| | | |  | | By Rachel Umansky-Castro | | Presented by |  | | | CASE DISMISSED: The criminal cases that President Donald Trump’s administration brought against former FBI Director James Comey and New York AG Letitia James were thrown out today by a federal judge, who ruled that Trump’s handpicked interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was unlawfully appointed, POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein report. U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie said Halligan’s appointment violated laws that limit the ability of the Justice Department to install top prosecutors without Senate confirmation. “Ms. Halligan has been unlawfully serving in that role since September 22, 2025,” Currie wrote in opinions simultaneously filed in both cases. “All actions flowing from Ms. Halligan’s defective appointment … constitute unlawful exercises of executive power and must be set aside.” The cases were dismissed “without prejudice,” meaning they could be re-filed — though Comey’s attorneys have already indicated they will argue he cannot be indicted again because the statute of limitations in his case expired in September.
|  | THE CATCH-UP | | | 
Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke today on a “very good telephone call,” in which Xi invited Trump to visit Beijing in April and he accepted. | Mark Schiefelbein/AP | WHAT’S ON TRUMP’S MIND TODAY: As Trump’s prosecutions against some of his perceived political rivals are unraveling, he’s entering the week focused on a trio of global agenda items, eyeing progress on Ukraine peace talks, the Supreme Court’s looming decision on his tariff power and forging an improved relationship with China. FINE CHINA: Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke today on a “very good telephone call,” Trump said in a readout on Truth Social. He said the two leaders discussed the Russia-Ukraine war, fentanyl, soybeans and other farm products. But the headline news was Trump’s announcement that Xi invited him to visit Beijing in April, which he said he accepted. “I reciprocated where he will be my guest for a State Visit in the U.S. later in the year. We agreed that it is important that we communicate often, which I look forward to doing,” Trump wrote. The view from Beijing: According to a report from China’s official Xinhua news agency, “Xi said that since he and Trump met in South Korea in late October, relations between China and the United States have ‘remained generally stable and positive’ and that the two leaders should seek to maintain that momentum, the agency reported. But Xi also emphasized the importance he attaches to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as its territory,” NYT’s Christopher Buckley reports. WAR AND PEACE: Trump is touting tentative progress on a peace deal coming together between Ukraine and Russia, “don’t believe it until you see it, but something good just may be happening,” the president posted on Truth Social, without offering any further details. The view from Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today called Ukraine’s current situation a “critical moment,” noting that Kyiv has maintained key issues in the negotiations over the weekend, such as the release of all Ukrainian prisoners of war and securing the return of children taken by Russian forces, NYT’s Cassandra Vinograd reports. Zelenskyy said in a post on X he was awaiting a full report from the Ukrainian delegation, after which they will “determine the next steps and the timing. The view from Russia: Moscow is scoffing at Europe’s proposed peace plan, calling it a “poor fit,” while signaling that Trump’s Ukraine proposal, which offers major concessions to Russia, is more “acceptable” to the Kremlin, POLITICO’s Seb Starcevic and colleagues report. Russian President Vladimir Putin is sitting back as Ukraine and Europe scramble to revise Trump’s plan, indicating that Moscow sees either a Kremlin-friendly deal or continued fight as a win, per NYT’s Paul Sonne. THE TARIFF TANGO: Trump is still awaiting the Supreme Court’s decision on his presidential power to enact his sweeping tariff agenda, and heaping on the pressure to allow his authority to continue for, what he argues, is the good of the nation. The impacts of his tariffs have not yet been seen and will result in “RECORD SETTING” revenue “and put our Nation on a new and unprecedented course,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. He continued: “Those opposing us are serving hostile foreign interests that are not aligned with the success, safety and prosperity of the USA. They couldn’t care less about us. I look so much forward to the United States Supreme Court’s decision on this urgent and time sensitive matter so that we can continue, in an uninterrupted manner to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Good Monday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at rumansky-castro@politico.com
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Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) speaks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol July 30, 2024. | Francis Chung/POLITICO | 1. FOR YOUR RADAR: “Pentagon to investigate Sen. Mark Kelly for anti-Trump video,” by POLITICO’s Connor O'Brien and Leo Shane III: “The Pentagon, in a post on X, said it had launched ‘a thorough review’ into Kelly for ‘serious allegations of misconduct,’ which could result in recalling the Arizona senator to active duty to court-martial him. … Defense Secretary Pete Hesgeth, in a statement, confirmed that the move was made in relation to a video circulated on social media last week, where Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers reminded American servicemembers of their oath to the Constitution and not to an individual ruler.” 2. TRAIL MIX: Trump is taking a hands-on role in the 2026 midterms, wasting no time to get involved on a granular level, Reuters’ Nandita Bose and Tim Reid report. “He’s calling candidates, making early endorsements, shaping strategy and pushing economic messaging to try to keep Congress in Republican hands, according to nine Republicans involved in election strategy. As early as this summer, 18 months before Election Day 2026, Trump was urging Republican congressmen exploring Senate or gubernatorial runs to stand for reelection instead to avoid party primary fights, according to a White House official, a senior Trump adviser and a party operative.” 3. IMMIGRATION FILES: “In cities targeted by ICE, empty desks and school disruptions follow,” by WaPo’s Justine McDaniel and María Luisa Paúl: “The effects of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Charlotte tore through schools last week, disrupting learning as more than 20 percent of students stayed home from class. … Schools were off-limits for immigration enforcement for years, but Trump rescinded that policy in January. … In Charlotte, federal agents arrested more than 250 undocumented immigrants from Nov. 15 to 19 … 30,000 students were absent in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district — an attendance rate of 79 percent compared to an average rate of 93 percent.” 4. MEDIA COURT: The AP and the Trump administration went before a federal appeals court today in the latest turn of the screw over Trump’s blocking of AP’s access after it refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America” in its copy. No immediate decision was issued. “The administration says it is up the White House to determine the makeup of ‘pools’ that cover the president in places where space is limited. And he can reward or punish reporters with access in these cases in the same way he does in granting interviews, Trump’s team argued,” AP’s David Bauder reports. “The AP says that if journalists are invited to cover an event on a pool basis … it cannot discriminate on the basis of a news organization’s freedom of speech.”
