Thursday, March 4, 2021

Axios Sneak Peek: Scoop - Biden meeting Quad ... "Cat in the Hat" means cash in the bank

Plus: Democrats eye reconciliation for immigration | Thursday, March 04, 2021
 
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Axios Sneak Peek
By Alayna Treene, Hans Nichols and Kadia Goba ·Mar 04, 2021

Welcome back to Sneak. We have a lot of news, so let's get right to it.

🚨 Breaking: "Federal investigators are examining records of communications between members of Congress and the pro-Trump mob that attacked the Capitol," CNN reports.

Situational Awareness: Former Defense secretary Mark Esper has been named the first John S. McCain Distinguished Fellow at Arizona State University's McCain Institute, Cindy McCain announced.

Today's newsletter — edited by Glen Johnson — is 591 words, a 2-minute read.

 
 
1 big thing: Scoop - Biden meeting Quad amid own pivot toward Asia
Artists are seen painting portraits of President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in Mumbia, India.

Artists paint portraits of President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in Mumbai, India. Photo: Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

 

President Biden plans to meet this month with the leaders of Japan, Australia and India in a virtual summit of the so-called Quad, people familiar with the matter tell Axios' Hans Nichols.

Why it matters: By putting a Quad meeting on the president's schedule, the White House is signaling the importance of partnerships and alliances to counter China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region.

  • Biden has spoken with each leader individually, but putting them together gives an early boost to the burgeoning group, which some have suggested could grow into an Asian version of NATO.
  • The White House declined to confirm the upcoming meeting.

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2. "Cat in the Hat" puts cash in the bank for GOP
Illustration of a parodied Dr. Seuss cover with the title

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

 

The House Republicans' campaign arm is offering donors copies of the Dr. Seuss classic "The Cat in the Hat," seeking to capitalize on a new front in the culture war, Axios' Lachlan Markay writes.

Why it matters: The offer, while gimmicky, shows how potent appeals to "cancel culture" can be for grassroots Republicans, even amid debates about more weighty policy matters like coronavirus relief and voting rights.

What's happening: The National Republican Congressional Committee is sending the books to donors who give $25 to GOP efforts to retake the House.

  • "We won't be able to speak or think freely by the time the Dems are through. Chip in $25 now and we'll send 'Cat in the Hat' right to you," the NRCC writes in the final verse of a Seussian passage on its online donation page.
  • The committee is seeking to capitalize on consternation over the decision by Seuss' publisher to cease printing six books deemed racially or culturally insensitive.

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3. Democrats eye reconciliation for immigration
Dreamer advocates holding signs outside the Supreme Court.

Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

 

Comprehensive immigration reform is a pipe dream, but some Senate Democrats are hoping to tie key immigration provisions to the next big reconciliation push, Axios' Stef Kight and Kadia Goba write.

Why it matters: Immigration is one of the most controversial and partisan issues in U.S. politics, which is why the budget reconciliation process — which allows for bills to pass the Senate with a simple majority rather than the usual 60 votes — is so attractive.

  • Democrats want to use it to force hundreds of thousands of green cards for Dreamers, temporary protected status holders and essential workers.

What we're hearing: If the measures fail to get the 10 Republican votes needed to meet the 60-vote Senate threshold, some Democrats hope to tack them on to whatever infrastructure and economic recovery package evolves this spring.

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4. AOC challenges Puerto Rico governor over statehood
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is seen marching in a Puerto Rico Day parade in New York City.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at New York's Puerto Rican Day Parade in 2019. Photo: Erin Lefevre/NurPhoto via Getty Images

 

Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Nydia Velázquez are pushing ahead with a bill in Congress that would let Puerto Rico decide its future — a proposal threatening Gov. Pedro Pierluisi's determination to pursue statehood for the island, Axios' Alexi McCammond reports.

Why it matters: There's an urgency among supporters of statehood to get it done while Democrats control both chambers of Congress, and President Biden has been publicly supportive. But there's a growing divide within the party about whether statehood is actually the best solution for the U.S. territory.

  • During a joint phone interview with Axios on Thursday, Ocasio-Cortez said she still hasn't heard from Pierluisi, and Velázquez said she met with him virtually a few weeks ago.

What they're saying: "The principled position — especially for the head of that colonizing power — is to say that people should have a process of self-determination and to not put your thumb on the scale of one direction or another," Ocasio-Cortez told Axios.

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5. Ro Khanna accuses Biden of quitting Middle East
Rep. Ro Khanna is seen speaking to an audience.

Rep. Ro Khanna. Photo: Cody Glenn/Sportsfile for Web Summit via Getty Images

 

An outspoken progressive Democrat is wary of Biden's approach to the Middle East, arguing it's like "conceding defeat of the aspiration" to win a Nobel Peace Prize, Axios' Sarah Mucha reports.

Why it matters: A number of members of the president's own party dislike his Middle East strategy, as his administration signals the region is no longer the priority it was for President Obama and his predecessors.

  • "Obama strove for greatness," California Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna told Axios. "He, at least, tried."

In a five-point plan shared exclusively with Axios, he suggests the administration withdraw all remaining U.S. forces in Iraq.

  • Khanna, 44, who backed Sen. Bernie Sanders for president, also proposes announcing additional resources for security and stability, including aid and development.
  • And Khanna's plan effectively asks other regional players to increase their presence in the region as the United States withdraws.

The White House declined comment on Khanna's suggestions.

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6. Mayor Pete makes it to the Oval
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is seen sitting with President Biden in the Oval Office.

Photo: Oliver Contreras/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images

 

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg joined President Biden today for a meeting with House members.

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