| | | |  | | By Adam Wren | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Bethany Irvine, Ali Bianco and Rachel Umansky-Castro Happy Friday. This is Adam Wren, hoping you and yours had a gratitude-filled Thanksgiving. Drop me a line. D.C. SHOOTING LATEST: President Donald Trump announced that Sarah Beckstrom, the 20-year-old National Guard soldier who was shot on Wednesday near the White House, died yesterday. She was a “highly respected, young, magnificent person,” Trump said while on a call to military service members from Mar-a-Lago. Andrew Wolfe, the 24-year-old officer also shot in the attack, remains in critical condition. “He’s fighting for his life,” Trump added. “And hopefully we’ll get better news with respect to him.” More from POLITICO’s Cheyanne Daniels The charges: U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro told reporters yesterday that the suspect, identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was facing three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. But Pirro also noted that if the soldiers succumbed to their injuries, murder in the first degree would be pursued. AG Pam Bondi vowed to deliver “JUSTICE for Sarah,” in a post on X, adding, “Thank you to President Trump — the death penalty is back.” The background: The suspect’s motive is still unclear, per WaPo, but officials say he drove across the country to commit the attack. FBI Director Kash Patel said a search warrant has been executed on the suspect’s home in Washington state, calling it an “ongoing investigation of terrorism.” The suspected shooter was an Afghan refugee, who fought in Afghanistan as part of a “Zero Unit,” a paramilitary force that worked with the CIA, NYT’s Julian Barnes and colleagues report, and a childhood friend said he had a history of mental health issues, disturbed by the violence his unit had inflicted. The fallout: Trump said in a Truth Social post last night that he wants to “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries,” and potentially revoke the legal status of more immigrants, per AP. “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation,” Trump wrote. The administration already announced a review of all asylum cases approved under former President Joe Biden’s administration, NYT’s Hamed Aleaziz and Minho Kim report. And U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services are also conducting a “full scale, rigorous reexamination” of green card holders from what officials called countries “of concern,” per NBC.
|  | DRIVING THE DAY | | | 
President Donald Trump speaks at a rally on July 31, 2024 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images | ALL ABOUT THAT BASE: Trump has held his coalition together throughout much of the first year of his second term in office like few other figures could — albeit at times with bailing twine and a red MAGA cap — but cracks are starting to show, according to the latest results from The POLITICO Poll. And it’s clear whoever tries to pick up the MAGA mantle ahead of 2028 has some serious work to do to keep the coalition together. For starters, a significant portion of 2024 Trump voters — more than a third — do not consider themselves to be MAGA Republicans. And not only are they less loyal to Trump than self-identified MAGA Republicans, the poll suggests some of them have already begun to turn on him: Non-MAGA Trump voters are much more likely to blame Trump for the state of the economy, say he has too much power and be pessimistic about the future. The results underscore just how sui generis the cohort that reelected Trump was — and foreshadow the GOP’s coming challenges. More than half of Trump’s voters last year — 55 percent — describe themselves as MAGA, but a critical 38 percent do not, according to the survey, which comprised 2,098 U.S. adults online and was conducted Nov. 14-17, with a margin of sampling error at plus-or-minus 2 percentage points. And it’s here where the fissures start to emerge: Among those self-described MAGA voters, 47 percent say the current economy still belongs fully to Biden, compared to just 26 percent of non-MAGA Trump 2024 voters. This divide becomes even starker on areas Republicans typically don’t own, like health care, where the White House is struggling to forge a path to extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies: 85 percent of MAGA Trump voters trust Republicans more to bring down health care costs, whereas just 55 percent of non-MAGA do — with 19 percent instead trusting Democrats and 27 percent saying they don’t know. When it comes to trusting a given party on the economy, 88 percent of those MAGA voters back Republicans generally; but only 63 percent of non-MAGA Trump voters support Republicans, with 28 percent saying neither party or don’t know. On affordability, the issue that Trump has said delivered him the election, and the one his own White House deputy chief of staff James Blair has said he will be “very focused on,” non-MAGA Republicans are more concerned by the cost of living than their MAGA counterparts: 59 percent to 48 percent.
| | | | A message from McDonald's: Extra Value Meals are back at McDonald's, which means Americans can save when you make it a meal. McDonald's is committed to providing quality food at a good value, so this month, fans can get even deeper discounts on two of the most popular Extra Value Meals, the $5 Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles® Meal and $8 10 pc. Chicken McNuggets® Meal, for a limited time*. | | | | Among the other findings centering on the economy:
- The non-MAGA cohort is less likely to feel Trump has taken the chance he had to change things in the economy: 65 percent of MAGA compared with 46 percent of non-MAGA.
