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By Heather Caygle | 02/02/2017 08:07 AM EDT


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

With an assist from Daniel Lippman

SCOTUS WATCH: THE DEMOCRATS WHO MATTER - Republicans need eight Democrats to join with them in support of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch to achieve the supermajority required for confirmation. So which of the chamber's 48 Democrats are on the GOP's target list? "Several are classic institutionalists prone to show deference to presidential nominees, even hotly controversial ones. Others are perennial swing votes who don't want to get tagged as obstructionist," Seung Min and Burgess report this morning.

Who to watch: "Republicans operate under the assumption that they've got five Democratic votes in the bag: the quintet who are up for reelection in states that Trump overwhelmingly won." Sens. Heidi Heitkamp, Claire McCaskill, Joe Manchin, Joe Donnelly and Jon Tester are all on the list, not that they're necessarily happy about it. "This idea that somehow you can bully me into doing something that I don't think is right for the country by saying 'You're from a red state,' it just gets old," Heitkamp said.

Other Dems to keep an eye on: Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Dianne Feinstein, who will lead Gorsuch's cross-examination. Democratic Sens. Bill Nelson and Tom Carper, who have been deferential to GOP Cabinet picks in the past, also made the list along with possible swing votes like Sens. Chris Coons and Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats. SMK and Burgess with the deets: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb09517573bb75ac326e9845d8f7eb01ffe0f7b7bf2f3f5367e37c5f7397319d34e91d6b5bc6bb8273

Making the rounds: Gorsuch met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, GOP Sens. Cory Gardner and Orrin Hatch and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin while on the Hill Wednesday.

McConnell takes his case to the people: In a Washington Post op-ed, McConnell urged Democrats to stop with the "apocalyptic rhetoric" and give Gorsuch an up-or-down vote. "While it might be difficult for Democratic senators to resist this siren song, for the sake of our country they must," he wrote. McConnell also defended his decision to block Merrick Garland's nomination, refusing to give Democrats an up-or-down vote on Obama's nominee. Read the op-ed: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcbc2aa5c2c708040af39e9e0bb04d1475078de2ef7f7afe2537ae2952aafeb71e680f55702c349d4ee

TAX TALK IS BEST ON THURSDAY - Leaders of the House and Senate tax-writing committees will meet with President Trump in the White House this morning. Sens. Orrin Hatch and Ron Wyden and Reps. Kevin Brady and Richard Neal will be on hand for the confab, which starts at 11:15 a.m.

TRYING 'REPAIR' ON FOR SIZE - A few weeks ago, Rachael and Kyle wrote a story about new House Energy and Commerce Chairman Greg Walden's pointed use of the words "repair" and "rebuild" to describe the GOP's Obamacare efforts. Now other Republicans seem to be abandoning the "repeal" mantra and trying the softer "repair" on for size. Sens. Lamar Alexander, Susan Collins and House Speaker Paul Ryan have all used "repair" when talking about Obamacare in recent days.

"The repair language was discussed by Republicans during their closed-door policy retreat in Philadelphia last week as a better way to brand their strategy," report Bloomberg's Anna Edney, Billy House and Zachary Tracer. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb779e642a227dbfc2320144150da9fbdbfb883f28c3c01d7ec443f7877eca47dd65db1cceaa9ecb0c

TOP SENATORS TO HUDDLE ON RUSSIA PROBE - Leaders of the three Senate committees leading investigations into Russia's U.S. election hacking - including whether there are ties between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign- are planning to meet in the coming days to discuss their progress, report Austin Wright and Martin Matishak. "There's not a day that goes by that I don't get - not just press, other members - but just folks on the street saying, 'What's going on here?'" said Sen. Mark Warner, top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb011a9e71b5830a12a0f0fa9220ab0957e7a45a8620cbb06e80bea625db3682c9dbab5b3a58bb1209

RYAN HUDDLES WITH KUSHNER - House Speaker Paul Ryan had a one-on-one dinner with Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-low and top adviser, at the Capitol Hill Club Wednesday, Jake and Anna report exclusively. Much more in Playbook: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcbe719daf2f219308d6c4297c987030150496dda1260ed4071f11ba1a3a7c49fe310054a9af670e593

TWO PAWS WAY UP FOR THURSDAY. Welcome to Feb. 2, Groundhog Day, 2017. Thanks for reading POLITICO's Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill. Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning, meaning six more weeks of winter. "'I see teeth,' his handler said as he emerged to cheers from his stump at Gobbler's Knob, where it was about 30 degrees out. 'He's squealing; he's hollering. Phil is feisty,'" Lisa Wardle reports for Penn Live.

WEDNESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Seung Min's story about the SCOTUS slugfest to come got the clicks.

TODAY IN CONGRESS - The House meets at 10 a.m. with first votes at 1:30 p.m. and last votes around 4:30 p.m. Today's House agenda: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb658b1de24424f4a64dffb38765df9e0ac006edbaadb9340e7ef5ccbc886487711c109dcc805b9dc0 The Senate meets at 11 am with votes on rolling back Obama-era regulations possible.

AROUND THE HILL - House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly press conference at 10:45 a.m. in HVC Studio A. Reps. Don Beyer, Joseph Crowley and Betty McCollum hold a press conference on their religious freedom bill at 10:45 a.m. in the House triangle. House Speaker Paul Ryan holds his weekly press avail at 11:30 a.m. in HVC Studio A.

Pelosi, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer and Reps. John Conyers, Elijah Cummings, Nita Lowey, Eliot Engel, Bennie Thompson, Tim Walz, Lucille Roybal-Allard and Adam Schiff will hold a forum on Trump's refugee ban with Khizr Khan and others starting at 11:30 a.m. in HVC 215. Reps. Diane Black, Ann Wagner, Vicky Hartzler, Mia Love and Trent Franks hold a press conference on defunding Planned Parenthood in the House triangle at 1:30 p.m.

OFF THE HILL -- Sens. John Boozman and Chris Coons lead the 65th annual National Prayer Breakfast at the Washington Hilton. President Trump will speak at 8 a.m.

COMING ATTRACTIONS - Both House Speaker Paul Ryan and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi will be guests on NBC's "Meet the Press" exclusively this Sunday.

DEMS PRESS RYAN ON NONDISCLOSURE RULES - Nine House Democrats are sending a letter to Speaker Ryan today, seeking clarity on whether House Judiciary Committee staff broke chamber rules while advising Trump officials on an executive order banning refugees. "Rep. Ruben Gallego and eight of his colleagues will seek clarity on whether staff may collaborate with the White House and sign nondisclosure agreements about their work," Rachael reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb2b5013633caaaba3d9d8973e45d6659a19022d67d4ec0bef08a8cc3980ac6a2efe7201b47bee2dcf

HATCH PUSHES THROUGH CABINET NOMINEES - After Democrats forced a delay on Cabinet votes Tuesday, Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch used a strong-arm tactic of his own yesterday, suspending the panel's rules to approve Treasury secretary nominee Steve Mnuchin and HHS nominee Tom Price without Democratic votes. "They have nobody to blame but themselves," Hatch told reporters after Democrats refused to show up for the second straight day. More from Zachary Warmbrodt, Adam Cancryn and Elana Schor: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcbf21c1c8b6dfbba5f3cf3f042e16fb7c88942f6141019783a325227aeab9cfad94560fbf9cd19da20

Groundhog Day: The Senate EPW Committee will meet again today to vote on EPA administrator nominee Scott Pruitt after Democrats boycotted a planned committee vote Wednesday.

VIDEOBOMB DU JOUR - Sen. John McCain won the day Wednesday when he videobombed CNN's Manu Raju as he was doing a live shot in a Senate hallway. Don't miss it: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb8039f4485ba9805c54470df38d9afa73f74310f165ef05652dea636c9940b921147884ad05376c62 And here's McCain seeing his photobomb for the first time, via Alex Guillen: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcbe9a35dcb26a714857d55e9a1bce503cedf63f60b68c54f7f23e964d4861efaf85015b6bb83a5bcf4

NO VOTES TO SPARE - There's no wiggle room for Betsy DeVos heading into a confirmation vote for the Education secretary nominee after GOP Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski said they were going to vote against her. "That could very well mean a 50-50 standoff on the Senate floor - and Vice President Mike Pence being called in to put DeVos over the top. Republicans have a 52-48 majority, and no Democrats are expected to support the prospective education chief," Burgess and Kimberly Hefling report.

A floor vote on DeVos is expected Monday but Democrats are doing everything they can to delay her confirmation, including encouraging voters to call their senators in opposition. Murkowski said the sheer number of her constituents calling her office helped sway her decision. "I have heard from thousands, truly, thousands of Alaskans who have shared their concerns about Mrs. DeVos," Murkowski said.

