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By Seung Min Kim (
mailto:skim@politico.com
skim@politico.com or @seungminkim)

WILL REPUBLICANS GO NUCLEAR? The incoming Republican Senate majority already has two major confirmations on their plate once they take over in January - a replacement for Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, who announced his resignation Monday, and Attorney General nominee Loretta Lynch. So that makes the decision whether to keep the current 51-vote threshold for most nominees even more pressing, per POLITICO's Burgess Everett and Jeremy Herb: "Their decision could decide not only how easily these two big openings are filled but also signal just how many confirmation fights lie ahead for the new Republican Senate and a president in his last two years in office."

--"Republicans have not yet reached a consensus, with intense member-to-member discussions needed after the Thanksgiving holiday to settle a matter of great importance given the GOP's sustained outrage following the Democratic gutting of the filibuster on nominations. 'That remains a subject of discussion. There's some division, but no resolution yet,' said Senate GOP Whip John Cornyn of Texas last week. 'It is something that bears serious discussion.' The GOP has some breathing room with more than a month before they take the majority - but already consequential Cabinet-level nominations are piling up as an early test for how Republicans will wield their majority."

--"Senate Republicans say the rules decision is mostly symbolic because control of the committees allows them to bottle up anyone they oppose before a floor vote. That might be a way to bury a controversial judicial nominee or ambassador next year, but it won't work for high-profile Cabinet nominees like the next defense secretary or Lynch: If there is any delay, Democrats will broadcast it to the world. 'It's one thing to hold up a judicial nominee, but it's another thing to leave the Department of Defense without a leader,' said Loren Thompson, a defense industry consultant."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbde8ff8e12145865ead2b658260be1c45e2bd43291e5797dbe
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--A quick profile of Michele A. Flournoy and Ashton Carter, former Pentagon officials who are potential top candidates to succeed Hagel, per the New York Times's Julie Hirschfeld Davis: "Both are seasoned national security professionals whose credibility among members of both parties and Defense Department experience would be considered assets in managing the threat from the Islamic State, budget cuts and other challenges."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdfc6f26107a6a26503cc5a837e4e9b3e788c810e9aff9e939
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdfc6f26107a6a26503cc5a837e4e9b3e788c810e9aff9e939

--Another name floated often on Monday as Pentagon chief - Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I) - makes it clear he's not interested. Providence Journal:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd773a9ac9fd1b5c1a67ddb8b0dac31ee9b04e119c09c6daae
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd773a9ac9fd1b5c1a67ddb8b0dac31ee9b04e119c09c6daae . And Sen. Ted Cruz's pick for Defense secretary: Joe Lieberman. Me:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd242a36d5cccb722fe3ef5152dcab3e8eda6d7e9e25a2d19e
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd242a36d5cccb722fe3ef5152dcab3e8eda6d7e9e25a2d19e

--And POLITICO's Glenn Thrush has a look into why Obama dumped Hagel:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd68fa6d2b3f77fd3ebbf99c1f9633a74b240d8cf0bc48f759
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd68fa6d2b3f77fd3ebbf99c1f9633a74b240d8cf0bc48f759

GOP PRESSES FOR BROADER FOREIGN-POLICY REVIEW - The Wall Street Journal's Kristina Peterson: "Republican lawmakers on Monday called for a broad re-examination of U.S. national-security policy as part of the confirmation process for a successor to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, criticizing the White House's approach as uncertain and shifting. The combative tone suggests that regardless of President Barack Obama's choice to replace Mr. Hagel-who said he would serve until his successor is confirmed-next year's GOP-controlled Congress is likely to push the administration hard on its approach to dealing with the Mideast militant group Islamic State as well as with conflicts in other parts of the
world."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdab7108ae1b01abf8a069f2dba1677dce29a74cbd1306625d
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OBAMA CALLS FOR CALM IN FERGUSON - David Jackson for USA Today: "President Obama urged calm Monday after a Missouri grand jury declined to indict a white police officer for the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager. While calling on protesters to honor the wishes of Michael Brown's family and stay peaceful, Obama also asked law enforcement to work with communities who feel they have been subject to police abuse."

