Subject: POLITICO Playbook, presented by the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs: INSIDE THE GRIDIRON DINNER: What Trump said and who showed up to bathe in the swamp
From: "Anna Palmer Jake Sherman Daniel Lippman" <[email-masked]>
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Date: Sun, 04 Mar 2018 09:56:08 -0600
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Today's POLITICO Playbook presented by the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs 
            
By JAKE SHERMAN ([email-masked]; @JakeSherman), ANNA PALMER ([email-masked]; @apalmerdc) and DANIEL LIPPMAN ([email-masked]; @dlippman)
        
Visit the online home of Playbook
                  Driving the Day         
Good Sunday morning. THE PRESIDENT made news last night at the Gridiron dinner talking about an upcoming meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

WHAT HE SAID: "I won't rule out direct talks with Kim Jong Un, I just won't. As far as the risk of dealing with a madman is concerned, that's his problem not mine," Trump told the more than 600 attendees during his 35-minute address at the Renaissance Washington Hotel on Saturday. "By the way a couple days ago they said we would like to talk, and I said, so would we, but you have to de-nuke, you have to de-nuke. So let's see what happens. Maybe positive things are happening, I hope that's true ... We will be meeting and we'll see what happens."

TRUMP'S BEST LINES OF THE NIGHT, via Brent Griffiths: "'I told them not to worry, nobody does self-deprecating better than I do.'

"On chaos in the White House, the president said: 'So many people have been leaving the White House it's been exciting and invigorating ... I like chaos. So, who's going to be the next to leave? Steve Miller, or Melania? That's terrible. But you love me right, honey? She said, behave! By the way she has been an incredible first lady.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f607b4cea9d54ebe744d84f9bfbe08088fedc8ec89dcf4d6c8cbd1645d5064d2c8f63b109ff66c873

-- ON JARED: "I want to apologize for running a little late, as Jared could not get through security."

-- ON PENCE: "Trump said he calls Pence 'the apprentice,' joking that the vice president 'wakes up every morning and asks, Has he been impeached yet?'"

-- "THE APPRENTICE" VS. THE WHITE HOUSE: "In one job I had to manage a cutthroat cast of characters, desperate for TV time, totally unprepared for their roles and their jobs and each week afraid of having their asses fired, and the other job I was the host of a smash television hit."

-- ON OPRAH: Oprah "says she'll run only if she gets the go ahead from the almighty - alright, Oprah go ahead and run."

BEST OF NEW ORLEANS MAYOR MITCH LANDRIEU and SEN. TOM COTTON (R-ARK.): 

-- COTTON: "America is falling in love with our first lady. In fact, I hear that one of the most popular names for newborn girls in America today is 'Melania.' It's true. And I guess that makes up for a inexplicable decline in the new crop of 'Donalds.' ...

"I came to this city by way of the Ivy League and a few years in the military. Being the only senator still in his 30s, I arrived in Washington, as a young man looking for role models. As they say in crime stories, 'the search continues.' ...

"More than a few reporters have strained to find the sources of the electrifying personality that's carried me so far in politics, and now you'll know the answer. This is what you get when you combine the common touch of Harvard, the sensitivity of the Army, and the personal mentoring of Dick Cheney.

"Another unexpected mentor is Sen. Elizabeth Warren. She was my first professor in law school, and she was a good one. She would even host dinner for students at her place - a hearty family recipe of stone-ground corn and freshly slaughtered buffalo. Liz calls it 'pow wow chow' and I just couldn't get enough."

-- LANDRIEU, who also made a surprise appearance onstage to sing with the Gridiron members during a skit: "I just came here from Mardi Gras and I have to say: boy do you guys have some weird traditions." ...

"I'm not gonna lie -- I feel kinda out of place here. More out of place than Mike Pence at a men's figure skating competition. More out of place than Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin. More out of place than the Mnuchins in a Waffle House. More out of place than Jeff Sessions at the Department of Justice. More out of place than John Kelly. Period." ...

"The truth is the president and I have a lot in common. We're both a little overweight and balding. I just have had an easier time admitting it. I know you like winning but...you're not gonna win this battle. We both love Wrestlemania. We both take more mulligans than we'd admit to.

 "And another thing that we have in common -- the President has a lonely job, and I understand lonely. I'm a Democrat from the South. That's lonely. Nobody ever comes to visit. For Nancy Pelosi, the south is San Jose. For Chuck Schumer, the south is the Jersey Shore, sunbathing with a shirtless Chris Christie."

