Pelosi stands aside for ‘a new generation’

From: POLITICO Playbook PM - Thursday Nov 17,2022 06:52 pm

Nov 17, 2022

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With help from Bethany Irvine

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 17: U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) delivers remarks from the House Chambers of the U.S. Capitol Building on November 17, 2022 in Washington, DC. Pelosi spoke on the future of her leadership plans in the House of Representatives and said she will not seek a leadership role in the upcoming Congress.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi announces she will not seek reelection to House leadership on Thursday, Nov. 17. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

PELOSI TAKES A BOW — Speaker NANCY PELOSI will step aside as House Democrats’ top leader after 15 years, she announced on the floor early Thursday afternoon. She said she will continue to serve in the House from the back benches.

“The hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect,” she said to a chamber packed full of Democrats who had assembled to pay tribute to her remarkable career. “And I am grateful that so many are ready and willing to shoulder this awesome responsibility.”

Pelosi, wearing her suffragist-white pantsuit and gold mace pin, quoted her most treasured role model, ABRAHAM LINCOLN, calling on the country to “come together, to swell the chorus of the union, when once again touched as surely they will be by the better angels of our nature.”

“That again is the task at hand,” she said. “A new day is dawning on the horizon, and I look forward, always forward, to the unfolding story of our nation, a story of light and love, of patriotism and progress, of many becoming one. And always an unfinished mission to make the dreams of today the reality of tomorrow.”

Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER walked over from the Senate to hear her speech. A few Republicans — including House Majority Leader-elect STEVE SCALISE and Reps. YOUNG KIM (R-Calif.) and JOE WILSON (R-S.C.) — sat in the front row to take in the moment, per NBC’s Scott Wong.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer embraces Pelosi after her speech. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Wilson, who famously yelled “You lie!” at former President BARACK OBAMA during a 2009 joint address, saluted the outgoing leader at the end of a brief floor speech this morning: “Godspeed, Nancy Pelosi,” he said.

President JOE BIDEN spoke with Pelosi before her address “and congratulated her on her historic tenure as Speaker of the House,” according to a White House statement.

Pelosi speaks to Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

THE NEXT GEN — Pelosi’s move paves the way for three up-and-comers who have been carefully orchestrating their own rise: Rep. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-N.Y.), the caucus chairman; Rep. KATHERINE CLARK (D-Mass.), the assistant speaker; and Rep. PETE AGUILAR (D-Calif.), the caucus vice chair, are now respectively set to claim the top three Democratic leadership positions — minority leader, whip and caucus chair.

The transition, it appears, will be bloodless.

Moments after her speech, House Majority Leader STENY HOYER (D-Md.) announced that he would also step aside for the youngsters, staving off what would have been a contentious leadership battle between the younger generation and the Maryland Democrat.

Majority Whip JIM CLYBURN, meanwhile, is expected to remain in leadership as assistant Democratic leader — a position first created for Clyburn back when Democrats last transitioned to the minority in 2011. It’s a position that comes without specific responsibilities but reflects Clyburn’s outsize role as a mentor and adviser to Jeffries.

With the three senior leaders peacefully passing the torch, Dems now appear to be headed into the next Congress with their new, muscular minority walking (mostly) in lockstep.

Roll Call's Bill Clark captured perhaps the photo of the day as Pelosi arrived to the Capitol. | Twitter screenshot

REPUBLICANS SHARPEN THEIR KNIVES — Meanwhile, Republicans will be left to manage a narrow majority, likely no more than four seats, with weeks of internal wrangling still to play out as GOP leader KEVIN McCARTHY scrambles to win 218 speaker votes.

Pelosi’s big reveal obscured House Republicans’ first official day as a majority-in-waiting — and the announcement this morning from two incoming committee chairmen – Reps. JAMES COMER (R-Ky.) and JIM JORDAN (R-Ohio) — that they would launch an investigation into Biden’s possible involvement in his family’s business dealings.

Comer, who is expected to lead the House Oversight Committee, cited whistleblowers in claiming “a wide range of criminality” in the Biden family’s overseas financial dealings. The allegations, he said, raise “troubling questions about whether President Biden is a national security risk” and if he “is compromised by foreign governments.”

“We want the bank records,” Comer said. “We’re trying to stay focused on: Was Joe Biden directly involved with Hunter Biden’s business deals and is he compromised? That’s our investigation.” Read the GOP report

Jordan, in line to lead the House Judiciary Committee, promised to investigate reported political activity in the FBI and “the political nature of the Justice Department.”

It’s a reminder that while Democrats have been buoyed by Election Day results that weren’t half as bad as predicted, a majority is still a majority — and it comes with subpoena power. After watching Democrats bedevil former president DONALD TRUMP for four years, they’re more than ready for some payback.

