Subject: Axios AM: Mike's Top 10 ?— ?? ???? Trump lands in Israel — White House budget to include welfare reform — Breaking: New Ford CEO — 'With social media, a flame becomes a bonfire'
From: "Mike Allen" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 22 May 2017 06:19:10 -0400 (EDT)

Presented by JPMorgan Chase & Co.:

Trump lands in Israel — White House budget to include welfare re=orm — Breaking: New Ford CEO — 'With social media, a flame=becomes a bonfire'

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Presented By JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Axios AM

By Mike Allen = ·May 22, 2017

You're invited ... to an event tomorrow at 8 a.m. in downtown D.C.: Chuck Todd an= Jim VandeHei host a live, onstage version of their famous mini-roundtable= and talk infrastructure with Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and Sen. Jim Inhofe=(R-Okla.), an avid pilot. Hope to see you — RSVP here.

1 big thing: 🇸🇦 🇮🇱 Can trip's t=action last?

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One in =el Aviv at the start of a two-day Israel stop / AP's Evan Vucci

Air Force One just landed at Ben Gurion International A=rport in Tel Aviv, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greeting=President Trump at a tarmac arrival ceremony. The President and First Lady=will visit the Western Wall later this morning, ET.

Trump said "Now we must work together to build a future where the nations =f the region are at peace ... During my travels in recent days, I have fou=d new reasons for hope."

With ambitions for=an eventual peace deal, Trump will continue the message he's taki=g to the base of three great religions: Tolerance, and a fierce resistance=to terrorism, lead to a more prosperous future.

Trump's week=nd overture to the Muslim world, combined with his call to the national leaders in his audience=/a> to be tougher on their homegrown threat ("history's great test �=94 to conquer extremism and vanquish the forces of terrorism"), has given =im a momentary respite from the legal peril he left at home.

while noting some=contradictions with past Trump stances, were mostly good. Fox's Bret Baier said from Saudi Arabia: "[A]s you travel the world an= you talk to world leaders, they think ... that this is a turning of the t=de in the relationships of these countries — Saudi Arabia, the Gul= nations."

"I do think=that you are seeing an effort by the White House ... to try to stick to th= message of the day, and that's why we're not having a lot of open Q&A=." (Trump hasn't yet had a presser on the trip.)

Can Trump s=stain the presidential mien, for this week, and when he returns?<=p>
A key Republican emails: "Can this team and its lead=r learn from success? If they can, the turn to presidential-level issues c=n create a sense of calm and normalcy which would begin the rebuilding pro=ess with Rs in Congress."

"It m=ans leaving Mueller to the various lawyers and focusing on result= for the moderate-income voters that Trump uniquely inspires. Trump's pres=dency is about Trump, and that is vexing and tiresome to those struggling =n a rapidly changing economy."

Qu=ck read by Axios' David Lawler on what to expect during the I=rael leg.

P.S. Per Bloomberg's Alan Levin, Margaret Talev and=Jonathan Ferziger: Trump traveled from Riyadh to Tel Aviv aboard Air Force=One today "in what appears to be an unprecedented direct flight by a U.S. =resident between those nations, which don't have diplomatic relations."N.Y. Times Quote of the Day ...="Love your shoes. Boy, those shoes. Man!" — Presi=ent Trump, returning a compliment given by President Abdel Fattah=el-Sisi of Egypt, who had told Mr. Trump, "You are a unique personality th=t is capable of doing the impossible."

2. $1.7 trillion in cuts to safety net

White House budget director Mick Mulvaney holds a copy of the budget as =e inspects the production run at the U.S. Government Publishing Office's p=ant in Washington on Friday / AP's Carolyn Kaster

The White House is billing the budget being released to=orrow as "a taxpayer-first budget," but the proposed cuts (allowing balanc= over 10 years) are so deep that even Hill Republicans will resist.

=strong>One former top GOP aide points out that food stamps are po=itically treacherous to reform, let alone cut.

A Trump offic=al tells me the budget includes notable welfare reform: "We'll wo=k with states to impose work requirements on the able-bodied. ... Not enou=h people left ... dependency as the economy recovered."

=hat we know:

"Trum= budget to slash entitlements by $1.7 trillion," by Axios' Jo=athan Swan: "The best summary, from one White House source: 'Conservatives=will love it; moderates will probably hate it.' These mandatory cuts �=80� especially to politically-sensitive programs like food stamps �=94 will make some moderate Republicans as nervous as the recent healthcare=bill did."

The cuts, per Swan: From programs incl=ding SNAP (food stamps), CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program), and S=DI (Disability Insurance). The budget proposal will also assume that Trump=can sign into law the American Health Care Act — the Obamacare rep=al and replace bill that passed the House and is now being considered by t=e Senate. That bill makes substantial cuts to Medicaid.

