| | | | |  | | By Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels and Ryan Lizza | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine
| | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | VIBE CHECK — “Harris is pushing joy. Trump paints a darker picture. Will mismatched moods matter?” by AP’s Will Weissert and Michelle L. Price: “Two-thirds of Americans reported feeling very or somewhat pessimistic about the state of politics, according to polling by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research from last month. Roughly 7 in 10 said things in the country are heading in the wrong direction.”
|  VP Kamala Harris has yet to settle on a plan for governing, except in the broadest of strokes. | AP | KAMALA RASA — When VP KAMALA HARRIS endorsed the notion of exempting tip income from federal taxation at a Las Vegas rally on Saturday, most people took note of the fact that she hijacked the policy from DONALD TRUMP (including, as we noted yesterday, Trump himself). What caught our eye was that she had endorsed any policy proposal at all. Now three weeks into her campaign, and with the Democratic National Convention just a week away, Harris has ridden a wave of base enthusiasm and swing-voter relief to put the presidency back into play. What she hasn’t done yet is settle on a plan for governing, except in the broadest of strokes. Her stump speech has framed the campaign as a “fight for the future” without saying much about what precisely that future would entail. There’s no 100-day agenda, let alone a detailed tax policy white paper. Say what you will about Trump’s, um, uneven interest in policymaking, his Republican allies have been laying the groundwork for a return to power for months. Top congressional leaders have plotted their first moves, including how they might use the fast-track reconciliation process to pass tax cuts, regulation rollbacks and more. (That’s to say nothing of the now-renounced Project 2025.) On one hand, the lack of clarity from Harris is understandable. A month ago, anyone talking about a 2025 Democratic agenda would have been laughed out of a room given the concerns over JOE BIDEN’s vitality. And it’s tricky, of course, running to succeed a sitting president as VP. But the pressure is mounting on Harris to say more, and it’s not just about persuading voters, as a new WaPo editorial argues, it’s about governing: “Elections aren’t just about winning. They’re about accumulating political capital for a particular agenda, which Ms. Harris can’t do unless she articulates one,” they write. “The more substance Ms. Harris can offer before the election … the more of a mandate she would have to govern should she prevail in November.” Over the weekend, we saw hints that more details are coming. In Arizona on Friday, she sketched out the bare bones of a border agenda, promising to sign the bipartisan border security bill that Trump killed earlier this year. On Saturday, before making her tax-free-tips endorsement, she told reporters she would roll out a more comprehensive economic agenda this week. That’s a political necessity, as Myah Ward points out this morning in a piece on the five major questions facing Harris right now: “Voters are still deeply worried about the economy and inflation,” she writes, and “public perception of the economy is a weak spot for Democrats.” What remains to be seen is how she will distinguish herself from Biden. We’ll note that the only public event on Harris’s schedule this week so far is a joint appearance with the incumbent in Maryland on Thursday to discuss “the progress they are making to lower costs for the American people.” So far, with the exception of the tips proposal, she has mostly adopted Biden’s economic agenda in her remarks as a presidential candidate — promising to tackle “junk fees,” prescription drug prices and high housing costs. She has kept Biden’s no-tax-hikes pledge for those making under $400,000 but hasn’t weighed on thorny particulars as the expiration of the 2017 Trump tax cuts approaches next year — such as whether she wants to, say, restore the full state and local tax deduction or send out the monthly child tax credit checks families enjoyed during the pandemic. Most Democratic insiders we spoke to, however, are totally fine keeping things vague. There’s a sense that Harris should continue to ride the wave of enthusiasm rather than change the conversation by offering up specifics. “Values unite and specific policies divide, so I don’t think there is a desire to spend the next 80 days litigating Medicare for All, for example,” one senior Democratic congressional aide told Playbook. Added a frontline Democratic lawmaker: “Why would we start talking about policy? ... We're actually better off just running on this real wave of enthusiasm and energy. … It’s the best thing [Harris] can do.” Top Hill leaders appear happy to stick to the basics. During a virtual Democratic caucus meeting last week, for example, deputies of House Minority Leader HAKEEM JEFFRIES gave a PowerPoint presentation that outlined a big-picture “People Over Politics” message to run on: “Lowering housing and health care costs”; “Tax relief for hardworking American families”; “Make corporations pay their fair share” and so forth. Asked what Senate Democrats might do if they keep their majority, Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER last month was similarly fuzzy: “Things like democracy … tax bills we're looking at that help families and the child tax credit … doing more for clean energy, doing more for transportation and education,” he said. “There are many different things we will do.” The risk of ambiguity is that Republicans stand ready to fill the void by reminding voters of the many policies Harris backed during the 2020 presidential primary (and since repudiated), including eliminating private health insurance, decriminalizing border crossings and banning fracking. But the Democrats we spoke to said they are comfortable nonetheless. “It’s fair to expect that she will continue to spotlight issues that will be top priorities for her and also drive contrasts between her and Donald Trump,” one person close to the Harris campaign told Playbook last night. “Getting into the legislative mechanics of how you will pass those things is a conversation for later.” Good Monday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza.
| | | | A message from Comcast: Did you know that most of the data on your smartphone travels over WiFi, not cellular? Thanks to WiFi innovation by Comcast, our customers connect over a billion devices to our network each year. Unlicensed spectrum is key to a fast and secure WiFi experience at home and on the go. Comcast leads the way by developing cutting-edge WiFi gateways that maximize our multi-gig broadband network and spectrum made available by the FCC. Learn more. | | | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: HARRIS SHORES UP YOUTH VOTE — A big reason Biden lagged in poll after poll earlier this year was weakness in the youth vote, with some surveys shockingly finding Biden trailing Trump. Now, with Harris atop the ticket, those dynamics have radically changed, according to a brand new poll from young-voter whisperer JOHN DELLA VOLPE for Won’t PAC Down. The poll of 18-to-29-year-olds found Harris’ own approval rating jumping 16 points since the beginning of last month, from 49 percent to 33 percent. And in a five-way race, Harris beats Trump in the youth demo by 9 points — that’s up 10 points since last month, when Biden was atop the ticket and behind Trump. In a two-way race, there’s been a 13-point shift toward Harris. Della Volpe, who also serves as polling director for the Harvard Institute of Politics, told Playbook that Harris “has had an extraordinary few weeks” and that “the enthusiasm and support for her among most every subgroup of young people is palpable.” “Still, there is room for her to grow and expand her margin,” he added. "Young people will want to know more about her values and vision, and I’m sure that’s coming soon.” THEIR MAN IN PARIS — “At the Paris Olympics, the second gentleman moves toward first place,” by WaPo’s Dan Zak in Paris: “When it was announced July 12 that DOUG [EMHOFF]mhoff would be leading the U.S. delegation to the Closing Ceremonies of the Olympics, Kamala Harris was still veeped in, cuffed by circumstance, towing the line of loyalty. Now Emhoff is suddenly being treated like No. 2 on the call sheet — in the jargon of an entertainment lawyer, which he used to be — instead of No. 4. ‘I cannot tell you,’ Emhoff said, not even 24 hours into his Paris trip, ‘how many leaders here have already whispered to me: “Thank you. You need to win.”’” THE WEEK — Tomorrow: Biden travels to New Orleans for a Cancer Moonshot event. TIM WALZ attends a fundraiser in Newport Beach, California. Former Rep. GEORGE SANTOS appears in federal court in Central Islip, New York, for a pre-trial hearing. … Wednesday: July CPI inflation numbers released. Trump delivers economic address in Asheville, North Carolina. JD VANCE campaigns in Byron Center, Michigan. Walz attends fundraisers in Denver and Boston. … Thursday: Biden and Harris hold an economic-themed event in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Walz attends fundraisers in Newport, Rhode Island, and Southampton, New York. … Friday: Biden departs for Camp David.
