| | | |  | | By Adam Wren | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Bethany Irvine and Ali Bianco On this morning’s Playbook Podcast, Adam and POLITICO’s Jordain Carney discuss the GOP megabill’s moment of truth, walk through the obstacle course it faces on Capitol Hill and home in on the senators to watch in the days ahead.
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| Good Friday morning. What a week. It’s Adam Wren. Drop me a line. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Cool on Kamala: As Kamala Harris ramps up her outreach to longtime supporters as she considers a run for California governor, many top Dem donors are ambivalent about her potential candidacy, POLITICO’s Melanie Mason and Jeremy White report. “In interviews, several major donors in the state told POLITICO they fear her reemergence as a candidate would re-open still-fresh wounds from her defeat in 2024. Some harbor lingering frustration about how her billion-dollar campaign juggernaut ended in debt and want assurances she would have a clear plan to win the governor’s mansion.” Says one megadonor: “Kamala just reminds you we are in this complete shit storm,” a California Dem who gave six figures to her campaign said. “With [Joe] Biden, we got bamboozled … I think she did the best she could in that situation, but obviously she knew about the cognitive decline too,” the donor said. “I’ve written so many checks because I knew the Trump administration would be horrible, but we’re living in a nightmare because of the Democrats. I’m furious at them, truly.” FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — McConnell’s victory lap: President Donald Trump has “got some pretty rabid isolationists over at DoD — you could argue the vice president [JD Vance] is in that group,” Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) tells POLITICO’s Jonathan Martin in a must-read new interview. “None of those people who’ve read history.” And yet: After the strike on Iran, McConnell sees an opening to move past his own fraught relationship with the president and enter a new phase where “he can be something of an evangelist to convert Trump to the peace-through-strength gospel of interventionism,” as JMart puts it. Think of it as positive reinforcement. But he doesn’t want to be a Trump whisperer: “I don’t think whispering in somebody’s ear is what ought to be done right now,” McConnell says. “I think you need to build support. The way you do that is publicly.” How Trump world sees it: “The president isn’t going to be swayed by hysterics on the hawkish side or hysterics on the other side,” Trump media adviser Alex Bruesewitz tells Playbook’s Dasha Burns in an interview for this week’s episode of “The Conversation.” “Obviously, the MAGA movement — and myself included — we are hesitant to want to get involved in forever wars. We’ve seen what has happened. The president has also seen what is happening. He's been very vocal that the [George W.] Bush era and the neocon era has failed our country, but the president has also always been a believer in peace through strength.” In today’s Playbook … — A congressional obstacle course stands in the way of the GOP megabill reaching Trump’s desk — and Dems see a huge political opening. — The legal world braces for a cascade of Supreme Court rulings today. — And the White House continues its messaging blitz on the Iran strikes.
| | | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
There’s still a path for Senate Majority Leader John Thune to deliver the megabill on deadline, but there's hoops to jump through first. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER: The GOP megabill is the signature legislation of Trump’s second term and the “ultimate codification of our agenda,” as he said yesterday at the White House. He wants it on his desk by July 4 — just one week from today. Just one tiny problem with that: “Republicans’ ‘big, beautiful bill’ is in tatters,” as our colleagues at POLITICO’s Inside Congress newsletter write this morning. Yes, technically, there’s still a path to meet that self-imposed deadline. But “technically” and “likely” are two very different things. Senate Majority Leader John Thune had hoped to tee up votes for today; that hasn’t happened. Tomorrow now looks possible, if uncertain; Saturday votes in the Senate would assume Republicans are able to both iron out any wrinkles spotted by the parliamentarian and shore up support from the stragglers within the conference. If all goes well, we could see final passage in the Senate on Sunday. But the obstacle course ahead — for Thune, Speaker Mike Johnson and, ultimately, for Trump — isn’t just a matter of procedure. There are major policy disagreements within the GOP conference. And they aren’t easing up. Thune met with Trump yesterday at the White House, and they discussed a “number of issues,” he told POLITICO’s Jordain Carney. Asked if he believes Trump wants the House’s Medicaid provider tax language in megabill, Thune said simply that Trump “wants us to do what we can do to get him the bill.” Trump’s a big-picture guy. But the challenges faced by the megabill require getting into the weeds. And what’s a bit vexing here is that Trump weighing in could be determinative — Republicans on the Hill very much see him as the closer — but he’s thus far declined to weigh in on many of the specifics of the bill. That’s made it easier for groups of backbenchers in both chambers to draw red lines on any number of issues, which — combined with the procedural hurdles and budget math issues — have made this such a difficult process. On Medicaid: Republicans were sent back to the drawing board on Medicaid cuts after Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled yesterday that “major pieces of the GOP megabill’s Medicaid policy can’t pass with a simple majority,” as The Hill’s Ian Swanson reports. “Republicans had already been struggling to reach a consensus on the provider tax provision, as senators including Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) said they were worried about the impact it would have on rural hospitals. The parliamentarian’s ruling further emboldened those members, who don’t want the Senate to rush ahead on a plan that’s not ready.” On SALT: Three House Republicans — Reps. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), Young Kim (R-Calif.) and Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) — rejected a proposed SALT compromise offered by the Treasury, POLITICO’s Mia McCarthy reports. In a potential sign of just how far apart the two sides are, LaLota said he wants the Senate to come to “the table with a serious proposal,” which doesn’t exactly stoke optimism that we’re close to a deal here. On public land sales: “Five House Republicans on Thursday threatened to vote down the GOP megabill if the Senate includes a provision to sell public lands for development” that has been championed by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), POLITICO’s James Bikales reports. On clean-energy tax credits: The Senate’s slower phasing out of the tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act “will need to be reversed,” House Majority Steve Scalise said Thursday. On the revenge tax: “Republicans said Thursday they are dropping a so-called revenge tax from a sweeping domestic policy megabill now pending in the Senate after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said it was no longer necessary,” POLITICO’s Brian Faler reports. Though Congress’ top tax writers quickly agreed with Bessent, the decision “blows a new billion-dollar budgetary hole in Republicans’ plans,” as Brian writes, and makes “Republicans’ lives harder, as they struggle to make the math” work. On the federal employee pension plan: In order to pay for the megabill, Senate Republicans are considering substantially hiking “federal employees’ retirement contributions to 15.6 percent of their salary — compared with the 9.4 percent required in the initial version of the bill — while carving out an exemption for members of Congress and their staff,” POLITICO’s Lawrence Ukenye reports.
| | | | A message from AHIP: Outdated manual processes, such as faxes, are holding back the health care system, adding costs and complexity, and causing frustration for patients. As part of health plans' new series of voluntary actions to support patients and providers, we are committing to real-time responses when routine coverage requests are submitted electronically. Let's work together to modernize the system. Learn more. | | | | WHICH BRINGS US TO THE DEMOCRATS: For much of the past five months, Democratic counter-messaging has languished amid Trump litigating what the White House characterizes as “80-20” issues — that is, issues on which they think they have overwhelming public support. The GOP’s goal in those fights is to center the public attention on battles that put Democrats on their heels on issues where their positions lack broad backing or where their counter arguments are tantamount to “bitch[ing] about the process,” as one Democratic strategist put it to our POLITICO colleagues Elena Schneider and Nick Wu this week. This time is different. Democrats are licking their chops about the prospect of running against the GOP megabill in next year’s midterms. Polling on the megabill has already sent a chill down the spine of many in-cycle Republicans. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who faces a fraught reelection bid next year, has told his Republican colleagues the megabill’s cuts to Medicaid could be the party’s Obamacare — meaning it could yield major defeats for Republicans, much as backlash to the Affordable Care Act hurt Democrats in the 2010 cycle. “It’s a slam dunk messaging opportunity for Democrats,” Democratic strategist Mike Nellis told Playbook last night. “It’s very easy to explain how it’s going to have a direct and immediate impact on people’s lives. They’re going to cut Medicaid and other critical government programs that people rely on to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy.” On message: Future possible Democratic presidential candidates from Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg are railing against it, homing in on the Medicaid cuts in particular. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear told Playbook that the megabill risks closing 35 rural hospitals in his home state, “forcing people to drive hours just to see their primary care doctor and is estimated to eliminate the jobs of 20,000 health care workers” in Kentucky. Expect to hear more like this: “It will force children to go hungry in a country that grows enough food to feed all Americans,” Beshear said. “And it doesn’t even work; it adds trillions to our national debt while blowing a hole in the budgets of all 50 states. It’s wrong, cruel and callous.” “The ads, the tweets, the press releases write themselves,” Nellis told Playbook. “Easy for everybody to get behind opposing it, regardless of the district dynamics.” Trump, of course, sees it differently. “It’s so good,” he said yesterday at the White House.
