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For Your Weekend Listening

August 16, 2025 at 8:00 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The latest episode of Trial Balloon is live for members.

What is Donald Trump’s actual job title these days? Can “the resistance” regroup? And what’s the deal with Laura Loomer?

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What Did Trump and Putin Say in Private?

August 16, 2025 at 7:27 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNN: “There was one moment that only Trump and Putin will be able to recount: their brief ride in the presidential limousine from the tarmac to the room where the meeting took place. No one else was in the car with them except Secret Service agents — no advisers or even translators.”

“That leaves the contents of their brief chat known only to them.”

Kremlin Leaks Video of Trump Fawning Over Putin

August 16, 2025 at 7:20 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The state-run Russian international news network Russia Today has released behind-the-scenes video from Alaska that appears to show President Donald Trump fawning over Vladimir Putin,” the Daily Beast reports.

The New York Times notes Trump showed deference to Putin: “Despite the fact that the meeting took place on U.S. soil, Mr. Trump allowed Mr. Putin to speak first at their joint appearance.“


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Fox News Calls Out No-Question ‘Press Conference’

August 16, 2025 at 7:18 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich was surprised President Trump took no questions from reporters after his meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, the Daily Beast reports.

Said Heinrich: “We were told we would have an opportunity to put questions to both leaders after a joint press conference in the event that meeting went well enough that they could set the stage for a second meeting. And President Trump said if that didn’t happen, he was likely to call off the joint presser and just address the media solo and send people home. Neither of those things happened.”

Congressman’s Stock Trades Draw More Scrutiny

August 16, 2025 at 7:14 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Over the first several months of his freshman term in Washington, Representative Rob Bresnahan Jr., Republican of Pennsylvania, became one of the most active stock traders in Congress, despite having campaigned for his seat on a promise to end stock trading by lawmakers on Capitol Hill,” the New York Times reports.

“Now Mr. Bresnahan’s trading is attracting more scrutiny after he made several transactions that appeared to benefit from the consequences of his own votes on the House floor.”

“Democrats are working to weaponize Mr. Bresnahan’s trades against him as they plot a campaign to oust him in next year’s midterm elections, and some Republicans privately concede that the issue could hurt him in his highly competitive district as they attempt to hold onto their slim House majority.”

Zelensky to Meet with Trump on Monday

August 16, 2025 at 6:44 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he’ll travel to Washington to meet with US counterpart Donald Trump on Monday to discuss the end of Russia’s invasion, as he and European allies push for a trilateral summit with Vladimir Putin,” Bloomberg reports.

Axios: “The meeting will take place six months after their disastrous Oval Office meeting in February.”

Trump Appears Open to Visiting Russia

August 16, 2025 at 6:40 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “When the hasty planning began for the historic summit in Alaska, some observers wondered whether — given the state’s proximity to Russia of less than 60 miles — Mr. Trump would make a ceremonial visit by stepping into the neighboring country.”

“It was not to be. But one person close to Mr. Trump indicated days before the trip that a Moscow visit might be possible down the road. So perhaps it wasn’t simply a joke when, in their final moments at the podium, Mr. Putin suggested that the two leaders next meet in his capital city.”

Mr. Trump seemed amenable: “Oooh, that’s an interesting one. I don’t know, I’ll get a little heat on that one. But I could see it possibly happening.”

Trump-Putin Summit Ends in Confusion

August 16, 2025 at 6:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Friday’s summit in Alaska began as a superpower spectacle, then abruptly ended without any indication of what was achieved or where things go from here,” Axios reports.

“President Trump didn’t get the ceasefire he came for, or the public commitment he wanted from Vladimir Putin to meet next with Volodymyr Zelensky. The leaders scrapped a planned lunch and departed early — but not before both declared the meeting a success.”

The Atlantic: Trump leaves Alaska empty-handed.

Trump Drops Ceasefire Demnd

August 16, 2025 at 6:31 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump said Saturday that Ukraine and Russia should go straight to agreeing on a final peace deal, dropping his demand for a ceasefire in a dramatic reversal that aligns him with Russian President Vladimir Putin,” the Washington Post reports.

Israel Is Quietly in Talks to Relocate Palestinians

August 16, 2025 at 6:20 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Israel and the U.S. are pushing forward efforts to relocate hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, a move they have presented in humanitarian terms but which governments in Europe and the Arab world have criticized as unrealistic and a potential violation of international law,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Trump-Putin Summit Ends Without Breakthrough

August 15, 2025 at 9:32 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Trump welcomed his Russian counterpart to Alaska with the former showman’s signature extravagance: a red carpet, a military flyover and a ride in the presidential limousine,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“But Trump is returning to Washington with little to show for all the pageantry.”

“The U.S. president and Russian leader Vladimir Putin ended their highly anticipated meeting without announcing a breakthrough, leaving the path toward ending the war in Ukraine unclear. By Friday evening, Trump, who had taken a risk in inviting the sanctioned Kremlin leader to the U.S., was stuck in the same predicament he faced days prior: Putin remains obstinate, deeply reluctant to end the 3½-year war without concessions on Ukraine’s future.”

“Both men staked their political reputations on a successful summit, and Putin appears to have come out on top.”

New York Times: In Russia, Putin’s meeting with Trump plays as a triumph.

Washington Post: Trump, Putin break off summit with no Ukraine deal as talks end early.

CNN: Trump-Putin summit ends without concrete deal.

The Meeting

August 15, 2025 at 5:06 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Julie Mason and I discussed the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska on her fantastic radio show.

You can listen here.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Wears U.S.S.R. Sweatshirt

August 15, 2025 at 4:00 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Foreign Policy: “The Russian government is many things, but subtle is not one of them. Ahead of a highly anticipated summit on the Russia-Ukraine war in Alaska on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov engaged in some blatant trolling.”

“Lavrov arrived in Alaska wearing a CCCP sweatshirt. Those are the Russian initials for ‘USSR,’ which stands for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (aka the Soviet Union). Experts say that Lavrov, who has been Russia’s top diplomat for roughly two decades, knew exactly what he was doing by wearing that sweatshirt.”

“The war in Ukraine—a former Soviet republic—is widely viewed as a product of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nostalgia for the Soviet Union and imperialistic ambitions.”

Consumer Sentiment Weakens

August 15, 2025 at 3:57 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“U.S. consumer sentiment softened in August as households anticipated higher goods prices because of import tariffs,” Reuters reports.

Already a Clear Win for Putin

August 15, 2025 at 3:11 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

David Graham: “For the Russian autocrat, this is a win in itself. Putin is a global pariah facing an international warrant for his arrest, but the United States is welcoming him to American soil for the first time since 2015… Without stopping his aggression against Ukraine, and despite blowing through a series of deadlines, he gets a photo op with Trump.”

Staff Mutiny Forces Pub to Turn Away JD Vance

August 15, 2025 at 3:05 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“A staff mutiny forced the management of a plush British countryside pub to turn away JD Vance, just weeks after the same venue hosted Kamala Harris,” the Daily Beast reports.

White House Turns Up the Heat on Indiana

August 15, 2025 at 3:00 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Pressure is mounting on Republicans in Indiana to take up redistricting ahead of the midterms, with both White House officials privately pressuring lawmakers and a mysterious group urging voters to call their elected officials in support of it,” Politico reports.

Missouri Is Next in the Redistricting Wars

August 15, 2025 at 2:37 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Missouri Republicans appear headed to congressional redistricting special session, St. Louis Public Radio reports.

They will likely redraw Missouri’s 5th congressional district to make it more favorable for Republicans.

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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