News: Stoic or scorched-earth? McCarthy’s Jan. 6 choice

Wednesday, July 7, 2021

Stoic or scorched-earth? McCarthy’s Jan. 6 choice

Jul 07, 2021

With Olivia Beavers.

MCCARTHY'S IDENTITY CRISIS MOMENT: House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy will soon have to decide which of his five members he'll tap for the House Democrats' high-profile investigation into Jan. 6 riots. So, will McCarthy (R-Calif.) go the rabble-rouser route, or will he pick steady voices who can go head-to-head with Democrats?

We all know he's got plenty of flamethrowers eager to hop on the panel, e.g. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.). But GOP members say they believe McCarthy sees this as a serious matter for his party and that he knows to pick members who can successfully challenge Democrats' strategy — rather than those who have excelled at provocation and political theater.

What could be problematic, however, is that some Republicans who'd qualify under the more "serious" umbrella are privately expressing reluctance, citing the downsides of a months, or even years-long investigation, and seeing little upsides in the political thorny role. Still, multiple Republicans say they will serve if asked by the GOP leader — even if they have to go toe to toe with one of their own: Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.).

McCarthy's path forward isn't necessarily binary, and he can still buck the committee altogether — though, we are confident he won't, as we're told he's already had some informal convos with members about serving on the panel. Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.), who served on the House Judiciary Committee during the first Trump impeachment, said he'd rather focus on debating issues like climate or criminal justice reform. "But that being said, we have to participate in it, right?" Armstrong told Olivia. "I mean we have to... and we need good solid members on that."

Of course, the GOP minority leader's picks will reveal more than just his party's narrative about the insurrection, with many Republicans — and Democrats — searching for clues about what he could be like as a potential speaker come 2023. Read the rest from Olivia here: https://politi.co/3qPOGbI

Related : Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), who chairs the Jan. 6 panel, told MSNBC on Tuesday that everything is on the table when it comes to investigating the attack and learning who was at fault. "Whether there were outside forces, inside forces — we will look at all of it," per NBC's Sahil Kapur.

"McCarthy nailing down GOP members for Capitol riot panel as Republicans' defense strategy comes into view," via CNN's Melanie Zanona https://cnn.it/3AydMAq.

MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY — Another progressive House Democrat has announced a red line when it comes to Congress's infrastructure bill(s). Rep. Jesús "Chuy" García of Illinois tells The Hill's Rafael Bernal that he'll only support his party's budget bill if it includes a provision to grant a pathway to citizenship to a swath of America's undocumented population. (That's assuming that the parliamentarian does allow this policy to pass muster under the Senate's rules, our pal Rafael later clarified.) Full story: https://bit.ly/3ytsYgj.

Why it matters: García is far from the only progressive (or Hispanic Caucus member) who wants this in the bill. And Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will probably only be able to lose three Dems on the bill's final passage.

Why it doesn't: House Budget Chair John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) put it this way on MSNBC yesterday, responding to progressives like Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) who have criticized his party's infrastructure plans: "I'm not sure that Congressman Bowman has talked to Nancy Pelosi yet but I'm sure that conversation will happen at some point. And she is a very, very convincing leader."

Related: "In hunt for infrastructure deal, every Dem has leverage," via the AP's Alan Fram https://bit.ly/36fmQMC. "With McCain in mind, Sinema reaches for bipartisanship," via the AP's Lisa Mascaro and Nicholas Riccardi https://bit.ly/2UwH4Pa.

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THE GRIM REAPER SAYS RIP TO THE REST OF YOUR JULY PLANS: Speaking in Kentucky on Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) laid out the stakes for Congress's infrastructure fight: "This is going to be a hell of a fight over what this country ought to look like in the future. And it's all going to unfold here in the next few weeks."

McConnell also had a warning for Democrats ahead of what's expected to be a grueling budget fight this summer: "There is a process by which they could pass this bill without a single Republican. But we're going to make it hard for 'em."

The GOP leader still isn't revealing his hand on a potential infrastructure deal with Biden. But in an interview with The Atlantic's Peter Nicholas, McConnell said: "If this infrastructure bill goes somewhere, believe me, I'll be in the middle of it."

Also in that Atlantic profile, more on McConnell's SCOTUS legacy (In Sen. Dick Durbin's words: "He's prepared to defy any rule, tradition, or precedent to make sure that he can personally choose the next Supreme Court."), his shocking Jan. 6 speech, his dedication to the filibuster, his opposition of Democrats' voting rights push (a "shirts and skins" issue.) Read the rest: https://bit.ly/36hvt9r

More MM: "Mitch McConnell Admits Democrats Deserve All The Credit For $4 Billion Coming To Kentucky," by Huffington Post's Amanda Terkel https://bit.ly/3wvXvcd

GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday July 7, where the news cycle is about as slow as I-95 over the July Fourth weekend. And that's just dandy for your fill-in host, Sarah Ferris.

