What's News

MICHIGAN: Former President Trump demolished former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley (R) in the GOP presidential primary, winning almost 70% of the vote on his way to a 42-point victory. President Biden cruised to victory in the Democratic presidential primary, winning over 80% of the vote. A left-wing effort to encourage Michiganders to vote “uncommitted” as a protest against Biden’s stance on the war between Israel and Hamas appeared to gather a little bit of steam, as over 100,000 voters—roughly 13%—opted for this. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN 03) finished fourth in the Democratic primary, behind “uncommitted” and 2024 presidential candidate Marianne Williamson (D), who suspended her campaign weeks ago, but unsuspended it Wednesday morning. (AP)

On the same day as the primary, a “Michigan court thwarted” former state GOP chair Kristina Karamo’s “efforts to remain in control of the state Republican Party, issuing a preliminary injunction Tuesday that bars her from conducting party business.” The judge’s decision was issued “hours before polls closed in the state’s presidential primary and days ahead of a Michigan GOP convention that will determine how delegates for this summer’s Republican National Convention are allocated.” Former Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R) replaced Karamo as state GOP chair, with the RNC formally recognizing him last month. (NBC News)

GENERAL ELECTION: American Values 2024, the super PAC backing anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (I), said it has gathered enough signatures for the candidate to qualify for the general election ballots in Arizona and Georgia. Biden flipped both of these states in 2020 on his way to defeating Trump, and a third-party bid could theoretically hamper his reelection hopes. (CNN)

DEMOCRATS: “Hunter Biden will come face to face” today “with the Republicans lawmakers he once accused of trying to kill him to harm his father's political career in a highly anticipated face-off that could be a pivotal moment for the sputtering GOP-led impeachment inquiry.” The House Oversight and Judiciary Committees will interview the president’s son behind closed doors today. (ABC News)

FIELD OF REPUBLICANS: Businessman Ryan Binkley (R) suspended his long shot presidential bid. (Twitter) He hadn’t won a single delegate yet. (Green Papers)

BATTLE FOR THE SENATE: Democrats will attempt to pass Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s (D-IL) IVF protection bill today but “some Republicans already have indicated their unease with the legislation.” Several Republicans told National Journal that even though they support IVF, they are “unsure about supporting Duckworth’s bill.” (National Journal) The debate around the bill comes as the NRSC has told GOP candidates to “clearly and concisely reject efforts by the government to restrict IVF” following the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling that embryos developed via IVF are to be considered children. (Hotline reporting)

Just about a year into the job NRSC Chair Steve Daines has “all but cleared Republican fields in Indiana, Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Montana for his chosen candidates.” He also put Maryland on the map by recruiting former Gov. Larry Hogan (R). “He has discouraged multiple candidates, including” former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R), from running, “while appealing for muted infighting states like Michigan and Ohio. Most importantly, he has formed a close relationship with Trump, bridging the still-festering divide between the former president” and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. (Washington Post)

MD SEN: Hogan “rebuffed years of entreaties and lobbying from a parade of powerful Republicans.” That is, until he received a letter from a lifelong Marylander on Jan. 8: Daines’ Chief of Staff Darin Thacker. Hogan “responded within an hour” and once Hogan showed interest, Thacker “quickly informed his boss of his personal outreach, setting in motion a frantic three-week sprint of private meetings and polling.” Hogan ultimately made a “dramatic surprise entrance into the race hours before a Feb. 9 filing deadline. The decision delivered a genuine jolt to a Senate landscape that was already heavily tilted toward Republicans in 2024.” (New York Times)

NJ SEN: First lady Tammy Murphy (D) “has been talking like a campaign finance reformer, calling the amount of money in politics ‘disgusting.’ But as first lady, she’s “spent a year and a half leading a dark-money group without disclosing donors. Now she has a super PAC supporting her bid” to oust embattled Sen. Bob Menendez (D). (Politico)

