| | | |  | | By Jack Blanchard | Presented by The U.S. Chamber of Commerce | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
| | | Good Thursday morning. This is Jack Blanchard, wishing R.I.P. to the great Roy Ayers.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
Elon Musk at the Capitol on Wednesday. | Ben Curtis/AP | DOGE DAY AFTERNOON: It’s not quite a mission to Mars, but a big day lies ahead for Elon Musk’s project to slice and dice the federal government. A long-trailed plan to abolish the Department for Education has been finalized and will likely be signed by Donald Trump as early as today, the Wall Street Journal scooped last night. It comes with a major court judgement looming this afternoon over Musk’s efforts to cancel tens of billions of dollars’ worth of foreign aid, hours after the administration secured a significant court victory over the firing of an independent watchdog leading the fightback against DOGE. With the Republican Party compliant and Democrats seemingly helpless, the courts still look like the only bulwark standing in Musk’s way. We don’t need no education: The biggest story of the day will surely be the closure of the Education Department, assuming Trump does indeed press the button. The shuttering of an entire federal department with an annual budget of $268 billion would represent the most significant play so far in the Trump administration’s drive to reshape the Washington machine, handing a totemic and long sought-after scalp to small-state Republicans. There’s been no formal comment from the White House so far. This is not new: Trump promised to kill the department while on the campaign trail last year, and has made repeated nods to the plan since returning to power. Wrestling exec-turned-Education Secretary Linda McMahon has already made clear to staff she plans to “send education back to the states,” having set out her thinking to senators last month. Even so, none of this diminishes the fact it will be a big story when the moment comes. Law and order: A draft of Trump’s executive order, as seen by the WSJ, directs McMahon to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Education Department” based on “the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law.” That final caveat is significant, given the department was created in 1980 via legislation signed by President Jimmy Carter. Lacking the 60 votes he’d need in the Senate to eliminate the department legislatively, Trump is looking to do it purely through executive order. Which means — as with most of DOGE’s radical cost-cutting moves — it’s likely to be challenged in the courts. Speaking of which: Musk’s first major program of cuts — the near-destruction of USAID — faces its own moment of truth in a D.C. courtroom today. Judge Amir Ali has given the Trump administration an 11 a.m. deadline to set out a new timeline for delivering $2 billion in frozen payments to foreign aid contractors for work they have already carried out, following the administration’s unexpected 5-4 defeat yesterday at the Supreme Court. An even more significant moment comes at 2 p.m. as Ali considers whether to extend the unfreeze to billions of dollars more in future USAID payments. Each of these judgements mark vital — if not final — moments in defining the new powers of the presidency. In the DOGE house: It wasn’t just the Supreme Court doling out defeats to DOGE yesterday. A workers’ board is reinstating — at least temporarily — almost 6,000 fired probationary workers from the Department of Agriculture, according to an order obtained by CNN. And a federal judge issued an injunction blocking cuts to National Institutes of Health payments, STAT News’ Jonathan Wosen reports — “a decision that suggests plaintiffs seeking to overturn the sweeping policy change are likely to eventually succeed.” We shall see.
| | | | A message from The U.S. Chamber of Commerce: Majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents agree: make the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent.
See why voters support permanent tax relief. Learn more. | | | Hampton out: More significant than any of that, my ace POLITICO colleague Josh Gerstein texts in to say, was a separate D.C. court ruling last night which gave Trump the green light to fire one of the last remaining voices of resistance within the federal government: federal ethics watchdog Hampton Dellinger. Dellinger, a special counsel, was fired by Trump last month despite laws protecting his independence, but then swiftly reinstated by a lower court judge. Dellinger subsequently began legal action to reinstate thousands of probationary workers fired by DOGE. Those efforts will cease with his departure, given his replacement will be a Trump appointee. SCOTUS pocus: Dellinger’s case — or others like it — could yet end up at the Supreme Court, and Josh reckons last night’s D.C. court ruling “flips the momentum” in Trump’s favor. The president insists he has the right to fire at-will executive branch officials who were meant to be protected by laws preserving their independence. Will the conservative-dominated SCOTUS agree? If so, it marks a highly significant scaling-back of Congress’s ability to impose any oversight upon the executive branch. But don’t be too sure … Georgetown Law’s Steve Vladeck writes in the Atlantic. He suggests that Trump’s 5-4 Supreme Court defeat yesterday — albeit on a narrow issue around specific foreign aid payments — could prove highly significant: It is the second 5-4 SCOTUS ruling against Trump since he returned to power, and proves an unlikely majority does exist in certain circumstances to reign in Trump’s excesses, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett both prepared to vote against the president’s expansion of powers. Let’s see if the theory holds when the biggest cases arrive. In the meantime … Congress ought to be the other main brake on an all-powerful presidency, but there are precious few signs of the GOP seeking to slow Trump down. Initial murmurings of Republican dissent against Musk have failed to ignite, as witnessed by the rapturous applause he received during Trump’s joint address to Congress on Tuesday night. Musk met with GOP senators and representatives on the Hill yesterday to explain himself and — having handed out his cell phone number so they can pester him directly — escaped with barely a scratch. Inside the room: “Musk defended himself to a room full of House Republicans on Wednesday night,” POLITICO’s Meredith Lee Hill and Jennifer Scholtes scooped, “saying that he ‘can’t bat a thousand all the time.’ But he also promised to work to correct mistakes amid the Department of Government Efficiency’s slash-and-burn operation across the federal government.” Republicans largely seemed happy with his tone, although a broader debate is now swirling within the party about whether Congress should take a lead and codify DOGE’s cuts into law. Axios’ Stef Kight has more on that.
