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12/21/2015 07:46 AM EDT


By Burgess Everett (@burgessev or beverett@politico.com)

Featuring Daniel Lippman

BUDGET TICK-TOCK: It seemed to be a most excruciating negotiation in the last week. The omnibus and tax deal seemed done for days, yet Speaker Paul Ryan, Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Harry Reid were having trouble finalizing it. In reality, they were still working on the particulars and things almost fell apart, Jake, Anna, Lauren and Bres report. "Democratic leaders knew that lifting the oil export ban would be seen as a giveaway to Big Oil, and that they'd need to secure a lot in return to get their members to go along. Their biggest demand was renewable energy tax credits, critical to the Senate minority leader's solar-heavy state of
Nevada ... Reid ... believed McConnell was shortchanging him on the renewable energy tax credits. Sitting in his office with top aides, the retiring Democratic leader threatened to pull out of the negotiations. He stormed into a conference room where one of his aides was speaking with Hazen Marshall, McConnell's top policy staffer, and said, 'My patience has ended.'" (A day later Reid came to the floor to say really nice things about Hazen)

Lots on the table: "While the White House simply wanted Republicans to drop their push for policy provisions dealing with issues like abortion and Syrian refugees in return for lifting the oil export ban, Reid demanded - and received - more, including solar tax credits. Other trades, though, were deemed too much. The two sides discussed rolling back new requirements on financial advisers in exchange for a provision to help Caesars Palace, but that discussion went nowhere. And each of the congressional leaders was unable to score his or her top priority. Pelosi lost her bid to help financially wracked Puerto Rico. McConnell could not ease coordination rules for political groups. Reid's
Caesars Palace proposal was excluded. And Ryan was unable to insert language in the deal sought by abortion opponents." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f5636034599857c75d432dbdc2423d1ad6e45231f16e5f154de

Rand dings Rubio for missing vote: Shortly after the omnibus passed on Friday, Sen. Rand Paul said it was time for Sen. Marco Rubio to either start voting or stop acting like a senator. "It's important to show up to your job. I think that really he ought to resign or quit accepting his pay if he's not going to come to work." SMK and I: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f569dbd25e41b33e0d84f64ea8fa6619dc6e910a4614b5e0d85

TO EVERY JOKE, SOME TRUTH: Under a President Ted Cruz and a Democratic Senate, this would be the most riveting confirmation battle of all in 2017. Over the weekend Cruz was down in Alabama with Sen. Jeff Sessions, whose name is getting dropped with growing frequency in the primary battle, when Cruz opened up the cabinet. "'For anyone who wonders, can we really secure the border, I got three words for you: Secretary Jeff Sessions ... You want to talk about Homeland Security, he'll go down there and build the wall himself,' Cruz added. Sessions, who also appeared at a Donald Trump rally in Mobile about four months ago, said he believed Cruz was 'teasing' about the overture. 'I'm sure he was
teasing or making a rhetorical point,' Sessions said." AL.com: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f5647634f8e5ca13db4eb21fa12a6d2c13dbd5e5a156e99a1bb

HAIR TODAY, GONE TOMORROW: Sen. Ron Johnson tells Huddle that you've seen his snowy white goatee for the last time. "You'll see a clean shaven Ron Johnson when we come back here in January," Johnson said on Friday afternoon as he prepared to head home for break. "I used to grow a beard every year. This isn't new, there used to be a full beard just for warmth during the winter time when you go skiing, that kind of stuff." The whole purpose of the beard was to draw some attention to Movember and cancer, and boy did he accomplish that goal. "People are still talking about it, so we thought we'd hang on to it."

Beard pic to remember him by: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f56442719b396504d5d63ae0896df9dec733f8eea238fdad4dd

A WINTRY GREETINGS. Welcome to the Huddle, your play-by-play guide to everything Capitol Hill, or wherever else you are reading from on this holiday week. Please send tips to beverett@politico.com and follow along on Twitter @burgessev.

