“President Trump said Monday he has not spoken to Attorney General Todd Blanche nor Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C. regarding prosecuting Dr. Anthony Fauci,” NewsNation reports. Said Trump: “I have not spoken to them about that, no.”

Wall Street Journal: “Hunter Biden is suddenly the one with the megaphone. He’s everywhere: tweeting, appearing on podcasts, talking about America and, often, Trump. He is in front of audiences that in the past might have viewed Hunter Biden as an archetypal villain. Maybe they still do.” “For much of Biden’s presidency, Hunter Biden’s life, […]

“Former Biden administration officials are contending with a new reality: Future administrations won’t have a choice but to confront the way the Trump administration has disrupted how the government works,” NOTUS reports. “That’s the premise of a new set of proposals published Tuesday in the law and policy journal Just Security, authored by several former […]

“Republicans aiming to flip Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District after redrawing the heavily Black district in their favor will pick their nominee Tuesday to challenge U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures, the Democratic incumbent who is seeking a second term despite the political headwinds,” the Associated Press reports. “The district is one of several Democratic-leaning districts across the […]

“President Donald Trump likes to say that he started his war with Iran after 50 years of economic pressure had failed to stop its nuclear weapons ambitions — but he’s now betting that another financial squeeze can bring an end to that war,” the Associated Press reports.

“President Donald Trump’s reported secret escape from Air Force One amid fears of an Iranian assassination attempt sparked a furious online backlash Monday, with critics accusing the White House of leaving journalists and staff aboard what was described as a ‘decoy’ aircraft,” Mediaite reports. ABC News: Trump reportedly used a catering truck to sneak off […]

“Violent crime kept falling across many of the nation’s largest cities through June, with homicides down 17.2% from the first half of 2025, according to preliminary data reviewed by Axios,” Axios reports. “The decline now spans two presidencies — it began falling under President Biden after the pandemic-era surge, and has kept dropping under President […]

Punchbowl News: “A new Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel memo released Monday says the president can assert executive privilege over communications with ‘private advisers … so long as they relate to official presidential decision making, involve or reflect communications with the President or his direct advisers, and are confidential.’” ”The OLC opinion extends that […]

“When Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted a video Saturday giving herself a shot in preparation to freeze her eggs, she instantly injected issues of fertility, family and feminism into political discourse,” Axios reports. “And some of the online backlash from the conservative right is making Republicans, including some in the White House, a little nervous.” Fox […]

“The United States and Iran have agreed to halt attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and allow vessels to move through freely, according to a U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing negotiations as continued hostilities threatened a two-week-old cease-fire,” the New York Times reports. ”Iran has yet to confirm […]

“When the U.S. and Israel began airstrikes on Iran in February, the attacks killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and almost his entire team of security chiefs, wiping out a generation of decisionmakers on military policy,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Now, the new supreme leader, Khamenei’s son Mojtaba, is putting his own stamp on the […]

“In the tiny corner of the legal world that follows such things, the March ruling crashed down like a thunderbolt,” the New York Times reports. “It was issued by an obscure government agency called the Merit Systems Protection Board, whose purpose is to protect federal workers from unfair firings. But the decision backed President Trump’s […]

“Over the past few weeks, President Donald Trump has made it clear that he will not take Supreme Court decisions as the final word on some of his most cherished priorities,” the Washington Post reports. ”The president has introduced new tariffs, renewed efforts to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook and issued new executive orders […]

“The Democratic Party’s ascendant left flank, looking to build on its success in Michigan last week, faces fresh tests in two primaries in the Midwest on Tuesday,” the New York Times reports. “A democratic socialist appears to be clearly ahead in the governor’s race in Wisconsin, and a progressive is facing off against a moderate […]

“Democrats are betting that domestic abuse allegations against Rep. Max Miller (R-OH) will turn his conservative House district competitive this fall,” the Washington Post reports. ”The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the political arm for House Democrats, announced Tuesday that it is adding Miller’s challenger, Brian Poindexter, to its priority ‘Red to Blue’ program.” New York […]

