| | | | |  | | By Ryan Lizza, Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | ‘I’M FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGED AS A HUMAN’— “Her Online Sex Life Was Exposed. She Lost Her Election. Now She’s Speaking Out,” by Alex Burns: “SUSANNA GIBSON’s campaign was rocked when an opponent exposed her private digital life to the public. She won’t be the last.” BORDER TALKS UPDATE — Myah Ward, Burgess Everett and Jennifer Haberkorn scooped details on the new border offer from Senate Republicans. Among the proposals from Sen. JAMES LANKFORD & Co.:
- “a ban on class-based ‘parole,’ a key tool the White House has used to create legal entry pathways and manage the influx at the border”;
- ”the creation of a new expulsion authority, reviving a form of the policy known as Title 42”;
- “metrics for automating a border shutdown — halting U.S. acceptance of migrants if border numbers hit a certain level”;
- “mandatory electronic monitoring for anyone, including children, who are not detained”; and
- “nationwide, expedited removal authority — a return to a Trump-era policy that the Biden administration rescinded in 2021.”
The policies, needless to say, are galvanizing opposition on the left. Via the AP: “ROBYN BARNARD, director of refugee advocacy with Human Rights First, called the current state of negotiations an ‘absolute crisis moment.’ She warned that broadening the fast-track deportation authority could lead to a mass rounding up of immigrants around the country and compared it to the situation during the [DONALD] TRUMP administration.” But evidence of the political imperatives for a deal continue to mount for Democrats. A new WSJ poll finds that 64% of voters disapprove of President JOE BIDEN’s performance on border security, including a third of Democrats: “That is the highest disapproval since the Journal began asking the question in March 2022.” (The same poll shows Trump defeating Biden 47% to 43%, in a head-to-head matchup and 37% to 31% when third-party candidates are added.) Writing in the NYT, Ross Douthat cites a new paper offering hard data to support the idea that Biden and Democrats would be rewarded politically for a deal that brought the border under control: “As the migrant flow goes up, so does the vote for Republicans in House elections,” he writes. “And the inflow also shifts local policy rightward, reducing public spending and shifting money toward law enforcement as opposed to education.”
|  Last night at fundraiser in California, President Joe Biden had a lot to say about Donald Trump. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP | 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN BRIEFING — There’s a surprisingly generous buffet of 2024 news today, so let’s dig in … — In this morning’s latest installment of the NYT’s 2025 project from Jonathan Swan, Charlie Savage and Maggie Haberman, there’s lots of new reporting on the fate of NATO in a second Trump term. Key quote, from former NATO supreme allied commander JAMES STAVRIDIS: “There is great fear in Europe that a second Trump presidency would result in an actual pullout of the United States from NATO. That would be an enormous strategic and historic failure on the part of our nation.” — The Trump campaign is starting to see all of this second term talk as politically damaging. WaPo’s Marianne LeVine and Josh Dawsey report that Trump campaign officials are working “to quell discussions about his possible second term in the White House, amid alarms about authoritarianism and reports about personnel.” Key quote, from Trump campaign managers SUSIE WILES and CHRIS LaCIVITA: “Let us be very specific here: unless a message is coming directly from President Trump or an authorized member of his campaign team, no aspect of future presidential staffing or policy announcements should be deemed official.” — A major abortion case in Texas could have major implications for 2024. Just last night, the Texas Supreme Court halted a lower-court ruling “that approved an abortion for a pregnant woman whose fetus has a fatal diagnosis,” the AP reports, after Texas AG KEN PAXTON vowed to fight the challenge to his state’s highly restrictive abortion ban tooth and nail. Alice Miranda Ollstein and Adam Cancryn note that Democrats think the case “highlights two of their central arguments: women’s rights are in jeopardy under a GOP-controlled government and the system of checks and balances is under attack” and plan to use it in their 2024 campaign messaging. Key quote, from American Bridge co-chair CECILE RICHARDS: “Ken Paxton is doing a great job of expressing for thousands of women in Texas the horror of having the state in charge of your pregnancy. These are people’s lives that are at stake, and it’s only going to get worse.” — Some Dems are freaking out about Biden’s poor 2024 organization, report Elena Schneider and Holly Otterbein: “In the swing states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona, Nevada and Georgia, the Biden team has not announced any staff, lagging months behind Trump’s pace in 2019 when he was running for a second term.” Key quote, from veteran Dem strategist PETE GIANGRECO: “They’ve got to build a serious infrastructure in the battleground states, and they don’t have it right now. You have to build an infrastructure to drive [the] message and deliver votes. It’s not something you do just on paid communications.” — Biden is saying his likely opponent’s name more often, per NYT’s Anjali Huynh, or at least he did on Friday in Las Vegas. “Trump just talks to talk,” Biden said. “We walk the walk.” And last night, at an LA fundraiser that included California Gov. GAVIN NEWSOM, Mayor KAREN BASS, NANCY PELOSI, STEVEN SPIELBERG and a performance by LENNY KRAVITZ, Biden had a lot more to say about Trump during 11 minutes of remarks, per the late night pool report — including recounting how Trump sat alone in a White House dining room as the Jan. 6 mob searched the Capitol for MIKE PENCE. “It’s despicable,” Biden said. Key quotes, from Biden: “You’re the reason that Donald Trump is a former president, or he hates when I say it, a defeated president.” … “The greatest threat Trump poses is to our democracy, because if we lost that, we lose everything.” … “The other day he said, ‘He would be a dictator only one day.’ Thank god. Only one day.” … “My guess is that he won’t show up at my next inauguration.” Good Saturday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line with your suggestions on where to buy a Christmas tree in D.C.: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
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Learn how Amazon innovates for sellers. | | | 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.
