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Presented by American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers: POLITICO's must-read briefing on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. | | | | |  | | By Eli Okun | | | |  | THE CATCH-UP | | | MANCHIN OPTS OUT — Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.) announced today that he will not run for president, NBC’s Ali Vitali, Julie Tsirkin, Mike Memoli and Alex Tabet report from Morgantown, West Virginia, saying that “democracy is at stake right now” and he didn’t want to be a spoiler. He’d flirted with the prospect of launching a centrist challenge against President JOE BIDEN and DONALD TRUMP on the No Labels ticket. NAILING DOWN TRUMP ON ABORTION — Trump has long managed to wriggle out of stating clearly what limits on abortion he supports, caught between the GOP’s strongly anti-abortion base and his need to appeal to swing voters who oppose severe bans. But NYT’s Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan report some of his most specific answers yet: Privately, he’s told his circle that he favors a national 16-week ban on the procedure, with exceptions for rape, incest and saving the life of the mother. It’s an attempt to split the difference politically — and Trump has reportedly said he doesn’t want to go public with it until after the primary. Classic Trump: Per the Times, he landed on 16 weeks in part because he liked four months as a nice round number.
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Alexei Navalny's death stunned the world. | Pavel Golovkin/AP Photo | MOURNING IN MOSCOW — Russian dissident ALEXEI NAVALNY, a leader of the opposition to Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN and a global symbol of resistance in the face of authoritarianism, died today in a penal colony at age 47, Russian authorities announced. Though details about his death aren’t yet clear, he’d seemed in good spirits and health at a court appearance just yesterday. More from WaPo His death stunned the world from Washington to the Munich Security Conference, with potential ramifications for the U.S.-Russia relationship, the war in Ukraine and even the American presidential campaign. President JOE BIDEN — who told Jonathan Lemire in 2021 that there would be “devastating” consequences for Moscow if Navalny died in prison — said simply in remarks this afternoon that “we’re contemplating what else can be done,” and that Russia had already faced significant consequences in the past three years. And Biden got very blunt about the need for Congress to pass more aid to Ukraine: “This tragedy reminds us of the stakes of the moment,” he said. “History is watching the House of Representatives. The failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will never be forgotten.” In Munich, VP KAMALA HARRIS and U.S. officials also shared new details on the price that Russia has paid for its invasion of Ukraine, saying that an estimated 315,000 Russian troops have been killed or hurt. YULIA NAVALNAYA, Navalny’s wife, also made a surprise statement on stage in Munich shortly after the news broke, declaring that Putin and his allies would be punished for what they’d done to him and to Russia, per NYT’s Peter Baker. She met with Secretary of State ANTONY BLINKEN today, per NBC’s Josh Lederman. In the U.S., the news could provide more ballast to opponents of Trump, who have long criticized him as overly cozy with Putin. NIKKI HALEY quickly blamed “[t]he same Putin who Donald Trump praises and defends.” Navalny’s death follows closely on the heels of Trump’s controversial comments inviting Russia to attack NATO allies, which are the subject of a new Biden campaign ad, NBC’s Monica Alba scooped. The minute-long ad, which calls Trump’s remarks outright “shameful,” “weak,” “dangerous” and “un-American,” is specifically focused on reaching voters of Polish, Finnish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian descent in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Could Navalny’s death break the logjam over Ukraine aid in Congress by spurring more House Republicans to action? Don’t count on it. But Democrats certainly hope so: Many lawmakers today said sending assistance to Kyiv and countering Putin is all the more essential now, Kierra Frazier reports. And notably, in a statement this morning, Speaker MIKE JOHNSON said, “As Congress debates the best path forward to support Ukraine, the United States, and our partners, must be using every means available to cut off Putin’s ability to fund his unprovoked war in Ukraine and aggression against the Baltic states.” (We also got bill text this morning from the band of moderates trying again on a national security/immigration package.) Added Sen. THOM TILLIS (R-N.C.), a vocal supporter of Ukraine aid: “History will not be kind to those in America who make apologies for Putin and praise Russian autocracy. Nor will history be kind to America’s leaders who stay silent because they fear backlash from online pundits.” Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. We’ll be off Monday for the holiday, but Playbook will still be in your inboxes every morning. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.
