POLITICO Playbook: Biden breaks up with Bernie

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DRIVING THE DAY

DON’T CALL ME BERNIE — There’s a lot to unpack from President JOE BIDEN’s marathon press conference in the East Room, but let’s start with this statement deep into the 1-hour-and-51-minute event:

“You guys have been trying to convince me that I am BERNIE SANDERS. I’m not. I like him, but I’m not Bernie Sanders. I’m not a socialist. I’m a mainstream Democrat, and I have been.”

It wasn’t so long ago when White House aides were happy to promote the fact that Sanders (I-Vt.), chair of the Budget Committee, wrote the initial Build Back Better legislation in the Senate as a signal to progressives that Biden was truly their champion. The other historical touchstones promoted were FDR and LBJ.

One of the newsiest bits from Biden was his grappling with the reality of how his two biggest priorities would need to be drastically scaled back:

1) On BBB: Biden said that the expanded child tax credit — the most important progressive achievement of his first year — will need to be jettisoned. Ditto for federally subsidized community college.

This reality has sunk in with important parts of the left. “We need to get as much as we can across the finish line,” Sen. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-Mass.) said Wednesday night when asked about Biden saying that the two issues would be sacrificed. “So we need to do what it takes to get every vote.”

2) On voting rights: As the president spoke, Senate Democrats were hours away from rejecting his pitch to scrap the filibuster to pass sweeping voting reform. But Biden set the stage for bipartisan talks on a much narrower package starting with reform of the Electoral Count Act. “I predict to you they’ll get something done on the electoral reform side of this,” Biden said. “But rather than judge what’s going to get done and not get done, all I can say is I’m going to continue to make the case why it’s so important to not turn the electoral process over to political persons who are set up deliberately to change the outcome of elections.”

SOME NEWS ON THAT — Sen. MITT ROMNEY (R-Utah) gave an update on where those voting rights talks were. Though the White House has never reached out, he said Wednesday night that 10 to 12 senators were involved in talks, and each of them has put together a list of priorities for the legislation. Sen. SUSAN COLLINS (R-Maine) is going to convene the group this week, according to Romney and Sen. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.Va.), and see where there’s agreement. Even some of the most forceful Democratic advocates for reforming the filibuster to pass sweeping legislation are already lowering their expectations. Sen. ANGUS KING (I-Maine) has been texting with Romney about reforming the ECA.

Manchin seems highly engaged in the effort. “There’s a good win there,” he said Wednesday night as he left the Senate. “I mean, my goodness, that’s what caused the insurrection.”

CHANGE IN LEGISLATIVE STRATEGY BUT LITTLE ELSE — Biden was modest when it came to what he might do differently going forward. He seemed to blame the White House bubble for some of his Year One problems, which he suggested were worsened by the pandemic. His solution, he said, was to get out of Washington more to talk to the public, to bring in more outside experts “from academia to editorial writers to think tanks,” and spend more time campaigning for Democrats.

Every president complains about the White House being a prison. BILL CLINTON famously called it “the crown jewel of the federal penitentiary system.” But Biden has been around a while (36 years in the Senate and eight years as VP) and he often spends three nights a week at home in Delaware, so this was an unusual complaint.

Biden also made it clear he has no plans to break up the four-man band that runs his White House and has served as his brain trust for many years: RON KLAIN, MIKE DONILON, STEVE RICCHETTI and BRUCE REED.

“I’m satisfied with the team,” Biden said.

Ditto for VP KAMALA HARRIS: He sounded determined to run in 2024 and have her on the ticket with him: “She is going to be my running mate.”

SAYING THE QUIET PARTS OUT LOUD — Biden is a far more disciplined speaker than he was a decade ago, but one reason his handlers keep him off stage is that he is often revelatory when he speaks.

He made two massive gaffes at the presser, under MICHAEL KINSLEY’s classic definition of the word: “When a politician tells the truth — some obvious truth he isn’t supposed to say.”

First he said that a “minor incursion” into Ukraine by Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN might not be met with a drastic response from the West. Second, he said that Putin would indeed invade: “My guess is he will move in. He has to do something.” Finally, he added that NATO allies were divided over how to respond: “There are differences in NATO as to what countries are willing to do, depending on what happened, the degree to which they’re able to go.”

Biden later walked back his comments about a “minor incursion.” And after it was over, the White House quickly issued a cleanup statement: “If any Russian military forces move across the Ukrainian border, that’s a renewed invasion, and it will be met with a swift, severe, and united response from the United States and our Allies.”

But the damage was done. Our Alex Ward reported, “Source close to Zelensky admin on Biden’s Russia/Ukraine remarks: ‘The fallout [in Kyiv] will be nuclear.’” (Metaphorically.) More from NYT’s David Sanger

Biden committed an equally ominous but no less honest (from his point of view) gaffe when asked about the (then imminent) failure of the Democrats’ voting rights and election reforms package: When it “isn’t passed, do you still believe the upcoming election will be fairly conducted and its results will be legitimate?”

