POLITICO Playbook: ‘CLINTON CASH’ AUTHOR on two Sun. shows – HILLARY campaign: no ‘true bombshells’

PETER SCHWEIZER, author of "Clinton Cash," is going on "Fox News Sunday" and ABC's "The Week" - with publication 10 days away.

--CLINTON MINDMELD - A top official gives Playbookers a window into what the campaign is saying internally, and will be saying publicly, as the gusher of stories about foundation finances continues: "'Clinton Cash' had been hyped ... by Rand Paul and Fox News as a ticking time bomb for the Clinton campaign, and once the New York Times made the bizarre decision to partner with its conservative author, the book was guaranteed to earn a few cycles' worth of attention ... But now that the allegations have been aired, it's clear the book fails to break any new ground ...

"[S]uspense over whether the book contains any true bombshells is already over: it doesn't. ... Team Brooklyn will keep working it hard, knowing that attacks like these will keep coming, but staying sanguine as they do. We have three rules: (1) You can't stop the onslaught so just act quickly to defuse it; (2) If there is no 'there' there the story will burn hot, fast and out; and (3) No handwringing - [Chairman John] Podesta won't have it."

PLAYBOOK EMAIL SIGN-UP: https://www.politico.com/playbook-signup

By Mike Allen (@mikeallen; [email protected]), and Daniel Lippman (@dlippman; [email protected])

HOT IN HILLARYLAND - --"Boehner Opens Door to House Subpoena of Clinton's E-mail Server," by Mark Halperin: "'I've not made any decisions ... If we need to do that, we may have to.'" https://bloom.bg/1DV9TTo

--"The Disastrous Clinton Post-Presidency," by New York magazine's Jonathan Chait: "The Clintons have been disorganized and greedy. The news today about the Clintons all fleshes out, in one way or another, their lack of interest in policing serious conflict-of-interest problems." https://nym.ag/1Ekgt78

--"Book blowback hits Clinton's NYC donor kickoff," by Annie Karni and Gabriel Debenedetti: "Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, had hoped to spend Thursday morning rallying fundraisers in a midtown office building in Manhattan ... Podesta ... attempted to reassure donors the campaign would respond to the allegations - without letting them interrupt ... a month of ramping up and fundraising. 'If we try to chase every media story, we chase our own tail. We're not going to do that.'" https://politi.co/1Eki5xX

--"Ed Henry to cover Clinton for Fox News," by Dylan Byers: "Henry has ... spent the last two weeks covering Clinton's early visits to Iowa and New Hampshire ... promotion ... official [yesterday]. Henry will lead ... coverage on the Democratic side while ... Carl Cameron will take the lead on Republican side. ... Henry will also maintain the title ... chief White House correspondent." https://politi.co/1d7EKTV

--"Sheryl Sandberg Wants to See Hillary Clinton in the White House," by Bloomberg's Emily Greenhouse: "Sandberg, the Chief Operating Officer of Facebook, ... said, 'I think politicians are the people that endorse. But ... I am very supportive of Hillary Clinton. I've said before I'd like to see her as president. And I'd like to see more women presidents all over the world.'" https://bloom.bg/1d6IHbw

-- "Clinton to Visit L.A. on May 7 for Fundraisers Hosted by Steven Bochco, Haim Saban," by Variety's Ted Johnson: "Hillary Clinton will hold her first fundraisers in Los Angeles for her 2016 presidential campaign on May 7... The $2,700-per-person event at the Pacific Palisades home of the Bochcos will be a luncheon reception, with Sen. Barbara Boxer as a special guest ... Hosts also include Sim and Debbie Farar and Howard and Cami Gordon. ...Clinton then will appear at the home of the Sabans for an early evening dinner event." https://bit.ly/1DiBLgq

