Playbook PM: The NYT gets its new chief

From: POLITICO Playbook - Tuesday Apr 19,2022 05:18 pm

Apr 19, 2022

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President JOE BIDEN is currently on his way to New Hampshire to tout his administration’s signature achievement: the bipartisan infrastructure law. It’s one of three planned trips for the president this week. He’s headed to Oregon on Thursday and Washington state on Friday.

White House aides have said Biden was going to start hitting the road in an effort to sell his record to voters ahead of the midterms. They’ve acknowledged that so far, it’s been difficult to break through, especially as world events continue to get in the way of the domestic agenda.

Two things to look out for:

— Expect Biden to step up his attacks on the GOP. An administration official told Eugene this weekend that we can expect to see Biden be a bit tougher on Republicans for taking credit for an infrastructure bill that some voted against, and for not having a plan to bring down inflation. (The official made clear that’s likely to happen in the more overtly political events, but it’s Biden, so an off-script comment is certainly possible.)

— Which Democrats will no-show these events? Biden’s approval ratings are in the gutter right now, and Democrats in tough races have to make a choice whether to stand with him or try to carve out their own lane. FWIW, New Hampshire Sen. MAGGIE HASSAN and Rep. CHRIS PAPPAS are both expected to be a part of the event program today, even though Hassan — who is up for reelection this November — has been increasingly vocal in her criticism of Biden’s decision to lift Title 42.

NYT GETS A NEW TOP EDITOR — The white smoke has risen from Eighth Avenue, and we have the next executive editor of the NYT: JOE KAHN, a longtime newsroom stalwart and the No. 2 under current leader DEAN BAQUET. The 57-year-old Kahn had been considered the frontrunner to succeed Baquet. He’ll take over in June. More from CNN

The inheritor of one of media’s most important jobs has played a big role in steering the NYT’s digital transition and expansion beyond the U.S. He’s a former China correspondent who previously worked for the Dallas Morning News and the WSJ; has won two Pulitzers, one at the Times; and later became international editor.

In a new profile, NYT’s Michael Grynbaum reports that Kahn “is a quieter, more reserved presence” than Baquet. He’s long been professionally focused on China as the next big story. And he said in an interview with Grynbaum and Jim Windolf that “securing the public’s trust ‘in a time of polarization and partisanship’ was among his top priorities,” as he would recommit the paper to its tradition of independence. Meanwhile, Baquet will stay at the NYT to “lead an exciting new venture,” publisher A.G. SULZBERGER said in a note to staff.

— Another big NYT move: MICHAEL BENDER is joining the paper to cover DONALD TRUMP and Trumpism. He previously covered the White House for the WSJ. Announcement

THE STORY LIGHTING UP TWITTER — Libs of TikTok is a powerful, anonymous account that has amassed major sway in right-wing media by creating outrage bait around LGTBQ issues and people. Now WaPo’s Taylor Lorenz pulls back the curtain, revealing that the account’s creator appears to be former Brooklyn real estate salesperson CHAYA RAICHIK, who has repeatedly espoused conspiracy theories and claimed to be at Jan. 6 before getting her big break when JOE ROGAN promoted Libs of TikTok last year. She’s been an especially prominently driver of anti-transgender posts and discourse painting queer people as “groomers” of children.

Despite her growing profile and appearances on Fox News, Raichik has taken pains to remain anonymous. Her account has directly contributed to a surge of Republican-backed state laws targeting LGBTQ people. “Raichik has said in interviews that she crowdsources the content for the feed from a flood of messages she receives every day,” Lorenz writes. “In that sense, Libs of TikTok is a collective, molded to the hive mind of the right-wing Internet. She views her account as giving a voice and platform to concerned parents and ordinary citizens.”

— Here’s what is causing a stir: In identifying Raichik, some critics claim that Lorenz effectively “doxxed” her, and that by knocking on the door of an address connected to Raichik, Lorenz was “harassing” her.

Prominent journalists have come to Lorenz’s defense. Our own Alex Thompson tweeted this : “Showing up at people’s homes is standard journalism that more reporters should do. [Like] half of ‘All the President’s Men’ is [BOB WOODWARD and CARL BERNSTEIN] showing up at people’s homes.” And later: “It’s called shoe-leather reporting for a reason.”

Good Tuesday afternoon.

