News : Goodbye recess, hello August action in the House

Monday, August 23, 2021

Goodbye recess, hello August action in the House

Aug 23, 2021

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By Katherine Tully-McManus

Presented by

With Sarah Ferris, Heather Caygle and Marianne LeVine.

IT'S GOING DOWN (I'm yelling timber) — The House is briefly back this week to advance President Joe Biden's massive domestic agenda. But Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is still in a standoff with a motley crew of moderates vowing to derail her legislative plan — and no one knows exactly how this will end.

DEAL OR NO DEAL? Pelosi made clear this weekend she's not in the mood to compromise. Fresh off her annual Napa fundraiser, the speaker put out a letter saying she'd like to pass both infrastructure and reconciliation by Oct. 1 — giving some certainty to the gang of nine moderates, led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.). She also offered another olive branch, reiterating that the bill would be "paid for."

But Pelosi also essentially told Democrats to get with the program — anything short of a unified caucus could tank Democrats' effort to deliver on Biden's promises at a time when the country needs it most, she said. Voting against the budget framework this week is a vote against Biden, at least that's how leadership is positioning it.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T : The speaker's missive went over like a lead balloon with the nine moderates who have publicly threatened to block the budget without an immediate vote on the Senate infrastructure deal. The group was in touch this weekend — along with a flurry of other calls across the caucus, including a smaller group of centrists who are also opposed but not public about it. And we're told they're all sticking to their guns. (A Sunday night Op-Ed also sent that signal: https://wapo.st/3sGBcQD).

Leaders of the opposition group say they have not heard directly from Pelosi in several days, though there are plenty of other leadership folks making calls. (Calls from the DCCC chief didn't go over too well with mods, as Sarah scooped on Friday night.) And Pelosi allies say she has been in direct contact with members of the group. Still, several of those moderates feel like their votes are being taken for granted at a time when leadership can only lose three Democrats on the floor.

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COMING ATTRACTIONS: So what happens next? If history is a guide, Pelosi doesn't lose on the floor. But the Democrats' budget blueprint, which is the key to moving forward on the $3.5 trillion domestic spending package, doesn't have the votes to pass (as of this morning.)

We're told the rule — which governs floor debate — is expected to pass tonight, in part because it also tees up a popular voting rights bill, along with an eventual vote on that Senate infrastructure bill. But some top Democrats were more pessimistic, saying the rule vote isn't even a sure thing right now.

TOO LEGIT TO QUIT: As House Rules takes up the three-part rule this morning and the clock ticks towards the full House vote later tonight, the question remains if the staring contest will continue until the gavel drops or if a deal will be ironed out between moderates and Pelosi behind closed doors before the vote opens.

We're also watching to see if Biden (who especially needs this win as the crisis in Afghanistan dominates the news going into another week) uses his bully pulpit to influence the Gottheimer Gang.

If Pelosi gets her way, the House will adjourn Tuesday evening with the budget resolution adopted. That will formally allow committees in both chambers to start writing their portions of that $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill, loaded with Democratic priorities from high-speed rail to universal pre-K — which could get its own vote in just a few weeks.

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GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Monday, August 23, where the House is back so soon it feels like they never left.

FRIDAY'S MOST CLICKED: The story on Missouri state Rep. (and Rep. Vicky Hartzler challenger) Sara Walsh's husband dying after contracting Covid-19 was the most-read item from last Friday's huddle: https://bit.ly/3kaf0KL

REPUBLICAN REJECTION — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and 18 other Senate Republicans voted in favor of the bipartisan infrastructure bill that would pump $550 billion in new spending into the country's roads, bridges and broadband. But House Republicans face a different calculation.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has come out strongly against the infrastructure bill and anticipates that tying it to reconciliation will keep much of his conference in the "nay" column, but has yet to engage the GOP whip operation.

McCarthy is navigating a political tightrope of his own. Most Republicans are expected to oppose the infrastructure bill, but with the GOP trying to take back the House majority in 2022 and McCarthy openly vying for the speakership, he must ensure moderates don't feel left out to dry while also shoring up his right flank. More from Olivia on the dynamics within the House GOP as we head into the week: https://politi.co/3B468NM

PORTMAN WEIGHS IN — Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), the lead GOP negotiator of the bipartisan infrastructure bill, told Marianne that he's confident the legislation will make it to Biden's desk, but agrees with House moderates that the House should vote ASAP on the infrastructure bill.

"President Biden should be really upset by it because he's the one who said consistently in private and in public that we would not be tying this to anything else," Portman said. "I would hope President Biden would weigh in more vigorously with the House because otherwise they're violating the basic agreement that we have."

COVID WATCH — Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) has tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing symptoms, reports the Texas Tribune. Nehls is fully vaccinated and warned in his Facebook post that he would likely have far worse symptoms if it wasn't for the shot. He received the Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment.

Booster buzz: The Capitol's Attending Physician announced Friday that they are prepared to offer Pfizer booster shots immediately to qualified immunosuppressed individuals across Capitol Hill.

Expanded eligibility for the booster is expected to begin on Sept. 20 and the Office of the Attending Physician "is prepared to provide this booster vaccination when the FDA review and authorization is complete."

If you got Moderna, the memo noted this: "The FDA has specified that individuals who received the Moderna vaccine previously should receive the Moderna vaccine but may receive the Pfizer vaccine if Moderna is unavailable."

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GROWTH SPURT — The new census data shows that the eight congressional districts that grew the most over the past decade were all in either Texas or Florida, where Republican lawmakers have the opportunity to redraw their states' maps.

Texas is adding two more congressional districts, while Florida will have one more. Since mapmakers need to draw each district to have the same population total, House members such as Troy Nehls (R-Texas) — whose district is south of Houston — or Michael McCaul (R-Texas) — whose district stretches from the Houston suburbs west to Austin — will see their constituencies shrink. More from Politico's data team: https://politi.co/383nBcL

BOMB THREAT CHARGES — The man who threatened to detonate a bomb outside the Library of Congress last week was charged with using a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to use an explosive device, a judge said Friday.

The charges against Floyd Ray Roseberry were unsealed during his first court appearance in D.C. District Court. The judge ordered a competency screening for Roseberry at the request of the government, which also asked for him to remain jailed.

Law enforcement officials said last week they found no bomb in Roseberry's car, but there were materials that could be used to make explosives. More on the charges: https://cnn.it/3y9Lqdo

QUICK LINKS

— The Pentagon Is Calling On 6 U.S. Airlines To Help With The Afghan Evacuation Effort, via NPR

— The Congressional Black Caucus: Powerful, Diverse and Newly Complicated, by New York Times' Astead Herndon

— Matt Gaetz elopes, via Vanity Fair

— Big Changes Coming to D.C.'s Transit to Boost Ridership, via Governing

TRANSITIONS

Kaylie Hanson Long returns to Sen. Chris Murphy's (D-Conn.) office as a senior adviser. She most recently was deputy campaign manager for Jennifer Carroll Foy's Virginia gubernatorial campaign.

Jacques Petit is the new communications director for Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz).

Al David Saab is now a legislative assistant for Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.). He most recently was legislative correspondent for Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

Ruby Robles has been promoted to be deputy press secretary for Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). She most recently was digital press assistant for Warren.

Emily Wood is now press secretary for Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.). She most recently was a staff reporter at the Christian Post and is a Trump WH alum.

Donni Turner is now legislative counsel for Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.). She most recently was legislative director for Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), and is a Bernie Sanders and Budget Committee alum.

TODAY IN CONGRESS

The House convenes at 5 p.m. for legislative business.

The Senate is not in session.

AROUND THE HILL

3:30 p.m. House Freedom Caucus holds a press conference on infrastructure legislation

4:30 p.m. Reps. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), Sean Casten (D-Ill.) and others hold a press conference on infrastructure and the environment

TRIVIA

FRIDAY'S WINNER: Wyeth Ruthven correctly answered that the Library of Congress has acquisition offices in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Cairo (Egypt), Jakarta (Indonesia), New Delhi (India), Nairobi (Kenya) and Islamabad (Pakistan)

TODAY'S QUESTION: Who was the first known House member to be elected by a write-in vote?

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

GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning.

Follow Katherine on Twitter @ktullymcmanus.

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