| | | | | |  | | By Renuka Rayasam | | | JUDGMENT DAY — More than 20 million California voters began receiving ballots in the mail this week for a Sept. 14 vote over whether to recall Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and replace him with one of 46 candidates. Just 50 percent plus one voter needs to vote "yes" for Newsom to be ousted. If that happens, the candidate who gets the most votes on a second question gets sworn into office.
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom talks with volunteers who are phone banking against the recall at Manny's in San Francisco. | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images | The bizarre math of the election means that any one of a motley crew of contenders could become the state's next governor. The leading Democratic candidate to replace Newsom, should he lose the recall, is Kevin Paffrath, a 29 year-old YouTube phenom who was once called a "landlord influencer," California Playbook author Carla Marinucci told Nightly today. GOP candidate conservative talk show host Larry Elder is leading the field of contenders at the moment, though his ex-fiancée is alleging that he brandished a gun at her. California Democrats intentionally kept strong candidates to replace Newsom off the ballot. Some in the party fear that strategy is about to backfire, Carla said. She and I chatted over Slack today about who might wind up in the governor's mansion. This conversation has been edited. How much trouble is Newsom in right now? Democrats are very nervous with several polls showing Newsom's recall at a dead heat. The party has battled indifference and complacency on this recall — while Republicans have been fired up ever since they met the signature goals to put it on the ballot. Polls show Republicans are almost twice as likely to want to vote in the election. Conceivably, the next governor could be elected with 20 percent of the vote. Could that really happen? The GOP lags behind Dems by 22 points on voter registration in California and has essentially been reduced to third party status. So they may not have the math to pull this off, but they insist this is within reach. Dems say they are mounting the "largest in-person get out the vote operation in California history." The independent committee backing Newsom boasts an army of 600 paid staffers, according to the campaign's documents. The Stop the Republican Recall committee aims to target 10.3 million voters and 6.1 million phones, with voter contact being done in Spanish, Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin and Vietnamese. The goals cited by the committee in the weeks leading up to the Sept. 14 recall are staggering: 18+ million calls and 1.5 million door knocks; 5,500 phone and walk shifts per week, and "more than 25,000 shifts to knock on doors over a get out the vote weekend." How worried is Newsom? Judging by Newsom's furious efforts to hit every part of the state with his message — in person, and using the bully pulpit — his team is definitely sweating it. They are taking no chances at this point. They're bringing VP Kamala Harris to the Dem stronghold of the Bay Area next Friday to try to light a fire under Democratic voters to grab those ballots and mark "no." Did that birthday dinner at French Laundry bring Newsom down? What are the issues at play? Some of this recall fire has been fueled by Newsom's own self-administered wounds: The French Laundry dinner may be the single biggest thing that CA voters know about him today. But he's also been hit by the resurgence of Covid, historic wildfires, some blackouts because of energy issues. And lately, a spike in crime rates and growing concerns about homelessness have also fired up Republicans who are determined to see him go. Democrats, for their part, are warning that with a "Republican recall," the GOP aims to strip California of some of its most signature gains — in climate change, in immigration reform, in worker protections. And most important, in strong measures to stop the raging Covid pandemic with some of the most stringent moves yet — requiring masks in all schools, public and private, and tough vaccination and masking requirements statewide. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. We're keeping an eye on Orlando, where residents were asked to reduce water consumption as liquid oxygen used for water treatment is redirected to hospitals for Covid patients. Reach out with news, tips and ideas for us at nightly@politico.com. Or contact tonight's author at rrayasam@politico.com and on Twitter at @RenuRayasam.
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A 10th-grade teacher at the Zarghoona high school gets vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine in July in Kabul. | Paula Bronstein /Getty Images | COVID ISN'T EVACUATING — Covid is still a concern in a country whose health system was ill-equipped to tackle the pandemic even before the Taliban takeover. In today's Global Pulse newsletter, Carmen Paun dove into public health in Afghanistan. She writes: The health system in Afghanistan is extremely weak and often unable to tend to people's needs, Filipe Ribeiro, Afghanistan representative for Doctors Without Borders, told Global Pulse in an email. Health care workers, medical supplies and infrastructure are lacking. What exists is largely funded by foreign donors and is at risk of collapse if donations stop because of the fluid situation in Kabul, he said. The medical charity has 2,300 people working in the country and is planning to stay as long as it's able to provide care. People have started coming out to seek care now that the fighting has stopped in cities like Kunduz and Lashkar Gah, Ribeiro said. But that's not the case everywhere. In the western city of Herat, people are staying indoors out of fear of the Taliban, said Nazila Jamshidi, whose extended family lives there and who came to the U.S. five years ago through a special immigrant visa. Sometimes, elderly residents may leave their homes to buy something, if it's really needed, but her family members aren't going out for food and medicines, said Jamshidi, who worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development in Afghanistan. "They are living with what they already have." More headlines out of Afghanistan 'We're making the same commitment': Biden vowed today to evacuate all Afghan allies of the United States seeking to flee Afghanistan , extending the same commitment he made earlier this week to Americans still stranded in the Taliban-controlled country. "There's no one more important than bringing American citizens out, I acknowledge that. But they're equally important, almost," Biden said to reporters after an address at the White House, referring to the thousands of interpreters and other Afghan personnel who aided the two-decade U.S. war effort. Austin's contradiction: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told lawmakers today that Americans trying to leave Afghanistan have been beaten by Taliban fighters , according to several people who participated in a briefing call with Austin and other top officials. Austin's remarks to House members appeared to directly contradict Biden's assessment from minutes earlier, in which Biden said the U.S. was not aware of Americans having trouble getting through Taliban checkpoints and to the airport in Kabul — the only evacuation point in the country for Americans and Afghan allies. Western nations coordinating to block Taliban recognition: The U.S government believes the Taliban wants international recognition, but the message from Washington and other democratic governments is: We don't trust you — so show us you're worth it. While G-7 governments insist there is no formal request yet to recognize the Taliban's grip on Afghanistan, preliminary conversations are underway, focused on ensuring allies and neighboring countries, including Pakistan, hold off from bilateral recognition of the group.
