Good Saturday morning. The Obamacare messaging war is on. PROTECT OUR CARE, a coalition aimed at boosting Obamacare, sent these talking points to Capitol Hill ahead of the President’s Day recess. http://politi.co/2lhdI1B
-- KATE ZERNIKE and ALEX BURNS on A1 of the NYT: “Congress Goes Home, and Constituents Fired Up Over Health Care Are Waiting”: “As Republican lawmakers prepare to leave Washington for a weeklong congressional recess, liberal groups and Democratic Party organizers are hoping to make their homecoming as noisy and uncomfortable as possible. But national organizers concede they are playing catch-up to a ‘dam-bursting level’ of grass-roots activism that has bubbled up from street protests and the small groups that have swelled into crowds outside local congressional offices.
“Protests against the Republican agenda have become routine since President Trump took office, with momentum building through widely shared videos of lawmakers being confronted by constituents angry over efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Now, national groups see the recess as the chance to capitalize on that local activism, with a show of might aimed at declaring the arrival of a new, and sustainable, political force — barely three months after their humiliating defeat in November.” http://nyti.ms/2ltMiId
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TRUMP SPEAKS -- @realDonaldTrump at 4:48 p.m.: “The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!” … at 8:31 a.m.: “Don’t believe the main stream (fake news) media.The White House is running VERY WELL. I inherited a MESS and am in the process of fixing it.” … at 8:51 a.m.: “Will be having many meetings this weekend at The Southern White House. Big 5:00 P.M. speech in Melbourne, Florida. A lot to talk about!”
-- GOLFER IN CHIEF -- TRUMP pulled into Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach at 8:51 a.m.
MUST READ -- “Sun, Sand and Influence: For Mar-a-Lago Members, Proximity Is Power,” by NYT’s Nick Confessore, Maggie Haberman and Eric Lipton: “On any given weekend, you might catch President Trump’s son-in-law and top Mideast dealmaker, Jared Kushner, by the beachside soft-serve ice cream machine, or his reclusive chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, on the dining patio. If you are lucky, the president himself could stop by your table for a quick chat. But you will have to pay $200,000 for the privilege — and the few available spots are going fast. Virtually overnight, Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s members-only Palm Beach, Fla., club, has been transformed into the part-time capital of American government, a so-called winter White House where Mr. Trump has entertained a foreign head of state, health care industry executives and other presidential guests. But Mr. Trump’s gatherings at Mar-a-Lago … have also created an arena for potential political influence rarely seen in American history: A kind of Washington steakhouse on steroids, situated in a sunny playground of the rich and powerful, where members and their guests enjoy a level of access that could elude even the best-connected of Washington lobbyists.
“Membership lists reviewed by The New York Times show that the club’s nearly 500 paying members include dozens of real estate developers, Wall Street financiers, energy executives and others whose businesses could be affected by Mr. Trump’s policies. ... Mr. Trump’s weekend White House appears to be unprecedented in American history, as it is the first one with customers paying a company owned by the president, several historians said. … Bernd Lembcke, the club’s managing director, said that applications had risen since Mr. Trump’s election. ‘It enhances it — his presidency does,’ Mr. Lembcke said, referring to membership in the club. ‘People are now even more interested in becoming members. But we are very careful in vetting them.’ And potential members must be sponsored by a current one, he said. ‘You still have to be introduced.’” With cameos from Jon Meacham, Ken Duberstein, Chris Ruddy and John Dean http://nyti.ms/2lhAUNh
PALM BEACH POST, FRONT PAGE -- “Trump returns, could quiz security hopefuls: Rock strikes motorcade, president heads to Melbourne today” http://bit.ly/2lXAawG
VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE is making his debut on the international stage, speaking at the Munich Security Conference.
-- “In Europe, Pence says US will hold Russia accountable,” by AP’s Ken Thomas in Munich: “Vice President Mike Pence vowed Saturday that the United States will ‘hold Russia accountable’ even as President Donald Trump searches for new common ground with Moscow at the start of his presidency. … In his first overseas trip as vice president, Pence sought to calm nervous European allies who remain concerned about Russian aggression and have been alarmed by Trump’s positive statements about Russian President Vladimir Putin. The address to foreign diplomats and security officials also sought to reassure international partners who worry that Trump may pursue isolationist tendencies.
