| | | | |  | | By Mia McCarthy | | | |  Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) speaks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol today. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | CAPITOL CHAOS — The House passed a temporary spending bill today, avoiding a looming government shutdown and ending ten weeks without a break on Capitol Hill. The bill is now headed to the Senate and White House, which are both on board with the stopgap measure, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. It wasn’t pretty getting there. The spending fight illustrated the chaos that reigns supreme in the chamber, as weeks of inertia and uncertainty suddenly gave way to a negotiated settlement that stirred up old resentments — and even escalated into physical confrontation. The Capitol has looked sleepy recently, moving at a slower rhythm than the three tumultuous weeks without a speaker. But even as lawmakers moved at a more measured pace after weeks of rushing through corridors with their heads down to avoid pesky reporters, tensions continued to build as the funding deadline neared. While Speaker Mike Johnson’s temporary spending bill will keep the government open into January, it has drawn the ire of the same group of hard-line Republicans who pushed Kevin McCarthy out of the speakership six weeks earlier, ostensibly for the same sin of working with Democrats to keep the lights on. The House Freedom Caucus, an influential right-wing faction of the GOP, announced their opposition to the bill this morning; Johnson relied on 209 Democrats to pass the measure after losing 93 Republicans. Even more Republicans opposed this continuing resolution than McCarthy’s effort in September, when he lost 90 votes from his own party. At a morning press conference, Johnson called the Capitol a “pressure cooker” — and it didn’t take long for him to be proven right. Before noon, former Speaker McCarthy allegedly elbowed Rep. Tim Burchett, a Tennessee Republican who had voted to oust the former speaker. McCarthy claimed he did not elbow the congressman. Burchett insisted McCarthy hit him in the back while passing him in the hall — “it was a clean shot to the kidney,” Burchett said, adding this was their first interaction since he voted against McCarthy. The GOP drama only escalated from there. Rep. Matt Gaetz, the Florida lightning-rod lawmaker who led the charge to topple McCarthy, filed a formal complaint against McCarthy for the Burchett incident later in the day, despite not witnessing the alleged incident. The hard-liners were quick to highlight their objections, arguing the bill serves the Democratic agenda. While some Republicans opposed to the bill appear to be giving Johnson some slack — he’s only been speaker for three weeks — they’re not exactly happy with the results either. As Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) put it, “We don’t work for the Senate.” Congress is done voting for the day and possibly rest of the week, a break Johnson described as essential for allowing members “cool off.” The spending disagreements are unlikely to dissipate immediately, which brings the House back to where they started: debating appropriations levels ahead of new government shutdown deadlines in the new year that are sure to gin up another round of hard feelings. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com. Or contact tonight’s author at mmccarthy@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @Reporter_Mia.
| | A message from The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: Congress: Support the highest possible increases for cancer research funding at the National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute to make time. Literally. More than 1.9 million people are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in 2023 alone. But by investing in the research of today, you’re helping prevent, detect, and treat many of the cancers of tomorrow, creating countless moments for patients and their loved ones in the process. Fight Cancer. Make Time. | | | | | — Prosecutors urge appeals court to reinstate Trump gag order: Former President Donald Trump’s renewed attacks on the family of special counsel Jack Smith and his repeated invective against likely witnesses in his Washington, D.C. criminal case warrant the urgent restoration of a gag order against him, prosecutors argued today. Smith’s team urged a federal appeals court in Washington to reinstate the gag order — which a three-judge panel suspended earlier this month — amid Trump’s appeal of the restrictions imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan. — U.S. consumer inflation eased in October as cheaper gas slowed overall price increases: Inflation in the United States slowed last month in a sign that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes are continuing to cool the consumer price spikes that have bedeviled consumers for the past two years. Today’s report from the Labor Department showed that lower gas prices helped cool overall inflation, which was unchanged from September to October, down from the 0.4% jump the previous month. Compared with a year ago, consumer prices rose 3.2% in October, down from 3.7% in September. — Ex-fundraiser for George Santos pleads guilty to posing as congressional aide to raise campaign cash: A former fundraiser for Rep. George Santos pleaded guilty today to a federal wire fraud charge, admitting he impersonated a high-ranking congressional aide while raising campaign cash for the embattled New York Republican. Sam Miele was caught soliciting donations in late 2021 under the alias Dan Meyer, who was then chief of staff for Rep. Kevin McCarthy, when the former House speaker was the Republican minority leader, according to Santos. Federal authorities still have not confirmed that Meyer was the aide who Miele impersonated.
