POLITICO Playbook: Afghanistan cuts short Biden's victory lap - POLITICO - Politico

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DRIVING THE DAY

This week was supposed to be a victory lap of sorts for President JOE BIDEN. After months of negotiations, naysaying from pundits and a major expense of his political capital, he’d actually managed to engineer a bipartisan infrastructure deal that passed a fractious Senate with 69 votes.

We finally got infrastructure week. Yet at the end of it, infrastructure is not the biggest story — and the ones that obscured it spell real trouble for the White House.

In part, that’s because they’re headaches on issues that are important to key constituencies for Biden. For many members of the Washington establishment, the collapse of Afghanistan is horrifying. For many younger voters and people on the left, the UN’s dire new climate change assessment is a call to action on an issue where they don’t see Democrats doing enough. And for many in the Democratic base — especially Black voters — the continued lack of urgency around voting rights feels discouraging and self-defeating.

AFGHANISTAN

— FLASHBACK to July 8, 2021, Biden on Afghanistan: “The likelihood there’s going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely.”

— FAST-FORWARD to today: “The Taliban seized two more provinces on Saturday and approached the outskirts of Afghanistan’s capital while also launching a multi-pronged assault on a major northern city defended by former warlords,” the AP reports from Kabul. … More headlines: “Biden has wanted the U.S. to pull the plug on Afghanistan for years. Doing it has consequences,” by WaPo’s Anne Gearan and Karen DeYoung … “Afghan women fear return to ‘dark days’ amid Taliban sweep,” AP … “U.S. Embassy in Kabul Told to Destroy Files in Case Taliban Wins,” Bloomberg … “In desperation, U.S. scours for countries willing to house Afghan refugees,” Reuters

— NPR’s David Gura (@davidgura): “At the conclusion of an @NPR interview today, RANGINA HAMIDI, Afghanistan's acting minister of education, said, ‘I hope and look forward to potentially having another conversation. And if this is my last one, may the world know that the Afghan people have suffered tremendously.’” Listen to the NPR interview

Why are Afghanistan’s army and police crumbling so quickly after two decades and more than $88 billion by the U.S. to train and equip them? Two pieces attempting to answer that question are worth your time this morning:

— Bryan Bender and Paul McLeary: “The breathtaking failure to mold a cohesive and independent Afghan fighting force can be traced to years of overly optimistic assessments from U.S. officials that obscured — and in some cases, purposely hid — evidence of deep-rooted corruption, low morale, and even ‘ghost soldiers and police’ who existed merely on the payrolls of the Afghan Defense and Interior Ministries.”

— On paper, the Afghan security forces “numbered somewhere around 300,000 people, but in recent days have totaled around just one-sixth of that, according to U.S. officials,” NYT’s Thomas Gibbons-Neff, Fahim Abed and Sharif Hassan. Their bleak assessment: the Afghan army “will likely be gone before the United States is.”

CLIMATE CHANGE

— FLASHBACK to January 27, 2021, Biden on climate change: “It is an existential threat.”

— FAST-FORWARD to today: This week, the UN released a report on climate change that UN Secretary-General ANTÓNIO GUTERRES called a “code red for humanity,” with the next decade being a make-or-break time to actually, well … save the planet.

The $3.5 trillion spending plan passed by Senate Democrats this week makes major investments in renewable energy and electric vehicles, while issuing import fees targeting particularly bad polluters. But the legislation can still change, and that has many climate advocates worried that the remaining environmentally friendly components will be watered down or cut out altogether — especially as Sen. JOE MANCHIN, whose home state of West Virginia is so closely tied to the coal industry, plays a central role in the legislative process.

There is no doubt that Biden plans to do more to fight climate change, but climate activists continue to ring alarm bells that even that hasn’t been enough. While the White House is circumventing Congress by using the regulatory process to institute climate-friendly policies, that runs the risk of being slowed or blocked by federal judges. Meanwhile, the possibility of further climate legislation is complicated by the coming 2022 elections, where Republicans have the wind at their back to retake the House — which effectively means that the window for Democratic action on the climate could be rapidly closing.

VOTING RIGHTS

— FLASHBACK to July 13, 2021, Biden on new voting restrictions in GOP-led states: “We are facing the most significant test of our democracy since the Civil War. That’s not hyperbole.”

— FAST-FORWARD to today: This week ended with Congress heading out of town without having touched the issue. And some on the front lines of the voting-rights fight are confused: If Biden really thinks that this is the biggest threat to American democracy since the Confederacy, why would it take a backseat to infrastructure? And why wouldn’t he pressure moderate Senate Democrats to carve out a voting-rights exception to the filibuster?

I spoke with some of the Texas Democrats who fled their own state in order to deny quorum in the Texas legislature and block (at least temporarily) new voting restrictions from being enacted. They are frustrated by the lack of urgency coming from the White House, and are starting to head home, saying there’s no reason to be here if the administration isn’t serious about making the issue a top priority.

