Jim Jordan on Trump cabinet, latest on PBM CR fight, and more!

In our latest edition, we have an interview with Rep. Jim Jordan about the Judiciary Committee’s plans for 2025, and much more!

December 16, 2024

In this edition

1. Interview: Jim Jordan on the Trump cabinet, the Judiciary Committee’s 2025 priorities, the Hunter Biden pardon, and how wrestling reshaped the political map

2. Heard on the Hill

3. Exclusive: Rep. Hakeem Jeffries hit with complaint: “Why is an official account promoting a campaign account?”

4. “The networking opportunities were out of this world”: Washington Reporter and Manhattan Institute host “the best night of D.C.’s holiday party circuit”

5. Scoop: Donald Trump upends PBM debate. Is it “ballgame” or is there more to come?

6. Scoop: Global health care giant Fresenius Kabi’s ties to left-wing nonprofit raise GOP eyebrows

7. Scoop: Parents Defending Education gives Congress a road map to an A+ on education

8. Op-Eds: Daniel Turner on how Rep. Brett Guthrie can re-energize America as the new Energy and Commerce Chair, Jack Sayers on the problems with the Senate Democrats’ Farm Bill, Mason Morgan on how young voters can save America, Jack Baum on the diverging paths of the Michigan and Louisiana legislatures, Professor Derek T. Muller on the need to pass the JUDGES Act, and Zach Thapar and Alex Titus about why Kelly Loeffler is a fantastic pick to helm the Small Business Administration

In our latest edition, we have an interview with Rep. Jim Jordan about Donald Trump’s cabinet picks, the latest on PBM reform, an exclusive ethics complaint that was lodged against Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, and much more!

Interview: Jim Jordan on the Trump cabinet, the Judiciary Committee’s 2025 priorities, the Hunter Biden pardon, and how wrestling reshaped the political map

by Matthew Foldi

Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio) made the most of President Joe Biden’s last two years in the White House. As chair of the Judiciary Committee, Jordan pressed the Democratic administration on “censorship and protecting First Amendment, [which] are things that American people view as really important.” Jordan also traveled the country to help maintain the Republican majority; he’s particularly excited about incoming Reps. Brian Jack, Brandon Gill, Tom Barrett and Brad Knott — a veteran prosecutor he wants to join the Judiciary Committee.

Two of Jordan’s notable wins this Congress include shutting down Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and helping to weaken the Climate Action 100+ (CA100+). Jordan went from knowing nothing about GARM to dismantling it in a matter of weeks, following a meeting in which Elon Musk explained to him that “GARM is harm.”

“I never forgot the sentence,” Jordan said. “And so we started investigating. [Musk] was 100 percent right. They're like, bad. We have a hearing, and Ben Shapiro did a great job, and one of the guys from the big media buying outfit up in New York, he testified. I felt kind of bad for him, because he got fired the next day. And then the next thing you know, they're no longer in operation.”

Jordan took a similar approach with CA100+.

“The same thing sort of happened with Climate Action 100+,” he said. “You had State Street, BlackRock, Vanguard, they all got out of the group. That's what the witness said to us. We asked her during the committee, ‘did anyone leave?’ She said ‘yeah,’ and we asked ‘anyone of note?’ She said ‘yeah.’ I asked her why’d they leave, and she said ‘because of your investigation.’”

Although Jordan wasn’t shocked by Biden’s recent pardon of his son Hunter, he was “surprised at the breadth of it.”

Heard on the Hill

• News to the max: Newsmax held its annual D.C. Christmas party at the Willard, where the company’s staff celebrated a banner 2024; the company broke its own records and regularly beat competitors in head-to-head ratings. To cap off its year, it also filed for an IPO. Spotted: Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy, along with Newsmax hosts, staff, and veterans Marisela Ramirez, Chris Plante, Guillermo Garcia, Anna Laudiero, Sebastian Gorka, Hogan Gidley, Roma Daravi, Jessie Jane Duff, Haley Gillman, Marc Lotter, Keitha Paleski, Valeria Riccioli, Kelly Sadler, Matt and Mercedes Schlapp, Joe Pinion, Tony Shaffer, Joe Simpson and Greta van Susteren. Hill staffers and political hacks joined the festivities.

