🤫 Ivanka's secrets

Plus: Sinema gives last rites | Tuesday, April 05, 2022

Open in app View in browser     Axios Sneak Peek By the Axios Politics team ·Apr 05, 2022 Welcome back to Sneak. 📅 Join Axios national political correspondent Jonathan Swan on Thursday at 8:30am ET for an exclusive interview with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell. Register here to attend virtually. Smart Brevity™ count: 871 words ... 3.5 minutes. Edited by Glen Johnson.     1 big thing: Ivanka's secrets Ivanka Trump on Inauguration Day 2021. Photo: Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images   Jan. 6 investigators have been intensely interested in Ivanka Trump, as the former first daughter is one of the few people with direct knowledge of what Donald Trump was thinking and doing during the critical hours of the Capitol attack. Why it matters: Although the extent of Ivanka Trump's cooperation today is still unclear, the import of what she had to say could be unmatched by almost any other witness, write Axios' Alayna Treene and Andrew Solender. Driving the news: Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the select committee, told reporters this afternoon that Ivanka Trump began testifying virtually midmorning, and was "answering questions" for several hours. She didn't plead the Fifth Amendment or assert executive privilege, to the extent of Thompson's knowledge. He also said her appearing voluntarily, and without a subpoena, has "significant value." The big picture: The Jan. 6 committee has been trying, through hundreds of interviews and thousands of documents, to understand what former President Trump said and did in real time during the insurrection. This includes his physical and emotional reaction immediately prior to and during the attack. Anyone he spoke with during that period is an eyewitness. Between the lines: Ivanka Trump had unique proximity to and influence over her father. That makes her one of the few people who can speak directly to his mindset as he sat in the private dining room adjoining the Oval Office and watched the riot unfold on television. NBC News first reported about her planned testimony today. A spokesperson for Ivanka Trump didn't respond to requests from Axios for comment. Keep reading.     2. Scoop: Sinema gives last rites to BBB Sen. Kyrsten Sinema. Photo: Al Drago-Pool/Getty Images   Last year, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) publicly sounded the death knell for President Biden's Build Back Better agenda. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), his fellow holdout, is privately concurring, Axios' Hans Nichols has learned. Why it matters: In closed-door conversations, Sinema has told donors a path to revival is unlikely. That's dampened expectations Congress will act on a slimmed-down bill before Memorial Day. It also means any revived BBB legislation faces an arduous route back to the center of the Senate agenda. No one's reached out to Sinema about the contours of the slimmed-down deal Manchin has discussed, people familiar with the matter tell Axios. Instead, Sinema's telling donors most of her focus is on the $10 billion COVID-19 relief bill, the so-called China competition legislation and modifications to the Electoral Reform Act. A Sinema spokesperson declined comment to Axios. The big picture: With an expected vote on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve as a Supreme Court justice this week, the Senate still wants to act on coronavirus relief before leaving town. If not, after a two-week recess, senators expect to finalize the new COVID-19 spending and then turn to settling differences with the House over the China bill. As a practical matter, those issues will suck up much of the Senate's bandwidth, leaving little room for Build Back Better talks. Keep reading.     3. By the numbers: Governing confidence Data: Pew Research Center; Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios Confidence in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is greater among the American people than any other international leader — including Biden, according to a new Pew Research Survey reviewed by Axios' Sarah Mucha. Why it matters: Russia's invasion of Ukraine has transformed Zelensky from a former comedian to a statesman, offering real-time lessons about leadership, courage and tech-savvy. The details: Seventy-two percent of Americans said they have confidence Zelensky will do the right thing regarding world affairs. He's leveraged his mastery of mass and social media — including a video appearance at the Grammys on Sunday — to earn support from both the public and Western leaders. That's compared to just 6% of respondents who said they have confidence in Russian President Vladimir Putin after he launched the invasion. Chinese President Xi Jinping comes in slightly above Putin, with 15% of respondents expressing confidence in him. Biden has the confidence of 48% of Americans in his handling of international affairs. That's down from the beginning of his presidency, when 60% of Americans expressed confidence in him on foreign policy. Keep reading.     A message from Axios Transform internal comms with smart, brief writing     Join us of April 14 to learn the methodology of Axios' Smart Brevity® style and specific techniques you can use in your own communications. You'll learn about: The research behind Smart Brevity The impact of Smart Brevity on engagement Axios HQ, our software, that helps users easily apply the methodology Sign up     4. Worthy of your time President Biden welcomes his predecessor to the Oval Office — and Resolute Desk — upon former President Obama's first visit back to the White House. Photo: Official White House photo via Twitter   ‎⚕️Former President Obama, during a White House event announcing an expansion of his signature Affordable Care Act, reflected on a major early hurdle in the "Obamacare" rollout. "It didn't help when ... the website didn't work," he said. "That was not one of my happiest moments," Andrew reports in tonight's Sneak political roundup. 📊 Asked for his message to worried Democrats as polls show Republicans seizing a clear lead in the November midterms, Obama said, "We got a story to tell. Just go tell it." 🔫 The current president plans to make a second attempt to confirm a director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and is eyeing former U.S. attorney Steve Dettelbach for the role, according to Politico. ⚖️ Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on Judge Jackson's nomination, setting up a vote to advance her nomination later this week — most likely Thursday. 💵 The State Department announced the creation of a paid internship program with the aim of "remov[ing] barriers for students who may not have the financial means to support themselves during an unpaid, volunteer internship."     5. Tweet du jour Via Twitter   This was the story of the day on Capitol Hill. 🦊 Go deeper: Read the warning and the story here.     A message from Axios Transform internal comms with smart, brief writing     Join us of April 14 to learn the methodology of Axios' Smart Brevity® style and specific techniques you can use in your own communications. You'll learn about: The research behind Smart Brevity The impact of Smart Brevity on engagement Axios HQ, our software, that helps users easily apply the methodology Sign up   📬 Thanks for reading tonight! 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? It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 200 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: