| | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | Presented by |  | | | With help from Makayla Gray
|  | THE CATCH-UP | | DEMOCRACY WATCH: “Trump, seeking executive power over elections, is urged to declare emergency,” by WaPo’s Isaac Arnsdorf: “Pro-Trump activists who say they are in coordination with the White House are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that claims China interfered in the 2020 election as a basis to declare a national emergency that would unlock extraordinary presidential power over voting.”
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In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, second from right, sits at his car in Geneva, Switzerland, where Iran and the United States are holding a round of indirect talks, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP) | Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP | THE ART OF THE DEAL: U.S.-Iran talks in Switzerland have resumed today, with the stakes no lower than international war — even as congressional Democrats ready their attempt to rein Trump in. The latest in Geneva: The third round of nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran, with Oman mediating, kicked off this morning and then restarted after an afternoon break. (It’s Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on one side, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the other.) Iran said the talks have moved forward “very intensely and very seriously,” saying they’d held firm refusing to move highly enriched uranium elsewhere. Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi put a somewhat rosier spin on the exchange of “creative and positive ideas.” The possibility of a deal depends on whether the U.S. and Iran can agree to terms on the future of Iran’s nuclear program and the lifting of U.S. sanctions, though Washington is also pressing for concessions on ballistic missiles. One top Iranian official told Reuters’ Parisa Hafezi and Olivia Le Poidevin that they want nuclear and non-nuclear issues to be spun off separately to raise the likelihood of an agreement, even as Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned this week that Iran’s unwillingness to talk ballistic missiles is a “big problem.” The drumbeat of war beats on: Though the ongoing talks hold out the hope of a potential deal to avert conflict, U.S. military movements in the Middle East continue to indicate that war is a very real (and perhaps imminent) option. In Bahrain, staffing levels for the Navy’s 5th Fleet are reminiscent of moves before Trump’s Iran attacks last year, Fox News’ Greg Norman-Diamond and Lucas Tomlinson report. If Trump does give the go-ahead, the U.S. will have the upper hand militarily but will nonetheless face a tricky landscape in Iran: New satellite images show reinforcements meant to guard against attacks at crucial sites, Bloomberg’s Jonathan Tirone and colleagues report. How it’s playing: Roughly half of Americans say they’re at least very concerned about Iran’s nuclear program, per the latest AP poll. But at the same time, 56 percent have little to no faith in Trump’s judgment on using force abroad. On the Hill: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the House’s war powers vote to limit Trump from striking Iran sans Congress will take place next week when the House returns, per POLITICO’s Connor O’Brien and Meredith Lee Hill. House Dems plan to force the vote on the bipartisan legislation, which will present a tough challenge for leaders in both parties and perhaps a close margin on Wednesday. There’s a chance that the White House could lose some Republicans on the vote. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio), for one, said he’ll vote for the resolution unless he gets a classified briefing first. GOP leaders will likely schedule such briefings. But some Iran-hawk Democrats may oppose the war powers vote. Senators may force a similar vote in their chamber soon too. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer groused that “we’re all looking for answers that the administration has refused to give,” though he didn’t say how he’d vote. Majority Leader John Thune, on the other hand, said that if Trump does attack Iran, he “better well make it about getting new leadership and regime change.” ELSEWHERE IN GENEVA: “US, Ukraine discuss post-war reconstruction as Russia pummels grid,” by Reuters’ Emma Farge and Pavel Polityuk Good Thursday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@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. | | | | | | 8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW | | 1. TRUMP’S FAVORITE SOCIALIST: NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani is in D.C. for a surprise visit today, per the N.Y. Post’s Craig McCarthy and colleagues. He’s slated to meet with President Donald Trump, at least in part to discuss housing in their shared hometown, NYT’s Dana Rubinstein and colleagues report. 2. MESSIN’ WITH TEXAS: Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) has scrapped a planned College Station rally tomorrow to appear with Trump at his event in Corpus Christi, POLITICO’s Adam Wren and Liz Crampton report. Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) and state AG Ken Paxton will also attend Trump’s event, spokespeople for the candidates confirmed — making it quite the intraparty face-off ahead of Tuesday’s primary and a potential GOP runoff. Trump has thus far remained neutral in the race. 3. NOT SO FAST ON THOSE REFUNDS: Several agencies are working on plans to try to find ways to block or discourage companies from getting massive tariff refunds after the Supreme Court struck down Trump’s levies, POLITICO’s Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers scooped. Among the possible ideas for legal/policy maneuvers: declaring that the tariff money paid is legal under the alternative tariff authorities Trump is working on, or incentivizing companies to give up some of the money in order to get it back faster. Outside experts are skeptical that slow-walking moves like these would survive legal challenges. 4. LAST CHANCE: Ahead of tomorrow night’s deadline that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has given Anthropic, the Pentagon sent its final offer to the AI company last night, CBS’ Jennifer Jacobs scooped. The details of what DOD offered or whether Anthropic has responded aren’t clear yet. The company has balked at Hegseth’s demands that the military be allowed to use its AI tools for all legal purposes, with Anthropic citing concerns about firing weapons without human oversight and mass domestic surveillance. (DOD says it has no plans to do so.)
