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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP will go on "Fox and Friends" Feb. 28 -- the morning of his speech to a joint session of Congress.
Good Thursday morning. Well, we got through about half the week before Donald Trump caused an uproar over his decision to withdraw protections for transgender students. The move, which his Education Secretary Betsy DeVos reportedly disagreed with, showed three key truths about Trump’s nascent presidency.
First, the power resides at the White House. Trump isn’t showing deference to his Cabinet picks, as some in Washington had hoped he would. Two, Trump is continuing to deliver for his base. The order, which puts him squarely in the middle of the culture wars, will be extremely popular on the right, particularly among evangelicals who came out in big numbers for Trump. It’s also another example of Trump not caring about expanding his coalition.
Three, Trump is using precious political capital to take on issues Congressional Republicans would prefer he ignore. They'd rather him use his juice to pass tax reform, or rewrite health care laws. As Republicans across the country continue to face screaming constituents at town halls, Trump's focus on transgender bathrooms doesn’t give them anything to say to people worried about losing their health care.
NOTE -- Trump only tweeted twice yesterday. It seems like he's eased up on blasting his unvarnished opinions -- for now. Republican leaders have begged him to pump the breaks on Twitter.
THE NEWS OF THE DAY, NYT A1 -- “Trump Rescinds Rules on Bathrooms for Transgender Students,” by Jeremy Peters, Jo Becker and Julie Hirschfeld Davis: “President Trump on Wednesday rescinded protections for transgender students that had allowed them to use bathrooms corresponding with their gender identity, overruling his own education secretary and placing his administration firmly in the middle of the culture wars that many Republicans have tried to leave behind. In a joint letter, the top civil rights officials from the Justice Department and the Education Department rejected the Obama administration’s position that nondiscrimination laws require schools to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms of their choice. That directive, they said, was improperly and arbitrarily devised, ‘without due regard for the primary role of the states and local school districts in establishing educational policy.’
“The question of how to address the ‘bathroom debate,’ as it has become known, opened a rift inside the Trump administration, pitting Education Secretary Betsy DeVos against Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Mr. Sessions, who had been expected to move quickly to roll back the civil rights expansions put in place under his Democratic predecessors, wanted to act decisively because of two pending court cases that could have upheld the protections and pushed the government into further litigation.” http://nyti.ms/2kPD3Tw
GOOD ONE, STEVE -- “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin Sees Tax Overhaul by August: Economic growth at 3% or higher is also among Trump administration’s ambitious goals, he says,” by WSJ’s Rebecca Ballhaus and Nick Timiraos: “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin laid out ambitious goals to secure a U.S. tax-code overhaul by August and to deliver economic growth at rates not seen in more than a decade. … Mr. Mnuchin said the administration was working with House and Senate Republicans to smooth over differences among them on tax policy, with the aim of passing major legislation before Congress leaves for its August recess. He added, ‘that’s an ambitious timeline. It could slip to later in the year.’ …
“The House GOP plan doesn’t count solely on growth. It also features limited deductions and a border-adjustment provision that taxes imports and removes taxes from U.S. exports. The plan is projected to generate about $1 trillion over a decade. The border adjustment provision has run into criticism from large retailers and other importers. U.S. senators have piled on, too, leaving the idea in trouble without a major presidential push that hasn’t happened and might never come. Mr. Mnuchin said the administration is ‘looking seriously’ at the House plan that includes border adjustment and was well aware of concerns raised by specific industries. The Treasury Department had its own concerns, he added, ‘about what the impact may be on the dollar’ from a border-adjusted tax.” http://on.wsj.com/2l2UQ4Z
