POLITICO Playbook: ‘The Democrats are going to take care of the son of a b—- for us’

JUST POSTED — Soon after the Jan. 6 insurrection, Republican congressional leaders signaled it was time for the party to move on from DONALD TRUMP. That sentiment didn’t last long, and Republicans soon flocked back to the former president and his phony election fraud conspiracies. For the first time, we’re getting an inside view of what House Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY and Senate GOP Leader MITCH MCCONNELL were saying behind closed doors in an excerpt from “This Will Not Pass” by Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns.

Here are some of the juiciest bits from a story just posted“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/21/us/politics/trump-mitch-mcconnell-kevin-mccarthy.html”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb20000″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb20001″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>from a story just posted: 

— McConnell told top advisers, “The Democrats are going to take care of the son of a b—- for us,” after it became clear that Democrats were going to impeach Trump in the House, adding, “if this isn’t impeachable, I don’t know what is.”

— On a conference call with top Republicans, McCarthy said Trump’s conduct was “atrocious and totally wrong,” blamed him for inciting the crowd and “inquired about the mechanism for invoking the 25th Amendment … before concluding that was not a viable option.”

— McCarthy told Republican leaders he “planned to call Mr. Trump and tell him it was time for him to go. ‘What he did is unacceptable. Nobody can defend that and nobody should defend it,’ he told the group. Mr. McCarthy said he would tell Mr. Trump of the impeachment resolution: ‘I think this will pass, and it would be my recommendation you should resign.’”

— McCarthy also told GOP leaders that he wished Big Tech companies would strip some Republican lawmakers of their social media accounts, ‘We can’t put up with that,’ Mr. McCarthy said, adding, ‘Can’t they take their Twitter accounts away, too?’”

But their insistence that Trump had to go didn’t last: “The leaders’ swift retreat in January 2021 represented a capitulation at a moment of extraordinary political weakness for Mr. Trump — perhaps the last and best chance for mainstream Republicans to reclaim control of their party from a leader who had stoked an insurrection against American democracy itself,” Martin and Burns write.

FWIW, McCarthy’s spokesman told the pair that “McCarthy never said he’d call Trump to say he should resign,” and denied that he “said that particular members should be removed from Twitter.” McConnell’s team didn’t comment.

DEMS RETHINK THEIR ‘CULTURE WAR’ STRATEGY — Whether it’s pandemic restrictions and schools, or critical race theory and political correctness, when it comes to the culture wars raging across America, the right often dances circles around the left. And because of that, many Democrats — particularly those in vulnerable seats — either avoid engaging on those topics altogether or privately beg their colleagues to avoid overly “woke” rhetoric or policy prescriptions they believe could hurt the party politically.

Enter MALLORY MCMORROW, who is turning that conventional wisdom on its head this week.

• On Tuesday, the little-known Democratic state senator from suburban Michigan took on a GOP colleague who accused her in a fundraising email of wanting to “groom and sexualize kindergarteners” and teach “that 8-year-olds are responsible for slavery” — just because McMorrow criticized the “Don’t Say Gay”-style proposals gaining steam with the GOP, and backs a robust curriculum on the history of slavery in America.

• McMorrow was (understandably) deeply offended by suggestions that she was a “groomer.” (“Groomer,” for those of you who don’t speak 2022, is an adult who befriends children and abuses them sexually.) Her takedown on the chamber floor dripped with righteous indignation as she — speaking as a mother, a Christian and a woman who cares about the mental health of children — defended discussing the history of slavery in schools and ensuring LGBTQ kids don’t feel more marginalized than they already do.

• By Wednesday, McMorrow’s impassioned speech had gone viral. As of Wednesday night, the video had amassed more than 12.9 million views (and counting) and propelled more than $285,000 in donations from 6,200 contributors to her campaign — an exorbitant sum for a state-level pol.

Back in D.C., McMorrow’s speech has triggered a conversation among Democratic strategists about whether it’s a model for how the party can hit back on “culture war” issues. There’s a sense that the right has overreached on issues like abortion and LGBTQ rights, and that in doing so, they’ve provided Dems with an opening in an otherwise grim midterm cycle. Even Democrats who have long argued that the party should avoid hotly partisan culture issues altogether — or focus its energy on pocketbook issues — are starting to see the outlines of a new approach using McMorrow’s playbook.

