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By Lauren French
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DRIVING THIS WEEK: DHS FUNDING. Senate returns with no plans to pass a bill. Monday will give the Senate yet another chance to try to pass a Department of Homeland Security's funding bill before the all but the agency's most essential employees are turned away from work at the end of this week. But the chances still don't look good at Republicans can overcome a filibuster from Senate Democrats. Burgess Everett and John Bresnahan report, "The Kentucky Republican could cave to Democrats' demands and abandon the GOP's attempt to tie the Department of Homeland Security's funding to an attack on President Barack Obama's immigration policies. But pushing through a short-term continuing resolution
for DHS would bring howls from the right, postpone the immigration showdown for only a couple of weeks or months, and most likely fail in the House. McConnell would gain nothing even if he could pass such a CR, which is far from a sure thing. Or, as some conservatives outside the Senate want, McConnell could employ the "nuclear option" to abolish the filibuster on legislation, allowing Republicans to pass the $39.7 billion DHS bill with a simple majority of 51 votes, rather than 60. But that would mean destroying the Senate traditions he's vowed so loudly over the years to protect - and Obama would still veto the bill."
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With only days left, Johnson goes on offense. From Time Magazine's Maya Rhodan, "As the deadline approaches for the department's funding, [DHS Secretary Jeh] Johnson echoed the administration line that Congress should simply fund the department without conditions. Republicans in Congress hoped to attach language to the funding bill that would override Obama's decision to defer deportations for millions in the U.S. illegally - an idea that both Senate Democrats and the president have rejected... The five talk-show effort - known in Beltway circles as the "full Ginsburg" after the first person to attempt it - was a sign of how seriously the White House intends to press its advantage on the
dispute with Congress. Polls show the majority of Americans would blame Congress if the agency shuts down."
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Graham: Blame will go to GOP. Caitlin Emma reports, "Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday the U.S. is facing more terrorist threats than ever and defunding the Department of Homeland Security would be the worst possible thing to do. Some Republicans aren't supporting a bill to fund the agency unless it scuttles President Barack Obama's executive actions on immigration. But the South Carolina senator said he hopes fellow Republicans will allow the immigration issue to play out in court after a federal judge in Texas issued an injunction last week blocking Obama's immigration actions. Graham said he supports the judge's decision. If Republicans fail to fund DHS, he said, they'll get blamed as a
party."
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GOOD MONDAY MORNING, and welcome to the Huddle, your play-by-play guide to everything Capitol Hill. It seems as if every conversation I had over the weekend centered on how awful the weather was - so here's looking forward to a brief reprieve from the bitter cold this week. Now accepting tips, complaints and compliments at
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lfrench@politico.com or @
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TODAY IN CONGRESS - The Senate will hold a roll call vote at 5:30 p.m., while the House is not in session.

AROUND THE HILL - Not all that much.

** Reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) now will help ensure America's children graduate from high school ready to succeed in college and the workplace. Quality education is a top priority for business leaders, and it should be for Congress, too. Read the Business Roundtable ESEA reauthorization
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principles . **

OBAMA NEEDS TO WIN OVER DEMOCRATS IF HE WANTS AN AUMF. Burgess Everett and Manu Raju report, "Before he can get Congress' approval for his war against ISIL, President Barack Obama may have to win an ugly battle with his own party. A wide range of House and Senate Democrats - many of whom, like Obama, rose to prominence opposing the Iraq War - are warning they won't support any war-powers measure that gives the president even greater latitude than he's already asked for. But the Republicans who control Congress insist that any war authorization must offer broad authority to combat Islamic militants, saying the White House's three-year draft would do too much to tie the hands of Obama and his
successor. That will leave Obama with a critical decision: He can stick with his proposal to limit the war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, fighting the GOP-controlled Congress over a draft that many liberals
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already dislike. Or he can acquiesce to Republican demands and prompt a revolt from his own party, something the president has rarely done during his six years in office."
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BUT WHITE HOUSE SIGNALS OBAMA IS OPEN TO A CHANGE. From the Associated Press, "President Barack Obama is open to negotiating with Congress on his request for new authorization for military force against Islamic State militants, including his proposed three-year time limit on U.S. military action and the use of American troops...After a weeklong holiday break, lawmakers return to Washington on Monday and start work on White House officials said Obama is firmly opposed to any geographic restrictions on where the U.S. military can pursue Islamic State militants, who have strongholds in Iraq and Syria but have been operating across international boundaries. But they said he is open to debate on
much of the rest of his offer and is willing to discuss the three-year time limit in Obama's draft and the hotly debated section on ground troops."
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WE'RE ALREADY HERE? Chris Cillizza starts off the week by naming the 10 most competitive Senate races of 2016. The "initial reading of the numbers is slightly deceiving. Yes, Republicans such as Sen. Mark Kirk (Ill.) and Sen. Ron Johnson (Wis.) are in a tenuous position to win second terms. But beyond that, there are no races that today you would call 50-50. Sure, Pennsylvania is a Democratic state, but Sen. Patrick J. Toomey is an able candidate, and Democrats are down on the prospect of a rerun from former congressman Joe Sestak. Sens. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.), Roy Blunt (Mo.), Rob Portman (Ohio), Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Richard Burr (N.C.) are all relatively young and have faced real races in
the not-too-distant past. Yes, they sit in swing (or Democratic-leaning) states, but none of them are underdogs (or even close) yet."
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IRAN DEAL - SLOWLY - TAKING SHAPE. From the AP, "The United States and Iran are shaping the contours of a deal that would initially freeze Tehran's nuclear program but would allow it to slowly ramp up activities that could be used to make nuclear arms over the last years of the agreement's duration. Officials from some of the six-power talks with Iran said details still needed to be agreed on, with U.S. and Iranian officials meeting Monday for the third straight day ahead of an end-of-March deadline for a framework agreement. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry joined the negotiations after arriving Sunday."
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FRIDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Kirtan Mehta, legislative director for Sen. Joe Manchin, was the first to correctly answer that Franklin Pierce is the only president to have affirmed his oath of office.

TODAY'S TRIVIA -Kirtan has today's question: In honor of your Oscar hangover, name the four Presidents whose characters have earned actors an Academy Award nomination. The first person to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day's Huddle. Email me at
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GET HUDDLE emailed to your Blackberry, iPhone or other mobile device each morning. Just enter your email address where it says "Sign Up."
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** Helping America's children reach their full potential includes providing them with a quality education that prepares them for college or the workplace after high school. Equipping all students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed is a priority for America's business leaders, and it should be one for Congress, too. Business Roundtable CEOs released
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principles to guide ESEA reauthorization, which include holding schools accountable, using reliable data to make improvements in educational outcomes and measuring progress in meaningful ways, particularly with annual testing. The future success of our children and our nation depends on decisions we make today. Congress, reauthorize ESEA. **

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