-- COME ON, MAN! … -- This is the most ambitious timeline envisioned by the biggest optimists on Capitol Hill. Congress isn’t planning to turn its focus to tax reform until the summer, and this deal won’t get done in a few months -- mark our words. The 1986 tax reform bill was introduced in December of 1985 and didn’t get to Ronald Reagan’s desk until October of 1986. That was a much less partisan time, a simpler business climate and a world without Twitter and cable television. Here is some suggested reading, Secretary Mnuchin. http://amzn.to/2lyF0Ru
ON THE WORLD STAGE -- “Top U.S. Officials Get Chilly Reception in Mexico,” by WSJ’s Felicia Schwartz and Jose de Cordoba in Mexico City: “Top U.S. officials arrived for talks here Wednesday to find a defiant Mexican government refusing to accept President Donald Trump’s tougher immigration and deportation policies. ‘I want to make it emphatically clear that neither Mexico’s government or the Mexican people have any reason to accept provisions that have been unilaterally imposed by one government on the other,’ Mexico’s Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray said at a ceremony on Wednesday. ‘We won’t accept it because we don’t have to,’ he added, in an apparent reference to U.S. plans to return illegal migrants to Mexico, regardless of their nationality. Mr. Videgaray’s declaration spelled trouble for Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who a White House official said were sent to ‘talk through the implementation’ of Mr. Trump’s guidelines.” http://on.wsj.com/2kPv4Wv
THE NEW STATE DEPARTMENT -- “In first month of Trump presidency, State Department has been sidelined,” by WaPo’s Carol Morello and Anne Gearan: “The Trump administration in its first month has largely benched the State Department from its long-standing role as the preeminent voice of U.S. foreign policy, curtailing public engagement and official travel and relegating Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to a mostly offstage role. ... The most visible change at the State Department is the month-long lack of daily press briefings, a fixture since John Foster Dulles was secretary of state in the 1950s. The televised question-and-answer session is watched closely around the world, and past administrations have pointed proudly to the accountability of having a government spokesman available to domestic and foreign press almost every day without fail. Tillerson has also been notably absent from White House meetings with foreign leaders. ... Tillerson has not taken the usual complement of beat reporters with him on either of his foreign trips so far, opting instead for small ‘pools.’ ... The former ExxonMobil chief executive has made no speeches beyond a well-received address to State Department employees on his arrival and has held no news conferences.” http://wapo.st/2lNtbta
--“Tillerson looking for ways to raise his public profile,” by Nahal Toosi: “Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has asked his aides to find ways to improve his media profile, a request that comes as U.S. diplomats increasingly worry about the direction of the State Department and whether their new boss has enough influence with President Donald Trump. A State Department official said Tillerson’s aides have asked staffers at the agency to draft a paper laying out ways he can engage with reporters, who have been given almost no access to the new Cabinet member. ... Meanwhile, several dozen Trump-appointed political staffers have arrived in Foggy Bottom, many of whom are still learning the ropes and are wary of engaging with the civil servants. ‘It’s like high school,’ said the State official familiar with Tillerson’s media request. ‘The Trump people all sit together at the tables at lunch.’” http://politi.co/2l23Jvs
--“Rex Tillerson Is Already Underwater: In just a month, the tough-talking CEO has been pushed to the margins. Here’s how a potentially strong secretary of state can salvage his term,” by Aaron David Miller and Richard Sokolsky in POLITICO Magazine: http://politi.co/2m9STbQ
PALACE INTRIGUE -- “Trump’s open door Oval Office,” by Annie Karni: “When Omarosa Manigault, the former ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ antihero-turned-White House adviser, needs to talk to President Donald Trump, she simply strolls into the Oval Office. As assistant to the President and director of communications for the office of public liaison, Manigault enjoys what Trump aides refer to as walk-in privileges — meaning she doesn’t need an appointment or permission to pop her head in and consult with the leader of the free world. Her level of easy access marks a break from the previous administration, where President Barack Obama and his gatekeeper chiefs of staff kept at bay the number of aides, even senior officials, who simply walked in without an appointment. In contrast, Trump may have set up the most accessible Oval Office in modern history.