| | | | A message from Comcast: Unlicensed spectrum is key to a fast and secure WiFi experience at home and on the go. Comcast leads the way by developing cutting-edge WiFi gateways that maximize our multi-gig broadband network and spectrum made available by the FCC. Learn more. | | | | | WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY | | On the Hill The Senate and the House are out. What we’re watching … After spending most of the past two years targeting Joe Biden and his family ahead of what was thought to be an inevitable re-election campaign, House Oversight Chair JAMES COMER (R-Ky.) is signaling he is now turning his attention to the actual 2024 Democratic president nominee. In an appearance last night on former South Carolina Rep. TREY GOWDY’s Fox News show, Comer said he is determined to dig in on Harris’ work regarding the southern border: “We want to know the cost [of providing services to migrants], and we want to know exactly what Kamala Harris did other than basically send an open invitation to the world to illegally cross our border.” At the White House Biden and first lady JILL BIDEN will leave Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, to return to the White House. Biden will receive the President’s Daily Brief in the morning. Press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE will brief at 2 p.m. Harris will receive briefings and conduct internal meetings with staff. Later in the day, Harris will record video remarks for the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees’ 46th International Convention. On the trail Trump will join ELON MUSK for a live conversation on X at 8 p.m. Related read: “Elon Musk’s X feed becomes megaphone for his far-right politics,” by WaPo’s Faiz Siddiqui and Jeremy Merrill
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Democrats are wondering if Tim Walz can help Kamala Harris win his battleground congressional seat in November. | Jamie Kelter Davis for POLITICO | WALZ TO WALZ — Tim Walz won his battleground congressional district six times by appealing to centrist Democrats and independents in small towns and suburbs. Now Democrats are wondering if he can help Harris do the same this fall. “The region, where the majority of voters supported Trump in 2020, has been represented by a Republican in Congress since Walz’s departure in 2018. It spans farm communities and cities like Rochester with the Mayo Clinic and health care as the major economic driver,” Meredith Lee Hill reports from Rochester, Minnesota. “Since Kamala Harris picked Walz as her running mate last week, this red district has seen a burst of Democratic enthusiasm — from ‘Hot Dishes for Harris’ events to phones ringing off the hook as voters call to ask for Harris-Walz yard signs. The mood change is shocking even the most seasoned organizers, coming after weeks of despair among rural Democrats here following Biden’s disastrous debate. “Democrats here are clear-eyed about the challenges ahead. They’ve been falling behind in competitive districts like this one for years and face new challenges, including voters reeling from inflation. But they say someone like Walz being on the ticket certainly helps.” Related read: “Former students and colleagues recall high school teachers Tim and Gwen Walz as allies and advocates,” by AP’s Michael Goldberg and Margery Beck … “Pelosi hits back at Republicans’ ‘stolen valor’ attacks on Walz,” by Isabella Ramírez More top reads:
- FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: The Republican Jewish Coalition is issuing a challenge to every speaker at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago next week to “Praise Israel” — an effort to troll Democrats on an issue that sharply divides the two wings of the party. The call to action: “If you speak from the main stage and ask the crowd to cheer if they support Israel, the RJC will donate to plant 1,800 trees in Israel in your name, to showcase your standing with the Jewish state. For those wondering ‘why 1,800?’ — it is 100 x 18, which stands for ‘chai,’ ‘life’ in Hebrew.”
- When Pennsylvania Gov. JOSH SHAPIRO was passed up as the pick for Harris’ running mate, the firestorm that cropped up around Shapiro’s identity as a Jewish man “confirmed or inflamed simmering fears about antisemitism on the left,” NYT’s Jennifer Medina and Katie Glueck write. The Shapiro episode and simmering global tensions have some “warning that in corners of the Jewish community, close ties to the Democratic Party may be fraying.”
- The Promise Keepers, an all-male Christian group, is back in the spotlight amid the MAGA movement. “Headed by a new young chief executive, the group is leaning into partisan politics where it once eschewed them, and equipping men to do battle not only with their own spiritual weaknesses but also with a secular culture that speakers portrayed as uniquely hostile,” NYT’s Ruth Graham reports from Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-N.J.) and and Democrat Sue Altman's congressional race is focusing on IVF. | Stefan Jeremiah/AP | HOW IT’S PLAYING — SUE ALTMAN is making in-vitro fertilization a key issue in her race against GOP Rep. TOM KEAN JR., hoping to center the race on reproductive rights against a self-described pro-choice incumbent. Kean is playing defense, calling Altman’s critique “dishonest” and noting his “longstanding commitment” to medical treatments, including IVF. But that Kean even has to defend himself “shows how drastically the election landscape has changed since Altman entered the race last May,” Daniel Han writes. In New York, where a half-dozen competitive races are likely to factor into House control, Democrats have zeroed in on reproductive rights. In California, an independent campaign arm of Planned Parenthood is running a multimillion-dollar effort focused on several competitive House races. “Democrats across the country have raked in electoral success running on abortion rights since 2022, and Altman’s increasing focus on the issue in New Jersey’s most competitive House race could provide a test case on how effective the message is — and potentially determine control of the House.” More top reads:
- “Why fewer women (and men) are running for Congress this year,” by CNN’s Simone Pathe and Hien An Ngo: “The number of Republican women running for the House this cycle dropped about 36% from 2022, while the number running for Senate dropped by about 45%, according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers.”
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|  Palestinians displaced by the Israeli air and ground offensive on the Gaza Strip flee from Hamad City following an evacuation order on Sunday. | Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo | MIDDLE EAST LATEST — Israeli intelligence officials’ “updated assessment is that Iran is poised to attack Israel directly in retaliation for the assassination of Hamas' political leader in Tehran and is likely to do it within days,” Axios’ Barak Ravid reports. “The new intelligence assessment indicates an attack could come before the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal talks planned for Thursday, potentially jeopardizing negotiations at what Israeli officials have said is a ‘now-or-never’ moment for a potential deal between Israel and Hamas. But one of the sources who has direct knowledge of the intelligence said the situation is ‘still fluid.’” The report comes as the Israeli military “ordered more evacuations in southern Gaza early Sunday” and Hamas “appeared to push back against resuming negotiations on Thursday on any new cease-fire proposals,” AP’s Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy report. Hamas issued a statement in which it “urged mediators United States, Egypt and Qatar to submit a plan to implement what was agreed on last month, based on Biden’s proposal, ‘instead of going to more rounds of negotiations or new proposals that provide cover for the occupation’s aggression.’” Meanwhile, Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN yesterday “ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and is telling the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area,” AP’s Lolita Baldor writes. “It wasn’t clear Sunday what his latest order means, or how much more quickly the Lincoln will steam to the Middle East. The carrier has F-35 fighter jets aboard, along with the F/A-18 fighter aircraft that are also on carriers.” Related read: “Hezbollah is undeterred as Lebanon braces for war with Israel,” by WaPo’s Kareem Fahim and Mohamad El Chamaa … “Months After Israel’s Rafah Operation, Gazans Say It Is Harder to Find Food,” by WSJ’s Abeer Ayyoub and Omar Abdel-Baqui More top reads:
- Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY said yesterday that Russia has “started a fire on the grounds of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest such facility in Europe,” Joe Stanley-Smith reports. “Its six nuclear reactors are in cold shutdown and no nuclear activity was recorded on Sunday, but the overall risk of nuclear meltdown remains elevated.”
