Subject: ?Axios AM: Mike's Top 10 — Why Preet was toast — Bite of the day — Hollywood conservatives in hiding — SNL's scent for Ivanka
From: "Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 12 Mar 2017 11:12:09 -0400 (EDT)

Presented by Walmart:

Why Preet was toast — Bite of the day — Hollywood conse=vatives in hiding — SNL's scent for Ivanka

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Presented By Walmart

Axios AM

By Mike Allen = ·Mar 12, 2017

1 big thing: Why Preet was toast

Why did Trump insiders instantly know that the "Sheriff=of Wall Street," Preet Bharara of Manhattan, would be fired when he resist=d President Trump's resignation order to all the holdover U.S. attorneys?<=p>
There's a school of thought that the whole purge was=about Preet in the first place: He's a maverick, his Southern District of =ew York is powerful, U.S. attorneys have significant independence, and he =as jurisdiction over Trump Tower. And he recently launched a personal Twit=er feed.

If Preet ever flexed his muscles to underm=ne Trump, he'd be hard to stop. Better to ax him when you can.

After news reports yesterday that the prosecutor was resisting= Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente gave him a buzz. An administra=ion official tattles that Preet "refused to admit that this applied to him="

"As we talked to him and tried to reinforce that =t did, he basically said: 'I'm interpreting that to mean you're firing me.="

Preet then tweeted: "I did not resign. Moments ag= I was fired."

The N.Y. Times' Maggie Haberman and =harlie Savage later popped the tantalizing scoop that Trump's off=ce had phoned Preet on Thursday. But the prosecutor hadn't called back bec=use of "protocols governing a president's direct contact with federal pros=cutors."

Questions for next week ... Matt Miller of=the strategic advisory firm Vianovo, who was a top aide to Attorney Genera= Eric Holder, told me that it's "the manner with which the White House did=this that, like so many other things, makes people suspicious about their =otives":

"It seems pretty clear they weren't=planning to fire them on Thursday, since Sessions held a call with all the=U.S. attorneys across the country and wished them 'happy hunting' on cases= So what changed between that call on Thursday and them being all told to =lean out their desks by the end of the day on Friday?"

"Ma=be it's the White House's paranoia that holdovers and civil serva=ts are out to get them — Trump just finally snapped and ordered t=em all fired immediately. ... [T]hey took something that could have been h=ndled the way past administrations handled it and instead chose chaos and =ut their actions under another cloud of suspicion."

<=trong>"It goes back to the fundamental question about so many thi=gs from this White House: What percentage of this mess is due to incompete=ce and what percentage is due to malfeasance? No idea, but you will have D=J reporters and Democrats on the Hill digging hard into the question."
As for Preet's future: There's a lot of buzz about him running for New York mayor or some o=her office: He'd be a great campaigner, and do well in the boroughs. But i=siders remind us that he lives in Westchester County ...

2. If you read only one thing

Acutely malnourished Sacdiyo Mohamed, 9 months old, is treated at the Ba=adir Hospital in Somalia yesterday after her mother, Halima Hassan Mohamed= fled the drought in southern Somalia and traveled by car to the capital, =ogadishu / AP's Mohamed Sheikh Nor

"20 million at risk of starvation in world's largest [h=manitarian] crisis since 1945, UN says," by CNN's Faith Karimi:

<=i>The scope: "UN humanitarian chief Stephen O'Brien plead=d with the world to come to the rescue of Kenya, Yemen, South Sudan and So=alia. 'We stand at a critical point in history. Already at the beginning o= the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation=of the UN'" in 1945.

Terror group stealing food: =The drought, impending famine and the presence of terrorist group Al-Shaba=b have left [Somalia] and its people in a desperate situation ... "Al-Shab=ab blocks the roads, there is no access for food aid, the Shabaab steal fo=d.

