| | | | |  | | By Katherine Tully-McManus | Presented by Cherokee Nation | | 
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) speaks with reporters after announcing that he will challenge Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to be the Senate Republican leader at the U.S. Capitol Nov. 15, 2022. (Francis Chung/E&E News/POLITICO) | THE MAKING OF A MINORITY LEADER — In the shadow of former President Donald Trump's announcement of his run for president, Senate Republicans will decide today which direction to take their caucus, with a choice between Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) for minority leader. Scott, the Senate GOP's campaign chief in this bruising cycle, was urged to mount the opposition bid by Trump Delay tactics: The leadership elections this morning are expected to kick off with a proposal to delay the vote until after the Dec. 6 Georgia runoff election and Alaska's senate race is decided, but it is not likely that there are enough votes for that. And don't count those who vote for a delay as an automatic vote against McConnell. Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) said she would support the Kentuckian, but is asking for a delay. (It's a nay on cloture but yea on the bill kind of situation.) Scott's challenge to McConnell is the first of its kind in the 15 years of McConnell leading Senate Republicans. But there's little chance of Scott prevailing. "I have the votes. I will be elected. The only issue is whether it will be sooner or later," McConnell said Tuesday after the three-hour meeting where Scott first announced his bid to lead the caucus. "I don't own this job. Anybody in the conference that's serving can challenge me. And I welcome [it]." Scott's bid has the backing of Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), who will nominate him this morning, Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.), who said his fellow Hoosiers are "sick and tired of the status quo." Braun is planning a run for Indiana governor in 2024. "I don't think a challenge of our Sen. McConnell is a wise decision. It's something that will stay with us for the next two years," said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), who predicted a "second-guessing game as people run for president." Predictions: McConnell ally and adviser Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) predicts that Scott will get "high-single digits" votes in the leadership elections. Burgess has a look inside that three hour long airing of grievances at yesterday's GOP caucus lunch (Seinfeld reference courtesy of Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney.) A must-read before this morning's elections kick off. Meanwhile… Senators float audit of Rick Scott's NRSC , from Alex Isenstadt IT TAKES TEN TO TANGO — The Senate is set to take an initial procedural vote on legislation to codify same sex marriage protections today, but supporters of the bill are still courting GOP support. Romney got on board on Tuesday, the fourth Republican to voice support for the measure. But Democrats need at least 10 to overcome a filibuster. An amendment to the measure aims to build broader support and soothe concerns about religious freedom from some conservatives. The amendment would leave intact protections from a 1993 religious freedom law and states that nonprofit religious groups would not have to perform marriage services and that the bill would not impact their tax treatment. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints said the bill, with the amendment on religious liberty, "includes appropriate religious freedom protections while respecting the law and preserving the rights of our LGBTQ brothers and sisters." Today's vote will be the first time the Senate has taken up standalone legislation on LGBTQ rights since 2013. Marianne has a loose whip count ahead of today's vote.
| | | | A message from Cherokee Nation: Cherokee Nation has waited 187 years for the U.S. government to honor the promise made in the Treaty of New Echota, which promised them a delegate in the U .S. House of Representatives. Congress must uphold its legal obligation. Action is long overdue for the U.S. House to fulfill its promise and vote to seat the Cherokee Nation's delegate. | | | GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday, November 16, where members are already scouting new offices. (More on that below.) A QUICK FLASHBACK — Earlier this week, Burgess, Olivia and Andrew asked a whole bunch of Republicans on Capitol Hill about Trump's 2024 bid for the White House. The exuberance wasn't quite there . But we'll see if the tune changes now that it's official. NEVER AGAIN? — Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) is working to prevent Trump from ever holding office again. In a letter to House Democrats Tuesday night, obtained by POLITICO , the former Trump impeachment manager said he is drafting legislation to bar Trump from holding office under the fourteenth amendment to the constitution. The reasoning is rooted in his incitement of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. "This language in our Constitution clearly intended to bar insurrectionists from holding high office in the United States," Cicilline wrote. TAKE IT TO THE LIMIT — Democrats in both chambers are talking about tackling the debt limit during the lame duck session. But McConnell is saying not so fast . Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday: "We'd like to get a debt ceiling done in this work period. The best way to get it done, the way it's been done the last two or three times, is bipartisan. And I intend, shortly, to sit down with the Republican leader and try to work that out." McConnell: "I don't think the debt limit issue is until sometime next year." RELATED: White House's hopes for a lame-duck debt ceiling deal are fading fast , from Adam Cancryn PELOSI IS POISED TO….? — House Democrats' leadership elections aren't for 14 days. They're waiting both on an official call of who will control the chamber, but also a major decision from Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). The will-she-or-won't-she energy is palpable. President Joe Biden and Schumer have publicly called for her to stay on to lead the caucus. House Democrats' history-making performance in the midterms hasn't changed one reliable thing about the Democratic Caucus: Not many are willing to call for a new generation of leaders to take power. Sarah and Nicholas unpack House Democrats' demeanor ahead of leadership elections on Nov. 30 .
| | | | POLITICO APP USERS: UPGRADE YOUR APP BY DECEMBER 19! We recently upgraded the POLITICO app with a fresh look and improved features for easier access to POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Starting December 19, users will no longer have access to the previous version of the app. Update your app today to stay on top of essential political news, insights, and analysis from the best journalists in the business. UPDATE iOS APP – UPDATE ANDROID APP . | | | | | FIVE OR LESS — Rep. Sarah Jacobs (D-Calif.) is making a bid for leadership, hoping to win the "five terms or less" position on the Democratic leadership team. Only junior members of the caucus, those who have served fewer than five terms, can vote for the position. Jacobs will face Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-Texas) for the caucus leadership representative role. Members who have been around since 2014 may not seem like the new kids anymore, but they still lack tenure of long-serving members. Classes of 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020 and 2022 will vote in the race. "This cycle, I was honored to serve as Recruitment Co-Chair and Red to Blue Co-Chair of the DCCC, raising more than $6.5 million to support House Democrats and traveling across the country to campaign for our candidates. So many of them – considered longshots and written off by pundits and polls – will be our new colleagues, and I couldn't be more excited," Jacobs wrote in her letter to colleagues . RULES RANKLING — House Republicans on Tuesday locked in Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as the conference's pick for speaker, but that doesn't mean he has the votes locked up to win the gavel on the floor. He'll be maneuvering to get to 218 up until the vote in January. Part of that is building out rules for the conference and a House Rules package for the 119th Congress that satisfies different conference constituencies. Republicans are splitting up consideration of a big list of proposals for those rules, with about a dozen on the table today and the rest up for consideration after the Thanksgiving recess. Catch up on those proposals here . Don't miss Olivia and Jordain's dispatch from the drama at the GOP conference leadership elections . NOW WE'VE GOT BAD BLOOD — Lawmakers are crying "monopoly" after Tuesday's ticketing debacle for Taylor Swift's new tour. Critics of the Ticketmaster/LiveNation merger think the two major players in the event space should have never, ever, gotten together and lawmakers questioned why high fees couldn't pay for a ticketing system that worked. The political power of Swifties has yet to be fully harnessed. Could anti-trust be the issue?
| | | | A message from Cherokee Nation:   | | | | | | Ominous drop-ins… Staff of outgoing House members are having some awkward interactions as lawmakers and staff who will still be around next year drop by to, almost literally, measure the drapes. Surviving incumbents are on the prowl for new office space. Last week they got access to the list of all the offices that will open up in the new Congress and now they're scoping out potential new digs. That can be a bummer – but also a kind of rite of passage – for staff of retiring or defeated members who started getting impromptu visits. "It feels a bit like they're dancing on the graves of retiring or lost members," one staffer told Huddle who spotted Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) poking around still-occupied offices in Longworth this week. The best offices — those with big rooms, close to food options and on a good floor — are getting the bulk of the visits. Staff and members are stopping by to take photos and try to imagine themselves in the space. Outgoing House members move out of their offices in waves and will all end up camped out in inhospitable cubicles by the end of the lame duck session. That means some offices are already looking bare, while others are still very much occupied when visitors come to see if they'd like to claim it. Stay tuned: This is all about incumbents. The office lottery for new members will take place after Thanksgiving. And, to your Huddle Host's delight, it will return to its raucous in-person format where freshmen draw numbers and then get to pick offices in that order. Stay tuned for robust coverage of a very fun part of Capitol Hill life here in Huddle. Hyperlocal… Would John Fetterman Fit in Capitol Hill Books' Basement? A scientific study from the bookstore itself. New digs… Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) has bought a three-bedroom home in Cape Coral, FL, for $1,120,000. TRANSITIONS Marcus Childress is joining Jenner & Block as special counsel and will play a significant role in the congressional investigations practice. He most recently was investigative counsel for the House Jan. 6 committee. John Krausis joining HHS as assistant secretary for public affairs/public health. He previously was comms director for Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.). Emily Cassilis now comms director for Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas). She previously was deputy press secretary for Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.).
| | | | GO INSIDE THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO is featuring a special edition of our "Future Pulse" newsletter at the 2022 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit from Dec. 6 to 8. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of health industry leaders and innovators solving the biggest global health issues to ensure a healthier, more resilient future for all. SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE . | | | | | TODAY IN CONGRESS The House convenes at noon for legislative business. The Senate convenes at 1:45 p.m. to resume consideration of the motion to proceed to the Respect for Marriage Act with a vote on cloture on the motion to proceed at 3:15 p.m. AROUND THE HILL 10 a.m. House Rules Committee hearing on legal and procedural factors related to seating a Cherokee Nation delegate in the U.S. House of Representatives (H-313). 11 a.m. Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-Nev.), and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) hold a press conference on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (Senate Swamp). 11 a.m. Reps. Dan Newhouse (D-Wash.), Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), Jim Costa (D-Calif.), Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.) and others hold a press conference on the Farm Workforce Modernization Act (House Triangle).
| | | TUESDAY'S WINNER: Jason Morganti correctly answered that the longest serving member of the House, the "dean," swears in the speaker of the House on the first day of a new Congress. TODAY'S QUESTION: Who was the first House majority leader elected by their party caucus? 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 Cherokee Nation: The 1835 Treaty of New Echota removed the Cherokee Nation from their lands and sent them west on the Trail of Tears. But that same treaty also guaranteed Cherokee Nation the right to seat a delegate in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Nearly 200 years later, that obligation remains unfulfilled. The U.S. government must honor its treaties. Seating the Cherokee Nation's delegate would be a win for all Indian Country, as the delegate would have an official seat at the table and be an effective advocate for all Native Americans.
Congress has a chance to make history. It is time for the United States government to honor its promise and seat the Cherokee Nation's delegate, Kim Teehee, in the U.S. House of Representatives. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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