“President Trump’s call for a controversial overhaul of the childhood immunization schedule puts high-risk vaccine policy changes front and center just three months before the midterm elections,” Axios reports. “The most immediate impact of Monday’s executive order may be political, if childhood vaccines are as popular as polling suggests.” ”But the announcement could further erode […]

“With less than three months remaining before critical elections in the United States and Israel, President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are being pulled in opposite directions by their domestic political imperatives,” the Washington Post reports. The Guardian: Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of U.S. deal for Gaza is a risky gamble.

“President Donald Trump said Monday the U.S. Navy had swept the Strait of Hormuz clear of mines and now holds ‘100%’ control of the waterway,” CNBC reports.

Wall Street Journal: “Elections are primarily run by states, and the federal government has traditionally helped share intelligence and cybersecurity warnings. Rather than continue this type of partnership, the Trump administration has instead mobilized federal agencies to sue states to try to force them to turn over their complete voter rolls and threatened chief election […]

“Persian Gulf energy producers are concluding that Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz will become permanent, disrupting their oil and gas exports and global energy supplies indefinitely,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The problem is they worry the alternative—going back to war—would be worse.” “The conundrum highlights how the war has unleashed a more […]

“The congressional town hall is becoming an endangered species,” Axios reports. “August recess once meant lawmakers returning home to face constituents — sometimes friendly, sometimes furious. After a wave of explosive confrontations last year, many lawmakers have stopped them altogether.”

“Democrats inside and outside Wisconsin are anxious about Tuesday’s primary election in the battleground state. Their worries can be summarized in two words: Francesca Hong,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The 37-year-old state representative and part-time bartender, a dues-paying member of the Democratic Socialists of America, has led in polls ahead of the final day […]

“A recount in a contested Indiana state Senate primary in May has put Republican Paula Copenhaver, who was backed by President Donald Trump, ahead of incumbent Spencer Deery,” NBC News reports. “Deery was one of seven GOP members of the state Senate who faced primary challengers this spring after having voted down a redrawn congressional […]

“Top White House and administration officials engaged in an elaborate ruse to spirit President Trump out of Turkey during the NATO summit there last month, transporting him in a catering cart to a military jet because of a credible threat against him and Air Force One from Iran,” the New York Times reports.

“Donald Trump found himself the butt of several jokes Monday after the president appeared to fall asleep during an update regarding childhood vaccines,” The Wrap reports.

“North Carolina Republican Party officials have selected state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom to replace Rep. Chuck Edwards on the ballot, after he withdrew from the race in the wake of a House Ethics Committee report that he sexually harassed two of his staffers,” NOTUS reports.

“The nonpartisan Cook Political Report shifted Rep. Max Miller’s (R-OH) seat from ‘Likely Republican’ to ‘Toss Up’ on Monday, underscoring the growing political fallout from allegations of domestic violence against the incumbent,” The Hill reports.

A Political Wire reader asks about the pros and cons of ranked-choice voting — and, more importantly, who benefits from it. The basic idea is straightforward: Instead of choosing one candidate, voters rank them in order of preference. If nobody wins a majority, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots are redistributed to the […]

“President Trump on Monday described Democratic candidates in the midterm elections as ‘jihadists,’ adding to Islamophobic statements recently made by Republican elected officials,” the New York Times reports. “Mr. Trump also delivered another tirade against people of Somali descent, saying: ‘They’re not smart, they have no aptitude, they have nothing going, and they’re telling us […]

“An Iranian assassination threat against President Donald Trump prompted an extraordinary operation last month in which he flew secretly from Turkey on an alternate military aircraft while the White House said he was aboard Air Force One,” the Washington Post reports. “The clandestine mission, which has not been reported previously, was carried out unbeknownst to […]