Drink this newsletter

Mar 07, 2024

By Eli Stokols, Lauren Egan and Ben Johansen

Presented by

Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.

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Tonight, at some point in his long speech to Congress, President JOE BIDEN will likely declare that “the state of the Union is strong.” The line, however debatable its veracity, is almost inevitable. In fact, much of the speech is.

Biden will tout his agenda, say work remains to be done, tell some compelling human interest stories, motion to a guest in the first lady’s box, save a section for foreign policy, draw implicit contrasts with DONALD TRUMP, and pledge to never, ever bet against America. Democrats will applaud. Republicans will sit on their hands. The Supreme Court justices who show will sit stoically.

To help you get through the clutter, or perhaps forget the whole thing, we put together our official West Wing Playbook SOTU Drinking Game. And please do email us if you play along at home, provided that you can still type. Or even if you can’t.

Biden enters wearing a Ukraine lapel pin: drink

Biden says “literally”: DO NOT DRINK

Biden misuses “literally”: drink

Biden uses the term “shrinkflation”: take a very small sip

Biden asks for a “show of hands”: bigger sip

Biden spars with a Republican in the room: drink… water

MTG shows up wearing a dead animal in some form: drink

MTG sits quietly and applauds: shot then a beer

Biden makes Speaker MIKE JOHNSON look pained/suffering over his shoulder: drink

Speaker Johnson visibly disturbed over one of his own members’ outbursts: Jägerbomb

Vice President KAMALA HARRIS does a mechanical NANCY PELOSI clap: take a lap around your house

Speaker Johnson puts a name tag on mid-speech so people know who he is: finish your drink

KEVIN MCCARTHY unexpectedly shows up and sits in the speaker’s seat: LONG ISLAND ICED TEAS!!!

Biden makes a reference to or joke about his age: drink

Biden leans in and whispers into the microphone: break out the champagne

Biden uses the phrase “inflection point”: drink

Biden interjects “not a joke”: drink more water

Biden busts out the aviators: do a shot of tequila

Cutaway shot to SGOTUS DOUG EMHOFF: drink twice

Cutaway shot to LAUREN BOEBERT when she’s distracted: Guinness

Cutaway shot to a pensive or angry looking member of the Supreme Court: take a drink according to your state laws

Biden calls out NIKKI HALEY by name: drink

Biden talks about Trump without using his name: dunk your head in ice water

Biden makes a Barbenheimer joke — or any other cultural reference— he doesn’t seem to understand: drink twice

Biden stops himself from cursing or saying something inflammatory and instead does the sign of the cross: take a sip of communion wine

RON KLAIN tweets about gas prices during the economic portion of the speech: drink… gas (Four Loko works)

ANDREW BATES tweets back at a specific GOP member: drink

Andrew Bates publishes a full memo before the speech ends: finish your drink

GEORGE SANTOS, holding a baby, somehow in the room at the end and taking a selfie with Biden: take two Advil with water

A cable news pundit talks about Biden’s “tone”: just go to bed, for God’s sake.

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POTUS PUZZLER

Which two presidents hold the record for shortest and longest State of the Union addresses?

(Answer at bottom.)

The Oval

SOMETHING TO TOUT: During tonight’s State of the Union address, Biden will announce he is ordering the U.S. military to establish a temporary port in Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians, our ALEXANDER WARD reports. The U.S. has “unique capabilities” that allow it to construct a port without requiring troops on the ground, administration officials said. The move will help ships dock on the Gaza Strip’s coast to deliver food, water, medicine and other assistance as Israel fails to let in enough aid to alleviate the humanitarian crisis affecting 2.2 million Palestinains.

One of the biggest challenges is protecting the aid once it’s onshore, though, and it’s unclear what role, if any, Israel will have in managing the distribution.

BOOTS ARE SHAKING: Congressional Democrats are feeling nervous ahead of tonight’s address, pressing Biden to be more aggressive in his criticism toward Israeli Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU’s government, NYT’s JONATHAN WEISMAN reports. Many mainstream Dems don’t want the president to altogether change the administration’s policies on the war, but instead become a more outspoken voice in demands for a cease-fire and a long-term solution to the conflict.

