| | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza | | | With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross
| 
McCarthy, Trump's inner circle feels, has taken advantage of the former president when it benefits him and failed to show unflinching loyalty in return. | Evan Vucci/AP Photo | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | MY, KEVIN — Former President DONALD TRUMP has catapulted the career of many a Republican over the past eight years, elevating backbenchers into stars and breathing new relevance into more than a few GOP has-beens. None, however, have benefited from his favor more than KEVIN McCARTHY. In every conceivable way, the House speaker owes his gavel to Trump. The former president embraced McCarthy — once dubbed a “RINO” by conservatives — during his time in the White House, elevating the California Republican as he feuded with other GOP congressional leaders. He personally intervened in January to ensure McCarthy won his dream job, ultimately convincing his critics to stand down amid a battle for the speakership. And just a few weeks ago, Trump notably kept quiet about the debt ceiling deal McCarthy struck with President JOE BIDEN — a major, and intentional, boost for the speaker that was crucial in ensuring the deal could withstand a conservative pile-on. That’s why it came as a shock yesterday when McCarthy dissed Trump in a CNBC interview, openly questioning whether Trump would be Republicans’ best presidential nominee in 2024 after carefully avoiding the topic for months. “Can he win that election? Yeah, he can win that election,” McCarthy said, referring to a Biden-Trump matchup. “The question is: ‘Is he the strongest to win the election?’ I don’t know that answer.” Unsurprisingly, Trump world flipped out. We’re told top aides to the former president and allies who know both men quickly traded messages asking, in short: What the fuck? Some called McCarthy a “moron,” we’re told. Others looked to Trump campaign hand BRIAN JACK, who also advises the speaker and has been a critical bridge between both men, to play mediator as Trump hit the trail in New Hampshire. McCarthy immediately pivoted into clean-up mode. He called Trump to apologize, according to the NYT’s Annie Karni. He offered Trump-loving Breitbart reporter Matt Boyle an exclusive interview, where he walked the comments back and accused the media of taking them out of context. “Trump is stronger today than he was in 2016,” McCarthy told Boyle.
| | | | A message from Meta: Augmented reality glasses will give you new ways to experience history.
People will be able to use augmented reality to explore Viking era settlements–helping them see, feel and fully experience what life was like.
The metaverse may be virtual, but the impact will be real.
Explore more possibilities with the metaverse. | | | This morning, we can report that none of these moves have assuaged the fury in Trump’s inner circle. McCarthy, they feel, has taken advantage of the former president when it benefits him and failed to show unflinching loyalty in return. They don’t understand how he could “misspeak” — as McCarthy, we’re told, put it to Trump — on something so critical. In fact, McCarthy’s damage control made things worse. After the debacle yesterday, the speaker’s campaign allies pushed out fundraising emails and texts claiming, “Trump is the STRONGEST opponent to Biden!” — then asking for money. Fundraising off of Trump’s name without permission is a huge no-no for the former president, whose team requires explicit approval for any campaign to use his name and likeness. Trump’s team, we’re told, asked McCarthy’s last night to take down the fundraising pitch. Now, it’s not the first time McCarthy has been crosswise with Trump. Shortly after the Jan. 6 insurrection, McCarthy floated the idea of censuring Trump for his actions and was later caught on tape discussing the idea of asking Trump to resign. Yet the two continued their symbiotic bond: McCarthy quickly assumed a key role in restoring Trump’s prominence in the GOP, and Trump stayed in McCarthy’s corner as he battled for the gavel. But yesterday’s drama came at a sensitive moment, with a major question already bouncing