Subject: Axios AM: Mike's Top 10 ?— SCOOP: Behind the curtain as White House rebuts New York Times article ?— The fake Oscar: 'Chaos in the moonlight'
From: "Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 27 Feb 2017 06:36:09 -0500 (EST)

SCOOP: Behind the curtain as White House rebuts New York Times article =— The fake Oscar: 'Chaos in the moonlight'

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Axios AM

By Mike Allen = ·Feb 27, 2017

​1 big thing: White House on the line

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer personally pick=d up the phone and connected outside officials with reporters to try to di=credit a New York Times article about Trump campaign aides' contact with R=ssia, then remained on the line for the brief conversations, Axios has lea=ned. Ten key points:

Why it matte=s: The new details show how determined the West Wing was to rebut=a front-page Times report on Feb. 15 that Tru=p campaign aides "had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence o=ficials in the year before the election."

Who was involved= The officials reached by Spicer were CIA Director Mike P=mpeo and Senate Select Intelligence Committee Chair Richa=d Burr (R-N.C), according to a senior administration official. Th= reporters were from The Washington Post and The =all Street Journal, the official said. Spicer provided reporters'=phone numbers to House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), who offered to make the calls himself, according to the =fficial: "He was in and out of an event."

Whe= did this happen? On Feb. 15, when the two-column lead of the Times print ed=tion, which Trump reads carefully, declared: "Trump Aides Had Contact With=Russian Intelligence: U.S. Officials Tell of a Flurry of Phone Calls Inter=epted Before the Election." An FBI official had volunteered privately to t=e White House that the story was "B.S." (but used the full word). When the=FBI didn't immediately agree to tell that to the press, the White House tr=ed to find other officials who would convey that idea to inquiring reporte=s.

What the White House was thinking:<=i>The backdrop: Top White House officials te=l us they're authentically confident that the Russia smoke won't lead to f=re, and are even happy to have their opponents distracted by the issue. "F=r over six months, we have heard about these alleged contacts with Russia,= the official said. "And yet, … with all the leaks have have come =ut, there's no 'there' there."

What was said =n the calls: Pompeo and Burr told the journalists that the Times =tory wasn't true but provided no details, frustrating the competing report=rs, according to the official: "Both of them said: All I can tell
you is the story is not accurate."

What we don't know: Our sources weren't sure exactly how many calls were made, or which of=icial talked to which reporter.

Why this is unusual: Intelligence officials from the Obama administration said it's rare for=the CIA director to talk directly to a single journalist – that in=the past, the director usually was held in reserve to talk to a publisher =r executive editor in a case where a news organization was contemplating p=blishing something that could harm national security.

What we knew before: The Washington Post reported the pus=back operation on Friday night under =he headline: "Trump administration sought to enlist intelligence offic=als, key lawmakers to counter Russia stories."

The reactio=: Some Democrats were already arguing that Russian involvement in=the election should be investigated by a special prosecutor or outside, 9/=1-style commission, rather than the congressional intelligence committees.=George Little, a top CIA and Pentagon spokesman under Pre=ident Obama, told us: "It's doubtful that Congress can conduct an objectiv= and independent investigation into ties between this White House and the =ussian government if it is collaborating so closely on media pushback with=the White House press secretary."

2. Get smart fast

What you need to know about the right-wing movement con=uming Europe: The rise of nationalism and right-wing populism is =he story of the decade in America and across Europe. The global movement d=livered Donald Trump the presidency and formed the core of his inaugural a=dress. In coming years, it could fundamentally reshape the European Union =s we know it.

See our 12 cards — by Shane Savitsky A=ex Duner Rebecca Zisser — showing how populism has made its mark =cross the continent, and what might happen next.

=img width="32" height="32" style="border: none" target="_blank" sr=="https://static.axios.com/img-email/twitter-circle.png" alt="Tweet th=s Story">

3. The 3 big themes ...

Trump walks into the Oval on Friday / Photo by Reuters' Yuri Gripas

... of Trump's address to a Joint Session of Congress t=morrow at 9 p.m., per Jonathan Swan: safety, sovere=gnty and economic opportunity.

Chris Krueger o= Cowen Washington Research Group has this sly preview: "We believe the spe=ch will be best described as American First (with more of a smile) along w=th a greatest hits collection of Trump's achievements thus far and the big=goals remaining for the Congress: tax reform/relief, border security, heal=h care, and infrastructure."

"W= would not be surprised to see further language in sync with Frid=y's CPAC address, where Trump stated 'the GOP will be from now on the part= of the American worker.' So language more geared towards the proletariat =s opposed to the owners of the means of production."

4. Beyond the bubble

A WashPost front-pager, "Mixed feelings in Trump land," takes a turn from the "attaboy" theme of most recent dispatches=from Trump country. Jenna Johnson, who covered last year's Iowa caucuses, =alked to more than 100 Iowans on a 370-mile drive across the state last we=k. She writes from Clinton, Iowa, under the online headline, "These Iowans=voted for Trump. Many of them are already disappointed":

"While Iowa is still home to many stron= supporters who say it's too early to judge him, there are others who say =hey voted for Trump simply because he wasn't Clinton. Many Iowans worry Tr=mp might cut support for wind-energy and ethanol programs; that his trade =olicies could hurt farms that export their crops; that mass deportations w=uld empty the state's factories and meat-packing plants; and that a repeal=of the Affordable Care Act would yank health insurance away from thousands=

"While the hyper-simplicity of Trump's campaign promises helped him win over voters, they are n= match for the hyper-complexity of Iowa's economy and values."

=img width="32" height="32" style="border: none" target="_blank" sr=="https://static.axios.com/img-email/twitter-circle.png" alt="Tweet th=s Story">

5. Shadow Cabinet debuts

Today, a progressive "Shadow Cabinet" starts tweeting <= href="http://link.axios.com/click/8984015.36425/aHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmN=bS9zaGFkb3dpbmd0cnVtcD91dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXImdXRtX21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbC=1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249bmV3c2xldHRlcl9heGlvc2Ft/5871993924c17c54d77a8b8cB4aaff0c=" target="_blank">@ShadowingTrump to rebut the administration's stat=ments, actions and tweets in real time.

The "cabinet" includes scholars, authors and former Democratic officials, assembled b= former New York City Public Advocate Mark Green in six weeks of frantic phoning, emailing and fundraisin=:

LAURENCE TRIBE, "Attorney General" -- Constitutional law pro=essor at Harvard Law School.

MARIELENA HINCAPIE, "INS/ICE/Immigrat=on" -- executive director, National Immigration Law Center

DERAY M=KESSON, "Justice Issues" - Co-founder, Black Lives Matter. civil rights ac=ivist.

ROBERT REICH, "Labor/Commerce" -- Ex-Labor Secretary, best-=elling author.

LAURA TYSON, "Treasury/Trade" -- Ex-chair CEA, prof=ssor at BerkeleyHass Business School

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON, "IRS" -- =ulitzer prize-winning journo/author. Founder of new DCReport.

DIAN= RAVITCH, "Education" -- Professor at NYU, author/editor of 24 books on ed=cation.

JOAN CLAYBROOK, "Transportation" -- Ex-head of National Hi=hway Traffic Safety Administration.

ROB WEISSMAN, "Consumer Agenci=s" -- President, Public Citizen.

DAVID FREEMAN, "Energy & EPA"=-- Ex-head of TVA & NYS Power Authority.

DAVID HIMMELSTEIN, ST=FFIE WOOLFINDLER, "HHS/Health" -- Distinguished Professors at Pub. Health =chool, CUNY/Hunter; co-founders Physicians for National Health.

CO=IN KAHL, "NSA/Terrorism" - V.P. Biden's National Security Adviser.

ANDREW BACEVICH, "Defense Department" -- Author/histo=ian, BU.Pardee School Global Affairs.

​6. Fast-food robots

Wendy's is installing self-help kiosks at 1=000 restaurants this year.

The automation paradox, per A=ios' Chris Matthews: This is the sort of anecdote brandished by t=ose who warn of the effects of automation on the labor market, and the the=retical case for why recent advances in computer science will greatly incr=ase number of automatable jobs is strong.

But actual labor productivity growth has been at histo=ically low levels lately. If automation were overtaking the American labor=market, business would be producing more with fewer workers, and the data =s saying they're not — at least yet.

7. Trending in business

Wall Street Journal front-pager, "Markets Flash Warning Sign," by Min Zeng: "Stocks and=bonds are again moving in tandem after diverging in recent months—= sign some investors may be losing faith in the so-called reflation trade.=

Huh? "It is a shift from late last year when =nvestors were selling bonds and buying stocks, anticipating that large fis=al stimulus from President Donald Trump would lead to accelerated growth a=d higher inflation, a bet known as the reflation trade."

N=C watching D.C.: "Trump is scheduled to speak on Tuesday to a joi=t session of Congress. Investors will zero in on updates to his proposals =or an expansive fiscal policy.

​8. Hot in tech (and for some of our readers)

The Recode headline says it all: "Chart of the day: The BlackBerry's fall to 0.0 percen= market share. A decade after the iPhone launched, the BlackBerry platform=is all but dead."

=/a>

9. News you can use

Will be quite a block party ...

10. 1 fun thing

Fred Berger, producer of "La La Land," gives his acceptance speech as me=bers of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Brian Cullinan, holding red envelope, and =artha L. Ruiz, in red dress, and a stage manager discuss the best-picture =rror / Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

The WashPost's Style banner is: "CHAOS IN THE MOONLIGHT="

The last-minute Oscars debacle ... The L.A. Times=Josh Rottenberg captures the scene in "'Moonlight' wins in unprecedented u=set during a night of many firsts":

"In one of the most surprising upsets and shocking moments i= Oscar history, the poetic coming-of-age drama 'Moonlight' [about a poor g=y African American boy growing up in Miami] took home the top prize for be=t picture at the 89th Academy Awards, beating out the heavily favored 'La =a Land,' which was actually announced as the winner.

"The win for 'Moonlight' came in a chaotic =nd confused moment that played out live in front of an audience of million=, as presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway initially presented the ...=final award to 'La La Land,' only to have one of the film's producers anno=nce that 'Moonlight' had, in fact, won. ...

"'Oh my God, he got the wrong envelope,' said a stag= hand in the wings. When 'La La Land' producer Jordan Horowitz revealed th= mistake — 'this is not a joke, "Moonlight" won' — the aud=ence in the Dolby Theatre erupted in gasps."

See Vanity Fair's =/strong>full list of winners.

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