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April 12, 2023
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PRESENTED BY
THE TOP
Happy Wednesday morning.
News: The Democratic National Committee is parting ways with Democratic super lawyer Marc Elias, multiple sources told us Tuesday.
The DNC and Elias had a number of strategic disagreements, according to sources familiar with the internal deliberations.
Elias has represented the DNC since 2009. His firm, the Elias Law Group, represents all of the major Democratic entities in Washington. Elias will continue to work for the DCCC, DSCC, DAGA and DLCC. And Elias counts a slew of senators and members as clients.
Most notably, Elias, a former partner at Perkins Coie, has been behind what he calls the “Democracy Docket” — an array of voting rights challenges nationwide. On Tuesday, Elias said this covered 45 cases in 18 states. And Elias has a knack for winning these cases, raising the ire of Republicans.
Elias’ firm has pulled in roughly $100,000 this year already from the DNC, according to FEC filings. In the 2022 cycle, the DNC paid Elias’ firm just shy of $2 million, according to campaign reports.
Ammar Moussa, a spokesperson for the DNC, told us this:
A spokesperson for the Elias Law Group said:
Tim Scott gets closer: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is launching a presidential exploratory committee today, another step toward an official White House run. Caitlin Byrd from The Post and Courier broke the news on Tuesday night:
Creating an exploratory committee allows the 57-year-old Scott — who easily won another Senate term last November — to act like a presidential candidate without being one, which he’s been doing anyway. Scott can conduct polls, travel and speak to others about whether he should formally become a candidate.
Under federal rules, once Scott has raised or spent more than $5,000, he must declare his candidacy. So the exploratory committee can then become the presidential campaign.
Former President Donald Trump — who Scott has strongly backed in the past — is already running, of course. As is former South Carolina GOP Gov. Nikki Haley. Haley appointed Scott to the Senate in early January 2013 to replace retiring Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.). Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is widely expected to seek the Republican nomination as well.
If he gets in, Scott will likely run as an upbeat, optimistic candidate of faith who sees a bright future for this country and the Republican Party. His humble roots and rise to political prominence are inspiring. And Black voters overwhelmingly vote Democratic, so Scott stands out as a Black Republican.
But the GOP vibe for a while has been that America’s best days are behind it, particularly since Trump arrived on the scene. We’ll see how Scott’s cheerfulness plays in the current Republican Party.
The Coverage
| → | NYT: “Tim Scott Set to Announce Presidential Exploratory Committee for 2024,” by Maya King and Shane Goldmacher |
| → | CNN: “Sen. Tim Scott plans to launch 2024 exploratory committee Wednesday,” by Kate Sullivan and Shania Shelton |
– Jake Sherman, John Bresnahan and Heather Caygle
OVERSEEING OVERSIGHT
House GOP fight with Bragg heads to court
The clash between Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is heading to federal court, where it was always likely to end up.
Bragg’s lawsuit Tuesday ratcheted up the stakes in the ongoing dispute over what Congress can do to probe the indictment of former President Donald Trump. Trump was indicted last week on 34 felony counts by a Manhattan grand jury. Jordan responded to the Trump indictment by ramping up his own investigation into Bragg’s office.
Bragg is seeking to block the enforcement of Jordan’s subpoena against former prosecutor Mark Pomerantz, who led the Trump probe for the Manhattan DA’s office until he resigned in February 2022. Bragg’s attorneys argued that the Judiciary Committee’s subpoena is “unconstitutional” and part of “an unprecedented, illegitimate interference by Congress that lacks any legal merit and defies basic principles of federalism.”
Make no mistake: This is an aggressive — if not totally unexpected — move from Bragg. Rather than sit back and wait for more subpoenas, Bragg is trying to take the fight directly to Jordan. Privately, Democrats have told us they wished the White House would respond similarly to the barrage of investigations launched by House Republicans.
In response, Jordan slammed Bragg during a Tuesday night appearance on Fox News:
U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil — a Trump appointee — rejected Bragg’s efforts to obtain a temporary restraining order and preliminary order barring enforcement of the Pomerantz subpoena. Vyskocil scheduled an April 19 hearing on the matter. Judiciary Committee Republicans have scheduled an April 20 deposition for Pomerantz.
