Release the Krach-en!

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Jun 07, 2022 View in browser   By Gavin Bade, Alex Thompson and Max Tani Presented by 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  Not every Trump administration vet is persona non grata in Biden World. KEITH KRACH, who served as a top economic official in DONALD TRUMP's State Department, has been a regular guest in Biden circles lately. A wealthy Silicon Valley CEO with a penchant for off-the-cuff remarks that rattled the national security establishment during the Trump years, Krach appeared alongside Commerce Secretary GINA RAIMONDO in March to press Congress to pass an economic competitiveness bill to confront China. He hosted the National Security Council's Indo-Pacific coordinator, KURT CAMPBELL, in April for a talk on China's economic aggression. And last month, he appeared alongside ALAN ESTEVEZ, the head of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security, to announce his new Global Tech Security Commission at the Atlantic Council. Krach's close relationship with the Biden team is not common among Trump vets. And it underscores how an aggressive posture towards China has intellectually bound the past two administrations. "One of the rarest things in government is continuity of programs, because when a new government comes in, they think, 'I've got a better idea and I am going to do it differently,'" Campbell, who is one of the White House's most influential advisers on China, said in his appearance with Krach. "Almost all the work that Keith did at the State Department … [has] been followed on in [the Biden] administration and, in many respects, that's the highest tribute." Krach himself is also largely complimentary of the Biden administration's approach to China, including praise for Biden saying the U.S. would intervene militarily to defend Taiwan. "It was really great to hear from President Biden that we have Taiwan's back on this," he said. To date, Biden has kept in place most of Trump's China policies, including his tariffs on Chinese imports, though he did waive potential tariffs on solar panels from four Southeast Asian nations this week, many of which have parts that originated from China. He's also continued to develop programs pushed by Krach to keep critical tech away from Beijing and steer other nations from Huawei, the state-backed Chinese telecom firm, for 5G wireless infrastructure. Krach, the former CEO of software firm DocuSign, said he emails with Raimondo regularly and has taken on an unofficial role in advising Commerce staffers on the last administration's initiatives toward China. "[Raimondo] reached out to me when she came on board because she wanted to understand the Clean Network of Democracies," Krach said, referring to his effort to push world governments away from Chinese technology. "That led to me working with – really, updating and advising – many of the people under her, and Estevez is one of them." The Commerce Department declined to comment on Krach's advisory role. Krach's is not your typical government bureaucrat. For starters, he has a self-promotional streak that can make him a bit of a renegade. He was the highest ranking State Department official to visit Taiwan in four decades when he went in 2020. And, to this day, he brags that he was the first to declare Beijing's abuses of Uyghur muslims a "genocide" — which he did on Fox News without warning most of his colleagues. He was then, and remains now, unrepentant. "It's not really a policy style," he said. "It's just kind of just kind of calling it as it is." But that call-it-as-it-is approach also inspired eye-rolls and snickering among career staffers. Three former national security officials noted, for instance, that Krach regularly boasts of his nomination for a Nobel Peace Prize — a distinction emblazoned across his personal website. But a nomination can be made by any national lawmaker, Cabinet official, or even a university professor. And in this case it was Krach's former State Department colleague MILES YU, who put him up for the honor. The self-promotion is evident elsewhere. Krach named his new think tank at Purdue University after himself, despite it also employing other former Trump China hawks like former USAID Deputy Administrator BONNIE GLICK. He hands out challenge coins — a tradition in the armed services — to people he meets, despite not being a military official. And he's wined and dined national security journalists (not your author…yet) at downtown Washington restaurants as he pumps his new think tank. Former colleagues said they appreciated his enthusiasm and commitment to taking on China, but added they wish it was matched with a deeper policy acumen. "I like him," said one former national security official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of ongoing business with the administration. "But sometimes it's a bit like that John Belushi scene from 'Animal House': 'Did we quit when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?'" Krach's backers counter that he's using the skill set he possesses — a business insight and a knack for branding — for altruistic motives. "He is a very effective marketer and brander," said ROB NOEL, Krach's former speechwriter at State. "So what may come off to others as self promotional, that was really to him just part and parcel to the overall branding effort." That's how Krach himself frames his mission. "I'm not trying to promote Keith Krach," he said. "What I'm trying to do is make sure the world has hope — that, yes, democracies can defeat authoritarian [governments] and freedom is worth fighting for. That's what I'm trying to do." TEXT US — Are you ALEXANDRA LAMANNA, new White House assistant press secretary? We want to hear from you. And we'll keep you anonymous if you'd like. Or if you think we missed something in today's edition, let us know and we may include it tomorrow. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com or you can text/Signal/Wickr Alex at 8183240098.   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.     