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05/24/2018 08:00 AM EDT


By Nolan D. McCaskill (nmccaskill@politico.com or @NolanDMcCaskill)

GOP SCRAMBLES TO CONTAIN IMMIGRATION MUTINY -- Conservative opposition to a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers is foiling House Speaker Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) effort to stop a group of centrist Republicans from forcing votes on immigration bills. "Leaders of the factions will convene Thursday morning to continue talks in hopes of coming to an agreement that would stop a discharge petition filed by moderate Republicans and Democrats," Rachael reports. Conservatives don't want a vote on any legislation with a pathway to citizenship, but moderates maintain they won't relent without that very vote.

"Under a potential deal being discussed, members representing the far right would get a vote on their conservative solution for Dreamers that doesn't include a pathway to citizenship," Rachael writes. "Moderates would get a vote on their own bill that does. But conservatives aren't sure they can live with that. They fear that even without their votes, a bipartisan plan with citizenship would pass the House with Democratic support and be an embarrassing display for Republicans who control the chamber." The discharge petition has 205 signatures. It needs 218. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a933095172d355aec7265c02d6119fc15464b3afacab91e08b69aebada0e793712e69a5762bbdc82fc73d0652

President Donald Trump indicated in an interview with "Fox & Friends" broadcast this morning that he would veto the bipartisan bill likely to emerge from a discharge petition. "Unless it includes a wall -- and I mean a wall, a real wall -- and unless it includes very strong border security, there'll be no approvals from me," Trump said. He also said "it's time to get the whole package" when asked if he'd sign a bill that didn't include both priorities. The Fox News clips: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a933095170b8268e214bcacbd9b3c587aa5944f59ed1c73ac9049cd0f32ae8cb8f02f0f88d5c1b5618330e2ca ... http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a933095177c8a520c402a3fd63519186c32f51103bc789422d341b14fafb87e011f7409487f2fadde93e5688b

BYE, PARTISANSHIP -- The Gang of Eight -- a bipartisan group of House, Senate and Intelligence Committee leaders -- has been invited to a briefing on whether an informant was embedded in President Donald Trump's campaign. "The briefing comes after complaints from Senate Democrats and some Republicans about the administration's plans for an unprecedented briefing for two prominent House Republicans from FBI Director Christopher Wray and the Justice Department on Thursday," Burgess and Elana report. Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) and Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) will still attend a noon briefing with Wray, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein,
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and White House chief of staff John Kelly.

"But two hours later on Capitol Hill, those same officials will meet with" Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.). House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) will attend the earlier briefing due to a scheduling conflict. "The developments marked a major break from the partisan play from House Republicans, who have largely joined President Donald Trump's war on the Justice Department," they write. "Their counterparts in the Senate, by comparison, are deliberately avoiding the crossfire. ... [T]heir default is to defend the FBI rank and file, not trash its leadership, as House members did at a news
conference on Tuesday." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a93309517ba3ea05b40538c1106bcbaed9e1f486b1f1ac559818e39721ca341e27192f1efdbb5e0308b0132ef

Related: "In reversal, Kelly will join lawmakers in briefings on FBI informant," by Kyle: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d1d095e5f71b3277b32a2396bff95064884ff4cdfc8ea1bda63f6e33bce714f53df527e818d86d45b "Trump allies already angry about upcoming FBI informant briefing," also from Kyle: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d93eadbddcfa4244a96926a4806a7bc75ad988336972201d74141421121159d91a2936258aab68a03 and "Devin Nunes' fundraising explodes amid aggressive defense of Trump from Russia probe," via the Washington Examiner's David M. Drucker: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a933095179875fd2e0d70923d820a98576f62c431eafe66016aab67c208b9d0948c625e9f4b097a099f39b315

TEXAS POISED TO ADD WOMEN TO CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION -- Everything may not actually be bigger in Texas, but the number of female congressional candidates on the general election ballot is. With the primary and runoffs complete, 20 women in Texas are running for Congress, double the amount from 2016. "That puts Texas at the forefront in a year when a surge of women as candidates has reordered the political landscape in state after state," Renuka Rayasam reports. "Texas is poised to add anywhere from two to four new full-time female members to its congressional delegation, which now has only three women." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=15c2b89a93309517b606ea48fee24bcb0f786c0f06b4b8d2192ca97a41b258ffccf44da1194dfbdefddc79d2c61842a6

** A message from the American Public Transportation Association: Public transit systems do more than carry Americans to work. They're a critical part of a transportation network that drives our economy forward. In fact, every $1 invested in public transportation generates $4 in returns. Congress, keep building on your investments. Stronger public transit makes a stronger America. APTA.com/InvestNow **

GOOD MORNING! Thanks for reading Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Thursday, May 24.

WEDNESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Mother Jones' report on an increasingly nasty Democratic primary in California was the winner.

SENATE SENDS VA MISSION ACT TO TRUMP -- The Senate overwhelmingly passed a multibillion dollar overhaul of the veterans health care system. The House passed the measure last week. It now heads to the president's desk. The VA MISSION Act "consolidat[es] seven Veterans Affairs Department health programs into one and mak[es] it far easier for veterans to take their benefits to private doctors for care," The New York Times' Nicholas Fandos reports. It "also expands popular stipends to family caregivers of veterans who served during the Vietnam War era or after. And it establishes a nine-member commission to study the department's current infrastructure to determine where its health system
should expand and contract." Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95df42743de448751398e73390dfd2a503e1b3e575e246cca6f427a6f09e05f3ae54d0ff375a9ad5e72

CRITICS HAMMER SENATE ANTI-HARASSMENT BILL -- The Senate unveiled its plan to overhaul Capitol Hill's anti-sexual harassment rules, but House members are already warning that the Senate version is too soft on lawmakers. Both chambers' policy would require lawmakers to personally pay for any harassment settlements stemming from their behavior and eliminate mandatory counseling and mediation periods. "But the Senate plan requires lawmakers to pay only for settlements related to harassment, not discrimination -- which often compose the bulk of misconduct claims -- and victims would have to opt out of mediation, making it the default setting," Elana and Rachael report.

"That irks multiple people backing the House version, which would require all members of Congress to pay for any harassment or discrimination settlements stemming from their own bad behavior," they continue. Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), a lead negotiator in the House, said the Senate plan "appears to shift the power back to the institution instead of the victims." A senior House Democratic source added that the "so-called compromise guts nearly every meaningful accountability provision in the House bill" and argued that it "sends a terrible message to the American public that Congress is not taking the responsibility to lead by example seriously." More:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d0140f1034f0165d6e06c11fcd7e9b27aa38436a4369f701992fe6b55109126d2f4db40f15eda1346

RESCISSIONS PACKAGE MAY BE REWORKED -- The Trump administration is considering canceling planned cuts to its rescissions package, a proposal to slash $15.3 billion in federal funding from unused accounts. The bill was once considered likely to get a vote this week. But Republican Study Committee Chairman Mark Walker (R-N.C.) says the House seems "further" from 218 votes than it was last week. "We never anticipated the kind of pushback we would have in our own conference on this rescissions package," Walker said. "We're having to go back and now get the messaging correct."

"Top Republicans are confident the package will ultimately pass, particularly after a group of government lawyers gave a seal of approval Tuesday. That likely means the bill will be filibuster-proof in the Senate and would need just a simple majority to pass," Sarah Ferris and Kaitlyn Burton report. "With eyes on a June 22 deadline for action, House GOP leaders are stepping up their vote-counting operation with aims of bringing the bill to the floor the first week of June, according to lawmakers and aides." Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d0dda6e199d5db217fb6bf74d39edc7e5340a2c648a5a520932bcc41a09eabbe89ce5be8d7b962b89