Fun fact (and possible future Huddle trivia): If Pence has to break the tie, it would be the first time ever a VP has ensured the confirmation of a Cabinet nominee. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb56d56fc7c8f3de059d425ca09840e22e014f887e68b9cb8b1b1757e386aacccb559a677ecc4f1f8c

BIDEN BACKS PEREZ FOR DNC - Former VP Joe Biden endorsed former Labor Secretary Tom Perez to lead the DNC. Biden's high-profile backing, while not a surprise, prompted a sharp response from Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is supporting Rep. Keith Ellison in the race. "Do we stay with a failed status-quo approach or do we go forward with a fundamental restructuring of the Democratic Party?" Sanders said. The rivalry between Perez and Ellison "reopens fault lines between progressive activists and the party establishment that ran through the 2016 primary fight," writes Janet Hook. The Wall Street Journal: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb7ab7c70231695aad1e8784bafacab160098771fe299044a31281debb37d3822e28a6ff7239336815

SESSIONS CLEARS COMMITTEE - "Jeff Sessions narrowly cleared the Judiciary Committee in his bid to become the nation's next attorney general - teeing off a contentious battle on the Senate floor where his eventual confirmation is essentially inevitable," Seung Min reports. The Judiciary Committee voted 11-9 along party lines. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb28ccf52eeb84ad2ce1427371882bbaf2f0ebbed815b6b9552a837a3bad13a35e0b3004f2352a700c

SENATE CONFIRMS TILLERSON - Former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson was sworn in as the next secretary of State Wednesday night after being confirmed by the Senate 56-43. Sens. Joe Manchin, Heidi Heitkamp, Mark Warner and Angus King voted with Republicans in supporting Tillerson's nomination. Trump called the new secretary "a star" in a Thursday morning tweet.

TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE - "Sen. Patty Murray, who earlier this week raised plagiarism questions about President Donald Trump's pick for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, appears to have pulled one of her written questions for the nominee from an industry group fact sheet," reports CNN's Dan Merica. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcb0c4b2967cde46619c70a14418201b2ef68f446ca0f0f2707dbfcd67ef7b38b63343eb88b9ac3af96

HAVE YOU SEEN MY CONGRESSWOMAN? "Rep. Barbara Comstock stood up constituents over the weekend who attended two townhalls with questions about an Obamacare repeal and the Trump Administration's travel ban," Rachael and Anna report. An invitation invited constituents to "mobile office hours" at two grocery stores Saturday, specifically staying Comstock would be there. Instead, constituents were met with a staffer who could only jot down concerns. Comstock's office said the invitation indicating she would be in attendance was a mistake.

Critics also blasted Comstock for failing to go to Dulles Airport over the weekend to help incoming travelers who were being detained due to Trump's executive order. Dulles is on the edge of her district. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5695b9f695578fcba8406f40e2d08af3fb3536034b56be2c9fd66463c21452e85d0cea5e9ef8018da395d3dabd50e5d5

SPOTTED: Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) at Matchbox on Barracks Row having dinner with friends.

ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES - Matthew Kravitz started on Wednesday as communications manager at the Center for Responsible Lending. He previously worked as press secretary for the North Carolina Democratic Party and in Rep. John Garamendi's office.

Lauren Fine, deputy press secretary for Sen. Joni Ernst, will join House Majority Whip Steve Scalise's office as press secretary Monday. Fine previously worked on Gov. Scott Walker's presidential campaign.

Starting Monday, Rob Damschen is heading back to the Hill to be communications director for Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-TX.) Rob worked as the director of special projects at Wise Public Affairs. Prior to Wise, he held positions with Rep. Greg Walden and Rep. Kevin McCarthy.

WEDNESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Bill Pascoe guessed that Sen. Lindsey Graham was the only Republican at Gorsuch's 2006 nomination hearing. At the time, Graham called Gorsuch "intellectually gifted" and possessing "all of the qualities that I would be looking for in terms of someone with the power to wear the robe."

And shout out to Devin Mogler who helped Huddle do some good old-fashioned research to track down the right answer.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Bill with today's question: Who was the only GOP senator to vote against the confirmation of Peter J. Brennan, Richard Nixon's third secretary of Labor? The first person to guess correctly gets a shout-out tomorrow. Send suggestions for trivia questions my way: hcaygle@politico.com

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