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By Scott Wong (
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swong@politico.com or
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BORDER CRISIS BILL A BIG TEST FOR HOUSE GOP - It'll be a long summer if Republicans can't pass a bill to deal with the influx of migrant children at the Southern border. Lawmakers have just days to do it before they leave town for the monthlong August recess. POLITICO's Jake Sherman and Seung Min Kim report: "This week, Republicans find themselves with the opportunity to set the narrative for the August recess. They will either go home having passed a bill to deal with the unaccompanied children coming primarily from Central America...Or they will fail, giving way to renewed criticism about their inability to rally around legislation to resolve what they themselves called a crisis. ...

-- "Even if a bill ekes through the House, it's most likely going to die in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is having trouble passing the Senate's own $2.7 billion emergency funding bill. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), who is facing a tough reelection bid this fall, has already said she will oppose the package, and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) signaled concern that the Senate Democratic bill did not touch the 2008 law."
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HOUSE, SENATE NEGOTIATORS REACH VA REFORM DEAL - POLITICO's Lauren French has the latest: "Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Jeff Miller have reached an agreement to reform the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to an aide briefed on the matter. The legislation, which is to be unveiled Monday, will touch on 'both the short-term and long-term needs of the VA,' the aide said. The two lawmakers worked continuously through the weekend to craft a deal before Congress heads home for a five-week recess Friday.

-- "Last week, the prospect of Sanders (I-Vt.) and Miller (R-Fla.) reaching a compromise had seemingly declined when Senate Democrats and House Republicans criticized each other for giving up on negotiations. ... Specific details of the agreement were not immediately clear, but any legislation would likely give the VA secretary a broader ability to fire senior officials accused of mismanagement. The deal is also expected to allocate money for veterans who have been awaiting medical treatment for longer than 30 days the ability to leave the VA system for care."
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BOEHNER: LAWSUIT NOT ABOUT ME VS. OBAMA - The Speaker explains House Republicans' legal challenge in a USA Today op-ed: "I believe the president's actions in a number of areas - including job-destroying energy regulations, releasing the 'Taliban 5' from Guantanamo without notice and waiving the work requirements in welfare - exceed his constitutional authority. On the advice of legal experts, the House action will focus on his decision to extend - twice - the deadline to institute the employer mandate in his health care law. We believe this targeted lawsuit offers the best chance of success. ...

-- "We will debate and pass the resolution authorizing the lawsuit openly, transparently and in regular order. At the same time, we will also continue to add to the list of more than 50 House-passed jobs bills currently awaiting action in the Democratic-controlled Senate. ... This is also not about me vs. President Obama. This is about future Congresses and future presidents. There is a conflict between the executive branch and the legislative branch of our government. It is the judiciary branch's role to help resolve it."
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HALF OF D.C. attended Saturday night's Billy Joel concert at Nats Park, if your Huddle host's Facebook and Twitter feeds are to be believed. The Library of Congress said last week that it would award the prestigious Gershwin Prize for Popular Song to the Long Island native this November, and Speaker Boehner took the opportunity this weekend to honor his "Greatest Hits," while taking jabs at President Obama. Here are just a few, courtesy of Boehner aide and fellow Long Islander Mike Ricci:

-- The American people have been asking 'where are the jobs' "For the Longest Time," with this being the
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worst 'recovery' for jobs ever .

-- Yet the president just has to be a "Big Shot,"
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bragging about his policies when Americans are having a tough time. ...

-- On top of all this, the president's "Shameless" push for 'economic patriotism'
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would just make things worse , with even more jobs "Movin' Out" of the country. ...

-- So "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," Mr. President, and
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work with us to help grow the middle class and expand opportunity for everyone, from the "Piano Man" to the "Uptown Girl."
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GOOD MONDAY MORNING, JULY 28, 2014, and welcome to The Huddle, your play-by-play preview of all the action on Capitol Hill. Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to
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swong@politico.com . If you don't already, please follow me on Twitter
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@scottwongDC .

