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Presented by PhRMA: POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. | | | | |  | | By Garrett Ross | | | | 
People wait in line to enter the Supreme Court to hear oral arguments on its first day back in session on Monday, Oct. 3. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images | BACK IN BUSINESS — The Supreme Court is officially seated for its new session, returning to the bench today after an offseason that was marked by perhaps the most contentious atmosphere for the court in recent history. Here’s a roundup of what they decided today: — “Supreme Court allows defamation lawsuit against MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell to proceed,” by CNN’s Dan Berman: “Dominion is seeking $1.3 billion in damages, claiming it was harmed by unfounded statements from [MIKE] LINDELL and other allies of former President DONALD TRUMP that Dominion rigged its machines in favor of JOE BIDEN in the 2020 presidential election.” — “SCOTUS to hear challenge to tech liability protections,” by Rebecca Kern: “The case marks a new focus for the highest court to weigh in on Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act that protects platforms from being sued over most third-party content on their sites. The court will decide in the case of Gonzalez v. Google LLC whether those protections are too far-reaching when it comes to Google’s recommendations of terrorist videos.” — “Supreme Court leaves ban on bump stocks in place – again,” by CNN’s Ariane de Vogue and Devan Cole — “High court rejects Russian company’s dispute with Ukraine,” AP TOP TALKER — The election year ritual has officially returned: Checking in on The Two Nates (NATE SILVER of FiveThirtyEight and NATE COHN of NYT) to see their latest projections and prognostications. Today’s big swing comes from Cohn: “It’s Time to Take Democrats’ Chances in the House Seriously” “No, I’m not saying Democrats are favored,” Cohn writes. “The likeliest scenario is still that Republicans will find the five seats they need to take control. … But the idea that Democrats can hold the House is not as ridiculous, implausible or far-fetched as it seemed before the Dobbs ruling overturned Roe v. Wade . It is a real possibility — not some abstraction in the sense that anything can happen.” He lays out the calculus here: “Of course, the reason we think Democrats might overcome their obstacles in the Senate is because we have dozens of polls in critical Senate races. Thanks to those polls, we know Democrats lead in Pennsylvania and Arizona, which we might have assumed were tossups otherwise. In contrast, we have no idea whether Democrats are leading in equivalent races for the House: There are almost no nonpartisan House polls at all, and they’re spread out across many more races. But if Democrats can do what they appear to be doing in the Senate, there’s no reason to assume they couldn’t already be doing something similar in the House.” TRIAL TIP-OFF — The Oath Keepers trial is officially underway today, as leader STEWART RHODES and other members of the group are facing felony seditious conspiracy charges in what amounts to the “most significant criminal trial” to stem from the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, Kyle Cheney writes. The setup: “Prosecutors say dozens of Oath Keepers, led by Rhodes, stockpiled firearms at a Virginia hotel and prepared to lay siege to the Capitol to prevent the transfer of power to Joe Biden. They ultimately never deployed those weapons, but large factions of the group were among those who entered the Capitol,” Kyle writes. “The Oath Keepers plan to argue that everything they did was legal. Members of the group say they were primarily in Washington to serve as security details for pro-Trump VIPs.” WaPo has live updates here Good Monday afternoon.
