| | | | |  | | By Eugene Daniels, Rachael Bade and Ryan Lizza | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
| | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | IT’S A WRAP — “Climate summit makes ‘historic progress’ — but the world still can’t quit oil,” by Karl Mathiesen, Zia Weise, Zack Colman and Sara Schonhardt at COP28: “Climate talks in Dubai ended with a deal to curb the use of fossil fuels that was both historic and 30 years too late.”
|  Delaware State Representative Madinah Wilson-Anton, center, and actress and activist Cynthia Nixon, right, call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza in front of the White House in Washington, on Nov. 27, 2023. | Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images | CANARY IN THE NAVAL OBSERVATORY — When Delaware state Rep. MADINAH WILSON-ANTON received an invitation to a holiday party at Vice President KAMALA HARRIS’ home, she was surprised. “I was like, there's no way this is real,” she told Playbook yesterday. Wilson-Anton, the first Muslim elected to the Delaware General Assembly, had for weeks publicly aired her anger and disappointment in President JOE BIDEN’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. She had sent letters on her official letterhead to the White House, calling for a permanent ceasefire and new conditions on aid to Israel. She spoke out on social media. She called her contacts in Biden’s orbit and eventually helped organize a protest outside of his Wilmington home. It all fell on deaf ears. The party invitation gave Wilson-Anton a new chance to get her point across. On Monday, she joined hundreds of others at the Naval Observatory, and when Harris rose to address the crowd, Wilson-Anton unfurled the scarf she was wearing, emblazoned with “CEASEFIRE,” and confronted the vice president of the United States. “I'm a state rep from Delaware — did you know that in Bethlehem, they’re not celebrating Christmas … that Baby Jesus is under rubble?” she shouted, before asking Harris why she didn’t support a ceasefire. The drama was momentary. Harris responded, “I appreciate that you want to be heard, but right now I'm speaking," and Wilson-Anton was quickly escorted out. Harris aides sidebarred with the representative. Yet the encounter encapsulates the precarious moment that Biden and Harris are confronting as they head into 2024. Already facing doubts from young Americans and voters of color, the Israel-Hamas war has served to turbocharge those doubts among a small but crucial subset of Democrats that includes Wilson-Anton — a 30-year-old rising star in the party who had previously kept those doubts private but is now airing them in the most public way imaginable. She described intense frustration at the administration’s continuing embrace of Israel while professing concern about the humanitarian plight facing Palestinian civilians: “It feels like we're being collectively gaslit by the administration.” The White House has been mindful of the backlash, to some degree. An administration official we spoke to cited “more than 100 conversations with leaders at the local and state level” concerning the conflict and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, as well a “thorough internal and external outreach strategy” aimed at Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian American communities. White House chief of staff JEFF ZIENTS, the official added, plans on “doing a call with Cabinet Secretaries to ensure they are reaching out to their Muslim, Arab American and Palestinian staff.” Wilson-Anton, in fact, told us she was pleasantly surprised by what happened after she was escorted away. She spoke to multiple officials from Harris’ office who promised to engage in further conversations. But she is plain about where she stands going into 2024. “If the election was today … I wouldn't be voting for Biden,” Wilson-Anton said. “I wouldn't be voting for Kamala Harris. I wouldn't be voting for [DONALD] TRUMP either, or whoever the Republicans nominee. I'll be voting for a candidate for governor. I’ll be voting for myself for state rep.” She added that there is still time for Biden and Harris to get her and others who feel the same way back on board. But she warned that the fear of Trump alone won’t cut it. It won’t be easy to paper over the Democratic divide on the Middle East. Recent polling shows Biden still enjoys majority support among Democrats on his handling of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, but Wilson-Anton demonstrates there is a significant faction on the other side of the issue that could easily unravel the party’s delicate coalition. “If they want Muslim and Arab Americans to support Biden in 2024, then Biden needs to switch course,” Wilson-Anton said. “He needs to start messaging that he actually cares about Palestinian lives, that he actually cares about human rights by stopping this continued funding of the Israeli military.” Perhaps she and her allies are starting to break through: At a campaign reception yesterday, Biden delivered his bluntest criticism yet of Israel: “It has most of the world supporting it. But they’re starting to lose that support by the indiscriminate bombing that takes place.” (More on that below.)
