Subject: POLITICO Huddle: STEFANIK AIMS TO PLAY IN GOP PRIMARIES -- NC candidate may not be seated on Jan. 3 -- SENIOR NRCC AIDES HACKED -- Republicans rage about MBS
From: "POLITICO Huddle" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 05 Dec 2018 07:03:09 -0600
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12/05/2018 08:02 AM EDT
        
By NOLAN D. MCCASKILL ([email-masked]; @NolanDMcCaskill)

        
NATIONAL DAY OF MOURNING -- Former President George H.W. Bush's casket will be removed from the Capitol rotunda and taken to Washington National Cathedral later this morning for Washington's farewell to 41. The House has canceled votes this week, and the Senate won't vote until this afternoon on what President Donald Trump designated a national day of mourning. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and other members of Congress are expected to attend this morning's ceremony. 

The list of attendees also includes "a bipartisan cadre of current and former heads of state, and will be the first time that President Trump is in the same room as all the former living presidents, as well as his defeated 2016 campaign rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton," ABC News' Alexander Mallin reports. Former President George W. Bush, former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and historian Jon Meacham will deliver eulogies. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b98a517cfd77ebc731057c2550ec90d82d9214e4e88d606ba9a90380172dcc1edb1bb30aa591e5182b 

STEFANIK GOING HER OWN WAY TO ELECT MORE WOMEN -- After recruiting more than 100 women as the NRCC's first female head of recruitment only to see one win, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) says she wants to "play big" in primaries, where most of those candidates failed to break through in the 2018 cycle. "She plans to refocus and expand her leadership PAC to support women and what she called 'nontraditional candidates,'" Roll Call's Simone Path&eacute; reports. "Democrats will have 89 women in the House next year, including 35 female freshmen. House Republicans, in contrast, have dropped from 23 women to 13." Stefanik is looking at EMILY's List and Rep. Seth Moulton's (D-Mass.) work with veteran
 candidates as potential models. 

"There's a reason Stefanik has to go outside the NRCC to do this," Path&eacute; adds. "Unlike their Democratic counterpart, the House GOP campaign committee does not publicly play in primaries." Incoming NRCC Chairman Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) acknowledged that it's Stefanik's "right" to do what she wants. "But I think that's a mistake," he said. "It shouldn't be just based on looking for a specific set of ingredients -- gender, race, religion -- and then we're going to play in the primary." Stefanik, however, posted a "NEWSFLASH" for Emmer. "I wasn't asking for permission," she tweeted. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b9a965b1a464b64df64969193892c6514f38769a749ebdcb591066a450e3022d798f376e72621e52b5 

Related: "Sen. Capito: We're 'well aware' of a lack of Republican women in Congress," by Jenny Ament: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b9909cb6966245a84f3220f20c236e021b444d105f8f224442fa0e207768c46f0d25c8a2fd8db1df7f 

NRCC HACKED -- Email accounts of four senior NRCC aides were surveilled for several months during the 2018 cycle, exposing thousands of sensitive emails to a hacker. "The intrusion was detected in April by an NRCC vendor, who alerted the committee and its cybersecurity contractor," Alex Isenstadt and Bres report. "An internal investigation was initiated, and the FBI was alerted to the attack." House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), and Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) weren't informed of the hack until contacted by POLITICO this week. Rank-and-file House Republicans were also kept out of the loop.

"Committee officials said they decided to withhold the information because they were intent on conducting their own investigation and feared that revealing the hack would compromise efforts to find the culprit," they write. "The hack became a major source of consternation within the committee as the midterm campaign unfolded. The NRCC brought on the prominent Washington law firm Covington & Burling as well as Mercury Public Affairs to oversee the response to the hack." Party officials didn't specify when the hack began or who was behind it, but they privately suspect that the culprit is a foreign agent. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b9af145e17b167c0e71d8633d27afe5329b3fef100d6195f3877a300c6ec6e67d932a72db8aa46b6c6 

HAPPY WEDNESDAY! Thanks for reading Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Dec. 5.

TUESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Roll Call's report on House Republicans' incoming committee leaders was the big winner.

