| | | | | |  | | By Melanie Zanona | Presented by |  | | | COVID IN THE CAPITOL -- Congress — and the country — are being confronted with another wave of coronavirus, just as the holidays draw near. The latest to get hit with the virus: 87-year-old Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), as well as Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.). That means five lawmakers over the past week and a half have tested positive for Covid-19, including a member of Democratic leadership and the dean of the House. Grassley's tweet: "I've tested positive for coronavirus. I'll b following my doctors' orders/CDC guidelines & continue to quarantine. I'm feeling good + will keep up on my work for the ppl of Iowa from home. I appreciate everyone's well wishes + prayers &look fwd to resuming my normal schedule soon." Grassley was forced to miss votes yesterday for the first time since 1993, when he had to visit his home state of Iowa to survey flood damage (h/t C-SPAN's Jeremy Art). Before Tuesday, Grassley held the record for the longest streak without missing a vote. His absence also disrupted legislative business in the Senate (more on that in a bit). The Iowa Republican presided over the floor and attended leadership meetings as recently as Monday. Ironically, Grassley's last speech before his positive Covid test was about the importance of masks and social distancing, per Burgess. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, told reporters that Grassley did everything "to protect himself," but added: "people catch this." Despite a resurgence of the virus, Congress has at times struggled with how to curb Covid-19 in the Capitol. Lawmakers have been spotted hugging the floor, some have sparred over mask-wearing and House leaders even tried to hold indoor dinner receptions for new members, before modifying their plans amid backlash. But the House did, however, finally implement a new testing program for members and staff. The big picture from NYT's Emily Cochrane: https://nyti.ms/2UENZD2. Related read: "Portman reveals he's enrolled in Covid-19 vaccine trial," by Susannah Luthi: https://politi.co/2UEUJR6. | 
EL PASO, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 17: A test flight is flown by a DroneUp pilot in preparation for drone delivery of COVID-19 home self collection kits from Walmart amid a Covid-19 surge in El Paso on November 17, 2020 in El Paso, Texas. Residents who live within 1.5 miles of the Walmart Supercenter in East El Paso are eligible for the free kits as part of a drone delivery pilot program. Texas surpassed 20,000 confirmed coronavirus deaths yesterday, the second highest in the U.S., with active cases in El Paso now over 34,000 and confirmed COVID-19 deaths at 782. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) | Mario Tama/Getty Images | | | A message from American Land Title Association: While the work of land title professionals is behind-the-scenes, and they may sometimes go unseen, the joy from what they do can be seen on the smiling faces of millions of Americans when they finally get the title of "homeowner." Land title professionals have safeguarded the American dream for more than 125 years. Meet the people who help protect homebuyers and sellers when they make the most important financial decision of their lives. Learn more | | | FED UP -- Trump's nomination of Judy Shelton to the Federal Reserve Board failed to advance in the Senate yesterday. The reason? There were three GOP absences, due to lawmakers in quarantine: Grassley and Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), who both support the Fed nominee, and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), who opposes it. What else doomed the nomination: Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was able to get back to the Senate just in time to vote against Shelton yesterday. Of course, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell can still bring up the nomination for a vote at a later date. But it's tricky: the Senate GOP will soon lose a member when Democrat Mark Kelly gets sworn in after beating Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) in a special election. Republicans don't have any votes to spare on the Fed nominee. And who knows if more lawmakers will be forced to quarantine in the near future. All the latest from Burgess and Marianne: https://politi.co/2IKOE39. Related read: "Biden builds team for Senate confirmation battles," by Alex Thompson: https://politi.co/3pHGjxV. GRAHAM-STANDER -- Everyone wants to know: what the heck is Sen. Lindsey Graham doing? The South Carolina Republican kicked up a storm this week when he confirmed that he contacted election officials in Georgia, Arizona and Nevada — all states that Trump lost to Biden. He also couldn't remember who he talked to in one instance. But Graham denied a claim — made on the record by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — that he was trying to pressure officials to toss out legally-cast ballots, and said he was just inquiring about the state's signature