| | | | | |  | | By Tara Palmeri, Eugene Daniels, Rachael Bade and Ryan Lizza | Presented by |  | | | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | TGIF, Playbookers. We have a juicy item today featuring MEGHAN MCCAIN, WHOOPI GOLDBERG and CEDRIC RICHMOND. But first a look at the major storylines as we head into the weekend. … INFRASTRUCTURE — The dominant issue in D.C. this spring has been overshadowed this week by violence in Israel and jockeying over a proposed Jan. 6 commission. But look for the focus to shift back today when GOP senators meet with White House officials including senior adviser STEVE RICCHETTI and head of legislative affairs LOUISA TERRELL. The AP reports that the current mood heading into today's talks is pretty pessimistic, at least inside the West Wing, and that Democrats are getting antsy about the negotiations going much longer. The key passage: "The lead Republican negotiator Sen. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO of West Virginia was encouraged by the talks and expected the White House to be back in touch by week's end, her office said. But there was some dismay at the White House that the Republican counteroffer did not substantially alter the party's original $568 billion proposal, leaving it far short of the White House's plan, according to an administration official not authorized to speak publicly about the private conversations. "The White House's hopes for a bipartisan deal on infrastructure have cooled but they have not abandoned the effort, the official said." THE CEASE-FIRE — POLITICO foreign affairs correspondent Nahal Toosi has a deeply reported story on the lessons Team Biden heeded from the last two major conflagrations in Israel — both during the Obama years — to help orchestrate a shorter war in Gaza. "According to three people familiar with the current situation, [the] playbook included U.S. officials working primarily behind the scenes on the diplomatic front, especially at the start; blocking moves by the U.N. Security Council, including demands for a ceasefire; and relying on other players in the region, in particular Egypt, to do the heavy lifting on truce negotiations." — The latest in Gaza, via WaPo: "As fragile cease-fire holds, eyes turn to suffering in Gaza and Netanyahu's political future" THE JAN. 6 COMMISSION CLASH — The NYT's Carl Hulse cuts to the heart of why the bipartisan deal for a Jan. 6 commission fell apart: "[T]here is really one overriding reason: [Republicans] fear it will hurt their party's image and hinder their attempts to regain power in next year's midterm elections." TRUMP ORG TROUBLES — Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti has a useful primer in POLITICO Magazine making sense of the big DONALD TRUMP news of the week: that New York A.G. TISH JAMES now considers her office's investigation of the Trump Organization to be a criminal, not just civil, matter. "Wednesday's announcement didn't materially change the liability Trump faces," he writes, "given that the DA's office already had a criminal investigation underway. But James' recent moves (including her decision to publicly join the criminal probe) are a sign that the evidence amassed by prosecutors is substantial and will likely result in charges. James wouldn't rush to embrace a weak case. That should make Trump very concerned." MEGHAN MCCAIN SNUBBED — It's a tale of two "View" hosts. With a vast number of Republicans still not vaccinated, you'd think the White House would accept all the help it can get from celebrities and influencers who speak to that demographic. But when McCain, the conservative co-host of ABC's daytime ratings-driver "The View," personally reached out to offer her help, she got crickets in response. Yet her co-host Goldberg was treated to a private briefing with the White House to go over vaccination messaging and talking points for the show. McCain, we're told, didn't hear back from the White House after offering to get vaccinated on air alongside her brother JIMMY MCCAIN. She wanted to be in sync with the Biden administration on its vaccination efforts before airing such a segment. McCain "just wanted to help with messaging and encouraging Republicans to get it, and the show wanted it too," said a "View" insider. The apparent snub was all the more notable because McCain's mother, CINDY MCCAIN, is being vetted to be an ambassador for the Biden administration to the U.N. World Food Programme after her endorsement of JOE BIDEN in the general election. "They should have given all of 'The View' hosts this training, not just Whoopi," the insider said. The White House at one time was coordinating with "The View" to have McCain and Goldberg vaccinated on air, with a senior administration official joining them. But it fell through due to scheduling issues on the White House's end. Nevertheless, Goldberg was briefed and McCain was not. A White House source said it was due to the fact that McCain was not eligible at the time to be vaccinated, but that was not relayed to McCain. | | A message from Google: Digital safety net helps businesses adapt, recover, and grow. A new report by the Connected Commerce Council (3C) in partnership with Google found that digitally advanced small businesses hired twice as many employees as digitally uncertain businesses, and were 3.2 times more successful at retaining customers. Read the report. | | | A BROADER ISSUE: We've heard from other celebrity wranglers that after much back and forth with the Office of Public Engagement, led by Richmond, the White House also dropped the ball on another offer to brief 30 to 40 celebrities for a vaccination push. These celebrities included JASON ALEXANDER, OMAR