DEPT. OF BATHING IN THE SWAMP -- SPOTTED at the Gridiron dinner: Attorney General Jeff Sessions, HHS Secretary Alex Azar, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Louise Linton, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

THE PRESIDENT'S WEEK: Monday: Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the president meets with U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Tuesday: Trump hosts the Swedish Prime Minister Stefan L&ouml;fven. Thursday: Trump holds a Cabinet meeting. Friday: Trump meets with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. 

LATEST ON MUELLER - "Mueller's Focus on Adviser to U.A.E. Indicates Broader Inquiry," by NYT's Mark Mazzetti, David D. Kirkpatrick and Maggie Haberman: "George Nader, a Lebanese-American businessman, has hovered on the fringes of international diplomacy for three decades. He was a back-channel negotiator with Syria during the Clinton administration, reinvented himself as an adviser to the de facto ruler of the United Arab Emirates, and last year was a frequent visitor to President Trump's White House. 

"Mr. Nader is now a focus of the investigation by Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel. In recent weeks, Mr. Mueller's investigators have questioned Mr. Nader and have pressed witnesses for information about any possible attempts by the Emiratis to buy political influence by directing money to support Mr. Trump during the presidential campaign, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.

"The investigators have also asked about Mr. Nader's role in White House policymaking, those people said, suggesting that the special counsel investigation has broadened beyond Russian election meddling to include Emirati influence on the Trump administration. The focus on Mr. Nader could also prompt an examination of how money from multiple countries has flowed through and influenced Washington during the Trump era." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f86f5bce47d70c84f8f9a88adb875a5feae243bd80f66cc432e02e3a971cc64a67599270cd6bfda6f

EURO NEWS: "European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker has vowed to fight back against President Donald Trump's threat of a 25% tariff on steel and 10% on aluminum imports.

"So now we will also impose import tariffs. This is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. We will now impose tariffs on motorcycles, Harley Davidson, on blue jeans, Levis, on Bourbon. We can also do stupid. We also have to be this stupid,' he said in Hamburg on Friday evening." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f9c781bd8421e9bb36e78bdb56152c8629dc7279c60d528cd09aa2e572bf19144c789777968ee9bd0 

****** A message from the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs: America's Seniors may be in for a Big October Surprise. CMS has proposed regulations that will increase costs and cause disruption for millions of seniors this fall. Tell CMS: don't make changes to popular preferred pharmacy network plans that will stick America's seniors with higher premiums & drug costs. Learn more. ******

INSIDE 1600 -- "'Pure madness': Dark days inside the White House as Trump shocks and rages," by WaPo's Phil Rucker, Ashley Parker and Josh Dawsey: "Inside the White House, aides over the past week have described an air of anxiety and volatility -- with an uncontrollable commander in chief at its center. 

"These are the darkest days in at least half a year, they say, and they worry just how much farther President Trump and his administration may plunge into unrest and malaise before they start to recover. As one official put it: 'We haven't bottomed out.' Trump is now a president in transition, at times angry and increasingly isolated. He fumes in private that just about every time he looks up at a television screen, the cable news headlines are trumpeting yet another scandal.

"He voices frustration that son-in-law Jared Kushner has few on-air defenders. He revives old grudges. And he confides to friends that he is uncertain about whom to trust. Trump's closest West Wing confidante, Hope Hicks -- the communications director who often acted as a de facto Oval Office therapist -- announced her resignation last week, leaving behind a team the president views more as paid staff than surrogate family. 

"So concerned are those around Trump that some of the president's oldest friends have been urging one another to be in touch -- the sort of familiar contacts that often lift his spirits. ... Still, Trump's friends are increasingly concerned about his well-being, worried that the president's obsession with cable commentary and perceived slights is taking a toll on the 71-year-old. 'Pure madness,' lamented one exasperated ally. ...

"For instance, aides said, Trump seethed with anger last Wednesday night over cable news coverage of a photo, obtained by Axios, showing Sessions at dinner with Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, who oversees the Russia investigation, and another top Justice Department prosecutor. 

