| | | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | | |  "Seems more like they want a default than a deal to me," Speaker Kevin McCarthy said of Democrats. | Cliff Owen/AP Photo | DEFAULT IN OUR STARS — As he descended the stairs from Air Force One this morning, President JOE BIDEN offered reporters a simple “no” when asked if there were any updates on negotiations to avoid catastrophic default. But at the Capitol, Speaker KEVIN McCARTHY had some updates to provide — and they were considerably more downbeat about the prospects for a deal than Biden sounded over the weekend. “I still think we’re far apart,” McCarthy warned when asked by NBC’s Ali Vitali. “It doesn’t seem to me yet that they want a deal. It just seems that they want to look like they’re in a meeting, but they’re not talking anything serious. … Seems more like they want a default than a deal to me.” McCarthy also indicated that time is running out: Congress might need a deal reached by this weekend, he said, to be able to pass it in time to beat the “X date.” Compounding the schedule crunch is the fact that Biden is slated to fly to Japan for the G-7 on Wednesday. Watch the full clip Another piece of ammunition for Republicans: House Appropriations is set to approve its Military Construction-VA spending bill this week, Jennifer Scholtes and Caitlin Emma report in Congress Minutes. They’re expected to increase spending, which could help the GOP rebut White House claims that Republican spending cuts would hurt veterans. “GOP leaders can claim they support funding increases for veterans programs, along with pushing a drastic decrease in overall spending — without actually detailing the cuts (which is, of course, the actually difficult part).” But don’t expect the public to pressure Washington on the debt ceiling — at least not yet. Even as default looms nearer, most Americans haven’t paid much attention to the debate or gotten particularly worried about the worst-case scenarios, NBC’s Alex Seitz-Wald and Peter Nicholas report. Voters seem fairly sanguine about political leaders’ ability to strike a deal in the end — even though, paradoxically, less pressure might make a deal less likely. GREAT SCOTT — Sen. TIM SCOTT (R-S.C.) is expected to launch his presidential campaign next week, and he’s already assembling some high-profile names for his team, Natalie Allison scoops. Former Tennessee Gov. BILL HASLAM will be national co-chair, giving Scott backing from a party establishment figure who’s also a well-connected billionaire. Scott is adding MICHAEL “MIKEE” JOHNSON (notably also a longtime ally of NIKKI HALEY) as national finance co-chair and ZAC MOFFATT in a top campaign role. TWO BIG SCOTUS CASES — “Supreme Court agrees to take up South Carolina racial gerrymandering case,” by CNN’s Ariane de Vogue: “The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to consider a lower court decision that struck down a congressional district in South Carolina as an illegal racial gerrymander. … A lawyer for South Carolina Republicans asked the Supreme Court to take up the case and argued that the Republican-led legislature took politics into consideration when drawing the map and that the use of race did not predominate in its decision-making process.” (This case primarily concerns GOP Rep. NANCY MACE’s seat.) — “Supreme Court wades into Trump hotel records fight,” by Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney: “The Supreme Court has agreed to take up a case that could empower members of the House and Senate minority to compel the executive branch to cough up information to congressional investigators.” Good Monday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.
