Your weekly roundup from Washington, D.C.
Former President Barack Obama speaks at the opening of the Obama Presidential Center, imploring Americans not to give in to cynicism and despair in the current divisive political climate.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani teamed up with Sen. Bernie Sanders at a Brooklyn rally to boost progressive candidates challenging Democratic congressional incumbents.
Former president calls for civility, inclusivity as he unveils $850 million campus
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has accused President Donald Trump of “coming after” him and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, claiming that the president directed the Department of Justice to investigate the couple. Newsom posted a video on social media on Monday, stating that he and his wife had “joined Donald Trump’s hit list” because the governor is “considering running for president.” 'It has been apparent ever since their maskless dinner party at the French Laundry during COVID that the Newsoms feel themselves above the law.'Newsom, who referred to Trump as “the most corrupt president in American history,” claimed that federal agents had “knocked on the doors of family, friends, and former employees.”“Not because they found a crime, because they’re simply trying to find one,” Newsom stated, adding that the federal agents were “digging through years and years of random documents.” “To get me, he’s coming after my wife, Jen, a public servant, a woman who’s dedicated her life to supporting women and girls,” Newsom continued. “We have nothing to hide,” he added.Newsom’s office stated that it believes grand jury subpoenas had been issued for records to financial institutions, ABC News reported. The governor’s office submitted a public records request seeking “all documents and records” from the DOJ that pertain to Newsom and his wife from the beginning of the second Trump administration.RELATED: 'Come after me': Gavin Newsom challenges Trump after claiming DOJ is investigating his wife Gavin Newsom, Jennifer Siebel Newsom. David Paul MorrisA source familiar with the situation informed Blaze News that multiple ongoing investigations relating to Newsom have been initiated since last year by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of California. One of those investigations concerns Siebel Newsom’s tax activities, and a separate probe concerns Newsom’s former chief of staff and potentially current staff members, the source confirmed. Local sources and whistleblowers reportedly triggered the investigations. Siebel Newsom, a documentary filmmaker, leads two tax-exempt nonprofits, the Representation Project and the California Partners Project. She also runs a film production company, Girls' Club Entertainment LLC, and works as a director for her family’s private foundation, the Siebel Family Charitable Foundation.The Sacramento Bee previously reported potential conflict-of-interest concerns related to one of Siebel Newsom’s nonprofits, writing, “In 2015, the year Newsom announced he would run for governor, the Representation Project’s contributions increased by 30% to almost $1.6 million.”The Representation Project’s tax filings show that the nonprofit funneled over $1.5 million to Siebel Newsom’s for-profit production company from 2015 through the first quarter of 2025. Siebel Newsom has received roughly $150,000 to $160,000 annually as the founder and chief creative officer for the Representation Project, which reported revenue of $1.2 million from April 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025.It is unclear whether Siebel Newsom receives compensation from the other two nonprofits, though tax filings from the Siebel Family Charitable Foundation indicate she does not draw a salary there, and she is not listed on the tax filings for California Partners Project.Tax documents from 2015 to 2023 showed that the Siebel Family Charitable Foundation gave $35,000 in charitable donations, classified as “support,” to the Representation Project.RELATED: VIDEO: Gavin Newsom's wife explains how she's raising children to 'deconstruct' the 'limiting narratives' about gender Jennifer Siebel Newsom. Shannon Finney/Getty Images"It has been apparent ever since their maskless dinner party at the French Laundry during COVID that the Newsoms feel themselves above the law,” Michael Chamberlain, the director of the government watchdog Protect the Public's Trust, told Blaze News. "What is interesting is that the accusations of financial corruption originated in Sacramento," Chamberlain continued. "If the governor of a one-party state like California is feeling heat from his own capital, it would be no surprise if people tended to ignore his protestations of politicized justice and believe there may be some egregious self-dealing going on."The second alleged investigation is likely tied to Dana Williamson, who previously served as Newsom’s chief of staff and is a former consultant for current Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner Xavier Becerra. Williamson pleaded guilty in May to three counts related to campaign finance fraud, filing a false tax return, and lying to federal investigators.Williamson was caught up in a scandal in which she was accused of conspiring with Sean McCluskie, Becerra’s former chief of staff, and a Sacramento lobbyist to funnel $225,000 from Becerra’s state campaign account to McCluskie.
Trump’s immigration agenda is on the supreme court docket with rulings still to come on birthright citizenship and TPS for Haitian and Syrian immigrantsSign up for the Breaking News US emailIn case you missed it, last night Donald Trump signed a 14-point agreement with Iran, claiming it delivered a “major win” for the United States – even as it made significant political and financial concessions to Iran to reopen the strait of Hormuz and prevent a “worldwide depression”.In extraordinary remarks yesterday, Trump went from threatening Iran with a new wave of attacks to suggesting the country had basic rights to enrich uranium for civilian use, that he would not pressure Tehran to abandon its ballistic missiles programme and the US was “going to have to give back” billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets.The agreement is a record of US failure. People will see it and judge. Continue reading...