MILLER from "Ballers" and others who represented demographics still reluctant to get vaccinated like older white men, Latinos and African Americans. On the whole, the White House has been focused on educating community leaders like doctors and religious leaders over celebrities because polling shows that these groups are shown to have a greater impact than celebrities . But officials also pointed out that the administration has engaged with a number of celebrities on the matter, from JENNIFER GARNER and KIM KARDASHIAN to GEORGE LOPEZ and TYRA BANKS. Richmond, for his part, has told D.C. insiders trying to connect with him that he's overwhelmed with the amount of requests coming into his office. He's said he has a skeleton staff because background checks are still being completed. Other White House officials have complained about what they call a sluggish background check process, too. "[Richmond] said he's just sitting at his computer all day answering emails," said one person who was struggling to get in touch with him and, like others we've spoken to, complained that the White House is inaccessible. In a statement, Richmond responded, "We're very engaged with the covid team on [vaccine hesitancy], and we're very proud of it." Complaints about his lack of availability are "news to me," he added. A White House official said it's staffing up at a brisk pace compared to past administrations at this point. DONORS ARE PEEVED, TOO: We've also heard griping from donors who expect more glad-handing from the White House. "They're not even doing the normal stuff like inviting donors to briefings," said one major Democratic donor. "Typically, they'd reach out to you to see, 'What are you interested in? Are you interested in serving the administration?' And there are a lot of jobs." Instead the administration reached out through an email listserv to inquire about political positions, this person said. "People are very disappointed right now," the donor said. "Most people aren't looking for anything but a thank you. And that hasn't happened." Covid protocols might be part of the issue. Typically, donors would be invited to events at the White House like Greek Independence Day or St. Patrick's Day as a way to keep them engaged and feeling like insiders. "Are they going to do Christmas parties this year?" the donor asked. | | | | A message from Google:   Report: Due to COVID-19, approximately 11 million small businesses (37%) would have closed all or part of their business without digital tools. Learn more. | | | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — We're told NICK OFFERMAN, aka RON SWANSON of "Parks and Recreation," will appear before the House Energy and Commerce Committee Wednesday to urge Americans (particularly Republican men) to get vaccinated. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri. HILL OVERSIGHT IS DEAD, LONG LIVE HILL OVERSIGHT — This week's vote on a bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection exposed some serious rifts on the Hill — rifts that could get even wider as the bill heads to the Senate. On today's episode of "Playbook Deep Dive," POLITICO's MARIANNE LEVINE and RACHAEL BADE dig into the dynamics playing out among congressional leadership, from Senate Minority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL'S 2022 calculations to House Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY'S quest to become speaker. One big question it all raises: Is Hill oversight dead? Listen and subscribe here | 
| BIDEN'S FRIDAY — The president will receive the President's Daily Brief at 9 a.m. He'll welcome South Korean President MOON JAE-IN at 12:35 p.m. At 1 p.m., Biden will award the Medal of Honor to Army Col. RALPH PUCKETT. Then the rest of the afternoon is all with Moon: bilateral meeting at 2:15 p.m., expanded bilateral meeting at 3:15 p.m. and press conference at 5 p.m. — VP KAMALA HARRIS will host Moon for a bilateral meeting at 10 a.m. — The White House Covid-19 response team and public health officials will brief at 11 a.m. Press secretary JEN PSAKI will brief at noon. THE HOUSE will meet at 9 a.m. THE SENATE is out. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO WEST WING PLAYBOOK: Add West Wing Playbook to keep up with the power players, latest policy developments and intriguing whispers percolating inside the West Wing and across the highest levels of the Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | 
PHOTO OF THE DAY: Xiao Qi Ji, a 9-month-old male giant panda cub, climbs in a tree on Thursday, May 20, at the Smithsonian National Zoo, which is scheduled to reopen to the public today. | Drew Angerer/Getty Images | THE WHITE HOUSE BIDEN TALKS TO BROOKS — NYT columnist David Brooks interviews Biden about why the lifelong moderate is going big, bold and progressive: "The values that drive him have been utterly consistent over the decades, and the policies he is proposing now are similar to those he's been championing for decades. It's the scale that is gigantically different. … "'We're kind of at a place where the rest of the world is beginning to look to China,' Biden said. 'The most devastating comment made after I was elected — it wasn't so much about me — but it was by the Irish taoiseach' — prime minister — 'saying that "Well, America can't lead. They can't even get their arms around Covid."'" DEADLINES ARE MEANT TO BE BROKEN — "White House backs off May 25 police reform deadline," CNN: "'We are in close touch and we certainly defer to the expectations of the key negotiators,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday when pressed on the timeline, citing positive feedback on the ongoing conversations from South Carolina Republican Sen. TIM SCOTT and New Jersey Democratic Sen. CORY BOOKER. "Talks between both parties in the House and Senate are ongoing. But the House entered a work period after their votes on Thursday and won't return to Washington until June, making passage all but impossible ahead of the President's deadline next week." LAW OF THE LAND — "Biden signs anti-Asian hate crimes legislation," by Nick Niedzwiadek INFRASTRUCTURE YEAR — "Biden's bank-shot strategy to win GOP support for his infrastructure bill," by Christopher Cadelago and Natasha Korecki: "Over the past few weeks, senior White House officials, Cabinet members, and President Joe Biden himself have held dozens of calls or meetings with local Republican leaders to talk roads, bridges, and modern infrastructure investments. Much of the outreach has been done in private … But in conversations with more than a dozen local officials familiar with the White House's efforts — including those on the receiving end of the outreach — a few themes emerge. Chief among them is that the White House wants local GOP mayors and governors to convince their Republican representatives in Congress of the need to back the president's proposals. "The local leaders described a White House strategy that attempts to harness the outrage these leaders feel over the infrastructure crises they're facing and Congress' sluggish response to it. In the calls and meetings, the White House has tiptoed around how to pay for their $2.3 trillion plan, avoiding discussions about the tax hike proposals unpopular with Republicans. In some of the conversations, administration officials conveyed that they understood that discussions over revenue raisers could imperil a bipartisan package." CONGRESS HERE COMES THE FILIBUSTER — "Filibuster brawl amps up with GOP opposition to Jan. 6 panel," by Burgess Everett: "After more than four months of letting their power to obstruct lie unused in the Senate, the 50-member Senate GOP is ready to mount a filibuster of House-passed legislation creating an independent cross-aisle panel to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection. If Republicans follow through and block the bill, they will spark a long-building fight over the filibuster's very existence. "The filibuster has spent months lurking in the background of the Senate's daily business, but the battle over the chamber's 60-vote threshold will erupt as soon as next week." POLITICS ROUNDUP REPLACING ROY BLUNT — "Missouri Senate race shapes into battle between controversial firebrands and GOP officials," by James Arkin and Melanie Zanona: "The more than half-dozen Republicans eyeing the state's open Senate seat include, on the one hand, traditional candidates like a sitting state official and four members of the congressional delegation who are considering whether to make the leap to statewide politics. On the other hand, there is a disgraced former governor who resigned his post halfway through his term, and a lawyer who became a celebrity on the right after brandishing a rifle at Black Lives Matter protesters, for which local prosecutors slapped him with felony charges. "It all sets up a messy and character-filled primary that the party will need to survive with enough unity — and electability — to keep retiring Sen. ROY BLUNT'S seat in the GOP column next November." GOOD NEWS FOR DEMOCRATS — "Don't Sleep on Asian American Voters," The Atlantic: "Even amid soaring participation from all major racial groups, Asian Americans increased their turnout by more than any other cohort, according to recently released studies by the Census Bureau and Catalist, a Democratic voter-targeting firm. In fact, no major demographic group in recent decades has increased its turnout from one election to the next as much as Asian Americans did from 2016 to 2020, the census found; not even Black voters grew that much from 2004 through to Obama's first election four years later." | | | | A message from Google:   Google has free tools to help businesses stay connected. Learn more. | | | MEDIAWATCH MORE TROUBLE FOR THE CUOMOS — "Chris Cuomo took part in strategy calls advising his brother, the New York governor, on how to respond to sexual harassment allegations," WaPo: "[CHRIS] CUOMO, one of the network's top stars, joined a series of conference calls that included the Democratic governor, his top aide, his communications team, lawyers and a number of outside advisers, according to the people familiar with the conversations. "The cable news anchor encouraged his brother to take a defiant position and not to resign from the governor's office, the people said. At one point, he used the phrase 'cancel culture' as a reason to hold firm in the face of the allegations, two people present on one call said." Cuomo apologized on his show Thursday evening. The clip NOT ONLY WAPO REPORTERS — "Trump administration secretly obtained CNN reporter's phone and email records," CNN: "The Justice Department informed CNN Pentagon correspondent BARBARA STARR, in a May 13 letter, that prosecutors had obtained her phone and email records covering two months, between June 1, 2017 to July 31, 2017. The letter listed phone numbers for Starr's Pentagon extension, the CNN Pentagon booth phone number and her home and cell phones, as well as Starr's work and personal email accounts. "It is unclear when the investigation was opened, whether it happened under Attorney General JEFF SESSIONS or Attorney General WILLIAM BARR, and what the Trump administration was looking for in Starr's records. The Justice Department confirmed the records were sought through the courts last year but provided no further explanation or context." SPEAKING OF