| | | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | Presented by |  | | | |  | THE CATCH-UP | | | 
Under Donald Trump, the military is now deploying thousands more active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. | Greg Nash/AFP via Getty Images | THE DOOR CLOSES — It’s just not the Day One executive orders. A flurry of major moves over the past several hours have reinforced that imposing severe limits on legal and illegal immigration is the first, biggest priority across President Donald Trump’s new administration. And there will be significant ramifications for the courts, the military and tens of thousands of would-be immigrants whose lives have already changed. Troops to the border: In line with Trump’s edict, the military is now deploying thousands more active-duty troops to the U.S.-Mexico border, CNN’s Natasha Bertrand, Priscilla Alvarez, Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann report. They’re expected to beef up existing operations to support Customs and Border Protection, not act as law enforcement. AP’s Lolita Baldor and Tara Copp peg the number at 1,500. This is just the “first wave” of more troops to come in the next weeks and months. Big changes at DOJ: Acting deputy AG Emil Bove has launched investigations of sanctuary cities and states that go against federal immigration orders, Bloomberg Law’s Ben Penn and Ellen Gilmer scooped overnight. The Justice Department’s new Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group could lay the groundwork for legal challenges to local laws and forcing compliance with the executive branch. At the same time, Bove is partially turning the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces to focus on immigration, Josh Gerstein and Dasha Burns report. “That could roil many of the task forces,” which have previously focused on anti-terrorism work, and could trigger a sanctuary cities legal clash. The end of asylum: The Trump administration has now told border agents to throw out people who cross the border illegally instead of allowing them to request asylum, CBS’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez scooped. That “effectively suspends U.S. obligations under domestic and international law,” and in conjunction with the elimination of the CBP One app for people waiting outside the U.S. to seek asylum, it more or less ends asylum-seekers’ ability to reach the U.S. The end of refugees: Roughly 10,000 refugees who had already been cleared and had their flights booked have now seen their travel canceled, CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez and Haley Britzky scooped. With Trump having suspended refugee admissions for now, the change could especially strand many Afghans, though Special Immigrant Visa holders aren’t affected. Some of the roughly 15,000 Afghans waiting in Pakistan, including people who worked with the U.S. military, are pleading for an exemption from Trump, AP’s Munir Ahmed reports from Islamabad. THE VIEW FROM DEMOCRATS — Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and a dozen other Senate Dems told Senate Majority Leader John Thune they want to work together on immigration legislation, contrary to Republicans’ plans for a party-line bill, WSJ’s Xavier Martinez scooped. That’s a long shot, but it reflects moderate Dems moving to the right on immigration, in line with the country. There are more mixed feelings among House Dems, Punchbowl’s Melanie Zanona, Mica Soellner and John Bresnahan report: Progressives told leadership they’re not doing enough to counter Trump and aid fearful constituents, while Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) prefers a more centrist approach. THE VIEW FROM REPUBLICANS — “Republicans renew efforts to limit people in US illegally from census count,” by AP’s Mike Schneider THE VIEW FROM AMERICANS — The latest AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds solid support for strengthening border security and deporting violent criminals, per Amelia Thomson-Deveaux and Tim Sullivan. But more Americans oppose more radical actions, including making arrests at schools and churches and ending birthright citizenship. The country is split on deporting undocumented immigrants who haven’t committed violent crimes. The Economist/YouGov, though, finds more mixed views on birthright citizenship than AP/NORC: 41 percent in support to 45 percent opposed. Good Wednesday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM, and apologies for the delay this afternoon due to technical difficulties. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com. A GRAIN OF SALT — This morning at the POLITICO Playbook: The First 100 Days Breakfast Series event focused on tax policy, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) told Rachael Bade that he’s meeting with Trump today. Lawler called himself a firm no vote on any tax bill that excludes raising the state and local tax deduction, a key issue for mostly wealthy people in high-tax states. And there’s SALT momentum: Trump supports including it, and House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) has “become a SALT acolyte,” Lawler said. Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), majority makers who won in Kamala Harris districts, will also be at today’s Trump meeting, per CNN’s Haley Talbot. Also at the Playbook event, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) raised the possibility of three party-line bills instead of one or two, per Benjamin Guggenheim: one for the border, one just to extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and one for separate major changes to simplify the tax code, crafted on a longer time horizon. Johnson said doing it all in one bill would be “very difficult.” (But see Lawler’s comments above for why a Tax Cuts and Jobs Act extension sans SALT changes might not fly.) Up next: Trump will go to the House GOP retreat Monday, NOTUS’ Reese Gorman reports.
