Subject: POLITICO Huddle: CHAOTIC CABINET SHUFFLE TESTS GOP PATIENCE -- Republicans won't 'go nuclear' -- MCCAIN FUTURE IN SENATE UNCERTAIN -- New rules for Senate reporters coming
From: "POLITICO Huddle" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 04 Apr 2018 06:03:29 -0600
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04/04/2018 08:02 AM EDT

By Nolan D. McCaskill ([email-masked] or @NolanDMcCaskill) 
 
With an assist from Burgess Everett
 
SENATORS GROW WEARY OF CHAOTIC CABINET SHUFFLING -- Republicans aren't looking forward to having to take up three Cabinet nominations in the coming months. "If Democrats offer unanimous opposition to any of the Cabinet nominees, Republicans are looking at a heavy lift -- or worse, a failed confirmation vote if some GOP senators also balk," Burgess and Eliana Johnson warn. "That would throw the Trump administration only further into disarray. But even GOP senators are getting impatient with the chaos coming from the White House, with clear, if quiet, dissatisfaction with [Ronny] Jackson's nomination [for VA secretary] in particular."
 
President Donald Trump has used his Twitter account to announce changes at the VA, State and CIA. And it's unclear whether EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt will survive the headlines haunting him. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) acknowledges that it's "unusual," and senators, aides and White House officials tracking the nominations say the White House expects the confirmation battles to be tough. Republicans have a narrow 51-49 majority, and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has been out recovering from cancer treatment. Marc Short, the White House's congressional liaison, is leading its efforts on Capitol Hill, where he's mobilizing support for the president's nominees and preparing to pressure red-state
 Democrats to stand with Trump.
 
Rand Paul is publicly opposed to Mike Pompeo and Gina Haspel's nomination for secretary of state and CIA director, respectively, and GOP senators are questioning Jackson's qualifications to lead the VA. "I could see him not being confirmed," one Republican senator said. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is already threatening to keep the Senate in on nights and weekends to address a lingering backlog of lower-level nominees. Republicans also plan to highlight Democrats' supposed obstruction of nominees and are considering changing the rules to allow for quicker votes. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc68047cd6427d8012348e67cdf3e94b017ae639b98ecc38953b55284accd6ce6e47673e418dae2d6c 
 
Related: "2 Florida Republicans Now Joining Calls For Scott Pruitt To Resign," by HuffPost's Alexander C. Kaufman and Igor Bobic: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcfd9f3f26f3e9bba1f0ce86c87b140b882bd6e9c6f4fede1551b6e0d9ebbd7e51ddec2041e090565c 
 
GOP CONSIDERS FORCING VOTES SLASHING BILLIONS FROM BUDGET DEAL -- Trump and congressional Republicans are mulling forcing votes that would slash billions of dollars in spending from the bipartisan omnibus they passed last month. The White House is working closely with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). "It's not clear which programs could be targeted or when the House would vote, although the White House had targeted dozens of programs in Trump's 2019 budget proposal," Bres and Burgess report. "The White House also proposed nearly $15 billion in budget cuts as part of last year's hurricane relief package, which were never acted upon." 
 
The potential move comes in the wake of conservative criticism over the budget-busting deal Trump signed. Matthew Dennis, a spokesman for House Appropriations Committee Democrats, said, "Calling for a do-over because you didn't like the press coverage after the fact is the height of absurdity." But if Congress moves forward with the plan, the Senate could pass a rescission resolution with a simple majority, though it's possible some Senate Republicans could balk at the cuts after supporting the bill. "The White House is also weighing whether to send a proposal for a line-item veto to Congress, which has been declared unconstitutional in the past," they write. More: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc32f7a7320dd35784d49489e9a345bb12363984378b6dc5c1966a7be0ff4640cb232f17ab70411ee2 
 
TRUMP FLOATS MILITARIZING U.S.-MEXICO BORDER -- Trump said he will send the military to guard America's southern border with Mexico "until we can have a wall and proper security." "Trump has for days taken to Twitter and used his public remarks to warn of threats posed by immigration, but the prospect of sending military personnel to the southern border added a new dimension to Trump's strategy," The Washington Post's Seung Min Kim reports. While it's not unprecedented to send troops to the border -- Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush did it -- it is unclear why Border Patrol agents would need the Pentagon's help right now.
 
