Tuesday: Money in the Senate, God in the House

The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to immediately take up several amendments to H.R. 2112, the Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Science, Transportation and Housing and Development bill, and then vote on the bill's final passage.

Senate Democrats are pushing to finish work on the bill even as a key Senate Republican argued on Monday that the bill actually increases spending over 2011 levels.

Before the final vote, the Senate will consider amendments from:

• Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), to cut funding for the Rural Development Agency;

• Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), to move 10 percent of transportation funds from surface transportation programs to highway and bridge programs (60 votes needed);

• Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), to prohibit funding for regulations related to ozone-depleting substances in inhalers;

• Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), to limit implementation of Dodd-Frank rules related to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (60 votes needed);

• Mike Lee (R-Utah), to recommit the bill to the Appropriations Committee to bring spending levels back to 2011 levels; and

• Coburn, to end funding for the Small Community Air Service Development Program.

The House meets briefly at noon for speeches and then at 2 p.m. to take up three suspension bills. One of these, H.Con.Res. 13, could prove controversial, as it would reaffirm that "In God We Trust" as the national motto of the U.S.

A two-thirds majority vote will be needed to pass this bill, which means it will need support from roughly 40 Democrats.

Two other bills up for suspension votes are H.R. 1002, which would prohibit new state and local taxes on wireless phone service companies, and S. 1280, the Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act. The latter bill would require the Peace Corps to establish programs aimed at preventing and dealing with sexual assault against volunteers.