Subject: Axios Sneak Peek: Something new worries White House insiders — Counter-programming — When Washington stops
From: "Jonathan Swan" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 4 Jun 2017 17:20:08 -0400 (EDT)

Presented by Koch Industries:

Something new worries White House insiders — Counter-programming=— When Washington stops

Presented By Koch Industries

Axios Sneak Peek

By Jonathan Swan = ·Jun 04, 2017<=span>

Welcome to Sneak Peek, our weekly lookahead for both en=s of Pennsylvania Avenue. I'd love your tips and feedback= [email-masked]=. And please urge your friends and colleagues to join=the conversation by signing up for Sneak Peak. See you all week in the Axios STREAM.

1 big thing: lawyerly concerns

Some in the White House are uncomfortable with the hiri=g of Marc Kasowitz — Trump's longtime lawyer, who was recently bro=ght on as outside counsel to lead the defense against the Russia probe.
A frequent informal adviser to the White House said: =/p>
"There are some people=who believe he's the right choice, because he knows the President. And in =omething like this, it's good to have somebody you know and trust and can =ell you: 'I've got your back.' On the other hand, there are people in the =uilding who say that Kasowitz brings out the worst in the President. Kasow=tz is a bit of an enabler and spins him up."

Concerns we're =earing about Kasowitz, (who did not respond to requests for comme=t):

Wrong experience: Kasowitz, known as a New=York "street brawler," has represented Trump on everything from a fraud cl=im to defamation suits and against newspaper accusations of sexual miscond=ct. A number of advisers inside and close to the White House worry his tal=nts won't transfer naturally to dealing with the national security apparat=s in Washington.

Inadequate supporting cast: Name= floated in news reports include legal stars like Theodore Olson. A source=close to the White House says there's not much chance of this: "All the na=es you've seen aren't going to work out."

Says it all, from a source: "With lawyers, there's a pride in taking on tough clie=ts. If you are defending the President and came on board now, ... you were='t part of the problem originally. ... I don't think there's any sort of s=ench that attaches to that ... [T]he larger deterrent is the structure of =orking for longtime ad hoc confidant Kasowitz ... [T]hat's not a slam on K=sowitz, but an acknowledgement that he's been fighting different battles a=d played to Trump's instincts, which would not be helpful here."

2. Scoop: Trump's outside army

America First Policies, a non-profit organization run=by Trump insiders, is rolling out a nationwide cable ad campaign this week=to promote the President's first trip abroad. I spoke with the group's lea=ers Katie Walsh and Brian O. Walsh (no relation) to hear what they're doin=, and how they're thinking about the fights ahead:

Data po=nts:

The group is putting $400,000 behind a weeklong T= ad, "Safe Again," which promotes the President's wor= in the Middle East and Europe — with a focus on fighting terroris=.

The new ad takes America First's spending this year to roughly $= million, with campaigns to support the Republican healthcare plan and the=special election in Georgia.

America First gave a $3 million outside pu=h to help get healthcare through the House. They ran TV, phone and dig=tal and key districts and they tell me they'll likely adopt the same strat=gy to help in Senate target states.

Inside the group's=thinking:

The ad ends by asking people to join America=First. The Walshes tell me this is the beginning of a much broader effort =o engage national audiences and re-energize those who voted for Trump in N=vember but have slipped away from political activity since then.

"=his is about collecting information and mobilization," says Katie Walsh, w=o recently left her post as deputy chief of staff in the White House to jo=n America First. "We strongly believe that for us to get the President's p=licy agenda passed we need to harness millions of voices."

White H=use officials like Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Stev= Bannon were frustrated at the lack of support from outside groups during =he healthcare fight. America First is now trying to correct that and count=r what the administration views as a lopsided cultural fight in the media.=

Reflecting the view of many in Trumpworld, Katie Walsh says "the =rofessional Left has a real advantage because the media is lined up behind=them." America First will give voters who backed Trump in November "an ave=ue to stay in the fight."

The first big t=st of America First's effectiveness: the Senate healthcare vote, =hich the White House expects will happen before the summer recess. When me=bers — whether they be Democrats or Republicans — block Tr=mp's policy agenda, expect these outside groups to encourage Trump support=rs to bombard these members with phone calls and to show up at their town =alls and district offices.