The numbers: "In Somalia, more than 6 million=people are in need of food assistance -- more than half the population. ..= In neighboring Kenya, more than 2.7 million people are at risk of starvat=on, and that number could go up to 4 million by next month ... South Sudan= where a famine was recently declared, has more than 7.5 million people in=need of assistance -- more than half of whom have been displaced ... in Ye=en, more than 7 million people are severely food insecure."

More details in the full statement.

3. Bite of the day

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) to George Stephanopoulos on AB='s "This Week": " I would say to my friends in the House of Representative= with whom I served: Do not walk the plank and vote for a bill that cannot=pass the Senate, and then have to face the consequences of that vote."
=p>Chaser ... HHS Secretary Tom Price, with Chuck Todd on =BC's "Meet the Press," embraces the bill and points to the non-legislative=track: "[T]here are hundreds of regulations that were put in place by the =revious administration. We're going to look at every single one of them an= answer the questions: 'Does it help patients or harm patients?'"

A message from Walmart

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Associates with a clearer path to success make Walmart a stronger compan=. As Sam Walton said, "Our people make the difference." This is just the b=ginning as Walmart continues to invest in associates' education and succes=. Learn More.

4. 2020 rumblings

"Cuomo takes key step =oward launching presidential campaign" — N.Y. Post's Aar=n Short: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo "has hired two Florid= fundraisers, a sign he's building a national network ... The two consulta=ts — one is former Hillary Clinton money man Jon Adrabi — =ill help plan events and build relationships with Democratic donors in the=key swing state."

Cory Booker to Jake Tapper on CNN=s "State of the Union": "This is a toxic environment that is being created=right now. And I don't care who you are: If you consider yourself a leader= your obligation is getting up and doing something about it — an= lead with love, and not appealing to peoples' darker angels."

Tapper: "Are you going to try to t=ke this further than the United States Senate?"

Booker: "No ... [I]f you're a senator thinking about being president, you're =ften not a very good senator."

=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. Top-ed: How Trump can prepare for crisis

Ruth Marcus' WashPost column is must reading for anyone=in the White House, including the residence — "How will thi= White House respond to an emergency?":

"For a new=president, April is the cruelest month; add John F. Kennedy's Bay=of Pigs fiasco to that litany of springtime woes."

"Trump'= unforced errors have implications and ripple effects for when th= real problems inevitably arrive."

"First, the best leaders become even more calm, deliberate and focused in mo=ents of stress and emergency. Trump lashes out — before checking t=e facts, before considering the consequences."

"Second, the skill set of steady presidential leadership must be=augmented by a functioning team of principals, deputies and advisers.""Third, Trump's predilection to assert a=d cling to untruths in the face of contrary evidence raises questions abou= his capacity to absorb and act on unwelcome information."

<=mg width="32" height="32" style="border: none" target="_blank" src=3D"https://static.axios.com/img-email/email-circle.png" alt="Email this =tory">

6. Trump's mystery man

The WashPost makes a surprisingly boring production of =rying to establish residency for White House chief strategist Steve Bannon=in "Ban=on had no fixed address during his rise," by Bob O'Harrow and Shawn Bo=urg. Don't waste your life — here are the takeawa=s:

"No presidential adviser in recent memory h=s followed such a mysterious, peripatetic path to the White House. ... In =he digital age, when most Americans leave a clear footprint of their where=bouts, Bannon left a meandering trail filled with ambiguity."

"He owned a house and condo in Southern California, where he h=d entertainment and consulting businesses ... He claimed Florida as his re=idence ... [H]e routinely stayed in Washington and New York as he engineer=d the expansion of Breitbart News and hosted a live Breitbart radio progra=. ... Bannon told a friend [in an email that] he was living in multiple ci=ies, including Washington, New York, London and Miami."

7. Inside the West Wing

"Sarah Huckabee Sanders is a rising star in Trump's orb=t," by AP's Catherine Lucey and Ken Thomas:

"The 34-ye=r-old spokeswoman for President Donald Trump was schooled in hard=crabble politics — and down-home rhetoric — from a young a=e by her father, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee."