Illegal border crossings are at the lowest level in decades. "In recent days, the president has emphasized the hard-line immigration stance he campaigned on as his conservative base has shown signs of growing impatience that he has not fulfilled some of his top promises, such as securing the funding to build a border wall," she writes. "One adviser who speaks often to Trump said that the president has been concerned about his political base since he signed into law last month a spending bill that did not fund the wall or some of his other immigration plans and that he has carefully monitored recent criticism, particularly on Fox News." Much more: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc3faedc5deaa7610eede72850ac7211b6719722c123d9aa15413b0d1856ac0bfc13fae8f1bf6e51c1 
 
Trump this morning called U.S. border laws "weak" and urged Congress to immediately change immigration laws. He tweeted, "We will be taking strong action today." It wasn't immediately clear what action he was hinting at.
 
Related read: "Some lawmakers don't want military involved with the border wall," by CNN's Daniella Diaz and Veronica Stracqualursi: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcb6bdcbe22a36b1a1945524dc8f341b9ab86767cefa5e45bceb38488d48eabae91039c8a4462fb463 
 
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TUESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Edward-Isaac Dovere's chat with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who wants the president to fire special counsel Robert Mueller, was the winner.
 
TRUMP'S TRADE WAR THREATENS HOUSE SEATS -- Trump's looming trade war with China is not only threatening local economies. It's also jeopardizing House seats. "Democratic candidates have blamed Republicans for the growing trade dispute's impact on local farmers, and Republican leaders have been publicly pleading with Trump to pull back from the brinkmanship," The Washington Post's Michael Scherer reports. That dynamic is playing out in Washington state, California and Iowa, where even Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) has expressed fears of a potential trade war. Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc8240b591b4bfb9fd0f69298c0fac10db61b50890448799f66add4f56a41282fe92297d0e097261e0 
 
Related: "China Hits Soybeans, Aircraft in Counter-Punch to Trump Tariffs," via Bloomberg: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcbf4f401b5967c1cb1c253c616fc738bcfbfcc22e4b5c9d3a2d1fa3a575cd981717f36c3d8ba5a502 
 
MCCONNELL NERVOUS ABOUT TRUMP TARIFFS -- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he's "nervous about what appears to be a growing trend in the administration to levy tariffs," which he noted he's "not a fan of." The Kentucky Republican told farmers and business leaders in Shelbyville that tariffs are "a slippery slope," and he hopes "this will stop before it gets into a broader tit-for-tat that can't be good for our country." Trump announced his intention last month to slap tariffs of 25 percent and 10 percent on steel and aluminum imports, respectively. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc65c16c0aae5cb99469aeefd02250037b8098b017b0031ad2fce9157a4698f22e664b07449aa75ce8 
 
In an interview with members of Kentucky Today's editorial board, McConnell cast the quick pace of judicial confirmations as the most consequential thing he's done, noting that the conservative picks could last a generation. "McConnell said he reached out to the White House general counsel shortly after Trump's election, encouraging him to move quickly with nominations of judges in their 40s and 50s," Kentucky Today's Roger Alford reports. And the majority leader acknowledges 2018 will be a tough election year, but he's hopeful Republicans can retain their Senate majority -- because "even if we were to lose the House and be stymied legislatively, we could still approve appointments,"
 McConnell said. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcf8651ab9cce9a499fbeacb676a87bcfd8a8c05aef59f6480f7019d15daacfa211f0b9b72ececdc97 
 