THE BIG PICTURE - "World War O: Obama took office vowing to end America's wars. Now we're in at least five, and U.S. officials are unsure what to do about it," by Michael Crowley: "Some administration officials fear that things will get worse before they get better, particularly in Ukraine and Iraq. But they are divided on how ... to proceed, ... with ... Secretary of State John Kerry urging ... arming Ukrainian government forces with Javelin anti-tank missiles, which can ... be called defensive. ... But ... more cautious advisers fret about how much more military risk America should take on as global conflicts multiply." https://politi.co/1Psukfo

--"U.S. Never Knew Where Warren Weinstein Was," by Bloomberg's Josh Rogin: "The ... intelligence community had lost the trail of kidnapped aid contractor Warren Weinstein long before his death in a counterterrorism strike in January ... One of the biggest questions following ... Obama's startling revelation ... is how the intelligence community could have been unaware that he was at the al-Qaeda site ... A lack of human resources on the ground and a total lack of intelligence on Weinstein's location contributed to the accident that now has the administration and Congress rethinking how the U.S. will conduct its secret war." https://bv.ms/1GnIhab

OBAMA ALUMNI: Former White House economic adviser Gene Sperling "has signed on with Renovate America as a senior advisor on policy and corporate strategy and growth. Renovate America administers the Home Energy Renovation Opportunity (HERO) Program, the nation's fastest-growing energy efficiency financing program ... Sperling will advise the company as it expands into new states."

ERIC HOLDER's last day is today - A Justice official: "[A]fter ... 26 years in public service ... under six presidents, Attorney General Holder will spend his last day ... surrounded by his wife, children, friends, current and former advisers ... [H]e will spend his evening, along with his wife Dr. Malone, at a criminal-justice event hosted by Politico featuring John Legend. [Loretta] Lynch will be sworn in at the White House by Vice President Biden on Monday ...

"In 2009, on his first day as Attorney General, Holder was greeted by staff throughout the building that all lined the hallways to applaud his arrival back to the Department after serving as Deputy Attorney General under President Clinton. On his last day, Holder will retrace his steps in reverse by walking from his personal office, across the golden hallway in front of his conference room, and down the spiraling steps toward the Great Hall."

--TRIBUTE VIDEO, produced by Brian Fallon as one of his last acts at Justice  www.justice.gov

DEATH OF COMCAST MERGER - "Trips Over Wheeler's Nixon-to-China Moment," by Bloomberg's Mark Drajem and Chris Strohm: "Tom Wheeler [became FCC chair] in 2013 with a resume featuring stints as the top lobbyist ... for both the cable and wireless industries. Consumer advocates weren't amused. ... Now, ... Wheeler is ... winning praise from public interest groups. He recently pushed for strong net-neutrality rules, and scrutiny by FCC staff helped push Comcast Corp. to ... abandon ... its yearlong effort to buy Time Warner Cable." https://bloom.bg/1bn77fM

SNEAK PEEK at tomorrow's MSNBC after-party: " [A]ttendees are expected from across NBCUniversal, including Mika Brzezinski, Joe Scarborough, Tom Collichio, Lawrence O'Donnell, Al Sharpton, Chris Matthews, Cecily Strong, Nasim Pedrad, Chris Hayes, Tamron Hall, Chuck Todd, Andrea Mitchell, Al Roker, Lorne Michaels, José Diaz-Balart, Ronan Farrow, Jim Cramer, Chris Jansing, Carl Quintanilla, Toure, Joy Reid, Krystal Ball, Abby Huntsman, Thomas Roberts, Joe Kernen, Becky Quick."

PIC DU JOUR -- ?@kimkingsley: "Who would've thought the ?@politico logo we designed in '07 would find its way to the top of a building in Berlin." https://bit.ly/1yUNmqK

FAMILY PIC: Savannah Guthrie kindly welcomed one of Playbook's Oregon nephews, Tate Ericson, to the "Today" show set yesterday, along with his parents, Cathie and Nels. Tate, who's 13 and in eighth grade, was visiting NYC for the first time after a school trip to D.C., where he crushed his We the People competition, testing his constitutional knowledge. (hat tips: Megan, Patrick, Ali) https://bit.ly/1aWWJus

** A message from Americans for Fair Skies: Qatar and United Arab Emirates are playing a shell game with the U.S. government by disguising over $40 billion in improper subsidies to their airlines, representing the largest trade violation in history. Our government must act quickly to end this charade and protect U.S. jobs. Learn more at https://bit.ly/1GT9sJG. **

SUNDAY SO FAR:

--"Fox News Sunday": Peter Schweizer, author of "Clinton Cash" ... Lanny Davis ... Power Player: Dr. Francis Collins, NIH director ... Panel: Brit Hume, Julie Pace, Karl Rove, Ron Fournier

--ABC's "This Week": Peter Schweizer ... Roundtable: Donna Brazile, Newt Gingrich, Mark Halperin, John Heilemann

--CBS's "Face the Nation": Ohio Gov. John Kasich ... Rep. Elijah Cummings ... NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton and Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller ... Evan Wolfson of Freedom to Marry and Tony Perkins of Family Research Council ... Panel: Ruth Marcus, Peter Baker, Kim Strassel, John Dickerson

--NBC's "Meet the Press": David Boies and Ted Olsen, attorneys who helped overturn California's Prop. 8 ... Cecily Strong, "Saturday Night Live" cast member, and entertainer at White House Correspondents' Association dinner ... Garry Trudeau ... Panel: Matt Bai, Helene Cooper, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson

--CNN's "State of the Union" (guest host: Jim Acosta, senior White House correspondent): Sen. McCain ... Ohio Gov. John Kasich, interviewed by Gloria Borger ... John Legend

2016 PLAYERS -- "Reagan biographer firm signs on for communications, strategy for Scott Walker Super PAC," by Breitbart's Matthew Boyle: "Shirley & Banister Public Affairs will be handling strategic communications for Walker's Super PAC, the Unintimidated PAC." https://bit.ly/1FinA0J

HOT VIDEO: Rand fist-bumps Harry Reid https://cs.pn/1DFHOfu

SOCIAL 2016 - "Paul's Internet Army ... the front lines of the battle for your Facebook news feed," by Tom Bartlett "Harris Media ... has amassed a marquee roster of conservative clients, from Sarah Palin to Rand Paul, and established itself as the buzziest GOP firm of the cycle. ... [Vincent] Harris hopes ... micro-victories like getting Rand ... to Meerkat ... will encourage online fundraising, boost get-out-the-vote." https://politi.co/1bz8vwi

WHAT IOWA IS READING - Des Moines Register, top of col. 1, "IOWA FAITH & FREEDOM ... NATIONAL SECURITY LIKELY A TOP TOPIC ... 9 presidential hopefuls to speak at Saturday night forum," by Jennifer Jacobs https://dmreg.co/1DWvbQq

--MARCO to IOWA - release: "Rubio will make his first visit to Iowa as a presidential candidate [tomorrow] ... His visit will include attending an ice cream social at the home of Senator Jack & Rachel Whitver and speaking at the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition Spring Kick-Off. Marco will also visit the Des Moines Register and meet with local business and political leaders. This is Marco's second visit to Iowa in 2015, and his sixth since the last presidential election."

TRAIL MIX - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, top of p. 1, "A MATTER OF FAITH: As Walker courts evangelicals, ... he has become more forthcoming about religion's role in his life," by Daniel Bice and Annysa Johnson: "The governor said he opens and closes every day in prayer. He said he and his wife like to read daily devotions from 'Jesus Calling,' a book in which author Sarah Young writes uplifting passages from Jesus' point of view ... Most Sundays over the past 10 years, Walker and his family have joined a couple hundred people in worship at Meadowbrook Church, a modest nondenominational evangelical congregation." https://bit.ly/1QqrOYH

--"Bush distances himself from James Baker," by CNN's MJ Lee: "Bush ... sought to distance himself from former Secretary of State James Baker, one of his foreign policy advisers, saying in a closed-door meeting that he doesn't believe Baker should have recently addressed the liberal-leaning Israel advocacy group J Street. He also pledged that his foreign policy team will also consist of younger experts." https://cnn.it/1IOsTnB