"The outing was described in news reports as amounting to an act of solidarity after Trump had attacked Sessions in a tweet that morning. The next morning, Trump was still raging about the photo, venting to friends and allies about a dinner he viewed as an intentional show of disloyalty." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f4dfa9138a6f20797d239b031ffe0bdd0da11a48bb548a94d8ad256f6580793b284b5f6bd13c01ad9

THE TRUMP SHOW -- "Live From the West Wing, Trump Pulls Back the Curtain," by NYT's Julie Hirschfeld Davis: "The chief executive sits at a long wooden table, putting his invited guests on the spot to defend their positions, occasionally needling them with biting comments, often shocking them with blunt talk - all for a rapt television audience. The tableau was a routine occurrence on President Trump's reality show, 'The Apprentice,' punctuated each week for one unlucky contestant with his signature 'You're fired!' 
 
"Now, it has become a staple of life at the White House, where Mr. Trump is presiding over a different kind of televised ritual: the hour-long discussion session with members of Congress or ordinary citizens. In West Wing meetings over the past several weeks, Mr. Trump has held discussions on immigration, school safety and gun control with cameras rolling and attendees speaking their minds. 

 "The sessions are extraordinary for the rare glimpses they provide of unscripted conversations at the White House on critical issues. They have featured plot twists of their own, with the president, at least while viewers are tuned in, breaking sharply with his own party. They are also a form of performance art for a president who has the instincts of a showman, and whose focus on building suspense and captivating an audience drives many of his decisions. ... 'He's in his element,' said Hope Hicks, Mr. Trump's communications director. 'It's what he does best, whether it's in real estate as a negotiator, but also as a television executive, he understands the value of showing people what
 happens inside the room.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f9a78d5e5133ecddeb786362a554b76c8c668f414fe11fcf19a07b82ceb53985383f4415e600edc1d

HMM -- "Trump on China's Xi consolidating power: 'Maybe we'll give that a shot some day,'" by CNN's Kevin Liptak: "In the closed-door remarks, a recording of which was obtained by CNN, Trump also praised China's President Xi Jinping for recently consolidating power and extending his potential tenure, musing he wouldn't mind making such a maneuver himself. 'He's now president for life. President for life. No, he's great,' Trump said. 'And look, he was able to do that. I think it's great. Maybe we'll have to give that a shot some day.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f6427fe22a7b5d2771149aa0232d444fcb878a04e888f3e014119d5fa92e8a661a15953e4119eaf03

DUH -- "Kushner-led Mideast-Peace Plan Faces Growing Difficulty Even Before Arrival: Trump administration blueprint remains in its nascent stages ahead of Netanyahu's second White House visit," by WSJ's Felicia Schwartz. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f07e99531fb553de9f8e4574949c8b0789f79a0bb71626aa1c74659f5cb57b93bee3cbcc7ab7d93fa 

JONATHAN MARTIN in Palos Hills, Illinois, and ALEX BURNS in Cambridge, Massachusetts: "As Primaries Begin, Divided Voters Weigh What It Means to Be a Democrat" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012fcabbfa37f4c5b639357d6d1bfaa8b91026b44c66d1c3277c37be4b6bc0aea2af411c4b6dedfde3ee 

SPOTTED: Barack and Michelle Obama at Bruce Springsteen in New York on Saturday night. They "received almost as big an ovation as Bruce [and] were with Craig Robinson and Valerie Jarrett," per a tipster. ... The Obamas and Jarrett were also seen having dinner on Friday night at Hank's Oyster Bar at The Wharf. ... Sean Spicer at Little Big Town at the Anthem.

ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU'S plane landed this morning at Andrews at 6:59 a.m.

SNL COLD OPEN - TRUMP flanked by Mike Pence and Dianne Feinstein: "It's clear something has to change. We have to take a hard look at mental health which I have so much of. I have one of the healthiest mentals. My mentals are so high but we have to respect the law. Believe me no one loves the Second Amendment and due process more than me. But maybe we just take everyone's guns away. Okay nobody is allowed to have a gun not even whites."

FEINSTEIN: "Oooh ooh ooh." TRUMP: "Do we like that? Dianne likes that. She hasn't been this excited since women were allowed to get jobs. ... I said I was going to run this country like a business. That business is a Waffle House at 2 a.m." 6-min. video  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f21308772002f2b6379ec7f26b197727fa2d9dae7123d5155f5c04a0fad17574008c53d8e435e5e1d 

SUNDAY BEST ... CHRIS WALLACE speaks with PETER NAVARRO on "FOX NEWS SUNDAY": WALLACE: "Some White House senior staff accuse you of guerilla warfare, saying you sneak into the West Wing and go in to the Oval Office and around policy meetings to personally lobby the president and frankly, a number of senior staff were surprised when the president made this announcement Thursday. How do you plead?"

