| | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus | Presented by GE | MINUTE BY MINUTE BY MATTHEW(S) — The House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol holds its second primetime hearing this week, which will zero in on what the panel has described as the crucial 187 minutes of inaction from President Donald Trump. Leading the line: Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria of Virginia will lead tonight's presentation with Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois. Don't expect to see chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) in the room, he tested positive for Covid earlier this week and will participate via video. Witness table: Former White House deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews and Matthew Pottinger, a member of the National Security Council during the Trump administration, are expected to testify. Both aides resigned after witnessing Trump's inaction and indifference over the three hours of the attack. RELATED: Even a day after Jan. 6, Trump balked at condemning the violence , from Amy Gardner, Josh Dawsey and Paul Kane at The Washington Post Pro tip: For an easy way to keep up with the biggest news out of tonight's hearing, turn on mobile notifications for @politicongress ' bite-sized, analysis-packed live updates. MAYOR OF THE HOUSE? — One of the House Republican lawmakers who has been under scrutiny by the Jan. 6 panel could, in a GOP-controlled House, lead investigations into the select committee. Oh, how the turn tables. Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) is angling to chair the House Administration Committee if the GOP takes back the House, which would give him broad oversight powers to investigate the investigators. The top job in House Administration is usually hand-picked by the speaker. When Jordain asked Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) if he would support Loudermilk's bid to lead the panel next year, McCarthy said that they are "looking at everything." "Mr. Loudermilk has worked hard on that," McCarthy said in a brief interview, though he noted others are interested in the position. The House Administration Committee under Loudermilk, or any other aspiring chair, could also be the avenue for longer-term proposals on Capitol operations. "It used to be a sleepy little committee that talked about the House gym. Well, it's got Capitol security and elections. I think the nature of that committee is going to change," Armstrong said. Don't miss this deep dive from Jordain into one of your Huddle Host's favorite (and too often overlooked) committees on Capitol Hill: The Jan. 6 panel raised questions about him. This GOP lawmaker could soon turn the tables.
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today . | | | | | GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Thursday, July 21, where you can wrap up the day with a drink in a historic space (more on that below.) PELOSI'S PUSH ON RUSSIA — Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave Secretary of State Antony Blinken an ultimatum earlier this week: If he doesn't designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, Congress will. "Pelosi's comments to Blinken highlight the chasm in the actions lawmakers want the administration to take and what the secretary is comfortable doing. Members of the House and Senate push for the designation, which compels the U.S. government to restrict foreign assistance, curtail defense exports and sales, place controls on exports of dual-use items, and more," write Alexander Ward and Betsy Woodruff Swan . SENATE GOP DEER IN THE HEADLIGHTS — When it comes to codifying the right of same-sex couples to marry, the biggest caucus of Senate Republicans is "I haven't looked at it." The House-passed bill is less than four pages long. Democrats need 10 Republican votes in favor, but there's a chance that Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will take a chance and put it on the floor to see where the votes land. Maine Sen. Susan Collins is the lead GOP sponsor of the same-sex marriage legislation, but isn't in a rush to get it done in the coming days . "I would like to see it on the floor. I don't think it needs to be done this work period. There is no pending immediate case that's going to be decided before the end of the year. So we have some time," Collins said. "I do think codifying is a good idea." Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) are likely yes votes along with Collins. And about a dozen others who spoke to POLITICO remain undecided. RELATED: Same-Sex Marriage Vote Shows Public Opinion Sea Change From 1996 , from Greg Giroux at Bloomberg Government ELECTORAL COUNT ACT REFORM — Senators have struck a deal on reforms to the 135-year-old law that governs the peaceful transition of power. The proposed legislation would clarify that the vice president's role in counting votes is merely symbolic, as well as raise the threshold for when a member of Congress can challenge an election result. They are hoping to pass it before the year is out. Marianne has more: Senators finalize bipartisan proposal designed to prevent another Jan. 6 And Kyle dove into one facet of the proposal: what happens if some electors are thrown out. We'll leave it to him to explain this Electoral College dropout situation .
| | | | A message from GE: GE plans for three new industry-leading companies–GE HealthCare, GE Vernova, and GE Aerospace– which will mark the beginning of something new. Building off a 130-year heritage of innovation, these planned companies will amplify elevated missions for precision health & connected care, a cleaner future, and flight & defense. This new era will transform a world that works into a future that does too. Learn more. | | | CHIPS TRACKER — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) filed cloture on the bill aimed at boosting the U.S. semiconductor industry on Wednesday night. What's not in the bill? The sweeping overhaul of U.S. policy toward China that some lawmakers hoped for: How Congress' dream of a China confrontation got gutted RELATED: Intel Spends Record Sum on Lobbying Amid Global Chip Shortage , from Emily Birnbaum at Bloomberg SIX DOWN SIX TO GO — The House passed the $405 billion six-bill spending package Wednesday, but there is still an increasing chance that a continuing resolution will be needed come October. The six-bill package includes Agriculture-FDA, Energy-Water, Transportation-HUD, Interior-Environment, Financial Services as well as Military Construction-VA spending measures — with spending increases for all. But there still isn't a bipartisan agreement between top Republicans and Democratic appropriators in the House and Senate on fiscal 2023 funding totals. Member Pay: On Monday there was a moment of unity over an issue deemed politically toxic by many — member pay raises. Retiring Rep. Ed. Perlmutter (D-Colo.) shared what he anticipated to be an unpopular opinion: Congress needs a raise. Members haven't seen a pay increase, not even a cost-of-living adjustment, since 2009. "We make a nice salary," he acknowledged, but pointed to the need for members to maintain two residences and incur significant costs just to be a member. He said not updating their own compensation to reflect the increased cost of living since 2009 "is almost masochistic." He found an ally across the aisle in Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.): "We have to ask ourselves the question, do we want this institution to be populated by people who really don't care about member pay at all because they are independently wealthy?" Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) was asked Wednesday if he'd delay floor action on the Legislative Branch spending bill until after the November midterm elections to turn down the heat on the member pay issue, which he has been vocal about for years. "We think it's a better time to have the Legislative Branch bill considered in a nonpolitical way," he answered. A pay freeze is written into the House LegBranch bill, but nothing is set in stone.
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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during the UNITE HERE union protest outside the Senate office buildings in support of Senate cafeteria workers employed by Restaurant Associates on Wednesday, July 20, 2022. | Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call via AP Images | Layoffs averted… for now: The 56 Senate dining workers who were issued layoff or transfer notices last week by contractor Restaurant Associates will keep their jobs. But that's cold comfort given that they'll face uncertainty again at the end of September when stopgap funding is set to run out. According to the Unite Here Local 23 union, there was a "miscommunication" between the Architect of the Capitol and Restaurant Associates about the need to "right-size" the workforce in the Senate. "While we appreciate the quick resolution of this round of layoffs, these workers need the long-term stability in their lives that only a union contract can provide," said Unite Here Local 23 in a statement Wednesday. No resolution: At this point, there is not a long-term solution in place to end the carousel of precarity the dining workers have faced in recent years. The union is calling for the Senate's contract with Restaurant Associates to be restructured and for the finalization of their union contract. Civil disobedience: Seventeen people were arrested Wednesday for blocking a street outside the Senate in a demonstration aimed at bringing attention to the plight of the Senate dining workers. Among those arrested was Rep. Andy Levin( D-Mich.) who had just paid his fine an hour or so before for his Tuesday arrest related to an abortion rights protest. Summer social… The House Members' Dining room is open to staff tonight for a summer social with food and drinks. They bill it as "a great chance for staff and interns who have never seen the Members Dining Room to spend some time there and meet their colleagues from other offices." QUICK LINKS Alaska is having the wildest election of 2022 , from Dan Zak in The Washington Post John Fetterman, in first interview since stroke, talks recovery and return to U.S. Senate campaign trail , from Julian Routh of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette TRANSITIONS Greta Bedekovicsis now associate director of democracy at CAP. She previously was a policy adviser/professional staff member on the Senate Rules Committee under Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Zack Brown, is now a public relations specialist at Amazon's Project Kuiper. He was previously Rep. Don Young's (R-Alaska) communications director and kept that role in the Alaska at-large office when Young died. Michael Williams is leaving the Hill to join Forbes Tate Partners as a senior vice president in the firm's lobbying practice. He most recently was legislative director for Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), serving as her policy lead on health, labor and employment, as well as tax and trade, and also worked for former Sen. Doug Jones.
| | | | A message from GE:   | | | TODAY IN CONGRESS The House convenes at 9 a.m. for legislative business. The Senate convenes at 10 a.m. with votes at 11:30 a.m. and more expected. AROUND THE HILL 10 a.m. Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) holds a press conference on funding for law enforcement. (House Triangle) 10:15 a.m. Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) hold a virtual news conference to announce new legislation to combat drug deals and other crimes stemming from social media apps such as Snapchat and TikTok. 10:45 a.m. Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly press conference. (Studio A)
| | | WEDNESDAY'S WINNER: Joe Bookman correctly answered that Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.) rescued then-House Speaker Jim Wright (D-Tex.) from potential drowning in Hawaii in the 1980s. Louis was known to swim 100 laps a day in the House swimming pool. TODAY'S QUESTION from Joe: What was the most recent year when the number of elected women to Congress decreased from the previous election? 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
| | | | A message from GE: GE announces plans for three industry leading companies: GE HealthCare, GE Vernova, and GE Aerospace. Each with an elevated vision to lead us into the future. This will be a new era of precision health & connected care, a cleaner future, and flight & defense, built off of a 130 year-old heritage of innovation. Continuing to build a world that works and ensuring our future does too. Learn more. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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