CANCEL CULTURE — "An interview with Emily Wilder, recent Stanford grad fired from AP job over criticisms of Israel," SF Gate: " EMILY WILDER, a journalist and 2020 graduate of Stanford University, started a new job as an Associated Press news associate based in Maricopa County, Arizona, on May 3. Two weeks later, she was unceremoniously fired by the news outlet after conservatives resurfaced old social media posts that drew attention from Republicans as prominent as Arkansas Sen. TOM COTTON. In Wilder's eyes, her firing is the latest example of right-wing cancel culture." TV TONIGHT — PBS' "Washington Week" with Yamiche Alcindor: Andrea Mitchell, Rachel Scott, Asma Khalid and Jeff Zeleny. SUNDAY SO FAR … | Gray TV | "Full Court Press": House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) … Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.). | FOX | "Fox News Sunday": Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) … Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.). Panel: Guy Benson, Julie Pace and Charles Lane. Power Player: Virginia Ali. | CBS | "Face the Nation": Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) … Scott Gottlieb … Robert Gates … Katherine Rowe … retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré. | ABC | "This Week": Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). Panel: Rahm Emanuel, Sarah Isgur, Donna Brazile and George Will. | MSNBC | "The Sunday Show": Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.) … Stuart Stevens … Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) … St. Paul, Minn., Mayor Melvin Carter. | CNN | "Inside Politics": Panel: Karoun Demirjian, Rachael Bade, Jeff Zeleny and Vivian Salama. | | | | | | 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. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | SPOTTED: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh grabbing dinner at Bluejacket. … Newt and Callista Gingrich in first class on a flight from DCA to Atlanta on Thursday morning. (Callista boarded early, Newt was late, and she called out to him to get on the plane, according to our tipster.) … Michael Grimm at Porterhouse. ARE YOU AN INTROVERT OR AN EXTROVERT? — Arthur Brooks (wish him a happy birthday) has a fun piece in The Atlantic that all types of personalities should be able to relate to. Cooped up at home the past year, extroverts were naturally unhappier during the pandemic, he writes — but the mood of introverts actually improved. "[T]he temporary shift has … created a kind of social-science field experiment, highlighting all the ways in which introverts and extroverts can learn from each other. If we take the lessons to heart, we can all benefit." BOOK CLUB — Vox's Alex Ward is writing "Power Play," a look at the first year of Biden's foreign policy, for Portfolio Books. Announcement WHITE HOUSE ARRIVAL LOUNGE — Emily Voorde is now an associate director at the Office of Public Engagement. She previously was Chasten Buttigieg's body woman on Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaign. TRUMP ALUMNI — Caitlin Thompson Groves is now a senior account executive at Pinkston. She previously was deputy assistant HUD secretary for public affairs. TRANSITIONS — Courtney Veatch is joining the Alzheimer's Association as associate director of federal affairs. She previously was counsel at DHS, and is a Marco Rubio and Neal Dunn alum. … David Peyman is now of counsel in DLA Piper's international trade practice. He previously was deputy assistant secretary of State for counter threat finance and sanctions. … Maci Morin is now a broadband program specialist at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. She previously was a program coordinator at the National Association of Regional Councils. … … Elizabeth Thorp is now a VP at Sunshine Sachs in D.C. She previously was president of her own PR firm, EDT Communications. … The Phoenix-based consulting and grassroots advocacy firm Camelback Strategy Group is opening a new D.C. office led by Matthew Pagano, who's moving up to become national VP. He previously was Arizona director at the RNC. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Arthur Brooks … Vox's Rebecca Leber … Abigail P. Gage … Jeffrey Toobin … Mike Podhorzer … Brent Del Monte of BGR … IMF's Ross Rattanasena … Mary Ann Gomez Orta of the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute … NRSC's Katharine Cooksey … Matt Appenfeller … Mike Viqueira … Mosheh Oinounou … Gillian Reagan … Rachel Phelps Bayens ... Brandon Pollak ... Erika Gutierrez Sheridan ... Wally Hsueh … Bully Pulpit's Cody Shankman and Julia Debo … former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) (7-0) … CNBC's Steve Liesman … Time's Jeffrey Kluger … Deb Riechmann … former Sen. George LeMieux (R-Fla.) … former Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Fla.) Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com. Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Mike Zapler, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Allie Bice, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross. | | A message from Google: Helping small businesses acquire new digital skills. A new report by the Connected Commerce Council (3C) in partnership with Google found that 11 million small businesses would have partially or completely closed without digital tools due to COVID-19. To help small businesses adapt and recover in the post-COVID landscape, Grow with Google offers free digital training and tools. Learn more. | | | | | | | 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 political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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