“Pence said the U.S. would demand that Russia honor a 2015 peace deal agreed upon in Minsk, Belarus, to end violence in eastern Ukraine between government forces and Russia-backed separatists. ‘Know this: The United States will continue to hold Russia accountable, even as we search for new common ground which as you know President Trump believes can be found,’ Pence said.” http://apne.ws/2kTQUnF
-- PENCE SAYS U.S. IS COMMITTED TO NATO, per pooler Ashley Parker of the Washington Post: “Today, on behalf of President Trump, I bring you this assurance. The United States of America strongly supports NATO and will be unwavering in our commitment to this transatlantic alliance. We have been faithful for generations -- and as you keep faith with us, under President Trump we will always keep faith with you. The fates of the United States and Europe are intertwined. Your struggles are our struggles. Your success is our success. And ultimately, we walk into the future together.
“This is President Trump’s promise: We will stand with Europe, today and every day, because we are bound together by the same noble ideals — freedom, democracy, justice, and the rule of law. So strong is our bond that over the past century, Americans have poured forth from our land to help defend yours.”
-- Pence met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after his speech. On the way over to Commerzbank for the rest of his bilateral meetings Pence was giving out “Challenge Coins,” per the pool report.
UNDERSTANDING TRUMP -- “Leaked Trump tape: ‘You are the special people’,” by Darren Samuelsohn and Annie Karni: “President Donald Trump, living alone inside the White House, often hungers for friendly interaction as he adjusts to the difficult work of governance. At his clubs, he finds what’s missing. That showed last November at a cocktail and dinner reception celebrating longtime members of his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club. Deep into the process of meeting potential Cabinet nominees, the president-elect invited partygoers to stop by the next day to join the excitement. ‘We’re doing a lot of interviews tomorrow — generals, dictators, we have everything,’ Trump told the crowd, according to an audio tape of his closed-press remarks obtained by POLITICO from a source in the room. ‘You may wanna come around. It’ll be fun. We’re really working tomorrow. We have meetings every 15, 20 minutes with different people that will form our government.’ ...
“As he prepares to spend the third straight weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, the tape provides a window into how Trump conducts himself away from the prying press and among the loyal faces of his club. Trump’s comfort level among his members also has raised questions about his discretion. The president last weekend turned the Mar-a-Lago patio into an open-air situation room — discussing the response to a North Korean ballistic missile test while club members snapped pictures that ricocheted around social media and put him in the crosshairs of congressional oversight from Democrats and Republicans concerned about lax security protocols. The incident received widespread condemnation from national security experts. But club members dismissed it as just an example of Trump being the man he has always been with them — available.” http://politi.co/2lv7ii5
FLYNN AFTERMATH -- PETRAEUS OUT? -- “Trump and Candidates for National Security Adviser Spar Over Staffing,” by WSJ’s Julian E. Barnes, Shane Harris and Paul Sonne: “President Donald Trump won’t guarantee that his next national security adviser will have full control over staffing and process, a move that is shortening the list of people willing to take the job at a tumultuous moment for the new administration, people familiar with the matter said. Retired Vice Adm. Bob Harward and retired Gen. David Petraeus have dropped out of consideration for the critical post, which became vacant with Monday’s firing of Michael Flynn, these people said. Both candidates have cited concerns about staffing and independence, the people said. People familiar with the process say former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, Army strategist Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster and former Army Chief of Staff and retired Gen. Ray Odierno remained under consideration.” http://on.wsj.com/2lVgNry
-- A Petraeus adviser told Playbook: “General Petraeus has tremendous respect for the new incoming Administration and NSC staff. General Petraeus never lobbied for the job, at any point. His advice and counsel were sought, by numerous entities, which he presented. General Petraeus has been and remains supportive of this President and his team.”