WHY REPUBLICANS WON'T 'GO NUCLEAR' -- Trump repeatedly urges the Senate to "go nuclear," and every time the GOP-led chamber essentially ignores the Republican president. "Republicans are in no rush to eliminate the legislative filibuster despite his constant pleas," The Washington Post's Paul Kane reports. "Their reluctance is not just some longing for the better, bygone days of bipartisanship, but also a recognition that Republicans have passed just about all they can on a simple majority." That means Republicans need Democratic votes to pass anything. And, as Kane writes, "There's nothing that they can't pass with 60 votes that they can pass with 51 votes." More: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcb8be036be9da0a42b2e7501c751111a4e4fe05e0e1d5e8c87b5d9980948d8158038283699f2a2439 
 
MCCAIN FUTURE IN DOUBT -- Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) absence has sparked muted questions about his future in the upper chamber. "As the Arizona Republican battles brain cancer, party leaders are contemplating the unusual prospect of defending two Senate seats in the state this year," Sean Sullivan reports for The Washington Post. "McCain's health has been shrouded in secrecy, leading many Republicans to privately wonder if he will remain in office beyond May 30. If he doesn't, there would probably be a special election for his seat in the fall." When Congress returns from recess on Monday, it's not clear whether McCain, who has been absent since December, will come back, too. More: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc58270de11a7d68fc5ac52d62e4d4a99c9bbd109dfcfcc980a82e148d296fdf2ef1bba5a00f919447 
 
SENATE BASEMENT BLUES -- The Senate's press gallery directors are preparing to place lines of tape in the Senate basement to denote where reporters can and can't stand when they are waiting for senators when the Senate returns from recess next week. When senators approach, however, reporters are not relegated behind those lines. The Senate sergeant at arms has repeatedly expressed concern about crowding in the Capitol. Critics say that the move could lead to a slippery slope of less access in the Capitol, but proponents say a concession is needed to allay fears the sergeant at arms may otherwise further restrict reporters' movements.
 
GOP DEPLOYS MORE SUPPORT IN AZ SPECIAL ELECTION -- National Republicans are intensifying their efforts to preserve a GOP-held House seat in an April 24 special election. The RNC and Congressional Leadership Fund have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Republican Debbie Lesko, while the NRCC is helping her air TV commercials. Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) will headline an April 18 fundraiser for her, and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is expected to travel to Arizona on her behalf. "Lesko, a former state legislator, is running for a suburban Phoenix seat that President Donald Trump won by 21 percentage points," Alex Isenstadt notes. More: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dc6fc057051033d9ebb8e52a7ce72f67631b09be93ff0a31fb671d55b8cc417fe07dfe15cc532177c5 
 
O'ROURKE RAISES $6.7M IN FIRST QUARTER -- Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) raked in a Texas-sized $6.7 million fundraising haul from 141,000 contributions in the first quarter of 2018, "a staggering number that poses a new category of threat to Republican incumbent Ted Cruz," Patrick Svitek reports for the Texas Tribune. "The haul is easily O'Rourke's biggest fundraising quarter yet." Cruz hasn't released his fundraising numbers for the first quarter, but the Texas Republican was outraised by O'Rourke in three of the last four reporting periods. 
 
"That's a whole lotta money -- there's no doubt about that," Cruz said at a campaign stop. "And it has been clear for some time that the hard left is energized and they're mobilized and they're angry at the president. And we are seeing all across the country, the far left giving millions of dollars to liberal Democrats running for office, and it underscores that Republicans cannot take November for granted." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b181ed45475df4dcc1d4952d4925f601d3927ac820b2f24b9236368119d8a8b52573547eedb383e4ce8c2ebb28251233 
 
ARRIVAL LOUNGE -- Omri Ceren, managing director of The Israel Project, is joining Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-Texas) office as national security adviser.
 
TODAY IN CONGRESS -- The House and Senate are out.
 
TUESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER -- Jayson Spiegel was first to correctly guess that Alf Landon, Dwight Eisenhower and Bob Dole were the three Republican presidential nominees from Kansas, though only Dole was born there. 
 
TODAY'S TRIVIA -- From Jayson: Who are the two sons of presidents to be awarded the Medal of Honor? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess my way: [email-masked].
 
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