DAILY CALLER NEWS FOUNDATION—After its Christmas break concludes, Congress is set to return in January with a host of unfinished business that could shape the political terrain of 2026. 

A short-term funding bill that ended the historic government shutdown in November expires on Jan. 30. Legislators have yet to implement healthcare reform following a new public focus on affordability in a GOP-controlled Congress bracing for the 2026 midterm elections.

“When I became the majority leader, I made it very clear that I was committed to funding the government through the regular order of consideration of appropriations bills, not through an omnibus or long-term [continuing resolution], oftentimes written behind closed doors,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said in his session-closing remarks on the Senate floor on Dec. 18.

“The regular order process gives senators from both parties the fullest chance to make their voices and the voices of their constituents heard. Which is why I’m disappointed that we’ll not be moving to our second package of appropriations bills tonight. Republicans were ready to go. But, unfortunately, my........

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