Subject: ?Axios AM: Mike's Top 10 — Trump ponders a war footing — Behind Zuck's road trip — The geography of life expectancy
From: "Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 9 May 2017 06:38:08 -0400 (EDT)

Presented by Koch Industries:

Trump ponders a war footing — Behind Zuck's road trip — =he geography of life expectancy

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Presented By Koch Industries

Axios AM

By Mike Allen = ·May 09, 2017

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1 big thing: "McMaster’s War"?

Over the next two weeks, President Trump will confront = momentous decision on escalation in Afghanistan, a topic that until now h=s received little public debate.

The Washi=gton Post's lead story, "U.S. is poised to ramp up Taliban fight," by=Missy Ryan and Greg Jaffe, reveals one of the most consequential choices t=at has yet faced this young administration. The Post says the Cabinet =s supportive, there are dissenters in the White House, and the president's=view is unknown:

"Trump's most senior military and foreign policy advisers have proposed a major shift in strategy =n Afghanistan that would effectively put the United States back on=a war footing with the Taliban."

"The plan comes<=strong> at the end of a sweeping policy review built around the president'= desire to reverse worsening security in Afghanistan and 'start wi=ning' again, said one U.S. official."

"The new st=ategy ... has the backing of top Cabinet officials."
Why it matters: "The ... changes would ... reverse m=ves by ... Obama to steadily limit the U.S. military role in Afghanistan, =long with the risk to American troops and the cost of the war effort.""Trump is expected to make a final call ... before a =ay 25 NATO summit in Brussels."

"Inside the White House, those opposed to the plan have begun to refer derisively to the str=tegy as 'McMaster's War,' a reference to H.R. McMaster, t=e president's national security adviser. The general, who once led anti-co=ruption efforts in Afghanistan and was one of the architects of President =eorge W. Bush's troop surge in Iraq, is the driving force behind the new s=rategy at the White House."

Key point by N.Y. Times' Michael Gordon, following =he Post story: "In some respects, [the decision] is a liability for a pres=dent who has called for putting 'America first.' Deploying more troops wou=d cost billions of dollars, and there is no guarantee of a clear win."

2. Zuck's year on the road

Rebecca Zisser / Axios

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's nationwide tour, aimed a= hitting all 50 states this year, has spurred oodles of speculation about =is political ambitions. Axios' David McCabe writes that while the Zuckerberg-fo=-president story has been overhyped, his friends think he may run for some=hing one day:

Why it matters: The presidenti=l election showed Zuckerberg that he doesn't understand a lot of Facebook'= users, and this trip is a way to learn about a part of the world he's bee= isolated from since at least his Harvard days. He's already met with Face=ook users who helped elect Trump.

The optics:=/strong> Events on the trip are mostly private, which Facebook says encour=ges the people Zuckerberg is meeting with to be candid without the press w=tching.

Zuckerberg has devoted significant time o=er the last several years to improving as a public speaker.

The latest swing took him through the Midwest for several made-=or-the-media events, but without the media. Zuckerberg ate dinner with an =nsuspecting Ohio family who didn't know he was their mystery guest until 1= minutes before he showed up.

Dip into our STREAM =or more on the Zuck-capade.

3. The geography of life expectancy

Life expectancy in the U.S. varies by more than 20 year= depending on your county. A=ios Science Editor Alison Snyder says researchers found the gap is gro=ing:

Why it matt=rs: Poverty, education, and unemployment — as well as smo=ing, lack of exercise and access to quality health care — explaine= 75% of the difference in life expectancy.

Best places: Central Colorado counties had the highest life expectancy (87 years)=in 2014.

Worst places: North and Sou=h Dakota counties encompassing Native American reservations had the lowest= — 66 years.

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Working to solve the global water crisis

At Koch Membrane Systems, scientists like Manny research ways to create =lean drinking water using state-of-the-art filtration technology. Learn more about Koch=innovations.

4. "I did my job"

Yates and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper / AP's =ablo Martinez Monsivais

N.Y. Times Quote of the Day ... Form=r acting Attorney General Sally Yates, at a Senate hearing yesterday, on M=ke Flynn: "To state the obvious: You don't want your national security adv=ser compromised with the Russians."

WashPost's Devlin Barrett and Sari Horwitz: "Y=tes testified ... that she expected White House officials to 'take action'= on her January warning that ... Flynn could be blackmailed."

Takeaways by NYT's Matthew Rosenber=:

"Perhaps the biggest takeaway ... was that=a lot of people had serious concerns about Mr. Flynn serving as national s=curity adviser. But none of them was named Donald J. Trump."

"Yates said ... she ... was not the source of any reports about=Mr. Flynn.

Yates, who was fired =y Trump when she refused to defend his travel restrictions, said: "Not onl= was the department not consulted, we weren't even told about it ... I lea=ned about this from media reports."

Trump tweeted last night: "Sally Yates made the fake media=extremely unhappy today --- she said nothing but old news! ... The Russia-=rump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded chara=e end? ... Biggest story today between Clapper & Yates is on surveilla=ce. Why doesn't the media report on this? #FakeNews!"

