Join Puck to listen to this article
McCarthy Schadenfreude & Dems’ M.T.G. Strategy
Abby Livingston
September 18, 2023
Try Puck for free
Sign up today to join the inside conversation at the nexus of Wall Street, Washington, A.I., Hollywood, and more.
Already a member? Log In
- Daily articles and breaking news
- Personal emails directly from our authors
- Gift subscriber-only stories to friends & family
- Unlimited access to archives
- Exclusive bonus days of select newsletters
- Exclusive access to Puck merch
- Early bird access to new editorial and product features
- Invitations to private conference calls with Puck authors
Exclusive to Inner Circle only
Latest Articles from Washington
Julia Ioffe
•
September 18, 2023
The Greenland Mile
After claiming the “framework of a deal” to expand America’s presence on the world’s largest island, Trump has dropped his threats to invade Greenland. Thank God, because a direct assault on Greenland wasn’t going to be a cakewalk.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
Trump’s G.O.P. Greenlanditis
With his Davos speech, the president reassured jittery Republicans that invading Greenland is, for now, off the table. But conversations on the Hill have escalated, as even Trump’s G.O.P. allies warn that any move that blows up NATO could end his midterm hopes—and lead to impeachment, too.
Peter Hamby
•
September 18, 2023
Inside the Democratic ICE Storm
A remarkably candid conversation with Adam Jentleson, the founder and president of the Searchlight Institute, about the rhetorical fight over abolishing ICE that’s raging inside the Democratic Party.
Abby Livingston
•
September 18, 2023
Klobuchar’s Minnesota Succession Mess
Two days before the killing of Renee Good, news leaked that Senator Klobuchar was weighing a bid to succeed Tim Walz as governor of Minnesota. But while the chatter about Klobuchar has receded from the headlines, Democrats are quietly discussing the political impact of a second open Senate seat in 2026.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
Will Democrats Impeach Kristi Noem?
While House Democrats are divided over how to challenge Trump, leadership is quietly building a case against the Homeland Security secretary—beginning with potential shadow hearings, outside the official committee structure, that would gather the evidence against her.
Julia Ioffe
•
September 18, 2023
The Havana Hangover
After years of denials, Washington is finally reckoning with new reporting that would seem to confirm the existence of the alleged Russian directed-energy weapon that causes Havana syndrome—or what the U.S. government now calls “anomalous health incidents.” But will Tulsi Gabbard be allowed to release the O.D.N.I.’s own findings?
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
John Thune Has the Hardest Job in Washington
Can the Senate leader preserve his majority, manage his members’ competing agendas, and protect his institution—all while placating the president?
Get access to this story
Enter your email for a free preview of Puck’s full offering, including exclusive articles, private emails from authors, and more.
Latest Articles from Washington
Peter Hamby
•
September 18, 2023
Support for ICE Is Collapsing
Outside the right-wing echo chamber, polls tell the true story of an unprecedented drop in support for Trump’s immigration agency, which has swung 30 points in 12 months.
Abby Livingston
•
September 18, 2023
Pelosi Succession Chatter & Gavin-mander Aftershocks
Nancy Pelosi’s retirement in San Francisco, an Obama alum’s generational challenge in L.A., and a redrawn Orange County could end careers and launch new California stars.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
The Ballad of Rand & Lindsey
The changing definition of “America First” has exploded tensions between two senators at opposite ends of the conservative foreign policy spectrum: the libertarian Rand Paul and the interventionist Lindsey Graham. If Paul won the ideological battle in the first term, Graham seems to have Trump’s ear in the second.
Abby Livingston
•
September 18, 2023
The Wolves of First Street
The once quixotic, bipartisan crusade to ban congressional stock trading is gaining real momentum—but in the least productive Congress in history, getting Washington’s best-informed traders to give up their Robinhood accounts may be a long shot.
Julia Ioffe
•
September 18, 2023
The Big Olowski Has Left the Building
Lew Olowski, the State Department’s wacky, polarizing head of H.R., is said to have imploded at his farewell party when he learned that he wasn’t getting a coveted assignment.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
Trump’s Mile-High Revenge Tour
The president’s bizarre decision to wage a retaliatory political war on Colorado—including the MAGA stronghold that elected Lauren Boebert—could wind up costing him the House.
Peter Hamby
•
September 18, 2023
Manospheres of Influence
The disaffected young men who helped elect Trump are fed up with high prices, worried about A.I., and frustrated by the president’s neocon turn. And, according to exclusive new polling data, they’re souring on Trump just as they turned on Joe Biden.
You have 1 free article Left
To read this full story and more, start your 14 day free trial today →
Already a member? Log In
Get access to this story
Enter your email to get access to one article and free previews of our private emails from Puck authors and editors.
OR
Already a Member? Sign in
Latest Articles from Washington
Julia Ioffe
•
September 18, 2023
Neocon Don
Trump’s largely consequence-free projection of military power in Iran and elsewhere laid the groundwork for last weekend’s shocking action in Venezuela—and validated a new framework for MAGA-style interventionism. But what happens when Xi starts playing by the same rules?
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
The Four Horsemen of Capitol Hill’s Apocalypse
A close look at the challenges, opportunities, and curveballs awaiting the Big Four congressional leaders in the new year: the M.T.G. mutiny, G.O.P. majority shrinkage, another shutdown, A.C.A. headaches, and Trump.
John Heilemann
•
September 18, 2023
The World According to Ezra
The Times columnist, podcast impresario, and would-be Democratic Party uber-reformer recaps the past year in politics—and explains why, despite his ongoing sense of alarm, he’s closing out 2025 feeling moderately hopeful.
Abby Livingston
•
September 18, 2023
The Real House Members of Potomac
Ready or not, the midterm primary season is just days away. And, as analyst Jacob Rubashkin explains, just about anything can happen… including a congressional surprise in Texas and a Senate upset in Michigan.
Leigh Ann Caldwell
•
September 18, 2023
The G.O.P.’s Midterm Polling Paradox
A few months ago, Republicans thought they had the country on autopilot. Now the party is stuck with a souring economy, beholden to Trump for turnout—whether they like it or not—and staring down an increasingly unpredictable midterm map.
Peter Hamby
•
September 18, 2023
The ICE Storm
A candid conversation with L.A. police chief Jim McDonnell about the complicated reality of ICE raids, hyperbolic crime narratives, and preparing for the World Cup and 2028 Olympics in the second Trump era.
Abby Livingston
•
September 18, 2023
“The Mini Mamdanis Are Coming”
Dan Goldman, the popular resistance-lib congressman repping downtown Manhattan and much of brownstone Brooklyn, was a star on MSNBC. But in a year in which his rival was just endorsed by Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, Democrats fear he could be among the biggest names to fall in a Tea Party–style reckoning.
