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Leigh Ann Caldwell, Peter Hamby, Julia Ioffe, Marianna Sotomayor, John Heilemann, & Abby Livingston
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Sunday through Thursday
Puck’s daily political newsletter from Washington—featuring Leigh Ann Caldwell, Peter Hamby, Marianna Sotomayor, Julia Ioffe, John Heilemann, and Abby Livingston—on what’s really happening in this town, from the White House to the Pentagon to Capitol Hill, K Street, the campaign trail, and beyond.
THE LATEST ARTICLES
Julia Ioffe
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July 2, 2026
Is It Time to Cancel the Annual NATO Summit?
The alliance’s summer meeting, which became a yearly event after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has since devolved into an annual display of Trump-induced disunity. “It’s not productive. It risks being destructive,” said one former defense official. So why keep taking that risk every single year?
Julia Ioffe
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June 25, 2026
Vance’s New Promised Land
As the Republican base sours on the Iran war and Netanyahu’s adventurism in the Middle East, the vice president has changed his rhetoric on Israel—positioning himself as the voice of a new MAGA foreign policy. “He sees the writing on the wall,” said one Trump administration official. “He’s trying to save his political future.”
Julia Ioffe
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June 18, 2026
Shock and Awe in Moscow
A new wave of Ukrainian drone strikes in the heart of Russia’s capital city has exposed the weakness of Putin’s air defenses—and the potential fragility of his regime.
Julia Ioffe
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June 18, 2026
Trump’s Surrender at Versailles
Hawkish Republicans are apoplectic over the president’s hastily signed deal with Iran—an agreement that falls far short of his original demand for “unconditional surrender.” Meanwhile, Trump’s capitulation leaves J.D. Vance holding the bag.
Julia Ioffe
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June 11, 2026
Catch-47
Barak Ravid has become one of D.C.’s most well-wired reporters during the Iran war, leveraging a direct line to the White House into endless scoops about the negotiations between Washington and Tehran. But what happens when your best source is an unreliable narrator?
Julia Ioffe
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June 4, 2026
Trump’s New Rules for Radicals
The State Department spent Tuesday trying to convince diplomats that antifa is the new Al Qaeda—but Foggy Bottom isn’t buying it.
Julia Ioffe
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May 28, 2026
Schrödinger’s War
Endlessly shifting goalposts and an increasingly violent ceasefire with Iran have created the perfect conditions for a new kind of forever war in the Middle East—a frozen conflict in which the only beneficiary may be Trump, himself.
Julia Ioffe
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May 25, 2026
Putin on the Fritz
Russia is in deep, deep trouble, spurring renewed speculation about possible collapse. But we’ve seen this movie before, and Putin always manages to hold on. Is this time different?
Julia Ioffe
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May 7, 2026
The Boys Are Back in Town
Many Democrats aren’t happy that Jake Sullivan and the other Biden bros who rode shotgun for Barack and Joe’s foreign policy adventures are positioning to return to power: “The idea that the same foreign policy leadership that brought us the Afghanistan withdrawal and the cover-up of Biden’s decline should be in charge of staffing the next Democratic administration,” said one insider, “is tone deaf at best.”
Julia Ioffe
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April 30, 2026
Love Him or LaNeve Him
Pete Hegseth’s decision to replace the highly regarded Gen. Randy George with Gen. Christopher LaNeve infuriated senior Army officials. As he prepares to be confirmed to the role, however, LaNeve is trying to mend fences and win converts.