| | | |  | | By Jack Blanchard with Dasha Burns | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco, Irie Sentner and Makayla Gray On today’s Playbook Podcast: Jack and JMart discuss a potential off-ramp for Trump’s war in Iran — and highlight a new POLITICO podcast (more on that below).
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| Good Tuesday morning. This is Jack Blanchard, full of the joys of spring. Drop me a line. NEW FROM POLITICO — ON THE ROAD WITH JONATHAN MARTIN: In a new POLITICO video podcast series launching today, our star columnist JMart travels the country for conversations with the politicians shaping the political cycle. “After over 20 years of covering politics and visiting all 50 states along the way, I’ve eaten a lot of meals with politicians and those around them,” Jonathan writes in his introduction to the series. “Now I want to take you with me, have you watch and listen as I sit down and (quite literally) break bread at local joints with Democrats and Republicans alike. “My vision: Anthony Bourdain meets ‘Lunch with the FT’ meets Almanac of American Politics,” JMart adds. “We’ll talk food, politics and place, delving into yesterday and tomorrow. It’s the great question at the heart of every political story, and it couldn’t be more relevant in America’s 250th year: How did we get here, and where are we going?” In the inaugural episode, JMart sits down with Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders to discuss her path from White House press secretary to governor, Trump’s strike on Iran, the future of the Republican Party and more — while enjoying some of the state's best barbecue. Watch the first episode or listen and subscribe on Spotify and Apple … Read the Q&A In today’s Playbook … — Trump tells POLITICO there’s plenty more for Witkoff and Kushner to do. — Is the president preparing an off-ramp for the war? — And what to watch on this Election Day in Georgia and Mississippi.
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“They actually have — they have capacity for more, to be honest with you,” President Donald Trump told POLITICO of his top envoys. | Evan Vucci/AP | MEET THE ‘EVERYTHING ENVOYS’: Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner’s trip to Israel today was canceled — but it’s not because the president thinks his top envoys are overworked. From the horse’s mouth: “They don’t have too much,” Trump tells POLITICO’s Diana Nerozzi in an exclusive interview published this morning. “They actually have — they have capacity for more, to be honest with you.” More? Lest we forget, Witkoff and Kushner were tasked with negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran at the same time as brokering an end to the Ukraine war, now in its fifth year. And they still play a central role in the fragile peace process in Gaza, which is currently meant to be moving to its complex second stage. As Diana writes this morning in her must-read new profile of the pair, plenty of observers think it’s crazy to have the same small team working on multiple geopolitical crises at once. Former State Department negotiator Aaron David Miller, who served in both Republican and Democratic administrations, says the vast workload brings a “risk of overextension.” A little help from my friends: But aides insist a small negotiating team is effective, noting the “game plan” always receives input from Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and chief of staff Susie Wiles. There’s also a working relationship with VP JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chair of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine, Diana writes. And Trump himself has no doubts: “I think they’re doing a great job,” the president told Diana in a brief phone interview Friday. “People like that you can’t hire.”
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Learn more. | | | | Going nowhere: Witkoff and Kushner were meant to be in Israel today for talks with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu as the war on Iran hits the 11-day mark. But the meeting was canceled yesterday on short notice. Witkoff was at the president’s side for his news conference in Florida last night. No reason was given for the cancellation, but it comes with Trump now clearly building himself an off-ramp to the war, should he choose to take it. The president was criticized for mixed signals during yesterday’s rambling appearance in Doral, but he evidently came with a clear message to deliver after market turmoil Sunday night and Monday morning. “We're achieving major strides toward completing our military objective, and some people could say they're pretty well complete,” Trump said, apparently reading from a prepared statement. The White House insists there’s been no change of approach, but a cursory analysis of Trump’s (many) interviews and statements over the past 11 days shows that yesterday marked an abrupt shift in tone: Saturday, Feb. 28: “I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: ‘See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding.’” Sunday, March 1: “We intended four to five weeks. … It won’t be difficult.” Monday, March 2: “We’re right on schedule, way ahead of schedule in terms of leadership: 49 killed.” Thursday, March 5: “We want to go in and clean out everything. We don’t want someone who would rebuild over a 10-year period. … We want them to have a good leader.” Saturday, March 7: “I said unconditional … It’s if they surrender, or if there is nobody around to surrender, but they're rendered useless in terms of military.” Sunday, March 8: “I think it’s [a] mutual [decision with Netanyahu] … a little bit. We’ve been talking. I’ll make a decision at the right time.” Monday, March 9, after the oil price spike: “We're achieving major strides toward completing our military objective, and some people could say they're pretty well complete … We're getting very close to finishing … We want a system that can lead to many years of peace — and if we can't have that, we might as well get it over with right now.”