“Along with Manigault, White House officials say, the list of aides with walk-in privileges includes chief strategist Steve Bannon, senior policy adviser Stephen Miller, chief of staff Reince Priebus, son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, and counselor Kellyanne Conway. White House Counsel Don McGahn has walk-in rights, as does senior communications aide Hope Hicks, and Keith Schiller, Trump’s longtime private security aide who followed him to the White House. Trump’s new national security adviser, Gen. H.R. McMaster, is also expected to be added to the informal list, according to a White House official. Press secretary Sean Spicer, often accompanied by Priebus, is another regular visitor to the Oval Office, as is chief economic adviser Gary Cohn and deputy chief of staff for operations Joe Hagin.” http://politi.co/2kPAq43
-- CHRISTIE TURNED DOWN LABOR SECY: “Trump’s Apprentice-style hiring is upending Washington: The president goes on gut and instinct -- and he keeps offering Chris Christie jobs,” by Josh Dawsey and Eli Stokols: “After a meatloaf lunch at the White House last Tuesday, President Donald Trump made New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie an intriguing offer: Would he like to be secretary of labor? Christie said no, according to four people close to Trump who were briefed on the conversation, which was just the latest in a series of nudges Trump has given Christie about joining him in Washington. Christie has told Trump he is not interested and instead plans to join the private sector after he leaves Trenton next year, two people close to Trump said. ...
“[Trump] cares, above all, about appearance, loyalty and a strength -- a word he often uses. ... While some of his choices are on a whim, he also likes to call dozens of people about potential hires, telling them what others said and asking them if they agree or disagree --and why. Last week, he asked TV anchors who visited the Oval Office for advice on filling the national security adviser position that opened up after Michael Flynn was ousted.” http://politi.co/2maE3ls
THE JUICE …
-- FORMER PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA hosted an open house for a few dozen White House alumni at his West End office space. Vice President Joe Biden was also on hand mingling with guests. SPOTTED: Denis McDonough, Susan Rice, Cecilia Munoz, Shaun Donovan, Josh Earnest, Broderick Johnson, Valerie Jarrett, Peter Velz, Jason Furman, Chase Cushman, Shailagh Murray, and Jeff Zients.
-- PAUL RYAN headed to San Francisco yesterday afternoon after his daylong tour of the Texas-Mexico border.
-- SNEAK PEEK -- WISCONSIN GOV. SCOTT WALKER will speak about his experience with protests this morning at CPAC at 9:45 a.m. He will urge lawmakers to stand up to protesters. According to remarks provided to Playbook, he will say: “The tipping point, however, was when protesters -- dressed liked zombies -- disrupted the Law Enforcement Torch Run for the Special Olympics. This was the moment when normal people could see that the protestors were not like them. I mean, who messes up an event for Special Olympics athletes?” Also at CPAC today: Kellyanne Conway at 9:10 a.m., Ted Cruz at 11:10 a.m., Betsy Devos at 12:50 p.m., Reince Priebus and Steve Bannon at 1:05 p.m. and VP Mike Pence at 7:30 p.m.
-- FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: The Washington Post’s ROBERT COSTA will guest host PBS’s “Washington Week” on Friday. This week is the 50th anniversary of the program, which first aired on Feb. 23, 1967.
--BRIAN FALLON, DAVID DRUCKER, JACK KINGSTON, and JASON KANDER have all been named CNN contributors.
--BRIAN HOOK, a former assistant secretary of state for international organizations under Bush 43, has left the private sector to return to State and work for Secretary Rex Tillerson as senior policy advisor and director of the policy planning office, sources tell Daniel and Michael Crowley. He was previously an advisor at Beacon Global Strategies, where Marc Lampkin was recently named an advisor.
-- ANNIE LOWREY, who covered economic policy for New York magazine, has been hired by The Atlantic. Another marquee hire in the Jeffrey Goldberg era.
-- DEVLIN BARRETT is leaving the Wall Street Journal to join the Washington Post to cover largely the same issues he reported on at the WSJ: national security, DHS, FBI, terrorism and intel. Economic reporter Damian Paletta also recently left the Journal for WaPo.
TOP READ -- KEN VOGEL, DAVID STERN AND JOSH MEYER: “Manafort faced blackmail attempt, hacks suggest” http://politi.co/2lNUnbi
SCOOP -- “Chief digital officer steps down from White House job over background check,” by Tara Palmeri and Daniel Lippman: “White House Chief Digital Officer Gerrit Lansing was among the six staffers who were dismissed from the White House ... after being unable to pass an FBI background check, according to sources. A source close to Lansing said the issue with the background check was over investments. Lansing previously led the digital department for the [RNC] ... Lansing left Feb. 9; his official file says he left on his accord.” http://politi.co/2lGEhjk
-- @VincentHarris: “Gerrit @lansing is stand up, hard working, smart, class act and it's sad for conservatives he’s not in White House.”
MIKE DUBKE PROFILE -- NEW W.H. COMMS DIRECTOR -- Amy Elinski in Enquiry: “Dubke, a native of Hamburg, [New York], graduated from Hamilton with a degree in government. While here, he was involved in the College Republicans, The Spectator, and [the college radio station], and played on the men’s rugby team. ... When asked about his new appointment, Dubke told Enquiry: ‘I can say that I am excited and honored to be working in the White House. I’ll be taking my Hamilton cane to the West Wing in case relations with the media get out of hand.’” http://bit.ly/2lsq9cP
BREITBART ON KATIE WALSH -- “Exclusive – Meet Deputy Chief of Staff Katie Walsh: The Woman Who Helps Coordinate Trump’s White House,” by Matt Boyle: http://bit.ly/2lynexE
FIRST FAMILY -- “Ivanka Trump visits center for minority-owned businesses,” by AP’s Catherine Lucey: “Trump expanded her research on economic policy Wednesday with a visit to a program for business owners in Baltimore. The first daughter visited the Raymond V. Haysbert Center for Entrepreneurship at the Greater Baltimore Urban League, where she participated in a roundtable discussion with minority business owners, mostly from the Baltimore area. ... Trump’s visit to Baltimore came after she took her daughter to visit the Supreme Court on Wednesday. In a post on Instagram, she wrote: ‘Arabella and I visited the Supreme Court this morning and attended a hearing. I'm grateful for the opportunity to teach her about the judicial system in our country firsthand.’” http://apne.ws/2lNpCTT ... Ivanka’s Instas on her Wednesday travels http://bit.ly/2ltAcyh ... http://bit.ly/2lIYNQi
--“Ivanka Trump Is Pushing Her $500 Billion Childcare Plan on Hill,” by Bloomberg’s Sahil Kapur, Shannon Pettypiece, and Stephanie Baker: “Trump has urged lawmakers writing a tax overhaul to include a deduction for child care expenses, but with a price tag of as much as $500 billion over a decade she may have trouble finding support in Congress. Members of the House and Senate met with the president’s eldest daughter in the Roosevelt Room at the White House last week to discuss her proposed child care tax benefit, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting.” http://bloom.bg/2kPw2Ch
NOTHING TO SEE HERE -- “GOP to bury House resolution on Trump conflicts,” by Rachael Bade and John Bresnahan: “House Republicans next week plan to derail a Democratic resolution that would have forced disclosure of President Donald Trump's potential ties with Russia and any possible business conflicts of interest, according to multiple House sources. Seeking to avoid a full House vote on the so-called ‘resolution of inquiry’ -- a roll call that would be particularly embarrassing and divisive for the right -- Republicans will send the Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) proposal to the House Judiciary Committee for a panel vote on Tuesday, two Democratic sources said. The GOP-controlled committee is expected to kill the resolution.” http://politi.co/2lyuMQT
