1 big thing: "Where is our backbone?"

2. Scoop: Tens of thousands of migrants wait on U.S. doorstep

3. 🗳️ Establishment trumps MAGA 

4. 🌹 One American

5. 🇨🇳 Trove shows rare images from inside Xinjiang camps

6. Two years ago today: Remembering George Floyd

7. 🛒 Why we trust grocery stores

8. 📷 1,000 words

Hello, Wednesday, after a long night in America. Smart Brevity™ count: 1,465 words ... 5½ mins. Edited by Noah Bressner.

📬 Invite your friends to sign up here to get their daily essentials — Axios AM, PM and Finish Line.

National

An analog clock with only two symbols instead of twelve: the symbols read 'AM' and 'PM'.

blue

Catch up with the most important news of the day

Axios AM

1 big thing: More words for your repertoire

Illustration of two mouths surrounded by 90s style pattern

🏆 Drumroll, please

Welcome back. Keep reaching us at FinishLine@axios.com.

Smart Brevity™ count: 293 words ... 1 1/2 minutes.

Thanks for reading. Invite your friends to sign up.

Axios Finish Line

1 big thing: Beto confronts Abbott

2. Remember them 

3. Catch up quick

4. The grimmest viral headline

Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 637 words, a 2-min. read.

Get Mike Allen’s afternoon take on the most important news of the day

Axios PM

⚽️ 1 big thing: World Cup USA

2. 🧸 Birth rate rises for first time since 2014

4. 1 smile to go: Free doughnuts tomorrow

Good afternoon: Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 493 words, a 2-minute read.

🚨 Texas school shooting: At least two are dead after a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, west of San Antonio. Uvalde Memorial Hospital said it received 13 children by ambulance or buses for treatment. Live updates.

1 big thing: How to talk to kids about Uvalde

Illustration of a chalkboard in the shape of a speech bubble. 

Go deeper

Welcome back. Send your feedback and questions to FinishLine@axios.com.

Smart Brevity™ count: 485 words ... 2 mins.

Thanks for reading. Invite friends to sign up.

Republicans are deeply split on their abortion strategy, with top officials pushing restraint, even silence, while activist GOP candidates demand an all-out campaign for a national ban and harsher penalties. 

Why it matters: Republicans' confidence in landslide victories this fall was shaken by the leaked abortion ruling — in part because they know the topic invigorates their base, while rattling many swing voters. 

A top adviser to House Republican leaders tells Axios their polling shows that in races that matter, voters aren't "hip to this kind of seismic change." 

The adviser said lawmakers are asking for guidance on how to talk about issues like abortion in cases of rape or incest — knowing a hardline view is wildly unpopular. 

The GOP establishment's initial marching orders, in an NRSC memo leaked to Axios' Alayna Treene, counseled caution and even silence. 

But activist candidates and voters couldn't care less what the establishment wants — and see this as the moment to fulfill their lifelong dream of strict abortion bans, with few exceptions, and penalties for those carrying out abortions. 

What we're hearing: Tony Perkins — president of the Family Research Council, who's been fighting on the issue for 30 years — told me in a phone interview that there's "some caution about overreach" among GOP leaders.

But they're privately promising to help push America to be a "predominantly pro-life nation," Perkins said. 

What to watch: Cook Political Report's Dave Wasserman points to swing state Nevada, which has toss-up Senate and governor's races. The GOP needs suburban voters in the Silver State — but the party's base is pushing hard for more abortion restrictions.

The takeaway ... One thing is certain about modern politics: Rarely does moderation or restraint prevail — especially on cultural, religious or identity issues. In fact, one truism of modern conservatism is: The more the establishment pushes something, the more the base recoils. 

The great GOP divide on abortion

Republicans know the topic invigorates their base, while rattling many swing voters.

Abortion

Policymaking

Republicans are deeply split on their abortion strategy, with top officials pushing restraint, even silence, while activist GOP candidates demand an all-out campaign for a national ban and harsher penalties. Why it matters: Republicans&#x27; confidence in landslide victories this fall was shaken by the leaked abortion ruling — in part because they know the topic invigorates their base, while rattling many swing voters.

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

After a weekend of angry tweeting, former GOP operative Steve Schmidt launched a new Substack yesterday by asserting that the late Sen. John McCain lied to him, to The New York Times and to America about his longtime relationship with a female lobbyist.  

Driving the news ... Schmidt, the top strategist on McCain's 2008 presidential campaign, wrote: "John McCain told me the truth backstage at an event in Ohio ... Understandably, he was very concerned about this potentially campaign-ending issue. He kept saying, 'The campaign is over.'"

Earlier, Schmidt writes, McCain denied it "dozens of times to my face."

Schmidt's post followed a weekend-long Twitter diatribe directed primarily at Meghan McCain, the senator's daughter.

A source close to Meghan McCain told Axios the two haven't spoken since 2008.

Schmidt — now a consultant, and a co-founder of the Lincoln Project — says he's taken too much blame for his role in choosing Sarah Palin as McCain's running mate, which has brought him 14 years of agony. 

During a 40-minute phone interview, I asked Schmidt if he worries about appearing unhinged. 

"There is some soft consensus that has emerged, mostly from soft people," he replied, "that responding to smears and slurs and insanity is some combination of unhinged or giving attention. This is as profoundly wrong a sensibility as there could conceivably be."

"I just completely reject the idea at every conceivable level — in part informed by 14 years of pain and abuse — that carrying a secret ... is healthy," he added. "It's not."

"I will sleep softly tonight — unburdened and much lighter than I was yesterday morning."

The McCain Institute for International Leadership, a nonprofit affiliated with the McCain family, didn't respond to a request for comment.

A New York Times story during the campaign (Feb. 2008) reported McCain's "close bond with a lobbyist whose clients often had business" before the Senate Commerce Committee, which McCain chaired. 

Following the story's publication, Schmidt writes, McCain "lied to the American people at a news conference" for which Schmidt helped him prep. 

I asked Schmidt if he has qualms about attacking a man who can't defend himself. "It's the truth," Schmidt said. "It's history. John McCain does not exist in a protected space."

I asked Schmidt if he had proof. "What will happen next is a number of people will go out and try to debunk what I said, maybe," he said. "And if they do, the conclusions of that effort will be solidifying the proof of what I said."

Steve Schmidt: John McCain lied to my face

"It's the truth. It's history. John McCain does not exist in a protected space."

John McCain

<figure><img alt="Steve Schmidt tweet about Sarah Palin" height="1080" id="c3e7527d-f90e-40c2-86aa-3d2333fb7686" src="https://images.axios.com/TtysqDCn33tVSo4YMAgNeiHnKjU=/2022/05/10/1652175752285.jpg" width="1920"/><figcaption><a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Via Twitter" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/SteveSchmidtSES/status/1523799628390359040" data-vars-content-id="28c60a7e-b2da-46aa-9849-cc070531c92a" data-vars-headline="Steve Schmidt: John McCain lied to my face" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/SteveSchmidtSES/status/1523799628390359040" target="_blank">Via Twitter</a></figcaption></figure>After a weekend of angry tweeting, former GOP operative Steve Schmidt launched a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="new Substack" data-vars-click-url="https://steveschmidt.substack.com/about" data-vars-content-id="28c60a7e-b2da-46aa-9849-cc070531c92a" data-vars-headline="Steve Schmidt: John McCain lied to my face" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://steveschmidt.substack.com/about" target="_blank">new Substack</a> yesterday by asserting that the late Sen. John McCain lied to him, to The New York Times and to America about his longtime relationship with a female lobbyist. Driving the news ... Schmidt, the top strategist on McCain&#x27;s 2008 presidential campaign, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="wrote" data-vars-click-url="https://steveschmidt.substack.com/p/no-books-no-money-just-the-truth" data-vars-content-id="28c60a7e-b2da-46aa-9849-cc070531c92a" data-vars-headline="Steve Schmidt: John McCain lied to my face" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://steveschmidt.substack.com/p/no-books-no-money-just-the-truth" target="_blank">wrote</a>: &quot;John McCain told me the truth backstage at an event in Ohio ... Understandably, he was very concerned about this potentially campaign-ending issue. He kept saying, &#x27;The campaign is over.&#x27;&quot;

Kellyanne Conway, who was counselor to former President Trump, writes in a memoir out tomorrow, "Here's the Deal," that she was stunned by attacks from her husband, lawyer George Conway, who has 1.9 million Twitter followers.

