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12/02/2016 08:02 AM EDT


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

With assists from Nick Juliano, Elana Schor and Daniel Lippman

HAPPENING TODAY: HEITKAMP MEETS TRUMP- Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp heads to the Big Apple today to meet with President-elect Donald Trump. But the North Dakota senator, who's facing a tough reelection in 2018, said it was "premature" to speculate about whether she'd take a job in his administration. "'You guys know what I know,' Heitkamp said. 'The president-elect asked me to come for a meeting. I don't even know it's about a job. And we're looking forward to having a very productive discussion.'" Matthew, Elana and Seung Min report: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab77f48ef3a10a87b7c362f482645542ab7ac58b1b38c5d2d2

NO ORCHESTRATION: Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) says he would be interested in moving to the Senate if Heitkamp's meeting today goes well enough for her to end up with a job offer -- and he doesn't end up working alongside her in the cabinet. Cramer said he knew about the Heitkamp meeting for a while before it was announced and said it was "entirely possible" that she ends up with an offer to join the new administration.

A longtime Trump surrogate, Cramer has been mentioned often as a possible energy secretary in the next administration, most recently by Harold Hamm. "I haven't even let you know what they're doing with me," Cramer said in a brief interview Thursday. He added that he would be interested in throwing his hat into the ring for a special election in North Dakota if Heitkamp leaves the Senate. "But as far as I know there is no truth to the rumor that Mitch McConnell is engineering the whole thing -- there really isn't," Cramer joked as he walked onto the House floor.

SECRETARY MANCHIN? Heitkamp isn't the only moderate Senate Democrat being eyed for Trump's cabinet. "Trump's transition team is considering Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia for the Energy secretary job, according to three sources close to the discussions," Darius Dixon reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0aba5028a36b10071d22b8479b1f7e25f0d748780a749c9abfa

WHO WILL BE THE NEXT DCCC CHAIRMAN? Democrats changed their caucus rules Thursday, allowing members to pick the chairmen of their campaign (DCCC) and messaging (DPCC) arms and adding two new leadership spots-one for a freshman and one for a member who has served five terms or less. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney was thinking about challenging current DCCC Chairman Ben Ray Luján on Thursday but it's unclear if he'll go through with it. He was seen making the rounds during votes Thursday night and huddled with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for a long time after.

But even though Democrats have been clamoring for change-they only picked up six seats in the election-many seem hesitant to unseat Luján, who's liked within the caucus. "I think Ben Ray Luján is a strong candidate and despite the outcome, a lot of things were out of his control," Rep. Ruben Gallego told Huddle, endorsing him for another term. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab60c9a9cff2467698354552ef550cdb60858d087267cfc5e7

You've got mail: Gallego along with Reps. Seth Moulton and Kathleen Rice, the trio that initially pushed for the leadership elections delay, sent a letter to their colleagues after the caucus meeting praising Thursday's results. "This conversation was difficult and contentious, but also necessary and inspiring," they wrote. "We are stronger today than we were a few weeks ago."

Keeping track: House Democrats huddle again later this morning to approve ranking members for the top committees (Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, Financial Services and Appropriations). Elections for the DCCC spot, the three DPCC chairmanships and the open junior leadership position are expected Monday. Reps. Debbie Dingell and Tony Cárdenas and Del. Stacey Plaskett are all vying for the leadership post, according to letters they circulated to colleagues Thursday.

BYE BYE BECERRA- Just days after announcing a bid for Ways and Means ranking member, California Rep. Xavier Becerra is saying goodbye to Congress after being tapped as the state's next attorney general. Becerra, whose nomination still has to be approved by the California legislature, will replace current attorney general and Sen.-elect Kamala Harris. More from Carla Marinucci on the Becerra pick and who might replace him in Congress: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0abd83c68a05e7f6a7b9023a24e85e6dbb412f7ec963aaf800f

And with Becerra out, this means Rep. Richard Neal is a lock to be top Democrat on Ways and Means.

MEDICARE DREAMIN'- House Republican hopes of privatizing parts of Medicare under a GOP-controlled Congress and White House are already hitting a wall with Senate Republicans. "Interviews with more than a dozen GOP lawmakers reveal they're not planning to pursue big changes to the popular health care program for seniors - at least not in the first year of the Trump administration," Jennifer Haberkorn and Adam Cancyrn report.

"Several Republicans said this week they want to tackle the repeal of Obamacare before taking up major changes to Medicare, pushing back against suggestions the two controversial overhauls should be considered together." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0abb60ea2c4d4e716a6360a1cfb52fc7113723cc69594be8413

TUNE IN- House Speaker Paul Ryan will be on "60 Minutes" this Sunday. In a preview of the interview, the GOP leader said he and Trump have talked about the constitution "extensively" in their almost daily phone chats, Nolan McCaskill reports. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab8652abbafa658e826aeef447781635b1b1c3f36bbb428d07

FRI-FRI-FRIDAYYYYY! Welcome to December 2. Thanks for reading POLITICO's Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill. Today's trivia, from Jon Deuser: What former House member served the longest without ever missing a single roll call vote? The first person to correctly guess the answer to today's question gets a mention in Monday's Huddle.

THURSDAY'S MOST CLICKED- Sen. John Thune's Instagram with Shaq got a mega number of clicks.

TODAY IN CONGRESS- The House meets at 9 a.m. with first and last votes between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. Today's House agenda: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab2b1ac0342791f6680aa262e032cd56206aec0da69e5ba647 The Senate is out.

AROUND THE HILL- Sheldon Whitehouse will hold an 11 a.m. conference call on conflicts of interest with Trump's cabinet picks. House Democrats hold a caucus meeting at 11 a.m. in HVC-215. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly press conference at 12:30 p.m. in HVC Studio A.

CLAMORING FOR CORKER- Forget Mitt Romney for secretary of state. Several senators would rather see their colleague, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, picked for the post. Corker's Capitol Hill fans include "not just fellow Republicans, but Democrats who'd happily vote to confirm him," Seung Min and Austin report. Even Sen. Rand Paul, who has criticized nearly every other potential pick, is on Team Corker. "I think he would be a great pick," Paul said. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab802ac128e7e20aacf5c6b923154834855c01070aa162be21

SENATE LIBERALS GO ENERGY SWAMP-HUNTING- Ten Senate liberals, including Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, late Thursday sent a public warning that Trump's transition teams and nomination short lists for energy and environmental agencies are "replete with lobbyists and others with extensive ties to the fossil fuel industry."

Coming attractions: Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, who spearheaded the letter, plans to hold a press event today with Public Citizen President Robert Weissman highlighting the themes of the letter. The subtext: Trump's nominees for the Interior and Energy Departments as well as the Environmental Protection Agency are set to face serious early blowback from Democrats. Think more Steven Mnuchin than Elaine Chao or Nikki Haley.

MOVE ALONG, NOTHING TO SEE HERE- Speaker Paul Ryan praised Trump's deal with Carrier Corp. Thursday, pushing aside questions about whether it was conservative policy for the president-elect to be picking winners and losers in the business realm. "Well, I'm pretty happy that we're keeping jobs in America - aren't you?" the Wisconsin Republicans responded. Rachael with the story: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab2277b3d8a039a54c385f07a1ce1286c09b95fc2c6179e04a

WALDEN WINS E&C GAVEL- Outgoing NRCC Chairman Greg Walden won a closed-door election Thursday to lead the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee. Speaker Ryan, who gets four votes on the Steering Committee and obviously has a lot of sway with other members, endorsed Walden over the more senior Rep. John Shimkus. More from Rachael: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab16b9615b652fc832da3df7594ab50b0a82aa7d81fbcb8b87

NEW TODAY: Senate Democrats are out with a short video highlighting the differences between Trump and congressional Republicans on repealing Obamacare. Trump has insisted the healthcare law will be repealed and replaced simultaneously but Republicans on the Hill say it's a much more complicated process that might require delaying the effective date of a repeal for a few years while they enact a replacement. The video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0abd613bbc74b7ccea81bb82b34963befc5ee376811a5ce3333

HIMES NEW CHAIR FOR NEW DEMS- The New Democrat Coalition picked Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes to be their chairman Thursday. Himes beat out Rep. Jared Polis, who was elected vice chairman. "I was here for two years when we had the majority, so I know what a majority looks like," Himes told Huddle Thursday. "The majority, when we win it, the two or three dozen seats we win will be people who have New Dem style districts."

HELLER FOR GOVERNOR? HE DIDN'T SAY NO- Sen. Dean Heller, whose Nevada seat is eyed by Democrats as a key pick up in 2018, isn't ruling out a run for governor. "In an interview Thursday, the senator said he enjoys his current job but indicated he's keeping his options open. The state's current governor, Republican Brian Sandoval, is termed out in two years," Burgess reports.

A little editorial advice: "Heller said it would be a mistake to predict what he's going to do in two years, warning a reporter not to read into his comments about enjoying his job as a senator. 'I wouldn't write about it if I were you. I wouldn't write about it,' he said. 'Whatever you write is going to be wrong.'" More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0abda0ecdfc734576a921d3251091c2b6192d06ccc64b5ebc10

SORRY CHARLIE! A tried-and-true tradition went down on Capitol Hill Thursday: The House freshman room lottery. Rep.-elect Lou Correa, who did the sign of the cross as he walked up, was the lucky winner, picking the number one chip. The loser? Rep.-elect Charlie Crist, former Florida governor, picked number 50.

The antics didn't stop: "When Maryland Democrat Anthony Brown went up to pick a chip, he bent down and struck the 'lightning' pose popularized by Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. Brown picked No. 34," Roll Call's Alex Gangitano reports. "Michigan Republican Paul Mitchell brought Correa up with him for good luck. 'Mr. Correa, I mean, Mr. Mitchell, drew No. 17,' the emcee said." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0ab8fe2da9bd108009f4e24697c7768053877f7492ba903dc7d

LET'S TALK TALKING POINTS- "President-elect Donald Trump's team is advising Senate Republicans to promote Jeff Sessions' deep familiarity with the Justice Department [and] his 'strong civil rights record' ... For Steven Mnuchin, the Trump team wants senators to emphasize that the former Goldman Sachs executive is a 'world-class financier' ... Those are just a sample of talking points sent by Trump's transition team to the Senate GOP Conference this week" and obtained by POLITICO. Seung Min with the story: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=488b733f73f0c0abbb551cda5482903a3d5f98fb3de6ac3511a9ed2e1a3e9969

MOVIN' ON UP- Kelley Moore has been promoted to press secretary in Sen. Shelley Moore Capito's office. Kelley was in charge of digital media during Capito's 2014 campaign and has served as press assistant since 2015.

THURSDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER- Jon Deuser was the first to guess that Elizabeth Dole is the first person to serve as Labor Secretary, Transportation Secretary and the spouse of the Senate majority leader (Bob Dole).

Send suggestions for trivia questions my way: hcaygle@politico.com

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