Why Santos is sticking around (for now)

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Oct 30, 2023 View in browser   By Olivia Beavers, Nicholas Wu and Daniella Diaz Presented by With assists from POLITICO’s Congress team A group of New York Republicans are pushing this week’s privileged resolution to expel the indicted George Santos. | Mariam Zuhaib/AP LAST STAND FOR THE ANTI-SANTOS GOP? As soon as Wednesday, the House will battle over proposed punishments for three of its most polarizing members. One of this week’s votes will mark a test for new Speaker Mike Johnson, who will have to corral Republicans to oppose a resolution that would further slim down his four-seat majority by expelling Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.). New faces with the New Yorkers: A group of New York Republicans led by Rep. Anthony D’Esposito is pushing this week’s privileged resolution to expel the indicted Santos, whose politically toxic fabrications have bogged down his delegation-mates in their efforts to hold onto swing districts. Santos’ GOP critics – including fellow New York Republicans Nick LaLota, Mike Lawler, Marc Molinaro, Nick Langworthy and Brandon Williams – are now trying to put their political distance from him on the record. This time, as they’d hoped, they may be getting help from new Republican allies. One GOP lawmaker told Olivia of a likely vote to join New York colleagues in voting to remove Santos. This Republican, who spoke on condition of anonymity, signaled a desire to help shield battleground-seat members whose reelections are threatened by the scandal-plagued Santos. But the New York Republicans will need to get dozens of colleagues to join them in order to reach the two-thirds support needed to expel Santos from the House. And that’s a pretty steep climb – particularly since Johnson has indicated that he doesn’t support booting Santos before the New Yorker stands trial on the dozens of charges that he has pleaded not guilty to. The trial timing: Santos’ trial on his latest set of federal charges isn’t set to start until September, meaning that a verdict might not come until close to the 2024 election. Given that Santos has multiple GOP opponents in a primary race that will end earlier next year, he may also face little incentive to leave Congress after that verdict comes down. But Santos isn’t the only target in this week’s dueling House votes – which pun-friendly ex-Huddle host Olivia has dubbed the privileged resolution-ary war. Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces censure over her stance on Israel’s drive to defeat Hamas, particularly her outspoken advocacy for ending Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip. That push is being led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and must come to a vote within two days of introduction, which likely sets up a Wednesday vote. Only a simple majority of the House is needed to pass it. The political fallout: Greene’s resolution argues that Tlaib’s support for a pro-ceasefire protest in a House office building, which was organized by Jewish-led groups, amounted to an “insurrection.” Although some in the party were outraged at Tlaib for her outspoken criticism of the Israeli government, the harsh language in Greene’s measure makes it unlikely that many, if any, Democrats will vote yes. Democrats will likely move to table it as soon as it comes up. And Greene herself faces a censure vote that Democrats unleashed after she moved against Tlaib — citing the Georgia conservative’s past flirtations with antisemitic tropes and comparison of vaccine mandates to the Holocaust. The Democratic-controlled House had voted to strip Greene of her committees during the last Congress over controversial remarks and actions. That’s not all: Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) has introduced a resolution to censure Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) for pulling a fire alarm during a vote for a funding bill last month. A person familiar with the censure told POLITICO that McClain’s measure is taking the normal course through committee, but Republicans hope there is action on it soon. Bowman has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for triggering the false alarm and agreed to pay a fine. — Olivia Beavers, Nicholas Wu and Daniella Diaz   A message from Electronic Payments Coalition: Don’t Buy What Mega-Retailers Are Selling About Durbin 2.0: Superstores like Walmart, Target, and Home Depot are pushing for legislation that's essentially corporate welfare at the expense of consumers. They're seeking new government mandates on credit card routing, which may appear harmless but would jeopardize YOUR data security and fraud protection, rewards for everyday purchases, and the convenience of using credit cards. Congress: reject the Durbin credit card interchange bill. Click HERE to get the facts.   GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Monday, Oct. 30, where we hope your Huddle host is stoked for this tomorrow! TICK TOCK: The government will shut down in 18 days if Congress can’t pass a funding patch. YOUR HOUSE GOP SPENDING BILL STATUS CHECK The House has a speaker now – which means spending bills are finally moving again. And it’s time for a handy rundown of where they stand heading into Johnson’s first full week as speaker. Chipping away at the dozen: Johnson committed to a significant number of floor votes on spending ahead of the Nov. 17 deadline for funding the government. So far, the House has passed five of its 12 individual spending bills: Energy-Water, Defense, Homeland Security, Military Construction-VA and State-Foreign Operations. This week, the House plans to vote on three more: Legislative, Interior-EPA and Transportation-HUD. If those three pass, then just four spending plans would be left: Labor, Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-Science and Financial Services. It’s worth noting that those four bills are historically among the hardest to pass along party lines, regardless of who’s in charge of the House. The underlying purpose: Johnson has left the door open to backing a stopgap spending patch in order to keep the government open come next month’s deadline. He’s betting that progress on individual bills will mollify any criticism that might come his way from conservative hardliners who are opposed to short-term funding fixes no matter who’se behind them. Meanwhile, in the Senate: Expect votes on another 10 amendments this week before final passage of a spending package that includes the Agriculture-FDA, Military Construction-VA and Transportation-HUD bills. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer hasn’t yet indicated how he plans to address government funding before Nov. 17 – but he’ll likely move toward a continuing resolution as the days tick closer to the deadline. Also worth noting: the Senate is voting tonight on advancing Jack Lew’s nomination to be U.S. ambassador to Israel, with a vote likely happening tomorrow, per a senior Democratic aide. — Daniella Diaz, with assist from Jennifer Scholtes and Caitlin Emma    GROWING IN THE GOLDEN STATE: POLITICO California is growing, reinforcing our role as the indispensable insider source for reporting on politics, policy and power. From the corridors of power in Sacramento and Los Angeles to the players and innovation hubs in Silicon Valley, we're your go-to for navigating the political landscape across the state. Exclusive scoops, essential daily newsletters, unmatched policy reporting and insights — POLITICO California is your key to unlocking Golden State politics. LEARN MORE.     JOHNSON’S OTHER BIG MOVE – ISRAEL AID – D.O.A. IN SENATE Just moments after House Republicans released the text of their $14.5 billion Israel aid proposal ahead of a slated vote on Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told Burgess that the measure is dead on his side of the Capitol. Why exactly? The House GOP has proposed offsetting aid that was designed as emergency spending (i.e. not paid for) with cuts to Internal Revenue Service funding that was included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Not only are Democrats disinterested in slashing their main party-line achievement of the last Congress, they’re likely to argue that the IRS funding is designed to crack down on higher-income tax scofflaws and boost tax receipts – effectively shrinking the deficit. "We believe, our Democratic Caucus, we should be doing all of it together: Israel, Ukraine, South Pacific, etc. And obviously a pay-for like that makes it much harder to pass," Schumer said. The House Rules Committee is planning to tee up the legislation on Wednesday. What about Ukraine? Johnson has not yet signaled when he plans to put funding for Ukraine’s defense against Russia on the floor, or what a potential continuing resolution could look like. — Daniella Diaz, with assist from Burgess Everett    PLAYBOOK IS GOING GLOBAL! We’re excited to introduce Global Playbook, POLITICO’s premier newsletter that brings you inside the most important conversations at the most influential events in the world. From the buzzy echoes emanating from the snowy peaks at the WEF in Davos to the discussions and personalities at Milken Global in Beverly Hills, to the heart of diplomacy at UNGA in New York City – author Suzanne Lynch brings it all to your fingertips. Experience the elite. Witness the influential. And never miss a global beat. BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION. SUBSCRIBE NOW.     HUDDLE HOTDISH One Democrat is saying “Let’s go Brandon.” But not for THAT reason! QUICK LINKS  How the mass shootings changed Jared Golden’s mind on assault weapons ban, from Billy Kobin at The Bangor Daily News House Republicans investigating D.C. probe of Federalist Society chief, by Stephen Neukam at The Messenger Republican congressman loses nearly $10K in mail theft, from Dave Levinthal at The Raw Story   A message from Electronic Payments Coalition:   TRANSITIONS  Kelly Healton is now a senior policy adviser to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, covering appropriations. She most recently was in the legislative affairs shop at OMB, and is a House Appropriations/Nita Lowey alum. Grace Martinez has been promoted to be communications director for Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.). Ethan Pann is now the digital press secretary for the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Pann was previously the press and digital coordinator for Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.). Olivia Late is now House Foreign Affairs Committee press secretary. She was previously the committee’s deputy press secretary. Emily Cassil is now the communications advisor for the House Foreign Affairs Committee. She will continue to serve as the communications director for Chairman Michael McCaul’s (R-Texas) personal office as well. McKayla Montgomery is now the press assistant for the House Foreign Affairs Committee. She is also the deputy press secretary for McCaul’s personal office. TOMORROW IN CONGRESS The House is out. The Senate convenes at 10 a.m. TUESDAY AROUND THE HILL 11:30 a.m. Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) are holding a press conference to discuss the border. (Senate Studio)   A message from Electronic Payments Coalition: Don’t Buy What Mega-Retailers Are Selling About Durbin 2.0: FACT: Credit Card Interchange Rates Have Not Changed for 7 Years The rate of interchange has remained flat for the past seven years, while merchant sales have grown substantially. The average interchange rate for credit cards is about 1.8% and hasn’t moved since 2016, when the NFIB said the payments market was “competitive” and the cost of accepting cards was “relatively inexpensive, considering what it delivers.” Businesses that accept credit cards benefit from increased sales, guaranteed payments, access to online channels, and lower costs than handling cash or alternatives like buy-now-pay-later. Congress: reject the Durbin credit card interchange bill. Click HERE to get the facts.   TRIVIA FRIDAY’S ANSWER: Kevin Diestelow correctly answered that John Quincy Adams was the only President to later assume the duties of temporary Speaker. TODAY’S QUESTION from Kevin: What football team, formerly the Frankford Yellow Jackets, derived their new name from the logo of a New Deal program? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answers to huddletrivia@politico.com. GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each evening. Follow Daniella on X at @DaniellaMicaela.   Follow us

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