- MAGA Republicans feel their personal financial situation has improved over the past five years (52 percent to 24 percent), whereas non-MAGA GOPers are virtually tied (37 percent to 36 percent).
- In a fascinating divide, 73 percent of MAGA Republicans expect their personal financial situation to improve over the next 5 years, compared with 57 percent of non-MAGA Republicans.
- Similarly, MAGA feels better off than the average American (49 percent to 17 percent), whereas non-MAGA is torn (30 percent to 29 percent).
What does this all mean ahead of the fast-approaching midterms? Already, we have evidence from the off-year elections that the 2024 Trump coalition isn’t holding, with Latino and young male voters shifting back to Democrats. On generic ballot vote intention, 92 percent of MAGA Republicans backed the Republican candidate, while 62 percent of non-MAGA did. There’s something in the MAGA Republican voter mentality — a kind of economic optimism — that is durable even amid the current turmoil. Trump’s definition of reality permeates their own. And the GOP has less than four years to turn Trump voters into reliable Republican voters.
| | | | A message from McDonald's:  
Start your morning with a $5 Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles® meal – which comes with Hash Browns and a small coffee – for a limited time*. | | | | 9 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 1. WAR AND PEACE: Russian President Vladimir Putin said the original 28-point Ukraine peace proposal devised by the Trump administration in conjunction with Russian officials was a good starting point for future discussions on ending the war, but hedged that “it would be impolite of me to talk about any final versions now,” WSJ’s Matthew Luxmoore reports. Putin also defended U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff following the leaked phone call transcript this week, saying Witkoff is “an intelligent person.” But Putin largely rejected the idea of a quick ceasefire and doubled down on his threats of taking Ukrainian territory by force if their troops don’t back down. Witkoff is scheduled to travel to Moscow next week to continue negotiations. Not so fast: In the next phase of talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy won’t deviate from his red line of not conceding territory for peace, Ukraine’s chief negotiator Andriy Yermak told The Atlantic’s Simon Shuster in a must-read interview. “All we can realistically talk about right now is really to define the line of contact,” Yermak said. “And that’s what we need to do.” How we got here: VP JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio presented the 28-point plan to Trump, which led Trump to start up the peace talks again, Axios’ Marc Caputo reports. A White House meeting on Nov. 18 laid the groundwork for the talks at Geneva. Now, the administration is riding a wave of optimism that the war can end soon. “We’re the closest we’ve ever been to ending the war,” one official told WaPo’s Michael Birnbaum and Natalie Allison. 2. PRESSURE COOKER: Trump said the U.S. will begin taking action against alleged Venezuelan drug traffickers on land, per Reuters. “We’ll be starting to stop them by land also. The land is easier, but that's going to start very soon,” Trump told military service members on a call yesterday. Venezuela has started banning international airlines and accusing them of “state terrorism” promoted by the U.S., per The Guardian. Among strongman leader Nicolás Maduro’s potential off-ramps, WaPo’s Karen DeYoung reports, is Turkey: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was one of the few world leaders who stuck with Maduro, despite sweeping calls that the country’s 2024 election was fraudulent. Tracking the toll: “The U.S. military has killed more than 80 people since the campaign began in early September. But it does not know who specifically is being killed, and the strikes were not designed to take out high-ranking cartel leaders,” NYT’s Julian Barnes writes. “Instead, the military has killed, at best, low-level people, whose role in the drug trade may have been taking a payment for moving cocaine from one spot to another.” 3. COURT IN THE ACT: At least 225 judges have ruled against Trump’s mass detention push in more than 700 cases, ruling that the administration’s efforts are likely a violation of the law and due process, POLITICO legal ace Kyle Cheney reports. More on the numbers: “Those judges were appointed by all modern presidents — including 23 by Trump himself — and hail from at least 35 states, according to a POLITICO analysis of thousands of recent cases. The number of judges opposing the administration’s position has more than doubled in less than a month. In contrast, only eight judges nationwide, including six appointed by Trump, have sided with the administration’s new mass detention policy.” The latest from the court: “Democratic attorneys general sue to block USDA guidance that makes some immigrants ineligible for SNAP benefits,” by CNN’s Alison Main and Kaanita Iyer 4. REDISTRICTING RODEO: “Mike Johnson set to huddle with Indiana Republicans amid redistricting fight,” by your Playbook author: “Speaker Mike Johnson is expected to huddle via conference call with Indiana House Republicans this weekend ahead of their upcoming state House session to redraw congressional maps … The meeting, ahead of next week’s session, represents an escalation of Johnson’s involvement in mid-cycle redistricting, a process driven by the White House: He has routinely said it’s an issue for individual states and one in which he has no direct involvement. … House Republicans are expected to talk with Johnson on a conference call at 1 p.m. Saturday before convening on Dec. 1.” 