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CNN: “The administration is worried that the media’s focus on these instances of breakthrough infections might lead to people being more hesitant to get a vaccine.”
Said one official: “The media’s coverage doesn’t match the moment. It has been hyperbolic and frankly irresponsible in a way that hardens vaccine hesitancy.”
“Joe Biden wagered his campaign and now his presidency on the premise that government itself could still work, even at a time of fractious political division,” the AP reports.
“When the Senate voted this week, with bipartisan support, to begin work on an infrastructure bill that Biden supported, he seemed to have proof of the concept.”
“But the triumph was overshadowed by the surging delta variant of the coronavirus that has forced the restoration of mask guidelines, imperiled the nation’s economic recovery and threatened Biden’s central promise that he would lead the United States out of the pandemic.”
“The Justice Department on Friday said the Treasury Department must turn over former President Trump’s long-sought tax returns to the Democratic-led House Ways and Means Committee,” The Hill reports.
From the memo: “The statute at issue here is unambiguous: ‘Upon written request’ of the chairman of one of the three congressional tax committees, the Secretary ‘shall furnish’ the requested tax information to the Committee.”
Charlie Cook: “Democratic hopes of retaining their slim majorities in Congress are almost entirely dependent upon President Biden not sinking them.”
A new Associated Press-NORC poll finds 6 in 10 Democrats say they’re optimistic about their party’s future, and Democrats nearly universally — 92% — approve of the way President Biden is handling his job.
“But the party is divided over the best strategy for accomplishing its agenda. About half say Democrats should compromise with Republicans, even if it means giving up things they want. The other half say Democrats should stick to their positions no matter what, even if it means they would have to find a way to pass laws without Republican support.”
“President Biden’s success at propelling an infrastructure deal past its first major hurdle this week was a vindication of his faith in bipartisanship and a repudiation of the slash-and-burn politics of his immediate predecessor, President Donald Trump, who tried and failed to block it,” the New York Times reports.
“Having campaigned as the anti-Trump — an insider who regarded compromise as a virtue, rather than a missed opportunity to crush a rival — Mr. Biden has held up the promise of a broad infrastructure accord not just as a policy priority but as a test of the fundamental rationale for his presidency.”
The Hill: “Six months into office, polls indicate Harris is viewed less favorably than President Biden. She has also made some tactical missteps outside of the White House that Democrats say show she hasn’t quite yet found her bearings.”
“Harris’s polling numbers are raising questions about how she might be used as Democrats seek to hold on to slim majorities in the House and Senate.”
The success of the bipartisan infrastructure deal, in some ways, is coming down to talks between Rob Portman (R-OH) and White House Counselor Steve Ricchetti, both longtime figures in Washington who are comfortable in their own skin and fluent in the art of legislating, Punchbowl News reports.
“It probably doesn’t hurt that Ricchetti — like Portman — is Ohio born and raised.”
“If he’s successful, Ricchetti will be the one who helps bring home a massive deal for the president of the United States.”
“President Biden said that the federal government was considering making vaccines mandatory for its workforce — what would be a significant escalation in push to expand vaccine coverage as the coronavirus surge from the Delta variant sends shockwaves through the country,” the Washington Post reports.
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), the top Democratic negotiator on the bipartisan infrastructure deal, is scheduled to visit the White House this afternoon to meet with President Biden, NBC News reports.
Said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), when asked if she expects the group to eventually reach a deal: “Ultimately, yes. But it’s painful.”
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell insisted on Steve Bannon’s podcast that after the U.S. Supreme Court sees his compelling evidence of election fraud at an upcoming “symposium” that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will say, “Hey, we’re here to protect the country” and resign.
“President Joe Biden is nominating eight new leaders for U.S. attorney positions across the country, including in the office overseeing the prosecutions of hundreds of defendants charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol,” the Associated Press reports.
“Most would be historic firsts, including the first Black or female attorneys to lead their districts.”
Harry Enten: “The lack of a topsy turvy first few months has translated to Biden’s approval rating. It’s been the most stable for any president since the end of World War II.”
Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), who was the former White House physician, told Fox News he believed President Biden would resign due to his cognitive abilities.
Said Jackson: “There’s something seriously going on with this man right now. And you know I think that he’s either going to — he’s either going to resign, they’re going to convince him to resign from office at some point in the near future for medical issues or they’re going to have to use the 25th Amendment to get rid of this man right now.”
Gallup: “President Joe Biden’s latest job approval rating of 50% is down from 56% in June. Before this month, his ratings had not shown meaningful variation during his time in office, and the current figure marks the lowest measured for him to date.”
Politico: “If a deal on the massive bill materializes next week, as several senators involved in talks are suggesting, it would represent the most significant validation to date of President Joe Biden’s commitment to bipartisanship. It would also support his claims that he possesses a unique congressional acumen.”
“Though he argued on Wednesday that it was working — ‘that’s all beginning to move,’ he said — many in his party warn that it could be a waste of time and capital. … The White House’s zealous pursuit of a bipartisan deal was kept alive, in no small part, due to the team of top advisers Biden installed to help work toward an agreement.”
The White House released a 23-page slide deck on how President Biden and his cabinet hope to sell the American public on his economic plans.
Notably, the slide deck focuses on “flooding local TV airways” with appearances by administrative officials, with the White House claiming they’ve already done over 1,000 local hits so far.
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Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.