| | | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Tara Palmeri, Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza | Presented by |  | | | | | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | One hundred years ago today, white assailants stormed a prosperous Black neighborhood in Tulsa, Okla., leaving the area known as a hub of African American entrepreneurship in total ruin and massacring hundreds of Black people. Survivors who saw their family members murdered or businesses torn to bits never saw a penny in compensation — and insurance companies declined most of their claims. And for a long time, the horrors of that day were buried. A century later, the nation still reels from racism — and President JOE BIDEN will head to Tulsa today to offer words of healing, once again donning his hat as sympathizer-in-chief. The president will give a speech and meet with the families of those lost that day. Ahead of his visit, he issued a proclamation calling on Americans to "commit together to eradicate systemic racism and help to rebuild communities and lives that have been destroyed by it." WaPo has more: "In Tulsa, solemn remembrances of a century-old race massacre by survivors and descendants" IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE TRIP, the Biden administration this morning announced initiatives designed to close the racial wealth gap. They include a proposed rule by HUD to counter discriminatory housing practices, as well as an effort to address inequities in home appraisals. The administration is also planning to increase the share of federal contracts that go to "small disadvantaged businesses" to 50% over the next five years. The White House says that will provide an additional $100 million to those businesses. CNN's Kate Sullivan has a story on this In an interview with POLITICO on Monday night, NAACP President DERRICK JOHNSON said the administration was headed in the right direction on closing the wealth gap, but criticized its lack of movement on student loan forgiveness. "Until we address the student loan debt crisis, which disproportionately impacts African Americans, we can never get to the question of home ownership, therefore accumulating wealth," Johnson said. | | A message from the American Beverage Association: At America's beverage companies our plastic bottles are made to be remade. We're carefully designing them to be 100% recyclable, including the caps—so every bottle can become a new one. That means less plastic waste in our environment. Please help us get Every Bottle Back. EveryBottleBack.org | | | THE ART OF THE (INFRASTRUCTURE) DEAL — Congress is out this week, but Biden is expected to continue working to try to strike a deal with Republicans on infrastructure. He'll huddle once again with Sen. SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO (R-W.Va.), and as our Christopher Cadelago reports this morning, the president's advisers "anticipate drawing harder lines in public over what should be in the plan and how to pay for it." A few interesting nuggets from Cadelago's story: — White House aides are eyeing June 9 as a new soft deadline to figure out which path they'll be taking on infra. That day, a House committee will begin work on a surface transportation bill. — There's a belief in the White House that Biden could get a boost from a bipartisan deal: "In an April meeting with the centrist New Democrats congressional caucus, STEVE RICCHETTI , Biden's counselor, told members that a bipartisan pact — or at least an effort at striking one — would be politically beneficial to the party, said a person in the meeting. … [C]ongressional sources say Ricchetti has been open to letting talks around infrastructure play out longer than he had scheduled." — In a sign of revved-up Hill outreach, "154 members of Congress have visited the White House, including some multiple times. More than 100 have participated in Oval Office meetings with the president." ( LOUISA TERRELL's team must be exhausted...) — Biden remains nostalgic for his preferred "old-fashioned dealmaking approach" in an era of hyper-polarized politics: "[N]o president of late has spoken so wistfully about a time when the two parties could reach consensus on major policy proposals in Washington. Biden confidants and colleagues still talk about his standoffs with JESSE HELMS , the conservative Republican senator from North Carolina who acquiesced to Biden after hours of talks by signing off on a chemical weapons treaty... "Biden has also waxed about his yearslong quest to convince former Sen. ARLEN SPECTER of Pennsylvania, a longtime Republican, to switch to the Democratic Party, giving them a 60-vote majority to overcome a filibuster. He placed call after call to Specter, and caught up with him on train rides home, arguing the GOP that elected him moved right, while he was aligned with Democrats on health care, the economy and foreign policy." Full story Good Tuesday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. It's a slow news week, so now is the time to make your pitch. Hit us up here: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri. | | | | A message from the American Beverage Association:   Every Bottle Back is one way we're driving solutions together. Starting another 100 years with a new look, American Beverage will continue with our shared leadership. Ameribev.org | | | BIDEN'S TUESDAY: — 9:30 a.m.: The president will receive the President's Daily Brief. — 11 a.m.: He'll leave the White House for Tulsa, arriving at 12:50 p.m. Central time. — 1:45 p.m.: Biden will tour the Greenwood Cultural Center with HUD Secretary MARCIA FUDGE, SUSAN RICE and CEDRIC RICHMOND. — 3 p.m.: Biden will deliver remarks commemorating the 100th anniversary of the massacre. — 4:50 p.m.: Biden will leave Tulsa, getting back to the White House at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time. Principal deputy press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE will gaggle on Air Force One on the way to Tulsa. CONGRESS is in recess this week. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO WEST WING PLAYBOOK: Add West Wing Playbook to keep up with the power players, latest policy developments and intriguing whispers percolating inside the West Wing and across the highest levels of the Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | 
