| | | |  | | By Jack Blanchard with Dasha Burns | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun and Bethany Irvine
| | | Good Wednesday morning. This is Jack Blanchard, deep in house-moving chaos. START YOUR DAY WITH A SIREN-EMOJI SCOOP: “Trump officials delayed farm trade report over deficit forecast,” by POLITICO’s Marcia Brown. “Trump administration officials delayed and redacted a government forecast because it predicts an increase in the nation’s trade deficit in farm goods later this year, according to two people familiar with the matter.” An inconvenient truth: “The politically inconvenient data prompted administration officials to block publication of the written analysis normally attached to the report because they disliked what it said about the deficit,” Marcia reports. “Policymakers, farm groups and commodities traders rely on the closely watched report, which the Agriculture Department issues quarterly … The highly unusual rollout could raise questions about potential political meddling with government reports that have traditionally been trusted for decades.” USDA is yet to respond. In today’s Playbook … — How MAGA world is fighting back against Musk. — Trump doubles steel and aluminum tariffs. — Hegseth’s NATO no-show.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
Elon Musk repeatedly skewered Republicans' megabill in a series of posts on X on Tuesday. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | THE SHOW MUSK GO ON: President Donald Trump will host a vast “summer soiree” on the White House lawn this evening to celebrate thousands of political appointments to his government. But it’s one absent — and now very much former — political appointee who will dominate the conversation there and across Washington today. Elon Musk’s DOGE days might be behind him, but the world’s richest man still has the power to blow up U.S. politics with a single X post like few others can. And yesterday, he really went to town. A single post? You probably stopped counting, but Musk offered up 13 different X posts and reposts over a six-hour period, tearing into the GOP’s “disgusting” tax-and-spend legislation which he fears is “bankrupting America.” And he took direct aim at Hill Republicans who have shown support. “Shame on those who voted for it,” Musk wrote. “You know you did wrong.” He was at it again in the wee hours this morning. So how’s Trump feeling? There’s been nothing about Musk on Truth Social so far, and Trump hasn’t done media in days. It's possible he’ll engage with the press at tonight’s White House lawn shindig, but it’s hard to imagine a public falling-out with Musk. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was unflappable when ambushed with Musk’s comments during her briefing yesterday. “The president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this bill,” she said, without missing a beat. “It doesn’t change the president’s opinion.” But inside the White House … All is not well, my POLITICO colleagues Adam Wren, Adam Cancryn and Dasha Burns revealed last night. “The West Wing is perplexed, unenthused, and disappointed” with Musk, one White House official tells Dasha. A careful briefing operation is now underway via Republicans close to the White House — not a push to denigrate Musk per se, but rather to frame his opposition to the bill as what you might call principled self-interest. Follow the money: “When businessmen criticize legislation, journalists don’t take them at their word,” a Republican close to the White House told POLITICO. “They look at how the legislation would impact their business interests. They should be doing that in this case.” Tesla, after all, was one of the beneficiaries of the Biden-era EV support package, which the “big, beautiful bill” strips away, as Axios’ Marc Caputo noted yesterday. Mike on message: Speaker Mike Johnson was quick out of the blocks with this exact argument yesterday, and you can expect to hear it plenty more from Republicans allied with Trump. “It's not personal,” Johnson said. “I know that the EV mandate [is] very important to [Musk] — that’s going away, because the government should not be subsidizing these things as part of the Green New Deal … And I know that has an effect on his business, and I lament that.” The $421 billion question: Will Musk respond to suggestions his criticisms are self-serving? And what will he do next? By far the most interesting of his stream of X posts yesterday was the one carrying an implicit threat to parts of the GOP. “In November next year,” Musk wrote, “we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.” Musk clearly has the wealth and influence to be a huge player in the midterms — or indeed in GOP primaries — if he wants to. Hill Republicans up for reelection will be watching with bated breath.
