| | | | | |  | | By Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri, Eugene Daniels and Rachael Bade | | | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | JARGON WATCH: As fans of "Back to the Future," we were amused to learn Tuesday night that inside the White House aides refer to the infrastructure deal as BIF: the bipartisan infrastructure framework. In case you never saw those movies MAKING THE CASE: Later today President JOE BIDEN travels to Illinois, where he will attempt to lay out the case for BIF as well as the reconciliation bill that will include his American Families Plan and everything that didn't make it into BIF. We'll be listening for what he prioritizes as Democrats on the Hill compete furiously to insert their top agenda items into the reconciliation bill, which is increasingly seen as the last best chance for meaningful legislation before next year's midterms. MEANWHILE IN NEW YORK: Biden did not endorse in the race and he wasn't a major issue in the election, but in some ways the victor of the Democratic primary in the NYC mayoral race was the most Biden-like candidate: someone who avoided lefty pieties about difficult issues (like crime); who bucked the white progressive establishment that he saw as out of touch with the party's multiracial base; who was in some ways a throwback to the old machine politics. He was a candidate who (alleged) political experts underestimated, and who emerged victorious after voters flirted with flashier alternatives. Your must-reads on the NYC results: — "Adams wins Democratic primary for mayor of New York City," by Sally Goldenberg: "ERIC ADAMS narrowly won the New York City mayoral primary, defeating second-place rival KATHRYN GARCIA by 8,426 votes in the first citywide race to utilize ranked-choice voting. Adams — the Brooklyn borough president who retired as a police captain in 2006 to become a state senator — rode an anti-crime wave to clinch the Democratic spot in November. He now faces Republican CURTIS SLIWA in a general election to replace outgoing Mayor BILL DE BLASIO. "Garcia's spokesperson, LINDSEY GREEN, said she is 'currently seeking additional clarity on outstanding ballots and [is] committed to supporting the Democratic nominee.' The city's Board of Elections said up to 942 absentee ballots that contained voter mistakes can still be fixed, making it impossible for Garcia to overtake Adams as the numbers stand." DISINFORMATION ABOUNDS — "Why New York's Election Debacle Is Likely to Fuel Conspiracy Theories," by NYT's Maggie Astor: "While the mistake was discovered within hours and corrected by the next day, it provided purveyors of right-wing disinformation with ammunition as powerful as anything they could have invented. Some supporters of [DONALD] TRUMP quickly suggested that the results of the 2020 election might also have been miscounted. (Exhaustive investigations have made it very clear that they weren't.) "The disinformation fueled by New York's mistake may not end up being compelling to Americans who haven't already bought into the lie that the 2020 election was stolen. But it is very likely, especially among New Yorkers, to undermine overall trust in public institutions — and that sort of distrust creates fertile ground for disinformation to grow." Good Wednesday morning, and thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri. | | | | A message from PhRMA: Out-of-pocket costs shouldn't be out-of-this-world confusing. If we fix insurance, we can fix out-of-pocket medicine costs. See how. | | | ANOTHER ONE — Back when Biden's aides were debating whether to have a summit with Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN, the pro-meeting side argued that if he ignored Putin, the Russian leader was more likely to act out and create headaches for the new administration. A little engagement and attention, the argument went, might forestall the worst behavior. Relative Russia hawks within Biden's orbit, like Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs VICTORIA NULAND, who favors a Cold War-era policy to "deter and roll back dangerous behavior by the Kremlin," were skeptical of any meeting until there were clear signs of improved behavior from Putin. The Nuland view is looking more prescient. So far it's hard to see how Putin has reined in anything since the Geneva one-on-one with Biden. The latest state-sanctioned cyber aggression from Russia is an attack on the RNC, which, after years of information warfare to boost Trump over his Democratic rivals, including the hacking and dumping campaign against the DNC, was probably seen in Moscow as a particularly inspired plot twist. More seriously, it's a major test of how aggressively Biden will respond, especially after years of attacking Trump for looking the other way as the Russian autocrat launched waves of cyberattacks against crucial U.S. institutions. The latest: — "Russia 'Cozy Bear' Breached GOP as Ransomware Attack Hit," by Bloomberg's William Turton and Jennifer Jacobs: "Russian government hackers breached the computer systems of the Republican National Committee last week, around the time a Russia-linked criminal group unleashed a massive ransomware attack, according to two people familiar with the matter. "The government hackers were part of a group known as APT 29 or Cozy Bear, according to the people. That group has been tied to Russia's foreign intelligence service and has previously been accused of breaching the Democratic National Committee in 2016 and of carrying out a supply-chain cyberattack involving SolarWinds Corp., which infiltrated nine U.S. government agencies and was disclosed in December. It's not known what data the hackers viewed or stole, if anything. The RNC has repeatedly denied that it was hacked." — "Attempted Hack of R.N.C. and Russian Ransomware Attack Test Biden," by NYT's Nicole Perlroth and David Sanger: "The twin attacks are a test for Mr. Biden just three weeks after he, in his first meeting as president with Mr. Putin, demanded that the Russian leader rein in ransomware activities against the United States. … White House officials were preparing to meet on Wednesday to discuss the latest ransomware attack, which used the innovative technique of getting into the supply chain of software used by governments, federal agencies and other organizations — a tactic that the S.V.R. deployed in SolarWinds last year. "The White House did not directly address the breach of Synnex, the R.N.C. contractor … But Mr. Biden plans to gather officials from several agencies in the Situation Room on Wednesday morning 'to discuss the Biden-Harris administration's overall strategic efforts to counter ransomware,' the White House said on Tuesday evening." | | | | A message from PhRMA:   The way insurance covers your medicine is too complicated. See how we can make the system work for patients. Not the other way around. | | | BIDEN'S WEDNESDAY: — 9:30 a.m.: The president and VP KAMALA HARRIS will convene interagency leaders in the Situation Room to discuss the administration's response to ransomware attacks. — 10:30 a.m.: Biden will depart the White House en route to Chicago, where he is scheduled to arrive at 11:35 a.m. CDT. He'll then travel to Crystal Lake, Ill., arriving at 12:35 p.m. — 1:20 p.m. CDT: Biden will tour McHenry County College, and then deliver remarks at 2:05 p.m. before heading back to Chicago. — 4:20 p.m. CDT: The president will depart Chicago to return to the White House, where he is scheduled to arrive at 7:15 p.m. EDT. Press secretary JEN PSAKI will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Crystal Lake. THE HOUSE and THE SENATE are 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: Tropical Storm Elsa passes through Key West, Fla., on Tuesday. Potentially stronger landfall is expected along Florida's western coast this morning. | Rob O'Neal/The Key West Citizen via AP | THE WHITE HOUSE 'NAH. I'M NOT DOING THAT' — Our Chicago-based Natasha Korecki spent some time at the It's Official Barbershop, where a few weeks ago second gentleman DOUG EMHOFF went for a vaccination event to highlight the White House's efforts to penetrate hard-to-reach populations. One customer after another, however, told Korecki, in so many words, nothing doing. The shop is in an area of Chicago with regular deadly shootings, but some customers were still wary of injecting themselves with substances to stop a disease that's killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. "'Ain't nothing going to make me take that unless my life is on the line," C.J. AYERS said of the vaccine. 'The CDC barely knows about the disease, y'all trying to tell me about a vaccine y'all just threw together in a month? Nah. I'm not doing that.'" … Another customer: "Hey, look. We know a lot of crackheads. We know no crackheads dying from Covid. … I mean, I don't think I know anybody who died of Covid. I know more people who died of violence this year than Covid." The skepticism, writes Korecki, is "a microcosm of the obstacles facing the White House nationwide. For all the celebrity plugs, offers of free beer, and cash lotteries, the national vaccination push is hitting a brick wall of reality. Conspiracies, lethargy and a sense that the pandemic is on the wane have intervened …" POLICE REFORM AND VOTING RIGHTS — "Biden 'frustrated' over stalled civil rights bills critical for Black America," by The Grio's April Ryan: "Biden is said to be 'frustrated' over what some call the collapse of the current police reform negotiations and a stall on voting rights legislation on Capitol Hill. Sources inside the Biden-Harris administration, however, say the White House is closely watching the movement and anticipating positive outcomes in present negotiations in hopes that the legislative packages will be passed. … Sources also note that Republican Senate Minority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL, given the evenly divided Senate, holds the keys as to whether voting rights and police reform will succeed or fail in the upper chamber." BEYOND THE BELTWAY GAETZ-GATE LATEST — "Key player in Gaetz probe seeks sentencing delay so he can keep cooperating with feds," by Matt Dixon: "JOEL GREENBERG, a former Seminole County tax collector who in May pleaded guilty to sex trafficking and corruption-related charges, requested in a motion filed Tuesday a delay in his sentencing, which is scheduled for August 19. Prosecutors are not opposing the motion, court records show. He faces a minimum of 12 years in prison ... "Federal prosecutors charged Greenberg with 33 criminal counts but dropped 27 of those after Greenberg agreed