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| | | | Obviously, this is Trump, so there are no guarantees about how things will actually play out. The president also made clear yesterday that he won't end the war this week. Fighting talk: The sudden change in rhetoric seems to have emboldened Iran — or at least, has got the regime talking tough. “We are the ones who will determine the end of the war," an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps spokesperson said overnight on state media, per Reuters. And an (unnamed) Iranian official tells CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen: “We hold the screw of the global oil price in our hands, and for a long time the U.S. will have to wait for our actions to control the price. Energy prices have become unstable and we will continue to fight until Trump declares defeat.” Iran is also trying to crank up pressure over the missile that killed 175 people at a school in southern Iran on the first day of the war. The NYT reports the Iranian government is now publishing pictures of missile fragments that it claims are from the site, although NYT notes it’s difficult to verify if that’s true. The NYT says the fragments have been identified as parts of a U.S.-made Tomahawk missile. Trump admitted last night that his suggestion the school was likely hit by an Iranian missile may not actually stand up, under tough questioning from the NYT’s Shawn McCreesh. (McCreesh also pressed both Trump and Hegseth on this issue on Saturday night, and was the first to quiz press secretary Karoline Leavitt about the strike at last week’s White House briefing.) The Pentagon still says it’s investigating … but it’s not clear how much longer that line can hold.
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| | | | TRAIL MIX ELECTION FEVER: It’s the second primary day of 2026, and the results tonight in Georgia’s special election and in Mississippi’s primaries will offer another preview of both parties’ trajectories ahead of November. Here’s what we’ll be watching. In Georgia: It’s been three months since Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene resigned from Congress and narrowed Republicans’ precarious House majority — and while the special election to fill her seat representing the state’s 14th Congressional District has finally arrived, it might drag on another four weeks, POLITICO’s Andrew Howard writes in. That’s because 17 candidates are on the ballot, 12 of whom are Republicans. The crowded field means it’s likely that no one emerges with the 50 percent required to win, leaving the seat open until after an April 7 runoff. The GOP candidates have had to tow the line between unflinching support of Trump without completely alienating themselves from Greene, who has remained popular in the district even amid her public spat with the president. State district attorney Clay Fuller, whom Trump endorsed last month, is seen as the front-runner. But a Democrat, veteran Shawn Harris, who challenged Greene in 2024, has raised the most of any candidate in the race — raking in about $4.3 million total with about $290,000 in the bank, notes AP’s Robert Yoon. Although the district is solidly Republican (it went about 63 percent to Greene and 36 percent to Harris the last time around), the fact that the Democratic vote will be split between three candidates compared to the Republicans’ 12 could propel Harris into the potential runoff. Read more from POLITICO’s Morning Score (for Pros) In Mississippi: All eyes tonight will be on two incumbents: Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson and Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith. Thompson, a 78-year-old civil rights icon who has represented the state’s 2nd Congressional District since 1993, is facing a primary challenge from the left from Evan Turnage, a 34-year-old antitrust lawyer and former aide to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Turnage’s bid is a long shot, but it’s the latest in a trend of younger candidates pushing for generational change. For Hyde-Smith, the expected outcome of the state’s Democratic Senate primary could lead to an uncomfortably personal standoff in the general. That’s because, in 2023, she used her veto power to block district attorney Scott Colom from becoming a federal judge — so he chose to run for Senate instead, and is now the Democratic front-runner (albeit a long shot, still), Semafor’s Burgess Everett writes. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Another senator backs Platner — Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) is formally endorsing Graham Platner for Senate in Maine today, praising the oysterman’s focus on “delivering for Mainers, not billionaire donors” and calling him “exactly the person the Democratic Party needs to win back working people,” POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky writes in. Heinrich is the third sitting senator to back the insurgent political newcomer — and buck Schumer, who recruited Gov. Janet Mills in the race. MONEY TALKS: “The Scale of Billionaires’ Campaign Donations is Overwhelming U.S. Politics,” by NYT’s Mike Baker and Steven Rich: “Billionaires made 19 percent of all reported federal campaign contributions in 2024, a Times analysis shows, and even more in some local elections.”
