Subject: POLITICO Playbook, presented by Chevron: HOUSE TAX VOTE TODAY … TRUMP to the Hill, where he’ll see the GLORY of HC-5 -- RON JOHNSON comes out against GOP tax plan -- HANNITY: Let the people of Ala. decide on Moore -- CORNYN, MURPHY make gun database deal
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Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2017 05:16:51 -0600
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Today's POLITICO Playbook presented by Chevron 
            
By JAKE SHERMAN ([email-masked]; @JakeSherman), ANNA PALMER ([email-masked]; @apalmerdc) and DANIEL LIPPMAN ([email-masked]; @dlippman)
        
Listen to today's Audio Briefing | Subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Visit the online home of Playbook
                  Driving the Day         
Good Thursday morning. BIG DAY -- HOUSE REPUBLICANS have their tax bill on the floor. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP heads to HC-5 -- their Capitol basement meeting room -- to hold a rally, of sorts, for the House tax bill. He's scheduled to talk around 11:30 a.m. SPOILER ALERT: the House will pass their bill quite easily. Democrats won't vote for it. The ease with which this is getting through has surprised some House Republicans. We don't expect Trump to appear publicly with any lawmakers at the Capitol, though. OUR QUESTION: Will Trump have Republicans to the White House to celebrate like he did with the health care bill before it exploded in the Senate? ... Rachael Bade and Heather Caygle with
 more on the state of play in the House http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7d0722ba62bc41b0c465f0253e78ec5f66815f7ab37113c685c55a98e4c55be6f1e768f0b4c056ac0

-- FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH: This is a big internal victory for Speaker Paul Ryan, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, Rep. Patrick McHenry, the chief deputy whip, and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady. But it's just the first step. Reconciling this bill with whatever comes out of the Senate will be another tricky test.

BUT ... IN THE SENATE

-- "Republican Sen. Ron Johnson Opposes GOP Senate Tax Package," by WSJ's Siobhan Hughes: "Sen. Ron Johnson (R., Wis.) said he opposes the Senate Republican tax package, becoming the first GOP voice of dissent that, if it gains momentum, could force significant changes or jeopardize the party's goal to pass the bill before the end of the year. 'If they can pass it without me, let them,' Mr. Johnson said in an interview Wednesday, adding that the plan unfairly benefits corporations more than other types of businesses. 'I'm not going to vote for this tax package.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee74937daff00b49a493fe5a3e3769c0c9c1a00ca87b8cde2eb26b6828c71364b4130fd020516d30f37

-- GOP SENATORS TO WATCH ... John McCain of Arizona, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Bob Corker of Tennessee

THE BACKSTORY -- "How Cotton brought Obamacare repeal back from the dead," by Seung Min Kim and Jen Haberkorn: "Sen. Tom Cotton was about to enter the White House early this month to discuss immigration policy when he got an unexpected call from President Donald Trump to talk about a different topic. For days, the Arkansas senator had been working behind the scenes to persuade Republicans that reigniting a battle over repealing Obamacare in the tax fight wasn't as crazy as it seemed. But Trump, still smarting from GOP's failures to dismantle the law whom Cotton had first pitched on the idea four days prior, needed little persuading.

"'I am with you 1,000 percent on this,' Trump told Cotton over the phone. Trump tweeted twice that Republicans should repeal the mandate, putting pressure on the GOP to tuck it into tax reform despite widespread dismissiveness the idea was greeted by at the time. That Nov. 2 conversation illustrated how the GOP rank-and-file methodically coaxed their leadership to embark on what seemed - and could still become - a fool's errand to try again to take down Obamacare. In a surprise move, Senate Republicans said Tuesday that they would repeal Obamacare's individual mandate in their tax plan, using the savings to plow into more tax cuts." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7c3f3f04bf51ad7054be5bc130216adfc220888b1a02cbd3ed550efcfda619d7aa2a524dff865ef8a

