Meet House Oversight’s new brawlers

By Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza

With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill after the House adjourned for the night, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023, | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

Just days after House Democrats announced impeachment proceedings against DONALD TRUMP in 2019, House GOP leader KEVIN McCARTHY faced an unwanted pressure campaign from the president’s closest allies.

Lawmakers including then-Rep. MARK MEADOWS (R-N.C.) and Rep. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.) were demanding McCarthy remove moderate Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee leading the probe — members like Reps. WILL HURD (R-Texas), MIKE TURNER (R-Ohio) and ELISE STEFANIK (R-N.Y.) — and replace them with MAGA-loving bomb-throwers who could be counted on to deliver a full-throated and unqualified defense of Trump.

McCarthy refused — even after the president himself made a private request. Centrists, he believed, would have more credibility when they called foul on the Democrats’ impeachment process. Trump allies, meanwhile, would be dismissed by persuadable voters as knee-jerk partisans playing to an audience of one.

It was a shrewd approach. The Intel members that the Trump loyalists sought to oust turned into some of Trump’s most effective defenders (especially Stefanik, who used the moment to begin her MAGA makeover) and helped maintain top-to-bottom unity against impeachment in the House GOP ranks.

That strategy has now flown the coop. McCarthy this week rewarded Trump’s most bombastic allies — including some of the members who initially opposed him as speaker — with seats on the high-profile House Oversight Committee, ground zero for the GOP’s investigations of President JOE BIDEN.

The panel’s roster is set to include Reps. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-Ga.), LAUREN BOEBERT (R-Colo.), PAUL GOSAR (R-Ariz.) and SCOTT PERRY (R-Pa.), who will join the likes of Reps. JIM JORDAN (R-Ohio) and ANDY BIGGS (R-Ariz.) — a lineup sure to turn 2154 Rayburn into the Madison Square Garden of heavyweight political brawling.

It’s a risky strategy, to say the least. Voters have already signaled in polling that investigations of Biden are not exactly top of mind — meaning the Oversight panel and its chair, Rep. JAMES COMER (R-Ky.), already have a hill to climb in convincing the public that their probes have merit. That hill could become a mountain if the lawmakers involved are seen as too partisan or strident.

Down Pennsylvania Avenue, White House officials are positively giddy about the Oversight panel’s new all-star cast, convinced that they’ll be able to discredit the president’s investigators as unhinged. Our colleagues on the POLITICO White House and Congress teams reported last night that upon learning about the new roster, “the president’s aides sent texts to one another with digital high fives and likened their apparent luck to drawing an inside straight.”

Those members would be “easy to dunk on in the media,” one administration official said.

Indeed, the counterattacks write themselves. Just look at this lede by NYT’s Annie Karni about the committee’s new makeup: “They were deeply involved in President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. They have come to the defense of people being prosecuted for participating in the deadly storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Some have called for violence against their political enemies online, embraced conspiracy theories or associated with white supremacists.”

Their extremism did not end on Jan. 6, either: Gosar defended white nationalist leader NICK FUENTES as recently as September, while Greene told the New York Young Republican Club last month that if she had been leading the attack on the Capitol, rioters would have been “armed” and “we would have won.”

House Republicans counter that Democrats won’t be celebrating for long — they’re the ones with subpoena power, after all. During BARACK OBAMA’s presidency, the panel under chairs DARRELL ISSA (R-Calif.) and JASON CHAFFETZ (R-Utah) was a major headache for Democrats — accusing the administration of politically targeting conservative groups, mishandling the Benghazi terrorist attack and bungling an undercover gun operation that went awry.

Now, under Comer, it will dog Biden about his family’s financial dealings, the administration’s embarrassing Afghanistan pullout and its handling of the Covid pandemic.

Rep. JAMIE RASKIN (D-Md.), the incoming top Democrat on the panel, will no doubt have his hands full playing defense, but Comer may have the harder job: While he’s conservative through and through, the new chair is not a bomb-thrower by nature and, we hear, wants to focus the panel more on waste, fraud and abuse in government — not just HUNTER BIDEN’s laptop.