around Trump world: Why hasn’t McCarthy endorsed Trump? While it’s unclear if Trump has explicitly asked McCarthy for his support, his silence on the matter has baffled the former president and his close allies. McCarthy has told some Trump backers that he’s holding off because an endorsement “might hurt” Trump by tying him to the party establishment, according to one GOP campaign consultant who asked not to be named. He’s also suggested that as the highest-ranking Republican in office, just two heartbeats away from the presidency, perhaps he should stay neutral. But Trump’s allies aren’t buying that. The former president, the thinking goes, will never allow McCarthy to stay on the sidelines in a nasty GOP primary and expects his full support, something many of them think he’ll get eventually — and perhaps, now, sooner rather than later. “At what point is it okay for Kevin McCarthy not to endorse Trump?” the consultant above asked. “Donald Trump has been very good to Kevin McCarthy.” Yesterday’s brouhaha also raised questions about how long Trump should — or would — support McCarthy. Many of the ex-president’s strongest allies in Congress have been stacking up their grievances against McCarthy, waiting for the right moment to make a move. Several would be more than happy to force a vote to oust the speaker if Trump wanted — and Trump knows that. “If Donald Trump wanted … he could have him out as speaker by the end of the week,” the GOP consultant said. Good Wednesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza. WILL HE OR WON’T HE? — “Trump explores messing with the first GOP debate by holding a competing event,” by NBC’s Jonathan Allen, Matt Dixon, Garrett Haake and Henry J. Gomez: “In NBC News interviews with more than a half-dozen advisers to Trump, it was clear that — even in his private conversations — he is leaning heavily toward skipping that first debate. The former president is also exploring options for counter-programming during the first GOP debate, according to people familiar with his deliberations.” JUST POSTED — “Why does Mike Pence bother?” by T.A. Frank for WaPo Style: “For anyone who wants to be president, it’s a tough time to be a Mr. Nice Guy. If there’s an obvious question that hovers over [MIKE] PENCE’s choice to run — and to run this way, despite everything — it must be this: Why?”
| | | | A message from Meta:   | | | |  VP Kamala Harris addresses a campaign rally on June 23, 2023 in Washington, D.C. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | THE HARRIS RESET — Late last year, VP KAMALA HARRIS sat around a table with top aides who presented her with a document — a strategy roadmap for 2023. After a rocky start to her VP tenure, Harris & Co. felt they’d finally hit a stride and sketched out how to harness that momentum. The plan was straightforward: Get on the road as much as possible, and lean into issues that suit Harris’s skill set, with the fight for abortion rights atop the list. Eugene reports this morning on how a half-year later, the plan is playing out as the Biden-Harris campaign begins to rev its engines for 2024: (1) Harris is set to be front-and-center on the campaign trail and is already a fixture on the fundraising circuit, (2) abortion rights remains a top issue for voters, and (3) she has found a new level of comfort in her role. While the public’s doubts have not dissipated — Harris recently scored the lowest net negative rating of any vice president tested in an NBC News poll — many in Harris’ orbit believe the moment has come for a reassessment of her skills. “It’s a time to get the objective viewer to take a second look. She needs a pivot to that second look,” said JAMAL SIMMONS, Harris’ former comms director. “Most of the bad news about Kamala Harris is old news.”
| | BIDEN’S WEDNESDAY (all times Eastern):
8 a.m.: The president will receive the President’s Daily Brief.
9:10 a.m.: Biden will depart the White House en route to Chicago.
1 p.m.: Biden will deliver an address on what the administration has dubbed “Bidenomics.”
2:15 p.m.: Biden will participate in a campaign reception.
5:30 p.m.: Biden will depart Chicago to return to D.C.
HARRIS’ WEDNESDAY — The VP has nothing on her public schedule.
