| | | | | |  | | By Ryan Lizza, Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels and Tara Palmeri | Presented by |  | | | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | TIMOTHY WU, the Columbia University professor and antitrust crusader who coined the term "net neutrality," is likely to join the White House National Economic Council, according to sources familiar with the move. Wu is the author of "The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Gilded Age," and a hero to progressives who want President JOE BIDEN to take a more aggressive approach to Big Tech. Wu previously served on the NEC at the end of the Obama administration, and has been discussed as a potential Biden pick to fill one of two vacancies on the Federal Trade Commission and perhaps also be elevated to FTC chair. We checked in with activists watching Biden's antitrust moves carefully, and they see Wu's return to the White House as signaling one of two possibilities: 1) Biden is building momentum for an administration that is tough on tech and will fill more crucial positions with policymakers in line with Wu's views. 2) It's a bone to the left before Biden picks more industry-friendly officials in those other jobs. The bigger test will come when Biden fills the FTC slots and chooses an assistant A.G. for antitrust, who, among other things, will help decide whether the Justice Department continues its case against Google. But for now progressives, who have had little to complain about when it comes to Biden personnel, are cheering. A Biden source said the Wu move to NEC is "likely but not yet done." Wu did not return messages seeking comment and hung up when reached on his cellphone. LEAH NYLEN, POLITICO's antitrust expert on our tech team, emails with more: "Wu, a major advocate for the antitrust suits filed by the FTC and state attorneys general against Facebook, is one of the founders of the New Brandeis school of thought, named for former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. Neo-Brandeisians believe the antitrust laws should focus not simply on consumers but on challenging corporate power itself to prevent any company from exerting too much economic or political control — making the tech giants, particularly Amazon, Google and Facebook, among their biggest targets. They also view antitrust as just one of several ways the government can fight monopoly power. "As a veteran of the FTC, the New York attorney general's office and the Obama White House, Wu was seen as a top pick for chair of the FTC, where he could help put some of that new antitrust manifesto into action. Installing him at the White House could breathe new life into the proposal to create a new Office of Competition Policy. The office, championed by Wu and prominent Obama-era antitrust vets, would be in charge of promoting competition across the federal government, urging federal agencies to institute new rules, or repeal old ones, and coordinate between agencies to help markets function better." | | A message from Google: Google for Startups helps fund and support Black entrepreneurs. Although a fast-growing group of entrepreneurs, Black founders receive less than 1% of venture capital in the U.S. The Google for Startups Black Founders Fund awards up to $100,000, along with support, to selected founders. Learn more. | | | SCOOP: PROGRESSIVES GIRD FOR BATTLE ON MINIMUM WAGE — A band of vocal House progressives and aides to Senate Budget Chair BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) are plotting their next moves on the $15 minimum wage if the parliamentarian rules the increase is allowed under reconciliation. Plugged-in sources who are part of these conversations tell us they're ready to oppose a compromise aimed at winning over moderates such as Sens. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) and KYRSTEN SINEMA (D-Ariz.) — namely, the idea of lowering that increase to $11, as Manchin wants. Sanders hinted at this Monday. When asked about a potential minimum wage compromise, he said, "I think we're going to pass it as it is" — in other words, at $15. And some House progressives are discussing how best to support Sanders to get what they want, including whether they should vote as a bloc to maximize their leverage. This could become an interesting game of chicken. Progressives have long talked about banding together on votes to pressure leadership. They're in a powerful position given how narrow Democrats' margins in the House and Senate are. We can say with confidence the House Freedom Caucus would do it if the roles were reversed. But drawing a hard line could backfire if progressives look like they're holding quick pandemic relief hostage to the minimum wage — and they are well aware of this. Progressives have also rejected the Freedom Caucus comparison, saying that's not their M.O. What we could see, however, is a pressure campaign from the left that attempts to flip the script. Democratic leaders could be put on defense over why they're catering to two moderates instead of putting the onus on Manchin and Sinema to pass a proposal that is pretty popular nationwide. Even Florida — yes, Trump-loving Florida! — approved an increase to $15 last election. The parliamentarian's ruling is now expected Wednesday, per Caitlin Emma and Aaron Lorenzo, who have more here. | | | | A message from Google:   Black-led startup Possip, which helps students succeed by connecting families with their schools, received $100,000 from the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund. More. | | | BIDEN'S TUESDAY — The president and VP KAMALA HARRIS will receive the President's Daily Brief at 9:50 a.m. Biden and domestic policy adviser SUSAN RICE will lead a roundtable with Black essential workers at 1:15 p.m. in the South Court Auditorium. At 4 p.m., Biden will have his virtual bilateral meeting with Canadian PM JUSTIN TRUDEAU, with Harris attending; the leaders will give statements at 5:45 p.m. — Press secretary JEN PSAKI will brief at noon. THE HOUSE returns tonight. … At 6:15 p.m., on the east front center steps of the Capitol, congressional leaders and members will hold a moment of silence for the half-million Americans lost to the pandemic. THE SENATE at 11:30 a.m. will vote on the nomination of LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD to be U.S. ambassador to the U.N. … At 2:15 p.m., senators will debate the nomination of TOM VILSACK to be secretary of Agriculture, followed by a confirmation vote. — Don't miss: At 10 a.m., the Senate Homeland Security and Rules committees will hear testimony about the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol from ROBERT CONTEE, acting chief of the Metropolitan Police Department; STEVEN SUND, former chief the U.S. Capitol Police; MICHAEL STENGER, former Senate sergeant-at-arms; and PAUL IRVING, former House sergeant-at-arms. | | | | NEW - "THE RECAST" NEWSLETTER: Power dynamics are changing. "Influence" is changing. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that all politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. "The Recast" is our new twice-weekly newsletter that breaks down how race and identity are recasting politics, policy and power in America. And POLITICO is recasting how we report on this crucial intersection, bringing you fresh insights, scoops, dispatches from across the country and new voices that challenge "business as usual." Don't miss out on this important new newsletter, SUBSCRIBE NOW. Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | 
PHOTO OF THE DAY: A.G. nominee Merrick Garland is greeted by Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) as he arrives for his confirmation hearing on Monday, Feb. 22. | Drew Angerer/Getty Images | SIGN UP! — POLITICO is launching The Recast, a twice-weekly newsletter exploring how race and identity are the DNA of American politics and policy. And we're hiring Brakkton Booker as a national political correspondent and author of the newsletter. He'll join from NPR, where he's currently a national reporter. The Recast will bring you dispatches from across the country, interview emerging power players and challenge conventional perspectives. And you're in luck: The first edition comes out this afternoon. Subscribe here … Newsroom announcement from Blake Hounshell THE WHITE HOUSE WHAT THE LEFT IS READING — "How Progressives Are Building Power in the Biden White House," Daily Beast: "[Ron] Klain speaks to Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) 'quite often,' recently talked to freshman Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a newly minted Squad member, and has conversations with many 'less famous' individuals in the Democratic Party's left wing on a regular basis, he told The Daily Beast in an interview. … "The goal, described by three White House officials, including the chief of staff, is not only to elevate their ideas and concerns, but to make them a permanent part of the policy making process. Famously known for teetering on the periphery of power within their own party, progressives now have direct access to the administration, jettisoning an initial assumption that the activist class would merely be tolerated in Bidenworld." CONGRESS STANDING BY THEIR LEADER — "Trump taunts don't shake McConnell's hold on Senate GOP," by Burgess Everett: "The crumbled alliance between Trump and McConnell, who worked hand-in-glove on political and legislative