on their own. The House resolution barely passed by a vote of 216-214.
Other bills are in the works that we are keeping an ‘eagle eye’ on as well. The Permanent Trump Secure Border Act (H.R. 9773) passed out of the House Judiciary Committee this week. The bill would institute significant reforms to our nation’s asylum laws, eliminate catch-and-release policies that allow illegal aliens to roam our country, and implement additional penalties for those who overstay their visas. Many of these policies have been carried out by the Trump administration, but codifying them into federal law will ensure that our borders are secure even after President Trump is out of office. Eagle Forum endorsed this bill.
We have also been pushing for Congress to pass additional protections for children. The Chloe Cole Act (H.R. 7651), named after detransitioner Chloe Cole, advanced out of the House Judiciary Committee. This bill will allow people who were medically transitioned as a child to sue doctors for malpractice. Chloe spoke at Eagle Council 51 three years ago and shared her harrowing story. You can watch her speech here.
The House Education and Workforce Committee passed the Title IX Clarification Act (H.R. 8781) to ensure that biological females have access to women-only sports and private spaces by making clear that ‘sex’ means male and female and not ‘gender identity’. The same committee passed the Parents Opt-in Protection Act (H.R. 4986), which requires parents of children in public schools to decide whether their child should participate in surveys conducted by the school system. Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), who also spoke at Eagle Council 51 (watch her video here), sponsored the bill. We expect these bills to come up for a floor vote in the Fall.
The Senate is expected to stay in session for two more weeks, but the agenda is up in the air. With Republicans holding a slim majority, and Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) absent due to illness, chances of passing conservative legislation, even with Reconciliation’s 51-vote threshold, will prove a massive challenge. We encourage Leader Thune to take up House-passed legislation and work to defund Planned Parenthood not only in Reconciliation 3.0, but through appropriations and other “must-pass” bills.
House members are considering a Reconciliation 4.0 package to defund Planned Parenthood, but the legislative days are dwindling. Your Representatives need to hear that protecting life is a priority. Visit our website here to send an email urging your Representative to defund big abortion.
We give you snippets of what is happening in Washington, D.C. every week through our Capitol Hill Reports, but you can learn even more at our annual conference! Join Eagle Forum members from across the country in Nashville, Tennessee, September 24–26, 2026 for Eagle Council 54. During this time, you will be able to listen to experts on issues affecting American families, engage in policy discussions, tour President Andrew Jackson’s estate, exchange ideas with fellow conservatives, and leave with practical tools to help defend faith, family, and freedom. Whether you’re a longtime member or attending for the first time, Eagle Council is an opportunity to be encouraged, equipped, and energized to make a difference in your community. We look forward to seeing you in Music City!