Th= budget assumes the economy will grow at 3% after a few years, in=tead of the 1.6% rate it grew last year. The Trump official tells Axios AM=it's a "post-policy" budget, meaning it assumes passage of tax reform and =ther White House plans, despite their uncertain future.

<= href="http://link.axios.com/click/9668865.33546/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cud2FzaGl=Z3RvbnBvc3QuY29tL2J1c2luZXNzL2Vjb25vbXkvdHJ1bXAtdG8tcHJvcG9zZS1iaWctY3V0cy=0by1zYWZldHktbmV0LWluLW5ldy1idWRnZXQtdGhpcy13ZWVrLzIwMTcvMDUvMjEvNjJjMDFmN=QtM2UzNC0xMWU3LWFkYmEtMzk0ZWU2N2E3NTgyX3N0b3J5Lmh0bWw_dXRtX3NvdXJjZT1uZXdz=GV0dGVyJnV0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPW5ld3NsZXR0ZXJfYXhpb3NhbQ/=871993924c17c54d77a8b8cB8994578a" target="_blank">WashPost's Damian Pale=ta: "The White House also will call for giving states more fl=xibility to impose work requirements for people in different kinds of anti=poverty programs, people familiar with the budget plan said, potentially l=ading to a flood of changes in states led by conservative governors."
=/ul>

3. Bulletin: New Ford CEO

Posted 4:34 a.m. ... "Ford Motor=Co. will replace Chief Executive Mark Fields with Jim Hackett, the former =ead of office-furniture maker Steelcase Inc. who joined the auto maker in =016," The Wall Street Journal's John D. Stoll and Christina Rogers.
Backstory: "The move comes amid a significant decline=in share-price value during Mr. Fields ' three-year tenure."

"Before his elevation to CEO, Mr. Hackett chaired Ford Smart Mo=ility LLC, a subsidiary formed last year by Mr. Fields to explore new vent=res in ride hailing, car sharing and self-driving vehicles."

Why it matters: "The move comes as Ford is looking to reimagine=the way people get from point A to point B. It has turned to an unusual pi=k to lead the charge, as Mr. Hackett is an industry outsider and will be l=ading a company full of senior executives widely seen as capable of succee=ing Mr. Fields."

A message from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

What makes Detroit so inspiring?

JPMorgan Chase is increasing its commitment to Detroit, a city they've b=en invested in for the past 80 years. They teamed up with Detroit artist J=seph Alessio to illustrate the Motor City’s growth and how its suc=ess can be replicated in cities everywhere. Get the full story here=

4. Read of the day

The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza, "Firing Back: How Sa=ly Yates stood up to the President": "

Sally Quillian Yates, who is fifty-six, spent more=than two decades as a federal prosecutor in Georgia before being named a U=S. Attorney and then the Deputy Attorney General by President Obama. She a=d her husband, Comer, live in Atlanta, but she keeps a modest apartment in=Washington, where I met her for her first interview since her career at th= Department of Justice ended. Yates was composed, disciplined, and sharp-w=tted as she spoke about her brief time in the Trump Administration [as act=ng attorney general] ...

Yates ... weighed her options: she would either resign or refu=e to defend the order [on migrant travel]. She told me, ... "I thought, ba=ed on all the evidence I had, that it was based on religion. And then I th=ught back to Jim Crow laws, or literacy tests. Those didn't say that the p=rpose was to prevent African-Americans from voting. But that's what the pu=pose was." ...

[A]t around 9 P.M., [White House counsel Don= McGahn's office asked the [Justice Department's] senior Trump appointee t= deliver a letter to Yates, notifying her that she had been fired. He said=a prayer, and walked down the hall. "Madam Attorney General, I have a memo=andum for you from the White House that I've been asked to deliver."<=p>

=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. GOP's green shoots

Rebecca Zisser / Axios

Conservatives are slowly coming around on climate chang=, Ax=os' Amy Harder reports in her weekly "Harder Line" energy column:
=ul>
The evidence: Over the past few years, more than a=half-dozen organizations have popped up pushing conservative climate-chang= and clean-energy policies, and the percentage of congressional Republican= going on the record acknowledging climate is a problem has gone from zero=to 8% [!], as judged by a House caucus on the issue.

Why i= matters: The changes among Republicans are small, but represent = sea change from a few years ago.

Dip into the Axios S=REAM to read the full column.

6. "A kind of anti-Trump"

Another worthy read in the new New Yorker= "The Warrior Monk," by Dexter Filkins, on SecDef James Mattis:

[I]n embracing Mattis's Mad =og persona, Trump neglected a side of him that appealed to many others �=80� that of the deeply read scholar-soldier and sophisticated analyst. I= this view, Mattis is a kind of anti-Trump, a veteran of three wars who ha= been sobered by their brutalities, a guardian of the internationa=ist tradition in American foreign policy. ...

