Five things to know about the new House Democratic campaign chief pick

Incoming House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has announced Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.) as his pick to chair the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), House Democrats’ campaign arm.

The chair will oversee efforts to secure a Democratic majority in the chamber in 2024, when much attention will also be on the White House race. While House Democrats will still vote on approving DelBene, she is expected to be confirmed.

Here are five things to know about her:

1. She wasn’t one of the declared candidates for the role 

Two California Democrats — Reps. Ami Bera and Tony Cárdenas — had publicly signaled an interest in the role for the 118th Congress.

Cárdenas previously oversaw Bold PAC, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ campaign arm, while Bera chaired the DCCC’s Frontline program, which aims to help vulnerable Democratic incumbents win reelection. 

Jeffries highlighted DelBene’s previous roles as DCCC finance co-chair and Frontline co-chair. He also said she has “proven fundraising ability as well as serious management and operational experience inside and outside government.” 

DelBene and Cárdenas ran for DCCC chair before — DelBene following the 2018 election cycle (Rep. Cheri Bustos of Illinois won) and Cárdenas in 2020 (Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York won).

2. DelBene helped push the rules change that set up her appointment

As our colleague Mike Lillis wrote, “This year, DelBene joined two other Democrats — Reps. Mark Pocan (Wis.) and Brad Schneider (Ill.) — in leading the charge to change the party’s internal rules so that the head of the campaign arm was appointed, as it had been until 2016.”

The caucus voted to adopt the rule change last month. 

3. She has deep ties to Silicon Valley

DelBene, a former Microsoft executive, has ties to Silicon Valley and is considered a strong fundraiser within her party — a key attribute for any chair of the campaign group.

She took a lead introducing privacy legislation in 2018 that aimed to give users control over companies’ use of “sensitive personal information” while she has also voiced concerns about past antitrust measures, citing concerns from stakeholders over privacy protections.

Politico wrote in June that she “has used her perch as chair of the business-friendly New Democrats caucus to push back on some of the most aggressive efforts to regulate or restrain Silicon Valley, which she claims would hurt the economy and hamstring the tech industry.”

4. She won big this year but previously held a competitive district

Jeffries said, “In the last decade, Rep. DelBene won a tough seat as a Red-to-Blue candidate, held a tough seat as a Frontline candidate and then put that tough seat out of reach.” 

After losing her first bid in 2010, DelBene was elected to the House in 2012, defeating John Koster (R) 54 percent to 46 percent. This year, she won with 64 percent of the vote to Republican Vincent Cavaleri’s 36 percent.

As DCCC chair, DelBene would hail from a safely blue district after outgoing chairman Sean Patrick Maloney (N.Y.) lost his reelection bid last month. Maloney’s tight race required the group to inject major resources to try to defend him.

5. She’s a moderate and adds female representation to leadership

DelBene chairs the moderate New Democrat Coalition in the current Congress. The group’s website says it’s made up of “99 forward-thinking Democrats who are committed to pro-economic growth, pro-innovation, and fiscally responsible policies.” 

DelBene would boost female representation on Democrats’ incoming leadership team, joining Minority Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.) and Battleground Leadership Representative Abigail Spanberger (Va.).

Men will serve as minority leader, caucus chair, assistant Democratic leader and Democratic Policy and Communications Committee chair.

This is NotedDC, looking at the politics, policy and people behind the stories in Washington. We’re The Hill’s Amée LaTour and Liz Crisp. Sign up here or in the box below.

BRIEFLY

• Marijuana advocates and executives are upset after opposition from Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) thwarted efforts in Congress to pass a key cannabis banking bill that would have helped the industry.
  
• Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) thinks that, despite some pushback he’s received from the far right, “I’m convinced that if I run, I win” when he’s up for reelection in 2024.
  
• Michelle Obama says she and former President Obama would dissuade their daughters from getting inked by threatening to show off matching tattoos on social media.

🇺🇦 Zelensky to give prime-time address to Congress

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky‘s trip to Washington, D.C., was kept mostly under wraps until news broke on Tuesday evening that he would speak to Congress and meet with President Biden.

Why it matters: The trip marks the first time that Zelensky is known to have left Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in February. It also comes as lawmakers in the U.S. weigh the scope of continued American aid for the war. Congress currently is considering another $45 billion in emergency assistance. 

What to expect: Zelensky met with Biden at the White House in the afternoon and was slated to meet with lawmakers later in the evening. Zelensky will give a prime-time address to the House and Senate at 7:30 p.m. 

Preparations: According to a senior administration official, the visit was first discussed during a call on Dec. 11, a formal invitation was sent on Dec. 14 and the visit was confirmed Sunday. 

The Ukrainian Embassy said priorities for the trip include “weapons, energy, sanctions, support for peace formula and tribunal.” 

In a letter to House members, Pelosi stressed, “As the fight for freedom in Ukraine wages on, we look forward to hearing his inspiring message of courage, unity and determination.” 

For security reasons, no guests will be allowed in the House gallery during the address, except those accompanying Zelensky. 

• With House members still allowed to cast votes by proxy through the end of the year, it remains unclear how many will turn up in Washington for the address.
  
• As lawmakers have continued to work on a $1.7 trillion spending package, Zelensky’s appearance could push votes back to Thursday.

🚀 Five highlights from the $1.7T spending package

Lawmakers are rushing to pass the $1.7 trillion spending plan for the current budget year, as the Christmas holiday approaches. 

Final votes on the bill, which clocks in at more than 4,000 pages, may not come until Thursday — first in the Senate and then in the House.

Members, of course, have grumbled about not having enough time to read the whole proposal. The clock is ticking as Congress only approved funding through Friday to prevent a government shutdown. 

Here are five highlights from the measure currently being mulled:

• NASA would get a $677 million boost — to $7.5 billion — toward its efforts to send U.S. astronauts back to the Moon.
  
• The current version of the bill includes $45 billion in additional aid to Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia (more here) 
  
• It also includes $40 billion in disaster recovery assistance for states rocked by storms this year (more here)
  
• After the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, lawmakers have included billions in the spending package for enhanced security and operations at the complex.
  
• The proposal includes nearly $39 billion — an increase of more than $3 billion — for the Department of Justice, including more money for federal law enforcement agencies.

NUMBER TO KNOW

4.6%

Pay raise for members of the military included in the omnibus bill. 

LOBBY WORLD

The Hill’s Karl Evers-Hillstrom has a weekly roundup of news from the lobbying world. Some highlights this week:

• Luke Holland joined The Nickles Group as a vice president. He served as chief of staff to longtime Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) and competed in the GOP primary to replace the retiring senator.
  
• Mary Elliot Aderholt has joined C-Spire as economic development director. She is the daughter of Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.), the top Republican on the House Appropriations Committee’s commerce subcommittee.
  
• The NCAA named outgoing Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) as its next president.

Check out more moves here.

QUOTABLE

“Rebel against liberal culture: Quit porn. Start a real relationship. Start a family. Have your own ideas — and stand up for them.”

– Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) in a tweet after delivering a similar message to young men at conservative youth group Turning Point USA‘s convention over the weekend.

ONE MORE THING

Dates announced for 2024 GOP convention

The Republican National Committee (RNC) has picked July 15-18, 2024 as the dates for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee when the party will formally select its presidential nominee.

“We look forward to our continued work with the beautiful city of Milwaukee to make this convention week a success. Republicans will stand united in Milwaukee in 2024 to share our message of freedom and opportunity with the world,” RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in announcing the dates.

The GOP will celebrate and offer more details about the event when members meet in California next month. 

Former RNC Chair Reince Priebus, a Wisconsin native who was chief of staff to former President Trump in 2017, is the 2024 convention host committee chair. 

“The location is set, the dates are booked, and now the work of pulling off the biggest event in politics is underway,” he said in a statement. 

Democrats had selected Milwaukee for their convention in 2020 but many of the events ended up being only virtual because of the COVID-19 pandemic. President Biden narrowly won the state that year over Trump.

Democrats haven’t announced their convention location or dates yet, but under tradition it should come sometime after the GOP event. 

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