PICKING UP THE PIECES -- “David Brock, donors wade into state fights: Leading Democratic figures are mounting rival efforts to boost Democrats ahead of 2020 redistricting,” by Ken Vogel: “Brock, the self-described reformed right-wing hitman who became a key figure in Hillary Clinton’s unsuccessful presidential campaign, has been named co-chair of the beefed-up board of SiX’s political arm SiX-Action, along with former Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis ... The new board also includes an operative who helped run Sen. Bernie Sanders’ populist campaign against Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination (Richard Pelletier), as well as a key official from Obama’s reelection (Buffy Wicks), a leading figure in the Black Lives Matter movement (Rashad Robinson of Color of Change) and an adviser to the influential progressive group MoveOn.org (Karine Jean-Pierre).” http://politi.co/2lHOVpI
FASCINATING STORY -- ON NYT, A9 -- "F.B.I. Interviews Tell of Cleric’s Role in Plot to Bomb Plane," by Scott Shane. http://nyti.ms/2l2XNlV
SPORTS BLINK -- HOW LONG CAN JT3 SURVIVE? -- SOMEONE CHECK CILLIZZA FOR A PULSE -- “Boo birds come out as Georgetown falls at home to lowly DePaul, 67-65,” by WaPo’s Gene Wang. http://wapo.st/2lObIR9
KEEP AN EYE ON THIS -- “300 protest in Anaheim after videos show off-duty LAPD officer firing gun in dispute with teens,” by L.A. Times’ Matt Hamilton, Kate Mather, Melissa Etehad and Frank Shyong: “A day after an off-duty Los Angeles police officer fired his gun during a confrontation with a group of teenagers in Anaheim, videos purportedly showing the encounter spread online, prompting questions about the officer’s actions. No one was injured by the gunfire, but the footage -- posted on YouTube and Facebook -- sparked a flurry of phone calls and emails to Anaheim police, who are investigating the officer’s actions.” http://lat.ms/2l2R9Mo
COOL TOOL – Bloomberg’s Trump Tracker: daily guide to the 45th president's administration: http://bloom.bg/2m9Zp2u
AT THE WHITE HOUSE TODAY -- THE PRESIDENT is meeting with CEOs and members of his staff. Tax and trade team: Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin; top economic adviser Gary Cohn and his aides Jeremy Katz and Shahira Knight; top trade adviser Peter Navarro; Michael Dell, the CEO of Dell Technologies; Inge Thulin, CEO of 3M; Kenneth Frazier, CEO of Merck; Mark Fields, CEO of Ford; Alex Gorsky, CEO of Johnson & Johnson. ... Regulatory reform team: Budget Director Mick Mulvaney; senior policy advisers Stephen Miller and Andrew Bremberg; Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson; Whirlpool CEO Jeff Fettig; International Paper CEO Mark Sutton; Emerson Electric CEO David Farr; Harris Corp. CEO Bill Brown; and Campbell Soup CEO Denise Morrison. ...
… Infrastructure team: Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao; Gary Cohn; former Bush Administration official DJ Gribbin; Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman; Corning CEO Wendell Weeks; Nucor Corp. CEO John Ferriola; US Steel CEO Mario Longhi; Veresen Inc. CEO Don Althoff; Archer Daniels Midland CEO Juan Luciano. Workforce of the future: Ivanka Trump; nominee for Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross; Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon; Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris; United Technologies CEO Greg Hayes; LiveOps CEO Keith Leimbach; Altec CEO Lee Styslinger; General Dynamics CEO Phebe Novakovic; assistant to the President, Reed Cordish; Dana CEO James Kamsickas.
-- THE BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE sent a letter to Gary Cohn ahead of the meeting, detailing the regulations the business community does not like. http://bit.ly/2lbOIYY
THE CABINET -- HOT DOCS -- NYT A13, “The Pruitt Emails: E.P.A. Chief Was Arm in Arm With Industry,” by Coral Davenport and Eric Lipton: “As Oklahoma’s attorney general, Scott Pruitt, now the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, closely coordinated with major oil and gas producers, electric utilities and political groups with ties to the libertarian billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch to roll back environmental regulations, according to over 6,000 pages of emails made public on Wednesday. ... Senate Democrats tried last week to postpone a final vote until the emails could be made public, but Republicans beat back the delay and approved his confirmation on Friday largely along party lines. The impolitic tone of many of the emails cast light on why Republicans were so eager to beat the release.” http://nyti.ms/2lxxIxq
GOOD LUCK -- “How Trump’s campaign staffers tried to keep him off Twitter: The trick? Making sure his media diet included a healthy dose of praise,” by Tara Palmeri: http://politi.co/2l21Uig
THE LOYAL OPPOSITION -- “Liberal group launches ‘Moscow Project’ to pressure Trump,” by Gabe Debenedetti: “Seeking to apply new pressure on President Donald Trump over his ties to Russia, the liberal Center for American Progress Action Fund is bringing on a former State Department official to run its new ‘Moscow Project,’ while advocating the creation of an independent investigation even while the Senate Intelligence Committee’s probes proceed. Max Bergmann — a former member of the State Department’s policy planning staff who was previously a speechwriter for Secretary John Kerry and a special assistant to the under secretary for arms control and international security — will lead the group’s efforts on Russia as political scrutiny mounts over alleged ties between Trump’s campaign and Russian intelligence. The organization is in the process of hiring more researchers and communications staff in its war room, which is run by former Harry Reid aide Adam Jentleson.” http://politi.co/2lsRLP4
-- “Obama lawyers form ‘worst-case scenario’ group to tackle Trump,” by Isaac Dovere: “Top lawyers who helped the Obama White House craft and hold to rules of conduct believe President Donald Trump and his staff will break ethics norms meant to guard against politicization of the government — and they’ve formed a new group to prepare, and fight. United to Protect Democracy, which draws its name from a line in President Barack Obama’s farewell address that urged his supporters to pick up where he was leaving off, has already raised a $1.5 million operating budget, hired five staffers and has plans to double that in the coming months. They’ve incorporated as both a 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4), allowing them to operate as a nonprofit but participate in some forms of political advocacy as well.” http://politi.co/2mo6UyC
-- "'They’re trying to turn Elizabeth into a boogeyman': Republicans are already trying to make Elizabeth Warren the face of the Democratic Party — and the 2018 midterms," by Burgess Everett and John Bresnahan. http://politi.co/2lO2Drw
THE CLINTON BEAT -- “Hillary Clinton to speak at St. Patrick’s Day Dinner in Scranton,” by The Times Tribune’s Patrick Wilding: “When she arrives, 214 days will have passed since she last set foot in the Electric City. But on Friday, March 17, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton returns to Scranton. The former presidential candidate … was announced Wednesday evening as the 2017 keynote speaker for the Society of Irish Women’s 19th annual St. Patrick’s Day dinner celebration at Hilton Scranton and Conference Center.” http://bit.ly/2mfddFH
VALLEY TALK -- NYT A1, “Inside Uber’s Aggressive, Unrestrained Workplace Culture,” by Mike Isaac: “[T]he focus on pushing for the best result has also fueled what current and former Uber employees describe as a Hobbesian environment at the company, in which workers are sometimes pitted against one another and where a blind eye is turned to infractions from top performers. Interviews with more than 30 current and former Uber employees, as well as reviews of internal emails, chat logs and tape-recorded meetings, paint a picture of an often unrestrained workplace culture. Among the most egregious accusations from employees, who either witnessed or were subject to incidents and who asked to remain anonymous because of confidentiality agreements and fear of retaliation: One Uber manager groped female co-workers’ breasts at a company retreat in Las Vegas. A director shouted a homophobic slur at a subordinate during a heated confrontation in a meeting. Another manager threatened to beat an underperforming employee’s head in with a baseball bat.” http://nyti.ms/2ma8sAt
MEDIAWATCH -- “Kellyanne Conway sidelined from TV after Flynn debacle,” by CNN’s Dylan Byers: “Conway, once the most visible spokesperson for the Trump White House, was sidelined from television appearances for a week for making statements that were at odds with the administration’s official stance, White House sources told CNNMoney on Wednesday. Conway, who [was] scheduled to appear on Fox News on Wednesday night, has not given a television interview since early last week.” http://cnnmon.ie/2lNsEr7
-- OBAMA ALUMNI -- KATIE COURIC’s new podcast episode featuring her conversation with Jon Lovett and Jon Favreau, co-founders of Crooked Media and co-hosts of the podcast Pod Save America. Lovett told her: “When I say ‘hold Trump accountable,’ I mean impeachment, but I don’t say it.” Katie’s podcast is No. 6 on Apple’s top charts list. http://bit.ly/2lsYhp6
-- VANITY FAIR'S SARAH ELLISON: "MEGYN KELLY, MATT LAUER, AND THE BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE OF NBC" http://bit.ly/2lyGF9s
--“The woman who helped build Michelle Obama’s brand is joining Instagram,” by Re/code’s Kurt Wagner: “Instagram has hired Kristina Schake, the deputy comms director for Hillary Clinton’s recent presidential campaign and the former comms chief for first lady Michelle Obama. She was also chief communications officer at L'Oreal for two years.” http://bit.ly/2l2bpxL
--MATT NEGRIN started a campaign on yesterday’s NPR’s “All Things Considered” to get picked as the writer in residence at the Mall of America. 90-second audio http://n.pr/2m9QuOm ... Matt’s job application http://bit.ly/2laTdmp
--“Cable Ratings: Rachel Maddow Posts Best Week Since 2008 as Fox News Dominates,” by The Wrap’s Brian Flood: http://bit.ly/2ma2Xle
-- Vanity Fair Hive’s Cheddar show premieres today at noon. It’ll be 30 minutes with Jon Kelly and Cheddar’s Kristen Scholer, joined by Wall Street correspondent Bess Levin, special correspondents Sarah Ellison and Nick Bilton, staff writer Maya Kosoff, and writer T.A. Frank. http://bit.ly/2mo4BvA
SPOTTED: Jamie Dimon and four guests at Kapnos last night ... Nigel Farage in the green room at Fox News in D.C. ... At separate tables at the Four Seasons yesterday morning: Cathy Merrill Williams, George Will and James Rosen, Melissa Moss, Howard Gutman and Nicholas Perrins, Hilary Rosen ... Kimberly Suiters (@ABC7Suiters): “We wished him good luck & offered to buy a shot. What else does a #SupremeCourt nominee need? #Gorsuch @GreenPigVA” in Arlington -- pic http://bit.ly/2meDW5c
WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- Jon Walter, director of Fox News’ “Special Report” with Bret Baier, and Erika Walter, press secretary of the Partnership for Public Service, have welcomed Roman Daniel Walter, who weighed in at 7 pounds, 7 ounces and measured 22 inches in length. Pic http://politi.co/2mnCXi9
--Sarah Charlop-Powers, CEO of the Natural Areas Conservancy of New York City and Dani Simons, director of comms and external affairs director for Motivate, the bike share company behind Citi Bike in NYC and Capital Bikeshare in DC, have welcomed Myles Alexander Charlop-Simons who was born on Feb. 13 in NYC. The three will live in Fort Greene in Brooklyn. Pic http://politi.co/2laP4Pu
MARK SMITH, after 41 years of continuous employment, is retiring after spending the last 20 years as AP Radio White House correspondent. His last day is next Wednesday. He told us: “Plans for the next gig still being discussed, but likely to include some combination of writing, speaking, teaching and travel. ... Not sure I can be more specific about the next steps - I have some serious goofing off to do first - but the career’s been quite a ride. Seven presidents, six continents and a ringside seat to the march of history (and human folly). I’ve been very fortunate.”
TRANSITIONS -- The ONE Campaign has hired Sally Canfield as its new senior director of U.S. gov’t relations. She is the former senior director for international gov’t affairs for the global pharmaceutical company AbbVie, and the former deputy chief of staff to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). http://bit.ly/2lxMzrH ... Sentinel Strategic Advisors has hired Laura Howard as associate for development and Carla Frank as manager of corporate engagement. Laura was previously deputy finance director for Speaker Paul Ryan’s political office and Carla was a deputy finance director at the DNC … Rich Ferraro, who most recently was senior director of comms and public affairs at Viacom, will now serve as GLAAD’s chief communications officer. Jim Halloran, who previously led Twitter’s global content management, was also named as GLAAD’s chief digital officer.
HILLARY ALUMNI -- David Reid started this week at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck as a policy advisor. He previously was the D.C. and PAC finance director for Hillary for America. … M+R, a nonprofit communications and digital agency based in D.C., has hired Emmy Bengtson, previously deputy social media director at Hillary for America in Brooklyn, to join the firm’s social media outfit. Emmy is also an alum of the digital teams at Planned Parenthood and Obama for America.
OBAMA ALUMNI -- Shannon Buckingham has rejoined the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities as the VP for comms and external affairs. She was previously the associate comms director at OMB. ... Sharon Parrott rejoined CBPP after serving as associate director for the education, income maintenance, and labor division at OMB. ... Aviva Aron-Dine has also joined the Center; she previously served as a senior counselor to Secretary Sylvia Burwell at HHS, and prior to that was acting deputy director and executive associate director of OMB.
BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Jim Manley, senior director at QGA Public Affairs and a Harry Reid alum -- he “was sick and tired of winning so much under Trump that I needed to go to failed socialist Europe for a week” -- he’s celebrating tonight over dinner with friends in London -- read his Playbook Plus Q&A: http://politi.co/2lIF8zT
BIRTHDAYS: Frank Luntz is 55 ... Michael Dell is 52 ... Lois Romano, former editor of WaPo’s Live, the pride of Brooklyn and a Politico alum … Jennifer Epstein, who studied history at Princeton ... Marissa Mitrovich, founder and editor of D.C.-based style blog Politiquette ... rising star Texas Tribune reporter Patrick Svitek is 25 (h/ts Matt Mackowiak) ... S.E. (Sarah Elizabeth) Cupp, the pride of Carlsbad, Calif. ... USAID’s Courtney Matson ... former Hillary for America press staffer Rebecca Chalif, spending her 31st in the Bay Area post torrential rains (h/t Lily Adams) ... Ellie Cohen, the pride of St. Louis and Correct the Record alum (h/ts Carla Frank and Anna Epstein) … Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College (h/ts Liz Johnson and Jeff Grappone) ... Politico’s Tommy Mattocks (h/t Andrew Thorne) ... Charles Sweeney, speechwriter extraordinaire ... former de Blasio COS and DNC COO Amanda Howe ... Daniel Goetzel, O’Malley alum now director of innovation initiatives and corporate relations at Johns Hopkins, is 3-0 ... Hillary and Obama alum Gidon Feen ... Joe Berkofsky, CEO at NYC-based Puder PR (h/t Jewish Insider) ...Rep. Kenny Marchant (R-Tex.) is 66 ... Nicole Sexton, alum of Steve Forbes’ presidential, Elizabeth Dole’s NRSC, and ONE Campaign now in NYC (h/t birthday boy Arjun Mody) ... Ana Serafin Smith, NRF’s senior director for media relations and an expert on consumer trends (h/t Robin Roberts) ...
... Gayle Smith, newly appointed president and CEO of The ONE Campaign (starting in March) and former USAID administrator (h/t Ben Chang) ... Benjamin Sternfield Baum, director of admissions at St. John’s College, Annapolis ... Gary Karr, group director at WeissComm Group ... The Hill’s Molly Hooper … Derek Khanna, an RSC, Romney and R Street alum ... Mike Nixon, a son of Kansas City, Mo. ... Karl Frisch … Marie McGrory, producer at NatGeo Travel ... Nikki McArthur, a former Laura Bush speechwriter now an associate at Jones Day ... AT Johnston of House E&C ... Business Insider’s Reuben Ingber is 29 ... Jill Hudson, senior style writer for ESPN’s The Undefeated ... Lorin Meeks-Harris ... Bernie Robinson, partner at the Livingston Group ... Arjun Mody, policy director for the Senate Republican Policy Committee ... Dana Bohan, director at FTI Consulting ... former de Blasio COS and DNC COO Amanda Howe ... Bernard Craighead ... Charles Sweeney (h/ts Teresa Vilmain) ... Dwayne Marshall ... Natalia Arno ... Jake Decker ... Patrick Velliky, director of congressional affairs at Anthem ... Nate Goddard ... Zaina Shaath … actor Peter Fonda is 77 ... Josh Gad is 36 ... Dakota Fanning is 23 (h/ts AP)