| | | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Tara Palmeri and Ryan Lizza | | | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | BREAKING OVERNIGHT — "Obama Significantly Scales Back 60th Birthday Party as Virus Cases Rebound," by NYT's Annie Karni: "The party plans had been months in the making and many invitees had already arrived on Martha's Vineyard when former President BARACK OBAMA belatedly announced he was canceling his huge 60th birthday bash scheduled for Saturday. "'Due to the new spread of the Delta variant over the past week, the President and Mrs. Obama have decided to significantly scale back the event to include only family and close friends,' HANNAH HANKINS, a spokeswoman for the former president, said in a statement Wednesday morning. 'He's appreciative of others sending their birthday wishes from afar and looks forward to seeing people soon.'" TRUMP REDEEMS HIMSELF IN OHIO — MIKE CAREY might have been on the ballot, but in the Buckeye State on Tuesday night DONALD TRUMP was just as much the winner. The former president's candidate prevailed in a 10-way primary to replace former Rep. STEVE STIVERS, showing that the "Trump influence waning" narrative last week was premature. As our colleague Marissa Martinez wrote Tuesday night: "Carey's win affirms Trump's ability to influence Republican primaries … after SUSAN WRIGHT, another Republican House candidate backed by the former president, lost her own special election for a district in Texas last week. Following the Texas defeat last week, Trump moved aggressively to prevent a second loss … [He] held a last-minute tele-rally for Carey Monday evening… Meanwhile, a pro-Trump PAC spent more than $350,000 on digital campaign ads in just the last week." In the Texas race last week, Democratic voters appeared to undercut Wright, making that election an imperfect test of the power of Trump's endorsement. In Ohio, however, only Republicans could vote in the primary. AS FOR TEAM BLUE … THE ESTABLISHMENT REIGNS (AND SO DOES THE CBC) — For the second time in recent weeks, progressives came up short. Our Ally Mutnick, reporting on the ground in Bedford Heights, Ohio: "The Democratic establishment dealt a crushing blow to the progressive movement Tuesday, with SHONTEL BROWN, the preferred candidate of party stalwarts, triumphing over NINA TURNER, a face of the insurgent left, in a special congressional primary election." It's a major win for the Congressional Black Caucus, which went all in for Brown in a race that pitted House Majority Whip JIM CLYBURN (D-S.C.) against Sen. BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) and the Squad. And it's the second defeat for the left in recent weeks after ERIC ADAMS won the New York City mayoral primary. Turner had the early momentum in the campaign, making this an especially tough loss for the left . Brown's allies "bombarded the airwaves with ads dragging up unfavorable Turner comments about the Democratic Party. (Some spots included a now-notorious interview Turner gave comparing voting for JOE BIDEN to eating excrement.) The Democratic Majority for Israel super PAC was the main spender, dropping nearly $1 million on TV to boost Brown." In her concession speech Tuesday night, captured on Twitter by National Journal's Kirk Bado, Turner showed her anger over the attacks: "I am going to work hard to ensure that something like this doesn't happen to another progressive candidate again. We didn't lose this race, evil money manipulated and maligned this election." Brown, meanwhile, thanked "my Jewish brothers and sisters" in her victory speech and noted her support for the U.S.-Israel relationship, per Jewish Insider. But it's not all doom and gloom for the left. As Kara Voght at Mother Jones noted, Turner lost "on the same day @justicedems proves its point via Squad's Capitol camp out." Our Maya King called it "quite [the] split screen… progressives suffer a bruising loss in Ohio while one of their own in Washington clears the way for millions to avoid eviction." "We can draw conclusions about 2022 momentum from this race," she wrote, "but can't deny the grassroots activism that progressives like [CORI] BUSH are bringing, and said they would as challengers/candidates." (More on this in a second …) Good Wednesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri. | | A message from Facebook: The internet has changed a lot since 1996 - internet regulations should too
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– Reforming Section 230 | | | CUOMO ON THE ROPES — New York Democrats are gearing up to impeach Democratic Gov. ANDREW CUOMO — and soon — after he refused to step down in the wake of state A.G. TISH JAMES' Tuesday report that he sexually harassed 11 women. Here's what it will look like, per our colleagues in the Empire State: — New York's impeachment process looks a lot like Congress', but with a few differences. It starts in the lower chamber and takes a simple majority of the Assembly's 150 members to impeach, just like on Capitol Hill. The chamber can create a special committee, though in this case the Judiciary panel has been investigating Cuomo. But unlike with presidential proceedings, Cuomo would be tried in the so-called "High Court of Impeachment," a jury composed of all the state's senators (except the majority leader, who would become lieutenant governor and therefore is recused), and the seven members of the state's highest court. Removal takes two-thirds of the 69-member body. Read our Bill Mahoney for the latest on the political front, and Nick Niedzwiadek and Terry Golway for more on the process. Also of note: Only one of the state's 56 governors has ever been impeached and removed from office: WILLIAM SULZER was ousted in 1912 after a select panel found that he didn't report all his campaign money and used some of it to play in the stock market. — Things could move fast, per the NYT's Katie Glueck: "A person familiar with the process said it could take just a month to complete the inquiry and draw up the articles of impeachment. A trial in the State Senate could begin as soon as late September or early October." IMPEACHMENT ISN'T CUOMO'S ONLY PROBLEM …, He's got a criminal probe hanging over his head, too. MEET THE POSSIBLE NEXT NEW YORK GOVERNOR — "What to Know About Kathy Hochul, Cuomo's Possible Successor," by NYT's Katie Glueck and Michael Gold MORE HEADLINES — "What we know about the 11 women in the Cuomo harassment report," POLITICO … "Key findings of the Andrew Cuomo sexual harassment report -- and what's next," CNN … "'Creepy' and 'flirtatious': How Cuomo allegedly sexually harassed a state trooper," NBC … "Biden calls for Cuomo to resign after investigation finds the New York governor sexually harassed 11 women," WaPo | | | |   | | | BIDEN'S WEDNESDAY: — 10 a.m.: Biden and VP KAMALA HARRIS will receive the President's Daily Brief. — 11:15 a.m.: Biden will meet with ERIC LANDER, science adviser and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, to talk about getting ready for future pandemics. Press secretary JEN PSAKI will brief at 12:30 p.m. THE SENATE is in. The Foreign Relations Committee will mark up a bill to repeal the authorizations for use of military force against Iraq at 10:15 a.m. The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hold a markup at 10:30 a.m. to vote on the nominations of ED GONZALEZ to lead ICE and ROBERT SANTOS to lead the Census Bureau. THE HOUSE is out. | | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | 
PHOTO OF THE DAY: Reps. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), Cori Bush (D-Mo.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.) arrive for a rally and news conference on the eviction moratorium at the Capitol on Tuesday, Aug. 3. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images | THE EVICTION MORATORIUM CORI BUSH GETS RESULTS — "Biden administration moves to block evictions in most of U.S. following liberal backlash," by WaPo's Jeff Stein, Tyler Pager, Seung Min Kim and Tony Romm: "The CDC issued a moratorium on evictions for 60 days for U.S. counties with 'substantial and high levels of community transmission' of the coronavirus, according to an agency news release. About 90 percent of the country will be covered by the ban as the virus's delta variant spreads quickly throughout the country, Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER (D-N.Y.) said in a statement." KNOWING THE SQUAD'S NEWEST STANDOUT — Speaker NANCY PELOSI used to remind former activists in Congress that when they were elected to serve their districts, they traded the picket line for a new set of decorum expectations. But this week Bush, the former Black Lives Matter activist and one of the newest members of the Squad, showed the nation that she can do things her way — and still get results. Nicholas Wu, Heather Caygle and Sarah Ferris take a closer look at the Missouri lawmaker, who experienced homelessness herself after an eviction. — Forbes' @AndrewSolender tweeted a video of Bush's victory lap — but also a reminder for Democratic leaders: "Let's be clear, activists are in Congress. So expect for things to be different than what people are used to." — As our Heather Caygle writes in to Playbook today, Pelosi was also flexing to get a win here. While Bush took to sleeping on the steps of the Capitol, the speaker publicly called on the White House to extend the moratorium, breaking with the president and working the phones all weekend to get the administration to do something. THE BACKLASH … Sen. PAT TOOMEY (R-Pa.) on Twitter: "The eviction moratorium lacks both a legal basis and an economic justification. Even the president admitted today that the 'bulk of constitutional scholars say … it's not likely to pass constitutional muster.'" ABC's Justin Gomez, Mariam Khan and Cheyenne Haslet have more: "Biden said that he isn't sure if the new moratorium would pass constitutional muster and expects legal challenges, but he said that some scholars he consulted think 'it's worth the effort.' … Biden said 'at a minimum' that by the time this works its way through the courts, some of the funds will be able to reach renters who are struggling." — "President Biden Announces on Live TV That He Intends to Break His Oath of Office," by National Review's Charles Cooke THE BACKDROP AROUND THE COUNTRY — "State, local aid bottlenecks leave renters exposed," by Katy O'Donnell CONGRESS NOMINATION WOES — In a 50-50 Senate, every Democrat (or independent caucusing with the Democrats) can take their turn to throw a wrench in the works. When it comes to DAVID CHIPMAN, Biden's pick to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Sen. ANGUS KING (I-Maine) is putting up a roadblock. Burgess Everett, Anita Kumar and Marianne LeVine have more: "[H]e has signaled to both the Biden administration and his Democratic colleagues that he is currently not supportive of the nominee, as he comes under pressure to buck a pick seen as resistant to gun rights in a state where hunting and gun rights are part of many voters' DNA. … King could change his mind. … "King's current position signals that Chipman's nomination — already facing long odds — is decidedly on the rocks. Several other Democratic senators, including JOE MANCHIN of West Virginia and JON TESTER of Montana, said this week they remained undecided. If Chipman can't get lockstep Democratic support, he would be among the highest-profile Biden nominees to fail in the Senate." FOR YOUR RADAR — "Senate nears pivotal 60-vote threshold for scrapping Iraq war authorizations," by Andrew Desiderio: "The historic, years-long push to rein in executive branch war-making authorities isn't over yet. But it got this far thanks to tectonic shifts in public opinion as well as growing support among Republicans, who are poised to push the effort over the finish line when it hits the Senate floor later this year. "On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will approve a bipartisan bill to repeal the 1991 authorization for the Gulf War and the 2002 authorization for the Iraq War; and, according to a POLITICO tally, the bill is likely to secure the requisite 60 votes when it hits the floor later this year — a significant shift for a Senate that has lagged behind a war-weary American public." | | A message from Facebook: Why Facebook supports updated internet regulations
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See how we're taking action on key issues and why we support updated internet regulations. | | | ALL POLITICS GOING LONG — "Rep. Billy Long launches Missouri Senate campaign after meeting with Trump," by Alex Isenstadt: "Rep. BILLY LONG, a former auctioneer and radio show host who was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2010, made his announcement during an appearance on TUCKER CARLSON's Fox News program. The congressman is tying himself closely to Trump. On Tuesday afternoon, prior to the airing of the interview with Carlson, Long met with the former president at Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan, according to three people familiar with the sit-down." 2022 WATCH — "Karen Bass signals openness to Los Angeles mayoral run," by WaPo's Sean Sullivan: "Rep. KAREN BASS (D-Calif.), one of the most prominent Black women in Congress and an ally of Biden, has signaled she is open to running for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022 under encouragement from some Democrats. The congresswoman has made no decisions about the race … but Bass's openness is notable; her stock in Washington has been on the rise in recent years, with some mentioning her as a potential future House speaker or Cabinet official. "Asked for comment on her intentions Tuesday, Bass spokesman ZACH SEIDL provided a written statement that said, 'People are urging her to do it. She is not considering it at this time. Her plan right now is to run for re-election to her House seat in 2022.'" ANOTHER 2020 SIREN — "DOJ officials rejected colleague's request to intervene in Georgia's election certification: Emails," by ABC's Katherine Faulders and Alexander Mallin: "Top members of the DOJ last year rebuffed another DOJ official who asked them to urge officials in Georgia to investigate and perhaps overturn Biden's victory in the state — long a bitter point of contention for former Trump and his team — before the results were certified by Congress. The emails, dated Dec. 28, 2020, show the former acting head of DOJ's civil division, JEFFREY CLARK, circulating a draft letter — which he wanted then-acting attorney general JEFFREY ROSEN and acting deputy attorney general RICHARD DONOGHUE to sign off on — urging Georgia's governor and other top officials to convene the state legislature into a special session so lawmakers could investigate claims of voter fraud. "The emails were provided by the DOJ to the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating efforts to overturn the election results. And they come as the DOJ investigator general looks at whether any officials in the department sought to overturn the outcome of the election." PANDEMIC INCOMING — "F.D.A. Aims to Give Final Approval to Pfizer Vaccine by Early Next Month," by NYT's Sharon LaFraniere and Noah Weiland SOPHOMORE SLUMP — "Chaos and confusion: Back to school turns ugly as Delta rages," by Dan Goldberg, Juan Perez Jr. and Daniel Payne: "School boards are at war with governors over masks. Superintendents are developing contingency plans on the fly. And schools that only just opened have had to shut down. "Welcome to sophomore year for Covid-19. The Delta variant, which few had heard of when classes ended in the spring, is upending reopening plans across the country, threatening President Joe Biden's promise of a more normal school year and sustained economic recovery. Nearly 18 months into the pandemic, there's no consensus on how to keep students and staff safe. Local school leaders, whipsawed by changing federal guidance, find themselves building a patchwork of protections based as much on local politics as public health." | | | | 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 | | TWEET OF THE DAY: House Oversight member Katie Porter (D-Calif.) sharpening her tools for a different context: "My oldest kid Luke is taking driver's ed next semester. The parent orientation video suggests that we do 'aggressive oversight' of our teens' driving. Some parents might be nervous, but I'm ready and eager to provide accountability when Luke gets behind the wheel of the van." SPOTTED: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) at the Nats game Tuesday night, appearing to have a good time in the nosebleeds. Pic … Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.), Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) in a suite at the Citi Open on Tuesday night. Pics via CBS' Tim Perry … John Kerry and Madeleine Albright separately at dinner at Cafe Milano on Tuesday night. SPOTTED at Foreign Policy for America's NextGen leadership retreat for young policymakers Tuesday evening: Alia Awadallah, Itai Barsade, Jack Miller, Perry Blatstein, Caroline Chang, Sam Denney, Shannon Kellman, Natalia Cote-Muñoz, Mike Fox, Phoebe Benich, Ben Read, Tabatha Thompson, Leah Dreyfuss and Kristina Biyad. MEDIA MOVES — Madeline Berg is joining Business Insider as a media editor. She currently is a staff writer at Forbes. … Kate Brannen will join the Foreign Affairs editorial team next month. She currently is editorial director at Just Security. … … Evan Lambert is joining NewsNation as D.C. bureau correspondent, mainly reporting for "Morning In America." He most recently was a reporter at Fox 5. … Bloomberg Economics has added Fed alums David Wilcox as director of U.S. economic research and Bill Dudley as senior adviser. Wilcox will remain affiliated with the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and Dudley will remain a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. TRANSITIONS — Mairead Lynn is now comms director for Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.). She's an EMILY's List and Senate HELP alum. … Josh Glasstetter is now director of comms and public affairs at the U.S. Cannabis Council. He previously was a VP at West End Strategy Team, and is an SEIU and Southern Poverty Law Center alum. … … Heather Purcell is joining the California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) in Los Angeles. She most recently was deputy chief of staff/comms director for Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.). … Patrick Griffin has been named director of the Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute at American University, where he's previously been the longtime academic director. He's a Clinton White House and Capitol Hill alum. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Emily Loeb, associate deputy A.G. at DOJ, and Sarah Feldman, comms director for Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), welcomed Hattie Frances Loeb on Saturday. She joins big brother Henry. She's named for her late grandma Marilyn Frank, Sarah's mom, as well as her great-great-grandmother and a long line of wise Texas women on Emily's maternal side. Pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Former President Barack Obama (6-0) … House Democratic Caucus Chair Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) … Reps. Tom Rice (R-S.C.) and Jim Hagedorn (R-Minn.) … Bret Baier … WaPo's Seung Min Kim, Joby Warrick and Mike Madden … The Hill's Bob Cusack … Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds … Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot … John Edgell … CBS' Katie Watson … Caren Auchman of Lewis … Alex Mallin of ABC … Joel Bailey of Rep. Jimmy Panetta's (D-Calif.) office … Andrea Hechavarria of Butterfly Network … CNN's Greg Krieg … Pete Brodnitz … USA Today's Deirdre Shesgreen … Washingtonian's Michael Schaffer … POLITICO's Ashley Ryan, Donna Lindsay and Shanima Parker … Brett Loper … Nick Wing ... Kate Michelman … Reagan Anderson ... Kaci Sturgeon ... Uber's Hayley Prim ... Valerie McCabe ... Emil Hill ... Chad Kolton ... Anna Bennett … former A.G. Alberto Gonzales … Something Major's Randi Braun … Richard Carlbom of United Strategies … Andrei Cherny … Minnesota A.G. Keith Ellison … former Rep. Rob Andrews (D-N.J.) … former U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin … Robert Tuttle … former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland 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. | | | | Sponsored Survey SHARE YOUR OPINION: Please take a short, 3-question survey about one of our advertising partners. | | | | | | | 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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