THE BIG QUESTION... HOW LONG CAN THIS LAST? -- "Conservative outside groups hold fire on tax bill ahead of first vote," by Nancy Cook: "As Congress rushes to pass the biggest tax reform legislation in three decades, high-powered business and conservative groups are holding fire on provisions they don't like in order to avoid derailing the vote. The kumbaya attitude emanates in large part from a sense of desperation among Republicans who believe the party needs to show voters and donors a concrete victory ahead of the 2018 midterms or risk losing control of one or both chambers of Congress, say strategists and conservative activists. 'It is kind of unreal,' said one Republican lobbyist.
 'People know this is a freight train coming, and they are doing everything they can to get their stuff on it rather than stand in front of it.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7112206bbc222ab83d6a69b4afb145565a364f1c095353e512e5f3a65e2123bbb233859fc9d122327

IVANKA SPEAKS -- "Ivanka Trump says child tax credit 'not a pet project'," by AP's Catherine Lucey: "Trump says she and husband Jared Kushner, a fellow White House adviser, have no plans to return to their old New York City life any time soon. 'It's definitely not short-term,' Trump said." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee712af901dbfe264f2a92aa5760151701799c9e6b2a0a1f5fab619baf21244daeadf3188eb5c618db3

-- LOOKING TO 2018: "Tax reform may doom Trump infrastructure plan," by Colin Wilhelm: "The tax reform bill set to be voted on Thursday by the House of Representatives could kill any chance of the Trump administration's trillion-dollar infrastructure plan ever happening. At best, House support for the plan would signal lukewarm backing among Republicans for President Donald Trump's ambitions. At worst, the bill would effectively end the funding structure that the administration touts as a way to reach its $1 trillion target and minimize the burden on taxpayers. The House bill ends tax breaks for private activity bonds, a key part of public-private partnerships in projects ranging from roads
 to low-income housing. The administration has said it wants to leverage those partnerships to reduce the direct cost of the president's building plan." For Pros http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee77728b77ae25085c6f8586943cbfbb75663a878e396fc72d9cd6d0f238a4a8b0e54162d727314fee6 

COMING ATTRACTIONS ... THE END OF THE YEAR FIGHT -- "Republicans stall budget talks for tax reform," by Rachael Bade and John Bresnahan: "Hill Republican leaders are slow-walking negotiations for a year-end budget deal with Democrats, adamant that tax reform must come first - even if the spending battle drags out until year's end. Top aides to the 'Big Four' - Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer - have been engaged in tightly held discussions for weeks, but they remain unable to reach an agreement on a 'topline' number for government funding bills for the next year.

"Democrats insist on 'parity' in any spending deal; they won't agree to raise strict budget caps for defense spending without an equal boost to domestic funding. Republicans, so far, refuse to cave on the issue. Pelosi accused Republican leaders of dragging their heels on the matter, suggesting they were trying to push a $5 trillion-plus tax cut package through Congress before they reach a spending agreement, multiple sources said.

"Pelosi also told her colleagues on Wednesday that she won't sign off on any funding bill that doesn't increase both domestic and Pentagon funding by the same amount. The California Democrat said she and Schumer have both rejected the latest GOP positions during the leadership-only discussions." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee759c684815c93c4f23eb3a9c3f9d352118e877656ac14eddd5845ce14aa128e337ac1067de6f5f34f

****** A message from Chevron: Advanced technology is helping us find safer ways to deliver energy. We're piloting a program that uses drones to monitor tanks and pipelines. Watch the video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ac40ff7e0f9404c73da80f949e7ee389857d53a71c5350dd12538529a98362daf0ce1984af5a66e1f ******

QUOTE OF THE DAY -- CORRY BLISS, executive director of the Congressional Leadership Fund, to Elena Schneider: "There are certainly incumbent members out there who need to work harder and raise more money if they want to win. They're fundamentally not prepared for how they're about to be attacked." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7d2f8cfe65d01b564fe67ed9311f87369897a39150bba9b47b0e8cc8c37ebebc580cff5648f4e2e5c 

2020 WATCH -- SPOTTED last night at the Fringetree restaurant at the Westin: Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), Martin O'Malley and Pete Buttigieg.

SIREN -- "Hope Hicks may hold the keys to Mueller's Russia puzzle," by Darren Samuelsohn: "Special counsel Robert Mueller's team is preparing to interview the woman who's seen it all: Hope Hicks. She's been part of Donald Trump's inner circle for years, first at Trump Tower and then as an omnipresent gatekeeper and fixer who could get emails or other communications directly to the boss during the 2016 campaign. As a senior White House adviser and now as communications director, she's been in the room for moments critical to Mueller's probe, which has grown to include the president's response to the Russia investigation itself.

