Congress

Johnson takes hands-off approach to picking his policy leaders

Published

2 years ago

December 13, 2024

Speaker Mike Johnson is taking a hands off approach as he finally puts his stamp on the House Republicans who will shape his conference’s policy ambitions — a break from his predecessors that has some lawmakers struggling to intuit his preferences.

On Thursday, the Republican Steering Committee finished selecting committee chairs for next year, minus the few who Johnson gets to pick unilaterally. It was his first time driving the selection process for panel leaders, which involves the Steering panel recommending chairs who are typically approved by a full conference vote. His allies have privately kvetched over the past year that he was being forced to operate in a Kevin McCarthy-organized House.

Unlike McCarthy, Johnson did not indicate who he would back to lead the panels ahead of time, pledging that he would stay neutral.

“[With] McCarthy you had a pretty good idea of where he was going and who he liked in the race, and I think maybe some people expected this speaker to do the same,” said Rep. David Joyce (R-Ohio), a member of the Steering Committee. “People are inferring things — that he’s tipping the scale — but Mike’s been very straightforward.”

Lawmakers still tried to read into Johnson’s actions and defer to the speaker. That was particularly true during Rep. Brian Mast’s (R-Fla.) presentation to lead the Foreign Affairs Committee on Monday, when he won an upset victory over Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.), according to two people in the room at the time.

A series of rumors flurried about how Mast won, including false claims that Donald Trump was calling every Steering member to lobby for him, though nearly a dozen lawmakers on the committee said they had not heard from the president-elect. Some lawmakers claimed the Florida delegation lobbied hard for him, saying no one from their state would win a gavel otherwise (multiple Sunshine State lawmakers are headed for prominent spots in the Trump administration). Others said Mast’s presentation was so strong it swayed Steering members to his side.

And some claimed the reason was simpler: Johnson made an offhand remark that hinted he was backing Mast. So a race between four competitors was decided quickly, on the first round of ballots, according to three people familiar with the meeting, granted anonymity to share private details.

Then there was the case of Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) seeking a waiver to continue leading the Transportation Committee, House Republicans had several theories as to why Steering granted a request they typically deny. Some believed Graves would resign if he didn’t get the waiver, potentially crippling Republicans’ ability to pass ambitious legislative priorities in the early months of next year. Others thought he received support from other chairs on the panel who may want a waiver for themselves down the line.

But some people familiar with the Steering meeting noted that Johnson made an innocuous comment that might’ve tipped the scales in that case, too. The speaker said something like: it seemed they were all in agreement and asked to move forward with a voice vote. No one wanted to vote against him — at least not openly.

The ultimate outcome of the contested chair elections was largely a mixed bag for different factions of the conference. Mast is an ardent Trump supporter, who already has strong existing relationships with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who Trump intends to nominate to be secretary of State; Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), who will be Trump’s national security adviser; and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), who oversees State Department funding on the Appropriations Committee.

Then there’s Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), who was selected to lead the Energy and Commerce Committee, an amiable Kentucky Republican who’s known as a team player and avid fundraiser. Two Steering members said it just came down to Guthrie running a stronger race. And Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.), who secured the Financial Services gavel, was once an ardent McCarthy ally who notably voted “present” during an internal roll call vote when Johnson ran for speaker.

Some members of the panel said Johnson’s hands-off approach coupled with the influx of new Steering members — roughly a third of the panel’s membership is new — made for a true meritocracy this time around.

“What I’m sensing in there: You’ve got a new Steering Committee. They are not held to the old ideas and rules. … You haven’t sensed the speaker having his thumb on the scale. I’m sure he has his preferences, but I don’t see that he has communicated that. And I think it’s a meritocracy at this point,” said Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), a member of the panel.

Congress

Nvidia’s Huang heads to Capitol Hill for AI talks

Published

25 seconds ago

July 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will meet with lawmakers in Washington to discuss American leadership on artificial intelligence, the company said Monday.

A spokesperson for the chipmaker said Huang would hold talks with both Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill to talk about latest developments with the technology.

“Jensen is in DC to meet with leaders on both sides of the aisle to discuss American leadership in AI, including leading in open source,” the spokesperson said.

Huang is scheduled to sit down Tuesday with Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee who has expressed serious concern about security threats following last week’s OpenAI autonomous cyberattack.

The senator’s office confirmed the meeting. Senate Intelligence Chair Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It comes as Huang defended open-source AI on X, writing that such models “strengthen safety and cybersecurity, accelerate innovation and diffusion, and enable sovereignty.”

Huang’s visit comes as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is also expected to meet with Warner, although a spokesperson for the senator said the talks were separate. Earlier Monday, Open AI announced it was in talks with Nvidia, a technology company that makes chips to use artificial intelligence, for a data center project.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Congress

Texas Republican is under House Ethics investigation

Published

1 hour ago

July 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The House Ethics Committee said in a statement Monday it is investigating Rep. Lance Gooden, a four-term Texas Republican.

It’s unclear what the committee is probing, but the Office of Congressional Conduct, an independent investigative branch of the House, sent over findings regarding Gooden to the committee June 10.

The Ethics panel plans to release an update on its investigation by Nov. 9. Committee representatives declined to comment beyond the statement.

In 2021, the Campaign Legal Center filed a complaint asking for an investigation into Gooden’s apparent failure to report his stock trades in a timely manner, which is a requirement under a federal law known as the STOCK Act. The complaint was sent to the OCC.

Congress

Congressional Black Caucus members break with Jeffries, endorse against Thanedar in Michigan House race

Published

2 hours ago

July 27, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

A handful of members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Monday broke with Democratic Party leadership to endorse Michigan state Rep. Donavan McKinney in his bid to primary Rep. Shri Thanedar, an unusual move given that sitting members of the same party rarely endorse against each other.

Democratic Reps. Steven Horsford (Nev.), the former chair of the CBC, and Lateefah Simon (Calif.) called McKinney a “fighter.” Rep. Ilhan Omar (Mich.) praised McKinney as “the only trusted candidate” in the race. And Rep. Ayanna Pressley (Mass.) touted McKinney for “never [losing] sight of the people.”

“We need Donavan in Congress,” said Pressley.

The race between McKinney and Thanedar, who was elected in 2022, is the latest battleground in the ongoing ideological clash between the Democratic establishment and its progressive flank.

McKinney is hoping to capitalize on the latest wave of progressive successes in primaries, but Thanedar retains the power of the incumbency — and the backing of House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar.

Thanedar’s 2022 election marked the first time since 1955 that the majority-Black city of Detroit didn’t have a Black lawmaker representing it in Congress. And he won two years ago only after Adam Hollier, who was viewed as his most credible primary challenger, was disqualified from the ballot.

“It’s not just about having Black representation, but that is a part of what appropriate representation looks for,” Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.), who had previously backed McKinney, told Blue Light News. “You have a majority-Black district, and I think that there is certainly an appetite to see that again, or to at least make sure that a Black candidate has the opportunity to present themselves.”

In a phone call, Thanedar emphasized that he has worked closely with members of the CBC during his time in office, noting that the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) was a mentor of his and, in addition to Jeffries, he has the endorsement CBC members like Rep. Bennie Thomspon (D-Miss.).

“I am fully aware that I am representing the Blackest city in America and I’m proud of it,” Thanedar, who is Indian-American, said. “My story is like Detroit’s story — I struggled through poverty, never say die, never gave up and I have that resilience that Detroit has. The resilience of Detroit is what my life is about.”

McKinney on Monday said he was “honored” by the endorsements.

“Millions of lives across the country have been made immeasurably better because of the hard work these members have done in Congress, and I look forward to working alongside these incredible leaders to pass critical legislation to protect voting rights, get big money out of our politics, and ensure all families have access to the resources they need to not just survive, but to truly thrive,” he said in a statement.