MONDAY'S MOST CLICKED: The Hill's story on growing Dem scrutiny over some of the pay-fors for the bipartisan spending deal.

CAMPAIGN CORNER

— "Mike Pompeo to headline SC GOP's annual fundraiser, raising presidential suspicions," by McClatchy D.C.'s Maayan Schechter https://bit.ly/3dLOXqU.

— GOP megadonor bankrolling super PAC for Eric Greitens by POLITICO's Alex Istenstadt https://politi.co/3ysO0eV.

— Democrat, Navy vet to challenge Jake LaTurner for 2nd District Congressional seat, via Kansas City Star's Katie Bernard https://bit.ly/3qQcDzG.

TWENTY THREE DAYS LATER — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Tuesday used a Nazi-era comparison in criticizing President Joe Biden's vaccination push, calling the individuals leading those efforts "medical brown shirts," per WaPo's Felicia Somnez. This comes roughly three weeks after Greene's apology and high-profile visit to the Holocaust Museum after her last Nazi comparison to the vaccines. https://wapo.st/3wrLwMp

LAW & ORDER — On the six month-mark of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol, Buzzfeed has tracked down exactly where those prosecutions stand so far https://bit.ly/3jQQY8X. The highlights:

— At least 535 people have been arrested and 70 jailed, as well as 13 plea deals and one person sentenced.

— Of those arrested, roughly 289 were charged with at least one felony count, 165 people were charged with assaulting or interfering with police, and 60 people charged with a weapons-related offense.

SMITHSONIAN BOUND — Rep. Andy Kim, the House Democrat who helped clean the Capitol until 3 a.m. the night of the insurrection — has donated the blue suit he wore that day to the Smithsonian Museum. Kim, an unflashy New Jerseyan, wrote an emotional explanation of why he decided to do it and how letters from across the country helped him come to terms with the riot and his role in it. Kim's Twitter thread here. The story behind the viral photo of Kim's cleanup here from NBC News.

One more on Jan. 6 aftermath: Morale is so low among Capitol Police officers that more than 75 officers have left since January 6, at a rate of about three per week, CNN reports https://cnn.it/3qQDdZo.

Alright, one more: "Rep. Paul Gosar wants to know who killed Ashli Babbitt? It's not hard to figure out," via the Arizona Republic.

GAETZ WAITS IT OUT — Rep. Matt Gaetz's associate, Joel Greenberg, has asked the judge to push back his sentencing for 90 days while Greenberg continues to cooperate with federal prosecutors. As the Daily Beast's Jose Pagliery puts it, Greenberg is effectively saying "he has so much evidence that he needs more than 44 days to share it" and that the investigation is far from over. https://bit.ly/3dM5NFZ

Greenberg, who is reportedly a witness in the ongoing investigation into Gaetz's alleged paid sexual relationship with a minor, is slated to be sentenced on Aug. 19.

FIRST IN HUDDLE: Winning For Women, an organization that seeks to elect Republican women, raised nearly $1 million for GOP House women sitting in critical seats during a joint fundraising event last week.

The RSVP list: The founder Annie Dickerson, along with Sylvie Legere and Linda McMahon, hosted the event, with GOP Reps. Stephanie Bice (Okla.), Jaime Herrera Beutler (Wash.), Ashley Hinson (Iowa), Young Kim (Calif.), Nancy Mace (S.C.), Nicole Malliotakis (N.Y.), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (Iowa), Maria Salazar (Fla.), Michelle Steel (Calif.), and Beth Van Duyne (Texas) participating. Rep. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), the GOP conference chair, also gave remarks.

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TRANSITIONS (& MORE!)

Over the weekend, House Veterans' Affairs Committee Democrats' Deputy Communications Director Jenni Geurink got engaged to House Science Committee Republicans' Staff/Press Assistant Garrett Littlejohn... bipartisanship is alive and well!

And POLITICO's own deputy Congress editor Kate Irby got engaged during a weekend trip in the Outer Banks! Multiple pics from Kate.

TODAY IN CONGRESS:

The House and Senate are out.

AROUND THE HILL

Sunburns.

TRIVIA

MONDAY'S WINNER: John Sullivan was the first person to correctly guess that Calvin Coolidge is the only president born on the Fourth of July.

TODAY'S QUESTION: from John: Name the child of Lithuanian immigrants who became an All-Big Ten basketball player, served in the Navy in World War II, served for 48 years in the House of Representatives, and helped establish the Holocaust Memorial Museum.

The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answers to sferris@politico.com

GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning.

Follow Sarah on Twitter: @sarahnferris