“Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call this week with President Donald Trump demanded that Kyiv surrender full control of Donetsk, a strategically vital region in eastern Ukraine, as a condition for ending the war,” the Washington Post reports.
“Putin has tried and failed to conquer the territory for 11 years, repeatedly repulsed by Ukrainian forces who are deeply entrenched in an area they believe is a major bulwark against a speedy Russian advance westward toward their capital.”
“Jeffrey Epstein had multiple appointments, phone calls and dinners with Matthew Menchel — the Miami U.S. Attorney’s office chief criminal prosecutor who spearheaded Epstein’s sweetheart deal in 2007,” the Miami Herald reports.
“A tranche of over 8,500 pages of records from Epstein’s estate — released by the House Oversight Committee Friday — show that Epstein’s calendars and emails reflect that Menchel, who left the DOJ in 2007, had multiple meetings or dinners with Epstein in 2011, 2013 and 2017. Lawmakers also referred to a photograph of Menchel on a ski trip with Epstein sometime in the 2000s, but didn’t produce the photo.”
“The IRS recently filed notices of a federal tax lien against Republican Sen. Jim Justice of West Virginia — the latest example of ongoing financial troubles that have trailed the former governor, members of his family and their network of businesses over the years,” Politico reports.
“One of the documents from the IRS lists Justice and his wife, Cathy, as having a total balance of more than $8 million in unpaid assessments.”
ProPublica: “Current and former national security officials describe the legions of masked immigration officers operating in near-total anonymity on the orders of the president as the crossing of a line that had long set the United States apart from the world’s most repressive regimes.”
Wired: “With just $800 in basic equipment, researchers found a stunning variety of data — including thousands of T-Mobile users’ calls and texts and even US military communications — sent by satellites unencrypted.”
“A Vermont state senator has resigned over his involvement in a Young Republican group chat after racist and antisemitic chat messages shared among its members were made public,” the Washington Post reports.
“Republican Samuel Douglass announced his resignation, effective Monday, in a lengthy statement posted online, adding that he was ‘deeply sorry for the offense’ caused by his comments.”
“Protesters nationwide are gathering at more that 2,500 locations today to rally against President Donald Trump in what organizers predict will be the largest one-day protest in modern American history,” USA Today reports.
For members: GOP Panic Reveals Fear of Mass Resistance
“The Department of Homeland Security has purchased two Gulfstream private jets for Kristi Noem, the secretary, and other top department officials at a cost of $172 million,” the New York Times reports.
“The jets, which a department official said were needed for safety, are the latest expenditures on behalf of Ms. Noem to draw scrutiny from Democrats and other critics who have noted her lavish spending on living and other expenses during her time in public life.”
“Donald Trump may not be on the ballot in the fall’s biggest political races, but both sides are counting on him to help them win,” CNN reports.
“A year after winning back the White House, Republicans are racing to motivate voters who love the president and Democrats are rallying those who don’t, as the races for governor in New Jersey and Virginia play out as an early referendum on Trump’s second term.”
“Trump administration officials have privately discussed setting up a meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when Trump visits Asia next month, though many are skeptical that it will ultimately happen,” CNN reports.
“President Trump has repurposed money to fund military salaries during the government shutdown. He has pledged to find ways to make sure many in law enforcement get paid. He has used the fiscal impasse to halt funding to Democratic jurisdictions, and is trying to lay off thousands of federal workers,” the New York Times reports.
“Government shutdowns are usually resolved only after the pain they inflict on everyday Americans forces elected officials in Washington to come to an agreement. But as the shutdown nears a fourth week, Mr. Trump’s actions have instead reduced the pressure for an immediate resolution and pushed his political opponents to further dig in.”
“The Trump administration is quietly watering down some of the tariffs that underpin the president’s signature economic policy,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“President Trump in recent weeks has exempted dozens of products from his so-called reciprocal tariffs and offered to carve out hundreds more goods from farm products to airplane parts when countries strike trade deals with the U.S.”
“The offer to exempt more products from tariffs reflects a growing sentiment among administration officials that the U.S. should lower levies on goods that it doesn’t domestically produce.”
“A federal prosecutor who resisted President Trump’s demands to bring charges against Letitia James, the New York state attorney general, was fired along with her deputy on Friday evening,“ the New York Times reports.
“The dismissal of the prosecutor, Elizabeth Yusi, was the latest fallout from attempts by career Justice Department officials to pump the brakes on Mr. Trump’s wide-ranging efforts to seek retribution against his perceived political opponents.”
“A former Trump campaign lawyer who worked on the effort to overturn the 2020 election results has joined the administration to investigate that year’s election and voting-related issues,“ the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Kurt Olsen, a lawyer who unsuccessfully pushed claims of voter fraud, has joined the administration as a ‘special government employee’… The appointment gives Olsen 130 days to work from within the White House without giving up any private business interests. He is talking directly with President Trump.”
President Trump said he had commuted the sentence of former Rep. George Santos, who is serving more than seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud and identity theft charges, the AP reports.
Trump said Santos would be released “immediately.”
“The political director for Graham Platner’s U.S. Senate campaign resigned Friday after Platner’s past online posts featuring numerous controversial remarks resurfaced this week,” the Bangor Daily News reports.
White House budget director Russell Vought said that the Trump administration will freeze another $11 billion worth of infrastructure projects in Democratic-leaning cities due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Taegan 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.