| | | | |  | | By Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza | | | With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross
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Maryland's primary is a proxy battle between Gov. Larry Hogan and Donald Trump, who is eager to embarrass longtime critic Hogan. Trump backs Dan Cox, a conservative state delegate who organized buses to take Trump supporters to the Jan. 6, 2021, protest in Washington. | Brian Witte/AP Photo | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | Just one state holds its primaries today: Maryland. And it doesn't lack for drama. FOR DEMOCRATS — In the gubernatorial primary, there's a "total lack of clarity about who will be representing the party in November, after a lengthy primary distinguished by the failure of any candidate to break away from a nine-person field," as our colleagues Brakkton Booker and Zach Montellaro write. Three Dems have consistently been neck and neck (and neck) in the polls: (1) PETER FRANCHOT, the state comptroller, who has a record of multiple statewide victories; (2) TOM PEREZ, the former DNC chair and secretary of Labor under President BARACK OBAMA; and (3) WES MOORE, a bestselling author and former Rhodes scholar who has been endorsed by OPRAH WINFREY. Set your expectations: Maryland election officials are not counting mail-in ballots until Thursday. Given that and how tight the race is, it could be a long couple of days. FOR REPUBLICANS — The primary is a proxy battle between moderate term-limited Gov. LARRY HOGAN and former President DONALD TRUMP, who is eager to embarrass Hogan, his longtime critic. — Hogan backs KELLY SCHULZ, who served under him as Maryland's secretary of labor and secretary of commerce. — Trump backs DAN COX , a conservative state delegate who organized buses to take Trump supporters to the Jan. 6, 2021, protest in Washington. Trump, in a statement: "Dan will end Larry Hogan's terrible RINO reign by defeating his 'Never Trump' successor." BUT HERE'S WHAT YOU SHOULD REALLY WATCH — Maryland offers the latest example of a strategy that Dems have employed throughout the country: meddling in GOP primaries to get the general-election opponent they'd prefer, often boosting candidates further to the right who are aligned with Trump. In recent weeks, the Democratic Governors Association has spent more than $1 million in ads to elevate Cox, whom many Democrats see as an easier foe than Schulz. — What that looks like: The DGA "launched an ad campaign 'attacking' Cox by tying him to Trump and promoting his conservative positions," Brakkton and Zach write. "'Dan Cox has already proven his loyalty to Donald Trump,' read a DGA mailer … listing opposing gun restrictions and 'continuing to spread that the 2020 elections were a fraud,' among other things." Basically, you give an assist to the candidate you want to run against by attacking them as being too conservative or too Trumpy — and, in doing so, you raise their profile and increase their appeal to the GOP MAGA base. This isn't the first time a party has worked to choose its own opponent (CLAIRE MCCASKILL vs. TODD AKIN, anyone?), and Maryland isn't the only state where Dems have done it this year. They succeeded in boosting Trump-aligned DOUG MASTRIANO in Pennsylvania (more on that below) and DARREN BAILEY in Illinois. They're attempting it in Arizona right now with KARI LAKE. They tried (unsuccessfully) to do it in Colorado by giving an assist to two 2020 election deniers. It's a strategy that comes with major risks, as we explore in our newest installment of Playbook's video series, "The Midterm View."
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| 1. Rankling fellow Dems: What happens if you prop up an election denier who ekes out a win in November? "What makes this moment unique is that we are in a democratic crisis," says Democratic strategist HOWARD WOLFSON . "You have a situation where there are people running for office who basically don't believe in the rule of law and don't believe in democracy, and potentially elevating them into positions of power. The Democratic Party putting people into positions where they may actually get elected and have control over the election system in this country — people who don't believe in democracy — is a very, very risky strategy. Very dangerous." 2. Inadvertently helping Republicans: If your preferred GOP opponent loses their primary, you've just spent money branding the new Republican nominee as the moderate choice. That's effectively what happened in Colorado, where JOE O'DEA won the GOP nomination for Senate. "[Democrats] spent millions of dollars saying that Joe was moderate, supporting … bipartisan infrastructure deals, saying that he was pro-choice or using different phrasing on being open to that choice between a woman and their doctor early on," says ZACK RODAY, O'Dea's campaign manager. "It's much easier to get someone's vote when they've already voted for you. That's going to be easier for us to get those votes come November." The pushback: MARSHALL COHEN, the political director of the DGA, defends the strategy by arguing that Democrats aren't boosting particular GOP candidates — they're simply starting the general election early. "We're not going to wait around for primaries to happen," he says. "I think the risk is electing any Republican to the governor's office in 2022." Speaking of … A WAKE-UP CALL IN PENNSYLVANIA — Republicans thought their shot at the Pennsylvania governor's mansion was all but gone when Mastriano captured the nomination. But as the national environment stays sour for Dems, Mastriano has a real chance against JOSH SHAPIRO, Holly Otterbein reports this morning . Republicans in the state are urging the Republican Governors Association to consider backing Mastriano with funds, which could make a big difference. "Though many still have doubts about Mastriano's ability to run a successful campaign, [recent polls have] made Pennsylvania Republicans more optimistic — and served as a wake-up call for Democrats."
| | | | A message from Amazon: DID YOU KNOW?—Amazon will invest more than $1.2 billion by 2025 on free education and technical training to help hourly employees advance their careers.
"Being able to have the chance to learn new skills and grow my career in a more specialized and higher-earning role feels like a life-changing opportunity," said Vanessa, a robotics apprentice for Amazon in Florida. Through the apprenticeship, Vanessa can earn up to 40% more. | | | Good Tuesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. What do you make of primary meddling? Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza. TOP-ED — "Reform the Electoral Count Act," by former President JIMMY CARTER and former Secretary of State JAMES BAKER III in the WSJ: "Lawmakers of both parties should unite to avoid a repeat of the disaster that occurred on Jan 6, 2021. TIKTOK ON THE CLOCK — Four months into launching a TikTok account, the DNC has seen that its JOE BIDEN-centered videos generally garner lower engagement than many other posts, Sabrina Rodríguez reports. "[D]igital organizers and youth activists say Democrats — and the White House specifically — would be wise to recognize which voices and messages are resonating on the continuously-growing platform and adjust accordingly." HERE COMES RAND — Sen. RAND PAUL (R-Ky.) told reporters that he sundered a Biden-MITCH MCCONNELL deal to nominate a conservative Kentucky judge because McConnell had left him out of consultations. "I think he would make a good judge," Paul said of CHAD MEREDITH. "Unfortunately, instead of communicating and lining up support for him, Senator McConnell chose to cut a secret deal with the White House that fell apart." More from Burgess Everett
| | | | A message from Amazon:   Amazon takes the cost out of career advancement. Through Career Choice, Amazon has committed to providing free education and skills training for 300,000+ employees. | | | | | BIDEN'S TUESDAY: The president and VP KAMALA HARRIS will receive the President's Daily Brief at 10 a.m.
Press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE will brief at 3 p.m.
THE HOUSE will meet at 10 a.m. Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG will testify before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee at 10 a.m. on the bipartisan infrastructure law implementation.
THE SENATE will meet at 10 a.m., with votes on NINA WANG's and NANCY MALDONADO's judicial nominations throughout the day and a recess from 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. for weekly conference meetings. | | | | | | HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT ROE BEING OVERTURNED? JOIN WOMEN RULE ON 7/21: Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade , abortion policy is in the hands of the states and, ultimately, voters. Join POLITICO national political correspondent Elena Schneider for a Women Rule "ask me anything" conversation featuring a panel of reporters from our politics and health care teams who will answer your questions about how the court's decision could play out in different states, its impact on the midterms and what it means for reproductive rights in the U.S. going forward. SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS AND REGISTER HERE. | | | | | PHOTO OF THE DAY
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Steve Bannon leaves the United States District Court House on the first day of jury selection in his trial for contempt of Congress, on Monday, July 18. The trial is set to commence today. | Nathan Howard/Getty Images | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | CONGRESS IRRECONCILABLE DIFFERENCES — Is Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) the most powerful man in the world? His move to potentially torpedo the passage of a global minimum tax in Dems' reconciliation bill is a big blow to Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN, who worked to convince 130 countries to sign on and vowed that Congress would get on board, NYT's Alan Rappeport and Jim Tankersley report . And Manchin has jeopardized what "would have ushered in the most sweeping changes to global taxation in decades," leaving "a mess both for the Biden administration and for multinational corporations." Though Treasury is still holding out hope, failure to pass the agreement would allow corporations to continue significant tax avoidance. — Many Senate Democrats are leaning toward just taking Manchin's much-reduced, health care-focused package for a reconciliation bill, though some are hoping he might change his mind on taxes and climate after the next inflation report, Marianne LeVine and Burgess Everett report. "[S]everal Senate Democrats said it's time for the caucus to cut its losses after months of negotiation with their elusive centrist and pass a health care bill before early August." Manchin: "I haven't walked away from anything. And inflation is my greatest concern because of how it has affected my state and all over this country, and that's all I have to say. … I don't know what tomorrow brings." — The reconciliation bill may not be done shrinking. Senate Republicans are planning to lodge objections to the health care provisions that remain in hopes that the parliamentarian will strike them from the legislation, Caitlin Emma and Jennifer Scholtes report. — Another reality check: Even if Manchin eventually gets on board with a tax-and-climate bill, Senate rules could make passing it much harder, Bloomberg's Erik Wasson and Laura Davison report: By September, "there simply may not be time then for the grueling late-night votes and other procedures required to push the legislation through," likely including a vote-a-rama or a difficult amendment process. Sen. MIKE CRAPO (R-Idaho), Finance Committee ranking member: "We're going to fight as hard as we possibly can, and we're going to challenge as much as we believe is properly challengeable." — Inside the White House, staffers are furious at Manchin for again derailing the party's agenda — but this time, they're keen not to say that publicly for fear of driving him further away, report Adam Cancryn and Jonathan Lemire. "The president has told confidants that while he understands Manchin represents a deep-red state, he can't fathom why he keeps torpedoing the party's best-laid plans." And he isn't likely to take big executive actions on climate until it's clear that door has entirely closed with Manchin. A DIFFERENT APPROACH — As hopes dwindle for crucial climate action from Congress, the Biden administration is considering declaring a "climate emergency" as soon as this week, which could give the president additional powers to take action on the environment, WaPo's Tony Romm and Jeff Stein scooped. 2023 DREAMING — If House Republicans take over the chamber next year, their list of investigative targets includes the Jan. 6 committee, HUNTER BIDEN, Afghanistan, the border, inflation and the origins of the coronavirus, Jordain Carney reports this morning. "Months before the midterms, Republican lawmakers are already working behind the scenes to divvy up which committee gets which piece of the investigative action next year. That includes talks with Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY and other conference leaders, plus member-on-member discussions." NEW ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN A FEW VOTES SHORT — Rep. DAVID CICILLINE's (D-R.I.) push to land support for an assault weapons ban is just one or two votes short currently, and House Dem leaders want to bring it onto the floor next week, per Jordain. TOP-ED: "Joe Manchin Is a Symptom, but It's the Senate That's Sick" by NYT's Jamelle Bouie ALL POLITICS RUSTY BOWERS SPEAKS — The Arizona state House speaker who testified before the Jan. 6 committee tells NBC's Allan Smith that he thinks it'll be a "miracle" if he's able to survive a GOP primary for reelection now. "Still, roughly a dozen voters, strategists and insiders who spoke with NBC News felt he had a better chance of defeating his opponent, former state Sen. DAVID FARNSWORTH, than Bowers himself predicted." 