3. The shows

The London terror attacks dominated the Sunday shows, b=t guests were also grilled about the Paris climate accord and the upcoming=congressional hearings on Russia.

Highlight reel:

The top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence committee, <=strong>Virginia Senator Mark Warner, said this of London to Jake Tapper on=CNN's "State of the Union": "I received a brief this morning...they still =on't know for sure whether this was terrorist-inspired or terrorist-direct=d, so, whether this was homegrown or actually directed by ISIS or al Qaeda= I think that will take a little while longer in terms of investigation."<=li>
He also told Tapper that internet companies need to do more=/strong> to stem the flow of hostile information. "I was just out on the W=st Coast last week talking with folks at Facebook," Warner said. "They're =ow recognizing the weaponization of false information, even around electio=s. They shut down 30,000 fake accounts right before the French elections. =ut this is going to require, I think, a much broader conversation than we'=e had to date."

Warner, who did the rounds Sunday, told John Dickerson on CBS's "Face the Nation" what to expect at this we=k's Senate Intelligence hearings. On Wednesday, Warner will question Direc=or of National Intelligence Dan Coats and NSA head Admiral Michael Rogers.=He'll do the same on Thursday with Comey.

"The press has reported =hat both of those individuals [Coats and Rogers] had some level of pressur= from the president to downplay the Russian investigation," Warner said. "= want to ask those individuals directly, did they have that kind of pressu=e, can they report on those conversations they had with the president, bec=use it would be very concerning."

On ABC's "This Week," ho=t George Stephanopoulos introduced EPA administrator Scott Pruitt=by playing video clips of Trump saying "I'm not a believer in man-made glo=al warming. I believe there's weather. I believe there's change."

Pruitt's response: "I think the President mad= it clear in that statement that the climate changes."

@realDonaldTrump tweet that'll echoan= Mayor of London says there is "no reason to be alarmed!"

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4. When Washington stops

NBC's Chuck Todd nails the stakes of James Comey's te=timony before Congress this Thursday. Todd says the Senate Intelligence he=ring will be "in the pantheon of moments where Washington stops." (See: Wa=ergate hearings.)

West Wing officials ar= nervous about what Comey might say — though there is some relief =nternally that staff can now deflect all questions about Russia to Kasowit=.

Threads I'm picking up, from conversations over t=e weekend with White House officials and with informal advisers to the Pre=ident:

Can't stop Comey: White House officials=recognize it would be seen as a cover-up — and Comey could go publ=c in other venues, anyway — if Trump invoked executive privilege t= stop the former FBI director from testifying about his private conversati=ns with the President. The wildcard here — and the reason we can't=be definitive about no executive privilege — is of course Trump hi=self.

Counter-programming: The White House is try=ng to draw the cameras as far away from Comey and Russia as possible, for =s long as possible. They're branding this week "infrastructure week." Trum= will have a series of events — including a pitstop in Oh=o — highlighting the urgent need to fix the nation's infrastructur=.

Trump to London this week? Trump ally David Bossie went=on Fox News in the wake of the London terror attack to say that if he =ere in the White House, he'd advise Trump to travel to London this week "t= walk on London Bridge ... [and] show solidarity with England." ABC's Jon =arl reported this morning that such a trip is under consideration, but the=e's a strong view at the senior level of the White House that going to Lon=on would be a bad idea and Trump's got enough to worry about here at home.=/li>
More pressure on outside effort: Now that the Whi=e House press team's default position is to deflect all media questions ab=ut the Russia investigation to outside counsel, this puts a premium on the=outside surrogate operation to defend Trump. It's widely acknowledged insi=e the West Wing that the surrogate operation has been mismanaged and needs=an urgent overhaul.

Concerns about Republicans being prepa=ed to press Comey: "There's some concern about whether the folks =n Capitol Hill will be sufficiently prepared. They need to work hard at qu=stioning Comey," says a frequent informal advisor to the White House. "The='re coming back from a break and they damn well better be prepared...[for]=good hard, tough questioning of Comey, and questioning of his integrity an= the way he does business."

What we'll be watchi=g for: Will Comey say Trump was lying when he said Comey told him=three times he wasn't under investigation? Will Comey corroborate what his=friends told the press — that Trump pressured him to ease off on h=s investigation? What will Comey say about reports that fake intelligence =otivated him to publicly intervene in the election campaign?

5. Tweet du jour

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