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By Eli Okun |
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THE CATCH-UP |
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President Donald Trump's administration pressed ahead with International Criminal Court sanctions right after an ICC alum won the Nobel Peace Prize. | Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images |
President Donald Trump has openly coveted the Nobel Peace Prize for years. Today’s laureate is in many ways his antithesis. Navi Pillay won the prize as essentially a living embodiment of an international legal system that the Trump administration often views as hopelessly outdated, biased and anti-American. Pillay is a South African (as Trump feuds with South Africa), an international human rights lawyer and jurist (as Trump calls human rights leaders hypocrites), the leader of a commission at the U.N. (which Trump frequently criticizes) who determined Israel had committed genocide in Gaza (which Trump rejects), and a former judge at the International Criminal Court (which Trump is seeking to hobble). “If you clap a little bit more, I may share this prize with Trump,” joked the 85-year-old Pillay, who was at a human rights conference today in Nuremberg, Germany. Her awarding by the Norwegian Nobel Committee will likely be seen at least in part as a pointed political comment, as its chair pointed to her work on the Gaza commission as “an important part” of her selection. In its announcement, the Nobel Committee warned that “the system of international law is under tremendous pressure, and its institutions are under attack. We see a shift towards power politics at the expense of legal frameworks and global respect for law and justice. Whenever might overtakes right, it undermines stability, trust and peaceful co-existence.” “One of the main reactions to that [Gaza] report is paying tribute to me for my courage,” Pillay said. “And you can imagine how surprised I was: Why would you need courage to speak the truth?” Going back to apartheid-era South Africa, Pillay has spent decades advocating for human rights, investigating genocides and going after war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the use of sexual violence in conflict. More from POLITICO’s Daria Zakharova But Pillay’s selection landed with a thud among Trump and his allies. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s office condemned the committee for having “lost its moral compass.” Trump “ReTruthed” a post on Truth Social that attacked Pillay as “an unabashed hater of America.” Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif said his country had nominated Trump for the prize — and hopes he’ll receive it yet. More from POLITICO’s Casey He And though Pillay got the plaudit, it’s far from clear that her and the Nobel Committee’s vision of an international legal order is winning. Trump has said he cares more about adhering more to “my own morality” than to international law. And his blunt-force power politics have been effective in reshaping everything from foreign wars to international financial deals to the humanitarian aid system. In the latest move, the State Department today unveiled massive new sanctions against the ICC, meant to cripple the foremost international tribunal for prosecuting the world’s worst crimes, as Reuters’ Humeyra Pamuk and colleagues scooped. The U.S. has never been party to the court, unlike a majority of the world’s countries. “We don’t need that court, and we don’t want it,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in today’s announcement, warning that the ICC could prosecute Americans and threaten “our sovereignty as a nation.” The new sanctions go beyond just hitting court officials, seeking to choke off American companies that do business with the ICC (though there are some exemptions). The change will kick in after a six-month grace period. The severe punishments could make it harder for the court to conduct its work, though it has been trying to shift to different systems that rely on other, non-American businesses in anticipation of this hammer falling. Much could depend on how effectively the ICC’s member countries rally behind the court — or choose to make concessions. The U.S. argues that the ICC needs to take action on Washington’s concerns if it wants sanctions relief. “Either the ICC will end its threats,” Rubio said, “or we will end the ICC.” Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.
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7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW |
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1. WEAPONIZATION WATCH: Trump redoubled his attempts to remove Lisa Cook from the Fed, unveiling a new White House investigation into yet-unproven allegations she committed mortgage fraud, per POLITICO’s Gregory Svirnovskiy and Victoria Guida. The committee has scheduled an in-person hearing for Nov. 5, after the administration’s previous effort to fire her was blocked by the Supreme Court over a lack of due process. Cook’s lawyers said they “have grave doubts that this ‘hearing’ is a legitimate one that would conform to the law.” Deep dive: “How Trump’s Revenge Campaign Descended Into Turmoil,” by NYT’s Alan Feuer and Glenn Thrush: “To date, [the now-departed Joseph] diGenova and others involved in the case have found it difficult, and time-consuming, to meet the standards of evidence and jurisdiction needed to prove anything close to a conspiracy [against Trump] in a court of law. Still, the pressure has not relented. The dozen prosecutors still pursuing the inquiry are fast-tracking narrower cases against some chief targets that could be brought quickly, according to people briefed on their work. Leadership of the effort has defaulted back to Washington, and is now being directly overseen by one of [AG Todd] Blanche’s top deputies, Aakash Singh.” 2. ICE SHOOTING FALLOUT: After local Democratic leaders excoriated the Trump administration over yesterday’s ICE shooting in NYC, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin placed the blame squarely back on sanctuary city policies and the man who was shot, POLITICO’s Eric Bazail-Eimil reports. Mullin called Oscar Bregal “the worst of the worst” and said an ICE officer shot the Dominican because he tried to escape after they stopped him, with his young son in the car. ICE said he’s a gang member with a criminal record. 3. WHERE’S THE BEEF? “Trump’s beef gamble isn’t paying off,” by POLITICO’s Grace Yarrow and Myah Ward: “Prices have barely budged, ranchers remain incensed, and vulnerable Republicans in Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Texas are fighting to convince rural voters to turn out in November as farmers confront economic headwinds fueled by the president’s policies.” 4. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Poll position: There haven’t been many GOP internal polls publicly released lately, but a co/efficient survey for North Carolina Republican Laurie Buckhout’s campaign finds her narrowly ahead of Democratic Rep. Don Davis, 43% to 42%. This newly re-redistricted district is one of Republicans’ top opportunities for a flip, and the GOP also leads by 1 point on the generic congressional ballot. The poll Survey says: Republicans also have data to like in a new Emerson/Nexstar poll of Iowa, which finds Rep. Ashley Hinson up by 2 points for Senate even as Democrat Rob Sand leads by 4 for governor. But Democrats will feel relieved by a WaPo/Schar School survey that has Troy Jackson leading by 4 for Maine Senate. And they’re outright thrilled by a Siena poll with Democrat Blake Gendebien up 4 in New York’s quite red 21st District.
