| | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus | | | With help from Sarah Ferris WHAT'S NORMAL ANYWAY?— Last week's House vote on banning imports of Russian oil stopped short of suspending normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus but the chamber is now ready to take that step today with backing from the White House. The company they keep…At the moment only two countries — Cuba and North Korea — do not have NTR status with the United States. The Ways and Means Committee bill on the House agenda today will withdraw the normal trade relations status from both Russia and Belarus and allow Biden to further increase tariffs on products from both countries. The bill moving today is meant to complement last week's measure that codified Biden's executive order banning Russian oil and energy imports and directed World Trade Organization members to suspend trade concessions with Russia and expanded sanctions over human rights abuses. RELATED: Republicans try to out-hawk Biden on Ukraine aid, from Burgess, Olivia and Andrew COVID AID CONTENTION — A vote on a standalone Covid aid package isn't in the cards for the House this week. "We will have, hopefully, compromise funding for this effort, and we will get this passed in the near term," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told reporters Wednesday. He had hoped for this week, but that's not happening. "We're working very hard to come up with funding sources," he said. Last week Democratic leaders had to cut out the $15 billion in Covid funds from the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending package following an upset from Democrats about offsets that would redirect money already allocated to states. (Republicans want a full accounting of trillions of Covid dollars already out the door before approving more.) Punchbowl News first reported on the Covid package getting booted off this week's to-do list. Our House Democratic sources were telling us it was highly unlikely the bill would reach the floor this week. A key group of moderate Democrats had told party leaders they wouldn't vote on anything that couldn't also pass the Senate, where the 50-50 split and that call for accounting complicates things. The House couldn't just vote on that same $15.6 billion package without the offsets that make members balk. That means there's a whole new compromise to cook up with Senate Republicans — something that House Democratic leadership and the White House is working on. "We're going to pass something that can get the votes in the senate," Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters. | | | | WIN A VIP TICKET TO THE GREATEST POLITICAL SHOW ON EARTH! POLITICO and SHOWTIME are teaming up for an evening of cocktails and conversation featuring the POLITICO Playbook team and Mark McKinnon and Jennifer Palmieri from "The Circus" on Showtime in Washington, D.C. Enter for a chance to win a ticket to join fellow Playbookers and newsmakers at this exclusive, VIP event by Friday, March 18th. Winners will be notified on that date (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 Thursday, March 17, where the Friends of Ireland luncheon might be less friendly after a Covid diagnosis.
THE OTHER STANDSTILL IN THE BELTWAY — Liberals in the House are so irked by inaction across the Capitol that they're now imploring President Joe Biden to pursue as much of the party's agenda as he can without them. That means executive actions. POTUS power: With Biden's agenda stalled and the midterms rapidly approaching, groups like the Progressive Caucus, the Black Caucus and the Hispanic Caucus are urging Biden to use his presidential pen to tackle everything from immigration reform to lowering gas prices. As Rep. Anthony Brown (D-Md.) put it: "People are realizing that, at this point in the cycle, executive order is probably where you're going to start seeing more things get done." Put more bluntly: "One-third of House members would like to have legislation over here to do away with the Senate," quipped Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.). Real talk ... Senior Dems say it's *not* that members are adopting a "minority mindset." Rather, it's a long-time-coming evolution toward a more achievable policy lineup with tight margins in both chambers. Not all Dems are on board either, insisting they need to focus on passing actual bills that can outlast a Republican taking over the White House. But some Dems say it's worth giving it a shot: Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) said voting rights, for instance, is "something that we should not walk away from." Lights, camera, executive action: The Congressional Progressive Caucus will drop their full slate of executive action items later today. Sarah and Nicholas have more: House liberals start asking Biden to sidestep Congress — months before the midterms IRISH GOODBYE? — President Joe Biden and Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin were supposed to head to the Capitol for the annual Friends of Ireland Luncheon, but with Martin's positive test yesterday (a diagnosis he received while he was sitting next to Pelosi last night,) those plans seem likely to change. No official update to the schedule yet, but expect a scramble. PROXY PALOOZA — The House Rules Committee hears from members today on a key operation of the House: the future of proxy voting and remote committee proceedings. This comes nearly two years after the practice was first implemented in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic. The hearing was originally slated for last summer, when vaccines were flowing and Delta was just an airline and no one had heard of Omicron. Things were looking up. House Rules Chairman Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) told your Huddle host back then: "Let's look at all of this. Is there any of this stuff we want to keep? Or what do we want to end?" Hoyer and Pelosi have both long maintained that they think in-person interaction is the best way to operate the House, but that proxy voting was put in place to accommodate a deadly and fast-changing public health crisis. Hoyer will testify today and we expect him to emphasize his preference for in-person action, but also advocate for exploring new technology and ways to accommodate members with health situations. "I think that's a legitimate discussion. I don't think there's some magic about my voting with a card in a particular room," he told reporters Wednesday. But he made it clear: "I'm not suggesting we work from home." Republicans will come out swinging against proxy voting. No surprise, given the lawsuit and all . Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) is set to testify along with Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.) who will say "proxy voting is destroying Congress," according to testimony obtained by Huddle. Gallagher will take aim at the widely acknowledged fact that the proxy privilege has been widely used by members of both sides of the aisle, often for non-pandemic reasons. (Despite signing letters saying their vote is by proxy due to the ongoing health emergency.) "It's time to say it directly: members are lying to this body and to the American public when they submit proxy statements attesting that it is the pandemic, and not other pursuits, that keeps them from conducting their sworn duty on the house floor," Gallagher will tell the committee. | | A message from Freight Rail Works: In times of recovery, America needs a transportation network that can keep goods moving, help businesses prosper and remain responsive to changing customer needs. Not only does freight rail invest $25 billion annually to provide U.S. businesses with safe, reliable service. Today's rail shipping rates are 44% lower than in 1981, which keeps U.S. businesses competitive. See how railroads are helping America get back on track. | | | CAPITO EYES LEADERSHIP— The Hill's Jordain Carney had the scoop on Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) eyeing the No. 5 spot in the Senate GOP Conference, which she'd need to be elected to by her colleagues. She pointed to Sen. Roy Blunt's (R-Mo.) retirement, which opens up a leadership slot and her work on the bipartisan infrastructure bill as two factors that swayed her towards the bid. FOLLOWING FORTENBERY— If you're trying to follow the trial of Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-Neb.), there are some folks inside the courtroom in Los Angeles for you to follow: Meghann Cuniff from law.com had a robust live-tweet situation for jury selection yesterday. Paul Hammel is on the ground in LA via Nebraska and has a full report from yesterday's action. The home-state press was relegated to an overflow room yesterday, but Paul has been promised a seat in the courtroom today. EXTREME MAKEOVER, HOB EDITION?— The House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress hears from Architect of the Capitol J. Brett Blanton and experts on modern workspaces and architecture at a hearing today on how to modernize the Capitol campus's 18.4 million square feet of facilities. Don't expect a "demo day" highlight reel… "Topics will include maximizing the use of existing space through improved access and flexible design, facilitating greater productivity, civility and collaboration through design, balancing modernization and historic importance, how physical space impacts staff recruitment and retention, and more." | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO NATIONAL SECURITY DAILY : Keep up with the latest critical developments from Ukraine and across Europe in our daily newsletter, National Security Daily. The Russian invasion of Ukraine could disrupt the established world order and result in a refugee crisis, increased cyberattacks, rising energy costs and additional disruption to global supply chains. Go inside the top national security and foreign-policymaking shops for insight on the global threats faced by the U.S. and its allies and what actions world leaders are taking to address them. Subscribe today. | | | | |
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21% bump street… House offices got their letters finalizing the 21 percent increase to members' representational allowances. Now we're watching how that boost will get used.
Hoyer, who along with Democratic Caucus Chair Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) advocated hard for this increase, weighed in Wednesday: "What we've done is try to make us an employer that pays people a living wage in an expensive city, so they can afford to get housing. I think that's a step forward," said Hoyer. "I've been a strong proponent, as you already know, of paying our people properly. It's most important on the lower spectrum, but it's also important on the upper spectrum," he said, pointing to the need to retain experienced staff and compete with executive branch opportunities. Hoyer is ready to see a minimum salary for House staff: "I'm for having a minimum," he said "I don't know what the minimum ought to be." (I bet junior staff could throw out some suggestions.) Dusty(ing) off the cobwebs … Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) is getting a jump start ahead of the Capitol's reopening to the public and taking close to 90 staff assistants on a Capitol tour…before they have to be tour guides themselves. (You might remember Johnson's interns penning a letter last summer to Speaker Nancy Pelosi lamenting not being able to give tours due to Covid restrictions.) Scores of staff assistants will set off at 3:45 p.m., led by Johnson. Curative's labyrinth?... With the Capitol Visitor Center set to re-open in the coming weeks, the Covid testing site that's been hosted in the CVC cafeteria will be heading to the Rayburn Foyer. Your Huddle host heard the groans and gripes from the Senate side of the Capitol when we scooped this yesterday. Reminder that the site has been a House program all along. Rayburn isn't so bad – there's &Pizza and sushi! Maybe leave a trail of sticky notes so you can find your way back out? Luck of the Irish… There is an Irish feast cooking in Longworth (we can't all be invited to the Friends of Ireland Luncheon) featuring corned beef and cabbage, Colcannon mashed potatoes with kale, glazed gingered carrots, leek and cabbage slaw, Guinness mocha cheesecake and much, much more. House chef Fred Johnson was tweeting out a preview that made your Huddle host hungry. TRANSITIONS Katelynn Thorpe has been promoted to serve as the House Appropriations Committee Communications Director. She previously served as Rep. Rosa DeLauro's (D-Conn.) personal office Communications Director since June 2020 and before that as CD for former Appropriations Committee Chair Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.). Denise Fleming is now senior director of legislative affairs at WorkMoney. She previously was legislative director for Rep. Cindy Axne (D-Iowa). | | | | A message from Freight Rail Works:   | | |
TODAY IN CONGRESS
The House convenes at 10 a.m. for morning hour debate and noon for legislative business. The Senate convenes at 10 a.m. with roll call votes expected at 11:45 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. AROUND THE HILL 9 a.m. House Congress Modernization Committee hearing on modernizing House office buildings (Cannon 210). 9 a.m. House Rules Committee hearing on proxy voting and remote committee proceedings (H-313). 10 a.m. House Ways and Means Committee hybrid hearing on the 2022 tax filing season with IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig (Longworth 1100). 10:45 a.m. Pelosi holds her weekly press conference (Studio A). 2 p.m. Reps. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) hold a press conference on the status of the country and mental health issues and "in solidarity for freedom in America" (House Triangle).
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WEDNESDAY'S WINNER:John Palatiello correctly answered that on May 28, 1954, Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia addressed a joint meeting of Congress.
TODAY'S QUESTION: Who hosted the first Capitol Hill St. Patrick's Day Luncheon in its current form? 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 Freight Rail Works: Alleviating an extraordinary supply chain crisis requires an extraordinary transportation network—like America's freight railroads. The dedicated employees of America's freight railroads are working 24/7 to find powerful solutions to maximize efficiency and reliability. Learn more about how railroads are creating an unbreakable link between manufacturers, retailers and other critical rail customers. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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