The seniority status quo
The prevailing sentiment is that upheaval atop a trio of House committees represents a sea change in how House Democrats operate, but that may not be the case after all.
First Things First
👋🏾 Hi, hey, hello! Welcome back to Once Upon a Hill. Senate Democrats will hold their leadership elections this morning. The goings-on had the potential to be interesting with Sen. Debbie Stabenow (Mich.) vacating the number-three post below Sen. Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) and Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.) upon her retirement at the end of the year. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) and Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.) had their sights set on the position but that would’ve meant senators who like both colleagues would have had to pick a side at a time when unity against Trump 2.0’s legislative agenda is paramount.
Schumer seems to have avoided this scenario: Per Stephen Neukam at Axios, Klobuchar will slide into Stabenow’s spot and Booker will elevate to the number-four spot on Schumer’s leadership team. Klobuchar and Booker get their promotions without a tumultuous face-off and Schumer ensures he starts his next stint as minority leader with a unified front.
House Democrats held their leadership elections before Thanksgiving. But the intrigue over the next few weeks will percolate at the committee level as the caucus grapples with the fallout of the general election that left them a few seats short of the majority and forced to endure at least another two years of a Republican trifecta.
Ahead of the election, House Democrats were at the forefront of the pressure campaign that ultimately succeeded in arm-twisting President Joe Biden to drop his bid for a second term after his dreadful performance at the first debate. Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) was the the second member to call for Biden to step down so it’s ironic that Grijalva would find himself on the receiving end of calls to step down as the top Democrat on the House Natural Services Committee, which has broad jurisdiction over policy related to American energy production, mineral lands and mining, fisheries and wildlife, public lands, oceans, Native Americans, irrigation and reclamation.
Grijalva missed time this year while receiving treatment for cancer and although he says he’s up to the task of leading the opposition against the Trump administration and Hill Republicans’ promise to undo much of Democrats’ progress towards a clean energy economy and he has the backing of top Congressional Hispanic Caucus members, his colleagues think otherwise.
For weeks, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) had called on Grijalva to pass the torch as the top House Natural Resources Democrat, a request the Arizona Democrat rejected until yesterday.
“After much thought, I have decided that it is the right moment to pass the torch as top Democrat on the House Natural Resource Committee for the 119th Congress. I do not make this decision lightly, as being elected ranking member stands as the honor of my professional career,” he said in a statement. “I will continue to focus on improving my health, strengthening my mobility, and serving my district in what is likely to be a time of unprecedented challenge for our community.”
Another committee of consequence next Congress will be Judiciary, which has counted Rep. Jerry Nadler (N.Y.) as the top Democrat since the start of Trump’s first term. Nadler is well-respected within the caucus and probably would have remained unchallenged had Democrats kept the White House or won back the House. But with Trump telegraphing his intention to weaponize the Justice Department for his own political satisfaction with his picks to lead the agency, Democrats are wary Nadler’s style and demeanor is a match for the next MAGA era.
The Oversight Committee has become a model for how to push back against the MAGA right with style and substance. And some members are hoping Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.), the top House Oversight Democrat, can transform Judiciary in its image.
Raskin answered the call yesterday when he announced his intention to run to be the House Judiciary ranker.
“This is where we will wage our front-line defense of the freedoms and rights of the people, the integrity of the Department of Justice and the FBI, and the security of our most precious birthright possessions: the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the rule of law and democracy itself,” he wrote in a letter to colleagues on Monday. “I am ready to enter this battle with every fiber of my being.”
Before the Thanksgiving break, Rep. Jim Costa (Calif.) and Rep. Angie Craig (Minn.) announced they would challenge Rep. David Scott (Ga.), the top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, who like Grijalva has faced health setbacks that have given members pause that he has the stamina and acuity to match wits with the modern GOP. Unlike Grijalva though, Scott hasn’t stepped down and has said multiple times he doesn’t intend to. We shall see.
It’s worth noting that the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee ultimately recommends committee assignments to the full caucus. But leadership has publicly taken a hands-off approach and seems content to let the members work their will ahead of the formal assignment process.
The prevailing sentiment is that the upheaval among the trio of committees represents a sea change in how House Democrats operate. While House Republicans limit their committee chairs or ranking members to three consecutive terms without a waiver, Democrats have no term limits for committee leadership and prioritize seniority to diverse members who may otherwise be bypassed by white colleagues, a status quo upheld by the influential Congressional Black Caucus.
But critics of the seniority system point to how it boxes out younger talent who may grow tired of waiting and leave Congress altogether or drag down morale within the caucus.
“It’s time for the old guard to step down,” a Democratic operative told me on Monday. “The party remains committed to seniority, mostly at its own detriment.”
Still, a junior CBC member told me that they believe seniority still matters—even if it means it takes them longer to receive a gavel.
“I think deference matters, especially for members who have been on committees for a while, have become experts on the issues and understand the dynamics of the committee,” the member added.
