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By Ali Bianco and Makayla Gray |
Presented by |
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THE CATCH-UP |
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Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick arrives for an interview with members of the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill on May 6, 2026. | Francis Chung/POLITICO |
LUTNICK IN THE HOT SEAT: The latest congressional testimony from one of President Donald Trump’s top lieutenants is — once again — all about Jeffrey Epstein. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is in the spotlight today as he answers questions before the House Oversight Committee behind closed doors about his interactions with Epstein. And just two hours in, the response from Democrats was stark as they gaggled outside the meeting room. Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.) called Lutnick a “pathological liar.” Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) said Lutnick could not remember why he paid a visit to Epstein’s island. Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-Va.) called the interview “part of the ongoing cover-up.” “Well now we know why that interview was not video-taped,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) told reporters, saying Lutnick offered “no acknowledgment” of any inconsistencies in his relationship with Epstein. “That was really embarrassing.” The stakes are high for Lutnick. His name appeared multiple times in the Epstein files DOJ released, and both Republican and Democratic lawmakers were poised to press him on inconsistencies over when he severed ties with the late convicted sex trafficker, which became the subject of testimony Lutnick gave to a Senate Appropriations subpanel earlier this year. Lutnick hasn’t been accused of wrongdoing and told senators in February he has “nothing to hide.” Though there were early bipartisan calls for Lutnick to resign, the White House stood behind him and largely shrugged off the Epstein ties. Today’s appearance before House Oversight reups that scrutiny — and the calls for Lutnick to resign from Democrats will no doubt ramp up again after today. “I’ve been on the Oversight Committee 10 years, and there's never been a chairman bringing in a Cabinet secretary of their own party,” Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) told reporters this morning before the meeting. Comer has not yet commented on today’s testimony. Lutnick’s answers could be critical for maintaining GOP support on the Hill — losing it could mean following the fates of Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem. Asked whether Lutnick’s credibility was in question, Comer said before the interview that he hadn’t seen evidence of any wrongdoing from the email correspondence, but he acknowledged that Lutnick “wasn't 100 percent truthful with whether or not he had been on the island.” The committee’s Democrats were also eager to get the full picture from Lutnick. Subramanyam told reporters he would ask about the “exact timeline.” Lutnick has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing or previous knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. The transcript of the interview is expected to be released in the coming days. Hanging over the meeting was an attendance problem due to the congressional recess. Only a handful of lawmakers on the panel were spotted entering the meeting in person, along with Lutnick. “I think that's by design,” said Subramanyam, who represents a nearby northern Virginia district, adding he plans to continue attending the meetings in person. Bondi’s testimony will also occur during a recess week. “The reality is we shouldn't be in this position. We should be having hearings.” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) has also been critical of the scheduling for the interviews, and did not attend. Asked whether Democrats might push for another appearance from Lutnick — this time on camera — Subramanyam wouldn’t rule it out. “Stay tuned,” he said. But Epstein isn’t the biggest scandal engulfing the Hill in recent weeks. Lawmakers have been weeding through their own ranks after accusations of sexual misconduct ousted members of both parties and ramped up focus on ongoing Ethics investigations. The Epstein saga, meanwhile, has ebbed and flowed from the forefront over the past year. For what is arguably one of their biggest testimonies to date, the buzz around it (or lack of) produced only a small showing in Rayburn. Lutnick’s voluntary testimony was originally scheduled when Congress planned to be in session this week. But even with the switch, Comer put it plainly: “If you're interested in the investigation, you can come here. I missed my son’s baseball game last night because I want to be here.” Good Wednesday afternoon. This is Ali Bianco and Makayla Gray. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop us a line at abianco@politico.com and mgray@politico.com.
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7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW |
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1. IRAN LATEST: Trump said the situation in Iran is “very much under control” and repeated his prediction that the war with Iran could be in line to end soon, telling PBS NewsHour’s’ Liz Landers that it has “a very good chance of ending” soon — though he issued his usual threat that if it doesn’t then “we have to go back to bombing the hell out of them.” He delivered a similar message on Truth Social this morning. Trump also told the NY Post’s Caitlin Doornbos it’s “too soon” to consider face-to-face negotiations as the two sides continue to haggle over peace proposals. Strait talk: Following Trump’s announcement last night that he had ordered U.S. forces to pause “Project Freedom” to clear transit through the Strait of Hormuz, global markets jumped and oil prices fell, per WaPo. “S&P 500 futures were up nearly 1 percent in the early morning, with gains in major European and Asian indexes as well. The price of Brent crude oil, the global benchmark, was down about 9 percent to just under $100 per barrel.” War report: “Iran has hit far more U.S. military assets than reported, satellite images show,” by WaPo’s Evan Hill and colleagues: “Iranian airstrikes have damaged or destroyed at least 228 structures or pieces of equipment at U.S. military sites across the Middle East since the war began, hitting hangars, barracks, fuel depots, aircraft and key radar, communications and air defense equipment, according to a Washington Post analysis of satellite imagery.” Talks that will happen: U.S. counterterrorism officials are slated to meet on Friday with international counterparts to discuss combatting terrorist threats, “especially from Iran and in the Strait of Hormuz,” per CBS’ Jennifer Jacobs and Kathryn Watson. 2. FOR YOUR RADAR: “FBI searches Virginia Senate leader’s office as part of corruption probe,” by AP’s Eric Tucker and Jennifer Peltz: “The search at Virginia Sen. L. Louise Lucas’s district office in Portsmouth comes after the Democrat helped lead the state’s recent redistricting effort. The FBI said only that it was conducting a court-authorized search warrant in Portsmouth. The person who confirmed the FBI’s search was not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation by name … Though the exact nature of the investigation was unclear, the search comes as the FBI and Justice Department have opened a spate of politically charged investigations into perceived adversaries of President Donald Trump.” 3. WHCD FALLOUT: A preliminary DHS assessment identifies the war with Iran as a potential motive for alleged WHCD attacker Cole Allen, Reuters’ Ted Hesson and colleagues scooped. “The examination includes a review of posts on a Bluesky social media account linked to Allen that posted and shared a range of anti-Trump messages in the weeks leading up to the attack. The posts include criticism of the U.S. actions in Iran but also broadsides against the Trump administration on immigration enforcement, Elon Musk, and Russia's war on Ukraine.” The FBI declined to comment and spokespeople for DHS and the DOJ did not immediately respond.
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4. PRESSURE CAMPAIGN: “FBI probing leaks to journalist who wrote explosive article on Kash Patel,” by MS NOW’s Ken Dilanian and Carol Leonnig: “The FBI has launched a criminal leak investigation focusing on an Atlantic magazine journalist who wrote a deeply unflattering account last month of Director Kash Patel’s work habits … The sources said the so-called insider threat investigation is highly unusual because it did not stem from a disclosure of classified information and because it is focused on leaks to a reporter. … There is deep concern about this approach among some of the FBI agents assigned to the matter, said the sources … ‘They know they are not supposed to do this,’ one source said. ‘But if they don’t go forward, they could lose their jobs. You’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.’” The responses: FBI spokesperson Ben Williamson denied the existence of such an investigation: “This is completely false. No such investigation like this exists and the reporter you mention is not being investigated at all,” he told MS NOW. “If confirmed to be true, this would represent an outrageous attack on the free press and the First Amendment itself,” The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg said in a statement. 