Senate shows off speed, clears debt deal

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

Jun 02, 2023 View in browser   By Katherine Tully-McManus and Daniella Diaz With a hand from Jordain Carney DEBT CLOCK — There are FOUR DAYS (including today) until the earliest possible federal default, according to the Treasury Department’s most recent projection. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer hustled the Senate through 11 amendment votes ahead of final passage of the debt limit deal. (Francis Chung/POLITICO ) | AP STEP BACK FROM THAT LEDGE, MY FRIEND — The threat of defaulting on the nation’s debt is off the table. Following the House, the Senate passed the bipartisan debt limit deal overnight after a flurry of votes on doomed amendments. The chamber cleared the bill late Thursday night, in plenty of time to beat Monday’s deadline when the U.S. was set to default without this intervention. Much of the action Thursday night was aimed at alleviating heartburn from defense hawks that the debt ceiling deal, struck by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Joe Biden — and largely without input from Senate leaders. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) issued a joint statement saying the “debt ceiling deal does nothing to limit the Senate’s ability to appropriate emergency supplemental funds to ensure our military capabilities are sufficient to deter China, Russia, and our other adversaries.” The breakdown: Four Democrats, plus Vermont Independent Bernie Sanders, voted against the debt deal, while 44 Democrats and Independents Angus King of Maine and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona voted in favor. Republicans had 31 votes against and 17 votes in favor. As the vote was wrapping up, there was a flurry of no votes as senators saw that it would pass even without their support. The one senator missing the vote was Republican Sen. Bill Hagerty who flew home to Tennessee to attend his son’s high school graduation. “Senator Hagerty regrets to miss any vote, but he made a commitment to his son and his family to be with them on this important day,” read a statement from his office. Speedy senate: Schumer spent the night urging (begging?) his colleagues to stick around the chamber and vote faster, even challenging them to beat the time of the previous amendment. He cheered when any votes took less than the 10 minutes allotted. The Sinema-Manchin angle: While many senators felt cut out of the debt limit dealmaking process, Sens. Sinema and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) did not. Manchin’s influence was clear with the inclusion of language to speed up approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Meanwhile, Sinema “Leaned on years of relationships with McCarthy and lead negotiators Reps. Garret Graves (R-La.) and Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) while also consulting closely with OMB Director Shalanda Young and White House counselor Steve Ricchetti, who led the White House strategy alongside Legislative Director Louisa Terrell. She spent Thursday racing around the Capitol, aiding Senate leaders as they sought an agreement to speed votes up, spending literally hours helping craft joint statements and locking in amendment votes,” Burgess reports this morning in an exploration of the duo’s approach to the debt limit package.   DON’T MISS POLITICO’S HEALTH CARE SUMMIT: The Covid-19 pandemic helped spur innovation in health care, from the wide adoption of telemedicine, health apps and online pharmacies to mRNA vaccines. But what will the next health care innovations look like? Join POLITICO on Wednesday June 7 for our Health Care Summit to explore how tech and innovation are transforming care and the challenges ahead for access and delivery in the United States. REGISTER NOW.     GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Friday, June 2, where your Huddle hosts have never been happier that it’s Friday after the longest short week ever. CONTEMPT WATCH — Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the panel’s top Democrat, will meet with the FBI on Monday to receive a briefing and review a document Republicans allege links then-Vice President Biden to a “bribery scheme.” (An Oversight Dem spox said they will also “be briefed on the Trump Justice Department's follow up.”) The meeting comes as Comer is threatening to hold FBI Director Chris Wray in contempt of Congress unless he gives the document, which the Kentucky Republican has already seen, to the committee. The Monday meeting, a GOP Oversight spokesperson confirmed to Jordain, does not meet Comer’s bar for complying with a subpoena because the FBI is only letting the committee review the document. Without full compliance, Comer had said he will schedule a contempt of Congress vote in committee for Tuesday or Wednesday. He’ll need to notice the business meeting today, to meet the committee’s 72 hours (in business days) notice requirement. HOUSE CARES ABOUT YOUR COOKING — Or at least House Republicans want to defend your gas stove. Even though the House gave back its recess this week to deal with the debt limit, it doesn’t seem they’re planning to take next week off – the Rules committee alerted a meeting for Monday to vote on several measures, including legislation that would bar the Consumer Product Safety Commission from using federal funds to ban gas stoves and another to stop the Department of Energy from finalizing its efficiency rule. ICYMI: DEBT AFTER ACTON — Yeah, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) isn’t just gonna get over the debt limit deal that he hated. The Texas Republican indicated that he will sit down with McCarthy next week, after internal GOP frustrations spiked this week amid divisions over the debt deal. “I think there needs to be a bit of a reckoning and a review of how we’re organizing ourselves in order to get things done, because what broke down this week was that we weren’t all sitting around the table. … We’ve got to have a sit down. I will say that,” the Texas Republican said during an interview with "The Guy Benson Show." Jordain has more on the potential Roy-McCarthy meeting. GOING ALL-IN ON GALLAGHER? — “Senate GOP recruiters are making a renewed push to lure Rep. Mike Gallagher into Wisconsin’s Senate race. Gallagher, a four-term member who represents the northeastern portion of the state, is considering a run against Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin. National Republicans have concluded he would be their strongest possible nominee and are eagerly courting him,” writes Ally Mutnick this morning. BIG DAY FOR CRAIG — The man who attacked Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) in the elevator of her apartment building pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of assault on a member of Congress and two counts of assault on a law enforcement officer. Kendrid Khalil Hamlin, 26, of Washington, D.C. will face sentencing on Sept. 15. Assaulting a member of Congress can result in as many as 10 years in prison. Meanwhile… Craig also had a successful surgery to repair multiple fractures in her left ankle, sustained while doing yard work. The surgery included “nine screws and a plate in my ankle as well as an internal tightrope device to stabilize the ligament,” she said in a statement with gory details. “I’m looking forward to scooting around the district and DC again soon!” Craig said. HUDDLE HOTDISH Fix Congress Caucus: Reps. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) and William Timmons (R-S.C.) are launching a Fix Congress Caucus to continue the work of the Modernization Select Committee and the shiny new House Administration subcommittee on modernization. TRANSITIONS  Kyle Chance is now comms director for Rep. Troy Balderson (R-Ohio). He previously was deputy press secretary for Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho). Mary Collins Atkinson is now director in public affairs at PLUS Communications. She previously was comms director for Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) and is a Tom Cotton and Cory Gardner alum   GET READY FOR GLOBAL TECH DAY: Join POLITICO Live as we launch our first Global Tech Day alongside London Tech Week on Thursday, June 15. Register now for continuing updates and to be a part of this momentous and program-packed day! From the blockchain, to AI, and autonomous vehicles, technology is changing how power is exercised around the world, so who will write the rules? REGISTER HERE.     TODAY IN CONGRESS The House is out. The Senate convenes at 10:15 a.m. for a pro forma session. AROUND THE HILL Not much. TRIVIA THURSDAY'S WINNER: Molly Gordy correctly answered that the four conservative justices on the Hughes Court known were derisively nicknamed “The Four Horsemen” in contrast to the liberal “Three Musketeers.” TODAY’S QUESTION from Molly: Which Senator from which state was famous for giving a “Golden Fleece Award? 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 and Daneilla on Twitter @ktullymcmanus and @DaniellaMicaela   Follow us

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