Axios

The Justice Department is seeking to block congressional Democrats' subpoenas on Trump businesses, including the Trump Organization, as part of a lawsuit alleging the president violated the Constitution by profiting from foreign governments without Congress' review, CNN writes.

What's happening: Over three-dozen subpoenas were issued for Trump companies' tax returns and records related to company assets. The deadline to reply is July 29. They're also seeking information about various Trump properties, including his Mar-a-Lago resort. The Justice Department attempted to quash the move in an appeals court Monday, defying a federal judge's ruling last month allowing Democrats to proceed with the request.

Democrat Rep. Eric Swalwell said at a press conference on Monday that he is dropping out of the 2020 presidential race to seek another term representing his California district in Congress.

Why it matters: Swalwell is the first of Democratic candidates who qualified for the debates to drop out of the primary campaign. His decision potentially alleviates the need for a tiebreaker in the upcoming debates on July 30-31. As of Monday, 21 candidates -- including Swalwell -- had provisionally qualified for the 20 debate slots.

President Trump and his top officials touted in a speech Monday how America's air pollution has decreased 74% since 1970, citing data from the Environmental Protection Agency due out next week.

Reality check: That's true, but most of those reductions occurred long before Trump was in office. Since Trump entered the White House, the little data available show that some kinds of air pollution have plateaued, while a few have even increased, according to a preview of the report EPA posted Monday.

Elizabeth Warren's presidential campaign announced today that it raised over $19.1 million in the last three months from 384,000 donors.

Why it matters: It isn't the biggest Q2 haul among the 2020 Democrats (Mayor Pete has raised over $24 million) but it shows the strength of Warren's grassroots support.

A new book by the Judicial Crisis Network's Carrie Severino and The Federalist's Mollie Hemingway has some colorful, behind-the-scenes details about the secret White House meeting where former Justice Anthony Kennedy told President Trump he was planning to retire.

Details: Severino and Hemingway write that Assistant Attorney General Steve Engel, who had previously clerked for Kennedy, met with the justice at an outdoor café near the National Gallery of Art’s Sculpture Garden two days before the Supreme Court broke for summer recess.

Billionaire Democratic activist and donor Tom Steyer is preparing to jump into the presidential race as soon as this week, reversing his January decision to stay out, according to several reports.

Why it matters: A well-funded Steyer run would likely include a heavy focus on climate change, though it would be broader.

Lots of voters decided to "swipe right" on Kamala Harris and Julián Castro after the first Democratic debates — signaling in polling and donations that they're interested to learn more about these candidates.

Why it matters: Now the pressure is on to make a lasting impression and keep up this post-debate momentum as much as they can before the next debates on July 30 & 31.

After fueling allegations that Twitter and other social platforms censor conservatives, President Trump is now calling on Congress to pass legislation that would target some of the world's largest social media companies, and has suggested that those companies be sued for illegal activity.

Why it matters: This is a departure from Trump's attitude after he was elected. Trump told Axios he would be reluctant to regulate social platforms, because they made it easier for him to reach Americans in an unfiltered way.

The crisis that's shocking the conscience of many Americans begins with Central American children and families crossing the southern border in unprecedented numbers.

The big picture: They're running from horrors and poverty at home toward a broken immigration system in the U.S. There's no single reason, but droughts, political instability, a booming U.S. economy, technological advancements and asylum backlogs all play a role.