• CR scoop: We’ve got the latest on the budgetary offsets in the continuing resolution. For a full list, click here.

• Thanks for reading! David Sacks, incoming AI and crypto czar, tweeted that he enjoyed reading the op-ed we published from Bonnie Glick and Erik Bethel about why he’s the man for the job.

• Congratulations 1.0! Rep. Brett Guthrie (R., Ky.) will chair the Energy and Commerce Committee next Congress. We spoke with Guthrie about his vision for the committee, which you can read here.

• Congratulations 2.0! Rep. Tim Walberg (R., Mich.) will chair the Education and Workforce Committee next Congress. Walberg spoke at length with us about his priorities for the committee, which you can read here.

Exclusive: Rep. Hakeem Jeffries hit with complaint: “Why is an official account promoting a campaign account?”

by Matthew Foldi

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D., N.Y.) improperly promoted an incoming House Democrat’s campaign Twitter from his taxpayer-funded social media account, according to a formal complaint lodged against him and obtained first by the Washington Reporter.

Weeks after Election Day, Democrat Derek Tran was certified as the winner in California’s 45th District, ousting incumbent Rep. Michelle Steel (R., Calif.). Jeffries congratulated Tran by tweeting from his government account, “Congratulations @derektranCA45 on your historic victory!”

This is impermissible campaign activity, a complaint received by the House’s Committee on Administration notes. “Why is an official account promoting a campaign account?” it reads. “Member is congratulating a campaign account on their campaign victory.”

“The networking opportunities were out of this world”: Washington Reporter and Manhattan Institute host “the best night of D.C.’s holiday party circuit”

by Matthew Foldi

‘Tis the season — and the Washington Reporter helped foster holiday cheer with its first Christmas party, hosted with the Manhattan Institute (MI).

“The Washington Reporter’s party that they cosponsored with the Manhattan Institute was arguably the best night of DC’s Holiday Party circuit,” a media mogul said. “A collection of the most aggressive and effective Washington doers on the right. You’d be hard-pressed to find a harder working or harder partying crowd, the networking opportunities were out of this world.”

More than 150 people joined us at Mission Navy Yard for hours of unlimited food, drinks, and remarks by our leadership, alongside remarks from MI President Reihan Salam, who spoke about his organization’s goals for the next year, which he went into at length in an interview with the Reporter.

“Matthew Foldi’s ability to host an epic party is only surpassed by his patriotism and journalistic integrity. It was an honor to partner with the Manhattan Institute which is, by far, the most influential think tank in Washington,” Brian Colas, the Reporter’s CEO, told the Reporter.

Jesse Arm, MI’s chief of staff and head of external affairs, added that “the Manhattan Institute was proud to partner with the Washington Reporter to bring together friends and colleagues committed to advancing the ideas our country needs now.”

Scoop: Donald Trump upends PBM debate. Is it “ballgame” or is there more to come?

By Matthew Foldi

President Donald Trump upended Congress’s lame duck deliberations about pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). “We have a thing called the middleman,” Trump said at a press conference. “I don’t know who these middlemen are, but they are rich as hell. And we’re going to knock out the middlemen, we’re going to get drug costs down.”

Multiple people backing PBM reform had the same exact message they conveyed to the Washington Reporter: “Ballgame.” Opponents of PBM reform aren’t so sure, and they are not without powerful allies of their own.

Congress’s fight is pitting various factions of the Republican Party against each other, specifically on attempts to reform PBMs . A bipartisan group of elected officials led by Sens. Bill Cassidy (R., La) and Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa), Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.), and Reps. Buddy Carter (R., Ga.), Diana Harshbarger (R., Tenn.), and Jake Auchincloss (D., Mass.), are squaring off against some of the most powerful voices in the MAGA universe.

Lawmakers are scrambling to determine what, if anything, a deal would look like. The Reporter reported that over the weekend, a deal emerged that has PBMs panicking — with both Trump and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. indicating support. Prior authorization, which is strongly opposed by insurance companies, is also in the deal. The deal comes as House Republicans, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio), announced an investigation into CVS Caremark for alleged antitrust violations.

During his press conference, Trump confirmed that he has been working with Kennedy, Dr. Mehmet Oz — his pick to run the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services — and with executives. “We spend more time talking about that than anything else,” he said.

