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09/11/2017 07:57 AM EDT


By Heather Caygle (hcaygle@politico.com or @heatherscope)

With an assist from Daniel Lippman

HOUSE VOTES CANCELED AS IRMA MAKES LANDFALL - Happy Monday Huddle readers. The House has canceled votes tonight as Hurricane Irma continues to work its way up the Florida peninsula and into the southeast. The first House votes of the week will now occur Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. with last votes still scheduled for Thursday. Irma was weakening this morning as the storm moved along the northwestern coast of Florida but still had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

BANNON PLOTS PRIMARIES AGAINST GOP INCUMBENTS - Steve Bannon "is launching an all-out war against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell," planning a slate of primary challengers to take on current GOP senators, Alex Isenstadt reports. The former White House chief strategist is "coordinating with conservative mega-donor Robert Mercer, who is prepared to pour millions of dollars into attacks on GOP incumbents. Bannon has also installed a confidant at an outside group that is expected to target Republican lawmakers and push the Trump agenda."

On the target list: Sens. Dean Heller (R-Nev.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) are both top targets, as expected. But Bannon and his allies are also eyeing challenges to Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who questioned the president's competence after Charlottesville, and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). Bannon is also pushing Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate runoff over Luther Strange, the McConnell choice.

Reality check: McConnell's team hasn't lost a primary in years. But Bannon's move would force GOP leaders to spend millions of dollars defending normally safe incumbents when they could be using that cash to unseat vulnerable Democrats. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe909aed983c6dcc5b0e78cd4a988c7cbbf9ec46a4af089b503ecef6ea10fca940ade894373c13808e287430a4e47708cd49

Related: Corker is considering retiring next year, CNN's Manu Raju reports this morning. But he still has more than $7 million cash on hand and top GOP operative Ward Baker as his campaign consultant.

MORE Bannon on 60 Minutes: Bannon called FBI Director James Comey's firing the biggest mistake in "modern political history" and he declared war on McConnell and Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), accusing the GOP leaders of "trying to nullify the 2016 election."

RYAN'S RANK-AND-FILE BOOST - Leaders of the House Freedom Caucus lashed out at Ryan last week after Trump struck a fiscal deal with Democrats, saying the House speaker should've done more to sell the president on a conservative alternative. But Trump's move "may have bolstered, at least temporarily, Ryan's standing among rank-and-file Republicans," Rachael and Kyle report this morning. "If you think that you can do a better job, man up and put your name on the ballot and say that you're running and challenge the speaker - rather than just being an agitator," said Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Fla.), a Ryan ally. "I get so tired of these guys that play Monday-morning quarterback with Paul." More:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe9007d7baaf0f55162e06355b891a24f64c63b94047de53d8770305ec9521cdce1c7906dbb67ca30458168c9187de512775

Related op-ed: The Wall Street Journal editorial board tells Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows to "man up" and run for speaker if he's so upset. Read: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe902876a541b6e4e5b8d7b2c0902defd6f47143e0eff8af893dc7e20b9b920c8d59e4aeec687ac5ccbe912e64d2014104e5


** A message from the American Academy of Dermatology: American Academy of Dermatology Association members are on Capitol Hill this week discussing findings from the Academy's Burden of Skin Disease report, which examined the prevalence, economic burdens and mortality for skin disease in the United States. For more information, visit www.aad.org/BSD. **


WELCOME, IT'S MONDAY. Let's all take a moment to pause and honor the lives lost 16 years ago on Sept. 11, 2001.

Thanks for tuning in to POLITICO's Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill.

FRIDAY'S MOST CLICKED: GOP Rep. Don Young of Alaska telling Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) she "doesn't know a damn thing," via the Hill, got the clicks.

LOOKING DOWN THE ROAD - Way back in January, GOP leaders predicted Obamacare would be repealed, Trump's border wall would be funded and tax reform would be wrapped up, all by August. Not one of those things has happened, sending Republicans scrambling and making tax reform even more imperative for the GOP. But for all the talk of finishing a tax code overhaul by the end of the year, "the GOP is nowhere close to passing a budget resolution for the next fiscal year - a critical step," Burgess, Seung Min and Kyle report. House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) "said there's still no time frame for the budget to pass or for lawmakers to release substantive details of a tax reform
package." More on the fall agenda: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe907edfc454fa06791dc4b7ab6f89585cb799fce25354c0cbb28844ecc5796dac4b59df8a6a32e64d8f1a11eb011425dde4

Related: The Freedom Caucus threatens to go rogue on tax reform if GOP leaders don't release a blueprint soon, Rachael and Josh Dawsey report.

