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11/10/2016 07:59 AM EDT


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

With assistance from John Bresnahan and Daniel Lippman

TRUMP LANDS IN D.C. TODAY- President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence will lunch with House Speaker Paul Ryan today at the Capitol Hill Club at 12:30 p.m. The lunch will follow Trump's meeting with President Obama to discuss the transition. Pence also will meet with Vice President Joe Biden today. "Several top Republicans, including Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, have lobbied Trump to soften his stance on Ryan... Pence, long a bridge builder to the Republican establishment and former Ryan colleague, will take on a significant role in the transition for Trump," Matthew and Jake report: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2ab86b86bd703b76060f6129c97deff4a4594186843fd3ed65c5c8fa20d9e8f6

Today's lunch is just the latest sign Ryan is moving quickly to sync up with Trump after a rocky relationship during the campaign. Ryan spoke twice with the president-elect in the hours after the election and the speaker's allies said Wednesday "they believe he's beginning to develop a rapport with the incoming president." Rachael and Jake with more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2ab86b86bd703b763ca7e3fe7ab38d83ef8e16ebabdc39459361dc6d9643c9af

WHEN GOING ALL-IN PAYS OFF BIG- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's decision to leave Antonin Scalia's Supreme Court seat vacant until a new president long seemed disastrous to many. But now, with Trump coming in the White House and strong GOP majorities in the House and Senate, it looks like the bet of the century. Burgess: "He's now on the precipice of altering the balance of the court for a generation, and there may be nothing at all Democrats can do about it. Not only that, there are indications that McConnell's calculated gamble may have helped elect Donald Trump and keep his Senate under Republican control."

What's next? Many are wondering if McConnell will do away with the 60-vote threshold needed to approve Supreme Court nominees. Before the election, outgoing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, anticipating a Hillary Clinton presidency, urged his caucus to do so. But "McConnell has traditionally taken the long view on Senate traditions, and Republicans don't expect him to change the rules unless Democrats give him an excuse to by blocking a Trump nominee," Burgess reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=2ab86b86bd703b76bb1bc0731121b79393cb0f4c92f29da97695b02058ee28b2

LOOKING TOWARD THE LAME DUCK- Lawmakers have one must-do item in the lame duck: Fund the government beyond Dec. 9. Senior House Republicans are mulling the idea of backing a short-term spending bill that would last into spring 2017 (March or April). The plan is under consideration but there's been no decision yet if that will be the strategy. Either way, it's clear Republican leaders don't want a messy budget fight; they want to 'clear the table' for Trump and prepare for the next Congress.

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell met with Republican lobbyists Wednesday night and he has a very different idea for the lame duck: an omnibus spending bill. "McConnell told attendees to expect a longer-term funding bill in order to avoid a March debt ceiling fight and clear a path for Trump," Anna and Jake report in Playbook this morning. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb4c15b2b621d1748ebedf6264061ebf1107b7f20b3c9462a6

SILVER LINING'S PLAYBOOK- Democrats had one glimmer of hope on an otherwise pretty dreary Wednesday: GOP Sen. Kelly Ayotte conceded to Democrat Maggie Hassan in the New Hampshire Senate race. That brings Democrats' total Senate pickups to two and the final breakdown likely 52 seats for Republicans, 48 seats for Democrats (assuming the GOP candidate wins in the Louisiana Senate runoff).

Fact of the day: "Hassan's win also makes a bit of New Hampshire history: Hassan and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen will make up the only pair of female former governors to serve together in the Senate," Burgess reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccbed1b25a9bcae916b52c21d1670bed8e513b0cc3b51d9548b

TRANSITION WATCH: WH CHIEF OF STAFF- RNC Chairman Reince Priebus is a leading candidate for White House chief of staff, a position Trump plans to fill first, reports Eli Stokols. But there's competition. "Transition chairman Chris Christie is making the case for a top job too, based on experience and loyalty, and he could wind up in the chief position, according to two sources and Vice President-elect Mike Pence. But many operatives in Trump's orbit are wary of giving Christie that top West Wing job given his Bridgegate baggage." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb41e3cff13bafe5885588d5fa9035c0131547a126f62cdc88

