Jen Psaki is finally circling back

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Sep 12, 2022 View in browser   By Max Tani and Allie Bice 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  JEN PSAKI, welcome to one of the world's most miserable, self-loathing professions. After taking the summer to relax, Monday marked the former White House press secretary's first official work day as a member of the cable news elite that some of her former colleagues in the Biden White House occasionally love to hate. There were some over-the-top initial reports about Psaki's potential plans for the gig. With MSNBC in a post-Trump ratings downturn, one piece speculated that she would help lessen the blow of RACHEL MADDOW's departure from MSNBC's 9 p.m. spot, the highest rated hour of programming on the network for years. The idea, then and now, was to harness some of the goodwill she engendered among liberal viewers with her "Psaki-bombs" during White House press conferences. Ultimately, the network opted for a safer (and saner) offering than immediately throwing her into the primetime hosting hot seat. Instead, it promised Psaki significant airtime during major political events, and a hosting job for an MSNBC streaming show set to debut in the first quarter of 2023. But the streaming program, which has yet to be named or have any staff, is still a long way off, and Psaki's rollout plan will be drawn out. She's set to make her debut as a full-time contributor on MSNBC this week, and is likely to join Maddow's actual replacement, ALEX WAGNER, as soon as tomorrow. Psaki is also expected to be slowly integrated into the network's D.C.-based programs, including appearances on NBC's Meet The Press, in the coming months. The former press secretary will have an office in the network's Washington, D.C. bureau, joining other ex- Biden White House officials who are nabbing real estate there, including former KAMALA HARRIS press secretary SYMONE SANDERS. But Psaki will also head to New York's 30 Rock this week for meetings and appearances. In a conversation last week with KARA SWISHER, Psaki said that she'd spend the next several months focused on election coverage and decoding the Biden White House for viewers, and planned to "bring that passion for explaining things, debunking things, calling out BS when you see it." But Psaki also starts at a time when Biden often isn't topic A on cable news. Indeed, MSNBC, like other networks, has been consumed with DONALD TRUMP's recent legal troubles. And it could present an editorially tricky situation for the network brass: handing over air time to Biden's former top spokesperson to wax about the troubles his main (and likely future) political opponent is enduring. For now, however, one of Psaki's primary challenges will be to translate some of her political popularity among liberals into steady viewership, and further bolster the network's fledgling streaming service. Sanders, who has both streaming and cable programs, has nabbed some high profile interviews with former Biden world colleagues, including one of MSNBC's only interviews with JILL BIDEN since she became first lady. But as West Wing Playbook previously noted, the high profile guests have not seriously boosted the ratings. Psaki may also have to navigate some lingering awkwardness with her colleagues on the news side. CNN reported earlier this year that NBC News reporters, some of whom occasionally attempted to distance themselves from the left-leaning cable news counterpart, were wary of the decision to hire her, a decision which leaked out several months before she left the White House. But the former Biden press secretary is publicly embracing her new job. In a tweet on Monday afternoon, she praised her new MSNBC coworkers, sharing a picture of her new NBCU employee badge. MESSAGE US — Are you interviewing for a job as a producer on Psaki's streaming show? We want to hear from you and we may publish your response tomorrow. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com. A message from Facebook: Facebook is taking action to keep its platform safe We spent $16 billion to enhance safety and security across our platforms over the past 6 years. That's enough to build 7 pro stadiums. And it's just one example of the work we're doing to create safer connections. Learn more about our work ahead.   POTUS PUZZLER With the White House Historical Association  Which first lady famously loved and popularized the color pink? (Answer at the bottom.) The Oval ATTEMPTING TO AVERT ANOTHER CRISIS: President JOE BIDEN made calls Monday to unions and freight rail companies, hoping to avert a national railroad strike that could start as early as Friday, an administration official confirmed to our CHRIS CADELAGO. The conflict puts the White House in a particularly tough spot as it involves two matters close to the president — union workers rights and transportation infrastructure, WaPo's TYLER PAGER, LAUREN KAORI GURLEY and JEFF STEIN report. Labor Secretary MARTY WALSH was a part of meetings about the matter last week, and postponed a trip to Ireland this week to work on the issue. Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG has also been involved. A strike, and the supply chain delays it would create, could cause yet another blow to the economy and hurt Democrats' chances in the midterm elections. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: Anything about gas prices dropping. Chief of Staff RON KLAIN and deputy press secretary ANDREW BATES retweeted a @GasBuddyGuy's post that said : "One in 10 US gas stations now selling at $2.97/gal or less." The pair have also been retweeting and tweeting other information about the lower prices. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: This piece by Bloomberg's SRI TAYLOR about the state of monkeypox cases on college campuses: "With about 20,000 cases, the US outbreak of monkeypox is the world's biggest, spreading through intimate contact mainly among men who have sex with men. While global rates have shown signs of cooling, dropping 21% in the week ended Aug. 21, concerns about the US outbreak are cresting as students return to school, ready to meet and form new relationships." ICYMI: POLITICO Magazine published an excerpt from the new book by New York Magazine's GABRIEL DEBENEDETTI. "The Long Alliance: The Imperfect Union of Joe Biden and Barack Obama" takes a deep dive into the friendship between the two leaders. The West Wing Playbook team also spoke to Debenedetti last week, which you can read here.   HAPPENING 9/29 - POLITICO'S AI & TECH SUMMIT : Technology is constantly evolving and so are the politics and policies shaping and regulating it. Join POLITICO for the 2022 AI & Tech summit to get an insider look at the pressing policy and political issues shaping tech, and how Washington interacts with the tech sector. The summit will bring together lawmakers, federal regulators, tech executives, tech policy experts and consumer advocates to dig into the intersection of tech, politics, regulation and innovation, and identify opportunities, risks and challenges ahead. REGISTER FOR THE SUMMIT HERE.     THE BUREAUCRATS PERSONNEL MATTERS: LILIÁN SÁNCHEZ has been promoted to senior associate director of the office of public engagement and intergovernmental affairs in the VP's office, DANIEL LIPPMAN has learned. NABEELA N. BARBARI has left the White House, where she was director for resilience and response at the National Security Council, Lippman has also learned. Barbari has joined national security consulting firm OTHSolutions as an executive vice president. Filling the Ranks CANCER MOONSHOT: The president announced the appointment of RENEE WEGRZYN to serve as the first director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health. The agency was established earlier this year as a result of Biden's cancer moonshot initiative to focus on biomedical and health research. Wegrzyn most recently served as the vice president of business development at Ginkgo Bioworks.   A message from Facebook:   Agenda Setting SWITCHING IT UP: Federal health officials are switching up their strategy to make the monkeypox vaccine more accessible nationwide, our MEGAN MESSERLY and KRISTA MAHR report for Pros. The administration previously made it a priority to have the vaccine available at large venues and events, but now officials are going hyperlocal, starting another pilot program to send vaccines to smaller venues and clinics. "In our view, this is where the hard work starts," White House National Monkeypox Response Deputy Coordinator DEMETRE DASKALAKIS said. "Increased supply means more places and new strategies can be used to keep getting first and second doses in arms, and that's exactly what we're doing to ensure we're reaching all of the highest-risk individuals."   Join POLITICO Live on Tuesday, Sept. 20 to dive into how federal regulators, members of Congress, and the White House are seeking to write the rules on digital currencies, including stablecoins. The panel will also cover the tax implications of crypto, which could be an impediment to broader adoption and the geopolitical factors that the U.S. is considering as it begins to draw regulatory frameworks for crypto. REGISTER HERE.     What We're Reading The Sordid Saga of Hunter Biden's Laptop (New York Magazine's Andrew Rice and Olivia Nuzzi) Democrats' Midterm Dilemma: How to Back Biden, Yet Shun Him, Too (NYT's Lisa Lerer and Katie Glueck) Biden has achieved historic diversity. A new study says more can be done. (WaPo's Cleve R. Wootson Jr. and David Nakamura) Biden's midterm self-edit: Less talk about inflation woes (AP's Josh Boak) The Oppo Book JEN EASTERLY, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, met her husband, JASON, on a dating website. Easterly said he stood out from other potential matches because of his initial email to her, according to the couple's 2004 New York Times wedding announcement . To start things off, Jason pointed out a spelling error she had on her profile. And Easterly confessed the message stood out because it showed "his attention to detail and sense of humor." A fairytale beginning if there ever was. Jason later proposed to Easterly on the White House grounds. POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER Known for her love of the color pink, First Lady MAMIE EISENHOWER inspired the name "Mamie pink" for the specific shade of her inaugural gown, designed by NETTIE ROSENSTEIN. A CALL OUT — Do 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. 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.     Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Maxwell Tani @maxwelltani Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

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