| | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | TICK TOCK — One month until Election Day. RETURN TO BUTLER — Former President DONALD TRUMP heads back to Butler, Pennsylvania, today — his first visit to the site since a would-be assassin’s bullet nearly took his life there. This time, however, his political situation looks much more tenuous, as our Meridith McGraw and Lisa Kashinsky write this morning: “Trump appeared to be well on his way to the White House after he was shot nearly three months ago. He was coming off a dominating debate performance against JOE BIDEN, was leading in national polls and arrived at his nominating convention in Milwaukee a near-martyr.” Now Trump is neck-and-neck with VP KAMALA HARRIS, with all-important Pennsylvania a virtual tie. Trump is hoping to use the visit to rally his supporters with just a month before the election. But it also marks a bitter milestone for residents of the area, Meridith and Lisa continue, as they recall how one of their own was killed shielding his family from stray bullets and others were injured. “The assassination attempt stunned residents in the western Pennsylvania steel town of roughly 13,000 that has now been marked as a crime scene and transformed into something of a tourist attraction,” they write.
|  VP Kamala Harris may have a Michigan problem. | Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo | MICHIGAN MORASS — Harris huddled last night in Michigan with Arab and Muslim leaders, in what WaPo described as an “ongoing effort to stem defections from a pivotal group of voters who have fiercely criticized President Joe Biden for his staunch support of Israel’s wars in Gaza and now Lebanon.” But on the ground, some Democrats worry Harris still isn’t doing enough — and that the party is taking their state for granted. Home to the largest Arab American community in the nation, the Wolverine State was always going to be complicated for Democrats this cycle given what’s happened in the Middle East over the past year. But the escalating violence between Israel and Lebanon might as well have picked off a scab and poured salt in the wounds. That’s especially true following news of the death of Lebanese American HAJJ KAMEL AHMAD JAWAD in an Israeli airstrike, whom the administration mistakenly referred to as a noncitizen before acknowledging his citizenship. Jawad and his extended family are widely known in the Dearborn community; his wife worked in the public schools there for years. What’s more, with Israel now undertaking a ground incursion into Lebanon that has many fearing another extended occupation akin to what took place through the 1980s and 1990s, Michigan’s large Lebanese Christian population is now just as angry as Palestinian Americans. It was against this backdrop that Harris decided to take yesterday’s meeting — with a select group. Harris’ team invited a Muslim advocacy group, Emgage Action, that has already endorsed her, as well as the American Task Force on Lebanon and prominent Palestinian American activist friend HALA HIJAZI, who’s reportedly a Harris friend. Not invited? Leaders of the “Uncommitted” and “Abandon Biden”-turned-“Abandon Harris” movements — which remain serious threats to Harris’ candidacy in the must-win state. (Harris had previously met with Uncommitted leaders.) “What we need right now is for [Harris] to specifically say that as president she will respect international humanitarian and U.S. law and stop sending the Israeli military weapons for war crimes,” Uncommitted leader ABBAS ALAWIEH said yesterday on X. “And we reiterate our longstanding request: meet with Palestinian & Lebanese American families whose loved ones have been killed using U.S. bombs.” Those who were invited said they pushed Harris to “do everything in her power” to end the violence and, if elected, to “reset” U.S. policy in the Middle East. In one sign of progress for Harris, some former Michigan uncommitted voters are now part of a newly formed “Arab Americans for Harris-Walz,” WaPo reports. But then you read statements like this: “Harris is going to lose Michigan,” ALI DAGHER, a Lebanese American community leader, told Reuters’ Nandita Bose, Andrea Shalal and Jeff Mason. “I will not be voting for Kamala Harris. No one I know will vote for her. I cannot find a single person in the community who supports her.”