| | | | Cyber criminals defraud millions of Americans each year, but law enforcement and regulators face major hurdles bringing the problem to heel. At POLITICO's Policy Outlook: Combating Financial Cybercrime, Reps. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) and David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) as well as FBI Special Agent Jordan Jenkins, Global Anti-Scam Alliance’s Nils Mueller and AARP’s Amy Nofziger discussed what can be done to protect consumers. Watch the conversations here. | | | | |
5. SCHOOL DAZE: As Education Secretary Linda McMahon implements the administration’s effort to shutter her agency, she has a specific message for her lieutenants to carry forward: In a recent phone call with “her depleted staff,” McMahon “said it was critical for them to talk about the changes in a way that would win over public support,” WaPo’s Laura Meckler reports. “Don’t talk about closing the department, she said. Talk instead about returning education to the states.” To be sure, the idea of “local control and the overreach of Washington” in education are longstanding GOP talking points. “But it’s a misnomer to talk about ‘returning’ education to the states because education has long been run mostly by states,” WaPo writes.
Related read: “The Education Department gave another agency power to distribute money. It hasn’t gone smoothly,” by POLITICO’s Juan Perez Jr. and colleagues: “Critics say issues with accessing federal career and technical education funding could preview bigger problems when the Trump administration starts to outsource more of the Education Department’s responsibilities to other agencies.” 6. TRADING SPACES: Canada is pivoting away from reliance on the U.S. amid Trump’s sweeping tariff agenda, instead seeking closer ties with China and India, WaPo’s Amanda Coletta reports from Toronto. Canadian PM Mark Carney called a recent meeting with Xi a “turning point” in relations. “Leaders here are now seeking to shift the economy from ‘reliance to resilience’ by diversifying trade away from the United States, the destination for more than 75 percent of its exports. They’ve set a goal of doubling non-U.S. exports by 2035.” 7. THE BRAVE NEW WORLD: The America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank with ties to the White House, today “will announce a $10 million initiative to develop artificial intelligence policies aimed at supporting workers, as a debate over tech regulation divides President Donald Trump’s supporters,” WaPo’s Emily Davies and Cat Zakrzewski report. “The plan signals an effort to equip the GOP with MAGA-friendly messaging and policy on the emerging technology, amid growing worries that artificial intelligence could automate jobs, increase unemployment and drive up energy costs for consumers.” 8. AILING AMERICA: “More Americans are getting their power shut off, as unpaid bills pile up,” by WaPo’s Abha Bhattarai: “Soaring electricity prices are triggering a wave of power shutoffs nationwide, leaving more Americans in the dark as unpaid bills pile up. Although there is no national count of electricity shutoffs, data from select utilities in 11 states show that disconnections have risen in at least eight of them since last year, according to figures compiled by The Washington Post and the National Energy Assistance Directors Association.”
| | | | A message from McDonald's:  
The return of Extra Value Meals ensures Americans can find everyday affordable pricing at McDonald's. | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | Donald Trump this morning praised Cleveland Browns QB Shedeur Sanders: “Wins first game, career start, as a pro (for Cleveland). Great Genes. I TOLD YOU SO!” He also derided the New York Giants for their late-game collapse to the Detroit Lions. DUMBO WATCH — One of the National Zoo’s Asian elephants is pregnant and could give birth in the next few months, which would mark the first elephant calf in 25 years, per WaPo. “The zoo has had only two elephant births in its 136-year history. The last was in 2001.” LISTEN UP — NOTUS is launching its first podcast, “On NOTUS with Reese Gorman,” with each episode exploring the background of a member of Congress, their journey to Washington and the issues that motivate them. The first guest is House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, with subsequent guests including Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.), House Majority Whip Tom Emmer and Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.). Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us on Signal here. Playbook couldn’t happen without our deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
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