— Case in point: JAMES CARVILLE, the longtime Democratic strategist who famously said “wokeness is a problem” for Democrats and has blasted his own party for messaging that he described as “faculty lounge bullshit,” told WaPo’s Greg Sargent that McMorrow’s speech was an “enormously effective piece of communication.”

“I’d show this clip as an instructional video,” he quipped.

— What’s so different here? We caught up on Wednesday night with BEN LABOLT, the longtime Democratic comms strategist at Bully Pulpit Interactive, who praised McMorrow for leaning into her personal story and framing these issues around defending basic human rights and a more inclusive society. He noted that many conservative “culture war” arguments are built on the premise of a foreign idea or set of values invading a local community or family unit, threatening what they hold dear. But McMorrow turned that narrative upside down by accusing the GOP of being the ones threatening values held by most people in the community.

LaBolt also argued that a vast majority of Americans support abortion rights and LGBTQ rights, which is why for a long time, many mainstream Republicans stopped making their own stances on those issues — which sometimes differed from society’s prevailing views — central to their campaigns. But now, red state after red state has enacted laws restricting abortion in anticipation of a major ruling on Roe v. Wade, banning transgender children from school sports and so on — issues that LaBolt thinks Democrats can win on if they start talking more like McMorrow

“It’s been sort of written off for years that Republicans fight and win culture wars, and I don’t think we should accept that,” LaBolt said. “Republicans are passing this legislation at a state level and viewing it as a messaging opportunity that they think rallies their constituencies, and I think we can fight back against it and we can fight back with the numbers behind us.”

SPEAKING OF ‘GROOMING’ — WaPo’s Colby Itkowitz has a story about a new trend in the GOP: accusing Democrats and LGBTQ people of some pretty heinous (and completely unsubstantiated) actions involving children. From the story: “The efforts ahead of the midterm elections are intended to rile up the Republican base and fill the campaign coffers of its candidates, without offering evidence that any Democrat had committed a repugnant crime.”

Good Thursday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”mailto:[email protected]”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40004″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40005″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”mailto:[email protected]”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40006″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40007″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”mailto:[email protected]”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40008″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bb40009″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>Ryan Lizza.

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN’S THURSDAY (all times Eastern):

— 9 a.m.: The president will receive the President’s Daily Brief.

— 9:45 a.m.: Biden will deliver an update on Russia’s war in Ukraine.

— 10:20 a.m.: Biden will depart the White House en route to Portland, Ore., where he is scheduled to arrive at 3:40 p.m.

— 4:05 p.m.: Biden will visit the Portland International Airport, and will deliver remarks at 5:10 p.m.

— 6:30 p.m.: Biden will attend a DNC fundraiser.

— 7:25 p.m.: Biden will depart Portland en route to Seattle, where he is scheduled to arrive at 8:15 p.m.

— 9:30 p.m.: Biden will attend a DNC fundraiser.

Principal deputy press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Portland.

VP KAMALA HARRIS’ THURSDAY (all times Eastern):

— 1:15 p.m.: The VP will depart Los Angeles en route to San Francisco.

— 3:50 p.m.: Harris will meet with current and former maternal health patients, and speak with members of the maternal health care workforce, and will deliver remarks on maternal health at 5:30 p.m.

— 10:55 p.m.: Harris will depart San Francisco to return to Los Angeles.

THE HOUSE is out. IRS Commissioner CHARLES RETTIG and national taxpayer advocate ERIN COLLINS will testify before an Oversight subcommittee at 10 a.m.

THE SENATE is out.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

FAA’S OOPSIES — It started with a panic-inducing email from the U.S. Capitol Police: “Evacuate Now: Aircraft Intrusion,” read the subject line on the blast that lit up phones of lawmakers and staffers just after 6:33 p.m. on Wednesday. While few members were actually on the Hill due to the ongoing recess, almost everyone who was there freaked out. Some longtime staffers had flashbacks to 9/11, when a plane was headed for the Capitol for a time, prompting people to literally sprint for safety. Others thought of the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6 and worried that this was somehow related.

