Did anybody really win that debate?

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Sep 28, 2023 View in browser   By Ryan Lizza, Rachael Bade and Eugene Daniels Presented by With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross Listen to today's Daily Briefing DRIVING THE DAY SHE’S IN — “Kari Lake to Announce Senate Run, Setting Up High-Stakes Arizona Race,” by WSJ’s Eliza Collins: “Lake, the former local TV news anchor turned conservative darling who is still contesting the results of her 2022 loss for governor, told The Wall Street Journal she will launch her next campaign at an Oct. 10 rally.“ TODAY IN TEMPE — President JOE BIDEN “plans to announce on Thursday that he will devote federal money to create a new library and museum dedicated to his old friend and adversary, Senator JOHN McCAIN,” NYT’s Peter Baker reports this morning. Read excerpts from Biden’s speech Amid the chaotic back-and-forths, there were some revealing moments at the 2nd GOP debate. | Philip Cheung for POLITICO ABOUT LAST NIGHT — The Republican debate last night at the Reagan Library in southern California was notable for a few things: There were sharper barbs at DONALD TRUMP from almost all of the seven candidates who made it onto the stage. There were also more criticisms leveled between the seven low-polling candidates, especially NIKKI HALEY, who was both attacked by and delivered some memorable digs at VIVEK RAMASWAMY and her fellow South Carolinian, TIM SCOTT. There were fewer policy divisions made clear compared to the last debate, perhaps because the questions this time seemed more about differences between Republicans and President Joe Biden rather than differences among Republicans. The debate was marred by the moderators frequently losing control as the seven Republicans descended into unintelligible crosstalk. The conventional wisdom of every major pundit reviewing the event is that little that happened on stage in Simi Valley is likely to change the contours of the GOP primary.  It was perhaps fitting that the two-hour debate ended with the candidates rebelling against moderator DANA PERINO’s insistence that they each write down the name of “which one of you on stage tonight should be voted off the island.” Instead of a dramatic reveal from each candidate, they grumbled about how it was “disrespectful,” in the words of RON DeSANTIS, and the event sputtered to a close with co-moderator STUART VARNEY cutting off a Ramaswamy soliloquy and declaring, “That does it!” That said, amid the chaotic back-and-forths, there were some revealing moments for each candidate that are worth highlighting. RON DeSANTIS Line of the night: “We are not getting a mulligan on the 2024 election. Republicans have lost three straight elections in a row. We were supposed to have a red wave with inflation at 9%. It crashed and burned — not in Florida, it didn't, we delivered it in Florida.” Biggest swing at Trump: "Donald Trump is missing in action. He should be on this stage tonight. He owes it to you to defend his record, where they added $7.8 trillion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation that we have now." (The Biden campaign is tweeting this one out.) Most brazenly false statement: He denied Haley’s claim that he banned fracking on his second day in office. DeSantis opposed fracking as a gubernatorial candidate in 2018 and on Day Two as governor, according to PolitiFact, “DeSantis issued an executive order with several water policy reforms and a line directing the Department of Environmental Protection to push to end all fracking in Florida.” VIVEK RAMASWAMY Line of the night (for its chutzpah): “I think we would be better served as a Republican Party if we're not sitting here hurling personal insults and actually have a legitimate debate about policy following Reagan's 11th commandment in his honor.” Biggest swing at Trump: “I think Trump was an excellent president. But the America First agenda does not belong to one man. It does not belong to Donald Trump. It doesn't belong to me. It belongs to you, the people of this country. And the question is: Who's going to unite this country and take the America First agenda to the next level?” The one thing he said that no one took issue with: “What do you see [when you look at me]? You see a young man who's in a bit of a hurry. Maybe a little ambitious. Bit of a know-it-all.” NIKKI HALEY Line of the night (directed at Ramaswamy): “This is infuriating. … Honestly, every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say.” Biggest swing at Trump: “This is where President Trump went wrong. He focused on trade with China. He didn't focus on the fact that they were buying up our farmland. He didn't focus on the fact that they were killing Americans. He didn't focus on the fact that they were stealing $600 billion in intellectual property. He didn't focus on the fact that they put a spy base off our shores in Cuba. They didn't