NAVARRO: "I would say that sitting here on a Sunday with you, that's a bit of a cheap shot. That there's no facts and evidence to support that and if I've learned anything in the 14 months here in Washington and the White House, is that there's all sorts of malicious leaks that go in that try to hurt us. And the culture in the White House now is if they go after one of us, they go after all of us. We're a team together. The president is doing a great job and I stand on my writings. I can tell you that the China issue is one that we as a country are going to have to address because it's a serious matter."

-- JAKE TAPPER also had NAVARRO on CNN'S "STATE OF THE UNION": TAPPER: "You've had major disagreements with the director of the National Economic Council, Gary Cohn, one of the president's top economic advisers. It's been reported he's now mulling resignation after losing this disagreement with you over tariffs. Would you be sad to see Gary Cohn go?" 

NAVARRO: "That's a great question. Look, I was with Gary and -- and the president Thursday afternoon. He was in great spirits. Gary and I actually get along very well. And we -- we agree on more things than we disagree, for example, on deregulation, on tax cuts. 

"You may be surprised to know that we are perfectly aligned on the China question. So, Gary and I basically have very differing opinions. The president loves that. He wants to hear all sides of the argument. So, he's a valued member of the team. And it's up to Gary whether he goes or stays, but I like working with the guy."

-- GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS talks to WILBUR ROSS on ABC'S "THIS WEEK": STEPHANOPOULOS: "It certainly sounds like the president is going to go forward, or you're committed going forward as well. Any concern that if the president goes forward this week, his top economic adviser in the White House Gary Cohn will resign?"

ROSS: "Gary Cohn has been a big participant in the interagency process that came to this conclusion. The president likes to hear every side of every argument, that way he's sure he's gotten all points of view. And so we've had lively discussion, but Gary Cohn, as far as I know, is certainly not going to walk out."

-- CHUCK TODD also spoke with ROSS on NBC'S "MEET THE PRESS": TODD: "Are you concerned about the president's state of mind?" ROSS: "His state of mind is fine. If you went to the Gridiron last night, which I did and others did, he was very relaxed, he was self-deprecating, he had some very good humorous lines. I don't see any problem with his behavior at all."

-- BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE CEO JOSH BOLTEN with WALLACE: BOLTEN on the possibility of a trade war: "Escalation into a trade war is that what businesses and my organization are really worried about. I mean, it's bad enough in the steel and aluminum case but the tweets by the President, including a tweet about responding on German autos on Friday suggests that he thinks a trade war is easy, it's winnable. It isn't. Nobody wins a trade war especially in these globalized days, the United States when we're so dependent on goods coming in and going out for our competitiveness."

          Playbook Reads         

PHOTO DU JOUR: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., on March 3. | Andrew Harnik/AP Photo

TRUMP INC. -- "Thugs, Leeches, Shouting and Shoving at Trump Hotel in Panama," by NYT's Kirk Semple in Panama City and Ben Protess and Steve Eder in New York: "The Trump International Hotel and Tower here is President Trump's only hotel property in Latin America. At 70 stories, it is the tallest building in Panama, offers sweeping views of Panama Bay and features five outdoor swimming pools. The rooms come with Trump branded bathrobes, stationery and mouthwash. But in recent days, guests have witnessed a decidedly less glamorous side of the operation: Yelling and shoving matches involving security personnel and others, the presence of police in Kevlar helmets, and various interventions by
 Panamanian labor regulators, forensic specialists and a justice of the peace.

"The source of the drama? The businessman who recently purchased a majority stake in the hotel wants the Trumps out. And the Trumps, who have a long-term contract to manage the property, are refusing to go. In a letter marked 'Private & Confidential' to the hotel's other owners, the businessman, Orestes Fintiklis, likened the Trumps to leeches who had attached to the property, 'draining our last drops of blood,' according to a copy reviewed by The New York Times. He has also filed legal actions accusing the Trump family business, the Trump Organization, of mismanaging the hotel." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f2379f951851c6a15ef43da8405658669140203aa96029c7fb62670a769f272cb902edb51086b63fe

FOR YOUR RADAR -- "Need a North Korean Missile? Call the Cairo Embassy," by NYT's Declan Walsh in Cairo: "Egypt has purchased North Korean weapons and allowed North Korean diplomats to use their Cairo embassy as a base for military sales across the region, American and United Nations officials say. Those transactions earned vital hard cash for North Korea, but they violated international sanctions and drew the ire of Egypt's main military patron, the United States, which cut or suspended $291 million in military aid in August.