GRAB THE TISSUES - Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), currently undergoing treatment for brain cancer, had a particularly touching moment at the end of his interview with CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday. "How do you want the American people to remember you?" Tapper asked. McCain's response: "He served his country and not always right - made a lot of mistakes, made a lot of errors. But served his country and, I hope we could add, honorably." Watch: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe90c04bb1e1c16d01525bf60c400af8a3e620a7ba6183577858594e49467f55a84ed43a4c590117288eddc62756a8f8aa35

More McCain: 'Every life has to end one way or another,' via Ian Kullgren. Read: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe9000f69a29527ee473d60496367eb8c8dd8bc4e79023ff5677da483c95367dc1dd45c99c7318c2b9c9292a6370a96f83c7

TRUMP TO MEET WITH SEN. SCOTT - The president will have a one-on-one meeting with Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) Wednesday, Emma Dumain and Anita Kumar scoop for McClatchy. The huddle comes after Scott questioned Trump's "moral authority" following the president's comments defending some who marched at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville. "The source with knowledge of the meeting said Scott will talk to Trump not only about the Charlottesville response but will also share his perspective on current events as an African-American," they report. Scott is the only black Republican senator. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe90aea7d6dfb02a5ccd71f0ac08f50fca31915017589f92ed0b0db892e680e08218a3694bedfa0b120e6a19d18628745605

DEMS THREATEN SHUTDOWN OVER DACA - House Democrats are already threatening to withhold their votes for a government funding bill in December if Congress hasn't found a path forward for Dreamers. "We will shut it down or let Republicans keep it open with their own votes," Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) said Friday. Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she's still focused on securing a legislative fix for Dreamers in September. Congress has two must-do items left this month: reauthorizing the FAA and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). More from Elana and your Huddle host: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe903c7c9a4c41c7c3388fb73e184d192d84885054d934ef26a0153a73dbc486f7140947341a683ebc79d1dd85b2757e43b2

WEEKEND TWEET DU JOUR - @NKingofDC: Ran into John Boehner at Trattoria Alberto, his DC hang out. "The nation needs you." "Oh God no," he said, radiantly sipping his merlot.

ALL EYES ON ME(RKLEY) - Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) isn't running for president - at least not yet. But he did spend the weekend hobnobbing in the Hawkeye State, headlining the Progress Iowa Corn Feed, unabashedly touting progressive policies and fueling 2020 rumors. "Making those contacts and keeping such a busy schedule in Iowa could easily arouse questions about his interest in the 2020 caucuses. Indeed, his itinerary is among the fullest yet seen by a senator, governor or any other Democrat with a potential presidential resume," reports Jason Noble. The Des Moines Register with the deets: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe903f4c127465b3d8b6dcbb2517500e520bea286cdc5c765ef3f3f6a0ee224405180bf89fe0409d648b1d4932c85eb377ac

SANCHEZ SCORES NEW GIG - Former Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez, who lost the California Senate race to Kamala Harris last year, has landed a new job, according to the Hollywood Reporter. "The network has handed out a script commitment to drama Accidental Candidate, which counts ... Sanchez as an exec producer," Lesley Goldberg reports. "The drama, sources say, is drawn from Sanchez's personal experiences when she was first elected in 1996 and defeated long-serving Republican Congressman Bob Dornan." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe90c99bcd6fa54f33d78c0542a135e4abe92c84bc7609cfd7448e1401fc66c032f59ef7a225a19179c2f6ec30127e13d2a6

WEEKEND WEDDING - "Kristen Molloy, Sean Coit" -- N.Y. Times: "The bride and groom both work in Washington for Democratic senators. She is the senior health policy adviser for Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia, who was a vice-presidential candidate in 2016, and he is the communications director for Senator Chris Coons of Delaware." Pic: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=9ebe836d3f9ebe90f46a2c042c0a06ae69421dbc9496f4aea8e636c0bd8818df1c3a77be2164b7496eb774cc9cfa05aa4e17443024d10ebb

TODAY IN CONGRESS - The House is out until Tuesday. The Senate gavels in at 3 p.m. and will hold a procedural vote at 5:30 p.m. related to the National Defense Authorization Act.

AROUND THE HILL - The House will observe a moment of silence at 8:46 a.m. for the 9/11 attacks.

Rep. Tom Garrett (R-Va.) participates in a Cato Institute discussion on federal marijuana policy at 12 p.m. in 122 Cannon.

The Senate will observe a moment of silence in remembrance of 9/11 victims shortly after 3 p.m.

FRIDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Justin Arnold was the first to correctly guess that three U.S. presidents went on to hold another paid federal public office after leaving the White House: John Quincy Adams, who served in the House; Andrew Johnson, who served five months in the Senate before passing away; and William Howard Taft, who went on to become chief justice of the Supreme Court.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Justin with today's question: The person, who claims a notable first in congressional history, announced his/her reelection campaign while presiding over the Senate floor. Name this person and the notable first. Send your best guess my way: hcaygle@politico.com. The first person to correctly answer gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle.

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** A message from the American Academy of Dermatology: Dermatologists are licensed medical doctors and the only residency-trained physicians fully educated in the medical and surgical conditions of the skin, hair, and nails. Dermatologists detect, diagnose, and treat more than 3,000 different diseases, but dermatology is more than skin deep. We can also provide a first alert for diseases such as cancer and diabetes. In fact, Nancy's breast cancer was diagnosed by her dermatologist - twice; Ralph lived when a dermatologist, surgeon and oncologist worked together to tackle his rare and aggressive form of cancer; Makeba got her life back when a dermatologist, gastroenterologist, and plastic
surgeon teamed up to treat her rare skin disease. They aren't alone - millions of other Americans seek treatment from dermatologists each year. Learn more about the impact of skin disease in the United States at www.aad.org/BSD and www.skinserious.org. **

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