“I get accused on the right all the time of– I just want people to have a ‘kumbaya’ moment. I want people to hold hands and just hug it out. And we’re done with that. We’re done holding hands and hugging it out. I’m not asking anybody to hold hands and hug it out. I’m not asking for that. I’m trying to get people to stop shooting each other. That’s it.”
— Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), on 60 Minutes.
President Trump bashed “communist” New York City mayoral race front-runner Zohran Mamdani (D) and renewed a threat to withhold federal funding from the Big Apple if the Democratic nominee wins, CNBC reports.
Said Trump: “He is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great City. Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his FAKE Communist promises. He won’t be getting any of it, so what’s the point of voting for him?”
“Speaker Mike Johnson told House Republicans on a conference call Monday that they need to stick together to force Senate Democrats to swallow the seven-week stopgap bill the House passed last week,” Politico reports.
“Johnson said he plans to bring the House back into session next week, the people said — a decision that comes as some House Republicans grow restless about the prospect of being out of Washington as a potential government shutdown looms.”
“I told them, ‘You didn’t get me elected. I do not work for you; I work for my district.’ We aren’t supposed to just be whipped on our votes because they’re telling us what to do with this scary threat, or saying ‘We’ll primary you,’ or that we won’t get invited to the White House events.”
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), quoted by the New York Times, recounting her disagreements with the Trump administration.
“Wisconsin business owner Bill Berrien, a supporter of President Donald Trump, ended his Republican campaign for governor on Friday, days after it was reported that he followed numerous sexually explicit accounts online, including a nonbinary pornography performer,” the AP reports.
“President Donald Trump said on Monday he would impose a 100% tariff on all films produced overseas that are then sent into the U.S., repeating a threat made in May that would upend Hollywood’s global business model,” Reuters reports.
“The step signals Trump’s willingness to extend protectionist trade policies into cultural industries, raising uncertainty for studios that depend heavily on cross-border co-productions and international box-office revenue.”
“I have no faith in Donald Trump’s judicial system. He has turned this judicial system to be his own political fighter, do what he wants politically, so that he tells them to go after people he doesn’t like, he tells them to exonerate people that he likes.”
— Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), quoted by The Hill.
“The number of people charged with breaking federal drug laws dropped to the lowest level in decades this year after the Trump administration ordered enforcement agencies to focus on deporting immigrants,” Reuters reports.
“So far this year, about 10% fewer people have been prosecuted for drug violations compared to the same period of 2024, court records show, a drop of about 1,200 cases and the slowest rate since at least the late 1990s. The pullback was more dramatic for the types of conspiracy and money-laundering cases often used to pursue higher-level traffickers. The number of people charged with money-laundering dropped by 24%, according to Reuters’ analysis.”
Oregon and its largest city, Portland, are suing to block President Trump from deploying the state’s National Guard, calling it an unconstitutional abuse of power, Politico reports.
President Trump accused former FBI Director Christopher Wray of “inappropriate” behavior during his tenure and said he “would think” the Justice Department is investigating him, NBC News reports.
Said Trump: “I would imagine. I would certainly imagine. I would think they are doing that.”
The Financial Times profiles Stephen Miller.
“Washington’s most powerful unelected bureaucrat slashes immigration and threatens his political enemies.”
“Australian beef has replaced U.S. supply in China since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, funnelling hundreds of millions of dollars that have in previous years gone to the U.S. cattle industry into Australian pockets,” Reuters reports.
In their meeting at the White House today, President Trump will try to close the gap with Israel prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu “who Trump believes is losing his grip on power,” Politico reports.
Said one Trump adviser: “Bibi is on his own island. Not just from us, from his own government.”
Axios: Trump plans to squeeze Netanyahu to sign Gaza peace deal.
“Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe signed a new U.S. House map into law Sunday as part of President Donald Trump’s plan to try to hold on to a narrow Republican majority in next year’s congressional election,” the AP reports.
“Public polling makes clear that generational change is coming that is set to reshape U.S. policy toward Israel in fundamental ways,” Politico reports.
“On both the left and the right, young Americans are growing more skeptical of offering unconditional U.S. support to Israel, particularly as the death toll in Gaza rises and the possibility of Palestinian statehood dims. At the same time, younger Israelis are veering hard to the right, becoming more nationalist and religious and less sympathetic to the Palestinians, a shift that will create more tension in the U.S.-Israel relationship in the years to come. A collision looks unavoidable.”
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.