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Amazon provides tools, programs, and services to help independent sellers grow their brands. After leveraging Amazon’s marketing tools, “customers started buying our products right away,” said Kyle Goguen, owner of Pawstruck. Learn how Amazon powers small businesses. Sponsored by Amazon   | | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | At the White House Biden and First Lady JILL BIDEN will participate in a campaign reception today in Los Angeles, California. VP KAMALA HARRIS and Second Gentleman DOUG EMHOFF will host a holiday reception at the Naval Observatory this afternoon. On the trail Rep. SHEILA JACKSON LEE (D-Texas) and Texas state Sen. JOHN WHITMIRE face off in a runoff election to be the next mayor of Houston. More from AP’s Robert Yoon Trump is slated to attend the New York Young Republican Club’s 11th annual gala tonight in New York, alongside Rep. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.) and Sen. ROGER MARSHALL (R-Kan.).
| | PLAYBOOK READS | | 9 THINGS THAT STUCK WITH US 1. JAN. 6 LATEST: The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals maintained a gag order against Donald Trump yesterday, reasoning that the former president's statements had "real-time, real-world consequences" that jeopardize the credibility of his forthcoming Jan. 6 criminal trial, Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report. “The ruling reinstates restrictions, imposed in October by U.S. District Court Judge TANYA CHUTKAN but suspended amid the appeal, on Trump’s ability to attack key witnesses in the case against him. …The provisions, however, represent a notable narrowing of Chutkan’s original gag order, which the appeals court said ‘sweeps too broadly.’” Speaking of … Special counsel JACK SMITH has signaled he intends to "go broad and deep" to show that Trump broke the law in a new legal tactic that lawyers say risks putting his case on a more vulnerable footing, WSJ’s Sadie Gurman and C. Ryan Barber report: “In recent court filings in the former president’s federal election-interference case, Smith’s team said it plans to lay out a history of Trump’s making baseless claims of election fraud over more than a decade.” 2. THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Joe Gould and Anthony Adragna go inside a private GOP lunch meeting last month where Sen. TOMMY TUBERVILLE’s colleagues finally convinced the Alabama Republican to end his months-long blockade of military promotions: “During a closed-door Senate Republican lunch on Nov. 28, Sen. DAN SULLIVAN (R-Alaska) gave a fiery 10-minute speech, the latest in a series of attempts to get Tuberville to relent. … Sullivan announced that he had exhausted all of his options and that it was time to join Democrats in a vote to undo the blanket holds.” More details: “While Sullivan was among the most visible and forceful of his GOP colleagues, a bloc of Republican senators — including several military veterans — had been actively plotting a way to end the blockade.” 3. ISRAEL-HAMAS LATEST: “US blocks UN Security Council demand for humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza,” by Reuters’ Michelle Nichols: “The United States on Friday vetoed a proposed United Nations Security Council demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza. … Thirteen other members voted in favor of a brief draft resolution, put forward by the United Arab Emirates, while Britain abstained. … The United States and Israel oppose a ceasefire because they believe it would only benefit Hamas.” 4. INTERNAL DEBATE: “RNC officially bows out of hosting primary debates,” by Alex Isenstadt: “The RNC’s decision, made by a 16-member internal body, means that any forthcoming debates will be hosted by networks independently of the committee. Two outlets — ABC and CNN — have announced plans to host future debates in Iowa and New Hampshire ahead of early state voting.” Worth noting: “The RNC-established benchmarks have helped to winnow the field. … The field is considerably smaller at this point than during the last seriously contested GOP primary in 2016, when going into January of that year there were still 12 candidates appearing in debates.” 5. HALEY’S COMET: Steve Shepherd is out with his latest analysis of recent polls and data from Marquette Law School that show how Trump and former South Carolina Gov. NIKKI HALEY would assemble different electoral coalitions in matchups against Biden — with those differences underpinning Haley's case as she attempts an unexpected, "come-from-behind victory" in the weeks before the first caucuses and primary. “To understand why Haley outperforms Trump against Biden, we looked at what we’ll call Biden-Haley voters: People who would vote for Biden in a 2020 rematch with Trump, but switch to Haley when she’s the hypothetical GOP nominee instead. Roughly 43 percent of the electorate would vote for Biden in either matchup, according to Marquette’s polling, and 47 percent for Trump or Haley but not Biden.” 