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MEDIAWATCH

BAD SIGNS FOR CNN+ — Though it’s landed 150,000 s and network execs are happy, the new CNN+ streaming service is unpopular at Warner Bros. Discovery — and they’re all but pulling the plug. “Warner Bros. Discovery has suspended all external marketing spend for CNN+ and has laid off CNN's longtime chief financial officer,” Axios’ Sara Fischer reports. Discovery wants to prioritize HBO Max instead. Another tidbit: “Sources say a plan is being considered to replace CHRIS CUOMO’s 9:00pm EST primetime slot with a live newscast, instead of personality-driven perspective programming.”

ALL POLITICS

2022 WATCH — As the Georgia gubernatorial GOP primary enters its final several weeks, Gov. BRIAN KEMP is pushing to fend off the challenge from Trump-backed DAVID PERDUE, feeling confident but not taking his lead for granted, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Greg Bluestein reports . He could even avoid a runoff by landing an outright majority. To get there, Kemp is leaning on a major war chest that funds a constant stream of ads. “Perhaps more importantly, he’s traveling the state with a sheath of legislative proposals that he’ll sign into law through early May,” Bluestein reports from the trail. “Many are designed specifically to appeal to conservative Trump supporters who will decide his primary fate.”

— DAN O’DOWD jumped into the California Senate race with a major new national ad campaign today for his unusual bid, aimed squarely at taking down ELON MUSK. O’Dowd, also a tech executive, is working with MARK PUTNAM, JOHN BLAIR and TIM MALTIN. In an interview with Chris Cadelago , O’Dowd said he’s running on only one thing: “He vowed not to talk about anything except Tesla and more broadly how security of America’s power grids and water treatment plants are deeply vulnerable to cyber attacks.” But some California Dems are worried about O’Dowd mucking up what would likely be an easy victory for Sen. ALEX PADILLA.

— MEHMET OZ’s ties to Turkey have alienated Armenian American voters in Pennsylvania, who say he has failed to acknowledge sufficiently the Armenian genocide 100 years ago, NBC’s Alex Seitz-Wald reports. In a statement, Oz’s GOP Senate campaign said that the candidate “opposes genocide and the murder of innocent people in all forms,” and that “the evils of World War I should be commemorated.” Armenian community leaders argue that their concern is not with his Turkish heritage, but with his failure to acknowledge the genocide more explicitly.

CASH DASH — Heritage Action today created a new super PAC, the Sentinel Action Fund, to bolster grassroots support for Republicans running for Congress, Fox News’ Houston Keene and Kelly Laco scooped. Heritage’s JESSICA ANDERSON is the president. They’ll aim to turn out conservatives with a focus on in-person door knocks. The initial targets are the Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and New Hampshire Senate races and at least a dozen House seats.

FOLLOWING THE MONEY — Sam Sutton and Zach Montellaro have a twisty tale of a mysterious $14 million donation to Protect Our Future, a super PAC focused on candidates who emphasize long-term policy planning that’s become one of the most significant outside players in the midterms. Protect Our Future told them the money came from crypto billionaire SAM BANKMAN-FRIED and his colleague NISHAD SINGH — but their company had previously given a different explanation. It’s also tied to the Oregon congressional Democratic primary that’s lately been the subject of controversy, as CARRICK FLYNN’s opponents criticize Bankman-Fried’s support of him:

The big picture, Sam and Zach write: “[T]he episode shows how malleable campaign finance laws are — and how even significant political spenders can escape disclosure without scrutiny.”

STATE OF THE UNIONS — The Democratic Party is moving to block its consultants from taking part in anti-union work, Eleanor Mueller scooped, following a firestorm on the left when CNBC reported that a big Dem pollster had helped Amazon oppose Staten Island unionizing. A draft addendum “to any contract between a Democratic Party political committee and a consultant would forbid the consultant — or any of its parents, subsidiaries or affiliates — from participating in an array of activities. That includes union-busting, aiding an employer in a labor dispute or lobbying against union-backed legislation.”

A PAIR OF GRAND CANYONS — WSJ’s Eliza Collins has a broad look at the intraparty fights tearing apart both Republicans and Democrats in Arizona, where the GOP is split over how Trumpy to go and much of the Democratic base is mad at moderate Sen. KYRSTEN SINEMA. In a fast-changing state, “[o]ne result so far isn’t good for either of them: the fastest-growing voter block is independents, many of whom view each party as both increasingly extreme and internally at odds.”