5. REDISTRICTING RODEO: Fresh off Trump’s redistricting revenge campaign success in Indiana last night, Tennessee Republicans today unveiled a new proposal to redraw their state’s congressional map that would cut into the state’s majority-Black district and will likely secure them an all-GOP federal delegation, POLITICO’s Samuel Benson reports. “Tennessee’s new map aims to draw the state’s lone Democratic congressional representative — Rep. Steve Cohen — out of his Memphis-area seat by splitting up majority-Black Shelby County. It also divides Maury County, likely delivering a more favorable district to Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.).” The plan has plenty of GOP backing in the legislature and is expected to pass tomorrow. 6. HEALTH CHECK: “Deleted tweets reveal new surgeon general pick criticized Trump and RFK Jr. health policies,” by CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski and Meg Tirrell: “Just two months before she was selected as [Trump’s] nominee for surgeon general, Dr. Nicole Saphier suggested the administration was hiding that measles was spreading widely enough in the United States for the country to lose its ‘elimination’ status until after the midterm elections. ‘Seems like they may not want to admit the U.S. Measles elimination status is is [sic] gone until after midterm elections,’ Saphier wrote in March.” 7. CHECKS AND BALANCES: The Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court to allow it to intervene in Trump’s appeal of an $83.3 million jury verdict in a defamation suit brought by E. Jean Carroll — a move that would doom Carroll’s case, POLITICO’s Erica Orden reports. “In a Tuesday filing, Assistant U.S. Attorney General Brett Shumate said the government would seek to use the Westfall Act to swap Trump for the U.S. as the defendant in the lawsuit. That would require dismissal of the case because the federal government can’t be sued for defamation. A panel of appeals court judges previously denied the U.S.’s effort to insert itself as the defendant.”
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TALK OF THE TOWN |
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IN MEMORIAM — “CNN founder Ted Turner, a pioneer of cable TV news, dies at 87,” by CNN’s Brian Stelter and Ann O’Neill: “The Ohio-born Atlanta businessman, nicknamed ‘The Mouth of the South’ for his outspoken nature, built a media empire that encompassed cable’s first superstation and popular channels for movies and cartoons, plus professional sports teams like the Atlanta Braves. Turner was also an internationally known yachtsman; a philanthropist who founded the United Nations Foundation; an activist who sought the worldwide elimination of nuclear weapons; and a conservationist who became one of the foremost landowners in the United States.” DOWN FROM THE FREDERICK DOUGLASS BRIDGE — After camping out on top of the Frederick Douglass Bridge in Southwest D.C. for six days in protest of wars in Iran and Palestine and AI, Guido Reichstadter was removed from the structure today. He was taken into custody and has been charged with crowding, obstructing, or incommoding, unlawful entry and failure to obey an officer, WTOP’s Jessica Kronzer and Ciara Wells report. MEDIAWATCH — “Vice News Is Being Resuscitated With Fresh Ambitions,” by The Hollywood Reporter’s Kevin Dolak: Vice News “is now being resuscitated by company founder Shane Smith, both as a social-platform-first outlet for his podcast and news reports and as a brand partnership vehicle … Vice News 2.0 won’t look much like its initial run, a rep for the company told The Hollywood Reporter this week. Gone are the days of massive budgets and embeds with the Islamic State.” OUT AND ABOUT — eBay hosted the “Made by America” reception in the Rayburn Foyer last night celebrating American entrepreneurship during National Small Business Week. SPOTTED: John Byers, Adrienne Christian, Matthew Low, Ryan Chandler, Alexander Gristina, Rico Doss, Brian McMillan, Jonathan McHale, Teddy Tanzer, Bryn McDonough, Mercy Beehler, Tom Manatos, Kate Sheerin, Elizabeth Oblinger, Nicholas Krebs, Scott Oakley, Vada Garcia, Samantha Wellington, Cathy Foster, Ashley Shillingsburg, Dan Martini, Betsy Hart, Ken Goldin, Mike Fritz and Quinn Bowman. MEDIA MOVE — Jenna Monnin is joining NOTUS as a breaking news reporter. She most recently worked for CNN. TRANSITION — Todd Tuten has joined King & Spalding LLP as a senior advisor. He most recently worked for the Senate HELP Committee. 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 editor Giuseppe Macri and deputy editor Garrett Ross.
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