POTUS PUZZLER This one is also from Alex: Which president avoided wartime military service by paying a Polish immigrant $150 to take his place? Hint: This practice of finding a substitute was legal at the time. (Answer at the bottom.) The Oval FIRST IN WEST WING PLAYBOOK: SHIRIN BIDEL-NIYAT is now the chief of staff at the U.S Patent and Trademark Office, DANIEL LIPPMAN reports. She most recently was senior advisor to interim director DREW HIRSHFELD (whose final day in office after nearly 30 years at the Commerce agency will be June 21) and the new director, KATHI VIDAL. Bidel-Niyat replaces CORDELIA (DEDE) ZECHER, who filled in as the acting chief of staff. Zecher will continue to serve in the Office of the Under Secretary as a senior adviser. HARRIS' NORTHERN TRIANGLE ASSIGNMENT: None of the presidents from Guatemala, Honduras or El Salvador — known as the Northern Triangle — will be present at this week's Summit of the Americas, the AP's AMY TAXIN, CHRIS MEGERIAN and JOSHUA GOODMAN report. From the story: "Perhaps the biggest disappointment was Honduras' President Xiomara Castro … Harris, who attended Castro's inauguration in January, in recent days spoke with Honduras' first female president in a last-ditch effort to persuade her to travel to Los Angeles. But in the end Castro sided with fellow leftist Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico in boycotting the summit." KINDNESS: Biden sent a condolence letter to Reuters White House reporter NANDITA BOSE after her father died. She posted it on Twitter today. A screenshot of a tweet from Nandita Bose featuring a letter from Joe Biden is pictured. | Nandita Bose via Twitter/POLITICO screenshot AT THE LECTERN: MATTHEW MCONAUGHEY continued his tour of Washington on Tuesday with a stop at the White House during which he called on lawmakers to enact bipartisan gun reforms following the horrific shooting at a school in Uvalde — the actor's Texas hometown — that left 19 children and two teachers dead. The Oscar-winning actor did not take any questions following his remarks. As he exited the room, Newsmax correspondent JAMES ROSEN asked if he was "grandstanding." The remark seemed to upset other journalists in the room, including one reporter who audibly remarked: "what an asshole." A message from Facebook: Facebook is taking action to keep its platform safe We have over 40,000 people working on safety and security across our platforms. That's more than the size of the FBI. And it's just one example of the work we're doing to create safer connections for our communities. Learn more about our work ahead.   Agenda Setting THE DEVIL IN THE DETAILS: Biden is set to outline a "new and ambitious economic agenda" to Latin American partners on Wednesday at the Summit of the Americas but it will not include new trade agreements, STEVEN OVERLY reports.  BUT, WHAT IF THERE ARE NO DETAILS? A pretty brutal assessment was offered about the Summit of Americas by RICHARD HAASS this morning, amid those reports that a number of world leaders are not attending. "The Summit of the Americas looks to be a debacle, a diplomatic own goal," he tweeted. "The US has no trade proposal, no immigration policy, & no infrastructure package. Instead, the focus is on who will & will not be there. Unclear is why we pressed for it to happen." That assessment may catch the White House's attention as Haass, a frequent guest on MSNBC's Morning Joe, is one of the outside foreign policy voices Biden listens to, which some in the White House reportedly find frustrating. As JONATHAN MARTIN and ALEXANDER BURNS wrote in their recent book "This Will Not Pass": "Even more vexing to his aides was when Biden would then invite his cable-news critics, like the foreign policy scholar Richard Haass, to meet with him in the Oval Office." SHOT: Bloomberg's story: "Gasoline Tops $5 a Gallon in 13 States as US Nears $6 Summer." CHASER: Gina Raimondo told CNN today that the White House can't do much more to bring down gas prices given Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN's invasion of Ukraine. "Unfortunately, that is the brutal reality," Raimondo said, per CNN's BETSY KLEIN. "Since Putin moved troops to the border of Ukraine, gas prices have gone up over $1.40 a gallon, and the president is asking for Congress and others for potential ideas. But as you say, the reality is that there isn't very much more to be done." ANOTHER SHOT BUT WITH NO CHASER: Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN told the Senate today: "I do expect inflation to remain high, although I very much hope that it will be coming down."   A message from Facebook:   What We're Reading US sees heightened extremist threat heading into midterms (AP's Ben Fox) Adult Children of Work-Visa Recipients Forced to Return to Parents' Countries (WSJ's Michelle Hackman and Teresa Mettela) The limits of Biden's power to 'cut through' in the media (Columbia Journalism Review's Jon Allsop) Where's Joe The president received the daily briefing in the Oval Office. In the afternoon, he was joined by the secretary of Veterans Affairs for a bill-signing event dedicated to improvements to veterans' health care. Where's Kamala She's in Los Angeles and slated to speak at an event this evening promoting women's economic empowerment in Northern Central America. A message from Facebook: Over 40 million people use Facebook Privacy Checkup each month That's nearly 60 times the population of Washington, D.C. And that's just one example of the tools and technologies we're building to keep our communities safe. Facebook is taking action to keep its platform safe. Learn more about our work ahead.   Something Fun "I love trains!" That's the lead quote from U.S. Ambassador to Japan RAHM EMANUEL, who was featured in Buzzfeed Japan this week about his love of and frequent Twitter posts about riding trains in Japan. The piece is in Japanese but the embassy provided West Wing Playbook with a translation. Emanuel explains some of his train experience so far: "I was amazed at how fantastic the Hankyu seats were! I have never seen such gorgeous seats!" "I was also surprised by the apology given over the PA because the train was 10 seconds late. It is hard to imagine an apology in Chicago for a train being 10 seconds late! (smiles wryly) "The seats on Chicago trains are plastic with a thin piece of leather covering part of the seat." POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER GROVER CLEVELAND avoided serving in the Civil War while living in Buffalo, N.Y. According to the 2021 Civil War history "A Fire in the Wilderness," the 26-year-old Cleveland convinced a 32-year old George Beniski to serve as his substitute with a payment promise of $150 before and another $150 when/if he returned. Beniski survived the war but Cleveland ignored his requests for the $150 he had promised. Classy guy! A CALL OUT — Do you think you have a more difficult trivia question? Send us your best question on the presidents with a citation and we may feature it. Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein   INTRODUCING DIGITAL FUTURE DAILY - OUR TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER, RE-IMAGINED:  Technology is always evolving, and our new tech-obsessed newsletter is too! Digital Future Daily unlocks the most important stories determining the future of technology, from Washington to Silicon Valley and innovation power centers around the world. Readers get an in-depth look at how the next wave of tech will reshape civic and political life, including activism, fundraising, lobbying and legislating. Go inside the minds of the biggest tech players, policymakers and regulators to learn how their decisions affect our lives. Don't miss out, subscribe today.       Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Maxwell Tani @maxwelltani Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

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