Julia Ioffe • April 23, 2026

Hegseth’s Useful Tool

Gen. Christopher LaNeve, the new chief of staff of the U.S. Army, has enjoyed a spectacular rise from obscurity, often at the expense of more popular generals that Pete Hegseth has purged—fueling suspicions that he’s become a proxy in Hegseth’s feuds and an active participant in his “slow-motion coup.”

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 22, 2026

Virginia Aftershocks & What Moderate White Women Want

Republicans confront the reality that launching the redistricting war might have been a costly mistake. And a new poll shows moderate white women breaking against Trump.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 22, 2026

Jim Banks’s Red Line

Backing Trump’s brinkmanship with Iran while helping the president settle intraparty scores at home, Senator Jim Banks is betting that the Republican base turnout in November will defy the party’s brutal midterm headwinds.

Peter Hamby • April 21, 2026

Trump’s Brain Fog of War

Exclusive new polling finds that Americans have no idea what the president is trying to achieve in Iran—probably because he keeps changing the story, himself. And they’re not thrilled about his war with the pope, either.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 20, 2026

House Expulsion Fever & First Solar’s Trump Playbook

News and notes on the next House expulsion target, plus a savvy lobbying effort from a solar firm seeking the president’s good graces.

Abby Livingston • April 20, 2026

Trump’s Midterm Divine Comedy

The president’s unholy spat with Pope Leo risks undoing Republican gains with working-class Catholics, just as the midterms approach. And Democrats are happy to help twist the knife.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 19, 2026

Mike Johnson’s Lousy Week & A Virginia Temp Check

The House speaker is on a losing streak, and a poll shows cracks in the Spanberger coalition ahead of her state's redistricting vote.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 19, 2026

The Swalwell Files

Eric Swalwell’s implosion, as sudden as it was overdue, is less a scandal than a reminder that Washington’s old boys’ club still confuses proximity to power with immunity from consequence.

Julia Ioffe • April 16, 2026

Orbán’s Fall & The De-Trumpification Fantasy

The collapse of Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party, after 16 years of authoritarian rule, offers mixed signals for America’s left—and a harsh preview of the monumental task that awaits Democrats after Trump is gone.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 15, 2026

The Battle of Omaha & L.A. Lobbying

Republicans meddle in a heartland Democratic primary, while LA28 chair Casey Wasserman goes begging at the Capitol.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 15, 2026

Young & The Restless

Straddling the fault line between old-school conservatism and Trump-era loyalty, Senator Todd Young joined Puck in D.C. to talk shop about Iran, his vote against a war powers resolution, and why, even if the war isn’t necessary, America can’t back down.

Abby Livingston • April 14, 2026

The Tit-for-Tat That Isn’t

Congressional departures mean special elections—but not all of them are equally safe for the incumbent party.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 14, 2026

Ruben Gallego on Swalwell’s “Double Life”

Inside the senator and 2028 contender’s emotional press conference, where he disavowed his former best friend and tried to soothe donors.

Peter Hamby • April 14, 2026

The Talented Mr. Swalwell

Even before the misconduct allegations that precipitated his downfall, Eric Swalwell was an attention-seeking social climber whose professed progressivism may have been his greatest lie of all.

Leigh Ann Caldwell • April 14, 2026

Jim Jordan’s FISA Flip-Flop & K Street’s Conundrum

Why the House Judiciary chair suddenly found religion on surveillance, and how lobbyists lost on reconciliation.