| | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus, Jennifer Scholtes and Daniella Diaz | Presented by The Alzheimer's Association | With a helping hand from Burgess Everett
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Speaker Kevin McCarthy is hustling for every last vote on his (freshly overhauled) debt limit bill. | Francis Chung/Politico | CH-CH-CHANGES, TURN AND FACE THE STRANGE — Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Majority Whip Tim Emmer both insisted that the debt limit bill was locked and changes would not be made to satisfy naysayers within the GOP conference, but sometimes reality becomes clear in the dead of night. It was after 2 a.m. this morning when House GOP leaders relented to demands during the House Rules Committee markup. The changes are substantial: Bye, bye, I.R.A: Major portions of the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law last summer would be eliminated, including $1 billion to boost the adoption of building codes for energy-efficient construction, $5 billion for loans to back energy infrastructure projects, $1.9 billion in grants to improve transportation access to neighborhoods, $200 million for National Park System maintenance projects and $5 billion in grants for reducing climate pollution. Speed up safety net cuts: Beginning in September, states would be barred from saving up unused exemptions under the SNAP food assistance program. Starting in October additional constraints on the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program would kick in. These changes are aimed at satisfying consternation about increasing work requirements for safety net programs. Fuel fight: The revised bill would still repeal the tax credits on clean fuels, but would now include an exception to allow the tax perk to continue for those in binding contracts or locked into investments for sustainable aviation fuel or for producing other “clean” fuel before April 19. The amendment would also kill changes in the incentive structure for renewable diesel, second generation biofuel, carbon dioxide sequestration and biodiesel. Yesterday McCarthy (R-Calif.) met with members from Iowa, Missouri and Minnesota on the ethanol and biofuels issue, which these changes address directly. This whole raft of changes must be what McCarthy meant when he told reporters "We're working through" issues with the bill hours before the changes were locked in. He promised that any delay won’t be too long. "This week, we will pass," he said. Rules Committee ranking member Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) accused Republicans of hastily cementing a "disgraceful amendment that materialized from your midnight séance." Procedure note: All these changes to the bill won’t require an additional amendment vote. They are tucked into the rule for consideration of the bill. When the House votes to clear the rule, the sweeping changes to the debt limit measure would be deemed as approved, without the need for a separate vote. Folks will call this a deemer, deem-and-pass, or a self-executing rule. No other amendments will be allowed on the floor.
|  No glamour or elbow room at the House Rules Committee. | Francis Chung/Politico | TIME MAY CHANGE ME — House Republicans who aren’t on the small House Rules Committee will still be digesting these changes as they head into this morning’s GOP Conference meeting. The changes were ostensibly made to win over holdouts, but it remains to be seen if those folks will budge or if there are unintended consequences. That leaves the future of this major bill – and a huge test of McCarthy’s leadership – up in the air ahead of the GOP Conference meeting. “We want to meet with the members. We want to get this done as soon as possible,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told reporters Tuesday night. Rep. Matt Gaetz (D-Fla.) said on CNN Tuesday night that there were eight (!) Republican holdouts on the debt proposal. House leaders will hope that these changes will winnow that number down to where they can pass this bill. Keeping score: The Congressional Budget Office weighed in on Tuesday, reporting that the debt limit and spending cuts package could put about $4.8 trillion toward deficit reduction over the next 10 years. But that’s for the bill without the overhaul executed at Rules.
| | | | A message from The Alzheimer's Association: The future of Medicare? President Biden recently called Medicare “a rock solid guarantee.” But that’s not true for beneficiaries living with early Alzheimer’s. For the first time ever, CMS has blocked Medicare coverage to FDA-approved drugs. Now CMS is stalling despite compelling evidence and coverage by the VA. Today it’s people living with early Alzheimer’s. Who will it be tomorrow? Learn more at alz.org/coverage. | | | GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday, April 26, where your Huddle hosts appreciated this reference. WHAT ABOUT ACTUAL SPENDING? — The spotlight in the debt limit fight is spending cuts, but appropriators on Capitol Hill know that spending bills still have to get done. Senate Appropriations Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and her Republican counterpart, Maine Sen. Susan Collins, are trying to not let the debt limit fight derail their plans to move all the spending bills. But the proposed cuts, which are subject to shifts in negotiations with the White House, will have a major impact on topline numbers for the spending bills. “We have laid out an aggressive schedule to bring the bills to the floor and to do that, we have to have a topline,” Collins told Caitlin.“I’m sure we’ll be talking, but first I want to see where the House lands." MANCHIN’S LEVERAGE — While House Republicans fume about conflicts over repealing certain tax credits in the Democrats’ huge energy, tax and health care bill, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is still raising hell over how the law is being implemented. Burgess asked Manchin on Tuesday if his discontent would motivate him to hold up Biden nominees: “I’m just going to look for opportunities and to ensure and fulfill the intent of that piece of legislation to ensure it's going to be energy security? That's all I'm trying to do and stay basically within the confines and the amount of money that was appropriated.” “I'm not gonna partake in fooling the public thinking that we had 10 years of incentives when they've only paid for three or four years where they're trying to blow the budget,” Manchin continued. That sounds like no nominee hold-ups, for now.