— Texas State Rep. JASMINE CROCKETT put it this way: “I think that we have dutifully passed the baton. … If they don't understand how significant it is and how important it is … there's nothing more that we, as Texas Democrats, can do.”

— Texas State Rep. RON REYNOLDS said he was disappointed that more hadn’t been done, and that he and his colleagues hope that the president will be more attentive once infrastructure is enacted.

Leadership in Congress remains adamant that they will work on the issue when they return to town. As our Heather Cagyle, Marianne Levine and Sarah Ferris reported this week, the House aims to vote later this month “on updated legislation to restore key provisions of the Voting Rights Act,” and that in the Senate, “a small group of Democratic senators are closing in on a compromise on separate but related set of more immediate voting reforms they think could unify the party, if not get any new Republican votes.”

But as we’ve said before: As long as the filibuster is in place, it’s hard to imagine what new voting rights bill could muster 60 votes in the Senate.

Good Saturday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri.

TWO MORE TOP SATURDAY READS …

— Can LINDSEY GRAHAM be the bridge between pro-Trump and Trump-hesitant Republicans? NYT’s Glenn Thrush, Jo Becker and Danny Hakim are out with a sharp deep-dive into the South Carolina senator who “casts himself as a singular force for moderation and sanity. He alone can fix the former president, he believes, and make him a unifying figure for Republicans to take back both houses of Congress next year and beyond. To that end, he says, he is determined to steer Mr. Trump away from a dangerous obsession with 2020.”

— ANDREW CUOMO speaks out about how he lost the governorship, by NY Mag’s Andrew Rice and Laura Nahmias: “‘How are you?’ ‘Philosophical, philosophical,’ Cuomo said, on the phone on Friday. … ‘I feel like I did the right thing. I did the right thing for the state,’ he said of his resignation. ‘I’m not gonna drag the state through the mud. … I feel good. I’m not a martyr. It’s just, I saw the options, option A, option B.’” Is there an option C? Rice and Nahmias dig into that.

BIDEN’S SATURDAY: The president is at Camp David and has nothing on his public schedule.

VP KAMALA HARRIS’ SATURDAY: The vice president has nothing on her public schedule.

PLAYBOOK READS

THE WHITE HOUSE

ABOUT HUNTER’S ART … “A Gallery Sells Hunter Bidens. The White House Says It Won’t Know Who’s Buying,” by NYT’s Graham Bowley and Robin Pogrebin: “The gallery is planning to sell 15 works by HUNTER BIDEN, and is asking as much as $500,000 apiece. The prices — which are high for a novice artist — have raised questions in Washington about whether the works might attract buyers seeking to curry favor with the Biden White House.

“In response, the administration has helped to develop a set of ethics guidelines that call on the gallery to keep the identity of buyers and other details of the sales from both the artist and the administration. Even though the art world is widely known for its secrecy and a lack of transparency, questions remain about how the arrangement will play out in practice.”

FLOTUS UPDATE — “Jill Biden wears medical boot after foot injury in Hawaii,” by AP’s Darlene Superville

POLICY CORNER

EVICTIONS EFFECTS — “‘We’re drowning’: Small landlords squeezed by eviction ban, slow aid,” by Katy O’Donnell: “Landlords are unsympathetic figures in the eyes of many struggling tenants, but they’re emerging as a new economic problem for Congress and the White House, after Democrats prioritized renters by pushing for the revival of the eviction ban earlier this month. The Biden administration has yet to find a way to accelerate the release of federal rental aid, meaning property owners will continue to be squeezed until the eviction moratorium expires Oct. 3 or is struck down in court.”

FOR YOUR RADAR — “DHS issues fresh threat warning as 9/11 anniversary approaches, pandemic grievances simmer,” by USA Today’s Kevin Johnson

PANDEMIC

THE VACCINATION EFFORT — “U.S. reports nearly 1 million vaccinations in past day, most since early July,” by The Hill’s Peter Sullivan: “About 918,000 were administered on Friday, according to CYRUS SHAPAR, the White House's COVID-19 data director. The number includes 576,000 people getting their first dose of the vaccine. … According to the CDC, the average number of shots per day has jumped from about 500,000 in mid-July to about 700,000. But the latest figures are still well below the peak in April, when more than 3 million shots were being given each day.”

PANDEMIC LATEST … “Los Angeles and Chicago schools to mandate teacher vaccinations,” by NYT’s Dana Goldstein … “Florida COVID deaths rise as delta spreads; infections hit 21,600 a day,” Tampa Bay Times … “‘Grim news’ of soaring COVID-19 hospitalizations prompts governor to send in Oregon National Guard,” by Oregonian’s Aimee Green

POLITICS ROUNDUP

CUOMO LATEST — “New York Assembly will not seek to impeach Cuomo after he resigns,” by Reuters’ Jonathan Allen and Joseph Ax: “Lawmakers in the New York Assembly will suspend their impeachment investigation of Governor Andrew Cuomo in light of his promise to step down from office over sexual harassment complaints, Speaker CARL HEASTIE said in a statement on Friday. … The decision means that Cuomo will not face the prospect of a ban from seeking elected office again in New York.”

— “Gov. Cuomo may be exiting, but ethical concerns still swirl around Chris Cuomo, CNN,” NBC News

SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED — “DeJoy bought up to $305,000 in bonds from USPS board chair’s investment firm,” by WaPo’s Jacob Bogage and Douglas MacMillan: “Between October and April, [Postmaster General LOUIS] DEJOY purchased 11 bonds from Brookfield Asset Management each worth between $1,000 and $15,000, or $15,000 and $50,000, according to DeJoy’s financial disclosure paperwork. RON BLOOM, a Brookfield senior executive who manages the firm’s private equity division, has served on the postal board since 2019 and was elected its chairman in February.

“DeJoy’s financial adviser purchased the bonds on the open market, Postal Service spokesman JEFFREY ADAMS said, and Bloom manages a division of Brookfield separate from the one that sells public securities.”

2022/24 WATCH — “Former Iowa Democratic Chair Troy Price named NHDP executive director,” by WMUR’s John DiStaso in Concord, N.H.: “The New Hampshire Democratic Party has tapped the former chair of the Iowa Democrats as its top staffer for the 2022 midterm elections and the 2024 presidential cycle as well. WMUR first reported early Friday afternoon that TROY PRICE is relocating to the Granite State to become the NHDP’s executive director, effective Monday. Price will lead a staff of more than a dozen people as the party beefs up its operations in preparation for the 2022 elections.”

BEYOND THE BELTWAY

RECALL ME MAYBE — “Newsom kicks off anti-recall campaign with simple message: ‘Just vote no,’” by S.F. Chronicle’s Joe Garofoli: “With ballots already arriving in the mail … Newsom said that the campaign had already invested $6.5 million in the largest get-out-the-vote effort ‘that’s ever been advanced in the state’s history.’ Newsom said the campaign has sent 17 million text messages reminding voters of the recall, and has 5,200 volunteers in the field. It is ramping up door-to-door canvassing and phone banking along with the state’s largest labor unions and other left-leaning organizations.”

— “Recall gives Netflix's Reed Hastings a chance to mend fences with Newsom,” by L.A. Times’ Taryn Luna: “In the jockeying among California political donors to support Gov. GAVIN NEWSOM’s fight against the recall, Netflix co-chief executive REED HASTINGS is near the top of the leader board — with one expensive mea culpa. The $3.1 million in contributions Hastings and his wife, PATRICIA QUILLIN, have given Newsom comes as part of a political reconciliation of sorts with the governor after the Silicon Valley executive supported Newsom’s opponent ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA in the 2018 gubernatorial primary.”

CHAOS IN COLORADO — “Mesa County must replace election equipment due to security breach, secretary of state says,” by Denver Post’s Justin Wingerter: “Mesa County must replace its election equipment because it is no longer secure after an unauthorized person allegedly took photos of its passwords that were later posted online, the secretary of state’s office determined Thursday. …

“[The secretary of state’s] office believes a security breach occurred at the Mesa County clerk’s office on May 25 during an update of Dominion Voting Systems’ equipment. On Aug. 2, images were posted to the social media site Telegram and right-wing blog The Gateway Pundit. They included election equipment passwords from Mesa County, according to the secretary of state’s office.”

MEDIAWATCH

CORRESPONDENT BARRED — “Russia Says It Will Expel a BBC Journalist,” by NYT’s Anton Troianovski: “Russia is expelling a BBC correspondent based in Moscow, Russian state television reported, the first time in years that a high-profile Western journalist has been publicly forced out of the country as part of a political dispute. The BBC condemned the move to expel the reporter, SARAH RAINSFORD, while holding out hope that the decision could still be reversed. … For now, even with Ms. Rainsford’s expulsion, the BBC will continue to have a presence in Moscow, including an English-language correspondent and a Russian-language operation.

“A Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that the British broadcasting giant had ignored ‘repeated warnings’ that it could face consequences in retaliation for pressure on Russian journalists in Britain, but she did not confirm the expulsion. The tone of a state television report Thursday evening left little doubt, however, that Russia was escalating its confrontation with the Western news media.”

