Commander's taste buds

Oct 02, 2023

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White House staffers have seen all the headlines about President JOE BIDEN’s 2-year-old German shepherd COMMANDER. They’re aware of the behavioral issues. It just doesn’t compute to them.

CNN reported last week that Commander recently bit yet another U.S. Secret Service agent, bringing the total number of known biting incidents to 11. Some of the attacks were bad enough that agents required medical attention, and at least one person had to go to the hospital.

While common sense might suggest that White House officials should avoid Commander at all costs, that’s not how staffers who work in the West Wing are approaching the situation. No one is moving about campus in fear of bumping into the dog. In fact, many get excited when they can sneak a few minutes away from their busy schedule to give him a quick scratch behind the ears.

“Everyone loves him,” said a White House staffer. “He’s always so friendly.”

Among staff, there is an emerging belief that, in the eyes of Commander, they are off limits; that the dog only has an appetite for the Secret Service.

“It’s shocking that he can be so aggressive,” said another White House staffer. “I’ve never seen him like that.”

Indeed, the wild discrepancy in Commander’s behavior has left White House staffers past and present trying to come up with theories about it.

“The White House is just a crazy environment for a dog,” said a former White House official. “There are enormous men with guns acting suspiciously hostile everywhere.”

Another former staffer suggested that it could have a lot to do with facial expressions. Dogs are very reactive to humans and when staff greet Commander, it’s usually with a big smile. That’s not the case for Secret Service agents, who tend to be less warm and fuzzy while on the job.

That theory would also explain why Commander is not the first of Biden’s dogs to go after Secret Service agents. Shortly after moving into the White House, the Bidens decided to send MAJOR, a German shepherd rescue, to live with family friends after multiple biting incidents.

When Biden’s brother, JAMES, gave Commander to the president for his birthday in 2021 after Major had been sent away — and as the first family was still grieving the loss of their longtime German shepherd, CHAMP — it caught the White House off guard. A person close to the Bidens said that the president and first lady initially weren’t thrilled to be introducing a new puppy into their chaotic White House life, but they felt like they couldn’t turn down a gift from a well-meaning family member.

Within months, the biting issues started, most of which were captured in 196 pages of internal communications obtained earlier this summer under the Freedom of Information Act by the conservative legal organization Judicial Watch.

The internal documents paint a scary picture of an uncontrolled dog terrorizing the people tasked with protecting the president and the first lady.

The White House pointed West Wing Playbook to an earlier statement from ELIZABETH ALEXANDER, the first lady’s communications director.

“As we’ve noted before, the White House can be a stressful environment for family pets, and the First Family continues to work on ways to help Commander handle the often unpredictable nature of the White House grounds,” she said. “The President and First Lady are incredibly grateful to the Secret Service and Executive Residence staff for all they do to keep them, their family, and the country safe.”

But whatever additional training Commander is getting hasn’t seemed to do the trick yet. Some White House staffers and reporters have running bets among themselves about how much longer until the Bidens will be forced to send Commander away, too. Sometime before Thanksgiving seems to be a popular take among reporters.

“We do wonder how much longer they can keep him around,” said the first White House staffer. “At a certain point, it becomes impossible.”

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POTUS PUZZLER

How did President HARRY S. TRUMAN threaten to punish striking railroad workers in 1946?

(Answer at bottom.)

The Oval

DEAL OR NO DEAL? Reporters pushed press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE at today’s White House briefing on whether Biden made a side deal with House Speaker KEVIN MCCARTHY to hold a future vote on Ukraine funding after this weekend's government funding resolution. On Sunday, Biden strongly suggested to reporters that he and the speaker made an agreement on additional support, but Jean-Pierre on Monday repeatedly declined to give a yes or no answer to whether a deal was cut, saying she “would not go beyond what the president said.”

Minutes later, ABC News’ RACHEL SCOTT posted on X that McCarthy had just told her he didn’t make a deal with Biden on funding for Ukraine.

Look, we get it, there are some things you want to keep private. But in this case, the secrecy seems wildly unnecessary, especially if McCarthy is out there giving his version of events. We’d recommend just, ya know, giving a straight answer.

AND YET, THE CONFUSION DOESN’T END THERE: Bloomberg’s ALBERTO NARDELLI, JENNY LEONARD, JENNIFER JACOBS and ALEX WICKHAM reported that Biden planned to call U.S. allies to reassure them that Washington will continue supporting Ukraine. However, Jean-Pierre told reporters at the press briefing that she had no calls to “preview.” She did say the U.S. plans to send aid to Ukraine “soon.” The Pentagon only has $5.4 billion worth of weapons remaining for the embattled country, our LARA SELIGMAN and KELLY GARRITY report.