--“Help wanted: National security adviser who can handle the chaos: ‘No serious person would take that job,’ says one former top Republican national security official. ‘It’s a recipe for disaster,’” by Bryan Bender and Daniel Lippman: “Trump will be forced to ‘sweeten the deal,’ predicted one former Republican NSC official, in order to enlist a high-caliber replacement following the resignation of retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn ... [A] spokeswoman for retired Gen. Jim Jones, who served as former President Barack Obama’s first national security adviser and is seen by some close observers as a dark horse, said he would consider an offer. ... Other possible contenders put forward by knowledgeable sources include former NSC official Fran Townsend and former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, who both served under George W. Bush.” http://politi.co/2lVgDjW
ABOUT THOSE LEAKS -- “Nunes asks FBI to investigate Trump leaks,” by Ken Vogel and Cory Bennett: “House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes on Friday sent a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation asking it to investigate the leaks of classified information that have produced a series of damaging media reports on President Donald Trump's administration, according to three sources familiar with the letter. Nunes has suggested in recent days that the leaks came from career government intelligence employees who are either loyal to former President Barack Obama or opposed to Trump. And Nunes’ letter gives Trump a key Capitol Hill bulkhead in his war on leaks.” http://politi.co/2lV9Dn2
INTRIGUE IN LANGLEY -- CBS NEWS -- “Trump yells at CIA director over reports intel officials are keeping info from him”: “CBS News has learned that on Thursday, an angry President Trump called CIA Director Mike Pompeo and yelled at him for not pushing back hard enough against reports that the intelligence community was withholding information from the commander-in-chief. The agency then drafted a strongly worded statement rebutting the claim. ‘We are not aware of any instance when that has occurred,’ read Pompeo’s statement. ‘It is CIA’s mission to provide the President with the best intelligence possible and to explain the basis for that intelligence. The CIA does not, has not, and will never hide intelligence from the President, period.’
“On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal had reported that U.S. intelligence officials have kept information from Mr. Trump because they feared it could be leaked or compromised. CIA spokesman Dean Boyd denied Friday that there was a conversation between Pompeo and Mr. Trump about the article. ‘There was no conversation between the CIA Director and the President about the Wall Street Journal article either before or after CIA issued its statement about the article,’ Boyd said. ‘The CIA issued its statement on its own accord because the story was inaccurate and we felt the need to defend the integrity of our officers and institution.’” http://cbsn.ws/2lvc2nM ... The original WSJ story http://on.wsj.com/2kVJpiI
PIC DU JOUR – A Playbooker sends a photo of flyers that were anonymously being placed around hallways at the State Department this week: “Dear Civil Servant, I know I don’t tell you how much I love you as often as I should. You are an unsung hero, with your daily work keeping our institutions functioning and protecting the liberty, justice and dignity of each and every person in the great United States of America. ... I want you to know that I need you now more than ever, and that I’m here for you when times get rough. With love from your admirer, We the People.” Pic of the flyer http://bit.ly/2kGHUBC
CONGRESS WATCH -- “Congress keeps Trump grounded,” by Burgess Everett and Seung Min Kim: “The Senate left town Friday with Trump’s administration barely staffed, Republicans’ legislative agenda stuck in neutral and Democrats using parliamentary tactics to make senators and staffers’ life a blur of partisan fights and all-night debates. The House left Thursday in barely better shape. On Capitol Hill, it’s been a less than stellar start for Trump’s vows to shake up Washington. … In the Senate, Democrats have stymied Trump’s Cabinet to a degree that has no historical precedent, eating away at precious floor time and delaying the GOP’s agenda until the spring. The House doesn’t have the arduous task of confirming hundreds of Trump’s nominees, but Republican infighting over health care and taxes has raised serious doubts about whether a bill signing on either issue will ever be in the offing.” http://politi.co/2lXOlCd
THE JUICE …
-- BUZZ: RUSSIA is on the lookout for new representation in Washington. Multiple sources said the country is considering upping its K Street operation. The moves come as Trump is trying to form a closer working relationship with Moscow. Russia could face a tough time finding someone to represent it. Several lobbyists who represent foreign countries said they would be hesitant to take the country on as a client. The Russian Embassy did not respond when asked for comment.
-- PASTRICK THROWS IN WITH BUTTIGIEG -- Former DNC treasurer and at-large member R. Scott Pastrick is backing DNC chair candidate Pete Buttigieg. Pastrick, who now runs Prime Policy Group, served as party treasurer for President Bill Clinton’s 1996 reelect.
-- FIRST IN PLAYBOOK -- JONATHAN HOFFMAN is headed back to public service as a communications adviser to Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. Hoffman, formerly a principal at government relations firm Summit Strategies, unsuccessfully ran for a South Carolina congressional seat in a special election in 2013. He previously was director of border security policy in the Bush administration.
