Hello, San Diego 🇺🇸
Alysa Horton
NEWSWELL D.C. reporting fellow
Back to regularly scheduled programming
Washington is getting back to business, and Capitol Hill is filling up with new faces. As member-elects and their staff settle into the nation’s capital, there’s plenty happening in the early days after the midterms.
So, what does it all mean for San Diego? Let’s catch you up on the stories shaping the region — and how they’re unfolding from D.C.:
- Jacobs vies for Dem leadership
- Newbies have arrived
- And more from the post-election landscape
Von Wilpert calls freshman Congressional orientation in D.C. ‘overwhelming, exciting’
Member-elects from across the country gathered in Washington for New Member Orientation: a week of learning the legislature and trying to make friends.
Picture the first day of high school, but instead of learning algebra, you’re learning your role in governing the country.
Marni von Wilpert jumped right into the fray and I got to catch up with her after the freshman photo on the Capitol Hill steps.
Along with bonding about how cold we were — it was 50 degrees and overcast at 8 a.m. — we spoke about her excitement to be in the nation’s capital with fellow member-elects “who have the energy to change our government.”
Von Wilpert is balancing her role as a city council woman in San Diego and learning the ropes of Congress. She will officially be a representative on Jan. 3 and her council seat will be up for a special election sometime early next year.
She didn’t clue me in when she’s planning to resign, but if it’s around the time she’s sworn into Congress, the special election will take place around March because the city has only 90 days to hold a special election after her resignation.
Jacobs, in House leadership bid, says it’s time for Democratic majority to pass universal free child care
The bluenami hit last week, and like many journalists, I’m still recovering and sorting through the sheer volume of information. Amid the wreckage in Washington, I decided to revisit Jacobs’ bid for caucus vice chair — particularly given the heightened stakes under a Democrat-controlled Congress.
Times of San Diego editor and general manager Andrew Keatts caught up with Jacobs’ in San Diego on Election Night. She spoke with him about the rejection of Republicans across the country and outlined her priorities in the 120th Congress.
She said it’s the “perfect moment for us to enact universal free child care,” with the Democrat controlled Congress.
Later this month, House Democrats will vote on their party leadership hierarchy and the only thing standing in Jacobs’ way is Rep. Lauren Underwood of Illinois — an equally experienced, passionate representative with similar ideas for the party’s direction.
Only time will tell what the caucus wants for the party’s future, but we should have an answer by this time next month.
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More from the Hill
🪖 Hegseth’s here to stay: The House voted to send impeachment articles, accusing Secretary Pete Hegseth of high crimes and misdemeanors in connection with the Iran war and other military actions over the past year, back to committee.The 211 to 204 vote means the articles likely won’t make it back to the floor before the Congressional session ends. (NPR)
- “I’m so proud to represent San Diego, the biggest military community in the country. It’s MY community, MY neighbors and friends, who’ve been shipped off to fight Secretary Hegseth’s reckless war in Iran. So I take it personally when our leaders are cavalier with our service members’ lives,” Rep. Sara Jacobs said on the House floor before the vote.
📣 A word on the way out: Rep. Darrell Issa shared his support for Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan as the party’s next House Minority Leader. Jordan won the leadership role against Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana in a closed door vote of 106-73. Issa did not have a vote because of his retirement at the Congressional session. (NBC and CSPAN)
- “I think it’s time for a change. I think People realize we’ve had a management team for a period of time that has done a good job but in light of the need to do what might be a multiple term comeback, a fighter like Jim Jordan represents to a lot of people somebody who in the minority proved that he can help us get back to the majority,” Issa said to CSPAN.
💸 Money makes a difference: Representative-elect Marni von Wilpert joined freshman Congress members in Washington for New Member Orientation this week as her lead against Jim Desmond keeps growing. After receiving nearly $5 million for her campaign, she holds 59.8% of the votes in District 48. In District 49, incumbent Rep. Mike Levin holds a smaller lead of 58.9% over his opponent. (New York Times)
📝 Lawmakers want ICE answers: The Democrats of San Diego’s congressional delegation demanded answers from the Department of Homeland Security following allegations that an 8-year-old boy was taken into custody after an immigration check. The Haitian boy had temporary protected status, which was allegedly expired. The San Diego House members said an officer with ICE placed the boy in restraints and took him away from the person who brought him to a Thursday immigration hearing. (Times of San Diego)
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Stay sharp, San Diego!
Have you kept up with what’s happening in the Capitol? Let’s see!
🧐 How many House Democrats were missing from the vote to move forward with Secretary Pete Hegseth’s impeachment?
A) 7
B) 19
C) 11
D) 13
Reply first with the correct answer to earn a shoutout in our next edition of the SD in D.C. newsletter.