"Tensions may bubble up again in the coming weeks with the publication of a United Nations report that contains new information about the cargo of a rusty North Korean freighter intercepted off the coast of Egypt in 2016. The ship was carrying 30,000 rocket-propelled grenades worth an estimated $26 million. The report, due to be released this month, identifies the customer for the weapons as an arm of the Arab Organization for Industrialization, Egypt's main state weapons conglomerate. Mr. Sisi heads the committee that oversees the group." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f55e93f25f3c8649b90c653dbaf7e314ced3abe58121f6351fcf9536d15b799daa750bbf214cc63d9

****** A message from the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs: Medicare Part D is working for seniors. An important part of the program's success comes from preferred pharmacy networks that promote quality and lower drug prices. Preferred pharmacy plans keep premiums low and are the most popular choice for seniors enrolled in Part D. But now, CMS is considering changes that would prevent seniors from choosing plans with preferred pharmacy networks. Tell CMS to stop proposed changes to Medicare Part D that would disrupt preferred pharmacy networks and hurt millions of seniors. Learn more. ******

BONUS GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Daniel Lippman:

-- "A journey on a caravan of misery," by Reuters' Alexandra Ulmer: "By the time dawn rises over Caracas, hungry people are already picking through garbage while kids beg in front of bakeries. Come dusk, Venezuelans shut themselves inside their homes to avoid muggings and kidnappings. In a country with the world's largest proven crude reserves, families cook with firewood because they cannot find propane. Food is so scarce and pricey that the average Venezuelan lost 24 pounds last year." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f9358cf37c8d6249cf8e1dec8ab9c901bbe91083a50fe37ad0e6162d5e0289b899a680412c5970648

-- "Can Venezuela Be Saved?" by Wil S. Hylton on the cover of today's N.Y. Times Magazine: "As a nation unwinds, Leopoldo L&oacute;pez, the opposition's most prominent leader, sits under house arrest and contemplates what might still be possible." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f9e75e589bcaabf2ef9d75db8891b079f10338d1806d3c81e3592360357bdb1125a30d3c5e49a59e0 ... The cover http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f7c84ae3edc88b64469cda4decfa8c8282cadbad086fe7245f0a7301d8069298c9aa32684f57c3fc2 

-- "The Genocide the U.S. Didn't See Coming," by Nahal Toosi in the March/April issue of POLITICO Magazine: "Barack Obama was determined to open up to Myanmar. Now the country's military is slaughtering its most vulnerable ethnic group. Could the United States have prevented it?"  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012fc1a4549d668264a527d4f34e552d1a5a794c415d93767fe987dbbc03aa5078cdceaa86794c1da945

-- "Mr. Churchill in the White House," by Robert Schmuhl on the White House Historical Association's website: "The Monroe Room on the Second Floor was converted into a map room to display the movement of troops and ships. ... The visitor did much of his work-dictation of correspondence, reports, and speeches-after dinner and into the early morning hours. A self-described 'tardy riser,' he liked to lounge in bed reading newspapers and catching up on affairs until lunchtime." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012fbe90c88610b88b5598d4800eeca36d82d5582465f4da710bc257746594290efef153d6c142368a87

-- "'This Route Doesn't Exist on the Map,'" by Lauren Markham in the New Republic: "How efforts to block refugees and asylum-seekers from Europe have only made the global migration crisis more complex and harrowing." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f84764a12c465809dee66531c9a63ac3c13b2ed6e4556867e0c76465fabd7500cc74daa103ecaa2a7

-- "Robin Hanson on Signaling and Self-Deception (Ep. 35)" - interviewed by Tyler Cowen: "I've sometimes been tempted to classify people as egg people and onion people. Onion people have layer after layer after layer. You peel it back, and there's still more layers. You don't really know what's underneath. Whereas egg people, there's a shell, and you get through it, and you see what's on the inside. In some sense, I think of introverts as going for the egg people strategy. They're trying to show you: This is who I am." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f9e315a2fee10a0c0153770f515db93e26012b1a5af5effd82a126819cc1519d2ecc8fe28e7f093a3