“Well,” he replied, “it all depends on whether or not we’re able to make the case to the American people that some of this is being set up to try to alter the outcome of the election.” Asked to clarify, he added, speaking of the 2022 midterms, “Oh, yeah, I think it easily could be — be illegitimate.”

Until DONALD TRUMP, presidents have always seen guaranteeing trust in elections as a sacred obligation. For a president who says he’s guided by the idea that American democracy must survive its global contest against Chinese autocracy, it was an unusual comment — and one that anti-Trump Republicans immediately seized on to argue that Biden sounded like his predecessor.

Said Sen. BEN SASSE (R-Neb.): “President Biden basically gave Putin a green light to invade Ukraine by yammering about the supposed insignificance of a ‘minor incursion.’ He projected weakness, not strength. If that wasn’t bad enough, he undermined trust in our elections here at home. This isn’t hard: If you’re the President of the United States you affirm public trust in our elections. Sadly, both the current president and the former president repeatedly, pathetically equivocate.”

BEING POTUS IS DIFFERENT — One final takeaway from Biden as he reflected on what he’s learned after a year in the job: Being president is different from his previous gigs.

He ended the press conference with this: “If I made a mistake, I’m used to negotiating to get things done, and I’ve been, in the past, relatively successful at it in the United States Senate, even as vice president. But I think that role as president is a different role.”

Good Thursday morning. Thanks for reading Playbook. Drop us a line and tell us what you’ve learned over the last year: Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza, Tara Palmeri.

JOIN US — Biden’s legislative agenda is stalled on Capitol Hill, and the Democratic Party faces a key moment of reckoning before election season. Can Democrats reset and resurrect Build Back Better, the party’s $1.75 trillion social spending package? And what’s next on voting issues? Join Rachael for a POLITICO Live interview with House Majority Leader STENY HOYER on Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. They’ll talk Hill latest and also dig into Democrats’ prospects for the midterms. Register here to watch live

BIDEN AND HARRIS’ THURSDAY:

— 9:30 a.m.: The president will receive the President’s Daily Brief.

— 11:15 a.m.: Biden and Harris will meet with the infrastructure implementation task force.

— 4:15 p.m.: Biden will meet with the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

— 7 p.m.: Biden and Harris will speak at a virtual DNC grassroots event.

Press secretary JEN PSAKI will brief at 1:30 p.m.

THE HOUSE will meet at 9 a.m. to take up the Ensuring Veterans’ Smooth Transition Act, with last votes expected no later than 1 p.m. Agriculture Secretary TOM VILSACK will testify before the Agriculture Committee at 9 a.m. House GOP leadership will deliver remarks on Biden’s first year in office at 11 a.m. Washington Gov. JAY INSLEE, Colorado Gov. JARED POLIS, Puerto Rico Gov. PEDRO PIERLUISI and D.C. Mayor MURIEL BOWSER will testify before an Oversight subcommittee about the Omicron variant at 3 p.m.

THE SENATE is in.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

PLAYBOOK READS

JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH

BIG NEWS — The Supreme Court “refused a request from former President Donald Trump to block the release of White House records concerning the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, effectively rejecting Mr. Trump’s claim of executive privilege and handing a major victory to the special House committee investigating the riot,” NYT’s Adam Liptak reports. The court backed an appeals court ruling “that Mr. Trump’s desire to maintain the confidentiality of internal White House communications was outweighed by the need for a full accounting of the attack and the disruption of the certification of the 2020 electoral count.”

— “House Jan. 6 Committee Subpoenas White Nationalist Figures,” by NYT’s Luke Broadwater and Alan Feuer

CONGRESS

SCHUMER’S LONG GAME — Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine explore a question on many political observers’ minds: Why did Senate Majority Leader CHUCK SCHUMER keep pursuing his risky, obviously doomed filibuster strategy? Part of the answer is that he saw voting rights and election reform as too important not to try to get them passed, and he did succeed in swaying several senators not named Manchin or KYRSTEN SINEMA to change their minds on changing the rules.

Now, our colleagues write, Schumer “has set the table for a future majority with a slightly bigger margin, whether it’s Democratic or Republican, to follow through where he fell short and perhaps go further.”

KNOCK KNOCK, WHO’S THERE? — The FBI confirmed Wednesday it was conducting “court-authorized” activity at Democratic Rep. HENRY CUELLAR’s home in Laredo, Texas. The agency did not provide specifics, The McAllen Monitor’s Valerie Gonzalez reports. “At Cuellar’s home … federal vehicles were seen with cases and other items taken from the congressman’s home as over a dozen agents filed in and out of the residence Wednesday afternoon. Calls made to Cuellar and his office seeking comment have not been immediately returned.”

ALL POLITICS

REDISTRICTING LATEST — The GOP played it safe in redistricting last year, but 2022 could usher in a new level of viciousness in redrawing the lines, Ally Mutnick writes. “While Republicans feel confident they can claim the majority this fall, questions linger over how durable it would be in tougher political environments. To add to their concerns: Democrats have missed no chance to carve aggressive gerrymanders in states like Illinois, Oregon, Nevada and New Mexico that can pose high risk when the party is facing national headwinds, but high rewards in a more favorable climate.”

