Pro-tip: don’t blindside legislators
If we had to come up with a list of generic things legislators hate, getting blindsided by important new information would probably be right near the top. Some examples of information you might prefer to find out about ahead of time, rather than via news reports or in real-time during the legislative process, include:
- an agency you oversee having a major problem;
- an interest in your coalition coming out against your initiative;
- another legislator offering a major amendment to your bill;
- a faction of legislators deciding to come out against a proposal;
- political actors preempting your public agenda-setting moves;
- the White House taking a public stance/action on legislation; or
- any of a million other things.
It’s not rocket-science why legislators hate this. It forces them to respond to things quickly with less information and preparation than they might like; it can blow up carefully constructed legislative coalitions; it can derail agendas, both legislative and in the public sphere; it can complicate issues that look finalized; it can disrupt negotiations; it can make you look dumb or out of touch or hypocritical; it can ruin expected media attention; and like 37 other things.
Legislators can and will deal with almost anything, if you bring it to the ahead of time in private. They're completely used to complications and things going wrong. That's par for the course. What drives them crazy is not having any advance notice, and losing control of the situation.
I can remember I was clerking a subcommittee oversight hearing one time, a real love-fest where we were celebrating an agency success story. On time, under budget, great project. That sort of thing. We had run the traps to make sure everyone on both sides of the aisle was completely content and bought-in to the love-fest. As the hearing is wrapping up, the chair asked if any other Members wanted to ask any further questions. A Member on our said of the aisle proceeded to grill the agency-head on an unrelated, embarrassing issue, which blew up the entire hearing, completely changed all of the media coverage, and came close to breaking my wrist, because the subcommittee chair was gripping it so hard while mouthing "W-T-F" to me. Not great.
I say all this because the White House, even more than usual, has been blindsiding congressional Republicans like crazy lately. Demanding the ballroom funding in the reconciliation bill; announcing the anti-weaponization fund; making the Pulte nomination to DNI; demanding the SAVE Act be attached to various bills; demanding McDonald be confirmed; pulling the Clayton nomination and hearing; and announcing the Iran deal publicly but refusing to share any details.
That’s just off the top of my head!
And look, none of this is new for Trump. He’s never cared all that much about the GOP or the political priorities of the congressional Republicans. I remember during the development of the 2017 TCJA, he was basically endorsing and then shitting on every iteration of tax proposal that came out of the House, putting Republicans in the bind of constantly endorsing stuff that he would turn around four days later and declare terrible or mean or nasty or whatever.
But this seems exceptional lately. And it’s a sure-fire recipe to not only lose more on the Hill and blow political capital while looking really weak, but also to piss off just about everyone, ardent supporters and lukewarm allies alike. Which is never a good strategy.