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Explore 30+ tools. | | | 2024 WATCH IOWA RUMBLES — Influential Hawkeye State evangelical leader BOB VANDER PLAATS sounded a warning this morning over DONALD TRUMP’s criticism of the 6-week abortion ban signed by Florida Gov. RON DeSANTIS. “No, Mr. former President, many in the #ProLife community do not believe saving babies is too harsh,” Vander Plaats tweeted. “Joining @RonDeSantisFL is #Iowa @IAGovernor Kim Reynolds in leading on life. The #IowaCaucus door just flung wide open.” BACK ON THE TRAIL — MIKE PENCE is returning to Iowa next month to participate in Sen. JONI ERNST’s (R-Iowa) motorcycle benefit ride, Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser scoops. Ernst has given invites to all the declared or would-be presidential contenders, and Haley is also taking part. VIVEK LA RÉVOLUTION — The Atlantic’s Elaine Godfrey reports from VIVEK RAMASWAMY’s Iowa swing this weekend, and finds that “the voters there may once have liked or even loved Trump, but honestly, they’re a little tired of his negativity.” Meanwhile, Ramaswamy is developing a public persona that’s “a bit like the GOP version of ANDREW YANG: a get-up-and-go business bro who does something vague in the new economy, and who seemed to wake up one day and ask himself, Why not run for president?” MORE POLITICS SEEKING JUSTICE — The DSCC is planning to sue to get their hands on West Virginia Gov. JIM JUSTICE’s official calendar and schedule after his office denied their request for the materials, NBC’s Bridget Bowman scoops. BATTLE FOR THE HOUSE — The nascent Democratic field to take on Rep. GEORGE SANTOS (R-N.Y.) is growing: ZAK MALAMED announced his campaign today, Semafor’s Kadia Goba reports. The Great Neck 29-year-old is a co-founder of the Next 50 donor network, which supports young Dems. PRIMARY COLORS — Baltimore County, Md., Executive JOHNNY OLSZWESKI JR., who’d been seen as a potential Senate contender, announced today that he won’t mount a campaign, The Baltimore Sun’s Lia Russell reports. Instead Olszewski backed Prince George’s County Executive ANGELA ALSOBROOKS. HOW THE PENINSULA WAS WON — In the first of a five-part series, The Hill’s Max Greenwood dives deep into Florida’s swing to the right. The transformation took place as the result of “a perfect storm of demographic changes, Republican power plays, pandemic politics and Democratic missteps.” Now the nerve center in many ways of American conservatism, the state looks increasingly out of reach for a Democratic Party that just a few years ago was inches from victory.
| | | | DON’T MISS POLITICO’S HEALTH CARE SUMMIT: The Covid-19 pandemic helped spur innovation in health care, from the wide adoption of telemedicine, health apps and online pharmacies to mRNA vaccines. But what will the next health care innovations look like? Join POLITICO on Wednesday June 7 for our Health Care Summit to explore how tech and innovation are transforming care and the challenges ahead for access and delivery in the United States. REGISTER NOW. | | | | | CONGRESS HEADS UP — There will be an all-senators classified briefing on Iran tomorrow, per Punchbowl’s Andrew Desiderio. BEYOND THE BELTWAY IT’S ELECTION DAY TOMORROW — Two special elections will determine control of the narrowly divided Pennsylvania state House, with one seat in the Philadelphia suburbs in particular seen as the deciding race. And today Biden endorsed the Democrat, HEATHER BOYD. The district has gotten bluer, but clearly Dems don’t want to chance it. More from the Philly Inquirer TITLE 42 FALLOUT — “Judge mulls contempt for Biden administration over immigration policy,” by Josh Gerstein: “A federal judge in Florida said Monday that the Biden administration’s reported release of about 2,500 migrants into the U.S. on Friday at the southern border may have violated a temporary restraining order he issued.” DEMOCRACY WATCH — WaPo’s Matthew Brown reports on a new Voting Rights Lab analysis that tallies state legislatures’ recent changes to election laws. The majority of bills introduced in the past three years sought to expand access to voting or strengthen election administration, but a growing proportion seek to restrict voting. “It’s increasingly the case that your Zip code determines your level of access to our democracy,” warns lead author LIZ AVORE. — “GOP state lawmakers try to restrict ballot initiatives, partly to thwart abortion protections,” by AP’s Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio: “The trend has taken off as Democrats and left-leaning groups frustrated by legislative gerrymandering that locks them out of power in state legislatures are increasingly turning to the initiative process to force public votes on issues that are opposed by Republican lawmakers yet popular among voters.” DOWN TO THE WIRE — North Carolina Republicans may vote as early as this week to override Democratic Go. ROY COOPER’s veto and impose a 12-week abortion ban — but opponents are mounting a pressure campaign to peel off just one vote, NYT’s Kate Kelly previews. The GOP just barely secured a supermajority to override any veto, but they’ll have to remain completely unified to push the bill through. So far, there’s no sign of anyone flipping. WHAT ONE-PARTY RULE LOOKS LIKE — “Inside the Tennessee legislature, where a GOP supermajority reigns,” by WaPo’s Kevin Sullivan in Nashville: “In the Republican-dominated state House, ’culture war’ battles rage while demands for new gun restrictions are ignored following a deadly school shooting.”
