Iran, AI, and shutdown mechanics dominate a heavy pre-recess Friday

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, called on President Trump to abandon ceasefire negotiations and allow the military to "finish the destruction of Iran's conventional military capabilities and then reopen the strait." "Further pursuit of an agreement with Iran's Islamist regime risks a perception of weakness," Wicker said. "We must finish what we started. It is past time for action."

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., published an interview clip through his office in which he argued the opposite case. "I'm against this war against Iran," Kelly said. "This was not well thought out. He went into this thing without a strategic goal, without a plan, without a timeline, without an exit strategy. You think about one side playing chess and the other side playing checkers. This guy, Donald Trump, is not even playing checkers. He's moving two of these red cups around on the table."

Kelly also addressed the administration's treatment of military officers, saying Trump "called for shooting protesters in the legs" and discussed "sending troops to American cities so they can train on U.S. civilians," adding: "This stuff is crazy."

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., published an op-ed in The Washington Times touting the Senate's passage of his resolution to withhold senators' pay during government shutdowns. "For some politicians, though, government shutdowns can be a win-win," Kennedy wrote. "They can throw the country into chaos to further their political agenda, and they never miss a single paycheck along the way."

Kennedy acknowledged the limits of his measure. "I'm not saying this is going to stop all shutdowns," he wrote. "To start, my resolution only affects Senators. The House of Representatives will have to come up with its own rule if it wants its members to feel the financial sting of a government shutdown." He noted the resolution passed by voice vote with every Senate Democrat in support.

Separately, Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., publicized broad outside support for their Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2026, which would require Congress to remain in Washington and keep the government funded automatically if appropriations deadlines are missed. The bill draws backing from AFGE, NTEU, Americans for Prosperity, the Teamsters, and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, among others.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the Senate Aging Committee, led 20 Senate Democrats in introducing a Congressional Review Act resolution to repeal the Trump administration's WISeR Model — a CMS experiment that uses artificial intelligence to approve or deny Medicare claims. "Using AI to delay and deny seniors' medical care is immoral and unacceptable," Gillibrand said. "The Trump administration must end the ill-conceived WISeR experiment to allow seniors to once again get timely access to the care that they need."

The resolution follows a Government Accountability Office determination last week that the WISeR Model is subject to the Congressional Review Act, opening a 60-day window for a forced vote. Gillibrand's release notes that in Washington state, patients have waited two to four times longer to complete procedures since the model was deployed. The model pays third-party administrators a bonus for each claim denied.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., added a separate Medicare beat Friday, welcoming House Ways and Means Committee passage of his Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act and provisions from his Hospice CARE Act. "These provisions will expand care options, especially for rural and underserved communities, and protect patients from fraud," Warner said.

Three separate releases touched artificial intelligence Friday, spanning agriculture, tech accountability, and national security. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., joined a bipartisan group to introduce the FARM AI Act, which would direct USDA grants toward AI research and extension programs for farmers. "We must ensure that America's farmers and ranchers are not left behind in utilizing AI innovations and cutting-edge technologies to keep our food systems and rural economies strong," Schiff said.

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., published a Substack piece through his office criticizing President Trump for abandoning an AI executive order after tech industry pressure. "America cannot lead in AI if our policy is determined by whichever billionaire gets the President on the phone last," Kelly wrote. "When the stakes are high, you do not just hope everything works out. You test. You plan. You ask hard questions. You build safeguards. That is not anti-innovation. That is how serious people handle serious systems."

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., separately announced that her provision prohibiting Intelligence Community employees with security clearances from using nonpublic information to place bets on prediction markets was included in the committee-passed FY2027 Intelligence Authorization Act. The IAA passed the Intelligence Committee 14-3.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., led a coalition of 27 Senate Democrats in sending a letter raising "strong concern" about the Trump administration's plan to reorganize the Food and Nutrition Service at USDA. The letter, highlighted Friday in releases from Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, warns the reorganization will compound recent damage to nutrition programs.

"After dramatic cuts to nutrition assistance programs and the significant staff losses at FNS in the past year, this reorganization will further weaken the ability of the agency to administer federal nutrition assistance programs," the senators wrote. They cited the administration "canceling over 90 million pounds of food ordered for food banks and schools; enacting the deepest cuts to SNAP in history; refusing to comply with court orders to fund SNAP benefits during the government shutdown; and terminating a long-standing food insecurity survey that has measured hunger in America since the 1990s."

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, demanded answers Friday from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and IRS CEO Frank Bisignano over what they called an "outrageously corrupt settlement agreement" that terminates all pending audits of President Trump, his family, and businesses. The settlement also creates what the senators described as a $1.8 billion taxpayer-funded fund for Trump allies.

The senators simultaneously wrote to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration requesting an immediate investigation. Their release quoted the letter's characterization of the settlement as "essentially (making) it official United States government policy that President Trump, his family, and many other allies are above the law."

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued a statement Friday following Tulsi Gabbard's resignation as Director of National Intelligence. Warner offered personal condolences — Gabbard's husband is battling cancer — before turning to the institutional stakes of the vacancy.

