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Presented by Facebook: POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. | | | | |  | | By Garrett Ross | | | BIDEN TO UKRAINE? — In an exchange with reporters on his way to North Carolina earlier today, President JOE BIDEN seemed to indicate that he is open to personally visiting Ukraine soon, as the administration discusses sending an official delegation to the war-torn country. Here was the back-and-forth, via The Recount: Reporter: “Will you send senior officials to Ukraine?”
Biden: “We’re making that decision now.”
Reporter: “Who would you send?”
Biden: “Are you ready to go?”
Reporter: “Are you?”
Biden: “Yeah.” RNC DUMPS THE DEBATES — The RNC today followed through in spurning the traditional debates structure, voting “to require GOP presidential candidates to attest in writing that they will only appear at party-sanctioned primary and general election debates,” WSJ’s John McCormick reports. “The resolution passed by the committee gathered in Tennessee reads, in part: ‘Any presidential primary candidate who does not agree in writing, or who participates in any debate that is not a sanctioned debate, shall not be eligible to participate in any further sanctioned debates.’” What’s next: “The RNC plans to form a working group to sanction debates based on input from presidential campaigns and criteria that may include timing, frequency, format, media outlet, candidate qualifications and the ‘best interest of the Republican Party.’” Even so, “a decision on participation in the debates will ultimately be up to the nominee.” MIDTERMS MESSAGING, PART I — As Republican candidates throughout the nation wage a political battle over what children should or should not be taught in school, the AP has fresh polling on the issue. Here are the topline takeaways from the data, via the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and the AP-NORC poll:
- “Overall, Americans lean slightly toward expanding — not cutting back — discussions of racism and sexuality, but roughly 4 in 10 say the current approach is about right, including similar percentages across party lines.”
- The party-line breakdown: “About 4 in 10 Republicans say teachers in local public schools discuss issues related to sexuality too much, while only about 1 in 10 say too little. Among Democrats, those numbers are reversed.”
- Parent involvement: “The poll shows 50% of Americans say parents have too little influence on curriculum, while 20% say they have too much and 27% say it’s about right. About half also say teachers have too little influence.”
MIDTERMS MESSAGING, PART II — Florida Sen. RICK SCOTT’s “Plan to Rescue America” — the NRSC chair’s proposed midterm guide for the GOP — was met with swift backlash when it debuted in late February , with Dems and even some Republicans decrying its contents. Now, Democrats are moving forward with their counterprogramming. “In a peek of its upcoming messaging strategy, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee recently field-tested Scott's plan with swing state voters and found strong aversion to the tax increase language as well as the idea of sunsetting all federally funded programs in five years, which would mean ending Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act,” NBC’s Marc Caputo reports. The two big takeaways:
- A potential line of attack for Dems: “When voters were asked about ending Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, Scott's plan proved to be the most potent of messages, according to the survey conducted by Blue Rose Research, a Democratic messaging and research firm. The field test showed that 65 percent of respondents said they would be less likely to support the GOP, 16 percent said it made no difference and 19 percent — all conservatives — said it would make them more likely to back Republicans.”
- The value of choosing your battles: “The figures also showed voters were more likely to support a candidate who was ‘standing up against Senate Republicans’ new plan that would raise taxes on working families. Republicans’ plan would raise taxes on over half of all Americans — especially on seniors, families with children.’”
CASH DASH — Here’s an eye-popping number: “Democratic U.S. Sen. RAPHAEL WARNOCK broke another fundraising record by amassing $13.6 million over the first three months of the year, ending the quarter with $25.6 million in the bank for a campaign that could decide control of the Senate. His campaign said Thursday it was the most money ever raised by any U.S. Senate candidate in the first quarter of an election year,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Greg Bluestein reports. Good Thursday afternoon.
