President Trump traveled to Beijing for diplomatic talks while U.S. military operations against Iran continued and the 2026 primary season moved forward, according to NPR Politics.

President Trump announced that U.S. and Nigerian military forces conducted a joint operation killing a senior ISIS commander described as "the most active terrorist in the world," according to The Hill. Said Trump: "Tonight, at my direction, brave American forces and the Armed Forces of Nigeria flawlessly executed a meticulously planned and very complex mission."

Rising diesel and fertilizer prices, driven by the Iran conflict, are pushing Midwest farmers into their most severe financial stress in decades as planting season begins, according to Axios. Said Mark Mueller, Iowa Corn Growers Association president: "The current landscape is more challenging than at any time since the 1980s farm crisis" — a period when soaring interest rates and collapsing exports triggered agricultural bank failures across the region.

Large U.S. employers including Deloitte and Zoom are reducing workplace benefits that expanded during pandemic-era labor shortages, with paid parental leave, fertility subsidies, and 401(k) matches now under review, according to Axios. The pullbacks follow years of competitive benefit packages and reflect rising health-care costs, diminished worker leverage, and increased corporate spending on artificial intelligence.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) drew sharp criticism from fellow Democrats after appearing on Fox News and defending President Trump, according to The Hill. Said one unnamed Democratic critic, per the report: Fetterman, once touted as a working-class populist capable of winning over independents and Republicans, is now seen by some in his caucus as turning his back on the party ahead of the 2026 cycle.

Jamie Ager, a North Carolina farmer, is running for Congress by separating himself from the national Democratic Party in an attempt to win a rural seat, according to the Washington Post. The race is being watched as a test of whether Democrats can recover ground in rural districts they have steadily lost over the past two decades.

President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he did not "want to say" whether the United States would defend Taiwan militarily, raising questions about U.S. commitments to Taipei following his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to The Hill. Said Trump: "I don't want to say."

Political campaigns and outside groups are directing money to social media influencers to promote political priorities while bypassing disclosure requirements, according to The New York Times.

The arrangement exploits a gap in campaign finance law that leaves audiences with no way to identify who is funding the content they see.

Sen. Bill Cassidy faces his first Louisiana voters since his 2021 vote to convict Donald Trump, running against Trump-endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow, former Rep. John Fleming, and businessman Mark Spencer in Saturday's Republican primary, according to Roll Call. Said Trump of Cassidy on Truth Social: "a very disloyal person" — a rebuke tied to Cassidy's role, as HELP Committee chair, in blocking surgeon general nominee Casey Means; a super PAC supporting Cassidy has spent more than $10 million on the race.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Jeanne Shaheen called on the Trump administration to allow a sanctions waiver covering purchases of Russian oil to lapse at its scheduled expiration just after midnight Saturday, according to The Hill. Said Shaheen: "Tonight, when the current license for Russian oil expires, it should not be renewed."

A delegation of prominent American chief executives traveled with President Trump to Beijing for his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to the New York Times. The CEOs were seeking market access and relief from U.S.-China trade tensions that have disrupted their supply chains and export relationships.

President Trump spoke by phone with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and both governments affirmed the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance following Trump's visit to Beijing, according to Bloomberg Politics. The affirmation was confirmed by the Japanese government.

The Food and Drug Administration fired Dr. Tracy Beth Hoeg, a senior drug regulator, amid broader turmoil at the agency, according to the New York Times. Said Hoeg: she did not know who had fired her or why.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) said President Trump traveled to China on "a weaker footing" and that Trump's silence on Taiwan arms sales represented "a critical step backwards" for U.S. interests, according to Bloomberg Politics. Separately, Christopher Smart of the Arbroath Group said incoming Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh cannot "credibly" argue for rate cuts at this stage, citing rising energy prices and building inflation pressures.

President Trump concluded his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and described the talks as "very good," without announcing concrete agreements, according to CBS News. The ambiguous outcome leaves the status of U.S.-China trade negotiations and tariff arrangements unsettled.

The Pentagon canceled a planned temporary deployment of 4,000 troops to Poland, drawing sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers who questioned the last-minute decision during Army briefings, according to The Hill. Said one GOP lawmaker, describing the reaction as being "not happy" and calling the cancellation "a slap in the face."

President Trump described his Beijing summit with President Xi Jinping as producing "fantastic trade deals," including a commitment for China to purchase at least 200 Boeing aircraft and unspecified volumes of U.S. oil and soybeans, according to CBS News. Said Wendy Cutler, former U.S. Trade Representative negotiator and now senior vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute: "So far, it doesn't seem like Trump and his team have a lot to show for the visit." Boeing shares fell 3.8% on Friday, and the proposed tariff relief under a new "Board of Trade" framework covers roughly $30 billion in goods — less than 10% of annual U.S.-China trade volume, according to Capital Economics.

Bipartisan lawmakers called on President Trump to approve a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan after he told reporters he made "no commitment either way" to Chinese President Xi Jinping on the pending package, according to CBS News. Said Rep. Gregory Meeks: "The president is the one that's holding it up" — noting Congress approved the sale in January, four months ago. Rep. Michael McCaul said the U.S. must "arm Taiwan so they can defend themselves for deterrence against Chairman Xi."

The State Department has incorporated "Great Replacement" theory language into official U.S. communications on migration and refugees, according to NPR. The "Great Replacement" concept, which holds that nonwhite immigration is deliberately engineered to displace white populations, originated in white nationalist movements and has been cited by perpetrators of mass shootings including the 2019 El Paso attack.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has proposed ending a civil-rights-era program that requires private companies to report workforce data by race and sex, according to the Washington Post. The program has been a primary federal tool for identifying patterns of employment discrimination since it was established under the Civil Rights Act framework.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley invited the chief executives of four major technology companies to testify before the committee on child safety, according to The Hill. The invitations follow landmark court rulings against two of the firms.

Don Fox, former acting director and general counsel of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, said Trump's recently disclosed stock purchases and financial transactions — hundreds of millions of dollars, including stakes in private companies whose deals Trump personally helped broker — are "completely unprecedented," according to NBC News. Said Fox on Meet the Press NOW: "completely unprecedented."

Migrant arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border climbed for a third consecutive month, reaching their highest level of President Trump's second term, according to Bloomberg Politics. Arrests had fallen sharply when Trump returned to office in January 2025 following a wave of executive enforcement actions, making the sustained three-month increase a reversal of that early trend.

The Justice Department has requested an additional 1,500 National Guard troops to expand the federal law enforcement presence in Washington ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary celebrations, according to The Hill. Said U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces Serralta, who made the request, the deployment is part of a planned "summer surge" of law enforcement in the capital.

Civil rights organizers announced a coordinated "Summer of Action" campaign, with marches beginning this weekend across Texas, Alabama, and Mississippi in response to Republican redistricting efforts targeting Black-anchored urban districts, according to Axios. The Supreme Court narrowed the Voting Rights Act in late April, limiting legal challenges to maps drawn on the basis of racial discrimination.

Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., announced he will not seek re-election after Tennessee's Republican-led legislature and Gov. Bill Lee enacted a map dividing his majority-Black 9th District three ways, according to NBC News. Said Cohen: "Last week Tennessee Republicans silenced the Black vote here in Memphis to make Republican victories likely." Cohen's retirement is the 59th by a sitting House member this cycle, the second-highest total since 1930, per NBC News analysis.

A House Republican leadership member warned that a third partisan fiscal package will likely miss the pre-midterm window if the chamber does not finish its work before the August recess, according to Bloomberg Politics. No named secondary actor, direct quote, or vote figure was included in available reporting.

President Trump's recent public comments on Iran drew critical attention from conservative foreign policy voices, according to RealClearPolitics. Said Hoover Institution fellow Michael R. Auslin: the remarks raised questions about the administration's negotiating posture with Tehran amid broader Middle East diplomacy during Trump's Gulf trip.

Robert Kagan, describing himself as a former neoconservative, argues that the Iran nuclear talks have produced a stalemate that undercuts Trump's demand for rapid, visible wins, according to RealClearPolitics. Said Kagan: Trump "has a need for immediacy, for results, for news, for 'winning,'" but the negotiations have delivered none of those.

Erebor Bank, a startup backed by Peter Thiel, has pitched Venezuelan officials on restoring the sanctioned country's access to the US financial system, according to Bloomberg Politics. The move positions a new, politically connected firm in a market that major global banks have continued to avoid under longstanding US sanctions.

The Trump administration is close to settling the president's $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over leaked tax returns, with the expected deal centering on a $1.7 billion fund to compensate allies who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the Biden administration, according to ABC News. Commission members overseeing disbursements would serve at the president's discretion and could be removed without cause, with no required disclosure of decision-making, and entities associated with Trump would not be explicitly barred from filing claims against the fund.

China hosted President Trump with formal ceremonies and a state banquet during his Beijing visit, producing no major diplomatic agreement, according to The New York Times.

Staffing and budget cuts at the U.S. Forest Service are drawing warnings from officials and fire management experts ahead of wildfire season, according to The Hill. Said one unnamed official cited in the report: "It's going to be a tough situation."

The Virginia Supreme Court ruled that last month's redistricting referendum violated the state constitution, a decision that alters the congressional map heading into the 2026 midterms, according to RealClearPolitics. The ruling drew an immediate reaction from national Democrats, who had counted on the new lines to improve their House prospects in Virginia.

The Supreme Court temporarily blocked a federal appeals court ruling that would have required women seeking abortions to visit a doctor in person, preserving mail-order access to mifepristone while the underlying lawsuit continues, according to STAT News. Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented; said Thomas: mailing mifepristone is a "criminal enterprise."

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has scheduled a June 23 hearing examining tech industry practices, with CEOs from Meta, Alphabet, TikTok, and Snap invited to testify, according to Axios. Said committee spokesperson Hannah Akey: the hearing, titled "Examining Tech Industry Practices and the Implications for Users and Families: Is This Social Media's Big Tobacco Moment?," will also cover AI safety oversight and whistleblower retaliation.

President Trump said he made no commitment to Chinese President Xi Jinping regarding Taiwan and indicated a decision on a pending $14 billion arms sale to the island is coming soon, according to Bloomberg. Xi had issued an unusually direct warning that mismanagement of the Taiwan issue could push the two countries toward conflict.

President Trump told reporters he gave Chinese President Xi Jinping no commitment on Taiwan and would decide soon on a planned $14 billion arms sale to the island, according to Bloomberg Politics. The sale, which has been under review, would be one of the largest U.S. weapons packages to Taiwan in recent years.

Republican lawmakers have not coalesced around any plan to address rising costs, with fewer than six months until the midterm elections and economic anxiety deepening amid the ongoing Iran war, according to Bloomberg Politics. The absence of a unified proposal leaves the party without a domestic economic message at a moment when voter concern over affordability is mounting.

Thirty-three states give their legislatures primary control over congressional redistricting, while nine use independent or politician commissions and two others employ hybrid systems, according to Ballotpedia. The single-member district requirement now standard in every state was not made permanently mandatory by Congress until 1967, with the passage of the Uniform Congressional District Act — 125 years after the Apportionment Act of 1842 first imposed it.

Democrats will likely need to win the national House popular vote by roughly four percentage points just to capture the chamber, following a Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the Voting Rights Act and a Virginia Supreme Court decision striking down the state's newly drawn Democratic map, according to The New Yorker. Said Nate Cohn, chief political analyst at the New York Times: "The stalemate that existed has been broken, and the Republicans now seem likely to obtain a meaningful edge heading into the midterms."

Kevin Warsh was confirmed by the Senate as Federal Reserve chair, with Jerome Powell's second four-year term ending Friday, according to The Hill. Powell's departure closes a tenure marked by sustained public pressure from President Trump, who repeatedly demanded lower interest rates.

President Trump concluded a two-day visit to China with an agreement to stabilize trade relations between the two countries, according to Bloomberg. Said President Xi Jinping: "The two nations agreed to stabilize trade relations," marking what he called a landmark summit.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and chief health department adviser Chris Klomp met with German Ambassador Jens Hanefeld to press Germany to raise its pharmaceutical prices, part of a broader administration effort to lower drug costs for American patients, according to STAT News. Officials raised the possible use of Section 301 tariffs — the same authority used to threaten other trading partners — and the ambassador agreed to consult with Berlin, though no deal was reached.

President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a bilateral summit that analysts say delivered Xi a core diplomatic objective: projecting China and the United States as coequal powers on the world stage, according to the Washington Post. Said one analyst cited in the report: the imagery of two superpowers on similar footing was "exactly what" Xi aimed to achieve.

President Trump departed Beijing after a two-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, receiving a red carpet send-off with an honor guard and children waving American and Chinese flags, according to NBC News. Said Trump of the talks: "Fantastic" trade deals had been made, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio said U.S. policy on Taiwan remains "unchanged" following the meetings.

The Supreme Court blocked a Fifth Circuit ruling that would have required in-person dispensing of mifepristone, allowing continued access via telemedicine and mail while the appeal proceeds, according to Roll Call. Medication abortion accounted for 63 percent of all U.S. abortions in 2023, per the Guttmacher Institute; Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented.

President Trump said China has expressed willingness to support diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Bloomberg Politics. Trump made the remarks during a visit to Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping.

President Trump concluded a two-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, including a private tour of the Zhongnanhai leadership compound, with a package of modest deliverables that stops well short of reversing a decade of U.S.-China decoupling, according to Axios. Said Trump, strolling Zhongnanhai's gardens: "The most beautiful roses anyone has ever seen" — to which Xi offered to send seeds.

President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Beijing's Zhongnanhai leadership compound for a second consecutive day of bilateral talks that have maintained stable relations but produced limited concrete agreements, according to Bloomberg Politics.

President Trump said the U.S. objective of recovering highly enriched uranium from Iran is "more for public relations than it is for anything else," while still reiterating his commitment to removing the nuclear material, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said Trump: "more for public relations than it is for anything else."

Republican redistricting efforts have inadvertently produced a concrete organizing message for Black voter outreach operations ahead of 2026, according to The Bulwark. Organizer Joshua Doss, speaking with Sam Stein, argued that Democrats have systematically neglected the Black voters they most need, and that GOP mapmaking has now handed those same organizers a tangible grievance to mobilize around.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said he expects China to commit to billions of dollars in American agricultural purchases as Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping conclude their summit in Beijing, according to Bloomberg Politics.

Said Greer: China would commit to "dramatic" agricultural purchases from the United States.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping completed the first day of a summit in Beijing, according to CBS News. The same day, Russia launched a large-scale aerial assault on Kyiv.

The Supreme Court blocked a Fifth Circuit order that would have reinstated the FDA's in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone, preserving mail and telehealth access to the drug while Louisiana's lawsuit against the FDA moves forward, according to CBS News. Justices Thomas and Alito dissented; Thomas invoked the 1873 Comstock Act, writing that the drugmakers "are not entitled to a stay of an adverse court order based on lost profits from their criminal enterprise."

The House voted down a war powers measure that would have required President Trump to seek congressional authorization for military action against Iran, though two vulnerable Republicans crossed the aisle to support it, according to The New York Times. The defections mark the second consecutive failure to advance the resolution and signal growing unease within the House Republican conference over the administration's conduct of the conflict.

The House voted 212-212 on a Democratic resolution that would have directed President Trump to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran within 30 days, according to CBS News. Three Republicans — Reps. Thomas Massie, Brian Fitzpatrick, and Tom Barrett — voted in favor; Rep. Jared Golden of Maine was the lone Democrat opposed. Said Rep. Josh Gottheimer, the resolution's sponsor: "I didn't want to have to bring this resolution to the floor. I had hoped that the administration would have changed course after I introduced it and properly briefed the Congress and the country."

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Shawn Montgomery, who lost part of his leg in a 2017 Illinois crash, may sue freight broker C.H. Robinson for negligent carrier selection, according to CBS News. Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote that federal transportation law's safety exception covers negligent-hiring claims, clearing the lawsuit to move forward. Said plaintiff's attorney Michael Leizerman: "They don't end up behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound vehicle unless someone hires them to do so."

Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced legislation that would permanently bar former members of Congress from registering as lobbyists or engaging in lobbying activity, according to The Hill. The bill pairs one of the Senate's most prominent progressives with a close Trump ally, a pairing that underscores the rare cross-ideological appetite for restricting the congressional-to-K-Street pipeline.