"The Director of National Intelligence is entrusted with one of the most serious responsibilities in government: providing objective, fact-based intelligence to policymakers and the American people, regardless of politics or pressure from the White House," Warner said. "The next DNI must be committed to restoring trust in the office, protecting the integrity of our intelligence, and ensuring our nation's intelligence professionals can speak truth to power, without fear or interference."

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., joined Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and 24 colleagues in a letter to President Trump calling for the full dismantlement of UNRWA, the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees. The senators cited findings that at least 12 UNRWA employees participated in the October 7 Hamas attacks and that roughly 10 percent of the agency's Gaza staff have ties to terrorist groups.

"We strongly urge your administration to take decisive action to fully dismantle UNRWA and eliminate it from the UN budget," the senators wrote. "Any aid organization in Gaza or otherwise must be demonstrably free of ties to terrorism and committed to transparency, accountability, and peace. We must ensure this failed system doesn't continue reinforcing the conditions that have fueled terrorism for generations. The time to act is now."

Sens. Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt, both R-Ala., introduced the Mandatory E-Verify Act of 2026, which would permanently reauthorize E-Verify and require its use by all employers nationwide. The bill would also enhance civil and criminal penalties for employing workers without legal status and prohibit states from blocking employer use of the system.

"American jobs should be going to Americans," Tuberville said. "E-Verify is a proven tool that protects good-paying jobs for Americans and helps employers legally staff their businesses. It's past time we are serious about enforcing all of our country's immigration laws, especially when it comes to workforce participation." Eight additional Republican co-sponsors joined the bill, including Sens. Marsha Blackburn, Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz, and Lindsey Graham.

A bipartisan bill to help law enforcement store and transfer child sexual abuse material evidence in the cloud cleared the Senate Friday. The Safe Cloud Storage Act, co-led by Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., would extend limited liability protections to law enforcement-approved vendors handling CSAM for investigative purposes.

"Those helping law enforcement in the fight against child sexual exploitation must be able to securely store evidence of these horrific crimes," Blackburn said. Klobuchar framed the bill in practical terms: "Our commonsense, bipartisan bill would improve investigations and prosecutions by allowing law enforcement to safely store and transmit evidence using cloud systems — saving time and resources." The bill now heads to the House, where companion legislation was introduced by Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Fla.

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., chair of the Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee, laid out her priorities from a hearing with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, signaling support for rural aviation funding while opposing proposed cuts to the Essential Air Service program. "The EAS program is critical to connecting our nation's rural communities like those in Greenville, Tupelo, Meridian, and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to the broader transportation network," Hyde-Smith said. "Significant funding cuts would jeopardize economic development and threaten jobs in local communities across the country."

On the environment front, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., ranking member of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, joined Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and 39 colleagues in writing to Appropriations Chair Susan Collins urging that anti-environment policy riders be kept out of FY2027 spending bills. "Harmful anti-environment policy riders are poison pills that will sabotage funding the government," Merkley said.

Meanwhile, both Nevada senators — Rosen and Cortez Masto — announced $20 million in FAA Airport Terminal Program grants for Reno-Tahoe International Airport, with Cortez Masto's release covering an additional $13.7 million for other Nevada airports including a new air traffic control tower in Boulder City.

Two bipartisan bills targeting military readiness moved Friday. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., introduced the Ready Reserve Force Modernization Accountability Act, which would require the Navy and Maritime Administration to accelerate design and procurement of new cargo vessels to replace the existing fleet — averaging more than 45 years old. "America's military is relying on decades-old ships to move troops, equipment, fuel, and supplies, and they're getting harder to maintain," Kelly said. "This bill replaces these vessels before it becomes a crisis."

Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., introduced the DoD and USDA Research Act, codifying an existing memorandum of understanding between the Department of War and USDA to coordinate research protecting the agricultural supply chain from foreign threats. "Protecting America's food supply is part of protecting our national security," Banks said. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., separately reintroduced the Chinese CBDC Prohibition Act, which would bar money services businesses from transacting in China's digital yuan. "The digital Yuan is just another tool used by the Chinese Communist Party to spy on its people and all those who use it," Scott said.

Signals

• volumeFriday output reached 34 releases, approximately 19.8% above the Friday baseline of 28.4 — consistent with pre-recess messaging acceleration with Memorial Day state work period beginning in three days.
• recessThe Memorial Day state work period begins in three days; Friday's volume and topical spread — including multiple Memorial Day statements and local funding announcements — reflect typical pre-recess positioning.
• coordinatedBoth Nevada senators — Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev. — issued separate releases announcing the same $20 million FAA grant for Reno-Tahoe International Airport within 16 minutes of each other, a standard same-state coordination pattern on federal funding announcements.
• coordinatedSen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., published the same video item ('Americans are selling their blood to afford to live') under two distinct release IDs and URLs within 29 minutes, suggesting a website publishing anomaly or dual-platform distribution logged as separate entries.
• silent breaksSen. Alan Armstrong, R-Okla., has no releases on record in the archive — logged at 999 days quiet — an anomaly that may reflect a data gap rather than an actual communications absence for a sitting senator.

Quiet desks

Senators with no release in two weeks or more.

• Sen. Alan Armstrong, R-OK—
• Sen. Tina Smith, D-MN23d
• Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-MT21d
• Sen. Thom Tillis, R-NC18d