10 Things in Politics: The 7-minute workouts at the core of Biden’s transition

Good morning! Thank you for joining us for our first week of 10 Things in Politics. I’m Brent Griffiths. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox each day.

Send me your tips, thoughts, and puns to [email protected] or tweet me @BrentGriffiths.

Here’s what you need to know:

• A 7-minute workout helped keep Biden’s transition team together
• Democrats are floating a plan to restrict stimulus checks 
• Want to know what the Insiders know about Biden’s stimulus and covid plans? Then join my colleagues later today during their free chat.

1. THE ELEPHANTS IN THE ROOM: House Republicans are vowing to forge ahead united. This means Rep. Liz Cheney will remain in GOP leadership despite voting to impeach President Trump. It also means Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene will face no punishment for spreading conspiracy theories and endorsing the assassination of some of her Democratic colleagues before she entered Congress.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said GOP lawmakers aired their “grievances” during a tense hourslong closed-door meeting on whether Cheney of Wyoming should remain the party’s No. 3. She ultimately prevailed on a secret ballot by a 145-61 vote, per CNN. 

• But it's not over yet: House Democrats are incensed over Greene's statements and now the lack of Republican action. Speaker Nancy Pelosi released a statement referring to McCarthy as "(Q-Calif.)", a reference to the QAnon conspiracy theory Greene repeated trumpeted. The entire House is set to vote later today on whether Greene should remain on any committees. 
• … Awkward: Greene reportedly received a standing ovation from many House Republicans during the private meeting after apologizing for some of her past remarks. Publicly, she has refused to show any contrition. 

What this means: At issue is less the fate of two lawmakers than the party itself. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell implicitly called Greene a "cancer" on his party. But Greene maintains strong support from Trump, who has signaled that he wants to remain a powerful force in the GOP.

• Key quote: "This is about the direction of our party and whether or not we're going to be a minority dedicated to just one person, or we're going to be a united Republican majority," Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), a Cheney ally, told reporters as she entered the meeting.

2. Coming tonight: Your mini-guide to the vote-a-rama: Senators will debate a wide range of topics in rapid succession with no set end. The entire process is only completed after both sides have had enough, usually in the wee hours of the following morning. 

• This mostly a messaging exercise, but if you think it's all for show just ask Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey about the headaches he gave himself in 2017. That was also the last vote-a-rama.
• More details: Vote-a-ramas are only triggered when one side uses the special budget procedure known as reconciliation to fast track legislation. Democrats are doing exactly this to pass President Biden's $1.9 trillion relief plan. Because anything goes and both sides look to embarrass each other, party leaders try to avoid this sort of spectacle. (I dove into reconciliation at length earlier this week.)
• What we're watching for: A handful of Senate Republicans have presidential aspirations. This is an opportunity for them to troll their colleagues. Elsewhere, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has already laid out an array of other issues he wants to force Democrats to respond to. The results provide grist for future attack ads.

3. The 7-minute virtual workouts amid an unprecedented transition: Every weekday at 3 p.m. Democratic operatives on Joe Biden's transition team logged on for their workout. It was just one of the ways the group tried to connect during remote work. Robin Bravender has more in her exclusive report.

4. Democrats are moving to limit the next round of checks: A proposal being floated would "provide a $1,400 payment to individuals earning $50,000 or below. Married couples making $100,000 or under would receive a full check," my colleagues Azmi Haroun and Joseph Zeballos-Roig write. (The Washington Post first reported this development.)

• Meanwhile, House Democrats took their step in fast-tracking Biden's $1.9 trillion relief plan. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell slammed Democrats' decision to use reconciliation to potentially pass the package on a party-line vote, but he also used the exact same vehicle to secure tax cuts in 2017.

5. The top things for your calendar, all times Eastern:

• The House votes on whether Greene should be removed from her committee assignments
• 10:45 a.m.: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly news conference.
• 11:30 a.m.: White House press secretary Jen Psaki holds the daily news briefing.
• 1:30 p.m.: President Biden and Vice President Harris visit the State Department, meeting with department staff and also Secretary Antony Blinken.
• 2:30 p.m.: The Senate begins its "vote-a-rama."

6. Biden will allow more refugees into the U.S.: The president isn't expected to give an exact number though when he speaks at the State Department later today. During the campaign, Biden promised to allow as many as 125,000 refugees annually, a marked departure from the record-low 15,000 the Trump administration was set to allow this fiscal year. (The New York Times)

7. A Republican congresswoman claims she spent enough on gas to circumnavigate the earth: Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado received $22,000 worth of gas reimbursements for her campaign, which means she would have traveled 39,000 miles, enough to travel around the globe 1.5 times. 

• For comparison, her predecessor claimed just $9,797 for travel over 10 years. (The Denver Post)

8. Prosecutors are seeking a new arrest warrant for Kyle Rittenhouse: Wisconsin prosecutors say Rittenhouse, the teen charged with murdering two people at a Black Lives Matter protest, failed to inform authorities of his current location. Rittenhouse's attorney says his client is at a "safe house" and a local police official urged him not to divulge his exact whereabouts. 

9. Coal in his stock (hold)ings: Democratic Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan has previously bemoaned the "costs of coal and oil pollution" in his state. He also recently invested up to $15,000 in a coal-fire power company. Check out my colleague Dave Levinthal's exclusive scoop.

10. Dr. Fauci wants another chance to bend his curve: The infectious-disease expert is hoping some fans will be able to return to ballparks this summer. He's also pining for another chance to throw out a first pitch since his last attempt was JUUUST A BIT OUTSIDE. 

One last thing.

Today's trivia question: Kate Jacobs correctly answered yesterday's question. We're briefly leaving the world of politics for today's question. What team did the New England Patriots defeat to win their first Super Bowl? Email your response and a suggested question to me at [email protected]

• Yesterday's answer: President Gerald Ford was married to first lady Betty Ford, who was a professional dancer.