--"'We need to recognize that the situation in Ferguson speaks to the broader problems that we still face as a nation,' Obama said during a 9 1/2-minute statement in the White House press room ... Speaking directly to protesters, Obama said that 'there are ways of channeling your concerns constructively, and there are ways of channeling your concerns destructively.' On the other hand, residents have legitimate concerns about the fairness of law enforcement, and local officials need to address their protests. 'In too many parts of this country, a deep distrust exists between law enforcement and people of color,' Obama said. He also said that people of color 'aren't just making these
problems up.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd9015e90243b96138e24b8f557c93230504ad581529655071
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd9015e90243b96138e24b8f557c93230504ad581529655071

--Congress reacts to Ferguson, from National Journal: "Members of Congress implored residents in Ferguson, Missouri, to protest peacefully as the city grapples with news that a federal grand jury will not indict Darren Wilson, a white policeman who shot and killed an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, in August. Missouri Republican Sen. Roy Blunt encouraged protesters to 'exercise their free speech alongside the rights of people to live peacefully and safely in their communities.' Blunt reiterated that Brown's death was a tragedy."

-- "Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill warned that while many residents would be upset by the grand jury's decision, she reminded people that the ruling was a 'result of a deliberate legal process that's being independently checked by Attorney General Eric Holder.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd7b73734911046984c92289712e88f3d4dce55762094f66c9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd7b73734911046984c92289712e88f3d4dce55762094f66c9

--But Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Marcia Fudge was infuriated by the grand jury ruling, calling it a "miscarriage of justice" that Wilson was not indicted. Kendall Breitman has more on Fudge's statement for POLITICO: "This decision seems to underscore an unwritten rule that Black lives hold no value; that you may kill Black men in this country without consequences or repercussions. This is a frightening narrative for every parent and guardian of Black and brown children, and another setback for race relations in America."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdc72d6f87b24483637079f2a4c845bdd46cd564d2ae184112
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdc72d6f87b24483637079f2a4c845bdd46cd564d2ae184112

--Attorney General Eric Holder says after the grand jury did not return an indictment that DOJ is still investigating potential civil rights charges against Wilson. The Hill:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd9f031e0e6037b128551e6586c8590bc97d3e5734a9d0b115
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd9f031e0e6037b128551e6586c8590bc97d3e5734a9d0b115

--The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports 29 people were arrested in and around Ferguson Monday night:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd67e6fcb1e8f509040ff04aaa9e48c632ad6140f04cd57e19
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd67e6fcb1e8f509040ff04aaa9e48c632ad6140f04cd57e19

HOUSE GOP'S FUNDING STRATEGY - In which POLITICO's Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan report that "CRO-mnibus" is now a thing: "The likely proposal would fund nearly the entire government through September 2015, but immigration enforcement related funding would be renewed on a short-term basis, according to several high-ranking GOP lawmakers and aides who described the plan as it stands now. The strategy is designed to keep the government open, while satisfying the base, which is livid with President Back Obama for issuing an executive order that ends deportations for millions of undocumented immigrants."

--"The short-term portion would likely expire sometime in the first quarter of 2015, sources said. The delay would give Republican leaders more options to counter Obama's executive order without inducing a government shutdown. In GOP circles, this plan taken on the name of "CROmnibus" - a combination of CR, the short-term funding bill, and omnibus, the longer-term way to fund the government that includes the 12 annual funding bills ... Some conservatives have called on Congress to choke off funding for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, but those employees are funded by fees, not congressional appropriations."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd50cf4dd54b218066d0c2111a85e5f4d0ab82c9fc73afac2b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd50cf4dd54b218066d0c2111a85e5f4d0ab82c9fc73afac2b

HOT CLICK - CNN's Chris Moody heads to the Texas border with Reps. Steve King (R-Iowa) and Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.):
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd1f1759f608671f1e29ab7c9ad8d06e600454861fc3fa9aeb
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KERRY UNDER FIRE FOR IRAN PUNT - POLITICO's Michael Crowley: "When nuclear talks with Iran were last extended in July, Secretary of State John Kerry declared that 'we have come a long way in a short period of time.' Now that the talks have been extended again - despite a lack of visible progress - even some moderate Democrats are worried that Kerry's dogged nuclear diplomacy has done the opposite: come a short way in a long period of time. 'It is disappointing and worrying that after a year of serious talks with Iran that we do not have a deal,' said the Democratic Senate Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, Robert Menendez, in a statement."

--"The seven-month extension that Kerry announced in Vienna on Monday after meeting with the Iranians and five other world powers wasn't the worst possible news for advocates of a negotiated agreement to contain Iran's nuclear program. President Barack Obama remains committed to such a deal. So does Kerry. But after having preached patience for a long time, Kerry, the designated defender of the talks, is coming under increasing pressure to deliver an agreement or give up."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd637fedf212f501fd237a7abec8638418b175427f709bdb15
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--Roll Call's Niels Lesniewski reports that Senate Republicans are pushing for more sanctions on Iran:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd20fc3671ce1b4e7b2d120a8a6548ffabce9b82af63589ef8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd20fc3671ce1b4e7b2d120a8a6548ffabce9b82af63589ef8

TRANSITIONS - Alan Tenille, chief of staff for retiring Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), is headed over to incoming Rep. Cresent Hardy (R-Nev.)'s office to be his top aide, per the Las Vegas Sun's Amber Phillips. Tenille says of Hardy: 'We share common values and believe the most important function of a congressional office is to provide the best constituent services as possible."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdf05c3f4d667bca9b6d2d20053cb026fd51ccf98ebf17cc89
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbdf05c3f4d667bca9b6d2d20053cb026fd51ccf98ebf17cc89

IT'S TUESDAY, NOV. 25, 2014 and welcome to The Huddle, where your host is hoping that it was a good decision to fly out to Cincinnati on Thanksgiving morning, not the day before. Please send your tips, suggestions, comments, complaints, and corrections to
mailto:skim@politico.com
skim@politico.com . If you don't already, please follow me on Twitter @seungminkim.

My new followers include @Will_Bo and @JohnAndrewMeza.

TODAY IN CONGRESS - Putting together last-minute Thanksgiving plans.

AROUND THE HILL - Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will deliver a speech at the National Press Club at 10 a.m. on the way forward for Democrats in 2016.

WASHINGTON BAILS ON DEMILITARIZATION -Buzzfeed's Evan McMorris-Santoro: "Lawmakers vowed changes to the Pentagon programs that deliver military-grade equipment to local police after images of cops climbing out of armored vehicles with military-grade weapons filtered out of Ferguson, Missouri, in August. But months later, the chaotic 1033 program - which sends surplus military gear built for combat to local police forces with little oversight - hasn't changed at all."

--"The 113th Congress will end without substantive changes to the program. The White House hasn't announced the results of its policy review. The flow of billions in technology designed for the battlefield to local police forces will go on unabated. 'The fear is that this is some kind of moment that passed. It's just another example of temporary interest in a crisis and inevitably things go back to normal,' said Radley Balko, a prominent expert on police militarization and author of the most cited book on the topic."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbda8059500bb624cfaa7526c7cb8afbe930d373f266b200ac4
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbda8059500bb624cfaa7526c7cb8afbe930d373f266b200ac4

TRIA FIGHT HEATS UP - The trio of MJ Lee, Zachary Warmbrodt and Ben White from POLITICO's finance team: "A critical piece of legislation to extend a government program that provides emergency insurance against massive terrorist attacks is now caught up in bitter sniping between House Republicans and Senate Democrats with the program's Dec. 31 expiration date quickly approaching."

--The fight now centers on House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the Senate's third-ranking Democrat. Lawmakers across the aisle in both the House and Senate want to extend the legislation, called the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, or TRIA, which expires at the end of the year. But some House Republicans, led by Hensarling, want to reduce the government backstop more than Senate Democrats and are demanding that the $3.5 billion cost of the program be offset by other spending cuts."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd786ff17a1c50d25bd8a4af5639056ae2e992db78aa062318
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd786ff17a1c50d25bd8a4af5639056ae2e992db78aa062318

JARRETT: BOEHNER ASKED OBAMA TO DELAY IMMIGRATION PUSH - Per the Chicago Sun-Times's Lynn Sweet: "In the months leading to President Barack Obama's decision to bypass Congress and issue immigration executive orders last week, at one point Obama honored a request from House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to hold off making a 'very public push' on immigration during the primary season, White House Senior Adviser Valerie Jarrett told me."

--"Jarrett told me in an interview on Friday, 'Initially (Boehner) encouraged the president to hold off on a very public push until after the primary season of the midterms, and the president did that. And after the primary season, the president said, he called again on the House to pass legislation, and the Speaker didn't call it up, and the president said he wanted it done by the end of the summer, and the Speaker did not call it up, and then the president decided to wait until the end of the year, and after the election the Speaker made it clear he would not be calling it up.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd7c2e7545dcd4b383c400224106a77248a1da67d07a6cc768
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd7c2e7545dcd4b383c400224106a77248a1da67d07a6cc768

--Michael Steel, a Boehner spox, tells Breitbart in response to the Sun-Times report: 'The Speaker told the President that his unilateral actions to alter his healthcare law undermined the American people's faith that he would implement any law as written.He also made it clear that any action on immigration would be done in a step-by-step, common-sense manner - nothing like the Senate 'Gang's' legislation."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd38c2ae94d82d08da0654fef7d8ebc3ca18bcaa2ad8f0dab3
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd38c2ae94d82d08da0654fef7d8ebc3ca18bcaa2ad8f0dab3

--Your Huddle author hopped on a call yesterday with Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) hosted by America's Voice, which had this interesting nugget: Lofgren, a longtime immigration lawyer, said she has a "disagreement" with the ruling from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel that Obama could not legally extend deportation relief and work permits to parents of DACA recipients - young undocumented immigrants shielded from deportations under a 2012 directive. Democrats and advocates made a last-minute push to include parents of so-called Dreamers in executive action. Lofgren says: "As you know, OLC is an independent office and
they call it as they see it. Other lawyers may disagree; the president obviously is prudently adhering to their advice."

RYAN STAFFS UP AT WAYS AND MEANS - Jake Sherman reports that Paul Ryan, incoming chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, is bringing on three trusted aides to the panel: "Joyce Meyer, who has been with Ryan (R-Wis.) since 1999, will be the staff director of the powerful committee. Austin Smythe, who has been with Ryan since 2007, will serve as policy director. And Brendan Buck, who was Boehner's press secretary and more recently the vice president at America's Health Insurance Plans, will be the communications director. Meyer, Smythe and Buck are three Ryan insiders and will quickly become among the most powerful aides on Capitol Hill."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbddbfdcbe20a1df2cc0d666fe16886b5842e11a012d97e6f08
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbddbfdcbe20a1df2cc0d666fe16886b5842e11a012d97e6f08

HOSPITAL CHIEF IN VA SCANDAL FIRED - The Associated Press: "Sharon Helman, director of the Phoenix VA Health Care System, was ousted nearly seven months after she and two high-ranking officials were placed on administrative leave amid an investigation into allegations that 40 veterans died while awaiting treatment at the hospital. Helman had led the giant Phoenix facility, which treats more than 80,000 veterans a year, since February 2012."

--"The Phoenix hospital was at the center of the wait-time scandal, which led to the ouster of former VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and a new, $16 billion law overhauling the labyrinthine veterans' health care system."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd34ff1457a70ced838b33ec412550c7dbc989c48517490e48
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd34ff1457a70ced838b33ec412550c7dbc989c48517490e48

BOEHNER RE-UPS GOWDY ON BENGHAZI PANEL - McClatchy: "House Speaker John Boehner Monday reappointed Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., to head a select panel to investigate the Sept. 11, 2012 deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. 'On September 11, 2012, four Americans were killed in a brutal attack in Libya,' Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a statement. 'Two years later, the American people still have far too many questions about what happened that night - and why. That's why I will reappoint Rep. Trey Gowdy and the Republican members of the House Select Committee to investigate the events in Benghazi in the 114th Congress.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd218c30edbc36437909aa9ee5bc18e1dce6f1e09c34803d7e
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=502f7a363ac4dcbd218c30edbc36437909aa9ee5bc18e1dce6f1e09c34803d7e

MONDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Colleen J. Shogan was the first person to correctly name the president whose first job was a baseball announcer (Ronald Reagan) and the team he covered (Chicago Cubs). An honorary mention goes to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Colleen has today's question: Ronald Reagan was the first president to pardon a turkey, and his successor, George H.W. Bush established the permanent practice of the "turkey pardon." Where did President Obama send last year's pardoned turkey? The first person to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day's Huddle. Email
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skim@politico.com .

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