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Presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield Association: POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. | | | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Garrett Ross and Eli Okun | Presented by |  | | | MEDIAWATCH — “ESPN’s Kevin Merida named L.A. Times executive editor,” L.A. Times: “Since 2015, Merida has been editor in chief of the Undefeated, the award-winning ESPN division that plumbs the intersection of race, culture and sports. … Merida also spent three decades in traditional newsrooms, including 22 years at the Washington Post, where he rose to managing editor in charge of news, features and the universal news desk. … “Merida quickly emerged as front-runner for the job because of his reputation as a thoughtful journalist with a rare combination of experience at legacy print publications, television and running a digital upstart.” — Merida was seen as an early favorite to succeed MARTY BARON as top editor of the Post, but there was some reporting that the newspaper wanted a leader for at least the next decade. Merida is 64. CHENEY DOUBLES DOWN — House GOP Conference Chair LIZ CHENEY (R-Wyo.) appears to have decided that if she’s going to be ousted from her job, she’s going out with a bang. The No. 3 leader, whose position has been on the rocks since her spat with House Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY last week, sent out this tweet this morning, basically daring the conference to come for her head for telling the truth about the election: “The 2020 presidential election was not stolen. Anyone who claims it was is spreading THE BIG LIE, turning their back on the rule of law, and poisoning our democratic system.” Cheney’s tweet came shortly after DONALD TRUMP put out a statement declaring, “The Fraudulent Presidential Election of 2020 will be, from this day forth, known as THE BIG LIE!” (Points for creativity, at least.) It’s just another reminder that Cheney has no plans to go quietly or tamp down her criticism of Trump. Some GOP lawmakers had speculated that this talk of ousting her was a mere warning from McCarthy to shut her up. Now this second vote seems all but assured. — Scott Wong of The Hill tweeted this following her missive, which tells you exactly where things are going: “Ally to @GOPLeader McCarthy sends a text just now: ‘There is no way that Liz will be conference chair by month’s end.’” COULD THIS BE GOOD FOR CHENEY’S BRAND? It might be counterintuitive, but some Republicans are speculating that Cheney wants to become a martyr on this issue. If she runs for president someday, there is no doubt which lane she will claim. And being able to say she stood her ground — even in the face of a mutiny from her own colleagues — would be a badge of honor, they say. But if she’s ousted from leadership, does that mean her career in the House is over? MCCONNELL NOT BUDGING — Senate Minority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL, speaking this morning in Louisville, drew some hard lines on the infrastructure package that President JOE BIDEN wants to push through Congress. McConnell said Republicans are “open to doing a roughly $600 billion package” — a far sight from Biden’s $2.3 trillion proposal. And on infrastructure pay-fors, McConnell slammed the door shut on Republican support for raising some of the taxes Trump and the GOP lowered in 2017. “We’re happy to look for traditional infrastructure pay-fors, which means the users participate,” he said. The GOP will “talk about how to pay for that in any way other than reopening the 2017 tax reform bill.” | | A message from Blue Cross Blue Shield Association: The racial health disparity crisis in the U.S. is unconscionable and unacceptable. That’s why Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are working to reduce disparities in maternal health by 50% in 5 years – part of our multi-year commitment to promote health equity. | | | HOW BIDEN’S BIG SPEECH PLAYED — We’ve got new polling data out with Morning Consult about Biden’s address to a joint session of Congress last week, of which 40% of registered voters say they watched some or all. Here are the reviews: Sixty-nine percent of watchers called it excellent or good, but only 11% of Republicans did. Men gave the address stronger marks than women did. Meanwhile, Sen. TIM SCOTT (R-S.C.), who delivered the GOP response, has a 21% favorable/22% unfavorable rating. His favorability among Republicans is 36%. Toplines … Crosstabs | 
| Good Monday afternoon. BIG CLIMATE MOVE — “E.P.A. to Announce Sharp Limits on Powerful Greenhouse Gases,” NYT: “The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday took its first significant step under President Biden to curb climate change, moving to sharply reduce a class of chemicals that is thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide at warming the planet. “In proposing a new regulation, MICHAEL S. REGAN, the E.P.A. administrator, said the agency aimed to reduce the production and importation of hydrofluorocarbons, which are used in refrigeration and air-conditioning, in the United States by 85 percent over the next 15 years. It’s a goal shared by environmental groups and the business community.” THE NEXT PANDEMIC PHASE — “Feds rethink vaccination strategy as slowing demand reveals stark divide,” by Dan Goldberg and Adam Cancryn: “[T]he administration is pivoting