PHOTO OF THE DAY: A girl sits in the grass among the headstones in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day in Arlington, Va. | Samuel Corum/Getty Images | CONGRESS VULNERABLE DEMS ON TRUMP: DON'T TAKE THE BAIT — As House Democrats ready for a contentious midterm cycle that historically favors their GOP counterparts, their most vulnerable colleagues appear to agree on one thing: Leave DONALD TRUMP out of it. Our Sarah Ferris and Melanie Zanona report today that Democrats in swing districts don't want to talk about him anymore, telling colleagues to stay narrowly focused on policy, just as they did when they netted 40 seats back in 2018. It's interesting advice because the DCCC has a slightly different take — at least where Republicans are concerned. As Sarah and Mel note in their story, the campaign committee is "already eyeing House Republicans whose vote against the Jan. 6 commission could hurt them back home." They've also talked about a strategy of tying far-right extremism, personified by Rep. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-Ga.), to other Republicans. But Democrats like Rep. STEPHANIE MURPHY (D-Fla.), a well-respected moderate from a competitive Orlando district, want to forget about the former president and talk about things like health care. "Trump is a Republican problem and a Republican cancer that they need to cut out of their party," she said. "But that's their problem." Full story MANCHIN IN THE MIDDLE — "Joe Manchin: Deeply Disappointed in GOP and Prepared to Do Absolutely Nothing," by The Daily Beast's Sam Brodey: "Asked by The Daily Beast last week how he'd win the votes to pass the John Lewis bill while maintaining the filibuster, [Sen. JOE] MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) didn't discuss policy specifics. He just said he'd get it done. 'We just keep working,' Manchin said, listing a set of issues that the Senate is tackling. 'I have to say, keep the faith in this damn Senate, and we'll make it, we'll work it out, make it bipartisan.' … "Without fail, at any Manchin gathering, he will blast his de facto anthem: 'S.O.B.,' by Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, an upbeat stomp and holler number with lyrics about the struggles of quitting drinking. But Manchin loves the song's rollicking chorus, which starts with 'Son of a bitch, give me a drink!' (Manchin has been known to offer senators moonshine from a mason jar during bipartisan legislative negotiations.) "The senator is also a notorious clean freak who is obsessed with the state of the carpets in his Senate office, a product of his younger years doing work for his father, who owned a furniture store. He's known to break out a Dustbuster himself if he sees something he doesn't like." PANDEMIC TOP-ED — "Media Groupthink and the Lab-Leak Theory," by NYT's Bret Stephens: "[T]his possible scandal, which is as yet unproved, obscures an actual scandal, which remains to be digested. "I mean the long refusal by too many media gatekeepers (social as well as mainstream) to take the lab-leak theory seriously. The reasons for this — rank partisanship and credulous reporting — and the methods by which it was enforced — censorship and vilification — are reminders that sometimes the most destructive enemies of science can be those who claim to speak in its name." TRUMP CARDS THE NEW GOP — "Republicans fear Trump will lead to a 'lost generation' of talent," by Meridith McGraw, David Siders and Sam Stein: "In conversations with more than 20 lawmakers, ex-lawmakers, top advisers and aides, a common concern has emerged — that a host of national and statewide Republicans are either leaving office or may not choose to pursue it for fear that they can't survive politically in the current GOP. The worry, these Republicans say, is that the party is embracing personality over policy, and that it is short sighted to align with Trump, who lost the general election and continues to alienate a large swath of the voting public with his grievances and false claims that the 2020 election was stolen. "Trump has driven sitting GOP lawmakers and political aspirants into early retirements ever since he burst onto the scene. But there was hope that things would change after his election loss. Instead, his influence on the GOP appears to be as solid as ever and the impact of those early shockwaves remain visible." POLITICS ROUNDUP AD WARS — "RNC launches seven-figure TV ad featuring Tim Scott," Washington Examiner: "The Republican National Committee is launching a seven-figure ad featuring Sen. TIM SCOTT, marking an aggressive strategy to combat President Joe Biden's agenda during a non-election year and demonstrating the South Carolina senator's rising star status. "The 30-second ad, provided exclusively to the Washington Examiner, showcases audio from Scott's Republican rebuttal