-- "A 21st-Century Reimagining of Norman Rockwell's 'Four Freedoms,'" by Abigail Tucker on the cover of March's Smithsonian: "The iconic paintings helped the U.S. win World War II. What do they mean today?" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f6d8a4515bc5d2f19804221e192f385d05175149e6b32d173efb59eef77f8a05ded23de5e9f1cc22a ... All four covers http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012ff62c99d984a374fddd919f422d0c1ab0e6b9d041b533da49200cb3d5cfef98a0e545a1e6a5d9b75f

-- "Travis the Menace," by Dan P. Lee in NY Mag's Jan 23, 2011 issue: "He was the most famous ape in America. But to really understand a chimp, you have to know his mother." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f06a11435715ab82decf6303c9671204e46eea4d6193d36f2cb410ae0c1b20e38497dd2f31e9a11ab (h/t Longform.org)

-- "Marge Go Large," by Jason Fagone in HuffPost Highline - per Longreads.com's description: "How a dyslexic cereal box designer with a penchant for puzzles and patterns figured out a loophole in the Cash WinFall state lottery game, earning $27 million in gross profits playing the lottery over nine years in two states." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012faf9b0c186c6a1854cd29407c7f25d48dff987ad7b4e31d0a4c4dcd84f9007d93c7c3305d2197dad3

-- "Slow Fade of the Pennsylvania Irish," by Charles McElwee in the American Conservative: "In the anthracite coal region, Irish immigrants fled Donegal for a better life. But today's Donegal is far healthier than this region of America. In 2017, National Geographic named Donegal the 'Coolest Place on the Planet.' In the Age of Trump, Pennsylvania's former mining towns are destinations for reporters' insensitive commentary. If they stayed a little longer, perhaps studying the region's history or dropping by cemeteries with Gaelic inscriptions, they would leave with a better idea of this unique place." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f8a4f760da0893aafd83baa708be4b6b885bd4659c3a77fa859f7794cb5521ea914655b5cc49e2170

-- "'We Wear All Black Every Day': Inside Wall Street's Complex, Shameful, and Often Confidential Battle With #MeToo," by Bethany McLean in Vanity Fair's March issue: "Wall Street may not have its own Harvey Weinstein to contend with, but the #MeToo movement has forced the industry to address its own history, practices, and culture in uneven, and sometimes shameful, ways."  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f239882f5db9ef31e9548c0b4eed4ffa2f376a1cecd7cc84efa0972af119f4811c6c75a061171e858

-- "She Left Harvard. He Got to Stay," by Tom Bartlett and Nell Gluckman in the Chronicle of Higher Ed: "Did the university's handling of one professor's sexual-harassment complaint keep other women from coming forward for decades?"  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f25476a5da17350f2487d55c97a11bb4349e694d33e37d49bc325c22cdb3478e1f1d570b98c279e44

-- "Nathan Myhrvold, Myth Buster," by Alex Renton in 1843 Magazine - per TheBrowser.com's description: "The author of the world's best-selling modernist cookbook is an ex-Microsoft billionaire with a sideline in paleontology - he holds the all-time record for unearthing T Rexes. Nathan Myhrvold trained as a cosmologist under Stephen Hawking, invented Microsoft's business model of perpetual upgrades, then left to start an R&D company called Intellectual Ventures which buys and sells patents. Foodie tip: add a pinch of salt to fine Bordeaux and aerate it in a food blender." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f1134eff9cb5d85bc1d4516e064b1366490cac240869d9f216ed66c9789b3d0c745ac1ce03d5c8216

                  Playbookers         
SPOTTED: Justice Elena Kagan leaving Federalist Pig with a bag of BBQ ... Tom Price boarding at DCA for a Delta flight to Atlanta. "He's in coach, no less!" per our tipster. Pic http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012fa0af5eb9274398b9217762ba952aa95699d83c6dd2f1b9e382c5e3a28b51b626d1458f4134bf02cb

ENGAGED -- JAKE KASTAN, deputy director of Paul Ryan's political operation, and JENNA SAKWA, media director to the speaker, got engaged Friday night in New York. AshLee Strong set them up on a blind date a year ago. Pic http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012f07c17a18b676875087bd5672276f81181308d17b0304b5c35e4f0e03b409e3011bffeee8c007c454 