| | | | POLITICO Policy Outlook: Powering 6G The next generation of mobile communications technology — commonly known as 6G — promises to unlock a bold new digital future. On Wednesday, March 18, POLITICO will convene decision makers from government and industry for incisive conversations that explore what’s next for the 6G rollout — and what stands in the way. Register now to join us. | | | | | BEST OF THE REST SAVE IT: Trump is delaying his endorsement in the Texas Republican Senate primary to ramp up pressure on congressional Republicans to pass the SAVE America Act, Dasha and POLITICO’s Liz Crampton scooped last night. Though the president was initially prepared to swiftly endorse incumbent Sen. John Cornyn after he and Texas AG Ken Paxton skidded into a runoff last week, Paxton then promised to drop his campaign if the Senate passes the voting bill — and the president spied an opportunity. Trump said over the weekend he would not sign any other legislation until the bill passes, and last night reiterated his message to Republicans in Florida that it’s his “No. 1 priority.” That’s causing headaches for Republican leaders on the Hill. “This particular approach in terms of the process is much more complicated and risky than people are assuming at the moment,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said, per POLITICO’s Jordain Carney. BUZZY 2028 READ: “Vance or Rubio in ’28? It’s a Question Trump Can’t Stop Asking,” by WSJ’s Alex Leary and colleagues: “The 2028 election is more than 2 and 1/2 years away, but it is very much on Trump’s mind, as he casts about for a suitable heir to his MAGA empire. For months, the president has privately polled advisers, donors and friends about the political strengths and weaknesses of his vice president and secretary of state.” MULLIN’ THEIR OPTIONS: Senate Republicans aim to hold a confirmation hearing for Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) to become DHS secretary on March 18, a date that fits Trump’s preferred timeline for Secretary Kristi Noem to vacate the position at the end of the month, POLITICO’s Jordain Carney reports. And the jockeying to replace Mullin in the Senate is already in full swing, with billionaire GOP megadonor Harold Hamm calling Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt to ask for the job.