| | | | INTRODUCING OTTAWA PLAYBOOK : Join the growing community of Politicos — from lawmakers and leaders to pollsters, staffers, strategists and lobbyists — working to shape Canada's future. Every day, our reporting team pulls back the curtain to shed light on what's really driving the agenda on Parliament Hill, the true players who are shaping politics and policy across Canada, and the impact it all has on the world. Don't miss out on your daily look inside Canadian politics and power. Subscribe to Ottawa Playbook today. | | | | | | | | — Full FDA approval of Pfizer Covid shot could come next week: The Food and Drug Administration is on track to approve Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine for adults as soon as next week , three people with knowledge of the matter told POLITICO. The long-anticipated announcement would make Pfizer's Covid-19 shot the first to receive full licensure from the federal government. — Appeals court leaves Biden eviction ban in effect: A federal appeals court declined today to block the Biden administration's new eviction moratorium , setting up a showdown at the Supreme Court. The three-judge panel at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit acted without recorded dissent and did not provide a detailed explanation for its ruling. — Florida agency says state can dock pay from school districts with mask mandates: Florida's Board of Education cleared the way today for the state to slowly bleed the pay of local school board members who voted to mandate masks for students , marking the first sanctions on those who have defied the DeSantis administration. The state board gave school leaders in Broward and Alachua counties 48 hours to reverse their mask requirements, or the Florida Department of Education can begin stripping salaries from their education budget, according to documents first obtained by POLITICO. Five school districts across Florida, representing more than 1 million students, are bucking the DeSantis administration's mask policies and are now exposed to similar punishment. — Biden to nominate Rahm Emanuel as ambassador to Japan: Emanuel, formerly a White House chief of staff and Chicago's mayor, is Biden's pick to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Japan , the White House announced today. The president announced his intent to nominate two other ambassadors, as well. R. Nicholas Burns, a former member of the Foreign Service, is Biden's choice for ambassador to China, and Michael Battle, who formerly served as the U.S. ambassador to the African Union, will be the president's nominee as ambassador to Tanzania. — Justice Barrett refuses to block construction of Obama Presidential Center: Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett denied a bid to block the construction of the proposed Obama Presidential Center in Chicago's Jackson Park today, acting alone and without releasing an explanation of her decision. The suit requested that a writ of injunction be issued to prevent any further groundbreaking for the center, as well as stopping tree cutting in Jackson Park for the Obama Center. One applicant for the writ of injunction was Protect Our Parks, a campaign dedicated to "keeping public park land open to the public." — U.S. extends border restrictions on Canadians; Trudeau asked about resealing frontier to Americans: The U.S. will keep restrictions in place until at least Sept. 21 in a move announced today by DHS. Trudeau, who is campaigning for reelection as prime minister, was asked by a reporter today what it would take to make him reseal the border to Americans given the backdrop of rising Covid cases and deaths from the virus in the U.S. The Liberal leader said the Canadian border was reopened only to fully vaccinated Americans.
| | | | A message from AT&T:   | | | | | | 'A MILLION HELICOPTER METAPHORS' — Matt Wuerker found the best in political humor and cartoons in his Weekend Wrap, including the efforts to evacuate people from Afghanistan and the surge in Covid cases.
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| | | | | 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. | | | | | | | | | | 8 of 26 The number of states that ended federal jobless benefits early that saw a significant statistical drop in unemployment in July , according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data out today. Nine states and the District of Columbia that did not end the benefits also saw statistically significant drops in unemployment, muddying the waters as economists, policymakers and labor advocates are searching for any indication of the ramifications of some governors' decision to cut off emergency unemployment insurance before its Sept. 6 expiration date. | | | | | 'MUST INCLUDE EVIDENCE THAT IS FAVORABLE TO THE GOVERNOR' — With three days left in office, outgoing New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his lawyer are hoping to alter the record regarding 11 allegations of sexual harassment outlined in a report from the state attorney general that ultimately led to the governor's resignation, Anna Gronewold writes. Today, as U-Haul moving trucks were spotted at the executive mansion, Cuomo's personal lawyer Rita Glavin said in the next week she will be requesting Attorney General Tish James' office add Cuomo-positive evidence to the damning 168-page report that was released Aug. 3. She will also submit the proposed supplements to the Assembly's Judiciary committee, to the extent legislators will include James' report in their own determinations to be published at a future date — despite the impeachment investigation's suspension. "THE REPORT MUST INCLUDE THE EVIDENCE THAT IS FAVORABLE TO THE GOVERNOR," read the title of one of the slides on Glavin's video briefing. Her message follows another Cuomo defense from his communications director, Rich Azzopardi, in a Daily News opinion piece that published this morning titled, "Gov. Cuomo has been railroaded: The governor's adviser says the attorney general's report is a sham."
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