With an assist from Daniella Diaz

WINDING ROAD TO REPEAL — There could be an alliance brewing between the most liberal Democrats in the House and the conservative flank of the GOP. You know, that thing when political ideologies are so far apart they actually crash into each other.

The result could give Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) a headache.

He can only lose four GOP votes on the floor in the closely divided House, which makes any deal that’s percolating fraught. The Progressive Caucus and the House Freedom Caucus are in open agreement: They want to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for use of military force in Iraq. The Senate already acted and President Joe Biden has promised to sign the two AUMF repeals if they reach his desk. But McCarthy has been pumping the breaks and doesn’t intend to fast track the two repeals. He’s said he’d back a repeal of the 2002 AUMF, but only if the sweeping 2001 AUMF that Congress approved in direct response to the 9/11 attacks remains in place.

But when Reps. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas) are pushing for swift action (plus a cadre of allies on both sides), House leaders could be feeling the heat. Even House Rules Committee Chair Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) wants the House to move.

• “Sometimes the political spectrum is more of a circle than a line. At some point, you might have sometimes-differing motives or different ranges, but you end up [at] the same conclusion, and that’s okay,” Roy said. “That’s kind of how our system works.”
• Or as progressive Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) put it: “Sometimes you have interesting bedfellows in Washington.”

Nicholas lays out their options for action, plus what other issues these unlikely allies are finding common ground on.

GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Thursday, April 6, where your regular host is heading out of town but the wonderful Daniella Diaz is taking the reins for a few days. (Send her your transitions, tips and trivia!)

TAKE ME TO TAIWAN — Olivia is in Taiwan with a bipartisan CODEL led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas).

Taiwan’s vice president Lai Ching-te pointed to the escalating tension in the Taiwan Strait and aggression from China and said that “Taiwan stands on the front line of combat to authoritarian expansionism.”

“It is important that we protect you” McCaul told Lai, adding that despite lots of discussion of ambiguity that “the United States stands by you and will protect you.” He later clarified that the U.S. protects Taiwan “by arming and training them – and by being prepared to defend them if necessary.”

President Joe Biden has all but tossed out the policy of strategic ambiguity and has also pledged to defend Taiwan.

The eight-lawmaker CODEL plans to meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen once she travels back to the island from her trip to the U.S. Don’t miss Anthony’s recap of Tsai’s meeting with McCarthy and others.

McCaul made a striking comparison on global threats: “This struggle for the global balance of power that we find ourselves in today often reminds me of my father’s generation, often referred to as the greatest in the United States. Then we had Hitler. Today we have Putin and Chairman Xi.”

Joining McCaul on the Taiwan trip are Reps. French Hill (R-Ark.), Michael Lawler (R-NY), Ami Bera (D-Calif.), Young Kim (R-Calif.), Guy Reschenthaler (R-Pa.), Nathaniel Moran (R-Texas) and Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.).

Related read: What Taiwan’s Tsai privately told 3 senators, from Alexander Ward over at NatSec Daily

WHERE’S WHITMER — The real question is: which one? Democrats are betting that two Whitmers is better than one. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has a sister and she’s considering a run for one of the House’s most high-profile battleground seats this cycle, report Sarah, Ally and Nicholas. Liz Whitmer Gereghty of New York’s Westchester County could announce her campaign to challenge GOP Rep. Mike Lawler as soon as mid-April, a person familiar with her plans told POLITICO.

DOUBLE FOR DeSANTIS — Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) endorsed Ron DeSantis for president, making him the second House Republican to back the Florida governor – who is not yet a declared candidate for the White House – as the 2024 Republican field takes shape.

“I’ve been honored to call Ron DeSantis a friend for over a decade. During the six years we served together in Congress, I witnessed Ron fight for economic freedom, personal liberty, fiscal responsibility, and constitutionally limited government,” Massie said. “If we make the right choices, America’s best days are in front of us. Let’s pick a proven energetic leader who can get us there. Let’s choose Ron DeSantis for President.”

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) threw his support behind DeSantis back in March.

Meanwhile… Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) is backing former President Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary, a show of support for the former president announced ahead of his arraignment on Tuesday.

REELECTION PULSE — Just keeping an eye on who’s running again and who’s still thinking about it. Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen is getting in the game to defend her battleground state seat. Another swing state Democrat, Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania “has not yet announced whether he will seek a fourth term, but he has done everything short of that,” writes Holly Otterbein from Philadelphia.

The most dangerous game… Rep. Dan Bishop (R-N.C.) sacrificed his achilles tendon to “an ill-advised game of pickleball.” But he promises to be back in Washington after the recess “come hell or high water.” Is there a pickleball caucus? Should we get a tourney going?

Tech guy shoutout… It’s just another anti-Trump op-ed from a House Democrat, except that the defining anecdote is about an outside tech vendor who set up the laptops for the impeachment trials?

House G.O.P.’s Plan to Cut Food Stamps Faces a Tough Vote, from Catie Edmondson at The New York Times

Jewish soldiers held a makeshift Seder in the middle of the Civil War, from Gillian Brockell at the Washington Post

Peter Welch on being the Senate’s (old) new guy, dairy, and how Dems like him win rural voters, from Jim Saksa at Roll Call

The Undercover Organizers Behind America’s Union Wins, from Josh Eidelson at Bloomberg

Republicans Vowed to Grill Bragg About Trump, but It’s Not So Simple, from Luke Broadwater and Jonathan Swan at the New York Times

TODAY IN CONGRESS

The House convenes at 11 a.m. in a pro forma session.

The Senate convenes at 10 a.m. in a pro forma session.

AROUND THE HILL

Looking quiet.

WEDNESDAY’S WINNER: Mike Ryan correctly answered that Teddy Roosevelt was the first U.S. president to visit a foreign country while in office. He visited Panama to inspect the construction of the Panama Canal.

TODAY’S QUESTION from Mike: Who is the only president to return to the House of Representatives after serving as president?

The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your answers to [email protected]

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