verification process. Graham also faced questions about why a senator from South Carolina would even be inquiring about the mail-in voting process in places like Georgia. But he defended his involvement, saying he is "worried about the integrity of the election process." He also said he is concerned about the runoff races in Georgia, which will determine control of the Senate. More from WaPo's Paul Kane about Graham's "one-man voting probe": https://wapo.st/38TX7Mc. ELSEWHERE on the "Is the sky blue?" beat: Trump ousted a top election security official who pushed back on his false claims of voter fraud. ... And Republicans who still haven't acknowledged Trump's defeat were seen congratulating and even fist-bumping Harris on the Senate floor, per NYT. HAPPY WEDNESDAY! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Nov. 18, where your host wishes everyone would stop trying to make Fleets happen. TUESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Roll Call's report on five things to watch in House Dems' leadership elections was the big winner. | | | | JOIN TODAY - CONFRONTING INEQUALITY TOWN HALL "BRIDGING THE ECONOMIC DIVIDE": Although pandemic job losses have been widespread, the economic blow has been especially devastating to Black workers and Black-owned businesses. POLITICO's third "Confronting Inequality in America" town hall will convene economists, scholars, private sector and city leaders to explore policies and strategies to deal with the disproportionate economic impact of the pandemic and the broader factors contributing to the persistent racial wealth and income gaps. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | KEEPING THE TEAM TOGETHER -- House Democrats will hold their internal leadership elections today, but they are being conducted virtually. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), Democratic caucus chair, tested out the app technology yesterday by polling members about the greatest musician of all time, per Sarah. (The results: Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, Bono and Selena.) Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her top deputies are all expected to easily secure their posts for another two-year term. Pelosi still needs to get 218 votes on the floor in January, but she isn't expected to have an issue, despite the slimmer Dem majority. In fact, at least two Dems who voted against her in 2019 told NYT they'd be backing her this time around. Here's a preview of today from Sarah and Heather: https://politi.co/2UFzWwO. But the high-profile contested races — assistant speaker and vice chair — will likely take place tomorrow. And the race to lead the House Democrats' campaign arm won't be held until after the Thanksgiving recess. Speaking of which … The Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus officially endorsed Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.) for DCCC chairman. Related: "House Democrats pledge to make racial justice central to 2021 legislative agenda," by Susan Ferrechio of the Washington Examiner: https://washex.am/2IKWDgC. STIMULUS STALEMATE -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell haven't spoken about a coronavirus aid package since the election. And Trump and the White House aren't engaged on the issue in any real way. Reminder: there are just 12 days left on the legislative calendar this year. But Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer are asking McConnell to resume bipartisan talks this week. "We write to request that you join us at the negotiating table this week so that we can work towards a bipartisan, bicameral COVID-19 relief agreement to crush the virus and save American lives," they wrote in a joint letter. Not everyone found it to be genuine. Here's Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas): "Well, I have been around here long enough to know the only reason you write a letter to somebody, and then release it to the press before it gets to its intended recipient, is for political purposes. It's posturing. That's what we continue to see from our friends across the aisle, is political posturing." And then McConnell tweeted this: "Republicans have tried for weeks to pass another targeted rescue package. It would send hundreds of billions of dollars to schools, unemployment aid, another round of the job-saving PPP, and healthcare. Democrats repeatedly blocked it all. Let's hope they let us make law soon." So in other words, everything's going great! In other lame-duck news … "Appropriators aim for agreement on government funding totals by week's end," by Caitlin Emma: https://politi.co/38PXmYN; and "Georgia runoff, Confederate issue complicate completion of annual Pentagon bill," via Roll Call's John M. Donnelly: https://bit.ly/2KjjaSq. | | | |   | | | CABINET WATCH -- Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) — one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress — is being vetted by Biden's transition team to be Interior secretary, reports The Hill. The deets from Rebecca Beitsch and Scott Wong: "The development