POLITICO Playbook: Hurricane Trump at the G-7 Presented by Amazon

DRIVING THE DAY

All eyes are on President Donald Trump at the G-7 summit in France. | Andrew Harnik/AP Photo

SCOOP -- ANDREW DESIDERIO and ELIANA JOHNSON: “House Judiciary Committee to subpoena ex-White House aide Rob Porter”: “The House Judiciary Committee will subpoena former White House staff secretary Rob Porter, a key witness in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s obstruction of justice investigation into President Donald Trump, as the panel weighs whether to recommend articles of impeachment.

“Porter, who resigned his post last year amid allegations that he abused his two ex-wives, was at the president’s side during several episodes of potential obstruction chronicled in Mueller’s 448-page report on Russian interference in the 2016 election and Trump’s attempted to thwart the probe.

“The White House is likely to block Porter from complying with the committee’s subpoena, which seeks public testimony.” POLITICO

G-7 WRAP-UP…

-- THE LATEST ON CHINA: “Trump says serious trade negotiations with China to begin,” by AP’s Zeke Miller and Darlene Superville in Biarritz, France: “President Donald Trump, under pressure to scale back a U.S.-China trade war partly blamed for a global economic slowdown, said Monday that the two sides will begin serious negotiations soon. Trump said his trade negotiators had received two ‘very good calls’ from China. He did not say when the calls were made and he declined to say whether he is in direct contact with President Xi Jinping.

“Trump said the conversations were a sign that China is serious about making a deal following the latest tit-for-tat tariffs between them. ‘I think we’re going to have a deal, because now we’re dealing on proper terms. They understand and we understand,’ Trump said as he met with Egypt’s president on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in France. ‘This is the first time I’ve seen them where they really want to make a deal. And I think that’s a very positive step,’ Trump said.” AP

BUT, BUT, BUT -- BLOOMBERG’S MELISSA CHEOK (@mkcheok): “JUST IN: China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang says has no info on phone calls to U.S. cited by Trump, adding later ‘I can tell you clearly that I haven’t heard of such a thing’ * Says China will protect itself on trade if U.S. persists with current approach.”

-- STATE OF PLAY: “G-7 summit set to end with little consensus amid Trump’s mixed messaging on the trade war,” by WaPo’s Toluse Olorunnipa, Michael Birnbaum and Damien Paletta in Biarritz: “[A]s the summit entered its final day, there was little sign that Trump and other world leaders had reached anything nearing a consensus on thorny issues including trade, climate change, and how to deal with Iran, North Korea and Russia.

“Illustrating the growing divide between world leaders, the French all-but-abandoned efforts to craft a joint statement at the end of the summit, cognizant of how the United States is drifting further away from other nations on a growing number of issues.” WaPo

-- NOT ON THE PRESIDENT’S PRIORITY LIST: L.A. TIMES’ @EliStokols: “Trump attended a G7 working session on Syria security issues but missed the one about climate, biodiversity and oceans. Other leaders attended both.”

-- FROM 30,000 FEET: NYT’S PETER BAKER in Biarritz: “Rule 1 at the G7 Meeting? Don’t Get You-Know-Who Mad”: “For a day, at least, everyone was on their best behavior when the cameras were on, eager to present a show of bonhomie after so many previous meetings ended in discord. But behind the scenes at the annual gathering of some of the world’s leading powers, President Trump still found himself at odds with his counterparts on Sunday over issues like trade, climate change, North Korea, Russia and Iran.

“Ever so gingerly, as if determined not to rouse the American’s well-known temper, the other Group of 7 leaders sought to nudge him toward their views on the pressing issues of the day, or at least register their differences — while making sure to wrap them in a French crepe of flattery, as they know he prefers.

“It was far from clear the messages were received, or in any case at least welcome. Like other presidents, and perhaps even more so, Mr. Trump tends to hear what he wants to hear at settings like this, either tuning out contrary voices or disregarding them. Through hard experience, other leaders have concluded that direct confrontation can backfire, so they have taken to soft-pedaling disagreements.” NYT

-- POLITICO EUROPE’S DAVID HERSZENHORN and RYM MOMTAZ: “Macron’s G7 descends into summit of spin”

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MARKET WATCH -- “Global Stocks Fall as Trade Tensions Escalate,” by WSJ’s Shen Hong and Steven Russolillo: “Global stocks and government bond yields fell on Monday as a fresh escalation in the U.S. trade war with China, followed by conciliatory moves over the weekend, cast fresh doubt on growth prospects. China’s Shanghai Composite Index shed 1.1%. …

“On Monday, investors’ concerns about the impact on global trade played out in the markets. U.S. futures tied to the S&P, which were briefly negative on Monday, turned positive after Mr. Trump said China had called U.S. trade officials and asked to ‘get back to the table’ for talks. Investors are losing faith in how both sides are approaching the trade war and whether a resolution could be reached soon, according to Peter Atwater, a research analyst and adjunct lecturer at William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.” WSJ

TRUMP’S TAKE -- @realDonaldTrump at 7:30 p.m.: “In France we are all laughing at how knowingly inaccurate the U.S. reporting of events and conversations at the G-7 is. These Leaders, and many others, are getting a major case study of Fake News at it’s finest! They’ve got it all wrong, from Iran, to China Tariffs, to Boris!” … “My Stock Market gains must be judged from the day after the Election, November 9, 2016, where the Market went up big after the win, and because of the win. Had my opponent won, CRASH!”