| | | | A message from The National Association of REALTORS®: Homeownership is the leading way Americans build wealth—but a 4.7 million-unit housing shortage is putting that at risk, especially for the middle class. The National Association of Realtors® has a plan. With smart tax reforms that support homeownership and community investment, paired with other targeted policy changes, we can increase housing supply and restore the American Dream. See the plan at FLYIN.Realtor. | | | | But what you saw yesterday was not just an attack on Hill Republicans. This bill is the legislative centerpiece of Trump’s second term, and its passage means the world to the president. Trump — with his usual understatement — has called it “arguably the most significant piece of Legislation that will ever be signed in the History of our Country,” and an “Historic Opportunity to turn our Country around.” This very week, he urged his GOP colleagues to get it done “AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!” Timing is everything: Crucially, Musk chose to deliver his critique at the very moment Trump is trying to turn the screws on GOP holdouts. Suddenly, the same Hill Republicans Trump is trying to pressure and isolate have found an ally in the world’s richest man — and the very guy Trump brought in to cut government spending. No wonder fiscal hard-liners like Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) were lapping it up. In the meantime … There’s the small matter of a megabill to pass, and there are several significant moments coming today. First, the entire Senate GOP conference gathers this morning for private talks about where the legislation is headed, and you can expect to see plenty of commentary as they depart the meeting. And later this afternoon, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and his tax writers will huddle with Trump at the White House. That one may be a little more guarded. Tick tock: There are still plenty of issues to work through, as my colleagues on Inside Congress detail superbly this morning, with GOP senators variously pushing back against Trump’s “no tax on tips” pledge, the SALT carve-out, the cuts to clean energy credits and several other measures that were painstakingly negotiated in the House. (Don’t miss my POLITICO colleague Jordain Carney’s exclusive sit-down interview with Thune, which posted this morning. Thune said there are a “ton of tradeoffs” he’s making to lock down support and that Trump is “very engaged” with the process.) Reminder: Any changes the Senate makes will still have to be approved by the House, where the GOP majority is ludicrously thin. And Trump wants a finished bill on his desk one month from today.
| | | | A message from The National Association of REALTORS®:  
Homeownership builds wealth, but a 4.7 million home shortage threatens middle-class prosperity. NAR has a plan to boost supply. See it at FLYIN.Realtor. | | | | TRADING PLACES MAN OF STEEL: It’s another big day on Trump’s tariff rollercoaster, with steel and aluminum import taxes having doubled to 50 percent as of 12:01 a.m. this morning, per the FT. U.S. steelworkers are predictably happy; Canadian PM Mark Carney considerably less so. Indeed, the only U.S. allies feeling vaguely jolly today are the Brits, who have maintained their own personal tariff level at 25 percent courtesy of the trade framework deal PM Keir Starmer signed with Trump last month. Sadly, as Bloomberg’s Alex Wickham notes, they’d actually hoped to get it down to zero. Speaking of trade deals: Your Playbook author is old enough to remember Trump’s trade chief Peter Navarro boldly floating the prospect of 90 trade deals in 90 days after the president “paused” his reciprocal tariffs on April 9. Yet so far, that solitary U.K. agreement is all we’ve seen — and there’s now only just over a month to go until deadline day. It’s almost as if hugely complex trade deals which normally take years to hammer out can’t easily be squeezed through en masse in a few short weeks. Who would have guessed? But God loves a trier … And so USTR Jamieson Greer is meeting with his EU counterpart Maroš Šefčovič in Paris today, as the Europeans try to break through the logjam in talks with the U.S. Back here in Washington, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick may shed some light on the (lack of) progress when he testifies before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee at 10 a.m. And it’s not just trade deals we’re waiting for. Some day — maybe even today — Chinese President Xi Jinping might actually pick up the phone to Trump to talk trade. Following the recent zig-zag of trade tensions and rapprochements between the U.S. and China, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned Beijing is at an inflection point, per Bloomberg: “They either want to be a reliable partner to the rest of the world, or they don’t.”
