| Democrats suffered a stinging defeat at the ballot box, losing the presidency, the Senate and the House (as you know), leading to questions of who should lead the party out of the political wilderness. In the House and the Senate, the answer is: the same people. Senate Democrats are scheduled to hold their leadership elections this morning, and there will be no challenges to the top two positions, held by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (New York) and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (Illinois). There had been long-simmering frustrations that, Durbin, who has served as Democratic whip for 20 years, has been in the position for too long, blocking any upward mobility for younger senators. That sentiment is especially acute for some who argue privately that voters want the Democrats to offer something different. But despite frustrations, no senator is going to challenge Durbin in today’s leadership elections. Some senators argue that an intraparty fight is not the change the public cares about. “There’s a lot of work for Democrats to do, but it doesn’t center around changing leadership,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) said. “The same leader doesn’t mean there’s no change.” Plus, Durbin, who is 80, is widely believed to not be running for reelection in two years. While he hasn’t announced his plans for a sixth term, President-elect Donald Trump’s victory and Republicans winning control of the Senate will play a role in his decision. “I’m going to watch and see what this means,” he told the Chicago Tribune last month. Durbin is well-liked at home and in the Senate, but his long tenure has frustrated younger lawmakers. There was an effort four years ago to change Senate rules to force Durbin to give up the gavel for the Judiciary Committee while also serving in a top leadership position. But that effort didn’t succeed. Durbin defended his roles as whip and judiciary chair and said he should not be blamed for Democrats’ electoral defeat. “If I had known his election hinged on me, I would’ve done things a lot differently,” Durbin said in jest before adding, “I’ve tried my best to serve the caucus and the nation, and I think I’ve got a good record to show.” He pointed to the confirmation of more than a quarter of the federal judiciary under President Joe Biden. Schumer also doesn’t want a public fight and has worked out a solution to appease Sens. Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota) and Cory Booker (New Jersey) to avoid a battle over the third-ranking position to replace outgoing chair Debbie Stabenow (Michigan) of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee. Both will receive top positions: Klobuchar will serve in the third-ranking slot and Booker in the fourth-ranking slot, which was first reported by Axios. In the House Meanwhile, there are no shake-up among the top ranks of House leadership. The Democratic leaders who took control of the caucus last Congress after Nancy Pelosi (California) and her leadership team stepped down — Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (New York), Minority Whip Katherine Clark (Massachusetts) and House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (California) — will remain the top three. The leaders argue that while Democrats didn’t win the House, the likely 220-215 margin will be tight, and that most House Democrats did better in their districts than Vice President Kamala Harris. There is frustration, however, playing out lower down the political ladder in committees. With Trump in the White House, some Democrats are insistent that committee leaders must be sharp and willing to go toe to toe with him. Rep. Jamie Raskin (Maryland) is challenging the longtime Democratic leader of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jerry Nadler (New York), and announced his bid in a defiant letter to his colleagues. The Judiciary Committee is expected to be at the center of Trump’s agenda, and the top Republican on the committee, Rep. Jim Jordan (Ohio), is one of the president-elect’s fiercest defenders. “This is where we will wage our front-line defense of the freedoms and rights of the people, the integrity of the Department of Justice and the FBI, and the security of our most precious birthright possessions: the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the rule of law, and democracy itself,” Raskin wrote in a letter to his colleagues Monday announcing his candidacy. And Rep. Jared Huffman (California) has effectively pushed aside Rep. Raúl Grijalva (Arizona) to lead the Natural Resources Committee after Grijalva missed months of votes because of health challenges. Two members are also challenging Rep. David Scott (Georgia) to be the top Democrat on the Agriculture Committee. Scott has also been in poor health. Some House Democrats have suggested that someone needs to be blamed for poor election results. “The frustration has to go somewhere,” one Democratic aide said. “There needs to be some changes made.” Former representative Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) told us he hoped House Democrats have been increasingly realizing the value of generational change since his unsuccessful challenge to Pelosi as Democratic leader in 2016. “I think we’ve come a long way with Hakeem and the new leadership team,” Ryan said. “But it’s clearly not, you know, where it needs to be.” | 
Leigh Ann Caldwell and 
