Playbook PM: Counting votes for the Senate's same-sex marriage bill

From: POLITICO Playbook - Wednesday Jul 20,2022 05:11 pm

Jul 20, 2022

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WHO’S WITH BIDEN TODAY — Bloomberg’s Nancy Cook ( @nancook ): “Spotted: Senators [ELIZABETH] WARREN and [ED] MARKEY boarding AF1 to accompany the president to Massachusetts, where he’ll talk about efforts to fight climate change thru executive action after [Sen. JOE] MANCHIN tanked the climate part of his economic agenda.”

FETTERMAN ON THE RECORD — Pennsylvania Democratic Senate candidate JOHN FETTERMAN gave his first interview since suffering a stroke to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Julian Routh , and said he’s “‘feeling really good,’ said he has ‘nothing to hide’ on the status of his health and described the lingering effects of his stroke as minor and infrequent.

“Mr. Fetterman, 52, said he has ‘no physical limits,’ walks 4 to 5 miles every day in 90-degree heat, understands words properly and hasn’t lost any of his memory. He struggles with hearing sometimes, he said, and may ‘miss a word’ or ‘slur two together,’ but he said it doesn’t happen often and that he’s working with a speech therapist. …

“In the Wednesday morning interview, Mr. Fetterman used closed captioning on the call to make sure he didn’t miss any words, his campaign spokesman said afterward — information that was disclosed at Mr. Fetterman’s urging for the ‘sake of being totally transparent,’ he said.”

BACK LIKE HE NEVER LEFT — Former VP MIKE PENCE got a glowing review from Rep. CHIP ROY (R-Texas) today for his handling of Jan. 6, Olivia Beavers reports for Congress Minutes . “According to two people in the room during Pence's appearance at a meeting of the conservative Republican Study Committee, Roy stood to thank the former vice president for counting the votes that certified President Joe Biden’s election — a move that incurred forceful blowback from DONALD TRUMP and his base. Roy's move was met with applause from multiple lawmakers, both people in the room confirmed.”

What Pence said: “Pence told the members he is planning to help the GOP heading into the 2022 midterms, according to Rep. KEVIN HERN (R-Okla.), so they can be in a good spot for 2024. Hern said Pence didn’t talk about a 2024 bid one way or another, but he still read Pence’s rhetoric on Wednesday as a stump speech.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., reads over notes during a news conference following a closed-door caucus lunch, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 19, 2022.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer wants to bring the House-passed bill protecting same-sex marriage to the Senate floor soon. | J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo

DEPT. OF VOTE COUNTING — Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER said today that he’s working to garner enough GOP votes to get the House-passed bill protecting same-sex marriage through his chamber. More from WaPo’s John Wagner

Where things stand:

— Sen. MITT ROMNEY (R-Utah) is “noncommittal on same-sex marriage bill and says it’s ‘unnecessary,’” per Burgess Everett . “‘I haven’t given consideration to that legislation, in part because the law isn't changing and there’s no indication that it will.’”

— Sen. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-S.C.) is a “no,” per CNN’s Manu Raju .

— Sen. MARCO RUBIO (R-Fla.) is also a “no,” per Insider’s Bryan Metzger . “‘That bill’s not important. It’s a waste of our time on a non issue,’ he said. ‘But I know plenty of gay people in Florida that are pissed off about gas prices.’”

— Sen. THOM TILLIS (R-N.C.) “says he’s looking at the House-passed same-sex marriage bill and ‘probably will’ vote for it,” The Hill’s Alex Bolton reports .

— Sen. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO (R-W.Va.) “when asked about House bill codifying gay marriage protections and if she supports gay marriage in general: ‘I’d rather answer those questions when we have the vote,’” per HuffPost’s Igor Bobic .

— Sen. CHUCK GRASSLEY (R-Iowa), when “asked about gay marriage bill and his stance on the issue … said, ‘It’s the law of the land.’ He didn’t respond when a reporter said so was Roe,” per Bobic .

— Sen. ROGER WICKER (R-Miss.): “I don’t think it would be necessary so probably not,” per Bobic .

— Sen. JONI ERNST (R-Iowa) is “keeping an open mind,” per Bobic . “Asked if she supports gay marriage, Ernst said: ‘I have a good number of very close friends that are same-sex married.’”

— Retiring Sen. ROY BLUNT (R-Mo.) “says he supports gay marriage but wants to look at the House bill,” per Bobic .

