Congressional Dems to meet today on Biden

Democrat: "We can't un-see what we saw" at debate

Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for July 9, 2024:

• Biden tries to box in Democrats on Capitol Hill.

• Black Caucus stands with Biden.

• House to vote on Refrigerator Freedom.

---

CONGRESS. I've witnessed a lot of difficult political moments. But I'm not sure I've seen anything like this. Democrats returned to Capitol Hill on Monday still spooked by President Joe Biden's weak debate performance, with some lawmakers basically hanging their party's leader out to dry just four months before the elections.

• INCUMBENT. Using the power of his office, Biden tried to undercut any effort among Democrats in Congress to toss him aside, as he sent lawmakers a note which left no doubt about his plans for 2024. "It’s time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump," Biden wrote in a letter.

• IMPACT. You could instantly feel how that statement - plus a live Q&A on MSNBC - was intended to box in Democrats who might want Biden to quit. "Biden has the high ground," said University of Virginia political expert Larry Sabato. "He has to agree to step aside and he is clearly not going to do so."

• AOC. One of the more interesting nuggets came from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who expressed her strong support for Biden. "I have spoken to him extensively," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters. "Joe Biden is our nominee. He is not leaving this race. He is in this race and I support him."

• DEMS. Most Democrats stayed in what I would call the 'mushy middle' on Biden. They expressed concern about his debate performance, and pressed for a clearer campaign message, but did not call for him to step aside. "I support the President's reelection campaign," declared Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA).

PRO TEMPORE. While the dam did not break against Biden on Monday, the day was capped off by a fairly rough statement from Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, which summed up the feeling of many Democrats. They want *more* from Biden both in terms of effort and action on the campaign trail.

• MURRAY. "President Biden must seriously consider the best way to preserve his incredible legacy," Murray said. "We need to see a much more forceful and energetic candidate on the campaign trail in the very near future in order for him to convince voters he is up to the job."

• HURDLE. We heard that type of statement a lot from Democrats. But it wasn’t immediately apparent how Biden could satisfy those demands.

---

VIBE CHECK. One thing really struck me on Monday evening as I walked around the Capitol - there was a tale of two chambers. Senate Democrats were much more concerned about Biden’s future and the state of the race for the White House, while House Democrats seemed ready to stay on board with the President.

• QUESTIONS. As Senators arrived for a Monday evening vote, it was obvious some did not want to chat. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) dashed by us like an Olympic sprinter. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) wouldn't take a question about Biden. "That's all I'm gonna say about it, so don't ask me," snapped Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH). "I'm not going to talk about this," said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who kept saying he would talk on Tuesday.

• CHAT. But some other Democrats held court with reporters and made clear their displeasure with Biden’s debate performance and how it’s been handled by his campaign and the White House.

• CENTENNIAL. "I was surprised by the debate," said Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), who called for a broad discussion by Democrats about Biden's performance. "I don't think the week since has been a very good week for the White House."

• LUNCH. Senate Democrats will meet to talk about the fallout from President Biden's bad debate performance at their weekly lunch meeting this afternoon. It was clear that many are worried about Biden and how it might impact Democrats down the ballot. "We can't un-see what we saw," said Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT).

---

HOUSE. Instead of meeting at the Capitol to talk about the Biden situation, House Democrats will gather this morning at 9 am at the party's national headquarters, a few blocks away. That will probably mean dozens of reporters (like me) will be waiting on the street outside the building, pestering Democrats as they head back to the Capitol.

• BLACK CAUCUS. In the House, the strongest support for Biden was clearly coming from the ranks of Black lawmakers. "I'm with him more than 100 percent," Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) said of Biden. "Together we stand, divided we fall," added Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS).

• NO PANIC. There definitely seemed to be less panic among House Democrats than their Senate counterparts - even though many weren’t thrilled with Biden’s debate performance. "This is a good process," said Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA), who gave off an Alfred E. Newman sense of calm. "We're gonna get there."

• WORD WORLD. Some Democrats were doing a heck of a job riding the fence. "I support continuing this conversation and winning the election," Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) said of today's meeting of Democrats about Biden, as he parried questions about his support for Biden.

• RASKIN. As in the Senate, there were some Democrats who were giving rather short answers to reporters. Asked if he had spoken with Biden over the weekend, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) was curt. "No comment on that."

---

NOT JOE. The most damning public assessment from a Congressional Democrat on Monday came from Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee. Most of you won’t know him, which is understandable, but he’s definitely a well respected lawmaker.

• SMITH. "If President Biden continues his campaign, it would be a mistake," Smith said, as he argued that Biden 'is not capable' of delivering the party's message 'in a cogent way.' "Personally, I think Kamala Harris would be a much better, stronger candidate," Smith told CNN.

• NUMBERS. While Smith’s comments made headlines, there are still very few Democrats who have openly come out and said that Biden should pass the torch. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) - who already called for the President to step aside - told reporters there would be more, but we didn’t see that on Monday.

• REBELLION. As I tweeted out yesterday, the rebellion against Biden doesn’t seem to have any leaders right now. There is lots of hand wringing - but not much in the way of public organization.

• WHAT’S NEXT. Could Democrats in Congress suddenly tilt against Biden? Sure, it could happen. But I wouldn’t bet on that right now - unless Biden has another verbal malfunction. The worst nightmare for Democrats would be keeping Biden, and then seeing a debate repeat before November.

