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Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) “says she has a big announcement coming, setting off chatter about a book or TV deal, a return to the courtroom or even long-shot moves involving her old House seat,” the Dallas Morning News reports.
“The Dallas congresswoman is at a career crossroads after losing the Democratic primary for Senate to state Rep. James Talarico (D).”
A Minnesota judge has ordered U.S. Senate candidate Royce White (R) not to contact his ex-wife and son, finding the former basketball star liable for abuse that left his family “plainly in fear,” the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
The order for protection prohibits White from contact with his ex-wife for 50 years and with his teenage son for two years.
“Gov. Janet Mills of Maine on Friday vetoed legislation that would have blocked new data centers in the state until November 2027,” the Boston Globe reports.
“The moratorium would have made Maine the first state in the nation to create such a hurdle for the booming artificial intelligence industry.”
Politico: “It’s a striking turnaround for a politician once dismissed as too hawkish, too establishment and too scarred by a failed 2016 presidential campaign to matter in a post-Trump GOP. But his work on deposing Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and his steadfast loyalty to Trump have boosted him in the West Wing – and among some MAGA voters.”
“Rubio has said he would not challenge Vance for the nomination and it remains to be seen whether his conversion to MAGA politics could win a majority of Trump’s base if he did run. For now, his growing number of admirers in the president’s inner circle describe Rubio’s belated embrace to Trumpism as a selling point.”
“Trump loves the zeal of a convert and it’s a welcome contrast to some old-school Republican elites who shunned the party or avoided Washington rather than reconcile with the president.”
Political Wire members apparently paid close attention to the news this week resulting in 44% of them getting every question right on the weekly news quiz.
Can you do that well? Take the quiz.
New York Times: “Times reporters had a hunch that politicians were using the F-word more than ever. So they analyzed the data and found an interesting trend: Democrats are swearing far more than Republicans.”
“President Donald Trump’s years-long campaign to undermine faith in U.S. elections has gained broad traction with the American public, a Reuters/Ipsos poll shows, potentially creating fertile ground for misinformation heading into November’s midterm elections.”
“Some 46% of respondents said they agreed with the statement that there are large numbers of fraudulent ballots cast by non-citizens in U.S. elections, with 82% of Republicans agreeing compared with 18% of Democrats and 38% of independents.”
Eurointelligence: “The consensus view seems to be that the U.S. war will end with a diplomatic settlement as part of which the U.S. will allow Iran to charge tolls for ships passing through the strait of Hormuz. If that were the outcome, the potentially most serious problem could be contagion as other countries next to narrow maritime straits may do the same.”
“One such country is Indonesia. FAZ reports that the Indonesia finance minister, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, said that his country felt inspired by the Revolutionary Guards, and is considering a toll on ships passing through the strait of Malacca. This strait is even more important to the global economy than the strait of Hormuz. Approximately 40% of global trade pass through it. He suggested that Indonesia, together with Malaysia and Singapore could act jointly, while noting that Indonesia could act unilaterally since its coastline along the strait is the largest. Such a toll would give the country a much-needed fiscal boost, he said.”
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) told ABC News that he spoke to Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ) by phone on Thursday, who said that he is dealing with an unspecified “personal health matter” and “expects to be back to 100% very soon.”
“A private investigator who is working for former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s lawyers called a former Swalwell staffer, asking them questions about their time in the office,” NOTUS reports.
“An investigator who identified herself as working for Beau Dietl & Associates, a high-profile New York firm, told the source she was mainly focused on sexual assault allegations and wanted to talk to the former staffer about her time in Swalwell’s office.”
Washington Post: “A U.S. delegation will resume talks with Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan, this weekend — but this time without Vice President JD Vance, the lead negotiator.”
“After Vance led a delegation there earlier this month that took part in more than 20 hours of negotiations on the ground, the White House this time said talks will be led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law who has taken part in past negotiations.”
“An internal Pentagon email outlines options for the United States to punish NATO allies it believes failed to support U.S. operations in the war with Iran, including suspending Spain from the alliance and reviewing the U.S. position on Britain’s claim to the Falkland Islands,” Reuters reports.
Politico: “The administration is still sending more forces to the region — and asking for help from allies — even as the White House says the conflict is over.”
Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni said today that she hasn’t spoken with President Trump since the two clashed around Easter weekend, but ties are “still solid,” Bloomberg reports.
“When a U.S. soldier was indicted on Thursday on charges of using classified information to place prediction market bets, it seemed to confirm President Trump’s lament just hours before that ‘the whole world unfortunately has become somewhat of a casino,'” the New York Times reports.
Said Trump: “I was never much in favor of it. I don’t like it conceptually. It is what it is. I’m not happy with any of that stuff.”
“Yet Mr. Trump and his family stand to profit from the very same industry.”
“The president’s publicly traded media company unveiled its own prediction market product last year. And the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., has ties to two of the industry’s top firms, including Polymarket, the platform that prosecutors say was used by the soldier for well-timed bets.”
“We have all the time in the world, and we’re not anxious for a deal.”
— Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, quoted by Punchbowl News, on the Iran War.
“A federal appeals court ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s declaration of an ‘invasion’ at the U.S.-Mexico border was illegal, effectively clearing the way to reopen the United States to migrants seeking asylum,” the Washington Post reports.
“It was not clear when asylum processing would resume, and the Trump administration is likely to appeal the decision.”
“Top White House officials are frustrated with former Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who they believe failed to do enough to stop Democrats’ successful redistricting push,” Politico reports.
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.
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