Axios.com reported Tuesday evening that House Intelligence Committee Chair Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) is lobbying to be appointed Attorney General of California by Gov. Gavin Newsom, replacing Health and Human Services Secretary-designate Xavier Becerra.
Axios reported:
Rep. Adam Schiff is quietly lobbying Gov. Gavin Newsom and his allies to appoint him California’s next attorney general, according to people familiar with the matter.
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If Newsom selects Schiff, chair of the House Intelligence Committee and a confidant of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Democrats would lose a powerful party voice in the U.S. House and temporarily give up a seat in their slim 221-211 majority.
Nonetheless, Pelosi has given her approval to Schiff’s bid, a clear sign she thinks she can manage without him. according to people familiar with the matter. Spokespersons for Schiff and Pelosi declined comment.
The attorney general’s job also would better position Schiff, a high-profile Democrat who led the Russia investigation into then-President Trump, to run for Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s seat, should the 87-year-old decide not to run for reelection in 2024.
The move would mark a dramatic turn in Schiff’s career. In 2018, Speaker Pelosi was reportedly grooming him as her successor. But in 2019, he spearheaded the first impeachment of President Donald Trump, based on accusations by a so-called “whistleblower” whom Schiff promised to produce and then covered up once Republicans began asking questions.
Schiff also lied to the public about his committee’s prior contacts with the so-called “whistleblower,” who had no direct knowledge of the contents of the infamous telephone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski.
The appointment might be a risky one for Newsom, whose approval rating has plummeted, and who is facing a potential recall election later this year.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His newest e-book is How Not to Be a Sh!thole Country: Lessons from South Africa. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.