6. TAR HEEL TUSSLE: North Carolina’s Republican primary race for Democratic governor ROY COOPER’s seat is heating up, with GOP Sen. THOM TILLIS now backing wealthy attorney and businessman BILL GRAHAM against Republican lieutenant governor MARK ROBINSON, who has been leading the pack, The National Review’s Audrey Fahlberg reports: “Tillis’s decision to back Graham — who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2008 — is a knock against [Robinson], North Carolina’s first black lieutenant governor whose fire-and-brimstone campaign style and dicey personal financial history have raised general electability concerns among the more establishment wing of the North Carolina GOP.” 7. DEEP BLUE Z: “Ukraine’s Zelensky appears increasingly embattled as U.S. backing wavers,” by WaPo’s Isabelle Khurshudyan, Siobhán O'Grady and David Stern: “The strain in the relationship between Kyiv and Washington comes as internal political divisions have resurfaced for President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, with fears over the potential gaps in funding feeding into other tensions in the capital. Relations between officials who have previously maintained a public appearance of unity are now openly fraying.” 8. AI ON THE BRAIN: “E.U. Agrees on Landmark Artificial Intelligence Rules,” by NYT’s Adam Satariano: “The law, called the A.I. Act, sets a new global benchmark for countries seeking to harness the potential benefits of the technology, while trying to protect against its possible risks, like automating jobs, spreading misinformation online and endangering national security. … Yet even as the law was hailed as a regulatory breakthrough, questions remained about how effective it would be. Many aspects of the policy were not expected to take effect for 12 to 24 months, a considerable length of time for A.I. development.” 9. THE BIDENS HIT HOLLYWOOD: AP’s Will Weissert has more on Biden’s West Coast fundraising swing: “[O]rganizers say Biden should raise more this weekend than in any similar time frame since announcing his campaign in April and could potentially take in more than any presidential candidate has in greater Los Angeles this far out from Election Day.” The numbers: “This weekend’s events are aimed at helping Biden reach a fundraising target of roughly $67 million for the fourth quarter of the year. … The major push to raise money could quiet some donors who have privately grumbled that the president hasn’t done enough to stock his campaign coffers ahead of a 2024 race.” Related read: “Peek inside Joe Biden’s campaign fundraisers, where big money mingles with old jokes in swanky homes,” by AP’s Chris Megerian and Will Weissert
| | | | SPONSORED CONTENT More than 60% of sales in Amazon’s store are from independent sellers
Amazon is committed to seeing small businesses thrive, which is why we provide services and support to help them grow. “Amazon has a ton of tools that helped us take our business to the next level,” said Kyle, owner of Pawstruck. Learn more. Sponsored by Amazon   | | | CLICKER — “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker — 15 funnies
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RJ Matson - Caglecartoons.com | GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Ryan Lizza: — “The Danger Ahead” by The Atlantic’s David Frum: “If Donald Trump returns to the White House, he’d bring a better understanding of the system’s vulnerabilities, more willing enablers, and a more focused agenda of retaliation against his adversaries.” — “Why all this Trump hysteria?” by Martin Gurri for UnHerd: “America won't descend into an authoritarian state.” — “The Spy Who Dumped the CIA, Went to Therapy, and Now Makes Incredible Television,” by Wired’s Laura Kipnis: “Joe Weisberg — the geopolitically entangled, heavily therapized creator of The Americans and The Patient — is the trickiest character he’s written (so far).” — “‘How do you reduce a national dish to a powder?’: the weird, secretive world of crisp flavours,” by The Guardian’s Amelia Tait: “Why can you buy lasagne flavour snacks in Thailand but not in Italy? Which country can cope with the hottest chilli? And why do Germans like paprika so much?” — “The Bitter Taste of ‘Not Too Sweet’” by Jaya Saxena for Eater: “Asian Americans have claimed the phrase ‘not too sweet’ as a defiant shorthand and a cheeky rallying cry. But is that maxim really true?” — “The call of Tokitae,” by WaPo’s Caitlin Gibson: “After half a century in a tank, a beloved orca was about to be freed. Then her life ended, and a moment of reckoning began.” — “Podcasters Took Up Her Sister’s Murder Investigation. Then They Turned on Her,” by NYT Mag’s Sarah Viren: “‘True crime’ has become a big business — and an emotional minefield for victims’ families.” — “How the Biggest Boutique Fitness Company Turned Suburban Moms Into Bankrupt Franchisees,” by Bloomberg’s Natalie Wong: “Xponential’s brands — Pure Barre, CycleBar, Club Pilates, Row House, Rumble Boxing — all have fanatical followings. And some very alarmed business partners.” — “How millennials learned to dread motherhood,” by Vox’s Rachel Cohen: “To our generation, being a mom looks thankless, exhausting, and lonely. Can we change the story?” — “Murders, Movies, and Those Who Remain,” by Michael Natale for Popular Mechanics: “The legend of the Amityville Horror is built on lies. This is the twisted truth.”