| | | | Playbook isn’t just a newsletter — it’s a podcast, too. With new co-hosts who bring unmatched Trump world reporting and analysis, The Playbook Podcast dives deeper into the power plays shaping Washington. Get the insider edge—start listening now. | | | | | BEST OF THE REST FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — MAN TALK: The Democrats’ much-derided research project on how better to connect with young men is uncovering predictably bleak results for the party, POLITICO’s Elena Schneider reports. It “reaffirms what young men already think, that Democrats don’t want to invest in you,” said Ilyse Hogue, who co-founded the Speaking with American Men project. “Democrats are seen as weak, whereas Republicans are seen as strong.” NATO NO-SHOW: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is skipping today’s meeting of 50 defense ministers at NATO HQ in Brussels — the first time in three years that the Pentagon’s top brass has missed a confab that has been pivotal for getting military assistance to Ukraine, POLITICO’s Paul McLeary reports. U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker will go in his place. Meanwhile on the Hill: Russia hawks will have their own meeting on Ukraine today when a Ukrainian delegation briefs a bipartisan group of senators co-organized by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), POLITICO’s Joe Gould and Paul report. The visiting delegation — featuring Andriy Yermak, a top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy — comes as the GOP’s Russia hawks are pushing Congress to pass a hefty sanctions package. POLITICO’s Jamie Dettmer profiled Yermak this week. LIVE FROM NEW YORK: The race for the Democratic nomination for NYC’s next mayor kicks into high gear tonight with the first big mayoral debate. Nine candidates, including frontrunner Andrew Cuomo, will face off — and POLITICO’s Sally Goldenberg will co-moderate the debate, which will be live on POLITICO’s homepage at 7 p.m. Sally sat down last week with Cuomo, who’s already planning a national-level campaign to take on Trump. He’ll face off against democratic socialist state Rep. Zohran Mamdani, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander and NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, among others. The primary is set for June 24. The missing piece: Mayor Eric Adams, who’ll confront the Democratic nominee in November after mounting his reelection bid as an independent. Adams has been launching attacks at Cuomo ahead of the debate, slamming him as a product of nepotism, POLITICO’s Cris Seda Chabrier and Joe Anuta report. JUDGE FOR YOURSELF: Five of Trump’s first 11 judicial nominees will face the Senate Judiciary Committee at 10:15 a.m., Reuters’ Nate Raymond reports, the first big step in Trump’s drive to remake the U.S. judiciary this term. It follows weeks of Trump bashing judges left and right for blocking his mass deportations and almost shutting down his tariff plans. Trump has blamed the Federalist Society, which recommends conservative judges to him.
| | | | A message from The National Association of REALTORS®:  
A 4.7 million home shortage threatens middle-class prosperity. Learn more. | | | | RESCISSION DECISION: Johnson is poised to call a House vote on Trump’s rescissions package — which codifies $9.4 billion of DOGE cuts — as soon as next week, POLITICO’s Meredith Lee Hill reports. The formal application submitted by Trump yesterday starts a 45-day clock for the cuts to either be approved or dismissed, and Johnson has pledged to “act quickly” — though some Hill Republicans like Maine Sen. Susan Collins sound jumpy about the cuts, per POLITICO’s Jennifer Scholtes and colleagues. IRAN LATEST: “U.S. Proposes Interim Step in Iran Nuclear Talks Allowing Some Enrichment,” by NYT’s Farnaz Fassihi and colleagues: “The Trump administration is proposing an arrangement that would allow Iran to continue enriching uranium at low levels while the United States and other countries work out a more detailed plan intended to block Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon … The proposal amounts to a diplomatic bridge, intended to maneuver beyond the current situation … But the details remain vague, [and] the two sides remain far apart on some elements.” THE POST-ROE WORLD: Hospitals across the U.S. are no longer required to provide emergency abortions to women whose health is in danger after the Trump administration revoked the Biden-era guidance yesterday, NYT’s Sheryl Gay Stolberg reports. BOULDER FALLOUT: Immigration enforcement officers detained the wife and five children of Mohamed Sabry Soliman, the alleged terrorist attacker in Boulder, Colorado, The