Comer could have a hell of a time managing such a bombastic group of rabble-rousers. Against his plans to dive deep on agencies, Karni notes, he “will have to balance and address the demands of committee members like Ms. Greene, who has already introduced five articles of impeachment against Mr. Biden.”

Good Thursday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.

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DEBT LIMIT LATEST — The “X date” for Congress to raise the debt ceiling or risk default will probably approach sooner than expected, thanks to the Biden administration’s student debt repayment freeze and the Fed’s ongoing interest rate increases, Zachary Warmbrodt and Victoria Guida report this morning. While the Bipartisan Policy Center predicts the date could arrive in the middle of the year, the prognosticating is more art than science; inflation and the upcoming tax filing season are outstanding variables. Still, the predictions highlight the growing sense of urgency to tackle the debt ceiling sooner rather than later.

— As the White House draws a hard line against debt limit talks, count Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) as one Democrat who is willing to negotiate with Republicans. Manchin said on Fox Business yesterday that he’s open to bipartisan work to tackle the national debt. You may want to bone up on the TRUST Act: Manchin said he’s spoken with McCarthy about pairing an increase with legislation he’s authored with Sen. MITT ROMNEY (R-Utah) that would create “rescue committees” examining Medicare, Social Security and other endangered government trust funds.

— House Financial Services Chair PATRICK McHENRY (R-N.C.) may be a pivotal player to watch in averting economic calamity, Bloomberg’s Laura Davison, Erik Wasson and Billy House report. McHenry is broadly trusted by both allies and opponents of McCarthy, and he has deep understanding of financial markets. He said last month that he wanted to separate spending questions from raising the debt ceiling but hasn’t commented since McCarthy struck a deal with his speakership holdouts. In any case, look for McHenry’s bowtie at the center of any coming negotiations.

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaks during a news conference to discuss the agency’s Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project "to develop technology and designs for a new generation of lower-emission single-aisle airliners" at the James Webb Auditorium of NASA Headquarters on January 18, 2023 in Washington, DC. | Alex Wong/Getty Images

ALL POLITICS

BATTLE FOR THE SENATE — KARI LAKE is considering and BLAKE MASTERS is “seriously” considering jumping into the 2024 Arizona Senate race, WaPo’s Liz Goodwin and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez report. Pinal County Sheriff MARK LAMB is also “seriously” considering the race and recently dined with Lake. Establishment pick KARRIN TAYLOR ROBSON is thinking about it too. (Not DOUG DUCEY, though.)

PRIMARY COLORS — The Indiana Senate GOP primary is heating up fast, with former Gov. MITCH DANIELS likely to jump in soon, and the party is readying for a tough fight between him and Rep. JIM BANKS, Adam Wren and Burgess Everett report. The primary could be the proverbial battle for the soul of the party, and Trump world is getting more invested in bolstering Banks.

POLL POSITION — Trump still comfortably leads Florida Gov. RON DeSANTIS in the latest national GOP primary poll from Morning Consult, 48% to 31%.

THE WHITE HOUSE

DOCU-DRAMA — “Inside the White House document strategy and its pitfalls,” by WaPo’s Matt Viser, Tyler Pager, Carol Leonnig and Yasmeen Abutaleb: A November DOJ letter to BOB BAUER, “with its implication that the Justice Department would take the lead in the inquiry, paved the way for the Biden team’s approach: They adopted a strategy of caution and deference, making only limited moves in coordination with federal investigators to determine the number of documents involved, their significance and how they were mishandled.

“They hoped that would earn the trust of investigators, avoid comparisons with former president Donald Trump, who is under federal criminal investigation for his own mishandling of classified materials, and end the matter quickly; instead, it yielded a political firestorm and repeated accusations of obfuscation, and instead of a speedy resolution, they now face a special counsel probe.”

KNOWING ROBERT HUR — The new special counsel’s decision to oversee the investigation into Biden’s classified documents means he’s forgoing a big payday representing the NFL at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, WSJ’s Ryan Barber, Aruna Viswanatha and Sadie Gurman report. People close to Hur tell the Journal that he didn’t feel he could say no to AG MERRICK GARLAND’s request, which required him to resign outright from the firm.

