| | | |  | | By Adam Wren | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco, Irie Sentner and Makayla Gray Good cold and snowy Saturday morning. This is Adam Wren. Get in touch. FOR YOUR RADAR: D.C. is deploying more contractors and specialized equipment to clear the “snow-crete” and create more pathways for cars, buses and bus stops, which remain vexing almost a full week after the snowfall. The National Guard is being tasked to help clear the roads. Trash pickup is also set to begin today. More from WaPo
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Firefighter Bob Brooks is running for Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District. | Bob Brooks for Congress | THE CANDIDATE NEXT DOOR: Bob Brooks — the bellwether Lehigh Valley Democratic congressional candidate and Pennsylvania firefighter running to flip Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District — had to reschedule this interview. That’s because the snow plow driver without a college degree trying to unseat freshman GOP Rep. Ryan Mackenzie needed more time to salt Bethlehem parking lots ahead of a big coming snow, and he didn’t know where he was going to put all of the white stuff. “I don't think it's something anybody in Congress is thinking about this morning,” he told Playbook when we finally caught up with him. In recent days, Brooks, who is running in a contested primary against at least six other Democrats, has shown himself to be something of a 2026 unicorn: He has racked up endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), more moderate Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, and as of yesterday, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. (He hasn’t unified everyone: candidates Carol Obando-Derstine, the former aide to former Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), and Ryan Crosswell, a former prosecutor, both boast congressional endorsements). That unlikely mix of endorsements alone makes Brooks exactly the kind of big tent Democrat some in the party thinks it needs on its bench—even if he doesn’t fit centrist Democrats’ traditional ideological definitions of electability: Brooks backs such liberal proposals as Medicare for All, government-funded health coverage for every American. It also puts him at the nexus of a larger debate the wilderness-wandering Democratic Party is having about electability, that ineffable, vibes-all-the-way-down catchall political term that frequently eludes voters and operatives alike. Democrats are testing two theories of electability in the run up the midterms: Candidates who align with the electorate on issues, and candidates who fit the culture of a place. The former gets closer to the idea of electability that center-left think tank Third Way espouses: “Obviously, it depends on the race. But in almost all swing districts, voters are looking for the more reasonable candidate on hot button issues,” said Third Way’s executive vice president of public affairs Matt Bennett. But the new Democratic organization that backs Brooks called The Bench is making waves in contested primaries this year by arguing there’s a better way to determine electability than ideological litmus tests. “The Bench supports candidates who match and feel like their districts. The term we use is 'culturally resonant,'” Andrew Mamo, a spokesperson for the group, told Playbook.
| | | | 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. | | | | But culturally resonant is an imprecise term, one that can’t be easily measured, even as The Bench is using it to make some big bets up and down the ballot and across the map. “Elections and people are imprecise,” Mamo said. “What we've done is talk to more than 50 candidates all across the country and just get a feel for who they are and how they tell their story.” Mamo says the group meets with a number of candidates in each primary, and it’s sided with Texas state Rep. James Talarico over Rep. Jasmine Crockett in the U.S. Senate race, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow over physician Abdul El-Sayed or Rep. Haley Stevens in Michigan, and state Rep. Josh Turek over a field that includes Nathan Sage and Zach Wahls in Iowa. “Electability, especially in a year like here in Iowa, is one, two, three, four and five,” said Turek, the Paralympian and two-time gold medalist who represents the reddest district his party won on election day in 2022—a 13-point overperformance. “I think that it comes down to: you can win in red environments with the right candidate, the right message and the right work ethic.” On the issues that divide the party, Turek and Brooks don’t share many ideological commonalities. But after the party’s 2024 blowout, they are twin examples of the party’s fresh willingness to toss out the old rule book. “Electability starts with a simple truth: that there is no one way to be a Democrat,” said the Democratic operative Lis Smith, one of the minds behind The Bench. “A Democrat in New York City is going to look very different from a Democrat in Eastern Kentucky, in Phoenix, Arizona, or rural Washington. If we want to elect Democrats everywhere and we want to build a majority party, we need to understand that a majority requires big-tent thinking. And you are not a big tent if you expect every Democrat in every district to check every litmus box of activist groups and Washington special interest groups.” Somewhat surprisingly, Brooks’ candidacy has also brought together Smith and Rebecca Katz, founding partner at Fight Agency, whose firm has made ads for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, among others. Katz and Smith are occasionally on different sides in races: Smith is working for McMorrow in Michigan and Katz’s Fight is working for the more progressive El-Sayed, for example. “I think a lot of people misunderstand what electability means,” Katz told Playbook. “At the end of the day, it’s about running candidates who have a finger on the pulse and understand the urgency of this moment. They need to be able to authentically speak to the electorate they’re running to represent, and actually make people feel something.” Not to be cliche but: Mamo, The Bench spokesperson, put a finer point on it. “What was the old line: do you want to have a beer with him?” he said. “The flip that I use all the time is, do these candidates feel like they’d want to have a beer with me?”
