Washington Post: “On Wednesday night, Trump will dine at what he acknowledges as the gold standard: Versailles, the enormous, gilded French palace that was home to Louis XIV, the self-appointed Sun King whose embrace of golden grandeur has long fascinated the U.S. president.”
“French President Emmanuel Macron invited Trump to join him at the palace, about 15 miles southwest of Paris, in a bid to extend the U.S. president’s stay in France.”
“A federal judge who has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s plan to close the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for renovations issued an order on Tuesday that gave officials three days to update him on its plan,” the New York Times reports.
New York Times: “Despite his relentless disavowals that he has any interest in seeking the presidency, Mr. Ossoff is now regularly mentioned as a potential 2028 contender. There’s good reason for him not to talk about it: Georgia remains a difficult state for Democrats to win, and Mr. Ossoff, the only Democratic incumbent seeking re-election in a state that Mr. Trump won in 2024, can’t afford to turn away from the immediate challenge.”
“Georgia on Wednesday will become the latest Southern state to seize upon the recent Supreme Court decision on voting rights to consider redrawing its congressional lines to favor the Republican Party,” the New York Times reports.
“Gov. Brian Kemp has summoned lawmakers to the Capitol in Atlanta for a special session, aiming to lock in new federal and state legislative lines ahead of the 2028 elections.”
Glenn Beck told the New York Post that President Trump once made him sign a non-disclosure agreement after giving him a private tour of the Lincoln Bedroom and telling him “some stuff.”
“House Democrats’ flagship super PAC is expanding its TV ad reservations in a pair of states upended by redistricting efforts,” NOTUS reports.
“House Majority PAC, which is closely aligned with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, is adding nearly $5 million to Miami and West Palm Beach, covering several battleground seats in south Florida, as well as an additional $6.5 million to Norfolk and Richmond in Virginia.”
“The Trump administration is warning all 50 states that they risk losing federal funding for unemployment insurance benefits if they don’t comply with antifraud efforts,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The administration alleges that unemployment benefits have become an easy target for fraud, especially in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic when millions of Americans relied on aid after losing their jobs.”
“The Trump administration wants 400 dealmakers to help the US bolster its national security supply chains — and it’s offering salaries as high as $400,000 a year for Wall Street recruits,” Bloomberg reports.
“Under a new hiring initiative, the White House is targeting top dealmaking talent by dangling those potential salaries — which match the president’s pay — with the promise that candidates won’t have to shed their private-sector stock options.”
CNN Poll: “Just shy of half of Americans think society has gone too far in its acceptance of different cultures, gender identities, sexual orientations and backgrounds, while a little over half reject that characterization.”
“Over the past year, Republicans and independents have grown more likely to say that society’s level of acceptance has gone too far, driving the overall share of the public who takes that view up 6 points from last summer. Close to eight in 10 Republicans now say they feel that way, as do 47% of political independents.”
“President Donald Trump’s emerging nuclear accord with Iran risks securing fewer restrictions than the deal negotiated by the administration of Barack Obama — one he derided and later scrapped,” Bloomberg reports.
“The potential agreement, set to be negotiated over a 60-day period, will build on a memorandum of understanding that states only that Iran’s stockpile of near-bomb-grade uranium be ‘adequately addressed.’ That leaves unresolved the fate of enough material to fuel multiple weapons, and underscores the challenge of surpassing the strength of Obama’s 2015 accord in preventing a nuclear-armed Iran.”
Punchbowl News: “Senate GOP leaders wanted to get back in sync with President Donald Trump after weeks of public clashes. Quickly clearing two of the president’s high-profile nominations was a good place to start.”
“Trump has blown that up.”
“The president suddenly announced early Wednesday morning that he’s delaying his nomination of Jay Clayton as director of national intelligence until his pick for the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, James McDonald, is approved by the Senate. McDonald would be Clayton’s successor in the key Justice Department post. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) have to approve of the nominee for SDNY.”
“Clayton was set for a hearing today in the Senate Intelligence Committee to become director of national intelligence. Clayton’s quick confirmation was supposed to be the piece that unlocked a bipartisan deal to reauthorize FISA Section 702.”
Tom Nichols: “Donald Trump arrived in France yesterday for this morning’s G7 summit and promptly confirmed America’s capitulation to Iran.”
“Instead of merely repeating the outlines of what looks to be a terrible peace deal, however, Trump made a series of statements so bizarre, even by his usual standards, that they raise the question of whether the president still understands the words that come out of his own mouth.”
“Ronald Reagan National Airport will be closed to flight traffic after noon on the Fourth of July, the local airports authority announced on Tuesday, as it warned would-be passengers to brace for several interruptions during the Trump administration’s planned events surrounding the nation’s 250th birthday,” the New York Times reports.
“Rep. Mike Collins (R) is projected to defeat former college football coach Derek Dooley in the Senate Republican runoff to take on Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) in Georgia this fall,” according to Decision Desk HQ.
“Collins’s victory is a major win for President Trump, who issued a last-minute endorsement for the staunch ally over the weeekend.”
Axios: “The deal is expected to allow Iran to sell oil freely during a 60-day negotiating window, while opening the door to broader sanctions relief, access to frozen funds and a potential $300 billion rebuilding investment fund if a final nuclear agreement is reached.”
“Critics argue that after shredding the 2015 nuclear deal in his first term, Trump is now following the same playbook — unfreezing cash in exchange for nuclear concessions — while potentially going a step further with the rebuilding fund.”
“Trump administration officials are discussing ideas to kick-start oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, including a plan that would offer a fee-based ‘VIP pass’ naval escort through the waterway,” Politico reports.
“President Donald Trump and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles have called for ideas to convince ship owners to take the risk of transiting the strait as the United States and Iran continue peace talks, said two energy industry officials familiar with the talks. The discussions so far have centered on ways to convince insurance companies to offer coverage to travel through a narrow waterway in which Iran has successfully attacked vessels.”
“The cryptocurrency industry’s biggest bet of the midterm election cycle so far has flown mostly under the radar,” the New York Times reports.
“It has been placed in Alabama, where a group tied to the main crypto super PAC, Fairshake, has spent $9.8 million on ads to try to elect a pro-crypto Republican congressman, Barry Moore, according to data from the media tracking firm AdImpact. Fairshake said its total spending in the race, including on things like direct mail, came to $12.1 million.”
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.