The Department of Homeland Security has established a dedicated unit to re-examine the legal status of thousands of permanent residents, with an eye toward deportation, according to the New York Times. The new apparatus represents a structural expansion of immigration enforcement beyond undocumented populations to include green card holders who have already cleared prior vetting processes.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told a delegation of fifteen U.S. chief executives traveling with President Trump that China will open further to American business, according to CBS News. President Trump separately announced that China agreed to purchase 200 Boeing 737 Max jets, up from an earlier deal for 50 aircraft. Said Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi: "I don't think there is a very high bar here for success. They just have to come away thinking they now have a channel to communicate quickly and they can trust each other."

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) warned that relaxing semiconductor export controls to China would accelerate Beijing's surveillance infrastructure, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said Krishnamoorthi: "You're going to be fueling their techno-surveillance state."

President Trump flew to Beijing aboard Air Force One accompanied by the chief executives of Boeing and Citigroup, according to RealClearPolitics. The trip marks a high-profile display of corporate alignment with the administration's China trade posture as tariff negotiations continue.

Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a warning over Taiwan during a period of broad U.S.-China tension that also includes the Iran war and its economic fallout, according to RealClearPolitics. President Trump, despite those tensions, publicly characterized the bilateral relationship in positive terms.

The Chief of Naval Operations said the Navy will cut training, routine operations, and personnel by July if Congress does not pass supplemental funding for Operation Epic Fury, according to The Hill. Said Adm. Daryl Caudle at a House Armed Services Committee hearing: "The [fiscal year 2026] budget didn't bake in [Operation] Epic Fury."

Four longtime Latino civil rights and political organizations are joining forces to register voters and mobilize Hispanic Democrats ahead of the 2026 midterms, according to The New York Times. The coalition is responding in part to a wave of new voting restrictions that advocates say have disproportionately affected Hispanic communities.

The Senate unanimously approved a resolution that would suspend senators' pay during future government shutdowns, according to The Hill. The measure, sponsored by Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), passed by voice vote.

Senators will forfeit their paychecks during future government shutdowns under a new measure set to take effect after the midterm elections, according to Bloomberg Politics. The provision adds a direct financial consequence for lawmakers who fail to pass funding legislation before a lapse occurs.

Republicans, who spent decades opposing government regulation of broadcasters as a First Amendment matter, have shifted toward supporting such oversight under the Trump administration, according to the New York Times. The reversal reflects the FCC's expanded willingness to scrutinize broadcast licenses and content under Trump-aligned leadership.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told President Trump in Beijing that the central question facing both countries is whether they can avoid the "Thucydides Trap" and establish a new model for major-power relations, according to The Hill. The concept, developed by Harvard political scientist Graham Allison, describes the historical tendency toward war when a rising power threatens to displace an established one.

House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill and ranking member Maxine Waters released a House-amended version of the "21st Century" bipartisan housing bill, setting up a conflict with the Senate after President Trump urged the lower chamber to pass the Senate's version instead, according to The Hill.

Said Waters and Hill in a joint release, the amended bill reflects House committee priorities distinct from the Senate text.

A Russian disinformation operation known as Storm-1516 is using AI-generated fakes to target American voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said investigative reporter Stephanie Baker: weakened social media guardrails have made the operation more effective and harder to counter.

Republicans have secured a series of redistricting victories that could offset anticipated Democratic seat gains in the 2026 midterms, according to The Hill. A new poll cited in the same report shows Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as early 2028 presidential frontrunners, while Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy faces a potentially competitive reelection.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned Donald Trump that mishandling the Taiwan issue could lead to clashes between the two countries, according to Bloomberg. The warning came during a nearly two-and-a-half hour meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing — Trump's first visit to China as a sitting president in nearly a decade — with China releasing Xi's remarks publicly while the session was still underway.

The Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair in a mostly party-line vote, replacing Jerome Powell atop the world's most powerful central bank, according to NBC News. Powell plans to remain on the Fed's board after his chairmanship ends.

China's scale as an oil buyer gives Beijing significant capacity to absorb trade disruptions and blunt the economic pressure of U.S. tariffs, according to RealClearPolitics.

Hospital prices rose faster than prices in other health care sectors over the past year, and hospital profits followed, according to RealClearPolitics. The trend extends a longer pattern in which hospital pricing has consistently outrun inflation across the broader health care market.

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Trump privately at their Beijing summit that Taiwan is the most important bilateral issue to China and that if it is mishandled, the two countries will "have clashes," according to NBC News. In public remarks, Xi called a stable U.S.-China relationship "good for the world" and said the two nations should be "partners, not rivals"; Secretary of State Marco Rubio said afterward that U.S. Taiwan policies remain "unchanged."

American agricultural producers are pressing for concrete relief from retaliatory Chinese tariffs as President Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping for trade negotiations, according to The Hill. U.S. farmers have faced direct exposure to the tariff war through lost Chinese export markets, making this round of talks among the highest-stakes diplomatic meetings for the farm economy in years.

Multiple Republican senators are warning that a Trump administration request for tens of billions of dollars to fund the Iran war faces significant resistance in the upper chamber, according to The Hill. Said one unnamed GOP senator, as characterized by the outlet: patience is waning over what members describe as the absence of a clear plan to end the conflict.

The Department of Defense fired the Stars and Stripes ombudsman and issued a letter the same day outlining its editorial policies for the military-funded newspaper, according to The Hill. Senate Democrats obtained the April letter and say it renews concerns about whether the outlet can operate free of Pentagon influence under the Trump administration.

House Republicans say recent favorable court rulings in redistricting cases have shifted internal optimism about retaining their majority in 2026, according to The Hill. Said one Republican: "We're putting ourselves in the best spot possible. We're leading and raising money."

The Senate Banking Committee is set to vote Thursday on legislation establishing federal regulatory guidelines for cryptocurrency companies, according to The Hill. Senators are still negotiating last-minute changes to the bill ahead of the procedural threshold.

The Trump White House has asked the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel to declare the Presidential Records Act of 1978 unconstitutional — and the O.L.C. obliged, concluding last month that 'the President need not further comply with its dictates,' The New Yorker reports.

Said Gary Stern, who served as general counsel of the National Archives for twenty-six years and worked with five administrations on records compliance: 'No one ever suggested that the law was unconstitutional. Everyone worked very constructively, including Trump 45 and his White House counsel, to implement the P.R.A. and make it work.'

Two lawsuits — one by the American Historical Association and American Oversight, one by the Freedom of the Press Foundation and CREW — are already in federal court. U.S. District Judge John Bates heard arguments Wednesday on whether to order the administration to comply while the case proceeds.

President Trump told reporters he does "not even a little bit" think about Americans' financial situation when dealing with Iran, according to The Hill. The comment drew concern from Republican lawmakers working to center their 2026 midterm campaigns on cost-of-living issues.

Republican legislators across the South are moving to redraw at least six districts held by Black Democrats, a campaign that could extend to a dozen seats by 2028, according to Punchbowl News. Said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries: "This is an assault on free and fair elections, an assault on racial progress in America, and an assault on Black representation and the ability of African Americans to actually simply elect the candidate of their choice." The Congressional Black Caucus, which reached a record 62 members this Congress, called a special Democratic Caucus meeting for today to address the fallout from the Supreme Court's Callais decision, which gutted Section Two of the Voting Rights Act.

Higher oil prices tied to the Iran war were the main driver behind a 3.8 percent rise in the Consumer Price Index in April, while surging electricity demand from the AI boom is outpacing grid capacity, according to Axios.

The convergence of an oil shock and a power shortage marks a sudden dual constraint on an energy sector that typically moves slowly, Axios reported.

Voting rights advocates and election law experts say the ongoing redistricting battles in states including Louisiana, Alabama, and Virginia are imposing direct costs on voters, even as the political debate centers on partisan advantage, according to NPR Politics. Said one voting rights advocate cited in the report: "Much of the focus has been on which political party will come out on top — but it's voters who will pay a cost."

Mississippi, Georgia, and Louisiana have pulled back from the most aggressive post-ruling redistricting proposals, giving several Black Democratic incumbents a temporary reprieve, according to Axios. Said CBC Chair Yvette Clarke: as many as 19 Congressional Black Caucus members could be affected in a maximized national redistricting scenario — and in Louisiana, Republicans opted to eliminate one Black-majority district rather than both, leaving Reps. Cleo Fields and Troy Carter in place for now.

A majority of Democratic voters say they support drawing congressional maps that maximize partisan gains even when doing so reduces the number of majority-Black districts, according to Politico. The poll signals a potential shift in how Democratic base voters weigh Voting Rights Act priorities against maximalist redistricting strategy heading into the 2026 cycle.

A commercial vessel was apparently seized by unauthorized personnel near the United Arab Emirates, setting back ongoing US efforts to negotiate an end to the war with Iran, according to Bloomberg Politics. The incident raises fresh questions about who controls the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply passes.

China renewed import permits for hundreds of American beef processing facilities as President Xi Jinping and President Trump met in Beijing to stabilize trade and diplomatic ties, according to Bloomberg Politics. The move revives a significant agricultural export channel between the world's two largest economies.

Rob Flaherty, deputy campaign manager and head of digital for the 2024 Harris presidential campaign, published his own account of what the unreleased DNC post-election autopsy should have concluded, according to The Bulwark. Said Flaherty: "My biggest lesson from the 2024 election is that tactics don't add up to a brand, and a brand is the most important thing in politics today. Without a brand that people genuinely feel is connected to your candidate's deeply held beliefs, your tactics will add up to nothing." Flaherty also said Biden "never should have run for re-election in the first place."

Rep. John Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on China, discussed President Trump's objectives heading into his Beijing summit, according to NPR Politics. Said Moolenaar: the committee's oversight role includes scrutinizing what the administration seeks to secure from China on trade, technology, and security.

President Trump attended bilateral talks in Beijing with President Xi Jinping alongside a delegation that included Elon Musk, Tim Cook, and Larry Fink, according to NBC News. Said Xi Jinping at the opening of talks: "We should be partners, not rivals."

Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) introduced legislation that would permanently codify the right of members of Congress to conduct oversight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security, according to The Hill. The bill comes one year after McIver was involved in a scuffle at a New Jersey ICE detention facility that resulted in criminal charges against her.

President Trump described the U.S.-China relationship as "fantastic" during bilateral talks with President Xi Jinping in Beijing, according to NBC News. Said Trump: "It would be totally reciprocal" — his characterization of the trade framework under discussion at the summit.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met Thursday at Beijing's Great Hall of the People to discuss trade stabilization and the U.S. war with Iran, according to CBS News. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News that China is "the most important relationship for us to manage," and separately warned Beijing that "any support for Iran would obviously be detrimental for our relationship"; the two countries had briefly pushed tariffs on each other's goods above 100% before scaling back last year.

The Nebraska Democratic Senate candidate plans to withdraw from the race to clear the path for independent Dan Osborn, according to RealClearPolitics. Osborn, a labor organizer who ran a competitive 2024 Senate race against incumbent Deb Fischer, has drawn national attention as a rare working-class independent capable of winning in a deep-red state.

A new analysis contends that Xi Jinping's domestic consolidation signals underlying political weakness that the Trump administration could exploit in trade and diplomatic negotiations, according to RealClearPolitics. The piece argues Xi's inward-facing moves reflect insecurity rather than strength, a dynamic it says Washington has room to press.

Senate Republicans voted down more than a dozen Democratic resolutions aimed at reinstating Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regulations rolled back under the Trump administration, according to The Hill. The measures targeted CFPB policies on overdraft fees, credit report privacy, and mortgage lending.

Political organizer Denise Powell won the Democratic primary in Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, defeating state Sen. John Cavanaugh 39% to 37% with roughly 90% of expected votes counted, according to NBC News. Powell, backed by EMILY's List and the Congressional Black Caucus, will face Republican Brinker Harding in November in a seat Cook Political Report rates "Lean Democrat" — one of just three House districts a Republican won in 2024 that Kamala Harris also carried.

William Paul, son of Sen. Rand Paul, confronted Rep. Mike Lawler at a Washington bar and made antisemitic remarks, according to CBS News. Said Lawler: "He yelled out, 'Jews'" when asked who he meant by "my people" — then went on what Lawler described as a "10-minute diatribe about Israel, about Jews" and said he "hates Jews, hates gays and doesn't care if they die." William Paul posted an apology on X, saying he was seeking help for his drinking problem.

The House unanimously passed a resolution calling on President Trump to secure the release of five people detained in China, according to The Hill. The resolution, sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), specifically names Pastor Jin Mingri and Pastor Gao Quanfu among those whose release Trump "should prioritize."

Democratic lawmakers remained skeptical of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's testimony that U.S. military weapons stockpiles are adequate amid active operations against Iran, according to The Hill. Congressional doubts center on two unresolved questions from Hegseth's appearance before House and Senate appropriators: whether stockpiles are dangerously depleted and how much firepower Iran retains.

Former U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke described President Trump's upcoming trip to China as focused on deal-making rather than strategic alignment, according to Bloomberg. Said Locke: "It will be a trip of transactions" — adding that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's inclusion in the delegation signals semiconductor access will be among the items on the table.

Senator Chris Van Hollen pressed FBI Director Kash Patel at a Senate hearing on his reported heavy drinking, internal leak investigations, and the use of polygraph tests on FBI employees, according to The Bulwark. The exchange included questioning about an alcohol "AUDIT test," with Patel offering combative and evasive responses throughout.

William Paul, son of Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), apologized after reportedly directing antisemitic attacks at Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) at a Capitol Hill bar, according to The Hill. Said William Paul: "Last night, I had too much to drink and said some things that don't represent who I really am."

Miami residents have filed suit to block a plan that would convert a presidential library on state-donated land into a hotel benefiting Donald Trump, the New York Times reports. The legal theory is the Constitution's domestic emoluments clause, which bars a sitting president from accepting money or gifts from any state government.

The clause has rarely been litigated to a final judgment, but the factual predicate here — state land, state donation, presidential profit — is about as direct a collision with the constitutional text as courts are likely to see.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Iran has regained access to most of its missile sites and launchers and that its Revolutionary Guard, senior leadership, and enriched uranium stockpile remain in place, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said Blumenthal: "The threat is still there" — adding that the situation leaves President Trump in a "real dilemma" over the Strait of Hormuz.

Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said he would support President Trump's most-favored-nation drug pricing proposal, which would align U.S. prescription drug prices with rates paid by other developed nations, according to Axios. Said Welch: "Not only vote for it, I would work actively and aggressively to make it happen" — while adding that Trump has yet to introduce legislation and should "do it, not just talk about it."

Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-Calif.) filed a discharge petition to force a House floor vote on legislation prohibiting states from redrawing congressional maps more than once per decade, except following a census, according to Axios. Kiley left the Republican Party after California's new midcycle map pushed his district into more Democratic territory.

A bipartisan group of senators wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the administration to make no unilateral changes to Taiwan policy, according to The Hill. Said the senators in the letter: "We write to reaffirm congressional support for the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act and our firm..." — the letter arriving as President Trump visits China.

The Trump administration has largely stopped describing China's crackdown on Uyghurs as a genocide in the lead-up to a summit with President Xi Jinping, according to The New York Times. Trump formally declared the crackdown a genocide in 2020, during his first term.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are holding a summit while both nations compete for leadership in artificial intelligence, according to Bloomberg Politics. No resolution to the underlying technology competition is reported ahead of the meeting.

The Trump administration withheld $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements to California and warned all 50 states that federal funding to their Medicaid Fraud Control Units could be frozen if they fail to aggressively prosecute fraud, according to NBC News. Said CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz: "It's the largest deferral we've ever made. We're making it for a good reason. We'd like the state to at least come to the table and explain to us how these outlier payments have been generated."

Rich Danker, assistant secretary for public affairs at HHS, resigned citing irreconcilable differences with an administration effort to advance flavored e-cigarettes, according to The Hill. Danker left one day after FDA Commissioner Marty Makary moved to expand flavored vape authorizations, which Danker argued risk addicting children.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine has declined to publicly address the military rationale behind the ongoing U.S. war with Iran, leaving the administration's strategic posture without public justification from its top uniformed adviser, according to The New York Times. The Times described Caine as "walking a tightrope" while leading the military through what the outlet called a divisive and unpopular war.

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) questioned Interior Secretary Doug Burgum about how his department awarded a $13 million contract for the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool renovation to Atlantic Industrial Coatings without competitive bidding, according to The Hill. The exchange occurred during Burgum's appearance before the House Natural Resources Committee on the administration's fiscal 2027 budget request.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation to require Treasury's Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to review farmland purchases by China, Russia, and other foreign adversaries, closing what sponsors called "dangerous loopholes," according to CBS News. Said Rep. John Moolenaar, the Michigan Republican who chairs the Select Committee on China and led the bill: "Food security is national security, and we cannot allow foreign adversaries like China to buy up American farmland near our most sensitive military and critical infrastructure sites." USDA data as of December 2024 puts total foreign-held agricultural land at more than 40 million acres; Chinese holdings amount to less than 1 percent of that figure.

Blocked by a series of court rulings that cleared the way for Republican-drawn maps in multiple states, Democratic groups are shifting their redistricting strategy toward flipping state legislative chambers in 2026 to position the party for new congressional maps in the 2028 cycle, according to NBC News. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, House Majority PAC, and The States Project are coordinating a push targeting at least a dozen chambers across states including Wisconsin, Arizona, Minnesota, Michigan, and Pennsylvania — with the DLCC committing $50 million to contest up to 650 seats across 42 chambers. Said DLCC President Heather Williams: "The Callais decision is a seismic shift in the electoral landscape that exposes yet again the importance of Democrats building a strong foundation of power in the states."

Legislation to bolster Ukraine secured the 218th signature on a discharge petition, sending the bill to the House floor over leadership opposition, according to The Hill. Rep. Kevin Kiley of California, who left the Republican Party to become an independent earlier this year, provided the decisive signature.

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that ICE officers will be present at some FIFA World Cup matches in the United States this summer as part of the administration's deportation enforcement efforts, according to The Hill. DHS told The Hill that ICE will "work with our local and" partner agencies at those venues.

The Senate unanimously voted to advance a resolution that would suspend senators' salaries during any future government shutdown, according to The Hill. The measure was sponsored by Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) and applies only to members of the Senate.

The Trump administration is searching for a new FDA commissioner with priorities including rebuilding staff trust, food policy, and drug-approval reform, with officials hoping to complete the process over "the next several weeks," according to STAT News. No short list of candidates currently exists, an anonymous official said, and acting commissioner Kyle Diamantas — formerly head of the FDA's food center — could still hold the role when midterms arrive in November.

The Department of Health and Human Services placed an immediate six-month moratorium on new Medicare enrollments for home health care and hospice providers, citing fraud prevention, according to The Hill. The freeze bars new providers in both categories from signing up for Medicare reimbursement during the moratorium period.

The United States entered talks with China from a weakened strategic position, with the balance of power having shifted toward Beijing even before the Iran war began in February, according to The New York Times. The shift compounds the diplomatic stakes for President Trump as the two countries meet.

The Supreme Court's 6-3 conservative majority this week green-lighted new congressional maps in Louisiana and Alabama that eliminate majority-Black districts — releasing its Louisiana ruling less than three weeks before that state's May 16 primary, after sitting on the case for more than a year. Some Louisiana ballots had already been returned when Governor Jeff Landry suspended the election.

Said Kareem Crayton of the Brennan Center for Justice: "I don't think you can see this as anything other than a raw exercise of power."

Said election law scholar Justin Levitt of Loyola Law School: "It seems the Supreme Court is picking winners and losers, not doing law."

The Senate voted 49-50 against a motion to discharge Sen. Jeff Merkley's Iran war powers resolution from committee, the seventh such failure since hostilities began on Feb. 28, according to CBS News. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who had opposed previous iterations, crossed over to join Rand Paul and Susan Collins on this vote; said Murkowski: "We're in a different place than we were last time we voted on this," citing the administration's failure to provide expected clarity after the 60-day War Powers Resolution threshold passed.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted to require President Trump to seek congressional authorization to continue military operations against Iran, according to The New York Times. The Senate again rejected the measure, but Murkowski's switch marks an expansion of Republican opposition to the administration's war posture.

Senators Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and Rand Paul joined nearly all Senate Democrats to advance a War Powers Act resolution that would halt military action against Iran without a formal congressional authorization, according to The Hill. The 1973 War Powers Resolution requires the president to seek congressional approval for sustained military engagements.

Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said 19 CBC members are at risk of losing their seats through Republican-led redistricting, according to The Hill. Said Clarke: "It's devastating. People have sacrificed so much to make this a more perfect union. And here we are, in 2026, seeing this massive regression in all the gains."

A discharge petition to bring $1.3 billion in Ukraine aid to the House floor reached 218 signatures, according to The New York Times. Representative Kevin Kiley, independent of California, provided the deciding 218th signature; a floor vote could occur as soon as the end of May.

President Trump landed in Beijing for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and was received by Vice President Han Zheng, senior officials, and a military honor guard, according to The New York Times.

A contributor argues Congress should authorize a temporary household gasoline subsidy to offset fuel-price pressure during the Iran conflict, according to The Hill. The proposal frames the rebate as a signal that policymakers are willing to act on affordability, not only on security.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on the Trump administration's fiscal 2027 budget request, which proposes cutting the agency's funding by 52 percent to $4.2 billion in budget authority, according to The Hill. The request represents the steepest proposed reduction to EPA funding in the agency's history.

President Trump arrived in Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, seeking to negotiate on trade and the ongoing Iran war, according to Bloomberg. It is Trump's first visit to China in roughly ten years.

President Trump arrived in Beijing for a state visit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who received him at the Great Hall of the People, according to Bloomberg Politics. Chinese Vice President Han Zheng greeted Trump on the tarmac alongside a military honor guard and hundreds of flag-waving children.

Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have each staked out distinct positions on the Iran conflict, signaling different instincts heading into a potential 2028 rivalry, according to RealClearPolitics. The divergence centers on how each official has publicly framed the war — a contrast analysts are already treating as an early marker of where each man stands on the use of military force.

President Trump arrived in Beijing for a summit with President Xi Jinping, his first state visit to China since 2017, according to The Hill. The two leaders previously met in October in South Korea, and the talks come as Trump faces bipartisan pressure over a concurrent conflict involving Iran.

President Trump landed in Beijing on Wednesday evening local time for meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, traveling with a delegation that included Elon Musk, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and Apple CEO Tim Cook, according to CBS News. Said Trump, when asked how much Americans' financial pressures motivated him to seek a deal: "I don't think about Americans' financial situation. I don't think about anybody. I think about one thing: we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon."

FBI Director Kash Patel and Sen. Chris Van Hollen traded sharp words at a Senate budget hearing after Van Hollen questioned Patel about media reports of excessive drinking, according to NBC News. The source article does not include verbatim quotes from the exchange, but NBC News describes the confrontation as heated.

The U.S. government held six immigration detainees at Guantanamo Bay as of May 11, despite President Trump's January 2025 pledge to build 30,000-bed detention capacity there, according to internal federal documents reviewed by CBS News. The Defense Department has 522 personnel assigned to the operation, which is projected to cost the military $73 million — a figure provided to Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren in April. Said ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt: "The use of Guantanamo is nothing more than political theater like so many other administration policies."

Republican and Democratic lawmakers have jointly written letters to President Trump asking him to press Chinese President Xi Jinping for the release of imprisoned media mogul Jimmy Lai and other political prisoners during this week's Beijing summit, according to The Hill. Lai, a Hong Kong pro-democracy publisher, has been held under China's national security law since 2020.

Senior House Democrats on national security committees called on President Trump to approve the long-delayed $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan before his planned meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to The Hill. Said the lawmakers in a letter: "Delays of Congressionally approved arms sales to Taiwan undercut the maintenance of effective cross-Strait deterrence, and even the possibility" of preventing conflict.

Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has become the largest known political spender in the current election cycle, according to the New York Times. Said Marc Andreessen in 2000: "If you think there's a lot of money in politics now, you haven't seen anything yet."

CBC Chair Yvette Clarke said as many as 19 of the caucus's 58 members could be affected by redistricting in a worst-case scenario following the Supreme Court's ruling narrowing Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, according to NBC News. Said NAACP President Derrick Thompson: "We are witnessing Southern legislators across the former Confederacy approach this racialized gerrymandering process in a way in which we thought we had gotten beyond."

The Trump administration will host a nine-hour prayer festival on the National Mall this weekend, arguing that the nation's founders intended the United States to be explicitly Christian, according to The Washington Post. Pete Hegseth, Marco Rubio, and House Speaker Mike Johnson are scheduled to speak at the event.

The New York Times reports that the Trump administration has quietly scaled back its most aggressive trade ambitions toward China — the moves Trump had positioned as the centerpiece of his economic confrontation with Beijing.

The strategic read is straightforward: when the hardest play proves too costly to sustain, you don't just lose a negotiating round. You reveal your pain threshold to the other side.

Beijing now has a data point it didn't have in January: Trump's opening bid was the ceiling, not the floor.

The Supreme Court ruled in Louisiana v. Callais that Louisiana's newest congressional map is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, according to The Dispatch. The case surfaces a recurring tension in redistricting law: the Voting Rights Act's mandate to create majority-minority districts and the Constitution's equal protection limits on race-conscious mapmaking can pull directly against each other.

Nvidia co-founder Jensen Huang joined Apple's Tim Cook, Tesla's Elon Musk, Boeing's Kelly Ortberg, and Goldman Sachs' David Solomon on President Trump's trip to China, according to Bloomberg. Huang was a last-minute addition to the delegation, placing artificial intelligence and semiconductor policy alongside trade and finance at the table before the summit.

President Trump arrived in Beijing for a two-day summit with President Xi Jinping, with trade, rare-earth export controls, and the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict all on the agenda, according to NBC News. Said Alexander Gray, a national security official in Trump's first term: "The important thing is establishing the ground rules, establishing the left and right bounds of the relationship, establishing what is acceptable to both parties and what would constitute an unacceptable break in the economic equilibrium." Trump brought more than a dozen CEOs to Beijing, including Apple's Tim Cook, Elon Musk, and Nvidia's Jensen Huang.

Cindy Burbank won the Nebraska Democratic Senate primary and announced she intends to drop out of the general election, clearing the two-candidate field for independent Dan Osborn to face Republican incumbent Pete Ricketts, according to The New York Times. Osborn, running without a party nomination, would become the sole non-Republican challenger in the race.

President Trump traveled to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping as U.S. inflation reached its highest level in nearly three years, according to CBS News. The timing places the administration in a difficult position: a high-profile diplomatic outreach to China coinciding with consumer price data that undercuts the White House's economic messaging.

Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA) endorsed President Trump's proposed federal gas tax holiday, describing the 18-cent-per-gallon cut as "symbolic" but still meaningful for consumers, according to Bloomberg Politics. Atlantic Council Vice President Josh Lipsky said Iran is unlikely to appear on the agenda when Trump meets President Xi in Beijing, arguing Trump wants "deliverables" from the summit rather than a broader diplomatic conversation.

President Trump will appoint Dave Venturella as acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, replacing acting director Todd Lyons, according to The Hill. Lyons is expected to depart the agency.

President Trump departed for China to meet with President Xi Jinping, while downplaying any need for Beijing to intervene in stalled Iran peace talks, according to CBS News. The source article does not include direct quotes or specific figures beyond the summit's staging.

President Trump says he will not change course on the ongoing war with Iran as the conflict drives consumer prices higher than wage growth, squeezing middle- and working-class households, according to CBS News. The cost-of-living gap between rising prices and flat wages is emerging as a central economic liability heading into the 2026 midterms.

House Democrats are introducing legislation to redirect oil company profits toward fuel cost relief rather than suspending the federal gas tax, according to Axios. Said Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), who is set to introduce one such bill: it would impose a 100% windfall tax on oil company profits derived from selling crude above $75 per barrel.

The Trump administration plans to name David Venturella as interim ICE director, replacing acting director Todd Lyons, who leaves the agency at the end of the month, according to CBS News.

Venturella, an ally of border czar Tom Homan, previously worked at GEO Group, one of the main for-profit prison companies operating immigration detention centers, before rejoining ICE after Trump's return to office.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has absorbed a series of setbacks at HHS, including Trump's appointment of a vaccine-supporting CDC director, the withdrawal of MAHA ally Casey Means from the surgeon general nomination, and the resignation of FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, according to The Bulwark. Said Kennedy of Trump's replacement surgeon general pick, whom he praised despite her having publicly criticized his efforts to roll back children's vaccine requirements: "I look forward to partnering with her."

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet this week to discuss artificial intelligence, a domain both governments are treating as central to long-term economic and national-security competition, according to The Hill. No secondary quote or specific figure was available from the source.

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, announced plans to investigate a U.S. strike on an Iranian girls' school that killed more than 100 people, according to The Bulwark. Smith also flagged a $29 billion cost estimate for the broader war in Iran and a projected $1.2 trillion price tag for a "Golden Dome"-style missile defense system.

Jho Low, the Malaysian financier accused by U.S. prosecutors of orchestrating the multibillion-dollar 1MDB fraud, has formally requested a pardon from President Trump, according to Bloomberg Politics. Low, who has been a fugitive since U.S. charges were filed in 2018, is alleged to have diverted roughly $4.5 billion from the Malaysian state investment fund.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) endorsed President Trump's push for a federal gas tax holiday, calling the 18-cent-per-gallon cut "symbolic" but still meaningful for consumers, according to Bloomberg. Issa had previously criticized a similar proposal when it was advanced under the Biden administration. Said Issa: "China must be part of the solution" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while defending continued U.S. involvement in the Iran conflict despite rising inflation and gas prices.

The Secret Service presented Congress with a detailed justification for a proposed $1 billion funding increase as Republicans pressed for specifics and Democrats moved to the offensive, according to The New York Times. The agency's pitch came amid unease among GOP members over a proposed presidential ballroom expenditure included in the broader request.

FBI agents interviewed current and former CIA officers at Langley last week as part of a grand jury investigation targeting former CIA Director John Brennan over his role in the 2017 intelligence community assessment on Russian election interference, according to NBC News. A 2020 bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee investigation spanning three years, more than 200 witnesses, and over a million documents endorsed that assessment's findings as accurate — and special counsel John Durham filed no charges against CIA officers who oversaw it.

Karen Evans has left FEMA, making her the fourth person to serve as the agency's acting director since January, according to Politico's E&E News. Evans had held the post since December, succeeding David Richardson, as the White House continues to fill the role on a temporary basis despite having named a permanent nominee.

FDA Commissioner Marty Makary stepped down, with President Trump announcing on Truth Social that Kyle Diamantas, the agency's top food regulator, will take over, according to The Hill. Said Trump, speaking to reporters: Makary had been "having some difficulty" in the role.

FDA Commissioner Marty Makary resigned from the agency, according to The Hill. Makary drew criticism from multiple directions during his tenure, including from the pharmaceutical and biotech industries as well as anti-abortion groups.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet this week for direct discussions on artificial intelligence, as both governments compete to lead development of advanced AI systems, according to The Hill. The talks arrive as the Trump administration faces domestic pressure around frontier AI models, including Anthropic's newly released Mythos.

FDA Commissioner Marty Makary resigned and will be replaced in an acting capacity by Kyle Diamantas, according to Bloomberg Politics. President Trump confirmed the departure.

New U.S. intelligence assessments conclude that Iran has operational access to 30 of its 33 missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz, contradicting President Trump's public characterization of Iran's military as severely degraded, according to the New York Times. The assessments suggest Iran's strike capabilities remain substantially intact.

President Trump and Defense Secretary Hegseth threatened to resume military strikes against Iran as nuclear negotiations remain deadlocked, with each side holding positions the other has called unacceptable, according to The New York Times. The ongoing Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz continues to drive up energy and shipping costs, compounding economic pressure on both countries.

President Trump visited China for talks with President Xi Jinping, according to Bloomberg Politics. Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) and foreign policy analysts from BGR Group and Beacon Global Strategies appeared on Bloomberg's coverage to assess the trip.

The ongoing U.S. conflict with Iran is generating measurable economic strain, and experts say neither Congress nor the Trump administration has effective tools to offset the damage, according to The Washington Post. The constraints are structural: wartime disruptions to oil supply and shipping routes tend to move faster than any legislative or executive response can.

Inflation remains a liability for Republicans heading into the 2026 midterm elections, with voters continuing to cite rising prices as a top concern, according to Bloomberg Politics.

The persistence of affordability anxiety gives Democratic candidates a durable line of attack in competitive districts where household budgets remain strained.

The Justice Department is targeting the Southern Poverty Law Center with legal pressure at a moment when current and former employees say the organization is already internally weakened, according to NPR. Said one unnamed current SPLC employee to NPR: the threat from DOJ compounds existing vulnerabilities inside the organization.

The Pentagon is considering renaming its combat operations in Iran to give President Trump additional political flexibility as peace negotiations stall, according to NBC News. Trump acknowledged he is not factoring the war's financial impact on Americans into his decision-making, telling reporters the ceasefire is "on life support."

President Trump traveled to China this week to meet with President Xi Jinping, with talks expected to cover trade and the ongoing war in Iran, according to The Hill. The visit marks Trump's first state trip to China since 2017.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers Tuesday that President Trump does not need congressional authorization to resume military operations against Iran, asserting that existing executive authority is sufficient for whatever action the president chooses to take.

Said Hegseth: "Senator, our view is that should the president make the decision to recommence, that we would have all the authorities."

The claim is not a legal novelty — it is the latest installment in a 75-year project of executive branch expansion over the war power. But the setting matters: a cabinet secretary telling a sitting senator, on the record, that her chamber is simply not a necessary party to a decision about war.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) questioned FBI Director Kash Patel about allegations of a drinking problem during a Senate oversight hearing, according to NBC News. The article body does not contain verbatim quotes or specific figures from the exchange beyond the described confrontation between the two.

President Trump removed FDA Commissioner Marty Makary from his post, according to two sources familiar with the matter cited by NBC News. NBC's Berkeley Lovelace Jr. reported that Trump had grown frustrated with Makary's performance and had previously considered firing him before the decision was made.

President Trump travels to Beijing this week for a 36-hour summit with Xi Jinping covering trade, tariffs, Taiwan, and Iran, arriving with his negotiating position constrained by the ongoing U.S. conflict in the Middle East, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said Sara Schuman, former Senior Trade Representative for China at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative: the Iran war limits American leverage heading into talks at the Great Hall of the People.

Several Senate Republicans signaled support for a gas-tax holiday floated by President Trump, reversing positions they held in 2022 when President Biden proposed the same measure, according to The Bulwark. Sen. Mike Lee, who called Biden's identical proposal "treacherous" in a 2022 Fox News interview, declined to oppose the Trump version; Sen. Steve Daines, who dismissed Biden's plan as "more gimmicks and bandaid solutions," told the outlet this week: "I think that ought to be an option on the table."

Rising gasoline and grocery prices tied to the Iran war drove U.S. inflation to its worst pace in years, eroding household spending power, according to Bloomberg Politics.

The price increases threaten to become the dominant economic story heading into the 2026 midterms, when voters historically punish the party in power for sustained affordability losses.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping opened talks with expectations scaled back on both sides, as the ongoing war in Iran has consumed attention and resources that each government had expected to direct toward bilateral tensions, according to The New York Times.

Marty Makary resigned as FDA commissioner, with one source telling CBS News that his departure stems from a dispute over flavored e-cigarettes — specifically that Makary had refused to approve fruit-flavored vaping products from Glas Inc. but was pressured by the administration to do so before the FDA approved them on May 6, according to CBS News. Said President Trump on the South Lawn: "Marty's a terrific guy, but he's going to go on and he's going to lead a good life. He was having some difficulty." Kyle Diamantas is expected to serve as acting commissioner.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) plans to introduce legislation suspending the federal gas tax, which would save drivers 18.4 cents per gallon, according to The Hill. Other Republican members of Congress have also moved toward supporting a gas tax suspension as consumers face rising fuel costs during the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The Senate voted 51–45 to confirm Kevin Warsh to the Federal Reserve's board of governors and separately voted to advance his nomination to serve as Fed chairman, according to The Hill. Warsh, tapped by President Trump to eventually lead the central bank, would hold significant influence over future interest rate decisions once confirmed as chair.

President Trump reposted content calling for the arrest of former President Barack Obama during a late-night flurry of social media posts targeting political opponents, according to the Washington Post. The White House did not immediately offer clarification on the post.

Louisiana, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, and Indiana are moving — in sequence or in parallel — to eliminate their lone Democratic House members through redistricting. The Bulwark's Jacob Rubashkin maps the cascade, and the geography of it matters: these are not close calls. These are deliberate purges of minority representation from state congressional delegations.

Said South Carolina Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey: "There will be another Democratic president. And drawing out our lone Democrat could be bad for the state."

Massey's warning is the most honest thing anyone in the GOP has said about this round of gerrymandering — and it will almost certainly be ignored. What he is describing, without quite saying it, is the logic of escalation: blue states will retaliate, the norm against maximalist redistricting will collapse entirely, and the endpoint is single-party congressional delegations as the national standard.

A super PAC with Republican ties is intervening in Democratic primary races, including backing a Texas candidate — a sex therapist facing antisemitism accusations — according to The New York Times. The PAC's involvement raises questions about outside money shaping which Democrats appear on general-election ballots.

The Trump administration has paused a plan to suspend tariffs on beef imports, shelving a measure intended to ease consumer prices, according to Bloomberg Politics. The delay comes as the administration faces mounting pressure over affordability ahead of the 2026 midterms, with high grocery costs among voters' top economic concerns.

American soybean farmers are pressing for concrete purchase commitments from China as Trump travels to Beijing for a summit with Xi Jinping, with fields already being planted amid unresolved demand from their largest export market, according to Bloomberg Politics. The uncertainty repeats a pattern farmers have faced across multiple rounds of U.S.-China trade negotiations, with soybeans historically representing one of the largest single U.S. agricultural exports to China.

The Senate voted to advance Kevin Warsh's nomination to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, with Senators John Fetterman and Chris Coons joining Republicans to clear the procedural threshold, according to The Hill. Warsh is expected to be confirmed to the board in the coming days, positioning him as Trump's nominee to chair the Fed.

The Wall Street Journal disclosed Monday that it received grand jury subpoenas on March 4 demanding reporters' records connected to a February 23 story about General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and planning around the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.

The subpoenas represent the Justice Department using its full criminal-investigation apparatus to identify the sources behind national-security reporting — a move with a specific and troubling genealogy in American constitutional history.

This is not the first administration to reach for this tool. It is, however, reaching for it in a political climate where the institutional guardrails that once slowed or stopped it have been systematically weakened.

Senior House Appropriations Republicans expressed skepticism toward the Pentagon's $1.5 billion budget request, with defense subcommittee chair Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) pressing Pentagon officials while Congress awaits a separate supplemental spending request tied to the war in Iran, according to The Hill.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine appeared before the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee to answer questions on the fiscal year 2027 Pentagon budget request and the ongoing conflict with Iran, according to The Hill. Hegseth also faced questions related to his reported friction with Sen. Mark Kelly (R-Ariz.), a member of the panel.

A federal district court in Washington struck down part of Trump's government reorganization in March, ruling it unconstitutional — one more judicial check on executive overreach. The Hill reports the ruling may paradoxically free Trump's hand on Iran by removing a structural obstacle to regime-change pressure.

The pattern is older than the republic's current trouble: when domestic courts constrict a president's room to maneuver at home, the temptation is to demonstrate dominance abroad, where judicial review rarely follows.

President Trump is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week in a summit that follows years of direct personal dealings between the two leaders, according to Bloomberg Politics.

Reports of a potential deal allowing China to invest $1 trillion in the United States in exchange for the Trump administration rolling back national security restrictions on Chinese deals have drawn pushback from conservative Republicans, according to The Hill. Said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Fox News host Laura Ingraham, among others, raised alarms over the arrangement, which China reportedly proposed last October as part of broader trade negotiations.

The White House is inviting Elon Musk, Tim Cook, and Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg to accompany President Trump on his upcoming trip to China, according to RealClearPolitics. The delegation also includes executives from other large companies, according to a White House official.

President Trump travels to China this week expecting economic deals, but will meet a more confident Xi Jinping at a moment when the ongoing U.S. conflict in Iran has reduced American negotiating leverage, according to Bloomberg Politics. The White House has not publicly addressed how the Iran engagement affects its China trade posture.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said President Trump will confront a major decision on Iran negotiations upon returning from China, according to Fox News. Said Gingrich: "I think the president, when he gets back from China, is going to have a very difficult choice."

Members of Congress with Pentagon budget oversight questioned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about the growing costs of the ongoing Iran war, according to Bloomberg Politics. President Trump separately suggested a fragile ceasefire with Tehran may not hold.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called for a complete reevaluation of Pakistan's role as a mediator in U.S.-Iran nuclear talks after reports that Pakistan allowed Iranian military aircraft to use its airfields, according to CBS News and The Hill. Said Graham: the cooperation between Pakistan and Iran opens the door for reconsidering whether Pakistan can credibly serve as a neutral party in ongoing negotiations between the Trump administration and Tehran.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared before both chambers for Pentagon budget hearings, according to The Hill. Trump's decision to withdraw 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany has not persuaded European allies to join the U.S. military effort in Iran or assist in reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

President Trump endorsed suspending the federal gas tax — currently 18.3 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.3 cents for diesel — but the proposal faces uneven support on Capitol Hill, according to Axios. Senate Majority Leader John Thune declined to commit to the idea, even as Sen. Josh Hawley moved to introduce legislation supporting it.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine testified Tuesday before House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees on a $1.5 trillion fiscal year 2027 Pentagon budget request, according to CBS News. The proposal would represent a 42% increase over 2026 spending levels. Said Sen. Mark Kelly: "When I got to the Senate five and a half years ago, the defense budget was just over $700 billion. Now they're asking for twice as much money — it's nearly the amount that the rest of the world pays for its defense."

President Trump urged House members to advance the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a Senate-passed housing affordability bill stalled in the lower chamber over conservative objections, according to The Hill. The Senate approved the bill 89-10; opposition in the House centers on a provision banning large institutional investors from purchasing single-family homes.

The Hill is running an opinion piece asking whether the Democratic Party's drift on Israel has made a Jewish candidate unelectable in a 2028 primary — a question with precedent older than the modern primary system itself.

The argument, in brief: Jewish voters remain among the most reliably Democratic blocs in the electorate, yet activist energy inside the party has shifted sharply against Israeli government policy in ways that could make a Jewish candidate's identity a liability rather than an asset.

New research finds that ICE raids and deportation fears reduced work among undocumented immigrants and disrupted local economies, with some negative spillover effects on U.S.-born workers as well, according to NPR. The findings suggest enforcement-driven labor withdrawal ripples beyond immigrant communities into broader regional economic activity.

House Democrats are pivoting to an affordability-focused midterm message after the Virginia Supreme Court rejected a redrawn congressional map that party leaders had expected to expand their competitive opportunities in November, according to The Hill. Said Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in framing the new direction: Democrats will run a "full-court press" on economic issues.

Ahead of a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Trump has abandoned his first-term demand that China fundamentally restructure its state-directed economic model, according to The Washington Post. The Post also reports that the administration has adopted elements of Beijing's own economic approach domestically.

Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ), facing federal indictment over her visit to an immigrant detention facility, plans to introduce legislation strengthening congressional oversight authority over such sites, according to The Washington Post. McIver's legal case is expected to escalate as she moves forward with the bill.

Advocacy organizations representing people with sickle cell disease and HIV are lobbying federal officials for automatic exemptions from Medicaid work requirements included in President Trump's tax cut legislation, according to STAT News. Federal officials face a June 1 deadline to issue implementation guidance to states, which must then build compliance systems by January 1.

Under current policies, publicly held federal debt is on track to exceed 240 percent of GDP over the next three decades, adding roughly $200 trillion in new borrowing on top of the existing $31 trillion already outstanding, according to The Dispatch. The Congressional Budget Office, comparing a debt-stabilization path against current policy, found the higher-debt trajectory would cut total per-capita output by 27 percent; separately, IMF cross-national research links debt above 85 percent of GDP to slower growth, a threshold the U.S. already exceeds when state and local obligations are included.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg is expected to travel with the U.S. delegation to China, where a deal for roughly 500 737 Max jets is under consideration, according to Bloomberg.

Said Ortberg: Trump's visit would be "a meaningful opportunity for us."

President Trump described a U.S.-Iran ceasefire as on "massive life support" after rejecting Tehran's latest peace offer, according to Bloomberg. Said Trump: "massive life support."

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet Thursday in Beijing to discuss trade and the war in Iran, according to Bloomberg Politics. The White House confirmed the summit, which marks the first direct meeting between the two leaders since the administration escalated tariff pressure on Chinese imports.

President Trump will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday morning, with discussions expected to center on trade and the ongoing war in Iran, according to Bloomberg Politics. The White House confirmed the meeting.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune plans to defend the $1 billion White House ballroom appropriations request as a security expenditure rather than a construction project, according to Axios. Said Thune: "It's a security-related measure. You've got a president where there have been three assassination attempts in just the last two years."

Strategists in both parties say House midterm advertising will center on Donald Trump for Democrats and Zohran Mamdani, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Nancy Pelosi, and Kamala Harris for Republicans, while Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries go largely unmentioned despite billions in spending aimed at determining who holds the speakership, according to Axios. Said one framing from party operatives to Axios: neither congressional leader generates the partisan animosity that makes an effective attack-ad target.

President Trump raised the prospect of a Vance-Rubio 2028 presidential ticket at a White House event, polling attendees on which potential candidate they preferred while declining to offer a formal endorsement, according to The Hill. Said Trump to the room: "Who likes J.D. Vance? Who likes Marco Rubio?"

President Trump nominated Kari Lake as U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica, according to The New York Times. Lake previously led the effort to dismiss hundreds of Voice of America journalists and eliminate federal funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty — both congressionally appropriated broadcast entities — but the campaign ultimately failed.

President Trump has nominated Kari Lake as U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica, according to The New York Times. Lake previously led an effort to dismiss hundreds of Voice of America journalists and cut federal funding to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, though both attempts failed.

President Trump has nominated Cameron Hamilton to lead FEMA for a second time, months after the administration removed him from the role, according to NPR Politics. Hamilton was dismissed in 2025 after telling Congress that FEMA should continue to exist.

The Senate voted 49-44 to advance Kevin Warsh's nomination to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, clearing a procedural hurdle that puts him on track for a full confirmation vote later this week to replace Jerome Powell as Fed chair, according to The Hill. Warsh, a former Fed governor and private equity executive, is expected to win final confirmation after clearing the Senate Banking Committee.

Ahead of President Trump's talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, analysts and lawmakers raised separate alarms about Iran and Taiwan, according to Bloomberg Politics. Said Rep. Jill Tokuda (D-HI): "Taiwan must not be a bargaining chip." Tom Kloza, Chief Energy Advisor at Gulf Oil, warned that gasoline could reach $5 a gallon or higher this summer if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, calling it "the only lever you can pull that has a major impact" on fuel prices.

President Trump said he wants to temporarily lift the federal gas tax as fuel prices rise during the ongoing war with Iran, according to CBS News. Trump also rejected Tehran's latest ceasefire proposal, telling CBS's Nancy Cordes it was "a bad proposal ... done by people that have no clue as to the danger they're in."

Kevin Warsh's nomination to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors cleared an initial Senate procedural vote, the first in a series of votes planned this week to confirm him as Fed chair, according to Bloomberg Politics. Additional votes are scheduled before confirmation is complete.

Trump's prospects of avoiding a midterm backlash over the economy may depend on whether a fragile U.S. job market can absorb the added strain of the Iran conflict, according to The Hill.

The report flags a vulnerable labor market as the key variable linking military escalation to 2026 electoral risk.

President Trump is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in the coming days, according to NBC News. NBC correspondent Tom Llamas is on the ground in China ahead of the talks, which will focus on trade and economic competition.

President Trump announced plans to suspend the federal gas tax as fuel prices rise in connection with the ongoing conflict with Iran, according to CBS News. Separately, Americans returning from a cruise ship linked to a hantavirus outbreak have entered quarantine, CBS News reported.