| | | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | Presented by |  | | | |  | THE CATCH-UP | | | TOP TALKER I — Israel secretly funded an influence operation to sway members of Congress, especially Black Democrats, to keep supporting money to Israel, NYT’s Sheera Frenkel reports. Though the campaign’s existence last year — creating fake pro-Israel social media commentary by posing as American accounts — had already been reported, the Times newly revealed that it was state-operated and funded with about $2 million. This is the type of campaign we’re more accustomed to seeing from China or Russia. (The Israeli ministry denied involvement.) Targets included House Minority Leader HAKEEM JEFFRIES, Sen. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-Ga.) and Rep. RITCHIE TORRES (D-N.Y.). TOP TALKER II — Democratic outrage mushroomed today over the WSJ article that reported President JOE BIDEN is slipping cognitively behind the scenes: Rep. NANCY PELOSI (D-Calif.), Sens. CHRIS COONS (D-Del.) and JACK REED (D-R.I.), and North Carolina Gov. ROY COOPER all said they’d given the Journal interviews that ran counter to its narrative of decline, but none were quoted.
|  The pro-Trump MAGA Inc. super PAC raked in a big haul in May. | Alex Kent for POLITICO | CASH DASH — With precisely five months to go before the election, campaign fundraising and spending plans are kicking into a higher gear. This morning brought several new announcements of massive sums that could reshape the political landscape from the presidential race on down. MAGA Inc., the super PAC supporting DONALD TRUMP, raised a stunning $70 million in May, NYT’s Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan report. That matches the Trump campaign’s self-reported surge in donations at the end of last month, after his conviction on 34 felony charges in Manhattan outraged many Republicans. The cash infusions are going a long way toward making up Trump’s cash-on-hand deficit to Biden so far this cycle. And a MAGA Inc. memo from chief executive TAYLOR BUDOWICH that the Times obtained lays out a plan for a $100 million spending blitz over the summer, targeting Black, Latino and white working-class voters in several swing states, especially Pennsylvania and Georgia. Not to be outdone (or, well, to be outdone by only half), the nonprofits Climate Power and Future Forward USA Action are readying a $50 million spending blitz to bolster Biden, per WaPo’s Michael Scherer. Their nonpartisan ads, while not directly referencing the election, aim to shore up voters’ understanding of the president’s achievements by contrasting his moves on drug prices, clean energy, oil industry profits and pollution with Trump’s legal troubles. They’ll air in six key swing states starting Friday, targeting Black, Latino and young voters. And much more will follow from these and other outside Biden allies, who have been dominating the airwaves. Down ballot, the American Civil Liberties Union is devoting $25 million to a number of races, its largest-ever election investment, NBC’s Adam Edelman scooped. With a focus on abortion rights, the ACLU will target Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate race, several state Supreme Court campaigns and multiple state legislative contests, along with abortion ballot referendums. For the first time, the ACLU has created a federal super PAC to spend the money: DEIRDRE SCHIFELING, the ACLU’s chief political and advocacy officer, says the organization is making a concerted effort to go on offense more than before. The nonpartisan group is focusing largely on voter education. SPENDING SHOWDOWN — House Republicans took their first big step on fiscal 2025 appropriations this morning, passing the Military Construction-VA bill on a 209-197 vote. It’s a victory for GOP leadership, who were able to keep all but two Republicans on board. Republicans want to pass all 12 spending bills this summer to maximize leverage with Democrats in negotiations over spending cuts. But this is also the easiest of the 12 bills — and a White House veto threat already looms over its conservative policy riders. More from The Hill THE KEYS TO THE VAULT — Speaker MIKE JOHNSON is adding Reps. SCOTT PERRY (R-Pa.) and RONNY JACKSON (R-Texas) to the House Intelligence Committee, per Olivia Beavers. The Freedom Caucus had been advocating for Perry and Trump for Jackson, though the idea of Perry in particular gaining access to highly sensitive intelligence has given GOP members of the committee “debilitating heartburn,” as Olivia reported last month. Good Wednesday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Why is GEORGE SANTOS not on “The Traitors” season 3? Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.
| | | | A message from Groundwork Collaborative: Do you think the tax code is fair? We don’t — and it’s time to fix it.