Proximity to power usually determines where fall in the seniority debate with those at arm’s length from it disliking it and members who sit at the top enjoying it.
“Everybody hates the status quo until they get to enjoy its benefits for themselves.”
Happenings
The House will meet at 12 p.m. with first and last votes at 6:30 p.m. on several bills to be considered under suspension of the rules.
The Senate will meet at 12 p.m. and recess from 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. for the weekly party lunches. Senators will vote to confirm Sparkle Sooknanan to be the US District for the District of Columbia and Catherine Henry to be the US District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Do you have questions about the lame-duck session or the incoming Trump presidency? Drop me a line at michael@onceuponahill.com or send me a message below to get in touch and I’ll report back with answers.
In the Know
— Sen. Schumer sent a letter to incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to allow senators to provide advice and consent on each of President-elect Trump’s nominations. “In our system of checks and balances, the Senate plays a vital role in ensuring the president appoints well-qualified public officials that will dutifully serve the American people and honor their oaths to the Constitution,” Schumer wrote. “Regardless of party, the Senate has upheld this sacred duty for generations and we should not and must not waiver in our Constitutional duty. We look forward to joining you in these efforts as soon as possible once the Senate and its committees are organized in January.”
— House Financial Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) introduced two bipartisan measures to highlight the impact of artificial intelligence on the financial services and housing industries. McHenry sponsored a resolution acknowledging the growing use of AI in those industries while Waters put forward a bill to direct the federal financial regulators to study the present and potential benefits and risks of AI in the financial and housing markets. The committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday morning on how technology is shaping the future of finance.
— The Biden administration announced a $725 million security assistance package for Ukraine. It includes artillery, rockets and air defense capabilities as part of a surge in assistance President Biden committed to in September. Before he leaves office in mid-January, the administration said it will deliver hundreds of thousands of additional artillery rounds, thousands of additional rockets and other critical capabilities to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position to negotiate a just peace with Russia amid fears President-elect Trump will halt US aid to Ukraine.
Read All About It
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“The most perverse part of the Hunter Biden pardon” by Mark Joseph Stern: “If Biden really wants to correct injustices, he could start by commuting the sentences of all 40 men on death row today.”
“Dear Texas teachers: Good luck” by Mark Minster: “‘Bible stories in public kindergarten’ might sound good to some Christians. But just think about it for two minutes.”
“The survivors of child sex abuse who don’t want their abusers punished” by Roxanna Asgarian: “We assume that victims will find closure when the people who hurt them are imprisoned. But many say that to heal, they need something else entirely.”
“The great grocery squeeze” by Stacy Mitchell: “How a federal policy change in the 1980s created the modern food desert.”
“Jimmy Wales on why Wikipedia is still so good” by Benjamin Hart: “After almost a quarter-century, the online encyclopedia remains an internet oasis.”
“When ESPN was a bunch of ‘rebels without a clue’” by B.J. Shecter: “At the 45th anniversary reunion with the pioneers who changed both sports and television.”
“What corporate baddies and tradwives actually have in common” by Rachel E. Greenspan: “These two diverging displays of womanhood online have a common source.”
“A ‘radical’ approach to reclaiming your attention” by Kaitlyn Tiffany: “It’s not just about putting your phone away.”
“The rise of the random destination wedding” by David Mack: “Expensive, difficult-to-get-to weddings in places the couple have little to no relationship to are, against guests’ wishes, becoming the norm.”
“Don’t throw a holiday party. Host a game night” by Katja Vujić: “From mancala to Wavelength, games can offer a ‘social scaffolding’ for your holiday party to build on.”
The Bright Side
— The Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed rule on Monday to limit the level of chlorpyrifos, an insecticide that can cause neurological effects such as tremors, fatigue and nausea. The rule is in response to a decision by a federal appellate court that reinstated chlorpyrifos tolerances and supports EPA’s efforts to cancel most uses of the chemical on food to reduce exposure and protect public health. The agency estimates the average annual pounds of chlorpyrifos could decrease by 70 percent if it is limited to the 11 foods that remain registered following the court’s decision.
— The US Capitol Christmas tree lighting ceremony will take place this evening at the West Front. A few miles away from the Hill, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden officially unveiled this year’s White House holiday theme: “A Season of Peace and Light.”
During remarks in the East Room to offer her holiday message to the nation and thank the volunteers from across the country who helped decorate the White House for the season, Dr. Biden noted that this year marks her and President Biden’s last holiday season in the White House.
The first lady said she and President Biden have “opened the doors of the People’s House wider and wider, so we can bring the light of more Americans into these halls.”
“It's been the honor of our lives to serve as your first family,” the first lady added. “May our nation be blessed with peace and light this holiday season.”
The White House expects to welcome approximately 100,000 visitors during the holiday season. Additionally, over the course of the holidays, a variety of interactive viewing experiences will launch on digital platforms, allowing people to engage with the White House during the holidays from home.