to cooperative with federal investigators, who are now also looking into whether Gaetz had sex with a 17-year-old." IN CALIFORNIA — "Republican Lanhee Chen wants to jump from TV talking head to California state controller," by SF Chronicle's Joe Garofoli CULTURE WARS — "Union will defend teachers in 'critical race theory' fights," by AP's Collin Binkley: "In a virtual address to members of the American Federation of Teachers, president RANDI WEINGARTEN said the union is preparing litigation and has a legal defense fund 'ready to go.' She promised to fight 'culture warriors' who attempt to limit lessons on racism and discrimination by labeling it as critical race theory." COMING TO TOWN, via Illinois Playbook's Shia Kapos: Illinois state House Speaker EMANUEL "CHRIS" WELCH is headed to D.C. later this month. It's his first big trip since he was elected earlier this year as speaker, a position that was held for decades by fellow Democrat MIKE "MACHINE POLITICS" MADIGAN. On July 26, he'll be feted at a meet-and-greet in the Lincoln Room just off the House floor, hosted by Rep. ROBIN KELLY, who is also Illinois Democratic Party chair. A July 27 fundraiser will be held on the rooftop of 800 Maine Ave. SW, overlooking The Wharf. Welch will also meet one-on-one with members of the Illinois congressional delegation and international union representatives, including folks at EMILY's List. Welch, a big fan of the Cubs, has also timed his trip with their contest against the Nats on July 30. | | | | A message from PhRMA:   Let's make out-of-pocket costs transparent, predictable and affordable. See how. | | | CONGRESS 'WE'RE ALL JOE MANCHIN RIGHT NOW' — In a story that states the obvious, but which is probably still worth stating, the AP highlights the internal Democratic politics of passing a massive infrastructure package with painfully few votes to spare. "With Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., winning the spotlight this year for pulling his party rightward by issuing demands on crucial issues, plenty of centrists and liberals are now using that same playbook. In a procession of meetings with White House officials and congressional budget writers, progressives have insisted that the emerging measures be big and aggressive, while moderates want them to be far more modest. '"We're all Joe Manchin right now,' said House Budget Committee Chairman JOHN YARMUTH of Kentucky." NOT AGAIN! — "Weeks after Holocaust Museum visit, Rep. Greene makes new Nazi-era comparison in opposing vaccination push," WaPo: "Rep. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-Ga.) on Tuesday used a Nazi-era comparison in opposing the Biden administration's push to encourage all Americans to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, calling the individuals leading those efforts 'medical brown shirts.' Members of the paramilitary organization that helped Hitler and the Nazi Party rise to power were known as 'brownshirts.' "Greene's remarks, made in a tweet, came weeks after she visited the Holocaust Museum and apologized for previously comparing coronavirus face-mask policies to the Nazi practice of labeling Jews with Star of David badges." POLITICS CORNER GREITENS GETS A BOOST — "GOP megadonor bankrolling super PAC for Eric Greitens," by Alex Isenstadt: "RICHARD UIHLEIN, a billionaire shipping and industrial supply company executive, is donating $2.5 million to a newly formed, pro-Greitens super PAC. The cash infusion will give [ERIC] GREITENS a financial lift as many of the party's contributors shun the former governor, who resigned from office in 2018 amid allegations that he sexually assaulted his hairstylist. "Greitens, who is running for the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. ROY BLUNT , will need the money. The former governor could face an avalanche of attacks from Republican establishment-aligned groups amid concerns from party leaders that his nomination would jeopardize the party's hold on what should be a safe seat and imperil their prospects of winning the Senate majority." WHAT REPUBLICANS ARE HOPING FOR — "Could a School-Board Fight Over Critical Race Theory Help Turn Virginia Red?" by Maya King in Leesburg, Va. JAN. 6TH AND ITS AFTERMATH BRANCHING OUT — "Capitol Police plan to open field offices outside Washington to track threats to lawmakers," by NYT's Luke Broadwater: "TIM BARBER, a spokesman, said the plan was to open several additional regional offices as the department charged with protecting Congress transforms itself in the aftermath of the attack, which exposed serious deficiencies in the Capitol Police's gathering and dissemination of intelligence, preparedness and training. Much like the Secret Service, which has field offices in multiple states and countries, the Capitol Police need to be able to monitor and quickly investigate threats against lawmakers wherever they occur, Mr. Barber said." TRUMP CARD FOR YOUR RADAR — NYT's Maggie Habberman tweeted Tuesday night that an announcement from Trump expected today — he teased that something was coming about First Amendment rights — is not about a new social media platform, but about "lawsuits related to ones that kicked him off." PLAYBOOK SPORTS SECTION FROM THE NAVY TO THE NFL — "Pentagon chief allows Naval Academy grad to pursue NFL job," AP FROM