| | | | |  | | By Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza and Rachael Bade | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | YOU CAN DO IT, MR. PRESIDENT — “Carter’s next potential milestone: First former president to see 100,” by WaPo’s Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan: “Sunday marks 100 days until [JIMMY] CARTER would become the first president to witness his own 100th birthday.”
|  Robert Winnett's parting buys WaPo CEO and Publisher Will Lewis time, if not much goodwill. | Alex Brandon/AP Photo | POST MATES — The Washington Post newsroom this morning continues to grapple with the fallout from yesterday’s announcement that incoming top editor ROBERT WINNETT will not in fact be incoming. The sense we’ve gotten from conversations over the past 24 hours is pretty simple: The parting with his old pal buys WaPo CEO and Publisher WILL LEWIS time, if not much goodwill. Winnett had been the subject of some of the most damning recent reporting about the two Brits’ Fleet Street pasts. But it has not gone unnoticed in the newsroom that Lewis has yet to engage in any detailed way with the revelations about his own actions in his past lives. That, many suspect, awaits further reporting on Lewis’ past that might materialize from the WaPo red team under the direction of former managing editor CAMERON BARR, not to mention from other outlets that have been diving deep into Lewis on both sides of the pond. “The newsroom was not against Will until recent weeks, to be clear. People would still love to see a business plan that helps us make money while doing good work,” one WaPo reporter texted us this morning. “My suspicion is that the story is far from over.” The precarity of Lewis’ position was put into perspective this week in withering public comments from two multiple-Pulitzer-winning Posties, DAVID MARANISS and SCOTT HIGHAM. And, this morning, another Pulitzer-winning WaPo alum, The Atlantic’s STEPHANIE McCRUMMEN, lays out in detail the fundamental clash that Lewis’ leadership presents. In short: Can the Post afford even a whiff of impropriety in its C-suite given the unremitting, politically motivated efforts to undermine its journalism? “The controversy around Lewis is not some small matter of different journalistic methods,” writes McCrummen, who broke the stories that cost ROY MOORE a Senate seat in 2017. “The reputation of the Post newsroom has been built upon readers’ trust that reporters do not pay sources, much less steal documents, hack computers, or engage in other deceptive news-gathering practices that have been associated with a certain kind of British journalism and the worst of American tabloid journalism. “This is why the Roy Moore stories were not vulnerable to the attacks launched against them. How their credibility was achieved remains highly relevant.” Yet there are signs emerging that there is a path forward for Lewis. To begin with, owner JEFF BEZOS has shown no sign he’s interested in a further shakeup as he watches from his Mediterranean sojourn. And while there are many in the newsroom who have lost faith in Lewis, there are others who are ready to make peace with Winnett’s exit and move on. Unlike Winnett, the thinking goes, Lewis spent years as Wall Street Journal publisher, where he got a crash course in American journalistic standards. McCrummen acknowledges in her piece that “Lewis did not institute the practice of paying for information [at WSJ], and he has pledged not to do so at the Post. This is a relief, to a degree.” Moreover, as one WaPo reporter put it to us last night, trying to find a new publisher right now would be its own kind of disaster. And with Winnett out, many feel as though the editorial integrity of the organization has been protected — barring any more earth-shaking revelations about Lewis. Good Saturday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
| | | | A message from U.S. Travel Association: Each year, 10 million passenger flights carry travelers safely from point A to point B — wherever that may be. Secure biometric technology makes air travel even safer and more seamless. The majority of recent air travelers are comfortable using biometrics to board a plane, get through security or check-in for a flight, making the air travel experience efficient and hassle-free. Learn more. | | | THE WHISPERERS — Five days out from the biggest moment of the presidential campaign so far, two stories out this morning go deep inside the inner circles of the two men vying to lead the country. For President JOE BIDEN, NYT’s Katie Rogers and Michael Shear report on the trio of familiar names who are closest to the incumbent’s thinking: top political aide MIKE DONILON, former chief of staff RON KLAIN and TED KAUFMAN, the longtime Biden aide who went on to hold his Senate seat. Biden calls Donilon “multiple times each day … to chew on the latest polls and headlines,” summons Klain once a week to “workshop the best attacks to use” in Thursday’s debate and seeks out Kaufman on his many trips to Delaware. “The three are at the center of the Biden world, part of an echo chamber where dissent is rare,” they write. “In important moments, each has told the president news he did not want to hear, although not one of them said no when the president was considering whether to run for a second term.” As for DONALD TRUMP, our colleagues Meridith McGraw, Adam Wren, Natalie Allison and Adam Cancryn examine how the most influential players in his policy portfolio are fat cats with big stacks. Multiple times over this election cycle, they report, policy shifts followed closed-door sessions with CEOs, donors and business leaders — meetings where Trump has not been shy about linking their support with his potential future administration’s actions. “To the former president’s allies, the reversals are evidence of a nuanced politician taking thoughtful new positions on rapidly changing issues,” they report. “But there is also plainly a pattern of Trump aligning his political stances with the views of wealthy donors and business interests.” Said veteran Republican strategist SCOTT JENNINGS: “Now some people might say that’s craven or he doesn’t have any core values or whatever. But he’s got to win the election.”
