| | | |  | | By Irie Sentner | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Makayla Gray
|  | THE CATCH-UP | | | 
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks with POLITICO's Dasha Burns at the POLITICO Pub at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Feb. 13. | Baldo Sciacca for POLITICO | ZELENSKYY SPEAKS TO POLITICO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy just spoke with Playbook’s Dasha Burns for more than 40 minutes at the Munich Security Conference’s POLITICO Pub — and he heaped pressure on President Donald Trump, Congress and Europe to bring the war in Ukraine to a close. HIS RESPONSE TO TRUMP: As Trump left the White House this morning, he was asked if there was any progress in Ukraine negotiations and whether the country would hold elections by the summer. Trump told reporters Zelenskyy needs to “get moving, otherwise he’s going to miss a great opportunity.” That seemed to be news to Zelenskyy. “He said something to me?” he asked when presented with Trump’s comments. Zelenskyy agreed that it would be a “great idea” to hold elections — but only “when the war stops.” Zelenskyy clarified that elections wouldn’t require “necessarily an end to the war,” but that he would need a ceasefire. Zelenskyy said he would hold elections if Trump successfully pushes Russian President Vladimir Putin to a two- or three-month ceasefire. HIS MESSAGE TO THE U.S.: Zelenskyy emphasized the outsized role that the U.S. holds in the ongoing negotiations. “Today, only [the] United States can stop Putin,” he told Dasha. He went on to suggest that the White House doesn’t fully understand his refusal to compromise on land with Russia, adding that it is “a big mistake to allow [the] aggressor to take something.” Asked whether he believed the U.S. was exerting more pressure on Russia or Ukraine at the moment, Zelenskyy said: “I think that they try to do both sides.” Pushed on what he thinks about that approach, Zelenskyy hesitated. “Too much people,” Zelenskyy said, nodding to the live captive audience gathered inside the room, where nearly every sniffle could be heard. “There are some thoughts which I have to save with me,” he said. Watch the clip Zelenskyy said it was important for the U.S. not to lose sight of Ukraine as the White House manages other foreign entanglements — including with Greenland, Venezuela, Iran and Gaza. “When we lose focus on Ukraine … we lose support, we lose focus, we lose geopolitical initiative,” he said. Has his communication with the White House decreased amid those other conflicts? “It’s good that we know their phone numbers,” Zelenskyy cheekily replied.
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Zelenskyy speaks with Dasha at the POLITICO Pub. | Baldo Sciacca for POLITICO | PUTTING PRESSURE ON CONGRESS: Zelenskyy also called on lawmakers in the U.S. to vote on security guarantees, which he said “will work only after Congress will vote and only when the war will end.” “Help people to trust again,” he said. It’s worth noting about a dozen U.S. senators from both parties are in Munich now, but Speaker Mike Johnson canceled the House’s official delegation to the conference amid the partial government shutdown. The Ukrainian president pressed for the U.S. and Europe to impose stronger sanctions on Russia, including full sanctions on nuclear energy and on Russians buying real estate and studying in Europe and the U.S. “They have children, relatives everywhere,” Zelenskyy said. “Fuck away to Russia. Go home.” ADDITIONAL BITES FROM THE PUB:
- NATO chief Mark Rutte endorsed the “NATO 3.0” pressure campaign to make Europe spend more on its own defense and claimed the alliance “is the strongest it has been since the fall of the Berlin Wall.” He said he believes Trump is “totally committed” to a Ukraine peace deal, which is “exactly what we need from the American president.” And for the first time, he addressed calling Trump “daddy” — blaming the gaffe on English being his second language.
- Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Trump administration tries to take another run at punishing him over a video telling troops not to obey unlawful orders. “I wouldn’t put anything past Donald Trump and this administration,” he told JMart. “We’ve seen these guys over and over again double down on stupid.”
- Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) strolled up to the POLITICO Pub sporting socks that featured Abraham Lincoln, a choice he said wasn’t intentional — though he used it to make a point about the Civil War-era president. “We’re not in a civil war with our partners and allies in Europe,” Tillis said. Allies were getting “caught up in the rhetoric of American politics,” he said, but Washington has no intention of dismantling longstanding alliances.
- Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) offered his blunt thoughts about the debate over Greenland that Trump has sparked: “Who gives a shit who owns Greenland? I don’t,” he said of the autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. But he noted that it’s all in the rearview now. “Everyone’s hugging it out and we’ll live to fight another day.”
- Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) warned that “of course” Trump will attempt to intervene in the midterm elections. And though she said she hopes Trump won’t place police at polling stations, Pelosi emphasized that “we have to make sure the public understands how wrong that is.”
Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Programming note: This newsletter will be off on Monday for the holiday. Playbook will still land in your inbox on Monday morning, and we will be back with you on Tuesday. Drop me a line at isentner@politico.com.
| | | | A message from AHIP: 35 Million Seniors Could See Reduced Benefits and Higher Costs. Health plans welcome reforms to strengthen Medicare Advantage. However, a proposal for flat program funding at a time of sharply rising medical costs and high utilization of care will directly impact seniors' coverage. If finalized, this proposal could result in benefit reductions and higher costs for 35 million seniors and people with disabilities when they renew their Medicare Advantage coverage in October 2026. Learn more. | | | | MORE FROM MUNICH: ‘HE'LL BE GONE IN THREE YEARS’: Democrats at the Munich Security Conference eyeing 2028 are already making the case abroad that Trump's foreign policy reset won't last — and that they'll be the ones to reverse it. “Donald Trump is temporary,” California Gov. Gavin Newsomsaid during a panel today. New international POLITICO polling suggests key U.S. allies may be inclined to believe them, POLITICO’s Erin Doherty writes in. Majorities in France (58 percent), Germany (52 percent) and the United Kingdom (51 percent) say Trump represents a temporary disruption to global politics, rather than a permanent shift, according to the survey. In Canada, views are more divided: 46 percent see Trump as a temporary disruption, while 41 percent view him as a lasting shift. AOC TAKES MSC: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) stepped onto the world stage today in Munich and touted how her party has moved substantially to the left since her infamous primary upset in 2018. The New York progressive emphasized that Democrats will need “a working-class-centered politics” if they want to succeed against Republicans and Trumpian populism. She added that she and other Democrats were at the conference to tell the global community, “we are ready for the next chapter, not to have the world turn to isolation, but to deepen our partnership on greater and increased commitment to integrity to our values.”
| | 8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW | | 1. THE NEW BLOC IN CONGRESS?: “Meet the YOLO Republicans: Lawmakers with nothing to lose are threatening Trump’s grip on Congress,” by POLITICO’s Meredith Lee Hill: “The reasons why this handful of GOP lawmakers feel empowered to spurn their president and their party vary. But they are launching mini-rebellions with increasing frequency. It’s causing headaches for party leaders who want to keep tight control of the legislative agenda in an election year and anxiety among rank-and-file Republicans who are facing intense pressure to stick with Trump.” Click through for the must-read reporting — and the can’t-miss photo of Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon 2. FOR YOUR RADAR: “ICE says federal agents appear to have lied about confrontation that led to shooting,” by POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein: “The two officers are under investigation by the Justice Department, [ICE Acting Director Todd] Lyons said. … Agents had initially said that two men — Alfredo Aljorna and Julio Sosa Celis – assaulted them with a broom and a shovel before one of them shot Sosa Celis. But that account was quickly called into question, and prosecutors now say “newly discovered evidence” contradicts the officers’ story.” 3. INFLATION NATION: The Labor Department today reported that inflation cooled to a rate of 2.4 percent over the 12 months ending in January, the lowest rise in the consumer price index since May, POLITICO’s Victoria Guida reports. That hands the White House another economic win following better-than-expected jobs numbers earlier this week as the administration races to turn around voters’ sour view of the economy ahead of the midterms — and on the heels of some Republican revolt over Trump’s trade agenda, sparked partly over concerns about rising costs. As for the Federal Reserve, the central bank is still likely to remain on hold with rate cuts, given the positive reports, though further cuts are possible this year, Victoria notes. 4. CLIMATE FILES: “Trump sidelines climate contrarians in science rollback,” by POLITICO’s E&E News’ Scott Waldman: “For all of the administration’s public mockery of climate change, which Trump calls a ‘hoax,’ it appears EPA and White House are unwilling to risk a court battle over climate science and instead will make a regulatory argument. … It’s an important subplot in the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back climate regulations, and it provides a silver lining perhaps for climate activists and scientists who are angry over EPA’s decision to abandon a principle that has stood since 2009.”
| | | | POLITICO Governors Summit Join POLITICO's annual Governors Summit, held alongside the National Governors Association’s Winter Meeting, for a series of forward-looking conversations with governors from across the country about how state leaders are setting the agenda for America’s next chapter. Hear from Gov. Wes Moore (D), Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), and more. Register Now. | | | | | 5. SHAKEUP AT HHS: Two top aides at HHS are moving elsewhere in the administration — the latest shakeup in HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s broader reorganization of the department as it continues “muscling up the management team over at HHS,” according to one official, to focus on Kennedy’s MAHA policies, POLITICO’s David Lim and Tim Röhn report. 6. SCHOOL DAZE: “Trump administration sues Harvard over race-based admissions probe,” by POLITICO’s Bianca Quilantan: “Trump administration officials argue … that the school is withholding information in a federal investigation over whether [Harvard] is racially discriminating against applicants. … A Harvard spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The DOJ’s investigation into Harvard’s admissions — and lawsuit seeking admissions data — is the latest development in the tense standoff between the country’s oldest and wealthiest university and the federal government.” 7. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: As early voting in Texas prepares to kick off next week, the pro-Jasmine Crockett PAC Forward Texas is getting involved in the Democratic Senate primary, with a seven-figure investment and ads that will begin running today hitting back at state Rep. James Talarico. The ads will run in English and Spanish on radio and digital. Watch the ad in English … Watch the ad in Spanish 8. 2028 WATCH: “Shapiro grows his donor network ahead of 2028,” by POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky and Kelly Garrity: “Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is using his book tour and his reelection bid as a way to expand his donor list.”
| | | | New from POLITICO Tracking the forces shaping politics, policy and power worldwide, POLITICO Forecast connects developments across regions and sectors — including key global moments and convenings — drawing on POLITICO’s global reporting to help readers see what’s coming next.
➡️ Subscribe Now | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | LAW AND ORDER — Liz Magill was announced as the new dean of Georgetown University’s law school this morning, more than two years after she resigned as president of the University of Pennsylvania after House Republicans grilled her over allegations of campus antisemitism, Evan Mandery reports for POLITICO Magazine. “In her new job, instead of navigating campus protests over Israel, she’ll be training the next generation of lawyers with the rule of law under attack.” OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at the POLITICO Pub at MSC: Nadia Calvino, Andrew Levy, EU Defense and Space Commissioner Andrius Kubilius, European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Dee Dee Myers, Gen. Alexus Gregory Grynkewich, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker, Gina Raimondo, Frank Niederländer, Matthias Berninger, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Luis Ramos, Mathias Döpfner, Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Michael McFaul, Ian Bremner, Matthew Whittaker, Zanny Minton Beddoes, Nick Paton Walsh, Alex Wickham, Alberto Nardelli, U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands Joseph Popolo, Alex Panas, U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic Nicholas Merrick, Neera Tanden and Christian Klein. — SPOTTED at the opening exhibit of Nick Cave: Mammoth at the Smithsonian American Art Museum last night: Reps. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), Emily Randall (D-Wash.) and Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.), Megan Beyer, Robert Blancato and Nick Cave. TRANSITIONS — Trevor O’Connor is now legislative assistant for Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.). He previously worked for Rep. Morgan McGarvey (D-Ky.). … FanDuel has added Meg McGaughey as senior director of federal government affairs and Rob Mejia as director of federal government affairs. McGaughey previously worked for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Mejia previously worked at FGS Global. 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 Giuseppe Macri and deputy editor Garrett Ross.
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