Playbook PM: Trump and Paul spar over megabill

Politico

2 days ago

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THE CATCH-UP
It's crunch time for the Senate GOP this week as the conference rushes to advance President Donald Trump's sweeping tax and spending package through the reconciliation process.
Staring down a July Fourth deadline, the president this morning ramped up his pressure campaign by jumping into a war of words with fiscal hawk Rand Paul.
Paul is standing firm in his opposition to the GOP megabill because of its impact on the national debt, the Kentucky senator told CNBC this morning, adding that raising the debt ceiling is 'not conservative.' Shortly after the show, the president took to Truth Social to lambast Paul.
What he said: 'Rand Paul has very little understanding of the BBB, especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming,' Trump wrote. He added later: 'Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas. His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can't stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!'
Paul said he was 'open to voting' for the package and is willing to compromise 'as much as I can.' But he is 'not going to take responsibility for the debt,' he cautioned, predicting that the issue will be owned by the Republicans' if it goes through. 'I think that's a big mistake.'
And he's not the only one. Paul claims that there are enough deficit hawks who can block the bill in the Senate. Shortly after Trump's posts, Paul shared a Fox News article on X, writing 'I want to see the tax cuts made permanent, but I also want to see the $5 trillion in new debt removed from the bill. At least 4 of us in the Senate feel this way.' He told CNBC that 'four people with courage can make the bill into anything that we want to.'
Still, leaders are projecting cautious optimism. Senate Majority Leader John Thune insisted on Fox News Radio that the chamber was on the right track to push the package through — but added the party needs 'to have [Trump] fully engaged with senators as we go through the next few weeks.'
Expect more tensions to bubble up tomorrow, with Senate Republicans set to hold a meeting to discuss their reconciliation strategy, per POLITICO's Jordain Carney. 'The meeting will give GOP senators a chance to quiz committee chairs on their forthcoming pieces of the megabill and talk through unresolved issues.'
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8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
1. DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS: TikTok users rejoice … for now … again. Trump is set to sign yet another 90-day extension allowing the popular social platform to continue operations in the U.S., 'as the future of the Chinese short-video app get enmeshed in the trade US-Chinese trade talks and will likely be used as leverage by the Chinese in crafting a deal,' Fox Business' Charles Gasparino scoops. There is still the potential for the extension to be a short-lived maneuver if Trump 'sees a strategic advantage in crafting a deal by letting it go dark,' Gasparino notes. The current extension for TikTok's operations was set to expire June 19.
Call it what you want: Meanwhile, Trump is 'obsessed' with scheduling a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, 'convinced he can personally hash out deep-seated divisions between the world's two largest economies,' POLITICO's Phelim Kine and colleagues report. But there's doubt that a call would move the needle and improve trade relations. 'Other outside observers remain skeptical Trump will actually be able to get Xi on the phone.'
2. BARAKA HITS BACK: Newark Mayor Ras Baraka is suing the Trump administration for 'malicious prosecution' following his arrest — and subsequent dismissal — of trespassing charges earlier this month when touring an immigration detention facility, POLITICO's Madison Fernandez and colleagues report. Baraka's attorneys claim interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba 'directed and ratified' his arrest unlawfully and acted as a ''political operative,' defaming him in inflammatory statements on social media and in TV interviews.' Read the filing
3. MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has set a Sept. 9 special election to fill the seat of the late Rep. Gerry Connolly, POLITICO's Gigi Ewing reports. 'Virginia's 11th district is deep blue and will almost assuredly elect another Democrat.' Virginia's contest will kick off a series of special elections to replace late Democratic members this fall: Arizonans will vote on a successor for Rep. Raúl Grijalva on Sept. 23, and Texans will pick a replacement for Rep. Sylvester Turner on Nov. 4.
4. RUSSIA-UKRAINE LATEST: Russia and Ukraine's second round of talks yesterday failed to make progress toward ending the grueling three-year war, in part, Ukrainian officials say, because of the Kremlin's 'no compromise' demands for Kyiv, NBC's Keir Simmons and Alexander Smith report. Russian President Vladimir Putin's demands read like 'less of a peace plan and more a demand for Ukraine to surrender, defang its military and become a vassal of Moscow.' Putin calls for Ukraine to downsize its army, agree to a 'neutral status' between Russia and the West, make Russian an official language, and ban the 'glorification or promotion of Nazism.'
5. OFF TO THE MARKET: Amid a wide-ranging economic uncertainty, new numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show demand for workers nationwide remains high. The latest openings and turnover report shows that the number of available jobs in the U.S. unexpectedly rose this month, totaling an estimated 7.39 million at the end of April — up from 7.2 million in March.