RAKING IT IN — House Minority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY collected “$9.5 million at a Wednesday night fundraiser in downtown Washington, a major sum that kicks off his drive to win the speaker’s gavel next year,” Alex Isenstadt reports. “The figure is a new record for McCarthy: His previous largest haul at a Washington event was $350,000. … The fundraiser shows how Republican donors are mobilizing ahead of this year’s midterm elections.”

LOOK WHO’S BACK — Former Rep. DONNA EDWARDS (D-Md.) is jumping into the open primary for her old seat today. She’s been a WaPo contributing columnist and NBC/MSNBC analyst in recent years since leaving the House to make an unsuccessful Senate bid in 2016. Her launch video

2022 WATCH — Massachusetts A.G. MAURA HEALEY is planning to run for governor, with an announcement coming as soon as today, per The Boston Globe. The progressive would quickly become the frontrunner in both the primary and general elections. And her entry into the race would likely stop Labor Secretary MARTY WALSH from jumping in too, reports Lisa Kashinsky from Boston.

PLAYBOOKERS

Mitt Romney, reacting to Joe Biden’s press conference, said his wife Ann told him that Biden “said that I was ‘a straight guy’ and someone tweeted that that made Ann happy to know.”

Mark Cuban told our colleagues at POLITICO Nightly, “I think the glaring problem is that there is absolutely zero charisma in the Biden administration.”

Ashley Hinson boasted that “we secured” $829 million in federal funding to restore locks and dams in her state. “This is game-changing for Iowa’s agriculture industry & our Mississippi River communities!” she tweeted. The money, however, was part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill — which Hinton voted against.

William Brodsky, the only person who’s ever defeated Biden in a head-to-head election, was nominated by the president to be a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.

Adam Kinzinger welcomed a new baby boy, Christian Adam Kinzinger.

Jen Psaki is going on Fox News today.

TRUMP’S ‘BIG LIE’ OF A GIFT — Every House Republican received a present Wednesday from Donald Trump’s outside group, Save America: a copy of Mollie Hemingway’s conspiratorial book “RIGGED: How the Media, Big Tech and the Democrats Seized Our Election” — along with a signed note from the former president.

“Republican leadership should never have certified the election on January 6, and now Democrats will never stop their assault on America,” Trump wrote. “I hope you find this book informative and encouraging in your battle for the heart of our Nation.”

While Kevin McCarthy led more than 100 House Republicans in objecting to the election that day, the GOP leader has been trying to pivot away from 2020 and focus on Biden ahead of the midterms. But as a House GOP aide who tipped us off said, Trump’s gift is the latest sign that the leader of the party doesn’t want that and expects House Republicans to fall in line.

“Just shows how Trump is continuing to pressure members/Republicans to embrace the Big Lie,” the person said.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Albright Stonebridge Group has added Erik Brattberg as SVP with the Europe practice and Ahmed Khalil as senior adviser with the Middle East and North Africa practice. Brattberg most recently was director of the Europe program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Khalil has worked at Lenovo, Toshiba and Network International.

MEDIA MOVE — Slate’s national correspondent Will Saletan is joining The Bulwark.

TRANSITIONS — Callie Eideberg is now a senior professional staff member for the Senate Agriculture Committee. She most recently spent five years at the Environmental Defense Fund. … Madison Mundy is now regional press secretary for the western region at the DCCC. She previously was comms director on a local campaign in Nassau County, N.Y., and is a Nevada State Democratic Party alum. … Amira Valliani is joining the Solana Foundation, where she’ll be running the policy team and working at the intersection of web3 and government. She’s an Obama White House alum.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) … Kellyanne Conway … Nikki Haley (5-0) … Paul Mandelson of Deloitte … Chip Englander … Robin Roberts of National Media … Bill Maher … Dan Schneider of Rep. French Hill’s (R-Ark.) office … Ian Sams … POLITICO’s Gavin Bade … Soroush Shehabi … CNN’s Diane Ruggiero … Stacie Rumenap … CBN’s Jenna Browder … Ben Watson of Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R-Iowa) office … Emma Thomas of Feldman Strategies … WSJ’s James Grimaldi … CBS’ Maria Gavrilovic and Peter Greenberg … Global Strategy Group’s Tanya Meck … Morton Abramowitz … Sam Dealey of Monument Communications … Jessica Hanna … Purple Strategies’ Alec Jacobs … Paola Ramos … Al Kamen … former Reps. Bill Owens (D-N.Y.) and Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) … Michelle Rodriguez … Tracy Russo ... Merrill Hartson ... Elena Robertson ... Andy Taylor … Sophie Trainor ... Zack Walz … Elizabeth Ray of Joe Lombardo’s Nevada gubernatorial campaign (25) … Olivia Shestopal … Shannon Bañaga … Sue Gildea (55) … Zach Beecher of C5 Accelerate … State Department’s Carter Allen … Abby Greensfelder

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CORRECTION: An earlier version of Playbook misspelled Rep. Ashley Hinson's (R-Iowa) name.