to Biden's joint address to Congress in April. It will run on cable networks." The ad 2022 WATCH — "Black women's next targets: governorships and Senate seats," by AP's Bill Barrow: "[Virginia gubernatorial candidates are] part of a surge in candidacies by Black women in the Democratic Party, not just for local and legislative posts but also statewide offices that are still new ground for Black women. … "STEVE SCHALE, a white strategist who helped President Barack Obama win Florida twice, said it's a developing consensus that Black women can assemble Democrats' ideal alliance for statewide elections: older Black voters, younger voters across racial and ethnic lines, urban white liberals and enough white moderates, especially women, in metro areas." NEVADA MAKES A MOVE AGAINST IOWA AND N.H. — "Mail-in voting takes another step forward in Nevada," Las Vegas Review-Journal: "Nevada Democrats' bids to make mail-in ballots permanent and position Nevada as the first presidential nominating state took major steps forward Wednesday … "Under AB126, a presidential primary would be held on the first Tuesday of February in place of the caucuses, likely setting up a battle with Iowa and New Hampshire over which state goes first on the nominating calendar." | | | | A message from the American Beverage Association:   Our plastic bottles are made to be remade. Help us get Every Bottle Back. EveryBottleBack.org | | | BEYOND THE BELTWAY WALKOUT FALLOUT IN THE LONE STAR STATE — "Gov. Abbott threatens to veto legislative salaries in response to Democrats' walkout," Houston Chronicle: "Hours after Democrats in the Texas House blocked sweeping new voting restrictions, Gov. GREG ABBOTT vowed to retaliate by stripping funding for all lawmakers and legislative staff from the coming two-year budget. … "The governor's threat comes as legislators are already preparing to reconvene for a special interim session at some point this year to take up redistricting and some conservative priority items that have stalled, including the voting measure." AMERICA AND THE WORLD THE LATEST IN JERUSALEM — "Israel on Edge as Politicians Wrangle Over Coalition to Oust Netanyahu," NYT: "Israel's political class was locked in frenzied horse trading on Monday, as opposition politicians struggled to strike a coalition deal to oust Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU , who in turn was waging a last-ditch effort to cling to power. The bartering put a spotlight on the fragmentation of the Israeli political system, in which the short-term fate of the Israeli state … was in the hands of a panoply of small political parties haggling over control of minor government offices like the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. "The granular nature of the discussions belied their dramatic implication: Mr. Netanyahu — Israel's longest-serving prime minister, and the man who has shaped contemporary Israel more than any other citizen — has never been so close to losing office. And yet, with just two days remaining for the opposition to secure a deal, his departure is still far from a foregone conclusion." IRAN SO FAR AWAY — "U.N. watchdog: Access to key Iranian data lacking since Feb 23," by AP's Kiyoko Metzler in Vienna and David Rising in Berlin: "The United Nations' atomic watchdog hasn't been able to access data important to monitoring Iran's nuclear program since late February, when the Islamic Republic started restricting international inspections of its facilities, the agency said Monday." LETTER FROM AFGHANISTAN — "A Siege, a Supply Run and a Descent Into a Decade-Old Battle," by NYT's Thomas Gibbons-Neff in Marja: "I first arrived here in Marja as a 22-year-old Marine corporal during one of the American war's earlier chapters … Touching down again this month, there was little evidence that could explain why my friends, and so many Afghan civilians and soldiers, died here." — "The Taliban Say They've Changed. On the Ground, They're Just as Brutal," by WSJ's Sune Engel Rasmussen in Kandahar MEMORIAL DAY READS BIDEN'S SPEECH — "'Democracy itself is in peril': Biden delivers warning while honoring fallen service members on Memorial Day," CNN: "'What we do now, how we honor the memory of the fallen will determine whether or not democracy will long endure,' Biden said. 'We owe the honored dead a debt we can never fully repay. We owe them our whole souls. We owe them our full best efforts to perfect the union for which they died.' "Biden said the nation must honor the sacrifices of generations of service members 'by sustaining the best of America while honestly confronting all that we must do to make our nation fuller, freer and more just.' 'Empathy is the fuel of democracy,' the President said. 'Our willingness to see each other not as enemies, neighbors, even when we disagree, to understand what the other is going through.'" | | | | JOIN TUESDAY FOR A TALK ON ECONOMIC RECOVERY AFTER COVID-19: The U.S. economy is picking up speed, sparking fears of inflation and financial bubbles even as millions are still out of work following the Covid recession. Join us for an interview with Federal Reserve Vice Chair of Supervision Randal Quarles to discuss the U.S. economic outlook, how the nation's banks are holding up, and what to expect from the Fed on interest rates and regulations. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | 'YANG'ING IT — The second debate of the New York City mayoral race is Wednesday night, and we're offering ANDREW YANG a bit of advice: take Tums. According to EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE'S new book, "Battle for the Soul," on the night of a presidential primary debate in Miami, Yang kept running to the bathroom to throw up. "The walls weren't thick, and he was so loud that operatives on other campaigns started joking about 'Yanging,'" Dovere writes. "He'd had an IV in him earlier in the day, [and] a massive nosebleed an hour before going onstage." Breathe in. Breathe out. SPOTTED I — In Nantucket for Memorial Day Weekend: Greta Van Susteren, John Coale, Tammy Haddad, Kaitlan Collins, Ryan Williams, John McCarthy, Elizabeth Milias and Felix Browne. SPOTTED II — The Bidens, VP Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff lunching at Le Diplomate on Monday. And the N.Y. Post picked this up: "Biden, Harris shock DC diners with unannounced visit to popular restaurant." SPOTTED III — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stopping by a Memorial Day stoop party in Brooklyn on his bike, hanging with the yuppies in his helmet, khaki shorts and white socks pulled all the way up his shins, cool-grandpa style. FWIW, he appeared to be drinking the generic La Croix competitor made and sold by Wegmans as he downed his plate of food. Pic FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Jason Noble starts this week as national comms director at NextGen America. He most recently ran comms for Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D-Iowa) and was Iowa comms director for Elizabeth Warren's presidential campaign. — Dominic Carr will be VP of comms at Lyft. He is currently VP of public affairs at Microsoft. — Alexandra Seymour is now chief of staff at CalypsoAI. She previously was the speechwriter to former Deputy Secretary of Defense David Norquist and also worked at the NSC in the Trump administration. — WHITE HOUSE ARRIVAL LOUNGE: Melissa Piccoli is now associate director of scheduling in the White House. She was most recently deputy director of talent for the Presidential Inaugural Committee and also worked on the Biden campaign. … Connor Goddard is now senior associate director at the Presidential Personnel Office in the White House. He worked on Wilmington advance during the transition, and was on the HQ production/advance team for the Biden campaign. TRANSITIONS — Grant Rumley is now a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East East Policy. He most recently was an adviser on Middle East policy at DOD in the Biden and Trump administrations. … Conor Sheehey is joining Sen. Mike Crapo's (R-Idaho) Finance Committee staff as a health policy adviser. He previously was legislative director for Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.). …Curtis Walter is now federal policy and advocacy manager at Clean Air Task Force. He previously was advocacy manager at the American Clean Power Association. … … Joe MacFarlane will be legislative assistant for Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.). He was previously legislative correspondent and body man for Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.). … Daphne Delgado is now project director of brain health partnerships at UsAgainstAlzheimers. She was previously senior government relations manager at Trust for America's Health. … Marcus Frias is now comms director for Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.). He was previously national press secretary for the House Financial Services Committee. ENGAGED — Elizabeth Butler, deputy director of finance at No Labels, and Chris Eddowes, senior legislative assistant for Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.), got engaged this weekend at sunrise on the beach in Ocean City, N.J., with family and friends there to celebrate. They met while both working for Smucker. Pic … Another pic WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Zach Gillan, VP at S-3 Group, and Cherie Paquette Gillan, a David Perdue and Fox News alum, welcomed Alice Marigold Gillan on May 23. Pic … Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.) … Heritage Foundation's Kay Coles James … Alex Stoddard … FT's Ed Luce … NBC's Alex Seitz-Wald … McCain Institute's Mark Green … Lizzy Peluso … AP's Bill Barrow … SBA's Matt Coleman … Sam Smith … Richard Sant of Lockheed Martin … Karen Tramontano … Leslie Harris … Sasha Moss of InSight Public Affairs … Irena Vidulović … CBS' Olivia Gazis … Monica Millman … Spencer Ackerman of The Daily Beast … The Spectator's Amber Athey (27) … Addisu Demissie … Abby Spring … former Rep. Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) … Sean Kennedy of the National Restaurant Association … Advoc8's Jeremy Rose … Matt Winkler … Melissa Hockstad … Fortune Magazine's Nicole Goodkind … Halimah Elmariah … Greg Nelson … Jim Innocenzi … Carol Wessel … Diane Zeleny … Christopher Minakowski … Terrance Green … Suzanne Merkelson … DNC's Jose Nunez … Lyndee Rose … Constance Boozer … Forest Harger … Dan Bartlett of Walmart … Genny Nicholas … Robin Harris … Dan Tannebaum of Oliver Wyman Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com . Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Mike Zapler, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Allie Bice, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross. | | A message from the American Beverage Association: America's leading beverage companies, The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo, are working together to reduce our industry's plastic footprint through our new Every Bottle Back initiative. We're investing in efforts to get our bottles back so we can remake them into new bottles and use less new plastic.
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