| | | | A message from PhRMA: The 340B program may be driving up costs for some patients. A new analysis finds average costs per prescription for a patient is more than 150% greater at 340B hospitals than at non-340B hospitals. It’s time to fix the 340B program. Learn more. | | | | 
| BIG PICTURE TOUGH TIMING — The Fed traditionally goes out of its way to steer clear of political campaigns, making no big moves in the months leading to Election Day. Not this year, Ben White writes. With inflation raging at 40-year highs, Fed Chair JEROME POWELL is determined to slam the brakes on inflation — even if it means tipping the economy into recession. “It’s a rare moment for a Fed chair to toss aside all political considerations and ignore frantic investors,” Ben writes. “But Powell is facing the worst inflation spike since the Reagan administration — a problem that Fed critics say he helped create by downplaying price surges last year — and is racing to prevent worse pain in the coming months. If he’s unable to do that, it could cement a legacy of failure that he deeply wants to avoid.” BATTLE FOR THE SENATE AS SEEN ON TV — WaPo’s Colby Itkowitz and Lenny Bernstein take a look at MEHMET OZ’s former life as a TV doctor, noting that during his time on TV, Oz “provided a platform for potentially dangerous products and fringe viewpoints, aimed at millions of viewers, according to medical experts, public health organizations and federal health guidance.” The Oz response: “Oz and his defenders have said that his approach on the program was to give viewers hope and provide different points of view. … After The Washington Post submitted detailed questions in an email, a campaign representative sent back broad statements addressing attacks from his opponent, his career, and products promoted on his program, but leaving many specific inquiries unaddressed.” — “In the midst of a tight race for U.S. Senate, Mehmet Oz visits Philly Black clergy members,” by the Philly Inquirer’s Henry Savage BATTLE FOR THE HOUSE ENDANGERED SPECIES — “How Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Progressive Democrat, Survives In Trump Country,” by HuffPost’s Daniel Marans in Honesdale, Pa.: “The former trial lawyer is one of just four House Democrats currently representing districts where President Donald Trump won in both 2016 and 2020. … What makes Cartwright more unique, however, is that unlike many colleagues in swing states or districts, he does not make a point of bucking party leadership on big-ticket items. He was an easy ‘yes’ vote for the Inflation Reduction Act and the Build Back Better legislation before that.” HOT ADS With help from Steve Shepard — Pennsylvania: Oz’s campaign slams Democrat JOHN FETTERMAN, accusing him of supporting “decriminalizing dangerous drugs, like heroin and fentanyl,” and touting Oz’s own medical experience: “I’ve worked in addiction for years.” (Fetterman’s campaign says he does not, in fact, support decriminalizing hard drugs.) — Indiana: GOP House candidate JENNIFER-RUTH GREEN, an Air Force veteran and reservist, wears a flight suit in her first TV ad , a bio spot in which she rails against “career politicians” while an image of Democratic Rep. FRANK MRVAN appears on screen.
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | MORE POLITICS HOW IT HAPPENS — “How a Tiny Elections Company Became a Conspiracy Theory Target,” by NYT’s Stuart Thompson: “Unlike other election technology companies targeted by election deniers, Konnech, a company based in Michigan with 21 employees in the United States and six in Australia, has nothing to do with collecting, counting or reporting ballots in American elections. Instead, it helps clients like Los Angeles County and Allen County, Ind., with basic election logistics, such as scheduling poll workers.” The impact: “Konnech’s founder and chief executive, EUGENE YU, an American citizen who immigrated from China in 1986, went into hiding with his family after receiving threatening messages. Other employees also feared for their safety and started working remotely, after users posted details about Konnech’s headquarters, including the number of cars in the company’s parking lot.” THE WHITE HOUSE CRUEL SUMMERS — “Larry Summers has President Biden’s ear — but not always his support,” by WaPo’s Jeff Stein and Tyler Pager: Since being shut out of talks over the White House’s economic rescue package, “White House officials have worked on what some privately characterize as a campaign to manage Summers, trying to make sure he feels heard — if not always heeded. Summers is in routine contact not only with [Treasury Secretary JANET] YELLEN and [NEC Director BRIAN] DEESE but also Chief of Staff RON KLAIN, with whom he communicates roughly weekly, as well as the president himself, with whom he has spoken privately around a half-dozen times over the last year.” Just how often is Summers speaking with the White House? “A White House official said the president has spoken with Summers about the same number of times since taking office as he speaks with Yellen every month.” TRUMP CARDS FAVRE’S BACKUP — “Trump lawyer Eric Herschmann to represent Brett Favre,” by Axios’ Mike Allen: “The former Green Bay Packers quarterback is at the center of Mississippi’s biggest-ever public corruption case. … Herschmann has talked with Favre multiple times, and spent several weeks reviewing years of text messages, emails and contracts, the source said. The lawyer concluded Favre shouldn’t be indicted, and has convincing defenses if he were. Then he agreed to represent him.”
| | | | A message from PhRMA:   It’s time to fix the 340B program. Learn more. | | | WAR IN UKRAINE AGAINST THE GRAIN — “Russia smuggling Ukrainian grain to help pay for Putin’s war,” by AP’s Michael Biesecker, Sarah El Deeb and Beatrice Dupuy: “AP used satellite imagery and marine radio transponder data to track three dozen ships making more than 50 voyages carrying grain from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to ports in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and other countries. Reporters reviewed shipping manifests, searched social media posts, and interviewed farmers, shippers and corporate officials to uncover the details of the massive smuggling operation.” LIFE IN LYMAN — “I Lived in Russia? Annexation Is News to Key City Reclaimed by Ukraine,” by NYT’s Andrew Kramer in Lyman, Ukraine POLICY CORNER ON YOUR FYP — “TikTok Security-Deal Talks Pose Liability for Biden,” by WSJ’s John McKinnon and Alex Leary in Washington and Raffaele Huang in Singapore: “The talks have taken on added urgency, according to people familiar with the situation, as Republicans vow to push for hearings, potentially including TikTok executives, on the issue should they win House or Senate majorities in the Nov. 8 midterm elections. These people say a deal with TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. aimed at erecting a wall between the U.S. and Chinese operations is close, but caution that hurdles remain—including operational challenges and possible opposition by China’s communist government.” KEEPING UP — “Kim Kardashian to pay $1.26M to settle SEC crypto charges,” by Declan Harty
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY. | | | | | BEYOND THE BELTWAY IMMIGRATION FILES — “Gov. Sununu announces deployment of New Hampshire National Guard members to southern U.S. border,” by WMUR’s Adam Sexton: “The governor's office says soldiers are prohibited from being in contact with migrants and can only notify Customs and Border Protection officers of crossings. The deployment is expected to be for one year.” PLAYBOOKERS OUT AND ABOUT — The Burns Brothers firm hosted a Congressional Black Caucus Conference after-party at the private lounge HQ on Sunday night. SPOTTED: Megan Goode, who was a host for the CBC ALC Phoenix Awards gala, Just Blaze, D-Nice, Larenz Tate, Lahmard Tate, Lauren Wilson, Kamau Marshall, Dr. LeMia Jenkins-Thompson, Vincent Evans, Erica Loewe, Trey Baker, Laura Jimenez, Cameron Trimble, Nicole Varner, Brandon Webb, Ashley Harrington, Ben Branch, Denise Terry and Roland Martin. COMING SOON — Rachel Maddow is launching a new podcast titled “Ultra,” an eight-episode series that “examines the history of a seditious plot to undermine democracy 80 years ago, and the wild fight to stop it.” The series will debut with two episodes on Oct. 10. MEDIA MOVE — Ryan Nobles is joining NBC as a Capitol Hill correspondent. He previously was a congressional correspondent at CNN. TRANSITIONS — Jon Trotta is joining Davis Wright Tremaine as a partner. He previously was an attorney and partner at Stinson and is a FERC alum. … Wes Fisher is now the director of government affairs at the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry. He most recently was senior director of government affairs at the Pet Advocacy Network. … … Tilden Katz is joining Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies as a senior principal and launching the firm’s strategic comms and reputation management practice. He most recently was VP of strategic comms and crisis comms at SmithBucklin. … Usman Rahim is joining Bank of America’s public policy team as a senior VP. He previously was a financial services policy analyst for BGR and is a Treasury and Thom Tillis alum.
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