| | | | | |  | | By Olivia Beavers | Presented by |  | | | With an assist from Sarah Ferris POLICING PROBLEMS: Every single House Democrat voted for the party's sweeping policing reform bill last summer. But as Dems prepare to pass it again next week, their whip count is causing some headaches, Heather Caygle and Sarah Ferris report. A group of between 6 to 12 moderate Democrats is pressuring leadership this week to modify language on a key part of the bill: its rollback of the "qualified immunity" that protects police officers from civil lawsuits on the job. Their argument? There's no point in causing heartburn on the House side over such a thorny provision, when it makes the whole bill DOA in the Senate anyways. The dynamics are different with Joe Biden in the White House — plus, many remember all too well how sharp those kinds of policing attack ads can be on the campaign trail. "This issue is far too important to just have a messaging bill. We need this to get to the president's desk," said Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), who was part of bipartisan talks on last summer's bill. But leaders of that bill, namely, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.), aren't budging on the qualified immunity piece — at least, not until it passes the House. And she didn't mince words on some of the mods' political fears: "I don't know how many more people need to be killed," she said. "I don't think that you pass legislation or support legislation based on your fear of a future campaign ad." Still, Bass isn't ruling out any kind of change , noting that she's just begun resuming bipartisan talks in both the House and Senate on what kind of bill can actually make it into law. And Gottheimer and others aren't saying whether they'd tank the whole thing next week, voting down the rule or against it on the floor. But few senior Dems expect that to happen, and say the bill will likely be on track to pass next week. It's perhaps the clearest example yet of how Democrats are adjusting to new dynamics with Washington entirely in their control, but with those pesky 10 votes in the Senate still controlling the agenda. It's also a clear display of the dilemma Democrats face in the House — just a handful of members can take down any bill, but so far, no one is willing to deploy their power that way. Heather and Sarah with the story: https://politi.co/3qTLkDK
| | | | A message from Walmart: The CDC selected Walmart and Sam's Club to help administer COVID-19 vaccines in communities across the United States. With more than 4,000 locations in underserved communities, Walmart can administer vaccines in hard-to-reach parts of the country. | | | PHONE BUDDIES: Former VP Mike Pence told members of the Republican Study Committee (RSC) yesterday that he has been in touch regularly with Trump since January 20, per RSC chair Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.). Banks said Pence indicated to the group that he will be taking a "very active" role in defending the Trump-Pence record in the "months and years to come," with plans to launch a political organization in the near future. "I think we're going to be hearing a lot more from Mike Pence in the near future," Banks teased. The Indiana Republican also noted that Pence spoke highly of the former president and seemed in high spirits. (This comes after Trump implied in a tweet that Pence was a "coward" for refusing to toss out the election results, and after a pro-Trump mob chanting "hang Mike Pence" as the Capitol was breached forced the VP to flee for his life.) Related: Trump acolyte Stephen Miller, who opposes almost all forms of immigration, will meet with the RSC today along with Tom Homan and Mark Morgan, two former top Trump immigration officials, as Republican look to challenge Biden's sweeping immigration overhaul, Meredith McGraw and Gabby Orr report. More on that here: http://politi.co/3urL2pV GOING POSTAL: Weeks of friction between the two parties boiled over in the House on Tuesday night, and at the center of it was a post office in Tupelo, Mississippi. Here's the backstory from Sarah and Heather: Over the weekend, Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) grew furious that the House planned to take up a suspension bill from Rep. Trent Kelly — a Republican who met with a group on Jan. 6 that later stormed the Capitol and who also voted against certifying Biden's election win after the deadly assault. Some of Casten's fellow Democrats warned him against trying to block the measure, fearing it could be the end of suspension bills — a process that's critical to keeping the trains running in the House. But he went ahead with it, surprising his colleagues and forcing Dem leadership into a last-minute scramble to save the bill. In a note to members, Casten's chief said the "willingness to collaborate can only extend so far" and that Kelly's vote to overturn the election results on Jan. 6 "was a bridge too far." In the end, just 15 Democrats voted "no," including the House's most progressive members. Dem leaders saved the bill, quickly distributing a whip notice to urge members to support it, and even calling on House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) to help turn out the votes. The issue is far from resolved within the caucus, many members and senior aides tell us. Related: Conservatives use new tack to target voting machines by Axios' Lachlan Markay: http://bit.ly/3bB01oS
