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THE BIG PICTURE
Trump's economic approval rating has hit a historic low — worse than Biden and Carter — as wholesale prices surge 6% annually and the Iran war's full grocery-bill damage hasn't even landed yet. Republicans on the Hill are still doing their best not to have heard anything, but three GOP senators have now broken ranks on the war powers vote, and JD Vance is on tape insisting Trump never said something Trump said on camera. The week is getting uglier faster than they can contain it.
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS
1. Trump's Economy Is Breaking Records Nobody Wanted
The numbers are now undeniable. Trump's economic approval rating has hit a historic low, polling worse than both Joe Biden and Jimmy Carter (The New Republic). The April Producer Price Index came in at 6% annual wholesale price growth — the largest such increase since December 2010 (Common Dreams). And AP is reporting that the full impact of war-driven fuel costs on grocery prices won't even show up for months (AP Politics). CNN's Harry Enten called these "the worst numbers ever" on an issue that is "absolutely" on Americans' minds (The Daily Beast). The kicker: when asked directly whether Americans' financial suffering motivated him to end the Iran war, Trump said he "doesn't think about Americans' financial situation" — and there's video (The Guardian US). JD Vance then went on television to claim Trump never said that (The New Republic). There is video.
2. GOP Iran War Resistance Is Growing — But Still Losing
Since our last briefing, Sen. Lisa Murkowski has flipped, becoming the third Republican to vote with Democrats on a war powers resolution requiring congressional approval for the Iran conflict. The measure still failed 49-50 (The Guardian US). The Democratic caucus was not unanimous: John Fetterman was the sole Democrat to vote against the resolution (The New Republic). Three GOP defections is movement, but it is not a majority, and Trump retains his war footing heading into the Beijing summit.
3. The Redistricting Blitzkrieg Keeps Going
Republicans are not done. The New Republic reports the GOP is moving to redraw maps in at least Georgia and South Carolina before the midterms (The New Republic), and Tennessee Republicans are going scorched earth — using the post-VRA landscape to target Democratic colleagues including Rep. Justin Pearson (The New Republic). House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called it out explicitly Wednesday, invoking the "ghost of the Confederacy" (Huffington Post News). A Virginia MAGA rep, meanwhile, ran away from reporters after a radio host she agreed with said Jeffries had "cotton-picking hands" (The New Republic).
4. The DOJ Is Now a Weapon — and Nobody on the Right Wants to Talk About It
Two separate stories illustrate the same reality. First: James Comey has now been indicted a second time, and legal experts are flagging it as a warning to anyone considering cooperation with investigators (The Guardian US). Second: Kash Patel has reportedly created a dedicated political hit squad inside the FBI — a team focused solely on investigating cases with political value to Trump (The New Republic). When HuffPost asked Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune about the separate report that the DOJ is preparing to pay Trump $10 billion, both claimed they weren't familiar with it (Huffington Post News).
5. Trump's Birthday Pardon Bonanza Is Real
The Daily Beast reports the White House is actively planning a mass pardon event timed to Trump's 80th birthday (The Daily Beast). This is not speculation — it is a coordinated scheme being developed inside the building. Given that pardoned January 6 rioters have already reoffended, and that the pardon power is being used as a loyalty reward, this deserves serious pre-emptive coverage before it happens.
THINGS TO WATCH
Republicans are actively meddling in Democratic primaries. The Nebraska result — where a GOP-linked PAC boosted a Democratic candidate who then immediately announced she'd drop out for independent Dan Osborn — is a preview of a tactic that will scale (Huffington Post News). This is worth watching in every competitive Senate state.
MAGA is fracturing over the Iran war — slowly but visibly. The base is revolting against any deal; three GOP senators broke on war powers; Trump is polling at historic lows on the economy he tied to the war. The political cost of the conflict is accumulating even as military progress stalls.
Big Tech's Beijing entourage signals a new transactional normal. The CEO lineup on Air Force One heading to China (AP Politics) and Musk's documented re-entry into Trump's orbit via white supremacist talking points (The Daily Beast) together describe an ecosystem where access is purchased and political protection is the product.
👀 KEPT OUT OF YOUR FEED
What the algorithm buried:
Bari Weiss let Netanyahu pick his own 60 Minutes interviewer.
Rand Paul's son got drunk at a D.C. bar and said something so jaw-dropping as reporter watched
Miami residents are suing to block Trump's "presidential library"
Musk crawled back into Trump's good graces by going full white supremacist
Judges have ruled against ICE over 10,000 times — and even Trump's own appointees are signing off on it.
The Secretary of the Interior proves he does not know that batteries exist
Taxpayers spent $73 million so Trump could imprison six migrants at Guantánamo — government employees outnumber detainees 100 to one.
The DHS watchdog just launched a probe into Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski's $38 billion warehouse-to-megajail scheme — and the receipts are ugly.
Jimmy Fallon just compared Trump's Lincoln Memorial "beautification" project to an IHOP parking lot — and honestly, he's not wrong.
Colbert just explained why Trump renamed his Iran war — and it's even dumber than you think
Stephen Colbert has one question about the president who posted 55 times in three hours — then fell asleep in the Oval Office.
NOTICE POLLING
Yesterday, we asked, Does Trump care about average Americans?
OVER 98% OF YOU SAID NO:
“That piece of shit so called ‘human’ doesn’t give a damn about anything or anyone except himself & his riches! Period!”
- tewalsh
“FFOTUS(First Felon of the United States) is only focused on making more money for himself & family; a raping of American population.”
- millodious“It came right out of the horses ass that he doesn’t”
- vikingschmitzds
“He never cared about the average person. Ask all the subcontractors who work with him in the 80s.”
- khassett95
“This has been obvious for years. The bigger question is what can be done to save the USA. We can complain all day, but until those in power act, we are a lost country.”
– callajr.jc
A lot of new people joined this week. If you've been on the fence — now's a good time. Paid memberships are 50% off →
Until next time,
