Playbook PM: How Biden sees the GOP

From: POLITICO Playbook - Thursday May 06,2021 05:25 pm

May 06, 2021

By Ryan Lizza, Garrett Ross and Eli Okun

Presented by

President JOE BIDEN will make two stops in Louisiana today as part of his Getting America Back on Track Tour. (They love rhyming and alliteration in this White House!) As has become typical, Biden has spent this week bouncing between pandemic-related events and infrastructure-related events. (They also love discipline!) Today is an infrastructure day, and he’ll make a pitch for the American Jobs Plan — a good way to crank up the PR machine outside the Beltway ahead of several bipartisan meetings he has scheduled next week in the Oval Office.

On the way down to Lake Charles and New Orleans, KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, the White House’s principal deputy press secretary, gaggled with reporters. What struck us about her preview of the event is that Biden is set to deliver a pretty partisan speech. Jean-Pierre said Biden would speak about the “stark contrast between the middle-class agenda” he’s put forward and the GOP’s “opposing vision that has placed tax cuts for the wealthy and giveaways to big corporations over all else.”

The speech comes days after Biden, when asked about the LIZ CHENEY vs. KEVIN MCCARTHY turmoil inside the opposition party, called it a “mini-revolution,” and noted, “I think the Republicans are further away from trying to figure out who they are and what they stand for than I thought they would be at this point.”

These two sets of comments are a good indication of how the White House views the GOP right now: They see a divided opposition gradually coalescing around devotion to an former president known primarily for one thing these days: lying about the legitimacy of the 2020 election. And with the GOP mostly absent from any actual debate about policy, the White House believes it has the upper hand and can easily define Republicans as handmaidens to the wealthy and corporate America.

Biden knows he has the advantage right now and he’s not giving it up, despite the occasional bromide about unity. Those bipartisan meetings next week should be interesting!

Good Thursday afternoon.

THE UNEMPLOYMENT PICTURE — “U.S. unemployment claims fall to a pandemic low of 498,000,” AP: “The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell last week to 498,000, the lowest point since the viral pandemic struck 14 months ago and a sign of the job market’s growing strength as businesses reopen and consumers step up spending. Thursday’s report from the Labor Department showed that applications declined 92,000 from a revised 590,000 a week earlier.”

THE NEW VOTING RESTRICTIONS — “Gov. Ron DeSantis signs Florida voting bill in front of Trump fan club,” Tampa Bay Times: “[Florida Gov. RON] DESANTIS on Thursday signed into law contentious and wide-ranging changes to the state’s voting system, including provisions targeting voting by mail and limiting the use of ballot drop boxes. … DeSantis barred Florida reporters from attending the event held in West Palm Beach before the group Club 45 USA. Fox News was granted exclusive access.”

— “Texas House braces for fight over GOP voting measure,” Austin American-Statesman: “After a relatively quiet month, the political fight over GOP voting measures will resume in a big way Thursday when the Texas House begins debate on a sweeping bill that would create new election-related crimes, boost penalties for existing crimes and raise the profile of partisan poll watchers.”

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2022 WATCH — “Trump aides flood Senate and gubernatorial races as consultants and pollsters,” CNN: “As the 2022 midterm map takes shape, at least seven Senate races have seen the direct or indirect involvement of former [DONALD] TRUMP staffers … Some of these same Trump veterans have also joined gubernatorial campaigns in Virginia and Nebraska …

“For aides with limited political experience predating the Trump era, consulting opportunities for novice candidates has provided a lucrative landing pad in a job market that has otherwise been difficult … The process of nabbing Trump’s endorsement has proved arbitrary in the months since the former President left office, with aides telling CNN that he will often change his opinion of a candidate from one day to the next.” Plus plenty of details on who’s working for whom

— “Missouri Reps. Wagner, Smith Add Campaign Muscle as They Consider Senate Bids,” Morning Consult: “Reps. ANN WAGNER and JASON SMITH are ramping up their political operations … [Wagner] hired former National Republican Senatorial Committee Executive Director WARD BAKER … And Smith, the top Republican on the House Budget Committee who has hewed closely to former President Donald Trump, told Morning Consult he hired BILL STEPIEN.”

AD WARS — “Pro-GOP group takes aim at House Dems over Pelosi’s ‘socialist drug takeover plan,’” Fox News: “The American Action Network on Thursday is unveiling a new [$4 million] issue advocacy campaign in 43 House districts to stop what it calls the House speaker’s ‘dangerous plan’ [for prescription drug prices].” The ad in Rep. CAROLYN BORDEAUX’S (D-Ga.) district

MUCK READ — “F.E.C. Asks Congress to Ban Prechecked Recurring Donation Boxes,” NYT: “The recommendation by the election commission came a month after a Times investigation showed that Donald J. Trump’s political operation had steered many unwitting supporters into repeated donations through the tactic.”