Also: We have some news on the Democratic response to Jordan’s New York City hearing next Monday. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries convened a call Tuesday with Judiciary Democratic staff and key anti-gun violence stakeholders to discuss a response to Jordan’s planned session, which is designed to show Manhattan has become hell on Earth under Alvin Bragg.
– Max Cohen and John Bresnahan
WASHINGTON X THE WORLD
Jeffries’ first codel will include a stop in Africa
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries will visit Ghana on the first congressional delegation trip that he’s leading, according to sources familiar with the planning.
Jeffries is taking a group of House Democrats to Ghana during his high-profile swing to Israel later this month. Speaker Kevin McCarthy is also taking a group of members to Israel at the end of April.
Ghana, of course, is the home to Cape Coast Castle, a terrible landmark in the trans-Atlantic slave trade with the United States. Jeffries, the first Black leader of either party on Capitol Hill, wanted to make a trip to Ghana, in part, to visit the castle. There’s also a large Ghanaian community in Brooklyn, which Jeffries represents.
Former President Barack Obama visited the castle in 2009, while Vice President Kamala Harris spoke there just weeks ago. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi also visited with members of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2019.
– Jake Sherman and Heather Caygle
PRESENTED BY BAYER
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THE CAMPAIGN
News: More additions to the DCCC’s senior staff
We got our hands on some new additions to the DCCC’s senior staff for the 2024 cycle. House Democrats are narrowly in the minority and like their chances of flipping the House in 2024. Here’s the team that will be tasked with winning the chamber under DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene’s guidance.
| → | Will Van Nuys, national political director. Van Nuys was the DCCC’s western political director for the 2022 cycle and managed Rep. Ami Bera’s (D-Calif.) reelection campaign in 2018. |
| → | Courtney Rice, communications director. Last cycle, Rice was Nan Whaley’s communications director during Whaley’s bid for governor for Ohio. Rice was the DCCC’s Midwest regional press secretary in 2020. |
| → | Rahul Chopra, research director. Chopra was research director for Sen. Mark Kelly’s (D-Ariz.) victory over Blake Masters, a campaign that was defined by some damaging opposition research on the Republican challenger. |
| → | Jonathan Cousimano, senior director for membership engagement. Cousimano has worked at the member engagement department for the past two cycles. |
| → | Brandi Woods, national candidate fundraising director. This is Woods’ second straight cycle in the role. Woods joined the DCCC in 2020 and has previous experience working with PACs and as a fundraising consultant. |
| → | Kate Magill, director of litigation and voter protection. Magill worked as voter protection director in Iowa for Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign. |
| → | Nick Richardson, national digital director for campaigns. Richardson previously served as the digital director for the DCCC’s independent expenditure arm. |
| → | Steve Moran, polling and modeling director. Moran was the DCCC’s deputy polling and modeling director in the 2022 cycle and has also worked at the National Democratic Redistricting Committee. |
| → | Grant Hamersma, analytics campaigns director. Hamersma was a regional analytics director for the DCCC in 2022 and worked on 15 competitive races. |
| → | Seong Kim, analytic programs director. Last cycle, Kim was the DCCC’s analytics director for the campaign arm’s sunbelt region. |
– Max Cohen
THE MONEY GAME
Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) raised an impressive $5 million for his reelection bid in the first quarter of 2023, his campaign announced Tuesday. Tester is a top target for Senate Republicans, who believe they can defeat him in the ruby-red state — though they haven’t coalesced around a candidate quite yet.
We also have a number of spring-themed fundraising events for you today.
From April 14-16, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) is hosting donors at the Eden Roc Miami Beach Resort. Tickets for the weekend, which benefits the Democrats Win Seats PAC, range from $1,500 to $5,000.
Over on the West Coast, Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) is raising money in Napa Valley to support her GWEN PAC. Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.) is the special guest at the weekend event at Meritage Resort & Spa.
On April 27, New Democrat Coalition Chair Annie Kuster (D-N.H.) is hosting a rosé soirée from 5-6 p.m. in D.C. House Minority Whip Katherine Clark and Reps. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), Lois Frankel (D-Fla.) and Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) will be joining Kuster. Check out the appropriately festive invite:
— Max Cohen and Andrew Desiderio
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