NotedDC — Congress faces packed post-Thanksgiving calendar

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Lawmakers won’t get much time hanging out in a turkey-fueled stupor this holiday, with some big-ticket items facing Congress in the final five weeks of the year.

The Senate will hold the next procedural vote Monday on a bill to codify same-sex marriage protections. Last week, 62 senators — including 12 Republicans, enough to overcome a filibuster — voted to begin debate. Expect a final vote soon after.

Also Monday, the Committee on Caucus Procedures will vote on whether to recommend an amendment that would put the Democratic leader in charge of nominating the chair of House Democrats’ campaign arm, Punchbowl News reported.

On Nov. 30, House Democrats hold leadership elections and will select new members for the top three positions as longtime party leaders Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), Steny Hoyer (Md.) and Jim Clyburn (S.C.) step away from those roles.

Getting into the final month of the year: Georgia holds its Senate runoff election between incumbent Raphael Warnock (D) and Herschel Walker (R) on Dec. 6.

Senate Democrats will also hold leadership elections that week. Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is running for the role again. Dick Durbin (Ill.) is seeking reelection to the second-ranking whip position. Schumer is nominating Patty Murray (Wash.), who is stepping down from the No. 3 spot of Assistant Democratic Leader to instead become President Pro Tempore — third in the presidential line of succession.

The stopgap funding bill passed in September expires on Dec. 16, making it the deadline for a government funding bill.

House Republicans will also have their second day of voting on proposed GOP conference rules changes after the holiday, though we’re not sure exactly when. The first day of voting was last week.

Another thing we can expect is a vote on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This is typically done at the end of the year. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who may be the next Speaker of the House, has pushed to delay the vote until next year when Republicans control the House. House Armed Services Committee Chair Adam Smith (D-Wash.) has panned that suggestion.

A few more things we could see before year’s end and before a new Congress is sworn in Jan. 3: A vote on raising the debt ceiling, the return of Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) permitting reform proposal and further action on the Electoral Reform Act.

This is NotedDC, we’re The Hill’s Liz Crisp and Amée LaTour. Have a tip or something you want to share? Email us at ecrisp@digital-stage.thehill.com and alatour@digital-stage.thehill.com.

🦃 Biden’s Thanksgiving getaway could be big for ’24

President Biden is sticking to family tradition, spending the Thanksgiving holiday on Nantucket island in Massachusetts this week.

But this year’s gathering could have huge implications as he mulls his political future in 2024, as he gathers input from his tight-knit family.

“This is, ultimately, a family decision,” he told reporters earlier this month. “I think everybody wants me to run … we’re going to have discussions about it.”

• Biden, who just celebrated his 80th birthday on Sunday, has said he plans to run for reelection but also has left the door open to a final decision.
  
• And as more and more Republicans gear up to launch their own White House campaigns — former President Trump has already made his 2024 bid official — expect more chatter surrounding Biden’s plans entering 2023.

Bidens’ Thanksgiving plans: The family is expected to stay on Nantucket through Sunday — a tradition that dates back decades. The Bidens are celebrating at the home of billionaire David Rubenstein, where they also spent Thanksgiving last year.

The president and first lady Jill Biden held a Friendsgiving meal for military families at Fort Bragg, N.C. on Monday after taking part in the annual White House turkey pardoning ceremony.

Before heading out Tuesday, they helped pack Thanksgiving meal kits at DC Central Kitchen.

ICYMI: The White House released a list of talking points “for when chatting with your uncle at Thanksgiving” — highlighting Biden’s accomplishments during his first two years in office.

Highlights touch on infrastructure and job creation, noting bipartisan efforts, but the last section takes an explicit dig at Republicans, calling them “EXTREME.”

Read more here.  

🏔 What to watch in Alaska’s election results

Alaska will run its ranked-choice voting (RCV) tabulations Wednesday night (and you can watch the action live at 8 p.m. ET!).

In addition to the high-profile U.S. House and Senate elections, where Rep. Mary Peltola (D) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) are favored to win, state legislative elections are worth keeping an eye on.

The results, potentially along with months of negotiations, will determine whether minority party-heavy coalitions control one, both or neither legislative chamber in 2023.

A bipartisan coalition has undercut Republicans’ numerical majority in the 40-member state House since 2017. Currently, Republicans hold 21 state House seats, Democrats hold 15 and unaffiliated or independent members hold the remaining four.

House Speaker Louise Stutes is a Republican, with Democrat Chris Tuck serving as Majority Leader and Republican Cathy Tilton as Minority Leader. Stutes, along with Republican Kelly Merrick, are members of a coalition with the Democrats and unaffiliated and independent members.

According to Ballotpedia, “While bipartisan coalitions are not all that uncommon in state legislatures … bipartisan coalitions that have succeeded in controlling who holds the chamber’s top leadership position are relatively rare.”

