Dozens of ambitious Democrats are looking at the next presidential race and thinking: Why not me?

• They're stashing millions of dollars, quietly hiring presidential-level campaign staff, fine-tuning potential stump speeches, sitting for glossy profiles, trying to grow their social media followings, and visiting Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, Axios' Alex Thompson reports.

Why it matters: The 2028 Democratic presidential primary will be the most wide-open in a generation.

• And — sorry! — it could also be the longest presidential contest ever. Several top Dem insiders tell Alex they're preparing for multiple candidates to formally launch even before next year's midterms.

✈️ Zoom in: A dozen Democrats have already visited or have plans to visit an early primary state this year.

• The governors: Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Gavin Newsom of California, Tim Walz of Minnesota, Wes Moore of Maryland, JB Pritzker of Illinois.
• The senators: Mark Kelly of Arizona, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Ruben Gallego of Arizona, Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
• Other Democrats: Rep. Ro Khanna of California, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Several other Democratic lawmakers haven't traveled to early primary states but have tried to establish national brands:

• Govs. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Jared Polis of Colorado, Phil Murphy of New Jersey.
• Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Raphael Warnock of Georgia, plus Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

🥊 Reality check: After Trump's rise in the Republican Party and voter anger, there's always the possibility of an outsider coming in and demolishing the field.

💰 By the numbers: At the end of June, here's how much money each of the potential candidates in Congress had in their campaign account. Those funds can legally be transferred to a presidential campaign account.

• Booker: $19.6 million (he's also up for re-election in 2026).
• Khanna: $14.2 million.
• Murphy: $10.2 million.
• Ocasio-Cortez: $9.8 million.
• Kelly: $7.9 million.
• Warnock: $4.2 million.
• Klobuchar: $1.8 million.
• Sanders has the most money on hand — $20.1 million. But he'd be 87 by the November 2028 election, and has suggested he's not interested in another presidential run.

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Investors who flocked to Europe for outsized market returns earlier this year are now coming back — not because of America itself, but because of America's AI dominance, Axios Markets author Madison Mills writes.

• Why it matters: Without an AI boom of its own, Europe will struggle to keep up and attract global investors.

"People want to be in the U.S. markets in the AI trade," Stuart Kaiser, head of U.S. equity strategy at Citi, tells Axios.

• "It's a market you have to be involved in."

Zoom in: Nvidia alone is worth an amount equal to 14% of the total U.S. GDP, notes Brave Eagle Wealth Management chief investment officer Robert Ruggirello.

• "Not owning it is ... painful," he wrote.

🔬 Between the lines: Europe's slower AI momentum reflects regulatory pressure, higher corporate taxes, and fragmented markets.

Even European AI successes often funnel into U.S. markets: DeepMind, the British AI firm behind Gemini, sold to Alphabet in 2014.

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President Trump's tour of the Fed's under-renovation headquarters amounted to a dramatic made-for-the-cameras moment with Fed chair Jay Powell, Axios' Neil Irwin writes.

• Why it matters: The tour followed weeks of Trump allies apparently laying the groundwork to oust Powell for cause over the $2.5 billion renovation project.

Powell toured Trump through the 1930s Marriner S. Eccles Building, both wearing white construction helmets.

• A reporter asked Trump if there was anything Powell could say to convince him to back off from his criticisms. "Well, I'd love them to lower interest rates," Trump said.

Powell, mostly stone-faced during the joint appearance, chuckled.

💰 Between the lines: Trump said that the project in fact costs $3.1 billion, not the much-cited $2.5 billion.

• Powell shook his head and said that the higher number includes a third office building across the street that was completed five years ago.

"I don't want to be personal," Trump said. "We'd just like to see it get finished. And in many ways, it's too bad it started, but it did start, and it's been under construction for a long time, that'll be it's going to be a real long time, because it looks like it's got a long way to go."

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President Trump's approval rating has fallen 10 points since his second term began six months ago, new Gallup polling shows.

• Why it matters: The decline is driven by a 17-point plunge among independents, who give the president a 29% approval rating. His numbers with the group have never been lower.

"No more than 36% of independents approve of the president's job performance" on any of the eight issues Gallup polled:

• The situation with Iran (36%).
• Foreign affairs (33%).
• Immigration (30%).
• The economy (29%).
• Foreign trade (27%).
• Israel (27%).
• The situation in Ukraine (24%).
• The federal budget (19%).

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The FCC yesterday approved Skydance's heavily scrutinized $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global — the parent company of CBS, Axios' Sara Fischer and Christine Wang write.

• Skydance has committed to ensuring the newly combined company will not have DEI programs and will invest in local news.

FCC chair Brendan Carr said he welcomes "Skydance's commitment to make significant changes at the once storied CBS broadcast network."

• "In particular," he added, "Skydance has made written commitments to ensure that the new company's programming embodies a diversity of viewpoints from across the political and ideological spectrum."

The other side: Dems slammed the approval as capitulation to President Trump and a further erosion of press freedom.

• Paramount's settlement with Trump for $16 million paved the way for the FCC to greenlight the deal, but Paramount had been making concessions long before then.
• Changes at the company prompted top leaders of "60 Minutes" to depart before the settlement.

Shortly after the settlement, Skydance CEO David Ellison met with Carr last week to urge the approval of the sale of CBS' broadcast licenses.

• Two days later, CBS canceled "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert." Colbert has been a vocal critic of Trump and the settlement.

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The DNC will target MAGA voters with ads about Jeffrey Epstein in a dozen GOP-held House districts at the start of the August recess, Axios' Tal Axelrod has learned.

• Why it matters: Democrats, after suffering debilitating losses in 2024, have found their mojo in pushing for the release of the Epstein files.

Democrats are pitting squeamish Republicans eager to move on from Epstein against MAGA voters who want validation of theories around the late financier's sex trafficking operation, its clientele and his 2019 death, ruled a suicide.

• The ads will run before videos on right-wing YouTube channels, including those of Fox News, Charlie Kirk and Ben Shapiro — target-rich audiences for the voters fixated on Epstein.

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The Agriculture Department will move thousands of employees out of the nation's capital in a reorganization the agency says puts them closer to farmers and ranchers.

• Why it matters: The move is part of President Trump's effort to make the federal government slimmer and more efficient, which received a boost from the Supreme Court this month.

Around 2,600 workers — more than half of its D.C. workforce — will be moved to five hubs: Raleigh; Kansas City, Mo.; Indianapolis; Fort Collins, Colo.; and Salt Lake City.

• The union representing federal workers immediately criticized the plan as a ploy to cut federal jobs, pointing out that 95% of the department's employees already work outside Washington.

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Minnesota is reminding Canadian travelers that the state is open for business after a sharp drop in visitors from north of the border, Axios Twin Cities' Kyle Stokes writes.

• Why it matters: Millions of Canadians have stayed home this year over tensions between the Trump administration and their government.

28% fewer Canadians have crossed the U.S. border by car this year than by this point in 2024.

• Minnesota's tourism agency is advertising on broadcast and digital platforms in Winnipeg and Thunder Bay — just north of the state's borders.

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