| | | | | |  | | By Andrew Desiderio | Presented by |  | | | What on Earth was Ted Cruz thinking? In the middle of an unprecedented natural disaster in his state, the Texas Republican jetted off to Cancun with his family. (Rule #1 of public life: Always show your face during a crisis.) Then, he implied he was only planning to accompany his wife and daughters to the Mexican resort city and then return to Texas the next day. All available evidence, independent reporting, and sheer common sense contradicted that explanation — which is why Cruz took it all back when he landed in Houston last night and embarked on an apology media tour. There are some lessons to be learned here for any politician; let's take a closer look. | | A message from Save The Inventor: Big Tech and large corporations are stealing ideas and innovations – we call them Patent Pirates. These organizations are infringing on inventor's patents in deliberate and damaging ways. As inventors, we need to protect each other. That's why we support the STRONGER Patents Act. This bipartisan bill will restore the protections our inventors, universities, and start-ups need to stop patent pirates in their tracks. Today's pirates don't wield a cutlass. They steal ideas. Learn more. | | | THE OFFENSE: It sends a terrible message to your constituents when you're fleeing the state (the country!) while they're suffering from widespread power outages, sub-freezing temperatures with no ability to heat their homes, and a shortage of food — and it doesn't matter the reason. At best, it's political malpractice; at worst, all-out negligence. But it's not just about the optics here. Some defenders of Cruz have insisted that senators don't play a big role anyway when their state is ravaged by mother nature. But that couldn't be further from the truth. Senators wield tremendous power during these events, often coordinating with the federal government on recovery and response efforts to supplement state-level work. In this case, Texas needs all the federal help it can get, as it deals with severe damage to its infrastructure and the power grid. It's also one of the few times when lawmakers put their political differences aside and work together on behalf of their shared constituents — often in life-or-death circumstances. Matt Glassman, a senior fellow at Georgetown's Government Affairs Institute, put it this way: "In the legislature, they are one of 435 or 100. In a local emergency, they are conduit to tons of resources and a resource who can effectively coordinate certain sets of actors and lean on people to make things happen. Can very much turn into administrators." Cruz later told Sean Hannity that he thought he would be able to work remotely through the weekend, but ultimately concluded, "You need to be here on the ground," adding: "As much as you can do on the phone and Zoom, you need to be there." THE MEA CULPA: Speaking to a reporter at the airport in Cancun, Cruz said his daughters asked him "yesterday" — meaning Wednesday — "if they could take a trip with some friends," and that he and his wife Heidi agreed. Cruz said he "dropped them off" and was heading back to Texas, suggesting that that was the plan all along. Later, as the backlash began to materialize further, Cruz acknowledged that he had planned to be in Cancun through the weekend and only changed his flight on Thursday morning. "I have to admit, I started having second thoughts almost the moment I sat down on the plane," Cruz said after landing back in Houston. "Frankly, leaving when so many Texans were hurting didn't feel right, and so I changed my return flight and flew back on the first available flight I could take." CRUZ CONTROL: Frankly, Cruz has had a pretty rough start to 2021. He's still facing heat — and now an Ethics Committee investigation — for his objections to the certification of Joe Biden's Electoral College victory, an effort that drew widespread condemnation from Republicans including Mitch McConnell. Republicans' silence on Cruz's Cancun flub on Thursday — and Sen. John Cornyn's (R-Texas) apparent sub-tweets — underscores Cruz's long-standing status as one of the more polarizing figures in the Senate GOP conference. We've got more for you here on what was a completely avoidable disaster for Cruz: http://politi.co/2ZwUtpM Related: "Top Texas Republicans on the ropes after tone-deaf storm response," by Marc Caputo http://politi.co/37thNJk
| | | | TUNE IN TO GLOBAL TRANSLATIONS: Our Global Translations podcast, presented by Citi, examines the long-term costs of the short-term thinking that drives many political and business decisions. The world has long been beset by big problems that defy political boundaries, and these issues have exploded over the past year amid a global pandemic. This podcast helps to identify and understand the impediments to smart policymaking. Subscribe and start listening today. | | | | | BIDEN'S IMMIGRATION PUSH — President Joe Biden's long-awaited immigration bill is here, but reality quickly set in on Thursday. The legislation, which provides a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, is a win for progressives but isn't likely to attract any support from Republicans, making it almost impossible to push through in the Senate, where it would need 60 votes. A White House official noted that "the legislative process can look different on the other end of where it starts," leaving open the possibility that the bill gets broken up into targeted measures. Speaker Nancy Pelosi seemed open to the idea: "There are others who want to do piecemeal and that may be a good approach today. That's up for the Congress to decide." Laura Barrón-López, Heather, and Anita Kumar have the very latest: http://politi.co/3pxaGpB SOMEWHERE, MCCONNELL SMILES — Ivanka Trump has told Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) that she won't challenge him in the GOP primary next year, according to a spokesman for Rubio. That's welcome news not only for Rubio, who effectively gets a field-clearing gesture from the former president's daughter, but also for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is eager to avoid messy primaries that could divide the party ahead of the 2022 general election. Rubio, 49, has been outspoken recently about the future of the GOP as he lays the groundwork for a potential 2024 presidential bid. Details on the Ivanka-Marco chat, from your fill-in Huddle host: http://politi.co/3bkDYCF SPEAKING OF PRIMARIES… The GOP primary to succeed retiring Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) is already shaping up to be a proxy fight between traditional Republicans and Trump loyalists. While Steve Bannon says that "any candidate who wants to win in Pennsylvania in 2022 must be full Trump MAGA," former GOP Rep. Ryan Costello, a moderate considering a Senate bid, is rushing to Toomey's defense amid criticism of his vote to convict Trump in the Senate's impeachment trial. Ex-Trump aides are already planning an offensive against Costello, painting him as a "Never-Trumper." Holly Otterbein has the story from Philadelphia: http://politi.co/3k2tR9C TO WIT… Sen. John Thune, the No. 2 Senate Republican, is warning his party against engaging in "cancel culture" against Republicans who voted to impeach or convict Trump. "If we're going to criticize the media and the left for cancel culture, we can't be doing that ourselves," Thune said, adding that while grassroots conservatives might want to see Trump-like candidates, "we're going to be looking for candidates that are electable." More from the AP's Stephen Groves in Pierre, S.D.: http://bit.ly/3dtZJTw