| | | | A message from AHIP: Health plans are making voluntary commitments to support patients and providers. As these commitments take effect, patients will have faster access to evidence-based care and fewer challenges navigating the health system. Providers will have streamlined workflows and reduced administrative burdens. Learn more. | | | | SCOTUS’ BIG DAY ALL EYES ON THE COURT: At 10 a.m., the Supreme Court will open the last official decision day of this term, according to Chief Justice John Roberts — and we’ve still got multiple pending decisions that could dramatically alter the future of everything from redistricting to online pornography. Follow along this morning at politico.com/SCOTUS2025 as POLITICO’s legal, politics and policy reporters analyze the decisions in real time. A breakdown of the cases: We can expect a handful of big opinions from the high court, per SCOTUSblog’s Amy Howe. They include whether a 2023 Texas law can require pornography websites to verify the ages of their users; the future of Louisiana’s second majority-Black congressional district; and whether schools can require students to participate in lessons that include LGBTQ+ content, among other cases. And the case we’re all waiting for … is the one we can’t be sure is coming, POLITICO’s ace legal reporter Josh Gerstein texts Playbook. Trump v. Casa started as a challenge to the president’s executive order ending birthright citizenship, but became an emergency appeal that took on a central legal question of Trump’s second term: “the Trump administration’s request to rein in the power of federal district court judges to block federal policies on a nationwide basis,” Josh writes. “The court could tell judges to narrow those injunctions and future ones in other cases, or set some criteria for them, or could snub the administration by turning down the request.” Or even this: The court could instead decide to punt the restraining order matter, and deal with the birthright citizenship question first. “That could push the whole fight off until sometime this fall, after the justices return from their summer break,” Josh writes. ANOTHER BIG LEGAL STORY TODAY: The Justice Department is once again attempting to deport Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia — though this time not to El Salvador, NYT’s Alan Feuer reports. A DOJ lawyer said in federal court yesterday that there were “no imminent plans,” but that the plan is to deport Abrego to another country.
| | | | Did you know Playbook goes beyond the newsletter—with powerhouse new co-hosts at the mic? Tune in to The Playbook Podcast every weekday for exclusive intel and sharp analysis on Trump’s Washington, straight from Jack Blanchard and Dasha Burns. Start listening now. | | | | | IRAN FALLOUT DAMAGE CONTROL: The White House has been on an all-out messaging blitz over the Iran strikes, but how hard Iran was hit and the future of its uranium enrichment program remains an open question, NYT’s Julian Barnes and David Sanger write. No solid conclusions have been drawn, questions abound as to where Iran’s stockpile originally was and whether it was dispersed before the attack. Trump has an intelligence briefing set for 11 a.m. today, and he will probably use the word “obliterated” once or twice again afterward. Escalating conflict: Trump threatened to sue The New York Times and CNN over their reporting on the initial intelligence assessment that Iran’s nuclear program was likely set back only a few months as a result of the strikes, NYT’s Michael Grynbaum reports. The Times’ lead attorney responded in a letter to Trump: “No retraction is needed. No apology will be forthcoming. We told the truth to the best of our ability. We will continue to do so.” A grain of salt: “We can have two things be true,” Beth Sanner, an intelligence official who frequently briefed Trump in his first term, tells POLITICO’s Amy Mackinnon. “We can have it be true that the bombing campaign was successful in destroying particular facilities or capabilities at particular facilities, and we still have questions about the Iran nuclear program and what might be left.” Among those with questions are some Senate Republicans, who left an afternoon briefing yesterday not totally convinced, POLITICO’s Connor O’Brien and colleagues report. “I don’t think anybody’s been on the ground to assess the extent of the damage,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) told reporters. But others were more definitive. “I think that Iranian nuclear development is set back years,” said Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), per CNN’s Sarah Ferris and colleagues. STILL TO COME: A vote on Sen. Tim Kaine’s (D-Va.) war powers resolution, set for 6 p.m. today.
