Playbook: Trump gives it to Democrats on a silver platter: the chaos elections Presented by Amazon

President Donald Trump's administration has given Democrats who want to run as being a check on chaos plenty of fodder. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Driving the Day

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MANY DEMOCRATS are going to run in November on being a check on President Donald Trump and the chaos they say he sows in the White House. The president keeps giving Democrats more and more fodder:

-- The president just pushed out his secretary of state. Now, reports indicate he is pushing out his national security adviser, possibly his chief of staff, maybe his VA secretary and attorney general.

-- The Mueller probe is moving closer and closer to Trump personally, as the special counsel subpoenaed the president’s business.

-- The president has toggled between completely divergent positions on everything from gun control to immigration.

-- A large number of government positions are unfilled, including critical ambassadorships. And, Trump keeps looking to cable news as his hiring pool.

-- Several of the president’s Cabinet secretaries are embroiled in scandals over pricey office decorations or a penchant for luxe travel.

-- A porn star who says she was paid a six-figure hush payment by Trump’s lawyer to cover up an affair is going on CBS’s “60 Minutes” in nine days. http://wapo.st/2DxkFTM

REPUBLICANS will try and localize their races and talk about the strength of the economy and how they delivered on tax cuts. It could be a tough sell with all this noise.

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CLEANING HOUSE … FOUR BYLINES, ONE CONTRIBUTOR: “Trump decides to remove national security adviser, and others may follow,” by WaPo’s Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey, Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig with Greg Jaffe contributing: “President Trump has decided to remove H.R. McMaster as his national security adviser and is actively discussing potential replacements, according to five people with knowledge of the plans, preparing to deliver yet another jolt to the senior ranks of his administration.

“Trump is now comfortable with ousting McMaster, with whom he never personally gelled, but is willing to take time executing the move because he wants to ensure both that the three-star Army general is not humiliated and that there is a strong successor lined up, these people said.” http://wapo.st/2FCid4t

-- NYT’S MIKE SHEAR and MAGGIE HABERMAN: “John F. Kelly, his second chief of staff, and Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, the national security adviser, are on thin ice. Mr. Kelly is said to have angered the president by privately saying ‘no’ to the boss too often, and Mr. McMaster, whom officials have described as never having clicked with the president personally, is sometimes at odds with Mr. Trump on policy.

“White House insiders predict that Mr. Trump could decide to fire one or both of them soon. The name most often mentioned as a replacement for Mr. McMaster has been John R. Bolton ... But another option is Keith Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general who is currently the chief of staff at the National Security Council ... Mr. Trump could act as early as Friday to remove one or more of them, though the president is known to enjoy keeping people off kilter.” http://nyti.ms/2GxUr6V

-- THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT pocket of people working in the White House who would be deflated and would consider quitting themselves if Kelly was fired. If Trump kicks Kelly to the curb the president would have to find a chief of staff who is willing and able to deal with the churn of his administration.

A NEW REALITY TRUMP WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH -- “Cabinet shakeups give Democrats a chance to block Trump picks,” by Matt Nussbaum and Burgess Everett: “The White House was hoping for a smooth 2018 on Capitol Hill. Instead, President Donald Trump is staring at two bitter confirmation fights — and the possibility emboldened Democrats could block his new Cabinet nominees.

“Trump’s decision to nominate CIA Director Mike Pompeo to replace Rex Tillerson at the State Department -- and to elevate Pompeo’s controversial deputy Gina Haspel, who hasn’t previously been confirmed -- has created a pair of high-stakes battles in the Senate, where the GOP enjoys a threadbare 51-49 advantage. With Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) opposing both nominees and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) absent while he undergoes treatment for brain cancer, Trump will need Democrats to support his picks.

“The looming struggle to get Cabinet replacements through underscores just how much the political calculus has changed for Trump since the early days of his administration, as Democrats look ahead to the midterms and throw off any semblance of cooperation with the White House.” http://politi.co/2DuXMAw

WOW -- DAN DIAMOND: “Exclusive: Trump finalizing opioid plan that includes death penalty for dealers”: “The Trump administration is finalizing a long-awaited plan that it says will solve the opioid crisis, but it also calls for law enforcement measures — like the death penalty for some drug dealers — that public health advocates and congressional Republicans warn will detract from efforts to reverse the epidemic. The ambitious plan, which the White House has quietly been circulating among political appointees this month, could be announced as soon as Monday when President Donald Trump visits New Hampshire, a state hard hit by the epidemic. ...

“Trump’s plan to use the death penalty in some cases found at least one fan among congressional Republicans: Rep. Chris Collins of New York, one of the president’s most consistent cheerleaders. ‘I’m all in on the capital punishment side for those offenses that would warrant that,’ he said when asked about the plans Thursday afternoon. ‘Including drug cases. Yep.’” http://politi.co/2ItwjCN

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ABOUT THAT BANKING BILL … -- “Hensarling’s last stand: Blocking banking bill,” by Zach Warmbrodt: “Texas Republican Jeb Hensarling is standing in the way of President Donald Trump’s next big legislative victory. The outgoing chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, backed by House leadership, is refusing to rubber-stamp the landmark bank deregulation bill the Senate passed Wednesday night in an overwhelming, bipartisan vote after years of work.

“The White House wants a bill on Trump's desk as soon as possible. But Hensarling warned Thursday that the House would sit on the legislation until senators agree to negotiate how to expand the package to include proposals that would benefit more sectors of the financial industry. That’s something the lawmakers are showing no appetite for after a brutal floor debate leading up to the bill's passage.

“‘Some seem to be under the impression that we are going to vote on their bill,’ Hensarling said. ‘They are under a misimpression.’” http://politi.co/2HCJYGu

A.P. UPDATE IN MIAMI … 5:57 a.m.: “BREAKING: Miami-Dade police say death toll in bridge collapse increases to six as search continues.”

-- More from the Miami Herald http://hrld.us/2GwkpHP

THE INVESTIGATIONS …

-- THURSDAY AFTERNOON SCOOP … MIKE SCHMIDT and MAGGIE HABERMAN: “Mueller Subpoenas Trump Organization, Demanding Documents About Russia”: “The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, has subpoenaed the Trump Organization in recent weeks to turn over documents, including some related to Russia, according to two people briefed on the matter. The order is the first known instance of the special counsel demanding records directly related to President Trump’s businesses, bringing the investigation closer to the president. The breadth of the subpoena was not clear, nor was it clear why Mr. Mueller issued it instead of simply asking for the documents from the company, an umbrella organization that encompasses Mr. Trump’s business ventures.

“Mr. Mueller ordered the Trump Organization to hand over records related to Russia and other topics he is investigating, the people said. The subpoena is the latest indication that the investigation, which Mr. Trump’s lawyers once regularly assured him would be completed by now, will continue for at least several more months.

“Word of the subpoena came as Mr. Mueller appears to be broadening his inquiry to examine the role foreign money may have played in funding Mr. Trump’s political activities. In recent weeks, Mr. Mueller’s investigators have questioned witnesses, including an adviser to the United Arab Emirates, about the flow of Emirati money into the United States.” http://nyti.ms/2Dw6n5V

-- OOPS: “Republicans fear they botched Russia report rollout: GOP lawmakers are on the defensive after challenging the intelligence community’s findings on election meddling,” by Kyle Cheney: “House Republicans are privately venting that they’ve fumbled the release of their own Russia probe report. The blaring headline the GOP wanted from this week’s rollout was clear:

“After a year of searching, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee found no evidence that President Donald Trump or his associates aided Moscow’s scheme to interfere in the 2016 election but that the nation must still prepare for another assault from the Kremlin.

