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Presented by AARP: Playbook is POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the day in Washington Aug 14, 2018 View in browser
By Jake Sherman, Anna Palmer, Daniel Lippman and Eli Okun

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ALERT ... PAUL MANAFORT'S defense team has rested its case without calling witnesses. Closing arguments are up next

SIREN ... POLITICO/MORNING CONSULT POLL ... STEVE SCALISE and NANCY PELOSI are the top choice for speaker of the House. 18% of Republicans want Scalise (R-La.) to be the speaker if Republicans take the House. 11% want Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and 9% want House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). Fifty-seven percent of people either do not know or have no opinion. Conservatives heavily favor Scalise: 16% of conservatives favor him, 12% want Jordan and 8% want McCarthy.

-- IF DEMOCRATS TAKE THE HOUSE: PELOSI is a clear favorite among Democrats. 32% polled want her, 13% want Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and 4% want House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.). 38% don't know or are undecided.

-- THE FULL POLL will be out tomorrow morning.

SPOTTED: Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump sharing small plates at Kellari Taverna on K Street Monday evening.

BREAKING -- "Trump campaign files for arbitration against Omarosa," by Rebecca Morin: "'Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. has filed an arbitration against Omarosa Manigault-Newman, with the American Arbitration Association in New York City, for breach of her 2016 confidentiality agreement with the Trump Campaign,' a Trump campaign official said." POLITICO

QUITE THE TWITTER EXCHANGE ... PHIL BUMP (@pbump): "How would the board of a company react if the CEO told them that he hadn't fired an unqualified employee who was disliked by coworkers because the employee constantly praised him?" ...

-- GEORGE CONWAY (@gtconway3d) -- KELLYANNE'S HUSBAND -- RESPONDS: "Interesting analogy. Likewise, what if a CEO routinely made false and misleading statements about himself, the company, and results, and publicly attacked business partners, company 'divisions' (w/ scare quotes!), employees, and analysts, and kowtowed to a dangerous competitor?"

SPLIT SCREEN -- OMAROSA will be on MSNBC with KATY TUR at 2 p.m. THE WHITE HOUSE is sending SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS out at 2 p.m. to talk to reporters.

DRIP DRIP ... ANOTHER OMAROSA TAPE -- "Omarosa reveals audio of Trump campaign aides allegedly discussing potential fallout of N-word," on "CBS This Morning": "Trump campaign advisers denied on Monday that any conversations took place. CBS News has not been able to verify the authenticity of the recording - though it appears to confirm Omarosa's claims that Trump campaign officials were aware of a tape in which then-candidate Trump uses a racial slur, and they talked about how to handle it." CBS

-- LYNNE PATTON (@LynnePatton): "No one ever denied we had multiple conversations re: the Apprentice tape. To the contrary my interview w/@HuffPost proves @OMAROSA was obsessed & discussed it constantly. What we refuted is having a call that Luntz CONFIRMED Trump said it. Trump himself confirms to us he didn't."

-- PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP continued to lay into Manigault Newman, tweeting at 7:31 a.m., "When you give a crazed, crying lowlife a break, and give her a job at the White House, I guess it just didn't work out. Good work by General Kelly for quickly firing that dog!"

WONDER how that will play with college-educated suburban women! @JeffFlake: "This kind of language is unbecoming of a President of the United States. There is no excuse for it, and Republicans should not be okay with it."

Good Tuesday afternoon. ALSO ON THE PRESIDENT'S MIND -- @realDonaldTrump at 7:42 a.m.: "Another terrorist attack in London...These animals are crazy and must be dealt with through toughness and strength!"

... at 7:55 a.m.: "Bruce Ohr of the 'Justice' Department (can you believe he is still there) is accused of helping disgraced Christopher Steele 'find dirt on Trump.' Ohr's wife, Nelly, was in on the act big time -- worked for Fusion GPS on Fake Dossier. @foxandfriends".

... at 8:06 a.m.: "'They were all in on it, clear Hillary Clinton and FRAME Donald Trump for things he didn't do.' Gregg Jarrett on @foxandfriends If we had a real Attorney General, this Witch Hunt would never have been started! Looking at the wrong people."

... at 9:01 a.m.: "Fired FBI Agent Peter Strzok is a fraud, as is the rigged investigation he started. There was no Collusion or Obstruction with Russia, and everybody, including the Democrats, know it. The only Collusion and Obstruction was by Crooked Hillary, the Democrats and the DNC!"

... at 9:10 a.m.: "Strzok started the illegal Rigged Witch Hunt -- why isn't this so-called 'probe' ended immediately? Why aren't these angry and conflicted Democrats instead looking at Crooked Hillary?"

A message from AARP:

Join POLITICO Playbook co-authors, Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman, and Playbook California author, Carla Marinucci, for a Playbook Elections event in California to discuss the 2018 midterms on Aug. 16, 2018 at 8:30 a.m. at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown. This event is part of the POLITICO-AARP series, "The Deciders."

MORE ON THE STRZOK STORY -- "'You stepped in it here': How anti-Trump texts ruined the career of the FBI's go-to agent," by WaPo's Matt Zapotosky and Devlin Barrett: "Strzok's firing, rather than easing tensions, might serve to fuel the partisan inferno surrounding the bureau's work. ...

"Many people who worked with Strzok over the years said they did not know what his partisan leanings were until the messages emerged. But even supporters acknowledge his reputation might have sustained a fatal wound from his texts about people he was investigating, on a work phone, to a woman with whom he was having an affair." WaPo

HEADS UP -- WSJ'S BEN MULLIN (@BenMullin): "New York Media, the publisher of New York Magazine, is exploring options including a potential sale."

FOR YOUR RADAR -- "Details scarce, but White House says it's actively working to bring Austin Tice home," by McClatchy's Franco Ordoñez and Stuart Leavenworth: "Six years after journalist Austin Tice disappeared in war-torn Syria, the State Department says it believes he is alive and that his case has 'attention at the highest level' of the Trump administration, including its new envoy for hostage affairs, Robert C. O'Brien." McClatchy

AT THE DNC -- "Black caucus chairman opposes DNC plan to weaken superdelegate influence," by David Siders: "Intensifying a dispute over superdelegates ahead of a [DNC] meeting next week, Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Cedric Richmond on Monday urged committee members to oppose a plan to weaken superdelegates' influence in the presidential nominating process.

"In a letter to DNC Chairman Tom Perez, Richmond (D-La.) said the proposal would 'disenfranchise elected officials' who serve as superdelegates." POLITICO

2020 WATCH -- "2020 Democrats take a page from Trump's playbook on race," by David Siders: "Democrats with 2020 aspirations are preparing for an uncharacteristically overt, racially pointed campaign against Trump, seeking to capitalize on major points of contrast with the Republican president. It's a marked departure from the last Democratic president, Barack Obama, who often downplayed race, long an undercurrent in presidential politics. ...

"Some Democrats fear playing on Trump's terms could alienate those same voters. In 2016, race worked to Trump's advantage more than it did to Clinton's, and if Democrats in 2020 press a match-up with Trump on issues of race, it is unclear they will prevail." POLITICO

-- "An Iowa Evangelical Leader Is Gaining A National Audience By Pushing Back On Donald Trump," by BuzzFeed's Henry Gomez: BuzzFeed

AP'S JEFF HORWITZ: "Gates testimony dredges up Trump inaugural spending mystery": "Donald Trump's inaugural committee pushed back hard last summer on questions about whether the unprecedented $107 million budget for the event was fraught with cost overruns and misspending. A top inauguration official assured The Associated Press that spending had been restrained and monitored.

"In court last week, that same official - Rick Gates - acknowledged that he personally may have pocketed some of the inaugural committee's money. ... It's not clear how much money Gates may have pocketed or whether his testimony will prompt the committee to review spending." AP

2018 WATCH -- "For Rashida Tlaib, Palestinian Heritage Infuses a Detroit Sense of Community," by NYT's Elizabeth Dias in Detroit: "Ms. Tlaib attributes her political vision and sense of justice to her Palestinian heritage. She often references checkpoints around her relatives' homes near Ramallah in the West Bank and how they limit residents' access to health care and education. ...

"When it comes to policy, Ms. Tlaib said she is mostly concerned with local issues, like Michigan's high car insurance costs and creating 'neighborhood services centers' - reimagined district offices that offer community resources like free tax preparation or energy grants. She plans to spend as much time as possible in Michigan, not Washington, and even wondered whether it was possible to move her swearing-in ceremony to Detroit." NYT

TOP-ED -- ROBERT RUBIN in WaPo, "America's debt has exploded. Why does no one care?": "Substantive fiscal policy work is essential, but all the good policy thinking in the world won't matter unless the politics works. Without good politics, the policies won't be implemented. And the politics of fiscal discipline have not been effectively addressed by too many of those who are deeply concerned about our country's economic future - including me." WaPo

FOR YOUR PLANNING ... The RNC's winter meeting will be held Jan. 23 to 25.

WAR REPORT -- "Far From Dead: Tens of Thousands of IS Fighters Linger in Iraq, Syria," by Voice of America's Jeff Seldin: "The Islamic State terror group may be far more resilient, stronger and dangerous than U.S. officials have been willing to let on, boasting a fighting force in Iraq and Syria that comes close to what it fielded at its peak.

