How Much Longer Will This Progressive Bullshit Continue
He's young, progressive, and a Biden stan
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Democratic midterm candidates aren't showing JOE BIDEN much love. But one progressive pol predicted to win his House race next month isn't shying away from the president. Instead, he's leaning hard into his close White House ties — and publicly urging Biden to seek reelection in 2024.
ROBERT GARCIA, mayor of Long Beach, Calif., and — quite likely — an incoming member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is a new kind of surrogate for the Biden-Harris White House. Garcia, 44 and an immigrant from Peru, describes Biden as the "most progressive president of the modern era" and says, without hesitation, "I hope he runs again." He also has been offering himself as a liberal footsoldier on cable TV's airwaves, where he's gearing up to do verbal combat with some of Biden's biggest, loudest MAGA tormentors.
The stance he's adopted makes him a unicorn of sorts among young Democrats. It's also a tactic that breaks with the White House's more buttoned-up approach towards political combat — though it's one Biden officials welcome.
"We have to fight back and continue to call out their bullshit," Garcia told West Wing Playbook. "We're allowing folks like MARJORIE TAYLOR GREEN, MATT GAETZ and LAUREN BOEBERT to control a narrative and define what America is about. But their worldview is exactly the opposite of what this country is about. We can't allow patriotism to be warped by America First, far-right extremists who promote hate. So for those of us who are immigrants — and who fought for citizenship — we know what the true America is about and what loving your country really means."
Over beers recently in Washington (WWPB nursed a Bud Lite and he had an IPA), Garcia didn't just profess support for the president. He also argued it's past time for Biden and Democrats to take up changes to immigration policy; he touted his work in Long Beach for guaranteed income and raising the minimum wage, his refusal to accept corporate PAC money, and hissupport from the likes of Rep. KATIE PORTER, who represents a neighboring district.
Garcia's path to Biden world wasn't direct. He was among KAMALA HARRIS' earliest supporters during her presidential run. When she dropped out, Garcia showed little hesitation in getting behind Biden and then hitting the trail for him in Iowa and Nevada, according to people close to the president's campaign.
"He wasn't looking to cut deals or create opportunities for himself," one of those people told West Wing Playbook.
When senior Biden adviser ANITA DUNN and top Democratic National Convention organizers STEPHANIE CUTTER and ADDISU DEMISSIE brainstormed emerging talent from the party to fill a keynote speaking slot, "his was one of the first names that came up," Demissie recalled. "It was not a hard decision for anyone."
Garcia joined a collage of rising stars, including two others from the LGBTQ community, to be featured in the slot. His convention remarks came at a particularly difficult time in his life. He had lost his mother and stepfather to Covid within days of each other while trying to steer his city through the health crisis.
Since then, Garcia has become a regular at White House events, working with Biden administration officials on some of their toughest problems. Garcia and his Port of Long Beach — where the backlog of idling ships has dropped from a high of about 110 to six or seven — had a starring role in the administration's efforts to untangle the supply chain. He was on the phone frequently with Harris and worked closely with Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG.
Garcia similarly heard from White House senior adviser JULIE CHÁVEZ RODRÍGUEZ, who heads the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, and Health and Human Services Secretary XAVIER BECERRA, as they searched for places last spring to house an influx of unaccompanied minors at the southwest border. They worked out a temporary agreement to create space at the Long Beach Convention Center, which Garcia called a "model" for sheltering, and then helped unify many of the children with their families.
How he will fit into a Washington D.C. that seems likely to have one, if not two, chambers of Congress run by Republicans remains to be seen. But he has a proclivity for going hard at Republicans on topics where Democrats, including some inside the White House, don't always show comfort. He said he was especially piqued by Republican Govs. RON DESANTIS of Florida and GREG ABBOTT of Texas for sending migrants into blue state enclaves. "The Biden-Harris administration has forcefully defended immigrants and condemned [the governors'] actions," he said, "but you also need to have people who were immigrants, who gained citizenship, at the frontline of the fight."
One possible role for Garcia may be as a thorn in the side of his fellow Californian KEVIN MCCARTHY, the Republican leader projected to be the next House speaker.
"He's someone that should never be Speaker," Garcia said flatly. "He can't control his own caucus — especially the extreme forces in it — and he would be a disaster for the country."
MESSAGE US — Are you MATT GROUM, associate director for candidate recruitment? We want to hear from you! And we'll keep you anonymous! Email us at [email protected] .
This one is from Allie. Which president swore two other presidents into office at their inauguration ceremonies? Bonus points if you can name those presidents, too!
(Answer at the bottom.)
ON THE MOVE: The president traveled Thursday to Pennsylvania, where he made a few public appearances with Lt. Gov. and Democratic Senate candidate JOHN FETTERMAN. WaPo's CLEVE R. WOOTSON JR. and CAROLINE ANDERS note the move is a rarity as other Democratic candidates have not appeared with Biden ahead of the midterm elections.
When asked why there haven't been more candidates campaigning with him, Biden responded a tad defensively: "There have been 15. Count. Count." He then said there would be more.
DELA-WHERE-ELSE: The White House also announced that Biden will deliver remarks Friday on student debt relief at Delaware State University.
