Bringing Brittney Griner home, Part 2

Jul 06, 2022 View in browser   By Max Tani and Alex Thompson Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from Allie Bice.  Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Alex | Email Max With help from Nahal Toosi and Alex Ward The White House announced today that JOE BIDEN spoke on the phone with BRITTNEY GRINER's wife about the WNBA star's detention in Russia and was sending her a letter as well. It was the first public recognition of Biden's direct contact with the Griner family. But behind the scenes, U.S. officials and advocates for Griner have been working on the case more aggressively than many want to publicly let on, sources told West Wing Playbook and NatSec Daily. (Read our first part on this here.) MICKEY BERGMAN, the vice president and executive director at the Richardson Center, said there were "many moving parts," and people like himself who are privy to sensitive information about the case needed to be "very careful" not to compromise ongoing efforts. Bergman, who works alongside former New Mexico Gov. BILL RICHARDSON to help secure the release of Americans detained abroad, is part of a formal and informal network aiming to bring back Griner and PAUL WHELAN, the security contractor accused by Russia of espionage. Multiple people involved said that the effort is largely being spearheaded by Griner's professional basketball representative LINDSAY KAGAWA COLAS. The powerful sports agent represents some of the biggest WNBA stars, including MAYA MOORE , whose husband Colas helped free from prison several years ago. Colas has been working behind the scenes with CHERELLE GRINER, Brittney's wife, who has become the public face of the campaign to secure her release. Bergman told West Wing Playbook that Griner's family quietly got in touch with the Richardson Center in late February when the WNBA star was first detained over what Russia says was possession of hash cartridges. Richardson and Bergman had just returned from Moscow, where they met with Russian government officials to advocate for the release of Whelan and former Marine TREVOR REED. Bergman suggested Cherelle Griner get in touch with the office of ROGER CARSTENS, special envoy for hostage affairs. But they did not start working with the family until April, when Griner's team began a more public effort to get her released. Bergman said he and Richardson are also in communication with the White House about the issue. But there is tension between the two units. The Biden administration has looked at Richardson with some annoyance, viewing the freelance diplomatic efforts as a bit of a publicity stunt and an occasional complication with official efforts. Still, the Richardson team has been credited with playing a role in the release of Reed earlier this year. And the administration publicly thanked Richardson for helping secure the release of DANNY FENSTER from Myanmar. "NSC leadership are in touch with Bill Richardson," said a spokesperson for the National Security Council. "We appreciate his commitment to getting Americans home and are pursuing this through government channels." Despite the official efforts, U.S. officials and people familiar with Griner's situation believe she will likely remain a prisoner of Russia for at least a few more months as Russia seeks maximum concessions from the U.S. The key for Russia is VIKTOR BOUT , a Russian citizen convicted in 2011 of offering to sell weapons to U.S. federal agents posing as representatives of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Russia has been intent on securing his release for years, and has previously sought him in exchange for other detainees. Whereas those efforts were unsuccessful, a former U.S. official familiar with the issue said the Russians now have more leverage. "All the pressure is going on Biden while the pressure should be on Putin," the official said. All of this has made the family and allies of Bout "cautiously optimistic" about the situation. Bout's lawyer, STEVE ZISSOU, said he has been encouraged by increasing calls he's getting from reporters as Griner's case has gotten more attention, and has been pleased by some of the high-profile advocates calling for a prisoner swap. The attorney has reached out to a number of people in Griner's camp, including her agent, but he said he has not received responses. He does not hear from U.S. government officials involved in securing the release of detainees, noting the State Department has advised families of Americans detained in Russia against having contact with him. "When you represent someone called the 'Merchant of Death,' people don't want to return your phone calls," he said. Zissou said through regular communication with Russian officials, he's convinced that commuting Bout's sentence would result in Griner's release. "The Russians have made it clear to me, the ambassador to the U.S. has made it clear to me that the Russians are not resting until Viktor is home as well," he said. TEXT US — Are you ROGER CARSTENS, special envoy for hostage affairs? We still 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.   STAY UP TO DATE WITH 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 from Allie. Which president reportedly owned 80 pairs of pants? (Answer at the bottom) The Oval THE END OF THE BEDINGFIELD ERA: White House communications director KATE BEDINGFIELD is leaving the White House in the coming weeks, the White House confirmed Wednesday. She first worked for Biden in 2015 and helped him navigate the difficult 2020 campaign as communications director and deputy campaign manager. People familiar with the announcement tell us that Bedingfield shared the news to her staff over Zoom at 2 p.m. Some Democrats noted with frustration that the communications director's exit ended up cutting into Biden's event in Ohio to highlight the American Rescue Plan. WHO'S NEXT?: White House officials are already speculating about Bedingfield's replacement. The two names that come up the most often: LIZ ALLEN at the State Department and ELIZABETH ALEXANDER in the first lady's office. Others think the White House will look outside the administration and some wondered if the White House would promote Bedingfield's deputy, KATE BERNER. REPORTERS BEWARE: Alex got wind of Bedingfield's departure early and called the White House at 2:53 p.m. to ask for comment about it. A White House spokesperson said they'd check and asked for time to talk to some of the people involved. We agreed. Big mistake. At 3:11 p.m., The Wall Street Journal published a story including a prepared statement from Chief RON KLAIN. This isn't the first time the White House has done something like this to reporters. As the Washington Post's TYLER PAGER tweeted: "This sounds so familiar!" FIRST IN WEST WING PLAYBOOK: Not everyone was pleased with the White House's statement today about its call with Griner's wife. CNN's NATASHA BERTRAND reported on Wednesday that Whelan's sister, ELIZABETH WHELAN, said the family was furious that Biden called Cherelle Griner, but did not call the Whelan family, despite the fact that Whelan has been held for years and the family has repeatedly sought a meeting with the president. In a statement first shared with West Wing Playbook, JONATHAN FRANKS , spokesperson for the Bring Our Families Home Campaign, said the White House was "using engagement with our President as a tool to put out PR fires they themselves set." "In its haste to manage the fallout from yesterday's briefing by calling Cherelle Griner, the White House started a new PR fire by not calling Paul Whelan's family, a fire that will hopefully be put out by a Whelan call," he said. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This story by AP's ZEKE MILLER about how the U.S. is helping baby formula producers overseas to address the domestic shortage. On Wednesday, the FDA announced "a way for producers temporarily selling in the U.S. to meet existing regulatory requirements so they can stay on the market, providing consumers with more choices and making supplies more resilient against current and future shortages." White House Chief of Staff RON KLAIN tweeted out the story. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: These emails from the White House's KATE MARSHALL to the office of Kentucky Gov. ANDY BESHEAR, a Democrat, about Biden's plans to nominate an anti-abortion Republican as a federal judge. The Courier Journal obtained the emails through a documents request. POLITICO published a draft Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade on May 3 and Marshall's emails show the White House still planned to nominate attorney CHAD MEREDITH to a lifetime judicial appointment on June 24, the day the high court formally overturned Roe. The timing caught the White House by surprise, according to the Journal. In a June 29 email, Marshall claimed her original correspondence was "pre-decisional" and "privileged." Beshear said going through with Meredith's nomination now would be "indefensible." Through a White House spokesperson, Marshall declined to comment. ALL-TIME LOW: FiveThirtyEight's polling average for Biden's approval hit a new low at 38.9 percent. That may also explain why the Democratic nominee for the Senate in Ohio, TIM RYAN, appeared to snub Biden during his visit Wednesday to the Buckeye state. TEAMING UP WITH IRON MAN: Energy Secretary JENNIFER GRANHOLM and actor ROBERT DOWNEY JR. are recruiting people to work for the Department of Energy. In a new animated promotional video, a cartoon version of Downey is a department intern talking to Granholm about the kind of employees they're looking to hire. Watch it for yourself here. MEANWHILE, IN CLEVELAND: Tweet by Matt Viser | Twitter Agenda Setting BEGGING FOR MORE: Many Democrats want a more aggressive response on gun control from the White House following the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Ill., our CHRISTOPHER CADELAGO and JONATHAN LEMIRE report. STUDENT LOAN LATEST: The Education Department on Wednesday released part of its plan to make it easier for millions of federal student loan borrowers to have their debts forgiven through existing relief programs, our MICHAEL STRATFORD reports for Pro. The department unveiled new regulations to make it easier for those "targeted" borrowers to obtain loan forgiveness, among other things. THE BUREAUCRATS PREPARING FOR THE PRESIDENT: BRETT McGURK, the National Security Council's coordinator for the Middle East, visited Saudi Arabia today in preparation for the president's visit later this month, Axios' BARAK RAVID reports. Filling the Ranks NOMINATIONS ON NOMINATIONS: The president announced a handful of nominations Wednesday, including PHIL WASHINGTON as administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, HENRY JARDINE as the U.S. ambassador to Mauritius and Seychelles and JEFFREY GURAL as the chair of the Public Buildings Reform Board. FIRST IN WEST WING PLAYBOOK: VANESSA LION has been named the new executive secretary of the Domestic Policy Council, where she starts on Monday, two people familiar with the matter tell DANIEL LIPPMAN . She most recently has served as deputy policy director for the first lady. Before the White House, she was briefings director for the Biden campaign.   DON'T MISS DIGITAL FUTURE DAILY - OUR TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER, RE-IMAGINED:  Technology is always evolving, and our 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.     What We're Reading Americans Ask Biden to Help Free Relatives Held in Saudi Arabia, Egypt (WSJ's Stephen Kalin) Buttigieg Says Airlines Are Improving, but Need to Do More to Reduce Cancellations, Delays (WSJ's Alison Sider) Getting Brittney Griner Out of Russia Means Overcoming Tensions Within the U.S. Government (WSJ's Louise Radnofsky, Aruna Viswanatha and Gordon Lubold) Disinformation Has Become Another Untouchable Problem in Washington (NYT's Steven Lee Myers and Eileen Sullivan) BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND: A number of you reached out to tell us that you miss the "Oppo Book" section so we brought it back! Have someone you think we should feature? Send it to westwingtips@politico.com. The Oppo Book When ROGER CARSTENS, Biden's special envoy for hostage affairs, was finishing up his master's degree at St. John's College in 2016, he was asked the age-old question for upcoming graduates: What's next? "You know, I don't know. I should," he confessed in an interview with the school . "I've spent at least the last seven or eight years advising senior leaders on strategy. ... And strategy's all about ends, ways, and means. I want to go there. I currently am here. And what tools do I have to get there? The big thing is determining that end state." But he also admitted: "As my wife will point out, lovingly, even though I can advise other people on it, I'm not really sure what my desired end state is." Well, we hope you've reached your desired end state in your current role, Roger! POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER CHESTER ARTHUR, according to History.com, was known for his fashion sense along with a wide-ranging closet — one with more than 80 pairs of pants. His style earned him nicknames like "Elegant Arthur" and "Gentleman Boss." A CALL OUT — Do you think you have a more difficult trivia question? Send us your best on the presidents with a citation and we may feature it. Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.   Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Maxwell Tani @maxwelltani Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

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