"Hicks' history with Trump makes her one of the more useful witnesses for Mueller as he looks for insights into the president's habits and moods. She also is one of the few people well positioned to recount the president's reactions at various moments as the Russia scandal has sidetracked his presidency - including the Mueller appointment itself. Mueller's decision to request an interview with Hicks - who hasn't been named in any criminal wrongdoing - also indicates he's reached a critical point in the overall investigation, according to former prosecutors and veterans of past White House investigations. Typically, conversations with such senior level aides are saved for near the end of a
 probe." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7ab0590a2039b9e3a4fba0f68fc439cf0a664ab4b1ad205fbd4631b4daee3845846e0cb7f6374100c 

TRUMP INC. -- "Taxpayers pay legal bill to protect Trump business profits," by USA Today's Nick Penzenstadler: "Taxpayers are footing the legal bill for at least 10 Justice Department lawyers and paralegals to work on lawsuits related to President Trump's private businesses. Neither the White House nor the Justice Department will say how much it is costing taxpayers, but federal payroll records show the salaries of the government lawyers assigned to the cases range from about $133,000 to $185,000. The government legal team is defending President Trump in four lawsuits stemming from his unusual decision not to divest himself from hundreds of his companies that are entangled with customers
 that include foreign governments and officials." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee79fc383dd6437525ef8c9f1303d2130984dbb95d3e4a1f52d5d4215cd6f35155c807d9847d17bbff0 

S.O.S. ... THE LATEST ON MOORE -- "GOP leaders weigh drastic plan to save Alabama Senate seat," by Alex Isenstadt and Eliana Johnson: "Republican leaders are exploring a dramatic remedy to salvage the Alabama Senate seat as fresh polling shows Roy Moore's prospects fading fast. With less than four weeks until the special election and no sign that the party's besieged nominee will exit the race, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his top advisers are discussing the legal feasibility of asking appointed Sen. Luther Strange to resign from his seat in order to trigger a new special election. McConnell aides express caution, saying they're uncertain whether such a move, one of several
 options being discussed, is even possible. ...

"New GOP polling obtained by POLITICO suggests that Moore is cratering. A survey conducted by the [NRSC] after allegations emerged that Moore had engaged in sexual misconduct with teenagers showed him trailing Democratic candidate Doug Jones by 12 points. Other recent polling has the race closer." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7b74bbeb681edae34f88a0ce3e0a95823c365da1258c8133e1e830319d8f44b868025509959facdf7

M.I.A. -- Republicans expected Trump to address the Moore situation Wednesday, hoping he would exert some pressure on the Alabama Republican to drop out of the race. So far, he's stayed mum. 

-- IS HANNITY CHANNELING TRUMP'S THINKING? ... @seanhannity at 11:12 p.m.: "I lived in Alabama-love the people. THEY will sort through the issues before them and decide. Not DC, McConnell, or Commentators, THE PEOPLE!"

DOWN BALLOT IMPACT -- "Republican Governors Seek to Avoid 2018 Damage From Trump, Moore," by Bloomberg's John McCormick: "Republican governors and their donors -- still reeling from GOP losses last week in New Jersey and Virginia -- are trying to distance themselves from their party's problems and plot a 2018 strategy to protect their state-level dominance. At the annual Republican Governors Association meeting in Austin, Texas, party officeholders downplayed those defeats and dismissed the political fallout of President Donald Trump's historically low approval ratings and lack of legislative accomplishments. They brushed aside questions about the potential long-term consequences from
 growing sexual misconduct allegations that have engulfed Republican U.S. Senate nominee Roy Moore in Alabama. ...