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➡️ Subscribe Now | | | | | 5. THE NEXT IMMIGRATION FLASHPOINT: “DHS agents detain Columbia student after entering University-owned residence, Shipman reports,” by the Columbia Daily Spectator’s Nadia Knoblauch and Dora Gao: “‘Our understanding at this time is that the federal agents made misrepresentations to gain entry to the building to search for a “missing person,”’ [university president Claire] Shipman wrote.” Breaking immigration news: “Judge: IRS broke law ‘approximately 42,695 times’ in giving DHS data,” by WaPo’s Jeff Stein 6. SHUTDOWN SIREN: FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund could get dangerously near empty in the weeks to come as the partial government shutdown of DHS drags on, Semafor’s Burgess Everett scooped. “We’re close to the red zone,” one administration official warned, as the fund will drop below $5 billion this week — leaving it just one big disaster away from running out. 7. THE LATEST IN CHAPPAQUA: “House Oversight, Hillary Clinton agree on deposition terms,” by POLITICO’s Maya Kaufman and Hailey Fuchs: “Hillary Clinton’s testimony before members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will focus on the federal government’s handling of the investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as potential ethics violations by elected officials.” Read her opening statement But but but: The deposition was briefly derailed after Benny Johnson posted a photo of Clinton inside the room that he said came from Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), per POLITICO’s Maya Kaufman and Gelila Negesse. More news: Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) told reporters the committee is investigating claims that documents related to an allegation against Trump were taken out from the public Epstein files, per Hailey. Comer also said it’s “very possible” that the panel would ask Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify. 8. SAVING SAVE: Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) wants to try to convince several Democrats to get on board with the SAVE America Act to push it past a filibuster, he told Semafor. Working with Democrats on a sweeping voter ID and election restriction package may sound far-fetched — but that’s where Republicans stand now, since they lack the votes in the Senate to alter the filibuster, despite intense pressure from Trump and the right. The SAVE America Act is near DOA, with Thune for now throwing cold water on the “talking filibuster” approach. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) told Punchbowl he’d be a no on the motion to proceed.
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| | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | SPOTTED: Olympic men’s hockey gold medalists Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin at Cafe Milano last night. Pic with Laurent Menoud TAKING THE STAGE — Mentalist Oz Pearlman was announced as the headline entertainer for the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April, per the WHCA. STRICTLY BALLROOM — “Judge rules construction of Trump’s White House ballroom can continue for now,” by CBS’ Arden Farhi and Jacob Rosen BIG DEPARTURE — World Food Programme head Cindy McCain is stepping down due to health reasons, per NBC. “I had truly hoped I could finish out my term, but my health has not recovered to a level that allows me to fully serve the enormous demands of this job,” McCain, 71, said in a statement. “This is one of the most difficult decisions I have ever had to make.” OUT AND ABOUT — The Hopkins Forum series from the SNF Agora Institute and Open to Debate held a debate last night at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center on whether AI will make work obsolete, featuring Andrew Yang, Simon Johnson, Chris Hughes and Rumman Chowdhury with John Donvan moderating. In a poll taken at the end of the debate, the audience voted “no” by a margin of 62 percent to 21 percent. SPOTTED: Frances Stead Sellers, Lisel Loy, Mark Dredze, Lia Matthow, Jade Lozada, Jeff Stein, Maria Curi, Regina de Heer, Nathan Bomey and Joseph Gedeon. — Rwandan Ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana and Singaporean Ambassador Lui Tuck Yew hosted a dinner in honor of Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) and Lolita Hand last night. SPOTTED: Icelandic Ambassador Svanhildur Hólm Valsdóttir, Thai Ambassador Suriya Chindawongse, Costa Rican Ambassador Catalina Crespo-Sancho and Yannick Tona. — NENA hosted its annual “9-1-1 Congressional Breakfast” at the Capitol Visitors Center yesterday. SPOTTED: John Provenzano, Matt Sandgren, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Reps. Troy Carter (D-La.), Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), John Rutherford (R-Fla.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) and April Delaney (D-Md.). — Forterra held a reception for the opening of its new Arlington office last night. SPOTTED: Gina Pizziconi, Tammy Haddad, David Greenberg, Mike Keating, Kaitlin Kleiber, Mike Fullerton, Stuart Hatfield, Michael Robbins, Craig Caruana, Danny Hartl, Lynette Nichols, Christopher Kim, Benjamin Haas, Bobby Parmiter, Trevor Kunkel and Alexis Oberg. MEDIAWATCH — “CNBC to unify digital and TV news operations, cut nearly a dozen jobs,” by Reuters’ Dawn Chmielewski and Aditya Soni: “The cuts are part of an overhaul under Editor-in-Chief David Cho, as CNBC prepares to introduce a paywall on its website.” MOVE OVER WAPO — The Athletic, NYT’s de facto sports desk, has hired six former WaPo sports reporters, most of whom were recently laid off, Axios’ Kerry Flynn scooped. Barry Svrluga, Spencer Nusbaum, Candace Buckner, Ava Wallace, Adam Kilgore and Jason Murray join as The Athletic “expands its coverage of the Commanders, launches a new Nationals beat and adds to its growing roster of tennis, opinion and investigative reporters.” Read the announcement TRANSITIONS — Joe Carden is now SVP of membership growth and strategy at GovExec. He most recently worked at the Professional Services Council. … Chrissi Lee has been named director of legislative affairs at BAE Systems. She previously worked for Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R-Texas). … … Tony Johnson is joining Purposeful Advisors as senior adviser. He most recently worked at the Truman Center for National Policy. … Mira Lezell is now SVP of government and regulatory affairs at the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association. She previously worked for the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee. WELCOME TO THE WORLD — Austin Rogers, a GOP congressional candidate in Florida’s 2nd District and a Rick Scott alum, and Hala Rogers, a physician, welcomed Clark yesterday. 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 Giuseppe Macri and deputy editor Garrett Ross.
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