The Playbook Podcast

Backlash against Georgia's sweeping new voting restrictions, news from our sit-down with Ron Klain and the latest on Gaetz-gate. Plus: Playbook dishes on former House Speaker John Boehner's scorching new book.

Biden will formally pull back the curtain today on his multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure plan — his first swing at a victory both Trump and Obama failed to deliver.

Lawmakers are fighting tooth and nail to get their priorities included in the massive infrastructure bill Biden's set to unveil tomorrow. That's put one guy at the center of it all: Ron Klain.

If there were a one-sentence takeaway from President Joe Biden's first press conference, this may be it. Plus: What the Senate has teed up after recess.

Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Mazie Hirono threatened to block Biden picks who aren't part of a minority group. They backed off that threat yesterday — but it reveals a lot about the dynamics in Washington right now.

Biden's next big legislative push is starting to take shape. Here's what you need to know about his infrastructure plans.

Biden's semantic battle du jour: whether to use the word “crisis” to describe the thousands of migrants streaming to the southern border during a still-raging pandemic. Plus: The president and VP meet with Asian American leaders in Georgia today.

We have an exclusive look at what Biden's chief of staff told powerful progressives about where the administration’s headed — on immigration, taxing the rich, the minimum wage and more.

Republicans will argue in a letter today not only that Biden’s move was unsanctioned by Congress — but that it exacerbated the border crisis.

Here’s how the party’s progressive base is framing it for Senate Dems: Get rid of the filibuster, or allow Republicans to disenfranchise millions of Black and brown voters who put President Joe Biden in office.

It might’ve been the most poignant moment yet of Biden’s seven-odd weeks in office. Plus: the latest on the spending bill that finally became law yesterday, and a scoop on the Trump-GOP fundraising drama.

It didn’t happen with Covid relief. But President Joe Biden says he really, really wants to go bipartisan on infrastructure. Here's why that's even less likely than GOP stimulus cooperation.

If you’re still confused about where Joe Manchin is on the filibuster, you’re far from alone. Plus: The House is teeing up the massive Covid relief bill for final approval today.

A new Biden nomination could seriously shake up Washington’s approach to Big Tech. Plus: This could be the big day for Covid relief.

After a dramatic weekend — and no, we're not talking about the Harry and Meghan special — there's one last hurdle for the Covid aid package: a final vote in the House.

The Senate is set to kick off a vote-a-rama on amendments to the Covid-19 package today — and Republicans are vowing to make it as painful as possible for their Democratic counterparts.

Neera Tanden has left the building. So who's next for Biden's budget chief? Plus: What to watch for on Covid relief in the Senate today.

Democrats are looking at a serious hangover once they celebrate getting Covid relief signed into law — courtesy of the Senate filibuster. Here’s Playbook’s handicapping of a few Democratic proposals coming down the pike.

After weeks in relative isolation at Mar-a-Lago without Twitter, Trump emerged at CPAC on Sunday ready to let loose. Here’s what we learned from his first big post-presidency speech.

The Senate referee has officially made her call: It’s a no-go on raising the minimum wage through Biden’s Covid bill. After this crushing blow for progressives, we walk through four possible paths forward.

All eyes are on Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who is expected to rule as soon as today on whether a $15 minimum wage can be tucked into Biden's Covid relief bill. Plus: Two other big stories we're watching today.

Today, Congress finally gets its first chance for answers about the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Plus: Playbook has the scoop on an anti-Big Tech crusader poised to join the Biden administration.

The drama of Ted Cruz returning from sunny Mexico — chastened and apologetic for fleeing Texas while 3 million of his constituents remained without power — was a kind of throwback to an era when politicians could be embarrassed.

Today is the big reveal for President Biden’s immigration bill. Here's what's inside — and why the final version might look a lot different from what's unveiled this morning.

Here are our superlatives from Joe Biden’s first town hall since he took office — from harshest toss under the bus to biggest progressive slap-downs.

Donald Trump may have been acquitted for a second time over the weekend. But despite that gripping impeachment-trial presentation laying out the ex-president’s role in the Capitol rampage, the GOP remains the undisputed party of Trump.

Reliving Jan. 6 was always going to be hard for senators. Emotions ran high in the chamber during the impeachment managers’ presentation Wednesday, as senators saw just how close the mob, egged on by then-President Donald Trump, came to finding them. No senator appears to be struggling with the trial as much as Louisiana Republican Bill Cassidy, who switched his vote Tuesday and declared the impeachment trial is constitutional.

McConnell's signaling to Republicans to vote with their conscience, but only one has changed sides so far. Even after Trump's lawyers left Republicans shaking their heads. Listen here for the top 6 takeaways from Day 1 of the impeachment trial.Politico Playbook: https://www.politico.com/playbookTransition Playbook: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/transition-playbook

Democrats are torn over strategy as they kick off the second impeachment of Donald Trump, with impeachment managers feeling muzzled by party leaders.

A first in Playbook: As Democrats take another step toward passing Biden's $1.9 trillion relief plan without GOP support, the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus will call on House Democratic leaders today to allow a stand-alone vote on $160 billion for vaccine distribution. Plus: It's Trump's last weekend to prep for his impeachment trial, and his allies are bracing for a PR nightmare.

Bring on the Red Bull: It’s time for a good old-fashioned all-nighter in the Senate tonight. Plus: If you’re trying to figure out the direction of the GOP after that circus of a conference meeting yesterday, good luck.

The president is embracing the left in his Covid-19 relief negotiations, while the House GOP leader may purge a member on the right. Here's what's driving Washington today.

Over the next 48 hours, the fates of two Republican women will be decided for diametrically opposite reasons. Plus: About that Biden-GOP huddle ... and more in today's Playbook Audio Briefing.

Just how serious is Joe Biden about bipartisanship? We're about to find out.

Democrats may technically control the House, the Senate and the White House. But there’s a new sheriff in town in Joe Biden — and centrist Democrats calling for some good old-fashioned bipartisanship on big-ticket items like Covid relief. That leaves lawmakers in the majority facing a conundrum: Work with the minority? Or try to run them over?

Today, we're taking you on a little field trip to the West Wing, giving you an inside look at who's occupying the most important real estate in Biden's White House. But first: Here’s what’s driving the day in Washington.

With a trial start date finally on the horizon, the pressure is on for Senate Republicans to acquit former President Trump. And that’s regardless of whether they think he actually committed an impeachable offense.

President Joe Biden followed through on several first-day promises, but there are a few big ones he hasn't hit yet. Plus: impeachment timeline news and GOP fractures.

Joe Biden officially becomes president today. He'll issue a flurry of executive orders. But he's also inheriting a mess: including a Schumer-McConnell standoff.

New administration, new Playbook! We reveal our four new Playbook authors, and the insider drama in the White House and on Capitol Hill as Trump exits the building.

Trump's impeachment trial could start an hour after Biden is sworn into office. But can the Senate try him? And can the Supreme Court intervene?

For the second time in just over a year, it's the morning after impeachment day. Here's what's next, and Playbook guest author Ben Shapiro's take on why most Republicans opposed impeachment despite the president's role in last week's deadly insurrection.