OH-09: 2022 nominee J.R. Majewski (R) “has told people he plans to drop out … just days after early voting began in the Republican primary.” Majewski said he does not know what he will do yet, but in private conversations and text messages he said he will end his campaign. Majewski, who embellished his Air Force record, was at the Capitol on Jan. 6, and lost to Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D) by 13 points in 2022, is facing increased scrutiny after he called Special Olympics athletes “retarded.” Majewski reportedly has been in touch with Trump about a job. If Majewski departs, 2022 candidate Craig Riedel (R) and state Rep. Derek Merrin (R) would remain. National Republicans initially recruited Riedel to run again but abandoned him and sought after Merrin when audio leaked of Riedel criticizing Trump. (Politico)

NY-03 SPECIAL: Rep.-elect Tom Suozzi (D) will be sworn in tonight following his special election victory to replace expelled Rep. George Santos (R). Once Suozzi takes the oath of office, Republicans will have 219 members to Democrats’ 213. There will be three vacancies, two Republican and one Democratic. Three defections on legislation will kill a party-line vote. (Hotline reporting)

Nassau County leaders have begun meeting with prospective candidates to run against Suozzi in the fall. They’ve lost two of their better-known candidates, former NYPD detective Mike Sapraicone (R), who’s running for Senate, and state Sen. Jack Martins (R), who’s running for reelection. Air Force veteran Kellen Curry (R), who, like Sapraicone, ran before the special election, hasn’t decided if he will run. Air Force veteran Greg Hach (R) recently launched a campaign and will self-fund $1 million toward the campaign. Security Traders Association Jim Toes (R) said he plans to run. (Politico)

CA GOV: Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) “faces his fifth recall attempt as a citizen-led group of conservative activists launched a fresh campaign on Monday to remove him from office.

Organizers with Rescue California plan to serve the governor with recall papers, citing concerns such as the state’s budget deficit, public safety and immigration.” The group also spearheaded the unsuccessful 2021 effort to recall Newsom. While the governor has been actively supporting Biden’s reelection, this time, the group said they are also trying to thwart Newsom’s potential presidential ambitions. (San Francisco Chronicle) Newsom responded to the news, saying “I take it very seriously. It’s the same dark forces that went after me last time.” (Spectrum News)

MO GOV: The Missouri Democratic Party refused to accept a filing fee from state Rep. Sarah Unsicker (D), blacklisting her from running for governor as a Democrat. State House Democrats removed Unsicker from the Democratic caucus in December “after social media posts last year showed her with a man cited by the Anti-Defamation League as a Holocaust denier.” The state Democratic Party’s lawyer, James Paul, wrote in a letter to Unsicker Tuesday saying that “having been removed from the House Democratic Caucus by your peers, the Missouri Democratic Party does not wish to associate with you as a candidate.” Unsicker “could still run for Missouri governor as a libertarian or a Republican if those parties would accept her. She could also run as an independent but would need to gather 10,000 voter signatures by July 29.” State House Minority Leader Crystal Quade (D) and businessman Mike Hamra (D) remain in the Democratic primary. (AP)

OR-05: Democratic Party chairs in four in-district counties penned a letter to the DCCC expressing frustration at the committee for consolidating behind state Rep. Janelle Bynum (D) over 2022 nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner (D). The letter asked the DCCC, DNC, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to not spend money in the district and “refrain from backing any candidate in an Oregon primary” henceforth. The local leaders urged the DCCC to let the voters decide the nominee, yet four county parties backed McLeod-Skinner against former Rep. Kurt Schrader (D) in 2022. Officials argue it was to counteract the DCCC”s endorsement of Schrader, who was a member of the committee and an incumbent at the time. The county chairs wrote in the letter that the DCCC “has damaged our ability” to motivate the base and did not consult local officials before adding Bynum to the "Red to Blue" challenger list. (Oregonian)

TX-34: Rep. Vicente Gonzalez’s (D) campaign “recently got involved in the Republican primary by sending out mailers” to boost cybersecurity specialist Greg Kunkle (R) over former Rep. Mayra Flores (R). One mailer says that Flores is “the weakest Republican and the easiest to defeat this November.” Another mailer reads that Kunkle is “not for us,” before likening him to the “MAGA agenda” and noting he defended the “January 6 hostages.” Guised as criticism, “those attacks could actually play well among Republican primary voters, who widely … adore Trump.” Flores has raised more than $2 million and has Beltway support. Kunkle has not “raised a single cent.” Gonzalez said he’s not meddling in the primary and preferred Flores to Kunkle. (Texas Tribune)