DON’T HOLD YOUR BREATH — Biden is not going to announce reelection plans before his State of the Union next month, NBC’s Mike Memoli and Carol Lee report. “We want him to be a president at State of the Union, not a candidate,” one source says. Biden still hasn’t made a final decision and rollout plans are yet in the works.

Related: “South Carolina’s James Clyburn says he is convinced Biden will seek second term,” CBS

HARRIS ON THE ROAD — The VP will head to Florida tomorrow to deliver a speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Details of when and where aren’t yet available. But the White House said Harris will call for a national bill protecting abortion rights, highlight the state-level fight on the issue and criticize Republicans as “extreme” on abortion. More from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

THAT’S A RELIEF — A biopsy showed that first lady JILL BIDEN’s eyelid growth was non-cancerous, the presidential doctor said yesterday. His memo

CONGRESS

SCARY NEWS — Rep. GREG STEUBE (R-Fla.) was injured in a roughly 25-foot fall yesterday afternoon from his roof, where he was doing routine maintenance, Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles reports. “Please pray for the Congressman and his family,” his office tweeted. They said Steube suffered several injuries but haven’t yet provided more details on his status.

THE TALENTED MR. SANTOS — Rep. GEORGE SANTOS (R-N.Y.) performed in drag in Brazil in 2008, a fellow drag queen and friend from that time told freelancer Marisa Kabas. He went by Anthony or his drag name Kitara at the time. Santos, who’s gay, has encouraged transgender people to vote Republican but has also aligned with some anti-trans people and policies in the GOP.

— Santos’ claim that his mother was in the World Trade Center on 9/11 was a lie, The Forward’s Andrew Silverstein confirms via new documents obtained by researcher Alex Calzareth. U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services records show that FATIMA DEVOLDER was in Brazil that day. In a 2003 application for a replacement green card, she said she hadn’t been in the U.S. since 1999.

— “NY Fund Manager Linked to Russian Oligarch Invested Big with Santos. Now He Claims He Was Conned,” by Mother Jones’ David Corn, Dan Friedman and Noah Lanard: “What’s the explanation for [ANDREW INTRATER’s] curious and sustained support for Santos? Intrater, Mother Jones has learned, the wealthy head of a sizable investment fund — seemingly as savvy an investor as they come — has told associates that he, like others, was conned by Santos.”

KNOWING MARIE GLUESENKAMP PEREZ — The freshman Democratic congresswoman from Washington state talks to Natalie Fertig for POLITICO Magazine about her party’s need to connect with the middle class and its blue-collar roots. “Wealthy leadership in the Democratic Party has taken it upon themselves to be champions of the poorest of the poor,” she says. “And I think that’s great, but I think that it has left a lot of people in the middle class feeling like people don’t understand the issues we’re facing. I think it’s left unaddressed a lot of really critical things that are not glamorous, lionized issues, but that beat the hell out of people’s will to persist. The indignity of supply chain problems. Catalytic converter theft. Bad infrastructure. Shit roads.”

TRUMP CARDS

WHOOPS — In a deposition last year, Trump thought a photo of sexual assault accuser E. JEAN CARROLL was actually of his ex-wife MARLA MAPLES, WaPo’s Shayna Jacobs reports from New York. That could weaken Trump’s repeated contention that he wouldn’t have assaulted Carroll because she wasn’t his type.

ALTAR CALL — “Trump criticizes evangelical leaders for not backing his 2024 presidential bid,” CNN

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JUDICIARY SQUARE

NEW NOMINEES — Biden put forth his first round of 2023 judicial nominees yesterday, including an Idaho jurist who critically has the support of the state’s two Republican senators, CNN’s Maegan Vazquez scooped.

SCOTUS WATCH — The Supreme Court declined yesterday to take up a challenge to New York’s new gun laws. There were no noted dissents to the move, which examined a petition from gun dealers. More from Reuters

POLICY CORNER

HAIL TO THE CHIEFS — The early frontrunners to replace Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. MARK MILLEY are Gen. CHARLES “CQ” BROWN, Air Force chief of staff, and Gen. DAVID BERGER, Marine Corps commandant, WSJ’s Nancy Youssef and Gordon Lubold scooped. Milley has to leave his post by the end of September.