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Learn about our efforts | | | JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH WHO’S TALKING — While most of Congress is on hiatus, the Jan. 6 select committee is still working away and has reportedly nabbed another big interview: “ STEPHEN MILLER, who served as a top aide to President Donald Trump, will appear Thursday” before the committee, AP’s Eric Tucker and Farnoush Amiri report. “He had resisted previous efforts by the committee, filing a lawsuit last month seeking to quash a committee subpoena for his phone records. … It’s unclear whether Miller will appear in person or virtually.” THE WHITE HOUSE BIDEN BETS BIG ON THE BITE-SIZED — As the midterms rapidly approach and Dems try to turn a corner on their messaging, the White House is ditching the grand in favor of the granular, AP’s Chris Megerian and Zeke Miller write . “Six months out from the midterm elections, Biden’s team is betting that smaller, discrete announcements can break through to voters better than talk of transformational plans that are so far only aspirational. And as the global focus is on Ukraine, the White House is eager for Americans to see Biden tackling the kitchen table issues important to them –- none more so than the searing inflation exacerbated by the Russian invasion.” — Here was press secretary JEN PSAKI on Wednesday, trying to balance the two ideas: “While the world needs to understand and see how he is leading on the war, the country needs to see how he is continuing to lead on the economy. Being able to continue to speak to our domestic audience about that is a huge priority.” Writes the AP: “All of the policies Biden is touting will have direct impact on American lives — but they also fall far short of the goals that Biden set for himself when taking office. Taken together, they show how the White House is trying to regain momentum at a time when Biden is under pressure to recalibrate his ambitions. … While there have been successes, notably the confirmation of Judge KETANJI BROWN JACKSON to be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court, much of Biden’s agenda remains stalemated — or worse.”
| | | | INTRODUCING DIGITAL FUTURE DAILY - OUR TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER, RE-IMAGINED: Technology is always evolving, and our new tech-obsessed newsletter is too! Digital Future Daily unlocks the most important stories determining the future of technology, from Washington to Silicon Valley and innovation power centers around the world. Readers get an in-depth look at how the next wave of tech will reshape civic and political life, including activism, fundraising, lobbying and legislating. Go inside the minds of the biggest tech players, policymakers and regulators to learn how their decisions affect our lives. Don't miss out, subscribe today. | | | | | THE ECONOMY THE UNEMPLOYMENT PICTURE — “The number of people seeking unemployment benefits ticked up last week but remained at a historically low level, reflecting a robust U.S. labor market with near record-high job openings and few layoffs,” AP’s Paul Wiseman writes. “Jobless claims rose by 18,000 to 185,000, the Labor Department said Thursday, after nearly touching the lowest level since 1968 in the previous week. The four-week average of claims, which levels out week-to-week ups and downs, edged up from 170,000 to 172,000.” SUPPLY AND DEMAND — The supply chain crisis is still lingering three years into the pandemic. And from the look of things, it may be here to stay for a while. In a report released today, “White House economists argue that while the pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in the supply chain, it didn’t create them — and they warned that the problems won’t go away when the pandemic ends,” writes NYT’s Ben Casselman and Ana Swanson. CONGRESS FOR YOUR RADAR — Sen. KYRSTEN SINEMA (D-Ariz.) released a statement this morning taking aim at the White House’s immigration policy, which has emerged as a key point of contention between 1600 Penn and the Capitol as of late. “The administration’s extension of public health emergency authorities proves the need to delay lifting Title 42 to protect the health and safety of Arizona communities and migrants,” Sinema said. — The context: Sinema’s missive comes right as Republicans have ramped up their criticism of Biden for his handling of Title 42, “accusing the Biden administration of hypocrisy after extending a mask mandate for public transportation — right after ending Title 42, a provision that would restrict immigration at the southern border due to the pandemic,” Nancy Vu writes for Congress Minutes.
| | | |   | | | WAR IN UKRAINE THE STEP BACK, 50 DAYS IN — WaPo’s Amy Cheng takes a 30,000-foot view of the global impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine as the conflict reaches the 50-day mark: “The fallout from Putin’s invasion also has repercussions far beyond Ukraine. It has forced nations to rethink neutrality and refugee policy, and it threatens to destabilize the global economy.” THE LATEST … — “Russia suffered a blow to its forces on Thursday when its flagship in the Black Sea was ‘seriously damaged’ and its crew was forced to abandon it. Russia said that an onboard fire had caused the damage, but Ukraine claimed to have struck the vessel with Ukrainian-made Neptune missiles,” NYT’s Cora Engelbrecht and Michael Schwirtz report. — The Biden administration is “expanding its intelligence sharing with Ukraine to allow more information on Russian activities in eastern Ukraine and Crimea to be shared,” CNN’s Katie Bo Lillis reports. — “Global businesses are tallying up tens of billions in losses from their Russian operations as they grapple with the impact of asset sales, shutdowns and sanctions, according to public statements and securities filings,” WSJ’s Jean Eaglesham and Thomas Gryta write. “The cost to shareholders of Western companies’ exodus from Russia will become clearer in coming weeks, as companies make their first earnings announcements since the invasion of Ukraine.” — “In pictures: See what life is like for Ukrainians waiting at the U.S.-Mexico border,” by CNN’s Catherine Shoichet and Austin Steele THE PANDEMIC HEADS UP — Pfizer-BioNTech said this morning that its vaccine booster shot “increased the level of neutralizing antibodies against both the original version of the virus and the Omicron variant in a small trial of children age 5 to 11,” per NYT’s Sharon LaFraniere. HOSPITALIZATIONS STAY LOW AMID SURGE — Amid the latest surge in coronavirus cases, there is at least a shred of good news: “BA.2 hasn’t yet caused the rise in hospitalizations some doctors said they would have anticipated. Disease experts say some combination of immunity from Covid-19 vaccinations and a severe wintertime surge, aided by springtime weather drawing people outdoors, might be keeping the virus at bay,” WSJ’s Jon Kamp and Brianna Abbott write.
| | | | DON'T MISS ANYTHING FROM THE 2022 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE: POLITICO is excited to partner with the Milken Institute to produce a special edition "Global Insider" newsletter featuring exclusive coverage and insights from the 25th annual Global Conference. This year's event, May 1-4, brings together more than 3,000 of the world’s most influential leaders, including 700+ speakers representing more than 80 countries. "Celebrating the Power of Connection" is this year's theme, setting the stage to connect influencers with the resources to change the world with leading experts and thinkers whose insight and creativity can implement that change. Whether you're attending in person or following along from somewhere else in the world, keep up with this year's conference with POLITICO’s special edition “Global Insider” so you don't miss a beat. Subscribe today. | | | | | VALLEY TALK MUSK MOVES ON TWITTER — “ELON MUSK has launched a takeover bid for Twitter, offering to buy it for $54.20 a share, just weeks after he became the social media company’s largest shareholder,” NYT’s Eshe Nelson reports. “It would value the company at about $43 billion. In the filing, Mr. Musk said ‘I don’t have confidence in management’ and that he couldn’t make the changes he wanted in the public market.” PLAYBOOKERS FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Matt Leasure is joining the Intelligent Transportation Society of America as VP of public policy and legislative affairs. He previously was director of Pacific Northwest policy for the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he’s been replaced by Katherine Ambrose, who previously was a professional staff member. TRANSITIONS — Simon Behrmann, Miranda Meyers and Emily Shay are joining Scarlet Oak Strategies. Behrmann will be a senior adviser and is managing partner of Red Cedar Global. Meyers will be a director and is president of M2 Strategies. Shay will be an associate and is a Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell alum. … …Jeffrey Last is now a director of federal government affairs at Bristol Myers Squibb. He previously was a health care legislative assistant for Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). … Jessica Kelley is joining the Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness as a policy manager. She previously was a legislative assistant for Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.).
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