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National Guard Now Carrying Weapons in D.C.

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National Guard members in Washington are now carrying weapons and “detentions may occur leading to arrests,” potentially deepening the military’s involvement in President Trump’s federal takeover of D.C. police, the Washington Post reports.

Guard members will carry their service-issued weapons, which may include M4 carbine rifles and M17 pistols.

CBS News: “The step is an escalation in Mr. Trump’s intervention into policing in the nation’s capital and comes as nearly 2,000 National Guard members are stationed in the city, with the arrival last week of hundreds from several Republican-led states.”

Just One Party Has Recruitment Bonanza in New Jersey

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“As Republicans look to flip House seats through redistricting in Texas and other red states, they have a pickup opportunity in what was once deep blue North Jersey, without having to redraw any lines,” Politico reports.

“In the state’s heavily Hispanic 9th Congressional District, the Democrat who was widely thought to be a shoo-in won by just five points last year, and President Donald Trump narrowly won the district after losing it the last two cycles. Yet, even amid talk of New Jersey becoming a purple state, just two Republican candidates have stepped forward to run in the district.”

“By contrast, in the one Republican-held seat Democrats have a realistic opportunity to pick up, in Central Jersey’s 7th District, Democrats are practically falling over each other to challenge two-term Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr.”


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Democrats Slam Trump’s Push for Troops in More Cities

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“Democrats on Sunday pushed back against President Trump’s characterization of blue-state cities as crime-ridden and lawless, which the White House has used to justify calling up National Guard troops and sending federal law enforcement agents to Washington streets,” the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Trump said on Friday that he was considering using the same playbook in other major American cities, and that Chicago could be next. The administration has not indicated when the National Guard could be sent to Chicago, New York or any of the other cities the president has mentioned.”

Texas County Cuts Over 100 Polling Sites

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“Officials in a large North Texas county decided this week to cut more than 100 Election Day polling sites and reduce the number of early voting locations, amid growing concern about GOP efforts to limit voting access ahead of next year’s midterm elections,” ProPublica reports.

“The 3-2 vote on Tuesday by commissioners in Tarrant County, which includes Fort Worth, came one day after President Donald Trump vowed to end the use of mail-in ballots.”

Trump Rips Wes Moore

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President Trump lashed out at Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) — accusing him of taking a “nasty and provocative tone” in a letter inviting Trump to a public safety walk in Baltimore.

Said Trump: “As President, I would much prefer that he clean up this Crime disaster before I go there for a ‘walk.’ Wes Moore’s record on Crime is a very bad one, unless he fudges his figures on crime like many of the other ‘Blue States’ are doing.”

Democrats Fight Over the Primary Calendar

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Jonathan Martin: “When the Democratic National Committee convenes for its summer meeting in Minneapolis Monday, it’ll begin discussing one of the most contentious, divisive and delicate matters consuming a party out of power: the calendar.”

“Chuckle as you may, the process can be (deeply) political, and little gets Democratic insiders stirred up quite like where and when to begin their presidential nominating contest. The debate is suffused with matters of race, region, class and, perhaps most significantly, the vanity of the would-be kingmakers in the states vying to kick off the 2028 primary.”

The Trump Family Cashes In First

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“When President Trump gets in on a new online moneymaking idea, his followers often pile in—but two out of the last three times, they went on to lose bigly,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Now the first family is trying again and the idea, at least, is intriguing. Unfortunately for fans, the Trump venture into a ‘crypto treasury’ stock is also set up so the president and his family cash in first.”

“The president’s ventures have so far been a disaster for investors who were slightly late to buy into them.”

A Rising Risk for the U.S. Economy

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“The labor market has moved front and center for the Federal Reserve, highlighting its fragility and risk to the economy,” the Wall Street Journal reports

“The good news is that unemployment remains low, and employers haven’t been all that interested in laying people off. The bad news is that companies haven’t been all that interested in hiring, either.”

“This precarious situation means even a relatively small increase in layoffs could lead the economy to start shedding jobs—a process that can be difficult to reverse once it starts.”

House Freedom Caucus Is Under Renovation

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“After more than a decade of upending life under the Capitol dome, leading members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus have decided their fortunes would be better in their state capitals,” the Washington Post reports.

“Four of the most prominent archconservatives in that caucus have said they are running for statewide office, the latest being Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who announced Thursday he will run for state attorney general.”

“Roy followed Reps. Andy Biggs (Arizona), Byron Donalds (Florida) and Ralph Norman (South Carolina) in saying they will run for the GOP nomination for governor in their states. They depart at a time when the Freedom Caucus’s swagger and negotiating credibility on Capitol Hill have taken a hit.”

The New Swing Voter

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Ron Brownstein: “Earlier in the 21st century, the dominant view among experts was that swing voters — those who might switch their party preference between elections — were all but extinct. Even today, the number of people who reliably turn out to vote but also regularly flip their votes between parties remains very modest by historical standards.”

“Yet strategists in both parties believe a new kind of swing voter has emerged as the total number of voters has dramatically increased in the past decade. Today’s key swing voters are the many Americans who cycle in and out of the electorate, casting a ballot in some elections but not others.”

Trump’s Next Fight With Universities

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“After months of targeting universities over antisemitism allegations, the Trump administration is turning to a new focus: whether schools are using proxies for race in admissions to diversify student bodies,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“This emphasis is emerging in recent edicts from federal agencies and in the White House’s scrutiny of specific universities.”

Most Californians Disapprove of Trump’s Deportations

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“Most California voters strongly disapprove of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies and believe that raids in the state have unfairly targeted Latinos, according to a new poll,” the Los Angeles Times reports.

“The findings, released Sunday, reflected striking emotional reactions to immigration enforcement. When voters were asked to describe their feelings about news reports or videos of immigration raids, 64% chose rage or sadness ‘because what is happening is unfair.’”

Epstein Files Sent to Congress Were Already Public

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“The ‘overwhelming majority’ of documents the Justice Department gave Congress in response to a subpoena for all information from its investigation into the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein had already been publicly released, the top Democrat on the House’s principal investigative committee said on Saturday,” the New York Times reports.

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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