WEEKEND WEDDING -- "Elizabeth Deutsch, Isaac Arnsdorf" - N.Y. Times: "The couple met at Yale, from which each graduated, she summa cum laude and he cum laude, and from which Ms. Deutsch also received a law degree. Ms. Deutsch, 29, is a law clerk for Judge [Nina] Pillard in Washington, and previously clerked for Judge [Paul] Oetken. She also holds two masters degrees as a Marshall Scholar: one in English from the University of Cambridge, the other in gender studies from the London School of Economics. ... Mr. Arnsdorf, 28, is a reporter covering national politics for ProPublica" and is a Politico alum. With pic http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012ff034d3588f5754d91092037bfc9d2c34af04a53309555b6ff1ec274f93cad84a916c59c172e81b55

-- Pool report: "Officiated by New York Southern District Court Judge Paul Oetken, for whom Liz clerked, and who quipped 'This is the one thing I get to do...that I don't have to worry about getting reversed by a higher court.' Jewish blessings led by D.C. Circuit Court Judge Nina Pillard." SPOTTED: Josh Dawsey, Josh Gerstein, Margy Slattery, Ken and Danielle Vogel, Martine Powers. Politico reunion photo, via Dawsey:  http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=6734bd08ff20012fedff75049dabaa427c1e5ac1685e8d908492d14c304422ce150914ef6f8f459b6159b5d86d4646fa  

BIRTHWEEK (was Friday): Ven Neralla, deputy chief of staff to Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.). He celebrated with friends at Shaw wine bar La Jambe. (h/t partner Chris McCannell)

BIRTHDAYS: Energy Secretary Rick Perry is 68. "He's celebrating Texas Independence Day and one-year anniversary as being Secretary on Friday and birthday on Sunday all while working with Saudis on a nuclear agreement. It's a working weekend" (hat tip: Brian McCormack) ... Doug Hoelscher, special assistant to the president and deputy director of intergovernmental affairs at the White House ... James Norton, president of Play-Action Strategies and Bush 43 DHS alum (h/ts Ed Cash) ... Cathy Russell, former ambassador for global women's issues at State ... Deborah Turness, president of NBC News International ... Mike Haidet, director of WH scheduling, is 3-0 (h/t Caitlin Conant) ... Sarah Scott
 ... Nick Ryan, founder of American Future Fund and president at Concordia Group (h/ts Blain Rethmeier and Stuart Roy) ... Shirley Henry ... Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) is 5-0 (h/t D.J. Jordan) ... Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) is 6-0 ... Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) is 65 ... Leigh Munsil, breaking news editor at CNN Politics, is 3-0 ... Emily Bazelon, staff writer for the NYT Magazine and co-host of the "Slate Political Gabfest" ... Callista Gingrich is 52 ... Vaughn Hillyard of NBC News ... 

... CNN's Kate Glassman Bennett ... Obama alum Jesse Lewin, now at McDonald's ... Abby Jagoda ... Sean Simons, U.S./Canada press secretary at the ONE Campaign, celebrating in his hometown of Philly (h/t Jeremy Thompson) ... Sarah Millican ... Wayne Estes ... Stephanie Gidigbi, Obama alum now at the NRDC ... Kevin Roberts ... Allison Putala ... Edelman's Anna Otten ... Politico's Mark McQuillan ... Eric Jeng ... Angela Zirkelbach ... Henry Barrett ... The New Yorker's Melvin Backman is 27 ... Alice Rivlin, senior fellow in the Economic Studies Program at Brookings ... Ben Rogers ... N.Y. Daily News Albany chief Ken Lovett ... Ellis Berry ... Zack Abrahamson ... Andie Coller ... Gary Whidby
 ... Connie Fenner ... Nora Di Martino ... Sophie Saxondale ... WTOP's Bruce Alan ... Alireza Latifi ... Ian Goldin ... Emma Sandoe ... ... Emily Ward ... Jim Sulentic ... Margaret McMurray ... Helen Nelson ... State's Steve Diminuco ... Alissa McKinney ... Simone Ward. 

****** A message from the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs: Medicare Part D is working for seniors. An important part of the program's success comes from preferred pharmacy networks that promote quality and lower drug prices. Preferred pharmacy plans keep premiums low and are the most popular choice for seniors enrolled in Part D. But now, CMS is considering changes that would prevent seniors from choosing plans with preferred pharmacy networks. Tell CMS to stop proposed changes to Medicare Part D that would disrupt preferred pharmacy networks and hurt millions of seniors. Learn more. ******

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