The Hill’s 12:30 Report — DOJ continues finding Biden classified documents

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–> A midday take on what’s happening in politics and how to have a sense of humor about it.* 

*Ha. Haha. Hahah. Sniff. Haha. Sniff. Ha–breaks down crying hysterically.

TALK OF THE MORNING 

This is becoming a high-stakes game of ‘hide and seek’:

The Department of Justice (DOJ) found *even more* documents with classified markings at President Biden’s Wilmington, Del., home on Friday. 

How they were found: The FBI conducted a 13-hour search, which a DOJ official said was “planned” and “consensual.”  

So, what has been found?: The contents are unclear, but documents have been found on four occasions. 

What we know: A small number of documents were found at Biden’s old Washington, D.C., office in November. And more documents have been found at Biden’s Wilmington residence.

Breakdown of the timeline, via The Hill’s Brett Samuels 

‘FBI SEARCH DEEPENS POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF BIDEN DOCUMENT DISCOVERIES’: 

Analysis from CNN’s Stephen Collinson 

‘THE BIDEN-DOCUMENTS MESS’: 

The New Yorker’s Amy Davidson Sorkin writes: “House Republicans are ramping up conspiracy theories, but one thing seems clear: the government’s documents system has an overclassification addiction.” The full read 

TWO DEMOCRATS ARE CALLING FOR INVESTIGATIONS:  

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) called Biden’s handling “totally irresponsible.”  And Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) also told Fox News, “This news raises serious questions and the appointment of an unbiased special prosecutor to investigate the matter is the right step.”

 

It’s Monday of what always feels like the longest month of the year. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here.

🚀 No longer happening tonight 

NASA is doing its launch on Tuesday instead:  

NASA is scheduled to launch a rocket from Wallops Island in Virginia this week. The launch was expected this evening, but it has been postponed until Tuesday due to weather.

When?: The launch window is 6-8 p.m. Details from Fox 5 DC 

Read NASA’s announcement

In Congress 

*Bell rings* — recess is over: 

The House and Senate are both back in session this week.  

The biggest change since both chambers were in session last: The U.S. officially hit its debt limit. The Treasury has bought Congress a few months by using “extraordinary measures” to prevent the U.S. from immediately defaulting. 

The gist: Republicans want to negotiate spending cuts in exchange for increasing the debt limit. Democrats want a clean debt limit increase with no strings attached — and the White House does not seem willing to negotiate. 

Likely a next step in the process: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre indicated that President Biden may meet with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

ALSO HAPPENING THIS WEEK — SORT IT OUT FOR THE SWIFTIES: 

The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on Tuesday on Ticketmaster’s handling of Taylor Swift’s new tour.  

The gist of what happened: “Ticketmaster canceled the public sale of tickets for the Swift concert in November after customers reported issues while trying to purchase tickets during a presale event, including the website freezing and crashing. Some lawmakers amid the chaos brought attention to the merger between Ticketmaster and Live Nation in 2010, which created Live Nation Entertainment. The company controls a massive portion of ticket sales for the live music industry.

More on what happened from The Hill’s Mychael Schnell 

MCCARTHY AND JEFFRIES ARE ALREADY BUTTING HEADS:

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has submitted Reps. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) to sit on the powerful Intelligence Committee. 

Why this is notable: Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) vowed keep Schiff and Swalwell off the committee. 

Why Republicans don’t want Schiff on the committee: “Schiff, as former chairman of the Intelligence Committee, had led the investigations into former President Trump’s ties to Russia, and Republicans have accused him of lying to the public during the course of those probes.” 

Why Republicans don’t want Swalwell on the committee: “Republicans have highlighted his ties to a suspected Chinese spy who had helped fundraise for Swalwell’s 2014 reelection campaign, which were first revealed in 2020. After the FBI informed Swalwell of their concern, he cut ties with the Chinese national and has said McCarthy’s decision to remove him from the Intelligence Committee is ‘purely vengeance.’”  

What could happen now, via The Hill’s Mike Lillis 

It’s all fun and games until campaign finance laws are involved: 

Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) has been in hot water for fabricating parts of his resume. But questions are now swirling over his finances, “a much graver class of misconduct that could result in civil penalties, criminal prosecution, expulsion from Congress or all three.” 

The questions about his finances: “The questions center around the hundreds of thousands of dollars Santos has loaned his campaigns from personal accounts; his sharp increase in reported wealth; an outside group that was raising funds on behalf of his campaign, without being registered with the Federal Election Commission (FEC); and a host of expenses submitted by his campaign for $199.99 — one cent less than the figure requiring receipts.”  

What Republicans think about Santos: “While GOP leaders have seated Santos on a pair of committees — and are quick to defend his right to remain in Congress after a fair election — some Republicans have called for his resignation. Most others are distancing themselves, warning that if Santos is found to have violated campaign finance laws, he should be booted from Congress.”  

What we know about Santos’s finances, via The Hill’s Emily Brooks and Mike Lillis

🌎 In other news

Where the economy stands — ‘Inflation Is Cooling, Leaving America Asking: What Comes Next?’:

The New York Times’s Jeanna Smialek writes, “Some economists expect inflation to remain stubbornly faster than before the pandemic, while others anticipate a steep deceleration. Some anticipate something in between. Which prospect plays out matters enormously: The speed and scope of the inflation cool-down will inform how high Federal Reserve policymakers raise rates, how long they leave them elevated and how much pain they inflict on the economy.”  

What we know 

I’m sorry, what?: 

The Washington Post’s Carolyn Y. Johnson writes, “In the mid-1990s scientists found evidence that Earth’s inner core, a superheated ball of iron slightly smaller than the moon, was spinning at its own pace, just a bit faster than the rest of the planet. Now a study published in Nature Geoscience suggests that around 2009, the core slowed its rotation to whirl in sync with the surface for a time — and is now lagging behind it.”  

The full story that may make you contemplate the universe for a while

🦠 The COVID-19 numbers

Cases to date: 101.8 million 

Death toll: 1,099,866 

Current hospitalizations: 31,377 

Shots administered: 667 million 

Fully vaccinated: 69.1 percent of Americans 

CDC data here.

🐥Notable tweets 

Getting traction — this may be even funnier than customers accidentally ordering insane numbers of bananas: 

@MinsterCourt tweeted, “A new low. My online supermarket delivery has just arrived. I have managed to order 1 [Brussels] sprout.” This tweet has more than 24,000 likes so far. Photo 

Back to work: 

The Hill’s Alex Gangitano tweeted, “POTUS and FLOTUS are headed back to the White House after a long weekend at their Rehoboth house.” Photo of the Bidens boarding Air Force One 

^ The Daily Mail’s Emily Goodin pointed out: “It’s the first public sighting of Jill Biden since her Mohs surgery on Jan. 11.”   

More on Jill Biden’s procedure a few weeks ago

⏱On tap 

The Senate is in. The House returns on Tuesday. President Biden and Vice President Harris are in Washington, D.C.

• 9:45 a.m.: Biden left Rehoboth Beach, Del., and returned to the White House. 
• 3 p.m.: Harris will administer the oath of office to Pete Ricketts, the junior senator from Nebraska.   
• 3 p.m.: The Senate meets. 
• Tuesday: The House returns. Tomorrow’s House agenda 

All times Eastern.

📺What to watch

• 2 p.m.: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre gives a press briefing. Livestream 
• 2 p.m.: State Department spokesperson Ned Price holds a press briefing. Livestream 

🥧 In lighter news 

Today is National Pie Day! 

And to leave you hyped up, here’s a dog who should absolutely pursue a career in hockey.  

^ Make sure you watch the whole video.