Today’s notice: Kamala Harris’ operation is already discussing who would lead a presidential transition team and who would fill out a potential cabinet. Surely no one will regret thinking about the transition before the election.
All the Goss on a Harris Transition
If she does it, here’s how it will happen.
NOTUS’ Jasmine Wright went deep on the Kamala Harris transition plan that’s quietly underway. If Harris wins, it would kick off the first transition from a president to his VP since 1988, creating a lot of opportunities for folks currently working in one administration to transition into another. A new president also means new opportunities for those currently outside the admin. Jasmine has details.
The inner circle, so far:
- Yohannes Abraham, who led Joe Biden’s transition, is heading up the early process for Harris. Former Biden White House counsel Dana Remus is on the team as well.
- From Harrisworld: Josh Hsu, former counsel in Harris’ Senate and VP offices, “was personally installed” by Harris and has a “major role.” Lorraine Voles, Harris’ CoS, is also involved, as is former aide Rachel Palermo.
The pressure campaigns:
- Progressive groups have demanded Lina Khan remain at the FTC in a future Harris admin. Jasmine reports Harris econ adviser Brian Deese is an insider advocating for that.
- AAPI groups, upset during Biden’s transition, “have already begun engaging with Harris’ team on potential candidates.” They’re hoping to keep USTR Katherine Tai and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su in their current jobs.
- The CBC, “which in the past has supported candidates for cabinet-level posts during transitions, is still thinking through their own suggestions for appointments.”
The potential admin jobs:
- Jeff Zients is in the mix for Treasury. So is Wally Adeyemo.
- Karen Dunn, fresh off running Harris’ debate prep, as well as opposing the Biden administration in court on behalf of Google, “has long eyed” the WH counsel job.
- Michèle Flournoy is a name floated for Defense.
- Aides to Kathy Hochul “have reached out about a potential position, said a person familiar with the effort.”
- Chris Coons “has openly advocated himself for secretary of state.”
- “Harris likes Don Graves and Michael Reagan and might seek to elevate their roles.”
- “Pete Buttigieg’s allies have pushed him for a foreign policy-focused role.”
Important caveats to all this: “Floats in October won’t necessarily turn to reality in January” and much will depend on what the makeup of the Senate looks like next year. Oh, and also Harris has to win the election.
Read the story here.
NOTUS Investigation: Trump’s Ground Game, Made in Ukraine
The app Charlie Kirk’s team is using to get out the vote on behalf of Trump has its origins in Ukraine, reporter William Bredderman uncovers for NOTUS. The app is built on a platform called Superfeed, which in turn was built by Ukrainian software engineers.
“Besides Turning Point USA, Superfeed has supplied a platform to Republican operations in Michigan, Nevada, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Yakima County, Washington. The company has also received $110,000 for ‘PAC digital consulting’ from the pro-Trump Tea Party Patriots Citizens Fund this cycle,” William reports.
The ground game program Kirk is running has drawn some significant criticism from Republicans, as Dan Merica and Brian Slodysko reported for the AP recently. But the Ukraine of it all only makes it more awkward. Kirk “has applauded Trump for pointedly refusing to say during the debate whether he wanted to see Ukraine triumph against Moscow,” William writes.
Read the story here.
Inside Tom Emmer’s Journey From ‘Globalist RINO’ to Trump’s ‘Great Ally’
Last October, Trump derailed Tom Emmer’s bid for speaker, denouncing him as a “globalist RINO” and claiming he was decidedly not one of his “wonderful friends.”
Fast-forward a year, and suddenly Emmer is now ingratiated in Trump’s circle, most recently lending his Minnesota charm to playing Tim Walz for JD Vance’s debate prep. Multiple Trumpworld sources told NOTUS’ Reese Gorman that Emmer has firmly worked his way into Trump’s good graces.
“At this point, Trump does like Emmer, and JD likes him too,” a source close to the Trump campaign told NOTUS. “I very much see a situation where Emmer, if Republicans lose the House, he could be minority leader.”
Read the story here.
Front Page
- Two House Democrats Are Already Angling for a Leadership Spot in a Potential Majority: Kelly has already shored some up among other Illinois Democrats.
- Trump Calls Himself the ‘Father of IVF,’ Sidestepping Abortion at All-Women Town Hall: The former president addressed an all-women audience in a pretaped town hall in Georgia as he struggles to break through with women voters.
- The Judge in Trump’s Election Case Has Shut Down His Attempts to Fish for Evidence: Judge Tanya Chutkan denied most of Trump’s lawyers’ requests for reams of documents.
Georgia Rules Run Into Gandalf the Grey
NOTUS’ Ben T.N. Mause reported last week that Georgia election officials were worried about implementing new rules. Now they’re facing another wrinkle.
Georgia activists spent the summer filing lawsuits and — with the help of a State Election Board aligned with their priorities — passing rules to reshape the state’s election processes. A local court has now halted a key part of those efforts, with Fulton County Judge Robert McBurney citing Tolkien’s famous: “You shall not pass!”
Read the story here.
Not Us
We know NOTUS reporters can’t cover it all. Here’s some other great hits by… not us.
- Over 165 lawsuits are already impacting the 2024 presidential election, Bloomberg’s Zoe Tillman and Raeedah Wahid report.
- The journey of Scott Jennings, CNN pundit and mainstream media’s most prominent Trump defender, by David Catanese for McClatchy.
- One of JD Vance’s top aides said he has struggled with drug abuse and posted extensively in the past to a drug culture forum after a Wired investigation by Makena Kelly.
Quotable
“I thought your mother was the cat’s meow. She would flirt with me in the most innocent ways.”
—Bill Clinton, eulogizing Ethel Kennedy.
Tell Us Your Thoughts
Cabinet jobs have a lot of perks: sampling modes of transportation, traveling abroad, meeting with the president. Which secretaryship sounds the most fun?
Send your thoughts to newsletters@notus.org.
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Correction: This newsletter has been updated to reflect that Google’s antitrust case is against the Department of Justice, not the Federal Trade Commission.