| | | | A message from Google: HomeTeam is an AI-powered training tool designed to help veterans navigate mental health conversations with their peers. Last year, Google.org gave a $1.5 million grant and deployed nine Google.org Fellows to support ReflexAI, a social enterprise that uses AI-powered tools to help emergency response, public safety, and healthcare organizations train counselors to better serve people in crisis. Together, they built HomeTeam. Learn more. | | | UKRAINE-BORDER DEAL ON LIFE SUPPORT — Could Christmas come early for Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN? Despite Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY’s in-person pleas yesterday, lawmakers look increasingly likely to leave Washington for the holidays later this week without a deal in place to deliver aid to Kyiv. Instead, the finger-pointing over the stalled border negotiations is in full swing:
- Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER skewered Senate Republicans for floating “maximalist, fringe policies” instead of “meeting at the middle” on an issue that has vexed Congress for years.
- Senate Republicans, meanwhile, all but threw up their hands due to the timeline, with Minority Leader MITCH McCONNELL saying a deal now seems “impossible” this year since the House is leaving town at the end of week.
- Speaker MIKE JOHNSON showed little sign of backing away from the House’s own conservative border package, which is full of poison pills for Democrats.
- And pressure continues to build on the left: Playbook has obtained a new memo to top White House officials from the advocacy group Immigration Hub warning that cutting a border deal with the GOP would have “immense and detrimental” political consequences, depressing the vote among key Democratic constituencies.
If there’s any glimmer of holiday hope, it’s that the White House appears to now be fully engaged in the negotiations, as our colleague Myah Ward reports. Homeland Security Secretary ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, White House deputy chief of staff NATALIE QUILLIAN and legislative affairs director SHUWANZA GOFF all participated in a Capitol Hill meeting yesterday afternoon with the key negotiators. The White House has put on the table “a new border authority to expel migrants without asylum screenings, as well as a dramatic expansion of immigration detention and deportations,” according to CBS’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez. But Democrats are still not convinced Republicans even want a deal with an election year just three weeks away. The immediate question for Schumer is whether to make good on his threat to keep the Senate in town until his long to-do list is finished. The chamber is set to wrap up work on the big annual Pentagon policy bill today and will then, we’re told, try to notch an agreement to confirm the remaining 11 four-star generals that Sen. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-Ala.) is still blocking. With those items cleared, only the Ukraine-border talks will remain. But the whiff of jet fumes is already in the air, and absent a burst of momentum in the coming days, Schumer will be hard-pressed to keep members around for talks that aren’t likely to bear immediate fruit — particularly if Republican negotiators don’t seem keen on it, we’re told. Good Wednesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza. WAKE UP, READ PLAYBOOK — We have an exciting update for Playbook readers: Starting Dec. 18, all Playbook subscribers will also receive Playbook PM every Monday through Friday. As a member of the Playbook community, you will get a double dose of scoops, storylines and analysis every weekday as we enter a newsy election year. No need to take action: You will receive your first PM edition on the 18th if you aren’t subscribed already. Thank you for being a part of the Playbook community. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: FLORIDA ABORTION VOTE ON TRACK — Florida advocates tell Playbook they’re on track to get the necessary signatures to land an abortion rights referendum on the state’s 2024 ballot by the end of the year. They report having secured 1.4 million petitions so far, 200,000 of them from registered Republicans. And having gotten close to the required threshold, the paid vendor working to gather petitions is expected to leave the state at the end of the week; volunteers will get the referendum over the finish line. The referendum needs nearly 900,000 verified signatures to get on the ballot, with the names coming from a distribution across the state’s congressional districts. If abortion rights activists do get it on the ballot, it could provide a major haven for the procedure in the conservative South — and potentially juice Democratic turnout/enthusiasm in a reddening swing state. PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION — Washington Capitals and Wizards owner TED LEONSIS appears to be on the cusp of taking his teams to Alexandria, Virginia, WaPo’s Teo Armus, Laura Vozzella and Michael Brice-Saddler report. D.C. officials have presented Leonsis with a $500 million counteroffer. “But the city’s proposal may be too late.”
| | | | A message from Google:   Built with veterans, for veterans, HomeTeam uses AI to help vets spot warning signs for mental health crises and train for critical conversations about mental health with their peers. Learn more. | | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | On the Hill The House will meet at 10 a.m. and at noon will take up several pieces of legislation, with votes expected at 5 p.m. The bills will likely include ending a ban on 2% and whole milk in public schools and authorizing the Biden impeachment inquiry. The Senate will meet at 10 a.m. to take up the conference report to accompany the National Defense Authorization Act, with final NDAA passage likely today. 3 things to watch …
- HUNTER BIDEN is due to appear before the House Oversight Committee for a closed-door interview at 9:30 a.m. Beyond that, it’s not clear what will happen. Biden has indicated he’ll testify only in public, but his legal team has not said what exactly he plans to do. (For what it’s worth, CNN reported yesterday that he’s in town.) If he’s a no-show today, GOP leaders are promising a quick contempt vote, though that is unlikely to result in actual sanctions.