What she's saying: "I had two men in my life. One was my husband. One was my boss, who happened to be president of the United States. One of those men was defending me. And it wasn't George Conway. It was Donald Trump."

George Conway, she writes, disappointed her by "skipping the kinds of confidential, civil conversations spouses typically have when one has a change of heart or both agree to disagree about something big."

"What are you doing, George?” I asked him plainly and calmly. I got the same answer every time ... "You work for a madman," George would say in a loud, sinister voice ... 

"Like everything George did during this time," Conway continues, "I found out about it after it happened or as it was happening. It was sneaky, almost sinister. Why not own it, share it, sneer in my face with a copy of tomorrow's Washington Post op-ed or next week's Lincoln Project ad?"

Night after night, I would come home from a busy day at work ... While I was minding dishes, dogs, laundry, managing adolescent dramas and traumas, George would be just steps away from me, tucked away in his home office, plotting against my boss and me.

When I asked Conway how her husband reacted to those passages, she replied: "I write lovingly and nostalgically about George for much of the book ... People thought we made some sort of deal ... I write in the book that if this is a show, no one told me; please cancel the season and take me out."

"[H]e has sent 100K tweets; we know what he thinks. Time for me to talk."

At the end, Conway writes that over dinner last year at Mar-a-Lago, Trump told her: "Write a great book, honey. You made history. You were the first woman [to manage a winning presidential campaign]. You did a fantastic job. You should talk about it."

When she told him she wished he were still in the Oval Office, Trump replied: "We'll be back, honey. We'll all be back."

Conway was represented by Keith Urbahn and Matt Latimer of Javelin.

Kellyanne Conway memoir: Husband's attacks "sneaky, almost sinister"

"I had two men in my life. ... One of those men was defending me. And it wasn't George Conway."

Kellyanne Conway

Kellyanne Conway, who was counselor to former President Trump, writes in a memoir out tomorrow, &quot;Here&#x27;s the Deal,&quot; that she was stunned by <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="attacks from her husband" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2019/03/14/george-conway-overshadows-kellyanne-1552544941" data-vars-content-id="65428f85-218f-4802-b199-df6d3b2b5bf1" data-vars-headline="Kellyanne Conway memoir: Husband&#x27;s attacks &quot;sneaky, almost sinister&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2019/03/14/george-conway-overshadows-kellyanne-1552544941" target="_self">attacks from her husband</a>, lawyer <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="George Conway" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/gtconway3d" data-vars-content-id="65428f85-218f-4802-b199-df6d3b2b5bf1" data-vars-headline="Kellyanne Conway memoir: Husband&#x27;s attacks &quot;sneaky, almost sinister&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/gtconway3d" target="_blank">George Conway</a>, who has 1.9 million Twitter followers.What she&#x27;s saying: &quot;I had two men in my life. One was my husband. One was my boss, who happened to be president of the United States. One of those men was defending me. And it wasn&#x27;t George Conway. It was Donald Trump.&quot;

Ian Bremmer writes in "The Power of Crisis," out Tuesday, that the globe's three great threats are the next pandemic ... the climate emergency ... and the unexpected impact of disruptive technologies:

"The speed of technological change is the biggest risk of all," writes Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group. "Companies are now using artificial intelligence to figure out the most efficient ways to change human behavior in ways that profit them."

"New technologies are already changing what it means to be human — and we have no idea where that might lead."

"The lead US and Chinese tech companies are central players in the drama that will determine whether the world descends into a new Cold War or heads toward a much more hopeful future," Bremmer adds.

"No other non-state actors today or arguably in history have come close to this kind of geopolitical influence."

"We've reached a crossroads," Bremmer writes:

[U]nprecedented global challenges aren't lurking somewhere in our future; they're here today. Climate change will intensify, no matter what we do, and its effects will be felt everywhere. Much of our planet is becoming hostile to life. The wealthiest countries and people will spend all they can to shield themselves from the worst effects of this unfolding calamity, but the upheaval and misery will continue. 

