| | | | |  | | By Sarah Ferris | With assists from POLITICO’s Congress team
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Jared Golden is heading into his toughest race yet. He’s facing 30-year-old former NASCAR driver Austin Theriault, who’s attacking Golden as a Washington elite. | Robert F. Bukaty/AP | JARED GOLDEN’S RAGE AGAINST THE ELITES Democrats have noticed a worrying trend: They’re losing working-class voters to the anti-elite brand of populist politics championed by Donald Trump, and now JD Vance. If Democrats have any hope of flipping the House or keeping the Senate this November, they need to reverse that years-long drift. Centrist Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) has thoughts on how to fix that: Ignore the party line altogether. In a little-noticed speech in D.C. on Tuesday, the millennial Mainer coined an offbeat term for it: “Progressive conservatism.” It means taxing the rich to cut the ballooning deficit. It’s supporting some tariffs and opposing electric vehicle mandates. It’s opposing corporate tax breaks and “financialization” of the economy. (Yes, it was an anti-elite speech to a group of D.C. insiders.) Golden described a “backlash” among his voters to hearing about “ever-expanding levels of student debt amnesty for college kids they see trashing campuses on TV” while they’re worried about car payments and mortgages. He said they’re angry about being told their concerns about crime and an “unsecured southern border” aren’t real issues and “they’re wrong to be concerned about them.” A post-“Scranton Joe” strategy?: His views on this sound remarkably like that of his fellow Blue Dog co-chairs, Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) and Mary Peltola (D-Alaska) — all three of them in Trump-won seats. Those leaders of the 11-member Blue Dogs Coalition are pitching what could be considered a post-“Scranton Joe” political strategy for non-college voters, particularly in predominantly working-class and rural areas. Besides their own seats, this could be important in places bleeding Democratic voters in must-win House seats like those of Rep. Matt Cartwright in Scranton, Pennsylvania and Rep. Marcy Kaptur in Toledo, Ohio, as well as Senate seats in Montana, Michigan and Ohio. Growing their ranks?: Blue Dogs are backing Rebecca Cooke in next month’s primary in western Wisconsin as their best chance to beat Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.). Cooke, who grew up on a dairy farm and works as a waitress, has stressed her own working-class roots in a seat that her party is convinced is flippable this year. (That race is already a doozy: Fellow Wisconsin Democrat Rep. Mark Pocan is not a fan and has been canvassing hard for another candidate, State Rep. Katrina Shankland.) As for his own reelection?: Golden is heading into his toughest race yet. He’s facing 30-year-old former NASCAR driver Austin Theriault, who’s attacking Golden as a Washington elite — a similar tact Golden took against his one-time opponent, former GOP Rep. Bruce Polliquin. Republicans are feeling extra confident this time: The House GOP campaign arm is opening a field office in Auburn, Maine next Wednesday. And they’ll have a special guest in town: Speaker Mike Johnson. — Sarah Ferris GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, where we will only be accepting source calls on swimming and women’s 3x3 basketball, thank you.