VOTER FRAUD CLAIMS ROCK REPUBLICANS -- Republicans for years have warned of potential voter fraud from Democrats. Yet it's a GOP congressional candidate who finds himself at the center of the biggest alleged election fraud in recent memory. "North Carolina's Board of Elections has postponed certifying election results in the state's 9th Congressional District, where Republican Mark Harris holds a 905-vote lead over Democrat Dan McCready -- and a contractor working for Harris' campaign has been accused of collecting and filling out hundreds of voters' absentee ballots," Elena Schneider writes. "The allegations run counter to longtime complaints from President Donald Trump and Republicans
 about supposed Democratic voter fraud, and they come at an especially awkward time for the state GOP in North Carolina." 

"The party just championed a voter-ID referendum approved in November, and Republican state legislators are pushing to approve language implementing the referendum during a lame-duck session, before they lose their veto-proof majorities in January," she continues. The state Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement called for an evidentiary hearing by Dec. 21 to consider "claims of numerous irregularities and concerted fraudulent activities." The Associated Press has retracted its call of the race, and the state board could vote to hold a new election next year. "Republicans have argued that any irregularities are not widespread enough to make a difference in the ultimate outcome of the
 race," she writes. "However, the board hasn't publicly disclosed how many ballots are in question." Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b93cd692866adcf8358be558c6722cd57a34867057214c8c2d4dea50826d9fa7dbcefb59ac83acf618 

Related reads: "Election fraud allegations in NC congressional race: What we know (and what we don't)," from McClatchy's Brian Murphy and Ely Portillo: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=60a86fb4857527a456ab412f2f998ab9c86f9158c9e5bad536a4b51624dbf16282979f7516a8b6bafbdba2c9cc606f02 and "Second woman claims she was paid to pick up ballots in U.S. House District 9 race," via WSOC TV's Joe Bruno: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b95db4c57a69010db394bf41f32585aa0ef8ddedf9bba81981c15f58dbd88c58ab1b0fe9c9b4cd3599 

HOYER ON HARRIS -- Incoming House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) says Democrats shouldn't seat Harris until questions of campaign-related fraud are resolved. "Harris has a lead of roughly 900 votes over his Democratic opponent, Dan McCready, but continues to face allegations that his campaign illegally tampered with absentee ballots to swing the election in his favor," Heather notes. "Hoyer said he planned to talk to Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), who is expected to lead the House Administration Committee next year, about looking into the fraud allegations. So far the North Carolina elections board has twice refused to certify the results and has launched its own investigation into the
 accusations." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b92a220575302e929099e76e27c05978c087cacdb301d2a7d33882a857bacb42abd843b27a914b3dd9 

REPUBLICANS RAGE AFTER HASPEL BRIEFING -- CIA Director Gina Haspel's briefing left senators raging about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "The unbridled anger toward MBS after a meeting between top Senate leaders and ... Haspel suggests that the chamber will move swiftly to punish the Saudi regime in the coming days," Burgess and Marianne report. "Republican senators in particular were biting in their assessments of MBS and the Trump administration, which has declined to assert that the Saudi prince ordered [journalist Jamal] Khashoggi's murder at the Saudi Arabian Consulate in Turkey in October." Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said there is "zero
 question that the crown prince directed the murder."

"If he was in front of a jury he would have a unanimous verdict in 30 minutes," Corker added. "A guilty verdict." Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said it is "virtually impossible" that such an operation could be carried out without MBS' knowledge. He said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who briefed senators last week, "are following the lead of the president." "There's not a smoking gun. There's a smoking saw," Graham continued, referring to reports that a bone saw was used to dismember Khashoggi. "You have to be willfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organized by people under the command of MBS." Much more: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b91a095e05380f999f3919301a2b0f9146845e954c65b2c69a6d105a5934cbd8d4ecde009df181fdd8 

Related: "Rand Paul blasts 'deep state' for shutting him out of CIA briefing," by Marianne: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=60a86fb4857527a447368b0bfc0c2c8e558a79b1b9d9da0d2cab752d6792226adbacadc83b41aa59510a3d9f4e9b7a99 and "GOP Rep. Chris Stewart Defends Trump on Khashoggi: 'Journalists Disappear' All the Time," from The Daily Beast: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b944fdc9c3e1d301830a1be8bf9ac19b3458a50ece28b5e752840db104d62df3f0a28b41532a6630eb 