focus enough on the fact that all of our law enforcement drones in America are Chinese, and we've got all these little surveillance cells.” Best shot at an opponent who wasn’t Ramaswamy: “He [DeSantis] always talks about what happens on Day One. You better watch out because what happens on Day Two is when you're in trouble. Day Two in Florida, you banned fracking.” CHRIS CHRISTIE Line of the night: “When you have the president of the United States sleeping with a member of the teachers union, there is no chance that you could take the stranglehold away from the teachers union every day.” Biggest anti-Trump jab: “I want to look at that camera right now and tell you, Donald: I know you're watching. You can't help yourself. I know you're watching, OK? And you're not here tonight, not because of polls and not because of your indictments. You're not here tonight because you're afraid of being on this stage and defending your record. You’re ducking these things. And let me tell you what’s going to happen: You keep doing that, no one up here is going to call you Donald Trump anymore. We're gonna call you Donald Duck.” Most embarrassing moment: When Stuart Varney busted Christie for having written down a name he wanted to vote out of the primary before Christie joined his colleagues in protesting that the reality TV show-inspired exercise was beneath them. MIKE PENCE Line of the night: “Well, first, let me say I'm glad Vivek pulled out of his business deal in 2018 in China — that must have been about the time you decided to start voting in presidential elections.” Biggest anti-Trump jab: “My former running mate, Donald Trump, actually has a plan to start to consolidate more power in Washington, D.C., consolidate more power in the executive branch. When I'm president of the United States, it’s my intention to make the federal government smaller by returning to the states those resources and programs that are rightfully theirs under the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution.” Most awkward line: “Chris, you mentioned the president’s situation. My wife isn't a member of the teachers union, but I gotta admit I’ve been sleeping with a teacher for 38 years — full disclosure.” TIM SCOTT Line of the night: “What we need are leaders who lead by example … Nicki offered a 10% —10 cent gas tax increase in South Carolina. Talk about someone who has never seen a federal dollar she doesn’t like. Ten cents on the gallon in South Carolina. As the UN ambassador, you literally put $50,000 on curtains at a $15 million subsidized location.” Clip that Fox will be playing: “America has suffered because of slavery. But we've overcome that. We are the greatest nation on Earth because we faced our demons in the mirror and made a decision. … Black families survived slavery. We survived poll taxes and literacy tests. We survived discrimination being woven into the laws of our country. What was hard to survive was [President LYNDON] JOHNSON’s Great Society, where they decided to … take the Black father out of the household to get a check in the mail, and you can now measure that in unemployment and crime and devastation.” DOUG BURGUM Line of the night (directed at the moderators): “You have tech questions; you didn’t ask the only guy that’s been in tech. You have energy questions; you don’t ask [me] anything. … The energy plans that have all been announced in the last month by these other folks on stage? We're already doing it in North Dakota. The border plans they already talked about? We've got troops down at the border flying helicopter missions. … We're fighting the Biden administration on 20 fronts.” Most awkward moment: When Dana Perino threatened to cut off his microphone after he interrupted to complain that he wasn’t being called on enough. THE HIVE MIND — “Who won, who lost and who flopped in the second GOP debate,” by POLITICO staff MEANWHILE, THE HEADLINE FROM TRUMP’S SPEECH — “Trump: UAW negotiations ‘don't mean as much as you think,’” by Detroit News’ Craig Mauger AND WHAT THE BIDEN CAMPAIGN WAS UP TO — “Biden Campaign Trolls Trump, Airs Ads on Fox During GOP Debate,” by the Daily Beast’s Justin Baragona Good Thursday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.   A message from bp: bp added more than $70 billion to the US economy last year. We did it by making investments from coast to coast – like acquiring one of America’s largest biogas producers, Archaea Energy, AND producing natural gas with fewer emissions in the Permian Basin. See how else bp is investing in America.   House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks with reporters. | Francis Chung/POLITICO SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN — Washington careened ever closer to a government shutdown yesterday, as top House Republicans rejected out of hand the stopgap CR moving through the Senate with bipartisan support. Despite warnings from everyone from Biden to Senate Republicans, Speaker KEVIN McCARTHY’s choice to go back on the deal he made with the president is about to plunge the federal government into chaos. OMB told federal agencies to start prepping for a shutdown, with information about furloughs coming as soon as today, WaPo’s Jacob Bogage, Marianna Sotomayor and Jeff Stein scoop. Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG warned that 1,000 air traffic controllers would be instantly furloughed. What the House was up to instead: slugging through regular order on four of the dozen annual spending bills, with some interesting results. Two amendment votes to strip out aid to Ukraine failed, Connor O’Brien reports, though each attracted roughly 100 GOP votes — a number rising from just this summer. Republicans did vote to slash Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN’s salary to $1. And the Agriculture-FDA bill didn’t come up for a final vote amid GOP disputes on abortion and rural funding. But that wasn’t all: Late last night, Republicans weighed going back to the drawing board to take Ukraine money out of the Defense bill and revise visa policy in the Homeland Security bill. Meanwhile in the Senate: “Romney polled Senate Republicans. They want a clean funding bill,” by Burgess Everett and Sarah Ferris   A message from bp: And, not or. See how it’s driving our investment in America.   WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY On the Hill The Senate will meet at 10 a.m. to take up the continuing resolution to keep the government open, with a vote on the motion to proceed at 11:45 a.m. The House will meet at 9 a.m. Air Force Secretary FRANK KENDALL will testify before the Armed Services Committee at 10 a.m. The Oversight Committee will hold a hearing on the Biden impeachment inquiry at 10 a.m. Minority Leader HAKEEM JEFFRIES will hold his weekly news conference at 11 a.m. 3 things to watch … House Republicans formally kick off their Biden impeachment inquiry at 10 a.m. in the Oversight Committee’s Rayburn hearing room. If you’re expecting breathless new revelations, don’t bet on it: The GOP’s witnesses — forensic accountant, a former DOJ tax official and a constitutional law professor — do not have firsthand knowledge of the Biden family’s financial dealings at issue in the panel’s investigation. Rather, they appear poised to interpret the facts that Chair JAMES COMER (R-Ky.) has already released. Excerpts from Comer’s opening statement … GOP hearing memo … AP preview Indicted Sen. BOB MENENDEZ (D-N.J.) saw even more colleagues call for his resignation yesterday, pushing the total over 30. But he managed to hold off Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER — and several others appeared to be giving him a chance to explain himself in person, which he intends to do during a closed-door caucus lunch this afternoon. Watch to see if anyone comes off the fence after that. Menendez’s indictment means Sen. BEN CARDIN (D-Md.) will retake the Senate Foreign Relations Committee gavel for the final 14 months of his political career. Later this morning, Cardin will meet with reporters in the Capitol’s ornate SFRC meeting room to discuss the transition. He can expect questions about pending business — such as the proposed sale of F-16s to Turkey —  but also about what the panel plans to do to probe the allegations that Menendez illicitly back-channeled with Egypt as chair. At the White House Biden will speak at the Tempe Center for the Arts in Arizona this morning to honor McCain’s legacy and talk about improving American democracy. He’ll then attend a campaign reception in Phoenix, before returning to the White House late tonight. VP KAMALA HARRIS will travel to Miami for a conversation at Florida International University that will also feature Small Business Administrator ISABEL GUZMAN, rapper FAT JOE and actor ANTHONY RAMOS, before going to a campaign reception and then returning to Washington.   GROWING IN THE GOLDEN STATE: POLITICO California is growing, reinforcing our role as the indispensable insider source for reporting on politics, policy and power. From the corridors of power in Sacramento and Los Angeles to the players and innovation hubs in Silicon Valley, we're your go-to for navigating the political landscape across the state. Exclusive scoops, essential daily newsletters, unmatched policy reporting and insights — POLITICO California is your key to unlocking Golden State politics. LEARN MORE.     