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Presented by Center Forward: The power players, latest policy developments, and intriguing whispers percolating inside the West Wing. | | | | |  | | By Myah Ward, Lauren Egan and Ben Johansen | | | Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from producer Raymond Rapada. Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Eli | Email Lauren It’s been a week since Republicans killed the bipartisan border deal. And while that has provided President JOE BIDEN a political opening on the thorny issue of migration, it still puts the onus of addressing the crisis largely on him. White House officials are actively discussing ways to move forward. As they do so, they face outside pressure from the left yet again. Today, a group of 35 Latino, civil rights, faith and immigration groups — including UnidosUS, Voto Latino, United We Dream, Mi Familia Vota and the Immigration Hub — sent a report to the White House, laying out a set of 2024 priorities to “advance humane border security and legal pathways for long-settled immigrants in the U.S.” The new report, first obtained by West Wing Playbook, praises some of the president’s actions last year, including the continued defense of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in court and the expansion of Temporary Protected status for some groups. It also commends efforts to reunite families separated under DONALD TRUMP’s administration. But the report criticizes the administration’s slowness in combating discrimination in the immigration system, as well as the reinstating of Trump-like policies, including the “Circumventing Lawful Pathways” rule that groups have called a “transit ban.” “In the last year of its first term, the administration must decide whether it will live up to the president’s noble campaign promises or fall back and resort to short-sighted or even cruel policies that harm the most vulnerable,” the report reads. Underlying the report is a concern, from immigration groups and others, that Biden officials may believe the political climate demands them to crack down on the border with a return to Trump-like policies to combat criticism on the right. The White House tried to tighten border security to help combat election year blowback. The fear is it will do the same with any executive actions it now takes. “The Administration spent months negotiating in good faith to deliver the toughest and fairest bipartisan border security bill in decades because we need Congress to make significant policy reforms and to provide additional funding to secure our border and fix our broken immigration system,” said White House spokesperson ANGELO FERNÁNDEZ HERNÁNDEZ in a statement. “Congressional Republicans chose to put partisan politics ahead of our national security and rejected what border agents have said they need.” The groups in the report recommend five main priorities to the president: To provide protection and relief to immigration families; to root out discrimination and “anti-blackness;” to promote safe and orderly migration pathways; to restore and strengthen asylum and refugee systems; and to strengthen collaboration in the hemisphere’s migration management, including on climate migration. Within each category, the groups suggest policies Biden could pursue. Among them, updating rules on cancellation of removal and allowing undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for work permits while they await long green card backlogs. They also urge the administration to continue its rebuild of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and suggest that the White House expand legal pathways already being used to manage border numbers. More broadly, they argue that Biden, as he did in 2020, has an opportunity to offer an alternative to voters by advancing both humane border security and legal pathways for immigrants who have long been in the U.S. “No longer can immigration policy center only on the southern border; it’s time to expand our horizons and ensure that Dreamers and long-settled immigrants can continue working and contributing to our nation,” said Immigration Hub Executive Director KERRI TALBOT. “If President Biden can deliver on that vision, he will not only mobilize his coalition, but also cement his legacy as a president who honored the nation’s promise to all those in the pursuit of the American Dream.” MESSAGE US — Are you STEPHANIE SYKES, special assistant to the president for the office of intergovernmental affairs? We want to hear from you. And we’ll keep you anonymous! Email us at westwingtips@politico.com. Did someone forward this email to you? Subscribe here!
| | | | YOUR VIP PASS TO THE MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE: Dive into the heart of global security with POLITICO's Global Playbook at the 2024 Munich Security Conference. Gain exclusive insights and in-depth analysis as author Suzanne Lynch navigates the crucial discussions, key players and emerging trends that will shape the international security landscape. Subscribe now to Global Playbook and stay informed. | | | | | | | | | Which president wrote in a 1961 letter to RICHARD NIXON that “elder statesmen are little regarded by their opposition party until they get over 80 years of age – and thus harmless.” (Answer at bottom.)