| | | | 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. Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | | HAPPY WEDNESDAY! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill on this Feb. 24, where Sen. Kyrsten Sinema doesn't mind breaking the internet. TUESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: The Times Union's story on which Republicans are considering a 2022 challenge against Cuomo was the winner. Member/Staffer You Should Know: Huddlers! Thank you to those who have responded. I am putting the emails in a special folder, including the Huddler who pitched that I spotlight an office puppy. Which member or staffer would YOU like to see spotlighted next? Send names to my Suggestion Box --> Obeavers@politico.com WATCH: As part of POLITICO's "Red, fresh and blue" series, your Huddle host interviewed freshman Reps. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) and Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Ga.) in back-to-back interviews about their unprecedented start in Congress. Check it out. http://politi.co/2ZHncZj GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY: House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced the House will vote on FRIDAY on Biden's Covid relief bill, tweeting that Dems are "moving swiftly to see it enacted into law." Also on tap? The Senate parliamentarian's decision on whether minimum wage hike can be included in Biden's Covid relief package as part of the reconciliation process — though that determination could also be made tomorrow. Related Reads: In stimulus debate, Senate Parliamentarian holds broad sway by NYT's Emily Cochrane: http://nyti.ms/3bBAEU4 | House Democrats prep changes to coronavirus relief package by Roll Call's Paul Krawzak: http://bit.ly/2ZHj6jK | Democratic congressman Khanna under GOP fire proposes small-business tax credits to help with $15 minimum wage by the Washington Examiner: http://washex.am/3dHbeqw BURNING QUESTIONS: Democrats already know what their next steps are after top security officials testified for five hours before the Senate yesterday: Hear from Pentagon, Homeland Security officials and FBI officials. Sens. Gary Peters (Mich.) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), who chair the two committees spearheading the probe, say they plan to immediately seek testimony for next week — though they declined to name specific individuals so far. Why? Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund and acting D.C. police chief Robert Contee described to senators how top Pentagon leaders worried about the "optics" of sending armed troops to the Capitol during a conference call on the day of the attack, even as the police chiefs emphasized how their security forces desperately needed backup. Contee said the DOD's response left him "literally stunned." The four witnesses all also agreed the intelligence they received ahead of time did not detail the types of violence and outright lawlessness they witnessed that day. BUT Senators did not touch a series of burning questions during the hearing, per Kyle Cheney and Andrew Desiderio, who provide a list of outstanding Q's here: http://politi.co/3qTLkDK Related Reads: Optics aren't everything. Sometimes they are the only thing by WaPo's Robin Givhan: http://wapo.st/3bwV54o | More than $30 million needed for riot aftermath and increased Capitol security, official says in House testimony by CNN's Annie Grayer: http://cnn.it/3pNRAfc MAKE IT CLEAR: Speaking at the Reagan Institute, GOP Conference chair Rep. Liz Cheney (Wy.) emphasized it's important to "ignore the temptation to look away" after Jan. 6, but she argues Republicans must make it clear they "aren't the party of white supremacy." CBS has more on her remarks: http://cbsn.ws/2ZYUZ0h WON'T FOLD: Ante in, folks. Republicans are betting voters won't punish them for opposing Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill — an approach that has Democrats baffled as polls make them increasingly confident they have a strong hand. The best defense: Republicans instead hope to wield voters' frustrations over schools remaining closed as a political weapon against Democrats, particularly in suburban battlegrounds next cycle. Plus, they can also blame Biden for excluding them from the legislative process. And as Banks told your Huddle host when asked if Republicans feared Dem messaging on this: "I'm not scared at all … it's clear that this is a massive overreach." Melanie and Burgess have the deets: http://politi.co/3dKC15p R-VERIFIED MIN WAGE PLAN: GOP Sens. Mitt Romney (Utah) and Tom Cotton (Ark.) unveiled a bill Tuesday called the Higher Wages for American Workers Act, which proposes a $10 wage phased in through 2025 with an E-Verify system that they argue would slash incentives of hiring illegal immigrants and preserve American jobs. USAToday's Ledyard King has more: http://bit.ly/3pN9sXt SHE'S GOING THERE: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) jumps into the immigration debate, and it likely isn't going to be received well from moderates: "Our immigration system is built on a carceral framework" she tweeted yesterday, calling for a "bold reimagination" of the system including arguing "DHS shouldn't exist...ICE gotta go" and more. | | | |   | | | CAMPAIGN WATCH: - Romney predicts Trump would win the 2024 GOP nomination if he ran for president by NYT's Thomas Kaplan: http://nyti.ms/37F2Kwo - Perdue rules out Georgia Senate comeback in 2022 our James Arkin reports: http://politi.co/2MmkgOG - There are no Black women in the Senate. Will Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) run for a seat? She says she will make a decision very soon, The 19th's Errin Haines reports: http://bit.ly/3shajkK OOPH: "Just about everyone in Washington, D.C., could see that Neera Tanden's nomination to head the Office of Management and Budget was beleaguered from the beginning — everyone, that is, except the White House," Natasha Korecki and Burgess Everett report. Democrats and the White House hoped her apology for her infamous Twitter attacks, her personal story of once living on food stamps, the historic nature of her nomination, and other factors would be enough to get Republicans to back her…"But those bets weren't supplemented by an aggressive lobbying effort on Tanden's behalf," my colleagues write. Lots more here: http://politi.co/3utym1K Related: With Biden behind on confirmations, senators are overloaded with hearings: http://nyti.ms/3dIbZzM TOP-ED: Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) writes in the Post: "Biden promised bipartisanship. That rhetoric hasn't been matched by action." CABINET CORNER: Today: 10 a.m.: The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will vote on the nomination of Neera Tanden to be OMB director. The Senate Budget Committee will also vote on her nomination. And Williams Burns, the first career Foreign Service officer chosen to run the CIA, is slated to testify today before Senate Intel. 