| | | | A message from The U.S. Chamber of Commerce: The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced and simplified the federal tax burden on families and businesses, stimulated economic growth, created jobs, and enhanced the global competitiveness of American companies.
See why voters support making it permanent. Learn more. | | | BEYOND THE BELTWAY EUROPE, ALONE: EU leaders are gathering in Brussels this morning for an emergency summit on Ukraine and the future of the beleaguered Western alliance. The bloc’s 27 national leaders will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss an $865 billion joint defense plan as the shockwaves of the Trump administration’s sudden turn toward Russia reverberate. Keep an eye out for spiky comments from EU leaders on their way into the summit and at press conferences when it all wraps up. Mon dieu: French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a remarkable TV address last night, spelling out how Europe’s security dynamic has now changed. “I want to believe the U.S. will stay by our side. But we have to be ready if that isn’t the case,” Macron said. “Europe’s future should not be decided in Washington or Moscow, and yes the threat from the east is returning. The innocence of these 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall is over.” What Europe is watching: This eight-minute speech about Trump by French Senator Claude Malhuret, which has gone totally viral on social media. He received a standing ovation from the French parliament. What Zelenskyy is reading: “Four senior members of Donald Trump’s entourage have held secret discussions with some of Kyiv’s top political opponents to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, just as Washington aligns with Moscow in seeking to lever the Ukrainian president out of his job,” POLITICO’s Jamie Dettmer scoops. “The discussions centered on whether Ukraine could hold quick presidential elections.” IMMIGRATION FILES: A U.S. military deportation flight slated for today has been canceled as the Trump administration pauses plans for military aircraft to remove undocumented migrants, WSJ’s Shelby Holliday and Nancy Youssef scooped. That’s just one of multiple ways the Trump administration is being forced to recalibrate as its immigration crackdown dreams run into financial and logistical constraints. The use of C-17 and C-130 aircraft has been deemed inefficient and costly, and similar concerns have arisen around using Guantánamo Bay to house detainees. For some officials, “there is a growing recognition … that it was a political decision that is just not working,” NBC’s Courtney Kube, Carol Lee, Julie Tsirkin and Julia Ainsley report. Working out the kinks: The Trump administration’s struggles to implement mass deportations have fueled “frustration” among top officials, NYT’s Hamed Aleaziz and Zolan Kanno-Youngs report. Border crossings are down and arrests are up — but without corresponding deportations, “the number of people waiting in ICE detention has surged, straining resources.” To that end: The administration is restarting the detention of children as part of reopening a Dilley, Texas, facility that will house migrant families to be deported, WaPo’s Maria Sacchetti, Arelis Hernández and Douglas MacMillan report. And Mellissa Harper, the acting leader of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (which supervises unaccompanied migrant kids), was suddenly axed from the role because she’d “failed to deliver on White House expectations,” Reuters’ Ted Hesson reports. Still dreaming big: Visiting the southern border yesterday, VP JD Vance said Trump wants to build a full border wall by the end of his term, per the Washington Examiner. TRADE WARS: With massive tariffs now in place on goods imported from Canada, China and Mexico, a race is on among lobbying groups to see which industries might be able to wriggle out of them. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that American automakers will get a monthlong reprieve from the North America levies, per the AP, contrary to previous White House warnings that no exemptions would come. And Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Bloomberg’s Jenny Leonard and Skylar Woodhouse that some agricultural items like potash and fertilizer could also be considered for carveouts — an especially urgent issue for farmers, as spring planting season is fast approaching and, per the American Farm Bureau, more than 80 percent of potash used in the U.S. comes from Canada. The big question: How much political risk is Trump willing to withstand? POLITICO’s Megan Messerly, Daniel Desrochers and Ari Hawkins write that companies and consumers have been “confused and flustered” by all the back and forth over tariffs. “The self-inflicted economic uncertainty” reflects disagreements among Trump advisers as well as the conflict within Trump himself between a sincere love of tariffs and a keen eye on the stock market. But the confusion could also threaten the economy, as businesses hold back due to uncertainty, POLITICO’s Sam Sutton writes. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: Trump met yesterday with several former hostages held by Hamas, and warned afterward that the terrorist group must release its remaining detainees immediately or face “HELL TO PAY.” More from NBC … Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, whom the Biden administration considered too far-right to engage with, was welcomed in D.C. yesterday, per the NYT.
