Feb. 2, 2023: Trump vs. DeSantis vs. who else?
\u201cThe Cold Calculus Behind the Shrinking GOP Presidential Field.\u201d Would-be Republican White House aspirants face a harsh reality: It\u2019s not just Donald Trump who\u2019s freezing the 2024 field, reports Jonathan Martin. As GOP strategist Scott Jennings puts it: \u201cThey don\u2019t have a Trump problem, they have a [Ron] DeSantis problem.\u201d\nBut consider this: \u201c[T]he history most on the minds of the Republicans considering the race, who are not named Trump or DeSantis, is what happens when there\u2019s a bloody battle between top contenders. Spoiler: It augurs well for a third candidate.\u201d\nAnd this afternoon, a subset of the Congressional Black Caucus will sit down with President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris to officially restart the push for police reform legislation following the funeral of Tyre Nichols, whose death last week at the hands of Memphis police has galvanized advocates for reform.\nBlack lawmakers have zeroed in on their first and biggest request of Biden: a commitment to talk about policing in next week\u2019s State of the Union. One CBC member told us the group is even considering telling Biden exactly what they want him to say \u2014 and that they expect him to bang the drum until legislation hits the Oval Office.\nSubscribe to the POLITICO Playbook newsletter\nRaghu Manavalan is the host and senior editor of POLITICO's Playbook Daily Briefing.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio.