With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross
FLORIDA LATEST — Via the National Hurricane Center: “IDALIA RAPIDLY INTENSIFIES INTO A CATEGORY 4 HURRICANE … CATASTROPHIC STORM SURGE AND DESTRUCTIVE WINDS ARE NEARING THE FLORIDA BIG BEND REGION.” More from AP
For your radar … “Florida’s Senator Rick Scott Demands More Disaster Aid as Idalia Approaches,” by Bloomberg’s Steve Dennis: “Scott says he will seek a vote on replenishing the depleted federal disaster relief fund next week.”
McCARTHY’S IMPEACHMENT QUAGMIRE — When Speaker NANCY PELOSI announced on Sept. 24, 2019, that House Democrats would move toward impeaching DONALD TRUMP, Republican Leader KEVIN McCARTHY responded with strenuous objections — including one centered on the process.
Previous impeachments had been launched with a House floor vote authorizing the inquiry, laying out the rules of the road and dictating the rights of the minority and the president. Without such a vote, McCarthy insisted, Democrats were pursuing “a process completely devoid of any merit or legitimacy,” as McCarthy wrote in a letter to Pelosi at the time.
McCarthy wasn’t the only one concerned, as Rachael reported in “Unchecked,” her book on the Trump impeachments.
- His senior counsel MACHALAGH CARR (now McCarthy’s chief of staff) had watched Pelosi’s address — where she said existing probes would be brought “under the umbrella of impeachment” without specifying a House vote — and relayed grave concerns to McCarthy about the break with precedent.
- McCarthy press aide MARK BEDNAR, also present, joked that Democrats were engaged in “Mickey Mouse bullshit” — pretending as though they were in an impeachment inquiry to please the party base without having the balls to make it official with a vote that could expose their most vulnerable members to political blowback.
- And when, later that day, key committee leaders huddled with McCarthy to discuss the matter, the Judiciary panel’s point man called Pelosi’s plan a farce: “It’s not impeachment unless there is a vote,” Rep. DOUG COLLINS (R-Ga.) flatly declared.
Now, four years later, House Republicans under McCarthy are considering borrowing a page from the Pelosi playbook their leader once scorned as they look to start an impeachment of President JOE BIDEN. According to CNN’s Mel Zanona, GOP lawmakers are discussing a strategy that would start an inquiry without a formal House vote — reporting we can confirm from our own conversations last night.
The irony — should that plan hold — is rich, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed by Democrats, who spent the better part of Trump’s first impeachment warding off GOP attacks on an “illegitimate” impeachment inquiry.
It’s an only-in-Washington tale of hypocrisy, on one hand. On the other, McCarthy has his reasons: Most importantly, he doesn’t have the 218 GOP votes needed to start the inquiry — at least not yet.
Moderate Republicans in Biden-won districts are still privately fretting that there’s no evidence to back up their conservative colleagues’ accusations that the president benefited from his son’s swampy gigs, where HUNTER BIDEN was paid millions of dollars by foreign entities seeking to rent the clout of the Biden name.
“We haven’t proven the case for impeachment yet,” one senior GOP aide told us last night. “How can you start impeachment? We haven’t done what you need to do to start impeachment. There is no way we’d get the votes.”
But for McCarthy, it’s about more than just avoiding an embarrassing failure on the floor. Trump — who has been breathing down McCarthy’s neck to charge forward with a Biden impeachment — has suggested he’d use an impeachment vote to smoke out any MAGA-skeptical Republicans and support primary opponents against them.
This, of course, mirrors the situation Pelosi found herself in four years ago — wary of exposing her frontliners to a politically risky impeachment vote. Ultimately House Democrats did vote to formalize the inquiry, but only after more than a month of interviews firmed up their case.
So why not avoid impeachment entirely? Easier said than done for McCarthy — particularly when Trump posted this just a few days ago: “You don’t need a long INQUIRY to prove it, it’s already proven. Either IMPEACH the BUM, or fade into OBLIVION. THEY DID IT TO US!”
And remember the context: McCarthy is already in hot water with Trump’s House allies over his support for a continuing resolution that would keep the government open past Sept. 30 while Congress hashes out long-term spending bills. One senior Republican said the speaker may need to turn to impeachment next month to let those unhappy members blow off steam — and protect his gavel.
“It’s good in terms of conference politics,” the lawmaker said. “Because some people might be upset that the approps bills aren’t moving quickly, or they have demands that they perceive are not being met. But they’ll have the impeachment inquiry, as well.”
SCALISE’S BAD NEWS — Allies of House Majority Leader STEVE SCALISE knew something was wrong last week. At McCarthy’s annual fundraising event in Jackson Hole, Wyo., the typically gregarious, back-slapping Louisiana Republican seemed tired and not himself. Where he typically jumps at opportunities to mix and mingle, he told people he was feeling off and just wanted to sleep.