-- BOSTON GLOBE: “Scott Brown under consideration for ambassador to New Zealand,” by Jim O’Sullivan: “Former US senator Scott Brown is being considered for nomination as President Trump’s ambassador to New Zealand, according to four people familiar with the process. Brown, who was previously considered for the veterans affairs Cabinet post, has told associates that he believes he will get the nod for Wellington, one of the people familiar with the discussions told the Globe. The White House declined to comment Friday, and Brown did not respond to several requests for comment.” http://bit.ly/2lVkmxH
NEXT WEEK’S NEW YORK MAGAZINE -- “McCain vs. Trump: Just how far will the senator go?” (online headline: “How Many Chances Do You Get to Be an American Hero? John McCain (ambivalently, agonizingly) takes on the president.”) by Gabe Sherman: McCain on why many Republicans aren’t speaking up about Russia’s hacking and Trump’s potential Russian ties: “I frankly don’t know,” he said. “It’s not a chapter of Profiles in Courage.” … On America’s place in the world: “The national-security aspect isn’t functioning. Nobody knows who’s making the decisions. The Iranians are testing. The Russians are testing. They’re testing this administration. Who is making the decisions when we don’t have a national-security adviser?” ... On the leaks: “In democracies, information should be provided to the American people. How else are the American people going to be informed?” http://nym.ag/2lXVodY … The cover http://bit.ly/2kJwHjz
WHAT AMERICA IS READING -- S.F. CHRONICLE: “Thrown off balance by the Trump storm: Democrats seek footing and effective opposition” http://bit.ly/2lhge85 …ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: “ICE may widen net in arrests: Everyone here illegally ‘at risk,’ legislator says” http://bit.ly/2kTBsbk … MIAMI HERALD: “Fearing Trump, commisison drops Dade’s ‘sanctuary’ protections” http://bit.ly/2kzgoL2
DEEP DIVE -- “Michael Flynn: General Chaos: What the removal of Flynn as the national-security adviser reveals about Donald Trump’s White House,” by Nick Schmidle in The New Yorker: “[E]ven before Flynn’s rapid fall, his closest military colleagues had been struggling to make sense of what had happened to the talented and grounded general they once knew. ... Some of Flynn’s former military colleagues, even those from whom he’s drifted apart in recent years, told me they were skeptical that Flynn would have conducted shadow diplomacy on his own. Despite his reputation as an agitator, he was, in the end, a soldier who followed orders, they said. ‘This story is bigger than Mike Flynn,’ [a] senior military intelligence official said. ‘Who told Mike to go do this? I think somebody said, “Mike, you’ve got some contacts. Let them know it’s gonna be all right.” Mike’s a soldier. He did not go rogue.’” http://bit.ly/2kzgm5W
DUELING VISITS TO THE BORDER -- On the front page of today’s McAllen Monitor: “U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-El Paso) is coming to McAllen on Wednesday, the same day U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and other top congressional republicans are scheduled to visit the area. O’Rourke, 44, will have a meet and greet on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at Koko's off Expressway 83. This is a series of meet and greets O’Rourke is having -- he will be in Corpus Christi and Laredo for similar events the days leading up to his McAllen visit.” http://bit.ly/2lXQRsa
COMING ATTRACTIONS -- Following President Bush’s live interview with Matt Lauer on Feb. 27, he will also sit-down with Willie Geist at MacDill Air Force Base. The interview will air Sunday, March 5 on “Sunday TODAY with Willie Geist.” http://nbcnews.to/2lejxwM
BIG BROTHER ALERT -- “Trump proposes including social media checks for Chinese visitors,” by Josh Gerstein: “The Trump administration is moving to expand social media checks to cover Chinese citizens traveling to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials are proposing to ask Chinese visitors to disclose their social media ‘handles’ or other identifiers on common social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. The question would be asked online as part of an electronic system Chinese holders of long-term U.S. business and visitor visas use to advise of upcoming travel. Answering the question would be ‘optional,’ CBP said in a notice set for publication Tuesday in the Federal Register. Those who don't wish to answer will have their travel requests processed ‘without a negative interpretation or inference,’ the notice said.” http://politi.co/2kxGVZh
MEDIAWATCH -- JONATHAN KARL PROFILE –Gray Television’s Samantha-Jo Roth: “Before Karl became a fixture of the D.C. press corps, his passion for journalism and history began somewhere a bit more modest -- South Dakota. ‘I was in, I mean really rural America,’ Karl said with a laugh. ‘I was in Hill City, population 350. We eventually moved to Keystone, which has a population of about 115.’ He got his first taste of journalism at the age of 10, accompanying his parents across the state as they worked on an oral history project for the University of South Dakota, interviewing the workers who helped sculpt Mount Rushmore.” http://bit.ly/2kRZvax