Programming note: We're shutting it down for the year on Wednesday so somehow, someway you will have to make it through Christmas Eve day without Huddle. We'll be back Jan. 4 after that hiatus.

TODAY IN CONGRESS/AROUND THE HILL: Nada.

WAY, WAY OFF THE HILL: Sens. Cory Booker and Bob Menendez plus Rep. Donald Payne will appear at NJT's Walnut Station at 11:30 a.m. to tout transit tax breaks.

COMING ATTRACTIONS: We will probably have to wait until after the joint GOP retreat in January to get a good read on the year's legislatin' in 2016, but we do know some of the first votes next year. In the Senate, McConnell will give Rand a big boost with an audit the fed vote (it will fail). And the House will take up the Senate's reconciliation bill repealing Obamacare, which will send the repeal to President Obama's desk.

... and after that? Maybe, just maybe Congress will do something for Puerto Rico. "Congressional Democrats said ... they have secured promises from Republican leaders to take up a relief package for Puerto Rico in the new year - a claim that helped persuade all but 18 House Democrats to support the spending bill Friday ... [Pelosi said] Ryan intends to follow 'regular order' and allow the various committees with a stake in territorial issues to weigh in, but that there is a mutual understanding that March 31 is 'really a do-or-die date for them. He said: On March 31, we'll have something done.'" WaPo: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f56147d022e3cf81751a4b91853925760c64ccec76983269c16

VICTORY LAP: Ryan and McConnell seem to be doing as much end-of-the-year press as the media will tolerate. On "Meet the Press" Ryan said the GOP "fought for as much as we could get" in the omnibus and pledged to turn to a more orderly appropriations process. On "State of the Union" McConnell said ... "The Senate is back to work again." I am really going to miss you guys over break. NYT: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f563954488bf4a42f529d8c0e31360fef1872c4907f1515fef6

Bowl me over: At his end of the year press conference McConnell was looser than perhaps taking the Senate, taking questions until we ran out. He also divulged that he'd be attending the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30, where his Louisville Cardinals will play. Umm, I'll definitely be watching that too, sir.

EARLY RETIREMENT: Rep. Richard Hanna, one of the most prominent GOP centrists in the House, will retire rather than face a tough primary challenge. "Hanna stood out nationally as the only Republican in Congress to support same-sex marriage, a woman's right to an abortion and the Equal Rights Amendment, guaranteeing equal rights for women ... Hanna said the decision by conservative state Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney, R-New Hartford, to challenge him in a primary for a second consecutive election had nothing to do with his decision." (Right). Post-Standard: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f5611253ca3713f9721cbcda7036e0326b7faab8b47457538f3

THE BLUE GRASS IS GREENER - Catherine Easley, the communications director for Rep. Adam Kinzinger, is heading home to Kentucky to become deputy chief of staff for external affairs to Gov. Matt Bevin. Maura Gillespie will take over for Catherine in Kinzinger's office starting today.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD - Rep. Jerry McNerney (CA-09) became a grandfather for the first time on Friday: "Our son, Michael and his wife Jillian welcomed Aidan Broadway McNerney into the world on December 18th. Aidan's parents are both veterans who served their country. Perhaps we have another service member in the family... or a mathematician, like his grandfather. We couldn't have received a better gift this holiday season!" Michael is the CEO of a cyber security start up, and Jillian is a manager in Silicon Valley. Baby pics http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f56915955c8499c9a123623a9128714fb3230878ee15040c444 ... http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d960a75e34515f56e0834eb05a006516792ada38448e1aca42074b1d6e4282a5

FRIDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Andy Wright was the first to answer that the five counties in the Wyoming Territory were: Laramie, Carter, Carbon, Albany and Uinta.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - I'll take today's question: In honor of my impending trip to my homeland of Maine, what are the two state capitals that have smaller populations than Augusta? The first person to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day's Huddle. Email me at beverett@politico.com

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