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Presented by Amazon: POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. | | | | |  | | By Garrett Ross | | | | 
What Republicans want to do after the midterms is starting to become more clear as Election Day approaches. | Andrew Harnik/AP Photo | Discussion about the debt limit has ramped up in recent weeks as the potential for Republicans to retake the House — and potentially the Senate — looks more and more likely. This morning, former President DONALD TRUMP weighed in during an on-air phone call on “Real America’s Voice,” and used the opportunity to attack Senate Minority Leader MITCH McCONNELL. “It’s crazy what’s happening with this debt ceiling. Mitch McConnell keeps allowing them to have it,” Trump said. “They ought to impeach Mitch McConnell if he allows that.” Watch a 27-second clip While that’s obviously not going to happen, Washington is starting to brace for the bruising fight over the debt ceiling — a prospect that’s “alarming administration officials, Democrats in Congress and some investors who fear a stalemate that could roil financial markets at a precarious time for the global economy,” NYT’s Emily Cochrane and Jim Tankersley write . — How soon we could see it: “The fight could come to a head as soon as early next year, when the government is projected to hit its borrowing limit unless Congress can muster the votes to raise it.” WHAT ELSE IS ON THE AGENDA? — “GOP congressional majorities would pivot to spending cuts, Biden probes,” by WaPo’s Liz Goodwin: “Some fiscal hawks are pushing dramatic spending reforms and overhauls of entitlement programs including Social Security and Medicare, while others are insisting that simply blocking future Democratic legislation and attempting to repeal some of President Biden’s signature achievements will represent enough of a shift toward fiscal responsibility to appease voters. “Either way, the GOP agenda would all but certainly lead to dramatic showdowns with Biden and his veto pen, and Democrats are warning of the potential for government shutdowns and dysfunction, while dreading the raft of oversight investigations Republicans will launch if they gain the gavels.” Rep. JIM BANKS (R-Ind.): “I don’t believe that anybody wants to shut down the government, but the debt limit and the spending fights provide leverage for Republicans to push for reforms that we’ve campaigned on to address the major issues and challenges of the day. … And hopefully President Biden would be willing to come to the table and be willing to negotiate with Republicans.” And then there’s the subpoena power that Republicans may wield. This morning on Fox News, GOP Leader KEVIN McCARTHY said the three “main investigations GOP-controlled House would undertake are the Afghanistan withdrawal, origins of COVID & DoJ probes of parents at school board meetings,” per Fox News’ Chad Pergram . (The big one he didn’t include: Republicans’ desire to investigate HUNTER BIDEN.) Meanwhile, Club for Growth President DAVID McINTOSH is warning Republicans to avoid whatever knee-jerk impulses they might have to impeach President JOE BIDEN should they secure the House next year. Even if there’s a GOP wave, “I don't think it’s a mandate to impeach Joe Biden,” McIntosh said in a press conference on Thursday. “I think the voters would want to leave that question to them in 2024 and sort it out in the next election.” (h/t Sam Sutton) WAR FATIGUE INCHES UP IN U.S. — “Republican Opposition to Helping Ukraine Grows, WSJ Poll Finds,” by Vivian Salama: “Some 30% of respondents overall said in the new survey they believe the administration is doing too much to help Ukraine, up from 6% in a March Journal poll. The change was driven by a big shift among GOP voters: 48% of Republicans now say the U.S. is doing too much, up from 6% in the previous survey. The portion of GOP voters who said the U.S. isn’t doing enough to help Ukraine fell to 17%, a steep drop from 61% in March.” Good Thursday afternoon.