strategy for four years, has finally brought the GOP to the reckoning that never happened after the 2016 election. Trump may take another swipe at McConnell in the coming days at the Conservative Political Action Conference. But McConnell probably won't hear it: He is not expected to speak at CPAC, according to Republican sources. McConnell still hasn't spoken to Trump in more than two months. "And interviews with nearly a dozen Senate Republicans on Monday night make clear that it will take more than a war of words with Trump to knock McConnell off his perch. Both Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), the two most likely successors to McConnell at the moment, back him vocally." THE BIDEN CABINET WHAT IF NEERA TANDEN WERE A MAN? Would her nomination be on the rocks? Increasingly, Biden allies and women's rights advocates are decrying what's happening to some of the president's female nominees, and questioning whether sexism is at play. That's because several senators opposing Tanden based on her tweets played nice with the King of Twitter Bullying himself. How do they justify opposing Tanden when DONALD TRUMP used social media to demean his adversaries on a daily basis? Laura Barrón-López and Christopher Cadelago write about the perceived "double standard" facing female nominees: "Inside the White House, it did not go unnoticed that many of the lawmakers objecting to Tanden's social media missives — including Manchin — voted to confirm Richard Grenell, the acid-tongued Trump booster, to the post of U.S. ambassador to Germany." Rep. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-N.Y.) also took to Twitter to knock Manchin for supporting JEFF SESSIONS for A.G. while expressing reservations about DEB HAALAND, who would be the first Native American to lead the Interior Department. Conservative BILL KRISTOL put it bluntly. "I feel like there's a little bit of sexism going on here," he said in a WaPo story by Seung Min Kim, Annie Linskey and Jeff Stein. "It just seems like these tweets sound harsher to these old guys because they're coming from a woman." THE NEXT BIG FIGHT — "'She became an easy target': GOP opposition to Haaland rankles Native Americans," by Anthony Adragna and Ben Lefebvre: "Republican senators … are centering their resistance on what they call the New Mexico Democrat's 'extreme views' on fossil fuels and use of federal lands. "But supporters of Haaland, who would be the nation's first Native American to serve in a presidential Cabinet, say they see a familiar pattern in the Republicans' rhetoric and their unusual move to voice their opposition even before her nomination hearing was scheduled. They say she's facing a level of criticism above and beyond the normal fiery Washington political rhetoric." POLICY CORNER THE TAX WOMAN COMETH — "Yellen Favors Higher Company Tax, Signals Capital Gains Worth a Look," Bloomberg: "Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said President Joe Biden favors boosting taxes on companies, and signaled openness to considering raising rates on capital gains, while steering clear of a wealth levy. 'A wealth tax has been discussed but is not something President Biden' favors, Yellen said at a virtual conference on Monday hosted by the New York Times. She said such a tax would have significant implementation problems. "The administration is looking to boost the corporate tax to 28%, Yellen said. The Treasury chief said last week that revenue measures would be needed to help pay for Biden's planned longer-term economic reconstruction program to help address concerns about debt sustainability." | | | | A message from Google:   Google for Startups Black Founders Fund awards up to $100,000 to selected founders. More. | | | JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH — "At stake in Senate hearing Tuesday: The story of the Capitol riot, and who is responsible," WaPo: "The public inquest into the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol begins a new phase Tuesday when four law enforcement officials — three of whom resigned their posts and some of whom have never before spoken publicly about the attack — face lawmakers aiming to uncover what led to the violence and prevent future unrest." — "Republicans demand equal representation on 1/6 Commission," by Heather Caygle and Kyle Cheney: "Pelosi, who's vowed to quickly take up legislation creating the commission, proposed tilting the panel in favor of Democrats, with her party getting to pick seven of the members while Republican leaders choose four additional appointees. "But Republicans are insisting on an equal split — each party gets to appoint five members — in their counteroffer, sources told POLITICO." PANDEMIC TRACKER: The U.S. reported 1,235 Covid-19 deaths and 53,000 new coronavirus cases Monday. SUPPLY LATEST — "Johnson & Johnson says it can provide 20M vaccine doses by late March," by Sarah Owermohle AMERICA AND THE WORLD TO RUSSIA, WITH LOVE — "Biden readies his first major penalties on Russia," by Natasha Bertrand: "The U.S. is preparing to respond to Russia's poisoning and jailing of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, and is expected to coordinate a sanctions rollout with European allies in the coming weeks … [T]he broader review of U.S.-Russia policy — launched by the administration in January — is still ongoing." MORE SANCTIONS — "U.S. sanctions 2 more Myanmar military commanders," ABC: "The U.S. Treasury announced sanctions on two more Myanmar military commanders, specifically citing the killing of three peaceful protesters in recent days. Moe Myint Tun and Maung Maung Kyaw are both generals who were named by the military to join the state administration council, the coup's new ruling body." TRUMP CARDS TROUBLE AHEAD? — "Here's What's Next in the Trump Taxes Investigation," NYT: "Terabytes of data. Dozens of prosecutors, investigators and forensic accountants sifting through millions of pages of financial documents. An outside consulting firm drilling down on the arcana of commercial real estate and tax strategies. "That is the monumental task that lies ahead in the Manhattan district attorney's criminal investigation into former President Donald J. Trump and his family business after a United States Supreme Court order on Monday cleared the way for prosecutors to obtain eight years worth of Mr. Trump's tax returns and other financial records." — "Trump to attend RNC spring donor summit," by Alex Isenstadt: "The private retreat is slated to take place April 9-11 in Palm Beach, Fla." MEDIAWATCH FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Al Jazeera is launching Rightly, a new digital platform aiming to serve conservative audiences — reaching center-right folks who feel left out of mainstream media. Longtime Fox News veteran Scott Norvell is the editor-in-chief. Rightly's first show will be "Right Now with Stephen Kent," an opinion-led interview program that will drop its first episode Thursday, with more programming to follow in the coming months. KNOWING YAMICHE ALCINDOR — "Journalist Yamiche Alcindor on 'Bringing the Hard Truth to America,'" Rolling Stone: "The child of Haitian immigrants, she was inspired to enter the field as a teenager by the story of Emmett Till … ''I wanted to be someone who was bringing the hard truth to America, who was forcing the country to look at the flaws of these promises that we make to treat every man and woman equally and how we don't live up to that a lot of times.' … "Having never covered a sitting president before, reporting on Trump was something of a learning curve for Alcindor. 'I had to learn how to jump in, how to really press my question, how to not be cut off,' she says." MISCELLANY BORN TO POD — "Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen launch podcast on Spotify," NBC: "Spotify on Monday announced the launch of 'Renegades: Born in the USA,' featuring the former president and the legendary rock star in conversation on issues ranging from politics and the state of America to fatherhood, marriage and manhood. The conversations will span eight episodes, the first two of which go live on Monday. The podcast, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, Higher Ground, is decidedly the highest-profile collaboration in the history of podcasting." The first episodes PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION — "Jeff Bezos Linked to Washington Football Team Sales Talk," Front Office Sports: "Jeff Bezos has been interested in NFL team ownership for some time — and The Washington Football team could be on his private wish list. Bezos' attorney spoke with Baltimore-based sports investment banking firm Moag & Co., which led the effort to sell a chunk of the team, according to court documents obtained by Front Office Sports." CPAC CANCEL CULTURE — CPAC has cut rapper Young Pharaoh from its conference later this week after Media Matters dredged up some of his past comments — from calling Judaism "a complete lie" to remarking that "pedophilia on social media is being done by Israeli Jews." (With some QAnon craziness sprinkled in.) CPAC tweeted that Pharaoh would "not be participating in the conference" for "reprehensible views that have no home with our conference or our organization." Pharaoh called the move "censorship at its best!" The theme of this year's event is "America Uncanceled." | | | | JOIN US TODAY TO MEET THE FRESHMEN: The freshman class of the 117th Congress took office just three days before an armed mob stormed Capitol Hill and in the middle of a once per century pandemic, making its first month in office just a bit different from any previous class. Join POLITICO for "Red, Fresh and Blue," featuring live interviews with newly elected members of Congress from both sides of the aisle. Huddle newsletter author Olivia Beavers will moderate back-to-back live interviews with Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) and Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Ga.). REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | BOOK CLUB — Michael Slaby, a top digital/tech strategist for Barack Obama's presidential campaigns, has a new book out today, "For ALL the People: Redeeming the Broken Promises of Modern Media and Reclaiming Our Civic Life." $18.99 MEDIAWATCH — Carey Goldberg will be Boston bureau chief for Bloomberg. She currently is CommonHealth editor at WBUR, and is a NYT, L.A. Times and Boston Globe alum. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — David Berrios has been named head of community at Swing Left, leading national organizing and mobilizing efforts for the 2021-2022 cycle. He most recently was coordinated campaign director for the North Carolina Democratic Party/Biden campaign, and is a Cory Booker presidential campaign and DNC alum. — Zach Fisch is now chief of staff for Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.). He previously was with the NBA's Brooklyn Nets and is new to the Hill. STAFFING UP — The Agriculture Department announced several new senior staff members, including Maribel Duran as deputy chief of staff for operations and Mickeala Carter as deputy director of comms. Full announcement TRANSITIONS — The Independent Women's Forum is adding May Davis, Alyssa Farah and Emily Jashinsky as fellows. Davis and Farah were previously in the Trump White House, and Jashinsky is culture editor at The Federalist. … Former Biden aide Mark Doyle has joined Assemble the Agency, a Democratic media and public affairs firm, as senior adviser. He's chair of Unite the Country, the pro-Biden PAC. … … Ansley Schoen is now a policy adviser for the House Budget GOP. She previously was a confidential assistant at OMB. … Tess Whittlesey will be deputy comms director for Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). She most recently has been at Planned Parenthood comms, and is a Pete Buttigieg campaign alum. … Dave Vasquez is joining Javelin as deputy director of strategic comms and senior account executive. He most recently was a Pentagon spokesman, and is a Ron DeSantis alum. WEEKEND WEDDING — Alysia Sands, executive director for publicity at Fox Entertainment and a Showtime and NBCUniversal alum, and Michael H. Weber, an Oscar-nominated screenwriter ("The Disaster Artist"), got married at New York City Hall. They were set up by mutual friends in 2015. Pic by Mel Barlow HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Reps. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.) and John Rose (R-Tenn.) … S.E. Cupp … Jim Manley ... Michael Dell ... Lois Romano ... Jennifer Epstein ... Patrick Svitek ... Rebecca Chalif ... Republican operative Chris Martin … Neil Levesque … Marissa Mitrovich ... BBC's Martine Croxall ... Nicole Sexton ... POLITICO's Matthew Choi, Katy Murphy and Andrew Briz ... APCO Worldwide's Flynn Chapman … former Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-Texas) (7-0) ... Rebecca Newberger Goldstein … Fox News' Erenia Michell … Katie Galioto … Derek Khanna … One Campaign president and CEO Gayle Smith … Tommy Mattocks … Arjun Mody … Ben Ryberg … The Atlantic's Tom McTague … Tom Pino … Gary Karr … Molly Hooper … Jones Day's Nikki McArthur … AT Johnston … Patrick Velliky … Dana Gemmill … Jaclynn Hohman of the Wilson Center … Michael Karloutsos (5-0) … Brad Whitford Got a document to share? A birthday coming up? Know Lisa Murkowski's decision on the Tanden nomination? Drop us a line at playbook@politico.com or individually: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri. Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Mike Zapler and producers Allie Bice, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross. | | A message from Google: New founders join Google for Startups Founders Academy. As part of Google's commitment to support underrepresented founders, Google for Startups is launching the second cohort of Founders Academy for diverse founders in the U.S. Selected founders receive six months of hands-on support from Googlers, industry experts, and investors to help them grow their startup and arm them with skills as they reach the next stage of growth. 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