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Learn more. | | | | WEALTH TAX? Voters in California appear likely to support a tax on the state’s wealthiest residents, POLITICO’s Jeremy White reports. A new poll conducted by POLITICO and its partners found that 50 percent of voters would support a one-time 5 percent tax on the ultrawealthy, versus just 28 percent opposed. But the poll also suggested voters are highly susceptible to counterarguments — which opponents of a wealth tax would certainly have the resources to broadcast widely if the measure qualifies for the November ballot. FOR YOUR RADAR: “Unearthed audio appears to contradict Rep. Rob Bresnahan’s stock trading claims,” by POLITICO’s Daniel Lippman: “Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-Pa.), who’s faced a firestorm over hundreds of stock trades after campaigning in 2024 on a promise to ban congressional stock trading, has insisted he doesn’t talk to his financial adviser about the activity and that he has no input on them. But a little-noticed local radio interview from last April contradicts a significant part of Bresnahan’s line on the market moves.” THE OUTCOME IS INCOME: “On Facebook, it now pays to post about politics,” by Chaotic Era News’ Kyle Tharp: “ I spoke to a dozen major political creators or people who run large pages on Facebook, and all said the same thing: in recent months, the platform has become a major boon … While most creators I spoke with declined to share exact revenue figures, one said they were earning ‘six figures’ a month.” POLITICO CONVENES LEADERS IN ALBANY: Tomorrow POLITICO will convene New York policy and political leaders for the first Albany Summit. Key speakers include: State Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra (R), state Sens. Pete Harckham (D), Kevin Parker (D), Jeremy Cooney (D) and Gustavo Rivera (D), Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D) and more. Doors open at 8:30 a.m., and you can register here to attend in-person or watch the livestream
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➡️ Get on the Invite List | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | IN MEMORIAM — “David Keene, maestro of the conservative movement, dead at 80,” by the Washington Times’ Stephen Dinan. “Keene … spent years at the pinnacle, forging the Conservative Political Action Conference into the must-attend event for Republican White House hopefuls and shepherding the National Rifle Association at the peak of its influence. He then helmed The Washington Times’ opinion pages before becoming editor at large, a role he held at the time of his passing.” — “Alexander Butterfield, the Nixon aide who disclosed Watergate tapes, dies at 99,” by AP’s Douglass K. Daniel and Michael Tackett: “As a deputy assistant to [President Richard Nixon], Butterfield oversaw the taping system connected to voice-activated listening devices that had been secretly placed in four locations, including Nixon’s office in the Executive Office Building and the presidential retreat at Camp David.” SORRY, EVERYONE — D.C. loves a lookalike contest, and in honor of the controversial new show “Love Story” based on the tragic romance between the late John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, hundreds gathered over the weekend to vie for a $50 prize for who most resembled JFK Jr. It went … exactly how you might expect if you’ve ever spent a night out in D.C. We’ll let the X posts speak for themselves. GET READY FOR SOME TRAFFIC — “There’s going to be an IndyCar race in downtown Washington. Here’s what we know,” by WaPo’s Rick Maese: “Officials on Monday unveiled the layout for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., a 1.66-mile street race scheduled for Aug. 23 that will wind around the National Mall.” MEDIA MOVES — Former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) has joined the Washington Reporter as a featured contributor to write about policy issues. … Kendel Ehrlich has been named executive director of the Daily Caller News Foundation’s American Journalism Institute. She is the former first lady of Maryland and an alum of Trump’s first administration. TRANSITIONS — Catalina Salazar is joining Groundwork Collaborative as managing director of digital strategy. She previously worked for Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). … Ann Marie Hauser is joining the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as senior adviser for strategy and comms to Chair Ho Nieh. She most recently worked at Fulcrum Macro Advisors. … Caroline Darmody has joined the Senate Finance Committee as senior oversight counsel. She most recently worked at Jenner & Block. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Kate Carney, deputy director at More in Common US, and Tim Carney, senior VP and general manager at Healthcare Elise AI, recently welcomed Ella Betty Carney. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: CNN’s Jim Sciutto and Mike Callahan … Randy White … Jon Haber of Cascade Strategy … Bill Nichols … Brad Dayspring … POLITICO’s Chithra Subramanian, Jordan Williams, Nicole Adams, Arek Sarkissian and Dylon Jones … Carrie Filipetti … States Newsroom’s Jane Norman … Jean Cornell … NPR’s Ron Elving … Vernon Loeb of InsideClimate News … Kevin McKeon … Alyse Nelson of Vital Voices Global Partnership … NYT’s Danny Hakim … Matt Morrison … Christie Roberts … Chris Corcoran … Matt Jessee … Alex Treadway ... Cary Hatch … Institute for Citizens & Scholars’ Olivia Dunn … CNBC’s David Faber … Bill Van Saun … Talia La Schiazza … Julie Balter … John Murray of Monument Advocacy … Adam Bodily … Biz Stone … Daniel Gleason … Andrew Smith 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. Corrections: Yesterday’s Playbook misidentified Brooke Brower. It also incorrectly stated the price for oil. It reached $120 per barrel before yesterday morning.
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