"San=ers has taken on a notably more prominent role in selling Trump's=agenda, including on television and at White House press briefings. As ...=Sean Spicer's public profile has fluctuated, ... Sanders has increasingly =ecome a chief defender of Trump in some of his toughest moments."

=span>"Sanders' rise has fueled speculation that sh='s becoming the president's favored articulator ... 'When Eric Schultz wen= on TV did anybody say Josh Earnest is getting fired?' Sanders asked. 'Was=that story ever written?'"

8. The talk of Hollywood

L.A. Times front page, "In Hollywood, conservatives keeping quiet: Some fear that their political=beliefs are more of a career liability than ever," by David Ng:

"The political closet is now a necessity for many in an =ndustry that is among the most liberal in the country."

"F=iends of Abe — the industry's largest conservative organi=ation — ... counts about 2,500 people on its roster, having starte= a decade ago with just a handful of individuals led by actor Gary Sinise.=The organization, which keeps the identities of its members secret, holds =onthly social events as well as lunches for new members."

"[A] concentration of conservatives =an be found [in] the corner offices of major entertainment companies. ... =rominent Republican supporters today include NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke,=former Univision head Jerry Perenchio and producer Jerry Bruckheimer."

9. Bracketology: Selection Sunday

Even if this March seems to have been =lenty mad already, March Madness officially begins at 5:30 p.m. ET with th= "NCAA Tournament Selection Sunday" show on CBS and the top storyline: "Is Duke =27-8) worthy [!] of a No. 1 seed?" (David Rubenstein, Charlie Rose and=Mark Mazzetti say: "Aye!")

The N.Y. Times' Marc Tra=y peaks behind the curtain in "N.C.A.A. and CBS Take Steps to Prevent Anot=er Bracket Leak": "The anonymous Twitter poster who leaked last year's ...=pairings halfway through CBS's televised selection show is on the minds of=a lot of people this weekend." The changes:

=strong>The NCAA says it's "reducing the number of entities and pe=ple who receive the bracket in advance."

"CBS is shortenin= the program — which for many years lasted only a half-ho=r [first live selection show aired on CBS in 1982] — to 90 minutes=from two hours, and it will be frontloading the revealing of the bracket. = 'vast majority of the bracket will be released in the first 30 minutes."<=li>
David Levy, Turner's president: "I th=nk we underestimated the viewers' impatience."

Neal Pilso=, a former CBS Sports president who was the primary negotiator wh=n his network pried the tournament's broadcast rights from NBC in the earl= 1980s: "Our theory was that the tournament is like a movie: It has a begi=ning, a middle and an end."

Welcome to the beginning! =/strong>Gus, will you fill out my bracket?

10 1 fun thing

"Saturday Night Live" goes after Ivanka for the first time, with a mock perf=me ad: "Every man knows her name. Every woman knows her =ace. ... She's IVANKA. ... She's beautiful. She's powerful. She's �=94 Complicit. … She's a woman who knows what she wants — =nd knows what she's doing.

"She=doesn't crave the spotlight, but we see her. … A feminist= an advocate. A champion for women. But, like: How? ... Complicit: The fra=rance for the woman who could stop all of this. But won't! Also availa=le in a cologne for Jared."

"Alien Attack=/a>" cold open on "Saturday Night Live": With the U.S. under atta=k by aliens from Planet Zorblatt 9, military leader Kenan Thompson informs=Alec Baldwin that the aliens just vaporized the state of California and ev=ryone is dead.

The commander-in=chief replies: "Even Arnold? ... Then I won the popular vote? ...=I actually heard Zorblatt 9 is very beautiful."

A message from Walmart

An investment in better training, education and hig=er wages

Since Walmart announced a $2.7B investment in training, education and hi=her wages, 70 new Walmart Training Academies have opened to help workers b=ild new retail skills and this March 850,000 Walmart associates will recei=e bonuses totaling $157M in their paycheck. Le=rn More.

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