What it all means: The surprisingly positive numbers 'support the Federal Reserve's assertion that the job market is in a good place. However, it's taking longer for those who are out of a job to find work, and economists expect the labor market to weaken more notably in coming months,' amid Trump's tariff threats, Bloomberg's Jarrell Dillard reports. The next major economic reading will come with Friday's May jobs report.
6. SCOTUS WATCH: Trump has long complained about the efficacy of the Supreme Court. But behind closed doors, the president has also been airing grievances about the justices he appointed, particularly Justice Amy Coney Barrett, CNN's Kristen Holmes and John Fritze reports. Trump's allies have convinced him Barrett is 'weak' and her 'rulings have not been in line with how she presented herself' during her 2020 confirmation. Some Trump allies say 'Barrett's rulings might have been shaped by menacing behavior and threats of violence directed at her family.' In response, 'Trump has asked advisers and allies if they think Barrett needs more security,' per CNN. And Trump 'insists he does not want to attack her publicly.'
7. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: The U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's aid delivery program in Gaza has gotten off to a tumultuous start, with humanitarian groups denouncing the project and allegations that the Israeli military has shot into crowds in line for aid. Now, WaPo's Karen DeYoung and Cate Brown report that the U.S. consulting group that helped design the effort has abandoned the program entirely — leaving its future uncertain.
Today, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces said that it was investigating a shooting near a GHF site that resulted in an estimated 27 casualties, in which Israeli troops fired on what they said were 'several suspects … deviating from the designated access routes,' per CNN. 'Tuesday's incident marks the third day in a row that people have been killed on their way to the GHF distribution point west of Rafah while attempting to secure food.'
8. SOUTH KOREA'S NEW LEADER: After years of political tumult, South Korea has elected center-left Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung as its next president. Conservative candidate Kim Moon-soo officially conceded defeat this afternoon and congratulated Lee for the win — with 48.3% of the vote and 80% of the votes counted, per Bloomberg. In his acceptance speech, Lee didn't address 'how he would handle relations with Washington, an especially pressing issue as tariff negotiations with the Trump administration are a priority for South Korea's export-reliant economy.'
TALK OF THE TOWN
Darren Beattie has stirred up concerns inside the State Department over his pro-Russian views and marriage to a Russian woman 'whose uncle has taken several roles in Russian politics and once received a personal 'thank you' message from Vladimir Putin,' per The Telegraph.
THE ARTS IMPACT — Kennedy Center subscription sales have dropped by roughly $1.6 million or 36 percent from last year, with ticket packages taking a major hit across every programming genre following Trump's takeover of the storied institution, WaPo's Travis Andrews scoops.
SOMETHING TO TACO ABOUT — The DNC is renting a taco truck deploying the 'Trump Always Chickens Out' slogan parked outside of the RNC HQ, per Axios. The truck features a 'graphic of Trump in a chicken suit' and is serving free tacos until 2 p.m. VP JD Vance was quick to respond on X: 'We have the lamest opposition in American history.'
PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION — 'Dupont Circle Park to remain open during Pride, council members say,' per WaPo: 'A plan to bar people from celebrating Pride in the park at Dupont Circle this weekend has been canceled following pushback from local elected officials, according to two D.C. council members. The change comes less than 24 hours after the closing was announced by the National Park Service Monday evening. The park is at the center of Washington's historic LGBTQ+ neighborhood, and an announcement by the Park Police that it would be closed during this weekend's WorldPride parade and parties was another blow to a celebration that has gotten off to a rocky start.'
MEDIA MOVE — Nancy Vu is now a congressional reporter at National Journal. She previously was a health reporter at Bloomberg Government and is a Washington Examiner and POLITICO alum.
TRANSITIONS — Bryan Moose is now a legislative assistant at the ACLU's National Political Advocacy Department. He previously was a deputy White House liaison at HUD under Bidden and is a Bobby Scott alum. … GuidePost Strategies has added Kate Beaulieu and Alex Large as principals, Pam Kinsey as senior adviser, Hailey Womer as director of research, Luke Midura and Tim Frei as associates and Mya Steir as an administrative assistant. …
… The American Humanist Association has added Amitai Heller as legal director. Rachel Deitch has also rejoined the organization and the Center for Freethought Equality as policy and political director. Heller previously was senior staff attorney at Compassion & Choices. Deitch previously was federal policy director for the National Coalition of STD Directors. … Dean Hingson is now a partner at Farragut Partners. He previously was a principal at Mehlman consulting and is a Dan Coats, Judd Gregg and Elizabeth Dole alum. … Rita Baranwal is now chief nuclear officer at Radiant Nuclear. She most recently was SVP of Westinghouse's AP300 small modular reactor program and is a DOE alum.
WEEKEND WEDDING — Alexandra Dakich, an associate at Cravath, Swaine and Moore LLP and a Pete Buttigieg 2020 campaign alum, and Nick Izzard, strategic finance senior manager at ZocDoc got married on Saturday at Newfields in Indianapolis. The couple met in college at Vanderbilt University. Pic
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