POLICY CORNER MUCK READ — When the Biden administration rolled out its plan to protect older Americans’ savings by cracking down on costly financial advice, “the insurance industry got to work,” WaPo’s Tony Romm reports. Lobbyists for big-time firms “first pushed back against the newly proposed regulations before suing to topple them entirely. Now the government’s latest attempt to protect retirees is in political and legal limbo, facing the possibility that it may never take effect. “It is the latest example of a pervasive pattern: As the Biden administration tries to impose new restrictions on powerful industries, those businesses successfully turn to Congress and the courts for a reprieve. This time, the resulting clash centers on a basic question: Should federal law require more financial professionals to put retirees’ needs above all else — including their own paychecks — when they offer advice about how to invest?” BEYOND THE BELTWAY DEMOGRAPHIC DEEP DIVE — “Why the fastest-growing place for young kids in the US is in the metro with the oldest residents,” by AP’s Mike Schneider in The Villages, Florida
| | | | DON’T MISS OUR AI & TECH SUMMIT: Join POLITICO’s AI & Tech Summit for exclusive interviews and conversations with senior tech leaders, lawmakers, officials and stakeholders about where the rising energy around global competition — and the sense of potential around AI and restoring American tech knowhow — is driving tech policy and investment. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | BD Wong has a new idea for a Law and Order spinoff — sort of. Kamala Harris raised $13 million in San Francisco. Donald Trump is falsely claiming that photos of Harris’ crowds are AI-generated. SPOTTED: Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) at a fundraiser at event planner and Democratic fundraiser Bryan Rafanelli’s house in Provincetown, Massachusetts, over the weekend. Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) was also in attendance. WEEKEND WEDDING — Chuck Rocha, a longtime senior Democratic strategist, and Ebony Payne, D.C. ANC commissioner and former Ward 7 council candidate, got married at the National Botanic Garden in Kauai, Hawaii, on Saturday, in a ceremony officiated by Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.). SPOTTED: Lalo Alcaraz, Finance Gomez, Sabrina Rodriguez, Mayra Macias, Adrian Carrasquillo, Kristian Ramos, Matt Barreto, Ric Torres II, Jeff Weaver, Shelli Jackson, Scott Bates, Caroline Gonzalez, Cristóbal Alex, Stephanie Valencia, Alexis Acevedo, David Sanchez, Luis Alcauter, Daysi Gonzalez, Roberto Nava, John Robinson and Sean Sinclair. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Inimai Chettiar is joining A Better Balance as president. She previously was deputy director at Justice Action Network. TRANSITIONS — Guy Mentel is now a senior professional staff member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He previously was senior policy adviser to the U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States, and is a Global Americans alum. … Casey Catlin is now director of member relations at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He previously was director of member outreach at the American Bankers Association, and is a Koch network alum. … Mitch Erdel is joining Synchrony as VP of government affairs. He previously was senior policy adviser to Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.), and is a Deb Fischer and Roy Blunt alum. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: George Soros (94) … Ed Feulner … HuffPost’s Dave Jamieson … Brian Devine … Google’s Brianna Puccini Duff and Nick Meads … Matt Sparks ... Casey Nelson of the House Republican whip’s office … Treasury’s Liz Hipple … Justin Folsom of Sen. Jon Tester’s (D-Mont.) office … Brandi Travis … POLITICO’s Jan Byun, Nidhi Prakas, Heather Richards and Scott Stephens … CNN’s Kyle Blaine … Angela Kuefler of Global Strategy Group … CBS’ Jericka Duncan … Toby Burke … Kelley McCormick … Tristan Fitzpatrick … Doris Truong of the Poynter Institute … WaPo’s Karen Attiah … Melanie Sheppard of EY … former FHA Administrator Nicole Nason … former Rep. Connie Mack IV (R-Fla.) … Lesley Fulop Byers … Pfizer’s Stephen Claeys ... Thurgood Marshall Jr. ... Christina Hartman ... WilmerHale’s Bill McLucas … Uber’s Tony West … BBB National Programs’ Eric Reicin … Mike Kelleher … BGR Group’s Remy Brim 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 Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
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