Democrats are descending on the early presidential states, with different levels of ambiguity and ambition.

Why it matters: Presidential candidates win delegates by distinguishing themselves from the party they want to lead, not reciting party talking points.

• That puts the possible '28ers serving in Congress on a potential collision course with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on everything from scheduling to messaging.

Zoom in: Some of this summer's '28 travel is under the cover of capturing the majority in '26.

• Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), who ran for president in 2020, is visiting New Hampshire this weekend to campaign for Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in his Senate race.
• Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) is taking his "benefits over billionaires" tour to South Carolina next week, holding town halls in GOP districts in the Deep South. (See item No. 2 for more).
• Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) will hit Ohio this month with Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) as part of a tour featuring the pair. Murphy raised $8 million in the first quarter of this year.
• Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) will attend the Iowa State Fair in August. He visited Pennsylvania earlier this year.
• Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) plans to travel to battleground states over the summer, supporting Democratic candidates ahead of the midterm elections, sources tell us. Booker has done events with state Democratic parties in Florida, California, Tennessee and Arizona in recent months.

Zoom out: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) visited GOP territory in South Carolina this week.

• Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to hit an Iowa fish fry in September.
• Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg held a town hall in Iowa that focused on veterans.

The intrigue: The Democratic National Committee hasn't finalized which states it wants to hold early primaries and caucuses in the 2028 election.

• But there's a strong push to restore Iowa and New Hampshire to their traditional gatekeeper roles.

— Hans Nichols and Stephen Neukam

Khanna's town halls in Deep South GOP districts are an opportunity "to test out this fresh economic vision with Black voters," he told us.

• "Black voters are the base of our party," Khanna said. The California Democrat co-chaired the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
• Khanna will also use the trip to troll Republicans and talk directly to some of their voters, including those who rely on Medicaid.

Driving the news: Khanna will participate in town hall meetings in the South Carolina districts of GOP Reps. Nancy Mace and William Timmons alongside Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.), the son of civil rights leader Jesse Jackson Sr.

• He has held previous town halls in GOP districts in California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Zoom in: Timmons' district is more solidly Republican, but Democrats are eyeing Mace's seat.

• "The Mace one is a winnable district, light red," Khanna said. "That's exactly the type of district which we could win if we put in the effort, but it's not a give-me."

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— Hans Nichols

A pair of storylines will dominate the Hill's attention next week.

• House GOP leaders plan to blitz through "Crypto Week," including taking up the Senate-passed GENIUS Act that regulates stablecoins.
• In the other chamber, the deadline's in a week for the vote on the cuts to PBS, NPR and foreign aid. Senate Republicans face the threat of President Trump withholding his endorsement for any defectors.

See you Monday!