-- PODCAST DU JOUR: The latest Times Insider podcast this week is with White House correspondent Julie Hirschfeld Davis, who visited Mar-a-Lago for the first time last weekend. http://nyti.ms/2kxmETv
-- FIRST PERSON – TOM BROKAW in the NYT, “The Offer From Nixon I Refused”: “In late 1969 I received a call from the White House chief of staff, H. R. Haldeman, that I would be invited to lunch by a friend of his, and that I should keep an open mind. ... His friend, my luncheon host, was a personable Los Angeles public relations man who quickly got to the point: ‘Bob would like you to consider becoming the White House press secretary. He’s talked it over with the president, who approves.’ ... At lunch with Haldeman’s emissary, I stammered something about having just signed a new contract with NBC News, a big step to becoming a national political correspondent, my dream job. ... I rushed back to my office and swore my boss to secrecy, saying, ‘You have to get me out of this.” http://nyti.ms/2l5KiVZ
CLICKER – “The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics,” edited by Matt Wuerker -- 16 cartoons http://politi.co/2lf3Bub
GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Daniel Lippman, filing from Vail, Colorado:
--“‘I thought I was smarter than almost everybody’: my double life as a KGB agent,” by Shaun Walker in The Guardian: “Raised in East Germany, Jack Barsky abandoned his mother, brother, wife and son to spy for the KGB. In America, he started a second family. And then it all came crashing down...” http://bit.ly/2kGsSvq (h/t Longform.org)
--“Love Is Like Cocaine,” by Helen Fisher in Nautilus Magazine: “From ecstasy to withdrawal, the lover resembles an addict.” http://bit.ly/2lSQtya (h/t ALDaily.com)
--“Terminal Democracy,” by Christopher Schaberg in Real Life Magazine: “At airports, ideals of free movement collide with protocols of restriction and privilege. That makes them vital sites of protest.” http://bit.ly/2lrk7tu
--“First They Got Sick, Then They Moved Into a Virtual Utopia,” by Kristen French in Medium Backchannel: “For many disabled residents, who may spend 12 hours a day or more in Second Life, the most important moments and relationships of their lives happen inside the virtual world. The fantasies of a decade ago have become reality: Second Life is where they live.” http://bit.ly/2lT1IXl (h/t TheBrowser.com)
--“This Was How Things Ended,” by Michael Hobbes in Longreads: “Breaking up is hard to do.” http://bit.ly/2m3wMj6
--“The Man Who Broke Ticketmaster,” by Jason Koebler in Vice’s Motherload: “The most infamous ticket scalper of all time used bots to buy millions of tickets. Now he wants to stop them.” http://bit.ly/2lrms7K
--“The Trash Heap Has Spoken,” by Carmen Maria Machado in Guernica Magazine: “The power and danger of women who take up space.” http://bit.ly/2lSWpr4
--“The Compost King of New York,” by Elizabeth Royte in the N.Y. Times Magazine: “What happens to food scraps after the city takes them? Soon a large fraction will wind up on Long Island, where Charles Vigliotti hopes to turn them into profit.” http://nyti.ms/2kRAjRo
--“The Battle for the Soul of San Francisco,” by Chris Colin in Wired: “Healing the tension between wealthy tech workers and their impoverished neighbors.” http://bit.ly/2l1ApZo
--“Driving America,” by Jacob Hoerger in The Point Magazine: “These dead hours of a trip put one in an unfamiliar state of suspension: all your lower needs (to borrow from Maslow’s framework) are met. The only thing you have to do is sit there. Yet you are unable to reach any higher capacity, any self-actualization, because all you can do is sit there. Your thoughts fold gently back onto themselves.” http://bit.ly/2leNLzQ
--“Why America’s Airports Suck,” by Leanna Orr in Institutional Investor: “And How New York City -- the worst offender -- plans to make them suck less.” http://bit.ly/2kGqvsB
--“Serial Killers Should Fear This Algorithm,” by Robert Kolker in Bloomberg Businessweek: “Thomas Hargrove is building software to identify trends in unsolved murders using data nobody’s bothered with before.” http://bloom.bg/2leHm80
--“Goodbye, Eastern Europe!” by Jacob Mikanowski in the LA Review of Books: “If the fall of the Iron Curtain removed the geopolitical rationale for studying the region, it also removed the main thing binding it together. What does Albania have in common with Estonia, or Belarus with Slovenia? Besides being fragments of long-vanished empires, they share almost nothing in terms of culture, economy, or creed.” http://bit.ly/2kGmbto
SPOTTED: Michael Wolff and Jason Miller drinking bourbon at a bar on D Street on Thursday afternoon ... at DCA terminal B rushing for their flights out of town: Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) and Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.) … Sen. Rand Paul with his wife and one of their sons on a 4 p.m. Southwest flight yesterday from DCA to Nashville. He was traveling light -- just a briefcase.