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TODAY IN CONGRESS - The House is in at noon with votes expected about 6:30 p.m. on a number of bills considered under suspension of the rules, including: the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act; Transparent Airfares Act and several Homeland Security-related bills.

The Senate meets at 2 p.m. and at 5:30 p.m. votes on the following nominations, including Pamela Harris to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit; three commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission; and Brian McKeon to be a Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense.

AROUND THE HILL - At 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, DCCC Chairman Steve Israel joins a Christian Science Monitor breakfast at the St. Regis Hotel. On Tuesday, July 29th at 2:00 PM, the Congressional Progressive Caucus will hold an Ad Hoc Hearing in 2322 RHOB to receive first-hand testimony from unaccompanied minors and expert witnesses stressing the importance of prioritizing the best interests of these children.

At 9 a.m. Wednesday, the CSM hosts another breakfast at the hotel with House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan.

TV AD SPENDING FOR CONGRESS APPROACHES $2B MARK - Ashley Parker reports on A1 of the NYT: "An explosion of spending on political advertising on television - set to break $2 billion in congressional races, with overall spots up nearly 70 percent since the 2010 midterm election - is accelerating the rise of moneyed interests and wresting control from the candidates' own efforts to reach voters. In the first full midterm cycle where outside groups have developed a sophisticated infrastructure, the consequences are already becoming apparent: a harshly negative tone dictated by the groups and a nearly nonstop campaign season that could cause voters to tune out before Election Day. The
phenomenon, which is playing out in races across the country, is particularly pronounced in several competitive Senate contests - in places like Alaska, Colorado and North Carolina ..."
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-- REPUBLICANS have a 60 percent chance of taking control of the Senate, the NYT's "The Upshot" blog concludes: "The Republicans appear to have a slight advantage, with the most likely outcome being a Republican gain of six seats, the minimum they need to finish with a 51-to-49-seat majority. But we, like many other forecasters, would not be surprised by a gain of anywhere from four to eight seats. Summing up the possible outcomes, our model gives the Republicans a 60 percent chance of taking control, up from 54 percent on April 1."
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--WSJ, A1: "Prospects Brighten for Republicans to Reclaim a Senate Majority: Strong GOP Candidates, Obama's Sagging Approval Expand Party's Map," By Patrick O'Connor:
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POLITICS ASIDE, PRYOR AND BOOZMAN ARE GOOD FRIENDS - Sarah D. Wire writes for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: "On an oddly cool summer evening recently, U.S. Sens. Mark Pryor and John Boozman stood on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and laughed as their staffs taunted each other over who was to blame for hitting a tourist with a softball. Standing behind home plate, the two senators from Arkansas cheered and consoled as their staffs played their fourth annual softball game. Boozman's staff, calling itself 'Booze Your Daddy,' beat Pryor's team, 'The Naturals,' 15-14 to secure a homemade, golden hog-head trophy. 'I love John, and I have a lot of respect for him. I think one of the
things we realized is it's better for Arkansas if we work together,' Pryor, a Democrat from Little Rock, said during the game. 'I've developed a really good friendship with him over the last 12 years, and it's been fun.'

-- "That Pryor and Boozman boast about working together stands out in a U.S. Senate that has largely come to a standstill fewer than 100 days before the November election. Pryor faces U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton in a race seen nationally as one that will help determine whether Democrats or Republicans control the U.S. Senate. Arkansas is one of 18 states represented by senators from two parties, as are Louisiana and Missouri. Other split delegations have more cantankerous relationships. On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, objected to an advertisement by her Democratic counterpart, U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, that called Murkowski and Begich 'a great team for Alaska.'" Subscription
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A DRAFT JOE MANCHIN FOR PRESIDENT website is now live:
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SOME IN 'TORTURE REPORT' NOW DENIED CHANCE TO READ IT - Ken Dilanian reports for WaPo: "About a dozen former CIA officials named in a classified Senate report on decade-old agency interrogation practices were notified in recent days that they would be able to review parts of the document in a secure room in suburban Washington after signing a secrecy agreement. Then, on Friday, many were told they would not be able to see it after all. Some of them were furious, while Democratic Senate aides were angry that they were given the chance in the first place.

