Pete's campaign in waiting

The power players, latest policy developments, and intriguing whispers percolating inside the West Wing.

Dec 14, 2022 View in browser   By Hailey Fuchs, Alex Thompson, Adam Wren and Eli Stokols Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from Lauren Egan and Allie Bice.   Send tips | Subscribe here| Email Alex | Email Eli Two years into the Biden administration, infrastructure for another potential PETE BUTTIGIEG bid for office lies in waiting. Allies of the transportation secretary have built out a dark money group, Win the Era Action Fund, and a political action committee, Win the Era, which has endorsed a small cohort of candidates in the 2022 midterms and allowed Buttigieg to maintain a political footprint as he remains in the Biden Cabinet. The new filings, first obtained by West Wing Playbook, paint a picture of a politician publicly downplaying future ambitions — while quietly having options open. Win the Era Action Fund spent relatively little in 2021 and has mostly operated quietly as Buttigieg's allies do not want to undermine the president. But the group's financial documents give insight into thinking by those allies. The filings show that the group has recruited Buttigieg confidants and a major Democratic donor for leadership roles, including SWATI MYLAVARAPU, his 2020 campaign national investment chair, and NICOLE FOX, a New York investor who was matron of honor at CHELSEA CLINTON's wedding and a Buttigieg bundler. Fox was also co-executive producer of the documentary, "Mayor Pete." She has given tens of thousands to Democratic candidates or groups, according to data with the Federal Election Commission. Two others who served on the group's leadership in 2021 — MICHAEL HALLE and MARCUS SWITZER — are now senior advisors to Buttigieg at the Department of Transportation. Both left Win the Era Action Fund in 2022 and 2021 respectively. MAX NUNES, a former campaign official now running Win the Era, did not offer details when asked numerous questions, including those about the group's endorsement plans, the future of Win the Era leading up to 2024, and Fox and Mylavarupu's roles. Political action committees and dark money groups can serve as outlets for aspiring politicians to raise funds, bring on staff, and do the grunt work that usually precedes a future campaign. They can also keep a former candidate in the game as he or she temporarily leaves the world of electoral politics although a person close to the PAC noted Buttigieg would have to buy Win the Era's list back if he wanted to use it for a future campaign. The Win the Era PAC is effectively what remained of Buttigieg's 2020 campaign, when his principal campaign committee was converted to the political action committee. It allowed to group to keep leftover funds along with campaign infrastructure. In 2021, Win the Era Action Fund, the dark money group, transferred nearly $185,000 to its PAC, which had made up the bulk of the funds raised since Buttigieg became secretary of the Transportation Department. As of late November 2022, the PAC has about $1.6 million on hand. The dark money group, registered as a 501(c)(4), was relatively dormant during 2021, after Buttigieg joined the Biden Cabinet. It reported raising $61,654 (which includes a $50,000 contribution received in 2020 but not cashed until 2021) and spending just over $177,000. Despite this behind-the-scenes work — and Buttigieg's new home in Michigan being more hospitable politically than his native Indiana — people close to Buttigieg say he's in no hurry to run for office again, especially with two small children at home. The PAC's public political activities this past year have been sporadic. It announced in June it would be a player in the 2022 cycle and started off with six endorsements of congressional, gubernatorial, and statehouse Democrats. But then the PAC largely laid low throughout the year before publicly announcing support for 29 candidates in the final two weeks before the November election. Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender state senator in U.S. history, was one of the 29 but ran unopposed, as did two others. The final flurry of endorsements did not include any federal or gubernatorial candidates, and instead focused on lower-profile races like the Texas Railroad Commission (critical to the state's gas and oil industry and therefore the country's) and the board of commissioners in Johnson County, Kan. But the politicking is a way to maintain Buttigieg's campaign email list — one of the most valuable digital assets for a candidate. An average Win the Era fundraising email sent before the midterms could net mid-five figures, a person familiar with the group's operation said, which the candidates split. "We try not to treat the email list as an ATM machine," a person familiar with the group's operations said. But for some candidates that ended up being a paltry sum. One statewide candidate among the last batch of endorsements said Win The Era's fundraising email only brought in about $500. MESSAGE US — Are you MICHAEL HALLE?  We want to hear from you! And we'll keep you anonymous. Email us at westwingtips@politico.com.   JOIN THURSDAY FOR A CONVERSATION ON FAMILY CARE IN AMERICA : Family caregivers are among our most overlooked and under-supported groups in the United States. The Biden Administration's new national strategy for supporting family caregivers outlines nearly 350 actions the federal government is committed to taking. Who will deliver this strategy? How should different stakeholders divide the work? Join POLITICO on Dec. 15 to explore how federal action can improve the lives of those giving and receiving family care across America. REGISTER HERE.     POTUS PUZZLER This one is from Allie. Which president's face was on the $500 dollar bill before it was discontinued? (Answer at the bottom.) The Oval UNIONIZATION HAPPENS IN DARKNESS: Some of the biggest names in the Washington Post newsroom joined the newspaper guild Wednesday afternoon. It came amid frustration over publisher FRED RYAN 's announcement at a paper-wide town hall that more layoffs are coming (he's already killed off the Sunday magazine) and his refusal to take questions from staffers. According to people familiar with the matter, White House reporter TYLER PAGER, senior national political reporter and former White House bureau chief ASHLEY PARKER and investigative political reporter JOSH DAWSEY — a standout during his four years on the White House beat — joined the guild shortly after the meeting wrapped up. So did JOHN HUDSON, BOB BARNES, JOHN WOODROW COX and JOSE DEL REAL, the people said. IT'S BEEN 10 YEARS: The president marked the 10-year anniversary of the Sandy Hook shooting Wednesday, saying in a statement that "we should have societal guilt for taking too long to deal with this problem. We have a moral obligation to pass and enforce laws that can prevent these things from happening again." Our MYAH WARD has more about the anniversary and how the issue has long stuck with the president. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This take from LARRY SUMMERS — yes, Larry Summers — on the latest economic numbers. In a thread he tweeted Wednesday morning, Summers said "the economy appears stronger and inflation and inflation expectations a bit lower than I would have guessed a few months ago." White House chief of staff RON KLAIN retweeted the sentiment. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: This new CNN poll that found 59 percent of Democrats don't want JOE BIDEN to be the nominee in 2024. More worrying for Biden is that since January, there was a ten point jump among voters of color who want a different nominee (43 percent to 53) compared to a six point jump among white voters (57 percent to 63). Biden especially struggles with voters under 35 with 74 percent saying they want someone other than Biden compared to just 43 percent of voters over 65. VEEP FORTUNE TELLING: WaPo's CLEVE R. WOOTSON JR. dives into what the second half of Vice President KAMALA HARRIS's tenure will look like now that she won't be called in to break ties for 50-50 Senate votes — at least with as much regularity. Her team is hoping the incoming 51-49 Senate split will allow her more time to establish her brand, as some believe she has her sights set on the presidency. NO LAMB CHOP LEFT BEHIND: At the end of last night's White House holiday party for the press, the first lady's press secretary VANESSA VALDIVIA very thoughtfully asked us if we'd gotten enough to eat. The answer was yes. Now, we stand by our report last week about lawmakers complaints that they were woefully under served at the Congressional Ball. But, honestly, it's hard to square with the two sumptuous buffet tables laid out for the press corps (a group of people who notoriously love nothing more than free buffets). We certainly did our part to ensure there were no lamb chops left behind, and we were hardly alone (proud of you, AURÉLIA END). And yet there were dozens still sitting on silver platters as guests were ushered out. Here's hoping COMMANDER got his share of the leftovers. CH-CH-CH-CH-CHANGES: The Biden administration plans try out changes to the U.S. citizenship test next year in an effort to make the test more accessible, CNN's PRISCILLA ALVAREZ reports: "The trial will include changes to the English-speaking component of the test, which is not standardized, and the civics component following a review by USCIS subject matter experts, according to the agency. The