Document 5Djmd2dDvMQdj46K90wYKMRn8

Democrats acknowledge that simply running against President Donald Trump wasn't a winning strategy in 2016 and probably won't work in 2018 either. The slogan, which is still being polled in battleground House districts, aims to convince voters that Democrats have more to offer than the GOP and the self-proclaimed deal-maker in the White House. But even as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi prepare a jobs package centered on infrastructure, trade and the minimum wage, some of their most vulnerable members are already making other plans. "Several moderate Democrats facing reelection next year told POLITICO that no matter what leadership does, they're preparing to craft their own pitch to voters. The ideological and political divides that gripped the party during the Hillary Clinton Bernie Sanders primary wars are far from healed, and leadership may not find universal support for the left-leaning platform, particularly from those trying to defend seats in Trump-friendly states." http://politi.co/2trdcT4 IN FOGGY BOTTOM -- "Tillerson's new deputy quietly wins over State Department staffers," by Nahal Toosi: "John Sullivan, the new deputy secretary of state, is quickly winning over State Department employees by taking otherwise ordinary steps in what seem like extraordinary times. The 57-year-old has repeatedly stated his admiration for the foreign service, even as President Donald Trump has proposed gutting it. He talks to career officers - and says he wants to meet all of them, even as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson grows increasingly isolated from his staff. Sullivan has also pushed the boundaries of the Trump administration's ethos by reaching out to Democrats as well as Republicans to help him prepare for his new job. ... "On Wednesday, Tillerson announced that Sullivan would oversee a steering team focused on ways to restructure the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development, the most contentious issue facing the agency as Trump pushes to shrink its budget and 75,000-person workforce. Although he's been a Supreme Court law clerk, held a top legal position at the Pentagon, and served as the deputy secretary of commerce, Sullivan had no direct State Department experience when nominated to be deputy to Tillerson, who is widely viewed within his department as isolated from and dismissive of career staff." http://politi.co/2ts9oRp -- "Tillerson urges Russia to cooperate on Syria ahead of Trump-Putin meeting," by Nahal Toosi: "Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday called on Russia to do more to bring peace to Syria, and suggested that Moscow and Washington could cooperate on establishing no-fly zones in the war-torn Arab country. In the unusual statement, Tillerson also insisted that America's top priority in Syria remains defeating the Islamic State terrorist network and that the future of the Syrian regime of Bashar Assad, who is engaged in a civil war with rebel factions, must be decided through a political settlement." http://politi.co/2ut3fEK THE JUICE ... -- FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: SHANNON DIBARI, chief operating officer and executive vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is retiring at the end of the year after 38 years with the trade group. Statement from the Chamber: "Her generous advance notification gives us ample time to plan a smooth transition of her duties and appropriately celebrate her success." -- PLAYBOOK SCOOP: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is releasing a report and sending a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions detailing what he believes are national security risks posed by leaks. The report from the majority staff says: "Under President Trump, leaks are flowing at the rate of one a day, an examination of open-source material by the majority staff of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs shows. Articles published by a range of national news organizations between January 20 and May 25, 2017 included at least 125 stories with leaked information potentially damaging to national security ... To ensure the security of our country's most sensitive information, federal law enforcement officials ought to thoroughly investigate leaks of potentially sensitive information flowing at an alarming rate." The report http://politi.co/2tjVIJG FOR YOUR SITUATIONAL AWARENESS -- BLUE BOTTLE COFFEE OPENING IN GEORGETOWN THIS WEEK! -- FRIENDS AND FAMILY FRIDAY, OPENING SUNDAY http://bit.ly/2ti7JiG PLAYBOOK READS