-Secretary Corker? Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker won't rule out serving as Secretary of State under Trump, if offered, but said the job didn't come up during a Wednesday phone chat with the president-elect. Burgess: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccba3032e69fe7d7fc8c7a1dc026b2bedf6c2def309ca7c68a0

-And don't miss Nancy Cook and Andrew Restuccia's great behind-the-scenes look at the Trump transition team's new ambitious agenda: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccbcb947f1d2438db30f595f3472bb67f0ee0e4c395f6f67ebe

PELOSI LIKELY TO REMAIN DEM LEADER- House Democrats are likely to walk away from the election with only a handful of pickups, despite months of boastfully predicting double-digit seat gains. But, as in the past, there's unlikely to be any turnover at the top of the leadership ranks, which has been the same for more than a decade. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is expected to seek the top post again, although she hasn't officially announced her intentions yet. House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer and Assistant Minority Leader James Clyburn are also expected to stay in place. More from me and Bres: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccba2c1570c9d3f4df7144efdb55f661cd39c666759903eaab3

-Related: A day after Donald Trump destroyed their world, Democrats on Capitol Hill were working through the stages of grief. Some were doing better than others. Bres and I walk you through Democrats' mourning process (with a William Faulkner quote and an Animal House reference): http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb6102fc79c2b1d49886a75740336c0386855044ed35674089

Pulse of the caucus: "I think that what's happening is our caucus is really reeling a bit, there's a bit of shell shock that's going on here and I really don't think the caucus knows what it wants to do at this point. I think it's going to take some time," a senior Democrat told Huddle.

TAKE A BREATH. Welcome to Thursday, Nov. 10. Thanks for reading POLITICO's Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill.

WEDNESDAY'S MOST CLICKED- Edward-Isaac Dovere's deep dive into Hillary Clinton's loss.

TODAY IN CONGRESS- The House is out. The Senate meets in a pro forma session at 10 a.m.

COMING ATTRACTIONS- Both the House and Senate are back Monday. And House Republicans are moving ahead with plans to hold their closed-door leadership elections Nov. 15. House Democrats are still eying the week of Nov. 30 to hold their leadership elections.

OBAMACARE REPEAL 'PRETTY HIGH' ON AGENDA- Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate will move quickly to repeal Obamacare after Trump moves into the White House. "McConnell would not explicitly commit to using budget reconciliation to repeal the healthcare law, though it's the likely path for Republicans to repeal the law, as they have only a narrow Senate majority next year," Burgess reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb96500c3b1fe6c6d198f18ca543b05a0da9bece30ce5683df

-Other areas where Trump could topple signature Obama achievements: immigration, climate change, Wall Street regulations and gun control. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb6984d549bf27c10757440cccf36c5a1aec0a83234097cbb1

"'The opportunity is to go big, to go bold, to get things done for the people of this country,' [House Speaker Paul] Ryan said Wednesday at a news conference in his hometown of Janesville, Wis. Not every item on the agenda will be easy. Republicans have had deep differences with Mr. Trump, whose policy stances and contentious comments they criticized during the long and turbulent presidential campaign." More from Siobhan Hughes and Kristina Peterson for the Wall Street Journal: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccbb19fd8e38c5438ee107b583a512fa91fada0f80ec8cae488

- One area where Trump and McConnell don't agree? Term limits. "'I say we have term limits now. They're called elections.' McConnell said. 'It will not be on the agenda in the Senate.'" Roll Call's Niels Lesniewski: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb8e76cec52de61f6ed9f2df4f1f2986f155b0bd1d274a2a2e

SO, ABOUT THAT WALL... "Republicans in the House of Representatives hope to offer President-elect Donald Trump an alternate plan to his proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall, a first test by lawmakers from his own party of one of his key campaign promises," Julia Edwards Ainsley reports for Reuters. "The plan would involve more border fencing and additional border staffing with federal agents, many of whom belong to labor unions that supported Trump's candidacy, the aides said." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb49ba7a9b8450a93ecf0a248411c470c12ae685668f7717e7

DEMS: YOU BLEW IT, MAN- Wondering how Senate Democrats blew their seemingly guaranteed chance at the majority in 2017? Well, so are they. A lot of it goes back to money, some Trump magic and key strategic decisions by the GOP's man of the hour, NRSC Executive Director Ward Baker. "Baker was convinced as far back as August 2015 that Trump would be the Republican nominee. But when the NRSC chief told a group of Senate chiefs of staff that month there was an '88 percent chance' it would be Trump, they laughed him out of the room," Burgess, Kevin and Seung Min report.

