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By Eli Okun |
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THE CATCH-UP |
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BREAKING: “Louisiana Republicans pass gerrymandered map that eliminates majority-Black district,” by POLITICO’s Andrew Howard: “The state Senate sent the bill to GOP Gov. Jeff Landry, who is expected to approve it. The new map was spurred by the Supreme Court’s decision to narrow the Voting Rights Act, which gave Louisiana the green light … Rep. Cleo Fields’ (D-La.) district has been completely erased in the new map, while Rep. Troy Carter’s (D-La.) blue-leaning district has been redrawn to mostly mirror the seat he won in 2022.”
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FILE - Acting U.S. attorney general Todd Blanche speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department, May 4, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File) | Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File/AP |
WEAPONIZATION WATCH: If public backlash was the first major obstacle to President Donald Trump’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” and Hill GOP outrage was the second, the unprecedented effort just hit a third — a significant early court loss. Virginia federal judge Leonie Brinkema temporarily blocked the unprecedented $1.776 billion fund, issuing a restraining order until a June 12 hearing, POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney and colleagues report. Brinkema, a Bill Clinton appointee, said she had to move with rare speed — before the Trump administration had full time to respond to the lawsuit — to prevent any payouts from going out the door. Her short order didn’t dive into the merits of the case, but it barred the administration for now from creating the fund or moving money around. The Justice Department hasn’t responded publicly yet. The fund was still in its early days of being formed. This is just one of multiple lawsuits that have quickly poured in against the fund, part of a settlement Trump struck with his own administration that would hand out massive sums of taxpayer money to people who claim to have been harmed by government “weaponization.” The fund has clearly broken through to the public in ways that many Trump moves do not, provoking broad Democratic opprobrium (with “slush fund” leading their messaging) and plenty of GOP anger, too. In this case, a former federal prosecutor and others argued that the fund would violate the law and the Constitution, potentially doling out payments to Jan. 6 rioters. Critics see it as part of Trump’s wide-ranging politicization of the Justice Department. But acting AG Todd Blanche has said it will be open for anyone to apply, not just Trump allies. Blanche’s rapid moves atop DOJ to go after Trump’s political enemies and satisfy the president has placed him increasingly at odds with skeptical Senate Republicans and federal judges, Reuters’ Andrew Goudsward writes. But his allies maintain that he’s the one fighting lawfare: The “man for the moment,” said Mike Davis. On the Hill, the question now becomes whether a court-ordered pause on the fund eases tensions that have hamstrung Republicans’ reconciliation bill. Republicans angry about the fund have asked Blanche to commit to guardrails that would, say, prevent the money from flowing to violent Jan. 6ers, Semafor’s Burgess Everett reports. But Trump opposes any such restrictions, and DOJ hasn’t yet said yes. That leaves the bill stuck, because Democrats plan to offer plenty of amendments restricting the fund — and as of now, some Republicans might join them. The upshot is that funding for years of immigration enforcement, the longest hangover from the last government shutdown, remains up in the air, waiting for clarity on this fund before the party-line bill can pass. “[A]bsent cooperation from the White House, Senate GOP leaders may go alone,” Punchbowl’s Andrew Desiderio and colleagues report, “with proposals ranging from imposing eligibility requirements to nullifying the fund altogether.” The path forward looks uncertain, as GOP leaders hope to pass the reconciliation bill next week. Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.
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6 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW |
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1. WAR REPORT: Trump announced that he’ll make a final call today in a Situation Room meeting on whether to accept a provisional peace deal with Iran. But he continued to set the bar high with his demands, raising the question of whether Tehran could swallow his terms. Trump demanded not only untolled free passage for ships in the Strait of Hormuz, but also the destruction of Iran’s enriched uranium. It remains to be seen whether this ceasefire extension will include any agreement on such nuclear issues. “No money will be exchanged, until further notice,” Trump added. N.B.: Gas prices have fallen around the country this week — they’re down in every state but Alaska, per GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan. 2. EBOLA LATEST: The U.S. plan to open a Kenya field hospital today for Americans infected by the Ebola outbreak hit a roadblock, as a Kenyan court temporarily blocked the facility, per WaPo. Though the Kenyan government had agreed to the plan — which stirred outrage among the Kenyan public — a constitutional rights group brought a legal challenge, and a judge today prevented the facility from moving forward before a court hearing Tuesday. “The plan to quarantine people exposed & treat cases abroad relies on good will the US may not have right now,” wrote Stat’s Helen Branswell. 3. THE BOAT STRIKES: NYT’s Simon Romero has a bracing reality check on the administration’s monthslong campaign of military strikes against suspected drug-trafficking small boats: Experts and addiction specialists say the effort hasn’t meaningfully reined in America’s cocaine problem and access. Coast Guard seizures have leapt, and top U.S. officials insist they’re stemming the flow of drugs. But the trade is vast, and traffickers have found other routes. Cocaine prices and purity in the U.S. haven’t really changed, which one would expect if supply were dropping. And the boat strikes have cost an estimated $4.7 billion and nearly 200 lives.