Ballotpedia noted similar instances in California, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, and New York since 1994.

Republicans have both a numerical and effective majority in Alaska’s 20-member state Senate. The GOP holds 13 seats, and Democrat Lyman Hoffman caucuses with the party, Daily Kos reported. But Democrats may have gained a couple seats in the midterms, and Merrick (of the current House majority coalition) won a state Senate seat outright with a majority of the vote on Nov. 8. This could spell “coalition” for the state Senate next year.

Check out Daily Kos’ rundown of specific districts to watch. 

💰 Georgia race nears $50M radio, TV ad spending

The race for Georgia’s Senate seat — the only midterm still in question in the upper chamber where Democrats have managed to hang onto a thin majority — is expected to become the most expensive of the cycle.

There’s nowhere that’s more apparent than in the amount of money being poured into radio and television ads, with Medium Buying reporting that it’s now topped $48.6 million for the runoff alone — with nearly two weeks to go until the Dec. 6 vote.

Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) and Republican rival Herschel Walker are locked in a heated battle, with polls showing Warnock with a slight edge. A Warnock win would give Democrats 51 votes in the upper chamber, padding their chances to approve President Biden’s nominees and other priorities.  

According to Medium Buying, a 30-second spot during the SEC Championship Game between LSU and Georgia, on Dec. 3, on Atlanta’s CBS affiliate WANF would run either candidate $120,000.

Worth noting: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R), who easily won reelection, has cut an ad for Walker. The ad is part of a $14.2 million advertising campaign funded by the Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC linked to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Political observers have noted that not having Kemp on the ballot in the runoff poses a major problem for Walker.

The state Supreme Court has also upheld early voting for this Saturday. Individual counties will decide whether to offer the option, but the ruling is seen as a win for Warnock and Democrats who argued that a regulation on Saturday voting doesn’t apply to runoffs. Under Georgia law, early voting will take place from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2, but counties can offer up to three additional days.

BRIEFLY

🚨 President Biden mourned the victims of a mass shooting inside a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va., on Wednesday that killed six people, calling it “yet another horrific and senseless act of violence.”

🔵 West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice says he is “very seriously considering” mounting a challenge to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) for in 2024. 

📺 CNN wants a Florida judge to toss former President Trump‘s defamation lawsuit against the cable news network, citing the First Amendment.

LOBBY WORLD

The Hill’s Karl Evers-Hillstrom has a weekly roundup of news from the lobbying world (and you can send NotedDC your professional updates too!). 

• Kelly McGrath, a former GOP legislative assistant on the House Financial Services Committee, has joined hedge fund Citadel as director of government affairs.
  
• Justin Roth has been named a partner at LINK Public Affairs’ Washington, D.C., office. Roth previously was chief of staff to then-Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) and chief of staff to former Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.).
  
• Pfizer has promoted Jennifer Walton to senior vice president for U.S. policy and government relations. 

Check out more moves here. 

QUOTABLE

“Why would anybody be surprised that the Supreme Court has ruled against me, they always do!”

– Former President Trump on TruthSocial after the Supreme Court rejected his latest effort to keep his tax returns out of the hands of House Democrats.

NUMBER TO KNOW

800

The number of kernels on a typical ear of corn, according to the Iowa Corn Growers Association.

🥧 Thanksgiving favorites around the District

Chef Enrique Limardo, co-owner of D.C. favorite Seven Reasons and co-founder of Immigrant Food, said that while he doesn’t often celebrate Thanksgiving since it’s not part of his heritage, he’s celebrated with friends and family a few times.

“I’ve enjoyed making a massive ‘Parrilla,’ which is what we call a BBQ in Venezuela,” he told NotedDC. “For our parrilla we cook a variety of beef cuts, preferably Coulotte, brined chicken, chorizos, blood sausage, ‘guasacaca’ (compare to guacamole), ‘cachapas,’ arepas, onions, potatoes, and etc!”

To whet our appetites for Thursday, we asked some figures around D.C. about their favorite Thanksgiving foods. (While we didn’t frame it as a vote, mac and cheese supporters turned out in force.) See their answers below:

• Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.): “Turkey with lots of dressing and cranberry, sweet potatoes and greens.”
  
• White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates: “My mom’s mac and cheese and tiramisu.”
  
• At-Large D.C. Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr.: “Baked macaroni and cheese (but only if an auntie over 50 made it!).”
  
• At-Large D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson: Mac and cheese (she emphasized it’s more important than the turkey).

If you’re looking for a restaurant meal this Thanksgiving, check out Eater DC’s list of options.

As for us: NotedDC is taking a break on Thanksgiving. Liz is looking forward to the pumpkin pie she’s making with her late grandma’s recipe. Amée is giving thanks for gravy. 

And we’re thankful for you. Have a wonderful holiday. We’ll see you next week!