The Playbook Podcast
POLITICO’s Jack Blanchard and Dasha Burns bring their fresh insight, analysis and reporting to the biggest story driving the day in the nation’s capital.
- Update frequency
- every day
- Average duration
- 6 minutes
- Episodes
- 1942
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
October 16, 2023: Will Biden visit Israel?
A little over a week into the conflict playing out in Israel and Gaza, the impact on Washington is becoming more clear. President Biden may try to visit Israel in the near future if the violence subs…
00:07:35 |
Mon 16 Oct 2023
October 13, 2023: Not McCarthy. Not Scalise. So… who?
Yesterday, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise shocked colleagues and reporters by pulling out of the race to become the next speaker — a little more than 24 hours after clinching the GOP’s nominatio…
00:07:31 |
Fri 13 Oct 2023
October 12, 2023: Don’t count Steve Scalise out just yet
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise clinched the GOP’s nomination for speaker of the house Wednesday. But that doesn’t mean it’s a sure thing from here: Not long after, members of his own party began…
00:06:19 |
Thu 12 Oct 2023
October 11, 2023: Jordan and Scalise face-off for the Speakership
At 10 a.m. Wednesday, Republicans will cast blind ballots for the person they want to be nominated to assume the Speaker of the House role left vacant after Kevin McCarthy’s ousting last month. In on…
00:07:55 |
Wed 11 Oct 2023
October 10, 2023: How the war in the Middle East is impacting Washington
A weekend of carnage after Hamas launched an attack on Israel, and the country in turn declared war on Palestinian-populated Gaza, disrupted international diplomacy for the foreseeable future. Though…
00:10:00 |
Tue 10 Oct 2023
October 6, 2023: Trump jolts speakership race
Late Thursday night, former President Donald Trump endorsed Rep. Jim Jordan’s bid to become speaker of the House — ending far-fetched speculation about a possible Trump run while dousing the campaign…
00:07:22 |
Fri 06 Oct 2023
October 5, 2023: Scalise, Jordan begin jockeying for the speakership
With Kevin McCarthy dethroned, House Republicans are mired in a frantic search for someone to fill the leadership vacuum. On Wednesday, two big names threw their hats in the ring: House Majority Lead…
00:08:16 |
Thu 05 Oct 2023
October 4, 2023: Speaker McCarthy lost his gavel. What comes next?
For the first time in history, a Speaker of the House was ousted. Yesterday, Kevin McCarthy’s tumultuous time as Speaker came to an end after every Democrat joined Rep. Matt Gaetz and seven others vo…
00:11:39 |
Wed 04 Oct 2023
October 3, 2023: What we know about California Senator-designate, Laphonza Butler
Laphonza Butler is well known in Democratic circles. Her resume includes roles as a regent on the board of the University of California, president of the California SEIU, and most recently the third …
00:10:26 |
Tue 03 Oct 2023
October 2, 2023: Gaetz v. McCarthy
Capitol Hill is lurching from one crisis to the next. Congressman Matt Gaetz announced yesterday that he plans to file a motion to vacate against Speaker Kevin McCarthy this week. Plus, former Presid…
00:07:33 |
Mon 02 Oct 2023
September 29, 2023: The final countdown (to shutdown)
Barring something genuinely surprising, the federal government will shut down in a little more than 24 hours’ time, as House Republicans show no sign of being able to pass the appropriations bills th…
00:05:00 |
Fri 29 Sep 2023
September 28, 2023: The GOP primary debate enters its flop era
As the 2024 GOP hopefuls gathered in California to debate, the barbs aimed at Donald Trump were more pointed, the elbows thrown at one another were sharper, and all in all, the moderators let the exc…
00:11:50 |
Thu 28 Sep 2023
September 27, 2023: Will any candidate close the Trump gap after the second Republican debate?
Candidates vying for the Republican nomination for president will once again take the stage to debate tonight, this time in California. But Donald Trump, whose lead continues to grow, says he once ag…
00:06:50 |
Wed 27 Sep 2023
September 26, 2023: Silence is golden for Sen. Bob Menendez
After a press conference that provided few answers about the federal charges leveled against him, Sen. Bob Menendez now must face a jury of his peers. Only three of his Democratic colleagues in Washi…
00:09:40 |
Tue 26 Sep 2023
September 25, 2023: Kevin McCarthy girds for battle with the hard right
As the clock ticks down, Kevin McCarthy is still trying to wrangle his fellow Republicans toward avoiding a government shutdown. But there seems to be no straightforward solution for the House speake…
00:07:25 |
Mon 25 Sep 2023
September 22, 2023: The incredible shrinking House speaker
A government shutdown appears inevitable as the clock winds down with little progress evident on the bills necessary to keep the government open. It’s so dire that Speaker Kevin McCarthy is seemingly…
00:07:55 |
Fri 22 Sep 2023
September 21, 2023: Mr. Zelenskyy goes to Washington
Republicans emerged from a meeting on Capitol Hill last night confident in their ability to move forward on critical spending bills that would keep the government funded and open. But, as Playbook co…
00:06:26 |
Thu 21 Sep 2023
September 20, 2023: The White House isn’t saving Kevin McCarthy
As the clock ticks closer to a government shutdown, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is struggling to pass a bill that would keep the government open, and the White House is not going to come to his resc…
00:08:27 |
Wed 20 Sep 2023
September 19, 2023: What we’re watching at UNGA
With a number of other world leaders skipping the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week, President Joe Biden has the opportunity to take the spotlight. He is expected to push a messag…
00:07:20 |
Tue 19 Sep 2023
September 18, 2023: A slim chance for shutdown stopgap bill
House Republicans spent the weekend trying to find common ground on a stopgap spending bill that could unite them against Democrats ahead of a potential government shutdown on Oct. 1. But with multip…
00:07:17 |
Mon 18 Sep 2023
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