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| | | | 9 THINGS THAT STUCK WITH US 1. PARTIAL SHUTDOWN UNDERWAY: The Senate passed its compromise spending package yesterday, voting for the measure 71-29 after Senate Democrats struck a deal with President Donald Trump to attach a continuing resolution of two weeks of funding the Department of Homeland Security to the other five appropriations bills, POLITICO’s Jordain Carney and Katherine Tully-McManus report. That still needs approval in the House, so we’re now in a partial government shutdown with lawmakers scheduled to return Monday morning. What’s next: Speaker Mike Johnson told House Republicans on a call last night that he hopes to hold a vote on the package by 6:30 p.m., with the likeliest route being passing it under a suspension of rules, as the package could face objections from hard-liners, per POLITICO’s Meredith Lee Hill and Nick Wu. While the deal was negotiated and signed off on by Trump, many GOP senators aren’t happy about it, NYT’s Carl Hulse writes. And House Democrats – whose votes will be needed to get to the fast-track option – are also sharply divided on how many will support the continuing resolution, with no promises yet to help get it over the finish line, Meredith reports. They’re holding a caucus call tomorrow evening. In the meantime: The brief shutdown will directly impact the FAA, though it's unlikely to be the same catastrophe as the last record-long pause of funding. Still, yet another disruption is frustrating the airline industry and prompting concern from the union for air traffic controllers, POLITICO’s Sam Ogozalek reports. Furloughed employees (as of now) can expect to miss one day of work, while crucial programs like farm loans, SNAP funds and national park upkeep are safeguarded, per POLITICO’s Jennifer Scholtes. 2. 2026 WATCH: The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws committee members are currently voting on which of the 12 states that applied to be in the early nominating window will advance to in-person presentations this spring, POLITICO’s Elena Schneider writes in. The members are gathered for their January meeting in Puerto Rico. So far, Delaware, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina have been approved for the next phase. Still on deck, as of press time: Virginia, Nevada and New Mexico. So far, no states have been cut. First in Playbook: Nevada has secured national endorsements from Latino Victory, Somos Votantes, UNITE HERE and AAPI Victory for its bid to be first-in-the-nation Democratic primary, according to the state’s packet first shared with Playbook ahead of today’s meeting. And happening today in Texas: “Houston runoff sets up next Democratic generational fight,” by POLITICO’s Liz Crampton: “House Republicans’ slim majority will be even leaner after Saturday, when Democrats vote to fill the Texas seat left open when Rep. Sylvester Turner unexpectedly died last year. … On Saturday, voters are choosing between Harris County attorney Christian Menefee, 37, or former Houston City Councilmember Amanda Edwards, 44, to fill the current seat.” 3. CASH DASH: Midnight tonight is the deadline for federal campaign committees to file their year-end finance reports with the Federal Election Commission. Keep an eye on Trump’s various groups, POLITICO’s campaign finance savant Jessica Piper writes in to Playbook. We know the Trump-linked super PAC MAGA Inc. has been a huge fundraiser. But Trump has a number of other groups that have continued to rake in money through a joint fundraising committee called the Trump National Committee JFC. We’ll soon learn just how much they’ve raised and if they've started spending at all. A few major super PACs also filed early yesterday, and they were raking in the cash:
- United Democracy Project, the super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, brought in $61.6 million in the last six months of the year, beginning 2026 with $95.8 million cash on hand.
