| | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | TALK OF THIS TOWN — “Trump’s Latest Move to Avoid Abortion Is His Strangest One Yet,” by Michael Schaffer: “Though Republican lawmakers spent years targeting abortion in D.C., and though [DONALD] TRUMP recently vowed to strip power from the deep-blue city’s elected government, his campaign told me — amazingly — that the District has the right to make its own rules about abortion.”
|  VP Kamala Harris and Donald Trump had their big sit down interview with CNN’s Dana Bash last night. | Will Lanzoni/CNN | CENTER OF ATTENTION — KAMALA HARRIS and TIM WALZ seemed to have a main goal for their sitdown interview with CNN’s Dana Bash Thursday night: rebuke the left-wing caricature drawn of them by the Trump campaign. On issue after issue, Harris signaled moderation and a gauzy centrism that has been the hallmark of every winning Democratic presidential campaign for decades. Notably, when given the chance to pivot to the topics she wanted to talk about, she chose middle-class economics, not abortion rights or other base motivators. Overall, the interview suggested to us how tough Donald Trump's job is now — and especially at the Sept. 10 debate. His two main areas of attack are to cast her as left-wing and to tie her to the unpopular Biden. Last night, Harris showed how she will defend herself against both of those charges. — FRACKING: The trouble for her on this issue started in 2019 during the Democratic presidential primary when she said on CNN that “there’s no question I’m in favor of banning fracking.” She abandoned that position as Biden’s running mate, but Trump, who will hold an event in central Pennsylvania today, has been hammering Harris over the issue whenever he’s in the Keystone State, which is the No. 2 producer of natural gas in the U.S. Harris last night said unequivocally that she would not ban fracking as president, explaining that she has studied the issue and concluded that U.S. climate goals could be accomplished without a ban. This is clearer than she’s been before, but not exactly new. As she noted, the Inflation Reduction Act included an expansion of fracking leases, and Harris cast the tie-breaking vote in the Senate for the bill. — THE BORDER: Again, Harris did not really break any news — she has already come out in favor of the bipartisan border security bill that Trump torpedoed — but she was a little more adamant about pursuing it as president. Bash asked if she would “push that legislation again.” “Not only push it,” Harris said. “I will make sure that it comes to my desk, and I would sign it.” When confronted with the time she raised her hand in a 2019 Democratic debate signaling she believed the border should be decriminalized, Harris reminded Bash that she prosecuted border offenses as attorney general of California: “I believe there should be consequence,” she said. “We have laws that have to be followed and enforced that address and deal with people who cross our border illegally.” — ISRAEL: In some ways this was the most interesting answer, because Harris has tried to signal more solidarity with pro-Palestinian activists than President JOE BIDEN has and inside the White House she has been a more left-leaning voice on the issue. But where it really counts to many activists — the flow of arms to Israel — she was clear she would not hold anything back. “But no change in policy in terms of arms and — and so forth?” Bash asked. “No,” Harris replied. — GOP OUTREACH: In a mildly newsy moment, Harris also told Bash she would appoint a Republican in her cabinet if elected. She seemed eager to show her bipartisan credentials. “I think it would be to the benefit of the American public to have a member of my Cabinet who is a Republican,” she said. Elsewhere in the interview she went out of her way to signal a more non-confrontational approach. “I believe it is important to build consensus,” she said, “and it is important to … find a common place of understanding of where we can actually solve problems.” Yes, these are just political cliches, but they are the political cliches of centrism. (Progressives have their own.) — RACE AND GENDER: One of the notable aspects of the still young Harris campaign is how she has barely talked about the historical nature of her run for office. In the CNN interview, when asked about what the viral photo of her niece meant to her, Harris was quick to preface her remarks with a comment deemphasizing race and gender. “I am running because I believe that I am the best person to do this job at this moment for all Americans, regardless of race and gender,” she said before adding that she “was deeply touched by” the photo. And when Bash tried to get her to engage on Trump’s attacks on her racial identity, she skipped past it entirely. “Next question,” she said. — AS FOR TRUMP: When Harris talked about Trump, she did not blow him up as a grave threat to democracy. She said he was “diminishing the character and the strength of who we are as Americans” and “dividing our nation.” She said that after a “decade” of this, “I think people are ready to turn the page on that.” That last bit is perhaps her trickiest messaging. As she did in her convention speech in Chicago, Harris is trying to position herself as the fresh-faced challenger and Trump as the quasi-incumbent who voters are tired of. When Bash pressed her on the fact that she and Biden have been in charge for the past three-and-a-half years, she suggested it was Trump who has been the dominant force in American politics. “I’m talking about an era that started about a decade ago,” she said, “where there is some suggestion, warped I believe it to be, that the measure of the strength of a leader is based on you beat down instead of where I believe most Americans are, which is to believe that the true measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you lift up.” Happy Friday. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
| | | | A message from Evernorth Health Services:   | | | HISTORY LESSON — “I Went to Howard With Kamala Harris. Here’s What It Taught Us,” by Eric Easter for POLITICO Magazine: “It was a place where you could succeed because you were Black, not in spite of it.”
| | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | On the Hill The Senate and the House are out. What we’re watching … Could the next Senate Republican leader hail from the vote-no-and-take-the-dough caucus? Last week, Daniel Lippman reports, Senate Minority Whip JOHN THUNE (R-S.D.) headlined a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Madison, South Dakota, for part of a water project that received $152 million under President JOE BIDEN’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — which Thune opposed, citing fiscal concerns. Thune, who’s running to succeed MITCH McCONNELL as GOP leader, touted the project on X, sharing a photo that partially cut off a sign plugging the BIL. In a statement to Playbook, Thune spokesperson RYAN WRASSE said Thune has supported the project, a connection to the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System, since the late 1990s. “To suggest that LCRWS is a new project or that Thune is somehow taking undeserved credit ignores the facts and the decades of history that support them,” he said. At the White House Biden will receive the President’s Daily Brief. Harris will receive briefings and conduct internal meetings with staff. On the trail Trump will hold a rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in the afternoon. In the evening, he will address the Moms for Liberty National “Joyful Warriors” Summit. Walz will deliver remarks at campaign receptions in Bethesda, Maryland, and McLean, Virginia.
| | | | CHECK OUT WHAT YOU MISSED IN CHICAGO!
On Thursday, POLITICO and Bayer convened four conversations at the CNN-POLITICO Grill at the DNC. The program featured Bayer’s Senior Vice President, Head of Crop Science and Sustainability Communications, Jessica Christiansen, as well as conversations with Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL), and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) about agriculture, food policy and how these issues will impact the November election. CATCH UP HERE. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | TRUMP CARDS
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Donald Trump indicated in an interview yesterday that he would make IVF treatments free for Americans. | Jamie Kelter Davis for POLITICO | HIS LATEST CONCEPTION — Trump indicated in an interview in battleground Michigan yesterday that in a second administration he would make IVF treatments free for Americans. Speaking to NBC, Trump said: “We are going to be, under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,” adding, “We're going to be mandating that the insurance company pay.” Asked to “clarify whether the government would pay for IVF services or whether insurance companies would do so, Trump reiterated that one option would be to have insurance companies pay ‘under a mandate, yes.’” The position is notable given the flak that the Republican Party has faced on IVF since Alabama’s Supreme Court tried to halt the procedure (and the fact that most Senate Republicans rejected a bill that would have mandated insurance coverage for IVF back in June). It also could “put him at odds with anti-abortion advocates who oppose certain parts of the IVF process that involve discarding unused embryos,” NBC notes. Speaking of abortion: In the same NBC interview, Trump was pressed on how he plans to vote in Florida’s abortion ballot measure. The former president responded somewhat loosely, only noting that “the six weeks is too short” but adding that he would be “voting that we need more than six weeks.” The Trump campaign was quick to clean up the statement: “President Trump has not yet said how he will vote on the ballot initiative in Florida, he simply reiterated that he believes six weeks is too short,” spokesperson KAROLINE LEAVITT said. SBA Pro-Life America President MARJORIE DANNENFELSER jumped into the action, too. “I spoke with President Trump this evening. He has not committed to how he will vote on Amendment 4,” she said in a statement. More from Arek Sarkissian and Kierra Frazier The ground game: “Women in Florida reach across the aisle to support abortion access initiative,” by Arek Sarkissian and Kimberly Leonard in Bradenton, Florida More top reads:
- Citing the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling, Trump’s legal team late yesterday asked a federal court to “intervene in his New York hush money criminal case, seeking a pathway to overturn his felony conviction and indefinitely delay his sentencing next month,” AP’s Michael Sisak writes.
- The Army came out in defense yesterday of the Arlington National Cemetery official involved in an incident with the Trump campaign, saying the woman was “unfairly attacked,” Paul McLeary and Connor O’Brien write. The unidentified female staffer is declining to press charges due to concern over retaliation and the Army said it considers the matter closed.
2024 WATCH
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A new poll finds Kamala Harris leading or tied with Donald Trump in seven battleground states. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | POLL POSITION — The Harris honeymoon is not over for Democrats, according to a new Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll that finds Harris “leading or tied with Republican Donald Trump in each of the seven states most likely to decide the race,” Gregory Korte writes. The breakdown: In Wisconsin, Harris holds a +8 advantage, 52% to Trump’s 44%. In Pennsylvania, Harris has a +4 lead, 51% to 47%. In Nevada, Harris leads 49% to 45%. In Michigan, Harris is up 49% to 46%. In North Carolina and Georgia, Harris holds identical +2 leads, 49% to 47%. And in Arizona, Harris and Trump are tied at 48% The turnaround is perhaps most striking in North Carolina, where Dems have struggled for presidential success for years and Trump led by 10 points back in April. Interesting nugget: “The poll shows that swing-state voters’ perceptions of the economy haven’t dramatically improved since Harris took over the top of the ticket. A majority of respondents still say they were better off under Trump. But voters appear less likely to hold Harris responsible for the economic insecurities that plagued Biden.” In another sign of the surge, a new WSJ national poll finds Harris with another lead, holding “48% support to Trump’s 47% in a head-to-head test of the two candidates,” Aaron Zitner writes. And when independent and third party candidates were included, Harris still led by 2 points, 47% to 45%. Trump held a 2-point lead in the Journal’s head-to-head in late July. How it’s playing: “MAGA faithful blow off polls in Michigan, insist ‘Trump’s got it made,’” by Adam Wren from Potterville, Michigan More top reads:
- Tax ax: Some of Harris’ big-dollar donors are “pushing her to reconsider supporting a proposed tax on the wealthiest Americans, as some Wall Street and Silicon Valley executives try to reshape the Democratic nominee’s governing agenda,” NYT’s Andrew Duehren and Teddy Schleifer report.
- The Thiel deal: Now that the ice has thawed between Trump and PETER THIEL, Vance is urging the millionaire to “get off the sidelines” to help the Trump-Vance ticket in the general election, FT’s Alex Rogers reports. “[H]e’s obviously been exhausted by politics a little bit — but he’s going to be really exhausted by politics if we lose and if Kamala Harris is president,” Vance said.
ALL POLITICS DeSANTIS DOWNLOAD — Since his failed presidential run, Florida Gov. RON DeSANTIS has seen a diminishing of his power in Florida — and there’s no signs of the tide turning. “There is growing anticipation in Tallahassee that incoming legislative leaders who take over this November will be less accommodating to DeSantis, and that other politicians eyeing the governorship or cabinet jobs will also grow bolder in expressing their positions,” Gary Fineout and Kimberly Leonard report. VALOR VAMPING — Maryland Gov. WES MOORE has never publicly claimed a Bronze Star distinction from his time in the Army. On two occasions, TV interviewers said he had received the award — and Moore did nothing to correct them. But Moore did make the claim “on an application for a prestigious White House fellowship in 2006, when he was 27 years old,” NYT’s Reid Epstein reports. In an interview, Moore said the incident “had been ‘an honest mistake’ and expressed contrition” and “also said for the first time that he regretted failing to correct the interviewers who had described him as a recipient of the award.”
| | | | | | | | DON’T MISS OUR AI & TECH SUMMIT: Join POLITICO’s AI & Tech Summit for exclusive interviews and conversations with senior tech leaders, lawmakers, officials and stakeholders about where the rising energy around global competition — and the sense of potential around AI and restoring American tech knowhow — is driving tech policy and investment. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | POLICY CORNER TARIFF TAKEOFF — Trump’s promised tariff on imports could hit U.S. voters in one of the spots it hurts most — their gas tanks, Ben Lefebvre writes: “Trump has called for imposing tariffs of up to 20 percent on all imported goods should he be elected. That would likely affect at least half, if not all, of the 8 million barrels of crude oil that the United States imports, market analysts said, in what could become an especially politically explosive example of his tariffs’ impact on consumers’ wallets. Such a move could also blow up a trade treaty with the nation’s No. 1 supplier of imported oil: Canada.” SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS — “Postal Service Overhaul Runs Into Challenges,” by NYT’s Madeleine Ngo: “Revenue is up, but expenses have climbed, in large part because inflation has surged in recent years and driven up labor expenses. … At the same time, the Postal Service is grappling with declining mail volume.” FOR YOUR RADAR — “FBI Falls Short in Child Sex-Abuse Probes, Watchdog Says,” by WSJ’s Sadie Gurman and Louise Radnofsky AMERICA AND THE WORLD
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Israel said the latest three-day pause is not the first step to a cease-fire. | Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo | MIDDLE EAST LATEST — Israel has agreed to “pause military operations in a staggered schedule across Gaza to allow health workers to give polio vaccinations to about 640,000 children under the age of 10, U.N. officials said on Thursday,” per NYT’s Lara Jakes and Ephrat Livni. But Israel said the three-day effort ”is not the first step to a cease-fire and that fighting will not be halted across the Gaza Strip, rather that there will be limited pauses in certain locations to allow for the vaccinations.” Behind the scenes: “Inside the Frantic U.S. Efforts to Contain a Mideast Disaster,” by NYT’s Michael Crowley, Eric Schmitt and Edward Wong: “Biden officials believe they have played an important role in staving off the worst, though they concede that other factors have kept a precarious lid on the fast-boiling pot.” More top reads:
- Dance of the superpowers: The Biden administration is “considering using federal dollars to prop up U.S. critical minerals projects being hammered by an influx of cheaper Chinese materials,” James Bikales reports. “Under the policy, the department would set a price floor and agree to pay the difference when market prices fall below that threshold for critical minerals produced by certain U.S. projects.”
- What Xi said: Chinese President XI JINPING “used a meeting with U.S. national-security adviser JAKE SULLIVAN to push for stability in ties between the two global powers, seeking to define the relationship in ways that favor Beijing as the U.S. presidential election draws near,” WSJ’s Brian Spegele reports from Beijing.
CONGRESS HOW CLOSE WE CAME — According to new video unearthed by House Republicans, Rep. NANCY PELOSI’s motorcade “passed by a pipe bomb at the Democratic National Committee headquarters that law enforcement had yet to render safe” on Jan. 6, 2021, NYT’s Luke Broadwater reports. WOWZA — Rep. DON BACON (R-Neb.) “intervened to help former President Donald Trump’s social media company jump the line for a difficult-to-obtain foreign-worker visa to bring a company executive to the U.S.,” ProPublica’s Robert Faturechi, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski report. “A former staffer for [Bacon] said the congressman personally instructed her to help Trump Media, even though she thought it was inappropriate to mix politics with the office’s constituent services duties.” A Bacon spox “said Trump Media was not given special treatment.” THE WHITE HOUSE HOW IT HAPPENED — “How Biden’s Senate Allies Helped Push Him From the Race,” by NYT’s Carl Hulse: “Senator JACK REED, the West Point graduate, Army veteran and Rhode Island Democrat who leads the Armed Services Committee, is hardly known as a troublemaker prone to rash statements.So when Senate Democrats gathered privately with President Biden’s top political advisers last month to assess Mr. Biden’s capacity to remain the Democratic presidential nominee, the decision by the normally taciturn Mr. Reed to be among the first to speak was notable. “What was even more remarkable was what he said, according to two attendees: If Mr. Biden wanted to stay in the race after a disastrous debate performance that underscored concerns about his condition and mental acuity, he should submit to examination by two independent neurologists who were willing to report their findings at a news conference.” TV TONIGHT — PBS’ “Washington Week”: Francesca Chambers, McKay Coppins, Jeff Mason and Domenico Montanaro. SUNDAY SO FAR … ABC “This Week”: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Panel: Donna Brazile, Reince Priebus, Rick Klein and Vivian Salama. CBS “Face the Nation”: Mitch Landrieu … Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) … Sean O'Brien … Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey … David Becker. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) … Corey Lewandowski. Panel: Matt Gorman, Marie Harf, Jeff Mason and Roger Zakheim. NBC “Meet the Press”: Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) … Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.). Panel: Molly Ball, Lanhee Chen, María Teresa Kumar and David Rohde. CNN “State of the Union”: Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) … RNC Chair Michael Whatley. Panel: Karen Finney, Scott Jennings, Meghan Hays and Shermichael Singleton.
| | PLAYBOOKERS | | Max Miller is filing for divorce from his wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Bernie Moreno. Nellie Pou will replace the late Bill Pascrell on New Jersey ballots. ABBA is demanding that Donald Trump cut its music from his campaign. Dennis Quaid’s turn as Ronald Reagan probably isn’t going to win him any awards. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — A first-of-its-kind singing competition pitting sitting members of Congress against members of the Capitol Hill press corps is slated for Sept. 12 at The Anthem. “Congressional Karaoke” will be the featured entertainment at the upcoming annual dinner to honor the Radio and Television Correspondents Association of Capitol Hill. Contestants for “Congressional Karaoke” will be announced next week. Tickets and tables are available through next Tuesday, Sept. 3. Buy tickets TRANSITIONS — Pascal Confavreux will be deputy head of comms and press directorate, deputy spokesperson of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He previously was press counselor and spokesperson at the French Embassy in Washington. … Akosua Meyers is joining the American Immigration Council as chief development officer. She previously was director of development at the Center for Law and Social Policy. … Aaron Kissel is now CEO of the newly merged Executive Platforms and Board.org. He previously was a partner at Shoreline Drive Advisors and is a WSJ and POLITICO alum. … Katelin Romano is joining the Council on Foreign Relations as a program associate for Washington external affairs. She previously was a policy analyst at Mindset. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Gaby Hurt, deputy comms director for Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and a Trump White House alum, and Ryan Marks, special agent with the U.S. Secret Service, on Tuesday welcomed Sofia Marks. Pic ... Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) … Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) … Warren Buffett … CNN’s John King and Christi Parsons … WaPo’s Martine Powers … NBC’s Brandy Zadrozny … Patrick Kerley … Tom Countryman … Lia Albini … George Riccardo … Karl Russo … Rachel Harris … POLITICO’s Mitch Schuler, Jordain Carney and Jen Dreyer … Elliot Bell-Krasner … Caitlin Girouard … Laura Moser … Cheryl Mills … Korie Traver of the American Cleaning Institute … Ariana Berengaut … Murray Weiss … BGR Group’s Loren Monroe … Alex Haskell … Guillermo Pérez of Rep. Gabe Amo’s (D-R.I.) office 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
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