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President Donald Trump is issuing new threats to Russia to end the war in Ukraine. | Evgeniy Maloletka/AP | 1. TO RUSSIA, WITH LOVE: Trump threatened today on Truth Social that if Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn’t quickly negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, “I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries.” Trump said that while he doesn’t want to damage Russia, “[w]e can do it the easy way, or the hard way … NO MORE LIVES SHOULD BE LOST!!!” Of course, the Biden administration has already tried to hammer Putin with sanctions for years, and the countries now have minimal commerce with each other. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who’s also eager for Trump to pressure Russia into a settlement on Kyiv’s terms, told Bloomberg’s John Micklethwait that only Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are strong enough to force Russia’s hand. “Ending the war should be a victory for Trump” in demonstrating American power, he said. Zelenskyy also wants U.S. troops to be part of a post-war peacekeeping force: ““It can’t be without the United States.” 2. WITH SENIOR ADVISERS LIKE THESE: Just hours after Trump proudly unveiled a grand plan for investments in AI infrastructure, his own ally Elon Musk publicly cast doubt on the project overnight, per WSJ’s Brian Schwartz. He posted on X that OpenAI, with which Musk has long been antagonistic, and SoftBank “don’t actually have the money” to deliver on their pledges and turn the Stargate plan into reality. 3. PRIMARY COLORS: “Emanuel Jones to challenge David Scott for Atlanta-area congressional seat,” by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Greg Bluestein, Tia Mitchell, Patricia Murphy and Adam Beam: “[Rep. David] Scott, who turns 80 in June, is facing ongoing criticism that his age and health challenges are making him unable to carry out the duties … [Emanuel] Jones, first elected to the state Senate 20 years ago, said he is running regardless of whether Scott decides to seek a 13th term in 2026. Jones also said he heard rumors that Scott was considering stepping down … Scott’s office quickly painted those rumors as false.” 4. BEHIND THE PARDONS: Trump’s sweeping amnesty for the rioters at the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection was a decision made at the last minute, multiple outlets reported this morning. Pressure from his base made clear that the far right would be unhappy with anything short of mass pardons, NOTUS’ Jasmine Wright and Reese Gorman report, including significant backlash to VP JD Vance’s comments earlier this week indicating that violent criminals would be omitted. In the end, “Trump just said: ‘F -k it: Release ’em all,’” one adviser recounts to Axios’ Marc Caputo. He also wanted to get the issue over with quickly. But in a broader sense, Trump’s pardons — and Joe Biden’s preemptive pardons for his own family members the same day — “forever stretched the immense public and private power of the presidency to once-unimaginable dimensions,” Axios’ Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen write. Trump, Biden and the Supreme Court have now expanded the role of president to something approaching a king, frequently unconstrained by limits on corruption or the rule of law, they write. Even Bill Daley says Biden’s pardons were “disgusting” and a permanent “stain” on his legacy. The big picture: “From Day 1, Trump Tests the Limits of His Authority,” by NYT’s Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman and Alan Feuer … “How Trump Is Pushing at Limits of Presidential Power in Early Orders,” by NYT’s Charlie Savage
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Amazon is committed to seeing small businesses thrive, which is why they provide services and support to help them grow. “Amazon has a ton of tools that helped us take our business to the next level,” said Kyle, owner of Pawstruck. Learn more. Sponsored by Amazon   | | | 5. TO WIT: Trump’s executive order on TikTok giving more time before a ban takes place effectively just flouts and refuses to enforce the law on the books, NOTUS’ Nuha Dolby, Emily Kennard and Samuel Larreal report. But Senate Republicans and even some Democrats who had previously said Trump would have to follow the law on TikTok are shrugging, giving him leeway, and saying they don’t know the legal situation or they don’t care. But but but: Thune said, “I’m hopeful that the law is the law,” per Semafor’s Burgess Everett. “I think we’re living on borrowed time with TikTok.” 6. KENNEDY CENTER: “Anti-vaxxer no more: RFK Jr. is remaking his image to serve Trump,” by Daniel Payne and Chelsea Cirruzzo: “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a message that seems to be resonating in the Senate: He’s changed his mind. … Kennedy’s effort to remake his image is winning Republicans over. … Kennedy’s flip-flopping is likely to be a centerpiece of his confirmation hearings … and Republican senators’ willingness to overlook it will test the power of Trump and his populist appeal.” 7. DEPT. OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES: Some of Trump’s earliest executive actions or plans could redound on the U.S. in unexpected ways:
- And Trump’s workaround for security clearances for members of his administration “opens the door to breaches and even espionage,” WaPo’s Michael Birnbaum reports.
