Congress
The likely next Congressional Black Caucus chair has big plans for the shrinking powerhouse
The Congressional Black Caucus is, for now, at the pinnacle of its power, with record-high membership, deep influence on the House Democratic agenda and one of its own members in line to claim the speaker’s gavel.
But major threats have shaken the nearly 60-year-old group in recent months. A recent Supreme Court decision threatens to decimate its membership and an influx of hard-left Democrats could undermine its brand of pragmatic, civil-rights-focused liberalism.
It will likely be Rep. Troy Carter’s job to plot a path forward. The three-term Louisiana Democrat is positioned to take over as chair from Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) next year, and in an extensive interview said he was determined to defend the CBC’s privileged place in House Democratic politics.
“If those who are out there banking on us being quieted, going away, not fighting for the rights of individuals, and providing resources to those that have been historically left behind, they are sadly mistaken,” he said.
Carter, 62, is now serving as caucus vice chair and a self-proclaimed “close ally” of Hakeem Jeffries, the minority leader and likely speaker if Democrats can win a majority in November. He would not commit to seeking the chair but spoke about his “passion for the caucus,” and five other CBC members, including Clarke, said in recent interviews that he is a strong — and perhaps the only — contender.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone who would even think about running against him,” Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.) said. “He’s set in a perfect position to be the chairman of our caucus, and he has my unyielding support.”
Fields, however, probably won’t be eligible to vote for Carter — underscoring the larger challenges the caucus faces.
The Supreme Court’s April ruling in Louisiana v. Callais allowed the Republican-controlled state legislature to redraw congressional lines — effectively drawing out Fields and leaving Carter as the delegation’s sole Democrat. The ruling’s effects went far beyond the Louisiana state lines, however, allowing GOP-dominated states to eliminate majority-minority districts and threaten the reelections of as many as 19 CBC members.
Carter cast the moment as an opportunity for evolution rather than reinvention for the CBC as he fielded questions about how aggressively Democrats should respond to Republican gerrymandering, the caucus’s longstanding commitment to preserving seniority rights and how it will respond to a new crop of ultraprogressives intent on tugging the party leftward.
“It’s always been revered as the conscience of the Congress, and we will still be the conscience of the Congress if we lose one, two, three or 10 members,” he said.
But some CBC consensus positions that have served to amplify its influence inside the larger Democratic Caucus are already coming into conflict with some members’ demands that their party get more serious about fighting President Donald Trump and Republicans.
For instance, some Democrats believe the most effective way to combat the GOP redistricting spree is to carve up majority-minority districts in blue states as well as red ones. That could create more Democratic seats at the price of diluting Black power in Congress.
Though some prominent CBC members, such as New York Rep. Greg Meeks, are open to the idea, Carter said he was not inclined to join them.
“We want a party that is reflective of all the voices of all the people,” he said. “And if we just start painting a picture, all we want is Democrats, then we lose the value and the flavor and the diversity of what our party represents, and that is a seat at the table for everyone.”
Carter struck a softer note on seniority rights, which has long been seen as the foundation of minority power in the House and a red-line issue for the CBC. The system, he acknowledged, helps minority members “ascend to roles of leadership in a system that even within the party hasn’t always been fair.”
But, he added, “I have never believed that a person that comes in with superior expertise in a subject matter, should be told to wait.”
That attitude has served Carter himself well, putting him in position to assume the CBC chair in only his fourth congressional term after a long career in New Orleans politics. His words, however, are a far cry from suggesting that longtime committee leaders such as Meeks on Foreign Relations, Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson on Homeland Security or California Rep. Maxine Waters on Financial Services ought to step aside.
The real threat could come from a slew of young progressives who have signaled they aren’t interested in waiting their turn next term or otherwise playing nice with the traditional Democratic powers-that-be. Some of those future lawmakers, such as Darializa Avila Chevalier of New York and Chris Rabb of Philadelphia, could be joining the CBC.
Carter brushed off the potential for conflict. He said that while the CBC “still plays a role” in moderating House Democrats, he would not endorse the suggestion from centrist lawmakers such as Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) that self-avowed democratic socialists like Avila Chevalier and Rabb don’t belong in the Democratic Party.
“We’re not going to let people pit us against each other,” Carter said. “A Democrat’s a Democrat’s a Democrat. We have different ideas, we have different philosophies, we have different views, different approaches on how to get there, but our missions aren’t different.”
But members of the caucus have shown a taste for intraparty warfare recently, and several of the new progressive members have so far refused to commit to backing as speaker should Democrats prevail in November.
Just weeks ago, Clarke and two former CBC chairs, Reps. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) and Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), publicly lambasted Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) for merely suggesting there should be “new leadership” in the Democratic Party, without naming Jeffries directly.
Carter said he was not involved in drafting the statement but did not distance himself from its sentiment — especially as a friend and fraternity brother of Jeffries.
“For Senator Slotkin to suggest there needs to be new leadership, I’m not sure what barometer she’s using to measure that,” he said. “If anyone cared to be honest and fair, and they evaluated the task at hand and the ultimate challenges … Hakeem Jeffries has demonstrated exquisite leadership.”