KOCH PRIMARY - USA Today 1A, Charles Koch interview, "NOT ALL ABOUT MONEY," by Fredreka Schouten in Wichita: "Charles Koch and his industrial empire are mounting an aggressive new defense of his company and his political advocacy, with the billionaire insisting his work to help elect Republicans is rooted in his decades-long quest to 'increase well-being in society.' ... 'We oppose as many or more things that would benefit us than would hurt us,' he said, ticking off potential losses at his Minnesota oil refinery if the Keystone XL pipeline ... is constructed and his opposition to the Export-Import Bank." https://usat.ly/1GoSCpb

POLITICO CAUCUS, our weekly survey of Iowa and N.H. insiders -- James Hohmann: "Nine in 10 Republican insiders from the early states think Jeb Bush's support for Common Core hurts him, but only a small minority believes that his backing of the education standards will prove fatal. The POLITICO Caucus ... asked participants to rank on a scale of zero to 10 how politically problematic it is for a GOP presidential candidate to back Common Core in their state - with zero being totally inconsequential and 10 being disqualifying. The average response was a six."

WEST WING TALKER - "Richard C. Holbrooke's Diary of Disagreement With Obama Administration," by NYT's Matthew Rosenberg: "In the summer of 2010, ... Holbrooke, the Obama administration's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, began recording a secret audio diary, detailing his frustrations with a White House that he believed was too willing to listen to the military and too often mistook domestic political calculations for strategic thinking. ... The notes are featured in 'The Diplomat,' a documentary [told through the perspective of his eldest son, David, and premiered yesterday] at the Tribeca Film Festival and will be shown on HBO in the fall." With 22-sec. clip https://nyti.ms/1yViAhd

WHAT SILICON VALLEY IS READING - "Getting your Apple Watch? Here's how to use it," by AP Technology Writer Anick Jesdanun: "The first batch of Apple Watches will arrive [today] ... It took about 12 minutes for all my apps, contacts and calendar entries to sync. Use that time to watch video tutorials on your phone. ... The watch uses the GPS sensor on your phone to measure distance during workouts. Without the phone, it counts steps, which tend to be inaccurate. ... [I]f you walk or run with your phone a few times, the watch will calibrate ... for better accuracy offline." https://bit.ly/1IP4luC

BUSINESS BURST - WSJ A1, "Nasdaq Climbs to a Record, Again Fueled by Tech," by E.S. Browning: "While today's Nasdaq still houses plenty of tech highfliers, it looks far less speculative than it did in 2000, and many of its most prominent companies have matured into global behemoths grounded in real products, sales and profits. On Thursday the index, ... rose ... to 5056.06, outrunning the high of 5048.62 set on March 10, 2000. Many investors doubted they would see a Nasdaq record again, ... after the index tumbled 78%." https://on.wsj.com/1Psohrn

CLICKER - "Unforgettable Hubble Space Telescope Photos" - 16 on one page https://nyti.ms/1HtQbSq

WHAT BRUSSELS IS READING -- "Rip Van Brussels: The 'dream' is dead. Here come the lobbyists," by Politico Europe Executive Editor Matthew Kaminski: "A Continent free, whole and prosperous [previously] looked within reach: 'The European Dream,' to borrow from futurologist Jeremy Rifkin - whose book sales and speaking fees seem undented by a record of consistent misprognostication. ... I can't find this Brussels, and asked a former member of a Commission cabinet ... where to look. 'The mojo is gone ... The dream has been deferred, possibly killed." https://bit.ly/1DVDsE6

TV TONIGHT - "Washington Week with Gwen Ifill": "Mark Mazzetti [on the killed hostages] ... Juana Summers [on Loretta Lynch] ... Jeff Zeleny [on Hillary and the foundation] ... Hannah Allam of McClatchy Newspapers [on Iran and Yemen]."