RACE FOR THE HOUSE: Democrats Serve PAC, which backs candidates with public service backgrounds, endorsed former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo (D) in CA-16, state Sen. John Mannion (D) in NY-22, and state Del. Michelle Maldonado (D) in VA-10. (Hotline reporting)

Our Call

It’s difficult to take too many positives away for former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley after her humbling defeat in Michigan yesterday. But one positive is that she appeared to gain more support from her ex-rivals’ supporters than former President Trump. A December poll in the Wolverine State found her with just 13% of support, while Trump was at 63%. The other three candidates who were then in the running combined for 21%. If that poll was accurate, Haley took much more votes from the other candidates, all of whom have since dropped out, than Trump did in the two months since the poll. The other positive for Haley is that these primaries are giving her the chance to introduce herself to as many voters as possible. If she runs again in 2028, the work she is doing now could prove vital. — Zac Weisz

Democratic governors are facing tough challenges as they continue to rally the proverbial troops for their president. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmner (D) went to bat for Biden ahead of the primary Tuesday night, despite the difficult dance she has to do with the sizable Arab American community that’s frustrated with the administration. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has also had his hands full with his fifth long-shot recall challenge while loudly maintaining his support of Biden and savoring his role as Republicans' favorite scapegoat. With both of these top-Biden surrogates firmly planting themselves behind the president despite the challenges, it’s important to remember what they might be getting out of it besides a headache. Though we’re hurdling toward election day 2024, these surrogates are likely thinking in term-limits with sights set on 2028. — Hannah Thacker

Sen. Tammy Duckworth's (D-IL) bill that would enshrine the right to in-vitro fertilization into law might hold Republicans’ feet to the fire. The debate around access to IVF comes as Republicans have been struggling to articulate a position on abortion and reproductive health after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.The NRSC warned candidates last week they needed to "clearly and concisely reject efforts by the government to restrict IVF" and GOP Senate candidates quickly fell in line. If Republicans reject Duckworth's bill today, it will allow Democrats to further paint the party as out of touch when it comes to reproductive rights. And it may make it difficult for voters to take Republicans seriously when they say they support access to IVF. — Sydney Kashiwagi

 Fresh Brewed Buzz

“A delegation of the U.S. Congressional Progressive Caucus traveled to Cuba last week in a trip that has not previously been disclosed by the legislators nor reported in Cuban state media.” (Miami Herald)

Despite its growing influence in education, immigration, and health care policies, “7 out of 10 American said they were” rejectors or skeptics of Christian nationalism, according to a new PRRI poll. “In California, New York and Virginia, more than 75% of respondents said they were rejecters or skeptics.” But in five deeply red states, North Dakota, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia, and Louisiana, at least 45% of respondents said they were adherents or sympathizers. (Axios)

“Power y Glory: Latino Politics in Los Angeles” (Los Angeles Times)

Biden is set to give his highly anticipated State of the Union address next week, but “it’s possible that the government could be partially shut down—and barreling toward a full shut down.” Should Congress fail to meet their funding deadlines, Biden will become the first president to give his address during a shutdown. (CNN)

“Inside North Korea’s Forced-Labor Program” (New Yorker)

“An elected member of a Virginia school board—who allegedly bragged about drinking Fireball and Coors Light in the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack and said he was in touch with a member of the far-right Oath Keepers that day—was arrested by federal authorities Tuesday.” (NBC News)

Swizzle Challenge

George Washington was posthumously promoted by President Ford to rank above all officers of the United States Army.

Evan Wilson won yesterday’s challenge. Here’s his challenge: Which president served in Congress after his time in the Oval Office and suffered a fatal stroke on the floor of the House Chamber?

The 3rd correct email gets to submit the next question.

 Early Bird Special

 Shot...

“If you resent me for the audacity to challenge Joe Biden, at least you’ll appreciate how relatively strong I’m making him look among primary voters!” — Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN 03) after finishing fourth in the Michigan Democratic primary (Twitter)

 Chaser

“You want me on that wall. You need me on that wall. … I would rather you just said ‘thank you’ and went on your way.” — Col. Nathan Jessup (A Few Good Men)