Only a global response can limit the damage," Bremmer says. "Our leaders in politics, business, and philanthropy must compromise, cooperate, and coordinate in new ways."

New Ian Bremmer book unpacks globe's "biggest risk of all"

"New technologies are already changing what it means to be human."

Books

<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Ian Bremmer" data-vars-click-url="https://twitter.com/ianbremmer" data-vars-content-id="6e68d7b9-9a1a-42b0-90a0-7617017543a6" data-vars-headline="New Ian Bremmer book unpacks globe&#x27;s &quot;biggest risk of all&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://twitter.com/ianbremmer" target="_blank">Ian Bremmer</a> writes in &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="The Power of Crisis" data-vars-click-url="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Power-of-Crisis/Ian-Bremmer/9781982167509" data-vars-content-id="6e68d7b9-9a1a-42b0-90a0-7617017543a6" data-vars-headline="New Ian Bremmer book unpacks globe&#x27;s &quot;biggest risk of all&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Power-of-Crisis/Ian-Bremmer/9781982167509" target="_blank">The Power of Crisis</a>,&quot; out Tuesday, that the globe&#x27;s three great threats are the next pandemic ... the climate emergency ... and the unexpected impact of disruptive technologies:<ul><li>&quot;The speed of technological change is the biggest risk of all,&quot; writes Bremmer, president and founder of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Eurasia Group" data-vars-click-url="https://www.eurasiagroup.net/people/IBremmer" data-vars-content-id="6e68d7b9-9a1a-42b0-90a0-7617017543a6" data-vars-headline="New Ian Bremmer book unpacks globe&#x27;s &quot;biggest risk of all&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.eurasiagroup.net/people/IBremmer" target="_blank">Eurasia Group</a>. &quot;Companies are now using artificial intelligence to figure out the most efficient ways to change human behavior in ways that profit them.&quot;</li></ul>

From the Valley to D.C., Big Tech players like Facebook, Google and Amazon are under more scrutiny than ever as new technology develops and privacy and antitrust concerns grow in lockstep with companies’ ambitions.

Technology

The racist shooting that killed 10 people in a Buffalo supermarket on Saturday was a shocking act of domestic terrorism that ignited debates over guns, racism and radicalization. And consider the weekend crime blotter from across the nation.

1. Orange County, Calif.: A man opened fire yesterday during a lunch reception at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, Calif., AP reports. He killed one person and wounded five senior citizens, before a pastor hit the gunman on the head with a chair and parishioners hog-tied him with electrical cords.

2. Houston: Two people were killed and three more were taken to a hospital with injuries after a shooting yesterday at a bustling open-air flea market, per AP. The shooting arose from an “altercation” that involved at least two guns and all five of the people.

3. Chicago: A curfew banning unaccompanied minors in Millennium Park after 6 p.m., Thursday through Sunday, was imposed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot after a 16-year-old was shot dead Saturday near "The Bean" sculpture — among the city's top tourist attractions, AP reports.

4. Milwaukee: A curfew was imposed, a massive watch party for the NBA's Bucks was canceled — and beer sales slowed downtown — after 21 people were hurt in three shootings Friday night. The shootings happened near the Deer District, where 11,000 gathered near the arena where the Bucks played the Boston Celtics in the NBA's Eastern Conference semifinals. In one shooting, 17 people were hurt when two groups started firing at each other, per AP.

5. Winston-Salem, N.C.: Seven people were injured by gunfire Sunday night in "related" shootings that were "not considered to be a random act of violence," police told NBC News. Authorities said they were still in the early stages of an investigation but believed there had been a "large exchange" of gunfire in the area, according to WGHP. None of the injuries were thought to be life-threatening.

People gather yesterday outside the scene of the shooting in Buffalo. Photo: Matt Rourke/AP

What we know about the 18-year-old charged with leaving 10 dead and three wounded at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo, as people shopped for Sunday gatherings (by the Axios newsdesk):

The suspect threatened to target his high school last spring. But he had no further contact with law enforcement after a mental health evaluation that put him in a hospital for a day and a half.