| | | PLAYBOOKERS | | | SPOTTED visiting Barack Obama’s post-presidential office yesterday: Antony Blinken. Nancy Mace and her fiance have broken up. Jeff Bezos’ neighbors rarely see him. Kevin McCarthy is still on board the Trump train. Casey DeSantis cleaned up her comments after urging out-of-state residents to caucus for her husband in Iowa. OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at Steve Rochlin and Christina Sevilla's holiday chalet bonfire party with a Filipino fusion dinner buffet: Swiss Ambassador Jacques Pitteloud, Angelique Pitteloud, Steve Clemons, Andy Oros, Matt Kaminski, Josh Dawsey, Meridith McGraw, Fin Gomez, Sarah March, Raquel Krähenbühl, Ali Dukakis, Kevin Baron, Rodell Mollineau, Sheena Arora, Sara Cook, Ed Roman, Neil Grace, Mark Paustenbach, Margaret Talev, Jon Garcia, Juliet Eilperin, Amy Argetsinger, Michael Isikoff, Mary Ann Akers, David Corn, Shaila Manyam, Bruce Kieloch, Adam Green, Katherine Doyle and Kate Sullivan. TRANSITION — Jonathan Eberle is now senior comms adviser for Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.). He most recently was director of comms for FreedomWorks and is a Matt Rosendale and Andy Biggs alum. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Steve Guest, a conservative commentator and comms consultant and a Ted Cruz and RNC alum, and Kate Guest, head of campaigns at Numinar Analytics, on Wednesday welcomed William Michael Guest. Pic ... Another pic — Sara Murray, political correspondent at CNN and a WSJ alum, and Nicholas Artenstein, strategy senior manager at Accenture, recently welcomed Archer Andrew Paul Artenstein. Pics by Kate Palermo Photography ... Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) … Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin … Wendell Primus … POLITICO’s Kaitlyn Olvera … The Boston Globe’s James Pindell … Brian McGuire of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck … Tamara Cofman Wittes … Shoshana Weissmann … Brunswick Group’s Neal Wolin … ABC’s Terry Moran … Veronique Rodman … Google’s Cris Turner … Aniela Butler … Megan Devlin of Deloitte … Karen Harbert of the American Gas Association … FGS Global’s Eric Wachter … K&L Gates’ Darrell Conner … Andrew Ricci of Riccon Strategic Communications … Emily Kopp … Tricia Enright of the Senate Commerce Committee … John E. Smith … Scott Schloegel of the Motorcycle Industry Council … former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle … former Reps. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas) and Pete Olson (R-Texas) … Laena Fallon … Eric Garcia … Jessica Furst Johnson … Anne Bradbury … HHS’ Andrea Goldstein … Alexandra DeSanctis Marr THE SHOWS (Full Sunday show listings here): CBS “Face the Nation”: Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) … Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) … Shalanda Young … Janti Soeripto … Anthony Salvanto. NBC “Meet the Press”: Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) … Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). Panel: Cornell Belcher, Lanhee Chen, Jonathan Martin and Kelly O’Donnell. FOX “Fox News Sunday,” guest-anchored by Gillian Turner: Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) … Pål Jonson … Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears. Panel: Michael Allen, Olivia Beavers, Katie Pavlich and Juan Williams. ABC “This Week”: Liz Cheney. Panel: Donna Brazile, Sarah Isgur, Mary Bruce and Asma Khalid. CNN “State of the Union”: Secretary of State Antony Blinken … Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) … Al Gore. Panel: David Axelrod, Mia Love, Kristen Soltis Anderson and Rep. Ro Khanna 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. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook misreported Sen. Bernie Sanders’ position on an amendment that would condition U.S. military aid on the recipients following international law. Sanders (I-Vt.) is supporting the amendment.
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