NOBODY HOME? — “NIH missing top leadership at start of a divided Congress,” by Roll Call’s Ariel Cohen

WAR IN UKRAINE

THE NEXT TRANCHE — Tomorrow, the U.S. is expected to announce a big new package of weapons for Ukraine — and it’s expected to include Stryker armored combat vehicles but not M1 Abrams tanks, Lara Seligman and Paul McLeary report. The debate over which Western allies will provide tanks to Kyiv, and who will go first, has raged all across the Atlantic this week. But the Biden administration’s “reluctance is due to the logistical and maintenance challenges of the tanks, and not over concern that their transfer could escalate the conflict.”

Related: “Tanks, but No Tanks,” by Foreign Policy’s Jack Detsch and Amy Mackinnon

AMERICA AND THE WORLD

WARM EMBRACE — A new Welcome Corps pilot program is launching today through which groups of five or more Americans can directly sponsor individual refugees to be resettled in the U.S., CBS’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez reports. Modeled on a Canadian program, the effort aims to bring in 5,000 refugees through the end of September; each group has to raise $2,275 per refugee, along with other requirements.

DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — “Inside Yellen’s rare meeting with China’s vice premier,” by Axios’ Hans Nichols

SOUTH PACIFIC SHOCKER — “Jacinda Ardern steps down as Prime Minister: Kiwis react to PM’s shock resignation,” NZ Herald

BEYOND THE BELTWAY

HOT ON THE LEFT — “Hochul’s chief judge pick rejected by progressives in stunning defeat,” by Anna Gronewold in Albany, N.Y.

HOT ON THE RIGHT — “DeSantis’ administration tells universities to detail spending on transgender care,” by the Miami Herald’s Divya Kumar and Ian Hodgson

HOT AT USCM — “Mayors bring Biden’s border crisis to his doorstep and demand national solution,” by the Washington Examiner’s Anna Giaritelli

ONE TO WATCH — New Pennsylvania Gov. JOSH SHAPIRO took a page out of former Maryland Gov. LARRY HOGAN’s book and did away with a bachelor’s degree requirement for most state government jobs, a policy Maryland Gov. WES MOORE also is planning to maintain in his state, Axios’ Alexi McCammond reports. It’s an interesting example of two Democratic rising stars adopting a Republican jobs policy with an eye toward equity and populism.

BIG READ — “California vs. Florida: A tale of two Americas,” by the L.A. Times’ Noah Bierman: “Advisors to [California Gov. GAVIN] NEWSOM and DeSantis, who are coming off landslide reelection victories, expect competition to escalate between the two governors, who could at some point run for president. But their differences are greater than one contest between two men. They also reflect widening national schisms over culture, lifestyle and the definition of freedom — between those who see institutions as forces to lift people up and those who see them bearing down on people.”

MEDIAWATCH 

BOOK CLUB — Ahead of a new book from former Manhattan DA prosecutor MARK POMERANTZ, the DA’s office warned yesterday that its publication could harm the ongoing investigation into Trump, the N.Y. Post’s Elizabeth Rosner reports. Simon & Schuster says it’s standing behind the book, “People vs. Donald Trump” ($29.99), coming out Feb. 7.

PRESS VS. PENTAGON — Reporters are pressing DOD to let them cover U.S. training of Ukrainian troops taking place in Oklahoma, which the Pentagon has banned. More from the Pentagon Press Association

POLITICO’s exclusive interview with Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will take place on Thursday, January 19 at 1:30 PM EST – live from the Davos mountaintop. Register today to join us online.

Oprah formally presented Wes Moore as the new Maryland governor at his inauguration.

Joe Biden surprised a worker at Ghostburger by personally calling in his order.

Jerome Powell tested positive for the coronavirus.

Geoff Morrell made $119,505 per day for less than four months of work at Disney last year.

Ben Savage filed FEC papers to run for Adam Schiff’s House seat.