| | | | Live briefings, policy trackers, and procedural, industry, and people intelligence from POLITICO Pro Analysis gives you the insights you need to focus your policy strategy this election cycle. Secure your seat. | | | | | GOP’S TRUMP-REMARK HEADACHES RETURN Trump’s comments to the National Association of Black Journalists on Wednesday may not have been in tweet form, but they’re still giving Senate Republicans a painful 2017 flashback. Trump, when asked to respond to Republicans who have called Vice President Kamala Harris a “DEI hire,” said: “She was always of Indian heritage and she was only promoting Indian heritage. I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she turned Black, and now she wants to be known as Black. So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” The remarks had reporters quickly asking GOP senators for their reactions in the Capitol hallways. And, similar to tactics used during Trump’s presidency, many tried to dodge. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), who had just emerged from a classified briefing, hadn’t seen the comments. When they were described to him, Rounds paused for several seconds. When he was told this was in response to a question about whether Republicans calling Harris a “DEI hire” is inappropriate, he responded with more silence. Finally, he said: “I don’t know the context.” Fellow GOP Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said he needed to see Trump's comments before responding to them. But Sen. Raphael Warnock was steps behind Hawley as he was being asked about Trump's comments, prompting the Georgia Democrat to quip: "I want to hear this. I want to hear this answer." When reached by phone, one House Republican, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said of the former president’s remarks: “He has to be smarter and not take the bait, all it does is hurt him with swing voters.” (This all comes after Speaker Mike Johnson and GOP leadership urged members not to make comments about Harris’ race, suggesting it hurts their messaging efforts. Instead, they argued GOP members should focus on her policy record.) Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) put it this way: "Does it make any difference how much Polish ancestry versus Irish versus whatever else it is that I have in me? Why are we talking about this?" — Anthony Adragna, Jordain Carney and Olivia Beavers
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, our newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | SCHUMER GOES K-HIVE Chuck Schumer is raving over the Democratic enthusiasm for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign. But he’s still not weighing in on the first major decision she’ll make. The majority leader is declining to put his thumb on the scale for any particular vice presidential candidate, even with a Senate Democrat in the mix. Harris is slated to make her pick in a matter of days, with Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-Penn.) and Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) among the top contenders. Asked about Harris’ potential running mates, Schumer told Inside Congress in an interview on Wednesday, “I have complete faith that Vice President Harris will make a great choice.” He added that Democrats, in his view, have a “plethora of great candidates, many to choose from.” Schumer did, however, have a comment on Trump’s pick of Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) as a running mate, calling it an “added gift” for Democrats. Trump on Wednesday at the National Association of Black Journalists’ conference said he has “great respect” for Vance, though he added he believes vice presidential picks historically do not have an impact on election outcomes. — Ursula Perano FALL AD PREVIEW House Democrats’ largest super PAC has offered a glimpse at the types of ads it will launch in battleground seats this fall. In its two TV ads out Wednesday, House Majority Forward, which is aligned with the party’s super PAC, is launching an attack against New York Rep. Marc Molinaro. The ad argues he could be the deciding vote on a “total abortion ban,” a sign the party will again lean heavily into reproductive rights. The outside group is also launching a pro-law enforcement ad for Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), touting his plans to “secure the border and crack down on cartels.” House Majority PAC announced earlier this week that it will add $24 million to its initial $186 million in TV and digital reservations this year. — Sarah Ferris
| | Love wins… on Capitol Hill! Sometimes House recess means sushi for breakfast? Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) gave a rousing speech and round of applause honoring Senate doorkeeper Laverne Allen, who is retiring after 43 years. “You don’t think about how hard it is to come to a U.S. senator and tell them to be quiet,” Tillis said. We thought Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) catching a foul ball at the O’s game last weekend was peak Maryland. But Tuesday’s orange crush competition might win out. What a rebel, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). We saw you almost fall dashing across the Senate subway tracks — it's dangerous, don't do it — to chat with Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). Hakeem Jeffries is writing a book. QUICK LINKS In the Halls of the Capitol, Lawmakers Hunt for a Smoke-Filled Room, from Owen Tucker-Smith and Natalie Andrews at the Wall Street Journal Washington Prepares for the ‘Super Bowl of Tax’, from Andrew Duehren at the New York Times Senate passes the most significant child online safety bills in decades, from NBC News Kean rejects 2 debates and Altman pounces, from Matt Friedman TRANSITIONS Lucas Agnew has joined Van Ness Feldman as policy counsel. He previously served as staff on the Senate Appropriations Committee. Alex Catanese is now VP of congressional relations at the American Bankers Association. He previously was director of advocacy at America's Credit Unions. Jon Bosworth is leaving Rep. Earl Blumenaur’s office to attend Berkeley Law. He currently serves as chief of staff, and had started in the office as a staff assistant. TOMORROW IN CONGRESS The House is out. The Senate is in session. THURSDAY AROUND THE HILL Quiet.
| | TUESDAY’S ANSWER: Madeleine Marr was the first person to answer correctly that James Garfield was the only president who was an ordained minister. TODAY’S QUESTION, from Madeleine: During his second term, President Grover Cleveland underwent a secret surgery to remove a tumor from the roof of his mouth. Where did this surgery take place? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@politico.com. GET INSIDE CONGRESS emailed to your phone each evening. | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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