Clark rolls out endorsements in assistant Speaker race

Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) on Tuesday officially threw her hat in the ring in the race for assistant Speaker, rolling out a series of key endorsements aimed at showing momentum in the now three-way competition.

Clark, who as vice chair of the Democratic Caucus is the second-highest woman on the leadership team, is facing Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), who leads Democrats’ messaging arm, and Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Calif.), who runs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’s political operation.

Clark’s top endorsement from Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) — one of two co-chairs of the influential Congressional Progressive Caucus and a co-chair of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus — was a not-so-veiled shot at Cicilline. Cicilline is a vice chair of the Progressive Caucus and also serves alongside Pocan as a co-chair of the LGBT group; both Cicilline and Pocan are openly gay.

“I am glad to support Congresswoman Katherine Clark because she always puts the needs of our Democratic Caucus members first in mind,” Pocan said in a statement. “Congress serves the people and Katherine has exemplified that service in her over seven years championing populist people-first legislation in the House.”

“We need someone with her vision and commitment to bold solutions sitting at the leadership table,” he said.

Clark also rolled out support from Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.), chairman of the pro-business New Democrat Coalition; Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), a former Congressional Black Caucus chairman; and Rep. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), a Democratic National Committee official and leading Asian American lawmaker; as well as Rep. Ann Kuster (D-N.H.), Rep. Paul Tonko (D.N.Y.) and first-term Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.).

Because the Big Three leaders — Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) — are all expected to cruise to reelection and hang onto their jobs, the three-person race for assistant Speaker is shaping up to be the most high-profile Democratic leadership race this year. 

The position can be a launching pad to higher office. Current Assistant Speaker Ben Ray Luján, the first person to hold the newly created post, is poised to win a Senate seat in New Mexico this fall.

With House lawmakers returning to Washington after their long summer recess, several other Democrats jumped into leadership races. 

Two freshmen, Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), a former NFL player and the first African American to hold his Dallas-area seat, and Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), a decorated war veteran who served as one of seven prosecutors in President Trump’s Senate impeachment trial, told colleagues they are running for “Caucus Leadership Representative,” a position which represents the five most junior classes on the leadership team.  

A big question among House Democrats is whether Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) stays on as chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the 2022 cycle. She declined to say Tuesday when asked by The Hill about her future in leadership.

Standing in front of the Capitol, Bustos said she was “singularly focused” on helping reelect front-line Democrats on Nov. 3.