Good Monday morning.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK -- STEVE BULLOCK is announcing a slew of staff and senior policy advisers later today, including Maura Matthews as national finance director and Mark Spengler as senior adviser and chief of staff for finance. Bailey Mohr is coming on board as digital director. James Wise will be policy director, and Marc Heinrich will be deputy policy director.

Bullock is also announcing more than a dozen policy advisers, including Chris Lu, Anne Slaughter Andrew, Andrew Shapiro, Frank Rose and Tracy Stone Manning.

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WHAT THE … AXIOS’ JONATHAN SWAN and MARGARET TALEV: “President Trump has suggested multiple times to senior Homeland Security and national security officials that they explore using nuclear bombs to stop hurricanes from hitting the United States, according to sources who have heard the president's private remarks and been briefed on a National Security Council memorandum that recorded those comments.” Axios

-- JUST SAYING … AP: “Forecasters say the fourth tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season is maintaining its strength as it moves toward the Windward Islands. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Sunday that Tropical Storm Dorian could intensify to near hurricane strength over the eastern Caribbean Sea by Tuesday.”

BURGESS EVERETT in Old Town, Maine: “Inside Susan Collins’ reelection fight in the age of Trump”: “Shortly after Barack Obama won and Susan Collins was reelected in 2008, the president invited her to the White House to pitch the economic stimulus. It was not particularly subtle. ‘He said: “You know Susan, they really like me in Maine. And I did really well in the last election,”’ Collins recounted over sandwiches at the Governor’s Restaurant in Eastern Maine. ‘I practically had to bite my tongue in two to avoid saying: “They do like you Mr. President, but they liked me better.”’

“For Collins to win a fifth term, she needs Mainers to again like her more than the current White House occupant. A whole lot more. The 66-year-old political giant is facing the race of her life despite her universal name recognition and bipartisan reputation. President Donald Trump is targeting Maine as a battleground while his divisive politics has cleaved the state in two, and Collins has to share the ticket with him. …

“Projected to be the most expensive in Maine’s history, the race is of imperative importance for party leaders and the Senate institution itself. With scarce opportunities elsewhere, Senate Democrats essentially need [Sara] Gideon to win to gain a minimum of three seats and the majority. In the Senate, a Collins loss would be a potentially fatal blow to the reeling center of the chamber.” POLITICO

2020 WATCH …

-- MARC CAPUTO in Seattle: “‘The rock star’ vs. ‘The rock’: Warren and Biden hurtle toward collision”: “Elizabeth Warren has the crowds. Joe Biden has the lead. The split-screen story of one of the most intriguing match-ups of the Democratic presidential primary is unfolding in a glaring contrast of style and substance.

“On Sunday, Warren stood on the biggest stage of her presidential campaign for a rally here that drew an estimated 15,000 people — eclipsing an estimated 12,000-person event she held in Minnesota earlier in the week, according to her campaign. Across the country in New Hampshire, Biden presided over a series of intimate, subdued events in New Hampshire and Iowa, hosting crowds that numbered in the low hundreds.

“Warren roused her supporters with calls for ‘big, structural change,’ and the crowd roared with chants of ‘Two cents! Two cents’ while waving two fingers in the air as Warren discussed her 2 percent ‘wealth tax.’ Biden pounded away at President Donald Trump, his campaign subtly and overtly reminding voters that polls consistently show him as the party's best general election candidate and the primary’s frontrunner.

“The parallel displays by two of the three leading Democratic candidates offered a possible preview of the collision course looming if Biden and Warren maintain their current trajectory. It would be a clash of opposites: the progressive firebrand against the establishment favorite; the cerebral candidate of big, bold plans vs. the elder statesman offering himself as a safe haven for people who simply want a return to pre-Trump normalcy.” POLITICO

-- “When they go low? Dems navigating nasty race against Trump,” by AP’s Steve Peoples

-- “How Bernie and Cardi B became 2020's oddest alliance,” by Holly Otterbein

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TRUMP’S MONDAY -- The president will meet with Indian PM Narendra Modi this morning. He will participate in a G-7 working lunch on digital transformation followed by a closed session of the G-7. Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron will hold a joint press conference at 9:30 a.m. Eastern time before Trump and first lady Melania Trump depart for Washington.

PLAYBOOK READS

PHOTO DU JOUR: Charred trees in the Amazon stand Sunday after a forest fire, one of many across the Brazilian rainforest that have been sparking global worries. | Eraldo Peres/AP Photo

FOR YOUR RADAR -- “Attacks blamed on Israel across three Middle East countries ratchet up tensions,” by WaPo’s Liz Sly and James McAuley in Beirut: “Attacks against Iranian-allied forces in three countries, all blamed on Israel, escalated tensions across the Middle East on Sunday, drawing threats of retaliation and intensifying fears that a bigger conflict could erupt.

“The attacks Saturday and Sunday targeted Iranian forces and their proxies in Lebanon, Syria and Iraq, in what appeared to be a significant escalation of Israeli efforts to contain the expansion of Iranian influence in the region that could jeopardize the continued presence of U.S. troops in Iraq and draw Lebanon into a new war.” WaPo

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SOUNDS LIKE A SWEET DEAL … REUTERS/KABUL: “As U.S. and Taliban negotiators push to wrap up talks aimed at securing the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan, Taliban sources say a pact will not mean an end to fighting with the U.S.-backed Afghan government. … ‘We will continue our fight against the Afghan government and seize power by force,’ said the Taliban commander on condition of anonymity.” Reuters

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MEDIAWATCH -- “Trump Allies Target Journalists Over Coverage Deemed Hostile to White House,” by NYT’s Ken Vogel and Jeremy Peters: “A loose network of conservative operatives allied with the White House is pursuing what they say will be an aggressive operation to discredit news organizations deemed hostile to President Trump by publicizing damaging information about journalists. …

“Four people familiar with the operation described how it works, asserting that it has compiled dossiers of potentially embarrassing social media posts and other public statements by hundreds of people who work at some of the country’s most prominent news organizations.

“The group has already released information about journalists at CNN, The Washington Post and The New York Times — three outlets that have aggressively investigated Mr. Trump — in response to reporting or commentary that the White House’s allies consider unfair to Mr. Trump and his team or harmful to his re-election prospects.” NYT

-- Canadian reporter Carolyn Dunn says she was blocked from entering the United States … @carolyndunncbc: “Guys, I’ve been refused entry into US. Sections 212 (a) (7) (A) (i) (I). Me going to DC is ‘entry into the labor’ market and I’d be ‘imported labor.’ I’ve never been pulled aside at a US border let alone refused entry.”

-- MSNBC’s Kasie Hunt is going on maternity leave, she announced on her show Sunday night. Ayman Mohyeldin will be filling in while she’s out. Video

PLAYBOOKERS

Send tips to Eli Okun and Garrett Ross at [email protected].

TRANSITION -- Yagmur Cosar is now comms director at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Corporate Citizenship Center. She previously was a VP at Burson Cohn & Wolfe.

ENGAGED -- Tyler Q. Houlton, senior adviser at the State Department and former DHS spokesman, proposed to Alli Papa, RNC Midwest finance director, on Saturday at Ladies Beach in Nantucket. The couple met at the NRCC in 2013. Pic … Another pic

WEEKEND WEDDING -- SoRelle Wyckoff, a University of Maryland PhD student and John Cornyn and House GOP Conference alum, and Michael Gaynor, a staff writer and editor at the Brookings Institution, got married Saturday at St. Stephen and the Incarnation Episcopal Church. They celebrated at the Meridian House and with a karaoke after-party at Colony Club. Pic

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America. A trend that she thinks doesn’t get enough attention: “Right now? The fires in the Amazon. More broadly, the international movements toward gender equity by removing restrictions on abortion -- from Ireland to Poland to Argentina -- and how the United States is moving in the opposite direction.” Playbook Plus Q&A

BIRTHDAYS: USA Today White House correspondent David Jackson is 6-0 (h/t John Fritze) … Robert Barnett … Oracle’s Josh Pitcock (h/t Matt) … Tom Ridge, chairman of Ridge Global, is 74 ... Eric Fehrnstrom ... Joe Weisenthal, co-host of “What’d You Miss?” and editor at Bloomberg … Savannah Sellers, co-host of “Stay Tuned” and NBC/MSNBC correspondent … Eddie Vale, partner at New Paradigm Strategy ... Messina Group partner Sean Sweeney ... Navin Nayak, executive director of the CAP Action Fund … Amanda Wood ... Robert Flock ... Jenn Sherman, director of public affairs for the surgeon general ... Devan Cayea, operations director for Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) … Jim Harris … Satyam Khanna ... Evan Zimmerman ... POLITICO’s Quint Forgey is 24 …

… Justin Dillon, partner at KaiserDillon, is 45 … BuzzFeed’s Miriam Elder (h/t Ben Chang) … Patrick Dorton, partner at Rational 360, is 51 ... Brielle Appelbaum … Morra Aarons-Mele … Don Sweitzer (h/ts Jon Haber) … Katie Sienicki (h/ts Teresa Vilmain) … Ammar Akkash … Kiran Chetry ... Julian Epstein ... Myles Miller ... Keith T. Tomatore ... Ari Ratner, founder and CEO of Inside Revolution ... Kirk Anderson ... Kimberly Overbeek … Andrew Ross ... Lee Ann Calaway … Drew Halunen … Thomas Rice ... Tiffany Cox ... Corey Cooke ... Jamal Halaby ... Jason Goings ... Jackie Smith ... Don Preston … Arthur MacMillan ... Bill Whitaker … Rebekah Jorgensen Hoshiko … Grace Segers, political reporter at CBS ... Stephen Dubner, co-author of the “Freakonomics” series ... Marissa Currie

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