Jill Biden wants you to read Trevor Noah’s book

Feb 10, 2022 View in browser   By Allie Bice and Alex Thompson Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  Send tips | Subscribe here| Email Alex | Email Max Teaching has always been a passion for first lady JILL BIDEN — since 2009, she's taught English at Northern Virginia Community College and is the first first lady in modern history to work full-time during her husband's tenure. She has described her teaching job as a core part of her identity, and it's something President JOE BIDEN regularly touts when discussing education policy. "If I wanted to know anything about community colleges in Virginia, I go to my wife," Biden said today at community college in Culpepper, Va. We know far less about what kind of professor the first lady is, or how she approaches the subject matter she's teaching. A copy of a syllabus for an introductory English course, ENG 111, she taught in the fall semester of 2021, obtained by West Wing Playbook, offers a glimpse. The required reading for the first lady's course consists of two books: "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood," an autobiography by The Daily Show's Trevor Noah; and "Rules for Writers, Ninth Edition (with 2016 Updates)," by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers, which covers the basics of writing, grammar and research. Her office did not comment for this story. Noah's office didn't respond. In the syllabus, Biden writes that the course "will focus on the theme of finding ways to solve some of the world's problems," and lays out three overarching class topics — the process of writing; expository and argumentative writing; and critical thinking and research. The first lady appears fairly accessible to her students despite her other responsibilities — her office hours are 10 a.m. through 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. through 3:30 p.m. on both Tuesdays and Thursdays, and through Zoom "as requested." If students reach out by phone or email, she writes that they can expect a reply to email within two days or a call within 24 hours. Biden also lays out Zoom etiquette for those students taking the course virtually (or what she calls "netiquette," a combination of the words "Internet etiquette"). She asks that students keep their cameras on — no black screens — and stay muted unless they're speaking. She also adds a disclaimer: no Zooming and driving. Makes sense! Students "who miss more than four classes will incur a grade penalty. Students who miss more than six classes will receive a failing grade." Showing up late, or leaving class early, "will be counted as unexcused absences unless you have permission from the instructor." The first lady also describes in detail what kind of essay is worthy of an "A" grade and what's worthy of an "F." An "A" essay "reflects excellence in a student's thinking and writing, deals with one topic, focused to fit the length and scope of the discussion." An essay worthy of an "F," in contrast, "has no focus … contains writing that rambles or is incoherent. It has so many serious grammatical, spelling, and/or punctuation errors that the errors interfere with the communication of ideas." And apparently she is stingy with those "A's"! While she received a 4 out of 5 rating on RateMyProfessor — those giving her low scores for her teaching seemed primarily to complain that she's a tough grader and gives too much homework. One student wrote in Nov. 2020 that she "gives a lot of work with no context," while another wrote around the same time that she's "a good teacher, but a very tough grader. Be ready to grind to pass the class." But another student raved, "Im not gonna lie, she gives A LOT of homework, makes you work for the good grade, but its 101% worth it." The West Wing Playbook team caught a few typos in the syllabus we received. But we'll leave that to the English professor to find! You can read the full syllabus here. TEXT US — Did we miss something about her teaching career? Send us an email or text and we will try to include your thoughts in the next day's edition. Can be anonymous, on background, etc. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com or you can text/Signal Alex at 8183240098 or Max at 7143455427. WHAT YOU TEXTED — In response to yesterday's top about Biden science adviser ERIC LANDER — including some of the defenses of him — one former OSTP staffer wrote us: "If he was Michael Jordan for basketball, he was Michael Jordan playing baseball when it came to government." Do you work in the Biden administration? Are you a student or have you been student of Jill Biden's? Email/text us! Please?   BECOME A GLOBAL INSIDER:  The world is more connected than ever. It has never been more essential to identify, unpack and analyze important news, trends and decisions shaping our future — and we've got you covered! Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Global Insider author Ryan Heath navigates the global news maze and connects you to power players and events changing our world. Don't miss out on this influential global community. Subscribe now.     POTUS PUZZLER From the University of Virginia's Miller Center  Which president's national security adviser had such a close relationship with his boss it was described as "[they] are almost like a single person. … There is almost a sense that they can complete each other's sentences."? (Answer at the bottom.) The Oval SCOOP — BETSY LAWRENCE, the chief counsel for the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship, is joining the White House's ever-changing immigration team as deputy assistant to the president for immigration starting on Feb. 14, the White House confirmed after we asked. She will replace ESTHER OLAVARRIA. Before working on the Hill, Lawrence was director of government relations at the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). DAMAGE CONTROL: The White House is setting up a meeting between the president and DNC chair JAIME HARRISON , NBC News' NATASHA KORECKI and JONATHAN ALLEN report. Biden met with the heads of the party's House and Senate campaign committees separately last week, the most extensive midterm strategy meetings the president has had to date with top party leaders, but Harrison was not included, they wrote. This also follows NBC's reporting that the relationship had frayed. DAMAGE CONTROL, PART 2: After the Washington Post and other outlets wrote stories about friction between the White House and Health and Human Services Secretary XAVIER BECERRA, Biden appeared alongside him today and pointedly offered some praise, thanking Becerra "for answering my call when I asked him to become secretary — I was worried he wouldn't." The Post story here. And CNN's follow story on Becerra's new