"60 MINUTES" LISTINGS- "Death in the Mediterranean -- 60 MINUTES goes aboard an Italian rescue ship and also follows migrants from the other side of the Mediterranean to capture both ends of the often tragic migrant trek that took the lives of hundreds last week. Clarissa Ward reports. Randall Joyce is the producer. [Preview:] https://cbsn.ws/1KaHwCR ... The Battle Above -- The US Air Force's Space Command is tasked with defending the satellites upon which our daily life and national security have come to depend. Now, says a general, Chinese weapons could pose a threat to those satellites. David Martin reports. Andy Court is the producer."

HOW THEY SPEND IT - "Exclusive Look Inside the Four Seasons' New Private Jet," by Bloomberg's Jennifer Parker: "Spending three weeks touring the world's wonders and staying in five-star hotels is better by private jet-right? ... [T]he Four Seasons is hoping that up to 52 passengers will pay $119,000 each for the round-the-world honor on their shiny new plane." https://bloom.bg/1EkhvQG

--"Now For Sale: The Most Expensive Ticket Ever," by Jesse Lawrence "The average cost to get into the building for next week's Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight is $11,000. ... Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao is the biggest boxing event in history. Tickets are listing for an average of over $11,000 on the secondary market. The most expensive ticket is going for $70,000. That's the most expensive average ticket listing price in history, according to TiqIQ's five years of historical data, and three times more expensive than the next most highest boxing match." https://thebea.st/1EkifFi

MEDIAWATCH -- "The Truth About Covering Obama: The presidential press corps dishes on what it's really like to report inside the White House" - Politico Magazine: "'All hype and spin.' 'Restrictive in every sense of the word.' 'Cramped and windowless.' 'Locked.' That's how just four reporters described the job in Politico Magazine's second annual survey of the White House press corps, with nearly 70 journalists weighing in on what it's really like to on the presidential beat. How often do they get to talk to President Obama? Who are the most reporter-friendly White House aides? What are the most over- and underhyped stories of the Obama administration? Which president has been most open to the press?" https://politi.co/1GcQSdi

--"Sinclair Announces The Addition Of Sharyl Attkisson To Its News Division" - Release: "Attkisson, has joined the company to host a new, national Sunday morning news program that will air on Sinclair's ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX affiliates nationwide. The 30-minute program, ... based in Washington, ... will be a blend of investigative and political journalism, with a focus on accountability. ... Attkisson will join Sinclair in June ... and the show is expected to launch in the fall." https://prn.to/1JitAJe

--"Washington Post launches initiative to spotlight and support [Tehran bureau chief] Jason Rezaian" -- Release: "Rezaian ... has been held in Iran's Evin Prison since July 22, 2014 ... [WP is] distributing lapel pins with the hashtag #FreeJason for guests attending the White House Correspondents' Association dinner. ... The pins will be available at The Post's pre-dinner reception at the Washington Hilton. Attendees ... encouraged to ... share their support ... hashtag #FreeJason. Ali Rezaian, brother of Jason, will ... attend the dinner as a guest of The Post." https://wapo.st/1bz9qx0

OUT AND ABOUT: Gloria Story Dittus paid tribute to women in journalism at her Kalorama manse last night, to kick off WHCD weekend. The event was co-hosted by Christina Bellantoni of Roll Call, Juliana Goldman of CBS, Nia-Malika Henderson of CNN, Tamara Keith of NPR, Kate Nocera of Buzzfeed and AP's Nedra Pickler.