8. DEMOCRACY WATCH: “Satisfaction With U.S. Democracy Edges Up From Record Low,” by Gallup’s Jeffrey Jones: “Most Americans, 61%, remain dissatisfied with the way democracy is working in the U.S. However, the 34% who are satisfied is up from the record-low 28% recorded a year ago. … [It’s] primarily a result of higher satisfaction among Republicans.” 9. EAST WING DISPATCH: “Melania Trump is brimming with plans for second term,” by CNN’s Betsy Klein: “Melania Trump spent the two months between Election Day and Inauguration Day engaged in intense preparation for a return to the White House … studying foreign affairs, preparing on her own and joining her husband for dinners with VIPs at his Mar-a-Lago club … The notoriously private Trump has demonstrated an implicit recognition of the public’s curiosity about her — and that leaning into it could prove lucrative and strategic.”
| | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | | FOR YOUR RADAR — Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are urging more streamers to include C-SPAN, with a new letter asking FuboTV, Hulu and YouTube to carry the network’s congressional and White House coverage. Read it here OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at a reception co-hosted by Rwandan Ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana and Robert O’Brien in honor of the new Trump administration: Olivier Nduhungirehe, British Ambassador Karen Pierce, EU Ambassador Jovita Neliupšienė, South Korean Ambassador Hyundong Cho, Italian Ambassador Mariangela Zappia, Bahraini Ambassador Shaikh Abdulla Bin Rashid Al Khalifa, Norwegian Ambassador Anniken Huitfeldt, Qatari Ambassador Sheikh Meshal bin Hamad Al Thani, Jordanian Ambassador Dina Kawar, Turkish Ambassador Sedat Önal, Estonian Ambassador Kristjan Prikk and New Zealand Ambassador Rosemary Banks. MEDIA MOVE — Griff Witte is joining The Atlantic as a managing editor for the politics and accountability team, NYT’s Ben Mullin reports. He previously spent 23 years at WaPo, most recently as senior editor leading political and democracy coverage. TRANSITIONS — Hannah MacInnis is now digital director at Edelman. She previously was director of digital strategy at Advancing American Freedom and is a Mike Pence alum. … Maggie Siddiqi is now a senior fellow at the Interfaith Alliance. She previously was director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Education Department. … House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) is adding Linoshka Luna as press secretary and Dylan Jones as comms adviser. Luna previously was press secretary for Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón (R-P.R.). Jones previously was comms director for Rep. John Rose (R-Tenn.). … … Daniel Greene will be senior director of consumer protection and product safety at the National Consumers League. He previously was a senior professional staff member for the House Energy and Commerce Committee. … Charlie Bailey has joined SW2 Political. He previously was deputy political director at the Republican Attorneys General Association and is a Congressional Leadership Fund alum. … The Niskanen Center has added Mike Ressegue as director of development and Helen Weston as advocacy and research associate for the criminal justice department. Ressegue previously was VP of development at the Tax Foundation. Weston previously was a policy analyst at CPAC’s Nolan Center for Justice. 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 deputy editor Zack Stanton and Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