He livestreamed the shooting on the gaming platform Twitch. A Twitch spokesperson said the video was removed in less than two minutes. But copies and screenshots are circulating online.

The shooter wore tactical gear, including a bulletproof vest, and used a semiautomatic rifle, police said.

The suspect drove 200 miles from Conklin, N.Y., and targeted a grocery store in a predominantly Black neighborhood. Eleven of the 13 people shot were Black.

He allegedly left a racist screed. Federal authorities are working to confirm the authenticity of a 180-page document that said the assault was intended to terrorize non-white people. (Go deeper ... Context.)

Photo: Kent Nishimura/L.A. Times via Getty Images

President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden will travel to Buffalo on Tuesday "to grieve with the community that lost ten lives in a senseless and horrific mass shooting," the White House said. 

Editor's note: This article has been updated with details from a shooting in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

American eruption

Consider the weekend crime blotter from across the nation.

A woman chalks a message yesterday at a makeshift memorial outside of Tops supermarket in Buffalo, N.Y. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Mass shootings

The racist shooting that killed 10 people in a Buffalo supermarket on Saturday was a shocking act of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="domestic terrorism" data-vars-click-url="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/05/14/statement-by-president-biden-on-mass-shooting-in-buffalo-new-york/" data-vars-content-id="e5e8c8d8-d14d-4b0b-9ec2-28ece58fbe1a" data-vars-headline="American eruption" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/05/14/statement-by-president-biden-on-mass-shooting-in-buffalo-new-york/" target="_blank">domestic terrorism</a> that ignited debates over <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="guns" data-vars-click-url="https://apnews.com/article/biden-crime-shootings-new-york-buffalo-065a2ed910a0a09b621ebba57bbba34b" data-vars-content-id="e5e8c8d8-d14d-4b0b-9ec2-28ece58fbe1a" data-vars-headline="American eruption" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-crime-shootings-new-york-buffalo-065a2ed910a0a09b621ebba57bbba34b" target="_blank">guns</a>, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="racism" data-vars-click-url="https://apnews.com/article/shootings-new-york-violence-religion-ad45b4c56e74a4ec606c0a7e44694a19" data-vars-content-id="e5e8c8d8-d14d-4b0b-9ec2-28ece58fbe1a" data-vars-headline="American eruption" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://apnews.com/article/shootings-new-york-violence-religion-ad45b4c56e74a4ec606c0a7e44694a19" target="_blank">racism</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="radicalization" data-vars-click-url="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-new-york-buffalo-shootings-migration-c86f309f02cd14062f301ce6b9228e33" data-vars-content-id="e5e8c8d8-d14d-4b0b-9ec2-28ece58fbe1a" data-vars-headline="American eruption" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-new-york-buffalo-shootings-migration-c86f309f02cd14062f301ce6b9228e33" target="_blank">radicalization</a>. And consider the weekend crime blotter from across the nation.1. Orange County, Calif.: A man opened fire yesterday during a lunch reception at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, Calif., <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="AP reports" data-vars-click-url="https://apnews.com/article/religion-shootings-california-1be9931f502664693afbdaa3f1cf6c57" data-vars-content-id="e5e8c8d8-d14d-4b0b-9ec2-28ece58fbe1a" data-vars-headline="American eruption" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://apnews.com/article/religion-shootings-california-1be9931f502664693afbdaa3f1cf6c57" target="_blank">AP reports</a>. He killed one person and wounded five senior citizens, before a pastor hit the gunman on the head with a chair and parishioners hog-tied him with electrical cords.

Sections

Axios Local

Axios gets you smarter, faster with news & information that matters.

About

Subscribe

Mike Allen

Stories

Kellyanne Conway memoir: Husband's attacks "sneaky, almost sinister"

New Ian Bremmer book unpacks globe's "biggest risk of all"

American eruption

The great GOP divide on abortion

Steve Schmidt: John McCain lied to my face

Newsletter editions

🏁 Axios Finish Line: Advice for kids

🎯 Axios PM: Surprise showdown

🌹 Axios AM: "Where is our backbone?"

🏁 Axios Finish Line: In your words

Axios PM: World Cup USA