KLAIN THE PUNDIT: On MSNBC's Morning Joe on Thursday, White House chief of staff RON KLAIN declared: "We are planning to work with the Democratic House and a Democratic Senate next year."
WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: The latest unemployment figures. JESSE LEE, the senior communications adviser for the National Economic Council, highlighted some of the numbers in a tweet Thursday morning: "Just 214,000 new unemployment claims this week, 4-week average of 212,500. That's 6,000 below the 2019 average, and 141,000 below the 2000-2018 average. Maybe less wild speculation about what happens a year from now, and more recognition of just how strong our economy is now." Ron Klain retweeted the sentiment.
WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: That mortgage rates are up, according to AP's MATT OTT: "Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average on the key 30-year rate ticked up this week to 6.94 percent from 6.9 percent last week. Last year at this time, the rate was 3.09 percent.
"The average rate on 15-year, fixed-rate mortgages, popular among those looking to refinance their homes, jumped to 6.23 percent from 6.09 percent last week. Last week it climbed over 6 percent for the first time since the housing market crash of 2008. One year ago, the 15-year rate was 2.33 percent."
BDAY CELEBRATIONS: Second gentleman DOUG EMHOFF and other officials wished the VP a happy birthday Thursday. Watch the video here.
NEWS YOU CAN USE?: Stopping at a Primanti Bros. in Pennsylvania Thursday, Biden "ordered the Pitts-Burger sandwich and left a tip of $40," per the White House.
LETTUCE PRAY FOR LIZ: In a statement about LIZ TRUSS' resignation Thursday, Biden thanked the U.K. prime minister for her 44-day long leadership and collaboration with the U.S. "on a range of issues including holding Russia accountable for its war against Ukraine."
"We will continue our close cooperation with the U.K. government as we work together to meet the global challenges our nations face," he said. Our KELLY HOOPER has more.
FASHION POLITICS: The White House Gender Policy Council team wore purple Thursday to promote awareness of domestic violence and snapped a group pic:
PERSONNEL MOVES: ERIC BURSCH has been promoted to director of congressional, legislative and intergovernmental affairs in the Office of Personnel Management. He most recently was deputy director of that office.
— BETH LYNK is now the assistant secretary for public affairs at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Lynk previously served as senior advisor for communications and external affairs at the Centers for Medicare & Medical Services.
— NIMI UBEROI is leaving the National Security Council's climate and energy team for the Treasury Department, where she will be senior advisor for climate and tax implementation for the Inflation Reduction Act.
ABORTION BATTLES: The Pentagon announced Thursday it will pay for service members to travel to obtain abortions. Our LARA SELIGMAN has more.
SHOTS, SHOTS, SHOTS, EVERYBODY: The CDC's independent vaccine advisers voted 15-0 Thursday to add most Covid-19 vaccines offered in the U.S. to the childhood, adolescent and adult immunization schedules, our LAUREN GARDNER reports.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis responded by saying:"I know a lot of parents are concerned about that, because if that's on the immunization schedule, then the fear is that schools could potentially mandate your child to get a COVID shot even if that's something you don't want to do… As long as I'm kicking and screaming, there will be no COVID shot mandates for your kids."
COMPARE/CONTRAST: NYT's AATISH BHATIA, FRANCESCA PARIS and MARGOT SANGER-KATZ have an interactive comparing what the Biden administration has proposed legislatively vs. what has passed.
ABOUT THAT IMMIGRATION OVERHAUL … Nearly two years into the president's tenure, some advocates say they aren't seeing the administration prioritize immigration reform as much as they thought they would, advocates tell our MYAH WARD. Their frustrations are compounded by the fact that a number of other groups within the progressive coalition have seen material policy gains in the past two years.
MENTAL HEALTH TALKS: The Office of the Surgeon General issued guidance Thursday about the importance of a healthy workplace culture, "outlining how long hours, limited autonomy and low wages can affect workers' health and organizational performance," WSJ's LINDSAY ELLIS reports. "Chronic stress disrupts sleep, increases vulnerability to infection and has been linked to conditions ranging from heart disease to depression, the document said, citing research from the American Psychological Association and a Stanford University psychologist." Good news for White House staff!
Biden world privately thinks McCarthy could fold on Ukraine aid (POLITICO's Andrew Desiderio and Jonathan Lemire)
U.S. Sees Opportunity for Ukraine to Capitalize on Russian Weakness (NYT's Julian E. Barnes)
US Border Chief Sees New Success in Deterring Venezuela Migrants (Bloomberg's Jordan Fabian and Ellen M. Gilmer)
The president is making the rounds — MSNBC's JONATHAN CAPEHART's interview with Biden will air on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
NowThisNews' Presidential Forum with the president will air on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. ET
Biden will also make an appearance on CNBC's "Jay Leno's Garage," airing Oct. 26 at 10 p.m. ET. CNBC posted a few preview clips here, here and here, but there's not much news in them.
After his presidency, WILLIAM TAFT went on to serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. In that role, he administered the oath of office to both CALVIN COOLIDGE and HERBERT HOOVER at their respective inauguration ceremonies.
A CALL OUT — Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents with a citation and we may feature it.
Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.
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Source: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/west-wing-playbook/2022/10/20/meet-joe-bidens-maga-punching-progressive-stan-00062797
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