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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
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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August 6, 2025
The Emancipation of M.T.G.
The MAGA congresswoman has made a career out of defending Trump. But lately she’s started to break with the president she still calls her favorite. Are her followers still with her?
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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August 4, 2025
Senate Pre-Recess Shutdown Jitters
What should have been a routine nominations agreement before the August recess has spiraled into a bitter standoff between Trump, Thune, and Schumer. Now the stage is set for a bruising fall showdown over confirmations, foreign aid, and government funding—with a shutdown increasingly likely.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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August 3, 2025
Josh Hawley Takes Stock
Congress’s latest, inevitably futile ritual of attempting to ban its own members from trading stocks was particularly explosive this time around, after the president erupted at Sen. Josh Hawley over a perceived threat to his own bottom line. And yet, the latest effort may present even bigger hurdles.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 30, 2025
Is Schumer a Flip-Phone Guy in an A.I. World?
The Senate Democratic leader is facing down the prospect of another government funding fight before he’s even recovered from the last one. This time, he’s trying to get ahead of it—but some in his caucus have other ideas.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 27, 2025
Johnson Loses the Epstein Caucus
The House speaker’s strategy to bury the Epstein drama by sending Congress home for the summer has only delayed a reckoning that Trump himself set into motion. The defection of a few key Republican members shows the problem isn’t going away.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 23, 2025
House Republicans’ Cruel Summer
G.O.P. members were hoping to spend the August recess focused on selling the (unpopular) Big Beautiful Bill to their constituents, and messaging about extended tax cuts. But the Epstein drama has consumed everything.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 21, 2025
The Collins Pressure Campaign
After Sen. Susan Collins’ eleventh-hour decision to not put forth an amendment slimming down the $9 billion rescission package, she blamed a “political stunt” from Democrats for her change of heart. But a subtle pressure campaign from her G.O.P. colleagues and the White House might have been the key factor.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 18, 2025
Angie Craig’s Big Tent
In this candid conversation, the Senate candidate and Minnesota Democratic representative discusses the bipartisan Clarity Act, the crypto-related questions facing the White House, the administration’s quixotic rural agenda, and much more.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 16, 2025
Trump’s Epstein Curse
The president’s perplexing reversal on releasing the Epstein case files has become the rare issue on which the MAGA base seems unwilling to follow his lead. It may not matter during the midterms, but it’s “the first real example of Trump’s base attacking him,” a Republican strategist said. “This softens him up for the next time he crosses them.”
Leigh Ann Caldwell
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July 13, 2025
The Senate’s Midterm Paralysis Problem
As the ’26 cycle ramps up, both Republican and Democratic Senate recruiting efforts have been slowed by uncertainty over Trump’s endorsement strategy, who is running, and whether the job is still worth the headache.