Washington, October 16 — Katie Bailey, a seasoned legislative strategist, has been appointed as the new legislative affairs director for President Donald Trump, a role she previously held as a top deputy. Bailey most recently served as legislative director for former Republican Senator Mike Braun of Indiana, who was elected governor of Indiana in 2024. With control of the House and Senate still hanging in the balance ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, the White House’s legislative agenda and Bailey’s potential success remain uncertain.
Once Congress returns next month for a lame-duck session, Bailey will face immediate challenges, including advancing the National Defense Authorization Act, finalizing appropriations, possibly passing a budget resolution, and addressing a reconciliation bill to raise the debt limit — all within fewer than 20 days to avoid a government shutdown as the holiday season begins. Both chambers previously passed a stopgap funding bill that keeps the government funded until December 11, which Trump signed on September 2, resulting in a quieter-than-normal September on Capitol Hill.
However, few in Washington expect a calm lame-duck period. Trump told a rally crowd in Marietta, Georgia, on July 22 that Democrats in Congress want an eventual government shutdown paired with a federal debt ceiling breach, which he referred to as ‘The 1929,’ referencing the start of the Great Depression, and urged them to terminate the filibuster.
Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, the No. 2 Senate Republican, praised Bailey, calling her “a strong pick to be Director of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs” and noting she had already been an important part of efforts to pass their shared agenda. Bailey will also need to navigate her boss’s fluctuating relationship with Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota.
Trump defended Thune at a Republican midterms convention in Dallas on September 9, despite some attendees booing when Thune was mentioned, but has at other times urged Thune to end the legislative filibuster to pass bills with a simple majority. In the House, leaders may take up the bipartisan ‘Protect College Sports Act,’ which Trump endorsed and which passed the Senate with 77 votes.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana said last month the House would want to make major changes to the bill before sending it back to the Senate, particularly removing language that would classify student-athletes as employees of colleges — a provision Scalise and other House Republicans call a non-starter.
If Democrats take control of the House in January, Trump’s agenda would face significant scrutiny, as House Judiciary ranking member Jamie Raskin of Maryland indicated there is a “long list of potentially impeachable events” related to Trump, his family, and top figures in his administration. In that scenario, Bailey “will have to play defense when her coach wants to be on offense,” according to G.
William Hoagland, a former Senate GOP leadership aide, who warned that her major first test will come during the lame-duck session if, as predicted, one or both chambers change party control for the 120th Congress.