| | | | HAPPENING NEXT WEEK! GO INSIDE THE 2023 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE: POLITICO is proud to partner with the Milken Institute to produce a special edition "Global Insider" newsletter featuring exclusive coverage, insider nuggets and unparalleled insights from the 2023 Global Conference, which will convene leaders in health, finance, politics, philanthropy and entertainment from May 1-4. This year’s theme, Advancing a Thriving World, will challenge and inspire attendees to lean into building an optimistic coalition capable of tackling the issues and inequities we collectively face. Don’t miss a thing — subscribe today for a front row seat. | | | | | SENATE WELL-BEING CHECK — The Senate Sergeant at Arms is looking to expand services offered by the Employee Assistance Program, including adding counseling staff to expand hours for west-coast state office employees. High usage: In 2022, more than 74 percent of Senate staff accessed EAP services across 90 percent of Senate offices, SAA Karen Gibson told the Senate Appropriations Legislative Branch subcommittee on Tuesday. That’s a nearly 30 percent increase from 2021. The Senate is looking to hire two additional mental health professionals “whose schedules can accommodate increased demands” across different time zones to “provide confidential emotional and behavioral support services for Senate employees.” Gibson also said the Senate is looking to ease Senate employee’s caretaking burdens, launching a partnership with LifeCare to help Senate staff find backup childcare in tough situations where plans fall through. The breadth of the SAA portfolio is enormous, so bear with us on this hard pivot: Gibson also touted the success of the Senate's first passport office that opened last year and completed more than 1200 passports in nine months. She also celebrated security report requests finally going digital, noting that when she arrived they were still all done on paper. Did you know? There’s a “life size model of a state office in the basement of the Russell Senate office building” that the SAA uses to showcase and recommend security equipment and design features for Senators’ in-state offices? TESTER STOPS THE TRAIN — Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) vowed to block President Joe Biden’s nominees for the Amtrak Board of Directors because of their lack of geographic diversity, the senator said in a letter to Biden Tuesday. Five of the six nominees are from “Northeast Corridor states,” said Tester , and none are from the West. The 2021 infrastructure law included a provision, which Tester championed, stating that no more than four members of Amtrak's board should be from the Northeast, which was intended to help ensure broad geographic representation. “It is important that people in places like rural Montana have a voice at Amtrak to ensure we aren’t left behind,” Tester wrote in a Tuesday letter to Biden. “After careful review, I will be blocking the slate of nominees currently before the United States Senate." Speaking of Tester… He said he met with Labor secretary hopeful Julie Su Tuesday. “I had a good meeting with her, but I want to ponder it some more before I make a decision,” he said. When asked how the meeting went, he said, “The meeting didn't hurt her, I don't think, so that's good.” The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is meeting in just a few hours to vote Su out of committee – but there’s still a handful of senators who haven’t said if they plan to support her confirmation vote.
| | | | A message from The Alzheimer's Association:   | | | NEW CAUCUS? Jordain caught wind Tuesday that Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) and Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) are circulating a letter to their colleagues on joining the Fourth Amendment Caucus, which outlines their priorities for Section 702, a surveillance law that’s meant to streamline the monitoring of foreign targets, but also gives the intelligence community the power to inadvertently collect the communications of Americans. “The Caucus will advocate for closing the legal loophole that allows the government to obtain sensitive personal information from data brokers without court oversight,” the letter stated. Related read: House GOP warns FBI to stay out of controversial surveillance talks, from Jordain TERRITORIAL CONFUSION — House Energy and Commerce Republicans looped in trips to Puerto Rico by Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm with travel to France, Australia, Mexico, and Singapore in a letter criticizing international travel. Puerto Rico is, of course, a U.S. territory and Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens. The letter and press release both mention Puerto Rico first, under the header “E&C GOP Probe Energy Secretary on Frequent International Travel.” “We understand the importance of stabilizing and modernizing Puerto Rico’s electric grid but question whether your frequent and extended presence is critical to these activities,” House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and oversight and investigations subcommittee Chair Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) wrote. The Republicans’ real complaint is that Puerto Rico and international travel came before a visit to Eastern Washington’s Hanford nuclear reservation site. MORE AI AT THE CAPITOL — McCarthy and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) are hosting a briefing on artificial intelligence with Professors Antonio Torralba and Aleksander Madry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology this afternoon at 3 p.m.
