Good Friday morning. I'm Anna Palmer and welcome to your Politico Playbook Audio Briefing,

sponsored by UC Davis. All eyes are on Mitch McConnell ahead of next week. Burgess Everett and John

Bresdenhan write that the Kentucky Republican is laying it all on the line ahead of the Alabama

special election where he has aggressively backed Senator Luther Strange and the Cassidy Graham

health care vote. They write, the typical cautious McConnell is taking huge gambols in both cases

and will emerge as a hero or goat within the GOP depending on how it all turns out.

McConnell will need everything to break his way to come out on top. Moore is leading in the polls,

and McConnell currently lacks the votes to repeal Obamacare. Both Sarah Palin and Sebastian

Gorka were down in Alabama last night, rallying for Roy Moore. President Donald Trump

will head to Alabama tonight for a strange rally. Nancy Cook scoops that Trump aides are

already looking for the exits. While many

had hoped to make it a year, AIDS are already circulating their resumes. Meanwhile, Josh

Dossy and Burgess Everett report that while Trump has been making calls and trying to help

secure votes for the Senate health care vote next week, the White House is privately harboring

doubts it will pass. On the world stage, North Korea leader Kim Jong-un

responded with a direct rebut to Trump. He called the president deranged and said he will pay dearly

for his threats. The AP reports that the message was unusual in its directness. Meanwhile,

Reuters is reporting that Iran says it will boost its missile capabilities defying Trump.

Facebook is back in the news again in connection with Russia ads.

While Facebook has agreed to provide details to congressional investigators about ads purchased

by Russians to influence the 2016 campaign, Democrats are moving ahead to push for legislation

that would require the company and other tech companies to publicly

...