2022 WATCH — Sen. MAGGIE HASSAN (D-N.H.) is looking stronger than expected to win reelection as her field of Republican opponents has failed to yield a frontrunner ahead of the primary, Axios' Alayna Treene reports. Hassan also has amassed a big fundraising edge, though the national environment could still threaten her in November. MONEY WOES — "Ex-Donors to GOP Charged With Fraud," by WSJ's James Fanelli and Corinne Ramey MALAISE FOREVER — Americans have "deepening and widespread discontent" in a new CNN/SSRS poll, feeling worse about the state of the country than they have since 2009, per Jennifer Agiesta. Biden has a 38% approval rating in the survey, with his numbers especially dropping among Democrats since the spring. JUST POSTED — "As Biden eyes 2024, one person weighs heavily: Trump," by WaPo's Matt Viser Related Read: "20 Reader Ideas for Who Could Replace Biden," The Atlantic
| | | | A message from Amazon:   Vanessa advanced her career through the Mechatronics and Robotics Apprenticeship Program, just one of Amazon's career advancement offerings. | | | ABORTION FALLOUT INTERESTING DYNAMIC — Democrats are navigating how to talk about abortion with Black Americans, among whom many older voters have more religion-informed, conservative views on social issues, NYT's Zolan Kanno-Youngs reports. One potential approach is to "frame the response as not just a matter of abortion, but rather as part of broader movement to restrict individual rights, including voting, marriage and control over one's own body," as Harris and other Democratic leaders are seeking to do. LATEST IN THE STATES — A West Virginia judge prevented officials on Monday from enforcing an abortion ban, allowing services to continue in the state at least for now at the only clinic in the state. More from the Charleston Gazette-Mail — Chief Justice JOHN ROBERTS paved the path for Indiana to enforce a stringent parental notification law for minors seeking abortions. More from CNN — Before, and even since, new abortion restrictions went into effect in Florida, the state has increasingly served as an abortion destination for women from nearby states with harsher limits, CBS' Manuel Bojorquez reports. JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH INCOMING THIS WEEK — MATTHEW POTTINGER, the prominent NSC official in the Trump administration, will be among those testifying at Thursday's Jan. 6 committee primetime hearing, CNN's Evan Perez and Zachary Cohen scooped. — Deadline's Denise Petski reports that ABC, NBC and CBS will preempt their normal programming to show the hearing, while a Fox spox "says the hearings will be available to affiliates in the event they wish to televise them in their markets." THE INCREDIBLE EXPANDING PROBE — The committee will keep operating past its originally planned end date of September, when an intended final report will become a "scaled-back" interim missive, Chair BENNIE THOMPSON (D-Miss.) told reporters Monday. More from Bloomberg — "Committee members, aides and allies are emboldened by the public reaction to the information they're unearthing about the former president's actions and say their full sprint will continue, even past November," add Kyle Cheney and Nick Wu this morning. "The only hard deadline, they say, is Jan. 3, 2023, when Republicans likely take over the House." AMERICA AND THE WORLD DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. MARK MILLEY ordered a review of all U.S.-China military interactions within the past five years, amid a particular focus on incidents in the South China Sea, NBC's Courtney Kube scooped. — Speaker NANCY PELOSI will lead a delegation to Taiwan in August, the first such trip by a House speaker since 1997, FT's Demetri Sevastopulo scooped. "Three people familiar with the situation said the White House had expressed concern about the trip." HEADS UP — For the third time since 2013, the U.S. has successfully conducted a flight test of Raytheon's hypersonic weapon, per the Pentagon. More from Reuters MORE E-RING READING — The Pentagon is getting close to landing a deal with Lockheed Martin for 375 F-35s over three years, ahead of potential rising prices, Reuters' Mike Stone scooped. The price tag could ultimately come in at about $30 billion. VALLEY TALK LIFESTYLES OF THE RICH AND LITIGIOUS — "Twitter fires back at Elon Musk's attempt to delay trial," CNBC