| | | | A message from AHIP:  
| | | | BEST OF THE REST TAKING HIS SHOT: The two-day meeting of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s vaccine advisers wrapped yesterday and put on display “how federal vaccine policy is beginning to reflect Kennedy’s personal views,” POLITICO’s Lauren Gardner and Sophie Gardner write. All signs point to yesterday’s vaccine “scrutiny” being just the beginning, as “the panel may consider at its next meeting advising against use of a combination shot known as MMRV against measles and chickenpox.” BIG DEALS: The U.S. and China finalized a trade agreement from last month in Geneva and signed a deal, according to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Bloomberg’s Jennifer Dlouhy and colleagues scooped last night. “They’re going to deliver rare earths to us” and then “we’ll take down our countermeasures,” Lutnick said. He added that 10 more trade deals with major trade partners are forthcoming, though he didn’t specify which countries. … White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt yesterday left the door open to extending the July 9 tariff deadline if needed. NEW YORK, NEW YORK: Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo will stay on the NYC mayoral ballot as an independent candidate, CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere scooped. And Mayor Eric Adams has officially launched his bid for reelection — calling out Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani for his “manicured nails,” per POLITICO’s Joe Anuta. But Mamdani’s team is ready for a fight, preparing to drop millions to win the general, POLITICO’s Holly Otterbein and Jeff Coltin write. 2026 WATCH: Businessman Nate Morris, a Vance ally, is running to succeed retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell, he announced on Donald Trump Jr.’s podcast. First in Playbook: Kentucky First Action is launching a video slamming Morris as a MAGA fraud from Atlanta who supported McConnell and other “RINO” candidates like Nikki Haley. It’s no doubt a preview of the forthcoming Senate battle as Morris looks to brand himself to the MAGA base. POLL POSITION: Early numbers out of UNH’s Pine Tree State poll put Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) and former GOP Gov. Paul LePage in a statistical dead heat. The same poll has not-so-great news for Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), whose favorability was measured at just 14 percent, with an unfavorability of 57 percent. SCHOOL TIES: “Trump Justice Dept. Pressuring University of Virginia President to Resign,” by NYT’s Michael Schmidt and Michael Bender: “Justice Department officials have told University of Virginia officials that hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding are at risk because of what the department says is the school’s disregard for civil rights law over its diversity practices … As part of those discussions, the Justice Department has said that [President James] Ryan must go.” HEADLINE DU JOUR: “‘Big Balls’ Is Now at the Social Security Administration,” by Wired’s Makena Kelly and colleagues THE WEEKEND AHEAD TV TONIGHT — PBS’ “Washington Week”: Shane Harris, David Ignatius, Andrea Mitchell and Ashley Parker. SUNDAY SO FAR … POLITICO “The Conversation with Dasha Burns”: Alex Bruesewitz. Fox News “Sunday Morning Futures”: President Donald Trump. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) … Sen. Jim Banks (R-Ind.). Panel: Olivia Beavers, Richard Fowler, Katie Pavlich and Kevin Roberts. ABC “This Week”: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Panel: Sarah Isgur, Ramesh Ponnuru, Marianna Sotomayor and Faiz Shakir. NBC “Meet the Press”: Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) … Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) … Zohran Mamdani. Panel: Courtney Kube, Stephanie Murphy, Amna Nawaz and Marc Short. CNN “State of the Union”: Panel: Reps. Riley Moore (R-W.Va.) and Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), Alyssa Farah Griffin and Ashley Allison. NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: Rep. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.) … Carol Moseley Braun. Panel: Burgess Everett, Domenico Montanaro, Margaret Talev and Julia Manchester.
