[CTC] IUST: House flip means big changes for Ways & Means

[Dolan, Mike]

"Criticizing President Trump on trade policies did not prove to be a winning strategy last night..."


Democratic House flip means big changes for Ways & Means
November 07, 2018 at 11:59 AM


While Tuesday's election results largely followed conventional wisdom, with Democrats winning a House majority and taking some tough losses in the GOP-led Senate, the Republican House losses mean an overhaul of the Ways & Means Committee is coming, with major implications for trade.



Democrats beat four sitting Republican members of Ways & Means: Reps. Peter Roskam (IL), Erik Paulsen (MN), Mike Bishop (MI) and Carlos Curbelo (FL).



The Republican side of the committee will also see the retirement or resignation of eight members after this year. Two of those open House seats will likely go to Democrats, including that of Rep. Dave Reichert (WA), who chairs the trade subcommittee and did not stand for another term. The Democrat in the race to succeed Reichert in Washington looks positioned to take the seat, although the race has not been officially called.



The results could mean just 12 Republican Ways & Means members will retain their seats on the committee. They include Chairman Kevin Brady (TX), although he will lose his chairmanship now that Democrats have taken control of the House.



Almost all Ways & Means Democrats won their re-election campaigns, with the exception of Joseph Crowley (NY), who lost his primary to a fellow Democrat in a surprise upset in June. She went on to win the election.



Ranking member Richard Neal cruised to victory in Massachusetts and is a favorite to take over as chairman<https://insidetrade.com/node/164912>.



In the other chamber, the Senate Finance Committee will see a lot less upheaval, though Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT) is retiring at the end of the year. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who is the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, is next in line for the chairmanship based on seniority; he has said he will announce this week whether he wants to chair Finance.



Sen. Dean Heller (NV) was the only Republican on the committee running for re-election; he lost his seat to his Democratic challenger. Nine of the 12 Finance Democrats, on the other hand, were defending their seats. Of those nine, seven won another term, one lost her seat and one race is still too close to call.



Sens. Debbie Stabenow (MI), Maria Cantwell (WA), Robert Menendez (NJ), Thomas Carper (DE), Ben Cardin (MD), Sherrod Brown (OH) and Bob Casey (PA) won on Tuesday night. Sen. Claire McCaskill (MO) was among the red state Democratic senators to lose her seat.



Sen. Bill Nelson's race in Florida is still too close to call, although his Republican challenger has a slight edge and some outlets have called the race for the GOP. The race could be headed for a recount, according to The Orlando Sentinel<https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/politics/political-pulse/os-ne-florida-senate-results-recount-20181107-story.html#nt=screamer>.



Criticizing President Trump on trade policies did not prove to be a winning strategy last night, with the exception of Democratic challenger Abby Finkenauer in Iowa. She defeated Rep. Rod Blum and had previously released an ad focused specifically the impact of tariffs on farmers in the state.



Like McCaskill, other red state Democratic senators, many of whom criticized the president on trade in their agriculture-heavy states, took a beating. Sen. Joe Donnelly (IN) lost his race, and Sen. Jon Tester is imperiled in Montana, although that race has not yet been called.



And Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (ND), who made tariffs and trade among the main issues of her campaign<https://insidetrade.com/node/164842>, could not overcome the handicap of her party affiliation in a state Trump won by more than 30 points. Rep. Kevin Cramer, an enthusiastic Trump backer, won the race.



The race for the open Senate seat left by retiring Sen. Bob Corker (R) in Tennessee also featured trade as a defining campaign issue and also ended on the side of the president. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R), who had once tried to distance herself from the president before embracing him as the election got closer, prevailed over a popular former Democratic governor, Phil Bredesen, who was not a fan of Trump's trade moves.



In Minnesota, the effect of trade and tariffs on farmers was a major talking point during the campaigns, particularly in rural districts. The state's voters re-elected both of their Democratic senators -- Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, who won her special election after being appointed to replace former Sen. Al Franken -- but two of its congressional districts could flip to Republicans.



House Agriculture Committee ranking member Collin Peterson won re-election in the western part of the state, but his district could now be surrounded by red on the map. Republicans flipped a more rural northwestern district -- an open seat left by the retiring Rep. Rick Nolan (D) -- and the Republican candidate is up just slightly in the southern, also more rural, part of the state in a district vacated by Rep. Tim Walz (D), who ran successfully for governor. -- Hannah Monicken (hmonicken at iwpnews.com<mailto:hmonicken at iwpnews.com>) (emphasis added)



Michael F. Dolan, J.D.
Legislative Representative
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
Desk  202.624.6891
Fax    202.624.8973
Cell    202.437.2254

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