| | | | A message from U.S. Travel Association:   | | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | At the White House Biden and VP KAMALA HARRIS have nothing on their public schedules. On the trail Trump will address the Faith & Freedom Coalition, as AP’s Michelle Price previews, before holding his first-ever rally in Philadelphia, speaking at Temple University in the evening.
| | | | THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.
Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | |  North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is one of the top contenders to be Donald Trump's running mate. | David Dee Delgado/Getty Images | 9 THINGS THAT STUCK WITH US 1. VEEPSTAKES: Trump’s VP search is zeroing in on North Dakota Gov. DOUG BURGUM and Sen. J.D. VANCE (R-Ohio) as the two leading possibilities, with Sen. MARCO RUBIO (R-Fla.) as a third option, NBC’s Henry Gomez, Jonathan Allen, Dasha Burns, Carol Lee, Matt Dixon and Olympia Sonnier report. The calculus could still change, of course, but Trump is seeking a running mate who both doesn’t threaten him politically and can carry the torch as a MAGA standard-bearer. (Questions about Rubio’s enthusiasm and residency have put him a notch behind.) Trump and his inner circle are also discussing how they should time the announcement around both the convention and his criminal sentencing next month. Many people around Trump are trying to influence his choice, CNN’s Alayna Treene, Steve Contorno, Kayla Tausche and Daniel Strauss report, though campaign managers SUSIE WILES and CHRIS LaCIVITA aren’t putting their fingers on the scale. That includes RUPERT MURDOCH supporting Burgum; DONALD TRUMP JR., STEVE BANNON and TUCKER CARLSON backing Vance; and SEAN HANNITY and KELLYANNE CONWAY urging Rubio. 2. TRUMP EXPANDS THE MAP: “Trump campaign bets big on Minnesota, Virginia with new field offices,” by CBS’ Olivia Rinaldi: “[T]he campaign is in the process of securing leases for eight ‘Trump Force 47’ offices in Minnesota, and 11 campaign offices in Virginia. … [T]he campaign has hired new staff to manage its ground game in Virginia and Minnesota, and is building out teams.” 3. CONVENTIONAL WISDOM: Teamsters President SEAN O’BRIEN will indeed speak at the Republican National Convention, Trump announced yesterday. The Teamsters confirmed the news and said he’s also requested to speak at the Dem convention, per Nick Niedzwiadek. The union hasn’t endorsed in the race yet, but playing both sides is a blow for Democrats, who typically get support from the Teamsters — especially as they’ve benefited handily from Biden’s big-ticket legislation in office. Meanwhile, some wild news emerged from Arizona, where the Trump campaign quashed a secret far-right effort for a bunch of delegates to challenge Trump at the convention, WaPo’s Yvonne Wingett Sanchez and Isaac Arnsdorf report from Phoenix. Details remain murky, but some plotters had talked about wearing black jackets as a signal and trying to push MICHAEL FLYNN instead of (or perhaps alongside) Trump. The Trump campaign headed off the threat and struck a deal with renegade leader SHELBY BUSCH on Thursday. 4. ANNALS OF INFLUENCE: “These Grieving Parents Want Congress to Protect Children Online,” by NYT’s Cecilia Kang: “[D]ozens of parents … are lobbying for the Kids Online Safety Act, or KOSA, a bill that would require social media, gaming and messaging apps to limit features that could heighten depression or bullying or lead to sexual exploitation. [It] has the greatest momentum of any broad tech industry legislation in years … Modeling themselves in part on Mothers Against Drunk Driving, which pushed for the 1984 federal law mandating a minimum drinking age of 21, about 20 of the parents have formed a group called ParentsSOS. … But KOSA still faces steep obstacles.” 5. DEMOCRACY WATCH: A judge threw out Nevada’s prosecution of six people who served as fake electors for Trump in 2020 in an effort to subvert the election, per The Nevada Independent’s Eric Neugeboren. Judge MARY KAY HOLTHUS said prosecutors had brought the case in the wrong venue — a major setback to Nevada AG AARON FORD, who’d filed the charges in more Democratic-leaning Clark County rather than Carson City or Douglas County. Ford said he’d appeal, but if the state Supreme Court agrees with Holthus, the statute of limitations has already passed for Ford to refile the charges elsewhere. 6. BATTLE FOR THE HOUSE: “‘Safe, legal and rare’: A California Republican’s Clintonian approach to abortion,” by Melanie Mason: “That position, a throwback to Democrats’ framing on abortion in the nineties, puts [MATT] GUNDERSON in a vanishingly small club of Republicans who espouse support for abortion rights — and sets him apart from most GOP candidates who try to avoid the topic altogether. … But Democrats, loath to give up their advantage on a galvanizing electoral issue, are quick to poke holes in Gunderson’s self-proclaimed support for abortion rights.” 7. CANNON FODDER: At the first day of Judge AILEEN CANNON’s unusual hearing in the Trump classified documents case, she “gave little indication of how she intends to rule” on Trump’s challenges to the constitutionality of special counsel JACK SMITH’s appointment, Gary Fineout and Kyle Cheney report from Fort Pierce, Florida. Though other judges have repeatedly thrown out similar legal challenges, Cannon is devoting a lot of time to this, and she repeatedly asked prosecutors how involved AG MERRICK GARLAND is in overseeing their work. She also allowed “nearly unheard of” comments from outside experts. Cannon’s skepticism of the prosecutors continued yesterday, though she also sounded dubious of Trump’s attorneys’ claims that Smith’s appointment was essentially a “shadow government,” CNN’s Holmes Lybrand and Evan Perez report.
| | | | A message from U.S. Travel Association:   | | | 8. KNOWING CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM: “Sheinbaum’s American Experience Offers Clues to Her Approach to U.S. Relations,” by NYT’s Natalie Kitroeff: “For four years [in the 1990s], Ms. Sheinbaum immersed herself in a new life as an immigrant academic in the United States. … American officials say privately that they believe security coordination could improve with Ms. Sheinbaum [as president of Mexico]. As mayor of Mexico City, she took a different approach than [ANDRÉS MANUEL] LÓPEZ OBRADOR, pouring money into the civilian police force, while he relied heavily on the military.” 9. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: As fears grow of a greater war between Israel and Hezbollah, the Biden administration told Israeli officials this week that it would fully support them with security assistance if the situation worsened, CNN’s MJ Lee reports. U.S. officials also said they would not deploy American troops. And they talked about ways to turn down the temperature and avoid a larger conflict. But in the Israel-Hamas war, the White House is still struggling to achieve its goals — and increasingly running out of options, WSJ’s Alan Cullison, Michael Gordon and Anat Peled write. In fact, the White House is now worrying that Israeli PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU will use his speech to Congress to attack Biden, Jonathan Lemire and Alex Ward report. ANDREW MILLER, a prominent advocate for Palestinian rights within the State Department, resigned from his senior role this week to spend more time with family, WaPo’s John Hudson reports. And NBC’s Katherine Doyle and Courtney Kube report on a pair of U.S. troops requesting to become conscientious objectors over the war. Related reads: “Yemen’s Houthis undeterred by U.S. campaign to halt Red Sea attacks,” by WaPo’s Susannah George, Dan Lamothe and Abigail Hauslohner … “The new anti-Israel right’s failure to launch,” by Semafor’s Dave Weigel CLICKER — “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker — 16 keepers
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Adam Zyglis - Buffalo News | GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Ryan Lizza: — “The Russian Spies Next Door,” by WSJ’s Georgi Kantchev, Joe Parkinson and Silvina Frydlewsky in Ljubljana: “Posing as Argentine immigrants in Slovenia, the quiet married couple were in fact part of Putin’s aggressive effort to seed the West with ‘illegal’ intelligence operatives, say authorities.” — “The Gods of Logic,” by Benjamín Labatut in Harper’s: “Before and after artificial intelligence.” — “The Cousin I Never Knew,” by Sophie Vershbow in Esquire: “When I inherited a box of papers about a mysterious relative, I went in search of his life — and discovered a courageous man who found his purpose fighting the disease that killed him.” — “From Nobel peace prize to civil war: how Ethiopia’s leader beguiled the world,” by the Guardian’s Tom Gardner: “When Abiy Ahmed took power in Ethiopia, he was feted at home and abroad as a great unifier and reformer. Two years later, terrible violence was raging. How did people get him so wrong?” — “The Deadly Mining Complex Powering the EV Revolution,” by Bloomberg Businessweek’s Matthew Campbell and Annie Lee: “Nickel is pouring into the supply chain from an Indonesian industrial park with a history of fatal accidents.” — “What Donald Trump Learned From Don King,” by NYT’s Matt Flegenheimer in Hollywood, Florida: “The decades-long friendship of two men who never especially changed.” — “America’s Top Export May Be Anxiety,” by The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson: “English-speaking teens are spreading their problems abroad.” — “The Problem With Erik: Privilege, Blackmail, and Murder for Hire in Austin,” by Texas Monthly’s Katy Vine and Ana Worrel: “A spoiled heir to an auto-dealership empire responded to a threatening text by ordering two murders. Four years and a jury trial later, what motivated his ruinous decision remains a mystery.” — “Inside the Titan Sub Recovery: A Hopeful Rescue Turned Tragic Mission,” by Willem Marx in Vanity Fair: “When Stockton Rush and his OceanGate vessel disappeared into the ghostly depths near the Titanic, rescue teams believed they had 96 hours to save five people. Then the international effort took a grim turn.”
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, our newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Donald Trump’s campaign is lying in fundraising emails to juice big bucks. Kamala Harris is trying to woo corporate America away from Trump. David DePape was convicted in state court. Samuel Alito missed his second day in a row at the Supreme Court. Campbell Brown is selling a $12 million Hudson Valley home. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Todd Zubatkin, senior adviser for comms at the EPA, is headed to the White House comms team on detail for the next six months as a senior researcher. He’s a Biden White House and campaign alum. TRANSITIONS — Caroline Sunshine is now deputy director of comms for the Trump campaign. She most recently was national press secretary for Vivek Ramaswamy, and is a Trump White House and Kari Lake alum. … Robert Matthews will be a chief program officer at Think of Us. He most recently was director of the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency. … Jirair Ratevosian will be the inaugural Hock fellow at the Duke Global Health Institute. He also is starting as an associate research scientist at Yale University. WEDDING — Sarah O’Neill, client partner for advocacy at WaPo, and Conor Gallagher, state outreach liaison at the EU Delegation to the U.S., got married Saturday in his dad’s hometown in County Donegal, Ireland. They met at 7DrumCity when he winked at her from across the room. Pic … Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) … Reps. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Blake Moore (R-Utah) … DNC’s Sam Cornale … AP’s Jill Colvin … Uber’s Michael Falcone … Brian Rell … Pia Carusone … ICANN’s Carlos Reyes … Nate Sizemore … Alisha Sud … Lauren Weiner of the ACLU … Brit Hume … Herald Group’s Steven Smith … Dana Harris … CRC Advisors’ Brian Doherty … Adam Sabes … Robert Stock (95) THE SHOWS (Full Sunday show listings here): CNN “State of the Union”: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum … New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. Panel: David Axelrod and Scott Walker. Panel: David Urban, Jamal Simmons, Alyssa Farah Griffin and Bakari Sellers. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) … Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Supreme Court panel: Jonathan Turley and Tom Dupree. Panel: Francesca Chambers, Katie Pavlich, Ralph Reed and Kevin Walling. Sunday special: Stephen Breyer. NBC “Meet the Press”: Mitch Landrieu … South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem. Panel: Molly Ball, Greg Bluestein, Symone Sanders-Townsend and Carlos Curbelo. NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) … Ben Carson … Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Panel: George Will, Hans Nichols and Julia Manchester. MSNBC “Velshi”: CFPB Director Rohit Chopra … Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) … Eugene Vindman … Michael Mann. ABC “This Week”: Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) … Jon Meacham, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Frank Luntz … Bill Nye. Panel: Reince Priebus, Barbara Comstock, Asma Khalid and Vivian Salama. CBS “Face the Nation”: New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham … Michael Morell … Robert O’Brien. 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 and Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
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