| | | |  | | By Ali Bianco | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Rachel Umansky-Castro
|  | THE CATCH-UP | | | 
Democrats are meeting this afternoon to strategize their path forward without having a repeat of March. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images | SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN: We’re mere days before the looming Sept. 30 deadline — and both sides are digging their heels in as neither side has taken the off ramp under the pressure. Democrats are meeting this afternoon to strategize their path forward without having a repeat of March. And Republicans are pushing hard to brand the shutdown as the Democrats’ problem. What they’re saying: The ball is in Democrats’ court, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told AP’s Mary Clare Jalonick — saying the only way out is Democrats “dialing back” their demands and moving forward with the “clean” stopgap funding bill. “I think there are off-ramps here, but I don’t think that the negotiating position, at least at the moment, that the Democrats are trying to exert here is going to get you there.” If Democrats don’t back down, Thune said “we’re probably plunging forward toward the shutdown.” And President Donald Trump is completely fine with that. “These people are crazy, the Democrats, so if it has to shut down, it’ll have to shut down,” Trump told reporters at the White House this morning. “But they’re the ones that are shutting down.” Inside the administration, officials are fully anticipating a shutdown — and they’re not stepping in to stop it, as Playbook’s own Dasha Burns scooped this morning. “We’re going to extract maximum pain,” one official told Dasha, saying Democrats will be blamed because the “aggressor always loses.” But as the off-ramp for Democrats increasingly looks like concession, Democratic leadership insists they’re not slowing down. “How can anyone trust these people?” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told Punchbowl. Some Democrats are privately worrying that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer will fold at the eleventh hour, but Jeffries said he’s “very confident” Schumer will stay the course after months of preparations for this moment. Mood music: “If I were a Democrat and Russ Vought was in charge of OMB, I would have nightmares about what Russ could do that you couldn’t undo when government reopens,” Erick Erickson, a conservative talk show host who’s close to the OMB director, told the Boston Globe’s Tal Kopan. “Russ has waited for this moment his whole life.” The midterms, meanwhile, are hanging over the shutdown like the sword of Damocles. As they approach the shutdown gamble, Democrats are underwater among some voters: the latest Quinnipiac University survey finds only 30 percent of voters have a favorable view of Democrats, “the lowest favorability rating for the Democratic party since the Quinnipiac University Poll began asking voters this question in 2008.” The timeline: Senate Republicans are eyeing a second vote on the CR on Tuesday, mere hours before the deadline. That would “exert maximum pressure and also give a little more time for any potential deal to shake loose,” POLITICO’s Jordain Carney writes. And House Republican leadership is now considering keeping the House out the entire week of Oct. 7, when they’re currently scheduled to return, if there is a shutdown, POLITICO's Meredith Lee Hill reports. They are waiting to see how Tuesday's Senate vote goes. That would delay GOP Rep. Thomas Massie’s effort to force a floor vote on releasing the Epstein files. More from Jordain and Meredith for Pro subscribers Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Send me your thoughts and tips to abianco@politico.com.
