Axios Sneak Peek

June 01, 2023
Welcome back to Sneak. Smart Brevityβ’ count: 1,093 words ... 4 minutes.
β‘Scoop: Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio is telling GOP donors that it's a "myth" that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is more electable than the former president, according to a private memo obtained by Axios' Alex Thompson.
1 big thing: GOP goes all-in on FBI gamble
Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images
House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) is moving to hold FBI director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress, escalating a fight over Biden bribery allegations that Republicans acknowledge have not been verified.
Why it matters: Comer's stated desire to lead bipartisan, substantive investigations is increasingly under strain, with his own public statements handing ammunition to Democrats as they seek to paint his probes as overtly partisan.
Driving the news: For nearly a month, Comer and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) have sought to compel the FBI to turn over a document that they claim includes an allegation of a criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Joe Biden and a foreign national.
- The FBI has refused, citing the importance of protecting confidential human sources. Under the threat of contempt, Wray offered this week to allow Comer to view the document at FBI headquarters.
- Comer agreed and will receive an FBI briefing on Monday but said he will proceed with contempt charges β backed by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) β unless Wray turns over the full document to the committee.
Context: The document Comer is seeking is called an FD-1023, which is used to memorialize interviews with sources and does not inherently indicate wrongdoing.
- CNN reports that it originated from unverified material Rudy Giuliani sent the Justice Department in June 2020 β information so radioactive that former Attorney General Bill Barr feared it could taint an ongoing investigation into Hunter Biden.
- "The same people who spun a four-year investigation on the made-up Steele Dossier are now trying to discredit an FBI-generated record when they denied its very existence as late as yesterday," an Oversight spokesperson told Axios in a statement.
Between the lines: Comer and Grassley's own media appearances have contributed to the growing skepticism.
- "We arenβt interested in whether or not the accusations against Vice President Biden are accurate," Grassley told Fox News today, arguing the question of whether the FBI fulfilled its due diligence to investigate is more important.
- Comer said on Fox News last week that Trump's competitiveness with Biden in a recent poll is a sign that "the American people are keeping up with our investigation" β appearing to link Biden's political standing to the FBI probe.
By the numbers: 100% of Comer's 50 media appearances in May were on conservative TV and radio stations, according to an analysis by the Democrat-aligned Congressional Integrity Project.
- Democrats on the Oversight Committee have even resorted to watching Fox News β on which Comer appeared 19 times last month β to keep tabs on the GOP chair's web of alleged evidence in the Biden family probe.
The bottom line: The Durham report's finding that the FBI's Russia investigation was "seriously flawed" has eviscerated any benefit of the doubt many Republicans may have once granted the bureau.
2. π€ Trump: "I don't like the term 'woke'"
Trump in Iowa today. Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Former President Trump raised eyebrows in Iowa today when he told voters he doesn't like using "woke" as a culture war catch-all, echoing a longstanding criticism of the term by Democrats.
- "I don't like the term 'woke,' because I hear the term 'woke woke woke' β it's just a term they use. Half the people can't define it, they don't know what it is," Trump observed in the midst of an attack on gender-affirming care for youths.
Why it matters: Trump is pushing the boundaries of how far he can reshape existing Republican preferences to his whims. As recently as Sunday, Trump used the term "woke" on social media to attack Disney.
- The "war on woke" has been at the center of the GOP agenda for the past several years, cited to attack everything from spending on climate change to diversity requirements at the Pentagon to corporations that support LGTBQ rights.
- 85% of likely Republican voters in a recent CBS poll said they want a presidential nominee who "challenges woke ideas" β their top issue out of any option polled.
Between the lines: The explanation for Trump's sudden shift may be a straightforward one β the former president is responding directly to DeSantis, who has fashioned himself as the nation's leading anti-woke politician.
- "Is anybody happy to see this woke mind virus affect all these institutions? And try to impose that ideology on society and even on young kids?" DeSantis asked at a New Hampshire event today.
- Trump's reflexive efforts to separate himself from DeSantis are resulting in some head-spinning positions as of late, including that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo β the disgraced Democrat β handled the pandemic better than DeSantis did.
3. πΊπ¦ Senate defense hawks revolt

Senators outraged by the level of defense spending passed in the House's bipartisan debt ceiling bill pressured Senate leaders today to agree to put a supplemental military funding package on the floor later this year.
Why it matters: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced minutes ago that a deal had been reached with the holdouts, clearing the way for a final vote on the debt ceiling bill later tonight.
Between the lines: The disconnect between Republicans in the House and Senate β a stronghold for the GOP establishment β is perhaps no more obvious than on issues of defense spending and support for Ukraine.
- "To my House colleagues, I can't believe you did this," a furious Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on the Senate floor. "To the Speaker, I know you got a tough job. I like you, but the party of Ronald Reagan is dying."
- "This bill poses a mortal risk to our national security by cutting our defense budget, which I cannot support as grave dangers gather on the horizon," said Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.).
4. πΈ Biden takes a spill

Biden tripped over a sandbag today during the commencement ceremony for the U.S. Air Force Academy, before being helped back to his seat uninjured and in good spirits.
Why it matters: As the nation's oldest president, the 80-year-old Biden comes under more scrutiny than most when it comes to health issues and optics.
- Allies rushed to his defense online, with former White House communications director Kate Bedingfield tweeting dryly: "I know I personally have never, ever tripped over anything a day in my life, not once."
- In Iowa, Trump told reporters that he hoped Biden wasn't hurt β before adding mockingly: "That's not inspiring."
π¬ Thanks for reading this week. This newsletter was copy edited by Kathie Bozanich.
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