 "Thirty-six states will hold gubernatorial elections in 2018, with 26 of those now controlled by Republicans. In those races, which often have trickle-down effects on legislative and local elections, Republican candidates will have to decide just how closely to embrace Trump and distance themselves from an unpopular Washington." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=48b5be84de1ebee7dc1b0063deb44a188bc8b7fd7a84b354e4b54271658d7d198c9b3268f3c8b6b9b0d81d23d6d4f967 

DRIP DRIP -- "Two more women describe unwanted overtures by Roy Moore at Alabama mall," by WaPo's Stephanie McCrummen, Beth Reinhard and Alice Crites: "Gena Richardson says she was a high school senior working in the men's department of Sears at the Gadsden Mall when a man approached her and introduced himself as Roy Moore. ... His overtures caused one store manager to tell new hires to 'watch out for this guy,' another young woman to complain to her supervisor and Richardson to eventually hide from him when he came in Sears, the women say. Richardson says Moore - now a candidate for U.S. Senate - asked her where she went to school, and then for her phone number, which she says she declined
 to give ... 

"A few days later, she says, she was in trigonometry class at Gadsden High when she was summoned to the principal's office over the intercom in her classroom. She had a phone call. 'I said "Hello?"' Richardson recalls. 'And the male on the other line said, "Gena, this is Roy Moore." I was like, "What?!" He said, "What are you doing?" I said, "I'm in trig class."'

"Richardson says Moore asked her out again on the call. A few days later, after he asked her out at Sears, she relented and agreed, feeling both nervous and flattered. They met that night at a movie theater in the mall after she got off work, a date that ended with Moore driving her to her car in a dark parking lot behind Sears and giving her what she called an unwanted, 'forceful' kiss that left her scared. ... Moore's campaign did not directly address the new allegations. In a statement, a campaign spokesman cast the growing number of allegations against Moore as politically motivated. 'If you are a liberal and hate Judge Moore, apparently he groped you,' the statement said. 'If you are a
 conservative and love Judge Moore, you know these allegations are a political farce.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a359597c63373e81823877f340a5678f5249fd32c6c90ec71ec9e3fd82d6a981f26d59b795388ab40
 
-- AND MORE .... "New Roy Moore accuser: 'He didn't pinch it; he grabbed it,'" by Anna Claire Vollers in AL.com: "A Gadsden woman says Roy Moore groped her while she was in his law office on legal business with her mother in 1991. Moore was married at that time. ... According to [Tina] Johnson, he asked questions about her young daughters, including what color eyes they had and if they were as pretty as she was. She said that made her feel uncomfortable, too. Once [legal] papers were signed, she and her mother got up to leave. After her mother walked through the door first, she said, Moore came up behind her. It was at that point, she recalled, he grabbed her buttocks. 'He didn't pinch it;
 he grabbed it,' said Johnson. She was so surprised she didn't say anything. She didn't tell her mother. ...

"In 1982, Kelly Harrison Thorp was working as a hostess at the Red Lobster restaurant in Gadsden. She was 17 years old and a high school senior. One day Roy Moore came into t Fringetree Bar & Restaurant at the Westin he restaurant, and she recognized him. ... Thorp said Moore asked her if she'd go out with him sometime. 'I just kind of said, "Do you know how old I am?"' she recalled. 'And he said, "Yeah. I go out with girls your age all the time."' http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ac90c2f1c4a0b70ba7ce6ed2e06ea92d97c8cd1f06c6f8e99534a67872f861c684769fd72eb907ee7

-- @MooreSenate: "An Open Letter to @seanhannity" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a872d4c58cb36ddfd91a125daf9c6a204402335ca69445f436d8fd3d711fe2510ab34ed5cf8b9f1f5 ... @VaughnHillyard: "New--> The Alabama GOP is maintaining its support for Roy Moore. In its steering committee meeting tonight, the prospect of removing Moore as the party's candidate did not reach the point of a vote." 

SHOT -- @MooreSenate: "Dear Mitch McConnell, Bring. It. On."

CHASER -- NRSC executive director Chris Hansen (@tankcat) replies: "Bring It On is a movie about high school cheerleaders".

DEPT. OF ODD BEDFELLOWS -- "Senators forge deal to improve gun background database," by Seung Min Kim: "A bipartisan group of senators has struck a deal to bolster a federal database used to check the backgrounds of gun buyers in the aftermath of several recent mass shootings. The new legislative push is led by Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), two powerful figures in their respective parties when it comes to gun policy. Though their bill has not been formally released, it targets the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which both senators have said is deeply flawed.