Carter and Jeffries aren’t out of step on much, but the likely new chair said he had a different view on what the signature bill of a new Democratic majority ought to be. Jeffries has said he wants a focus on “affordability.” Carter is instead advocating for a voting rights bill that could help restore Black political power.
But the two have been in lockstep on using the bully pulpit to pressure corporate America and other institutions outside government to preserve American democracy from the threats they see.
When the caucus announced unanimous opposition in May to a bipartisan college athletics reform bill, Jeffries spoke at a news conference announcing a boycott of the Southeastern Conference over its limp opposition to Republican redistricting in the South.
Expect more of that, Carter said.
“If you call yourselves our friends, if you recognize and appreciate our economy, our entertainment, our sports, then you have to also recognize and stand with us at this great time of peril, when our rights are being taken away,” Carter said. “Stand with us if you want us to stand with you.”
Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley rescheduled a planned vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general late Friday in a preemptive move as negotiations between the Trump administration and GOP holdouts continue.
The vote, now set for Tuesday after a scheduled Thursday vote was postponed, isn’t an indication that a deal allowing for Blanche’s confirmation is near, so much as it is a nod to Judiciary Committee rules that require three days of notice for a panel meeting.
There is no sign that President Donald Trump is about to acquiesce to the unflinching demands of Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who wants a controversial settlement agreement between Trump and the IRS substantially pared back.
Cornyn, who lost his primary to a Trump-endorsed candidate, wants the Justice Department to nullify a $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” and limit the scope of a tax audit immunity component of the pact.
Trump told reporters earlier Friday the fund is “dead” but added “I wish it weren’t.”
“I’d like to see them compensated,” he added, referring to people he considers victims of government abuse, including participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
To advance Tuesday, Blanche needs to pick up Cornyn and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), another senator on the panel with similar concerns. He can’t lose any GOP votes if he wants to be reported favorably out of the Judiciary Committee.
“Chairman Grassley wants Todd Blanche’s nomination to be successful,” said a Judiciary Committee spokesperson, who declined to be named. “Noticing the markup gives more time for the White House to secure the votes for the President’s nominee. Grassley would like to see Blanche confirmed before the August recess as he has an excellent record restoring law and order and keeping Americans safe.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise is zeroing in on one of House Republicans’ biggest contests — a purple district in Nebraska — when he starts his recess campaign sprint.
Scalise will travel to Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District in the Omaha area for an event with Republican Brinker Harding in the coming days, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter granted anonymity to share plans not yet made public. Republicans are digging in to defend the seat, which Kamala Harris won in the 2024 presidential race and is among Democrats’ best pick up opportunities this fall as they seek to flip the House.
Harding is running against Democratic consultant Denise Powell to replace retiring GOP Rep. Don Bacon. Bacon, a moderate-leaning Republican, flipped the Omaha district red in 2016.
After Nebraska, Scalise is planning to travel across the country throughout August, including to defend GOP incumbents Mariannette Miller-Meeks’ and Zach Nunn’s key battleground seats in Iowa’s 1st and 3rd Congressional Districts and Derrick Van Orden in Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District.
He’ll boost candidates working to flip blue districts like Laurie Buckhout in North Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, Derek Merrin in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District and Mike LiPetri in New York’s 3rd Congressional District.
Scalise also plans to travel to Michigan, Colorado, South Carolina and Texas for campaign events over the August recess.
President Donald Trump goaded John Cornyn on social media Friday morning, accusing the Texas senator of withholding his vote on Todd Blanche’s attorney general nomination in retaliation for Trump’s central role in his political demise.
Cornyn, who lost his May primary to Texas’ scandal-ridden attorney general, the Trump-endorsed Ken Paxton, has threatened to block Blanche’s nomination in the Senate Judiciary Committee until the White House promises to permanently shelve its $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” in writing — something Trump appears unwilling to do.
“John Cornyn never had a problem with the so called “Fund,” which will not benefit me, but rather the great American Patriots who were hunted down like dogs and whose lives were unfairly and illegally destroyed by the Crooked Joe Biden Administration, until after I decided to Endorse and Support his Republican Primary opponent in Texas, who easily won the Nomination for the United States Senate,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Several Republicans bristled at the fund, which could have been deployed to compensate Americans who faced charges after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and which gives the president and his family audit immunity over taxes. At his July confirmation hearing, Blanche said that the fund, part of a settlement the president reached with the IRS, was defunct. But the administration has been “reluctant to change” the text of the settlement, Cornyn told reporters Thursday.
Trump signaled his continued support for the Jan 6 rioters on Friday.
“I will always feel that these victims of government abuse should be paid back for what they were forced to endure, their lives have been ruined!” he wrote. “Millions of people agree with me, as was proven in my landslide Presidential win, where this was a major subject of debate, and so did John Cornyn, until he lost his Election to an opponent that I Endorsed.”
On Thursday, the president suggested that he could punt a Senate vote on Blanche until after Cornyn — and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) — leaves the chamber at the end of the year. Cornyn, however, suggested on social media that there are other Republican senators with concerns about the fund.
“After the midterms, who knows who’s going to be the next United States senator from North Carolina or Texas?” Cornyn told reporters.
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