WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING -- House Democrats unveiled a highly-anticipated resolution on Tuesday that lays out the guidelines for their next — and public — phase of the impeachment inquiry. Some Democrats, however, privately fretted that the rollout of that resolution unintentionally played into the GOP’s hands and overshadowed other events this week, including damning new testimony from a White House official (more on that later.
) But first … here is some of the guidance outlined by the impeachment resolution:- The House Intelligence Committee will be in charge of the public hearings.
- Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) can add longer rounds of questioning for himself and ranking member Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), followed by the usual five-minute rounds for members. Both Schiff and Nunes may yield their questioning time to staffers.
- Schiff is authorized to publicly release the transcripts from their previous closed-door depositions with impeachment witnesses, with redactions where necessary for classified information.
- Republicans may request to call witnesses (which is technically already permitted under House rules) and issue subpoenas. In both cases, though, the requests are subject to a veto by Schiff and committee Democrats.
- Trump and his counsel are allowed to attend all Judiciary Committee hearings. Trump’s lawyers can cross-examine witnesses and make closing presentations during proceedings. The president’s counsel can also lodge objections during testimony. But that’s all subject to Democrats’ discretion.
On timing: Later today, Democrats will prep the resolution for floor debate, with a floor vote expected on Thursday.
Much more on the resolution (and how both Republicans and vulnerable Democrats feel about it) from Sarah, Heather and Kyle: https://politi.co/2JsycSz.Related reads: “Impeachment rights for Trump include loophole for Democrats to take them away,” by Roll Call’s Lindsey McPherson: http://bit.ly/2q3GvNJ; and “Appeals court delays House’s access to Mueller grand jury secrets,” via Josh Gerstein: https://politi.co/3316fcb.
VINDMANIA -- Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a top National Security Council official and Iraq war veteran, testified for 10 hours yesterday during a closed-door deposition with impeachment investigators. He is considered a crucial, first-hand witness, having been on the infamous July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukraine. Here are some of the takeaways:
— Vindman said the White House’s transcript of the call omitted crucial words and phrases and he unsuccessfully sought to correct it, report the NYT’s Julian E. Barnes, Nicholas Fandos and Danny Hakim: https://nyti.ms/2C0yxrf.
— Vindman’s testimony appears to contradict Rick Perry's repeated denials that he never heard the Bidens discussed as part of pressure campaign on Ukraine, per Ben Lefebvre and Natasha Bertrand: https://politi.co/2q7OXvf.
— Democratic lawmakers accused Republicans of using the closed-door deposition to learn the name of the whistleblower, who Trump’s GOP allies believe should be interviewed and publicly identified. More from Andrew and Kyle: https://politi.co/368IaSR.
— Top-ranking Republicans thought the attacks on Vindman’s patriotism crossed a line and went out of their way to defend him, via Burgess and your Huddle host: https://politi.co/2WrA3MH.
— Vindman’s testimony conflicts with what U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland told investigators, and now Sondland could be in trouble, per The Hill’s Olivia Beavers and Mike Lillis: http://bit.ly/2NmVF8Y.
ON TAP TODAY … “Senate Democrats get a bite at impeachment apple,” by Nahal Toosi: https://politi.co/2JvvtYs … “State Department official to testify that John Bolton warned about influence of Rudy Giuliani on Ukraine,” by CNN’s Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood: https://cnn.it/2BVyqgJ.
HAPPY WEDNESDAY! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this October 30. If you’ve ever mixed up Joaquin and Julián Castro — or been annoyed by the people who do — than boy, does WaPo have the
TUESDAY’S MOST CLICKED: The big winner was Zachary Warmbrodt’s story on the Capitol Hill birthday bash for the financial firm AIG.
FIRST IN HUDDLE -- House Republicans are pushing for a “call of the roll” instead of an electronic vote on the impeachment resolution, hoping to make it as painful and public as possible for some of their colleagues across the aisle. Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas) is currently collecting signatures for a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting that each member be required to stand up and announce their vote on the floor, a dramatic display that is typically only done when selecting a speaker.
While they don’t have much power in the minority, Republicans want to at least publicly argue their case during the House Rules Committee meeting today and floor debate. The GOP tried to pull a similar move for the passage of Obamacare.
Related: “Pelosi, Schiff Prep for GOP Impeachment ‘Stunts’ and Attempts to Out the Whistleblower,” from The Daily Beast's Betsy Swan, Erin Banco, Sam Brodey, Sam Stein: http://bit.ly/2Pw1sf5; and “Ron Johnson says his involvement in Ukraine will not cause him to recuse himself from a Senate impeachment trial,” via Craig Gilbert and Christal Hayes of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/USA TODAY: http://bit.ly/2NBP3DR.