Turns out it was all part of a Washington Nationals pregame ceremony: The Army’s Golden Knights were slated to parachute into the stadium and were flying around the area, which is just down the street from the Capitol, and no one bothered to give USCP a heads-up.

The lack of coordination highlights yet another serious problem in security on the Hill. Speaker NANCY PELOSI blasted the Federal Aviation Administration for its failure to notify the USCP in advance, calling it “outrageous and inexcusable,” and insisting on a review of what happened. We’ll hear more of this soon. In the meantime, here’s more from NBC.

ALL POLITICS

VULNERABLE DEMS FLEE BIDEN’S DRAG — Our Natalie Allison has a story up this morning about how the four most vulnerable Senate Democrats — Arizona’s MARK KELLY, Georgia’s RAPHAEL WARNOCK, Nevada’s CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO and New Hampshire’s MAGGIE HASSAN — are putting distance between themselves and Biden, who is deeply unpopular in their states.

— What they’re doing: “Their public pushback against Biden’s plan to lift the Trump-era border restriction known as Title 42 is the most visible expression of the effort to get distance from the president. But the four Democrats are also finding other ways of signaling to voters. They’ve visited the border wall and blocked his nominees. A month before a Trump-appointed judge struck down Biden’s mask mandate on mass transit, three of the four voted in favor of a Republican bill to do just that.”

— BUT, BUT, BUT: “On social media, where they shy away from praise of the president and instead focus on their efforts to prod the White House to action, it’s hard to tell they’ve voted in line with Biden no less than 96 percent of the time.”

YOUNGKIN GOES NATIONAL — Our colleague Alex Isenstadt scoops this morning that Virginia Gov. GLENN YOUNGKIN is looking to use the prominence he gained last fall by defeating TERRY MCAULIFFE to launch new political groups that will allow him to help GOP candidates in other gubernatorial and congressional races this November.

If this doesn’t say ambition, nothing does. “While the recently elected Youngkin has yet to declare any interest in running for president in 2024, his decision to set up a political vehicle is a natural one for a politician looking to expand his brand and forge alliances nationally.”

SANDERS NOT RULING OUT 2024 RUN — Sen. BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vt.) is never saying never. WaPo’s Sean Sullivan got his hands on a memo from top Sanders political hand FAIZ SHAKIR saying that “in the event of an open 2024 Democratic presidential primary, Sen. Sanders has not ruled out another run for president.”

MINNESOTA MAKES A MOVE — Minnesota Dems are plotting to join the growing number of states vying to jump ahead in the presidential nominating calendar, Elena Schneider scoops.

THE CONSULTANTS BEHIND THE RIGHT’S VIRAL ALL-STARS — Arsenal Media has emerged as something of a talisman among conservative politics that touts a roster of right-wing stars and promises viral campaign success. “Co-founded by gadfly meme enthusiast BENNY JOHNSON, the firm lists clients like Rep. MADISON CAWTHORN and DANA LOESCH and takes credit for more than doubling DONALD TRUMP JR.’s Facebook following. Most enticing, it seems to offer a tried-and-true playbook for making content hit it big,” reports The Verge’s Makena Kelly, who obtained the firm’s pitch deck.

Six former Arsenal employees who spoke to The Verge “described a chaotic working environment, rife with internal bullying, toxic HR practices, and an intense culture of secrecy. … ‘Benny can be a tough director, there’s no question,’ a Johnson spokesperson said when confronted with the claims. … Still, the pressures have led the company to shed staff just as the midterm election cycle is heating up. The Verge confirmed that three employees have left Arsenal over the last two weeks, although the specific reasons for the departure are unclear.”

OBAMA’S NEW MISSION — BARACK OBAMA has found a new passion in his post-presidential life: fighting disinformation. “In private meetings and public appearances over the last year, the former president has waded deeply into the public fray over misinformation and disinformation, warning that the scourge of falsehoods online has eroded the foundations of democracy at home and abroad,” NYT’s Steven Lee Myers and Cecilia Kang write. “In a speech at Stanford University on Thursday, he is expected to add his voice to demands for rules to rein in the flood of lies polluting public discourse.”