---

NATO SUMMIT. I really still think this week’s NATO Summit - which begins today in Washington - could present some real challenges for Biden, most of which he won’t be able to control. Every world leader is going to get asked by reporters about Biden and his mental fitness. There will be leaks. And then Biden will do a Thursday solo news conference.

---

DEADLINES. I've seen a lot of crazy talk in recent days about Democrats and ballot deadlines - like somehow *if* Democrats pushed President Biden aside, they wouldn't be able to get their candidate on the ballot for November. That is just flat out wrong.

• TIMING. Think about it - the Democrats have not nominated anyone yet for President. They don't have an official candidate, and neither do Republicans. Neither party has held a convention vote as yet. That will all be settled in the coming weeks.

---

SPENDING. House Republicans will take the next step today on a bill which cuts funding for the Justice Department and FBI, as that government funding measure goes before the House Appropriations Committee. The big question is whether Republicans will add on plans to block money for the federal investigations of former President Donald Trump.

• GEORGIA. When this funding bill was released in late June, Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) vowed that he would move to target Special Counsel Jack Smith. Clyde gets that chance in the full committee markup today. "I will reintroduce my amendment to defund the Left’s lawfare against Trump," Clyde said in late June.

• TRUMP. Republicans have more than enough votes in committee to add whatever they want to this funding bill. And the GOP has made no bones about running interference for Trump. But will they approve that kind of provision? Stay tuned.

---

ECONOMY. I hear a lot of people telling me the economy is in terrible shape. But if you look at the airline industry, records are being set. The feds said yesterday that Sunday saw the highest number of air travelers ever screened by the Transportation Security Administration - over 3 million in a single day at U.S. airports.

• VOLUME. Compared to last year, air travel in the United States - in terms of the number of passengers screened - is up 27 million over the same point a year ago. That's an increase of over 6 percent.

• GREAT RECESSION. What happened to air travel when the economy turned down in 2008-2009? It dropped 10 percent in the last quarter of 2008. The gains we are seeing now speak to the strength and resilience of the U.S. economy.

---

GOP PLATFORM. Normally, Republicans would be getting a lot of attention one week before the GOP convention in Milwaukee - but not as much this year, because of the unrest among Democrats. On Monday, Republicans released their party platform for 2024, which has the distinct influence of former President Donald Trump.

• MAGA. In a statement which almost reads like Trump himself dictated it, the platform features '20 Promises' that Republicans want to accomplish when they win the White House and the Congress. Here are six of the bullet points:

  • 1. Seal The Border, And Stop The Migrant Invasion

  • 2. Carry Out The Largest Deportation Operation In American History

  • 3. End Inflation, And Make America Affordable Again

  • 4. Make America The Dominant Energy Producer In The World, By Far!

  • 5. Stop Outsourcing, And Turn The United States Into A Manufacturing Superpower

  • 6. Large Tax Cuts For Workers, And No Tax On Tips!

---

APPLIANCE DAY. The House will vote today on a pair of GOP bills which seek to block new energy savings regulations from the Biden Administration. Lawmakers will vote on the 'Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act' and the ‘Refrigerator Freedom Act.'

• VETO. The White House on Monday vowed to veto both of those plans, saying the GOP effort would undermine 'appliance energy efficiency standards that lower costs for American families and businesses.'

• MAGA JUNK. Democrats blasted the bills as ‘MAGA junk.’ "Apparently, nothing says freedom to (Republicans) quite like forcing their constituents to pay more on their electric bills," said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA).

---

MENENDEZ. Closing arguments got underway Monday in the federal bribery and corruption trial against Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ). "The government is intoxicated with their own rhetoric," Menendez told reporters in New York after the court adjourned for the day. Jury deliberations could begin as soon as today in his case.

---

MRS. GREENE OF GEORGIA. I still can't believe this one. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) posted a tweet in a bid to take a jab at Joe Biden's age. In it, she said there were more than a dozen people who signed the Declaration of Independence who were under 45.

• NAMES. She then oddly listed a whole bunch of people who *did not* sign the Declaration of Independence - including Paul Revere. Now, most of us are not U.S. history scholars, but we know damn well that Paul Revere wasn't a Founding Father.

---

RAP SHEET. Five different Jan. 6 convicts will find out their sentences today in a trio of hearings at the federal courthouse. One of those is a former church minister from Kansas City who brought his 71-year-old mother to the Capitol. They went into Lower West Terrace Tunnel - site of some of the worst violence that day - and were two of the last people pushed out by police.

---

MUSE OF HISTORY.  July 9, 1917.  In the wake of a massacre of blacks in East St. Louis, Illinois a week earlier, Rep. Leonidas Dyer (R-MO) on this date proposed a joint House-Senate panel to 'investigate the causes that led to the murdering, the lynching, the burning, and the drowning of innocent citizens of the United States.'  Several days later, a group of citizens made the case to Vice President Thomas Marshall for an investigation; Marshall noted it from the chair in the Senate, and asked for the petition to be included in the Congressional Record.  

---

LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:

The House meets at 10 am.

The Senate convenes at 10 am.

Check President Biden’s schedule.

Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.

Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com

If you want to say ‘thanks’ - you can buy me a cup of coffee.