| | | | A message from American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers: EPA is set to finalize a regulation designed to end the sale of new gas and diesel cars regardless of what drivers want, need, and can afford. Polling shows that Americans think the Biden EPA is moving too far, too fast. President Biden: Stop the EPA’s car ban. Vehicle policies can’t just work for some of us. They should work for all of us. | | | | | 8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW | | | 
If Donald Trump has a Republican Congress, undoing the Inflation Reduction Act would be a priority in a second term. | Jamie Kelter Davis for POLITICO | 1. TRUMP’S SECOND TERM: If Trump returns to the White House, he would take major steps to unwind Biden’s climate change-fighting agenda, Reuters’ Valerie Volcovici and Gram Slattery report in a deep look at Trump’s would-be energy and environmental policies. That would include quick executive orders to expand fossil fuel production, pull out of international climate efforts and slow down the electric vehicle transition. If he has a Republican Congress, undoing the Inflation Reduction Act would be a priority. Giving national forests and federal land to the states is also under consideration. The folks Trump is talking to on these issues include LARRY KUDLOW, DAVID BERNHARDT, RICK PERRY, KEVIN HASSETT and HAROLD HAMM. The anti-Project 2025: While Trump’s allies lay the groundwork for massive upheaval in the federal bureaucracy to fire tens of thousands of employees and install political loyalists instead, some liberal groups are trying to take action now to hamstring him, AP’s Will Weissert reports. A forthcoming Office of Personnel Management rule will prevent the reclassification of many bureaucrats, and another OPM rule could pump the brakes on agency relocations. Some advocates want Biden to sign executive orders putting guardrails around the domestic use of the military. But Trump’s opponents also acknowledge they can do only so much. 2. ANNALS OF LOBBYING: “As Gaza Death Toll Mounts, the Peace Lobby Fights for Influence in Washington,” by NYT’s Kate Kelly: “When the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a Quaker group that is pushing for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, wants to push its message, its Middle East lobbyist turns to tactics like playing guitar with schoolchildren in the occupied West Bank and sharing video messages about their fears with members of Congress … [But they’re] struggling to get traction for their message in Washington.” 3. STRUGGLING TO CONTAIN TEHRAN: A big new NYT investigation from Christiaan Triebert, Blacki Migliozzi, Neil Bedi and Alexander Cardia reveals that at least a whopping $2.8 billion worth of Iranian oil has managed to circumvent U.S. sanctions in just the past year, propping up the Iranian government. Notably, it “was transported aboard 27 tankers, using liability insurance obtained from an American company. That meant that the U.S. authorities could have disrupted the oil’s transport by advising the insurer, the New York-based American Club, to revoke the coverage.” At the same time, Iran’s weapons industry has increasingly turned into a major supplier of arms around the world, targeting and stumping the U.S. and its allies in multiple conflicts, WSJ’s Benoit Faucon reports. The technological sophistication of its drones and other exports has grown in leaps and bounds. 4. PRIMARY COLORS: “Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee was once Amanda Edwards’ boss. This time, she’s her opponent,” by Semafor’s Kadia Goba in Houston: “There’s a growing nationwide fatigue with senior politicians who refuse to pass the baton and [Rep. SHEILA] JACKSON LEE may be on the receiving end of it this cycle. After a surprisingly lousy showing in the mayoral race, she appears vulnerable for the first time in nearly three decades as a member of Congress. [AMANDA] EDWARDS is a credible opponent with real cash and energy behind her. … [But] Jackson Lee has high name recognition and is known for a loyal base of support that she’s carefully cultivated and maintained across decades.”
