Republicans will win control of House as Democrats keep Senate

Former Vice President Mike Pence told CBS News that he is “closing the door” on testifying before the House Select Committee investigating Jan. 6, putting an end to the question of whether he would agree to speak with the committee before it wraps its investigation. 

“I am closing the door on that, but I must say again, the partisan nature of the Jan. 6 committee has been a disappointment to me,” Pence said.  

Pence criticized the makeup of the committee, ignoring the fact that Republicans rejected earlier opportunities to form the panel in a more bipartisan fashion, but acknowledged that he did not stand in the way of members of his senior staff, including his chief of staff Marc Short, from testifying in front of the panel. 

“It's inconceivable to me that one party would appoint every member of a committee in Congress that's antithetical to the whole idea of the committee system,” Pence said. 

He continued, "We have a separation of powers under the Constitution of the United States. And I believe it would establish a terrible precedent for the Congress to summon a Vice President of the United States to speak about deliberations that took place at the White House.”

Pence said even though he does not want to testify before the committee, he would continue to share his story about what happened on Jan. 6 in his book and he will “continue to speak openly about it.”

CNN has previously reported that Pence’s legal counsel had been in communication with the committee about whether he would testify. Over the summer, the panel dedicated an entire hearing to the pressure campaign Pence faced in the lead-up to Capitol attack, which included testimony from some of his top aides.

GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a member of the committee, was quick to criticize Pence’s decision not to testify.

“Hey Pence, do you like Democracy or nah? Did trump break the law or nah? Pick a lane and a position. You will fail to please everyone” Kinzinger tweeted.

Pence will participate in a CNN town hall airing at 9:00 p.m. ET tonight.

Committee's response: The House select committee also issued a statement pushing back on Pence's comments.

“The Select Committee has proceeded respectfully and responsibly in our engagement with Vice President Pence, so it is disappointing that he is misrepresenting the nature of our investigation while giving interviews to promote his new book” Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson and GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, who serve as chair and vice chair of the committee respectively, said in a joint statement.

“The Select Committee has consistently praised the former Vice President’s refusal to bow to former President Trump’s pressure to illegally refuse to count electoral votes on January 6th. But his recent statements about the Select Committee are not accurate.”

The panel’s leaders also debunked Pence’s criticism of the makeup of the committee neglected to include Republican members, detailing how Republican pushback along the way led to the committee’s current formation.

A growing number of Senate Republicans are calling for a reassessment of the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s spending decisions after the party failed to take back the majority in 2022 despite a favorable national political environment. 

The NRSC and the Senate Leadership Fund, the Mitch McConnell-aligned Super PAC, have sparred for months over the quality of various candidates and when, where and how to spend resources.

Utah Senator Mitt Romney said Wednesday that he has not called for an “audit” of the NRSC. But he would like to see an evaluation of its “initiatives,” “investments,” “fundraising” and payments to political consultants.

“How well did various aspects of fundraising go,” he asked. “How much was paid to various consultants and did they do the job we wanted them to do?” 

Asked if he was concerned about any potential wrongdoing, Romney said, “No.”

Republican Sen. Rick Scott, the NRSC chair, said in a statement that the Senate GOP campaign arm is “more than happy” to discuss its spending with senators. Politico first reported that a couple of lawmakers — Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Thom Tillis — privately called for an audit of the NRSC on Tuesday. 

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley said there was a “distinct change in tone” from members at the Senate GOP’s closed-door meeting on Wednesday.

“Senators backed off of that today,” said Hawley. “I don’t know if there was a little indigestion about that... People who had yesterday were using that word, today said, ‘Oh, that's not what I meant. That's not what I meant.’”

But Tillis reiterated his call on Wednesday, according to a person familiar. And a Blackburn spokesperson said, “Senator Blackburn’s position has not changed. That is incorrect.”

House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy said he has “plenty of time” to get the support of members of his conference who voted against his speakership bid on Tuesday, following an hours-long meeting where Republicans discussing the rules package that will govern the new Congress.

McCarthy said progress was made on several fronts, including expanding the Steering Committee and saying leadership would like to open up the floor for more amendments. 

“We'll continue to work with our conference to be able to produce more of their amendments for the floor,” he said. “We’re not done. It was a great discussion. We got part of it done. We'll carry it on again after we come back” from recess, McCarthy said.

Remember: CNN has yet to project which party will win control of the House although the GOP is only one seat away from gaining the necessary 218 seats.

Speaking to a group of Republican donors in Orlando on Tuesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis touted his strength in the suburbs, his rural turnout effort and his appeal with Latino voters just one week after he cruised to victory in his reelection effort.

DeSantis made the pitch in a conversational tone that reflected his good mood after his win last week, according to a person in the room. His remarks came at a time when the Florida Republican is being touted as a potential presidential candidate and a preferable alternative among many in the party to former President Donald Trump.

The group of about 250 people, which included donors to the Republican Governors Association as well as governors and their spouses, gave DeSantis a standing ovation at the end of his conversation with outgoing Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts. The person in the room told CNN that DeSantis walked through in detail where he performed well across the state, including winning the traditionally Democratic Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties.

When asked by Ricketts what he would like to work on with Republican governors, DeSantis said he was looking to take on the growth of so-called environmental, social and governance, or ESG, investment funds as well as improving border security, the person said.

A second person familiar with the speech confirmed that DeSantis did not mention Trump, who later on Tuesday announced he was running for president in 2024.

Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, who lost a bid for the GOP leadership in the Senate in a secret ballot Wednesday, didn't answer directly when asked if he has confidence in Sen. Mitch McConnell's leadership.

