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PRESENTED BY

BY JOHN BRESNAHAN, ANNA PALMER AND JAKE SHERMAN
WITH MAX COHEN AND CHRISTIAN HALL

THE TOP

Happy Wednesday. We’re halfway through Christmas Week. 

New: Last night at 8 p.m., Senate Democrats dialed into a “virtual meeting” to discuss their legislative strategy on the Build Back Better Act and voting rights. Both Democratic Party priorities are on life support, thanks to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.).

A few nuggets from the call:

→ Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer reiterated that there will be a vote on a revised version of the BBB early next year. “I know we are all frustrated at this outcome. However, we are not giving up on BBB. Period. We won’t stop working on it until we pass a bill,” Schumer said, according to a Democratic source.

→ Schumer added that Democrats will take up voting rights legislation in January. If Republicans block it, then the Senate “will consider and vote on rules reform.” Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) won’t agree to get rid of the 60-vote threshold to end a filibuster, but Democrats are hoping they can convince the pair to back some changes to the procedure.

→ Manchin dialed into the meeting and addressed his fellow Democrats, according to several sources. Manchin indicated he was comfortable with Schumer’s plan, but his position hasn’t changed on BBB. Manchin noted that he’d publicly raised his concerns about inflation for months. Manchin also said he can’t support any new or expanded programs that add to the federal debt. Of course, the vote on the motion to proceed to the BBB will likely fail because Manchin is opposed to the package in its current form.

“This evening, Sen. Manchin had an honest conversation with his colleagues for whom he has a great deal of respect,” said Samantha Runyon, communications director for the West Virginia Democrat.

Overall, there really wasn’t anything new here as Schumer outlined his plan for January in that “Dear Colleague” letter on Monday. But this was the first time Senate Democrats were able to hear directly from Manchin as a group – albeit virtually – since he came out against the BBB as drafted, a serious blow to Schumer and President Joe Biden.

🚨Some more news: Senate committee staff directors held a call with the leadership Tuesday before the private, senators-only meeting. These Democratic aides got a bit more information on what the leadership plan is in the new year and where things currently stand on BBB.

→ The Byrd Bath for the BBB, which determines what is permissible in a fast-track reconciliation bill, is on hold for the moment. Republicans haven’t brought forth all of their challenges because, of course, the legislation is still being worked on.

→ The Joint Committee on Taxation scores for the tax portions of the BBB have been completed and sent to the leadership. The score for the Senate Finance Committee’s portion of the BBB is expected to be delivered during the first part of January.

→ The Senate could take up voting rights as soon as the first week of January, but if a deal seems to be anywhere within reach and senators want more time, the leadership could switch to working on the BBB, nominations or the Nord Stream 2 sanctions vote. 

→ Senate Democratic leaders haven’t decided how to handle immigration in the version of the BBB that will be voted upon next month. There’s some talk of senators hatching a fourth plan – a “Plan D” – as the Senate parliamentarian has rejected Plans A, B and C. If Democrats do come up with a new proposal, there could be Byrd problems here as well.

There’s a theory bouncing around town that a failed BBB vote will help the Senate close the door on the package as currently constructed and move Manchin and the rest of the body toward a new, smaller deal. Even Biden said Tuesday that “Sen. Manchin and I are going to get something done.” 

But there are a few caveats. New inflation data covering December will be released on Jan. 12. If it’s anywhere near as bad as November’s report, then Manchin may not be in the mood to make any deals. Furthermore, with a Democratic Senate, White House and House, can progressives accept a watered down deal that is meant to cater to Manchin? It will be an interesting few months.

OMICRON

Covid rips through Congress

Six lawmakers have announced in recent days they have contracted Covid, and sources tell us that the virus has also spread rapidly at the staff level in several Senate offices.

Lawmakers are under no obligation to announce their Covid status, so it’s completely possible that additional members have the virus. 

In the House, Reps. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) have all contracted the virus. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) have both announced positive tests.

The number of infected lawmakers has reached levels not seen since August, raising concerns about what could happen when the Senate returns on Jan. 3. The House isn’t back to Jan. 10. House members can vote remotely on the floor, while the senators have to be present in the chamber.

But lawmakers caught a break as Congress is out of session for the next two weeks for its Christmas break. Most Republican staff and lawmakers don’t wear masks, even though hundreds of people travel each week through the nation’s busiest airports to get to D.C.

HOT DOCS

A few nuggets in public records we thought you may enjoy:

→ Ryan Zinke, the former congressman and Interior secretary who is running for the House again, filed a new financial disclosure report, and here’s what we learned. Zinke has an automobile collection worth between $100,000 and $250,000 and a “family art and furniture collection” worth between $250,000 and $500,000. Zinke made $350,000 as a consultant to JVL Enterprises in Dallas and $220,000 as a consultant for ConocoPhillips, $50,000 as a consultant for Cyber Range Solutions, $68,000 as a consultant for US Gold Corp and $100,000 as a consultant for Continental Divide International. Zinke also served as a consultant or adviser for US Trinity, Oasis Petroleum, Keelen Group, DM Group and Domestic Energy Producers Alliance. 

→ Two members of the House recently took a privately funded trip to Beirut. Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) traveled to Lebanon with the American Task Force for Lebanon at the end of November, according to documents filed with the House Ethics Committee. They flew business class and stayed at the Hotel Albergo. They met with U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea, President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

→ Edaville Operations LLC, which owns Edaville Family Amusement Park in Carver, Mass., signed up O’Neill and Associates to lobby for “pandemic relief.” The firm is run by Thomas P. O’Neill III, the son of the late Speaker Tip O’Neill.

Potential Pennsylvania Senate GOP primary candidate David McCormick is on the air with his first ad buy of the campaign as he mulls entering the wide-open race. 

A wealthy hedge fund manager with no political experience, McCormick began taking concrete steps to run for Senate on Monday. Jonathan Tamari of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that McCormick, a veteran, filed IRS paperwork to create the “Friends of Dave McCormick Exploratory Committee” and also purchased the ad buy that aired Tuesday. 

In the 30-second Christmas-themed clip, McCormick makes no mention of politics. Instead, McCormick plays up his military service (he’s a Gulf War veteran) and his Pennsylvania roots on his family’s tree farm.

Watch the ad here, courtesy AdImpact.

FRONTS

MOMENTS

9:30 a.m.: President Joe Biden will get his daily intelligence briefing.

10:30 a.m.: Biden will meet with his “Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force” and CEOs.

12:30 p.m.: Jen Psaki will brief.

3 p.m.: The Covid-19 team will brief.

5:25 p.m.: Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff will fly to Los Angeles. 

CLIP FILE

NYT

→ “Menendez’s Son Prepares to Run for His Father’s Old House Seat,” by Tracey Tully

→ “McConnell to Manchin: We’d Love to Have You, Joe,” by Carl Hulse

→ “John Thune, a Likely Successor to Mitch McConnell, Weighs Retirement,” by Jonathan Martin

WaPo

→ “Biden seeks to recast pandemic fight, rejecting lockdowns and school closures as omicron surges,” by Tyler Pager, Dan Diamond and Andrew Jeong

USA Today

→ “Uncounted: Inaccurate death certificates across the country hide the true toll of COVID-19,” By Dillon Bergin, Betsy Ladyzhets, Jake Kincaid and Derek Kravitz, Brown Institute for Media Innovation and MuckRock’s Documenting COVID-19 project; Sarah Haselhorst, The Clarion-Ledger; Ashley White and Andrew Capps, The Daily Advertiser; Rudi Keller, The Missouri Independent; Nada Hassanein, USA TODAY

WSJ

→ “Unruly Passengers Will Lose TSA PreCheck, Officials Say,” by Alison Sider

Bloomberg

→ "Omicron at Least Doubles Risk of Getting Infected on a Plane,” by Angus Whitley

AP

→ “South Africa’s case drop may show omicron peak has passed,” by Andrew Meldrum

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Editorial photos provided by Getty Images