| | | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | Presented by |  | | | |  | THE CATCH-UP | | | MANCHIN IN THE MIDDLE — West Virginia Sen. JOE MANCHIN made the surprise announcement today that he’s leaving the Democratic Party and registering as an independent, as Hoppy Kercheval scooped. It’s a big change for the lifelong Democrat, who has long held down the fort as the party’s most moderate senator, often frustrating progressives but providing a reliable Democratic vote from conservative West Virginia on many big-ticket items. He’ll still caucus with the party (and keep the chairmanship of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee). The timing is pretty striking: Any newly independent West Virginian hoping to run for office has to change their political party registration by June 1, two months ahead of the signature-gathering deadline … i.e., tomorrow. Manchin already announced he’s not running for reelection; could he have a change of heart, or make a play for governor, without the baggage of being a Democrat in West Virginia? Either would be difficult against Republicans, and Manchin said the change was simply about wanting to bring America together. But as Burgess Everett notes, that won’t stop the speculation.
|  His Trump Tower remarks amounted to a full-circle moment for Donald Trump. | Julia Nikhinson/AP Photo | TRUMP SPEAKS — Fresh off of being found guilty of 34 felonies, DONALD TRUMP this morning denounced his conviction, in repeatedly misleading terms, as a politically motivated and “rigged” verdict that he vowed to appeal. It was a full-circle moment for the former president, speaking at the same Trump Tower site where he famously announced his first run for the White House in 2015. His half-hour speech today channeled the anger of many Republicans across the country at this history-making moment in American politics. Maintaining his innocence in the hush-money/false-business-records case, Trump decried Justice JUAN MERCHAN as a “devil” and a “crooked judge” (a baseless claim, but one he’s legally entitled to make) and MICHAEL COHEN as a lying “sleazebag” (which does seem to be an active violation of his gag order). Without evidence, he called President JOE BIDEN a “Manchurian candidate.” Though he took no questions, Trump did veer away from his prepared remarks with various stream-of-consciousness riffs that sometimes felt like a typical Trump campaign rally, including false claims about immigrants. More from WaPo If Trump’s response was somewhat typical, that of Republican donors nationwide has been anything but. In the past day, the Trump campaign announced, he raised an astonishing $34.8 million from small-dollar donors outraged by the conviction. It’s a record-breaking sum as the party largely rallies around him, and the Trump camp said 30 percent of donors were new to WinRed. The NRSC and NRCC also announced their largest single-day fundraising numbers of the cycle. And Trump got backup from his Hill allies: Speaker MIKE JOHNSON said on “Fox and Friends” that “the Supreme Court should step in.” (Any appeal would likely take months to get to SCOTUS and would have to go through the top New York state court first.) And the House Judiciary weaponization subcommittee demanded that Manhattan DA ALVIN BRAGG and prosecutor MATTHEW COLANGELO appear at a hearing next month. Notable: Trump is not likely to lose his right to vote in Florida because his conviction happened in New York, WaPo’s Patrick Marley reports: “[R]esidents convicted of crimes in other states lose their ability to vote in Florida only if they are barred from voting in the state where they committed their offenses, according to the U.S. Vote Foundation. In New York, where Trump was convicted, felons are barred from voting only while they are incarcerated.” More fallout: “Trump supporters call for riots and violent retribution after verdict,” Reuters … “Right-wing media figures vow revenge after Trump’s conviction,” CNN The crystal ball: “21 Experts Predict What the Trump Conviction Will Mean for 2024 and Beyond,” with contributions from TIM NAFTALI, SARAH LONGWELL, JEFF GREENFIELD, CHARLIE SYKES, MONA CHAREN, RUY TEIXEIRA and more in POLITICO Magazine Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com. URSINE OF THE TIMES — “Washington, We Need to Talk About You and Your Pandas,” by Michael Schaffer: “The nation’s capital fashions itself a sophisticated global metropolis and yet it gets all excited about a pair of zoo animals. … What gives with Washington?”
| | | | A message from PhRMA: The 340B drug pricing program is supposed to help vulnerable patients access medicines at qualifying hospitals and clinics. It’s meant to be a safety net for those who really need it. So why is the 340B program padding profits for large hospitals, PBMs and chain pharmacies? Let’s fix 340B so it can help the patients that need it most. Let’s fix 340B. | | | | | 7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW | | |  Don't expect any big changes soon from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, but the latest inflation data could be a bit reassuring. | Susan Walsh, File/AP Photo | 1. INFLATION NATION: The country got slightly good news on prices today in the latest Personal Consumption Expenditures index data, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure. It showed inflation holding steady in April at 2.7 percent annually or 2.8 percent with food and fuels excluded. Those were the same as in March. The month-to-month core inflation index dipped from 0.3 percent to 0.2 percent, per NYT’s Lydia DePillis. The PCE numbers were the latest sign that after a worrying start to the year, inflation is beginning to cool a bit in the second quarter. Overall, the numbers matched economists’ expectations — don’t expect any big changes from the Fed, but interest rate cuts could still be on the table later in the year. Consumer spending fell in April, and that was a surprise, as wage growth also slowed down, Bloomberg’s Augusta Saraiva reports. “The report offers Fed officials some solace about the pathway for inflation.” 2. THIS KEEPS HAPPENING: “Trump suggests to oil donors he will fast-track their merger deals,” by WaPo’s Josh Dawsey and Maxine Joselow: “Trump’s remarks, which have not previously been reported, indicated that he may try to influence the FTC, an independent agency, on behalf of his supporters. They come as the oil and gas industry is in the midst of multibillion dollar mergers, which have prompted calls from Democrats for strict government scrutiny. … [He also] promised to revoke California’s waiver under the Clean Air Act, which allows the state to set tougher emissions limits for passenger cars than those of the federal government.” 3. DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS: Meeting today in Singapore, Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN and new Chinese Defense Minister DONG JUN focused on communication and confirmed that they’ll bring direct military contacts back online, per WSJ’s Feliz Solomon and Chun Han Wong. The small step of rapprochement is meant to keep lines of communication open, lowering tensions between the two countries and making sure that potentially dangerous miscommunications can be taken care of. But “saying they are discussing new mechanisms is not the same as agreeing to begin using them,” one expert cautions. 4. NOT MISSED CONNECTIONS: “Internet providers agree to continue discounted plans through end of 2024 as federal subsidies end,” by The Hill’s Julia Shapero: “AT&T, Comcast, Cox, Spectrum, Verizon, and nine other providers will continue offering their $30 or less plans to those currently enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program and other eligible households. … The Affordable Connectivity Program, which provided broadband discounts to more than 23 million households, will halt benefits completely starting Saturday due to a lack of funding. … [T]he Biden administration called on Congress once again to pass an additional $6 billion in funding to extend the program.”
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Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | 5. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: Houthi rebels claimed that the most recent round of U.S. and U.K. strikes on their facilities killed 16 people, including civilians, in the deadliest attacks yet, AP’s Jon Gambrell and Lolita Baldor report. The AP hasn’t independently confirmed that the people killed in Hodeida were all civilians. The Western countries stepped up their airstrikes on Houthi sites after the Yemeni group had once again started attacking more commercial ships. The Houthis also claimed that they’d retaliated by attacking the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, per Bloomberg, but U.S. officials said that was totally false, per Lara Seligman. New on the schedule: Biden will deliver remarks about the Middle East this afternoon, the White House announced. Though they didn’t specify, Axios’ Barak Ravid reports that he’ll talk about the Israel-Hamas war and freeing hostages held by Hamas. 6. UP FOR DEBATE: “Biden wants to talk abortion, Trump immigration in CNN debate,” by Reuters’ Trevor Hunnicutt: “Biden has three preferred topics, according to a campaign memo viewed by Reuters: abortion rights, the state of democracy and the economy. Trump’s team has pointed to immigration, public safety and inflation as key issues ahead of the debate. … This is not new. Campaigns in the past have lobbied debate hosts about rules, topics and other specifics.” 7. VALLEY TALK: Rep. RO KHANNA (D-Calif.) is leading a big Napa Valley summit of tech executives that kicks off tonight, taking over the tradition from longtime host Rep. NANCY PELOSI (D-Calif.), NBC’s Scott Wong reports. Pelosi, STEVE KERR and RON KLAIN will be among the speakers at the Innovation Leadership Circle Retreat, an issues conference that will include big donors and politicos but “have a much heavier tech focus” than in past years. The confab comes as Democrats are struggling with some Silicon Valley bigwigs defecting to Trump and ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. this year. Related read: “‘Little Tech’ sets its sights on Washington,” by Brendan Bordelon and Josh Sisco: “Venture capitalist GARRY TAN is working to create a new front in the influence battle over artificial intelligence and rally his startup allies into a force he hopes can challenge the tech industry’s biggest voices.” Listen to Tan on today’s “POLITICO Tech” podcast
| | | | YOUR DAILY DOWNLOAD ON ALL THINGS TECH: Today marks the 200th episode of the POLITICO Tech podcast! That’s 200 incisive conversations with global policymakers, tech executives, social activists and other influential voices reshaping our world, one algorithm at a time. Join host Steven Overly for a daily dive into the major political and policy battles around artificial intelligence, election disinformation, competition with China, TikTok, microchips and much more. SUBSCRIBE AND LISTEN TODAY via Apple, Spotify, Simplecast or your preferred podcast player. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Toomaj Salehi’s death sentence is prompting a new congressional push for Iran sanctions. Mike Pence still hasn’t heard from Joe Biden or his campaign. Vivek Ramaswamy is serious about making big changes at BuzzFeed. Patricia Duff got engaged. IN MEMORIAM — All In Together is setting up an Alice Stewart Memorial Fund in honor of the late CNN commentator and campaign veteran. It will boost new programs/initiatives “to celebrate and honor her legacy of leadership, inclusivity, civility and mentoring the next generation of women leaders.” Funeral details for next week OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at an AANHPI Heritage Month reception hosted by Cornerstone Government Affairs yesterday: Nisha Ramachandran, Lucas Lam, Ray Salazar, Moh Sharma, Joseph Knowles, Sonali Desai, Kevin Dawson, Ben Kane, Kellie Chong, Kevin Diamond, Alex Huang and Kelvin Lum. MEDIA MOVE — Katie Davies will be U.S. editor-in-chief of DailyMail.com. She currently is U.S. editor of The Times and Sunday Times. TRANSITION — Michaela Todd will be comms director for Rep. Jake LaTurner (R-Kan.). She most recently has been press secretary for Rep. Tracey Mann (R-Kan.). BONUS BIRTHDAYS: Commerce’s Bert Kaufman … Keith Fernandez of DoorDash 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 Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM included an incorrect first name for Bill Pruitt.
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