WATCHDOG REPORT FINDS GARRETT MISUSED STAFF -- The House Ethics Committee released a watchdog report accusing outgoing Rep. Tom Garrett (R-Va.) of inappropriately using his staff. "But it is unclear that Garrett ... will ever face consequences," Rachael writes. "Following POLITICO's story revealing that he and his wife made aides chauffeur their daughters, clean up dog poop, go grocery shopping for the family and do other personal errands for them during work hours, the Virginia Republican announced his retirement." Though Garrett is leaving office at the end of the year, the ethics panel said it will continue to look into the allegations. More: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b9f9c899fe568b552fb7dc34e9202244c050f6c1e41a09cdf31504a5960aecc28df2232355ffea7e0f 

SERVICE OVER SENIORITY -- Sen.-elect Rick Scott (R-Fla.) won't be sworn in with the rest of his class on Jan. 3. "Scott announced Tuesday that he will remain in his current role until governor-elect Ron DeSantis is sworn in," the Miami Herald's Samantha J. Gross reports. A Scott spokesman said he will serve as governor until Jan. 8, adding that Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has agreed to hold a swearing-in ceremony for Scott that afternoon. The decision means Scott, who would have been 97th in seniority, will come to Washington as the most junior incoming senator. "Seniority plays a major role in things like the seating chart on the Senate floor, office space and committee
 assignments," Gross adds. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b9c49fa0c549c8543e2f3a377dfea809b9ddb63a91c4abb48e11cc94f059ff84d38deb253244a46c5a 

WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL STARTS NEXT WEEK -- Incoming White House counsel Pat Cipollone officially starts Monday, three and a half weeks before Democrats take control of the House. "Trump tapped Cipollone in early October to be the White House's top lawyer, replacing Don McGahn, who stepped down Oct. 17 after a turbulent tenure during which he clashed with the president," Eliana Johnson writes. "Even before assuming his official duties, Cipollone has reached out to several lawyers to staff an office responsible for everything from judicial nominations to federal litigation to presidential pardons. Cipollone's team will also contend with what are expected to be several investigations launched by
 House Democrats who will assume committee chairmanships in January." 

"Cipollone will oversee four deputies, with responsibility for investigations, judicial nominations, national security, and ethics, respectively," she adds. Mike Purpura, a DOJ veteran who worked in George W. Bush's counsel's office, will likely serve as a deputy leading the response to congressional investigations. Kate Comerford Todd, a former clerk to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and head of the Chamber of Commerce's litigation arm, is also expected to join Cipollone's team to handle judicial nominations, though it's unclear whether she will serve as a deputy White House counsel. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b90d6fe143dbae582bb521ebe0f28d5a696cef9c052af7b6cbd826fe816efb74afb16f271d74219f03 

GOOGLE CEO TO TESTIFY NEXT WEEK -- Google CEO Sundar Pichai is set to testify before Congress on Tuesday. "The new hearing -- confirmed by the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday -- will see Pichai field questions from Congress for the first time in response to Republicans' concerns that Google's search algorithm, and services it owns including YouTube, unfairly censor conservative-leaning users," The Washington Post's Tony Romm reports. The hearing was originally scheduled for today but was postponed following former President George H.W. Bush's death. Pichai is also expected to attend a White House meeting tomorrow with fellow tech executives and top Trump aides to discuss innovation
 policy. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d147a71b3d1c03b94468340e8435225c0ef062d632f980f4b6b489cbe3f09cf611ac64ca18060cb65d493f58738259bc 
          TRANSITIONS         

Eve Lieberman, outgoing Rep. Jared Polis' (D-Colo.) chief of staff, will move to Denver to work as the governor-elect's top adviser on his legislative and policy agenda. 

John Keast, a lobbyist at Cornerstone Government Affairs, is joining the Senate Commerce Committee as staff director under incoming Chairman Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). 
          TODAY IN CONGRESS         
The House is out. The Senate meets at 2:30 p.m. to resume consideration of FERC member nominee Bernard McNamee. At 4 p.m., the chamber will hold a procedural vote on McNamee's nomination. 
          AROUND THE HILL         
Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) will hold a media availability following a meeting with the University System of Maryland Board of Regents at 5 p.m. in S-116.
          TRIVIA         
TUESDAY'S WINNER -- Ritika Robertson was first to correctly guess that the offices George H.W. Bush occupied as a member of Congress were 1607 and 1609 Longworth. 

TODAY'S QUESTION -- From Ritika: Which president changed his Secret Service code name after taking the oath, and what were the two names? 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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