THE NFL TO THE GOP CIVIL WAR — " The Toughest Route of Anthony Gonzalez's Life," by Sports Illustrated's Stanley Kay: "The former Ohio State Buckeye and Indianapolis Colt is today a Republican legislator from Ohio who acknowledges the gravity of the January 6 insurrection and voted for the impeachment of Donald Trump. Now he's in the former president's crosshairs." | | | | 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: The best of Dave Grohl, at Le Diplomate on Tuesday evening. … Melania Trump leaving Trump Tower in New York City on Tuesday, via The Daily Mail. MEDIAWATCH — Sean McMinn is joining POLITICO as a data and graphics editor. He previously was a data editor at NPR. STAFFING UP — Kerry Arndt is starting as press secretary for Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. She most recently was comms director for the House Transportation Dems, and is a Patty Murray alum. — Jaclyn Rothenberg is now director of public affairs at FEMA. She most recently was senior comms adviser to the first lady of New York City, and was the Georgia comms director on the Biden campaign. — The Department of Education announced several new political appointees, including Toby Merrill as deputy general counsel, Hayley Matz Meadvin and Chris Soto as senior advisers, Antoinette Flores as senior adviser for ARP implementation, Deven Comen as chief of staff in the Office of Communications and Outreach and Abel McDaniels as special assistant in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. TRUMP ALUMNI — Reed Rubinstein has joined America First Legal as senior counselor and director of oversight and investigations. He is the former acting general counsel at the Department of Education and is a DOJ, Treasury and Agriculture Department alum. — Paul Lawrence has started a consulting firm that advises organizations that help veterans. He most recently was under secretary of benefits for the Department of Veterans Affairs. TRANSITIONS — Jamitress Bowden is now a VP in BerlinRosen's issue advocacy practice. She most recently was deputy comms director for the House Oversight Committee, and is a Donald McEachin and Bobby Scott alum. … Kevin George is now senior director of legislative policy at the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. He previously was legislative director for Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.). … … Jessica Brandt is returning to the Brookings Institution as policy director for the AI and emerging tech initiative. She most recently was head of policy and research for the German Marshall Fund's Alliance For Securing Democracy. … Jay Riestenberg is joining Secure Democracy as associate director of state comms. He previously was deputy comms director at Common Cause. ENGAGED — Eric Heigis, legislative director for Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), and Jessica Stewart, a production coordinator at ViacomCBS, got engaged over the holiday weekend in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., where they met six years ago. Pic WEDDINGS — Ryan Caldwell, SVP at J.A. Green & Co., and Kristen Clardy, a public school teacher, got married Sunday at Spire, with a view of the July Fourth fireworks and a supporting appearance by the Washington Irish Rugby Football Club. Pic — Karolina Jewett, director of comms and marketing at St. Patrick's Episcopal Day School in D.C. and an Edelman and DKC alum, and William Canning, an asset management associate at CWCapital, recently got married at the Hotel Vermont, a property that is part of the Westport Hospitality Company, which is owned by Will's father. The couple met through Will's oldest brother, Chris, and are expecting a baby girl this September. Pic WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Casey Christine Higgins, senior policy adviser at Akin Gump and a Paul Ryan alum, and Juston Johnson, partner at Grassroots Targeting and an RNC alum, welcomed Saoirse Margaret Johnson on July Fourth. She came in at 7 lbs, 5 oz and 19.5 inches. Pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Reps. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) and Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) … White House's Matt Hill … Treasury's Marti Adams Baker … CNN's Nia-Malika Henderson … Eleanor Clift … Patrick Dillon … Rachel Rosen of Democratic Majority for Israel … Rachael Leman of Leman Kennedy … Amanda Maddox of Plus Communications … Terry Camp … Ed Kaleta of Walgreens … Matt Gobush of ExxonMobil … Stuart Varney of Fox Business Network … Luther Lowe of Yelp … Truman Reed of Rep. Don Young's (R-Alaska) office (27) … Michael Stevens … Mike Rigas … Andy Manatos … Ana Kasparian … ABC's Sophie Tatum … Jason Raymond … Patricia Bryan … Miranda Dabney … Nicole Eynard … Geoff Garin … Neil Newhouse … former House Majority Leader Dick Armey … Robin Doody … Keech leGrand (73) 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 PhRMA: Getting to what you pay for medicines shouldn't be a maze. Let's make out-of-pocket costs transparent, predictable and affordable. And let's do it without sacrificing access to medicines and innovation. See how we can make the system work for patients. Not the other way around. | | | | | | | 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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