| | 'HISTORY IS WATCHING': After the Senate passed a $95.3 billion supplemental aid package for Ukraine and Israel early Tuesday morning, the White House urged the House to get it over the finish line. “Supporting this bill is standing up to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, opposing it is playing into Putin’s hands,” President Biden said on Tuesday. “History is watching. Failure to support Ukraine in this critical moment will never be forgotten.” Biden also attacked former President Donald Trump for recently suggesting he would not defend NATO allies and that he would allow Russia to “do whatever the hell they want,” our JENNIFER HABERKORN reports. Biden said of the comments: “It’s dumb. It’s shameful. It’s dangerous. It’s un-American.” RELATED: The White House is using a new talking point to convince House members to pass the supplemental aid package, our ALEXANDER WARD reports. According to a new messaging memo, the administration is arguing that a failure to pass the bill only helps Iran. QUITE THE LEGACY: On Tuesday, the White House welcomed more than 30 descendants of civil rights icons to commemorate Black History Month, the Grio’s GERREN KEITH GAYNOR reports. The guests were welcomed by STEPHEN BENJAMIN, director of the office of public engagement, who delivered remarks on behalf of the administration. The invite list included relatives of FREDERICK DOUGLASS, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON, MALCOLM X, HARRIET TUBMAN and IDA B. WELLS. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This piece of today’s consumer price index report, which showed that real wage growth is the strongest of any business cycle of the past 50 years. As CNN’s ALICIA WALLACE writes, “Americans’ wage gains are outpacing inflation, and people are feeling a whole heck of a lot better than they were about the economy.” National Economic Council deputy director DANIEL HORNUNG shared the data on X. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: The views of this NYT Opinion focus group of 13 undecided independent voters from across the country on Biden and Trump. Even with a disdain for his personality, most participants leaned toward Trump and used words such as “senile,” “unfit” and “disingenuous” to describe Biden. “If there was one takeaway, it’s that Mr. Biden has his work cut out for him to win over these voters,” the piece reads. NOT SO MOMENT OF ZEN: JON STEWART returned to the “Daily Show” on Monday night, and he pulled zero punches in his criticism of the president. Stewart did offer some advice to the Biden camp. Showing a compilation of Biden allies defending his mental fitness in interviews, Stewart asked: “Did anyone film that?” “If you’re telling us behind the scenes he is sharp and full of energy and on top of it and really in control and leading, you should film that. That would be good to show to people instead of a TikTok,” he said, slamming the president for his Sunday night post where he talks about, among other things, chocolate chip cookies. THE PSYOP IS MUCH DEEPER THAN WE IMAGINED:: NFL star TRAVIS KELCE’s upcoming movie — which he is a producer on — will be the first financed by Biden’s green energy tax credits, Variety’s TATIANA SIEGEL reports. The low-budget dark comedy, “My Dead Friend Zoe,” used money generated from green energy entrepreneur MIKE FIELD’s sale of surplus tax credits through the Inflation Reduction Act. AWKWARDNESS IN THE BRADY ROOM: The White House has heralded press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE as a trailblazer for being the first Black and openly gay press secretary. But national security communications adviser JOHN KIRBY’s expanded role in press briefings has created an increasingly awkward dynamic, NYT’s MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM reports. The situation was tense from the start, Grynbaum writes. At a departure reception for former press secretary JEN PSAKI, the president reassured Jean-Pierre in front of a group of aides not to worry about filling Psaki’s shoes — because Kirby would be by her side. “You’ll have an admiral looking over your shoulder,” Biden told her.
| | A message from Center Forward: America’s capital markets benefit our whole economy – with investments, innovation, economic growth and job creation. They enable everything from stable prices to strong pensions and clean energy. But the Federal Reserve is considering Basel III Endgame, which will weaken capital markets and undermine American competitiveness. Why would we hurt our economy at a time like this? See why companies and groups across America are speaking out against the proposal. | | | | | MEDIA BASHING, CONTINUED: The Biden team loves to complain about the New York Times. Today, it was over a recent NYT headline — “Which Is Worse: Biden’s Age or Trump Handing NATO to Putin?.” A tweet from a Biden fan account criticizing that headline was bouncing around Biden 2020 alumni group chats. A person familiar with those conversations said the tweet summed up how Biden allies feel about the paper, which is best described as bitter. “They apparently haven’t learned anything since that cycle [2020] or past ones.” BATTLEGROUND BLITZ: The Biden campaign is launching a mass outreach effort to connect with Black voters throughout battleground states, BET’s RASHAD GROVE reports. Radio, print and digital ads will air starting Wednesday, and through Feb. 26, in Atlanta, Milwaukee, Detroit and other markets.