| | | | Policy moves fast—stay ahead with POLITICO’s Policy Intelligence Assistant. Effortlessly search POLITICO's archive of 1M+ news articles, analysis documents, and legislative text. Track legislation, showcase your impact, and generate custom reports in seconds. Designed for POLITICO Pro subscribers, this tool helps you make faster, smarter decisions. Start exploring now. | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | Ro Khanna did Stephen A. Smith’s podcast. “He’s somebody that can be trusted,” Smith said of the California Democrat. Todd Young settled a bet with James Lankford over the Indiana Pacers’ NBA Finals loss to Oklahoma City by donning a Thunder jersey. IN MEMORIAM — “Bill Moyers, a Face of Public TV and Once a White House Voice, Dies at 91,” by NYT’s Janny Scott: “To Americans who grew up after the 1960s, Mr. Moyers was known above all as an unusual breed of television correspondent and commentator. He was once described by Peter J. Boyer, the journalist and author, as ‘a rare and powerful voice, a kind of secular evangelist.’ But before that, Mr. Moyers was President [Lyndon B.] Johnson’s closest aide.” — “Carolyn McCarthy, NY’s ‘Gun Lady’ in Congress, Dies at 81,” by Bloomberg’s Laurence Arnold: “She had announced her retirement from Congress in 2014, months after disclosing that she had lung cancer and was receiving chemotherapy treatments. In a post on X, Representative Tom Suozzi, a New York Democrat, called her ‘one of our nation’s great champions in the fight against gun violence.’” MAJOR MEDIA MOVE — “Anna Wintour stepping back from editorial role at U.S. Vogue,” by CBS’ Megan Cerullo OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED Wednesday at the Consumer Technology Association’s Innovation House for World Wi-Fi Day: Reps. Deborah Ross (R-N.C.) and Darren Soto (D-Fla.), John Lin, Johanna Thomas, Parul Desai, Jeremy Marcus, Mary Huang, Georgia McLean, Kevin Robinson, Kelsey Odom, Cliff Riccio, Lee Friedman, Tiago Rodrigues, Erica McCann, Jaime Hjort, Kristine Hackman, Nathan White, David Trope, David Grossman and Rachel Nemeth. — SPOTTED last night at Rwandan Ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana and Jordanian Ambassador Dina Kawar’s dinner in honor of House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast (R-Fla.): French Ambassador Laurent Bili, Qatari Ambassador Meshal Hamad Al Thani, Luxembourg Ambassador Nicole Bintner-Bakshian, Singaporean Ambassador Lui Tuck Yew, Swiss Ambassador Ralf Heckner, Costa Rican Ambassador Catalina Crespo Sancho, Kuwaiti Ambassador Sheikha Al-Zain Al-Sabah, Yannick Tona, Michael Weglein and Joe Foltz. TRANSITIONS — The Heritage Foundation has added Justin Coleman as senior broadcast manager (previously at Fox News), Britney Dickerson as senior comms manager (previously at Polaris National Security) and Jacob Matthews as comms manager (previously at JLK Political Strategies). … Chelsea Goldinger is now chief of staff to the chief legal and policy officer at Constellation Energy. She was previously a senior adviser at the Small Business Administration. … Boies Schiller Flexner has added Blair Jacobs, Christina Ondrick and John Holley as partners. They join from Spencer Fane. … Philippe Brahin is now director and head of insurance and non-bank financial intermediation at the Institute of International Finance. He previously has been a senior adviser to the Insurance Development Forum and an independent senior risk consultant at AXA Climate. WEDDINGS — Luke Garrett, an editor at NPR News, and Kaia Hubbard, a reporter at CBS News, got married Saturday in Portland, Oregon. They met in 2016 at the University of San Diego, where they wrote for their school newspaper, The USD Vista. Pic — Stephen Winchell, the newly appointed director of DARPA, and Mattie Hanley, director of business development at Scoop News Group, got married June 20 in Olivella, Spain. They met on OKCupid in 2015, with their first date on the Billy Goat Trail in Great Falls Park. Pic, by @saralazarophoto … Another pic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte … Reps. David Scott (D-Ga.) (8-0) and Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) … Jennifer DeCasper … Ilya Shapiro … Semafor’s Eleanor Mueller … Tom Steyer … former Reps. Conor Lamb (D-Pa.), Scott Taylor (R-Va.), Mike Honda (D-Calif.), Jim Nussle (R-Iowa) and Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) … Hunter Morgen … Terry Nelson of FP1 Strategies … Bob and Louis Boorstin … Reuters’ David Shepardson … Josh Rubin … NYT’s Krista Mahr and Lisa Friedman … David Wochner of K&L Gates … Isaac Reyes of Target … Geoff Vetter … Hub Project’s Jessica Floyd … Robert Schlesinger … CNN’s Carrie Stevenson … Matt Letourneau … former USTR Ron Kirk … Sahar Hafeez … former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt … Sarah Bovim … Brian Martinez of the American Conservation Coalition … Caroline Adler Morales … Tony Fratto … Thorn Run Partners’ Harriet Melvin and Carmen Ojeda … Kathleen Welch … Bailey Ware of Sen. Dan Sullivan’s (R-Alaska) office … POLITICO’s Seth Batbayar and Louis Bolanos … Jordan Foley … Charles Bronfman (94) 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. Correction: Tuesday’s Playbook failed to include Jim Walden among the general-election candidates who’ve qualified for the NYC mayoral ballot.
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That's why health plans are making a series of voluntary commitments to improve prior authorization for patients and providers. As these commitments take effect, patients will have faster access to evidence-based care and fewer challenges navigating the health system. Providers will have streamlined workflows and reduced administrative burdens. Learn more. | | | | | | | | 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 | | | |
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