- Fairshake, the cryptocurrency-linked super PAC, brought in $73.8 million in the second half of the year and had $191 million cash on hand.
- Leading the Future, a new pro-AI super PAC that launched in August, brought in $50.3 million, with $25 million coming from Andreessen Horowitz and $12.5 million each from OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman and his wife, Anna.
4. DEPORTATION DRIVE: As the two shootings in Minnesota continue to draw national backlash over ICE tactics, an internal memo to federal agents this week claimed an even broader authority to arrest people without warrants, NYT’s Hamed Aleaziz and Charlie Savage report. It opens the door to even bigger sweeps by lower-level ICE agents, arguing arrests can be made based on if immigrants are “likely to escape.” This comes as there’s been a “full-blown clarion call” from judges across the country denouncing the Trump administration over violations of the law, including due process rights, POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney writes. “But the sheer volume of violations judges are now describing reflects an intensification of the mass deportation effort and a system ill-prepared to handle the influx.” The view from the GOP: Trump’s once most-popular issue is now threatening the party’s path to victory in the midterms, POLITICO’s Megan Messerly and Myah Ward write. The Trump administration, which hasn’t backtracked amid the firestorm, is now caught between fulfilling promises to the MAGA base and alienating key swing voters. WSJ’s Sabrina Rodriguez and Eliza Collins have a closer look at the voters who are turning against Trump on immigration.
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➡️ Subscribe Now | | | | | 5. AMMO PROBLEM: “2nd Amendment advocates issue dire warning over Trump’s Pretti gun remarks,” by POLITICO’s Alex Gangitano and Sophia Cai: “The White House labels itself the ‘most pro-Second Amendment administration in history.’ But Trump’s comments about Pretti, who was legally carrying a licensed firearm when he was killed by federal agents last week, have some gun rights advocates threatening to sit out the midterms. … It doesn’t take much to swing an election, said Dudley Brown, president of the National Association for Gun Rights. ‘All you have to do is lose four, five, six percent of their base who left it blank, who didn’t write a check, who didn’t walk districts, you lose,’ he said.” 6. WAR AND PEACE: Concerns are growing among Arab allies that Trump is lurching towards another strike on Iran, despite their repeated efforts to counsel against any attacks, POLITICO’s Eli Stokols and Paul McLeary report. Trump’s tough rhetoric may be boxing him into a strike, but Gulf nation officials are still assessing whether Trump has landed on an objective for an Iran attack, especially as he continues to tout the large “armada” of warships in the region. Trump has asked his advisers for quick attack options that could have the most impact but don’t risk a larger war, per WSJ’s David Cloud and Alexander Ward. Iran, meanwhile, is renewing its threats to strike Israel if the U.S. attacks, with Major General Amir Hatami telling state media today that “our finger is on the trigger,” per Bloomberg. Israel-Gaza latest: Israeli strikes killed 30 people today, one of the biggest death tolls since the ceasefire began, per AP. The strikes come as the Rafah border crossing is expected to be reopened tomorrow, a crucial lifeline for many Gazans looking to get medical treatment. The reopening has brought hope to many families as they wait to be evacuated, NYT’s Bilal Shbair and Adam Rasgon report. But the starvation and death in Gaza has been well-documented since the war began: Reuters’ Erin Banco and colleagues scoop an internal USAID memo just three months into the war that called northern Gaza an “Apocalyptic Wasteland,” but the cable was blocked from distribution within the Biden administration. On the money: “U.S. approves almost $16 billion in arms sales to Israel and Saudi Arabia,” by WaPo’s Frances Vinall: “The sales to Israel worth close to $6.7 billion include 30 Apache attack helicopters, while Saudi Arabia is set to buy Patriot missiles worth $9 billion.” 