CAN’T SEE A PLAN B Speaker Mike Johnson sounded like Coach Johnson Wednesday morning when he insisted he’s working with a one-page playbook ahead of tonight’s vote on a stopgap spending bill. “We’ll see what happens with the bill,” said Johnson. “We’re on the field in the middle of the game, the QB is calling the play, and we’re going to run the play.” That play would be passing a six-month continuing resolution with a voter citizenship verification bill attached, and, as of this evening, it looks destined to be tackled for a loss. If Johnson is cooking up a Hail Mary to clear a CR and not get jammed by the Senate, he’s not sharing it with key members of his team. Top GOP appropriators have been largely frozen out, and some have been left to learn about key developments — like last week’s move to pull the stopgap bill off the floor and the scheduling of this week’s vote — through social media posts and staff. Johnson met with Appropriations subcommittee chairs Tuesday, but his gathering of the “cardinals” doesn’t necessarily mean they have real agency in what comes next. “When you're formulating whatever Plan B is, hopefully the people whose bills they are, will be fully in the loop,” said Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.), who chairs the Appropriations Homeland Security subcommittee. Amodei added that Johnson might have good reason for keeping mum: “If you do have a Plan B, the last thing you want to do is say what it is because that just undermines Plan A.” GOP appropriators have been privately urging Johnson to bring up a shorter stopgap spending bill, one that would allow for a potential full-year spending package to pass in December. Combining the spending patch with the proof-of-citizenship bill is a no-go in the Senate, they note, as well as the potentially dire impacts of a six-month CR on defense readiness. House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole is still projecting confidence: “We’ll work it out,” he said Wednesday. The short-term thinking: Johnson allies believe the speaker has to show that he is fighting for the plan backed by most of his conference and, potentially more importantly, former President Donald Trump — even though the writing is on the wall about the outcome. The point of tonight’s vote is threefold, depending on who you talk to: (1) to put Democrats on the record, (2) to prove to his right flank the plan can’t pass and (3) to let his members vote for a plan they prefer before making them swallow some bitter medicine. The leadership long game: Whatever Johnson does next will spill over into his bid to keep the speaker’s gavel if Republicans keep control of the House. And it’s not just Johnson who might face a challenge. Three GOP lawmakers, in different factions of the conference, told POLITICO that based on ongoing conversations with their colleagues, they expect multiple members of the leadership team to draw challengers regardless of whether or not Republicans are in the majority or minority. — Katherine Tully-McManus, with help from Caitin Emma and Jordain Carney GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, where we’re excited to see who’s on the DMV season of “Love is Blind.” KTM’S CAMPUS CORNER Staff Union Update: Two House Democratic offices are getting close to securing union contracts with the Congressional Workers Union, with two memorandums of understanding locked in today in the offices of Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and Val Hoyle (D-Ore.). “We’re proud to have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that ensures better compensation, back pay, security, and clarity for staff as we continue working towards a Collective Bargaining Agreement.,” said the Pocan unit in a statement. “We secured especially strong raises for junior staff and important acknowledgement of our most-tenured staff through updated job titles.” Hackathon Use Case: An idea floated at last year’s Congressional Hackathon has come to fruition and will be on display tomorrow, at this year’s event focused on leveraging tech to improve how Congress works. The company Prolegis will unveil an artificial intelligence tool to draft legislative summaries — similar to what the Congressional Research Service has said they’re looking to develop. Prolegis says its summaries aren’t meant to compete with what Congress’ in-house research wing is cooking up and will include “annotations with links to official documents.” (Full disclosure: POLITICO Pro is also dipping into AI bill summaries.) — Katherine Tully-McManus KUSTER JOINS TEAM GOODLANDER Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (D-N.H.) is hosting a fundraiser Wednesday night for the Democratic nominee to fill her seat, Maggie Goodlander, according to a person familiar with the event. Kuster had been an ardent supporter of Goodlander's primary opponent, Colin Van Ostern, and she even cut an ad for him that irked Goodlander's supporters. Now Kuster and other Van Ostern allies are all in for Goodlander to keep the swing-y seat blue. President Joe Biden won the seat by nine percentage points in 2020, but it could be competitive under the right circumstances. A recent poll from the Saint Anselm College Survey Center showed Goodlander leading Republican Lily Tang Williams, 49% to 38%, with 11% undecided. — Sarah Ferris, with an assist from Nicholas Wu
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