Judiciary Dems make a Gaetz play

Nov 20, 2024

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THE CATCH-UP

FOR THOSE KEEPING TRACK — “Venezuelan Migrant Found Guilty of Killing Laken Riley in Georgia,” by NYT’s Rick Rojas in Athens, Georgia: “The verdict followed a four-day bench trial in which prosecutors detailed a violent attack that became a flashpoint in the bitter national debate over immigration policy.”

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) looks on during a House Rules Committee hearing.

Democrats are asking the FBI for details on its investigation into Matt Gaetz. | Francis Chung/POLITICO

THE GAETZ WAY — Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee have formally requested the FBI file on former Florida GOP Rep. MATT GAETZ, who has been tapped by President-elect DONALD TRUMP to become AG, Rachael scoops.

In the letter, sent to FBI Director CHRISTOPHER WRAY and obtained by POLITICO, Democratic members of Judiciary Committee requested the evidentiary file from law enforcement’s probe into whether Gaetz engaged in child sex trafficking.

“In order for the Senate to perform its constitutional duty in this instance, we must be able to thoroughly review all relevant materials that speak to the credibility of these serious allegations against Mr. Gaetz,” reads the letter, which was signed by every Democrat of the panel except Georgia Sen. JON OSSOFF. Read the full letter

Gaetz has denied all allegations of wrongdoing.

THE BATHROOM BROUHAHA — As Rep. NANCY MACE (R-S.C.) pushes increasingly anti-transgender rhetoric in her crusade to bar transgender Rep.-elect SARAH McBRIDE (D-Del.) from using the women’s bathroom in the Capitol, Speaker MIKE JOHNSON has now weighed in with a new policy barring transgender women from using restrooms that align with their gender identities.

“All single-sex facilities in the Capitol and House Office Buildings — such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms — are reserved for individuals of that biological sex,” Johnson said in a statement. “It is important to note that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol.” The Hill’s Mychael Schnell scooped news of the policy

Our colleague Olivia Beavers pressed Johnson on the new policy, asking if it would be enforceable. “Like all House policies, it's enforceable,” he said. “And we have single-sex facilities for a reason, and women deserve women’s-only spaces. And we are not anti-anyone and we are pro-woman. I think it is an important policy for us to continue. It’s always been an unwritten policy and now it is in writing.”

Matthew Whitaker speaks during a rally.

Matt Whitaker, who previously was in the running to become AG, has been tapped as U.S. ambassador to NATO. | Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

TRUMP’S LATEST PICK — Trump said this morning that he will name former acting AG MATTHEW WHITAKER to serve as the U.S. ambassador to NATO — an organization with which Trump has vowed to play hardball with in his next administration.

Whitaker’s “foreign policy views are largely unknown,” Eric Bazail-Eimil notes. “A college football player turned prosecutor, Whitaker served as U.S. attorney for the southern district of Iowa and worked as a commentator before joining the Justice Department in 2017 as Attorney General JEFF SESSIONS’ chief of staff. Whitaker was seen as a contender for attorney general or another top law enforcement job in a second Trump administration. He has never served in a foreign policy or national security-focused role.”

Elsewhere among the admin …

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. is racing to win over skeptical anti-abortion groups and their allies as he seeks to head up HHS, Megan Messerly, Alice Miranda Ollstein and Adam Cancryn report. “Abortion opponents — concerned about Kennedy’s past comments supporting abortion access — have two major asks: that he appoint an anti-abortion stalwart to a senior position in HHS and that he promise privately to them and publicly during his confirmation hearing to restore anti-abortion policies from the first Trump administration.” Kennedy, sources say, is open to their entreaties.

“RFK Jr. wants fluoride out of drinking water. Oregon shows what’s coming,” by WaPo’s Fenit Nirappil in Lebanon, Oregon: “Just 26 percent of Oregonians using community water systems drink fluoridated water, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, compared to 72 percent of Americans overall. … The battles in Oregon illustrate how fear of fluoride spans partisan lines, tapping into distrust of authorities and mainstream science.”

LINDA McMAHON, Trump’s outsider pick to lead the Education Department, “incorrectly claimed in 2009 that she had a bachelor’s degree in education on a questionnaire for a Connecticut Board of Education post,” WaPo’s Beth Reinhard, Aaron Schaffer and Laura Meckler write. “McMahon resigned from the state education board one day after the [Hartford] Courant told her it intended to write about the error, the paper reported, but McMahon said the timing was unrelated.”

RESISTANCE ROLL CALL — “The Democratic leaders stepping up as Trump’s biggest foes,” by Liz Crampton and Lisa Kashinsky: “These are the governors, attorneys general and advocacy groups preparing to battle the incoming administration’s policy plans.”

Good Wednesday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at gross@politico.com.