12 p.m.: The Senate convenes and will consider the nomination of Jennifer Granholm to be Biden's secretary of Energy. 2 p.m.: The Senate Finance Committee will have its second day of hearings on the nomination of Xavier Becerra to be Health and Human Services secretary. 2:30 p.m.: The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee will vote on the nomination of Isabella Casillas Guzman to be administrator of the Small Business Administration. Updates: - Confirmed: Linda Thomas-Greenfield was confirmed in the Senate as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations by a 78-20 vote, and so was Tom Vilsack, as Biden's Agriculture secretary in 92-7 vote. (One no vote on Vilsack? Sen. Bernie Sanders.) - Grilled: Deb Haaland faced questions over past criticism of Republicans at her confirmation hearing, while Becerra was separately pressed about his experience, the pandemic, abortion, during his confirmation hearing. Haaland Related Reads: Native Americans finally have a Cabinet nominee. Will an adopted Tlingit take her down? Julian Brave Noisecat with the POLITICO Mag story on Murkowski: http://politi.co/3dDSI2v | Indian Country gripped by Haaland hearing for top US post by AP's Felicia Fonseca: https://bit.ly/3aMNIXp - Also … Mitch McConnell plans to support Merrick Garland for attorney general.
| | | | HAPPENING TODAY - A PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW WITH REP. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY : Democrats clinched control of the House in November but did not achieve their expected gains, making it trickier to push forward with President Joe Biden's agenda. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.), the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair, joins Playbook co-authors Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels to discuss his plans for protecting Democrats' slim majority in 2022, lessons learned from the November campaign cycle, and the continued fallout from the Jan. 6 insurrection. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | TRANSITIONS Gabrielle Gould will serve as the first Democratic Women's Caucus (DWC) Executive Director. She most recently served as Staff Director of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Energy, the Environment & Cyber. Jenni Muns is joining Medicaid Health Plans of America as their associate director of comms and media relations. She was previously the press secretary for Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.). Jose Borjon has left Capitol Hill, where he has been a top aide to a number of members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, to become a senior policy adviser at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Casey Black is returning to her home state to be press secretary for Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee. She previously was a spokesperson for former Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.). Melissa Alvarado is joining Delta Air Lines as a director of government affairs. She was previously on the Democratic staff of the House Homeland Security Committee, where she worked on aviation, maritime and transportation security policy TODAY IN CONGRESS The House returns at noon for legislative business with votes beginning at 1:15 p.m. The Senate convenes at noon. AROUND THE HILL 10 a.m.: House Republican leadership will hold a news conference. 10:30 a.m.: House Democratic leadership will hold their news conference. 10 a.m.: The House Financial Services Committee will have a hearing on the state of the economy, featuring Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell. 10 a.m.: The House Oversight and Reform Committee will also have a hearing on the Postal Service featuring Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and other witnesses. 10:30 a.m.: The Heritage Foundation holds the virtual fourth annual Jay A. Parker lecture to honor the "founding father of the emerging black conservative movement" featuring Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Rep. Burgess Owens (R-Utah), and Heritage Foundation President Kay James. 12 p.m.: Playbook co-authors Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels will host a conversation on POLITICO Live with Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.), chair of the DCCC, focusing on plans for protecting Democrats' slim majority in 2022 and lessons learned from November. TRIVIA TUESDAY'S WINNER: Joe Kalmin was the first person to correctly guess that James Hogg was the Texas governor who championed the establishment of the Texas Railroad Commission and fought against railroad monopolies, but was ironically permanently injured in a railroad accident that caused injuries which plagued him for the rest of his life. TODAY'S QUESTION: From Joe: Who were the two candidates to take part in the first-ever U.S. presidential debate that was broadcasted nationwide? (Hint: It's not Nixon and JFK.) 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 Walmart: Walmart is gearing up to play a pivotal role in COVID-19 vaccine distribution. Over the last year, the retailer has been working with the CDC and HHS to prepare for the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine at scale.
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