“Instead, much of the focus has been on lawmakers’ startling conclusion that the nation’s intelligence agencies botched their analysis when they determined Russia wanted Trump to defeat Hillary Clinton.” http://politi.co/2phrbco

TRUMP WORLD …

-- “Trump eyes ‘Fox & Friends’ personality Pete Hegseth to take over Veterans Affairs,” by WaPo’s Lisa Rein: “Fox News personality Pete Hegseth, a conservative voice on veterans’ policy, has emerged as a leading candidate to replace embattled Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, who has fallen from favor with the Trump administration, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

“Hegseth, 37, is co-host of ‘Fox & Friends Weekend,’ a platform he has used to push his vision of a health-care system with a drastically smaller government footprint and a larger share of private care. He has railed against Shulkin and members of Congress in both political parties for their moderate approach to offering veterans access to private doctors.

“Hegseth is an Iraq War veteran who was previously executive director of the conservative advocacy groups Vets for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America, which is backed by the billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch.” http://wapo.st/2tR29X1

-- “U.S. housing department adviser quits amid questions of fraud and inflated biography,” by the Guardian’s Jon Swaine: “He said he was a multimillionaire – an international property developer with a plan to fix America’s cities through radical privatization. He felt that Donald Trump’s administration was where he was meant to work. ‘It was a natural fit,’ Naved Jafry said in an interview. Citing connections across the military, business and academia, he said: ‘I bring, and draw on, experiences from different areas of knowledge, like a polymath.’

“Jafry was contracted to work for Trump’s housing and urban development department (Hud). His government email signature said his title was senior adviser. Jafry said he used his role to advocate for ‘microcities’, where managers privately set their own laws and taxes away from central government control. But those plans are now stalled. Jafry, 38, said he had resigned from his position with Hud after the Guardian asked him to explain multiple allegations of fraud as well as exaggerations in his biography.” http://bit.ly/2DvqJfN

-- Hartford Courant’s Neil Vigdor: “The revolving door of Donald Trump’s political operation is opening once again for Carl Higbie. Two months after resigning from the Trump administration for making racial, homophobic and anti-Muslim slurs on a radio show in 2013, the former Navy SEAL from Greenwich is back helping the president. Higbie, 34, was named advocacy director Thursday of America First Priorities, a political action committee that uses the same tax exemption as ‘social welfare organizations’ such as the NAACP to keep its donors confidential.” http://cour.at/2HzUG0k

TIM ALBERTA in POLITICO Magazine’s March/April issue, “‘God Made Me Black on Purpose’: Tim Scott is the most prominent African-American Republican in America. In the Trump era, that’s no easy thing”: “Concerned about narrowing his brand, the senator long has tried to downplay his ethnic exceptionalism and avoid the role of race-relations ambassador for the GOP. And yet Scott, now more than ever, cannot seem to escape being perceived as such. He is not just a generic black Republican in a generic period of history; he is the most powerful and prominent black elected official in America, serving at a time of heightened racial tension and widespread accusations of xenophobia against his own party and the president who leads it.

“This ensures that Scott wears a target on his back regardless of the issue or crisis at hand. When race is involved, the stakes are even higher, forcing upon him decisions of personal and political identity: Scott can choose to stay silent and be accused of selling out his heritage, or speak out and be defined by his blackness.” http://politi.co/2G0Om4U

TRUMP’S FRIDAY -- The president with have lunch with VP Mike Pence, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.

SUNDAY SO FAR -- “Fox News Sunday”: Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) ... Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). Panel: Karl Rove, Marie Harf, Jason Chaffetz and Charles Lane

-- NBC’s “Meet the Press”: Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas). Panel: Jose Diaz-Balart, Jonah Goldberg, Eliana Johnson and Amy Walter

-- CBS’ “Face the Nation”: Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), and Angus King (I-Maine) ... South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha. Political panel: Dan Balz, Susan Davis, Mark Landler and Toluse Olorunnipa

-- CNN’s “State of the Union”: Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). Panel: Rick Santorum, Nina Turner, Jen Psaki and Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.)

-- CNN’s “Inside Politics,” hosted by John King: Julie Pace, Manu Raju, Jeff Zeleny, Rachael Bade



Playbook Reads

PHOTO DU JOUR: Speaker Paul Ryan holds up a pint of Guinness as he proposes a toast during the Friends of Ireland luncheon at the Capitol on March 15. | Alex Edelman/Pool/Getty Images

A BIG THANK YOU to the thousands of loyal Playbookers from around the country who submitted brackets to this year’s Playbook Pool. Fun storylines to keep an eye on:

-- GAVEL GAMES: SPEAKER PAUL RYAN has Xavier winning, while HOUSE MINORITY LEADER NANCY PELOSI has Arizona beating Villanova. Arizona lost in the first round to Buffalo.

