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Presented by Everytown for Gun Safety: Feb 26, 2019 View in browser
By Jake Sherman, Anna Palmer, Daniel Lippman, Garrett Ross and Eli Okun

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FIRST IN PLAYBOOK ... ROBBY MOOK, campaign manager for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential race, will become president of the HOUSE MAJORITY PAC, the House Democratic super PAC. This isn't Mook's first turn at House races. He served as executive director of the DCCC during the 2012 campaign cycle. ALI LAPP, who founded the super PAC in 2011 and has served as its president, is stepping into the role of senior adviser.
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SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI said in a statement that "House Majority PAC was an essential part of the midterm results. I'm pleased that Robby Mook will be its president" and that "I know he will build upon House Majority PAC's success and ensure voters hear about what House Democrats are doing to build a stronger America for the people."

LET'S BE HONEST ... THE HOUSE WILL VOTE this afternoon to overturn PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP'S emergency declaration. Somewhere around 10 to 12 House Republicans will buck TRUMP on this.

THIS IS ONE OF THE HUGE INTELLECTUAL DISHONESTIES of the Trump era. Republicans spent years saying BARACK OBAMA acted inappropriately when using executive authority to do what Congress couldn't do. Now Republicans are completely permissive of Trump doing the exact same thing. Early in the Trump presidency, they said he could use executive authority to undo what Democrats had done. Now, they don't care. It's open season.

Good Tuesday afternoon.

SPY GAMES -- WAPO'S ELLEN NAKASHIMA: "U.S. Cyber Command operation disrupted Internet access of Russian troll factory on day of 2018 midterms": "The U.S. military blocked Internet access to an infamous Russian entity seeking to sow discord among Americans during the 2018 midterms, several U.S. officials said, a warning that the group's operations against the United States are not cost-free.

"The strike on the Internet Research Agency in St. Petersburg, a company underwritten by an oligarch close to President Vladimir Putin, was part of the first offensive cyber campaign against Russia designed to thwart attempts to interfere with a U.S. election, the officials said." WaPo

THE HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE has subpoenaed A.G. Bill Barr, DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and HHS Secretary Alex Azar for "records on the Trump Administration's child separation policy." More from Ted Hesson

IMMIGRATION FILES -- "Thousands of migrant youth allegedly suffered sexual abuse in U.S. custody," by Axios' Caitlin Owens, Stef Kight and Harry Stevens: "Thousands of allegations of sexual abuse against unaccompanied minors in the custody of the U.S. government have been reported over the past 4 years, according to Department of Health and Human Services documents given to Axios by Rep. Ted Deutch's office.

"Allegations against staff members reported to the DOJ included everything from rumors of relationships with UACs to showing pornographic videos to minors to forcibly touching minors' genitals. By the numbers: From Oct. 2014 to July 2018, the HHS's Office of Refugee Resettlement received 4,556 complaints, and the Department of Justice received 1,303 complaints. This includes 178 allegations of sexual abuse by adult staff." Axios

THE SUMMIT ...

-- THE PRESIDENT TWEETS at 10:08 a.m.: "Just arrived in Vietnam. Thank you to all of the people for the great reception in Hanoi. Tremendous crowds, and so much love!"

-- VOX'S ALEX WARD: "Exclusive: here's the tentative deal Trump and Kim Jong Un may strike in Vietnam": "A tentative deal between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to be finalized over the next two days at their summit in Vietnam has emerged - and while it may still change, the current agreement looks like a huge win for Kim. For the US? Not so much.

"Under the current iteration of the agreement, described to me by three people familiar with the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic issues, the US would agree to lift some sanctions on North Korea and improve ties between the two countries in exchange for a commitment from Kim Jong Un to close down a key nuclear facility." Vox

-- NYT'S HANNAH BEECH in Hanoi, Vietnam: "Cozy Up to U.S., Vietnam Tells North Korea. Look What It Did for Us"

-- POLITICO MAGAZINE'S MICHAEL KRUSE: "How Vietnam Became Donald Trump's Forever War: Absent from his generation's signature conflict, he turned Vietnam into an ideological battlefield he has returned to repeatedly." POLITICO Magazine

A message from Everytown for Gun Safety:

On average, gun violence claims 100 lives in America each day. Lawmakers have a choice: take action to help free Americans from gun violence, or ignore us for the gun lobby. We're Everytown for Gun Safety, and we urge Congress: support H.R. 8 to update background checks. Learn more here.

COURT WATCH -- "U.S. Appeals Court Rejects Justice Department Antitrust Challenge to AT&T-Time Warner Deal," by WSJ's Brent Kendall: "A federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected the Justice Department's bid to roll back AT&T Inc.'s 2018 acquisition of entertainment company Time Warner, a second defeat for government antitrust enforcers who sought to sink the $80 billion-plus deal. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed a trial judge's ruling in June that found the deal was unlikely to harm competition.

"The ruling could sweep away much of the legal uncertainty that has hung over AT&T as it has moved forward with the Time Warner assets. ... The decision also cements one of the biggest losses for the Justice Department's antitrust division in a generation." WSJ

THE INVESTIGATIONS ... DARREN SAMUELSOHN: "Trump inner circle might escape Mueller charges - but still won't be safe": "In recent weeks, several prominent figures close to Trump have insisted that they'll survive Mueller's probe unscathed. Trump himself maintains that Justice Department officials have told his lawyers he is not a target of the special counsel's investigation. ... But Mueller is far from the only threat to the president, his family and aides. ...

"Lawyers for Trump and several other senior officials told POLITICO that they are as much in the dark about Mueller's next moves as everyone else trying to decipher whether the special counsel really is close to wrapping up his probe, as several media outlets reported last week.

"They're also grappling with the reality that even if Attorney General William Barr releases a summary of Mueller's report, the document will likely be scrubbed of the names and details of anyone who wasn't formally charged - offering people who have been living under a legal shadow no exculpatory evidence." POLITICO

-- JOSH GERSTEIN: "Mueller scores big win as court rejects challenge to his appointment": "The appeals court judges also found no flaw in Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's appointment of Mueller in the wake of the recusal of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The court said that because the attorney general can repeal the regulations used to appoint Mueller at any time, he remains under the control of a Cabinet official." POLITICO

-- CNN'S SHIMON PROKUPECZ (@ShimonPro): "For your calendar: Paul Manafort's sentencing in a Virginia federal court for financial crimes will take place March 7 in the afternoon, a day earlier than previously planned. His sentencing in D.C. for his guilty plea to conspiracy charges will happen March 13."

WAR REPORT -- CNN'S CLARISSA WARD, NAJIBULLAH QURAISHI and SALMA ABDELAZIZ in Balkh Province, Afghanistan: "36 hours with the Taliban": "Our 36 hours with them provided an extraordinary window into a desolate world frozen in time. We found few indications that the militant group's insular and austere ideology has changed.

"At times, as foreign women, our presence was incredibly uncomfortable. But, as peace talks in Qatar with the US gather momentum, the Taliban believes that victory is within its grasp and, perhaps as a result, there are signs the group is showing greater pragmatism." CNN

ON THE WORLD STAGE -- WSJ'S DAN STRUMPF and SARAH KROUSE in Barcelona: "U.S. Officials Press Allies to Exclude Huawei From 5G Networks": "Officials from the U.S. State Department and America's telecommunications regulator publicly outlined their campaign to exclude Huawei Technologies Co. from allies' next generation communications networks, calling the Chinese equipment-maker 'duplicitous and deceitful.'

"The officials, however, declined to offer any specific evidence of so-called backdoors in Huawei infrastructure that would permit it to spy on the U.S. or its allies. Speaking at mobile industry conference MWC Barcelona Tuesday, Robert Strayer, the State Department's top cybersecurity official, said the U.S. has had successful conversations with international allies about what it sees as security threats posed by Huawei." WSJ

FOR YOUR RADAR -- "Kushner to pay first visit to Turkey to promote Middle East peace plan," by Middle East Eye's Ragip Soylu in Istanbul: "An American delegation, led by senior White House adviser Jared Kushner, will visit Ankara on Wednesday to discuss the details of a draft US peace plan for the Palestinian conflict, Middle East Eye has learned.

"Kushner's first ever trip to Turkey will be closely followed by Ankara's neighbours, especially Saudi Arabia, due to recent tensions over the murder of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year. ... The officials expect to hold talks not only about the Palestinian peace process but also about bilateral topics such as the Syria crisis. It was not immediately confirmed whom Kushner would meet with in Ankara." Middle East Eye

KNOWING MIKE POMPEO -- MATTATHIAS SCHWARTZ in NYT MAGAZINE: "Mike Pompeo's Mission: Translate Trump to a Wary World: This week's North Korea meeting is just the latest challenge in a larger balancing act for the secretary of state." NYT Magazine

TRADE WARS -- "Tariff Fears Led U.S. Manufacturers to Trim Spending," by WSJ's William Mauldin

2020 WATCH -- "Hillary Clinton Is Not a Candidate. She Looms Over 2020 Anyway," by NYT's Shane Goldmacher and Lisa Lerer: "Beyond [Joe] Biden and [Sen. Amy] Klobuchar, she has spoken with Senator Kamala Harris of California; [Sen. Cory] Booker; Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; John Hickenlooper, the former governor of Colorado; and the former housing secretary Julián Castro, among others. She and [Terry] McAuliffe speak regularly. Gov. Steve Bullock of Montana is trying to schedule a meeting with her. ...

"A notable name not to consult Mrs. Clinton is Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, whose once close relationship with the Clintons deteriorated after she said President Bill Clinton should have resigned over his sexual relationship with a White House intern. In her conversations, Mrs. Clinton signaled that she has no plans to endorse someone in the primary, say those who have spoken with her, but is eager to help the eventual nominee." NYT

-- THE ATLANTIC'S ADAM HARRIS: "The College Affordability Crisis Is Uniting the 2020 Democratic Candidates": "Bernie Sanders has called for tuition-free college. Julián Castro has signaled support for it as well. Elizabeth Warren has pushed, for years, for 'debt-free' college. Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, and Kirsten Gillibrand have signed on to legislation that could make college debt-free. Even Amy Klobuchar, who notably shirked 'free college for all' during a CNN town hall in February, signed on to a metered free-college proposal last year.

"All together, the field seems to have converged on a consensus: A free-college proposal-or an answer about why they don't have one-is something of a prerequisite for Democratic candidates hoping to challenge Donald Trump in the 2020 election." The Atlantic

-- CARLA MARINUCCI in San Francisco: "Harris aims to lock down California with new statewide endorsements"

-- THE 2020 SHUFFLE ... Lindsay Lassman will be the deputy national finance director overseeing the west coast for Sen. Cory Booker's presidential campaign. She previously was Northern California finance director for Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign.

-- NATIONAL JOURNAL'S HANNA TRUDO (@HCTrudo): "Scoop: @JoeBiden has made job offers in New Hampshire, a source directly familiar tells me."

-- NBC'S ALEX SEITZ-WALD: "Bernie Sanders staff shakeup: Top strategists leave his presidential campaign": "Tad Devine, Mark Longabaugh and Julian Mulvey, colleagues in a political consulting firm who all played leading roles in Sanders' 2016 campaign for the White House, are parting ways with the senator, citing creative differences.

"'The entire firm has stepped away. We're leaving the campaign,' Longabaugh told NBC News. 'We just didn't have a meeting of the minds.'" NBC

COMING ATTRACTIONS -- HEATHER CAYGLE (@heatherscope): "Update on House DEM retreat: the conference has been rescheduled for April 10-12 in Lansdowne, Va. (near Leesburg), per Dem aide."

WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- Ed Skyler, EVP for global public affairs at Citigroup and a Mike Bloomberg alum, and Jen Skyler, chief communications officer at WeWork and a Facebook alum, on Monday welcomed Samuel Ellis Skyler, who joins big sisters Amelia and Anneliese. Samuel's middle name is an allusion to Ellis Island.

-- Jaime Horn, principal at New Heights Communications and a Blue Engine and DCCC alum, and Mathew Harkins, director of production at the Engage Group, on Friday welcomed Luke Charles Harkins, who joins big sis Grace. Pic ... Another pic

A message from Everytown for Gun Safety:


Americans are standing up to urge Congress: pass H.R. 8 to update background checks. Learn more here.

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Anna Palmer @apalmerdc

Jake Sherman @JakeSherman

Daniel Lippman @dlippman

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