| | | | INTRODUCING POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don't miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | If you are the person who was overheard saying you found out your boyfriend got engaged via Playbook, please email us. We have some questions. Chris Cuomo applied to become a volunteer firefighter in the Hamptons. Donald Trump's attempt to get the Pulitzers revoked for the NYT's and WaPo's Trump-Russia reporting failed as the Pulitzer Board said none of it was discredited. Joe Rogan said Trump is a "man baby" and suggested he was on Adderall. Trump is sticking with the controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour over the PGA. Symone Sanders and Shawn Townsend's surprise wedding got the glamorous Vogue treatment. The Stephen Colbert staffers who were arrested at the Longworth Office Building will not be prosecuted. The Library of Congress' renovation plans are earning major consternation from the D.C. Preservation League. 270 to Win has a cool new tool to compare new and old congressional districts. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — The Texas Tribune Festival is announcing today that it's adding Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas) and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich to its lineup for the in-person confab in September. — Zach Sentementes will be a director of federal advocacy at PhRMA, focused on trade policy. He most recently was VP of Advanced Advocacy. BOOK CLUB — Jann Wenner's memoir, "Like a Rolling Stone," will be published in September ( $27.99 pre-order). OUT AND ABOUT — European Union Ambassador Stavros Lambrinidis hosted a reception at his Kalorama residence in honor of the House Chiefs of Staff Association, with 75 Republican and Democratic chiefs of staff and staff directors. SPOTTED: co-chairs Mitchell Rivard and Jonathan Day, Paige Hutchinson, Kate Bonner, Robert Edmonson, Yardena Wolf, Don Andres, Yuri Beckelman and Claudia Urrabazo, James Bernhard, Robin Chand and Braden Dreiling. — Uber's federal affairs team hosted a conversation previewing the midterms at their D.C. office on Monday evening. Jonathan Martin moderated a conversation with Symone Sanders and Liam Donovan, and guests mingled over light appetizers and drinks. SPOTTED: Paul Kane, Josh Dawsey, Adrienne Elrod, Steve Benjamin, Tammy Haddad, Daniel Strauss, David Schnittger, Alex Conant, Alice Stewart, CR Wooters, Meridith McGraw, Rebecca Buck and Bryan DeAngelis. MEDIA MOVES — Toluse Olorunnipa will be the next White House bureau chief at WaPo. Ashley Parker is becoming senior national political correspondent. Announcement … Sam Sabin is now a cybersecurity reporter at Axios. She most recently was a cybersecurity reporter at POLITICO. TRANSITIONS — Eden Alem is joining Senate Majority PAC as press secretary. She most recently was press manager at Sunrise Movement. … Andrew Newhart is now a senior director of government relations at the U.S. Travel Association. He most recently was director of policy and legislation at the American Bus Association. … … Eric Field is now a shareholder with Littler's employee benefits practice. He previously was counsel for Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. … Erica Jedynak is now COO for yes. every kid. She most recently was director of economic opportunity at Stand Together. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Playbook's own Rachael Bade … Reps. Ron Estes (R-Kan.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) … White House's Jeff Marootian … WSJ's Rebecca Ballhaus … Locust Street Group's Ben Jenkins … Capitol Counsel's Lyndon Boozer … Larry McCarthy … Rick Dearborn of Cypress Group … Eric Lichtblau … WaPo's Isaac Arnsdorf … Andrea Porwoll ... POLITICO's Lauren Gardner and Luis Pinto de Sa … E&E News' Massimo Artista … George Rakis ... Joe Goetz … DOD's Kelly Magsamen … Lindsee Gentry … Google's Maria Giannopoulos … former Rep. John Campbell (R-Calif.) … NBC's Alex Johnson … Keegan Bales … Stephen Ching … Ron Faucheux … LaVenia J. LaVelle … Stephanie Valencia … The Nation's Atossa Araxia Abrahamian … Rema Rahman of The Hill … Ruby Gordon of FTI Consulting … Recount Media's Mary Newman … Howard Schultz … Rachel Robinson (1-0-0) Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us at 202-556-3307. Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Mike Zapler, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Setota Hailemariam and Bethany Irvine. Correction: Monday's Playbook misstated the agency where Julia Krieger works. She works at the Treasury Department.
| | | | A message from Amazon: Amazon gives associates the opportunity and tools to advance their careers and move into higher-paying roles.
"The increase in pay, along with the potential to continue to learn, really makes a difference—especially since my mom recently moved in with me, so I can help care for her more," Vanessa said. "This job helps me feel more confident in being able to be there for her, which is a big priority in my life." | | | | | | | 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 | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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