| | | | |  | | By Eli Stokols, Lauren Egan and Ben Johansen | Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Eli | Email Lauren It’s not a fun topic to talk about — or think about. And it’s not going to rank high on voters’ list of top election issues. So it was not terribly surprising that President JOE BIDEN did not hold an event last week to highlight a new effort by the White House gender policy council to address a growing problem sparked by AI technology: the generation of what the administration refers to as “image based sexual abuse.” There has been a proliferation of such cases, including one where the FBI charged a man with creating more than 10,000 sexually explicit and abusive images of children using AI. The influx has prompted the White House to call on companies in the tech space to combat the creation and distribution of non-consensual deepfake pornography. West Wing Playbook spoke with ARATI PRABHAKAR, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, to get a better sense of the problem and the administration’s approach. So can you just tell us a bit about what you’re seeing? This has been happening for a long time: people generating non-consensual intimate imagery and then using it to degrade people in the online environment. It’s happening disproportionately to women and girls and LGBTQIA individuals. And we’ve seen a really significant acceleration of these kinds of images, because of generative AI. How have you figured that out, that this is accelerating? There’s a Graphica investigation [showing that this has become a major online industry]. Their estimate was that the referral link spam for these services has increased by 2,000 percent since the beginning of 2023. And this is mainly being targeted at the most vulnerable? Yeah, as far as we can tell, no one’s immune. But as has traditionally been the case with pornography and non-consensual imagery, it is overwhelmingly women. And the effects can be really devastating. It’s a vicious form of abuse. It affects lives. There are many instances that lead to depression and anxiety, PTSD, and even an increased risk of suicide. Because even if it’s fake, the effect is humiliating. Exactly. And now it’s easier to generate fake content. So what can the White House do? This was a case where we saw the harms growing so fast, that we felt it was important to put out this call for action from the industry, because there are immediate steps that companies of various sorts can take that could help if not completely eliminate this problem, but they could certainly slow it down. Like what? Payment platforms or financial institutions could commit to curbing access to payment services that enable these sites. And sometimes companies will actually have it in their Terms of Use that this kind of business isn’t [allowed] but it often doesn’t even get enforced. Are there things you can require of the AI companies themselves? Or is the train already out of the station? A couple of things that came out of [Biden’s] executive order on AI are helpful. One area of focus is safeguards for AI systems to prevent them from generating this kind of abusive material. That’s a technologically incredibly hard problem. There were OMB actions that speak to how the government procures AI models. The fact that OMB is recommending testing and safeguards against this kind of generation of non-consensual imagery, or child sexual abuse material, that can be an important factor. But it sounds like you could really use some of these companies to take steps themselves. What are the prospects for that? The point of this call to action is specifically to ask them to step up and our hope and I think we’re starting to see that people will show up with their good ideas and they’re going to deeply understand what their best levers are. So you’re somewhat optimistic? Fundamentally, no one really wants to see this kind of behavior going on in the world, including the companies. MESSAGE US — Are you MORGAN MACNAUGHTON, deputy director of partnerships at the White House? We want to hear from you. And we’ll keep you anonymous! Email us at westwingtips@politico.com. Did someone forward this email to you? Subscribe here!
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| | PRESSURE, PUSHING DOWN ON DEMS: Five months out from the election, anxiety has “morphed into palpable trepidation” at the highest levels of the Democratic Party over President Biden’s reelection prospects, our CHRISTOPHER CADELAGO, SALLY GOLDENBERG and ELENA SCHNEIDER report. “This isn’t, ‘Oh my God, Mitt Romney might become president.’ It’s ‘Oh my God, the democracy might end,’” a Democratic operative close to the White House said. The landscape may only become murkier as DONALD TRUMP’s hush-money trial concludes and another trial — this one involving the president’s son HUNTER BIDEN — begins in Delaware. The list of scenarios in which Democrats win is “so small I don’t even need to keep the list on my phone,” one adviser to major Democratic donors said, adding that she keeps a running list of nearly two dozen reasons why Biden could lose. Of course, Democrats are prone to this type of panic. But what stood out to us today is how accepted this vibe has become. There wasn’t really much pushback. UNLIKELY ALLIES: Two of Washington’s most powerful Republican-leaning industry groups are gearing up to defend (parts of) the Inflation Reduction Act if Trump wins this November, our KELSEY BRUGGER reports. The Chamber of Commerce and American Petroleum Institute largely opposed the IRA two years ago, but due to the hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks and beneficial spending for the two groups — including financial incentives for clean energy manufacturing — the groups are willing to go to bat for it. Funny what money will do. “Business is going to defend the Inflation Reduction Act,” said CHRISTOPHER GUITH, senior vice president at the Chamber’s Global Energy Institute, adding that the IRA is instrumental for “energy security, competitiveness, and the business case for the energy transition.” WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This data from the Conference Board, which found that U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly grew in May for the first time in four months. The Board’s gauge of sentiment increased to 102, up from 97.5 in April. May’s index of present conditions climbed for the first time since January, with the measure of expectations jumping by the most since July. The Expectations Index — based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions — also rose to 74.6 from 68.8 in May. National Economic Council chief of staff ROB FRIEDLANDER and assistant press secretary MICHAEL KIKUKAWA reposted the data on X. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: This piece by WSJ’s CATHERINE LUCEY, GORDON LUBOLD and NANCY A. YOUSSEF, who detail the fresh political challenge Biden faces at home after an Israeli airstrike on Rafah killed dozens of Palestinian civilians in displacement camps on Sunday. Israel said the strike killed two Hamas leaders, but Palestinian authorities said it also led to the deaths of at least 45 Palestinian civilians and wounded others, including women and children. “It makes a difficult situation worse” for Biden, said RICHARD HAASS, a former State Department official and president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations. “He is trying to walk a line but the problem with his line is for many it’s too supportive of Israel and for others it’s not supportive enough.” QUITE THE CROO: President Biden will welcome Belgium Prime Minister ALEXANDER DE CROO for a meeting at the White House on Friday, press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE announced Tuesday. The two leaders will reaffirm the close partnership between the U.S. and Belgium “to address global challenges” and discuss the continued support for Ukraine.
| | OH GOD. THERE ARE GONNA BE SO MANY RECYCLED DE NIRO QUOTES THIS ELECTION: For months, the Biden camp has largely stayed out of Donald Trump’s hush-money trial. But as Elena reports, it dispatched actor ROBERT DE NIRO and other campaign surrogates to the New York City courtroom on Tuesday to draw attention to the threat they say Trump poses to the country. As the former president’s trial wraps up, the campaign held a press conference outside the court with De Niro and former U.S. Capitol police officers HARRY DUNN and MICHAEL FANONE, who served during the attack on Jan. 6, 2021. “When Trump ran in 2016, it was like a joke,” De Niro said. “With Trump, we have a second chance, and no one is laughing now. This is the time to stop him by voting him out once and for all.” The conference was not without its misfires, as the Academy Award winning actor got into it with hecklers, who called Dunn and Fanone traitors. “I don’t even know how to deal with you, my friend,” he responded. “They stood there and fought for us, for you!” COVID ERA NOSTALGIA: The Democratic National Committee announced Tuesday that it will nominate President Biden through a “virtual roll call” vote to ensure that he appears on the Ohio ballot this November, Lauren reports. Ohio’s ballot deadline is Aug. 7, two weeks before the DNC plans to hold its in-person convention in Chicago. FRANK LAROSE, Ohio's Republican secretary of state, warned last week that Biden would be left off the ballot unless state lawmakers moved the ballot access deadline to after the convention. Days later, the DNC announced it would expedite the nominating process, though no date has yet been announced for the virtual roll call. “Through a virtual roll call, we will ensure that Republicans can’t chip away at our democracy through incompetence or partisan tricks and that Ohioans can exercise their right to vote for the presidential candidate of their choice,” DNC chair JAIME HARRISON said in a statement.
| | | ON THE MOVE: Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN will leave Wednesday for a trip to the Pacific for the Shangri-la dialogue, our LARA SELIGMAN reports. During the trip, Austin will meet with his Chinese counterpart, Admiral DONG JUN.
| | CLOSING A LOOPHOLE: The Biden administration is giving immigration judges and asylum officers more access to classified information to help them determine which migrants have ties to terrorism or pose a public safety threat, NBC’s JULIA AINSLEY reports. The change in policy follows an April NBC story which found that an Afghan migrant on the terrorist watch list was released on bond after ICE prosecutors withheld information about a possible connection to terrorism because the evidence was classified. The new memo, internally announced earlier this month by Homeland Security Secretary ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, overrules a 2004 directive saying classified information could only be disclosed as a “last resort.” WE’RE GONNA NEED A BIGGER PIER: The U.S.-built pier that had been used to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza broke apart on Sunday after rough seas hit the strip. Operations have since been suspended, just two weeks after the $320 million pier began delivering aid. Over the next 48 hours, the trident pier will be removed and towed back to the Port of Ashdod, where U.S. Central Command will complete repairs — which will take over a week, according to Pentagon spokesperson SABRINA SINGH. IT’S ELECTRIC: The White House on Tuesday announced steps to modernize America’s aging electrical infrastructure, CNN’s ELLA NILSEN reports. The new initiative between the government and 21 states will make faster improvements and fixes to the grid. There is also a commitment to constructing a more modern grid as a part of an effort to reduce power outages and increase electrical transmission capacity. A million Texas residents lost power after destructive storms hit the state Tuesday morning, amid a deadly weekend of storms throughout the South and Midwest.
| | | | The Untold Story of the Network That Took Down Roe v. Wade (NYT’s Elizabeth Dias and Lisa Lerer) Skyrocketing rents and home prices may be pivotal in the 2024 election (WaPo’s Leigh Ann Caldwell) For 2028 prospects, abortion is a test-run for a national message (POLITICO’s Rachel Bluth, Alice Miranda Ollstein, Shia Kapos and Christopher Cadelago) Is Naomi Biden pregnant? Speculation was 'talk' of state dinner (Daily Mail’s Emily Goodin and Laura Collins)
| | There is a widely-held theory that Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN is a stamp fanatic. This came about when Yellen’s financial disclosures showed a stamp collection worth between $15,001 and $50,000. And even though she’s made it clear that it was her mother’s collection, which she inherited years ago, the perception has stuck. In 2017, Yellen declined an invitation to join the likes of the late QUEEN ELIZABETH II and PRINCE ALBERT of Monaco in the Club de Monte-Carlo, a prestigious club dedicated to collecting stamps. And as of 2022, six foreign leaders have given Yellen stamps in diplomatic meetings. Heads up to the many foreign leaders reading this newsletter: rocks and minerals are much more up her alley.
| | | | Early on as commanding general in the Civil War, Grant was putting down 20 cigars a day and often would chew on unlit cigars. The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that Grant received such an excess of cigars as gifts — 10,000 by one point — that he ended up with more than he could possibly smoke. 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 Sam Stein
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