| | | | A message from The U.S. Chamber of Commerce:  
Americans overwhelmingly support making the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent, according to a new poll from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Learn more. | | | BACK TO THE HILL SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN: A March 14 U.S. government shutdown is now just over a week away — and House Republicans’ eyes are fixed firmly on the holdouts who oppose President Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan for a six-month continuing resolution. Trump’s meeting with fiscal hawks yesterday at the White House convinced at least one hardliner, Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.), to express some openness to the idea, despite never having voted for a CR before, per POLITICO’s Nick Wu and Meredith Lee Hill. But but but: With Democrats opposed, Johnson and his allies are running out of time. Heritage leaders Kevin Roberts and Ryan Walker penned a Fox News op-ed yesterday making the case for a clean CR, while Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) visited the House Republican Study Committee to deliver “a wake-up call for what will actually be achievable,” POLITICO’s Katherine Tully-McManus, Nick, Meredith and Ben Leonard report. Will any of it be enough? The bigger picture: Senior appropriators are actually getting close to a deal on topline government funding levels, POLITICO’s Jennifer Scholtes, Mia McCarthy and Meredith Lee Hill report. “It’s imminent,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said last night. House GOP leadership is nonetheless barreling ahead with plans for a CR to keep funding levels the same through the end of the fiscal year. But if Johnson can’t get the votes for that — and has to resort to a much shorter-term CR — these negotiations on updated funding levels could come into play. Medicaid raid: Hill Republicans meanwhile received an uncomfortable reality check about their reconciliation plans from the Congressional Budget Office. Its nonpartisan analysis said the House GOP’s budget blueprint for $880 billion in savings simply cannot be done without cuts to Medicaid, Medicare or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, per WaPo’s Jacob Bogage. HAPPENING TODAY: The House plans to hold its censure vote against Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) today, per CNN’s Sarah Ferris and Annie Grayer. Some Dems haven’t ruled out voting for it, Axios’ Andrew Solender and Hans Nichols report. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries will hold his weekly news conference at 11 a.m. MEANWHILE IN THE SENATE: Lori Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination as Labor secretary will come up for a procedural vote in the afternoon, as will the HALT Fentanyl Act, after a vote on Troy Edgar as deputy DHS secretary. Yesterday, senators voted 52-46 along party lines to confirm Todd Blanche as deputy AG, per the AP. BEST OF THE REST FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s early handling of the Texas measles outbreak has drawn concerns within the department — and even from some allies — over whether he’s been too slow or casual in responding, POLITICO’s Adam Cancryn, Sophie Gardner and Chelsea Cirruzzo report. (Case in point: As a deadly measles outbreak spread across Texas, Kennedy took time this weekend to mountaineer for leisure above California’s Coachella Valley.) Some local Texas officials are frustrated Kennedy hasn’t done more to state clearly that vaccination is the answer. ... Meanwhile, in “an unusual arrangement,” Kennedy is getting protection from the U.S. Marshals, Reuters’ Sarah Lynch scooped. EMPIRE STATE OF MIND: NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams today becomes the latest surprise entrant in the city’s mayoral race, POLITICO’s Jeff Coltin reports. That could present a fresh challenge to incumbent Eric Adams and frontrunner Andrew Cuomo. Separately, a federal judge yesterday declined to intervene immediately in Adams’ demand that the Trump administration give back an $80 million migrant grant it withdrew, per Jeff. MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Tech leaders including the CEOs of HP, Intel, IBM and Qualcomm may meet with Trump at the White House on Monday, Bloomberg’s Ian King, Brody Ford and Mackenzie Hawkins report. CASH DASH: “ActBlue, the Democratic Fund-Raising Powerhouse, Faces Internal Chaos,” by NYT’s Reid Epstein and Shane Goldmacher: The organization “has plunged into turmoil, with at least seven senior officials resigning late last month and a remaining lawyer suggesting he faced internal retaliation. … The exodus has set off deep concerns about ActBlue’s future.” KNIVES OUT FOR KINGSLEY WILSON: The Pentagon