-- BROTHER V. BROTHER: Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts has Kentucky winning the championship over Michigan. RNC Finance Chair Todd Ricketts has Xavier beating Villanova. At least they both like the Cubs, right?

-- UNITY AT CNN: Jake Tapper and Wolf Blitzer both picked Villanova to win.

-- CAN SPICER BEAT SHS? Sean Spicer has UVA beating Villanova for the championship in San Antonio. Sarah Huckabee Sanders has Nova beating UVA.

-- BATTLE OF THE FLACKS PART II: Joe Lockhart, most recently the top communications official at the NFL, has Villanova. His successor, Jake Siewert -- now of Goldman Sachs -- has UVA over Purdue.

KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED for an update on the leaderboard next week. Track all movement here. http://bit.ly/2pgpNYn

MCCLATCHY’S KEVIN HALL and BEN WIEDER: “Two controversial GOP fundraisers duking it out in court”: “Call it the oil well that didn’t end well. On one side of a bitter, long-running civil lawsuit over a failed Russian oilfield investment is Elliott Broidy, a top Trump fundraiser who faces questions raised by McClatchy and other news outlets about his work in Romania and with the United Arab Emirates, and about a possible contract to persuade the Justice Department to drop a probe involving Malaysia’s prime minister. ...

“On the other is Yuri Vanetik, a Zelig-like Soviet émigré who has misrepresented his academic credentials, may have run afoul of foreign agent registration requirements when he took politicians from Ukraine and Georgia to a series of meetings on Capitol Hill and, with his father, has been ordered by the courts to pay at least $8 million in civil fraud judgments.” http://bit.ly/2IrkxJ8

CH CH CH CHANGES -- “Coats rolls out overhaul of top intelligence office,” by James Kitfield: “A year into his tenure as the country’s top intelligence official, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats is reshuffling the office that oversees America’s 16 intelligence agencies, consolidating many functions under a new layer of management intended to refocus its work around a new set of security challenges. ...

“The year-long reorganization effort, driven in part by a survey of employees at ODNI and the agencies it oversees, will focus the office on four major functions: integrating intelligence streams from the various agencies it oversees; allocating resources among the agencies; promoting national security partnerships that include the private sector and foreign intelligence services; and developing strategies to grapple with future threats.” http://politi.co/2DxgxmK



‘HORROR SHOW’ -- “Trump wildlife protection board stuffed with trophy hunters,” by AP’s Michael Biesecker, Jake Pearson and Jeff Horwitz: “A new U.S. advisory board created to help rewrite federal rules for importing the heads and hides of African elephants, lions and rhinos is stacked with trophy hunters, including some members with direct ties to President Donald Trump and his family. A review by The Associated Press of the backgrounds and social media posts of the 16 board members appointed by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke indicates they will agree with his position that the best way to protect critically threatened or endangered species is by encouraging wealthy Americans to shoot some of them.

“One appointee co-owns a private New York hunting preserve with Trump’s adult sons. ... The first meeting of the International Wildlife Conservation Council was scheduled for Friday at the Interior Department’s headquarters in Washington. Council members aren’t being paid a salary, though the department has budgeted $250,000 in taxpayer funds for travel expenses, staff time and other costs.” http://bit.ly/2pffh3n

FIRST FAMILY -- “Vanessa Trump files for divorce from Donald Trump Jr.,” by NY Post’s Julia Marsh and Emily Smith: http://pge.sx/2FZMw4i

