GOP sees internal divides broader than Trump: The Note

The TAKE with Rick Klein

It is possible, in theory, to tell a story about Republican Party angst that does not center on former President Donald Trump.

Overshadowed in a week about the unfolding crisis in Ukraine and the State of the Union address is a separate storyline about divisions inside the GOP ranks that aren't specifically about Trump -- or at least aren't exclusively about him.

The last few days have featured high-profile examples of elected Republicans earning themselves new rebukes and condemnations from leaders of their own party, including after several attended a white nationalist conference.

Then came the ugly incident during President Joe Biden's speech Tuesday night, where Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., heckled Biden during a portion of the speech where he talked about the death of his son. (Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was spotted on camera nearby appearing to say "shut up.")

Earlier that same day, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell shredded an election-year agenda offered last week by the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.

"We will not have as part of my agenda a bill that raises taxes on half the American people and sunsets Social Security and Medicare within five years," McConnell said, pointedly reinforcing talking points that Democrats have developed about Scott's plan.

And Wednesday night, it was three Republicans who kept the House from voting unanimously to approve a non-binding resolution expressing support for the people of Ukraine.

Much of the debate about the future of the Republican Party continues to be about Trump. But just beneath the surface, there's a potentially more important series of debates happening about what the party should be and be like next.

The RUNDOWN with Averi Harper

Democrats have always pledged to move quickly on the confirmation of Biden's Supreme Court pick Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, and now the dates are set for hearings.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced that hearings for Jackson will start March 21 and conclude March 24. The dates set are on pace make Jackson's confirmation the second fastest on record, after Justice Amy Coney Barrett. There were 30 days between Barrett's announcement and her confirmation.

In a letter to colleagues, Durbin wrote of his desire for "respectful and dignified hearings" -- a hope that is likely more wishful thinking than a probability given the current contours of this deeply divided Senate. Jackson will face a familiar cast of characters as she prepares for the fourth set of confirmation hearings. Her last confirmation was in June 2021.

Among the GOP members, and the one of the most inflammatory voices on the committee, is Jackson's law school classmate Sen. Ted Cruz, who said that Biden's pledge to nominate a Black woman to the court is "offensive" and a "discriminatory quota." He voted no on Jackson during her last confirmation process. Democrats, by way of Vice President Kamala Harris' tie-breaking vote, can confirm Jackson without a single Republican vote.

Jackson was on Capitol Hill Wednesday and met with Sens. Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley and Durbin.

The TIP with Alisa Wiersema

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' Wednesday event aimed to announce a multimillion-dollar investment in cybersecurity education, but it was quickly overshadowed by the governor's own actions toward a group of masked students standing near his lectern.

"You do not have to wear those masks. Please take them off. Honestly, it's not doing anything. And we've got to stop with this COVID theater. If you want to wear it, fine, but this is ridiculous," DeSantis told the students before turning away and shaking his head.

Over the course of the last year, DeSantis has firmly rejected the implementation of mask mandates, signaling an unwavering stance in the ongoing culture war over pandemic restrictions.

The governor's actions included signing an executive order that threatened to withhold funding from schools that implemented such measures, and last month DeSantis voiced support for parents to be able to sue school districts over mask mandates.

As reported by ABC News, the American Academy of Pediatrics recently asked for empathy from leaders and communities about students' and families' individual choices despite changing CDC guidelines regarding masking protocols.

"We encourage each family to make a plan that works best for them, while also modeling empathy and discouraging bullying of any child who chooses to mask to protect themselves and their family even when not required to do so," said AAP President Moira Szilagyi in a statement.

NUMBER OF THE DAY, powered by FiveThirtyEight

10 points. That's how much the median percentile ranks for Black third- graders dropped in reading two years into the pandemic, according to data compiled by NWEA, a nonprofit educational testing and research organization. As FiveThirtyEight's Maggie Koerth writes, it's not that kids have lost ground during the pandemic, they're just not progressing as fast, and this is especially true of Black, Hispanic and American Indian and Alaskan Native students.

THE PLAYLIST

ABC News' "Start Here" Podcast. Start Here begins Thursday morning with Harvard's Dr. Joan Donovan explaining the role of misinformation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Then, ABC's Averi Harper reports on the Texas primary results. And, ABC's Jason Nathanson breaks down AMC's variable ticket pricing for Batman screenings. http://apple.co/2HPocUL

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