7. THE ECONOMY, STUPID: Trump announced yesterday that he’s nominating economist Brett Matsumoto to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, raising the career staffer to the top of the agency months after firing the last head over negative jobs numbers, WSJ’s Matt Grossman and Alex Leary report. Matsumoto has been at the BLS since 2015 and did a brief turn on the White House Council of Economic Advisers last year. And on the Fed: POLITICO’s Sam Sutton has a must-read interview with famed economist Mohamed El-Erian on Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh. El-Erian told Sam that Warsh may be quicker to act than outgoing Chair Jerome Powell. “The Fed didn’t engage in that forward-looking view. And I think what’s going to happen now is that he’s going to bring fresh air into the institution,” he said. And Warsh’s success atop the central bank will also be crucial for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who could be haunted by his role in the selection process if Warsh disappoints Trump, NYT’s Alan Rappeport writes. 8. ON THE EPSTEIN FILES: The trove of files on convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein released yesterday — around three million pages from the Justice Department — revealed even deeper details of his relationships with major figures like Steve Bannon and Elon Musk. They add even more cause to believe that Epstein wielded major influence for years. The full rundown from Kyle The biggest takeaways: There were thousands of texts unveiled between Epstein and Bannon, spanning multiple topics. Epstein also tried repeatedly to arrange a meeting with Musk, but the communications didn’t indicate an in-person meetup ever occurred. There’s also details about Epstein arranging meetings with European government leaders, former heads of states and fixers. He also had contact with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about a visit to his Caribbean compound. 9. SPORTS BLINK: “The World Cup’s biggest policy bet,” by POLITICO’s Natalie Fertig: “The self-described socialist mayor of Seattle has responded to President Donald Trump’s threat to remove World Cup matches from her city with an audacious gesture of her own: a mission to find housing for her city’s homeless before the first tournament match kicks off there in June. … To make progress on the seemingly intractable issue, [Mayor Katie Wilson] will have to navigate a dismal fiscal environment, including cuts to federal funding used by Seattle’s existing homeless programs.”
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| | | | CLICKER — “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker — 17 funnies
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| GREAT WEEKEND READS: — “What MAGA Can Teach Democrats About Organizing—and Infighting,” by the New Yorker’s Charles Duhigg: “Republicans have become adept at creating broad coalitions in which supporting Trump is the only requirement. Democrats get tied up with litmus tests.” — “Lessons From My Me Too,” by Brooke Nevils for NY Mag: “In 2017, I accused the Today show’s longest-serving anchor of sexual misconduct. I was no one’s perfect victim.” — “The Ex-Hipster Behind Substack’s Elite Tastemakers,” by NY Mag’s Charlotte Klein: “How Max Stein turns influence into profits.” — “The Last Ride of Big Bad John,” by Texas Monthly’s Eric Benson: “John Cornyn is a modern master of the Senate. That may be the political kiss of death.” — “Greg Bovino’s Last Stand,” by the Assembly’s Jim Morrill: “The U.S. Border Patrol commander grew up in Blowing Rock and attended Western Carolina University, where he was gung ho and hyperaggressive. Those traits just cost him his job.” — “How Iran Crushed a Citizen Uprising With Lethal Force,” by NYT’s Farnaz Fassihi and colleagues: “The Times has verified videos of security forces’ opening fire on protesters in at least 19 cities and in at least six different neighborhoods in Tehran in early January. … These videos show the breadth and ferocity of the regime’s crackdown.” — “How a trans woman's removal from a restroom tore the world of competitive pinball apart,” by NBC’s Jo Yurcaba: “Pinball is one of the most welcoming sports for trans players. But after a confrontation at an arcade last fall, pinball’s governing group is struggling to rebuild trust.”
