News : Is Cornyn the key to a compromise?

Friday, June 3, 2022

Is Cornyn the key to a compromise?

Jun 03, 2022

With help from Jordain Carney and Alec Snyder

A congressional staffer wears a rifle shaped pin on his suite during a House Judiciary Committee mark up hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on June 02, 2022 in Washington, DC.

A congressional staffer wears a rifle shaped pin on his suit during a House Judiciary Committee mark up hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on June 02, 2022 in Washington, DC. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Image

WHAT WILL THE CONGRESS DO? — That's what President Joe Biden asked last night, after outlining his own agenda on gun safety and mass shooting prevention.

Great question.

Any compromise on Capitol Hill will be narrow and will not include paradigm shifting limits to gun access like an assault weapons ban or universal background checks, and will likely fall short of satisfying anti gun violence advocates. Any deal has to make it through the gauntlet of the 50-50 Senate and earn the votes of at least 10 Republicans to avoid a filibuster.

One of those could be Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has tapped as his emissary in the negotiations. He told Marianne that "it will be embarrassing" if the Senate can't produce legislation in response to the school children killed in his home state.

"It would feed the narrative that we can't get things done in the public interest," the 70-year-old former state attorney general told POLITICO in an interview. "I don't believe that narrative, I believe we can get a bipartisan deal done in the public interest."

He wouldn't outline his "red lines" but, like McConnell, his focus has been mental health.

"I'm not talking about restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens under the Second Amendment," Cornyn said. "I'm talking about identifying people with criminal and mental health problems that are a threat to themselves and others."

Don't miss more from Marianne on her conversation with Cornyn, plus Democrats involved in the talks.

RELATED: The Altered Lives of America's School-Shooting Survivors, from The Wall Street Journal

MEANWHILE IN THE HOUSE … The Judiciary Committee advanced a package of gun safety proposals, which are more ambitious than what can realistically survive the Senate. Emotions and tensions ran high during the day-long markup, including Republican lawmakers showing off their personal arsenals via video conference and personal statements from Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), who's son Jordan was shot and killed in 2012 at the age of 17. Jordain and Nicholas rounded up some key moments.

The panel adopted an amendment from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) that would require annual Justice Department reports to Congress on demographic data for all individuals found to be ineligible to buy a gun after undergoing a background check by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

WIN A VIP TICKET TO JOIN POLITICO's CONGRESS TEAM FOR COCKTAILS AND CONVERSATION: Our reporters spend each day firing off questions to elected officials and their staff – so we figured it's time to return the favor and give lawmakers a chance to turn the tables on us with a (short!) reverse press conference, featuring Senator Jon Tester (D-MT), Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Representative Julia Letlow (R-LA) followed by cocktails & conversation. Enter for a chance to join newsmakers at this exclusive event on June 15th at The Observatory at America's Square on Capitol Hill. Winners will be notified by June 10th (travel and accommodations not provided, this is a widely attended event pursuant to House & Senate ethics rules). ENTER HERE.

GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Friday, June 3, where the NBA finals games tip off at your Huddle host's bedtime, leading to tough decisions.

BUSTOS BACKS A BAN — Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) is signing on as a new cosponsor to legislation that would ban the sale, manufacture or transfer of hundreds of assault weapons, her office told POLITICO.

It's a small boost for House Democratic leadership. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a "Dear Colleague" letter that an assault weapons ban bill would get a hearing, but she hasn't yet decided if it will get a vote.

Despite Bustos' support, an assault weapons ban is still short on votes, complicating its path to the House floor. Jordain breaks down the tricky math here.

COMING SOON IN PRIMETIME — Mark your calendars. The House Select Committee Investigating the Jan. 6 Attack on the Capitol has scheduled its first public hearing for Thursday, June 9 at 8 p.m. The panel promises a presentation of "previously unseen material documenting January 6th...and findings about the coordinated, multi-step effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and prevent the transfer of power."

FEARS ABOUT FETTERMAN — Pennsylvania's Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman won all 67 counties in the primary, just days after being hospitalized for a stroke. But with the general election on the horizon and Fetterman still recovering, some Democrats in the Keystone State are sweating, report Sahil Kapur, Jonathan Allen and Henry J. Gomez for NBC News.

Health check: After a check-up in Lancaster on Wednesday, the campaign reported that Fetterman's doctors "said that cognitively John is perfect, and well on his way to a full recovery here" and that "John's heart is looking good and performing well" with the pacemaker working.

Vibe check: "After a long primary on both sides, in both parties, I think voters need a little rest, too. They don't need to be hearing from candidates every minute of every day," Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said Thursday.

THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS — Lawmakers on Capitol Hill say that more than thoughts and prayers are needed to respond to deadly mass shootings and are pursuing legislative action. But CSPAN's The Weekly podcast dove into the prayers from those on Capitol Hill who can't legislate solutions and pray professionally: the chaplains. Listen to prayers offered by House and Senate Chaplains opening the chambers following mass shooting after mass shooting in America's schools.

EMAILS YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY WANT TO READ — Have you ever typed out "sigh" in italics in a work email? That was the vibe as the National Park Service, military officials and White House aides scrambled to give then-President Donald Trump the 4th of July party of his dreams in 2019. Our friends at E&E got some FOIA requests back and they've got everything : in-depth discussion of algae, potential damage reports of having Abrams tanks at the Lincoln Memorial and all-caps, bolded "IT WASN'T US!!!!" That sound you hear is congressional staff thanking God that their emails aren't FOIA-able (but they're always forward-able and your Huddle host's inbox is open.)

HUDDLE HOTDISH

On what planet… Does President Joe Biden appoint Donald Trump as VP? Whatever world Missouri Senate candidate Rep. Billy Long (R-Mo.) is living in. Check out his out-of-this-world platform he tweeted yesterday.

Al Gore has arrived… His bust is now in the Senate alongside other vice presidents, more than 21 years after he left office. Why the long wait? That's not clear. The Senate curator went on the record in 2019 saying the bust was finished and plans for an unveiling were underway. Some VPs aren't in a rush to see their bust. The arrival leaves Biden and Pence as the only bust-less VPs since the tradition began.

Institutionalize 'em… Says Ohio Senate Candidate J.D. Vance. He tweeted that "we need to be willing to institutionalize people more…That would be far more effective than any 'red flag' law."

QUICK LINKS

GOP makes gains with minorities. Will it change the party?, from Christa Case Bryant at The Christian Science Monitor

Progressives have a blueprint to unpack Mitch McConnell's court, from Matt Laslo at Raw Story

TRANSITIONS

Francesco Hanson is now staff assistant/scheduler for Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-N.J.). He most recently was a legislative intern for Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.).

Brett Freedman is now chief of staff to Matt Olsen, assistant attorney general for the national security division at the Justice Department. He most recently was a lawyer on the Senate Intelligence Committee, serving as general counsel to Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.).

TODAY IN CONGRESS

The House convenes at 9 a.m. for a pro forma session.

The Senate convenes at 4:30 p.m. for a pro forma session.

AROUND THE HILL

A recess Friday, enjoy the quiet.

TRIVIA

THURSDAY'S WINNER: Daniel Luongo correctly answered that as the White House burned, First Lady Dolly Madison saved a portrait of George Washington.

No wrong answers: Who's portrait in the U.S. Capitol would you save? Your Huddle host would protect the wonderfully bold portrait of Rep. Shirley Chisholm by Kadir Nelson (the original on the first floor, not the reproduction in the Rules Committee room).

TODAY'S QUESTION from Daniel: How many Catholic priests served in the United States Congress and why are there no more priests serving in public office?

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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