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| BIG PICTURE DEMS’ DEMOGRAPHIC DILEMMA — WaPo’s Dan Balz is up with the latest in their “Deciders” series, reporting from Norcross, Ga.: “Democrats count on huge Black turnout, but has the party delivered in return?” He writes: “Given that the political fundamentals of this midterm election favor Republicans, Black voters are more crucial than ever for the Democrats. One overriding question is whether they will turn out in numbers big enough to offset those GOP advantages. Regardless, many Black voters fear a future in which overt racism becomes more apparent. They have concerns about whether Biden, who is well liked, has the strength to unify the country around a more positive vision. And there are questions about whether the Democratic Party speaks to Black voters as effectively as needed.” THE VIEW FROM 1600 PENN — “In campaign swing, Biden focuses on incumbent Democrats,” by AP’s Aamer Madhani ON WISCONSIN — Rolling Stone’s Kara Voght profiles BEN WIKLER , the chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, who sees existential stakes to next week’s election. “There’s a real sense of, like, a twilight struggle against authoritarianism if we don’t do everything we can,” he tells her. Writes Voght: “[W]hen the polls close at 8 p.m. next Tuesday, Wikler will have either held the line for democracy, or Wisconsin will be in the hands of a party that has made clear that the only legitimate elections are ones where it wins. Either way, there’s a good decent chance he’ll spend a lot of the next few years thinking about how he spends the next few days.” DEEP IN THE HEART — “They Were Trying to Help Run Elections. Then They Got Criminally Investigated,” by ProPublica’s Cassandra Jaramillo and Joshua Kaplan: “Texas Attorney General KEN PAXTON hasn’t just been pursuing supposed voter fraud. His office has also criminally investigated at least 10 election workers, in a harbinger of potential post-midterm turmoil.” WAY DOWN-BALLOT — “TOMS shoes founder gives $1 million to psilocybin legalization in Colorado,” by the Denver Post’s Tiney Ricciardi BATTLE FOR THE SENATE FAMILY FEUD — “Alaska Senate race fueled by Trump, McConnell feud,” by NBC’s Peter Nicholas, Carol Lee and Marc Caputo: “A Republican is going to win the Alaska Senate race, but that hasn’t stopped MITCH McCONNELL from plowing millions of dollars into the deep-red state. McConnell allies say he simply wants to protect Republican Sen. LISA MURKOWSKI, who faces a serious challenge from fellow Republican KELLY TSHIBAKA . But strategists see a proxy war playing out between McConnell, R-Ky., the Senate minority leader, and his chief antagonist, former President Donald Trump, who is backing Tshibaka.” BATTLE FOR THE HOUSE CALIFORNIA LOVE — “Exploring the riddle of California’s 450-mile-long 3rd Congressional District,” by the L.A. Times’ Thomas Curwen: “Nearly 450 miles long, the 3rd Congressional District contains scores of small towns like Darwin from its southern border in the Mojave Desert where Inyo and San Bernardino counties meet, along the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada, the western shore of Lake Tahoe, to the southern Cascade Range where Plumas County ends. Two candidates — Republican Assemblyman KEVIN KILEY and Democrat Dr. KERMIT JONES — are vying to represent the district. Both are from the Sacramento suburbs, adding to Darwin residents’ suspicions.” BATTLE FOR THE STATES FROM THE OPPO FILES — “Michels Corp. does not have Black employees in management positions, according to public documents,” by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Corrinne Hess: “Michels Corp., Wisconsin's largest construction company co-owned by Republican gubernatorial candidate TIM MICHELS, doesn't have any Black people and only two Hispanic people working in leadership positions, according to public documents filed by the company. Michels Corp. which employs 8,000 people and has received more than $1.1 billion from Wisconsin for construction projects since 2014, also falls slightly below the industry average for hiring Black and brown people.” HOT POLLS — Wisconsin: GOP Sen. RON JOHNSON leads Democrat MANDELA BARNES, 47% to 45%, per a new Spectrum News/Siena College poll . Meanwhile, Democratic Gov. TONY EVERS leads Michels in the gubernatorial race by the same margin, 47% to 45%. — New Hampshire: Democratic Sen. MAGGIE HASSAN leads Republican DON BOLDUC 51% to 41%, per a new UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion poll . HOT ADS Via Steve Shepard — Ohio: Democratic Senate candidate TIM RYAN is back at the bar for a form of closing-argument ad in which he says he’s part of the “exhausted majority,” and urges voters to “turn the page on this era of stupidity and reject the extremism and get back to being Americans first.” — Rhode Island: “This is the Republican Party in Congress now,” begins the DCCC’s latest ad in Rhode Island , as images of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot flash along the screen, along with photos of House Minority Leader KEVIN McCARTHY and Reps. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.) and MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-Ga.). “And ALLAN FUNG will vote with them.” — Massachusetts: In the sleepy race to replace GOP Gov. CHARLIE BAKER, Democrat MAURA HEALEY is up with her closing-argument ad . “My opponent is Donald Trump’s choice for governor,” Healey says to camera. “I’d be honored to be yours.” — Iowa: GOP Rep. MARIANNETTE MILLER-MEEKS recalls her six-vote victory last cycle in her closing-argument ad . “When I got [to Congress], Nancy Pelosi tried to take it away,” Miller-Meeks says, referring to losing candidate RITA HART’s aborted challenge last year.
| | | | NEW AND IMPROVED POLITICO APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. With a fresh look and improved features, the sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don’t miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. Already a POLITICO app user? Upgrade today! DOWNLOAD FOR iOS – DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID . | | | | | CONGRESS PROMISES MADE — “Cherokees Ask U.S. to Make Good on a 187-Year-Old Promise, for a Start,” by NYT’s Simon Romero in Tahlequah, Okla.: “The Cherokees and other tribal nations have made significant gains in recent decades, plowing income from sources like casino gambling into hospitals, meat-processing plants and lobbyists in Washington. At the same time, though, those tribes are seeing new threats to their efforts to govern themselves. … Amid such challenges, the Nation is trying to cobble together bipartisan support for its delegate, who, if seated, would resemble the nonvoting House members representing several territories and the District of Columbia. Such delegates cannot take part in final votes, but can introduce legislation and serve on committees.” FOR YOUR RADAR — “Private Medicare Plans Misled Customers Into Signing Up, Senate Report Says,” by NYT’s Reed Abelson and Margot Sanger-Katz THE WHITE HOUSE WHO’S GOT BIDEN’S EAR — “Biden’s Inflation Advisers: CEOs, Old Pals, Field Hockey Parents,” by Bloomberg’s Nancy Cook: “While his predecessors might have turned to Wall Street giants like Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Biden’s White House reached out to corporate executives such as Apple Inc.’s TIM COOK, Bank of America Corp.’s BRIAN MOYNIHAN, and the leaders of retailers Target Corp. and Walmart Inc., according to people familiar with the matter. “Biden’s most frequent calls were with labor leaders , several of whom the president’s known for years. He talked occasionally with former Treasury Secretary LARRY SUMMERS, whom the president calls ‘Lar,’ and gleaned tidbits of information about the US economy from people he ran into at church, golf and his grandkids’ field hockey games back home in Delaware.” STUCK ON THE TARMAC — “Delays in Boeing’s New Air Force One Cause Costs to Pile Up for Shareholders, Taxpayers,” by WSJ’s Andrew Tangel: “The Arlington, Va., aerospace company said it expects to lose $766 million more on the high-profile, years-late project to transform two 747-8 jumbo jets into flying White Houses, bringing its total losses related to the effort to nearly $2 billion, according to securities filings. The additional costs were part of a larger charge that led Boeing to report a $3.3 billion third-quarter loss.”
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Francisco started at Amazon in a fulfillment center and is now a trained technician, thanks to Amazon’s Mechatronics and Robotics Apprenticeship. Hundreds of thousands of hourly employees can use Amazon’s free skills-training programs to get higher-paying jobs at the company. Learn more. Sponsored by Amazon   | | | MORE POLITICS HEARTLESS — “Thieves keep stealing money from Kanye West's old 2020 presidential campaign account,” by Insider’s Dave Levinthal: “An Insider review of federal campaign finance records indicates that ‘unknown’ persons took several thousand dollars from his still-active Kanye 2020 account: $1,474 on December 9, 2021; $1,280 on February 8, and $1,245 on February 22. In an unsigned letter to the Federal Election Commission, West's campaign acknowledged that it experienced an ‘external fraud situation.’” BEYOND THE BELTWAY THE BLAME GAME — “Mortgage Rates Too High? (Blame the Fed, Wall Street and Your Neighbor.),” by NYT’s Joe Rennison and Tara Siegel Bernard — “Older, White and Wealthy Home Buyers Are Pushing Others Out of the Market,” by NYT’s Ronda Kaysen AMERICA AND THE WORLD SHOCKING NEWS — “Imran Khan, Ex-Prime Minister of Pakistan, Is Shot at Rally,” by NYT’s Salman Masood and Christina Goldbaum: “[IMRAN] KHAN was in Wazirabad, in eastern Pakistan, leading a protest march to the capital, Islamabad, to demand that the government hold early elections when his convoy came under attack. Mr. Khan, 70, was shot in the leg and was being moved to Lahore for treatment, according to FAWAD CHAUDHRY , a senior member of Mr. Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. Mr. Chaudhry called the incident ‘100 percent an assassination attempt.’” DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — “A Biden-Xi Summit Presents Latest Challenge to U.S.-China Ties,” by WSJ’s Charles Hutzler and Lingling Wei: “Senior officials and aides have been wrangling over whether the leaders will meet around the Group of 20 summit of major economies in Indonesia in mid-November. The meeting would be their first face-to-face since Mr. Biden’s election, and, people briefed on the discussions said, Chinese officials have only recently re-engaged after ill feelings over the leaders’ last exchange.” CLIMATE FILES — “China Is Burning More Coal, a Growing Climate Challenge,” by NYT’s Keith Bradsher and Clifford Krauss — “Fossil fuel projects were stalled a year ago. Now they’re making a comeback,” by WaPo’s Evan Halper THE 30,000-FOOT VIEW — “The Messy Unwinding of The New World Order,” by WSJ’s Jon Hilsenrath, Anthony DeBarros and Kara Depena
| | | | LISTEN TO POLITICO'S ENERGY PODCAST: Check out our daily five-minute brief on the latest energy and environmental politics and policy news. Don't miss out on the must-know stories, candid insights, and analysis from POLITICO's energy team. Listen today . | | | | | MEDIAWATCH FOR WHOM THE CLOSING BELL TOLLS — “CNBC Cancels Shepard Smith’s Show Amid Business-News Push,” by Variety’s Brian Steinberg: “Smith’s last show will air later in November, and CNBC intends to replace his program, ‘The News with SHEPARD SMITH,’ with an evening hour devoted to business news in early 2023.” GOING DIGITAL — “Alabama’s Three Largest Newspapers to Stop Printing Next Year,” by WSJ’s Alexandra Bruell PLAYBOOKERS TRANSITIONS — Antonio White is now SVP and public policy executive for U.S. federal affairs at Bank of America. He most recently was deputy assistant secretary for community engagement in the office of public affairs at the Treasury Department. … James Hong is now head of marketing for Americas at Ørsted. He previously was VP and chief of staff at Urban Legend and is an SKDK alum.
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