“When France compared the United States to North Korea and Russia in July, the Trump administration responded by freezing the approval of a new French ambassador to Washington,” the New York Times reports.
“Now, after seven weeks of American pressure, France has backed down, apologizing on Friday for the social media post that set off the dispute. That will allow France’s nomination of Aurélien Lechevallier as its ambassador to Washington to move forward.”
“Veteran socialist Bernie Sanders and rightwing activist Steve Bannon are joining forces to call for greater guardrails on AI, in a sign of how concerns over the technology are reshaping the U.S. political landscape,” the Financial Times reports.
“At an event billed as a ‘Pro-Human Assembly’ in Washington on Tuesday, the unlikely duo will be joined by speakers from across the political spectrum — including Republican senator Marsha Blackburn, progressive congressman Greg Casar and conservative stalwart Chip Roy — to urge lawmakers to do more to tackle the effects of AI.”
“Former staffers for Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) are threatening to expose what they say happened behind the scenes in his Senate office,” NewsNation reports.
“The group, which remains anonymous, operates an X account called ‘Former Fetterman Staffers.'”
“The account says it plans to release its first batch of stories and screenshots from former aides’ time working for the Pennsylvania senator.”
“President Donald Trump was dealt a fresh setback in his push to overhaul mail voting ahead of the November midterm elections, with another federal judge blocking the Postal Service from enforcing changes to mail-in ballot rules as the U.S. Supreme Court weighs whether to step in,” Bloomberg reports.
“In a ruling late Sunday, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols in Washington added to the pile of lower court losses for the Trump administration in recent weeks. Nichols concluded that there was a stronger public interest in maintaining the status quo for how states handle mail-in voting ahead of the Nov. 3 contests, when Republicans will defend their slim control of Congress.”
“President Donald Trump on Monday pushed back on growing calls for greater regulation of artificial intelligence, and lashed out at Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei following his urgent plea for an AI slowdown,” CNBC reports.
Said Trump: “The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the USA has that, in spades!”
Jonathan Czin: “President Trump will host Xi Jinping for a state visit on September 24, once again putting his claimed bonhomie with the Chinese leader at the center of the relations between the two superpowers.”
“But Trump’s insistence on the importance of this personal rapport shows just how little he understands his adversary.”
Anne Applebaum: “Far-right ideologues have transformed American foreign policy into a tool of private gain and antidemocratic reaction.”
Dexter Filkins: “Throughout the Trump era, Kushner has made a career of combining business and politics. He argues that being a businessman aids his diplomatic efforts, by allowing him to find inventive solutions to problems ordinarily handled by unimaginative bureaucrats.”
“But, as he has traversed the globe for Trump, he has grown more entangled in the commercial affairs of countries where he works. He represents a new kind of Washington figure, for whom public office serves as a means to extraordinary wealth.”
“We’re not going to let a billionaire class tell us what’s inevitable and fuck over the American people again.”
— Democratic strategist Morris Katz, quoted by Politico, on the need for Democrats to take the lead on AI regulation.
Bloomberg: “The debate reflects bigger questions about where the country sees itself in a world of increasingly fractured international relations. For many on the right, it’s lost much of what made it special, and can’t afford to let neutrality be weakened.”
“It’s a head-to-head between two competing visions. One points to sovereignty, neutrality and distance from larger powers — particularly the EU — as the foundations of Switzerland’s success. The second sees international cooperation as essential for a small economy which can steer its own fate only so far.”
“Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has not appeared in the Senate since June as he recovers from a fall that his office said he suffered at his Washington home,” the Washington Post reports.
“It’s unclear if he’ll be back in the chamber Monday as the Senate reconvenes after a five-week recess.”
“President Trump told reporters he personally uses artificial intelligence ‘for a lot of things,’ but declined to reveal exactly how,” CNN reports.
“Sweden’s high-stakes general election is heading for a tight finish in a contest to decide whether a new center-left prime minister takes over or the far right enters government for the first time,” Politico reports.
“With 95% of results now declared, the left-wing bloc of Social Democrat opposition leader Magdalena Andersson has a three-seat lead in the 349-member parliament — ahead of conservative Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s four-party right-wing alliance.”
“The outcome of Sunday’s vote may not be known until Wednesday. The two candidates for prime minister will now seek talks with other party leaders as they attempt to solidify their blocs into governing majorities.”
The Atlantic: “The White House held a summer contest to see who could appear in the most congressional districts and states with competitive midterm elections.”
Doug Sosnik writes in his latest memo that the midterm elections will “mark the end of the Trump era as the bailing wire that held this political structure together will begin to unravel.”
“Immediately following the elections, attention will shift to selecting the next president of the United States.”
“There’s no fighting. We have essentially taken over Iran.”
— President Trump, quoted by the Washington Post.
“Fresh off basking in the praise of adoring supporters at the GOP midterm convention, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance kick off their first swing of midterm campaigning in earnest this week, with trips that betray how much trouble their party could be in,” the Washington Post reports.
“Trump, returning from a weekend retreat to his Ireland golf course, is scheduled on Wednesday to visit North Carolina, where his handpicked Senate candidate, former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley, trails former governor Roy Cooper (D) by seven points in a recent high-quality poll.”
“Vance, meanwhile, plans to travel to Kansas on Monday to campaign for GOP Sen. Roger Marshall, whose reelection race appears too close for comfort for Republicans.”
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.