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➡️ Get on the Invite List | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | EXTREME MAKEOVER: D.C. EDITION — “Trump wants to build a 250-foot-tall arch, dwarfing the Lincoln Memorial,” by WaPo’s Dan Diamond and colleagues: “Trump has grown attached to the idea of a 250-foot-tall structure overlooking the Potomac River … a scale that has alarmed some architectural experts who initially supported the idea of an arch but expected a far smaller one. … The planned Independence Arch is intended to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary. Built to Trump’s specifications, it would transform a small plot of land between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery into a dominant new monument, reshaping the relationship between the two memorials and obstructing pedestrians’ views.” PLAYBOOK ARTS SECTION — After artist cancellations and the relocations of some performances, the Kennedy Center has no planned programming to commemorate Black History Month, WaPo’s Fritz Hahn and Travis Andrews report. OUT AND ABOUT — Democracy Forward hosted “Together for Democracy 2026” in Washington D.C. yesterday, bringing together more than 430 changemakers, partners, advocates, organizers, policymakers and artists from all 50 states. SPOTTED: NY AG Letitia James, Massachusetts AG Andrea Campbell, Dolores Huerta, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Rep. Jason Crow (D-Co.), Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, Aaron Parnas, V Spehar, Joe Perticone, Andrew Egger, Eugene Daniels, Jesse Rodriquez, Ankush Khardori, Rhett Buttle, Sean Rankin, Randi Weingarten, Winston Pingeon, Jess Floyd, Rev. Susie Hayward, Bishop Mariann Budde, Georges Benjamin, Rev. Paul Raushenbush, Ashley Tucker, Maggie O’Neill, Valerie Kaur, Sean Rankin, Skye Perryman, Melissa Schwartz, Jacob Bernard and Jordan Klepper. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Ted Lehman is joining Paramount as SVP of U.S. public policy and government affairs. He joins from Todd Strategy Group where he was a partner. TRANSITIONS — Andrea Woods is rejoining the American Petroleum Institute as director of external comms. She previously worked at the Department of Energy. … Brian Wanglin is now public affairs regional manager at Google. He most recently was at PLUS Communications. … Victor Shi has joined the Committee for the First Amendment as manager for new media communications. He previously worked for L.A. Mayor Karen Bass. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: UN Ambassador Mike Waltz … Reps. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), Russell Fry (R-S.C.) and Janelle Bynum (D-Ore.) … Ali Zaidi … CNN’s Clarissa Ward … Fox News’ Martha MacCallum … Dylan Byers … David Plotz … Dick Gephardt … Nic Pottebaum … NYT’s Katherine Miller … Chris Marklund … Barbara Slavin … Nathan Lewin … former Reps. Garret Graves (R-La.), Larry Kissell (D-N.C.), Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.) and Gwen Graham (D-Fla.) … NBC’s Christine Romans and Sarah Blackwill … Sam Dorn … POLITICO’s Angel Torres and Michael Doyle … Peter Sagal … Tim Naftali … USTR’s Conor Harrington … Christopher Semenas … BGR Group’s Erskine Wells … Tom O’Donnell … Fred Karger … Amos Friedland … Mikhail Zygar … Matthew Gottlieb … Kripa Sreepada … Heather Riley … USDA’s Jacqueline Thomas … Tricia McLaughlin … Michael Kempner of MWW THE SHOWS (Full Sunday show listings here): ABC “This Week”: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Panel: Donna Brazile, Chris Christie, Michelle Cottle and Doug Heye. NewsNation “The Hill Sunday”: Rep. Julie Johnson (D-Texas) … Geoff Duncan … Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.). Panel: George Will, Jonathan Rauch and Audrey Fahlberg. FOX “Fox News Sunday”: Speaker Mike Johnson … Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) … Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). Panel: Olivia Beavers, Richard Fowler, Susan Page and Karl Rove. CBS “Face the Nation”: María Corina Machado … … Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) … Gary Cohn. Mayors panel: Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, Mesa, Arizona, Mayor Mark Freeman, Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins and Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas. MS NOW “The Weekend: Primetime”: Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) ... Jeff Duncan … Alexander Vindman. PBS “Compass Points”: Behnam Ben Taleblu … Vali Nasr … Firas Maksad … Robin Wright. NBC “Meet the Press”: Speaker Mike Johnson … Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) … Ken Burns. Panel: Lanhee Chen, Adrienne Elrod and Jonathan Martin. CNN “State of the Union”: Deputy AG Todd Blanche … Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) … Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.). Panel: Bill Stepien, Bill de Blasio, Shermichael Singleton and Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.). 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.
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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. | | | | | | | | 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 | | | |