TRUMP CARDS

ONE MIGHT CALL IT ‘FAKE NEWS’ — The headline was juicy: “Trump walks out of explosive PIERS MORGAN interview after being pressed on 2020 election,”“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”https://nypost.com/2022/04/20/trump-walks-out-of-piers-morgan-interview-after-being-pressed-on-2020-election/”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbb0001″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbb0002″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>“Trump walks out of explosive PIERS MORGAN interview after being pressed on 2020 election,” wrote the N.Y. Post. The preview clip was even more enticing. Here’s how the Post described it: “Morgan told Trump the 2020 vote ‘was a free and fair election. You lost.’ ‘Only a fool would think that,’ Trump shot back. ‘You think I’m a fool?’ Morgan retorted. ‘I do now, yeah,’ Trump responded. The preview clip ended with Trump getting out of his seat and ordering production to ‘turn the camera off.’ ‘Very dishonest,’ he added while walking away.”

But the reality wasn’t quite as advertised. “Instead, according to [a] recording, which was provided by Trump’s spokesman, the two men thanked each other and laughed at the conclusion of the interview for Talk TV, a subsidiary of RUPERT MURDOCH’s News Corp,” NBC’s Marc Caputo and Jonathan Allen report. “There are no signs of Trump’s storming off set.”

Trump comms director TAYLOR BUDOWICH supplied audio of the interview to NBC, and “alleged that the show’s producers deceptively edited the video by splicing the sound of Trump saying ‘turn the camera off’ to make it falsely appear as if he made the statement while he was rising in anger. As for Trump’s saying ‘very deceptive,’ he made the comment after a frustrated Budowich called out Morgan for dragging out the interview and falsely and repeatedly saying he had one last question, only to ask more.”

END OF AN ERA — We’re just gonna let this lede sing for itself: “It’s last call at the bar of the Trump International Hotel in Washington,” NYT’s Eric Lipton writes. “The hotel … is slated to be sold in the coming days to a Florida investor group that will take down the Trump name and rebrand it as a Waldorf Astoria.”

JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH

ALEX JONES SEEKS IMMUNITY — “ALEX JONES, the host of the conspiracy-driven media outlet Infowars and a key player in the pro-Trump ‘Stop the Steal’ movement, is in discussions with the Justice Department about an agreement to detail his role in the rally near the White House last Jan. 6 that preceded the attack on the Capitol,” NYT’s Alan Feuer, Adam Goldman and Katie Benner report.

“As a condition of being interviewed by federal investigators, Mr. Jones, who is known for his rants about the ‘Deep State’ and its supposed control over national affairs, has requested immunity from prosecution. … [H]is discussions with the Justice Department suggest that the investigation into the postelection period could be gathering momentum.” (Our colleague Kyle Cheney had this news two days ago.)

LEE GOES ON RECORD — Sen. MIKE LEE (R-Utah) spoke publicly for the first time about the trove of text messages uncovered by CNN that showed his communications with Trump chief of staff MARK MEADOWS in the months after the 2020 election. Lee told the Deseret News in an interview Wednesday that “his only goal was to figure out Congress’ role in a presidential election and sort through theories the Trump campaign pursued to challenge the outcome.”

On his relationship with Meadows: “He knows that when I said things like ‘Tell me what we ought to be saying,’ what I was just trying to figure out was ‘What is your message?’ He knows me well enough to know that that doesn’t mean I will do your bidding, whatever it is,” Lee said. Lee also told Deseret that the “texts to Meadows are being used out of context for ‘political motives’ and were ‘leaked’ during an important period of time in his reelection campaign.”

Barack and Michelle Obama are shopping for a new podcasting partner and won’t be re-signing with Spotify, Bloomberg reports. Speaking of the Obamas …

Michelle Obama will make her “first in-person appearance before a large audience” since the pandemic started when she delivers remarks June 13 to When We All Vote’s inaugural Culture of Democracy Summit in Los Angeles.