| | PERSONNEL MOVES: MURIEL CHASE, LUISANA PÉREZ FERNÁNDEZ and DHARA NAYYAR have all been promoted to special assistants to the president, our DANIEL LIPPMAN has learned. Chase is director of broadcast media, Pérez Fernández is senior director of coalitions media and Nayyar is senior regional communications director.
| | FIRST IN WEST WING PLAYBOOK: Biden-allied group Climate Power sent letters to a slew of local television stations today, urging them to pull down a new ad dropped by a big oil and gas interest group that falsely accuses the president of trying to “ban” gas-powered cars. The move comes after the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers launched a $7 million ad campaign Monday in key battleground states, slamming the administration’s regulatory efforts to push electric vehicles. “These advertisements include obvious lies aimed at deceiving the public and must be pulled from the air immediately,” wrote Climate Power Chief Operating Officer JILL SHESOL. BROKEN PROMISES: Israeli finance minister BEZALEL SMOTRICH is blocking a U.S.-funded flour shipment to Gaza because it will be going to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, Axios’ BARAK RAVID reports. Biden and Secretary of State ANTONY BLINKEN had already publicly thanked the Israeli government for allowing this shipment through. But Ravid reports that once Smotrich found out that the aid was headed toward UNRWA, he ordered the Israeli customs service to hold the shipment. UNRWA has been under Israeli scrutiny following accusations that a dozen of its employees were involved in the Oct. 7 attacks. SPEED IT UP: The Department of Education on Tuesday announced steps that it’s taking to accelerate college financial aid rewards for the upcoming school year, CNN’s KATIE LOBOSCO reports. The move comes as the department faces growing criticism for its bumpy rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid — or FAFSA.
| | | | A message from Center Forward:   | | | | | Get Used to It: Biden Isn’t Going Anywhere (POLITICO’s Jonathan Martin) This Arctic Circle Town Expected a Green Energy Boom. Then Came Bidenomics (NYT’s Jeanna Smialek and Ana Swanson) Why Biden couldn't resist TikTok (POLITICO’s Rebecca Kern, Hailey Fuchs and Brendan Bordelon)
| | BEN KALLOS, federal data sharing lead for the U.S. Digital Service, has been around the block when it comes to public service. Now working in the White House and as co-counsel with the firm Armstrong Teasdale, Kallos spent eight years as a New York City Council member who focused a lot on food inequality. During that time, he would host “Cooking with Kallos,” where he had cooking demos for constituents and shared recipes featuring food from local farmers markets.
| | A message from Center Forward: The Federal Reserve’s Basel III Endgame will undermine the U.S. economy – and American competitiveness. That’s why so many companies, organizations and people are speaking out in rare agreement against the proposal and its harmful impact on capital markets and the U.S. economy – Republicans and Democrats, corporations and nonprofits, manufacturers and consumers, and even groups from California and Alabama.
Organizations from across industries are urging the Fed to reconsider the rule, saying it would have “significant adverse consequences” and is “bad for consumers and bad for economic stability.” Even lawmakers from both sides of the aisle agree that the Fed should “carefully consider the proposal’s consequences on capital markets.”
America has spoken. Will the Fed listen?
Protect our Capital Markets. Protect our Economy. | | | | | HERBERT HOOVER in a letter responding to Nixon in 1961 just after he left the vice-presidency, saying after eclipsing 80, politicians’ become “harmless.” Oh, how the times have changed. Thanks to George Nash for the question! A CALL OUT! Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents, with a citation or sourcing, and we may feature it! Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.
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