"Their plan is twofold, according to two sources familiar with it: One is to incentivize states to send more information about criminal histories to the system, known as NICS. States usually aren't required to do so, unless their own laws mandate it or they have to do so to receive federal funding. It would also make sure that federal agencies follow through on their own requirement that they send information to the database. The new plan would beef up the federal mandate and include punishments for agencies that don't comply, according to one of the sources." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963aec47063885a1260d489bda35d01ce4b2b3f22b9ce5874808ad0176df4c513652cad5ede144465f23 

CLINTON WORLD -- "'What About Bill?' Sexual Misconduct Debate Revives Questions About Clinton," by NYT's Peter Baker: "The cultural conversation about women, power and sexual misconduct that has consumed the United States in recent weeks has now raised a question that is eagerly promoted by those on the political right just as it discomfits those on the political left: What about Bill? While Fox News and other conservative outlets revive years-old charges against Mr. Clinton to accuse Mr. Moore's critics of hypocrisy, some liberals say it may be time to rethink their defense of the 42nd president. Matthew Yglesias ... wrote on Vox.com on Wednesday that 'I think we got it wrong' by defending
 Mr. Clinton in the 1990s and that he should have resigned. Chris Hayes, the liberal MSNBC host, said on Twitter that 'Democrats and the center left are overdue for a real reckoning with the allegations against him.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a47acf93f98e6b209c4b86f96b976792e0719d05c420ecd58842b896d5f95b97d192a790e0e8c6b07 

-- "Clinton hits back at possibility of Uranium One special counsel," by Brent D. Griffiths: "Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has slammed President Donald Trump for suggesting that a special prosecutor investigate her role in the Uranium One deal, a current cause c&eacute;l&egrave;bre among conservative commentators and some House Republican lawmakers. 'Taking myself out of it, this is such an abuse of power and it goes right at the rule of law,' Clinton told Mother Jones in an interview posted Wednesday night. 'As secretary of state, I went around the world bragging about America's rule of law. ... If they send a signal that we are going to be like some dictatorship, some
 authoritarian regime where political opponents are going to be unfairly, fraudulently investigated, that rips at the fabric of the contract that we have that we can trust our justice system.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963afc629a4203968402feb16f60551941a247e48a24a70c3980e7a444175c07b8a7338c28a58ca7476c

WHO MIGHT REPLACE CORDRAY -- per Lorraine Woellert, Zach Warmbrodt, and Daniel Strauss: "Republicans are floating a handful of agency critics as contenders for the post, including Cordray's biggest foe, House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas. ... Keith Noreika, the outgoing acting head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, has also been mentioned, along with Todd Zywicki, a law professor at George Mason University. Both have fiercely opposed the bureau's approach to regulation and enforcement and would face long odds of being confirmed, but could serve as interim directors without Senate approval. Brian Brooks, an executive vice president and general counsel
 at Fannie Mae who worked with Mnuchin at OneWest Bank, and former Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum are also mentioned as candidates to lead the bureau." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a824089eafc3865c01693e153ca2e2f3eab9b4183a0bb8b4bdf511d58c3b5f8d817a8169848661bcb

CLICKER -- @WardDPatrick: "President Trump stops his speech to search for water cc: @marcorubio" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ad629f34e4fbe5098b63be4e86ae0e57cdbf253e9931e58dba7a6f59e99fd0e376992615ea2e7a718 ... @marcorubio: "Similar, but needs work on his form. Has to be done in one single motion & eyes should never leave the camera. But not bad for his 1st time".

SPORTS BLINK -- "NEW YORK (AP) - Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals wins third Cy Young Award and second straight in National League."

          Playbook Reads         

PHOTO DU JOUR: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and his wife Louise Linton hold up a sheet of new $1 bills, the first currency notes bearing his and U.S. Treasurer Jovita Carranza's signatures, on Nov. 17 at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington D.C. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

MICHAEL GRUNWALD in POLITICO Magazine, "The IRS Is Building a Safe to Hold Trump's Tax Returns: Departed tax chief John Koskinen explains why even he can't see Trump's taxes-and why we should 'beware the collapse of the IRS'": "Koskinen doesn't share those concerns-not because of his faith in Trump, but because of his faith in the IRS staff and the strict rules governing the integrity of its audits and investigations. Koskinen basically believes the IRS and its professional culture are virtually impregnable to political agendas. He hasn't spoken to Trump or anyone in the White House in 2017, even though he's known the president since they negotiated the sale of the Commodore Hotel in New
 York City in 1975. He's never looked up Trump's tax returns-legally, he can't, and neither can any other IRS employee who isn't working on them-and says the agency not only keeps them in a locked cabinet in a locked room, but is replacing the cabinet with a safe." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a576cdd7fcd992705fc6667913bafe5fc5652ebdbe6ccd03d339ac178d5b7406d51357e33050c6075