Ron DeSantis will head to Las Vegas to campaign with Adam Laxalt — a big step outside of his own state.

Newsmax aired a segment on Wednesday lamenting the lack of Black conservative voices in the media that featured a graphic that showed Herman Cain (who died in July 2020) and Ben Shapiro (who is, uh, not Black).

Rudy Giuliani was unmasked on “The Masked Singer” on Wednesday night. He sang — if you can call it that — “Bad to the Bone.” Judge Ken Jeong wasn’t too pleased.

David Mack uncovered the surprisingly moving backstory behind the White House Easter bunny costumes.

Robert Allbritton is interested in buying the Washington Nationals.

The Bard meets The Donald in a new play, called “The 47th,” running in London.

The Trump campaign on Wednesday was ordered to pay nearly $1.3 million in legal fees to Omarosa Manigault Newman.

MIRROR, MIRROR — When “Daily Show” correspondent Jordan Klepper traveled to Hungary to film a new special on the decline of democracy under Viktor Orbán, he went with a goal in mind. The country has become “a place that conservatives were pointing to as somewhat of a conservative wonderland,” Klepper told Playbook. “We thought: Let’s go take a look at what America’s future could look like, at least if the conservative movement has its way.”

What he got, though, was less a glimpse of America’s future than a funhouse mirror of “many of the issues that are being talked about in America” right now, ranging from press freedoms to liberal democracy to LGTBQ rights.

On the ground in Budapest, Klepper said he was “shocked” by what he heard from Orbán supporters, like references to Hunter Biden’s laptop, suggestions that George Soros is “an enemy” and accusations that Joe Biden is a “fake” president — “the types of things I was used to hearing in the middle of Pennsylvania, not in the middle of Hungary,” Klepper told us.

Even as the special’s aim is comedic, Klepper says that the gradual loss of rights in Hungary is a stark reminder of how fragile democracy can be. “You can land in Hungary, and it’s a wonderful place with beautiful people who are caring and thoughtful but losing the ability to interact with it as a true democracy,” he said. “And I think Americans need to wake up.” “Jordan Klepper Fingers the Globe: Hungary for Democracy” premieres tonight on Comedy Central at 11:30 p.m. 

POLITICO MOVES — Adam Allington is joining POLITICO as a senior audio producer. He will helm our very own “Playbook Deep Dive” podcast (sign up here!“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”https://www.politico.com/podcasts/playbook-deep-dive”,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0002″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0003″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>sign up here!). He previously was at Bloomberg Industry Group, where he was a reporter and podcast host/producer. Newsroom memo“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000180-4a0d-d4ee-a7e0-dacfb7e60000″,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0004″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0005″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>Newsroom memo … Clea Benson is moving into a new role as managing editor for policy and Bob King is taking on an expanded role in driving coverage on energy, environment and transportation. Newsroom memo“,”link”:{“target”:”NEW”,”attributes”:[],”url”:”https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000180-4a6c-d4ee-a7e0-daee4b5c0000″,”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0006″,”_type”:”33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df”},”_id”:”00000180-4d6f-df63-aff1-dfef7bbf0007″,”_type”:”02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266″}”>Newsroom memo

MEDIA MOVE — Meghan Mistry is joining ABC as a producer for “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.” She previously was an associate producer at “CBS Mornings.”

TRANSITION — Zack Decker is now a managing analyst at Ballast Research. He previously was a government relations manager at the American Bakers Association.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: NYT’s Jodi Kantor … Queen Elizabeth II (96) … Saagar Enjeti … Matt Rivera … Felix Salmon of Axios and the “Slate Money” podcast … Farmer Mac’s Greg Lyons … Collin O’Mara of the National Wildlife Federation … Jay Cranford of CGCN Group … Will Boyington … Brad Cheney of the Majority Group … WSJ’s Katherine Finnerty … Mercury’s Jon Reinish … Steven Chlapecka … Paul Haenle of the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center … Harry L. Williams of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund … POLITICO’s Gloria Gonzalez, Amanda Hayes and Molly Childers … Terrence Clark … FEMA’s Justin Knighten … Niamh King of the Aspen Institute

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