“Nobody can question Biden’s commitment to the security of Israel, and nobody can question his commitment over the course of his career to human rights and international law,” Rep. JAMIE RASKIN (D-Md.) said on Wednesday. “Now is the time when the world needs to see American leadership for peace.”

LUNCH DATE: President Biden held the traditional off-the-record lunch with TV anchors and other media personalities Thursday at the White House ahead of his State of the Union address. MSNBC’s LAWRENCE O’DONNELL, Telemundo’s JULIO VAQUEIRO, CBS’ NORAH O’DONNELL, CNN’s ERIN BURNETT, NBC’s LESTER HOLT and TheGrio’s APRIL RYAN were all spotted being escorted into the West Wing just before … 1:30 p.m. It was a late lunch made perhaps even later by Ryan, who lingered on the West Wing driveway FaceTiming before press aides politely asked her to hurry it up.

BUT DID THEY GET TONY P??? The White House is briefing dozens of online creators ahead of the president’s State of the Union, WIRED’s MAKENA KELLY reports. Around 70 creators, digital publishers and influencers were either briefed Wednesday or attended events Thursday, including the first-ever “influencer luncheon,” which Vice President Harris attended. And 30 of them plan to attend a Creator Watch party in the State Dining Room tonight, a White House official said.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO WATCH: This video released Thursday on the president’s X account, where he gets SOTU advice from a group of fictional presidents. The group included MICHAEL DOUGLAS (“The American President”), TONY GOLDWYN (“Scandal”), MORGAN FREEMAN ("Deep Impact”), GEENA DAVIS ("Commander in Chief”) and BILL PULLMAN (“Independence Day”).

Although these presidents had to deal with scenarios Biden will, we hope, never face — such as alien invasions and catastrophic meteors — Goldwyn provided some genuine advice: “When I used to give big speeches, I would always wind down with popcorn and red wine. Do that with ice cream.” (But just please don’t do it while announcing important international news. Not the best look.)

Communications director BEN LABOLT shared the piece on X, expressing some frustration with the video: “Outraged I didn’t have the opportunity to staff this.” Also, did MARTIN SHEEN just miss the invite? And where the hell was KEVIN KLINE? HARRISON FORD?????

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: This piece by CNN’s ANDREW KACZYNSKI and EM STECK, who write that President Biden’s 2020 campaign pledge to reverse Trump-era immigration policies has come back to bite him. While harshly critiquing Trump’s treatment of undocumented immigrants at the border, Biden said that America had the capacity to “absorb them” and could “afford to take in a heartbeat another two million.”

Now, an estimated 3 million migrants have been encountered at the border since he took office and immigration resources have become strained.

FILLING OUT THE SEATS: First lady JILL BIDEN will have some company tonight as she watches her husband deliver a consequential State of the Union address. Some 20 guests will join her in the viewing box. United Auto Workers president SHAWN FAIN will be one of them, along with KATE COX, a Texas mother who spoke out about experiencing the consequences of her state’s abortion bans.

Sweden’s Prime Minister ULF KRISTERSSON will also join the first lady’s box, coming on the same day his nation became the newest member of NATO. Other guests include a woman affected by the Alabama Supreme Court decision halting in vitro fertilization treatment, a gun violence prevention activist and sister of a victim from the Uvalde, Texas shooting, and BETTIE MAE FIKES, a civil rights activist who marched in Selma, Alabama on Bloody Sunday in 1965.

CAMPAIGN HQ

CAMPAIGN COMP DAYS! The Biden campaign on Thursday officially recognized unionizing efforts by staff in its Wilmington, Delaware, headquarters, CNN’s ARLETTE SAENZ reports. The move will kickstart a series of bargaining efforts that could address wages, working hours and working conditions. The effort is affiliated with Campaign Workers Guild, which was established in 2017 to support unionizing efforts by political campaigns. Negotiations are set to begin in the near future.

THEY WENT THERE, FAST: A Trump super PAC on Thursday released a controversial ad asking whether or not Biden “can survive until 2029,” the year his second term in office would conclude. Biden campaign director of rapid response AMMAR MOUSSA clapped back at the attack, calling it a “sick and deranged stunt” from a “struggling campaign that can’t defend Trump’s extreme Project 2025 agenda.”

A message from American Chemistry Council – Chemistry Creates America Competes:

President Biden: American chemistry is the backbone of innovation. It's time to address the regulatory overload stifling American chemistry. Chemistry powers our semiconductors, medical devices, and clean energy initiatives. But your administration’s avalanche of regulations is hampering America’s progress and competitiveness. American chemistry is more than an industry; it's our future. The Biden Administration must commit to smarter, growth-oriented regulations before it’s too late - because when chemistry is enabled to create, America competes.

THE BUREAUCRATS

STICKING AROUND: Chief of staff JEFF ZIENTS said in an interview Wednesday that the Cabinet and senior White House aides will stay with the administration through the rest of Biden’s first term, our EUGENE DANIELS reports. “We’ve had extraordinary retention and people who are committed to this president,” he said. “So, yes, we have the team in place.”

Agenda Setting

AI BEEF UP: The Justice Department is taking steps to increase its focus on artificial intelligence, with officials on Thursday warning that companies and people who purposely misuse the technology for white-collar crimes risk harsher sentencing, AP’s ERIC TUCKER reports. Deputy Attorney General LISA MONACO said the DOJ will take into account how well companies are managing the risks posed by AI every time it assesses a corporate compliance program.

CLEAN ENERGY WIN (SORT OF): A new report from the American Clean Power Association found that companies installed a record 33.8 gigawatts of clean energy projects across the country in 2023, breaking a previous record by more than 12 percent, our KELSEY TAMBORRINO reports for Pro subscribers. The record year brought the total U.S. clean energy operating capacity to 262 gigawatts — the equivalent of powering 69 million homes.

A message from American Chemistry Council – Chemistry Creates America Competes:

What We're Reading

Biden’s State of the Union report card: Here’s where Biden stands on last year’s promises (POLITICO’s Myah Ward)

Mutual Frustration Arise in U.S.-Ukraine Alliance (NYT’s Helene Cooper, Eric Schmitt and Thomas Gibbons-Neff)

China Intensifies Push to ‘Delete America’ From Its Technology (WSJ’s Liza Lin)

The Oppo Book

DAVIS CONGER, adviser to deputy chief of staff ANNIE TOMASINI, is a “damn savant” at chess, according to his cousin, EPA communications director NICK CONGER. “Whenever we’re home in New Jersey, we wake up early before the family gets up and play knock-down-drag-out games as the sun rises,” Nick told West Wing Playbook. “It’s poetic, if also one-sided.”

When asked about the rivalry, Nick responded: “Oh man. It’s not a rivalry when one person dominates the series… He sees six moves ahead.”

Shoutout to DANIEL LIPPMAN for connecting the dots that Davis Conger is in fact related to Nick Conger!

A message from American Chemistry Council – Chemistry Creates America Competes:

President Biden, as you approach this week’s State of the Union address, remember that America’s priorities depend on chemistry.

American chemistry is the foundation of semiconductors, medical devices, infrastructure, defense, clean energy and more. But there's a looming threat – ballooning regulatory overload.

Over the past two decades, regulations on chemical manufacturing have doubled. This isn't just numbers, it's a reality that hampers policies like the Inflation Reduction Act, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the Chips and Science Act.

Your administration’s current approach is a direct hit to America's innovation and global standing. We need to wake up to the reality that over-regulation stifles growth and production. It's time to promote smarter, growth-oriented regulations.

American chemistry isn't just an industry -- it's our nation’s future. When Chemistry Creates, America Competes.

POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER

In 1972, RICHARD NIXON kept his address just under 29 minutes. And in 2000, BILL CLINTON went on for an hour and 28 minutes, holding the record for longest State of the Union delivered in-person.

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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