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Watch the season finale of On the Road with Jonathan Martin On the Road with Jonathan Martin wraps Season 1 in South Philly with Gov. Josh Shapiro, who weighs in on the future of the Democratic Party, voter trust, 2028 speculation and more — from inside Angelo’s Pizzeria. Watch the finale and catch up on the full season. |
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4. DEMOCRACY WATCH: The FBI’s effort to investigate the 2020 election — seeking evidence of widespread fraud that has heretofore eluded them — has stepped up recently in Wisconsin, WaPo’s Patrick Marley reports from Madison. Agents have interviewed current and former election officials and police officers. Local officials’ big fear is that the administration will move to seize Milwaukee’s ballots like it did in Atlanta, pursuing conspiracy theories of a stolen election. 5. RETIREMENT REPORT: Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) announced she won’t seek reelection, telling the Miami Herald’s Raisa Habersham that she’d waited to make it public until now for fear that Republicans could gerrymander her district. The 83-year-old’s decision — despite denying such chatter as a “crazy rumor” that had her “almost distraught” just last week — will open up the Democratic primary in the heavily Black, heavily blue Miami district. The always-hatted Wilson has served for eight terms, often focusing on increasing opportunities for young Black people. More from POLITICO’s Cheyanne Daniels and Kimberly Leonard 6. THE EPSTEIN FILES: In a private House Oversight interview, former AG Pam Bondi admitted to “redaction errors” in the Justice Department’s release of the Jeffrey Epstein files but overall defended their handling, POLITICO’s Hailey Fuchs reports. She also said oversight of the process had been led by now-acting AG Todd Blanche, not her. Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) was the only committee Republican who showed up, along with half a dozen Democrats.
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TALK OF THE TOWN |
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SUBTWEET OF THE DAY — Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) posted the classic fable of the scorpion and the frog, in which one creature can’t help but kill the other, even if it means both their deaths. Cornyn presented it without comment, raising questions about whom he might imagine as the scorpion: President Donald Trump? Texas AG Ken Paxton? Texas state Rep. James Talarico? Let us know, Senator. PAULINA MANGUBAT SPEAKS — The DNC deputy chief mobilization officer gave her first interview to The New Republic’s Greg Sargent about going viral for tweeting (as the Democrats) that Stephen Miller was an “ugly fuck.” She says the DNC had approved the tweet — part of a broader effort to sound more normal and fast online — and she stands by it. “What he’s doing is ugly — siccing federal agents on civilians, applauding when families are separated. It is ugly behavior,” Mangubat says, noting Miller’s underlying “untrue and transphobic attack against James Talarico.” ANOTHER ONE — Bret Michaels became the latest musician to drop out of the Freedom 250 concert, saying it “has evolved into something much more divisive than what I agreed to be a part of.” THE JILL BIDEN PRESS TOUR — The former first lady told CBS’ Rita Braver that she found Joe Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis “just shocking.” Though they “had amazing care in the White House,” she added, “somehow that was missed.” Watch the clip TRANSITIONS — Hayden Haynes is leaving his role as chief of staff to Speaker Mike Johnson, per Punchbowl’s Jake Sherman. Deputy chief Garrett Fultz will move into the top position. … Vera Institute of Justice has added Carlo Makarechi as campaign manager and Nick Brennan as comms director for a new campaign with Dream.org called the “Serious About Safety Majority.” Working with the Congressional Black Caucus, they’ll advocate for evidence-based public safety solutions and oppose GOP crime legislation. Makarechi is a DCCC alum, and Brennan is a FWD.us alum. More from Semafor … David Harvilicz will start an investment fund aimed at AI and critical infrastructure. He most recently worked at DHS. 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. Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM misstated where Reagan Reese works. It is The Daily Caller.
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