The Republican Recap: Week of July 13, 2026
Implementing an America First foreign policy agenda has bolstered freedom and security under the leadership of President Trump. At its core, an America First agenda strengthens national security while ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly.
The FY27 National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Appropriations bill demonstrates that America can continue to project strength and leadership abroad without increasing spending. The legislation allocates $47.32 billion—6% below FY26 levels—to counter Communist China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific, combat the illicit flow of fentanyl, strengthen key alliances, and advance American interests around the world.
This bill achieves these priorities through reduced spending by codifying President Trump’s executive orders to defund Biden-era climate, gender, and DEI policies, and by reforming foreign assistance to promote self-sufficiency and alignment with America’s priorities.
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart’s H.R. 8595, the National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2027, responsibly funds the America First agenda by safeguarding American national security while exercising fiscal discipline in the handling of taxpayer dollars.
“This Republican majority has delivered another critical piece of legislation to strengthen our national security while reducing spending. Under Chairman Cole’s leadership and the support of our colleagues, we have delivered nearly $12 billion in responsible cuts under the purview of this subcommittee since 2023,” said Rep. Diaz-Balart. “The fiscal year 2027 bill continues this effort with an additional $2.69 billion in cuts from the fiscal year 2026 enacted level. The ever-increasing national debt is the greatest long-term threat to our country's stability and security, and this bill makes disciplined decisions to continue reining in spending, while responsibly maintaining our national security priorities. Among its many achievements, this bill increases funding to counter narcotics and related law enforcement efforts, including to combat the trafficking of fentanyl, which has devastated every community in America. It maintains support for friends and valuable partners who align themselves with U.S. interests. It also continues a resounding support for a democratic transition to freedom for the people of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. All this while countering anti-American adversaries and ensuring full accountability and transparency of international organizations that have lost sight of their mission. Once again, I thank my colleagues for their commitment to ensuring Congress upholds its responsibility to safeguard our national security while protecting taxpayer money.”
What Members Said:
Establishing Guardrails to Protect Americans’ Privacy in Firearm Purchases ✅
When Americans make a purchase at a firearm retailer, credit card companies can assign a specific merchant category code (MCC) to the transaction, identifying it as a firearm-related purchase. This policy has raised concerns that these codes could be weaponized to monitor or track law-abiding Americans exercising their constitutional rights.
Some states, like Texas and Florida, recognize the threat to privacy posed by these codes and have banned the use of firearm retailer-specific MCCs; however, states like California and New York have instead mandated the use of these trackable MCCs.
To ensure Americans’ rights to privacy do not depend on their ZIP code, House Republicans passed legislation this week to implement a national standard prohibiting firearm-specific MCCs and protecting law-abiding citizens’ financial data from being used to surveil lawful firearm purchases.
Rep. Riley Moore’s measure, H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act, would prevent the use of firearm-specific merchant category codes, establishing guardrails to ensure financial institutions and credit card companies are not coerced into surveilling customers during constitutionally protected purchases.
"The Second Amendment is not a second-class right. Americans should never have their lawful firearm purchases tracked by financial institutions or payment processors. The creation of a separate merchant category code for gun stores at the behest of the Democrat-affiliated Amalgamated Bank opens the door to creating an unconstitutional backdoor gun registry and discrimination against law-abiding gun owners,” said Rep. Moore. "My bill stops this dangerous overreach, protects consumers' financial privacy, and ensures that a backdoor federal gun registry can never be created through credit card transaction data. I'm proud the House has acted to defend both the Second Amendment and Americans' right to privacy."
What Members Said:
Rep. Michelle Fischbach highlighted how the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act will prevent banks from monitoring info on American gun owners.
Rep. Rich McCormick underscored how this legislation will solidify Second Amendment protections nationwide.
Maximizing Sunshine Across America ✅
Americans shouldn’t have to change their clocks twice a year. The outdated practice of switching between standard time and daylight saving time disrupts daily life, burdens families, and creates unnecessary challenges for businesses, travel, and public safety.
Congress has previously adopted permanent daylight saving time twice–including during World War II–to conserve energy, but current federal law prevents states from making daylight saving time permanent.
House Republicans passed legislation to the floor this week that will make daylight saving time permanent nationwide, ending the twice-yearly clock changes and helping boost economic activity.
Rep. Vern Buchanan’s bill, H.R. 139, the Sunshine Protection Act, ends an outdated practice by making daylight savings time permanent. This legislation will lower crime, save Americans time and money, reduce traffic accidents, and encourage the public to get outside.
“This week, the House took an important step toward ending the outdated practice of changing our clocks twice a year by passing my bipartisan Sunshine Protection Act. This commonsense legislation reflects what Americans have been saying for years: it’s time to lock the clock and make daylight saving time permanent,” said Rep. Buchanan. “Permanent daylight saving time will improve public safety, promote healthier and more active lifestyles and give families more daylight to enjoy after work and school. I’m grateful to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for supporting this bipartisan effort, and I urge the Senate to send this long-overdue reform to the president’s desk.”
What Members Said:
Rep. Adrian Smith emphasized how this measure is a commonsense win constituents have been asking for.
Rep. Kat Cammack celebrated the Sunshine Protection Act relieving Americans of the inconveniences that come with changing the clocks.
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