— Sen. MIKE ROUNDS (R-S.D.) said “he doesn’t think House gay marriage bill is necessary, but adds: ‘I think there’s a difference between matrimony as a sacrament and a legal marriage and so if someone wants to do that type of a partnership, I’m not opposed,’” per Bobic .

— Sen. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-Ala.) “says he sees no need for ‘legislating’ on gay marriage. But then he adds: ‘I’m all about live life the way you want to. It’s a free country.’ Do you support gay marriage? ‘Yeah, if that’s what you want to do, fine,’” per Bobic .

— Retiring Sen. ROB PORTMAN (R-Ohio) is co-sponsoring the bill in the Senate, WEWS’ Morgan Trau reports .

For the record: That’s two “no” votes, two “yes” votes (counting Maine Sen. SUSAN COLLINS) and a whole lot of who knows.

And just for good measure, here’s Manchin: “I haven’t seen the final print but I don’t have a problem,” the West Virginia Democrat told Raju .

Good Wednesday afternoon.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY — BORIS JOHNSON, signing off his final Prime Minister’s Questions session as PM: “I want to use the last few seconds to give some words of advice to my successor. No. 1: Stay close to the Americans. Stick up for the Ukrainians. Stick up for freedom and democracy everywhere. … Remember above all: It’s not Twitter that counts. … Hasta la vista, baby! ” Watch the 2:05 clip

— Who’s next in line: “Former Chancellor RISHI SUNAK will battle it out with Foreign Secretary LIZ TRUSS to lead the U.K.’s Conservatives and become Britain’s prime minister, after the party’s MPs chose their final two candidates to go on to the next stage of the contest,” our colleagues in London, Eleni Courea, Matt Honeycombe-Foster and Andrew McDonald, report .

JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH

GIULIANI ORDERED TO TESTIFY — RUDY GIULIANI is “being ordered to appear in front of a Fulton County special grand jury next month after failing to attend a hearing in New York to challenge a recent subpoena,” the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Tamar Hallerman reports .

THE SECRET SERVICE SAGA CONTINUES — The Secret Service provided “a single text exchange to the DHS inspector general who had requested a month's worth of records for 24 Secret Service personnel, according to a letter” sent to the Jan. 6 select committee, CNN’s Jamie Gangel scoops . “The revelation provides insight into the concern raised in a recent letter to Congress by the inspector general, who accused the agency of not retaining records needed for the January 6 investigation. … Rep. ZOE LOFGREN , a California Democrat who is a member of the select committee, told CNN Wednesday that the information the Secret Service provided to the committee relating to January 5 and 6 specifically was ‘insufficient.’”

THE WHITE HOUSE

COMING ATTRACTIONS — The White House announced today that it will host a summit to convene African leaders this December. “The U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit will be held Dec. 13-15 and demonstrate a commitment by the U.S. to Africa that Biden described as ‘enduring.’ He said the gathering will ‘underscore the importance of U.S.-Africa relations and increased cooperation on shared global priorities,’” per the AP .

HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT ROE BEING OVERTURNED? JOIN WOMEN RULE ON 7/21: Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade , abortion policy is in the hands of the states and, ultimately, voters. Join POLITICO national political correspondent Elena Schneider for a Women Rule “ask me anything” conversation featuring a panel of reporters from our politics and health care teams who will answer your questions about how the court’s decision could play out in different states, its impact on the midterms and what it means for reproductive rights in the U.S. going forward. SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS AND REGISTER HERE .

ABORTION FALLOUT

ONE TO WATCH — FiveThirtyEight’s Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux and Nathaniel Rakich have the latest reading on a ballot measure in Kansas that would “clarify that the state’s bill of rights does not protect Kansans’ right to an abortion” and serve as “an early bellwether for how Americans are thinking about abortion in the lead-up to the midterms.”

The current takeaway: “Even though the state leans Republican, new polling and fundraising numbers suggest it’s a close race.”

By the numbers: “Most respondents (84 percent) in the co/efficient survey say the amendment has made them more likely to vote, and the poll finds that Democrats are more energized than Republicans by the issue: 94 percent of Democrats say the amendment has ‘increased the importance of voting in this upcoming election,’ compared with 78 percent of Republicans.”

ALL POLITICS

SURVEY SAYS — Some more interesting numbers from the new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll: What do Americans think is responsible for increasing inflation?

Russia’s war with Ukraine — 63% said “very” or “somewhat” responsible; 27% said “not too” or “not” responsible.