THE HOUSE and THE SENATE are out. | | | | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | PHOTO OF THE DAY
| 
A haze from Canadian wildfires is seen over the Milwaukee Art Museum on Tuesday, June 27, as the fires continue to make for low visibility conditions and Air Quality Alerts across the U.S. | Morry Gash/AP Photo | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | TRUMP CARDS DOCU-DRAMA — As the legal drama swirls around Trump’s possession of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago compound, there is also another setting that is coming into focus: his Bedminster, N.J., compound, where prosecutors allege that he showed off some of the documents to a handful of associates. “Trump’s behavior in New Jersey is yet another data point showing that the former president did not simply stash the boxes of sensitive documents, unopened and untouched, in the basement of his Florida club and forget about them,” WaPo’s Jacqueline Alemany, Josh Dawsey and Spencer Hsu report. “Instead, advisers said he was personally attached to and hyper-aware of the boxes, instructing that at least some of them accompany him from place-to-place, and appeared aware of what was inside.” What Trump said: On the trail in New Hampshire, Trump was asked about the newly released audio recording from Bedminster by Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser. “What did I say wrong on those recordings? I didn’t even see the recording. All I know is I did nothing wrong,” Trump said. “We had a lot of papers, a lot of papers stacked up. In fact, you hear the rustle of the paper. And nobody said that I did anything wrong other than the fake news, which is Fox, too.” The bravado defense: “I would say it’s bravado if you want to know the truth. It was bravado, I was talking and just holding up papers and talking about, but I have no documents, I didn’t have any documents,” Trump said yesterday, per ABC’s Rachel Scott. WHO’S TALKING — “Rudy Giuliani interviewed in special counsel’s 2020 election interference probe,” by CNN’s Paula Reid and Sara Murray TRIAL BALLOON — “Judge, rejecting Trump arguments, signals he’ll let New York criminal case stay in state court,” by AP’s Jennifer Peltz and Larry Neumeister
2024 WATCH
FLORIDA MAN FIGHT — In dueling campaign stops in New Hampshire yesterday, Trump and DeSantis displayed their disparate approaches to the trail, offering the latest split screen as the Florida governor tries to close the gap on the frontrunning Trump. DeSantis’ dynamic: In an effort to overcome past critiques, DeSantis submitted to a town-hall style event, where he was “pressed on two subjects he ordinarily avoids talking about in great detail: abortion and former President Donald Trump,” NBC’s Henry Gomez and Jonathan Allen write from Hollis, N.H. Florida focus: The governor mentioned Florida “about 80 times” during his town hall, NYT’s Jenna Russell, Jonathan Swan and Nicholas Nehamas note, adding this equally stunning anecdote: “Roughly an hour into the event, Mr. DeSantis finally got around to saying ‘New Hampshire.’” And while the NYT grants that his Florida focus was “at times well received,” it also “left the distinct impression that he believes Republican voters need what he is offering them more than he is interested in what he could learn from their questions.” TRUMP’S TACTICS — Trump is beginning to lean on political operatives in key early states to secure more friendly primary election rules for 2024, Reuters’ Nathan Layne, Alexandra Ulmer and Gram Slattery report. Trump campaign hand CHRIS LaCIVITA “confirmed that Nevada — an early primary state with a Trump-friendly state Republican leadership — was one of the campaign's targets. He declined to elaborate on the changes the campaign is seeking or to name the other states they are involved in.” PENCE PERSONNEL — Pence has tweaked his campaign staff, bringing on STEVE DeMAURA as campaign manager, our colleague Adam Wren scooped. DeMaura is a former executive director of the New Hampshire Republican Party and managed CARLY FIORINA’s 2016 campaign. WORD WAR — “‘He’s the cheapest S.O.B. I’ve ever met’: Christie rips Trump for diverting campaign money to PAC,” by Kelly Garrity MORE POLITICS PELOSI PICKS SIDES — Rep. NANCY PELOSI (D-Calif.) is preparing to jump into the Arizona Senate race by headlining a fundraiser for Rep. RUBEN GALLEGO (D-Ariz.), who is aiming to unseat Sen. KYRSTEN SINEMA (I-Ariz.), NBC’s Kate Santaliz reports. The Thursday virtual appearance marks a rare bit of politicking for Pelosi, whose only other involvement for 2024 has been backing Rep. ADAM SCHIFF’s (D-Calif.) Senate bid. THE WHITE HOUSE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER — “Hunter Biden Isn’t Hiding. Even Some Democrats Are Uncomfortable,” by NYT’s Peter Baker: “In the nation’s capital, where such things are rarely accidental and always noticed, the oh-so-public appearances came across as an in-your-face message of defiance by a president determined to show that he stands by his son in the face of relentlessly toxic attacks. Yet some Democrats, including current and former Biden administration officials, privately saw it as an unnecessary poke-the-bear gesture.”