effort. SCOTUS UPDATE: Biden tells NBC's LESTER HOLT that he's done a "deep dive" on four potential Supreme Court nominees and says: "I'm not looking to make an ideological choice." He also predicted that whoever he picks will "get a vote from the Republican side." "The short list are nominees who are incredibly well qualified and documented," said Biden. "They were the honors students. They come from the best universities. They have experience, some on the bench, some of them practiced law." Watch the clip here. THE BUREAUCRATS MORE OSTP DRAMA — House Republicans with oversight over the Office of Science and Technology Policy wrote a letter to the White House today hitting JANE LUBCHENCO , the director for climate and environment, over previous work as an editor for the Proceedings for the National Academy of Science of the United States of America. Read the letter here. As BRENDAN BORDELON reported earlier this week, Lubchenco is seen as a potential successor to Lander . An OSTP official said in a statement that "Jane agreed there was a conflict and the paper should be retracted, told OSTP, and it was a matter of public record at the time….[T]here's no evidence that Jane's work with the task force resulted in any pulled punch on the topic." Advise and Consent NFL BOUND — Close Biden confidante CYNTHIA HOGAN — who also helped lead Biden's vice presidential vetting team — had her nomination officially withdrawn today by the White House to be a member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Last month, she started a new gig as a senior adviser to NFL Commissioner ROGER GOODELL. Neither Hogan nor an NFL spokesperson responded to requests for comment. SLOW WALK TO THE PENTAGON: Frustrations with Sen. JOSH HAWLEY's monthslong slow-walking of Biden's Pentagon nominees boiled over on Thursday, after the Missouri Republican stymied an attempt from Sen. JEANNE SHAHEEN (D-N.H.) to approve three Pentagon nominees. CONNOR O'BRIEN reports that the tranche of nominees included CELESTE WALLANDER — a Russia expert who has argued the U.S. was too slow to respond to Moscow's last incursion into Ukraine — to be the Pentagon's top international security official. Also blocked were DAVID HONEY, the pick to be Pentagon's No. 2 research and engineering official, and MELISSA DALTON, nominated to head up homeland defense issues. Shaheen accused Hawley — who has blocked the quick confirmation on Pentagon nominees in recent months over how the Biden administration withdrew from Afghanistan — of hamstringing the military as it responds to the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. SETTING SAIL: The Senate this afternoon voted 51-43 to confirm MAX VEKICH to be a Federal Maritime Commissioner. ICYMI: The Senate confirmed a series of nominations in rapid-fire fashion Wednesday night, including former U.S. Attorney NEIL MACBRIDE as Treasury's general counsel, former Obama State Department official RETA JO LEWIS as president of the Export-Import Bank, former Biden NSC senior director SASHA BAKER to be deputy under secretary of Defense, and LEONARD PHILIP STARK as a U.S. circuit judge for the Federal Circuit. Agenda Setting DOG DAYS OF INFLATION — Consumer prices rose a higher-than-expected 0.6 percent for the second month in a row, suggesting that surging prices will continue to dog President Biden's economy, VICTORIA GUIDA reports. The new Labor Department data also increased speculation in financial markets that the Federal Reserve might act more aggressively in its campaign of interest rate increases, which are expected to begin next month. But as Victoria writes, the central bank may be reluctant to move too fast for fear of spooking investors. What We're Reading Food Fight: Inside Team Biden's Disastrous Meeting With Restaurant Leaders Over Covid Relief (Rolling Stone's Kara Voght) Lander was a tough boss at the Broad Institute, but not sexist, say former colleagues (Boston Globe's Jonathan Saltzman, Anissa Gardizy and Ryan Cross) Government medical advisers urge ICE to expand COVID-19 vaccinations for immigrant detainees (CBS News' Camilo Montoya-Galvez) U.S.-Canada bridge jam brings more pain for auto sector (POLITICO's Alex Daugherty and Tanya Snyder) What We're Watching Biden's Super Bowl interview with NBC's Lester Holt. They recorded the interview today and will air the first segments tonight on NBC Nightly News.   DON'T MISS CONGRESS MINUTES: Need to follow the action on Capitol Hill blow-by-blow? Check out Minutes, POLITICO's new platform that delivers the latest exclusives, twists and much more in real time. Get it on your desktop or download the POLITICO mobile app for iOS or Android. CHECK OUT CONGRESS MINUTES HERE.     Where's Joe He received the President's Daily Brief at the White House, before heading to Germanna Community College in Culpeper, Va. to deliver remarks about health care alongside HHS Secretary Becerra. He also sat down for an interview with Holt at the college. He arrived back at the White House in the afternoon, where he met with Senate Judiciary Democrats to discuss the Supreme Court nomination process. Where's Kamala She also attended the meeting with Senate Democrats. The Oppo Book We previously noted that DAN KOH, chief of staff for the Department of Labor, is a big fan of routine. One aspect of his routine that is integral — eating the same breakfast each day. "For breakfast I have egg whites and Diet Coke every morning, that's my thing," he told Boston.com in 2016. Diet coke in the morning may seem, well, gross. But there is a senator who drinks Red Bull. We'll let you guess. POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER GEORGE H. W. BUSH's relationship with BRENT SCOWCROFT was characterized as particularly close by PHILIP ZELIKOW in his oral history interview with the Miller Center. He went on to add, "they meshed together very well too because Scowcroft complemented certain important weaknesses that Bush had, while Bush had brought some very important strengths. Bush 41 provided a very strong emotional compass, and for Bush 41 politics is a lot about relationships." For the complete oral history of the George H. W. Bush administration, visit millercenter.org. A CALL OUT — Do you have a better trivia question? Send us your hardest trivia question on the presidents and we may feature it on Wednesdays. Edited by Emily Cadei   Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Maxwell Tani @maxwelltani Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

To change your alert settings, please log in at https://www.politico.com/_login?base=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com/settings This email was sent to rouf@idiot.cloudns.cc by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA Please click here and follow the steps to unsubscribe.