PLAYBOOK READS CONGRESS Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife, Nadine Menendez, leave federal court on Wednesday, after entering not guilty pleas on charges stemming from his alleged involvement in a bribery scheme. | Jeenah Moon/AP Photo NOTHING GOLD CAN STAY — As Menendez prepares to address fellow Senate Dems today, he got some notable support from a friend who’s already called on him to resign: Sen. CORY BOOKER (D-N.J.). Insider’s Bryan Metzger scoops that Booker gave an “impassioned” speech in private yesterday defending Menendez’s character and urging compassion for him: “You gotta hate the sin, but love the sinner.” Booker was greeted with “awkward silence.” Newly notable: Menendez was the key reason that a bipartisan law to tighten the screws on foreign influence in the U.S. died in 2020, NBC’s Ken Dilanian and Frank Thorp V report. Other fallout: If he leaves his role on Senate Finance, plenty of other Democrats would likely love to snap it up, Roll Call’s Laura Weiss previews. IMPEACHMENT LATEST — “Hunter Biden’s business dealings draw more scrutiny as Republicans release trove of private documents,” by Benjamin Guggenheim: “Republican members of the House Ways and Means Committee released more than 700 pages of IRS whistleblower documents Wednesday, providing ample fodder for the newly launched House GOP impeachment inquiry … Democrats were quick to push back, asserting that GOP lawmakers cherry-picked information that gives a distorted view of the allegations.” Watch the testy exchange when NBC’s Ryan Nobles challenged Chair JASON SMITH (R-Mo.) on the facts More top reads: “Speaker’s office looks to review Capitol press credentialing process,” by Roll Call’s Chris Marquette and Justin Papp: It’s “a rare lawmaker intervention into a process long overseen by journalists.” The landmark cannabis banking bill advanced out of the Senate Banking Committee yesterday in a bipartisan 14-9 vote, with Schumer vowing to put it on the floor ASAP. More from CNBC Put away the shorts: The Senate unanimously passed a bill to establish an official men’s dress code of business attire. More from Axios 2024 WATCH SCOOP — Part of a tweet last week from VIVEK RAMASWAMY last week plagiarized a 2019 Foreign Policy article by Keith Johnson and Lara Seligman: “Every advanced weapon in the U.S. arsenal — from Tomahawk missiles to the F-35 fighter jet to Aegis-equipped destroyers and cruisers and everything in between is completely reliant on components made almost exclusively in China,” he posted on X, copying the FP story almost word for word. The tweet summarized part of his speech on economic policy and China; we checked, and none of the actual speech appears to have been plagiarized. After Playbook asked for comment, Ramaswamy’s campaign did not explain what happened with the tweet, but spokesperson TRICIA McLAUGHLIN made a statement: “Instead of covering Vivek’s brilliant and unprecedented policy that would change the course of American history, Politico dissects 10 words from a Tweet. Very serious reporting!” AS THE CROW FLIES — “Harlan Crow, Oil Executives to Host Nikki Haley Fundraisers in Texas,” by Bloomberg’s Laura Davison DROPOUT WATCH — ASA HUTCHINSON indicated to NBC’s Jillian Frankel that he’ll consider exiting the race if he doesn’t hit 4% in a poll by Thanksgiving. TRUMP CARDS The E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington. | AFP via Getty Images LEGAL HOT WATER — Trump was dealt significant setbacks on two major legal fronts this week: Yesterday, Judge TANYA CHUTKAN dismissed Trump’s effort to have her recuse herself from his criminal election interference trial. More from ABC … WaPo’s Rachel Weiner, Keith Alexander and Spencer Hsu have a big profile of Chutkan and her path to this moment. An immigrant from Jamaica who once dreamed of a career in dance, she was seen as “serious and impressive” as early as her undergrad days at GW. She’s worked as a public defender and in private practice, but her handling of Jan. 6 cases really stands out as having “been tougher than other judges.” Meanwhile, Trump’s teams are reeling after a judge issued a stunning summary judgment finding that the Trump Organization “repeatedly” committed fraud. If the decision isn’t overturned on appeal, it “could strip Trump of his authority to make strategic and financial decisions over some of his key properties,” CBS’ Aimee Picchi and Graham Kates report, and “Trump and his family also would no longer have legal authority to operate the businesses.” In court yesterday, both Trump’s lawyers and New York AG TISH JAMES’ team said they were combing through the decision to understand its scope, per CNN’s Sabrina Souza and Devan Cole. One thing the shutdown can’t stop: the criminal proceedings against Trump, Roll Call’s Michael Macagnone reports. Civil cases might hit a speed bump, though. More top reads: “Gen. Milley says he has ‘appropriate’ safety measures after Trump social media threat,” interviewed by CBS’ Norah O’Donnell   A message from bp: Just two of the ways bp is investing in America.   ALL POLITICS ET TU, JOSE? — Rep. HENRY CUELLAR (D-Texas) just got a new challenger — and it’s a former staffer. JOSE SANZ, a former press secretary and district director for Cuellar, has switched parties and is running against him as a Republican, The Texas Tribune’s Patrick Svitek scooped. FOLLOWING THE MONEY — “S.B.F.’s McConnell Money Tickle, Part 2,” by Puck’s Teddy Schleifer: “As the trial of the century looms, three scoops shed new light on how SAM BANKMAN-FRIED, and even former paramour CAROLINE ELLISON, were part of the McConnell-DeSantis matrix.” POLICY CORNER Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) arrives for a press conference at the Capitol. | Francis Chung/POLITICO IMMIGRATION FILES — The U.S. plans to maintain the refugee cap for next year at the same level of 125,000, Reps. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-Wash.) and JERRY NADLER (D-N.Y.) announced yesterday and AP’s Rebecca Santana and Matthew Lee confirmed. The cap, of course, is not a commitment: This year, fewer than half that number were admitted through the program. Some advocates wanted the new cap to be higher. But the program is still rebuilding after the Trump administration worked to decimate it. Meanwhile, Reuters’ Ted Hesson scooped that the Biden administration last year recommended closing nine immigration jails — many of them run by for-profit operators — due to “high costs and staffing shortages." The move might have saved $235 million. But ICE ultimately ended things with only two of the nine. MEDIAWATCH PALACE INTRIGUE — “Inside Bezos’s WaPo C.E.O. Bake-Off,” by Puck’s Dylan Byers: “Over the summer, [PATTY STONESIFER] enlisted ERIK SORENSON’s executive search firm, Sucherman, to assist her in casting a wide net for a C.E.O. Sucherman looked at media executives, yes, but also veterans of finance and tech.” Among the names mentioned as at least being on an early list Stonesifer was interested in: MEREDITH KOPIT LEVIEN, MARK THOMPSON, NICHOLAS THOMPSON, BOB COHN, GOLI SHEIKHOLESLAMI, DAWN OSTROFF, CRAIG FORMAN and EVAN SMITH.   GO INSIDE THE CAPITOL DOME: From the outset, POLITICO has been your eyes and ears on Capitol Hill, providing the most thorough Congress coverage — from political characters and emerging leaders to leadership squabbles and policy nuggets during committee markups and hearings. We're stepping up our game to ensure you’re fully informed on every key detail inside the Capitol Dome, all day, every day. Start your day with Playbook AM, refuel at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report and enrich your evening discussions with Huddle. Plus, stay updated with real-time buzz all day through our brand new Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here.     PLAYBOOKERS Steve Scalise’s fight against cancer is going well. Antony Blinken had a jam session. Mike Simpson is a grocery store vandal. Jeff Duncan is not commenting on his wife’s divorce-papers claim that he’s had an affair with a lobbyist. Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday celebration was moved up a day to beat the shutdown. Mitt Romney let loose as only Mitt can. MEDIA MOVES — David Crow will be executive editor at the WSJ, a newly created role at the paper. He currently is U.S. news editor and executive editor at the FT. … Chris Nguyen will be an anchor for Scripps News. He previously was a national correspondent for CNN. TRANSITIONS — Antonio White is launching McCann Enterprises, an advisory services firm. He most recently was SVP and public policy executive for government affairs at Bank of America and is a Biden Treasury alum. … Jen Deci is now director of government relations at Qcells North America. She previously was senior adviser for policy and legislative affairs for Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) … Jen O’Malley Dillon … Scott Mulhauser of Bully Pulpit Interactive … Steve Schmidt … Del Quentin Wilber … POLITICO’s Patrick D’Silva, Bob McGovern and Tony Benson … Christian Vasquez … Matt Corridoni of Rep. Jake Auchincloss’ (D-Mass.) office … White House’s Vanessa Valdivia … Chrys Kefalas of the National Association of Manufacturers … Brian Rogers of Bullpen Strategy Group … Puck’s Abby Livingston … Molly Crosby of Planned Parenthood … Rory Murphy of the US-China Business Council … Chris Geidner … William Thompson of Sidley Austin … Jon Summers … Laura Quinn of Catalist … Dan Crawford of SKDK … Ocean Conservancy’s Janis Searles Jones … WaPo’s Emily Heil … Bhavna Ghia … former Reps. Curt Clawson (R-Fla.) and Steve Largent (R-Okla.) … Marty Machowsky … Florida GOP’s Helen Aguirre Ferré … Kelsie Wendelberger … Poppy MacDonald of USAFacts … former Vermont Gov. Madeleine Kunin (9-0) … American Cleaning Institute’s Wanda Stokes and Shawnté Furbush-Jones … Rokk Solutions’ James Nash 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 producer Bethany Irvine.   A message from bp: Many of bp’s biggest global investments happen right here in America. We’re keeping oil & gas flowing AND developing more lower carbon energy. It’s and, not or. Learn more.     Follow us on Twitter Rachael Bade @rachaelmbade Eugene Daniels @EugeneDaniels2 Ryan Lizza @RyanLizza   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

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