Prior to his press conference, a clip of Trump went re-viral among health care policy wonks, in which he attacked PBMs: “We’re going to reduce prices, because the middleman makes more money than the drug companies,” Trump said. “There's a middleman that nobody even knows who they are.”

Some industry groups want a deal before the year ends, believing that some movement on health care policy is preferable, but they are facing a conservative buzzsaw, from some GOP veterans who are objecting to what they view as a singling out of PBMs.

Scoop: Global health care giant Fresenius Kabi’s ties to left-wing Arnold Ventures

by Matthew Foldi

Congressional Republicans are raising concerns that Fresenius Kabi, a global health care company known for its infusion therapies and generic drugs, is aligning with leftist ideologies and support for policies that undermine intellectual property protections.

Hill Republicans told the Washington Reporter that Rachel Goode, Senior Vice President of Legal and Intellectual Property at Fresenius Kabi, co-authored a 2023 paper titled “Ancillary Product Patents to Extend Biologic Patent Life.” This research was funded by Arnold Ventures, owned by left-wing billionaire John Arnold, a frequent source of criticism from the right. The study advocates for fewer patent protections — a policy change that would benefit Fresenius Kabi while harming other intellectual property owners.

Beyond Arnold Ventures funding Fresenius Kabi’s work, a tipster pointed out to the Reporter that Fresenius Kabi and Arnold Ventures submitted similar comments to the FDA on the issue of biosimilars and interchangeable biosimilar.

“Arnold’s support for Fresenius Kabi’s work could pose a problem for the company in light of the high profile criticisms levied against him by Republicans who are poised to have big roles in the new year,” a senior GOP staffer told the Reporter.

Scoop: Parents Defending Education gives Congress a road map to an A+ on education

by Matthew Foldi

Congress has new education sheriffs in town: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R., La.) and Rep. Tim Walberg, (R., Mich.) are chairing the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions and the House’s Education and Workforce Committee for the next two years — and parental advocacy organization Parents Defending Education Action (PDE Action) has a roadmap for them.

In a letter sent to Cassidy and Walberg, obtained by the Washington Reporter, PDE Action laid out a ten-point plan for education policy, including plans to support school choice, “rescind guidance on disparate impact in school discipline,” and “investigate foreign influence in K-12 education.”

Op-Ed: Daniel Turner: A Brett Guthrie-led Energy and Commerce Committee can reenergize America

by Daniel Turner

As Rep. Brett Guthrie (R., Ky.) prepares to take the reins of the House’s Committee on Energy and Commerce, he faces a monumental task cleaning up the mess of the last four years. Guthrie is not alone in this endeavor. President Donald Trump’s nominations to lead the big-three cabinet agencies (Energy, Interior, and the Environmental Protection Agency) have their hands full implementing a regulatory structure that will lead to a brighter future for America’s energy industry.

Our energy sector is in a ditch, and not by accident. Four years of the Biden-Harris administration’s obsession with the climate agenda landed this great industry there.

Op-Ed: Jack Sayers: The Senate Democrats’ farm bill is a burden, not a benefit, for rural America

by Jack Sayers

As I drive across Iowa, I’m constantly reminded of the countless family farms I pass — land much like the Sayers family farm, where a few hundred acres are dedicated towards feeding and fueling the world. My family has been farming in Mills County, Iowa for 75 years, and I’ve witnessed firsthand the many challenges our farmers face.

That’s why I’ve always advocated for policies that protect and support our agricultural community, because I truly believe farmers are the heartbeat of this nation. Unfortunately, it seems that outgoing Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D., Mich.) doesn’t share that same belief.

I strongly oppose the Farm Bill that Sen. Stabenow is pressuring Republicans into voting for; it is a misguided and harmful piece of legislation that will do far more harm than good to our rural communities. With a staggering price tag of $1.5 to $1.7 trillion, this bill does almost nothing to support family farmers and instead looks like a legacy project for a retiring senator who is more concerned with appeasing special interest groups than addressing the real needs of American agriculture.

Op-Ed: Mason Morgan: Young people founded this country, and young people will save it

by Mason Morgan

For years, political pundits dismissed younger generations as ideological strongholds of the left. But Generation Z is proving them wrong. While 18-29-year-olds overwhelmingly supported Joe Biden in 2020, the political tide shifted in 2024.