Denver Post’s Shelly Bradbury reports. “Six One-Way Tickets for Mohamed’s Wife and Five Kids. Final Boarding Call Coming Soon,” trumpeted the official White House X account, as authorities said their deportations could be swift. “Twelve people were hurt in the attack, and all are expected to survive, Boulder police Chief Stephen Redfearn said Tuesday,” per the Post. IMMIGRATION FILES: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is considering another huge shift in immigration policy: blocking work permits for most asylum-seekers, which would prevent them from being able to earn money legally, CBS’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez scooped. HILL BITS AND BOBS: There’s more turnover in Sen. John Fetterman’s (D-Pa.) office as Krysta Sinclair Juris leaves her role as chief of staff, to be replaced by Cabelle St. John, Axios’ Stephen Neukam scooped. … Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) became the fourth Democrat to launch a bid for House Oversight ranking member, per POLITICO’s Nick Wu and Hailey Fuchs. … Billy Long’s nomination for IRS commissioner moved out of the Senate Finance Committee on a party-line vote, per Roll Call. AND ONE TO WATCH: The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee will hold a confirmation hearing on Cheryl Mason as VA IG at 4 p.m. today, where Democrats will likely question her role as a top adviser to VA Secretary Doug Collins — given she’s to serve in the independent IG position. LEONARD LEO’S NEXT ACT: The Federalist Society co-chairm is shrugging off Trump’s recent attacks, proud of how he yanked the judiciary to the right, WSJ’s Maggie Severns and colleagues report. But his next big plan is to reshape pop culture, thanks to a $1.6 billion donation. He’s “secretly helping bankroll Wonder Project, a Texas-based studio that produced the popular series [‘House of David’] and, Leo hopes, will follow with a string of Christian- and conservative-leaning shows so slick they can go head-to-head with other big-budget entertainment.”
| | | | Cut through policy complexity and turn intelligence into action with POLITICO’s Policy Intelligence Assistant—a new suite of tools designed to save you time and demonstrate your impact more easily than ever—available only to Pro subscribers. Save hours, uncover critical insights instantly, and stay ahead of the next big shift. Power your strategy today—learn more. | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | Pete Hegseth has ordered Harvey Milk’s name to be stripped from a Navy ship, an unusual step that was intentionally timed to denigrate the gay rights icon during Pride month. Other vessels carrying the names of Thurgood Marshall, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Harriet Tubman, Dolores Huerta, Cesar Chavez and Medgar Evers could be next. Kevin Hassett’s latest disclosure shows that he holds a stake of $1 million to $5 million in Coinbase. Andrew Cuomo, the frontrunner to be the next mayor of NYC, said he hasn’t had his primary residence in the city since he was roughly 32. Anthony Reyes, a man from Texas arrested and accused of trespassing onto Mar-a-Lago, told police he wanted to “spread the gospel” to Donald Trump and to “marry Kai” — Trump’s 18-year-old granddaughter. PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION — “Smithsonian’s Reaction to Trump’s Firing of Its Museum Director: Silence,” by NYT’s Robin Pogrebin and colleagues: “[T]he Smithsonian has weighed whether to challenge Mr. Trump on his legal authority … At an emergency meeting on Monday, the Smithsonian’s board and Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III discussed how to respond to the president’s announcement that he had fired [National Portrait Gallery director] Kim Sajet … But so far, the Smithsonian, which is not an executive branch agency, has been silent on whether it will dispute a presidential announcement that is distinctly at odds with how the institution has long regarded its independence.” FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — “State of Firsts,” a new documentary from Chase Joynt, tracks Rep. Sarah McBride’s (D-Del.) campaign to become the first transgender member of Congress and her early days in office. Ahead of its premiere at Tribeca on Saturday and screening at DC/DOX on June 15, we have an exclusive clip that shows McBride’s reaction to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) attacks on her. Watch it here OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at American Compass’ fifth-anniversary gala last night at the National Building Museum, where VP JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both