MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, November 11 | By Joshua Feldstein and Sarah Fortinsky

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In today's issue:

▪ House blocks Hegseth impeachment

▪ GOP elects minority leaders

▪ Buttigieg to release book, ‘Next’

▪ Exxon eyes return to Venezuela

11 Democrats miss Hegseth impeachment vote

House Republicans came together Tuesday to shelve a measure to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, thanks largely to almost a dozen Democrats failing to show up for the early evening vote.

Some of the Democrats who did cast a vote did not even try to hide their frustration.

“The people send us here to do a job. I don't know if anyone had any real health issues or anything significant. So I want to leave room for that,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-N.Y.) told CNN's Manu Raju. “But that being said, at the end of the day, we're here to do a job. And the same way I had to clock in when I worked at a restaurant, we got to clock in and do our work here.”

Some of the members missed the vote, which ended around 6 p.m. EST, due to gridlock on Pennsylvania Ave., caused by a traffic accident.

“Like other Members of Congress, Rep. Stansbury was blocked from entering the Capitol to vote due a traffic incident and a police escort of a bus during the vote,” Rep. Melanie Stansbury's (D-N.M.) office said in a statement on the social platform X. “When she reached the chamber, the vote had just gaveled out.”

“The Congresswoman was stuck behind a motorcade and missed the vote by 1 minute. She would have voted against the motion to refer,” Rep. Marilyn Strickland's (D-Wash.) chief of staff said.

The House voted to refer the resolution to committee, allowing Republicans to stop it from advancing during the lame-duck session. The 211-204 vote effectively punted any efforts to impeach the Pentagon chief until Democrats take back the majority.

The 11 Democrats who missed the vote were Stansbury, Strickland and Reps. Julia Brownley (Calif.) Lou Correa (Calif.), Laura Gillen (N.Y.), Steven Horsford (Nev.), Jonathan Jackson (Ill.), Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), Brittany Pettersen (Colo.), Haley Stevens (Mich.) and Frederica Wilson (Fla.).

Outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.), who introduced the impeachment articles, was the only Republican to oppose the move to impede his measure.

Democratic leaders supported Massie’s resolution but said they did not pressure rank-and-file members to do the same, calling it a vote of conscience for each member.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (Calif.), the chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said they “didn’t put our fingers on the scale,” and played down the idea that Democrats would race to try and impeach Hegseth again in the next Congress.

“When we are in the majority, we are serious about holding people accountable, and that will … start early with oversight,” Aguilar said. “But that is not anything that is being discussed at this point.”

Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who is poised to take the Speaker's gavel next term, predicted Hegseth would be gone soon.

“If he was an honorable individual, which he's not ... he should have just stepped down. As opposed to putting the country through this type of proceeding, when it's all unnecessary, given the fact that we know at the end of the day that Pete Hegseth is not going to be around for much longer.” Jeffries told Spectrum News NY1 in an interview.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) made a similar prediction on his podcast earlier this week.

“And one of two things is going to happen: either Hegseth is going to step down, either he will resign voluntarily or Trump will fire him. Or, if that does not happen, I think it is extremely likely, if not certain, that the House will impeach him,” Cruz said Monday on an episode of “The Verdict.”

“Because, on the face of it, the votes are there. Now, it only takes a majority to impeach,” he added.

Ahead of the evening vote, Hegseth held his first press conference at the Pentagon in more than six months and strongly pushed back against Massie’s impeachment effort, dismissing the Kentucky Republican as “one disgruntled and defeated congressman” who is following “a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment.”

The president celebrated the vote in a social media post Tuesday night.

“Victories in Venezuela and Iran, the Best Recruitment Numbers in the History of the Military (Long waiting lists to get in!), and Spirit like rarely seen before, led to the EXONERATION of a Great American Patriot,” President Trump wrote last night after the vote.

“The Democrats continue to weaponize and abuse the United States of America," Trump continued. "They must be stopped!”

▪ The Hill: Thom Tillis ‘leaning toward’ impeaching Hegseth if articles reach Senate.

▪ The Hill: Top Dem says Susie Wiles will face congressional probe next year.