Ward "was unbowed. A month later he prepared a lengthy white paper on how to run alongside Trump and began coaching candidates individually. His main advice: run hyper-local 'sheriff's race' campaigns. And don't count on riding the traditional coattails of the Republican presidential nominee." Don't miss this deep dive into how the Senate was won: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb625ae952bba995bccc287c2b2eed8fed0ec88860033d9cf5

TWEET DU JOUR- @JeffFlake: Congrats to Pres. Elect Trump on a big win and a gracious and healing speech. I look forward to working with him. Now, back to eating crow..

DEMS NEW TUNE: WE CAN WORK WITH TRUMP- Still reeling from blistering Election Day losses, congressional Democrats emerged Wednesday trying to look at the bright side: finding ways to work with President-elect Trump. Potential areas of compromise? A billion-dollar infrastructure package is the leading policy contender.

But does Trump even need Democrats? If Democrats launch a strategy of blanket opposition, Republicans will have the votes to unilaterally change Senate rules or use reconciliation to move legislation to the White House for Trump's signature. The threat of getting steamrolled could put pressure on Democrats to come to the table. Burgess and yours truly with more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb35ad82375aae8e79e7311f615b474d42553598f2e424eb7c

Related- Sen. Bernie Sanders: I'm "prepared to work" with Trump. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb0b2fa64bcea5cdb50e23fbe0b0d7405cbfab138750e8920d

GARDNER TO LEAD NRSC- Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner is expected to be the next leader of Senate Republicans' campaign arm, with Sen. Thom Tillis, who was also vying for the job, likely to play a "major role" within the organization. Gardner heads into the job with a very favorable map for the GOP in 2018: Republicans will only be defending eight seats compared to 25 for Democrats, including several in conservative and purple states that favored Trump. Burgess: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccbed68a5e39077561c7747759bfbd6de38c86d777404c7d06b

FLORES EYES LEADERSHIP POST- Outgoing Republican Study Committee Chairman Bill Flores has a new gig he's eyeing: GOP conference vice chair. Flores was starting to reach out to members Wednesday to gauge their support and expected to get the full backing of the Texas delegation, "a head start that will improve his chances of winning the position," Rachael reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccbe46d8f3631888eb5beb259c406fa2b6c0b50ada8b2be617c And Georgia Rep. Doug Collins is also considering running for the vice chair spot, Jake and Anna report in Playbook: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a58a00b2aca06ccb4c15b2b621d1748ebedf6264061ebf1107b7f20b3c9462a6

The Diabetes Dilemma: An Agenda to Prevent the Preventable - Join POLITICO on World Diabetes Day for a deep-dive conversation about what it will take to reverse the trends and slow the rise of Type 2 Diabetes in America. Speakers include: Joslin Diabetes Center's Dr. Robert Gabbay, Kaiser Permanente Colorado's Dr. Eric Harker, CMMI's Dr. Hoangmai Pham and Robin Schepper, Former Executive Director of the First Lady's Let's Move Initiative. Monday, November 14, 8am - The Newseum. RSVP: here.

ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES- Colin Brainard, a native Kansan, has rejoined the office of Rep. Lynn Jenkins as deputy chief of staff. He worked in the office for more than five years, before spending time at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores as Director of Federal Government Affairs.

Daisy Letendre will serve as communications director for Sen. Jim Inhofe and the Senate EPW Committee. She replaces Donelle Harder, who leaves Inhofe's office this week for a new gig in Oklahoma City.

WEDNESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER- Justin Arnold was the first to correctly guess that Sen. Sam Ervin was the last senator before Richard Burr to successfully win reelection in that North Carolina seat, way back in 1968.

TODAY'S TRIVIA- Justin with today's question: Traditionally, the oath of office is given in Washington D.C. by the chief justice to the new president. Name the president who wasn't initially sworn in by a judge, who he was sworn in by and the state this happened in. The first person to correctly answer gets a mention in tomorrow's Huddle: hcaygle@politico.com

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