| | Sharks in West Virginia?... Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) has invited Shark Tank Host Kevin O’Leary to West Virginia after he expressed interest in building a refinery. Are any other sharks interested? QUICK LINKS How Two History-Making Congresswomen (and Roommates) Made It Through 100 Days in Office, from Madison Feller at Elle Bernie Sanders endorses Biden, rules out 2024 bid of his own, from Steve Peoples at the Associated Press McMorris Rodgers calls for VA to scrap troubled computer system tied to harming Inland Northwest veterans, from Orion Donovan-Smith at The Spokesman-Review
| | | | The McCain Institute will convene its 10th annual Sedona Forum on May 5-6, featuring lawmakers, journalists, military leaders, business executives, and more. This year’s theme, “Indispensable Power,” will examine the diplomatic, military, and economic means employed to protect democracy, human rights, and the global competitive edge. Established by Senator John McCain, the Sedona Forum is held each spring in the red rock country of Sedona, Arizona, to advance the mission of the McCain Institute – fighting for democracy, human dignity, and security. Visit TheSedonaForum.org to register for the livestream today. | | | | | TODAY IN CONGRESS The House convenes at 10 a.m. for morning hour and noon for legislative business. The Senate convenes at 10 a.m. with a vote at 12 p.m. for the nomination of Joshua David Jacobs to be Under Secretary for Benefits of the Department of Veterans Affairs. At 2:15 p.m., the Senate will vote on the cloture on proceeding to the vehicle for a veterans package and then at 4 p.m. the Senate will vote on a CRA to reverse trucking emissions rule, then passage if it advances. AROUND THE HILL 10 a.m. Scalise, Emmer (R-Minn.), Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and others hold a House Republican Leadership press conference. (HC-8, Capitol) 10 a.m. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee executive session to consider Julie Su’s nomination for Secretary of Labor. (430 Dirksen) 10 a.m. House Homeland Security Committee markup of the Border Reinforcement Act of 2023. (310 Cannon) 10 a.m. House Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.” (2141 Rayburn) 10:45 a.m. Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), Vice Chair Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), Reps. Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.), Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) and Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) hold a press conference. (HVC Studio A) 11 a.m. Reps. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) hold a press conference on the launch of Vincent Chin Institute. (House Triangle) Noon Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.), Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and others hold a press conference on the GOP debt ceiling proposal and clean energy jobs. (House Triangle) 2 p.m. Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.), Reps. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), Rob Menendez (D-N.J.) hold a press conference on healthcare price transparency and its effects on Latino communities. (House Triangle) 2 p.m. Senate Democratic and GOP leaders hold separate press conferences following closed door caucus lunches. (Ohio Clock Corridor) 3:30 p.m. Reps. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) join former Rep. Gabby Giffords to host a discussion on 10 years of the GIFFORDS gun violence prevention organization. (HVC 215) 4:30 p.m. Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) hold a press conference on veterans' health care. (House Triangle) 5:30 p.m. Frost and Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones join local youth leaders for a press conference on attacks on democracy. (House Triangle)
| | TUESDAY’S WINNER: Lorraine Tong correctly answered that Rep. Shirley Chisholm (D-N.Y.), when put on House Agriculture, said “Apparently all they know in Washington about Brooklyn was a tree grew there." TODAY’S QUESTION: Who was the first woman to serve in both the House of Representatives and the Senate? 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 The Alzheimer's Association: The Biden Administration is continuing to block access to FDA-approved Alzheimer’s treatments. Despite the fact that Medicare has always covered FDA-approved treatments for those living with a disease, CMS has made the unprecedented decision to deny access to FDA-approved treatments for people living with Alzheimer’s. Each day CMS blocks access, more than 2,000 people transition to a more advanced stage of Alzheimer’s where they are no longer eligible for treatment. Each day matters to someone living with early stage Alzheimer's when it comes to slowing the progression of this disease. The Administration’s policy to block access to these treatments eliminates people’s options, resulting in continued irreversible disease progression and contributes to greater health inequities. The role and responsibility of CMS is to provide health care coverage, not to stand between a patient and a doctor when deciding what FDA-approved treatments are appropriate. This decision must be reversed. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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