with help from Sarah Ferris and Marianne LeVine
ADVENTURES IN SONDLAND -- Get ready for the biggest wild card yet in the public impeachment hearings: Gordon Sondland. The U.S. ambassador to the European Union has already amended his closed-door testimony once to say he did, in fact, tell Ukraine that they likely wouldn’t get military aid unless they investigated President Donald Trump’s political rivals.
And Sondland may have donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration committee, but he refused to back Trump for president in 2016. Both parties are eager to pierce his credibility, which means Sondland may wind up as impeachment roadkill. Here’s how:For Democrats … They will hammer Sondland for omitting evidence from his closed-door testimony and press him on new revelations that have popped up in other witness testimony. Democrats view him as a marquee witness, because he was one of Trump’s point men on Ukraine, was in regular contact with the president and sat in on nearly every meeting being scrutinized by investigators.
For Republicans … They will try to paint Sondland as a rogue actor who was just trying to impress the president by muscling his way into meetings on the U.S.-Ukraine relationship. Expect the GOP to try to put distance between Trump and Sondland, with Republicans arguing that the ambassador was just overexaggerating his close relationship to Trump. Much more from Kyle and Andrew: https://politi.co/37oHCss.
Related read: “Sondland testimony cliffhanger: Will he vindicate or implicate Trump?,” via Roll Call’s Lindsey McPherson: http://bit.ly/2XxsFQr.
IMPEACH-A-PALOOZA -- Yesterday was a marathon day of hearings, featuring testimony from four top national security officials who all had first-hand knowledge of Trump’s communications with Ukraine.
Some standout moments include Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman and Jennifer Williams both calling Trump’s July 25 phone call inappropriate … Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) ripping into the media … Kurt Volker trying to clean up his closed door testimony ... and Democrats accusing the GOP of trying to out the whistleblower.Related: "Aides bring impeachment inquiry directly into the White House,” via Sarah D. Wire, Molly O’Toole and Del Quentin Weber of the Los Angeles Times: https://lat.ms/335qViz.
I’D DO ANYTHING FOR TRUMP, BUT I WON’T DO THAT -- Republicans have thrown everything at the wall when it comes to defending Trump from impeachment. But there's one tactic they won't try out: Trump's vicious or personal attacks on the impeachment witnesses. That dynamic was once again on full display Tuesday, when most GOP members went out of their way to praise Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a decorated war hero and national security aide who has been subject to baseless attacks on the right about his patriotism.
To be sure: the Republican approach is more a difference of style than substance, as the GOP has made clear that part of their strategy involves undermining the witnesses (and Dems took issue with a GOP attorney’s line of questioning that they said was a veiled attack on Vindman’s loyalty.) But overall, Republicans are clearly uncomfortable embracing Trump's scorched-earth defense tactics, which the GOP openly admits make their job tougher. “There’s no need to attack,” said Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.). “I think the better position to take is: there’s nothing impeachable.” The dispatch from your Huddle host: https://politi.co/330BDXr.
Related: “Trump White House Blasts Out Anti-Vindman Talking Points to Surrogates,” from The Daily Beast’s Asawin Suebsaeng and Sam Stein: http://bit.ly/346ycjj.
MURPHY WEIGHS IN … “Chris Murphy offers House investigators own account of Ukraine visit,” via Marianne: https://politi.co/2O5tmgP.
WE’RE HALFWAY THERE! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday, November 20. This GIF of McClatchy’s Emma Dumain
WEDNESDAY’S MOST CLICKED: The Hill’s report on the Judiciary Committee’s planned markup of a cannabis reform bill was the big winner.
GIRL GETS THE GAVEL -- Rep. Carolyn Maloney is expected to win caucus-wide approval on Wednesday to lead the House Oversight Committee — the first woman in the role — after clinching the nomination from the caucus’s steering group. Maloney won a runoff against Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) within the House Steering Committee on Tuesday afternoon, with a final vote of 35 to 17. The full caucus will now vote, though it's rare for members to override a steering nomination. Rep. Stephen Lynch was also running for the position.
Maloney’s win comes after she landed an endorsement from House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn in the final stretch of the contest. Supporters of the New York Democrat believe she’d already locked it up, but other Democrats say Clyburn’s nod likely put her over the top. The scoop from Sarah: https://politi.co/2D12592.
USMC-A LOTTA TALK, NOT A LOTTA ACTION -- Freshman Democrats voiced their frustrations directly to a key labor leader on Tuesday as the timeline for a big trade deal with the White House appeared to slip into 2020. The first-term Democrats emerged from a meeting with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka — who’s been embroiled in talks with the White House and top Democrats — with little hope of a deal by year’s end — a big disappointment to centrists who want to vote on anything but impeachment.
And, of course, plenty of sports metaphors: “He still says we’re at the five yard line,” said Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), but added: “It feels like we’ve been at the five yard line for a while.” Rep. Donna Shalala (D-Fla.), former president of the University of Miami, added with a chuckle: “They don’t understand football.” More from Sarah, Heather and Megan Cassella: https://politi.co/2XxbMFF.
Related: “House moves to avert shutdown, but border wall fight dominates spending talks,” by Caitlin Emma: https://politi.co/2qtIRWE.
VAWA DRAMA -- Sen. Joni Ernst and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer traded jabs Tuesday over the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Ernst accused Schumer of trying to stymie progress on the bill to thwart a win ahead of her 2020 re-election campaign, while Schumer claimed the Iowa Republican is “afraid of the NRA.” The rare conflict suggests tensions are running high ahead of next year’s election, where Ernst holds a competitive seat. “Basically anybody that’s up in 2020, Schumer doesn’t want to move on legislation sponsored by them,” Ernst told reporters Tuesday morning.
But Schumer retorted that Ernst’s bill is not enough. “Ask Sen. Ernst if she believes a boyfriend of a woman who has gotten a protection order issued against him should get a gun? Sen. Ernst evidently believes yes,” Schumer said. Ernst is set to introduce her legislation this week, after bipartisan talks with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) fell through. The House passed its own version of VAWA in April, which broadened the domestic violence law by adding language to ensure that people convicted of dating violence or stalking cannot obtain a firearm. Feinstein introduced her version of the House-passed bill last week. More from Marianne and Burgess: https://politi.co/2r7XnU4.
Related: “2020 Republicans accuse Schumer of snubbing legislation,” by The Hill’s Jordain Carney: http://bit.ly/37n7GUO.
STILL PINING FOR POMPEO -- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo might be under fire for his role in the Ukraine saga — but he is still seen as a GOP savior in the Kansas Senate race, reports McClatchy. The National Republican Senatorial Committee’s executive director even called on lawmakers, lobbyists and donors at a recent fundraiser to encourage Pompeo to run. Republicans worry that if Pompeo sits out, then Kris Kobach, the polarizing former Kansas secretary of state who already lost a statewide race, will lock up the primary — and make it harder for the GOP to win in the general election. The story from Francesca Chambers and Bryan Lowry: http://bit.ly/2qlB2T9.
Related: “Sondland Kept Pompeo Informed on Ukraine Pressure Campaign,” via NYT’s Michael Schmidt: https://nyti.ms/336hy1Q.
TOASTS AND TEARS -- For a brief moment yesterday, congressional leaders from both parties came together and took a break from the partisan impeachment grind to celebrate former Speaker John Boehner. And there were plenty of jokes — and tears — to go around at his portrait unveiling in the Capitol. But the bipartisan, feel-good moment felt like a bygone era. WaPo’s Paul Kane explains why: https://wapo.st/2Xwi0oW.
Zach Prager is leaving Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio)'s office later this year where he has been a legislative fellow. He will be headed back to the fleet with the Navy in a month and will be stationed on board the PCU John F. Kennedy in Newport News, Va., as the Command Judge Advocate.
Michael Howard will take over as communications director for Rep. Ron Wright (R-Texas). He previously worked on Governor Charlie Baker's 2018 re-election campaign before coming to Wright's office in January.
The House gavels in at 10 a.m., with first and last votes expected between 5 and 6 p.m. Today’s agenda: http://bit.ly/2KF1xtx.
The Senate meets at 10 a.m. to resume consideration of the nomination of Barbara Lagoa to be a U.S. circuit judge for the 11th Circuit, post-cloture. They will vote on Lagoa's nomination at 11:30 a.m.
Reps. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Doug Collins (R-Ga.) will be honored with the 2019 Javits Prize for Bipartisan Leadership at 9 a.m. today in Russell 325.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force hold a media availability to discuss "the bipartisan background checks legislation” at 9:30 a.m. at the Will Rogers stakeout location.
Rep. Jesus Garcia (D-Ill.) holds a news conference "demanding justice for Mexican unionists and strengthened labor standards in the revised NAFTA to end the violence against workers." at 10:30 a.m. on the House Triangle.
Reps. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.), Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.), French Hill (R-Ark.), Robert Wittman (R-Va.) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) hold a news conference to announce the Task Force chairs for the Suburban Caucus at 11:15 a.m. in HVC Studio B.
Jeffries, Reps. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.) and Sharice Davids (D-Kansas), and the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus will recognize Transgender Day of Remembrance and hold press conference with actress and trans activist Angelica Ross at 1:30 p.m. outside of HVC-210.
The Congressional Tri-Caucus and the Butterfly Effect hold an event to mark the Universal Day of the Child and call for support of immigrant children who "have been or are currently in U.S. detention facilities" at 2:30 p.m. in Longworth 1539.
Rep. Filemon Vela (D-Texas) holds a news conference with Mexican Ambassador to the United States Martha Barcena Coqui on Migrant Protection Protocols at 2:30 p.m. on the House Triangle.
TUESDAY’S WINNER: Meghan Johnson was the first person to guess that in 1998 the House Judiciary Committee hired Jim Jordan, a communications expert, to run their messaging defense of Bill Clinton heading into his impeachment hearings.
TODAY’S QUESTION: From yours truly: What job did John Boehner have at the age of 8? 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