"After four years of bombings, the elimination of key IS leaders, and other U.S. and coalition backed efforts, there are still anywhere from 28,600 to 31,600 IS fighters in Iraq and Syria, according to information given by the Defense Department." VOA

A message from AARP:


Learn more about the 2018 midterm cycle and issues shaping the races with the Playbook Elections event in California on Aug. 16, 2018.

SPY GAMES -- "Chinese Cops Now Spying on American Soil," by The Daily Beast's Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian: "[E]ven for those who have escaped China, surveillance and intimidation have followed. As part of a massive campaign to monitor and intimidate its ethnic minorities no matter where they are, Chinese authorities are creating a global registry of Uighurs who live outside of China, threatening to detain their relatives if they do not provide personal and identifying information to Chinese police. This campaign is now reaching even Uighurs who live in the United States." The Daily Beast

KNOWING ALEXANDER TORSHIN -- "Handler of alleged spy Butina tied to suspicious U.S.-Russia exchange program," by Josh Meyer: POLITICO

ON THE WORLD STAGE -- "Erdo\u011fan announces 'boycott' of American electronics," by POLITICO Europe's Jakob Hanke: "Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan said Monday Turkey would boycott American electronics, amplifying fears of economic nationalism and further confrontation with the United States just as the currency plunges. ... 'If they have iPhones, on the other side there is Samsung. And in our own country there is our own Venus Vestel,' he added." POLITICO Europe

-- "Warm, high-profile welcome for Taiwanese president in the United States," by the South China Morning Post's Lawrence Chung: "Taiwanese analysts said Tsai's warm reception in the U.S. included U.S. President Donald Trump's signing of the National Defence Authorisation Act, which opens the door to bigger arms deals and military exchanges with Taiwan." South China Morning Post

HMM ... "Scientists Are Still Fighting Over What Made US Diplomats In Cuba Ill," by BuzzFeed's Emily Tamkin: BuzzFeed

AFTERNOON READ -- NICK CONFESSORE with the NYT MAGAZINE cover story: "The Unlikely Activists Who Took On Silicon Valley - and Won": "For most of its relatively brief existence, Silicon Valley has been more lightly regulated than almost any other major industry. The technology that drove the business was complex, and few lawmakers wanted to be seen as standing in the way of a new kind of wealth creation, one that seemed to carry no messy downsides like pollution or global economic collapse.

"Most of the biggest tech companies could simply ignore Washington - until they grew too big for Washington to ignore. When regulators finally threatened to intervene, the companies did what they were best at: They scaled up, this time not with software and servers but with phalanxes of lobbyists and lawyers." NYT Magazine ... The cover

WHAT ANNA IS READING -- PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION -- Bon Appétit named Maydan the No. 2 best new restaurant in America. (Oklahoma City's Nonesuch topped the list.) The full top 10

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK - BUSH ALUMNI: YUVAL LEVIN is working on a new book about how Americans think about institutions and how our changing relationship with them is at the "center of our social crisis," Levin, editor of National Affairs and a Bush WH alum, told us. The book, with the title "A Time to Build," will come out mid-next year and will be published by Basic Books.

MEDIAWATCH -- Graham Vyse started Monday as a staff writer at Governing Magazine. He was most recently a staff writer at The New Republic.

TRANSITIONS -- Erika Masonhall has moved to Los Angeles and started as manager of content communications at Netflix. She previously was manager of news communications at Facebook and is an NBC News and Joe Lieberman alum. ... Jon Berrier will be senior director for public affairs at Juul, based in San Francisco. He most recently was executive VP for public affairs at Edelman and is a George W. Bush and Arnold Schwarzenegger alum. ... Jeff Holmes is now deputy director of communications for Iowa Democratic gubernatorial nominee Fred Hubbell. He previously was a director at SKDKnickerbocker.

WEEKEND WEDDING -- Seth Stein, deputy press secretary for NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio and an alum of LCV and former Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.), married Katy Tasker, a nurse. Pic ... Video

WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- BOEHNER ALUMNI -- Jared Eichhorn, senior manager of federal government affairs at the Association for Global Automakers who used to work for Speakers John Boehner and Paul Ryan, and Sarah Cannon, LD for Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), on Saturday welcomed Charles Cannon Eichhorn, who came in at 7 pounds, 3 ounces, and is 20 inches long. Pic

-- Jennifer Zuccarelli, a managing director of communications at J.P. Morgan, and Jonathan Lesko recently welcomed Emmeline.

BONUS BIRTHDAY: Mason Meredith, associate director of research in the WH office of communications.

A message from AARP:


The Playbook Elections event in California on Aug. 16, 2018 will feature interviews with candidates and party leaders on issues that matter most to voters.

Follow us on Twitter

Anna Palmer @apalmerdc

Jake Sherman @JakeSherman

Daniel Lippman @dlippman

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