Pelosi exits as House Democrats will get new leaders
Republicans make Hunter Biden their #1 priority
Also in today’s “Regular Order” for November 17, 2022:
Rep. Boebert’s race heads for a recount.
Marriage bill moves forward in the Senate.
Musical chairs on Capitol Hill.
HOUSE DEMS. In a major shakeup brought about by the loss of their majority, House Democrats will have new leaders for the first time since 2002. Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her top two lieutenants all announced on Thursday that they would leave their leadership posts at the end of this year - stepping aside for a new group of younger House Democrats.
PELOSI. The outgoing Speaker revealed her decision first in a House floor speech - the Democratic side was packed; the GOP side was nearly empty. Recounting what she saw at age 6 when her dad was sworn into Congress, Pelosi said it was time. "The hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic Caucus."
HOYER-CLYBURN. Soon after, there were similar announcements from Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC). "It is time for me to continue my service in a different role," Hoyer said.
TEARS. The Pelosi speech hit her female colleagues hard. "It's really emotional," said Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (D-NH), who was fighting back tears. "People don't realize that it's still hard for women." "I'm joyful and so lucky to have served with her," said Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA) - who was also crying.
NEW LEADERS. The departure of Pelosi, Hoyer, and Clyburn from the leadership means House Democrats will elect an entirely new team when they meet after Thanksgiving, with elections set for Nov. 30. "Now it’s time for the next generation," said Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA).
NEW TEAM. The emerging favorites were clear - but there could still be others who decide to run for the top three posts:
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) - Minority Leader
Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA) - Minority Whip
Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) - Dem. Caucus Chair.
NEW YORK NEW YORK. If Jeffries ascends to the top slot for Democrats in the House, it would mean that both leaders from the House and Senate - Jeffries and Sen. Charles Schumer - would be from New York City.
ON THE FENCE. Some Democrats were not jumping on board with the Jeffries-Clark-Aguilar train. "It’s a bit of whiplash right now to try to dive into that," said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). In other words, progressives might be on the outside looking in.
UPS AND DOWNS. Pelosi had highs and lows as Speaker. She willed the Obama health law to approval in 2010 - and saw the backlash send her party into the minority. She then faced down critics who wanted her out - and led them back to the majority to battle Donald Trump. "We've made so much progress under her leadership," said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA).
MOMENTS. Democrats told many stories. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NJ) was with her on an August trip to Taiwan, when China warned of possible military retaliation as Pelosi led a Congressional delegation to Taipei. "She was focused. She wasn't intimidated," Meeks said. "Nancy Pelosi is a historic Speaker."
GENERATIONAL CHANGE. Pelosi, Hoyer, and Clyburn are all in their 80's. Jeffries is 52. Clark is 59. Aguilar is 43. That's a big change - and probably a needed one inside the House Democratic Caucus.
NEW GOP. Some Republicans celebrated the Pelosi departure, doing a little dance on her political grave. "Good riddance, indeed," said Rep.-Elect Monica De La Cruz (R-TX). "She should be ashamed," said Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX). "Nancy Pelosi has been fired," added Rep. Lance Gooden (R-TX).
OLD GOP. It was a different tenor from one former House GOP veteran, as ex-Speaker John Boehner (R) sent his congratulations to Pelosi. "We were able to disagree without being disagreeable," Boehner wrote on Twitter. "You've been unfailingly gracious to me and my family."
REGULAR ORDER. Thanksgiving is almost here, which means the holiday season is upon us. Do you need a different kind of gift? Why not give the gift of straight news to one of your friends or someone in your family. The next few months will be very busy as Congress moves back to divided government.
HUNTER. Republicans were almost giddy with excitement on Thursday as they announced their first big investigation of the 118th Congress - now that the GOP is in charge. The probe will focus on past business dealings of Hunter Biden, the much maligned son of President Biden. "Accountability is coming," declared Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX).
BIDEN. Republicans have been telegraphing this for months. "We want to know what the Biden Administration is trying to hide from the American people," said Rep. James Comer (R-KY), who is expected to lead the GOP charge as the next Chairman of the House Oversight Committee.
JORDAN. Republicans also slammed reporters for not pursuing questions about how big social media companies treated stories about Hunter Biden - which has been a perpetual focus in conservative media. "I think there's all kind of questions that need to be answered," said Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).
FOCUS. At a news conference, Comer did not like reporters asking questions about other subjects on Capitol Hill. "If we could keep it about Hunter Biden - this is kind of a big deal we think,” Comer said.
ALTERNATE MESSAGE. Democrats were not impressed. "Well that will help deal with inflation," said Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ).
COMMANDERS. Rep. Comer also notified the lawyers of Dan Snyder - the owner of the Washington NFL franchise - that the House Oversight Committee will end its investigation into charges of financial and workplace impropriety leveled against the team.
STATEMENT. "We applaud Representative Comer for his leadership in putting an end to the investigation into a private company, which has been correctly characterized by sitting members of Congress as a ‘farce’ and ‘an abuse of power,'" Snyder's attorneys said.
FANS. Oddly enough, this Congressional probe has revealed all sorts of possible financial wrongdoing. For example, the team seemingly tried to cheat season ticket holders out of their ticket deposits - by not paying the money back.
WOMEN. And then there was all of the testimony that lawmakers uncovered about repeated examples of absolutely shameful workplace behavior towards women who were working for the team.
PRO TIP. One piece of advice I would offer to Comer is this - if he wants Republicans to be liked by people living in and around Washington, D.C., he should probably do everything he can to run Dan Snyder out of town. He is the most hated man in Washington.
MARRIAGE BILL. The Senate on Thursday took another step forward on a bill dealing with same-sex and interracial marriage, as the Senate voted 53-23 late last night to officially begin debate on the bill. Final action is not expected until after Thanksgiving, with the next procedural vote set for November 28.
SCHUMER. "I have zero doubt that Respect for Marriage will soon be the law of the land,” Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) said after last night’s vote. “We have the bipartisan support to get this across the finish line,” added Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR).
BACK STORY. Normally, Senators hold their last vote on Thursday around 2 pm, so everyone can get home. But GOP critics of the marriage bill refused to let that happen - so the vote took place at 10 pm. And then - a bunch of Republican Senators skipped the vote.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY. Conservative GOP opposition to the bill has formed around the argument that churches and religious organizations would be forced to cater to LGBTQ individuals. "It is about silencing and disadvantaging people that disagree," said Sen. James Lankford (R-OK).
DIVIDE. But Lankford's arguments are the exact opposite of what the Mormon Church says - one reason why it endorsed the measure. The National Association of Evangelicals is for it. The Southern Baptists oppose it. The Catholic Church has qualms about it.
TEXT. What does the plan say? It's only five pages, so it's not hard to read. It clearly states that churches and religious organizations can't be forced to perform or provide services for a same-sex marriage. It clearly states that nothing rolls back religious liberty or conscience protection. Read it.
BOEBERT. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) declared victory last night, though her race is headed for an automatic recount in Colorado. With almost all of the ballots now counted, Boebert's lead is down to 543 votes out of over 326,000 cast. The chance of that seat flipping to the Democrats is probably remote - but we'll see what happens.
HOUSE UPDATE. Democrats on Thursday held another seat in California, as Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) was declared the winner in CA-47. Republicans lead in three other House races from California, by 827, 4,446, and 9,472 votes.
ALASKA. Democrats are likely to pick up one more seat next week from Alaska, as Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK) leads by 22 points. “If Twitter collapses before this race is called I’m going to be so mad,” Peltola wrote last night.
NUMBERS. If all of the uncalled races hold - Republicans would have a 222-213 majority. That's exactly what Democrats won two years ago in the 2020 election.
MUSICAL CHAIRS. One of the most important parts of the lame duck session is figuring out who will take the top spots on key committees in both parties in the new Congress. In the Senate, it's like a game of musical chairs, as one move by a Senator can spur another, and another.
CHAIRS. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) will likely take the helm of the HELP Committee (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions). Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) will leave that post in order to chair the Senate Appropriations Committee.
NOT FAUCI. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) had talked about possibly being the chair of the health committee in the Senate - in order to pursue investigations about COVID and Dr. Anthony Fauci. But with the GOP staying in the minority, Paul will now claim the top slot on the Homeland Security panel instead.
GEORGIA RUNOFF. What’s really interesting about Senate committees next year is that everything depends on the Georgia runoff. If Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) wins, Democrats will get a one seat majority on every committee. If Herschel Walker wins, every panel will be split evenly.
MRS. GREENE OF GEORGIA. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) was very visible this week, as she backed House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy for Speaker - and refused to join forces with the fellow GOP conservatives to oppose McCarthy. In other words, the outsider (Greene) is trying to play the inside game on Capitol Hill. That's my column for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
CAPITOL CHRISTMAS TREE. A big crane was in place this week on the West Lawn of the Capitol - and that's because today the Capitol Christmas Tree arrives at 10 am. This year's tree is from the Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina, a 78-foot tall Red Spruce tree - named 'Ruby.' The tree lighting ceremony will be November 29.
MUSE OF HISTORY. November 18, 1938. This was the date of the 'Cherry Tree Rebellion' in Washington, D.C. Angered by plans to build the Jefferson Memorial, a group of about 150 women marched to the construction site by the Tidal Basin, protesting plans to move and transplant Japanese cherry trees to allow for construction of the memorial. Some of the women chained themselves to the trees - disrupting work at the site. It was all part of an extended fight over the Jefferson Memorial - which Congress first wanted to build much closer to the Capitol.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House next has votes on November 29.
The Senate next has votes on November 28.
President Biden’s daily schedule link.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree. Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
I think it's pretty obvious that Hunter Biden was trying to play off of his family name and his father to make some money - and it came at a time when he was struggling to keep his from going off the rails. All of the stuff that's at issue - to my understanding - happened before Biden became President. What the GOP hopes to accomplish is exactly what they did with Benghazi - they want to hold hearings and fire off subpoenas and paint the picture of a corrupt Biden family + Democrats. If you watch Fox News / Newsmax / crazy channels, etc., the viewers are fed a very steady diet of Hunter Biden, like it's a pot boiling over on the stove. My thought is simple - if Hunter Biden violated the law, prosecute him like anyone else.
They can't resist it. And if you don't watch conservative TV, you have no idea how this is their top story most days. It will make Benghazi look like chump change.