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7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Senior Advisor to U.S. President Biden Amos Hochstein is pictured speaking and gesturing.

Amos Hochstein is on a mission to work out a cease-fire agreement in the Middle East. | Hussein Malla/AP Photo

1. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: AMOS HOCHSTEIN, one of President JOE BIDEN’s top envoys in the Middle East, “met with Lebanese officials for a second day on Wednesday, continuing an unusually long visit amid cautious optimism over a potential cease-fire agreement in the war between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah,” NYT’s Euan Ward reports. Hochstein “said that there had been ‘additional progress’ as a result of the latest discussions, and that he would travel to Israel later on Wednesday ‘to try to bring this to a close if we can.’”

2. WAR IN UKRAINE: The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv issued a warning early this morning that Russia could launch “a significant air attack” before shutting down the embassy and advising employees to shelter in place, NYT’s Marc Santora reports. “The warning came one day after Ukraine’s military used American-made ballistic missiles to strike into Russian territory for the first time, after receiving long-sought authorization from President Biden to do so. The Kremlin had long warned that such strikes would be treated as an escalation, and on Tuesday vowed to respond.”

Related read: “‘Frankly shocking’: Human rights groups thrash Biden’s decision to send land mines to Ukraine,” by Robbie Gramer, Nahal Toosi and Jack Detsch

Want to know what's really happening with Congress's make-or-break spending fights? Get daily insider analysis of Hill negotiations, funding deadlines, and breaking developments—free in your inbox with Inside Congress. Subscribe now.

3. RECRIMINATION STATION: The Harris campaign’s decision to cancel ads directly responding to Trump’s anti-transgender rhetoric and ad campaigns has “landed in the center of a contentious debate over how large a role transgender issues played in her party’s losses around the country,” NYT’s Adam Nagourney and Nicholas Nehamas write. “Several prominent Democrats said Ms. Harris’s relative silence was a damaging concession to Mr. Trump — and evidence that the campaign was so out of step with Americans’ views that it did not appreciate the potency of the ads.” Now, with Democrats “turning to rebuild after a demoralizing and decisive loss, the question of how the party deals with transgender rights has emerged as a challenge for the years ahead.”

4. FOR YOUR RADAR: “U.S. judge appointed by Trump criticizes ‘blanket pardons’ for Jan. 6,” by WaPo’s Spencer Hsu: “U.S. District Judge CARL J. NICHOLS, appointed by Trump in 2017 after serving as a Justice Department official under President GEORGE W. BUSH, spoke Tuesday during a hearing in which he reluctantly postponed a trial for riot defendant EDWARD ‘JAKE’ LANG until after Inauguration Day. Lang has pleaded not guilty to charges of beating police officers with a baseball bat during a lengthy assault at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. ‘Blanket pardons for all January 6 defendants or anything close would be beyond frustrating and disappointing, but that’s not my call,’ Nichols said, according to a court transcript, repeating the sentiment twice for emphasis.”

Don't just read headlines—guide your organization's next move. POLITICO Pro's comprehensive Data Analysis tracks power shifts in Congress, ballot measures, and committee turnovers, giving you the deep context behind every policy decision. Learn more about what POLITICO Pro can do for you.

5. WAR OF THE WORDS: Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN, in an exclusive interview with NBC’s Courtney Kube and Mosheh Gains, did not thrash Trump’s selection of PETE HEGSETH to succeed him in the post — but did offer an impassioned defense of women in military service. “I have spent 41 years in uniform, three long tours in Iraq, one in Afghanistan, and everywhere I went on a battlefield, there were women in our formation,” Austin told NBC. “I would tell you that, you know, our women are the finest troops in the world. Quite frankly, some of the finest in the world.” Hegseth recently said in a podcast interview that the U.S. “should not have women in combat roles” and that men are “more capable.”

6. TRUMP-PROOFING IN ACTION: “Why Biden’s $7.5B electric vehicle charger push is probably safe from Trump,” by James Bikales: “The president-elect has vowed to redirect all unspent funds from President Joe Biden’s climate programs to ‘important projects like roads, bridges [and] dams.’ But the charging money is expected to be largely insulated from Trump’s reach despite the initiative’s lagging rollout, according to experts who closely track the funding. Even though few chargers have come online so far, most of the funds will be formally committed to projects or available for states to spend by the time Trump takes office in January, which experts say will make them harder to claw back.”

7. WILD STORY: “How a brutally repressive African country freely raises money in the U.S.,” by WaPo’s Katharine Houreld: “Three years ago, the United States imposed sanctions against the ruling party of Eritrea, a small and brutally repressive country in the Horn of Africa. And yet, Eritrea’s embassy in Washington has helped raise millions of dollars on behalf of the cash-strapped country since then, while Eritrean officials acknowledge that the government and the ruling party are one.”