OUT AND ABOUT -- Rich Beeson (whose birthday is next Friday) celebrated last night at a surprise party hosted by Katie Packer at Blackwall Hitch in Alexandria with 100 of his closest friends. SPOTTED: Heath and Mallory Thompson, Matt and Jamie Rhoades, Scott Jennings, David Kochel, Sara Craig, Jessica Ennis, Heather and Keith Greenaway, Molly Donlin, Rob and Salina Engstrom, Tony Feather, Sean Murphy, Trygve and Erika Olsen, Neil Newhouse, Will and Kelli Ritter, David and Mindy James, John and Jen Gibson, Sheila Berkley, Michael and Angela Meyers, Zac and Tricia Moffatt, Michael and Brooke Beach, Abe Adams.
TRANSITIONS—Shana Teehan is leaving her as job communications director for Texas Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas) and will become communications director for the tallest senator in modern history, “Big Luther” Strange (R-Ala.) ... Research and data firm WPA Research hired Ashlee Rich Stephenson as a senior vice president. Stephenson most recently was managing partner of the consulting firm Just Win Strategies. http://bit.ly/2lf31wx
BIRTHWEEK (was yesterday): former Bush 43 director of WH advance Spence Geissinger ... former Bush 43 DHS alum Fred Schwien (h/ts Ed Cash, who was on time)
BIRTHDAYS: Keith Urbahn, former Donald Rumsfeld chief of staff, now founding partner and president at Javelin, is 33 ... Packer fan Denny Jungwirth ... rising star journalist Ben Wofford ... former Sen. John Warner is 9-0 (h/t Bronwyn LanceChester) … WaPo’s James Hohmann, the pride of Apple Valley, Minnesota. ... NYT alum Michael Janofsky ... Kiara Pesante Haughton, Ed & Workforce Dems’ spox and DNC alum, is 3-0. She was toasted by her DC squad and colleagues Thursday night at Vieux Carre, and is now second-lining in New Orleans with her husband and friends during NBA All Star Weekend (h/ts Malik Haughton and Jacque Chevalier) ... Politico’s Connor McKay ... Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) is 7-0 ... Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) is 53 ... Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.) is 6-0 ... Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) is 53 ... Ill. Gov. Bruce Rauner is 6-0 ... Lisa Knapp (h/t Jon Haber) … David Bormel, a senior financial advisor at Merrill Lynch (h/t daughter Allison, filing from Cambodia) ... Stephanie Young, former associate director of the Obama WH Office of Public Engagement ... Elizabeth Kanick, deputy CoS for Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and a State and Hillary alum ... WMUR’s John DiStaso, the Dan Balz of the Granite State ...