| | | | A message from USAFacts: Americans deserve clear, trustworthy facts to make up their minds on today’s most pressing issues. In this new series, USAFacts Founder Steve Ballmer walks through the data on immigration, the economy, healthcare, and much more, to help you inform your perspective. Get the numbers, not rhetoric, topic by topic. | | | The tensions aren’t limited to the Arab community. A simmering feud among Michigan Democrats over Rep. RASHIDA TLAIB’s criticism of AG DANA NESSEL’s move to charge anti-Israel demonstrators has enraged both Jews and Muslims in the state. There’s ongoing anxiety about the Biden administration’s push toward electric vehicles, a huge issue given the state’s ties to the auto industry. (Harris, notably, tried to turn the tables on the EV issue yesterday, accusing Trump of threatening hundreds of Michigan jobs.) And that’s on top of the usual in-state griping about the national campaign not doing enough to coordinate with local leaders on the ground. (One blunder a birdie told us about: The campaign initially forgot to invite the Michigan AFL-CIO president to Harris’ Labor Day event in Detroit, an oversight that was caught and rectified, the campaign said.) The Harris campaign told us they’re very much minding the Mitten. “We know Michigan is neck-and-neck, and we’re acting accordingly,” said spokesperson LAUREN HITT, rattling off key stats, including the fact that Harris herself has traveled to Michigan more than any other state besides Pennsylvania. This weekend, she noted, “top tier surrogates” including Sens. BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) and MARK KELLY (D-Ariz.), Rep. JIM CLYBURN (D-S.C.) and United Auto Workers President SHAWN FAIN will be campaigning in the state. Yes, polling continues to show Harris with a slim lead in the Wolverine State. But given all this, don’t be surprised when you hear folks like Rep. DEBBIE DINGELL, the matriarch of the state’s delegation and famous Trump Cassandra, tell CBS that “I don’t think either of the candidates has won Michigan yet,” or Rep. ELISSA SLOTKIN, running for Senate alongside Harris, telling her donors: “I’m not feeling my best right now about where we are.” Good Saturday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels. ANOTHER PRE-BUTLER READ — “As Lawmaker Claims Trump’s Shooting Was Inside Job, G.O.P. Indulges Him,” by NYT’s Annie Karni: Rep. ELI CRANE, “a first-term Republican from Arizona, has been everywhere that will have him, promoting conspiracy theories about the assassination attempts against Mr. Trump, despite all evidence that such theories are false. And far from sidelining or attempting to silence him, Republican leaders have given him a prominent platform to air his outlandish claims at the highest levels, lending credence to the conspiracy theories spread by him and others on the far right. … “‘I think they’re theories, and if you want to classify them as conspiracy theories I’m OK with that,’ he said in an interview on Thursday. ‘What usually happens in this country when catastrophic things like this tend to occur, there’s a mainstream narrative and anyone who veers is called a conspiracy theorist or a kook.’”
| | | | A message from USAFacts:   Want to know the facts on immigration, taxes and spending? Steve Ballmer, former Microsoft CEO and owner of the LA Clippers, shares facts and data, you make up your mind! | | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | At the White House Biden and first lady JILL BIDEN will travel to South Bend, Indiana, in the afternoon, before heading to Camp David for the rest of the weekend. Harris will travel to and from Charlotte, North Carolina, where she’ll get a briefing about the Hurricane Helene recovery, meet with people affected and deliver an update on the federal response in the afternoon. On the trail Trump will return to Butler for a rally at 5 p.m.
| | | |  | |  VP Kamala Harris is planning to go more negative against Donald Trump. | Alex Brandon/AP Photo | HARRIS’ FINAL SPRINT — With a month to go, Harris is planning to turn more negative against Trump to coax undecided voters into her column, NBC’s Monica Alba, Jonathan Allen, Peter Nicholas and Yamiche Alcindor report. Her internal testing has shown that tougher language and ads could make an impact — especially presenting Trump as unstable — in a race that hasn’t budged from a coin toss in a while. Harris is also expanding her new media strategy with an appearance on ALEX COOPER’s “Call Her Daddy” podcast, which will post next week, per Axios’ Sareen Habeshian. Her campaign is much bigger and better funded than Trump’s, WaPo’s Josh Dawsey, Michael Scherer, Clara Ence Morse and Theo Meyer report. But, but, but: Some Democrats are fretting that Harris could fumble the race away by playing it too safe, as both Myah Ward, Elena Schneider, Eli Stokols, Jonathan Lemire and Megan Messerly and NBC’s Peter Nicholas, Natasha Korecki, Monica Alba and Matt Dixon report. Even some of her own staffers tell our colleagues they’re concerned about her fairly light, media-shy schedule, which has largely buttoned up her and eschewed risks. The likes of DAVID AXELROD argue Harris needs to be barnstorming swing states more — and showing more unscripted authenticity. The greatest fear is a repeat of HILLARY CLINTON in 2016, some say, if Harris acts like she’s protecting a lead (even as her campaign insists they’re underdogs). RACE FOR THE WHITE HOUSE ON THE TRAIL — Trump announced yesterday in Fayetteville, North Carolina, that he would return Fort Liberty’s name to Fort Bragg, once again honoring the Confederate general, if elected again, per The Fayetteville Observer’s Rachael Riley. SCOTT McAFEE NOT GOING THERE — “Judge dismisses Republican lawsuit alleging voting machine vulnerabilities,” by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Niesse ONE TO WATCH — “Conservative Activists Are Monitoring, and Filming, Voter Registration Sites,” by NYT’s Jack Healy: “Despite the many debunked falsehoods about widespread voting by noncitizens, liberal Latino advocacy groups say they are being trailed by conservative activists with cameras and accused of registering undocumented immigrants.” RACE FOR THE STATES VOTING ABOUT VOTING — Following a state Supreme Court move yesterday, Arizona voters will indeed decide this fall whether to create open primaries in their elections, AP’s Gabriel Sandoval reports from Phoenix. The ballot initiative, which conservatives had challenged, would create a sea change in Arizona primaries, putting candidates from all parties together and having the top two finishers go to the general election. RACE FOR THE HOUSE NARRATIVE WATCH — “House Democrats’ new bogeyman: Project 2025,” by Nick Wu and Madison Fernandez POLL POSITION National: Harris and Trump tied at 49 percent, per RMG Research. … Nevada: Harris +3, Sen. JACKY ROSEN +7, per the Tarrance Group.
| | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | |  The devastation from Hurricane Helene could have an impact on the election too. | Mario Tama/Getty Images | 5 THINGS THAT STUCK WITH US 1. HURRICANE HELENE FALLOUT: As the Southeast continues to dig out from a devastating storm, the potential political impacts are coming into view. Ariel Wittenberg, Avery Ellfeldt and Thomas Frank report this striking factoid: Never before has a natural disaster of this scale hit two swing states so close to a presidential election. In North Carolina and Georgia, there’s reason for the Trump campaign to worry, as the counties where a disaster has been declared leaned toward him overall in 2020. But bright-blue Asheville was the urban epicenter of the damage. And serious shifts in the electorate in these regions could make a big impact. Of particular concern is what will happen to damaged voting sites, lost mail ballots and overall voter turnout. The Assembly’s Kate Denning notes that mail service has been suspended for millions of people, though officials say they’ll work to make sure absentee ballots get delivered. In the hurricane response, meanwhile, FEMA faces two struggles: not only getting desperately needed aid to hard-to-reach mountainous communities, but counteracting a flood of online misinformation, WaPo’s Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Maxine Joselow, Clara Ence Morse and Will Oremus report. The claim that migrant aid has been siphoned from disaster relief funding has been particularly rampant; as WaPo’s Glenn Kessler fact-checks, only Trump, not Biden, has done that. Related news: In a letter to Congress, Biden said that beyond the short-term response, FEMA and the Defense Department may need more funding — but even more urgent is a Small Business Administration loan program that’s running out of money, CNN’s Kayla Tausche and Lauren Fox report. Fact check: “No, Biden didn’t take FEMA relief money to use on migrants — but Trump did,” by WaPo’s Glenn Kessler 2. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: Biden didn’t sound happy yesterday with Israeli PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, saying that “Bibi should remember” how much Biden has helped Israel and that he didn’t know if Netanyahu was trying to influence the U.S. election by holding out on a cease-fire, per the AP. Biden also encouraged Israel not to go after Iranian oil in an expected retaliatory strike, after he’d opened the door to it earlier this week, per Bloomberg. But the U.S. may have more to worry about than oil: CNN’s Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler report that Israel hasn’t told the U.S. it’s ruled out hitting Iranian nuclear facilities. As Biden tries to coax the region toward peace, he faces intransigence on all sides. In U.S. officials’ view, Hamas leader YAHYA SINWAR has grown “fatalistic,” convinced he’ll die, opposed to a cease-fire and eager to see a broader regional war targeting Israel, NYT’s Julian Barnes, Adam Goldman and Edward Wong report. And short of Biden getting much tougher on Israel, not only has Netanyahu continually proven resistant to U.S. entreaties, as Bloomberg’s Peter Martin, Fiona MacDonald, Dan Williams and Iain Marlow capture; now the U.S. isn’t even getting a heads up about Israeli decisions, WSJ’s Lara Seligman and Vera Bergengruen report. As FT’s Edward Luce puts it, “Netanyahu is ‘running rings’ around Biden.” Elsewhere in the region: The U.S. attacked 15 targets in Yemen tied to the Houthi rebels, per Reuters. 3. HACK ATTACK: “U.S. Wiretap Systems Targeted in China-Linked Hack,” by WSJ’s Sarah Krouse, Dustin Volz, Aruna Viswanatha and Robert McMillan: “A cyberattack tied to the Chinese government penetrated the networks of a swath of U.S. broadband providers, potentially accessing information from systems the federal government uses for court-authorized network wiretapping requests. For months or longer, the hackers might have held access … Verizon Communications, AT&T and Lumen Technologies are among the companies … The widespread compromise is considered a potentially catastrophic security breach.”
| | | | A message from USAFacts:   USAFacts: Data straight from the source. | | | 4. SCOTUS WATCH: The Supreme Court yesterday took up — and declined to take up — a number of notable cases for this term: What’s in: A debate about whether the Mexican government can sue American gun manufacturers for providing the weapons that fuel cartel violence, Josh Gerstein reports. The question of whether a man on death row is entitled to DNA testing. A challenge to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s authority over nuclear waste storage. And a dispute over police officers’ use of deadly force. The latter three all stem from the very conservative Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which the Supreme Court has repeatedly reined in of late, NYT’s Abbie VanSickle and Adam Liptak report. What’s out: The court dismissed two emergency challenges to Biden climate regulations, NBC’s Lawrence Hurley reports. The rules limiting methane and mercury emissions will remain in place for now. 5. IMMIGRATION FILES: “Biden administration won’t renew parole for immigrants from four countries,” by WaPo’s Maria Sacchetti: “[I]mmigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who entered the United States through a parole program will have to leave the country once their two-year permits expire if they have not found another way to stay. … [I]t is likely that only a small number of people are at imminent risk … Republicans slammed the Biden administration for making it appear as though it was cracking down on immigration … Meanwhile, some advocates for immigrants worried … Fewer than 100,000 Nicaraguans could be at risk — but they, too, may apply for asylum.” CLICKER — “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker — 15 funnies
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M.Wuerker - Politico | GREAT WEEKEND READS: — “Russian Missiles, American Chips,” by Bloomberg’s Stephanie Baker and Daryna Krasnolutska: “How a weapon packed with US technology killed a 6-year-old girl in Ukraine.” — “As America’s Marijuana Use Grows, So Do the Harms,” by NYT’s Megan Twohey, Danielle Ivory and Carson Kessler: “The drug, legal in much of the country, is widely seen as nonaddictive and safe. For some users, these assumptions are dangerously wrong.” — “Murder for hire: Inside Iran’s proxy war with Israel in the West,” by Reuters’ Renee Maltezou, Cassell Bryan-Low, Yannis Souliotis and Phil Stewart: “The Islamic Republic’s long shadow war with Israel is playing out in the West with a rise in alleged Iran-linked murder and kidnapping plots, often with the help of hired assassins.” — “Has Social Media Fuelled a Teen-Suicide Crisis?” by Andrew Solomon in The New Yorker: “Mental-health struggles have risen sharply among young Americans, and parents and lawmakers alike are scrutinizing life online for answers.” — “The Hindutva Lobby,” by Andrew Cockburn in Harper’s: “How Hindu nationalism spreads in America.” — “You Are Going to Die,” by The Atlantic’s Hillary Kelly: “Oliver Burkeman has become an unlikely self-help guru by reminding everyone of their mortality.”
| | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Hakeem Jeffries said Eric Adams should not resign. Joe Biden slammed Marco Rubio’s false claim of a “fake” jobs report. Jamie Dimon debunked Donald Trump’s claim that he’d endorsed him. Ben Horowitz is getting behind Kamala Harris. Jared Kushner has talked with Mohammed bin Salman about U.S.-Saudi diplomacy. Brian Kemp and Trump made nice. IN MEMORIAM — “Steven Hurst, who covered world events for The Associated Press, NBC and CNN, has died at 77,” by AP’s Jamie Stengle: “[A] career highlight came when he covered the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 … He spent the last eight years of his career in Washington writing about U.S. politics and government.” OUT AND ABOUT — Latino Men On the Hill, a new group looking to foster professional development to help Latino Hill staffers advance to higher positions, met for a Hispanic Heritage Month event at Hamilton’s Bar & Grill. SPOTTED: Eddie Meyer, Brian Garcia, Javier Gamboa, Noel Perez, Leo Mendoza, Andres Gomez, Erik Gomez, Ishmael Abuabara and Raymond Rodriguez. Instapic — SPOTTED at a party for Sonia Purnell’s new book, “Kingmaker: Pamela Harriman’s Astonishing Life of Power, Seduction, and Intrigue” ($35), hosted by Melissa Moss and Jonathan Silver in Georgetown last night: British Ambassador Karen Pierce, Sally Quinn, Matt Bennett, Byron Dorgan, Juleanna Glover, Bruce Andrews and Didem Nisanci, Linda Douglass and John Phillips, Nelson Cunningham, and Gerry McGowan and Susan Brophy. TRANSITIONS — Gurbir Grewal will be a partner in Milbank’s litigation and arbitration practice in their New York office, Bloomberg’s Nicola White and Ava Benny-Morrison report. He’s leaving his role as the SEC’s enforcement chief this month. … Will Townsend is now political director at the Specialty Equipment Market Association. He previously was at the American Petroleum Institute, where he oversaw carbon management campaigns and established its first nationwide field organizing effort. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — John Sutter, a managing director on FTI Consulting’s energy and natural resources team, and Amy Sutter, a stay-at-home mom and former kindergarten teacher, welcomed Collins Kate Sutter on Thursday afternoon. She came in at 9 lbs, 3 oz, and joins big siblings George and Remi. Pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) … Panasonic’s Megan Pollock … Alexandra Pelosi … Mark Paoletta … American Clean Power Association’s Karina (Petersen) Borger … former Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) … Jonathan Wilcox of Rep. Darrell Issa’s (R-Calif.) office … Timothy Barrett of the Office of the DNI … AEI’s Joseph Kosten … Michael Petruzzello … Matt Well of the Herald Group … Nicole Brener-Schmitz of NBS Strategies … John Jasik … D.J. Koessler … Mandy Grunwald … Teresa Heinz Kerry … Tyler Goldberg of Assembly Global … Jon Banner … Willson Lee Henderson THE SHOWS (Full Sunday show listings here): ABC “This Week”: Speaker Mike Johnson … FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. Panel: Donna Brazile, Reince Priebus, Julie Pace and Adam Nagourney. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Speaker Mike Johnson … Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) … Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.). Panel: Michael Allen, Susan Page, Karl Rove and Juan Williams. Sunday special: Hadassah and Matthew Lieberman. CNN “State of the Union”: Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) … RNC Co-Chair Lara Trump … Larry Hogan … Jonathan Greenblatt. MSNBC “The Weekend”: Dan Osborn … Debbie Mucarsel-Powell … Olivia Troye. NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: John Bolton … Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.) … Eric Hovde. Panel: Hans Nichols, David Weigel, Sabrina Siddiqui and Julia Manchester. CBS “Face the Nation”: Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) … Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) … Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio) … Catherine Russell … retired Gen. Frank McKenzie. NBC “Meet the Press”: Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) … Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Panel: Andrea Mitchell, Amna Nawaz, Jen Psaki and Marc Short. 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. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook misspelled Kimberly Cheatle’s name.
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