SUSAN GLASSER in the New Yorker: "Karl Rove Has Seen the Enemy and He Is Steve Bannon": "Yet Bannon, clearly, has got under Rove's skin. Rove ticked off a list of candidates whom he said showed Bannon's amazing 'bad judgment' and constituted what, to his mind, amounts to a parade of horribles: Grimm, that 'convicted felon' from New York; the 'despicable' Tom Tancredo for governor in Colorado; the 'hapless' Danny Tarkanian, a five-time failed candidate running against Senator Dean Heller in Nevada. 'These are the people he's backing and thinks can both win and then govern?' ... The Republican war is on, and Rove is quite clear on just who is the enemy. 'Bannon is a side show,' Rove replied
 after one too many questions about the strategist trying to claim his mantle. 'Trump is the real issue.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ad9b124143a6c5fb2aa5e42c43c63480afac451a1079bb293f1d68f54b0e776bcc6ada6d4998419ee

BUSINESS BURST -- Fortune has named Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang its 2017 Fortune Businessperson of the Year. Also on the list -- 2: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon ... 3. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff ... 4. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos ... 5. Ulta Beauty CEO Mary Dillon. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ad848615cba8c19d93e7cddd672a5d0a08e20e8ce1c03d06009872eea0e12a42d8545aeabf7bbc290

****** A message from Chevron: Advanced technology is helping us find better and safer ways to deliver energy to America. We're piloting a program that uses drones, HD imaging, and thermal mapping capabilities to monitor Chevron wells, tanks, and miles of pipeline. Watch the video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ac40ff7e0f9404c73da80f949e7ee389857d53a71c5350dd12538529a98362daf0ce1984af5a66e1f ******

DESSERT -- "Leonardo da Vinci Painting Sells for $450.3 Million, Shattering Auction Highs," by NYT's Robin Pogrebin and Scott Reyburn: "After 19 minutes of dueling, with four bidders on the telephone and one in the room, Leonardo da Vinci's 'Salvator Mundi' sold on Wednesday night for $450.3 million with fees, shattering the high for any work of art sold at auction. It far surpassed Picasso's 'Women of Algiers,' which fetched $179.4 million at Christie's in May 2015. The buyer was not immediately disclosed. There were gasps throughout the sale, as the bids climbed by tens of millions up to $225 million, by fives up to $260 million, and then by twos." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a5a45e7b8de47b513b69e4a5270ac993a9934364836e7140ea037afce0ce6260146ed1d44ef5dc6c9 

-- NYMag art critic Jerry Saltz: "I'm no art historian or any kind of expert in old masters. But I've looked at art for almost 50 years and one look at this painting tells me it's no Leonardo. The painting is absolutely dead. Its surface is inert, varnished, lurid, scrubbed over, and repainted so many times that it looks simultaneously new and old. ... Why else do I think this is a sham? Experts estimate that there are only 15 to 20 existing da Vinci paintings. Not a single one of them pictures a person straight on like this one." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ad1430d9daa2cbb64c96568c414074e11b73a8b8a1cb88ade74baa15c476a3547121cbc915c41a16f
 
 MEDIAWATCH -- "Koch Brothers Said to Back Time Inc. Deal Talks With Meredith," by NYT's Sydney Ember and Andrew Ross Sorkin: "Time Inc. is said to be in talks to sell itself to the Meredith Corporation, in a deal backed by Charles G. and David H. Koch, the billionaire brothers known for supporting conservative causes. Talks between Time Inc., the publisher of Time and People, and Meredith, the publisher of Family Circle and Better Homes and Gardens, fizzled this year. The new round of negotiations, motivated by the surprise entry of the Kochs, could lead to a quick deal, according to people involved in the discussions. The Kochs have tentatively agreed to back Meredith's offer with an
 equity injection of more than $500 million." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a399fcbc8f84e01623ec9a0b25c0e858fa506749aa6dfc620ba3153169bcb6378d3d27639e7bba703