came after Haaland dropped out of the three-way leadership race for House Democratic Caucus vice chairwoman. If Haaland is tapped by President-elect Joe Biden, her nomination would be historic, making her the first Native American Cabinet secretary, where she would oversee an agency with vast responsibility over tribal issues and public lands. "More than half of the president-elect's transition team is comprised of women, and nearly half of its members are people of color; Biden has also vowed that his new Cabinet and administration will be very diverse and 'look like America.' Haaland, the former chairwoman of the New Mexico Democratic Party who just won reelection to the House, did not respond directly when asked why she suddenly dropped out of this week's leadership race." More: https://bit.ly/32Vx9Eg. Related: "Udall confirms he's on Biden's 'short list' to lead Interior," from Emma Dumain of E&E News: https://bit.ly/3nA2vYZ. INVESTIGATION NATION -- At least one House Democrat is demanding that the DOJ investigate the Trump administration next year, after NBC reported that Biden told his advisers he doesn't want his administration focused on Trump probes. This could be a point of contention in the party next year. Here's Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), who was one of the most vocal Dems in calling for Trump's tax returns: "Donald Trump and members of his administration have committed innumerable crimes against the United States. He has endangered our national security. He ripped families apart. He poisoned the Census. He has personally profited from his office. He has attacked our elections and sought to throttle democracy. He was rightly impeached by the House of Representatives. He has engaged in treachery, in treason. He has all but given up on governing and protecting our nation and if he had a shred of dignity he would resign today. "Therefore, in 2021 the entire Trump administration must be fully investigated by the Department of Justice and any other relevant offices. … Failure to hold financial and political wrongdoing accountable in the past has invited greater malfeasance by bad actors. A repeat of those failures in 2021 further emboldens criminality by our national leaders and continues America down the path of lawlessness and authoritarianism. There must be accountability." TECH TESTIFIES -- "'Censorship teams' vs. 'working the refs': Key moments from today's hearing with tech CEOs," via Cristiano Lima, Steven Overly, Nick Niedzwiadek and Leah Nylen: https://politi.co/32U4mQH. | | | | DON'T MISS NEW EPISODES OF GLOBAL TRANSLATIONS PODCAST: The world has long been beset by big problems that defy political boundaries, and these issues have exploded in 2020 amid a global pandemic. Global Translations podcast, presented by Citi, unpacks the roadblocks to smart policy decisions and examines the long-term costs of the short-term thinking that drives many political and business decisions. Subscribe for Season Two, available now. | | | | |
|  | TRANSITIONS | | Ryan Diffley is now a legislative assistant to Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.). He previously was a senior legislative assistant for Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga.). … | | TODAY IN CONGRESS | | The House gavels in at 10 a.m., with first votes expected around 5 p.m. Today's agenda: https://bit.ly/3kFkw6w. The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to resume consideration of the nomination of Stephen Vaden to be a judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade. They will vote on whether to invoke cloture on Vaden's nomination at 11 a.m. Further votes are expected during today's session. | | AROUND THE HILL | | Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Senate Democrats hold a press call to unveil the Protect Our Heroes Act, legislation to increase the production of critical PPE, at 11 a.m. | | TRIVIA | | TUESDAY'S WINNER: Colleen Shogan was the first person to guess that Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, Woodrow Wilson, John Adams and John Quincy Adams were alive at the time their successors were inaugurated, but did not attend the inauguration. TODAY'S QUESTION: From Colleen: Which president was the first to send a pardoned turkey to a sanctuary or farm and in what year? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess to mzanona@politico.com. GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning. | | A message from American Land Title Association: While the work of land title professionals is behind-the-scenes, and they may sometimes go unseen, the joy from what they do can be seen on the smiling faces of millions of Americans when they finally get the title of "homeowner." Land title professionals have safeguarded the American dream for more than 125 years. Meet the people who help protect homebuyers and sellers when they make the most important financial decision of their lives. Learn more | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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