PELOSI QUIETS TALK OF IMPEACHMENT -- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said during a CNN town hall that impeachment isn't a policy agenda, continuing to downplay any chatter from her caucus on efforts to oust the president if the party regains control of the House. "Impeachment is, to me, divisive," Pelosi said. "Again, if the facts are there, if the facts are there, then this would have to be bipartisan to go forward. But if it is viewed as partisan, it will divide the country, and I just don't think that's what we should do." Pelosi told the Dallas Morning News earlier this month that "being a jerk" isn't an impeachable offense, drawing a rebuke from Rep. Al Green (D-Texas),
who led a push to impeach the president last year. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95dfbe40a679229b7b0a890a1f260962067b24345d6210b9f19b7ac9fabf718117f47c34512ef54b27c

FLAKE BLASTS TRUMP, CONGRESS IN COMMENCEMENT SPEECH -- Retiring Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) told Harvard Law graduates that the "presidency has been debased by a figure who has a seemingly bottomless appetite for destruction and division and only a passing familiarity with how the Constitution works." He said Congress, which he accused of "dishonoring itself" by failing to stand up to the president, "is utterly supine in the face of the moral vandalism that flows from the White House daily." "Last summer," CBS News' Ed O'Keefe notes, "Flake published a conservative treatise that outlined his specific concerns with Trump's ascension and how he was molding the Republican Party and conservative
movement in his own view." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95dab27856645fcdd102a343237dc7e736f129e53a9c562fb9395b42a0882c87e5068fc46a8dcfef2f5

POMPEO SAYS U.S. WILL FIGHT RUSSIAN MEDDLING IN MIDTERMS -- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told lawmakers the Trump administration won't tolerate Russian interference in the 2018 elections. Pompeo told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the administration will take "appropriate countermeasures" against Russia's "continued efforts" to meddle in U.S. elections. "He did not elaborate on the Russian interference or say what the countermeasures would be but said there was much more work to be done to stop Russia's efforts," The Associated Press reports. Pompeo will return to Capitol Hill this morning to testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. More:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95dcbacfcea40ce63bd4d8f398c1e2bd1ed7fcd91d08f512372b2d4ba1fc26abf85e0dee4cc5388d36a

Related reads: "Pompeo out of sync with Trump on North Korea," by Nahal Toosi: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d94d527d48221cde2b0ea0fb6522e4183a43672b05dd7762fb7e1828665c72ef6b5635ec0449bdfb0 "Midterms are in Putin's crosshairs, ex-spy chief says," from Josh Meyer: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d415ffcf4631ba76a301553e6127357a012896303a47ad597553b9c79c77535968d63a6aa807e8541

GARRETT'S FUTURE IN CONGRESS IN DOUBT -- House Freedom Caucus member Tom Garrett (R-Va.) abruptly split with his chief of staff, Jimmy Keady, on Tuesday and is considering retiring from Congress. "The first-term Garrett represents a conservative district that stretches from southern reaches of the state to more northern areas," Alex Isenstadt reports. "His seat has become more competitive this election year in part because he's posted anemic fundraising totals. In recent months, the congressman has struggled to keep pace on the fundraising front with his Democratic opponent, journalist and filmmaker Leslie Cockburn." The filing deadline for Virginia congressional candidates has passed, so a
group of more than 30 local GOP officials would select Garrett's replacement should he forgo reelection. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95da21a39f63fca4bc0980e7faf5120b66aaf8b5ec33ca556724dae56823fa1712afd6234fbddeeafef

Garrett told Roll Call that he isn't resigning, and his office said it would release a statement soon. In a tweet this morning, Garrett teased a forthcoming announcement following today's votes. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d69ce2076af6490f8e6ea5b427023e584e2ebb6a7a15042e72b3d1bf4630ef9d3c775aaa7654af0dc

Related: "Will Rep. Tom Garrett run again? Friend says: 'Until they tell you they are out, count him in,'" via the Richmond Times-Dispatch's Patrick Wilson: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d35716b72d4f7069d5fbe96ee9972ea10ba4b2cca92c63155e02f22ce6c89f2f61e0737781799e1ae