5. FROM THE WILDERNESS: Democrats made significant gains with young male voters in the 2025 elections, a sea change from 2024. But now comes the hard part — replicating those gains in the midterms — a prospect that party leaders are confident they can achieve, POLITICO’s Jacob Wendler writes. “I never want to hear again that the Democratic Party has a problem with young men,” DNC Chair Ken Martin said. In New York, beyond Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s win, Democrats expanded their margins in suburbs, rural counties and small towns across the Empire State this year, with numbers rivaling 2017’s “Blue Wave,” POLITICO’s Bill Mahoney captures from Albany. 6. CLIMATE CRISIS: “Pollution from coal plants was dropping. Then came Trump and AI,” by POLITICO’s Ariel Wittenberg: “The Trump administration is allowing coal plants to release more pollution at a time when utilities across the country are opting to save their aging coal facilities from retirement so they can power artificial intelligence. Those twin trends — weaker pollution safeguards and accelerated coal use — could have dramatic implications for rising temperatures and the health of people living near coal plants whose emissions are linked to heart disease, respiratory illness and lower IQs.” 7. TRUMP AND THE WORLD: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said yesterday that her first in-person meeting with Trump could happen as soon as next week, at the FIFA 2026 World Cup draw, Bloomberg’s Alex Vasquez reports. She’s waiting on Trump and Canadian PM Mark Carney to confirm their attendance to make the call on whether to go. She also indicated that a U.S.-Mexico trade deal could be struck soon. 8. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Robert George discusses his decision to step away from the Heritage Foundation’s board following Heritage President Kevin Roberts’ defense of Tucker Carlson’s controversial interview with white nationalist Nick Fuentes on tonight’s episode of C-SPAN’s “Ceasefire” with Playbook’s own Dasha Burns. “Sometimes one finds one’s self in a situation where it’s impossible to go along with something that one’s friends and colleagues and comrades are proposing, or promoting, or going along with,” George said. He noted that he felt it was his responsibility as a board member to work toward “rectifying a mistake, a bad mistake, that had been made at the leadership level.” Watch the clip 9. EYES ON THE SKIES: “Winter Storm in Northern U.S. Expected to Snarl Post-Thanksgiving Travel,” by NYT’s Nazaneen Ghaffar: “After a mostly dry Thanksgiving across the United States, forecasters say a storm bringing heavy snow, sleet, freezing rain and blizzard conditions could lead to “severe travel disruptions” for the Northern Plains, Upper Midwest and Great Lakes from Friday through the weekend.” Related read: “Sean Duffy Longs for the ‘Golden Age’ of Air Travel. What Was That Like?” by NYT’s Claire Fahy
| | | | A message from McDonald's:  
The return of Extra Value Meals ensures Americans can find everyday affordable pricing at McDonald's. | | | | THE WEEKEND AHEAD FRIDAY PROGRAMS … C-SPAN “Ceasefire”: Robert George and Cornel West … John Feehery and Joel Payne. SUNDAY SO FAR … CBS “Face the Nation”: National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett … Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) … Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio). NBC “Meet the Press”: Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.). Panel: Val Demmings, Mike Dubke, Susan Glasser and Garrett Haake. ABC “This Week”: Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) … Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.). Panel: Chris Christie, Donna Brazile, Faiz Shakir and Frank Luntz. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Sundar Pichai … Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) … Megan Garcia. Panel: Mary Katharine Ham and Kevin Walling. Sunday special: Zachary Levi. CNN “State of the Union”: Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) … Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) … Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.). Panel: Rep. Riley Moore (R-W.Va.), Xochitl Hinojosa, Karen Finney and Kristen Soltis Anderson. MS NOW “The Weekend”: Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) ... Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) ... Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.). Fox News “Sunday Morning Futures”: Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) … Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) … U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba … Benny Johnson. NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: Hawaii Gov. Josh Green … Ezekiel Emanuel … Avik Roy … P.J. Parmar … Daniel Claassen.
| | TALK OF THE TOWN | | IN MEMORIAM — “Robert A.M. Stern, renowned architect and educator, dies at 86,” by WaPo’s Fred Bernstein: “Robert A.M. Stern, one of the most prolific American architects of the past 60 years, whose historically detailed buildings conferred gravitas on individuals and institutions, died Nov. 27 at his home in Manhattan. He was 86. … In Washington, Mr. Stern designed several office and apartment buildings, and his firm had a decades-long relationship with Georgetown University, working as a master planner and designing several residence halls.” — “Faith Winter, Colorado State Senator, Is Killed in Car Crash,” by NYT’s Jenny Gross: “Faith Winter, a Democratic state senator in Colorado known for her environmental advocacy, was killed Wednesday night in a five-vehicle crash south of Denver. … Ms. Winter, 45, was first elected to the state senate in 2018, initially representing Colorado’s 24th district and later the 25th district, after redistricting. She previously served in the Colorado House of Representatives and as a city councilwoman.” FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — New on the pod circuit: Brody and Luke Mullins are launching a new weekly podcast this morning, “The Wolves of K Street,” based on their book by the same name. On the podcast, they’ll explore the history of the modern lobbying industry and provide insight on the current events impacting K Street. ENGAGED — Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced that his son, Kyle, is now engaged to Khrysgiana Pineda. “Khrys, welcome to the family. We are so excited for the future,” Lutnick wrote. Instapic HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) … former national security adviser Jake Sullivan … NYT’s Matea Gold … Jonathan Lemire of MS NOW and The Atlantic … POLITICO’s Cally Baute, Danny Nguyen and Patrick Steiner … Sean Rankin of the Democratic Attorneys General Association … Stephen Jordan … CNN’s Tim Skoczek … Michael Sargeant … Bryan Corbett of the Managed Funds Association … Ryan Hedgepeth … Anna Weinstein of Green Mountain Strategies … FTI Consulting’s Chris Tucker … FoodCorps’ Mickeala Carter … Mandy Gunasekara … Ashley Baker of the Committee for Justice … former Reps. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) and Chris Jacobs (R-N.Y.) … Lindsay Biscardi … former Sen. Gary Hart (D-Colo.) … Judy Rapfogel of GrandRap Strategies … former DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff … U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s Kelsey Carolan … former VA Secretary Eric Shinseki … Shawn Balcomb of the American Association of Port Authorities … Harris Walker … Newsmax’s Marisela Ramirez … CBS’ Susan Spencer 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 deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
| | | | A message from McDonald's: McDonald's will always be a place where Americans can get affordable food at a good value. In celebration of the return of Extra Value Meals to menus nationwide, eight of the most popular Extra Value Meals will save customers 15 percent when compared to purchasing an entree, fries and a drink individually. With options across breakfast, lunch and dinner, there's an Extra Value Meal for every craving. *Prices & participation may vary. Prices may be higher in Hawaii, Alaska and California and for delivery. | | | | | | | | 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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