🤫 Biden's Catch-22

Plus: Earmarks, rebranded | Tuesday, February 15, 2022

Open in app View in browser     Axios Sneak Peek By the Axios Politics team ·Feb 15, 2022 Welcome back to Sneak. The U.S.-Russia messaging war over Ukraine ramped up. Smart Brevity™ count: 1,086 words ... 4 minutes. Edited by Glen Johnson.     1 big thing: Biden's inflation Catch-22 Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Max Mumby/Getty Images   President Biden and his top advisers are caught in a loop: They know inflation wounds them politically and hurts their voters, but scrapping some inflationary policies would wound them politically — and hurt their voters. Why it matters: The president remains committed to the core elements of his economic program, even as price hikes threaten to wipe out Democrats in November's midterms, write Axios' Hans Nichols and Jonathan Swan. Biden's approach includes imposing strict "Buy American" requirements on all federal spending and maintaining President Trump's tariffs on China. Both of those hardline policies put upward pressure on prices, leading to higher inflation. What they're saying: "The objective has to be buying as cheaply as possible," said Larry Summers, a former Treasury secretary and National Economic Council director under President Obama. "When you make other objectives dominant — prioritizing small business, buying American or the empowerment of workers — you are sacrificing the low-price objective." The other side: Some of the current president's economists question whether "Buy American" has any effect on inflation. "Is there an independent inflationary impact from Buy America? We have never seen it," Council of Economic Advisers member Jared Bernstein told Axios. "I don't think the president has competing priorities," he added. "I think the president has complimentary priorities, and we have to make sure they are implemented in a way that helps the American people both next week and next year." Keep reading.     2. Rebranded earmarks return Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios   Top Senate appropriators say the return of earmarks — albeit with new branding — will now happen through this year's omnibus spending package, Axios' Andrew Solender and Hans report. Why it matters: Though much discussed during the past year, finally reversing the decade-old ban on congressional earmarks will allow lawmakers to target federal spending towards projects in their districts, but with significant new limitations. Driving the news: Sen. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told Axios he expects earmarks to make it into the budget but stressed the Senate has a new term of art for them. "There will be congressionally directed spending, yes. Of course, there will be," he said. "There will be congressionally directed spending." In the House, they're referred to as "community-project funding." "Oh, I would think so," Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), Leahy's Republican counterpart on the Appropriations panel, said of earmarks making it into the budget. By the numbers: New guidelines cap earmarks at 1% of discretionary spending. They also exclude projects benefitting for-profit companies and require earmark requests to be posted online. Go deeper: Paul Kane of The Washington Post wrote a primer about the potential return of the "e-word."     3. Charted: Guarding lawmakers Data: OpenSecrets.org; Chart: Baidi Wang/Axios Members of Congress — including Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) — are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign funds on personal security after federal regulators blessed the practice last year, records reviewed by Axios' Lachlan Markay show. Why it matters: Tempers are flaring amid intense political polarization, and lawmakers are enduring huge numbers of threats as a result. The spending is just the latest index for the concern. A common denominator for most of the top spenders is a high national profile and controversial legislative record, according to campaign finance data provided by OpenSecrets. By the numbers: Warnock led all members of Congress by a wide margin, with more than $600,000 in security expenses last year. His fellow Georgia Democrat, Sen. Jon Ossoff, is also near the top of the list. The special elections putting them in Congress last year resulted in the current 50-50 Senate. Cruz comes in at No. 2. He drew intense criticism after teaming up with Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who also makes the top 20, to try to block the certification of Biden's 2020 election win. Republicans who voted to impeach former President Trump over the Jan. 6 Capitol attack — and drew Trump's fury as a result — also spent heavily on personal security. They include Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Rep. John Katko of New York. Keep reading.     A message from Axios Local D.C. News in Your Inbox     Axios D.C. features the best local news written and curated by the reporters who know the city best. Subscribe for free.     4. Worthy of your time President Biden addresses the Russian military buildup on the border of Ukraine during remarks from the East Room. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images   🏛️ Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) blocked a resolution introduced by Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and 25 Senate Republicans calling to fully reopen the Senate side of the Capitol for tours, as first reported by Andrew, author of tonight's Sneak roundup. "We're simply relying on the health and safety experts to ensure that ... when we do reopen, we do it safely," said Klobuchar, the chair of the Senate Rules Committee. She said reopening will likely occur "incrementally." 🍎 Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced he won't run for Congress in a Republican-held district recently redrawn to be more Democratic-leaning — and include his Brooklyn neighborhood. "I'm certain a progressive can win this seat and serve us in Washington," de Blasio said. Moderate former Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) is running to face Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) in a rematch. 💨 Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.), a moderate who was something of a thorn in the side of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, became the 30th House Democrat to announce they won't seek re-election this year. "As elected officials, we must give all we have and then know when it is time to allow others to serve," Rice said in a statement. 💵 Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said she won't block legislation to temporarily fund the government, after Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra pledged not to use federal funding for drug pipes, according to the Wall Street Journal. "No federal funding will be used directly or through subsequent reimbursement of grantees to put pipes in safe-smoking kits," Becerra reportedly wrote. He had previously issued a similar statement through a press release but not a letter to Congress. 🇺🇦 After failing to come to an agreement on a sanctions package against Russia to deter an invasion of Ukraine, a bipartisan group of Senate leaders instead released a statement warning the country will "pay a severe price" for invasion. A group of Senate Republicans separately introduced the Never Yielding Europe's Territory (NYET) Act to halt Nord Stream 2; tee up sanctions on Putin allies, Russian banks and others; fund aid to Ukraine; and boost U.S. spending in the region.     5. Pic du jour Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images   A daily challenge for photographers on the Hill and at the White House is catching a familiar subject in a new way. Here, President Biden is seen — in tack-sharp focus — through a video camera viewfinder while addressing the National Association of Counties. In the trade, the compliment to Brendan Smialowski would be, "Nailed it!"     A message from Axios Local D.C. News in Your Inbox     Axios D.C. features the best local news written and curated by the reporters who know the city best. Subscribe for free.   📬 Thanks for reading. Please tell your family, friends and colleagues they can subscribe to Sneak or any of Axios' other free local and national newsletters through this link. Like this email style and format? Bring the strength of Smart Brevity® to your team — more effective communications, powered by Axios HQ.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. 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