away from mass vaccination sites to refrigerated vans, community health clinics and even door-to-door campaigns in predominantly rural communities with the most holdouts. … The White House long expected vaccination rates to drop off in rural communities and among younger people … “But the sudden and dramatic decline in demand caught both state and federal officials off guard … The slowdown means it will take that much longer to reach a level of protection from the virus that would allow a return to normal life. And it lays bare inequities within states, setting up the possibility that some localities will see businesses and schools broadly reopening while others just a few counties over are still fighting to tamp down cases.” GRIM REALITY — “Reaching ‘Herd Immunity’ Is Unlikely in the U.S., Experts Now Believe,” NYT: “Now, more than half of adults in the United States have been inoculated with at least one dose of a vaccine. But daily vaccination rates are slipping, and there is widespread consensus among scientists and public health experts that the herd immunity threshold is not attainable — at least not in the foreseeable future, and perhaps not ever. “Instead, they are coming to the conclusion that rather than making a long-promised exit, the virus will most likely become a manageable threat that will continue to circulate in the United States for years to come, still causing hospitalizations and deaths but in much smaller numbers. How much smaller is uncertain and depends in part on how much of the nation, and the world, becomes vaccinated and how the coronavirus evolves. It is already clear, however, that the virus is changing too quickly, new variants are spreading too easily and vaccination is proceeding too slowly for herd immunity to be within reach anytime soon.” BUT HOPE REMAINS — “Next Generation of Covid-19 Vaccines Could Be Pill or Spray,” WSJ: “These newer vaccines, from U.S. government labs and companies including Sanofi SA, Altimmune Inc. and Gritstone Oncology Inc., also have the potential to provide longer-lasting immune responses and be more potent against newer and multiple viral variants, possibly helping to head off future pandemics, the companies say.” | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO "THE RECAST" TODAY: Power is shifting in Washington and in communities across the country. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. The Recast is a twice-weekly newsletter that explores the changing power dynamics in Washington and breaks down how race and identity are recasting politics and policy in America. Get fresh insights, scoops and dispatches on this crucial intersection from across the country and hear critical new voices that challenge business as usual. Don't miss out, SUBSCRIBE . Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | | WHO’S ON FIRST — “WHO’s Tedros plans to seek reelection, setting up referendum on his leadership,” Stat: “TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, the director-general of the World Health Organization, plans to run for a second five-year term as the head of the agency, according to a person familiar with his thinking, setting up a referendum on the WHO’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic under his leadership. “It is unclear at this point whether others will emerge to challenge the 56-year-old from Ethiopia, who made history in 2017 when he became the first African elected to the global health agency’s top job. WHO director-generals may only serve two five-year terms, and must be elected each time.” IMMIGRATION FILES — “Biden administration to reunite four migrant families separated under Trump,” NBC: “The four families include at least one child who was separated from his or her parent at age 3 and at least two women who were separated from their children in late 2017 — part of a pilot program for former President Donald Trump’s 2018 ‘zero tolerance’ policy. “But the immigrant advocacy organization Al Otro Lado, or AOL, said the Biden administration is taking credit for reunifications it did very little to facilitate. … The parents will be given humanitarian parole to come back to the U.S., said MICHELLE BRANÉ, executive director of Biden's reunification task force. … Brané said there are ‘1,000 families that we know of that remain separated or that we believe remain separated.’” SCOTUS WATCH — “Supreme Court won’t take Maryland bump stock ban case,” AP — “Justice Clarence Thomas, Long Silent, Has Turned Talkative,” NYT: “Justice CLARENCE THOMAS, who once went a decade without asking a question from the Supreme Court bench, is about to complete a term in which he was an active participant in every single argument. “Justice Thomas’s switch from monkish silence to gregarious engagement is a byproduct of the pandemic, during which the court has heard arguments by telephone. The justices now ask questions one at a time, in order of seniority. … If Justice Thomas’s questions differed from those of his colleagues, it was in their courtesy. He almost never interrupted lawyers, though he asked pointed follow-up questions if there was time left. Some of his most memorable comments were colorful asides.” COMMENCEMENT CORNER — “President Biden to speak at Coast Guard Academy commencement,” AP/New London, Conn.: “The address, scheduled for May 19, will be the second time Biden has addressed a graduating class at the academy.” BATTLE OVER