| | | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus | | | With Nicholas Wu. CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE IS BACK — After Covid restrictions and post-insurrection security measures kept peaceful demonstrators away for nearly two years, protests have returned to office buildings on Capitol Hill. Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) was among nine protesters arrested in Hart Thursday afternoon. The group was calling on the Senate to pass voting rights legislation. Beatty and a cohort of close to two dozen demonstrators chanted "end the filibuster" and "let the people vote" in the echoey atrium before Capitol Police warned and then restrained some protestors with zip-tie handcuffs. Nick was there and has a full report . "Today, I stood in solidarity with Black women across the country in defense of our constitutional right to vote," Beatty said in a statement later Thursday. "We have come too far and fought too hard to see everything systematically dismantled and restricted by those who wish to silence our voice." The Capitol Police said the group was arrested for violating a D.C. law that prohibits "crowding, obstructing, or incommoding." The scene of Capitol Police detaining a small number of nonviolent demonstrators, who had filed through metal detectors and cooperated with security screening, was in sharp contrast to the violence and destruction unleashed on Jan. 6, which resulted in few arrests on the scene. Demonstrations, sit-ins and arrests of activists used to be a regular feature of life on Capitol Hill, a spectacle or a nuisance, depending on where lawmakers and staff needed to be. But the dual threats of Covid and the assault on the Capitol on Jan. 6 changed the posture of the office buildings that were once open to the public but now remain limited to staff, lawmakers and visitors with specific business (Thursday's demonstrators were escorted by Beatty). Top security officials at the Capitol, along with key lawmakers, are still discussing what access to the office buildings will look like in the future. Urging emergency investment in Capitol security earlier this week, Senate Appropriations Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) also noted the need for access. "It's important that the Capitol campus that I first saw as a teenager with my mother and father, remain open for citizens from all walks of life to come and enjoy. It's their democracy, after all," he said. There's a prolific history of members of Congress participating in civil disobedience while in office, but typically off-campus. Beatty was pepper sprayed in June 2020 in Ohio protesting the police killing of George Floyd. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), was arrested during a 2018 demonstration in Hart protesting the Trump administration's immigration policies. Both Jayapal and Beatty were charged with "crowding, obstructing, or incommoding" their own workplace. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO WOMEN RULE : The Women Rule newsletter explores how women, in Washington and beyond, shape the world, and how the news — from the pandemic to the latest laws coming out of statehouses — impacts women. With expert policy analysis, incisive interviews and revelatory recommendations on what to read and whom to watch, this is a must-read for executives, professionals and rising leaders to understand how what happens today affects the future for women and girls. Subscribe to the Women Rule newsletter today. | | | | | IMMIGRATION LEAVING THE STATION?— Immigration legislation has been stuck in neutral for years, despite bipartisan agreement that significant changes to the system are needed. Now, Democrats are planning to try to hitch immigration provisions onto the massive spending bill they plan to pass along party lines. Key Democrats have White House backing to tuck certain immigration priorities into the forthcoming $3.5 trillion spending bill, including a pathway to citizenship for clearly designated groups, such as Dreamers who were brought to the U.S. as children and farmworkers already living here. The finicky rules of reconciliation could still prove to be a stumbling block for what some Democrats see as their only chance to make impactful changes to immigration laws this congress. And, of course, Republicans are sure to contest the tactic. The current parliamentarian, a former immigration lawyer, has not yet commented on Democrats' tactics. But she did strip out Democrats' minimum wage hike in a coronavirus aid bill moving under reconciliation earlier this year, Sarah, Burgess and Laura Barrón-López noted Thursday. | | A message from AARP: Millions of family caregivers are struggling to provide care for their older parents and spouses. Many are sacrificing their income, tapping into life savings, and taking on debt to keep their loved ones safe—at home and out of nursing homes that could put their lives at risk. Family caregivers are reaching their breaking point. Congress must pass the Credit for Caring Act now to give caregivers some of the relief they desperately need. Learn more. | | | TGIF! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Friday, July 16. Have a great weekend. THURSDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Vulnerable House Democrats call for sweeping drug pricing reforms in spending plan from Sarah. AOC WARNING BELL — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) called the $3.5 trillion budget resolution an "enormous victory" for progressives on Capitol Hill. "If it wasn't for progressives in the House, we probably would be stuck with that tiny, pathetic bipartisan bill alone," she told a virtual town hall Thursday night. She flexed the power of the progressives, warning that their votes are make or break for the massive package. "House progressives are standing up," she said. "We will tank the bipartisan infrastructure bill unless we will also pass the reconciliation bill." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) can't afford to lose more than four Democratic votes to get the $579 billion infrastructure plan passed in her chamber. "If Manchin, and in the Senate, if they approve our reconciliation bill we will approve their bipartisan bill," Ocasio-Cortez said. "And if they try to strip immigration reform, if they try to, you know, claw back on childcare, climate action, etc., then we're at an impasse. It's a no-go." | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO "THE RECAST" TODAY: Power is shifting in Washington and in communities across the country. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. The Recast is a twice-weekly newsletter that explores the changing power dynamics in Washington and breaks down how race and identity are recasting politics and policy in America. Get fresh insights, scoops and dispatches on this crucial intersection from across the country and hear critical new voices that challenge business as usual. Don't miss out, SUBSCRIBE . Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | | MILITARY JUSTICE OVERHAUL — Sen Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) has received assurances from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that her bill to overhaul how the military prosecutes serious crimes will likely receive a vote in the Senate in the fall. "He supports the measure. He has voted for it in the past," Gillibrand said. "And he has told me that he will give me a vote." Gillibrand has been pushing for almost a decade to remove military commanders' authority to prosecute major crimes as sexual assault remains a serious issue within the ranks. Her proposal would remove decisions involving prosecution from the chain of command, giving independent military prosecutors the responsibility for evaluating cases to pursue. The military justice shakeup has solid odds in the senate, where Gillibrand has secured 65 cosponsors, including 21 Republicans. Connor O'Brien has the latest on where things stand. SCREEN TIME: We've seen lawmakers vote remotely from moving cars, trains, weird makeshift offices and not fully dressed. But on Thursday Rep. Maria Salazar (R-Fla.) voted at a House Foreign Affairs Committee markup while on FaceTime with a staffer, who held up the video call to a computer tuned into the committee's markup via WebEx. How many screens is too many screens? | | | |   | | | TRANSITIONS Steve Kelley, communications director for Sen. Pat Toomey's (R-Pa.), is leaving Capitol Hill to work for Amazon doing public relations work in the Philadelphia area. Phillip Pinegar has joined Rep. Victoria Spartz's (R-Ind.) office as legislative director (previously in then-VP Mike Pence's office), replacing Erica Barker, who has moved up to be deputy chief of staff and counsel. Sydney Thomas is now on Sen. Mike Lee's (R-Utah) team as comms director for the Joint Economic Committee. She previously was comms director for Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.). TODAY IN CONGRESS The House is out after a quick pro forma. The Senate is out. AROUND THE HILL Nothing today. TRIVIA THURSDAY'S WINNER: Dawson Hobbes answered correctly that before being elected to the Senate, Joe Manchin (R-W.Va.) served as West Virginia's Governor, Secretary of State and also as a state legislator. TODAY'S QUESTION: From Dawson: Marauding pigs caused a rupture in diplomatic relations between the Republic of Texas and what foreign nation, generally referred to as the "Pig War"? Bonus if you can name the owner of the pigs or his business. The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answers to ktullymcmanus@politico.com. GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning. Follow Katherine on Twitter @ktullymcmanus. | | A message from AARP: Family Caregivers Need Help Now
Caring for loved ones shouldn't lead to bankruptcy and financial ruin. But that is exactly what is happening for too many family caregivers. The financial strain of caregiving is immense, and it is unacceptable that more isn't being done to provide support for them. That's why AARP is fighting for America's 48 million family caregivers and their loved ones who depend on their care to survive. Family caregivers nationwide spend over one-quarter of their income, on average, providing this essential care. Congress must pass the Credit for Caring Act to help alleviate some of the financial strain of caregiving.
Tell Congress to act now to help protect family caregivers from financial devastation. Tell Congress to pass the Credit for Caring Act. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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