Office politics

Jun 30, 2022 View in browser   By Alex Thompson and Max Tani 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  Former Atlanta Mayor KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS started her job at the White House this week, replacing CEDRIC RICHMOND as the head of the Office of Public Engagement. But Lance Bottoms didn't get Richmond's former West Wing office, surprising some White House staffers. Instead, she started work inside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB), which is on the White House complex but a short jaunt across the street. Senior adviser ANITA DUNN, who recently returned to the White House, moved into Richmond's office with her team instead. "Mayor Bottoms is in the process of moving to D.C. full time and will shortly move to an office in the West Wing," a White House official told West Wing Playbook. Dunn also temporarily worked in the EEOB when she started last month and used the same office Lance Bottoms is working from now, a person familiar with the matter said. Richmond, who left to join the Democratic National Committee, declined to comment through a committee spokesperson. Still, some White House officials felt that starting in the EEOB was insulting to Lance Bottoms, an early endorser of JOE BIDEN's campaign in 2019. She was initially reluctant to take the job, and originally turned it down, a person familiar with the matter said. The White House then considered former Transportation Secretary ANTHONY FOXX before Lance Bottoms ultimately accepted the job. Another person familiar with the dynamic said that Lance Bottoms was approached "a number of times since the transition and the White House consistently tried to get her to come because she's a remarkable talent. This has been a nearly two-year recruitment effort." Lance Bottoms is now one of the few Black senior White House officials. Biden's Cabinet is the most diverse in history, but his inner circle is largely white, which has caused some internal tensions. The game of office musical chairs and the gossip around it suggests the White House is subject to the same type of internal politics as most white-collar workplaces. With limited real estate in the West Wing, office size and proximity to the Oval Office indicate influence and are comparable to corner offices and executive suites. To that point, Dunn's move to Richmond's office signals her further ascension in Biden's orbit. In her initial temporary role during the first seven months of 2021, Dunn worked from the communications office known as "upper press" next to communications director KATE BEDINGFIELD and former press secretary JEN PSAKI (Bedingfield later moved into Dunn's old office). But in Richmond's former office, it's clear that her portfolio is much wider-ranging now. As the same White House source put it, Dunn's "current office is not designated for a certain role or team." TEXT US — Are you KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS, the White House's new director for the Office of Public Engagement? We want to hear from you and talk about office decor! 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 With the White House Historical Association Which president and first lady began the tradition of dining in the White House's Family Dining Room? (Answer at the bottom) The Oval SCOTUS WOES: It was another brutal court day for the Biden administration as the conservative justices curtailed the Environmental Protection Agency's authority to limit carbon dioxide from power plants. The ruling is yet another setback for the president's ambitious climate agenda, which initially aimed to cut carbon emissions in half within a decade but has been stymied by the failure to advance Biden's Build Back Better proposal. Our ALEX GUILLÉN has more details. The court did, however, rule in the administration's favor on another case. It rejected a challenge to the Biden administration's attempt to end a Trump-era immigration policy that forced some asylum seekers to wait in Mexico as their immigration case made its way in the U.S. WHAT GIVES?: Some White House reporters are fed up with lingering pandemic restrictions limiting press access at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. In a letter expected to be sent Thursday, dozens of reporters organized by freelance reporter BRIAN KAREM criticized press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE and the White House for continuing to restrict certain areas of the White House that were previously open to reporters when covering events before the pandemic. "The continued inability of the White House to be candid and transparent about the selection process for reporters attending his remarks undermines President Biden's credibility when he says he is a defender of the First Amendment," the letter said. In April, only 10 reporters signed a similar letter, Karem said. This time, nearly 70 did. We are all about transparency here at West Wing Playbook so, just FYI, Alex also signed the letter. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: KETANJI BROWN JACKSON was sworn in as a Supreme Court justice Thursday, making history as the first Black woman to serve on the high court, USA TODAY's JOHN FRITZE reports. Biden has now kept his campaign promise to put the first Black woman on the bench in American history. Her swearing in is a BFD, one could say. WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN'T WANT YOU TO READ: A bleak summary of Biden's approval rating among young and young-ish voters. CHARLOTTE ALTER , in a piece published in Time, noted Gallup polls show Biden's approval rating with voters under 30 has dropped 23 points since the first months of his presidency. It has dropped 17 points with voters between 30 and 50. And a recent NPR/Marist poll showed only 2 percent of Millennial and Gen Z voters said they strongly approve of Biden's presidency. ABOUT THAT TRIP TO THE MIDDLE EAST … The president Thursday said he will not directly ask Saudi Arabia's leaders to increase oil production during his visit to the Middle East next month, our MATT BERG reports. "All the Gulf states are meeting. I've indicated to them that I thought they should be increasing oil production generically, not to Saudi Arabia in particular," Biden said at a press conference in Madrid. THE BUREAUCRATS PETE TAKES HEAT: A growing number of Democratic lawmakers are publicly criticizing Transportation Secretary PETE BUTTIGIEG over the high number of flight cancellations and hiccups travelers already are facing ahead of this holiday weekend. The American Prospect reported that Rep. RO KHANA (D-Calif.) sent a letter to the secretary on Thursday saying the administration's "incremental response so far has been lacking the urgency, imagination, and boldness to meet the moment and needs of the American people." Buttigieg responded to criticism in a tweet on Thursday. "If you've been waiting and saving for a vacation, you're counting on getting the service you paid for. We are engaging the airlines every day on the steps they must take to deliver this summer travel season."   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.     Agenda Setting SETTLE IN: Asked by the NYT's JIM TANKERSLEY how long people should expect to pay a premium on gas prices because of Russia's war on Ukraine, Biden said: "As long as it takes so Russia cannot, in fact, defeat Ukraine and move beyond Ukraine. This is a critical, critical position for the world." PRESIDENT MANCHIN: The president said Thursday he would support making an exception to the Senate filibuster so the chamber could pass a bill that would codify Roe v. Wade, following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn it last week, our KELLY HOPPER reports. The comments come after a wave of criticism from progressive Democrats this week urging Biden to do more for abortion rights. But Biden's proposal was quickly smacked down as spokespeople for Sens. JOE MANCHIN and KYRSTEN SINEMA told reporters they still oppose reforming the filibuster. Reuters' TREVOR HUNNICUT, NANDITA BOSE , and ANDREA SHALAL have more. What We're Reading Biden plans to deliver major Jan. 6 speech when House probe ends (NBC News' Mike Memoli and Carol E. Lee) Biden Backs F-16 Sales to Turkey Amid Deal to Expand NATO (WSJ's Jared Malsin and Vivian Salama) Supreme Court clears Biden to end Trump's 'Remain in Mexico' policy (WaPo's Robert Barnes) Former Kamala Harris aide Meaghan Lynch will lobby for Airbnb (POLITICO's Caitlin Oprysko) POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER President JOHN QUINCY ADAMS and first lady LOUISA CATHERINE ADAMS began taking their meals in the Family Dining Room in 1825. The room because known as the "Old Family Dining Room," as the Kennedys began having meals in their private residence in 1961, leaving the other room for more official meals. A CALL OUT — 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.   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.