spoke: Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, FCC Chair Brendan Carr, FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), Reps. Riley Moore (R-W.Va.), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) and Jared Golden (D-Maine), FTC Commissioner Mark Meador, Elbridge Colby, Jeff Sessions, Robert Lighthizer, Emily Jashinsky, Wells King, Gail Slater, Michael Kratsios, Jacob Reses, Caleb and Gabby Orr, Saurabh Sharma, Julius Krein, Neil Patel, Mike Needham, Dan Katz, Sohrab Ahmari, Molly Ball, Jerry Seib, Idrees Kahloon, Phil Letsou, Phil Wegmann, Matt Spalding, Ryan Walker, Terry Schilling, James Hitchcock and Rachael Bade. — Public Citizen held its annual gala event at the National Press Club yesterday evening, with this year’s awards going to Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and former CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. They both spoke about fighting corruption in the Trump administration and corporate accountability for malfeasance. SPOTTED: Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Robin Juliano, Lisa Gilbert and Robert Weissman. — SPOTTED at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s annual Capital Markets Summit in their Great Hall yesterday: Michael Faulkender, Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Reps. French Hill (R-Ark.) and Bill Foster (D-Ill.), acting FDIC Chair Travis Hill, SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda, acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney Hood, Nelson Griggs, Jeffrey A. Rosen, Monica Curtis, Andy Navarrete, Brian Smith, Kristy Croushore, Andrew Olmem, Ji Kim and Minh Ta. — Gwen Young and Christianne Ricchi co-hosted a lunch celebrating the filmmakers of “Lilly,” based on the life of Lilly Ledbetter, at i Ricchi yesterday. SPOTTED: director Rachel Feldman, producers Jyoti Sarda and Allyn Stewart, David Adler, Tom LoBianco, Bill Press, Janet Donovan, Dan Glickman, Gloria Dittus, Kathy O’Hearn, Catherine Hand, Marcia Greenberger, LaFonda Willis, Edie Fraser, Jocelyn Ulrich and Charlotte McDowell. TRANSITIONS — Stu Sandler will be chief of staff for Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) as Craig Carbone departs. Sandler previously has been a partner at OnMessage and is an NRSC alum. … Lexi Branson is returning to the U.S. Chamber as VP for health policy. She most recently was deputy VP of advocacy and strategic alliances at PhRMA. … Carlos Felipe Uriarte is now partner and co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s congressional investigations group. He most recently was assistant AG for DOJ’s Office of Legislative Affairs. … … Mary Thomas is now CEO of the Faith and Freedom Coalition. She previously was chief strategic growth officer of the Job Creators Network. … Angel Logan is now digital comms director for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. She previously was digital comms director to the House Ways and Means GOP. … Avi Zevin, Miles Farmer, Kim Smaczniak and Sam Walsh have launched Roselle LLP, a boutique energy law firm. They previously were energy and regulatory lawyers at DOE and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) … Reps. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.) and Jim Baird (R-Ind.) (8-0) … Mike Murphy … Colby Itkowitz … ProPublica’s Justin Elliott … May (Davis) Mailman … NBC’s Emily Gold … POLITICO’s Carlos Anchondo and Chase Sutton … Scott Tranter … Camden Stuebe of Free the Facts … Joey Coon of the Niskanen Center … Adfero’s Steve Lombardo … Meta’s Ryan Daniels … Dentons’ Jason Attermann … John Arundel of Perdicus Communications … Mort Zuckerman … Amelia Showalter … David Bolger … Daniel Swartz … Patrick Dumas of the House Ways and Means GOP Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us on Signal here. Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Zack Stanton, deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
| | | | A message from The National Association of REALTORS®: Homeownership is the cornerstone of the American Dream—and the primary way families build lasting wealth.
But today, a nationwide housing shortage of 4.7 million units is putting that dream out of reach for too many, especially the middle class.
The National Association of Realtors® has a plan to turn the tide.
By advancing smart tax reforms that support homeownership and community investment—alongside other targeted policy changes—we can boost housing supply and pave the way for a new era of opportunity and prosperity.
Discover the path forward at FLYIN.Realtor. | | | | | | | | Follow us on X | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Canada Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment