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05/11/2016 08:19 AM EDT


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

With assists from Burgess Everett and Rachael Bade

SNEAK PEEK: GRASSLEY DEFENDS JUDICIARY RECORD - Ahead of the most intense day yet of the Democrats' pressure campaign against Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) over Merrick Garland, the Judiciary Committee chairman is pre-butting the expected attacks with a new report highlighting his track record on the Judiciary Committee. It outlines legislation passed (14 bills out of committee have passed the Senate and six have become law, comparatively higher than the committee in the last Congress, then led by Democrats) and nominations cleared (hearings for 43 nominees by the end of May, same number as a Dem-led committee did at the same point under President George W. Bush).

--Key excerpt: "The committee, under Grassley's leadership, is on pace to exceed its legislative productivity in the previous Congress. The committee is also on track to match nominations benchmarks set in past similar scenarios. Grassley's longstanding focus on oversight has put the committee in position to renew its focus on ensuring accountability and transparency in government as mandated by the Constitution." The three-page report will be released later today by the Judiciary Committee.

--But the Democratic fusillade against Grassley already began today, even before we brewed our coffee. The Constitutional Responsibility Project, coordinated by former Obama aides, released this morning a new ad titled "Old Chuck" blasting the committee chairman over the Garland inaction: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35133888f2c5892ee7022a79d91dd18914b9b61e106474d829d

More on the Supreme Court fight later in the newsletter ....

PAUL RYAN'S TRUMP TRAP - Jake Sherman and Rachael Bade with the analysis for POLITICO: "Paul Ryan knows he's in a squeeze. The Wisconsin Republican has spent two decades building a brand as a serious conservative with a friendly demeanor, who totes budget charts to town halls and is more prone to a back slap than a back stab. But in the last year, Donald Trump has seized control of the Republican Party, throwing verbal daggers in every direction, and offering little in terms of policy specifics as he waltzed through the GOP presidential primary ... [N]ow Ryan is having to contend with a reality: Trump is the party's nominee, and there is nothing he can do about it."

--"So here's the House speaker's play, according to multiple people in Ryan's inner circle: he wants Trump to understand where he is coming from. Ryan wants to try to steer the party's national political dialogue - as embodied by Trump's barbed rhetoric - in a better direction. He wants an open line of communication between his operation and Trump's. He isn't going to try to extract policy concessions from Trump - he understands they are unlikely to ever agree on trade or immigration - but he wants some recognition that Ryan has 247 members of the House that need to be re-elected, and they can't do so while wincing through the general election in November."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351ba20f8cee4ab7c5f799bc850f2abdd594fe3fdb4e7f8cd69

--No kidding: "Paul Ryan: GOP unity will 'take more than a week'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3511677eb259bb437556cd189837ce234532569e3e26e7952ce That's from Ryan's interview with the Wall Street Journal, with the highlights here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35199fe1d02454ee2fd0619f5142dc06ec53d2a7aa7c2cc1612

--Meanwhile, Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) gets the (Trump-related) TMZ treatment: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3519a9ab76814325e9578ad7320ff1b041f4d795a86ae5a7a81

--And more on what it's like to be a Hill reporter these days, from the AP's Erica Werner and Steve Peoples: "'We're not doing any Trump questions today,' an aide to Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois told a crowd of reporters as Kirk, one of the most endangered Senate Republicans, sped into a meeting." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3511a628db8a37b389d11e277f8e355a4e873c0c8fe82efdc24

QUOTE OF THE DAY - My colleague Burgess Everett writes how Senate Republicans are delving headfirst into appropriations bills (and making the Senate function) as a way of distinguishing themselves from the Donald Trump disarray. But in the kicker, Burgess asks Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) if he'll be introducing a similar Iran amendment to the THUD bill, like he did for energy and water approps.

--Cotton's response: "He won't be offering an Iran amendment to the housing and transportation bill unless President Barack Obama announces 'Section 8 housing in Tehran' in the next week." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3512ed831b81cd38ab1df0528110c4200456118cd29eefadecc

FIRST IN HUDDLE: MCCARTHY HEADS TO THE CONSERVATIVE BULLPEN -- House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will attend the Republican Study Committee's weekly closed-door meeting today to continue talks about a potential budget deal, a birdie writes in. A GOP leadership aide confirmed his attendance, noting he'll talk about the GOP agenda broadly.

--GOP leadership and conservatives - whose members comprise the RSC - have been at a standstill on the budget due to the far right's objection to higher spending levels for government agencies. Conservatives want to see some kind of mandatory spending cuts to make up for that boost, and the two sides are considering a "sidecar" bill that would do just that, as well as House rules changes.

GOP TO TRUMP: MORE SCOTUS INFO, PLEASE - Your Huddle author: "Some of Donald Trump's toughest GOP critics in the Senate are pressuring the presumptive Republican nominee to reveal more information about the type of justices he would nominate for the Supreme Court - and force the mercurial candidate to bolster his conservative bona fides ... 'We're going to decide at some point what we do with Garland,' said Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who doesn't support moving on Garland's nomination before November yet has strong reservations about Trump as his party's nominee. 'It would help to feel better about where Trump is going.'"

--"Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, one of the most influential Republicans refusing to support Trump, argued that Trump's pick would be 'no worse than that' of likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton but added: 'I know Clinton's gonna pick a liberal. I have no idea who Trump would pick.' 'I think it'd probably help him,' Graham, a Judiciary Committee member, said of Trump releasing more information about whom he would nominate to the Supreme Court." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351de83f74d4d139637826537358144ca9991c94c7d2c36ef13

--Good summary of Garland's questionnaire from the Wall Street Journal's Jess Bravin: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3512046420f0dc5e0ecd4017e30100652de003d44554efdfee0 And Bloomberg's Greg Stohr reports that Garland recused himself in 66 cases because of his financial holdings: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351958e7e67d61c7c6ff1c87dcdad57528539cf9445b42ff3bb

--Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) met Tuesday afternoon with Garland, but said - SPOILER ALERT! - that he still believes the Scalia seat should be filled next year. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35127274239321fdbc48ef36faa67dd80fa4d66623b69c098e2

TRANSITIONS - Sandy Davis, a longtime veteran of the Congressional Budget Office (20 years) and the Congressional Research Service (16 years), is joining the Bipartisan Policy Center as a senior adviser with the Economic Policy Project. He'll begin May 16. "I have known Sandy for many years and have seen first-hand how indispensable his knowledge of the congressional budget process is to legislative activity," said Bill Hoagland, a senior vice president at BPC.

And Tina Dupuy is the new communications director for Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) Dupuy was previously an investigative journalist and syndicated columnist. And Christopher Evanson is Grayson's new press secretary. Evanson is a U.S. Coast Guard veteran where he served as an on-the-record spokesperson and media relations adviser.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 2016 and you're reading the Huddle, where we've (clearly) given up trying to keep Trump out of your favorite Congress-focused newsletter. You can always reach me, Trump or non-Trump, at skim@politico.com or on Twitter at @seungminkim.

My new followers include @CapitolHillCBA and @stevenportnoy.

TODAY IN CONGRESS - The House is in at 10 a.m., with votes between 1:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. and again from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., continuing work on opioid legislation. The Senate is in at 9:30 a.m. with a vote on Sen. Tom Cotton's (R-Ark.) Iran heavy water amendment (in conjunction with the energy and water appropriations bill) at 10:30 a.m., and then cloture on the funding bill at noon.

AROUND THE HILL - Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and other House Republican leaders will hold their post-conference media avail at 10 a.m. in HC-8. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other House Democratic leaders will hold a post-caucus news conference at 10 a.m. in HVC Studio A. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) will have a photo op before her meeting with Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland at 10 a.m. in Hart 503. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will hold a news conference with Iowans on Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in front of the Supreme Court at 11 a.m.

Reps. Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.) and John Katko (R-N.Y.) will hold a briefing on school mental health programs at Rayburn B-340. Reps. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and advocates will hold a news conference discussing the Asian American and Pacific Islander community at 12:30 p.m. at House Triangle. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) will meet with Garland at 1 p.m. in Dirksen 255.

Reps. Don Beyer (D-Va.), Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.), Mike Honda (D-Calif.), Andre Carson (D-Ind.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) will hold a news conference on new religious liberty legislation at 1:30 p.m. at House Triangle. Sens. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), David Vitter (R-La.) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) will hold a news conference on sentencing legislation at 2:30 p.m. in SVC-212. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) will meet with Garland at 2:45 p.m. in Hart 513. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Pelosi will award the U.S. Capitol Historical Society Freedom Award Presentation to David McCullough at 6 p.m. in Statuary Hall.

Away from the Hill, Sens. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) will speak on a panel about the budget process at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation 2016 Fiscal Summit at 11 a.m. at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium. To register, email JoannaHill@rational360.com. And Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) will hold a conference call with immigrant advocacy leaders on naturalization efforts at 11 a.m. Dial-In: 1-888-632-3381, Conference ID: CITIZENSHIP

CRUZ'S BIG RETURN: NO THIRD PARTY, TRUMP ENDORSEMENT - Todd Gillman for the Dallas Morning News: "Ted Cruz returned to the Senate on Tuesday refusing to lend his support to likely Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, casting himself as the leader of a resurgent conservative movement and vowing to keep fighting Washington as an outsider. 'All across this country, people are hungry for change,' he told dozens of journalists who'd camped out in the hallway outside his Senate office awaiting his return, one week after he ended his presidential bid."

--"And he made clear that for his remaining time in the Senate, he won't be tamed. 'From the first day I was elected to the Senate, my priority has been fighting for the 27 million Texans that I represent," he said." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351805b7dbdd86439e60d1f52cbd1116269c9721c36b7a2ed1b

CONGRESS STRIKES 'ORIENTAL' FROM U.S. CODE - NBC News: "On Monday, the Senate unanimously passed a bill that would remove the word from the last known laws in the United States Code where it applies to a person. In February, the House passed the original measure unopposed. Now the bill is on its way to President Obama for final approval. 'The term 'Oriental' is an insulting and outdated word and the Senate's passage of my bill will soon force the U.S. government to finally stop using it,' Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) said in a statement. Meng authored the original bill, H.R. 4238, which was sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI)." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351f071272f818687878ed187bd6fea0e931f9e1b5f9e3ec829

GOP (ANGRILY) POKES FACEBOOK - Tony Romm for POLITICO on the fight brewing between the social media giant and the right: "Washington's leading Republicans mounted an aggressive campaign on Tuesday targeting Facebook for the way it handles news stories, the latest front in the party's fight to highlight perceived liberal bias. In a presidential election year marked by the growing importance of social media - especially in helping fuel the rise of Donald Trump - Republicans found themselves seething in response to allegations that Facebook's employees had excluded news stories by conservative outlets from appearing in the Trending section of its users' daily news feeds."

--"Facebook, which has an estimated 1.5 billion users worldwide, stressed it never condoned any such practice. But Sen. John Thune, chairman of the Commerce Committee, escalated the confrontation on Tuesday by demanding that CEO Mark Zuckerberg explain how the company curates news, while Republican National Committee leader Reince Priebus railed on Twitter: 'Facebook must answer for conservative censorship.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b3519014791c16891c3dbbe7685e05e96566a9fb01e9d40ca9b7

--Harry Reid: "I've never heard anything about this and, at this stage, don't care." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351623eebe43fa68c2974bddd1f161822f41f573183b7a51246

BIPARTISAN TRIBUTE FOR BENNETT -- Thomas Burr for the Salt Lake Tribune: "Even in death, former Utah Sen. Bob Bennett brought warring parties together. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid shared the stage. Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., sat on the same side of the aisle. So did former Sens. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and Dick Lugar, R-Ind."

--"Bennett, who died last week at age 82 from complications of cancer and a stroke, was respected by Democrats and Republicans as a statesman who put his state and country first, well-wishers said Tuesday in a service honoring his life spent in politics and business but rooted in family and faith. Bennett earned the trust and esteem of his fellow senators, 'and you see that here today,' McConnell said, noting more than a dozen current or former members of Congress in attendance." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35159f5a609979842766859db542f3193239dc6ca38becf390b

INFLUENCE THEFT - My colleague Isaac Arnsdorf, over at POLITICO Influence, reports that Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) is chatting with K Street about a post-Senate career. Isaac notes: "Senate ethics rules prohibit negotiating lobbying jobs until one's successor has been elected, Vitter hasn't filed a disclosure with the Secretary of the Senate, but preliminary talks may not rise to the level of negotiations."

--If you're not subscribed to PI, you're missing out. Sign up here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35124401c3df027a82cc11beb2b433e3ea452a862400d83fbb6

BERNIE KEEPS EYES ON SENATE -- Bernie Sanders hasn't been on the Hill for months, but that isn't stopping him from trying to wield his rising influence in the Senate. The Vermont independent is writing Senate Banking Chairman Richard Shelby and ranking member Sherrod Brown this morning urging them to pick up the Housing Opportunities Through Modernization Act that passed the House unanimously and ready it for the Senate floor.

--"Congress has not made any major changes to federal rental assistance programs in nearly 18 years, which is why I urge the committee to consider this bipartisan legislation to implement badly needed and long overdue reforms at the earliest opportunity," Sanders writes to the committee. Here's the letter, shared first with Huddle: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b351af433c1da645c07420e495289df251ca77241c98fa79b305

HOUSE TAKING ON OPIOID ADDICTION - The Senate has already passed a comprehensive measure combatting opioids, and the House is diving in this week with 18 (!) bills on the issue. NYT's David Herszenhorn has more: "The bills include measures intended to make it easier for doctors to treat patients addicted to opioids, as well as to give law enforcement officers greater authority to interdict drug trafficking. There are also measures that would offer greater protections for veterans and for children affected by the opioid epidemic, and that would require the federal government to conduct studies evaluating the nation's capacity for treating opioid addiction."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=a33fec176ca2b35115d346b9dac992d03b7c0477a62b2fe32f35ca19a907e3a0

TUESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Marshal Shemtob was the first person to correctly answer that Teddy Roosevelt coined the phrase "Speak softly and carry a big stick" at the Minnesota state fair in 1901.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Marshal has today's question: Someone started the tradition of rolling something on presidential campaign planes for good luck. Name the person, the first year it was rolled, and name the item. The first person to correctly answer will get a mention in the next day's Huddle. E-mail skim@politico.com.

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