Exclusive: House GOP measures drapes for Trump win

• With slim margins, tapping multiple House members could potentially make it even more difficult to govern or potentially put the majority at risk.
• "I've heard from a number of members that have been having conversations whether they're on a short list or a long-short list," Scalise told Axios in an interview.
• "And we saw it in 2017 where a number of House colleagues got pulled into Cabinet secretary positions and other positions, and so I wouldn't expect anything different this time. Hopefully we have a large enough majority where that option is available to them, but that's going to be up to President Trump," he added.

The intrigue: Scalise said a margin of 8-12 seats could help them avoid some of the chaos seen during the current Congress.

• Scalise said he is "very confident" House Republicans will hold or grow the majority. But he noted that the likely small margins create difficulties.

• "You know, with the way redistricting is, these aren't the days we can get a 30-seat majority anymore. So whatever majority we have is going to be slim," he said.

The big picture: Republicans are looking to stave off multiple rounds of speaker votes and motions to vacate.

Any increase in their margin gives them an easier time getting major pieces of legislation over the finish line in the next Congress.

• "Whatever the number is, you take a one seat majority over the Democrats controlling things, but I think we're going to do better than that," he added.