Weekly Washington Policy Pulse: Partial Government Shutdown, Trump Fed Pick (Feb. 2, 2026)

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Senate Majority Leader John Thune dismissed Democrats’ list of demands to curb the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement posture as political messaging rather than an opening bid in negotiations on a funding deal for the Department of Homeland Security.The two parties have just eight days to reach an agreement or risk a shutdown at the department at the center of the ongoing immigration crackdown. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries listed 10 restrictions they want placed on federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol in a letter late Wednesday to House Speaker Mike Johnson and Thune. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Republican Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis of New York. Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Bully Pulpit Managing Director Adam Hodge. Bloomberg TV Markets Correspondent Norah Mulinda. Former Republican Congressman Patrick McHenry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.The Department of Homeland Security will immediately pull 700 officers from Minneapolis, a reduction of about a quarter, amid efforts to deescalate tensions after federal agents killed two US citizens. White House border czar Tom Homan, who President Donald Trump sent to Minneapolis as part of an effort to ease pressure amid local outrage, emphasized a shift to more targeted enforcement after a surge of immigration agents sparked widespread protests. Homan also said cooperation with local authorities to detain immigrants with criminal records had improved. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs Heather Conley. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.The partial US government shutdown is on track to end later Tuesday after the House passed a funding deal President Donald Trump negotiated with Senate Democrats, overcoming opposition from both ends of the political spectrum. The spending package, which Trump has said he wants enacted quickly, now goes to the president for his signature. The House vote was 217 to 214.Still, a more limited funding lapse looms since the Department of Homeland Security would only be funded through Feb. 13 while Trump negotiates with Democrats over their demands for new restraints on immigration enforcement agents. The rest of the government would be funded through the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Republican Congresswoman Erin Houchin of Indiana. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas. Obama 2012 Campaign Manager Jim Messina. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our view that the US government partial shutdown will likely end this week -- with the bulk of the US government funded for the rest of the fiscal year -- led Bloomberg Intelligence's Feb. 2 edition of the Washington Policy Pulse. We also discussed the confirmation process and how it could play out for President Donald Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh to be the next Chairman of the Federal Reserve, especially in light of Senator Thom Tillis's desire to block the nomination at the Senate Banking Committee. Finally, we discussed upcoming testimony from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on regulation for banks like Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo.The Bloomberg Intelligence Financial Policy weekly call is designed to provide investors an opportunity to learn about the most recent relevant policy research, information regarding forthcoming political catalysts and other on-goings within Washington DC. The call is open to all and is held every Monday at 10:00 a.m. EST. You can register for the call here: https://bloomberg.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__PqCkwY-S2m3hbQqvVC1_Q#/registrationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.House leaders are scrambling to pass a bipartisan deal to end a partial government shutdown by funding the majority of agencies through September with the exception of the Department of Homeland Security.The House Rules Committee will meet at 4 p.m. today on the latest version of the spending measure blessed by President Donald Trump, but it will be a heavy lift.The five full-year funding bills in the deal — Defense, Labor-HHS-Education, Transportation-HUD, Financial Services-General Government, and National Security-State — passed the House last month by a bipartisan vote of 341-88. But the circumstances are different this time around with the inclusion of the two-week DHS stopgap.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Congressional Reporter Erik Wasson. US Representative-Elect Christian Menefee of Texas. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Democratic Congressman Suhas Subramanyam of Virginia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Donald Trump named Kevin Warsh to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve, ending months of speculation over who’d take charge of US interest rates as the president pushes for big cuts. Trump elevated Warsh, who’s advised him on economic policy and previously served as a Fed governor, to succeed Jerome Powell when his term at the helm ends in May. It marks a comeback for Warsh, 55, who’s called for a major overhaul of the Fed but was passed over for the top job in 2017 when Trump opted for Powell.If confirmed by the Senate, Warsh will take the reins at a time when many economists and investors see the Fed’s traditional insulation from elected officials as being under threat from the White House. Warsh aligned himself with Trump in 2025 by arguing publicly for lower rates, going against his longstanding reputation as an inflation hawk.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Bloomberg's Tyler Kendall is in for Kailey. Joe and Tyler speak with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Former White House Council of Economic Advisers Member Heather Boushey. Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino and Firehouse Strategies Managing Director Matt Terrill. Center for Strategic and International Studies Economic Security and Technology Department President Navin Girishankar. House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Breaking news from the White House.   President Donald Trump said he intends to nominate Kevin Warsh to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve, according to a post on his Truth Social platform.   “I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best,” Trump wrote. “On top of everything else, he is ‘central casting,’ and he will never let you down.”    Warsh, who served on the US central bank’s Board of Governors from 2006 to 2011 and has previously advised Trump on economic policy, would succeed Jerome Powell when his term at the helm ends in May. It marks a comeback for Warsh, 55, whom the president passed over for the top job in 2017 when he selected Powell.   If confirmed by the Senate, the former Fed governor will take charge of US monetary policy at a time when many economists and investors see its traditional insulation from elected officials as being under threat from the White House. Warsh aligned himself with the president in 2025 by arguing publicly for lower interest rates, going against his longstanding reputation as an inflation hawk.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill.Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.President Donald Trump and Senate Democrats are nearing a deal to avert a US government shutdown as the White House negotiates with Democrats to place new limits on immigration raids that have provoked a national outcry.The talks between top Senate Democrats and the Trump administration aimed at averting a government shutdown have moved closer to Democrats’ demands, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.“I think we’re getting close,” Trump told reporters at a cabinet meeting Thursday morning. “We’ll work in a very bipartisan way, I believe, not to have a shutdown.”Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Democratic Congressman Gregory Meeks of New York, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Bluestack Strategies Founder Maura Gillespie and Bellwether Government Affairs CEO Arshi Siddiqui. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the two parties are in talks with the White House over US government funding as Democrats threaten to force a partial US government shutdown following a mounting public backlash over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota.The fatal shooting of Minnesota nurse Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents on Saturday quickly led to a Senate Democratic revolt against funding the Department of Homeland Security without new safeguards. Funding for several other agencies, including Defense, Health and Human Services, Labor, Treasury and Education, could become a casualty of the dispute as a Jan. 30 funding deadline nears.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Bloomberg News US National Security Team Lead Nick Wadhams. Bloomberg News US Equities Managing Editor Michael Regan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Donald Trump said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem would remain in her post despite the president’s decision to reshuffle the leadership running his deportation effort in Minnesota following widespread outcry over the killing of two US citizens by federal agents.“I think she’s doing a very good job,” Trump told reporters Tuesday as he departed the White House for a trip to Iowa. “The border is totally secure.”The public vote of confidence came a day after the president ordered the shakeup in the aftermath of the Jan. 24 fatal shooting of 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti by a Border Patrol agent during an enforcement operation. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg News Immigration Reporter Alicia A. Caldwell. Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Former Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney. Redwave Communications Owner and Republican Strategist David Kochel. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.