Spiegel Stuff: The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump sought control of voting machines

NEWS THIS MORNING

Trump sought control of voting machines:

Then-President Trump ordered Rudy Giuliani to call the Department of Homeland Security to ask whether the agency could take control of voting machines in key swing states, The New York Times reports. Trump had also asked then-Attorney General Bill Barr whether the Justice Department could do so, and he rejected a proposal to force the Defense Department to swoop in. https://is.gd/mKNPrJ

Trump advisors drafted two executive orders requiring DHS and DOD to seize voting machines. The National Archives has handed the draft order aimed at DOD over to the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection. https://is.gd/Dni1oq

Former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany has turned over her text messages to the Jan. 6 committee, and former Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff Marc Short testified before the panel last week. https://is.gd/H9JYp3, https://is.gd/VEKyeX

It’s Tuesday! I’m Reid Wilson, filling in for Cate today with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Cate will be back tomorrow, so send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook.

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IT’S FEC DAY!

Big bucks rolling in:

Candidates, parties and PACs filed their year-end reports with the Federal Election Commission last night, giving us a sneak peek at the fundraising fight for control of Congress. Some highlights:

The RNC and the DNC both raised almost $160 million last year, while the DCCC and the NRCC each topped $140 million. Filings made last night show the NRSC has raised $104 million, ahead of the DSCC’s $91 million. https://is.gd/gD00Z1 https://is.gd/PR1NZP
House and Senate super PACs pulled in huge sums, and Republicans are moving into an early lead as they seek to reclaim the majority. The top House Republican outside groups pulled in $110 million, twice as much as their Democratic equivalents. https://is.gd/Yc098i
Former President Trump’s constellation of outside groups had $122 million in the bank – twice as much as the RNC itself. Which makes one wonder, why is the RNC still paying Trump’s legal bills? https://is.gd/GDNACA
Senate campaigns are pulling in monster numbers this year. Among the top cash hogs: Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), who has almost $23 million in the bank; Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), who’s sitting on $18.6 million; Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who has $10.5 million on hand (But watch out for Rep. Val Demings (D), who’s already raised more than $20 million and has $8.1 million on hand); and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), who’s stockpiled $10.4 million.
Looking for self-funders? Look to Ohio, where two Republicans – Michael Gibbons (R) and Matt Dolan (R) – have each loaned or donated more than $10 million to their own campaigns. Bernie Moreno (R) and Jane Timken (R) have loaned themselves more than $3.5 million each.

Stay tuned to TheHill.com for our full takeaways from the end-of-year reports later today.

TRUMP STARS IN PERDUE AD:

Former Sen. David Perdue (R) is up with his first ad as he challenges Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) in the GOP primary. The star of the show: Trump himself, who blames Kemp for Biden’s victory in Georgia in 2020. https://is.gd/xMhWeu

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: The tenor of Perdue’s campaign, blaming Kemp for his own loss and Trump’s, is unlike anything we’ve ever seen.

Kelly narrowly leads generic GOPer:

Via The Hill’s Mychael Schnell, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) runs just 4 points ahead of a generic Republican, 42 percent to 38 percent, in the latest AZ POP survey from our friends at OH Predictive Insights. Attorney General Mark Brnovich (R) leads the GOP primary at 25 percent, with 11 percent backing retired Maj. Gen. Michael McGuire (R) and the rest of the crowded field in single digits.

And/but: If Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) convinces Gov. Doug Ducey (R) to join the race, Ducey would lead with 35 percent, ahead of 13 percent for Brnovich. Ducey has said many times he’s not running, but we’ll be sure to ask him again. https://is.gd/LXFbqU

IN CONGRESS

Electoral Count Act reform moves ahead:

Via The Hill’s Jordain Carney, Senate Democrats this morning rolled out legislation to reform the Electoral Count Act, the 1887 law governing the ceremonial ratification of presidential election results every four years. The proposal from Sens. Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Judiciary Committee chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) makes clear that the vice president’s role in the count is ceremonial, and it increases the number of representatives and senators necessary to support an objection to a state’s votes.

A bipartisan group of 16 senators led by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is working on their own version. The Collins-Manchin group shares some goals with the King-Klobuchar-Durbin gang. If any election reform gets through Congress this year, it’ll be some form of ECA overhaul. https://is.gd/nSOhHu

Schumer’s latest omnibus push:

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer plans to sit down with Democratic negotiators later this week to check in on the state of negotiations over an omnibus funding package. Lawmakers have until Feb. 18 to reach a spending deal to avoid another shutdown. https://is.gd/5hxmLY

LATEST WITH THE CORONAVIRUS

Vaccines for youngest available soon:

© Associated Press/Carolyn Kaster, file

Huge news for our friends with kids under 5: The FDA has urged Pfizer and BioNTech to submit an application for an emergency use authorization for COVID-19 vaccines for children between 6 months and 5 years old, and the two-shot regimen could be on the market before the end of the month. https://is.gd/jeJuUk

CASE NUMBERS:

Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 74,944,584

U.S. death toll: 886,727

Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y

VACCINATION NUMBERS:

Total number of vaccinations administered in the U.S.: 539 million shots have been given.

Seven-day average of doses administered: An average of 490,810 doses

For context: The U.S. population is roughly 331 million.

Breakdown of the numbers: https://bloom.bg/3iVTPLH

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Theresa May’s dagger:

How much would you pay to watch an American president suffer through the equivalent of Prime Minister’s Question Time? https://bit.ly/3ofYImo

Punxsutawney Phil begs to differ:

Remember that time Bill de Blasio killed a groundhog? https://bit.ly/3Hjmcic

ON TAP:

The House and Senate are in. President Biden and Vice President Harris host Senate Judiciary Committee chair Dick Durbin and ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) for a SCOTUS chat.

2 p.m. EDT: White House press secretary Jen Psaki briefs the media. The House gavels into session.

2:30 p.m. EDT: The Senate Budget Committee holds confirmation hearings for Biden’s nominees for director and deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget.

6:30 p.m. EST: First and last votes in the House. The House’s full agenda today: https://bit.ly/3ofSh2J

WHAT TO WATCH:

10 a.m. EST: The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on mental health and substance abuse during the COVID-19 pandemic. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3GamTcc

2:30 p.m. EST: Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo testifies on expanding internet access. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3HmKSpV

NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF...:

Today is National Dark Chocolate Day.

Bomb cyclone, bomb waves:

Check out these surfers hitting the beach to ride the cold, cold waves. Couldn’t pay us enough to do that. https://is.gd/7ffx2u

And because you made it this far, here’s a baby elephant discovering his trunk: https://bit.ly/3oe6zRy