- “Woke investing” is the latest subpoena target for House Judiciary Chair JIM JORDAN (R-Ohio), who demanded asset managers Vanguard and Arjuna Capital comply yesterday with his probe of environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies in the financial sector. The two firms were among more than two dozen targeted in a July documents request; Jordan said yesterday their response had been “inadequate,” necessitating the subpoenas.
- The uproar over the college presidents’ testimony last week is headed to the House floor today. A resolution authored by Rep. ELISE STEFANIK (R-N.Y.) condemns “the rise of antisemitism on university campuses around the country” as well as the presidents for giving “evasive and dismissive” answers. It goes on to note that University of Pennsylvania President LIZ MAGILL resigned and that Harvard’s CLAUDINE GAY and MIT’s SALLY KORNBLUTH “should follow suit.” Bipartisan support is expected.
At the White House Biden will deliver remarks at a meeting of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council at 12:15 p.m. Harris will speak about gun violence prevention at a meeting of state legislators, before hosting two holiday receptions with second gentleman DOUG EMHOFF.
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A cyclist rides past the New York Court of Appeals, May 5, 2015, in Albany, N.Y. | Hans Pennink/AP | POLITICIANS CHOOSING THEIR VOTERS — New York’s top court yesterday tossed the state’s congressional map and paved the way for a potentially whopping Democratic gerrymander, per Reuters’ Joseph Ax. The dynamic here is essentially the mirror image of what happened earlier this year in North Carolina: The New York court got more liberal, and now it looks much more open to signing off on maps skewed in Dems’ direction. That outcome isn’t assured yet: Next up, a bipartisan redistricting commission will take up the map. But Democrats who control the state legislature have the power to reject the commission’s map and draw their own — and the court seems likelier to say yes now. If Dems do go for a gerrymander, they could alter as many as six GOP-held seats, Zach Montellaro notes. Another gerrymandering victory: The Supreme Court ruled yesterday that Galveston County, Texas, can use an electoral map that a lower court had ruled illegal under the Voting Rights Act, The Galveston County Daily News’ B. Scott McLendon reports. LOOK WHO’S BACK — “KELLYANNE CONWAY is going to Capitol Hill on Wednesday with a message for Republicans: promote contraception or risk defeat in 2024,” Alice Miranda Ollstein reports. She “is part of a group set to brief Republicans on how they might get ahead of Democrats’ attacks that the GOP is anti-woman.” AMERICA AND THE WORLD
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President Joe Biden speaks during a joint press conference with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in a in the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Dec. 12, 2023. | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images | BIDEN VS. BIBI — Biden yesterday made some of his harshest comments yet about Israeli PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU and his government’s war, warning that “he has to change, and with this government, this government in Israel is making it very difficult for him to move,” per CNN’s Kevin Liptak and Jeremy Diamond. At the same time, Netanyahu openly acknowledged that he and the U.S. disagree over what should happen to Gaza after the war. Still, U.S. military support for Israel continues: The Pentagon said it’s stepping up its help with Israel’s F-35s, per Bloomberg’s Tony Capaccio. And the U.S. pressure campaign is getting results in one area: Israel will “likely” reopen a significant border crossing that will get more humanitarian aid into Gaza, as the U.S. has urged, Axios’ Barak Ravid reports. But the global backlash continued as the U.N. General Assembly yesterday backed an immediate cease-fire in a non-binding 153-10 vote, per CNN’s Caitlin Hu. Meanwhile, Israel has started to flood Hamas’ tunnel network with seawater in a risky move, the WSJ scooped. Here, too, Biden voiced some hesitations. Happening today …. “Biden to meet in person Wednesday with families of Americans taken hostage by Hamas,” by AP’s Zeke Miller More top reads:
| | | | A message from Google: Every day, 17 veterans die by suicide. Research shows that 92% of veterans want to help another veteran experiencing a mental health challenge, but only 25% feel prepared to do so. A team of nine Google.org Fellows — made up of veterans, veteran family members, and technologists — worked pro bono with Google.org grantee ReflexAI to build HomeTeam, a tool that uses educational modules and AI chat simulations to give veterans the opportunity to practice lifelike conversations about mental health in a low-risk, confidential setting.