Good Thursday afternoon. Send us your Pelosi tributes: rbade@politico.com and gross@politico.com .

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*EYES EMOJI* — NYT’s Maggie Haberman ( @maggieNYT ): “Seen at Mar-a-Lago: KARI LAKE, per a source.”

CONGRESS

THE NEW MAJORITY — CNN’s Manu Raju, Melanie Zanona and Annie Grayer spoke to a raft of Republican lawmakers in both chambers to get a sense of the mood as Republicans prepare to take control of the House but still face a Democratic-controlled Senate. Here’s a roundup of the candid quotes:

Rep. BRIAN MAST (R-Fla.) on Republicans using their leverage: “Nobody’s ever really liked [government shutdowns] … But I think you’re in a different state of play right now, where people will be, in part, pining for government shutdowns.’”

Sen. MITT ROMNEY (R-Utah) on GOP plans to investigate HUNTER BIDEN: “There are a lot of high priorities, and, frankly, looking into the president’s son doesn’t strike me as one of the big priorities we ought to be focused on.”

Rep. KELLY ARMSTRONG (R-N.D.) with a word of warning: “I may offer a hazardous activity clause to the Republican Conference rules package: No dangerous activity for the next two years. … I’m looking into ‘Armstrong For Congress’ shower mats for the whole conference. We can’t afford a slip and fall right now.”

Rep. DAVID JOYCE (R-Ohio) on the power dynamics: “The Freedom Caucus is making a lot of noise, but they don’t hold all the cards. … It was hard to govern when we had a large majority. We have many independent agents. It’s like herding cats trying to get everybody together.”

— “Republicans to Wall Street: We’re so over you,” by Zachary Warmbrodt and Sam Sutton: “Republican lawmakers, who will be in the House majority come January, are pressing party leaders to send a message to big financial firms: Stop appeasing the left with ‘woke’ business practices, keep financing fossil fuels and cut ties with China. Republicans will have committee gavels and subpoena powers to back that up.

“GOP lawmakers are singling out major asset managers and their Washington trade groups as targets because of climate investing practices they see as hostile to oil, gas and coal. Some Republicans want to continue hauling in big bank CEOs to publicly testify — a tradition established by liberal Democrats. GOP senators are already demanding that law firms preserve documents related to how they advise clients on environmental and social initiatives, signaling a potential investigation. Wall Street firms and Washington lobbyists are preparing for subpoenas.”

THE WHITE HOUSE

CHECKS AND BALANCES — “Biden’s era of big government is over,” by Kate Davidson: “The president must now find a way to work with GOP lawmakers to get things done. Rather than driving the economic policy agenda on Capitol Hill, Biden will be along for the ride — forced to grapple with issues that Republicans care about, or else settle for gridlock. That means he’ll have to seek common ground with the GOP on issues from standing up to China to reining in Big Tech. Yet even with a potential recession looming, he’ll confront stiff Republican resistance to more federal spending — as well as threats to slash Medicare and Social Security benefits.”

— “With GOP House win, Biden faces added curbs on foreign policy,” by WaPo’s Missy Ryan and Yasmeen Abutaleb: “While many Republicans have privately expressed skepticism that McCarthy and a Republican-led House would cut off aid all together, one senior GOP aide said funding for Ukraine could become a sort of litmus test as far-right factions of the party assert their policy priorities. Republicans taking control of influential committees, such as Rep. MICHAEL McCAUL (R-Tex.), who is poised to preside over the House Foreign Affairs Committee, are likely to face the delicate task of having to accommodate isolationists and hawks within their party.”

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MORE MIDTERMS FALLOUT

TIPPING THEIR CAP — “GOP to DeSantis: Thanks for helping us flip the House,” by Matt Dixon in Tallahassee: “Florida Gov. RON DeSANTIS was heavily criticized last spring when he pushed Republican lawmakers to adopt congressional maps that were much more friendly to the GOP.

“Republican lawmakers were initially reluctant to go along with the governor and GOP legislative leaders even punished rank-and-file members for siding with DeSantis. But Republicans in Florida and nationally are now praising the governor for strong-arming his own party to approve his congressional maps, which netted Florida Republicans four additional congressional seats on Election Day and essentially helped the GOP win the tiny House majority.”