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Shaping American Influence Meridian and POLITICO join forces for the 15th Annual Summit on Oct. 16, bringing leaders together to explore "Shaping American Influence". |
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5. TRAIL MIX: A federal court today tossed out another legal challenge to Tennessee Republicans’ congressional gerrymander, keeping the new map in place. More from The Tennessean Race ratings: The Cook Political Report’s Erin Covey shifted 18 House races toward Democrats, including putting Arkansas’ 2nd District and Indiana’s 5th on the competitive board for the first time. Iowa’s 1st and 3rd, Pennsylvania’s 7th and 10th and Washington’s 3rd shifted out of toss-up status into leaning Democratic, while Iowa’s 2nd, Michigan’s 4th, North Carolina’s 1st and Virginia’s 1st are newly toss-ups. Big money: Senate Majority PAC is putting $5 million into the Kansas race as it becomes a real target for Democrats, NYT’s Bayliss Wagner scooped. Big guns: Barack Obama cut new digital ads for the DNC, CBS’ Nikole Killion scooped, and has raised more than $13.6 million for Democrats this cycle. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries heads to Pennsylvania tomorrow to boost Bob Harvie’s challenge to GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, per the Philly Inquirer’s Sam Janesch and Fallon Roth. And Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is hitting the trail in Nevada, South Carolina, New Hampshire and Alabama, per NBC’s Sahil Kapur. 6. KNIVES OUT FOR KEN PAXTON: Another leaked audio recording of the Texas AG has Paxton saying last month that Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is “clearly not helping,” CNN’s Patrick Svitek reports. “He wants me to lose.” NYT’s Lauren McGaughy obtained a 2014 deposition of Paxton that provides a window into his immense wealth, including Paxton saying he couldn’t find stock certificates worth as much as $200,000 because “I don’t always keep track of this kind of stuff.” And an investigation by Zach Despart for ProPublica and The Texas Tribune finds that only one-sixth of his trips in office — which have cost taxpayers millions for security — listed a purpose related to his work. 7. WHEN TAX POLICY GETS JUICY: “SALT Tax Cap Has Couples Considering Divorce or Skipping Marriage to Save $20,000,” by Bloomberg’s Nacha Cattan: “The catch is that the SALT cap is the same for a single filer or a married couple, an aspect of the law that critics refer to as a marriage penalty. … It may not be the most romantic way to talk about your relationship status, but the new SALT rules are prompting some high-earning couples to run the numbers on marriage.”
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A message from OpenAI:  
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TALK OF THE TOWN |
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OUT AND ABOUT — The McCain Institute hosted a discussion last night about common ground with Mike Pence and Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), moderated by Bloomberg’s Annmarie Hordern. SPOTTED: Cindy McCain, Rick Davis, Lynn Forester de Rothschild, Josette Sheeran, Evelyn Farkas and Marc Short. — The Herald Group and John “CZ” Czwartacki’s Survivors for Solutions co-hosted a reception last night on the power of medical innovation, with an art show featuring the longtime GOP comms veteran’s paintings that reflect on his multiple sclerosis journey. SPOTTED: Doug McGinn, Marc Brumer, Taylor Gross, Tim Vaske, Berrett Stradford, Lauren Weber Holley, Brian Smith, Sean McGraw, Terri Stewart and Emma Doyle. — The Consumer Brands Association’s Tom Madrecki hosted a dinner roundtable at Cafe Milano last night about which dimensions of America First trade policy will remain constant in future administrations. USTR chief of staff Sam Mulopulos spoke, and Widehall’s Steve Clemons moderated. SPOTTED: Trevor Jones, Josh Snead, Zoe Sophos, Shawn Bengali, Stephen Vaughn, Clete Willems, Kyser Blakely, Kevin Dempsey, Ed Brzytwa, Katie Morley, Khary Cauthen, Heather Helm, Sean Murphy, Richard Vague, Mayur Patel, Betsy Struse, Rory Heslington and Paul Nolan. WHITE HOUSE DEPARTURE LOUNGE — Kevin Cline is joining Lex Politica as senior counsel. He previously worked in the White House Counsel’s Office, and is an RNC and Trump campaign alum. TRANSITION — Judy Shelton has been tapped as a senior adviser and counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, focused on China, per POLITICO’s Michael Stratford. She’s the Fed nominee from Trump’s first term who failed to make it through the Senate, and a longtime advocate for the gold standard. Shelton most recently was at the Independent Institute and Stanford’s Hoover Institution. 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 editors Giuseppe Macri, Garrett Ross and Kyler Alvord. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM was updated to include Georgette Mosbacher in a list of attendees at the Center for European Policy Analysis’ annual CEPA Honors gala.
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