Senate stands alone with vets and spending on deck

A play-by-play preview of the day's congressional news

Aug 01, 2022 View in browser   By Katherine Tully-McManus Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) arrives for a press conference at the U.S. Capitol July 28, 2022. (Francis Chung/E&E News/POLITICO) SENATE FLIES SOLO — Where there's a bill, there's a way. At least that's what Democrats hope as they aim for a clear path forward on their party-line legislative package revealed last week. This week could prove critical for Democrats. They are racing to pass their party-line energy, tax, deficit reduction and health care legislation. But multiple hurdles remain. Parliamentary purge: Splish, splash, it is time for a Byrd bath. Staff were already duking it out behind closed doors with the parliamentarian over the drug pricing provisions, but now they're adding the tax and climate deal struck by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). It will all need to be parsed with a fine tooth comb to ensure that the provisions align with the Senate's rules for the budget process that would allow Democrats to evade the filibuster. There's a chance that the bill hits the floor before the meetings are done, with Republican challenges to certain language still pending. That could mean chaos on the floor if sections are tossed out. Our budget queen Caitlin Emma warned us all about it last week . Attendance: Positive Covid tests are running through the Democratic caucus and isolation periods have the potential to upend the pre-recess sprint. The deal between Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) may have been struck over the phone while Manchin had Covid, but the caucus will all need to be in the chamber to pass the bill. Democratic caucus lunches will be virtual this week, to prevent further Covid spread. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who has been out of commission following a broken hip and ensuing surgeries, will be available this week. Democrats will still need Vice President Kamala Harris's tie breaking vote if the rest of the caucus sticks together. ATTN: Kyrsten Sinema… Manchin made the rounds on the Sunday shows yesterday and he had plenty to say about his centrist colleague Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), who has not yet said whether she will support the package. Sinema wasn't included or briefed on the one-on-one negotiations between Manchina and Schumer and was surprised (along with the rest of the Senate) by their release of the bill last week. Burgess has more on Manchin's pitch to an audience of one: Manchin to Sinema: Believe in this bill Vote-a-rama drama: Before Dems can bring in Vice President Kamala Harris to break a tie on final passage, they'll first need to stay united during the unlimited amendment firehose vote-a-rama.   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 Monday, August 1, where there's only one chamber left in town. But get Marie Kondo up here, it could get messy . VETERANS KEEP VIGIL — The Senate is expected to vote again this week on a bill to expand benefits and medical options for veterans exposed to toxic burn pits while deployed. Republicans tanked the bill last week. Twenty-five Republicans who voted against moving forward on the bill last week voted for it back in June. Republicans want an amendment vote to make changes to discretionary versus mandatory spending in the bill and they say a dispute over those numbers is what prompted their "no" votes last week. After Senators left for the weekend, veterans groups did not. They camped out on the Capitol steps all weekend, undaunted by the rain, in a "fire watch" demonstration to call for passage of the legislation. President Joe Biden did a video call with the group and sent pizzas, after a rebound of Covid kept him from visiting in-person. "I will hold a new vote this week, and I am urging everyone to vote 'yes'," Schumer told reporters at a press conference in New York on Sunday. More from Leo Shane at Military Times on the budget fight over the burn pits bill: Burn pits benefits bill concerns aren't new, hinge on budget moves . PELOSI TRIP TO ASIA — Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) kicked off what has become a tense tour of Asia. She arrived in Singapore Monday and plans to hold high-level meetings in Malaysia, South Korea and Japan. Unnamed Biden administration officials told the New York Times that Pelosi's trip is indeed expected to include a stop in Taiwan, which will inflame tensions with China. If she does make a stop on the self-governing island, it would be the highest-level visit by a U.S. official in 25 years. Pelosi is no stranger to unnerving the Chinese government. She unfurled a banner in Beijing's Tiananmen Square during a 1991 visit that read "To those who died for democracy in China." Pelosi is traveling with Reps. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) and Andy Kim (D-N.J.). CASES, CLOSED — Stock violations, dismissed: The House Ethics Committee dismissed cases alleging that Reps. Pat Fallon (R-Texas), John Rutherford (R-Fla.) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) violated the STOCK Act by failing to properly report their stock trades. All three cases were referred to the panel by the Office of Congressional Ethics, which found "substantial reason to believe" that the violations occurred. Suozzi's lawyers admit that he failed to file periodic transaction reports. They say he "made every effort to disclose every reportable transaction on his annual financial disclosure statements. Until August 2021, he was unaware that his transactions also needed to be disclosed on PTRs." They blame a junior accountant for not passing along an email. He cooperated with the OCE inquiry and filed a flurry of corrective disclosures on more than 450 transactions from between January 2017 and August 2021, valued between $6 million and $19 million. Back in March, Fallon and Rutherford's lawyer (they have the same one) said there "was and is literally nothing to investigate here" in both cases but also acknowledged that the two lawmakers did fail to file timely Periodic Transaction Reports and that the information has since been filed and fines paid. Arrests settled: The seventeen members of Congress who were arrested in mid-July while protesting in front of the Supreme Court in support of abortion rights will not face further inquiry. All the members have either paid their $50 fine or plan to and the Ethics panel considers the matter closed . The same goes for Rep. Andy Levin's (D-Mich.) arrest the following day in support of Senate dining workers. He's paid his fines for both arrests.   INTRODUCING POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don't miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY .     HUDDLE HOTDISH Picket line launches… Senate dining workers will be picketing outside their workplace today, starting at 2 p.m. The cooks, cashiers and other food service staff are calling for finalization of their union contract and more stability in their work status and are asking customers — including Senators and staff — to not cross the picket. Eight senators have voiced support and pledged to not cross the picket line. A slur, an apology… Rep. Chuy García's office (D-Ill.) apologized over the weekend for what it called an "unauthorized tweet" that used "profanities and offensive language," including a slur for people with disabilities. What a way to close out Disability Pride Month. García's team called the tweet "inappropriate" and "inconsistent with Congressman García's history, values, and character." Disciplinary action will be taken against the staffer who posted the tweet, according to the statement. Union Station woes… tons of Hill commuters rely on the transit hub, which has seen falling foot traffic, vacant storefronts and now, Starbucks is calling it quits. The Washington Post looks at how the pandemic, labor organizing, and the overlapping housing and mental health crises are impacting the once-vibrant hub . QUICK LINKS  Tim Scott's new book says he's preparing a presidential bid. He says 'absolutely not.' , from Caitlin Byrd at The Post and Courier She voted to impeach Trump. Now Rep. Herrera Beutler tries to navigate a tough primary , from Troy Bynelson at OPB States boost child care money as congressional effort stalls , from Maysoon Khan at The Associated Press Slice of Profits From North Carolina Casino Goes to Relatives of Politicians , from By Mark Maremont at The Wall Street Journal TRANSITIONS  Paige Rusher is now a director at Seven Letter. She previously was press secretary for Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and the Senate HELP Committee and is a Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) alum. Rebekah Rodriguez is now director of federal affairs at Boundary Stone Partners. She previously was senior legislative assistant for Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah) and deputy executive director of the Conservative Climate Caucus. TODAY IN CONGRESS The House is out. The Senate convenes at 3 p.m. and will vote at 5:30 p.m. AROUND THE HILL 11 a.m. Veterans groups and supporters rally outside the Senate in support of burn pit legislation (Senate Swamp). TRIVIA FRIDAY'S WINNER: Alan Rosenberg correctly answered that Mount Rushmore features surveyors (and presidents) Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln and non-surveyor Teddy Roosevelt. TODAY'S QUESTION: Who was the only president sworn in by a former president? 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   Follow us

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