deputy press secretary is the subject of stories from Mother Jones’ Anna Merlan and Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel, who report on her history of controversial online posts. They include spreading antisemitic conspiracy theories, calling for an end to immigration and urging to “make Kosovo Serbia again.” Some Republican lawmakers have now denounced Wilson’s posts and questioned the administration’s vetting, POLITICO’s Jack Detsch and Joe Gould report. NAME TO KNOW: “Dealmaker Michael Grimes expected to lead new US sovereign wealth fund, sources say,” by Reuters’ Milana Vinn and Alexandra Alper TALES FROM THE CRYPTO: Major cryptocurrency legislation that the industry likes already has bipartisan backing. But increasingly, internecine fighting within the crypto world could threaten its chances of passage, POLITICO’s Victoria Guida writes. And Trump’s plans for a cryptocurrency strategic reserve could gum up the works too, Semafor’s Eleanor Mueller reports. IN THE WILDERNESS: “Most voters think Dems don’t have their act together, insider poll shows,” by POLITICO’s Holly Otterbein, Lisa Kashinsky, Brakkton Booker and Myah Ward: “A plurality of voters — 40 percent — said the Democratic Party doesn’t have any strategy whatsoever for responding to Trump, according to the survey by the liberal firm Blueprint that was shared first with POLITICO. Another 24 percent said Democrats have a game plan, but it’s a bad one.”
| | | | CALIFORNIA DECODED: The technology industry and its key characters are driving the national political narrative right now, but it is also a uniquely California story. To understand how the Golden State is defining tech policy and politics within its borders and beyond, we’ve launched POLITICO Pro Technology: California Decoded. This new daily newsletter will track how industry players in Silicon Valley are trying to influence state and national lawmakers – and how government officials are encouraging or foiling those figures. Sign up now to get a limited, free trial of this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox. | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | Lin-Manuel Miranda canceled a run of “Hamilton” at the Kennedy Center next year for the country’s 250th anniversary due to Donald Trump’s takeover. Hayden Haynes, chief of staff to Mike Johnson, was arrested for alleged drunk driving after Trump’s address to Congress. Barack Obama and Steve Ballmer took in the Clippers-Pistons game. PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION: The White House has moved away from plans to issue an executive order taking control of local D.C. issues like crime and homelessness, WaPo’s Emily Davies and Meagan Flynn report. … Bradley Bondi, whose sister is AG Pam Bondi, is mounting a bid for D.C. Bar Association president — which could be involved in complaints against Justice Department officials, NYT’s Glenn Thrush and Adam Goldman report. HUNTER BIDEN BROKE: A pardon from his dad spared Hunter Biden from prison, but the former president’s son remains saddled with debt and was forced out of a home he was renting by the recent Pacific Palisades fire, POLITICO’s Josh Gerstein writes in. Biden detailed his grim financial situation in a court filing yesterday, saying that he has struggled to sell his paintings in recent months, moving only one in the past 14 months, compared with 27 in the prior two or three years. He reported “significant” debts and lackluster sales of his memoir: just more than 4,200 copies during a one-year period that led up to the trial in Delaware last spring in which he was found guilty of lying about his drug addiction on a federal gun-purchase form. “Given the positive feedback and reviews of my artwork and memoir, I was expecting to obtain paid speaking engagements and paid appearances, but that has not happened,” Biden wrote. Citing the financial burden of ongoing legal fees, he’s asking a federal judge in LA to allow him to drop a lawsuit he filed in 2023 accusing former Trump White House aide Garrett Ziegler of hacking the contents of Biden’s laptop. OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at the Invariant/Washingtonian party: Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Wolf Blitzer, Josh Dawsey, Heather Podesta, Kellyanne Conway and Oriana Pawlyk. — SPOTTED at a NOTUS breakfast event yesterday morning with top political anchors discussing how to cover Trump 2.0: Bret Baier, Dasha Burns, Josh Dawsey, Major Garrett, Jonathan Karl, Ali Vitali, Jasmine Wright, Ugandan Ambassador Robie Kakonge, Mike Rancilio, Melissa Moss, Gloria Dittus, Reggie Greer, Francesca Craig, Kristin Wilson, Tim Grieve, Matt Fuller, Justin Peligri, Elise Foley, Bill Turenne, Tiffany Cianci, Brian Bartlett, Morgan Gress, Emily Mellencamp Smith and Katie Fitzwilliam. — SPOTTED at a reception celebrating the launch of the new Crypto Caucus by House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.): Reps. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.), Brian Jack (R-Ga.), Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.), Herb Conaway (D-N.J.), John Joyce (R-Pa.) and Scott Perry (R-Pa.), Juan Suarez, Kara Calvert, Julia Krieger, Phil Elliott and Amrith Ramkumar. — SPOTTED at a fundraiser last night benefiting BOLD PAC, hosted at Capitol Counsel by Norberto Salinas: Reps. Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-Calif.), Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.), Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), Darren Soto (D-Fla.) and Mike Levin (D-Calif.), Abby Jagoda, Albert Shen, Anais Carmona, Jaqui Serrano, Linda Pham, Cynthia Pullom, Daniel Jones, Robert Chiappetta, Emmanuel Tormes, Javier Palomarez and Lyndon Boozer. — SPOTTED at the Internet Works “Middle Tech Mixer” at the Dentons townhouse on Capitol Hill, where guests had “Middle Tech-quila margaritas”: Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), Caitlin Brosseau, Belinda Sirha, Matthew Jensen, Tim Lynch, Angela Hooks, Jasmine Vasquez, David Segal, Katelyn Wolfgang, Kate Sheerin, Courtney Duffy, Dan Black, Ashley McManus and Peter Chandler. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Jon Levine will be a political reporter at The Washington Free Beacon. He most recently has been a political reporter at the N.Y. Post. MEDIA MOVES — Tom Llamas will become the new anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News” this summer, the network announced. … Chris Cillizza is now a contributor to NewsNation. He previously was a contributor to Scripps, and is a CNN and WaPo alum. TRANSITIONS — Zev Karlin-Neumann is launching a boutique speechwriting and strategy firm, Just Write Communications. He previously was a senior adviser/speechwriter for Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and is a Susan Rice and Pete Buttigieg alum. … The Asia Group has added Christopher Johnstone as partner and chair of the Indo-Pacific defense and national security practice and Abraham Denmark as partner. Johnston previously has been senior adviser and Japan chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and is a Biden NSC alum. Denmark previously was senior adviser to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. … LSG is adding Teal Baker as managing director and Rachel Shell and Dayna Adelman as SVPs. … … Ben Lazarus is joining Patinkin Research Strategies as principal. He’s a Democratic pollster and strategist who previously led the opinion research practice at TargetSmart. … Jennifer Trock is now a partner at Morgan Lewis. She previously was chair of the global aviation group at Baker McKenzie. … Ashkhen Kazaryan is now senior legal fellow at The Future of Free Speech at Vanderbilt. She previously was a senior fellow at Stand Together, and is a Meta alum. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Former CIA Director William Webster (101) … former Fed Chair Alan Greenspan (99) … David Urban … Brandon Chaderton … Jim Bourg … Anthony Foti … Elias Law Group’s Jacqui Newman … John Stossel … Jonathan Day … David Bradley … Sandra Salstrom … Parker Brugge … Joe Perticone … Brooke Gladstone … NFL’s Brendon Plack … Emily Leviner … Anna Kopperud Jordan … Chris Leavitt … Co-Equal’s Karen Lightfoot … Katy Bayless … Tim Bergreen … NYT’s Eileen Murphy … Saul Anuzis … former Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) … Pablo Chavez … Ari Spinoza … Albemarle’s Alex Stroman … Kara Carscaden … Kim Moxley … Minah Malik 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.
| | | | A message from The U.S. Chamber of Commerce: A new U.S. Chamber of Commerce survey conducted by McLaughlin and Associates says:
By a nearly 3-to-1 margin (64% to 20%), voters favor permanently extending the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, noting its ability to reduce and simplify the federal tax burden on families and businesses, stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and enhance the global competitiveness of American companies. Support for permanent tax relief transcends partisan lines, with 81% of Republicans, 55% of Independents, and even a majority—53%—of Democrats backing the 2017 tax law. This broad support can translate at the polls, as 65% of voters say they are more likely to support a candidate who votes to make the tax cuts permanent, compared to just 20% who would be less likely to do so.
See why voters support permanent tax relief. Learn more. | | | | | | | 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 political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | |
