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Trump’s ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ Could Carry Big Tax Bill

May 28, 2026 at 1:44 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump isn’t supposed to directly profit from the dismissal of his lawsuit against the IRS,” Politico reports. 

“And yet, he could still owe taxes on the money going to set up a central feature of that deal — the $1.8 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund.”

“Some tax practitioners say the way that the fund, which Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced May 18, is structured likely makes it an income tax liability for the president, potentially costing hundreds of millions of dollars.”

How Howard Lutnick Operates

May 28, 2026 at 1:42 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “In a freewheeling first year in office, Mr. Lutnick, one of President Trump’s most influential deputies, has used the power of the federal government in unorthodox and aggressive ways. Some of his tactics have been creative. Others were blunt-force. Still others were downright outlandish.”

“All of them were honed during decades at the helm of the Wall Street investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, a period in which he amassed wealth and prominence and assumed leadership positions at a dizzying array of corporate entities, at least 818 in all.”

The Progressive Playbook for November

May 28, 2026 at 1:40 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “MoveOn, the progressive grassroots group, is launching a $27 million investment into an election program aiming to engage one specific kind of voter: skippers. These are the voters who turned out in 2020 but became disaffected with politics and stayed home in 2024.”

“MoveOn’s theory of the case is that enough of these voters exist in this cycle’s most competitive races to make a difference — if they can just get them off the sidelines.”

Inflation Rate Hits 3.8%

May 28, 2026 at 1:10 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNBC: “Inflation continued to hit consumer wallets in April, likely keeping the Federal Reserve on the sidelines until the current wave subsides, fresh pricing data released Thursday showed.”

“The personal consumption expenditures price index increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% for the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 3.8%, the Commerce Department reported.”

The King of Queens

May 28, 2026 at 1:07 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Ashley Parker: “President Trump delights in playing what he calls ‘the gay national anthem‘ whenever he wants to rev up a crowd. He’s obsessed with Elton John, was once friendly with Liza Minnelli, and has a Liberace-esque flair for gilded interiors. One of his favorite sports to watch—mixed martial arts—is basically sweaty, semi-naked dudes. And he is a deep and vocal admirer of the physique of fellow men…”

“Some of Trump’s allies note that years before gay marriage was legalized, Trump had gay friends, took pro-gay stances, and allowed gay people to join his private club in Palm Beach starting in the mid-1990s. Ric Grenell became the first openly gay person to hold a Cabinet position when Trump appointed him acting director of national intelligence…”

“To be clear: Trump says he is attracted only to women and, in fact, has been married to three of them. He once hosted the Miss Universe pageant, was caught on tape saying that he loves to grab women “by the pussy,” and was found civilly liable for sexually abusing a woman. Loads more have accused him of sexual misconduct…”

“But there’s also little doubt that Trump has unabashedly embraced the aesthetic—the je ne sais quoi—of a certain kind of gay man.”

Bari Weiss Shakes Up ’60 Minutes’

May 28, 2026 at 12:44 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “Bari Weiss, the editor in chief of CBS News, signaled a new direction for the nation’s top news program on Thursday, replacing the executive producer of ’60 Minutes’ with Nick Bilton, a longtime tech journalist and documentarian who has never worked in traditional broadcast news.”

“The appointment came as part of a significant shake-up at the venerable Sunday evening news program.”

A Very Tight Race for Los Angeles Mayor

May 28, 2026 at 12:21 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Los Angeles Times/UC Berkeley Poll: “Karen Bass, Nithya Raman and Spencer Pratt are locked in a tight battle for Los Angeles mayor, with incumbent Bass holding what pollsters called a statistically insignificant lead ahead of Tuesday’s primary.”

“Bass had 26% support from likely voters, followed by City Councilmember Raman with 25% support… Pratt, the former reality TV personality making his first bid for elected office, had support from 22% of the likely voters surveyed.”

CNBC: Reality star’s long shot L.A. mayoral candidacy becomes surprise test for Democrats.

A Cheapskate’s Guide to Investing in Competitive Races

May 28, 2026 at 12:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Louis Jacobson: “If you want your money to go as far as possible, Alaska’s Senate race—which is one of several competitive races that could determine control of the Senate—may be your best bet anywhere in the U.S.”

“The state has three media markets, none of them bigger than 146th in the nation.”

An on the House side, the best bet is Nebraska’s 2nd district: “This is one of four House seats on our list that are one-media-market districts, and it ranks first because it has the smallest market of any of them. This seat is one of the Democrats’ biggest flip opportunities; Kamala Harris won the district in 2024 by five points.”

Supreme Court Sides with Mississippi Man on Death Row

May 28, 2026 at 12:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Washington Post: “The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with a Mississippi man who was sent to death row for his role in the murder of shopkeeper, upholding a lower court’s decision to vacate his conviction because of potential racial bias in jury selection.”

Jill Biden Admits Her Husband Was ‘Slowing Down’

May 28, 2026 at 11:52 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Former first lady Jill Biden denied in a CBS News interview that she saw signs her husband Joe Biden was in cognitive decline when he was president.

Said Mrs. Biden: “He was the same, the essence of the same Joe Biden, but yeah, he was slowing down.”

Jill Biden has a book coming out next week but this is the last thing Democrats need in the headlines right now.

Pam Bondi Won’t Make a Sworn Deposition

May 28, 2026 at 11:41 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will answer questions about the Justice Department’s release of investigative files connected to Jeffrey Epstein in a closed-door, transcribed interview, not a sworn deposition, NewsNation reports. 

Former Aide Says Jill Biden Is Revising History

May 28, 2026 at 11:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A former senior Biden campaign advisor told Politico that Jill Biden’s recent comments on her husband’s 2024 debate performance are “revisionist history.”

Said the person: “She and a handful of other close advisors around President Biden kept gaslighting us, telling those of us on the campaign we were the ones who were wrong, and that he just had a ‘bad night.’ I think she saw the reputational harm this caused her and is therefore taking a new position.”

Chris Cillizza: “How Jill Biden acted in the days and weeks following Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance does NOT comport with her statement this week that she was scared for his well being during the debate and thought he might have suffered a stroke.”

“On the other hand, if Jill Biden really did believe that something serious was wrong with her husband and acted the way she did, that’s worse? Right?”

U.S. and Iran Reach Deal But Need Trump’s Approval

May 28, 2026 at 11:31 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Axios: “U.S. and Iranian negotiators have reached an agreement on a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and launch negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program, but President Trump has yet to give his final approval.”

Gretchen Whitmer Won’t Run for President

May 28, 2026 at 11:29 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) told a reporter she will not be a presidential candidate in 2028.

Said Whitmer: “I think there will be a robust group of people running for president. I will not be one of them in 2028.”

No Kings Event Set for June 14

May 28, 2026 at 11:16 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The No Kings movement has announced a nationwide event on June 14, “directly counter-programming Donald Trump’s 80th birthday celebrations and a Ultimate Fighting Championship bout on the south lawn of the White House,” The Guardian reports. 

U.S. Sanctions Iran’s Hormuz Strait Agency

May 28, 2026 at 11:14 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Iran’s “Persian Gulf Strait Authority,” the agency launched this month as Tehran works to exert control of transit through the Strait of Hormuz, CNBC reports.

Iran’s ‘Red Lines’ Are the Exact Opposite of Trump’s

May 28, 2026 at 11:13 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The head of the Iranian parliament’s national security commission laid out Tehran’s “red lines” for any agreement with the US Thursday — and they’re diametrically opposed to those of President Trump,” the New York Post reports. 

Said Ebrahim Azizi: “Iran will not be pushed back by Trump’s rhetoric from its red lines: the right to enrich uranium, possession of enriched uranium, authority over the Strait of Hormuz, and the removal of sanctions.”

Mamdani Mimics Trump’s DOGE With COGE Plan

May 28, 2026 at 11:11 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he’s forming a new Commission of Government Efficiency, or COGE, to improve the way City Hall spends public funds, Bloomberg reports.

Said Mamdani: “This commission will find ways for our city to work smarter, faster and more efficiently for working people. New Yorkers deserve a city government as careful with their money as they are.”

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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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