The House as Launching Pad
Elise Stefanik sees a chance to make her move
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What You May Have Missed
Could Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) use the spotlight of House investigations to become Donald Trump’s 2024 running mate?
If he’s not the presidential nominee, Trump might not support the GOP ticket. Larry Hogan, moving toward a run himself, says he expects to back the nominee — but might not if it’s Trump.
Though several House Democrats are likely to run for the California Senate seat if incumbent Dianne Feinstein retires as expected, Nancy Pelosi is already saying Adam Schiff is her candidate.
Not planning a run for Senate or president next year: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
The House voted along party lines, with Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) voting “present”, to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) from the Foreign Affairs Committee over her past comments on Jews and Israel. Omar has also signed on to a resolution recognizing Israel as a U.S. ally and condemning anti-Semitism.
Though Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) has yet to say if she will seek another term now that she’s an independent, she has been raising big money from Wall Street.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell dumped Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) by text.
Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK) is hiring one of the Republicans who ran against her to serve as her state director.
The ultimate insult? Trump posted an old video of Ron DeSantis saying he wants to be like Paul Ryan.
Boris Johnson is baffled by “a guy called Tucker Carlson.”
Extra Links
Here are some interesting links that didn’t make it into Political Wire today:
The things that cost George Santos precisely $199.99 — one penny below the threshold for itemizing on campaign finance reports.
Republicans once used to let the market decide which channels a private TV distributor wanted to carry.
Labor Secretary Marty Walsh is in the running for a job with the NHL players’ union.
Where inflation is hitting hardest.
Problems mount in U.K. as Sunak hits 100th day as prime minister.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) says the vote to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was “about targeting women of color.” The video is worth watching.
The politics of loneliness.
Former Cranston mayor launches long-shot bid for president.
Number of traced "ghost guns" doubled between 2020 and 2021.
Or at least it’s a strong message for those who are Jew-ish.
Trending on the political dictionary: “iron curtain”
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Presented Without Comment

Closing Thoughts
This suggests Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is actually stronger than I would have thought.
That Santos speech was not only a insult but a highlight reel of hypocrisy. Exhibit A: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/01/george-santos-facebook-comment-hitler-jews-black-people/amp “George Santos, Who Falsely Claimed His Grandparents Fled Hitler, Reportedly Joked About Killing “Jews and Blacks”He added a “lolololololololololololol” for good measure.