| | | | A message from Meta:   | | | CONGRESS ANNALS OF WEAPONIZATION — “Impeachment? Censure? Stigma is falling away from Congress’ most severe punishments,” by AP’s Stephen Groves and Farnoush Amiri: “Long viewed as an option of last resort, to be triggered only for the most severe wrongdoing, the constitutionally authorized power of impeachment is rapidly moving from the extraordinary to the humdrum, driven in large part by Republicans and their grievances about how Democrats twice impeached President Donald Trump.” MARK YOUR CALENDARS — “Merrick Garland to testify before House panel as GOP ramps up scrutiny of probes,” by NBC’s Katherine Doyle, Rebecca Kaplan and Megan Lebowitz: “The hearing scheduled for Sept. 20 will put [AG MERRICK] GARLAND face to face with one of his biggest GOP critics: [Judiciary] Committee Chair JIM JORDAN of Ohio.” A DIFFERENT KIND OF RUSSIA REVIVAL — “Russia mutiny revives stagnant talk of increasing Ukraine aid in Congress,” by Joe Gould, Connor O’Brien, Lee Hudson and Paul McLeary HEADS UP — Sens. JEANNE SHAHEEN (D-N.H.) and THOM TILLIS (R-N.C.) will lead a bipartisan congressional delegation to the 2023 NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, the two senators announced this morning. JUDICIARY SQUARE SCOTUS WATCH — The Supreme Court’s major decision yesterday rejecting the so-called independent state legislature theory ensured that state Supreme Courts will remain ultimate arbiters of partisan gerrymandering, and that they can rein in legislatures looking to use redistricting to eviscerate a minority party, our colleagues Zach Montellaro, Ally Mutnick and Madison Fernandez write in a stepback look. It also means that previously under-the-radar judicial contests will continue to see millions of dollars pour in to influence their outcomes. Presidential fallout: “How the Supreme Court’s decision on election law could shut the door on future fake electors,” by Zach, Kyle Cheney and Madison First-person perspective: “Reflections on Winning Moore v. Harper,” by Neal Katyal on Substack Lighting the fuse: “There’s a Time Bomb in Progressives’ Big Supreme Court Voting Case Win,” by Richard Hasan for Slate POLICY CORNER THE BRAVE NEW WORLD — “The Pentagon’s endless struggle with AI,” by Mohar Chatterjee: “The military needs more AI technology, faster — which means first getting out of its own way. TOP-ED — ROCHELLE WALENSKY writes for NYT Opinion: “What I Need to Tell America Before I Leave the C.D.C.” AMERICA AND THE WORLD AFTER-ACTION ASSESSMENTS — “Russian General Knew About Mercenary Chief’s Rebellion Plans, U.S. Officials Say,” by NYT’s Julian Barnes, Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt … “After Wagner Revolt, Questions of Blame in Vladimir Putin’s Inner Circle,” by WSJ’s Alan Cullison DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — “U.S. Considers New Curbs on AI Chip Exports to China,” by WSJ’s Asa Fitch, Yuka Hayashi and John McKinnon MEDIAWATCH GUT CHECK — “How Fox News (Yes, Fox News) Managed to Beat ‘The Tonight Show,’” by NYT’s Matt Flegenheimer and Jeremy Peters: “GREG GUTFELD has installed his brand of insult conservatism as the institutional voice for the next generation of Fox News viewer. And it’s catching on.”