| | | | A message from Instagram:   | | | AMERICA AND THE WORLD ANNALS OF DIPLOMACY — Biden has a high-profile decision to make in selecting the next U.S. ambassador to Israel — and one administration official tells Haaretz’s Ben Samuels that they’re already worried about a congressional “shitshow” over Israel policy at a confirmation hearing. Among the names being floated are ROBERT WEXLER, SUSIE GELMAN and AMOS HOCHSTEIN. Meanwhile, Secretary of State ANTONY BLINKEN is weighing an appointment of former U.S. Ambassador to Israel DAN SHAPIRO to a new State Department position taking the lead on the Abraham Accords, Axios’ Barak Ravid reports. THE WORLD’S BIGGEST DEMOCRACIES — The next month of global meetings will shine a spotlight on the relationship between Biden and Indian PM NARENDRA MODI, as the leaders try to strengthen their connection despite U.S. concerns about Modi’s leadership, AP’s Josh Boak reports. India has been unwilling to support Ukraine as much as the U.S. would like, and Modi’s actions have raised concerns about the health of Indian democracy. “That means the future of the alliance depends on a degree of patience.” WAR IN UKRAINE THE SANCTIONS SHUFFLE — The U.S. and Ukraine’s other Western allies have tried hard to impose technological controls on Russia. But NYT’s Ana Swanson and Niraj Chokshi dig up records that show sanctioned Russian airlines have continued to receive thousands of shipments of parts. That includes $14.4 million worth of U.S.-made airplane parts over eight months, as “illicit networks … have sprung up to try to bypass the restrictions by shuffling goods through a series of straw buyers, often in the Middle East and Asia.” POLICY CORNER LAY OF THE LAND — A new White House proposal would allow conservationists to lease federal land for restoration in a similar way as ranchers and oil companies, AP’s Matthew Brown scoops: “While the bureau previously issued leases for conservation in limited cases, it has never had a dedicated program for it.”
| | | | GET READY FOR GLOBAL TECH DAY: Join POLITICO Live as we launch our first Global Tech Day alongside London Tech Week on Thursday, June 15. Register now for continuing updates and to be a part of this momentous and program-packed day! From the blockchain, to AI, and autonomous vehicles, technology is changing how power is exercised around the world, so who will write the rules? REGISTER HERE. | | | | | THE WHITE HOUSE IT’S OFFICIAL — Biden announced that he’ll nominate National Cancer Institute director MONICA BERTAGNOLLI to be the next NIH director. Erin Schumaker reports on the difficult two-part challenge awaiting Bertagnolli: (1) getting past Republican senators who have grown antagonistic toward NIH, and (2) “restoring faith in science” in the country writ large. JUDICIARY SQUARE WILD HISTORY LESSON — “16 Crucial Words That Went Missing From a Landmark Civil Rights Law,” by NYT’s Adam Liptak: “The phrase, seemingly deleted in error, undermines the basis for qualified immunity, the legal shield that protects police officers from suits for misconduct.” PLAYBOOKERS TRANSITIONS — UL Standards & Engagement has added David Martin as director of government engagement, Sarah Shields as director of events and outreach and Catie Talenti as manager of media relations and strategic positioning. ENGAGED — Will Layden, VP of government affairs at the American Wood Council and a Bruce Westerman alum, proposed to Crosby Armstrong, director of comms and public affairs at the Entertainment Software Association, on Friday in front of Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Ore., where they had one of their first dates. They met through mutual friends.Pic … Another pic — Sean Lerner, legislative director for Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.), and Daniele Polatnick, a registered nurse at Johns Hopkins University Health, got engaged Saturday in Georgetown. They met at the Ronald Reagan-themed Ropewalk Tavern in Baltimore in 2021. Pic — Mary Collins Atkinson, comms director for Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), and Jason Howell, who works with an investment banking firm, got engaged on the Hill on Saturday. They met in 2015 at sailing camp in North Carolina. BONUS BIRTHDAY: Nora Kohli of the House Intelligence Dems 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 editor Mike DeBonis, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Setota Hailemariam and Bethany Irvine.
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