Congress
Meet the new members: A Kamala Harris protegee rises
The new member: Rep. Lateefah Simon (D-Calif.)
How they got here: Simon bested a fellow Democrat, Jennifer Tran, in the general election for this solidly Democratic seat based in Oakland. She won 65 percent to 35 percent.
Inside the campaign: Simon was a heavy favorite in this contest after jumping into the race to replace long-time Bay Area Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) in February 2023. (Lee ran unsuccessfully for Senate.)
She got a major boost when Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom backed her candidacy to succeed Lee in a statement to Blue Light News in November 2023. Simon emerged well ahead of the rest of the pack in the March 2024 primary with 55 percent of the vote.
The issues she’ll focus on: Simon has said she wants to be an advocate for people without political power — a mission she’s focused on throughout more than two decades in public service. That includes expanding access to disability services, building more affordable housing and expanding access to health care.
Expect a continuation of Lee’s outspoken progressive record throughout Simon’s time in Congress. “I’m a deep blue Democrat and I still am a deep mentee to Vice President Harris,” Simon said upon reaching the Capitol for new member orientation. “We’re going to fight for the lifeblood of our people. I’m here not just to serve, but to lead.”
Background: Simon’s benefitted from the mentorship of both Lee — she passed Simon a literal baton to her congressional seat — and Vice President Kamala Harris. She worked under Harris for about four years when the future vice president was San Francisco district attorney.
More recently, Simon served on the Bay Area Rapid Transit board of directors and was also a member of the board of trustees of the California State University system. She’s also been an outspoken advocate for racial and civil rights across a variety of organizations in the Bay Area.
Campaign ad that caught our eye: Simon ran an ad promising to “lock arms” with Harris on initiatives like banning assault weapons and ensuring public safety.
Of note: She’ll become one of the few openly blind members of Congress to ever serve.
We’re spotlighting new members during the transition. Want more? Meet Rep. Maggie Goodlander.
Congress
Musk goes back on the offensive as megabill moves through Congress
Elon Musk is escalating his assault on President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” as the Senate readies a final vote on it.
The world’s richest man, who until recently played an active role in the Trump administration, attacked the GOP’s sweeping domestic megabill over the weekend. On Monday, he threatened to wield his financial resources against Republicans who support it.
“Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame!” Musk wrote on X. “And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth.”
Musk’s opposition to the megabill, which could cripple the renewable energy industry while adding trillions to the national debt, led to a public break with the president shortly after his time as a federal government employee came to an end in late May.
The two appeared to patch things up several days later.
But Musk is again on the offensive. Also on Monday, he tagged Freedom Caucus members Texas Rep. Chip Roy and Maryland Rep. Andy Harris in another post assailing the megabill.
“How can you call yourself the Freedom Caucus if you vote for a DEBT SLAVERY bill with the biggest debt ceiling increase in history?” Musk wrote.
Congress
Planned Parenthood funding at grave risk after Senate ruling
Republicans are on the cusp of a breakthrough in their long effort to strip federal funding from Planned Parenthood after a Senate ruling Monday.
Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough advised lawmakers that a provision that would cut off Medicaid funding for one year to the women’s health organization and abortion provider can remain in the GOP’s domestic policy megabill without threatening its ability to be passed along party lines, according to Senate Democrats.
The megabill is expected to clear the Senate Monday or Tuesday using a budgetary tool to bypass a 60-vote filibuster. Bills advanced with that tool must adhere to strict budget rules, and the parliamentarian is the de facto arbiter of those rules. Senate Democrats had challenged whether the provision was allowed.
“Republicans will stop at nothing in their crusade to take control of women’s bodies,” said Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley of Oregon in a statement.
Conservative lawmakers have sought to strip Planned Parenthood’s eligibility for federal funds for decades. It has long been subject to the Hyde amendment, which bans federal funding directly on abortions, but the organization bills Medicaid for nonabortion services and receives other federal funding through other programs and grants.
Republicans sought to target the group in their party-line 2017 push to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but the overall effort collapsed.
Congress
Anxious House Republicans scramble to forestall Senate’s Medicaid cuts
Dozens of House Republicans are scrambling behind the scenes to head off the deep Medicaid cuts in the Senate version of the party-line megabill that could pass as soon as tonight.
Group texts are blowing up and frantic phone calls are being exchanged among GOP lawmakers alarmed about the Senate Medicaid provisions, according to six House Republicans granted anonymity to describe the conversations. Even some conservatives in states that will be hit hard by the Senate’s crackdown on state-directed payments and medical provider taxes don’t want to vote on the Senate’s Medicaid text.
That’s to say nothing of an effort pushed by Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) to scale back federal payments under the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion — a well-established red line for many House members.
Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to hold a call with House Republicans Monday afternoon, according to two other people granted anonymity to discuss yet-to-be-announced plans. Senate and House leadership staffers huddled Monday to discuss the outstanding concerns.
Senior House Republicans are warning they still might need to hammer out differences between the two chambers if the Senate doesn’t strike a final compromise on the language and add it in a final amendment before sending the bill to the House. That would mean missing President Donald Trump’s arbitrary July 4 deadline for signing the megabill.
It’s still unclear whether the Senate will relent and allow a compromise on Medicaid or other policy issues in a final amendment. That chamber is dealing with its own politics, including the determination of many GOP senators to swell the size of the tax-cut package, prompting the need for sharper Medicaid cuts.
Thune has been noncommittal in closed-door meetings with GOP senators about whether there will be a final “wraparound” that would incorporate House Republicans’ concerns. Senate leaders are betting the House will accept whatever the Senate sends them.
“Right now, there isn’t a need for it,” said one GOP senator granted anonymity to discuss the situation.
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