WAR IN UKRAINE

BEHIND THE SCENES — “Inside the U.S. scramble to run down the facts as the Russia-Ukraine war spills into NATO territory,” by CNN’s Natasha Bertrand, Kevin Liptak, Oren Liebermann and Kylie Atwood

ON THE GROUND — “Russia launches new Ukraine barrage as grain deal extended,” by AP’s John Leicester in Kyiv

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THE PANDEMIC

BOOSTER BUSINESS — “Loads of Covid-19 Boosters Are Going Unused This Fall and Here’s Why,” by WSJ’s Stephanie Armour and Brianna Abbott: “Outreach is limited in part because Congress hasn’t approved additional Covid-19 funding, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees Covid-19 response. Health officials and experts say that the recent easing of the pandemic has also played a role in public outreach and messaging.”

MEGATREND — “U.S. home births rise in pandemic, to highest level in decades,” by AP’s Lindsey Tanner

POLICY CORNER

THE CRYPTO CONUNDRUM — “Congress took millions from FTX. Now lawmakers face a crypto reckoning,” by WaPo’s Tony Romm: “From the burst of the dot-com bubble at the turn of the millennium to the rampant privacy mishaps at Facebook decades later, federal policymakers historically have been slow to anticipate the troubles of the digital age. Only after massive, costly scandals have lawmakers and regulators been stirred to action, sometimes with less-than-desirable results. The nascent world of cryptocurrency — where digital tokens replace dollars, investments and payments, all without the need for traders, governments or banks — has presented perhaps the most complicated challenge to date.”

THE FTX MESS — “Exec who cleaned up Enron calls FTX mess ‘unprecedented,’” by AP’s Michelle Chapman: “JOHN RAY III, in a filing with the U.S. bankruptcy court for the district of Delaware, said there was a ‘complete absence of trustworthy financial information.’ ‘Never in my career have I seen such a complete failure of corporate controls and such a complete absence of trustworthy financial information as occurred here,’ Ray said. … Ray noted that many of the companies in the FTX Group, particularly those in Antigua and the Bahamas, didn’t have appropriate corporate governance and many had never held a board meeting.”

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MUSK READS

PATTERN OF BEHAVIOR — “SpaceX Employees Say They Were Fired for Speaking Up About Elon Musk,” by NYT’s Noam Scheiber and Ryan Mac: “On Wednesday, unfair-labor-practice charges were filed with the National Labor Relations Board on behalf of eight of those workers, arguing that their firings were illegal. … Interviews with the eight SpaceX employees who filed the charges highlight Mr. Musk’s firm grip on his workplaces, perhaps even beyond the restraints of federal law.”

PLAYBOOKERS

IN MEMORIAM — “Michael Gerson, Post columnist and Bush speechwriter on 9/11, dies at 58,” by WaPo’s Brian Murphy: “Michael Gerson, a speechwriter for President George W. Bush who helped craft messages of grief and resolve after 9/11, then explored conservative politics and faith as a Washington Post columnist writing on issues as diverse as President Donald Trump’s disruptive grip on the GOP and his own struggles with depression, died Nov. 17 at a hospital in Washington. He was 58. The cause of death was complications of cancer, said Peter Wehner, a longtime friend and former colleague.” Read Bush’s remembrance

OUT AND ABOUT — Substack co-founders Chris Best and Hamish McKenzie celebrated five years of the platform and the newsletter that launched it, Sinocism, at a party Wednesday night at the D.C. home of Bill Bishop and Carol Chow. SPOTTED: Matt Yglesias, Andrew Sullivan, Emily Atkin, Swati Sharma, Jim Bankoff, Andrea Koppel, Chris Bodenner, David Chavern, Jim Sciutto, Mary Katharine Ham, Peter Suderman, Robin Hanson, Ross Andersen, Sophia Efthimiatou, Ilya Shapiro, Nausicaa Renner, Jessica Goldstein, Dan Zak, Emily Miller and Christine Emba.

— Sen. Jim Inhofe’s (R-Okla.) birthday celebration was held Wednesday night at Joe’s Stone Crab, where he was joined by Senate colleagues and alumni. The annual event, usually a campaign fundraiser, was altered this year to benefit Project Mercy, an organization dedicated to providing relief and service in Ethiopia. SPOTTED: Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and John Kennedy (R-La.), Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), Elaine Chao, Luke Holland, John Bonsell, Ryan Jackson, Craig Purser and Bill Behrens.

TRANSITIONS — Benjamin Cantrell is now chief of staff for Sen.-elect Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.). He most recently was chief of staff in Mullin’s House office and previously and is a Pence and Trump OMB alum. … Ron Storhaug is now deputy assistant secretary of Treasury for tax and budget in the Office of Legislative Affairs. He most recently was director of tax and economic policy for the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and was also an adviser to Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.). … Chris Griffin is now a senior associate at The Ferguson Group. He most recently was a legislative aide for Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and previously worked in the Department of Interior and Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.