KOCH GROUP TARGETS HOUSE GOP -- The Koch-backed group Americans for Prosperity is launching a six-figure ad buy targeting 10 House Republicans and seven Democrats who supported a $1.3 trillion spending bill in March. The effort, which includes direct mail, digital, radio and print ads, will commence this weekend. Among the group's GOP targets is Rep. Lou Barletta (R-Pa.), who is running against Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) this year. "The Koch brothers' expansive political network spent heavily to help the GOP win and retain control of the Senate in 2014 and 2016, and it's highly unusual for them to attack a GOP Senate candidate in a swing state, even if most handicappers consider Barletta an
underdog in November," HuffPost's Kevin Robillard reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95d3db8a1b83af3ac00ec647690af1ae55ef44df5836140ffcdd7a79de1b306f84f642f4795637b1318

Related read: "Koch Group Pushing Lawmakers for DACA Fix," from RealClearPolitics' Caitlin Huey-Burns: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95df5af3905b7f766f82797e06e72cc4128ad7ee19f950f7bb69dd2a51933012cccced8331c1df3f8be

TWITTER TO VERIFY MIDTERM CANDIDATES -- Twitter will verify midterm candidates running in House, Senate and gubernatorial elections. "The company will affix a label to candidates consisting of a small icon of a columned government-style building and details on which position the candidate is seeking," Nancy Scola reports. "Twitter will rely on the website Ballotpedia to identify the legitimate accounts of those who've qualified for the ballot." The move could mitigate the effectiveness and influence of fake accounts, like @RepStevenSmith, which falsely claims to represent Georgia's nonexistent 15th District and has more than 50,000 followers. More:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95df0ca0a7d8cf79cec6dcf3fefc4e5363645834982812850ff954d8435ab73c07aa97f204fa6c5ee50

TODAY IN CONGRESS -- The House gavels in at 10 a.m. with first and last votes expected between 10:15 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. Today's agenda: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=581a7edd1602b95dfe5a30d80bee6e5ec65721c18f3cba5aaff415db925c1edf231783a69d71b37c0f5e09a910fb3583 The Senate meets at 9:30 a.m. to resume consideration of Jelena McWilliams to be chairperson and member of the FDIC Board of Directors. At 12 p.m., the chamber will vote on McWilliams' nominations and hold a procedural vote on James Evans' nomination to be ambassador to Luxembourg, with a possible confirmation vote at 1:45 p.m.

AROUND THE HILL -- House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Reps. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) will hold an enrollment ceremony for three bills Congress passed this week at 9:10 a.m. in H-207.

Sens. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) will hold a conference call briefing on the Trump-Pence administration's plan to restrict Title X family planning funds with gag rule beginning at 9:30 a.m. RSVP here for call-in information.

House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) will hold a news conference with Democrats on the panel to denounce the partisan White House meeting with congressional Republicans regarding a confidential FBI informant as a direct assault on the independence of the Justice Department at 9:45 a.m. in HVC-Studio A.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the fiscal year 2019 State Department budget request at 10 a.m. in 419 Dirksen.

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) will hold a news conference on the comments by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on the decision of schools to report undocumented students to ICE at 10 a.m. in the House Triangle.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will hold her weekly news conference at 10:45 a.m. in HVC-Studio A.

WEDNESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER -- Harold Harman was first to correctly guess that General John Logan, a former Illinois congressman and senator, is widely credited for the establishment of Decoration Day (now known as Memorial Day) as a national holiday.

TODAY'S TRIVIA -- From Harold: On this day in 1844, Samuel F.B. Morse sent a telegraph message from the Capitol Building to Baltimore in a demonstration viewed by several government officials. From what room in the Capitol was the message sent? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess my way: nmccaskill@politico.com.

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** A message from the American Public Transportation Association: Across the country, public transportation is a boost to local communities, spurring new business development, increasing property values, and attracting new families. For every $1 billion invested in public transportation infrastructure, more than 50,000 jobs are created. And three out of four Americans support increased investment in public transit infrastructure, whether they use it or not. The money Congress has already budgeted for public transit will have a lasting positive impact-but it's just a start. To restore and modernize our public transit's aging infrastructure, we need to address the $90 billion backlog of
projects. Congress, let's keep building on our investments in the 2019 budget. Stronger public transit makes a stronger America. APTA.com/InvestNow **

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