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I’m Jonathan Tamari, senior Washington reporter for Bloomberg Government, and each weekday I’ll be coming to you with inside-the-room reporting and insights that reveal what’s really happening in Washington—and how it impacts you. Email me with feedback and comments here. If this newsletter was forwarded to you sign up here. Today: Some funding progress, trying to out-MAGA Trump, and betting on yourself in the worst way. Progress. Kind of?This morning, Congress brings us something unusual: progress. Of a sort. Maybe? Amid a grim stretch, even by the Capitol’s standards, Senate Republicans after 3 a.m. advanced their plan to fund ICE and border patrol, taking a step toward ending a Department of Homeland Security shutdown that has dragged on more than two months. 
Senate Majority Leader John Thune
Photographer: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg
It took an overnight vote-a-rama (actual Senate term) and the GOP invoking a complicated and time-consuming procedure (reconciliation), that’s almost never used for just basic funding. But it’s needed now to break two impasses. One with Democrats, who want new rules around how immigration agents conduct themselves, like banning masks for most enforcement. And one (believe it or not) between the House and Senate GOP, who have managed to feud over how to pay an agency they both support. The successful vote of course left people on all sides fuming. Democrats accused the GOP of prioritizing Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown over steps to make life more affordable. 
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer
Photographer: Eric Lee/Bloomberg
“Instead of pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into ICE and Border Patrol, Republicans should be working with Democrats to lower out-of-pocket costs,” Senator Chuck Schumer said, per my colleagues Zach C. Cohen and Ken Tran. And some Republicans want to do more than just fund two agencies, because reconciliation is a powerful, if time-consuming tool (Senator Lindsey Graham joked that it was “Latin for a long night”). If they’re going to go through the grind, some argue, they should do something bigger than just getting paychecks printed again for DHS employees. “You win the election in November by putting points on the board,” Senator Ted Cruz told CNBC Tuesday. It’s still not clear if enough House Republicans, fearing an electoral beatdown, will even go along with the narrow plan. But it’s also hard to see them doing much more. The House, with its tiny Republican majority, has repeatedly tripped over itself in recent weeks, fumbling a key spy powers vote, and yanking two bills off the schedule this week because of internal strife. It hasn’t even voted on a bill that would have funded nearly all of DHS – even though it passed the Senate unanimously last month. “Republicans will have helped ensure that America’s borders are secure,” the Senate’s top Republican, John Thune, said. The problem for the majority is that with voters deeply unhappy, even many Republicans don’t think the basics are enough to turn the political tide. Right now, though, it’s about all Congress can manage. Top NewsThe shipping war with Iran continues, with the US saying it intercepted two Iranian supertankers. Iran says it won’t resume negotiations while the US blockade continues. Can a Republican out-MAGA Trump? Representative Thomas Massie is trying. Joshua Green has a fascinating deep read on the most defiant Republican in Congress, who’s now trying to survive a primary challenge. 
Rep. Thomas Massie speaks to the press on Nov. 18.
Photographer: Heather Diehl/Getty Images via Getty Images North America
Three congressional candidates wagered on the outcome of their own elections on Kalshi, according to the prediction market, which said Wednesday that it fined and suspended the men from their platform for five years. Navy Secretary John Phelan was fired after clashing with top leaders. It comes just weeks after Army Chief of Staff General Randy George was pushed out, making for a pair of remarkable departures during wartime. 
A tractor in Mount Vernon, Washington.
Photographer: David Ryder/Bloomberg
While Trump has opposed immigration in nearly all forms, there’s at least one exception: he has kept a path open for temporary farm workers and lowered the minimum wage. In Brazil, having a famous last name has helped Flavio Bolsonaro become a presidential contender. Now he needs to shed some of the baggage. The DOJ is curtailing election-year coordination aimed at protecting state-run voting processes, Ben Penn reports. It increases the risks of the Trump administration interfering in the November midterms. The most recognizable diversity rule in sports is now a target. Florida’s attorney general is calling for an end to the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview at least two minority candidates for head coaching jobs. Watch This 
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) says the US must “finish the job” in Iran. He spoke with Kailey Leinz and Joe Mathieu on Bloomberg’s “Balance of Power.”
Go Deeper With BGOVCongress is debating whether to allow year-round sales of higher-ethanol gasoline, which at present generally can’t be sold during the summer, BGOV’s Aaron Gregg writes. The US saw a surge in ethanol production between 2000 and 2010, spurred by amendments to the Clean Air Act that called for cleaner fuels. 
On Today’s AgendaUS Trade Representative Jamieson Greer testifies at the Senate Finance Committee Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick testifies at a House Appropriations subcommittee. Trump speaks about health care affordability at 3 p.m. Initial jobless claims for the week ending April 18 are released More From BloombergLike Washington Edition? Check out these newsletters:
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