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | The New Hampshire Federation of Republican Women served “MAGA Mimosas” at a luncheon. Mike Gallagher sported a T-shirt of John Cena as Mao Zedong during an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show. OUT AND ABOUT — Shopify hosted a summer rooftop reception at the S3 Townhouse yesterday evening, where they welcomed four Shopify merchants from Washington, D.C. (Dakota Jackson of District Heroines, Samantha Hayes Hushner of The Phoenix, Mallory Shelter of Shelter, and Becky Waddell of Take Care). SPOTTED: Aaron Gottesman, Zach Deatherage, Rumer LeGendre, Michael DeFilippis, Erik Kinney, Ali Sternburg, Jesse von Stein, Sarah Young, Conner Swanson, Joel Richard, Meghan Pearce and Leigh Claffey. TRANSITIONS — Former DNI John Ratcliffe is joining The Heritage Foundation as a visiting fellow for national security, cybersecurity, and intelligence. … EJ Valentine will be policy director for the NRCC in the 2024 cycle. He most recently was senior policy adviser to Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and is a Carlos Gimenez alum. … Josh Handelman is launching Accelerate Political Advisors, a new fundraising and strategy firm. He previously was VP of development for the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee and is a Brian Schatz and Katie McGinty campaign alum. … … Ashlee Bierworth is now legislative director for Rep .Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa). She previously has been senior legislative assistant for Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-Pa.) and is a Martha McSally alum. … Hayley Alexander is now associate director of government affairs at pharmaceutical company Lundbeck. She most recently was senior manager for government affairs and public policy at BeiGene and is a Senate Approps alum. WEEKEND WEDDING — Lisa Einstein, executive director of the CISA Cybersecurity Advisory Committee, and Wren Elhai, who just finished a tour as a senior adviser at the State Department’s Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy and is starting soon as spokesperson for State's Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, got married on Sunday. The wedding featured a concert with performances by their friends at the Dance Institute of Washington and a ceremony and reception at Riverside on the Potomac in Leesburg, Va. They met on the first day of graduate school at Stanford, where they were both getting a Master’s in international policy. Pics by Eric Einstein Photography and Video … Another pic WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Rishi Banerjee, senior director and SmartLabel lead at the Consumer Brands Association and an alum of Amazon, and Neha Chatterjee on Saturday welcomed Riaan Banerjee, who came in at 7 lbs, 7 oz. Pic … Another pic — Ansley Rhyne, director of federal affairs at Novo Nordisk, and Curtis Rhyne, director of federal affairs at GSK, welcomed William “Liam” Alston Rhyne on Friday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Elon Musk … Marc Kasowitz ... former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ... former Reps. Jane Harman (D-Calif.), Donna Edwards (D-Md.) … Laura Tyson … Ziad Ojakli … Bill Greener III ... Jesse Holland ... POLITICO’s Eli Reyes and Scott Waldman ... Kurt Eichenwald ... Erin McPike … Carolyn Coda of Invariant … Brunswick Group’s Stephanie Benedict ... Comcast’s Brian Roberts … Bloomberg’s Anna Edgerton … Paul Morrell … Paul Bonicelli … Allison Aprahamian of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party … CNN’s Yaffa Fredrick … Megan Bloomgren … AP’s Brendan Farrington … Steve Johnson of American Airlines … Kristen Ellingboe of Alliance for Gun Responsibility … Al Briganti … Bill Hulse of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness … Kate Mills of Monument Advocacy … Rob Tappan … Mike Lurie … Pete Nonis 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 producers Setota Hailemariam and Bethany Irvine.
| | | | A message from Meta: With the metaverse, you will be able to visit grandma's past.
Grandchildren will be able to walk through grandma's 1950s childhood alongside her. Using the metaverse will help new generations better understand their family's history.
The metaverse may be virtual, but the impact will be real.
Explore more possibilities with the metaverse. | | | | | | | 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 | | | | |