The Biden administration's policies — 61% said “very” or “somewhat” responsible; 27% “not too” or “not” responsible.

Economic sanctions on Russia — 56% said “very” or “somewhat” responsible; 30% said “not too” or “not” responsible.

Large companies having little competition — 52% said “very” or “somewhat” responsible; 31% said “not too” or “not” responsible.

Americans returning to pre-pandemic behaviors — 49% said “very” or “somewhat” responsible; 38% said “not too” or “not” responsible. Toplines … Crosstabs

IN THE GOLDEN STATE — “London Breed is beating the progressives. But is she actually fixing anything?” by Jeremy White: “The San Francisco mayor has outflanked her progressive opponents but now she has no one to blame for the city’s persistent problems with crime and homelessness.”

INTRODUCING POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY .

TRUMP CARDS

TRUMP’S LATEST CALL — Trump is contacting state officials again, this time placing a call to Wisconsin regarding the 2020 results. “Assembly Speaker ROBIN VOS says former President Donald Trump called him last week in another attempt to convince Wisconsin Republicans to decertify the state's 2020 presidential results. The conversation came after the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled absentee ballot drop boxes in the state illegal,” WISN’s Matt Smith reports . “‘It’s very consistent,’ Vos said of the call in an interview for UPFRONT. ‘He makes his case, which I respect. He would like us to do something different in Wisconsin. I explained it's not allowed under the constitution. He has a different opinion, and then he put out the tweet. So that’s it.’”

What Trump wrote on Truth Social: “Looks like Speaker Robin Vos, a long time professional RINO always looking to guard his flank, will be doing nothing about the amazing Wisconsin Supreme Court decision … What a waste of a brilliant and courageous decision by Wisconsin’s Highest Court.” (The context: “Ballot drop boxes not allowed in Wisconsin, state Supreme Court rules,” by WaPo)

DOCUMENT DUMP — The House Oversight Committee released a new trove of documents today showing that Trump administration officials attempted to influence the census for political gain, NYT’s Miriam Jordan writes . “The documents provided the most definitive evidence yet that the Trump administration aimed to exclude noncitizens from the count to influence congressional apportionment that would benefit the Republican Party, the report concluded, and that senior officials used a false pretext to build a legal case for asking all residents of the United States whether they were American citizens.”

IT’S 2020 SOMEWHERE — “A coalition of rightwing ‘constitutional sheriffs,’ who claim legal power in their jurisdictions that exceeds U.S. federal and state authorities, has a new calling: investigating conspiracy theories that the 2020 election was rigged against former President Donald Trump,” Reuters’ Peter Eisler and Nathan Layne write . “The Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association has teamed with True the Vote, a Texas nonprofit and purveyor of debunked voter-fraud claims, to recruit like-minded sheriffs nationwide to investigate 2020 stolen-election allegations and to more aggressively police future voting.”

AMERICA AND THE WORLD

NORTH KOREA WATCH — WSJ’s Alastair Gale has the details of a previously unreported confab in Omaha, Neb., in late May that brought together “dozens of U.S. intelligence officials, military officers and security analysts” to “assess the escalating nuclear threat from North Korea as the regime develops new tactical nuclear weapons.” The takeaway: “While U.S. policy remains aimed at ending the North’s nuclear status, the program is now so far advanced that the priority is preventing its use.”

TRADE DISPUTE — U.S. officials have engaged Mexico in a spat over trade, “accusing President ANDRÉS MANUEL LÓPEZ OBRADOR’s government of favoring its state-owned utility and oil company at the expense of American businesses,” WSJ’s Yuka Hayashi and Juan Montes write . “The U.S. is seeking dispute settlement consultations under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement — the first step in what could lead to tariffs on a range of Mexican products.”

PLAYBOOKERS

SPOTTED: Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) having lunch with Richard Petty at the Capitol Hill Club on Tuesday, where Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) also chatted with Petty.

MEDIA MOVES — Kristine Coratti Kelly is joining CNN as executive VP and head of global comms. She previously was chief comms officer at WaPo and general manager of its live video operation. More from Variety … David Herszenhorn is joining WaPo as Russia and Eastern Europe editor. He previously was chief Brussels correspondent for POLITICO Europe. The announcement

TRANSITION — Greta Bedekovics is now associate director of democracy at CAP. She previously was a policy adviser/professional staff member on the Senate Rules Committee under Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).

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