After a blood test, Scalise got shocking news: He had blood cancer, but it would take more tests and several more days to determine whether it was a mild, treatable form or something more aggressive — and life-threatening. The waiting once again left Scalise’s family and political team in anguish, six years after Scalise almost died from a would-be assassin’s gunshot at a congressional baseball practice.
The news was ultimately encouraging. Yesterday, Scalise announced that he’s in the early stages of multiple myeloma, what he called a “very treatable blood cancer” in a statement. He’s already undergoing a form of chemotherapy, and while it’s unclear exactly how long the treatments will last, doctors have assured Scalise he can lead a normal life so long as he routinely gets tested and takes medication, we’re told.
Scalise and his inner circle are bullish about a return to work sometime in the fall, though the exact date is TBD for now. “Team Scalise knows how to deal with this,” said one person close to him. “There’s no worries, at least from us, about this.”
Good Wednesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
JUST POSTED — “How Jeffrey Epstein Tried to Tap In to Trump’s Circle,” by WSJ’s Khadeeja Safdar and David Benoit: “Epstein scheduled lunches with venture capitalist PETER THIEL and real-estate investor THOMAS BARRACK in 2016, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. At the time, both were high-profile financial backers of Trump’s campaign. Epstein invited Thiel and Barrack to separate meetings with VITALY CHURKIN, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations. …
“‘I was rather naive,’ Thiel said in an interview, ‘and I didn’t think enough about what Epstein’s agenda might have been.’ Barrack, founder of Colony Capital and a longtime Trump ally, declined to comment.”
PROGRAMMING NOTE — Our daily news podcast, Playbook Daily Briefing, is off this week along with most of POLITICO’s other newsletters and podcasts. We’ll be back with a new episode Tuesday.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
2024 WATCH
SUAREZ CALLS IT QUITS — Miami Mayor FRANCIS SUAREZ announced yesterday afternoon he was suspending his longshot presidential campaign after failing to gain momentum — or a spot on the first debate stage — in a crowded GOP field. “It was a privilege to come so close to appearing on stage with the other candidates at last week’s first debate,” Suarez said in a post on X. More from Kelly Garrity
Notably … Just a day before announcing the end of his run, Suarez filed a new financial disclosure revealing he has earned additional income from various undisclosed jobs and agreements on top of his mayoral salary, The Miami Herald’s Sarah Blaskey and Tess Riski report: “Suarez listed income ranges for 15 consulting arrangements or jobs, including his mayoral compensation, and five investment properties — putting his total income for the past 20 months somewhere between $2.1 and $12.9 million.”
SPEAKING OF FLORIDA — Florida Gov. RON DeSANTIS has rejected the White House’ offer of some $350 million in energy incentives for the Sunshine State, the first prominent refusal of the funds through the Inflation Reduction Act, and that could create some headaches for the Biden administration, Jennifer Haberkorn reports this morning.
“Unlike many federal laws, there is no federal fallback option or way to circumvent an obstinate governor. That leaves the Biden administration hoping Florida will reconsider — and that the IRA funding doesn’t snowball into a political litmus test for GOP governors as Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, and the Obama administration’s high speed rail funding, did a decade ago.”
Meanwhile … There’s trouble at home for DeSantis as he juggles both the looming landing of Hurricane Idalia and the recent fatal shooting at a Jacksonville Dollar General, NBC’s Alec Hernández reports.
TRUMP WORLD’S POST-DEBATE VIEW — A polling memo from Trump pollster TONY FABRIZIO is warning donors that former South Carolina Gov. NIKKI HALEY is “surging” in Iowa polls following last week’s GOP debate, while VIVEK RAMASWAMY and Haley are tied with DeSantis in New Hampshire, Axios’ Alex Thompson scoops: “Fabrizio’s memo, sent to fundraisers and allies of former President Trump, said that all three remain far behind him in the first two states that will vote in the GOP primary season.”
“Haley and Ramaswamy were widely seen as doing well in the debate, but the memo also reflects Team Trump’s emphasis on DeSantis’ early struggles — and how it’s trying to shift the campaign’s narrative from ‘Trump vs. DeSantis’ to ‘Trump vs. everyone else.’”
Related read: “Trump fundraising spikes after Fulton County mugshot, surpassing $20M in August,” by Fox News’ Brook Singman: “36,000 t-shirts with Trump’s historic mugshot printed have been sold, bringing in more than $1.7 million. The Trump campaign also sold 24,000 mugshot coffee mugs, bringing in $864,000 and 8,600 mugshot posters, raking in $352,000.”
