Hakeem on Trump, WaPo Nail-Biting, Belichick’s Second Act

Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon dose of Puck’s best new reporting.

First up today, Dylan Byers explains what Politico poaching NBC’s Dasha Burns says about the dismal state of television news, the uncertainty inside 30 Rock, and the future of Politico, itself. Then Dylan provides the latest readout from across the Potomac, where Washington Post staffers are still waiting for Will Lewis to announce a “change agent” editor to lead the newsroom.

Plus, below the fold: Rachel Strugatz considers whether Rhode, Hailey Bieber’s nine-figure beauty business, can avoid Goop’s “key man risk.” John Heilemann sits down with House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries to discuss the future of bipartisanship under Trump. Baratunde Thurston connects with Eriq Gardner, in a special conversation presented by Meta, to reveal how Hollywood is countenancing the rise of A.I. On Somebody’s Gotta Win, Tara Palmeri rings up veterans advocate Paul Rieckhoff to unpack Pete Hegseth’s charm campaign. And on The Powers That Be, John Ourand joins Peter Hamby for a candid chat about the booming college football business and Bill Belichick’s path to Chapel Hill.

P.S., if you haven’t taken our survey for the second installment of Puck’s Private Conversation series, powered by Orchestra, there’s still time to fill it out by clicking here!

DYLAN BYERS

News and notes on the recruitment of Dasha Burns, raided from the increasingly gloomy halls of 30 Rock, as Politico seeks their new Maggie. Plus the latest updates on Jeff Bezos’s narrowing talent search for a “change agent” to transform The Washington Post.

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RACHEL STRUGATZ

Rhode, the Hailey Bieber-founded beauty brand, has scaled up from a one-off celebrity lip gloss line into a nine-figure business with aspirations to be the Skims of beauty—and that includes charting a future that’s less dependent on its famous founder.

JOHN HEILEMANN

A sprawling conversation with the Pelosi protégé and House Democratic leader on some of the most pressing issues facing Democrats in the near and long-term: reconstituting the party after November’s crushing defeat, countenancing Trump’s screwball cabinet nominations, and what bipartisanship will actually look like over the next four years.

BARATUNDE THURSTON

A candid conversation with Puck’s resident legal expert about the myriad ways that A.I. is poised to change Hollywood, from its potential to transform the talent landscape to how the town’s agencies are bracing for impact.