THE BED WETTING CONTINUES: Top Democrats publicly support Biden’s reelection bid, but privately, they’re concerned about his ability to secure another term and resigned to the fact there’s no viable backup plan, the Wall Street Journal’s CATHERINE LUCEY and KEN THOMAS report. Many party leaders compare the concerns surrounding Biden to the fears about HILLARY CLINTON’s popularity in 2016 before she ultimately lost to former President DONALD TRUMP.

“I want to see Bidenism continue but I think the best way to make sure that happens is to perhaps have a different candidate than Joe Biden,” a DNC member said.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO WATCH: This clip of Rep. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.) criticizing McCarthy by arguing that Biden got the better of him in government funding negotiations. “It is going to be difficult for my Republican friends to keep calling President Biden feeble while he continues to take Speaker McCarthy's lunch money in every negotiation,” Gaetz said.

Biden’s campaign quickly spotlighted the comments.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: This piece by our MICHAEL STRATFORD and SAM SUTTON about how the end of the pandemic-era freeze on student loan repayments could spell trouble for the economy. The Biden administration has aimed to soften the blow for borrowers by encouraging them to sign up for a new repayment program that offers lower monthly payments and caps interest, the reporters write.

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: Former Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. MARK MILLEY will join NBC Nightly News tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET for an interview with LESTER HOLT.

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THE BUREAUCRATS

FIRST IN WEST WING PLAYBOOK: The Treasury Department has a raft of new political appointees, our DANIEL LIPPMAN has learned:

— ADAM WANG-LEVINE is now deputy assistant secretary for climate, environment and infrastructure. He most recently worked for the National Economic Council and National Security Council.

— SUBHAN CHEEMA is now senior adviser for public affairs. He most recently was communications director for the Office of Science and Technology Policy at the White House.

— ADAM SHAW is now special adviser for IRA implementation. He most recently was deputy director of the Global Economic Governance Commission at the London School of Economics.

— ALLEN LI is now special assistant in the office of the executive secretary. He most recently was an analyst at DOD and is a recent graduate of Auburn University.

MORE PERSONNEL MOVES: SARAH MORRIS has been named acting deputy assistant secretary at the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Daniel has learned. She most recently was a senior advisor to Assistant Secretary of Commerce ALAN DAVIDSON.

— RACHEL HOMER is now chief of staff for the Office of the General Counsel at the Department of Education. She most recently was counsel at Protect Democracy and is a Justice Department alum.

A message from the Computer & Communications Industry Association:

Agenda Setting

MORE OF A PROBLEM THAN WE THOUGHT: A State Department document obtained by POLITICO outlines steps that administration officials are taking to help Ukraine fight corruption, demonstrating top U.S. officials are more wary about the possibility of malfeasance than they have admitted publicly, our NAHAL TOOSI reports.

The U.S. has urged Ukraine’s military to adopt NATO protocols and has also offered English language training to the country’s education ministry to “help reintegrate Ukrainians freed from Russian occupation.”

WHICH WAY THE WIND BLOWS: Six Democratic governors are calling on Biden to provide states with more offshore wind subsidies to support struggling projects, our RY RIVARD reports for Pro subscribers. Although state-level staffers had engaged with administration officials, the governors of the states decided to go public with their frustration in a letter to Biden last month.

“Without federal action, offshore wind deployment in the U.S. is at serious risk of stalling because States’ ratepayers may be unable to absorb these significant new costs alone,” the governors wrote.

A message from the Computer & Communications Industry Association:

American tech companies continue to propel us forward. Not only is technological innovation an important part of the way we live, it’s also critical to our nation’s economic success. Small businesses and startups, large employers and those who keep our country safe, all build their success on American tech. Tech companies and the digital economy are providing consumers with more choices than ever before–empowering them to find new products and to explore the world.

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What We're Reading

Biden should stop focusing on the economy (Michael LaRosa for MSNBC.com)

Americans Are Still Spending Like There’s No Tomorrow (WSJ’s Rachel Wolfe)

Biden and UAW’s Shawn Fain forge an uneasy alliance amid labor turmoil (WaPo’s Toluse Olorunnipa)

POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER

Truman threatened to draft striking railroad workers into the Army after a work stoppage brought the country to a standstill. When Attorney General THOMAS C. CLARK questioned the constitutionality of the plan, the president told him, “we’ll draft ’em and think about the law later,” according to PBS’ American Experience.

Thanks to the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum for this question!

A CALL OUT! Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents, with a citation or sourcing, and we may feature it!

Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.

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