Two months after Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) took over as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee from Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), there’s still some bad blood between top Democrats on the panel.
Multiple Judiciary Democrats privately unloaded on the strained relationship between Raskin and Nadler, as well as the former chair’s posture toward other members of the committee.
For example, there was a dispute over Nadler seeking the subcommittee ranking posts from other colleagues in a manner that rubbed some Democrats the wrong way.
Several sources familiar with the matter cited an incident where Nadler made a last-minute play for Rep. Hank Johnson’s (D-Ga.) spot as the top Democrat of the subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet.
Nadler called Johnson eight minutes before his ranking member spot on the panel was to be announced to declare that he’d challenge the Georgia Democrat for the spot. Nadler ultimately landed as the ranker on the subcommittee focused on antitrust. That post was previously led by Rep. Lou Correa (D-Calif.).
Then there was a private fallout over some staff retention when Raskin took over for Nadler. Some of Nadler’s top staff weren’t kept on under Raskin, though sources close to the Maryland Democrat said Raskin didn’t explicitly promise to return everyone from the original staff.
“Obviously Jerry was not happy to be going, but I think Jamie’s team has tried to help him stay involved,” one Judiciary Democrat told us. “My understanding is that Nadler tried to go for a lot of different subcommittee options after stepping down.”
Raskin has tried to quell any notion of a beef between the two men. Raskin organized a celebratory dinner for Nadler last month during the Judiciary Democrats’ retreat where members could talk about Nadler’s tenure and mentorship.
“It’s excellent,” Raskin said of his bond with Nadler. “We have a great relationship.”
Meanwhile, Nadler was more terse in his view, saying that the two’s relationship is “OK.”
Nadler’s aides said the veteran lawmaker and Raskin have a productive relationship and he’s satisfied serving as the top Democrat on the antitrust subcommittee.
Committee reset: Raskin was one of a handful of younger House Democrats who challenged aging leaders following last year’s elections.
The Maryland Democrat, who is a constitutional lawyer, is already putting his own spin on the panel by expanding member engagement and hosting a retreat that included a discussion by a pair of psychologists to study ways to combat Republicans.
So far, committee members have welcomed the change with Raskin taking the helm against top Trump ally and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio.).
“He’s in his element,” said Correa. “It’s not a question of leadership style, but a knowledge base. If you look at the Constitution, there’s no better guy than Raskin.”
Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) said Raskin’s takeover has “reenergized” committee members.
Meanwhile, Jordan welcomed Raskin as his new Democratic counterpart but reflected on areas he and Nadler aligned on such as the Section 702 fight.
“I can work with both of them,” Jordan told us. “I can debate both, but I was always able to talk with Jerry when we weren’t in intense debate and we worked well together on FISA.”
