Axios Sneak Peek: Senate retirements could attract GOP troublemakers ... Charting congressional diversity

Plus: Axios Re:Cap - How the pandemic shook Facebook | Monday, March 08, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By McDonald's   Axios Sneak Peek By Alayna Treene, Hans Nichols and Kadia Goba ·Mar 08, 2021 Welcome back to Sneak. Let's get right to it. Today's newsletter — edited by Glen Johnson — is 615 words, a 2-minute read.     1 big thing: Senate retirements could attract GOP troublemakers Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.). Photo: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images   Sen. Roy Blunt's retirement highlights the twin challenge facing Senate Republicans: finding good replacement candidates and avoiding a pathway for potential troublemakers to join their ranks, Axios' Alayna Treene writes. Why it matters: While the midterm elections are supposed to be a boon to the party out of power, the recent run of retirements — which may not be over — is upending that assumption for the GOP in 2022. People with sharp rhetoric and outlandish style who see themselves as Trumpian figures — similar to Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert in the House — may be attracted to the Republican Senate races. And there's no question Donald Trump will want a say in each of the resulting primaries. The question: is the GOP more (Josh) Hawley than Blunt? Go deeper.     2. Staff for retiring Republicans a K Street prize Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios   The retirements of those high-profile Senate Republicans mean a lot of experienced staffers will soon be seeking new jobs, and Washington lobbying and public affairs firms are eyeing a potential glut of top-notch talent, Axios' Lachlan Markay writes. Why it matters: Blunt is the fifth Republican dealmaker in the Senate to announce his retirement next year. Staffers left behind who can navigate the upper chamber of Congress will be gold for the city's influence industry. What they're saying: Multiple lobbyists and public affairs executives told Axios many of staffers will simply move to other Senate offices. But those who choose to market their skills and experience in the private sector will be prized commodities. "Money follows the talent," said veteran GOP strategist Ron Bonjean. Go deeper.     3. Congressional diversity growing — slowly Data: Brookings Institution and Pew Research Center; Note: No data on Native Americans in Congress before the 107th Congress; Chart: Danielle Alberti/Axios The number of non-white senators and House members in the 535-seat Congress has been growing steadily in the past several decades — but representation largely lags behind the overall U.S. population, Axios' Stef Kight reports. Why it matters: Non-whites find it harder to break into the power system because of structural barriers such as the need to quit a job to campaign full time for office, as Axios reported in its latest Hard Truths Deep Dive. A sign of progress: In the House of Representatives, the share of Black lawmakers is now nearly equal to the percentage of the U.S. population who are Black. Yes, but: The share of Congress members who are Hispanic has only grown from 3.6% to 9% during the past two decades — still less than half of their 18.5% representation in the overall population.     A message from McDonald's $125MM+ in tuition assistance     Over 45,000 McDonald's restaurant employees have received tuition assistance to help pay for college — and over $125 million has been awarded for both college and high school tuition assistance programs. Hear how tuition assistance helped the Fluker sisters.     4. 1 year later: How the pandemic shook Facebook Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Paul Marotta/Getty Image   One year into the virus crisis, Axios Re:Cap is looking back at the week of March 9, 2020 — when high-profile leaders were forced to make consequential choices that upended our lives and society. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg thought Mark Zuckerberg was "nuts" when he raised the possibility in January 2020 that 50,000 Facebook employees might have to work from home. But by March 6, they were. What she's saying: "I thought he was nuts. I was like, 'What do you mean there'd be a pandemic. What's a pandemic? And would we really work from home?' But he said, 'No, no. It's possible that everyone's going to have to, like, go home,'" Sandberg says in an interview with Axios Re:Cap. What to watch: Sandberg said Facebook is exploring more work-from-home options but added she doesn't know what will happen with remote work in general. "We had talked about people working remotely before, and we didn't think it was possible," she said. "Being away is still hard, I think. I don't know what's going to happen with work travel. I don't know how much more we're all going to do." 🎧 Listen to the full episode, including what Sandberg said about the pandemic's impact on women. Go deeper all week: Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner (Tuesday); NBA Commissioner Adam Silver (Wednesday); Anthony Fauci (Friday). Free subscription here.     5. Pic du jour Photo: Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images   Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) stores her cellphone today before a classified briefing about the Jan. 6 Capitol breach.     A message from McDonald's $125MM+ in tuition assistance     Over 45,000 McDonald's restaurant employees have received tuition assistance to help pay for college — and over $125 million has been awarded for both college and high school tuition assistance programs. Hear how tuition assistance helped the Fluker sisters.   🥳 Thanks for reading. A reminder: you can sign up for any of Axios' free newsletters by clicking here.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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