PENCE ON THE MOVE? — Former VP MIKE PENCE may be experiencing a post-debate spike after raking in one of his largest single-event fundraising hauls yesterday, raising $250,000, Adam Wren reports: “Pence’s allied super PAC, Committed to America, also saw a spike in fundraising. The PAC saw an additional $250,000 flow in the day after the debate”
14A WATCH — “Secretaries of state get ready for possible challenges to Trump’s ballot access,” by NBC’s Vaughn Hillyard
MORE POLITICS
SOMEONE STEPS UP — Former Rep. MIKE ROGERS is gearing up for an announcement to run for Michigan’s open Senate seat as soon as next week, The Detroit News’ Melissa Nann Burke reports. The seven-term former Intel committee chair would be the first GOP candidate to make a move for the seat after Sen. DEBBIE STABENOW announced her retirement earlier this year. Remember: “the GOP has not won a Michigan U.S. Senate race since 1994.”
EYES ON BRIAN KEMP — “As Trump and Republicans target Georgia’s Fani Willis for retribution, the state’s governor opts out,” by AP’s Jeff Amy
THE WHITE HOUSE
SHORING UP THE BASE — “Biden Looks for New Ways to Energize Black Voters,” by NYT’s Erica Green and Zolan Kanno-Youngs: “[T]he White House is looking for new ways to re-energize a crucial constituency that helped propel Mr. Biden to the presidency. That means describing the stakes of the election in stark terms… arguing that the Republican Party is trying to reverse generations of racial progress in America. But Mr. Biden is also asking voters to judge him on a series of achievements that benefit Black Americans — but that are hardly the marquee promises from the early days of his administration.”
TRUMP CARDS
GEORGIA ON MY MIND — Fulton County District Attorney FANI WILLIS has asked a state judge yesterday to expedite the cases of all of the 19 defendants facing racketeering charges in the Georgia 2020 election interference case and reiterated the defendants be tried together. “The State maintains its position that severance is improper at this juncture and that all Defendants should be tried together,” Willis wrote in a court filing. More from The Hill.
Meanwhile … Trump is considering waiving his formal arraignment appearance in the Fulton County case next week, CBS’ Caitlin Yilek, Nicole Sganga and Fin Gómez scoop: “Fulton County Superior Court allows defendants to appear virtually for arraignments or waive their right to appear at all. Instead, a defendant’s attorney would enter a not guilty plea in writing.”
Speaking of the defendants … HARRISON FLOYD, the last of the 19 defendants in the case, was granted bond late last night, NYT’s Richard Fausset reports: “While the other defendants named in the indictment, including Mr. Trump, made only brief visits to an Atlanta jail … [Floyd] spent a number of days at the jail after turning himself in last Thursday, apparently because he showed up to his booking without a lawyer.”
EYEBROW RAISE — “Jack Smith’s Team Grilled Witnesses About Rudy Giuliani’s Drinking,” by Rolling Stone’s Asawin Suebsaeng and Adam Rawnsley
FROM 30,000 FEET — “Court Skirmishes Show Divergent Strategies by Prosecutors in Trump Cases,” by NYT’s Glenn Thrush and Danny Hakim
JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH
HAPPENING TODAY — “Proud Boys could get record sentences this week in Jan. 6 seditious conspiracy case,” by NBC’s Ryan Reilly and Daniel Barnes: “Prosecutors are seeking 33 years in federal prison for ENRIQUE TARRIO, the former leader, when he’s sentenced in the morning. ETHAN NORDEAN will be sentenced Wednesday afternoon, with prosecutors seeking a 27-year prison sentence.”
POLICY CORNER
THE LIST IS OUT — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services formally announced its list of 10 drugs that will be first up for Medicare price negotiations yesterday, in federal officials’ strongest effort yet to tamper down high costs imposed by drug companies. The medications listed include blockbusters Eliquis, Jardiance and Xarelto and together accounted for $50.5 billion of Medicare spending between June 2022 and May 2023. More from WSJ
Related Read: “‘Go after it’: GOP strategists say Republicans need to hit Biden on drug pricing,” by Robert King
A FAREWELL TO WOTUS — “After Supreme Court curtails federal power, Biden administration weakens clean water protections,” by AP’s Michael Phillis, Matthew Daly and John Flesher: “Environmental Protection Agency Administrator MICHAEL REGAN said the agency had no alternative after the Supreme Court sharply limited the federal government’s power to regulate wetlands that do not have a ‘continuous surface connection’ to larger, regulated bodies of water.”
