Playbook Deep Dive Creators & Guests

Ryan Lizza is a journalist and chief Washington correspondent for Politico.

Melanie Zanona is a political reporter. Currently, she reports on Capitol Hill for CNN.Zanona started her career as the policy and legislative action reporter at CQ Roll Call, then became a staff reporter for The Hill, where she reported on House leadership. After that, she was a congressional reporter for Politico.

Veronica Escobar is a politician.

Benjamin Wofford is a journalist.

Bryan D. Bender is a journalist. Currently, he reports on the Pentagon, NASA, and the defense and aerospace industries as a senior national correspondent for POLITICO, where also writes the Morning Defense newsletter and edits POLITICO Space. He also writes about terrorism, the international arms trade, and government secrecy. Previously, Bender covered the Pentagon for The Boston Globe and Jane’s Defence Weekly. Bender's work has appeared in The New Republic, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Jane's Defence Weekly, and he is a frequent television and radio commentator on national security and foreign policy topics. His first book, "You Are Not Forgotten," was published in 2013.

Holly Otterbein is a reporter and the National Political Reporter for POLITICO.Previously, Otterbein was a staff reporter at NPR station WHYY, where she covered Philadelphia's city government and schools. Before that, she was a staff writer for the Philadelphia City Paper.Otterbein was born and raised in Baltimore.