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3 Things to Know Today

Nvidia tapped Joon H. Kim, former acting U.S. attorney of the Southern District of New York, and his firm to investigate CEO Jensen Huang, following reports he had an intimate relationship with an alleged Chinese spy. The company’s board announced Sunday it would launch the probe.
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) was projected to win her close reelection race, according to Decision Desk HQ. During the campaign, she made a stunning break with President Trump on immigration, telling the president directly in an ad that his Hispanic voters felt “betrayed” by him.
A U.S. Army soldier was arrested Tuesday in the United Kingdom on suspicion of spying for Russia. The 41-year-old is accused of disclosing protected information and assisting a foreign intelligence service.

LEADING THE DAY

MINORITY REPORT: Sen. John Thune (S.D.) and Rep. Jim Jordan (Ohio) will hold the minority leader positions in the incoming Congress after prevailing in caucus elections on Tuesday.

Thune was reelected to be the GOP's Senate leader after a daylong battle and delays in votes Tuesday.

The Republican conference meeting Tuesday was only supposed to last a few hours but turned into an all-day event after Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and other conservatives pressured Thune to commit to bring a budget reconciliation package to the Senate floor during the lame-duck session.

After several hours, no Republican senator challenged Thune for the position, ultimately ending the hours-long standoff.

"I appreciated the opportunity to have an open, honest conversation with my colleagues today, and I am honored to have their continued trust and support to lead the Senate Republican Conference in the 120th Congress," Thune wrote in a statement.

Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan (R) was voted to be the new House minority leader for the Republican Party in a 106-73 vote over Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.).

Jordan has spent nearly two decades in the House and is a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus — the most conservative bloc in the House.

Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer (R) will be the next minority whip, defeating fellow GOP Rep. August Pfluger (Texas) for the position. Emmer had served as the No. 3 Republican in the majority.

▪ The Hill: Scott, Hawley decline to commit to backing Thune for leader

TIME'S UP?: Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) said during a press conference Tuesday afternoon that they would not back Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to hold the Senate majority leader position.

Schumer, the current Senate minority leader, has received opposition from both progressive and centrist Democrats.

“We need leadership that’s going to govern for the entirety of the caucus, for folks from blue states, purple states and red states,” Slotkin said Tuesday.

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen (Md.) has been floated as a possible candidate to challenge Schumer for the position but has made it known that he is only in "listening mode" at this time. Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-Mich.), among a handful of new faces who committed during their campaigns to oppose Schumer, said he'd support Van Hollen.

Schumer told reporters on Tuesday he's confident he'll ultimately win. Democratic Sens. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.) noted at a separate press conference that they will continue to back the New York lawmaker.

“It’s time for us to unify, we are going to work together as a caucus and put a plan together about how to move forward for what the country wants us to do, and I think, you know, we have the person who’s going to lead us there,” Gallego said.

▪ The Hill: Schumer says Trump support of Nvidia CEO a ‘dereliction of duty’

ALASKA GAP WIDENS: Former Rep Mary Peltola (D) expanded her lead over Sen. Dan Sullivan after the latest batch of ballots was counted in Alaska overnight.

Peltola's lead increased from 2,517 to 4,250 votes. Significantly, that also puts her total ahead of the combined vote share for Sullivan and Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a former schoolteacher that her campaign allegedly recruited into the race. The other Sullivan now has 4,027 votes.

But Peltola, leading 49 percent ot 47.2 percent, is still short of the 50 percent of votes needed to avoid a second round of ranked-choice voting.

Alaska’s vote count is expected to continue for several more days as state election officials transport ballots across the state’s remote regions. Ballots can arrive up to 15 days after the election so long as they are postmarked by Election Day.

▪ The Hill: Cindy Hyde-Smith ‘feeling very optimistic’ despite trailing in vote count.

PRICE CHECK: Consumer prices rose more than economists expected last month, upping the chances of an interest rate hike when the Federal Reserve meets next month.

The consumer price index (CPI) report released yesterday showed prices rose 0.4 percent on a monthly basis in October, higher than the 0.3 percent that economists polled by FactSet predicted.

Economists at the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, as well as at The New York Times, calculated an annual inflation rate of roughly 4 percent in October. The previous month, the official annual inflation rate was 3.7 percent.

Federal Reserve board of governors member Christopher Waller, in remarks yesterday, opened the door to a half-point rate hike next month, though those prospects remain unlikely. As of late Tuesday, CME FedWatch shows a 90.8 percent chance of a quarter-point rate hike at the Dec. 9 meeting.

▪ The Hill: Gretchen Whitmer presses Trump on tariffs, grocery reimbursements.

▪ The Hill: Credit card debt mounts amid Democrats’ push to cap interest rates.

OUR EYES ONLY: A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration will have limited access to journalists’ private chat logs, specifically on the platform LinkedIn.

The three-judge panel unanimously voted on the ruling, saying it violates the First Amendment and could hinder the way politics is reported.

Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson, who wrote the ruling, said the Department of Justice’s attempt to access journalists’ private messages on the networking site also has the potential to expose anonymous sources.

The Trump administration had requested for LinkedIn to provide them 18 months' worth of confidential messages from specific reporters who used the platform.

▪ The Hill: Voice of America head was illegally fired by Kari Lake, court says.

WHEN & WHERE

The president will participate in a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery before giving Veterans Day remarks.
The Senate convenes at noon.
The House convenes at 11 a.m.

ZOOM IN

THANK YOU, NEXT: Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is wasting no time laying the groundwork for a potential 2028 presidential bid.

He announced yesterday that he penned a new book, called “Next,” which is set to be released on Jan. 26. The former Biden administration official described his new book as “not a policy manual,” but “an account of how we got here and an argument about what could happen if America takes big swings to reform our political system.”

“If we do that, we can have a life that is better, not just better than today, but better than before,” Buttigieg said.

In the book, publisher Simon & Schuster said, Buttigieg “makes the urgent case for seizing the current moment of political rupture as a chance to deliver transformative improvements that the majority of Americans demand” and “lays out a vision for addressing the profound challenges facing our country today.”

Writing a book ahead of a presidential run has become something of a rite of passage for many political candidates — from former President Obama, who wrote “The Audacity of Hope” when he was an Illinois senator, to former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) to Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

In 2019, ahead of his run for president in 2020, Buttigieg released a biography, "Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future."

His publisher did not shy away from hinting at another possible White House bid in its book description: "No matter who the next American president will be, if you are reading ‘Next,’ you are holding our nation’s future in your hands.”

▪ The Hill: Former President Biden’s book reveals ‘very generous letter’ from Trump in 2021.

ELSEWHERE

EXXON OVERSEAS: Oil company ExxonMobil has taken a significant step toward returning to Venezuela as Trump has pushed for U.S. oil companies to set up shop in the South American country.

According to The Hill’s Rachel Frazin, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with Venezuela to explore opportunities and locations for where to set up shop.

“This memorandum is a meaningful first step, but any future investment would require stable policies, clear regulations, strong investment protections and competitive returns,” an ExxonMobil spokesperson said on the possibility of moving to the South American nation.

In January, after the U.S. captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Trump said, “We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.”

Ahead of midterms, Trump continuously called for Venezuela to be the U.S.’s 51st state, while Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez told journalists back in May that the country has no plans of becoming a U.S. territory.

ExxonMobil, alongside ConocoPhillips, were pushed out of the country in 2007 by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez due to a nationalization push. Chevron, the only oil giant currently operating in the county, is expected to double its production in the coming years.

▪ The Hill: Key Democrats shrug off Trump’s wind comments.

▪ The Hill: John Kerry says China now leads on green energy.

OPINION

How Republicans lost the Hispanic vote, Samuel Rodriguez writes in The Hill.
The midterms gave Congress a mandate — now use it, Evelyn Farkas writes in The Hill.

THE CLOSER

Former President Biden did not receive the warmest of welcomes during a visit to Ireland this week.

Biden and first lady Jill Biden attended a ceremony at Trinity College Dublin for their son, Hunter Biden, who was being honored by its traditional Hist debating society with the Gold Medal for Outstanding Contribution to Public Discourse.

Videos showed protesters waving Palestinian flags, chanting “blood on your hands” and scuffling with police officers outside the university. Protesters can also be seen throwing what appears to be milk toward the Bidens.

The former president often speaks about his Irish roots. His Irish heritage stems from his mother Catherine “Jean” Finnegan Biden’s side of the family.