MISCELLANY

WITHIN THE BELTWAY — “D.C. military base locked down until armed man detained,” by AP’s Michael Balsamo and Ashraf Khalil

PILLOW TALK — “MyPillow CEO says aggressive poke led to attack claim,” AP: “MyPillow chief executive MIKE LINDELL says he was aggressively poked by someone seeking a selfie in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, this week, which led him to say he was attacked. Lindell, who hosted an election fraud symposium in the city this week, told the conservative talk show FlashPoint that he was approached by a man who wanted a photo on Wednesday night. … Lindell had told the crowd Thursday at the election fraud symposium that said he was still in pain and wanted everyone to know about the evil in the world, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reported.”

CLICKER — “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker — 16 keepers

GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Ryan Lizza:

— It’s as good as everyone says: “What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind,” by The Atlantic’s Jennifer Senior: “Grief, conspiracy theories, and one family’s search for meaning in the two decades since 9/11.”

— “The Long, Slow Drowning of the New Jersey Shore,” by Andrew S. Lewis for NYT Magazine: “Billions have been spent to protect the beachfront. But inch by inch, water is winning the war.”

— “Everyone in San Francisco Has Something to Say About Chesa Boudin,” by New York’s Daniel Duane: “A wave of discontent crashes on a progressive prosecutor.”

— “QAnon Almost Destroyed My Relationship. Then My Relationship Saved Me From QAnon,” by the pseudonymous Megan, as told to Anastasiia Carrier for POLITICO Magazine: “How Covid isolation and supporting Bernie Sanders primed me to be sucked into a dark conspiracy theory.”

— “These People Who Work From Home Have a Secret: They Have Two Jobs,” by WSJ’s Rachel Feintzeig: “When the pandemic freed employees from having to report to the office, some saw an opportunity to double their salary on the sly. Why be good at one job, they thought, when they could be mediocre at two?”

— “A dog’s inner life: what a robot pet taught me about consciousness,” by Meghan O'Gieblyn for The Guardian: “The creators of the Aibo robot dog say it has ‘real emotions and instinct’. This may seem over the top, but is it? In today’s AI universe, all the eternal questions have become engineering problems.”

— “The disappearance of Dolores Wulff: A family's suspicions and 41-year search,” by ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg and Kyle Bonagura: Paul Wulff, a college football coach, was only 12 when his mother vanished from their family home. After 41 years of searching, he finally has been able to piece together some details of a mystery that upended both his life and family.

— From the archives: “The 9/11 Commission Report,” July 22, 2004.

PLAYBOOKERS

HOT JOB: Public engagement assistant at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Daybook

MEDIA MOVE — Rachel Roubein is joining WaPo to write the Health 202 newsletter. She most recently has been a health care reporter at POLITICO.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) … Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) … Kate Carr … NYT’s Adam Goldman … Boris Epshteyn … Tim Carney of the Washington Examiner and AEI … White House’s Rob Flaherty … Paige Willey of New Founding … Erik Sperling … POLITICO’s Peter Canellos and Colby Bermel … Bill Couch … WaPo’s Lori Montgomery … NYT’s Katrin Bennhold … Dan Sena of Sena Kozar Strategies … David Ellis … Elliott Hulse of the World Bank … Jessica Pavel … Denise Feriozzi of Civitas Public Affairs … Eric Wohlschlegel … E&E News’ Avery Ellfeldt … Jon Hoadley … Alia Awadallah … Paige Decker of the House Ways and Means GOP … Josh Freed … Edelman’s Jere Sullivan … Gary Endicott … Sean Miles of the Mayfair Group … Lynne Cheney (8-0) … former Reps. Tom Campbell (R-Calif.) and Robin Hayes (R-N.C.) … Matt Lauer of Mercuria Energy Trading and MSLGroup

THE SHOWS (Full Sunday show listings here):

“Face the Nation”: Anthony Fauci … House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) … New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul … Rosalind Osgood.
“The Sunday Show”: Eric Holder … Jane Harman … Rep Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.) … Amy Walter … Brittney Cooper … Matthew Dowd … Joe Walsh … Robin Givhan … Tarana Burke.
“Fox News Sunday”: NIH Director Francis Collins … Mike Pompeo. Panel: Doug Heye, Julie Pace and Juan Williams. Power Player: Newton Minow.
“Full Court Press”: Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) … Ina Fried.
“Meet the Press”: Secretary of State Antony Blinken … Michael Osterholm … Richard Engel. Panel: Kristen Soltis Anderson, Peter Baker, Cornell Belcher and Anne Gearan.
“Inside Politics”: Panel: Margaret Talev, Jeremy Diamond, Lauren Fox, Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Leana Wen and Kimberly Dozier.
“State of the Union”: Secretary of State Antony Blinken … New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul … Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas).
“This Week”: Secretary of State Antony Blinken … Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.). Panel: Donna Brazile, Phil Rucker, Sarah Isgur and Jane Coaston.

Send Playbookers tips to [email protected]. Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Mike Zapler, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Allie Bice, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross.

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