Read Fellow Chris Keller’s first-hand account of Google’s AI collaboration with ReflexAI. | | | TRUMP CARDS
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Then-President Donald Trump, left, meets North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi, Feb. 27, 2019. | Evan Vucci/AP | LITTLE ROCKET MAN — Trump is weighing a major shift in North Korea policy if he returns to the White House, Alex Ward reports this morning. A potential plan would yield significant concessions to KIM JONG UN by letting North Korea keep its nuclear weapons while incentivizing it not to make any more with sanctions relief. For the self-styled dealmaker, “[a]t least part of his motivation … would be to avoid wasting time on what he sees as futile arms talks — and focus instead on the larger task of competing with China.” Any deal with North Korea that doesn’t emphasize denuclearization would be a shift from U.S. policies in recent decades, and “it could rattle allies like South Korea and Japan and unnerve members of his own party. … It would also open the former president to criticisms of hypocrisy.” More top reads:
2024 WATCH ENDORSEMENT ROUNDUP — New Hampshire Gov. CHRIS SUNUNU made his support for NIKKI HALEY official — dealing a significant setback to CHRIS CHRISTIE in particular, Lisa Kashinsky reports from Hooksett, New Hampshire. … Sen. JOSH HAWLEY (R-Mo.) became the latest senator to back Trump explicitly, he told Burgess Everett. BLURRED LINES — “DeSantis’ campaign and allied super PAC face new concerns about legal conflicts, AP sources say,” by AP’s Steve Peoples and Thomas Beaumont: “[T]here has been concern in recent weeks among some within [Florida Gov. RON] DeSANTIS’ operation that interactions between his campaign and his network of outside groups are blurring the lines of what’s legally permissible.” ABOUT LAST NIGHT — “Takeaways from CNN’s Iowa town hall with Ron DeSantis,” by CNN’s Eric Bradner and Steve Contorno: “DeSantis on Tuesday showed new urgency in taking on Donald Trump, attacking the former president at every turn.” TRAIL MIX — “Vivek Ramaswamy sees an opening for a candidate willing to court the fringe,” by Semafor’s Dave Weigel in Hampton, New Hampshire BEYOND THE BELTWAY DEMOCRACY WATCH — Crucial court hearings this week will determine whether 10 GOP state senators in Oregon will be barred from running for reelection because they missed too many days during walkouts to try to gum up the Democratic majority, Paul Demko reports. The 43-day walkout flew in the face of a voter-passed referendum that sought to punish such behavior; the Republicans’ legal challenges face an uphill battle. The bigger picture: Oregon is “arguably the most glaring example yet of how Washington’s toxic partisan culture is increasingly infecting statehouses across the country.” POLICY CORNER INFRASTRUCTURE LAW IN ACTION — “US agency takes first step toward requiring new vehicles to prevent drunk or impaired driving,” AP/Detroit
| | | | POLITICO AT CES® 2024: We are going ALL On at CES 2024 with a special edition of the POLITICO Digital Future Daily newsletter. The CES-focused newsletter will take you inside the most powerful tech event in the world, featuring revolutionary products that cut across verticals, and insights from industry leaders that are shaping the future of innovation. The newsletter runs from Jan. 9-12 and will focus on the public policy-related aspects of the gathering. Sign up today to receive exclusive coverage of the show. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Tim Burchett served a fun “charcuterie board” at his famous 16-minute Christmas party. Isabelle Brourman is doing a different kind of Donald Trump courtroom sketch. Harry Coker Jr. was confirmed as national cyber director. George Santos wants to return to Congress eventually. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Bharat Ramamurti is joining the American Economic Liberties Project as senior adviser for economic strategy. He previously was deputy director of the National Economic Council and is an Elizabeth Warren alum. OUT AND ABOUT — Israeli Ambassador Michael Herzog and Shirin Herzog hosted a Hanukkah solidarity event at the Israeli Embassy yesterday, commemorating the people killed in the Hamas Oct. 7 attacks and honoring the hostages still held. Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) delivered remarks as the guest of honor. Also SPOTTED: AG Merrick Garland, John Kirby and Reps. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Kathy Manning (D-N.C.), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Brad Sherman (D-Calif.). — SPOTTED at an advance screening of “Wonka” hosted by Warner Bros. Discovery and the National Confectioners Association last night at the U.S Navy Memorial theater: Mariana Adame, Monica Gorman, Alex Jacquez, Alexa Verveer, Susan Whiteside, Chris Gindlesperger, Blair Klein, Ellie Portillo, Joanna Turner, Courtney Clark, Andrew Kovalcin, Eriq Gardner, Jackie Kucinich, Alex Gangitano, Christopher Crawford, Jed Ober, Rebekah Solem, Rebecca Avitia, Neri Martinez, Tyler Grimm, John Lee, Dahvi Cohen and Rita Lari. — Booking Holdings had a reception at Union Station, where Glenn Fogel had a panel discussion about the travel industry with Reps. Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Marc Molinaro (R-N.Y.) and Dina Titus (D-Nev.). Also SPOTTED: Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Norm Coleman, Maryam Mujica, Heather Podesta, Kate Bennett, Susan Farkas, Greg Walden, Elizabeth Baker Keffer, Nu Wexler, Patrick Mellody, Erik Hansen and Puru Trivedi. — At the WSJ’s “Japan & the U.S.” event last night at Nobu, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel spoke remotely with Mae Cheng, Japanese Ambassador Shigeo Yamada delivered opening remarks, Phillipa Leighton-Jones hosted, and other speakers included Catherine Campbell, Toshiyuki Kondo and Vito Mabrucco. Also SPOTTED: Ex-Im Bank Chair Reta Jo Lewis, Michael Chertoff, Marcus Brauchli, Katherine Finnerty, Jennifer Prescott, Kathy O’Hearn, Robert Costa, Sumi Somaskanda, Ron Bonjean, Teresa Carlson and Andre Pienaar, T.W. Arrighi, Alex Dresner, Winston Lord, Erika Moritsugu and Ben Haas. MEDIA MOVES — Luke Russert is returning to MSNBC as host and creative director of “MSNBC Live!,” leading the live events brand, The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin scooped. … Laura Bassett will cover the 2024 election for N.Y. Mag/The Cut. She previously was editor-in-chief of Jezebel. WHITE HOUSE ARRIVAL LOUNGE — Rodericka Applewhaite is now director of Black media at the White House. She most recently was at SKDK, and has worked on campaigns including Gretchen Whitmer’s reelect in Michigan and Pete Buttigieg’s presidential bid. TRANSITIONS — Former Wisconsin Senate candidate Alex Lasry is now deputy assistant secretary for travel and tourism at Commerce, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bill Glauber reports. … Heather Williams is now president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, Madison Fernandez scooped. She previously has been interim president and executive director. … Jeanette Quick will be deputy assistant Treasury secretary for financial institutions policy. She previously has been deputy commissioner of investor protection at California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. … … Benjamin Stanislawski is now comms director for Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.). He previously was comms director for Will Jawando’s Maryland Senate campaign. … Matthew Nguyen is leaving his role as a senior adviser to the House Select Committee on China, returning to his former life trading commodities in New York. … Daniel Beck is joining National Public Affairs as a digital account manager. He most recently was an associate at Plus Communications. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Devin Dwyer, senior Washington reporter for ABC News, and Adam Ciarleglio, assistant professor of biostatistics at GWU, welcomed Sydney Ciarleglio Dwyer on Thursday. Pic … Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack … Reps. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) and Donald Norcross (D-N.J.) … White House’s Jing Qu … Mo Elleithee of Georgetown’s Institute of Politics and Public Service … State’s Stephenie Foster … Todd S. Purdum … Jeffrey Schneider of The Lead PR … Trish Regan … Allan Blutstein … Brian Baenig … former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke (7-0) … CNN’s Haley Talbot … Michael Smith of AmeriCorps … Kyle Hauptman of the National Credit Union Association (5-0) … Lizzie Gregory … Joe Rozek … Consumer Healthcare Products Association’s David Spangler … Precision’s Matt Creeden … Peter Ogburn … Martin Whitmer … Ruth Wedgwood … Alec Zender of Rep. Jack Bergman’s (R-Mich.) office … Florida Democratic Chair Nikki Fried … Alexandra Seymour … Staci McDermott of the McCain Institute … Gillum Ferguson … Google’s Riva Sciuto … Tara Rigler … Eugene Kinlow 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 DeBonis, deputy editor Zack Stanton, producer Andrew Howard and Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath. | | | | 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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