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WAR IN UKRAINE

NOW IT’S REALLY OFFICIAL — Russia declared that it had commenced the new phase of its invasion of Ukraine, hitting hundreds of targets with missiles and other attacks in the eastern region it’s seeking to seize. That will likely halt the momentum of peace talks for the time being, NYT’s Marc Santora and Ivan Nechepurenko report.

— Kherson remains a key battle site as Ukrainians fight to retake the port city, but “it is unlikely Moscow will relinquish its grip any time soon,” WaPo’s Isabelle Khurshudyan reports on the ground.

— Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN lauded a brigade accused of war crimes in Bucha by granting them an honorary title, per CNN.

— Putin has about 75% of his original combat power now, a senior U.S. defense official said.

U.S. REACTION — The U.S. will boycott some G-20 meetings this week if Russia shows up, Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN said today, calling for the forum to kick Russia out. More from Reuters

— Biden had a video call for nearly an hour and a half this morning with Canadian PM JUSTIN TRUDEAU, European Commission President URSULA VON DER LEYEN, European Council President CHARLES MICHEL, French President EMMANUEL MACRON, German Chancellor OLAF SCHOLZ, Italian PM MARIO DRAGHI, Japanese PM FUMIO KISHIDA, NATO Secretary-General JENS STOLTENBERG, Polish President ANDRZEJ DUDA, Romanian President KLAUS IOHANNIS and British PM BORIS JOHNSON.

POLICY CORNER

ON THEIR CONSCIENCE — HHS is preparing to undo the so-called conscience rule that the Trump administration put in place to allow health care workers “to refuse to provide services that conflict with their religious or moral beliefs,” Alice Miranda Ollstein and Adam Cancryn report . The proposal could come as soon as late April. The Trump administration rule never took effect thanks to court challenges, but formally reversing it has been a health care priority for progressives. It would have allowed providers to decline to provide everything from abortions to HIV and STD services if they disagreed with them.

CLIMATE FILES — In another Trump reversal, the White House said today it’s restoring parts of a major environmental rule that force construction projects to consider their climate and environmental impacts, per the WSJ. The Trump administration had weakened its implementation in 2020.

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THE PANDEMIC

MASK MANDATE FALLOUT — Uber became the latest company to drop its mask mandate for both riders and drivers, following a judge’s ruling Monday that overturned the CDC’s order for public transit. More from CNBC

VACCINE LATEST — New data put out by Moderna data provided fresh optimism about manufacturing booster shots to address different strains of Covid-19, but “the data also point to how difficult it could be to determine exactly which Covid shots to give as annual boosters,” Stat’s Matthew Herper reports.

PLAYBOOKERS

MEDIA MOVES — Eun Kyung Kim is now deputy White House editor at POLITICO. She most recently was a policy editor at CQ Roll Call, and is a veteran reporter and editor. … Griff Witte is moving to be democracy editor at WaPo. He most recently has been a national correspondent. Announcement … Noticias Telemundo is moving up Arantxa Loizaga to be anchor of the late-night newscast “Noticias en la Noche” and Rebeka Smyth to join the news anchor team on the morning program “hoyDía.”

STAFFING UP — Khalilah Harris is now deputy chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management. She most recently was managing director for K-12 education policy at the Center for American Progress, and is an Obama Education Department and OPM alum.

OMB ARRIVAL LOUNGE — Analia Mireles is now confidential assistant for the Office of Management and Budget. She most recently was a legislative correspondent for Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.).

TRANSITIONS — Olivia Taylor-Puckett is now comms director for Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pa.). She most recently was comms director for the Democratic joint legislative campaign committees in New Jersey. … Gabriela Rivera is now deputy political director at Public Wise. She previously was national field director for the Paid Leave for All campaign, and is a Hillary Clinton and Mike Bloomberg campaign alum. …

… Bruce “Fez” Miller is now director of federal affairs at Kyndryl. He most recently was principal at Article One Consulting LLC, and is a Mark Amodei alum. … Courtney Williams is now senior manager of congressional relations at the American Society for Radiation Oncology. She most recently was a health insurance specialist at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

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