two other parts of the exam – reading and writing – are already standardized and will remain unchanged." Agenda Setting AT-HOME TESTS: The Biden team plans to reopen a partnership with the U.S. Postal Service to mail free at-home Covid-19 tests to households that request them, ADAM CANCRYN and DAVID LIM report. DEMOCRACY, IT'S HAVING A MOMENT: First, the election deniers lost. Then, they conceded (except for KARI LAKE in Arizona). And now new data shows that public confidence in American democracy increased after the midterms and beliefs in voter and election fraud decreased, with the largest changes coming from Republicans. Those are the main takeaways from fascinating new parallel surveys published Wednesday by BRIGHT LINE WATCH. The political scientists behind the report, which surveyed both the public and democracy experts, also found that "a substantial fraction of Americans say protecting democracy is the most important consideration in which candidate they will support for president in 2024." STOCK MARKET SHAKEUP: The Securities and Exchange Commission unveiled its blueprint to overhaul the stock market Wednesday. Some of the proposed rules "redefine how investors' orders to buy and sell stocks in the U.S. are handled, priced and executed by a long line of financial intermediaries — from the New York Stock Exchange to online brokers like Robinhood to GOP megadonor KEN GRIFFIN's Citadel Securities," our DECLAN HARTY reports for Pro subscribers. FOLLOWING THE MONEY: U.S. officials are struggling to track Ukraine aid — using tactics like blockchain technology and asking Ukrainian soldiers to keep tabs, our NAHAL TOOSI and BRYAN BENDER report. The administration also plans to delegate funding oversight to a firm by February. LONG COVID WATCH: An analysis by the CDC Wednesday found that more than 3,500 Americans have died due, at least in part, to long Covid, underscoring the severity of the virus and its long term effects, our KRISTA MAHR reports. BIG SOCCER FANS: Biden tuned into the World Cup game between Morocco and France Wednesday afternoon, with the Prime Minister of Morocco, AZIZ AKHANNOUCH, and other leaders who attended the U.S.-Africa Summit. Tweet by President Joe Biden | Twitter THE BUREAUCRATS WILL THE ROAD RISE UP TO MEET HIM? A report from the other side of the pond (Irish Central) suggests that former Rep. JOE KENNEDY III (D-Mass.) is the frontrunner to be Biden's pick for U.S. envoy to Northern Ireland. Though hardly a famous name (we jest), Kennedy would bring some historical chops to the post. His great-uncle, the late Sen. TED KENNEDY, helped secure the Good Friday Agreement. What We're Reading Legal immigration to the U.S. rebounds from pandemic drop in visa approvals (CBS News' Camilo Montoya-Galvez) Biden pushes US as a crucial ally to African leaders (AP's Aamer Madhani and Colleen Long) Russia's 'Sham' Charge of Spying Makes Whelan's Case the Hardest (NYT's Michael Crowley)   POLITICO AT CES 2023 : We are bringing a special edition of our Digital Future Daily newsletter to Las Vegas to cover CES 2023. The newsletter will take you inside the largest and most influential technology event on the planet, featuring every major and emerging industry in the technology ecosystem gathered in one place. The newsletter runs from Jan. 5-7 and will focus on the public policy related aspects of the event. Sign up today to receive exclusive coverage of CES 2023.     The Oppo Book White House adviser KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS is a pretty stealth photobomber. In a video recording of the president calling to congratulate Democratic Sen. RAPHAEL WARNOCK on his win the Georgia runoff election, Bottoms is seen opening the door in the background, putting her hands up and cheering joyfully (but quietly.) She slowly walks out of the frame, and later took to Twitter to explain: "I was SOOO excited about the election, I accidentally photo bombed @POTUS' call to @ReverendWarnock." Happens to the best of us! POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER President WILLIAM MCKINLEY's face was featured on the $500 bill. But in 1969, "the Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve System announced that currency notes in denominations of $500, $1,000, $5,000, and $10,000 would be discontinued immediately due to lack of use," according to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. "Although they were issued until 1969, they were last printed in 1945." A CALL OUT — Do you have a $500 will McKinley's face on it? 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.   Follow us on Twitter Alex Thompson @AlexThomp Eli Stokols @EliStokols Lauren Egan @Lauren_V_Egan Allie Bice @alliebice   Follow us

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