⚡️ Trump's horrific month

Plus: First big Biden probe | Tuesday, December 06, 2022

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Instagram   Axios Sneak Peek By Axios Sneak Peek · Dec 06, 2022 Welcome back to Sneak. Smart Brevity™ count: 845 words ... 3 minutes.     1 big thing: Trump's horrific month Trump leaves the stage after speaking at Mar-a-Lago in November. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images   Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign is only 3 weeks old, and it's been nothing but nightmares so far: He's faced setbacks in court, dismal polls, scandals of his own making — and today his company was convicted of tax fraud. Why it matters: The former president doesn't even have an opponent yet. But Trump is struggling to regain his front-runner's luster after those disappointing midterm setbacks, Axios' Alayna Treene reports. A series of polls pitting Trump against his expected 2024 rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has stirred unease within Trumpworld. Run today's tape: Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith subpoenaed local election officials in Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin for their communications with Trump and his allies as part of the department's investigation into Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. House Jan. 6 committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said the committee is closing in on making criminal referrals to the Justice Department, with a final decision expected by the end of the week. The Trump Organization was convicted by a New York jury of conducting a 15-year scheme to defraud state and federal tax authorities and faces up to $1.6 million in fines. Trump and his family members involved in the business were not charged. Backing up a few more days: Trump drew massive backlash from Republicans for hosting a dinner with antisemitic rapper Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and white nationalist Nick Fuentes, as well as pushing for the suspension of the Constitution. An appeals court dropped the Trump team's effort to appoint a special master to review documents seized from Mar-a-Lago. The Supreme Court denied Trump's bid to block the House Ways and Means Committee from obtaining his tax returns. A federal judge ordered Trump's former White House lawyers to provide additional grand jury testimony, dealing a blow to Trump's attempt to exert executive privilege in the Justice Department's investigation into the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. Yes, but: GOP primary voters have proved immune to scandal and bad headlines as recently as Trump's last election bid. Share this story.     2. Dems' friends-and-family plan Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios   Democrats have gone big on a novel organizing tool ahead of today's Georgia Senate runoff, Axios' Lachlan Markay reports. How it works: Relentless, a Democratic firm, says it's paid 1,455 Georgians to contact more than 63,000 potential voters in a tactic called relational organizing. They get $200 each to contact, on average, between 40 and 50 friends, family members and acquaintances to encourage them to vote in the runoff. The Sen. Raphael Warnock campaign also ran a paid relational organizing program this cycle. It's offering supporters $500 to "encourage people you know (friends, family, neighbors, etc.) to vote early and to make a plan to vote on Election Day." 🧠 The research-backed thinking is that people trust appeals from people they know more than generic political advertising or canvassing. The effort is designed to target low-propensity voters to boost Democratic turnout. The intrigue: Relational organizing was pioneered during the 2021 runoff that elected Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in the same state. Relentless and a partner technology firm, Rally, say the tactic boosted turnout in that race by 3.8% among voters in its "relational network." What's next: "What's happening right now will be setting the stage for the presidential," Relentless co-founder Zoë Stein told Axios. Share this story.     3. Exclusive: First big Biden investigation Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Saul Loeb/AFP, Farshad Usyan/AFP and Javeed Tanveer/AFP via Getty Images   House Republicans are planting targets for their first investigations in the majority next year, starting with the Biden administration's withdrawal from Afghanistan, Axios' Sophia Cai reports. Why it matters: The operation — centered on airlifting 120,000 people out of the country as Kabul fell — was clouded by a suicide attack that left 13 Americans and roughly 200 Afghans dead. In a series of letters obtained by Axios, Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, is requesting documentation and declassification of materials from several agencies involved. He also crafted an internal memo alleging "illegal" obstruction by the Biden administration, after receiving new material from the official watchdog overseeing Afghanistan reconstruction. The GOP memo describes "a pattern of obstruction by the Biden Administration" using emails John Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), provided to the committee. The other side: Sopko and the Biden administration fundamentally disagree about his oversight jurisdiction. "Our position is that except for certain specific funds, SIGAR's statutory mandate is limited to funds available 'for the reconstruction of Afghanistan,'" a State Department spokesperson told Axios. Go deeper.     A message from Instagram Explore 30+ Instagram tools helping teens have positive experiences     Instagram's tools can help parents keep their teens safe on social media, help teens see less sensitive content and help them spend less time on our platform. Because teens' experiences on Instagram should be positive and supportive. Explore our tools and set them up today.     4. Chart du jour: Most prolific speakers of 2022 Data: C-SPAN; Chart: Thomas Oide/Axios     5. Pic du jour Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images President Biden, photographed today on the South Lawn, visited Phoenix to celebrate the construction of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s $12 billion advanced chip plant. Apple will be a major customer of the new TSMC factories, and Biden noted the company will be able to move more of its supply chain to the U.S., Axios Phoenix co-author Jeremy Duda reports. "These are the most advanced semiconductor chips on the planet, chips that power iPhones and MacBooks, as Tim Cook can attest," he said, referring to Apple's CEO, who spoke at the event. "It could be a game changer."     A message from Instagram Instagram's daily time limits can help teens spend less time online     Parents can help teens spend time online more intentionally with Instagram's daily time limits, which lets them say how long their teens can spend on the platform once supervision is set up. Set up daily time limits and explore 30+ tools that can help teens have a positive experience on Instagram.   Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   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, 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? 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