--"DC's Most Powerful Women Talk Success, Equality, and More," by Capitol File's Elizabeth E. Thorp: "Rima Al-Sabah, philanthropist and Goodwill Ambassador to the UN; Muriel Bowser, mayor of the District of Columbia; Amy Dacey, CEO of the [DNC]; S.E. Cupp, conservative political commentator and cohost of CNN's Crossfire; Kristen Soltis Anderson, cofounder of Echelon Insights and a leading GOP pollster; and Jacquie Dalton, COO of Metropolitan Jets." https://bit.ly/1HtP7y5

--Rock The Vote , Twitter, and Fusion kicked off WHCD weekend with a party at Blind Whino in Southwest D.C., with iHeart Media, the Video Game Voters Network and Ogilvy Washington. Guests enjoyed DJ Shiftee and RDGLDGRN, catering by STK Washington and refreshments by Anastasia Vodka, Green Hat Gin and Flying Dog beer.

BIRTHWEEK (was yesterday): Michael Celler, a Christie alum, who celebrated by wearing a track suit and Gucci loafers (h/t Fresh and Schwee)

BIRTHDAYS: Ruth Guerra, RNC's director of Hispanic media, is 27 (h/t Andrew Kovalcin) ... former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley is 73 ... Bruce Taylor is 75 ... Jessica Wagstaff ... Shaun Kelleher, LCV, and Pats' fan (h/t DJW)... eBay's Megan Hannigan, a DLCC alum ... USA Today's Larry Kramer ... Gabriela Domenzain of the Raben Group, an Obama alum ... Megan Sowards, NRSC general counsel and former Romney deputy general counsel ... Sarah Braswell of Weber Shandwick ... Joe Russo, House Judiciary coalitions director and former McLean High School homecoming king (h/t Kate Waters) ...

... Romney advance alum Charlie Pearce ... Jim Caplice ... Brandon Hersh, a Glover Park Group alum ... Austin Bailey ... Andrew Bailey ... Sara Ehrman ... Rebecca Kasper of Jon Tester-world ... Imani Greene of New Media Strategies, an Ogilvy alum ... Peter Daou ... David Botkins ... Andrew Kirtzman ... Terron Daniel Sims II ... Shirley MacLaine is 81 ... author Sue Grafton is 75 ... Barbra Streisand is 73 ... Cedric the Entertainer is 51 ... Rory McCann ('Game of Thrones') is 46 ... Kelly Clarkson is 33 ... golfer Lydia Ko is 18 (h/t AP)

DESSERT -- "Spoiler alert: Shocking 'Grey's Anatomy' episode!" by AP's Frazier Moore: "[T]he episode walloped viewers with the shocking exit of ... Derek 'McDreamy' Shepherd, the reigning heart-throb and a charter member of the long-running ABC medical drama. Played by Patrick Dempsey, making a surprise departure, ... Shepherd died from injuries suffered when he was blindsided by a truck. ... The episode ... leaves Grey, played by series star Ellen Pompeo, facing life as a single mother of two as 'Grey's Anatomy' heads toward its 12th season." https://yhoo.it/1JAi1tA

--"Chipotle begins delivery," by USA Today's Bruce Horovitz: "Chipotle ... has begun offering delivery for online and mobile orders in 67 cities. The move ... puts Chipotle right in the delivery driver's seat along with Starbucks, which also plans to test delivery service with the very same third-party operator in the Seattle area later this year. Both chains are linking-up with Postmates, an app-based delivery service that works with private contractors, in a sort of Uber-like business model." https://usat.ly/1EkhyMp

** A message from Americans for Fair Skies: The largest trade violation in history has been exposed. Qatar and United Arab Emirates have subsidized their airlines with over $42 billion in DIRECT VIOLATION of the Open Skies agreements they signed with the United States. This has triggered a joint docket for investigation by the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, and Transportation.

Nations negotiated and signed Open Skies Agreements to ensure fair competition and a level playing field for airlines providing international travel. Open Skies Agreements specifically mandate that participating airlines CANNOT receive subsidies from their governments. Instead of honoring this agreement, Qatar and United Arab Emirates have disguised and hidden the subsidies they've provided directly to their airlines, undercutting fair competition and threatening U.S. jobs. Until a resolution to the subsidies is reached, the U.S. needs to freeze new routes for these airlines into the states so that there is no further distortion of the market. Learn more at https://bit.ly/1GT9sJG. **

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