According to political commentator and Contrarian editor-in-chief Jennifer Rubin, while President Donald Trump has been working hard to make himself appear like a winner by hosting events like his UFC birthday bash, he is in fact “getting blown off the court of public opinion” as “his fan base has drifted away.”As evidence of the president’s tanking support, she points to a recent survey by the New York Times, which shows “that a majority of white, non-college educated voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy. The nosedive since the 2018 midterms — when he held a +30-point advantage with working-class white voters — to his current deficit, ranging from 14 to 30 points, confirms that he has lost his most loyal followers.” While she notes that this is one of many telling numbers, “his collapse among independent voters is truly stunning. AP-NORC research shows that ‘while about half of independents without a college education had a positive view of Trump around the 2024 election,’ only about a quarter did by this spring, PBS reported. The education gap disappeared, so independents now have ‘similarly negative views of the president regardless of their level of education.’ Likewise, PRRI’s poll of over 5,400 Americans confirms that Trump’s support has plunged among independents (down from 37 percent to 25 percent since last September) and even further (35 percent to 14 percent) among ‘true independents’ (who don’t lean toward either party).”But according to Rubin, arguably “Trump’s biggest fumble may have been with Hispanic voters, thanks to his disastrous economy and cruel anti-immigrant onslaught. PRRI shows Hispanic support down from 39 percent in September 2024 to 23 percent, the lowest in five years. AP-NORC found Hispanic independent support cratering from 46 percent around the 2024 election to ‘as low as 15 percent during last fall’s government shutdown before landing around one-quarter in the spring.’ In the same vein, the UnidosUS Bipartisan Poll of Hispanic Voters found 67 percent of Hispanic voters nationally disapprove of Trump’s performance, and 66 percent think he and Republicans are not doing enough on the economy.”All told, says Rubin, it’s clear that “Trump’s lame stunts” have failed to “distract Americans from his decrepit appearance and dismal job performance are not helping him.” What’s more, she asserts that when “you look at the reasons for voters’ economic angst, there’s an argument to be made that Trump’s vile displays of self-indulgence will make Republicans’ predicament worse. Behind the polling numbers is an inescapable economic reality. At the very time Americans are most stressed about making ends meet, they are confronted on a daily basis with evidence of Trump’s egregious self-enrichment and an ever-widening chasm between his uber-rich pals and everyone else.”With all this in mind, Rubin’s conclusion is not optimistic for the Republicans’ midterm chances this November: “Only people as clueless and selfish as Trump, MAGA operatives, and the Epstein class could imagine that they can keep the masses at bay and themselves in power with the 21st-century equivalent of Circus Maximus. It is easy to see why, then, Trump’s shenanigans may aggravate the threat to MAGA rule, not stave off its impending political reckoning.”
In today’s edition, we explore the domestic political challenges facing President Donald Trump on the Iran agreement.
President Donald Trump appears to once again be using the government to go after a top Democratic presidential contender, but according to a new piece from The Hill, he might have actually given one of his biggest enemies a massive "political gift."Earlier this week, Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California, revealed that the Trump Justice Department had launched an investigation into him and his wife, claiming that it was an attempt to fabricate a case against him because of his plans to consider a run for president in 2028. Reports from MS NOW later backed this up, with sources claiming that prosecutors in California had been pressured to "come up with a case" against the governor.This development would appear to mirror efforts to similarly target top Democratic presidential hopefuls that Trump undertook in his first term. Trump infamously attempted to extort the Ukrainian government for dirt on Joe Biden and his family in 2019, which ultimately led to his first impeachment the following year.That effort did little to stop Biden from winning the 2020 election, and now, according to a new piece from The Hill's Amie Parnes, Trump might also now be creating a "political opening" for Newsom. The governor has been viewed by many as one of, if not the top, Democratic 2028 contender, given his outspoken criticism and trolling of Trump during his second term."An investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) could have put California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on defense. Instead, it is giving Newsom, seen as a leading Democratic White House contender in 2028, a new political opening," Parnes wrote. "Newsom is embracing the DOJ investigation, using the confrontation with President Trump to raise his national profile and cement his role as one of the president’s lead rivals ahead of a probable White House bid."“By targeting Newsom, Trump just elevates his standing among Democrats, and, ironically, being singled out by the president makes Newsom appear more presidential-level himself,” California-based Democratic consultant Garry South, who previously advised Newsom, told Parnes. “And Newsom will play it to the hilt. He understands when he’s been given a gift.”Another Democratic strategist, Rodell Mollineau, told Parnes that the investigation has elevated Newsom as a 2028 hopeful, given that it signals Trump and Vice President JD Vance's concern about his ability to defeat them. "It demonstrates that Trump and Vice President Vance are concerned about his ability to take them on in 2028," the strategist said.Another strategist, speaking anonymously, summed up why Newsom has been getting to Trump enough to prompt such a move as this.“He’s become the one to beat,” they said. “And it’s for one reason only: He’s getting in Trump’s face constantly.”