RETIREMENT REVERSAL? -- GOP Rep. John Shimkus is reconsidering his decision to retire now that the top Republican spot on the Energy and Commerce Committee will soon be up for grabs. He also said lawmakers on the Hill and in his southeastern Illinois district have asked him to stick around. “It’s true, I am at least reconsidering,” he told reporters. That would surely be welcome news for a party that’s faced a string of high-profile retirements this year.
And if Shimkus threw his hat into the ring for the E&C post, he would likely be an immediate front-runner, given his seniority status and ties to leadership. But the senior lawmaker, who represents a district where 70 percent of voters went for Trump, could face challenges in a primary: just last month, he said he took his name off the “I support Donald Trump list” because of the Syria pullout. Now, Shimkus is trying to downplay their disagreements. The latest from Anthony Adragna and your Huddle host: https://politi.co/31Xq42R.
PIC OF THE DAY … Trump, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, NRCC Chairman Tom Emmer and Rep. Fred Upton dining on shrimp cocktail and slabs of bacon at the Trump hotel after a fundraiser.
SITUATION IN SYRIA -- From Marianne: The Trump administration will hold an all-senators briefing at 3 pm today about the situation in Syria, according to a Senate official. Among the officials who will brief the senators are Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley, Commander of U.S. Central Command Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr., Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Special Representative for Syria Ambassador James Jeffrey, and Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire.
Meanwhile, the House passed a bipartisan bill to impose sanctions on Turkey for its invasion of Syria, in another big rebuke of Trump for pulling troops from the region. The final vote tally was 403 to 16, with 15 Republicans and one Democrat, Rep. Ilhan Omar (Minn.), voting against the legislation. Much more from NYT’s Catie Edmondson: https://nyti.ms/2WoULwC.
Related: “Trump’s dealings with Turkey pave way for House vote acknowledging Armenian genocide,” by WaPo’s Paul Kane: https://wapo.st/36dPGf3.
PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW CARPETBAGGER -- A familiar name is jumping into the race for the seat being vacated by freshman Rep. Katie Hill (D-Calif.): George Papadopoulos. The former Trump aide, who helped set in motion the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, has officially filed to run. “I’m smelling blood in the water now that Katie Hill has resigned. California’s 25th congressional district is wide open for the taking” he tweeted earlier. “Someone has to step up. I love my state too much to see it run down by candidates like Hill. All talk, no action, and a bunch of sell outs.”
But Papadopoulos doesn’t even live in the district, though he is not required to do so. He also served time for making false statements to the FBI. And the field is already crowded, with former GOP Rep. Steve Knight also interested in trying to win back his seat. More from Carla Marinucci: https://politi.co/2pgf1EN.
Related: “Reporter on Katie Hill scandal promotes GOP candidates for her seat,” by Michael Calderone: https://politi.co/2pq37rQ; and “Former Rep. Katie Hill's father pushes for prosecution of 'evil' estranged husband,” via ABC News: https://abcn.ws/34iYlv7.
PLAY BALL! -- The Nats stayed in the fight last night, forcing the World Series to go to a Game 7. But there was another baseball storyline in D.C. last night: the Congressional Sports for Charity Foundation, the nonprofit organization that puts on the Congressional Baseball Game, held an event to officially award grants and scholarships to 27 different nonprofits. President Ryan Thompson says the foundation donated over $850,000 brought in from this year's game to nonprofits across D.C., plus an additional $150,000 to a new scholarship fund.
Tyler Haymore has started as chief of staff for Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.). He previously was legislative director for Budd.
Flynn Rico-Johnson, a former staffer for FirstNet and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), has been hired as Rep. Doris Matsui’s (D-Calif.) new legislative director for tech and telecom.
The House gavels in at 10 a.m., with first and last votes expected between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. Today's agenda: http://bit.ly/2N4dbOw.
The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to resume consideration of S.J.Res.52. At 12:15 p.m., the Senate will vote on S.J.Res.52.
Reps. Mike Levin (D-Calif.), Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) and Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) hold a press conference to announce the introduction of bipartisan legislation to reduce gun violence at 10:15 a.m. in Longworth House Office Building 1539.
Reps. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and Jesus Garcia (D-Ill.) hold a news conference with immigration advocates to discuss the introduction of the "New Deal for New Americans Act," at 12 p.m. on the House Triangle.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) will be speaking on the Never Again Education Act (S. 2085 and H.R. 943) at 3pm in Dirksen G-11.
Sens. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) hold a news conference to discuss new telehealth legislation at 1:15 p.m. in SD-628.
TUESDAY’S WINNER: Bradley Jaye was the first person to correctly guess that "Across the Isle" was the name of the fictional Polynesian folk band that Sens. Cory Booker and Orrin Hatch are members of on their cameo in Parks and Recreation
TODAY’S QUESTION: From Bradley: Members of this illustrious American family include a Speaker of the House during the FDR Administration, two Senators, and an internationally-acclaimed actress of stage and screen known for her outrageous personality and witticisms such as “I’m as pure as the driven slush.” Name the family. First person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess my way: mzanona@politico.com
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Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine