| | | | |  | | By Daniella Diaz | Presented by American Health Care Association | With an assist from Jordain Carney and Katherine Tully-McManus
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Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) continued to push his deal to address the debt limit in interviews over the weekend. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | DEBT LIMIT IS OVER — While the nation breathes a collective sigh of relief that the federal government won’t default on its debt today, lawmakers are already shifting their attention back to issues that landed on the backburner during debt talks. There are a couple of fights we’ll see play out in the coming weeks: What’s happening with Julie Su? Senate Democrats have pushed forward with confirming judicial nominations this Congress even as other nominees have languished, perhaps none more so than Secretary of Labor nominee Julie Su. She was voted out of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee in April but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has yet to schedule a full chamber vote to confirm her. We’re mostly watching Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who has privately expressed concerns about Su as secretary but has not yet said publicly whether he’s against her nomination. Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and Angus King (I-Maine), too, have yet to say whether they’ll support her or not. First in Huddle: As the clock ticks on Su, the Small Business Majority is doing a six-figure print and digital ads push in Arizona, West Virginia and Maine urging senators from those states to confirm Su. Will there be a defense supplemental? Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who complained loudly last week that the debt limit deal did too much to hold down military spending, got his assurances from Senate leadership that there would be efforts to pass a standalone, supplemental bill on defense funding. Graham wanted guarantee that Congress would still be able to pass emergency aid packages for Ukraine, as well as deal with what he said are other urgent defense needs. Now that the debt limit fight is over, all eyes turn to what that supplemental bill will look like and more importantly, will House Republicans get behind it? What’s next on the calendar: Republicans in the House, which is back in session today, are expected to shift their attention this week to a comprehensive bill that would include tax breaks aimed at boosting economic growth. Timing for that is still up in the air, with several votes taking place this week in the House that aren’t expected to go anywhere in the Democratic-led Senate, including a vote on 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. More importantly, included in the debt limit proposal was a pledge for lawmakers to finish the 12 annual appropriations bills, something that hasn’t happened on Capitol Hill since 1997. Passing all 12 will consume a lot of bandwidth in Congress these next few weeks and is expected to be an intense back-and-forth between Democrats and Republicans on spending priorities. Also notable: As we watched over the weekend, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) continues to push his deal to address the debt limit (seems more like he’s trying to convince voters it was the right deal to make more than anything).
| | | | A message from American Health Care Association: It’s time to prioritize seniors’ access to care. The long term care community is facing a historic labor crisis, forcing nursing homes across the country to limit new admissions, or worse - close entirely. A federal staffing mandate would only further reduce seniors’ access to care and lead to more nursing home closures. We need resources to recruit, not unfunded mandates. Learn more about better solutions. | | | GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Monday, June 5, where today is national Thank You day – and we thank you for being a reader. RASKIN PUSHES TIMELINE — Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) has kept everyone on their toes on whether he will announce a bid for the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.). But at least he’s putting a timeline on his decision-making process. “I'm hoping, before the Fourth of July, I will have an answer for everybody,” Raskin told CNN’s Dana Bash on Sunday. “The election is not until May 24, 2024, so it's still 11 months away.” Related read: Jamie Raskin beat cancer twice. Now he turns to his political future, from Meagan Flynn at The Washington Post ICYMI: Hoyer endorses Prince George’s county executive for Senate, from Lateshia Beachum at The Washington Post Speaking of a Senate race … Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), who is running for Senate in Arizona, claimed his Washington property as his primary residence in paperwork to claim a special mortgage rate afforded to military veterans. But Gallego and his wife also say a home they own in Phoenix is their primary residence. The loan documents for the Washington property, obtained by POLITICO, confirmed he counts D.C. as his primary home even though his campaign maintains he resides in Arizona. Politically, it means the Democratic congressman aiming to take out Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) in a hotly contested race next year may have to explain why he declared he was primarily a resident of the nation’s capital. “Ruben’s primary residence is in Arizona,” Hannah Goss, a spokesperson for Gallego, said in a statement. “The VA loan is a benefit that Ruben earned by serving his country as a Marine combat veteran, and he’s well within his right to use it as a residence when he’s doing his job in D.C. It comes with being both a veteran and a congressman who needs to live and work in two places. Ruben expected to face a lot of political attacks in the race, but taking a loan he earned by serving in Iraq isn’t one of them.”
| | | | A message from American Health Care Association:   | | | CAUGHT IN A LIE — Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) told her 2.5 million Twitter followers she missed the debt limit vote in “protest” — but was caught in the lie when CNN’s Morgan Rimmer shared video on Twitter showing the Republican congresswoman sprinting to catch the vote as it was ending. In the video, Rimmer tells Boebert: “They just closed it,” with Boebert responding: “They closed it?” before continuing to run up the Capitol steps, clearly in a hurry.
| | Summer starts now: We couldn’t help notice that once the debt ceiling deal was done, lawmakers were more than ready to let loose with some summer fun. Key negotiator Rep. Garrett Graves (R-La.) caught some truly massive red snapper. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) hopped on his bike (we respect the helmet hair). Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) roasted wild mushrooms over an open fire and Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) rocked out on stage at The Anthem.
| | | | 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. | | | | | QUICK LINKS Chuck Todd will depart NBC's 'Meet the Press'; Kristen Welker to become host, from Daniel Arkin at NBC News Sonic boom in D.C. region caused by F-16s intercepting Cessna, from Justin Wm. Moyer, Ian Duncan, Gillian Brockell and Katie Shepherd Suddenly, things are actually going the Senate GOP campaign arm’s way, from Holly Otterbein and Ally Mutnick
| | | | 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. | | | | | TRANSITIONS Cari Berlin is now director of operations and scheduling for Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.). She previously was director of scheduling for Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.). Terry Carmack is joining Daniel Cameron’s campaign for Kentucky governor as campaign manager. Carmack is taking a leave of absence from his post as chief of staff to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s personal office, where he will return after the election. Carmack is a four-decade veteran of Republican campaigns in Kentucky, including four of McConnell’s, and an NRCC alum. TODAY IN CONGRESS The House will meet at noon for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business. First and last votes are expected at 6:30 p.m. The Senate is out.
| | | | A message from American Health Care Association: America’s seniors need our help. The long term care community is facing a historic labor crisis that is forcing nursing homes across the country to limit new admissions, and for hundreds, close their doors. Facilities are doing everything they can to hire more caregivers, but with limited government funding, they can’t recruit the staff they need.
A federal staffing mandate without resources would only make the crisis worse, forcing more nursing homes to close and limiting access to care for seniors. We need Washington to invest in long term care and our workforce to ensure seniors have the caregivers they need. Learn more. | | | AROUND THE HILL 3 p.m. House Rules Committee business meeting to consider the REINS Act of 2023, the Separation of Powers Restoration Act of 2023, the Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act, and the Save Our Gas Stoves Act. (H-313 Capitol) TRIVIA FRIDAY’S QUESTION: Sen. William Proxmire of Wisconsin is the lawmaker who in 1975 became famous for awarding a “Golden Fleece Award” to projects he viewed as wasting tax dollars. TODAY’S QUESTION: Who was the first female senator to represent Texas in the Senate? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answers to ddiaz@politico.com GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning. Follow Daniella on Twitter @DaniellaMicaela | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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