5. Commencement speakers avoid Trump

Most college graduations are a "No-Trump Zone," per a=front-pager by USA Today's Rick Hampson:

6. Getting Trump on the line

Jared "Kushner emerged as conduit for Canada on NAFTA t=lks," by AP's Julie Pace and Cath=rine Lucey:

"According to a White House official, =/strong>aides to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Kushner urg=ntly on April 26 after seeing news reports that Trump was considering sign=ng an executive order withdrawing from NAFTA."

"Kushner to=d his Canadian counterpart that this was a matter the leaders nee=ed to discuss themselves ... The Canadians asked when Trudeau should call.=After checking at the White House, Kushner called back to say Trump was re=dy to talk now."

Chaser ... N.Y. Times front =age, "Trump Acts, And Kushners Stand to Gain," by Eric Lipton and Jesse =rucker:

"It was the first=major piece of legislation that President Trump signed into law, and burie= on Page 734 was one sentence that brought a potential benefit to the pres=dent's extended family: renewal of a [visa] program offering permanent res=dence in the United States to affluent foreigners investing money in real =state projects here."

"A White House statement sa=d the administration 'is evaluating wholesale reform of the EB-5 [visa] pr=gram.'"

7. The talk of Wall Street

Wall Street's "fear gauge" dropped to its lowest since =993 following centrist Emmanuel Macron's victory in France, Reuters reported: "The CBOE Vol=tility index dropped 0.8 point to close at 9.77 ... A declining VIX typica=ly indicates a bullish outlook for stocks."

Be smart .=. The Wall Street Journal warns: "Some investors interpret th= VIX's decline as a contrary indicator of where the market will go. Their =iew is that ... investors have grown too complacent. And some say investor= are turning to other financial instruments to protect against a downdraft=in stocks."

8. The ex-presidents

"Obama starts defining his new role in the age of Trump=" by AP's Julie Pace: "Afte= dropping out of sight for a pair of glamorous island getaways, Obama is e=erging for a series of paid and unpaid speeches, drawing sharp contrasts w=th Trump even as he avoids saying the new president's name."

"[T]he attention surrounding Obama has ... magnified the vac=um for new Democratic leadership, a reality that aides say is not lost on =he former president."

"In an unusual move for a former president ... Obama taped a video endorsing Emmanuel Mac=on, the eventual winner of the French presidential election. He backed Mac=on after Trump appeared to side with nationalist candidate Marine Le Pen."=/li>
"Obama advisers say ... he is willin= to consider requests for support from overseas candidates. Later this mon=h, he'll appear alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who faces elect=ons later this year, for a panel on democracy.

"Obama's st=p in Germany will coincide with Trump's first visit to Eu=ope as president, ... setting up a stark contrast between the 44t= and 45th presidents on the world stage."

Bill Clint=n teams up with James Patterson to pen White House thriller, per =a href="http://link.axios.com/click/9571582.31850/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW=lcy5jb20vMjAxNy8wNS8wOC9ib29rcy9qYW1lcy1wYXR0ZXJzb24tYW5kLWJpbGwtY2xpbnRvb=10ZWFtLXVwLXRvLXdyaXRlLWEtbm92ZWwuaHRtbD91dG1fc291cmNlPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXImdXRt=21lZGl1bT1lbWFpbCZ1dG1fY2FtcGFpZ249bmV3c2xldHRlcl9heGlvc2Ft/5871993924c17c=4d77a8b8cB9ee01b6b" target="_blank">N.Y. Times' Alexandra Alter: "In=June 2018, Alfred A. Knopf and Little, Brown and Company will jointly publ=sh 'The President Is Missing' ... a 'unique amalgam of intrigue, suspense =nd behind-the-scenes global drama' that will be 'informed by insider detai=s that only a president can know.'"

How it happened: "The project came about late last year when Robert B. Barnett, ...=who represents both Mr. Clinton and Mr. Patterson, had the idea of pairing=them up on a novel."

9. 2018 watch

Sabato in L.A. in 2013 / Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Actor Antonio Sabato Jr. is running for Congress, chall=nging Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village), who represents the souther= central coast and most of Ventura County, the L.A. Times re=orts:

"Sabato is ... best known for roles =n 'General Hospital' and 'Melrose Place.'"

"The 45-year-ol= was a vocal supporter of President Trump during the 2016 preside=tial campaign and spoke on his behalf at that year's Republican National C=nvention. ... Sabato said afterward that he was blacklisted by Hollywood p=oducers because of his visible support for Trump."

=/a>

10. 1 fun thing: Just a coincidence?

Oliver mocks FCC Chairman Ajit Pai

The FCC says its website was hit with an online attack =unday night, about the same time HBO's John Oliver urged viewers to flood =he site with comments supporting current net-neutrality regulations, per U=A Today's Mike Snider:

"Three years ago, Oliv=r spurred a massive response after a segment on net neutrality on ... =ast Week Tonight. After explaining the principle that the FCC was con=idering — Internet service providers (ISPs) should treat all legal=content and applications equally and not block or slow content — h= encouraged fans to submit supportive comments on the agency's website. Th=t caused the site to crash."

"On his latest episode, ... Oliver urged viewers 'once more into the breach.'"

Axios' David McCabe: "The FCC says members of the public had trouble filing comments ... o= Sunday and early Monday morning because of a cyberattack."

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