-- "Matt Drudge jabs Bannon over Roy Moore, prompting internal Breitbart fury," by CNN's Oliver Darcy: "In a tweet, Drudge linked to a Daily Beast story that said Bannon recently had second thoughts about supporting Moore. 'A lesson on leaving politics to the professionals,' Drudge wrote. ... [S]taffers at Breitbart ... were seemingly taken aback by Drudge's jab. 'Wow,' wrote Breitbart White House correspondent Charlie Spiering, linking to Drudge's tweet in an internal Slack message obtained by CNN. 'Is that accurate?' 'FACTUALLY INACCURATE,' replied Matthew Boyle, Breitbart's Washington editor. 'FAKE NEWS. MATT DRUDGE IS PEDDLING FAKE NEWS.' ... 'Not true. Bannon is not turning on judge
 moore. Bulls***.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a4fec5bd1349fd698aa93141f3e46d98c9b2b22d82b7d9a6197b2e5498ad0f7d8edb1bec63d4eb834

                  Playbookers         
TRANSITIONS -- Adam Kincaid is launching a consulting firm called Cornerstone Solutions. He most recently was special projects director at the RNC and is an NRCC and RGA alum. 

BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Republican Jewish Coalition executive director Matt Brooks. How he's celebrating: "Tonight I'll be having a quiet dinner at home with my wife and son. Definitely a great bottle of wine and cake are on the menu. Friday night my daughter comes home from college and since my wife's birthday was Tuesday we'll all celebrate both birthdays at Rasika. All of this though is merely a precursor to what will be a GREAT birthday present, watching the NFL leading Philadelphia Eagles destroy the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. FlyEaglesFly." Read his Playbook Plus Q&A: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963a287192cbb47ac4d932d5d8f625c690d88f4e676dce305b43c6499150be458c53b04c3dec2caaf651 

BIRTHDAYS: Elizabeth Drew is 82 ... Jay Newton-Small, co-founder and CEO of MemoryWell and a Time and Bloomberg alum (hat tip: Ben Chang) ... Hannah Hankins, VP of Civic Advisors ... Meg Campbell ... Lisa Camooso Miller, partner at Reset Public Affairs ... USA Today reporter Fredreka Schouten ... Jillian Rogers of DOL ... Michael Levi, Obama and CFR alum ... Carly Coakley of Blue Engine Message & Media (h/t Matt Moon) ... Jim Boyle, partner at Boyle Public Affairs ... Kevin Herzik ... Michelle Nunn, CEO of CARE USA (h/t Jon Haber) ... Adrienne Schweer, SVP of Forbes-Tate Partners and an Ash Carter alum ... Caroline Emch ... Samir Paul ... Ashley Dejean of Mother Jones ... Heritage's Ken
 McIntyre ...

... Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) is 37 ... Melissa Winter, Michelle Obama's first hire in 2007 who remains her chief of staff in the family office (h/t Katie McCormick Lelyveld, who was Michelle's second hire) ... Michael Smith, executive director at My Brother's Keeper Alliance ... James Joyner ... Ron Blackwell ... Patrick Ryan is 63 ... Dale Pfeifer ... Griffith Waller ... Shanti Shoji ... Jennifer Eileen Giglio ... DiAnne Owen Graham ... Raul Damas, partner at Brunswick Group ... Christopher Kilian Peace is 41 ... Paul Rodriguez ... Seth Obed ... Edelman's Mike Reuscher ... Rachel Cothran ... Melody Johnson ... Robbi Dickens ... Mike Reynard ... Marty Ryan ... Seth Obed ... Paul C.
 Barton ... AARP alum David Pepper ... Zerlina Maxwell ... Libby Gerds ... Jason Perkey (h/ts Teresa Vilmain)

****** A message from Chevron: Advanced technology is helping us find better and safer ways to deliver energy to America. We're piloting a program that uses drones, HD imaging, and thermal mapping capabilities to monitor Chevron wells, tanks, and miles of pipeline. Watch the video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=ad4d86ba77cd963ac40ff7e0f9404c73da80f949e7ee389857d53a71c5350dd12538529a98362daf0ce1984af5a66e1f ******

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