Chris Cillizza has launched his Substack.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Naomi Seligman is joining Whistleblower Aid as their first VP of external affairs. She helped launch Media Matters and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, and more recently accused an Eric Garcetti aide of sexual misconduct.

— Abbie McDonough is now a senior managing director at the Levinson Group. She most recently was comms director for former D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, and is a Heidi Heitkamp, Jay Rockefeller and Paul Kanjorski alum.

OUT AND ABOUT — The Motion Picture Association, MGM’s Orion Pictures and United Artists Releasing hosted a screening of “Women Talking” at MPA headquarters on Wednesday night, with a reception and a panel featuring Kelley Robinson, Shaunna Thomas, Sheila McCarthy and moderator Karen Finney. SPOTTED: Charles Rivkin, Emily Lenzner, Ian Alberg, Liz Baldick, Tyler Beardsley, Neisha Blandin, Tamara Buchwald, Gloria Dittus, Aaron Earls, Tricia Enright, Betsy Fischer Martin, Phyllis Greenberger, Nora Halpern, Meghan Johnson, Lauren Leader, Penny Lee, Kathleen and Chris Matthews, Susan McCue, Kiki McLean, Linda Moore, Lois Romano and Janna Little Ryan.

— Jeff Goldberg hosted John Hendrickson for a book talk at Politics & Prose on Wednesday night for Hendrickson’s new memoir, “Life on Delay: Making Peace with a Stutter” ($29). A party at Comet Ping Pong followed. SPOTTED: McKay Coppins, Ben Terris, Adrienne LaFrance, Nick Baumann, Eleanor Barkhorn, Margy Slattery, Elaine Godfrey, Denise Wills, Ross Andersen, Christian Paz and Marina Koren.

WHITE HOUSE ARRIVAL LOUNGE — Kristen Averyt is now director for drought and Western resilience at the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality. She most recently was senior climate adviser for Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and is a research professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

HHS MOVES — Clare Pierce-Wrobel has left HHS to serve as a policy adviser on the Domestic Policy Council. Kacey Wulff is now counselor to the secretary at HHS, and Brian Kaplun is now senior adviser to the chief of staff at HHS.

TRANSITIONS — Gary Andres is joining the House Budget GOP as staff director. He previously has held that role on Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce. … Priyanka Hooghan is now chief of staff for the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management at the Department of Energy. She previously was Democratic staff director for the House Science Environment Subcommittee. … Emily Hall is now comms director for Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas). She most recently was press secretary for Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.). …

… Vanessa Cadavillo is joining the DNC as mid-Atlantic finance director. She previously was deputy finance director for Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto’s (D-Nev.) reelect. … Marina Pearce is joining House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ team as deputy finance director. She previously was finance director for Rep. Josh Gottheimer’s (D-N.J.) campaign. … Patrick Hobart is now public engagement adviser for the Commerce Department. He most recently was special assistant to the general counsel at the DHS.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Rachel Weiss, VP of advocacy for health care at Arnold Ventures, and Adam Weiss, managing partner at FIO360, welcomed Parker Sloane Weiss on Jan. 10. She came in at 6 lbs, 8 oz, and just under 20 inches, and joins big sister Hudson. Pic… Another pic

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg … Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker … Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) … Del. Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (I-Northern Mariana Islands) … Jon Karl … UAE Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba … DOD’s Sarah Farnsworth CNN’s John Avlon and Evan McMorris-Santoro … Dan Holler of Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) office … CAP’s Anne Dechter … WaPo’s Drew Harwell and Catherine Valentine … POLITICO’s Dianne Manian … Bloomberg’s Tyler Kendall … Megan Shannon of No Labels … Philip Reeker … Jason Waskey of Civic Nation and Blue Crab Strategies … National Women’s Law Center’s Melissa Boteach (4-0) … Brennan Hart … Meta’s Caitlin Rush … Sean Downey … Mike Goodman of Cornerstone Government Affairs … Shelley Fidler … Brooke Ericson Donilon … Vice’s Subrata De … Jerry Howe of Leidos … Catie Horst … Ann Compton … Marc Schloss … Craig Turk … Adrienne Jacobs … Lori Wallach of the American Economic Liberties Project … Puru Trivedi … Clive Wren (2)

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