| | | | YOUR VIP PASS TO THE MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE: Dive into the heart of global security with POLITICO's Global Playbook at the 2024 Munich Security Conference. Gain exclusive insights and in-depth analysis as author Suzanne Lynch navigates the crucial discussions, key players and emerging trends that will shape the international security landscape. Subscribe now to Global Playbook and stay informed. | | | | | 5. THE NEW GOP: Several different factors contributed to Trump’s push to dethrone RONNA McDANIEL as chair of the RNC in his near-complete takeover of the Republican Party. But among the most potent was ongoing bad blood over money issues, including how much the RNC did or didn’t support the Trump campaign in 2020, WaPo’s Josh Dawsey and Ashley Parker report. Though the former president liked McDaniel, he rewarded her loyalty only up to a point. Big donors had told Trump they might not keep contributing if she remained at the helm, and he was irked by the RNC’s poor cash-on-hand numbers. Trump was also frustrated in feeling that McDaniel hadn’t supported his election fraud lies enough. Related read: “Trump Fully Devours the Republican Establishment,” by NYT’s Michael Bender: “Long a dominant force over the party’s institutions, he is now moving to fully eradicate their independence and remake them in his own image.” 6. WHEN EVERYTHING IS POLITICS: “Donald Trump Jr. Ventures Into the Lifestyle Space — and Brings the Culture War With Him,” by Rosie Gray in POLITICO Magazine: “Field Ethos, a new hunting and outdoors magazine founded by the former president’s son, seems at first glance like a new project for [DONALD] TRUMP JR. But it’s all an extension of his father’s political strategy.” 7. KNIVES OUT FOR MIKE JOHNSON: The House GOP’s recent stumbles have more members grumbling aloud about the speaker’s leadership, including in a new piece from NOTUS’ Haley Byrd Wilt and John Seward. Many representatives say Johnson is trying his best with a near-impossible task of uniting a fractious and small majority. But aside from fundraising, they write, “Johnson is failing on multiple fronts: Lawmakers don’t know what the House will work on each week and the chamber’s schedule frequently falls apart. Republicans are forced to take uncomfortable or pointless votes. They don’t have much clarity into Johnson’s strategic thinking.” 8. PULLOUT FALLOUT: “Biden defends deadly Afghanistan withdrawal — doesn't think anyone made a mistake,” by Axios’ Alex Thompson, reporting from our colleague Alex Ward’s forthcoming book, “The Internationalists” ($32): “[He’s] privately defiant that he made the right calls on Afghanistan in 2021 despite the U.S. military’s chaotic exit … Biden believes history will look kindly on his decision to end the two-decade war — America’s longest — even though it came at an enormous political cost … Ward captures the subtle and not-so-subtle tensions between the State and Defense Departments in the run-up to the withdrawal. Biden was wary of the Defense Department.”
| | | | CONGRESS OVERDRIVE: Since day one, POLITICO has been laser-focused on Capitol Hill, serving up the juiciest Congress coverage. Now, we’re upping our game to ensure you’re up to speed and in the know on every tasty morsel and newsy nugget from inside the Capitol Dome, around the clock. Wake up, read Playbook AM, get up to speed at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report, and fuel your nightly conversations with Inside Congress in the evening. Plus, never miss a beat with buzzy, real-time updates throughout the day via our Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Fani Willis has been urged by multiple advisers to tell Nathan Wade to step aside. William Ruto will have a state visit to Washington in May. Elon Musk’s X is allowing Chinese propaganda aimed at the U.S. to run rampant. Ronny Jackson’s time at the White House Medical Unit is coming under scrutiny. Alexander Eastman tried to get fentanyl lollipops for a helicopter flight to the U.N. IN MEMORIAM — “Retired AP photographer Lou Krasky, who captured hurricanes, golf stars and presidents, has died,” by AP’s Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina OUT AND ABOUT — HBO and the Icelandic Embassy co-hosted a screening of the finale of “True Detective: Night Country” at the Motion Picture Association last night. SPOTTED: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), Douglas Jones, Mariana Adame, Elizabeth Hidalgo Reese, Norwegian Ambassador Anniken Krutnes, David Sigurdsson, Sheridan Prasso, Julia Manchester, Sarakshi Rai, Mari Jo Winkler, Alexa Verveer, Gail MacKinnon, Tammy Haddad and Amy Ricchetti. — SPOTTED at the XR Association’s “Charting the Future of Immersive Technology: Transforming Work, Education, Entertainment and Health” event: Elizabeth Hyman, Jameson Spivack, Kristina Podnar, Ellysse Dick, Dileep Srihari, Hunter Graff, Jason Goldman, Brett Hallagan, Rachel Wolbers, Joan O’Hara and Stephanie Montgomery. — CNN hosted a screening last night of the first episode of Jake Tapper’s new series, “United States of Scandal,” centered on Rod Blagojevich, at the International Spy Museum. Amy Entelis welcomed guests, and Alyssa Farah Griffin held a Q&A with Tapper afterward. SPOTTED: Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), Anthony Fauci and Christine Grady, Jennifer Tapper, Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Terry and Dorothy McAuliffe, David Leavy, Virginia Moseley, Sam Feist, Lynda Carter, Kara Swisher and Amanda Katz, Chris and Emily Krebs, John McCarthy, Jessica Dean and Alex Katz, Josh Dawsey, Ben Haas, Michael Grynbaum, David Chavern, Michael Moroney and Francesca Chambers, David Chalian, Eva McKend, Boris Sanchez, Yemisi Egbewole, Sydney Harvey, Crystal Carson, John Hudson and Mary Ellen Callahan. Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us at 202-556-3307. Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Mike DeBonis, deputy editor Zack Stanton and Playbook Daily Briefing producer Callan Tansill-Suddath. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM misstated the position Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) holds in the House Freedom Caucus. He is a member.
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