DRUGS IN AMERICA — “Fentanyl is killing record numbers of teens. Government is playing catch up,” by Carmen Paun
AMERICA AND THE WORLD
CYBERBATTLE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — “Meta Uncovers Largest-Ever Chinese Influence Network,” by WSJ’s Sarah Needleman: “In a report released Tuesday, Meta said the effort was largely unsuccessful despite comprising thousands of accounts across more than 50 apps, including about 7,700 of its own Facebook and Instagram, plus YouTube, TikTok, Reddit, Pinterest and X, formerly Twitter. … Meta said the China network was pushing positive commentary about the country as well as criticism of the U.S. and western foreign policies.”
ZELENSKYY AND THE JETS — “The Object of Ukraine’s Desire: F-16’s From the West. But It’s Tricky,” by NYT’s Lara Jakes, Eric Schmitt and Thomas Gibbons-Neff: “As it presses for the fighter jets, Ukraine also senses a ticking political clock, current and former officials in Kyiv and Washington said.”
BEYOND THE BELTWAY
NASHVILLE BYLINE — “With tempers mounting, Tennessee’s special session ends with little action on guns,” by the Tennessean’s Melissa Brown, Vivian Jones and Angele Latham
MEDIAWATCH
ZAZ HAS HIS MAN — “CNN Is Expected to Pick Mark Thompson as Next Leader,” by NYT’s Benjamin Mullin and John Koblin: “Some senior executives at Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent company, have already been informed of the decision to hire [MARK THOMPSON], said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because some executives at CNN hadn’t yet been informed of the decision. … Mr. Thompson started as a trainee at the BBC in 1979 and ascended to the position of director general, the broadcaster’s top position, in 2004. He joined The Times as its chief executive in 2012, and was among a group of executives who revitalized the company financially by greatly expanding its digital subscription business.”
X MARKS THE SPOT — “X will allow political ads from candidates, parties ahead of US election,” by Reuters’ Sheila Dang
Vivek Ramaswamy is going to stop losing himself.
Stephanie Ruhle had a surprising relationship with Kevin Plank.
The Daily Tar Heel has a front page for the history books.
John Hudson’s feral cat is a rat slayer.
Walter Oleszek retires tomorrow after a storied career with the Congressional Research Service.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Fox is adding Joanna Orlando and Alex Clark Dillie as directors of government relations, according to an email obtained by POLITICO. They’ll both register to lobby for Fox. Orlando most recently was senior manager of Boeing’s PAC. Dillie most recently was deputy finance director and West Coast regional finance director for Team McCarthy.
— Talya Lockman-Fine is now chief speechwriter for Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. She most recently was a legal consultant at the IFC.
QUITE THE LINEUP — The Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics is announcing its fall semester fellows: resident fellows Cheri Beasley, Rodney Davis, Andrea Flores, Betsy Fischer Martin and POLITICO’s own Jonathan Martin, Daniel Mulhall and Jeff Rosen; and visiting fellows Roy Blunt and Susan Rice.
TRANSITIONS — Mark Lambert is expected to be named deputy assistant secretary for China and Taiwan at the State Department, the top China policy official, Reuters’ Humeyra Pamuk and Michael Martina scooped. He most recently was a deputy assistant secretary focused on Japanese, Korean and Mongolian affairs. … Thom Woodroofe is joining the Australian Embassy as chief of staff. He previously was chief of staff at the Asia Society. …
… Jackson Thein is now a director of health policy at Waxman Strategies. He previously was a policy adviser for health, education, nutrition and LGBTQ issues for Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.). … Seven Letter has added Robin Calleja and Kelcey McClung as managers. Calleja recently got a master’s from Georgetown, and McClung previously worked at the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition.
ENGAGED — Ansley Schoen, professional staff member for the House Ways and Means Committee, and Zach Deatherage, legislative director for Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), got engaged Friday on the Speaker’s Balcony. He told her they were taking headshots and surprised her by getting on one knee instead. They met when Ansley worked for House Budget and Zach’s then-boss, Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa), was on the committee. Surprise after-party celebrations included family, friends and @Sadie4Speaker. Pic … Another pic
WEEKEND WEDDING — Zach Kahan, a special assistant in HHS’ Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs and a House Energy and Commerce alum, and Erin Dempsey, chief of staff and associate at Brunswick Group, got married Saturday in Leesburg, Va. Pic
WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Eric Sayers, managing director at Beacon Global Strategies and a non-resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and Elizabeth Petrun Sayers, a social scientist at the FDA, yesterday welcomed Arthur David Sayers, who came in at 7 lbs, 13 oz. Pic
— Merideth Potter, SVP for public affairs at the American Beverage Association, and Jason Potter, a professional staff member for the Senate Appropriations Committee, welcomed Liza Galloway Potter on Aug. 23. She joins big siblings Quincy and Jud. Pic … Another pic
HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) … Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) … Warren Buffett … White House’s Alex Haskell … 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
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