THE BALLOT — “Florida Republicans rushed to curb mail voting after Trump’s attacks on the practice. Now some fear it could lower GOP turnout,” WaPo: “Not only are GOP lawmakers reversing statutes that their own predecessors put in place, but they are also curtailing a practice that millions of state Republicans use … The potential fallout in the key swing state illustrates how the Republican Party is hurting itself in its rush to echo Trump’s false allegations, they said.” 2024 WATCH — “Pence headed to New Hampshire in June, sparking more 2024 buzz,” Fox News: “Pence will headline the Hillsborough County GOP’s annual Lincoln Reagan awards dinner on June 3 in Manchester.” | | | | JOIN TUESDAY FOR A CONVERSATION ON SMALL BUSINESSES AFTER COVID-19: About one in six small businesses in the U.S. closed their doors since the pandemic began. The ones that remained open are getting by with fewer employees after laying off workers or a hiring freeze. What is ahead for small businesses in 2021 as they try to weather the ongoing economic uncertainty? And how does President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package intend to support small-business owners? Join POLITICO for a virtual conversation with White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein and Joyce Beatty, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, on what small businesses need to survive and thrive beyond the Covid economic crisis. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | SO MUCH FOR THE NEUTRAL SWISS! — “Swiss Billionaire Quietly Becomes Influential Force Among Democrats,” NYT: “Newly obtained tax filings show that [HANSJÖRG] WYSS’S foundations donated $208 million from 2016 through early last year to three nonprofit funds that doled out money to a wide array of groups that backed progressive causes and helped Democrats in their efforts to win the White House and control of Congress last year. “Mr. Wyss’s representatives say his foundations’ money is not being spent on political campaigning. But documents and interviews show that his foundations have come to play a prominent role in financing the political infrastructure that supports Democrats and their issues. While most of his operation’s recent politically oriented giving was channeled through the three nonprofit funds, Mr. Wyss’s foundations also directly donated tens of millions of dollars since 2016 to groups that opposed former President Donald J. Trump and promoted Democrats and their causes.” COMING ATTRACTIONS — Facebook’s @OversightBoard: “The Oversight Board will announce its decision on the case concerning former US President Trump on its website at https://oversightboard.com/news on May 5, 2021 at approximately 9:00 a.m. EDT.” VALLEY TALK — “The Epic court battle that could upend Apple’s future,” by Leah Nylen: “Apple is about to face off in court against the biggest threat to its $2 trillion tech empire — not the governments of the U.S. or Europe, but a video game company based in the town of Cary, N.C. “Epic Games, the maker of the popular video game Fortnite, has captured the attention of regulators in Washington and Brussels with an antitrust lawsuit that could upend how the iPhone-maker does business. The federal civil trial starting Monday in Oakland, Calif., focuses on Apple’s control over its App Store — the only way app developers can reach the world’s 1.5 billion iPhone or iPad users.” MEDIAWATCH — Sam Sabin and Benjamin Din will be the authors of POLITICO’s Morning Cybersecurity and Morning Tech newsletters. Sabin previously covered tech policy at Morning Consult. Din previously was a breaking news intern at POLITICO. TRANSITIONS — Melissa Miller is joining Ford Motor Company’s D.C. office as government and public policy comms manager. She most recently was comms director for John Hickenlooper’s Senate campaign, and is a DCCC and Democratic Governors Association alum. … Kate O’Scannlain is joining Jones Day as a partner in the labor and employment practice. She previously was solicitor at the Department of Labor. … Michael Desmond is now a partner in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s LA and D.C. offices. He previously was chief counsel of the IRS and assistant general counsel at Treasury. … … Rachel Hicks is now a federal lobbyist for McDonald’s. She previously was director of federal affairs and PAC for the American Beverage Association. … Shelita Stewart has rejoined Hogan Lovells as a partner in the litigation, arbitration and employment practice group. She previously was senior deputy general counsel at Comcast Corp. … Troy Wittek has been named director of research at the Beer Institute. He previously worked at Inforum. WEEKEND WEDDING — Julie Alderman, research director at the League of Conservation Voters and a Planned Parenthood alum, and Alex Boudreau, a 3L at Yale Law School, got married Saturday at their home in New Haven, Conn. They celebrated in person with vaccinated family members (including their corgi, Sherman) and over Zoom with friends and family around the country. The two met on Tinder when Julie went to George Washington University and Alex went to Georgetown. | | | | A message from Blue Cross Blue Shield Association:   Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are committed to creating a more equitable health care system. See how we’re promoting health equity. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |  |