BEYOND THE BELTWAY -- “Gavin Newsom’s past affair disqualifies him from governorship, rival Renteria says,” by the Sacramento bee’s Alexei Koseff: “California gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom’s past sexual misconduct disqualifies him from holding higher office, rival Democrat Amanda Renteria said Thursday, and he should resign from his position as lieutenant governor. ‘If he was in the Legislature right now, he’d be called out, and like what we’ve seen, being forced out,’ Renteria said in an interview with The Sacramento Bee. ... As mayor of San Francisco more than a decade ago, Newsom had an affair with one of his City Hall aides, who was also married to his campaign manager at the time.” http://bit.ly/2FLJxt7

MEDIAWATCH -- “Fox News Renews Deal With Shepard Smith,” by Variety’s Brian Steinberg: “Fox News said Thursday that it signed the anchor to a new multi-year deal. Smith and Fox last drew up new employment terms in 2013, when Fox News made him its primary breaking-news anchor for the network, and created a new studio, the ‘Fox News Deck’ that he could use to interrupt regularly scheduled programming as events warranted.” http://bit.ly/2HA4Vlx



Playbookers

SPOTTED: Speaker Paul Ryan on an 8 p.m. American Airlines flight to Chicago Thursday night. … Kansas GOP Reps. Kevin Yoder and Lynn Jenkins on an American flight to Kansas City night. Paul Davis, the Democratic candidate running to replace Jenkins, was also on the flight.

TRANSITIONS -- Emily Miller is the new SVP of communications for the public affairs firm Clout, which is part of Axiom Strategies. She previously was the senior political correspondent for One America News and was the chief investigative reporter for Fox 5 DC.

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Julie Pace, Washington bureau chief for the Associated Press. How she’s celebrating: “My husband and I will probably spend my birthday weekend putting together furniture for our soon-to-arrive first baby and panicking about all of the things we still need to get ready!” Read her Playbook Plus Q&A: http://politi.co/2FCTo8x

BIRTHDAYS: Amy Shuster, coordinating producer at MSNBC ... Jeff Nussbaum, partner at West Wing Writers (hat tip: his WWW colleagues) … Art Collins, founding and managing partner at theGROUP ... Jason Rosenbaum, founder of Seward Square Strategies and HRC, DSCC and DCCC alum ... Andy Lewin, VP at BGR Group (h/ts Jon Haber) ... Rebecca Coffman, digital director at In Pursuit of (h/ts James Davis and Ali Pardo) … Patrick Appel, editor in chief of Traffic magazine, is 34 ... Denis Sgouros is 26 (h/t Nihal Krishan) ... WaPo’s Dalton Bennett ... Alex Stabler, who works in global partnerships at Endeavor (formerly WME|IMG) … WaPo’s Ellen McCarthy … Eric Avram, VP for talent, booking and ABC News specialized units at Disney/ABC Television Group ... Obama WH alum Darren Martin ... Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.) is 55 ... Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) is 56 ... former Citigroup CEO and chairman Sandy Weill is 85 ... Bobbi Bosch, former VP Quayle aide ... Stuart A. Smith is 77 ... Jordana Cutler, head of policy at Facebook’s Israel office ... freelance journalist Kaveh Waddell … Mike Valerio, correspondent for WUSA 9, is 3-0 (h/t Mitchell Rivard) ...

... Kevin Varney, COS for gov’t operations at Boeing (h/t Phil Musser) ... Riccardo Reati, VP for strategy, technology and innovation at Zurich Insurance in Chicago (h/t wife Lydia Mulvany) ... communications strategist Steven CF Anderson ... Patrick Murphy ... Brian Rosenthal, NYT metro investigative reporter (h/t Shane Goldmacher) ... GPG’s Adam Blickstein ... Kate Brown … Gary Emerling, AME for news at U.S. News ... Brian Young, a Fox News and ABC alum, is 51 ... Elly Pickett ... Kathy Prendergast ... Bradley Everett ... Ajay Kuntamukkala ... Neil Romano ... Matt Greenberg ... Ky Griffin … Carl Holshouser, senior director of global government relations at Visa ... Tom McDonough ... Jim McCray ... Kimmie Lipscomb of Morgan Stanley ... Christopher Swift is 42 ... Maura Brueger ... Seth Boffeli ... Jed Hastings ... William Payne is 3-0 ... Murat Gokcigdem.

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