The other DNC chair

Presented by

With help from Allie Bice

Welcome to POLITICO’s 2021 Transition Playbook, your guide to the first 100 days of the Biden administration

When JOE BIDEN nominated JAIME HARRISON to head the Democratic National Committee, the president’s team also informed Harrison they had already hired his top staffers, according to a Democratic official familiar with the conversations.

The DNC’s CEO, MARY BETH CAHILL, would become a senior adviser and her deputy, SAM CORNALE, would be the DNC’s executive director, they said.

Some former DNC officials expressed surprise that Harrison, who had been boosted by House Majority Whip JIM CLYBURN, would not be able to bring in more of his own people.

The moves speak to the powerful role White House Deputy Chief of Staff JEN O’MALLEY DILLON — who’s become Biden’s point person dealing with the DNC — has at the committee.

It also raises the prospect of a power struggle developing between one of Biden’s closest allies and the White House.

Cahill is a close ally of O’Malley Dillon’s and became the party committee’s CEO last spring at the Biden campaign’s request soon after O’Malley Dillon became campaign manager.

“You gotta go through Jen,” White House Chief of Staff RON KLAIN has told those who’ve approached the White House about political questions touching the DNC. Even after O’Malley Dillon was named deputy chief of staff and Harrison assumed his role, she was closely involved in the DNC personnel machinations, including running meetings.

A White House official said in an email that “Chair Harrison has proven himself to be an effective leader for the Party and is a full partner in every decision being made.”

In a statement through a spokesperson, Harrison told Transition Playbook, “We are focused on a 50 state strategy to win and I’m proud to partner with President Biden and play whatever role I can to help him elect Democrats up and down the ballot. I was honored to be asked to serve as chair.”

The relationship between O’Malley Dillon, Harrison, Cornale, and Cahill will matter in the lead-up to 2024. Inside the building, staffers are working under the assumption that Biden is running again and are preparing to build an organization supporting his reelection.

Even if Biden doesn’t run, however, many of the valuable digital assets the DNC is working on, such as the email list, would likely belong to the other member of the 2020 ticket — Vice President KAMALA HARRIS — which could give her a running start in a Democratic primary. Biden had access to President BARACK OBAMA’s 2012 email list in the 2020 primary, but that list was nearly eight years old and not as valuable as Biden’s 2020 list would be.

Some Obama-era veterans say there is nothing unusual about the White House choosing the senior staff for the new party chair. JIM MESSINA, who was the deputy chief of staff overseeing the DNC during the Obama administration, remembered that “We said [to DNC Chair TIM KAINE], ‘We’re gonna put Jen there [as executive director]. And then we set them up to meet each other, and they hit it off, and they were great.”

Messina also said the scrutiny of O’Malley Dillon’s DNC role and senior staff hires is “borderline sexist.”

“People are picking on Jennifer in a way they wouldn’t pick on her if she was the guy,” he said. “And I just think it’s bullshit. Like no one wrote this story when I was doing this because it’s exactly what Bush did. It’s exactly what Trump did. But it’s Jen and it’s not fair. So I hate this.”

It’s not the first time O’Malley Dillon has faced the complicated task of coordinating between the DNC and a new Democratic president.

She was executive director of the party committee under Kaine at the outset of the Obama administration in 2009. While the DNC and Obama’s Organizing for America effort powered Obama to reelection, many Democrats felt the Obama White House neglected the rest of the DNC, which hurt Democrats down ballot.

That experience has made some state parties wary of O’Malley Dillon’s return as a driving force at the DNC, but people who have spoken with O’Malley Dillon say she has been introspective about how to improve on what the national party did last time. Many of the decisions that will determine the direction forward, however, have yet to be made.

The Biden administration is preparing to launchits own outside political organization with close allies — the working name is “Building Back Together” — but insist that the group will not duplicate or overshadow the DNC and state parties’ work.

There have not been outward signs of tensions between the DNC and the White House, although there were some divides during the 2020 campaign. Clyburn, for example, clashed repeatedly with O’Malley Dillon on the decision to forgo door-to-door canvassing over health concerns amid the pandemic, and attributed Harrison’s loss in the Senate race last November to that decision.

“Jen O’Malley’s — all I’m saying is, is that her kind of politics? I don’t know,” he told NATASHA KORECKI in January. “We raised holy hell during the campaign” over the canvassing freeze.

O’Malley Dillon’s decision on door knocking also raised questions within the Biden campaign, as did some of her other moves, including the pace of hiring. Her ascension to campaign manager also triggered some internal divisions during her initial months last spring.

Clyburn’s office tells us the disagreement wasn’t personal and that “the Whip supports the partnership between Jaime and Jen in their current roles. To say otherwise would be inaccurate.”

The White House declined to make O’Malley Dillon available yesterday or today. They did, however, make her available to the Washington Posttoday for a story on the DNC ...

Do you work in the Biden administration? Are you in touch with the White House? Are you JASON MILLER (the Biden one, not the Trump one)? We want to hear from you — and we’ll keep you anonymous: [email protected]. Or if you want to stay really anonymous send us a tip through SecureDrop, Signal, Telegram, or Whatsapp here. You can also reach Alex and Theo individually if you prefer.

We want your tips, but we also want your feedback. What should be covering in this newsletter that we’re not? What are we getting wrong? Please let us know.

Did someone forward this to you? Subscribe here!

Where's Joe

In the Roosevelt Room, where he met with Canadian Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU and Deputy Prime Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND in a virtual bilateral meeting. “It’s so great to see you, Joe,” Trudeau said.

Biden and Domestic Policy Adviser SUSAN RICE also held a virtual roundtable earlier in the day with four Black essential workers: DEMETRIS “AL” ALFRED of St. Louis; MELANIE OWENS of Chicago; CARMEN PALMER of Columbus, Ohio; and JEFF CARTER of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Where's Kamala

With Biden in the Roosevelt Room.

Presidential Trivia

With the Center for Presidential Transition

Which Biden Cabinet secretary’s name was an answer to this past Sunday’s crossword puzzle in The New York Times Magazine?

(Answer is at the bottom.)

Pro Exclusive

HAALAND TONES DOWN RHETORIC ON FOSSIL FUELS — Rep. DEB HAALAND (D-N.M.) softened her stance on fossil fuels in testimony before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Tuesday, as she sought to woo moderate senators who hold power over her confirmation to be Biden’s Interior secretary.

The remaining articles and infographics in this section are exclusively available to POLITICO Pro subscribers. Pro is a smart, personalized policy intelligence platform from POLITICO. If you are interested in learning more about how POLITICO Pro can support your team through the 2020 transition and beyond, visit this webpage.

Advise and Consent

MITCH’S OLIVE BRANCH TO MERRICK — Senate Minority Leader MITCH McCONNELL will support MERRICK GARLAND’s nomination for attorney general, five years after blocking the judge’s path to the Supreme Court.

“I do,” McConnell told MARIANNE LeVINE, when asked this afternoon if he plans to back Garland. He did not elaborate. McConnell has voted to confirm each of Biden’s Cabinet picks thus far except for Homeland Security Secretary ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS.

AND THEN THERE WERE NINE: Sen. BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) voted against confirming TOM VILSACK as Agriculture secretary this afternoon, making him the first member of the Senate Democratic caucus to vote against one of Biden’s nominees. Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) has said he’ll oppose NEERA TANDEN’s nomination as Office of Management and Budget director, but she hasn’t come up for a vote on the Senate floor yet.

In a statement, Sanders said he looked forward to working with Vilsack but “opposed his confirmation today because at a time when corporate consolidation of agriculture is rampant and family farms are being decimated, we need a secretary who is prepared to vigorously take on corporate power in the industry.”

“I heard from many family farmers in Vermont and around the country who feel that is not what Tom did when he last served in this job,” he added.

HELENA BOTTEMILLER EVICH reports that Vilsack was easily confirmed by a vote of 92 to 7, despite Sanders’ opposition.

Also confirmed by the Senate today: LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, Biden’s pick for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who sailed through on a 78-20 vote. As RYAN HEATH writes, Thomas-Greenfield won’t have much time to ease into her new job. The U.S. assumes leadership of the Security Council — the U.N.’s top decision-making body — on March 1.

Vilsack and Thomas-Greenfield are the first Biden Cabinet nominees confirmed since Veterans Affairs Secretary DENIS McDONOUGH on Feb. 8.

Sen. JOSH HAWLEY (R-Mo.) voted against Vilsack and Thomas-Greenfield, maintaining his status as the only senator who’s rejected against all of Biden’s Cabinet picks thus far. Sen. TED CRUZ (R-Texas) has voted against eight of them, and Sen. RICK SCOTT (R-Fla.) has voted against seven.

Biden still has only nine of his Cabinet picks confirmed. As we noted last week, President DONALD TRUMP had 14 Cabinet members at this point in his presidency, Obama had 15 and President GEORGE W. BUSH had 17.

THE @NEERA PROBLEM — The White House came to Tanden’s defense today, amid a scramble to save her nomination. “There’s one candidate to lead the budget department,” White House Press Secretary JEN PSAKI said when asked who Biden’s Plan B for the job might be if Tanden withdraws her name or is voted down. “Her name is Neera Tanden.”

Biden, himself, insisted later in the day that “We’re going to push,” to confirm Tanden, despite the opposition facing her in the Senate. But he expressed more uncertainty than he has previously: “We still think there’s a shot, a good shot.”

MORE TWEETS, MORE PROBLEMS: Tanden isn’t the only Biden Cabinet picks whom Republicans have grilled about past tweets. “Just a couple of months ago, you tweeted, ‘Republicans don’t believe in science,’” Sen. JOHN BARRASSO (R-Wy.), the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s ranking member, said during Rep. DEB HAALAND’s (D-N.M.) confirmation hearing today to lead the Interior Department.

Barrasso asked Haaland whether she thought the three Republican medical doctors on the committee — Sens. BILL CASSIDY (R-La.), ROGER MARSHALL (R-Kan.) and himself — didn’t believe in science.

“If you’re a doctor, I would assume that you believe in science,” she replied.

WELL, THAT WASN’T SO BAD: Republicans on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hit XAVIER BECERRA during his confirmation hearing today for his support of abortion rights and said they felt he was not qualified to lead the Health and Human Services Department during a pandemic.

But they landed few real hits on him, ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN reports, and the critique of Becerra’s record brought up in conservative attack ads — including his stance on Medicare for All and California’s pandemic restrictions — failed to gain much traction among senators.

Becerra still has to get through his Senate Finance Committee hearing on Wednesday, but Republicans indicated today he’s likely to get confirmed. Moderates such as Sens. SUSAN COLLINS (R-Maine) and LISA MURKOWSKI (R-Alaska) raised no concerns with Becerra’s record or qualifications. And Sen. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-Ala.), who pressed Becerra on insulin prices, also made a reference to “when” he is confirmed rather than “if.”

FILLING THE RANKS

YOU DOWN WITH OPM? — Biden will nominate KIRAN AHUJA as Office of Personnel Management director, the White House announced this afternoon. The nomination is not a surprise: Ahuja, the chief executive of Philanthropy Northwest, led the Biden transition’s OPM agency review team and also served as the agency’s chief of staff during the Obama administration.

Agenda Setting

ACTION ON GUNS IN THE WORKS — The White House isweighing a number of gun safety proposals as it looks to deliver on President Joe Biden’s campaign promises, ANITA KUMAR and LAURA BARRÓN LÓPEZ report. But some activists are upset that after one month in office the administration has yet to set a firm timeline or provide specifics about its overarching plan.

REPARATIONS REVIEW: The White House has refused to say whether it supports legislation to create a commission to study the issue of reparations for the descendants of slaves. But an exclusive POLITICO/Morning Consult poll first reported in The Recast, our brand new sister newsletter on race and politics, shows a majority of Democrats are in favor of the idea.

Read more from the inaugural edition of The Recast and subscribe here.

What We're Reading

Congressional Black Caucus backs Shalanda Young as OMB replacement (The Washington Post)

On immigration, “the Biden administration is trying but it’s got to be way the hell more” (The New York Times)

The challenges facing Bill Burns at the CIA (The Wall Street Journal)

Secretary of State Tony Blinken might not take a foreign trip until April (The New York Times)

Inside the new $65 million push from progressives to compete with conservative media (Recode)

The Oppo Book

Labor secretary nominee MARTY WALSH might just be the ultimate U2 fanboy.

Walsh told The Boston Herald in 2015 that he began listening to the Irish rock band since their 1980 debut. “I’ve loved them from when they first started making music,” said Walsh, who is Irish-American. The Boston mayor admitted he didn’t make the first show U2 played in his city, but has seen three of their shows in Foxboro, Mass.

Walsh said he likes “Bono obviously, but the whole band,” adding that “a lot of their songs have meanings in different ways.”

“They’re the Beatles of my generation,” he gushed. That’s a bold (wrong?) claim! Any other Gen Xers care to weigh in?

TRIVIA ANSWER

Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN’s first name was the answer to 76-across in The New York Times Magazine’s crossword puzzle on Sunday. (The clue: “_____ Austin, Biden defense secretary.”) In addition, White House Press Secretary JEN PSAKI’s name was the answer to 69-down. (The clue: “___ Psaki, Biden press secretary.”)