| | | | A message from Save The Inventor:   | | | HAPPY Friday! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill on this Feb. 19. I'm Andrew Desiderio, filling in for Olivia on this chilly, icy Friday. THURSDAY'S MOST CLICKED: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's story about Bucks executive Alex Lasry entering the U.S. Senate race in Wisconsin was the big winner. JUMP IN, EVERYONE! — Freshman Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) has become such a lightning rod in Washington that she's already drawing a boatload of Democratic challengers. On Thursday, state Rep. Donald Valdez became the seventh Democrat to jump in the race. "With the rhetoric that's coming from Boebert, I can't sit here and not engage," he said. Valdez joins state Sen. Kerry Donovan and five others in the crowded field of challengers. As the Colorado Sun notes, the district could be re-drawn before the 2022 campaign gets into full swing, but there's enthusiasm on the left to oust Boebert, who supported the former president's unfounded election fraud claims and has stirred up controversy over his insistence about carrying a gun throughout the Capitol. The Colorado Sun has more: http://bit.ly/2M2pUVS 'PEOPLE JUST WANT RESULTS' — The story of Covid-19 aid on Capitol Hill has been pretty simple for about a year now: Don't get your hopes up. When Biden came into office and Democrats took control of the Senate after sweeping the Georgia runoffs, the promise to Americans was immediate aid. But even if Biden and congressional Democrats meet their goal to finish up the massive relief package next month, it'll feel too late for Americans who have been forced out of work due to the pandemic. "After a really long political season, that went all the way into 2021, people just want results," Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said. There are already obstacles to getting this done within a month, including the question of whether a $15 minimum wage boost will make it into the final package — so there's little room for error as Congress stares down the unemployment insurance cliff in mid-March. Our POLITICO Pro team takes you up to speed: http://politi.co/2NAOJZv PRAYERS — Bob Dole — the 97-year-old former GOP presidential nominee, Senate majority leader, and World War II hero — announced on Thursday that he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer and will begin treatment next week. "While I certainly have some hurdles ahead, I also know that I join millions of Americans who face significant health challenges of their own," Dole said in a statement. FIRST IN HUDDLE — Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, is endorsing Shontel Brown in the Democratic primary in the special election to succeed Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), who was nominated to be the secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Brown is a self-described protege of Fudge, and currently serves on the Cuyahoga County council. She's facing off against several candidates, including former state Sen. Nina Turner, an early supporter of Sen. Bernie Sanders' presidential ambitions. | | | | NEW – "THE RECAST" NEWSLETTER: Power dynamics are changing. "Influence" is changing. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that all politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. "The Recast" is our new twice-weekly newsletter that breaks down how race and identity are recasting politics, policy, and power in America. And POLITICO is recasting how we report on this crucial intersection, bringing you fresh insights, scoops, dispatches from across the country, and new voices that challenge "business as usual." Don't miss out on this important new newsletter, SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | TRANSITIONS Jose Juan Villalvazo is joining Sen. Alex Padilla's office as defense and foreign policy adviser after previously serving as a military LA in Rep. Lori Trahan's office. TODAY IN CONGRESS The House is not in session. The Senate will gavel in for a pro forma session at 10:15 a.m. AROUND THE HILL 11:30 a.m.: Pelosi and members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) hold a virtual news conference on the recent spike in anti-Asian hate crimes. COMING UP: Join Olivia on POLITICO Live for "Red, Fresh and Blue" on Tuesday Feb. 22nd at 10 a.m. She'll be doing live interviews with newly elected members of Congress, Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) and Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Ga.) on how they are finding their footing and looking to make their mark after a tumultuous start to their first term in office. Register to watch live here. TRIVIA THURSDAY'S WINNER: Nick Pearson was the first person to correctly guess that there have been 45 individuals, including Joe Biden, who have served as president of the United States because Grover Cleveland served as two non-consecutive terms (as the 24th and 27th POTUS). TODAY'S QUESTION: From Nick: Name the U.S. senator who succeeded Speaker Newt Gingrich and preceded future Cabinet Secretary Tom Price. The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answer to obeavers@politico.com. GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning. Follow Olivia on Twitter: @Olivia_Beavers | | A message from Save The Inventor: Big Tech is stealing ideas and innovations – we call these abusers Patent Pirates.
These corporations have determined that it's simpler to steal a patent owner's idea, and drag out interminably any legal challenge in court, than it is to simply license the use of an invention. They know they can use their wealth, resources, and weakened patent laws to drag out legal proceedings until small inventors give up or go under.
To get away with this behavior, they have perpetuated the notion that patent litigation is out of control. By spreading this false narrative, they have found support in the courts and in Congress for changes that have weakened patent rights and the ability of inventors to protect their patented innovations.
We need to support the STRONGER Patents Act. This bipartisan bill will restore the protections our inventors, universities, and start-ups need to stop patent pirates in their tracks. Learn more. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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