President-elect Donald Trump’s embrace of youth-focused strategies — appearing on popular podcasts, launching a TikTok account, and speaking directly to their concerns — demonstrated a key truth: young voters are persuadable, but only if you meet them on their terms.

That philosophy is at the heart of Run GenZ, the nonprofit I helped found after a college friend pitched me the idea in early 2020.

Op-Ed: Jack Baum: A tale of two legislatures in Louisiana and Michigan

by Jack Baum

With the 2024 election over and a Republican trifecta secured in Washington, D.C., the nation’s focus will turn to the policy proposals that emerge from Congress. However, the real battleground for contrasting Republican and Democratic priorities lies in the states, where lawmakers in Louisiana and Michigan highlight the partisan divide on economic policy — whether to champion tax cuts or embrace tax hikes.

In Louisiana, Republican leaders including Gov. Jeff Landry, House Speaker Phillip R. DeVillier, Senate Majority Leader Cameron Henry, and Revenue Commissioner Richard Nelson took advantage of the end-of-year special session to enact comprehensive tax reform. These efforts resulted in substantial tax cuts designed to ease the financial burden on Louisianans and spur economic growth in the state.

Op-Ed: Derek Muller: Pass the JUDGES Act to clear up courts’ backlog

by Professor Derek T. Muller

The federal judiciary is significantly short-staffed. Active civil cases have more than tripled in the last 20 years, from 18,000 in 2004 to nearly 82,000 in 2024. It can take more than two years for a typical civil case to get to trial. Criminal cases take longer to resolve, which leaves defendants to remain incarcerated as they await trial.

Congress has not added judges to the federal judiciary since 1990, and our overworked judicial system is paying a price. The judiciary desperately needs more judges. And President Joe Biden announced he would veto legislation that had unanimous backing in the Senate that would expand the federal judiciary.

Mr. Biden suggested exploring the use of “senior status” judges to enhance access to justice. One way to do that would be a one-time buyout for some of the most senior judges in the judiciary. Such an act would permit these judges to hear cases while opening up opportunities for new judicial appointments and easing the federal docket.

Op-Ed: Zach Thapar and Alex Titus: America needs Kelly Loeffler after a difficult four years for American small businesses

by Zach Thapar and Alex Titus

President Donald Trump announced that former Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R., Ga.) will lead the Small Business Administration (SBA). In picking Loeffler, President Trump is placing an experienced leader and businesswoman at the forefront of his efforts to “unleash opportunity for our Small Businesses to grow, innovate, and thrive” and “crack down on waste, fraud, and regulatory overreach.” She could not be taking the helm of the agency at a more critical time for American small businesses.

Over the past four years, the state of small businesses in America has deteriorated rapidly, and the current outlook is grim. A survey before the election found that nearly half of American small business owners felt they could not survive another four years of Biden-Harris policies. In the last year alone, small businesses have been forced to cut over 43,000 jobs, while wholesale costs for these businesses remain high — up 20 percent since Biden’s inauguration. At the same time, the Biden administration has created 30 times more regulations than under President Trump, leading to more than $1 trillion in new regulations.

What we’re reading

• Washington Post: The Postal Service’s electric mail trucks are way behind schedule, by Jacob Bogage.

• The Spectator: The Daniel Penny verdict is a hopeful sign that sanity can rule in our cities again, by Ben Domenech.

• New York Times: D.E.I. Official at University of Michigan Is Fired Over Antisemitism Claim, Lawyer Says, by Stephanie Saul and Vimal Patel.

• Fox News: George Stephanopoulos and ABC apologize to Trump, are forced to pay $15 million to settle defamation suit, by Gabriel Hayes.

• Washington Free Beacon: Meet the Judge Who Ordered the Release of a Chinese National Arrested for Taking Drone Shots of a Military Base, by Adam Kredo.

• Politico: We need to talk about Salt Typhoon, by Robbie Gramer.

• Fox Baltimore: How George Soros pushed Mayor Scott to bring drug consumption sites to Baltimore, by Patrick Hauf.

• Telegraph: Number of civilians killed in Gaza ‘inflated to vilify Israel,’ by Patrick Sawer.