… Denise Dunckel, VP of public affairs at the Beer Institute and a Visa and Bush 43 WH alum (h/ts Jason Recher and Clea Benson) … Lucien Zeigler, research director at Saudi-U.S. Trade Group ... Marc Lampkin, managing partner of DC office of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and a QGA alum ... Parul S. Choksi ... NPR’s Rachel Martin, the pride of Idaho Falls, Idaho, and co-host of Morning Edition ... Mark Sickles ... William Bertles, SVP and partner at DDC Advocacy (h/t birthday girl Angela Chiapetta) ... Matt Burgess, alum of Planned Parenthood and Al Franken ... Danielle Borrin … Meredith Brown Wills ... Rebecca Kaplan, associate producer at CBS Evening News … Shana Marchio, director of federal affairs and comms. for Kit Bond Strategies ... DDC’s Angela Chiappetta, celebrating with friends at El Rey ... Linda Gass ... Al Quinlan (h/ts Teresa Vilmain) ... Abbey Blume Gibson… Adam Prather … Carol Vanterpool ... Willem Rijksen ... Leon Mary ... Chuck Kleeschulte of Senate ENR ... Joe Dacca … Nick Spencer ... Rebecca Conley ... Jesse Purdon … author Toni Morrison is 86 ... Yoko Ono is 84 ... John Travolta is 63 ... Dr. Dre is 52 ... Molly Ringwald is 49 (h/ts AP)
THE SHOWS, by @MattMackowiak, filing from Austin:
--ABC’s “This Week”: Vice Adm. Robert Harward … Corey Lewandowski … Robby Mook … Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) … Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.)
-- NBC’s “Meet the Press”: Reince Priebus … Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) from Munich … Leon Panetta. Panel: David Brooks, Donna Edwards, Hugh Hewitt and Amy Walter
-- CBS’s “Face the Nation”: Reince Priebus … Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) … Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) … Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) … Tom Donilon and Mike Morrell. Panel: Bob Woodward, Jeffrey Goldberg, The Boston Globe’s Indira Lakshmanan, and The Weekly Standard’s Michael Graham
--“Fox News Sunday”: Reince Priebus … Rush Limbaugh. Panel: Karl Rove, Mo Elleithee, Kimberley Strassel and Charles Lane … “Power Player of the Week” with Smithsonian National Zoo panda Bao Bao
--CNN’s “State of the Union” (9 a.m., 12 p.m.): Ohio Gov. John Kasich, Gen. James Jones (USMC, Ret.) and Bob Menendez. Panel: Amanda Carpenter, Nina Turner, Rick Santorum and Jason Kander (substitute anchor: CNN’s Jim Sciutto)
--Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” (10 a.m.): Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) … Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) … former Assistant FBI Director James Kallstrom … Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) … George Mitchell. Panel: Ed Rollins, Maslansky & Partners president and partner Lee Carter and Garry Kasparov
--CNN’s “Inside Politics” with John King (8 a.m.): Panel: Julie Pace, Ryan Lizza, Jackie Kucinich and Manu Raju (substitute host: CNN’s Nia-Malika Henderson)
--CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS” (10 a.m., 1 p.m.): Panel: Elliott Abrams, Anthony Blinken, former Obama deputy national security adviser Avril Haynes, and former Russian foreign policy advisor Sergey Karaganov … Caroline Kennedy
--CNN’s “Reliable Sources”: (11 a.m.): Glenn Thrush and Salena Zito. Panel: Dana Priest, Glenn Greenwald and Carl Bernstein
--Univision’s “Al Punto” (10 a.m.): Daughter of an undocumented immigrant Jersey Vargas and immigration attorney Alex Gálvez … ACLU Ambassador Demián Bichir … Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles president Alfonso Aguilar and Republican analyst Adolfo Franco … Univision News correspondent Freddy Barros … former Peruvian president Alejandro Toledo … Latin singer and songwriter Prince Royce
--C-SPAN: “The Communicators” (Sat. 6 p.m.): Rep. Marsha Blackburn, questioned by Communications Daily’s John Hendel … “Newsmakers” (Sun. 10 a.m.): Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.), questioned by The Washington Post’s Mike DeBonis and The Hill’s Mike Lillis … “Q&A” (SUN 8pm & 11pm ET): Author and Georgetown University’s Barbara Feinman Todd (“Pretend I’m Not Here: How I Worked with Three Newspaper Icons, One Powerful First Lady, and Still Managed to Dig Myself Out of the Washington Swamp.”
-- Washington Times’ “Mack on Politics” weekly politics podcast with Matt Mackowiak (download on iTunes or listen at MackOnPolitics.com): Former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza … DNC vice chair candidate Adam Parkhomenko.