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PLAYBOOKERS

Lara Trump is quickly becoming a favorite to succeed Marco Rubio in the Senate.

MEDIA MOVE — Noah Bierman is joining POLITICO as White House editor. He previously was at the Los Angeles Times and is a Boston Globe alum. The announcement

OUT AND ABOUT — The Walt Disney Company, Searchlight Pictures, the Motion Picture Association and the Polish Embassy hosted a screening of “A Real Pain” last night at the MPA, featuring a conversation with Jesse Eisenberg moderated by Wolf Blitzer. SPOTTED: Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Peruvian Ambassador Alfredo Ferrero, Susan Fox, Charlie Rivkin, Bogdan Klich, Nicole Elkon, Geoffrey Pyatt, Bill Bailey, Troy Dow, Hap Rigby, John Mercurio, Jonny Powell and Stan McCoy.

— SPOTTED at the Women’s Tech & Telecom Partnership’s inaugural reception last night at Ciel Social Club: FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel, FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, Shirley Bloomfield, Nicol Turner Lee, Jasmine Vasquez, Narda Jones, Sophia Bock, Deena Shetler, Kate Black, Joi Chaney, Amy Hinojosa, Ruth Milkman, Roger Sherman, Martha Heller, Katie Ray-Jones, Portia White, Ivy Choi, Jennifer Epperson, Lisa Hone, Trooper Sanders, Priscilla Argeris, Paloma Perez, Jennifer Bixler, Richard Lukas, Breon Wells and Tom Stroup.

— SPOTTED at a party for Beth Solomon’s new book, “From Fired to Fabulous” ($13), yesterday at Martin’s Tavern, where Jack Evans gave a spirited account of his own experience: Gloria Dittus, Kenny Day, Gero Geilenbruegge, Francesca Craig, Lyndon Boozer, Tommy Quinn, Janet Donovan, Kevin Chaffee, Mignon Clyburn, Kevin Cirilli, Margaret Carlson, Didi Cutler, Marc Silverstein, Tom LoBianco, Matt Shirley, Richard Scully, Aniko Gaal Schott, Sheila Weidenfeld, Tamara and Joel Buchwald, Larry and Vesna Leamer, and Enid Doggett.

— SPOTTED at a celebration last night of the launch of La Coalición Hispana (the Hispanic Coalition), a new 501(c)(3), at Akin’s Gump Capitol Hill office: Jose Borjon, Ruben Barrales, Addison Smith, Luis Bernal, Ruth Cruz, Melisa Diaz, Javier Cuebas, Ralina Cardona, Javier LLano and Lorenzo Gabriel LLano-Cruz.

TRANSITION — Aaron Walker is joining Think Big as managing director of its new public relations and crisis comms practice. He previously was EVP at WE Worldwide and is an Edelman alum.

ENGAGED — Cara Schumann, deputy director of federal strategies at All* Above All and an Amy Klobuchar alum, and Sean Moazezi, a physician, got engaged Saturday in New Orleans. They met in Alabama while she was working on Sen. Doug Jones’ 2020 campaign. Pic

WEDDING — Rasheedah Thomas Ballou, founder of Emerald Digital Solutions and board vice chair of the Women’s Congressional Staff Foundation, and Jeff Ballou, a producer with ABC News, got married on Friday at Metropolitan AME Church in Washington, D.C, in a ceremony that was officiated by Rev. William H. Lamar IV. The candlelight reception was held in the Cosmos, where Jeff was elected to membership last summer. The two met at a mutual friend's birthday party at a rooftop bar named Whiskey Charlie in late Spring 2018. The couple also received congratulatory letters from President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris. Pic, via Myron Fields … Another pic … SPOTTED: Adrienne Todman, Fawn and Keith Weaver, Kimberly Godwin Manning, Joyce Brayboy, Clifford Brown, Hope Goins, Vicki Ballou-Watts, William Clyburn Jr., Courtney Clyburn Pope, Jennifer Clyburn Reed, Thomas Burr, Jerome Navies, Sheila Brooks and Rodney Brooks.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Carly Bird, founder and president of Bird’s Eye Consulting and a Ron DeSantis, Kevin Stitt and NRCC alum, and Eric Bird, an associate financial adviser at Davenport & Co. and a former professional soccer player, recently welcomed Roselynn Tannery Bird, who came in at 7 lbs, 1 oz. Pic … Another pic

— Olivia Gazis, intelligence and national security reporter at CBS News, and Kyle Gazis, counsel in Davis Polk & Wardwell’s white collar defense and investigations practice, welcomed Oriane Marie Gazis on Nov. 5. She’s named for the French word for sunrise and her great-grandmother, and joins big siblings Odette and Onyx. Pic

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Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM misspelled Ashraf Khalil’s name.