| | | | JOIN US ON 11/15 FOR A TALK ON OUR SUSTAINABLE FUTURE: As the sustainability movement heats up, so have calls for a national standard for clean fuel. Join POLITICO on Nov. 15 in Washington D.C. as we convene leading officials from the administration, key congressional committees, states and other stakeholders to explore the role of EVs, biofuels, hydrogen and other options in the clean fuel sector and how evolving consumer behaviors are influencing sustainable energy practices. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | | | THROWING RONNA UNDER THE BUS — Former President Donald Trump has grown “increasingly sour” on Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and the overall leadership of the RNC, reports CNBC. In the wake of a string of Republican losses last week in high profile contests in Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio, Trump has been hearing from allies within his party who believe McDaniel’s leadership at the RNC is to blame for the party’s struggles, according to people familiar with the matter. They want Trump to pressure McDaniel to resign. Several of the people lobbying the former president to turn on McDaniel also encouraged Trump not to publicly support Rep. Kevin McCarthy earlier this year, as the California Republican fought a losing battle to save his speakership. 14TH AMENDMENT KNOCKDOWN — A Michigan judge ruled today that former President Donald Trump will remain on the state’s primary ballot, dealing a blow to the effort to stop Trump’s candidacy with a Civil War-era Constitutional clause, reports the Associated Press. Court of Claims Judge James Redford rejected arguments that Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol meant the court had to declare him ineligible for the presidency. Redford wrote that, because Trump followed state law in qualifying for the primary ballot, he cannot remove the former president. Additionally, he said, it should be up to Congress to decide whether Trump is disqualified under a section of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment that bars from office a person who “engaged in insurrection.” SAD ABOUT SCOTT — Many Black Republicans were filled with optimism when Tim Scott launched his presidential run in May, POLITICO reports. They thought an accomplished senator like Scott would highlight the party’s growing diversity, and that he had a real chance to advance farther in a GOP primary than past African American candidates had. By the time it was over, that optimism had been replaced by disappointment with Scott’s candidacy — and some criticism of it, too. DIGITAL PRIORITIES — Priorities USA, one of the biggest liberal super PACs, will not run a single television advertisement in the 2024 election cycle, reports the New York Times. Instead, the group announced today, Priorities USA is reshaping itself as a digital political strategy operation, the culmination of a yearslong transition from its supporting role in presidential campaigns to a full-service communications, research and training behemoth for Democrats up and down the ballot. The move reflects a broad shift in media consumption over the past decade, away from traditional broadcast outlets and toward a fragmented online world. It also shows the growing role played by big-money groups in shaping campaigns and American political life: Priorities USA says it will spend $75 million on digital “communications, research and infrastructure” in the next year.
| | | | A message from The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network:   | | | | | | | 
Artillery ammunition stands near the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip today. | Christopher Furlong/Getty Images | EVACUATION ASK — Palestinian authorities today called for a cease-fire to evacuate three dozen newborns and other patients trapped inside Gaza’s biggest hospital as Israeli forces battled Hamas in the streets just outside and seized more ground across northern Gaza, reports the Associated Press. For days, the Israeli army has encircled Shifa Hospital, the facility it says Hamas hides in, and beneath, to use civilians as shields for its main command base. Hospital staff and Hamas deny the claim. Meanwhile, hundreds of patients, staff and displaced people were trapped inside, with supplies dwindling and no electricity to run incubators and other life-saving equipment. With refrigeration out for days, morgue staff dug a mass grave today in the yard for more than 120 bodies, officials said. The standoff at Shifa and other hospitals comes as Israeli forces control larger swaths of Gaza City and the surrounding northern part of the Gaza Strip, saying they are driving out and killing Hamas fighters. ANGLING FOR THE JOB — Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said today she’s interested in taking over the top job at NATO, as the Cold War-era alliance continues to navigate Russia’s war in Ukraine and homes in on common strategies against China and other emerging threats. Speaking at the POLITICO Defense Summit, Kallas was pressed on whether she’d like to be considered for the role once NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg steps down. She responded “yes.” Kallas’ response and her visit to Washington comes as worries grow in Europe, especially among the leaders of Baltic and Eastern European countries such as Estonia, that U.S. support for Ukraine’s war effort is increasingly wavering. It also comes as NATO’s role is evolving as a key force in support of Ukraine as it continues to repel Russia’s February 2022 invasion, and as the alliance seeks to project strength and unity in the face of emerging threats such as China, artificial intelligence and other challenges.
| | | | GET A BACKSTAGE PASS TO COP28 WITH GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Get insider access to the conference that sets the tone of the global climate agenda with POLITICO's Global Playbook newsletter. Authored by Suzanne Lynch, Global Playbook delivers exclusive, daily insights and comprehensive coverage that will keep you informed about the most crucial climate summit of the year. Dive deep into the critical discussions and developments at COP28 from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | | | | | | 9 percent The amount that planet-warming pollution is expected to increase under the current climate plans of nearly 200 countries by the end of the decade, raising alarm among United Nations leaders two weeks before the start of international climate talks. The grim assessment was released today in a report by the U.N. climate change secretariat. Scientists previously have said carbon emissions must fall 43 percent by 2030 over 2019 levels to prevent temperatures from increasing more than 1.5 degrees Celsius. | | | | FORENSIC RECOGNITION — In border towns across Texas, as migrant deaths climb, there’s a dedicated group of researchers that is attempting to identify the dead. To do so, they need to train a host of people to quickly exhume dead bodies — and only then can they repatriate migrants who have been improperly buried in the United States. A team of forensic scientists based out of Texas State University is expanding their mandate to do so through a program referred to as Operation Identification, or OpID. For The Baffler, Caroline Tracey takes us inside the OpID headquarters and explains the nuts and bolts of their mission.
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On this date in 1945: Women representing the New York City Consumer Council march in Washington to protest inflation. They're told here by Capitol police that they cannot carry their signs to the Capitol. | AP | Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here.
| | A message from The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: Cancer takes away many things, but the most devastating is time. And while policies and federal research investment have helped avert 3.8 million cancer deaths since 1991, the fight against the country’s second most common cause of death is far from over. With over 609,000 deaths and 1.9 million diagnoses expected in 2023, there is still work to do in the fight against cancer. And that is where you come in.
When Congress prioritizes ending cancer as we know it, you literally make time for patients, loved ones, caregivers, and everybody else affected by 200 diseases known as cancer. By investing in the research of today, you’re helping prevent, detect, and treat many of the cancers of tomorrow, creating countless moments for cancer patients and their loved ones in the process.
Fight Cancer. Make Time. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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