THE BEST HEADLINE YOU’LL READ ALL WEEK — “‘Turning the Corner’: U.S. Covid Outlook Reaches Most Hopeful Point Yet,” NYT

THE REEMERGENCE — “Biden hits 100-day school reopening goal, but reopening difficulties persist,” by Juan Perez Jr.: “Close to 90 percent of public K-8 schools offered hybrid or full-time in-person instruction by the end of March, the government said. Education Secretary MIGUEL CARDONA said 54 percent of K-8 schools were open in-person on a full-time basis. …

“But federal data released Thursday continued to show enrollment gaps for in-person learning between white students and their peers from other racial groups. … [T]hose numbers represent a notable improvement from earlier in the year, but students of color still attend remote-only classes at disproportionate rates.”

MEANWHILE — “Poll Shows Parents Are Reluctant to Get Their Children Vaccinated for Covid-19,” NYT: “Only 9 percent of respondents said they hadn’t yet gotten the shot but intended to do so, according to the survey, published in the April edition of the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Vaccine Monitor. And with federal authorization of the Pfizer vaccine for adolescents ages 12 through 15 expected imminently, the eagerness of parents to let their children be vaccinated is also limited, the poll found. …

“While 69 percent of people said they had confidence in the safety of the vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna, only 46 percent felt confident about the safety of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. … The survey did show that there had been some progress among Republicans, who have been among the firmest holdouts. Among that group, 55 percent said they had gotten a shot or intended to do so, up from 46 percent in March.” The poll

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THE VACCINE PAYS — “Moderna Turns First-Ever Profit, Boosted by Its Covid-19 Vaccine,” WSJ: “The vaccine brought Moderna revenue of $1.73 billion in the first quarter, reflecting three full months of its use in the U.S. and the increase of international sales, the company said Thursday. Moderna, based in Cambridge, Mass., recognized 102 million doses as revenue in the quarter and said it expects to deliver 200 million to 250 million doses in the April-to-June period.”

POLITICO GETS RESULTS — “Audubon fostered toxic work culture for women and people of color, probe confirms,” by Zack Colman: “The report by law firm Morgan Lewis substantiated several claims, including that white men in the organization carried disproportionate influence over decisions, and recommended ‘changes to the structure and leadership of the organization.’” The audit … Zack’s original story

COFFEE’S FOR CLOSERS — “Thieves jacked the Republican National Committee for $44K and then went on a coffee shopping spree, records show,” Insider: “The RNC spokeswoman EMMA VAUGHN told Insider that the theft stemmed from fraudulent charges made in September on an RNC American Express card ...

“The thieves spent more than $35,500 of the RNC’s money at EZ Coffee & Tea, a Pennsylvania-based merchant whose products include high-end espresso machines, and another $8,450 at MidWest Biochar, an agricultural-services company in Kansas, according to [treasurer RONALD] KAUFMAN’S April 30 letter to the FEC. But the RNC originally disclosed the thefts differently, describing them in an October FEC report as a ‘credit’ for ‘office supplies.’ Asked why, Vaughn said ‘these charges were still currently being researched’ in October.”

JAVA MEETS MAGA — “Right-wing coffee companies want to make coffee great again,” Vox: “CLIFF GEPHART doesn’t drink coffee, but he didn’t let that stop him from opening Conservative Grounds last year. You can find his first coffee shop at the end of a Tampa Bay area strip mall, across the parking lot from an Arby’s. The store’s decal lays out the offerings inside: ‘COFFEE, DONUTS, PASTRIES,’ and of course, ‘PATRIOTISM’; The slogan underneath the logo reads, ‘The RIGHT COFFEE FOR AMERICA.’ …

“Conservative Grounds is not an outlier. … The most prominent conservative coffee business is perhaps the Black Rifle Coffee Company, a subscription-based roaster founded in 2014 by an ownership group composed of former military personnel … Black Rifle does not make many overt references to the former president in their marketing material, but counterparts like Thrasher Coffee in Hiram, Georgia, do. … The more you dive into this niche, the more it becomes clear that one of the unifying bonds between all of the regressive coffeehouses is a deep umbrage at Starbucks.”