Speaking to reporters

7. "Young men slide down income ladder"

"The loss of blue-collar jobs ... is forcing more men i=to low-wage service jobs, and in some cases causing them to drop out of th= workforce altogether," according to a Boston Globe front-pager by Katie Johnston:<=p>

An analysis last month by the U.S. Census Burea= ("The Changing Economics and Demographics of Young Adul=hood: 1975–2016") found that many young men have fallen to the bot=om of the income scale, "despite the fact that they are better educated an= working full time at the same rate."

What caused it: "Wages have stagnated, while the cost of living and student debt have =kyrocketed, and college graduates are taking lower-level jobs ... [M]en are being hit particularly h=rd, as many of them are forced to take contract or part-time work."
Key fact: "The jobs that are growing the fastest ... are concentrated in female-dominated pro=essions, such as health care."

Why it matters: "M=ny young men — defined by the Census Bureau as ages 25 to 34 �=80� are starting out their working lives at a distinct disadvantage, com=ared with previous generations. And as more of them live at home and delay=marriage, young adulthood has started looking much different than it used =o."

<=a>

8. "The quants run Wall Street now"

"For decades, investors imagined a time when data-drive= traders would dominate financial markets. That day has arrived," The Wall Str=et Journal reports on its front page, in a big package anchored by Gre=ory Zuckerman and Bradley Hope:

"[A]l=orithmic-driven trading and the quants who use sophisticated stat=stical models to find attractive trades are taking over the investment wor=d.

"On many trading floors, quants are gaining re=pect, clout and money as investment firms scramble to hire mathematicians =nd scientists. Traditional trading strategies, such as sifting through bal=nce sheets and talking to companies' customers, are falling down the pecki=g order.

Quantitative hedge funds are now respons=ble for 27% of all U.S. stock trades by investors, up from 14% in 2013,
Why it matters: "The computers are outperforming hum=ns at picking investments. In the past five years, quant-focused hedge fun=s gained about 5.1% a year on average. The average hedge fund rose 4.3% a =ear in the same period."

9. "With social media, a flame becomes a bonfire"

Seven months after the "Access Hollywood" tape that end=d his "Today" show career, Billy Bush talks to The Hollywood Reporter (by =acey Rose and Marisa Guthrie):

"I plan to return to the job that I love, which is television, communicating, interviewi=g people. I have changed in a way that I think will make me better at my j=b.

"I believe there will be more people like me i= crisis. And with social media, a flame becomes a bonfire quickly. So I wi=l be picking up my pen and writing them and calling them on the phone, and=I will pursue these interviews and these moments with these people. And th=ough what I've learned and where I've been, I will tell them, 'You have em=athetic ears in me.'"

Q: "You got fired, and the =ther guy on that tape became president. How does that make you feel?" A: "I will admit the irony is glaring."

P.=. "Smaller Rivals See a Chance to Challenge=Fox News" — Jim Rutenberg's "Mediator" column, on N.Y. Ti=es p. B3, says Bill O'Reilly could be the key to turbocharging a real riva=.

10. 1 for Memory Lane

Big cat trainer Alexander Lacey hugs one of the tigers during the final =how of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, yesterday, in Un=ondale, N.Y. / AP's Julie Jacobson

"Ringling Bros. shuts =own the big top after 146 years," by AP's Tamara Lush at the =assau County Coliseum on Long Island, about 30 miles east of New York City=

"With laughter, hugs and tears — and=... death-defying stunts — the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bai=ey Circus received its final standing ovation Sunday night as it performed=its last show."

"Many of Ringling's employees are=second, third and even fourth-generation circus performers, while others m=t their spouses while touring. All spent months on the road, traveling fro= city to city in Ringling's train cars and describing themselves as a gian= family, albeit one with many clowns."

"Over the years, animal rights activists had targeted Ringling, saying that forcing a=imals to perform and transporting them around the country amounted to abus=. In May 2016, the company removed elephants from its shows, but ticket sa=es continued to decline."

"People ... didn't want to see a circus without elephants. Ringling's parent comp=ny, Feld Entertainment, announced in January it would close the show, citi=g declining attendance and high operating costs."

"Feld ex=cutives said they knew the circus couldn't compete with iPhones, =he internet, video games and massively branded and carefully marketed char=cters. Their other productions — Frozen on Ice, Marvel Live, Super=ross, Monster Trucks, Disney on Ice — resonate better with younger=generations."

A message from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Investment in Detroit expected to reach $150M by 20=9

JPMorgan Chase’s initial commitment was $100 million over five year= to help revitalize Detroit. There’s still work to do, =ut thanks to local collaboration and the city’s progress, they exc=eded that commitment in just three years.

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