-- "It is the latest chapter in the drama and recriminations that have been playing out behind the scenes in connection with what some call the Senate 'torture report,' a summary of which is being declassified and is expected to be released in the coming weeks. ... The 6,300-page report, along with a CIA rebuttal, represents the most detailed accounting to date of a set of bitterly controversial interrogation, rendition and detention practices the CIA carried out in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks - practices many Americans now consider to have been immoral or illegal. ...

-- "About a dozen officials were called in recent days and told they could read the executive summary at a secure room at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), four former officials said. ... Then, on Friday, CIA officials called some of the former officials and told them that because of a miscommunication, only former CIA directors and deputy directors would be given that privilege. Former directors Michael Hayden, Porter Goss and George Tenet were invited to read it, as were former acting directors John McLaughlin and Michael Morell. Senate aides familiar with the matter say [Senate Intelligence Chairwoman Dianne] Feinstein protested to the White House that it had no
business allowing so many retired officials to read a Senate oversight report."
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GOP'S NEW BLACK MARKET: ANTI-INCUMBENT CAMPAIGNS - "The highest-profile Republican insurgents of 2014 have had a few things in common: They've all run against longtime incumbents whom they accused of going native in D.C. They've all relied on super PACs to buoy their campaigns. And in three of the biggest primaries of the year, hard-right candidates have hired the same general consulting firm: Cold Spark Media, a small, Pittsburgh-based company led by former advisers to Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey.

-- "Not that long ago, consultants say, it might have been a professional death sentence to sign up with even one candidate targeting a veteran incumbent like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell or Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran. These days, Cold Spark is only one of a limited but growing number of Republican firms that operate heavily in the black market of anti-incumbent campaigns."
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AMASH CONFIDENT IN HOMESTRETCH - Our own Anna Palmer reports from the ground in Byron Center, Mich.: "Rep. Justin Amash was supposed to be the next big target of the establishment wing of the Republican Party, sweating all the way to the finish line. Instead, campaigning just two weeks before his primary, Amash seemed almost carefree. 'Things are going great,' he said after a parade this weekend in this Grand Rapids, Mich., suburb. His confidence is for good reason. Many GOP operatives had been outspoken about their hopes to kick out Amash this cycle for being what they viewed as too extreme in his tea party positions. But while the establishment deployed a shock and awe strategy for Sen.
Thad Cochran in Mississippi and Rep. Mike Simpson in Idaho this year when they feared losing primaries against tea party rivals, no intense effort has materialized against Amash.

-- "The race in Michigan underscores that while Republicans say they are done with the tea party, the pro-business wing is reluctant to play the dirty game of taking out one of their own-even when it comes to a despised figure like Amash, who has repeatedly voted against much of the rest of the party."
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CLAWSON APOLOGIZES FOR GAFFE: 'I SHOT AN AIR BALL' - Catalina Camia writes for USA Today: "Rep. Curt Clawson, R-Fla., apparently mistook two senior American officials who are of South Asian descent as representing the Indian government, according to a Foreign Policy report published Friday. The story includes video from Thursday's House Foreign Affairs subcommittee hearing on U.S.-India relations, in which Clawson refers to 'your capital' and 'your government' as he addresses Nisha Biswal, an assistant secretary at the State Department, and Arun Kumar, an assistant secretary at the Commerce Department. ...

-- "Clawson won a special election last month to replace Trey Radel, who resigned following a cocaine bust. The political novice, who was a businessman and college basketball player before running for office, apologized in a statement sent to our Gannett colleague, Ledyard King. 'I made a mistake in speaking before being fully briefed and I apologize. I'm a quick study, but in this case I shot an air ball,' Clawson said."
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FRIDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - David Heymsfeld was first to correctly answer that Maurice Tobin was the future Secretary of Labor who once appeared with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Frank Sinatra at a postseason-campaign rally at Fenway Park.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Katherine Pudwill has today's question: States are represented in the Capitol's Statuary Hall Collection by two statues each. But which is the only state represented by three historical figures? The first person to send the correct answer to
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