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Trump suggested that Comey may not be the last of his enemies to get slapped with charges. | Andrew Harnik/AP Photo | 1. COMING FOR COMEY: Trump started his morning by blasting former FBI Director James Comey as a “dirty cop” who lied to Congress and praising the news of his indictment by a grand jury last night. Then speaking to reporters earlier this morning, Trump suggested that Comey may not be the last of his enemies to get slapped with charges, POLITICO’s Eli Stokols reports. “It’s not a list, but I think there will be others,” Trump said. “I hope there will be others.” Revenge tour? “It’s about justice, not revenge,” Trump said, denying that DOJ is being incentivized to go after his opponents. “These are sick, radical left people. It is also about the fact that you can’t let this go on.” But Trump’s very public comments may backfire. “The president’s comments could give Comey’s team more material with which to fight the case,” NYT’s Maggie Haberman writes. “Typically, government officials avoid public commentary that could be seen as influencing a criminal case.” How it happened: Lindsey Halligan, the Trump loyalist and personal attorney-turned U.S. attorney for Eastern Virginia, presented the case to indict Comey to the grand jury by herself, MSNBC’s Ken Dilanian and colleagues report. Meanwhile, the retribution continues: Banks are scurrying to fill requests from regulators on whether they closed accounts or unfairly denied service as the Trump administration expands its crackdown on “debanking,” WSJ’s Gina Heeb and colleagues scooped. … And Democrats are pushing Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte for answers on how he is pursuing allegations of mortgage fraud, accusing him of abusing his role, WaPo’s Rachel Siegel reports. 2. MORE EPSTEIN FILES DROP: House Oversight Democrats released a third batch of partial records on the Jeffrey Epstein files, which includes phone message logs, copies of flight logs and manifests for aircrafts, copies of financial ledgers and Epstein’s daily schedule — and this drop has some heavy-hitters among the names, POLITICO’s Hailey Fuchs reports. Intrigue: Within the documents there are mentions of possible contact between Epstein and Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, Steve Bannon and Prince Andrew. The committee said in a press release that there’s evidence of Thiel and Bannon having scheduled meetings, as well as a pending planned trip by Musk to Epstein’s island with Prince Andrew as a passenger. There’s financial disclosures with payments from Epstein to masseuses on behalf of an individual identified as “Andrew.” See the documents for yourself It’s just the latest move to ramp up pressure as Democrats look to keep Epstein front of mind and get DOJ to release all the files. That battle is still looming as the House waits to swear in Adelita Grijalva, who would become the 218th signature on Massie's petition. “If this is what’s in the [Epstein] estate, I can’t imagine what’s in the full DOJ’s files,” a source familiar with Oversight tells Playbook. 3. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Endorsement watch: The New Democrat Coalition Action Fund is throwing its support behind two candidates looking to flip battleground seats next year: JoAnna Mendoza in Arizona’s 6th Congressional District and Paige Cognetti in Pennsylvania’s 8th. 4. THE MIDDLE EAST SPLIT SCREEN: At the U.N. General Assembly this morning, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech to the gathered world leaders — after many walked out of the session — stating that Israel “must finish the job” against Hamas in Gaza, signaling that the war was far from over. Meanwhile, Trump offered a different outlook, telling reporters today that an end to the war is “very close,” POLITICO’s Felicia Schwartz writes. “I think it’s a deal that will get the hostages back. It’s going to be a deal that will end the war,” Trump said as he left the White House, moments after Netanyahu’s remarks. Incoming: “Netanyahu will meet with Trump on Monday at the White House, where the U.S. leader will brief him on his conversations with Gulf and Arab leaders on his administration’s 21-point plan for how Gaza will be run and reconstructed when the war ends,” Felicia notes. Taking the scenic route: During Netanyahu’s trip from Israel to New York for UNGA, his plane took a longer route to avoid flying over France and Spain, two European countries who have criticized Israel, NYT’s Liam Stack and colleagues. Dancing the Waltz: “Waltz plays catch up at UN General Assembly,” by POLITICO’s Eric Bazail-Eimil
| | | | Join us for a POLITICO Policy Outlook: Cybersecurity: incisive conversations on how the U.S. and its allies can counteract looming security risks without hampering the pace of technological innovation. Don't miss Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Kemba Walden, former acting National Cyber Director and more. Register Now. | | | | | 5. THE ECONOMY, STUPID: Inflation remains high in the latest reading from the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure. The personal consumption expenditures index climbed at an annual rate of 2.7 percent in August, well above the Fed’s 2 percent target. Without food and energy costs, that number hits 2.9 percent, largely in line with what economists expected. But but but: “That’s still unlikely to be enough to knock Fed Chair Jerome Powell off course from announcing another interest rate cut next month,” POLITICO’s Sam Sutton writes. What it all means: “In normal circumstances, that increase might preclude policymakers from lowering short-term borrowing rates and risk stoking inflation. But the central bank is also confronting a slowdown in hiring, and keeping rates too high risks further stalling the labor market. … Yet Friday’s report suggested that the economy is faring well even against the backdrop of elevated rates.” Meanwhile, on tariffs: The announcement of new tariffs shocked and raised even more questions throughout Asia, as many U.S. allies in the region are still uncertain over the details of their trade deals, NYT’s Daisuke Wakabayashi and colleagues report. The announcement came after U.S. Trade Representative Jaimieson Greer told officials while in Malaysia yesterday that Trump was not planning more tariffs. 6. WAR AND PEACE: Trump’s hopes for a complete cessation of European imports of Russian oil hinge in part on Hungary — and PM Viktor Orbán, an ally of Trump. But Orbán told reporters today that the country does not intend to stop purchasing Russian oil, as dropping it would mean “disaster” for Hungary’s economy, AP’s Justin Spike reports from Budapest. Orban said he told Trump that a cutoff would mean “the Hungarian economy would be on its knees.” … In a similar vein, the question of Russian oil is also hanging over India’s trade negotiations, despite “constructive meetings” with the U.S. this week, per Bloomberg.
But it comes as Ukraine’s running out of money. European leaders are weighing using frozen Russian assets in Belgium as a loan for Kyiv that could keep them going — for years, if necessary, per NYT’s Jim Tankersley. The hope is if Kyiv is able to stay the course, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s calculations will change and force him to negotiate.
For your radar: “Russia is helping prepare China to attack Taiwan, documents suggest,” by WaPo’s Catherine Belton and Christian Shepherd: “The agreements allow Beijing to access training and technology in one of the few areas where Russian capabilities still surpass those of the Chinese military: Russia’s more experienced airborne troops, military analysts said.”
7. NATIONAL GUARD IN NEW MEXICO: In Albuquerque, New Mexico, the National Guard walks around wearing black polos and khaki pants, carrying no firearms. It’s a stark contrast to the deployment that Trump pushed in D.C. — in part because this one was ordered by Democratic New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, WaPo’s Karin Brulliard writes. Though Grisham called in the National Guard for similar reasons as Trump, to crack down on crime in light of the city’s homicide and auto theft rates, the “approximately 100 soldiers, most of them local residents, have no arrest powers, drive no Humvees and wear no fatigues. Instead, there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work, and, officials say, glimmers of positive results.
8. TRUMP’S FRIDAY: Trump is at the Ryder Cup today, arriving at the New York course this morning with his granddaughter Kai as the tournament tees off. His appearance today is the latest barometer of Trump’s popularity with the sports world, after mixed receptions at the U.S. Open and the Club World Cup, Bloomberg’s Aysha Diallo writes. But golf is an especially important sport for the Trump family. “I hope he’ll inspire us to victory. I think he’ll be a great force for us to get a lot of people on our side,” said Bryson DeChambeau, one of the members of the U.S. team. The security question: Trump’s pattern of appearances at such sporting events has also caused “anxiety and disruption for security services and event organizers,” The Athletic’s Adam Crafton writes. “This week at the Ryder Cup, New York State Police will be deploying helicopters and drones, and their Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear response team will be on hand to ensure the safety of those present.”
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| | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | IN MEMORIAM: “Robert Barnett, a consummate Washington dealmaker, dies at 79,” by WaPo’s Alec Dent: “Barnett, a consummate Washington lawyer and dealmaker known for his work on behalf of corporations, journalists and politicians on both sides of the aisle, died Sept. 26 at a hospital in the District. He was 79. … Mr. Barnett, a partner at Williams & Connolly, was a ubiquitous figure in Washington legal circles, known especially for arranging high-profile book deals and helping public officials transition into the private sector. … ‘To list Barnett as a signifier of Washington connectedness,’ Post journalist David Montgomery once wrote, ‘is like calling the sun a symbol of heat.’” FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Kristen Eichamer is now comms director for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. She previously worked at the Commerce Department and is a Heritage Foundation and NASA alum. — Jacob Marco is now special assistant to the president for economic security. He previously worked at Holland and Knight and is also an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve JAG Corps. TRANSITION — Aidan Curran is now comms director for Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.). He most recently worked for the House Select China Committee. … Tiffany Coutris is joining NASA as a creative director. She previously worked at Conservative Partnership Campus. … Jay Williams has launched the Republican creative political consultancy QUIVER. He previously founded the Stoneridge Group. WEDDING — Nadgey Louis Charles, deputy comms director for House Judiciary and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and Harry Fones, principal deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at DHS, got married on Aug. 23 at Holy Cross Catholic Church, followed by a reception at Rockwood Manor in Potomac, Maryland. They met on the Hill. Pic … Another pic 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: Yesterday’s Playbook PM misidentified a member of Congress in attendance at the Continent to Continent Afrobeats party. It was Rep. Wesley Bell.
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