"I support the Republican leadership," he told CNN.

McConnell won the leadership vote 37-10-1 and said at a news conference that he was “pretty proud” of the result.

Scott also defended the decision of the National Republican Senatorial Committee — which he chairs — to not engage in GOP primaries, a decision some McConnell allies believe helped weak candidates emerge. 

“We should trust the voters of the states,” he said.

Asked if he supported former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign, Scott said: “I’m not getting involved in the presidential campaigns.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could make an announcement about whether she will run for the top House Democrat leadership spot this week, according to several senior representatives.

While Pelosi hasn't said one way or the other what she will do so far, the senior House Democrats told CNN they believe she will announce her decision before the House recess by the end of the week.

Why this is important: What happens in Democratic leadership elections revolves around the key question of what Pelosi decides to do. Until Pelosi makes her announcement, much of the rest of the field is expected to remain essentially frozen in place.

If Pelosi decides to run again for the top leadership spot for House Democrats, it will make clear that she is not yet ready to relinquish her role atop the House Democratic caucus. Pelosi, a towering figure in Democratic politics, commands widespread support among her members and is viewed as an effective leader within her party.

But if she runs again for leadership, such a move would also likely surprise, and even frustrate, many in Washington, including members of her own party, who have been anticipating that she might step aside for a new generation of leadership to take the reins.

If Pelosi does not run for the top leadership post, it would set the stage for a major shakeup in House Democratic leadership and mark the end of an era for Washington. The move would kick off a fight for her successor that could expose divisions within the party as other prominent members of the party look to move up the leadership ladder.

Remember: CNN has not projected which party will control the House yet. Republicans are on the cusp of reaching the 218 seats necessary to claim a House majority. Eleven House races remain uncalled — and the GOP needs to win one more to gain control of the lower chamber.

CNN's Clare Foran, Melanie Zanona and Annie Grayer contributed to this report

Rep. Adam Schiff will not seek a leadership position in the Democratic caucus next Congress, multiple sources tell CNN.

Instead, he is considering a run for Senate in California where Democratic Sen. Diane Feinstein, 89, is up for reelection in 2024.  

This paves the way for Hakeem Jeffries to become the leader of the Democratic caucus. Jeffries is widely seen as the favorite in the caucus for the position, if House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, who is the current leader, runs for a different position next Congress. 

Hoyer is considering a number of options to stay in Democratic leadership in the new Congress, including running for leader or for the whip position, sources told CNN on Tuesday.

Remember: CNN has yet to project which party will win the House as several key races are too early to call. But, right now, Republicans hold 217 seats — one away from the 218 needed to capture the majority.

House Democratic leadership elections have been announced for Nov. 30. Voting will take place behind closed doors via secret ballot using an app.

To be elected to any position in Democratic leadership, a candidate needs to win a majority among those present and voting. If more than two candidates run and no one wins a majority, the candidate with the fewest votes after the first round of voting will be eliminated and voting will proceed to a second round.

Republicans are one seat away from winning control of the House, with votes in some western states and Maine still being counted more than a week after Election Day. Either party needs to win at least 218 seats to have the majority.

Here's where the balance of power in the House stands:

The most uncalled races are in California — six of the remaining 11 races have not been projected. Counting there could take weeks because the official canvass is not due for a month after Election Day.

Two races are still too close to call in Colorado, including in the 3rd District where Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert is in a surprisingly tight race, leading by just more than 1,1000 votes with about 99% of ballots in.

Alaska and Maine still have one race each to call. Both states use a ranked-choice voting system. Oregon also has not yet projected the winner in its 6th Congressional District. The state conducts its elections entirely by mail.

Senate leadership elections: Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell won a secret-ballot leadership election after days of finger-pointing over the Republican election losses, putting him on pace to becoming the longest-serving Senate party leader in US history in the next Congress. McConnell defeated Sen. Rick Scott, his first challenger in his 15 years atop his conference.

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that the Democratic Senate leadership elections will be on Dec. 8, according to a source.

Still ahead: Former Vice President Mike Pence is set to participate in a CNN town hall on Wednesday as questions swirl about his plans for 2024 and the direction of the Republican Party after a disappointing showing in the midterm elections.

The town hall is taking place the day after former President Donald Trump announced his third bid for president and follows the release of Pence’s memoir, “So Help Me God,” on Tuesday.

Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Josh Hawley both said after a lengthy Senate GOP meeting that they voted for Sen. Rick Scott for leader over Mitch McConnell because they wanted change in the wake of the 2022 midterm elections.

“I voted for change,” said Graham. “I accept the results of the conference, and I hope we can be better.” 

Asked by CNN why McConnell won, Hawley turned sarcastic. 

“Why do I think he won? Because the conference doesn't want to change course,” said Hawley. “They want to do what we're doing. It's working so well.”

Hawley told reporters that he asked McConnell and Scott why “a sizable number of” independent voters stayed home. 

“That's why there wasn't a red wave,” Hawley said.

“I just asked both of the candidates, ‘Do you acknowledge that as a fact — and what do you think we need to do different?’ Because clearly, the Republican Party's got to do something different if we ever want to be a majority party,” said Hawley.  

Hawley also told reporters that he believes McConnell blames former President Donald Trump for the party's lackluster showing in the midterms.  

Hawley added to CNN that he doesn't believe this division within the conference his going away. 

"I hope that this is the beginning of a conversation and not the end of it. And we haven't resolved anything, we've chosen leadership, which is the same leadership. So now we've got to think about what do we do going forward," he said.