For too long, the tax code has been slanted towards the wealthy and large corporations, and the economy and our country have suffered as a result. The expiration of key provisions of the Trump tax law in 2025 is a rare opportunity to reform the tax code and ensure it is fair, raises revenue, and supports equitable economic growth. Learn more. | | | | | 8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW | | |  Though Hunter Biden said he saw art as a refuge from his public scrutiny, struggles and scandals, the paintings ultimately became a political target too. | Samuel Corum/Getty Images | 1. NIGHT OF THE HUNTER: At HUNTER BIDEN’s gun trial today in Wilmington, Delaware, his ex-girlfriend and ex-wife both testified about his struggles with drug addiction, which go to the heart of prosecutors’ charge that in order to buy a gun, he lied on a form about using drugs. Ex-girlfriend ZOE KESTAN said Hunter Biden once called her a “distraction” from using crack cocaine, while KATHLEEN BUHLE talked about finding drugs in the house. The defense, trying to thread a narrow needle, argued that the prosecution had scant evidence of Hunter Biden actively using drugs right when he purchased the gun — only in the months before and after. Live updates from NBC Meanwhile, NYT’s Julia Jacobs, Graham Bowley and Mattathias Schwartz take a closer look at Hunter Biden’s art sales, which ultimately have been for much smaller amounts than a New York gallery was originally reportedly to be selling the pieces for. In total, though, GEORGE BERGÈS has sold $1.5 million worth of his art, and the president’s son received about $131,000 in the first two years they were up. Though Hunter Biden said he saw art as a refuge from his public scrutiny, struggles and scandals, the paintings ultimately became a political target too. 2. FOR YOUR RADAR: “Gunman captured after shootout outside US Embassy in Lebanon,” by AP’s Kareem Chehayeb and Lujain Jo in Aukar: “A gunman who attacked the U.S. embassy near Beirut was shot and captured by Lebanese soldiers after a Wednesday morning shootout that injured an embassy security guard, the military and embassy officials said. … Lebanese media have published photos that appear to show a bloodied attacker wearing a black vest with the words ‘Islamic State.’” 3. ISRAEL-HAMAS LATEST: CIA Director WILLIAM BURNS and BRETT McGURK are returning to the Middle East this week to try to make progress toward a cease-fire in the war, NYT’s Adam Rasgon and Julian Barnes report. “But statements by Israeli and Hamas officials in recent days suggested that a breakthrough was still elusive,” and Burns’ meeting isn’t expected to yield a huge change, as the world still awaits a response from Hamas leader YAHYA SINWAR and more clarity from Israel. National security adviser JAKE SULLIVAN told NBC today that the Biden/Israel proposal is still on the table and just waiting for Hamas. 4. BIG BLOW FOR GARY GENSLER: “SEC Hedge Fund Fee Disclosure Rule Struck Down by US Court,” by Bloomberg’s Madlin Mekelburg and Rachel Graf: “A federal appeals court struck down the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules requiring hedge funds and private equity firms to detail quarterly fees and expenses to investors, a significant setback for the regulator. The US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans on Wednesday sided with the private funds industry, which argued that the agency overstepped its authority and that rules weren’t necessary.”
| | | | 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. | | | | | 5. HOW THE RULE OF LAW ENDS: “The G.O.P. Push for Post-Verdict Payback: ‘Fight Fire With Fire,’” by NYT’s Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman and Charlie Savage: “The intensity of anger and open desire for using the criminal justice system against Democrats after the verdict surpasses anything seen before in Mr. Trump’s tumultuous years in national politics. What is different now is the range of Republicans who are saying retaliation is necessary and who are no longer cloaking their intent with euphemisms.” “There are dozens of ambitious backbencher state attorneys general and district attorneys who need to ‘seize the day’ and own this moment in history,” STEVE BANNON texted. Going even further: LAURA LOOMER called for Democrats to be executed. 6. DEMOCRACY WATCH: The RNC says it will deploy 100,000 volunteers and staffers to serve as poll monitors, election workers and attorneys around November, amid widespread and false conspiracy theories about voter fraud, NBC’s Adam Edelman and Jane Timm report. It has tapped more than a dozen state heads of “election integrity,” and is holding weekly trainings, saying that recruit numbers are already in the tens of thousands. But Democratic critics say the RNC will never reach 100,000, and the GOP “has otherwise provided scant details on its plans” for recruitment, training and more. 7. BEYOND THE BELTWAY: “Conservative attacks on birth control could threaten access,” by WaPo’s Lauren Weber: “[F]ar-right conservatives have been trying to curtail birth-control access by sowing misinformation about how various methods work to prevent pregnancy, even as Republican leaders scramble to reassure voters they have no intention of restricting the right to contraception … The divide illustrates growing Republican tensions over the political cost of the ‘personhood’ movement to endow an embryo with human rights.” 8. SWING-STATE DISPATCH: As Trump tries to woo Black male voters, Reps. BYRON DONALDS (R-Fla.) and WESLEY HUNT (R-Texas) were in Philadelphia last night, for a “cognac and cigars” event urging Black communities to ditch the Dems — and Republicans to invest in reaching them, Semafor’s Kadia Goba reports. “Donalds and Hunt were trying to show what a targeted, on-the-ground strategy might look like — perhaps proof of concept for a larger effort.” Attendees mostly cited concerns about inflation and LGBTQ+ rights. Donalds and Hunt emphasized that many Black people have fundamentally conservative views and vote Democratic only out of tradition, Brakkton Booker reports.
| | | | POLITICO is gearing up to deliver experiences that help you navigate the NATO Summit. What issues should our reporting and events spotlight? Click here to let us know. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Kelly Magsamen, DOD chief of staff, is stepping down after 3.5 years as a key adviser to Lloyd Austin, Lara Seligman scooped. Michael McCaul threatened a subpoena against Jen Psaki. Harry Dunn is launching a new PAC to support “Democracy Defenders.” 50 Cent was on the Hill. OUT AND ABOUT — The Climate Leadership Council hosted an event on Capitol Hill last night to celebrate recent progress on market-driven climate policies. SPOTTED: Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) and Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Greg Bertelsen, Tiffany Adams, Catrina Rorke, Kathryn Murdoch, Robert Litterman, Véronique Bardach and Gary Rieschel. — SPOTTED yesterday at the Congressional Management Foundation lunch honoring the finalists for the 2024 Democracy Awards, at the offices of the American Council of Life Insurers: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Sean Casten (D-Ill.), Don Davis (D-N.C.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), Susie Lee (D-Nev.), Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), Blake Moore (R-Utah), Burgess Owens (R-Utah) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.). MEDIA MOVE — Mary Katharine Ham is joining Fox News Media as a contributor. TRANSITIONS — Dustin Carmack is now director of public policy for the southern and southeastern U.S. at Meta. He previously was policy director and senior adviser for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign, and is an ODNI and John Ratcliffe alum. … J.T. Foley has been named executive director for the Coalition for Fantasy Sports. He previously was VP of government relations at the Las Vegas Sands Corp. … Evan Ross is now director of media at the creative agency This January. He is a Purple Strategies, FleishmanHillard and FP1 Strategies alum. … … Henry Haggard is now a senior adviser at WestExec Advisors. He spent 25 years at the State Department, most recently as a member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of counselor. He also was named a senior fellow at the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies at Rice University and is a senior associate at CSDS. … Brandon Possin is founding a science marketplace startup in Japan. He previously was a diplomat with the State Department. … Dickinson Wright is adding Robert Driscoll and Lee Petro as members and Alfred Carry as of counsel. WEDDING — Heather Rawls, a senior manager supporting federal health care clients at Deloitte, and Brian Hawthorne, a specialist leader also at Deloitte supporting VA/DOD clients and a sergeant major in the U.S. Army Reserve, got married Friday at the Creek Club at I’on in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. Their fathers, both Methodist ministers, co-officiated. The couple met while working together at Deloitte. Instapics WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Mike Dankler, deputy chief of staff for Rep. Rudy Yakym (R-Ind.) and a Jackie Walorski and Peter Roskam alum, and Carole Anne Dankler, director of operations for Rep. John Rutherford (R-Fla.) and a Chuck Fleischmann alum, welcomed Louis Andrew Dankler on Thursday. Pic … Another pic — Carly Shanahan, VP of corporate comms at NewsNation, and Brenden Bailey, associate at Wells Fargo Advisors, welcomed Charles “Charlie” Robert Bailey on May 28. Pic … Another pic BONUS BIRTHDAY: Everytown’s Kate Brescia 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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