TRUMP’S PIVOT TO VIDEO — “Trump Is Still Banned on YouTube. That Could Change,” WSJ: “With Donald Trump’s return to Facebook in limbo, YouTube has emerged as the former president’s best chance to return to social media in the near future. Mr. Trump has been suspended from posting on the video-sharing service owned by Alphabet Inc.’s Google since January.

“Company leaders have said they will revisit their decision, but have given few details on when, or who will make the call. Unlike Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc., which has permanently banned Mr. Trump, YouTube has provided limited information on its call.”

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UNSANCTIONED — “Banks Seek Biden’s Aid After Trump’s 1,000-Sanctions-a-Year Pace,” Bloomberg: “Wall Street firms have urged the Biden administration to ease the industry’s burden in complying with a flood of financial sanctions the U.S. has levied in recent years as a primary tool of foreign policy toward Russia, China, Iran and other adversaries.

“Financial services industry groups have asked for more transparency and flexibility to target big-money evasion of the restrictions, as the Treasury Department undertakes an exhaustive review.”

THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION — “Biden Outlines Plan to Preserve More Wilderness,” WSJ: “The Biden administration wants to preserve wildlife habitats by expanding collaboration with private landowners and state and local governments, with less emphasis on putting more land under federal protection, according to a report issued Thursday.”

STATISTIC DU JOUR — “NY AG finds nearly 82% of net neutrality comments to the FCC were fake,” Protocol: “LETITIA JAMES found that of the more than 22 million public comments the Federal Communications Commission received in 2017 regarding the repeal of net neutrality protections, a whopping 18 million were fake. Millions of those comments, the report says, were funded by the broadband industry.” The report

MEDIAWATCH — “Chris Ruddy and Newsmax went all-in on Trump. Now they might pay a price for it,” WaPo: “Ruddy’s attempts to attach himself to Trump, and ingratiate himself with Trump’s base, have landed him in legal jeopardy … Now the most quotable man in Trump’s orbit is keeping his head down, as his company faces the threat of potentially disastrous lawsuits …

“[W]hatever happens to Newsmax, Ruddy continues to create new products to market to his audience. In October he filed a trademark application for a new slogan: ‘Real News for Real People.’ In April, while Ruddy and Trump palled around at Mar-a-Lago, his company filed five other trademark applications: ‘Real Sports for Real People,’ ‘Real Cars for Real People,’ ‘Real Furniture for Real People,’ ‘Real Coffee for Real People,’ ‘Real Burgers for Real People.’ Who constitutes ‘real people’ in the Newsmax universe is unclear — but Ruddy probably already has their email addresses.”

— “Sports-Media Outlet the Athletic Shifts Its Search for Merger Partner,” WSJ: “[T]he Athletic is no longer in merger talks with news publisher Axios … The Athletic views the New York Times Co. as a leading contender for a merger tie-up.”

AFTERNOON SNACK — First lady JILL BIDEN went to Nevada to surprise JULIANA URTUBEY, who was just named National Teacher of the Year. The moment she walked in, via “CBS This Morning”

IN MEMORIAM — “Joe Slade White, 71, longtime adviser to President Biden, award-winning Democratic political consultant,” Buffalo News: “He went on to work on more than 400 campaigns for Democratic candidates at all levels of government. He claimed a success rate of more than 75%. … [H]e died Wednesday after a battle with cancer. …

“The late Republican national chairman LEE ATWATER once described Mr. White as ‘the most dangerous secret weapon the Democrats have. He wins races they have no business winning.’ … He served as an adviser and consultant to President Joe Biden for 25 years and directed media for Biden’s late son BEAU’S political campaigns.”

SPOTTED at a virtual party Wednesday night for Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s new book, “Antitrust: Taking on Monopoly Power from the Gilded Age to the Digital Age” ($32.50), hosted by Hilary Rosen, Tammy Haddad and Kara Swisher: Anne Finucane, Don Lemon, Robert Barnett, Dana Bash, Michael Beschloss, Elizabeth Bagley, David Chavern, Susan Page, Daniel Koh and Amy Sennett, Jay Roach, Kelley McCormick, DeDe Lea, Betsy Fischer Martin, Polson Kanneth, Amy Dacey and Craig Gordon.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — TRUMP ALUMNI: Carlos Trujillo is going to launch Democracy Now, a 501(c)(4) focused on elections, rule of law and economic freedom, for which he will serve as founder and president starting Monday. He most recently was appointed by Trump in 2018 as the U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States.

TRANSITION — Eli Cousin is now a press assistant at the DCCC. He previously was press assistant on MJ Hegar’s Texas Senate campaign.

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