Prominent conservative activists spent the weekend at war — or in denial — over former President Trump's remarkable criticism of the anti-abortion rights laws enacted by a vast majority of Republican-controlled states.
Why it matters: Trump is a walking contradiction on social issues. His record as the president whose Supreme Court nominees voted to overturn Roe v. Wade is often at odds with his own political instincts — raising difficult questions for social conservatives who find their influence in the GOP primary waning.
The big picture: The 2024 GOP front-runner is said to be giving a prime-time speech on Sept. 27 instead of attending the second Republican primary debate, in what is likely a bid to get the votes of auto workers as a historic strike plays out.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fl.) on Monday slammed a new report that he plans to run for Florida governor — saying he's focused on backing former President Trump's 2024 campaign.
Why it matters: A Trump loyalist and conservative firebrand in the U.S. House, Gaetz making a gubernatorial run would set him up to try potentially succeeding Gov. Ron DeSantis, his ex-ally running for president against Trump.
Lawyers for ex-Department of Justice official Jeffrey Clark claimed Monday that former President Trump directed him to draft a letter to Georgia state officials falsely stating that the DOJ had concerns about the 2020 election, per multiple reports.
Why it matters: Clark, who faces state RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) and false statements charges, is one of several defendants in the case attempting to have their cases moved to federal court. However, the judge in the case seems skeptical.
Republican megadonor Ken Griffin has not yet made up his mind over who to support in the 2024 Republican primary, he told CNBC in an interview airing Monday.
Why it matters: Griffin, the founder and CEO of hedge fund Citadel, last November said that he would support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis before he officially launched his campaign, but now, he's not so sure.
House Republicans leaders' hopes for a short-term spending plan that would temporarily avoid government shutdown at the end of the month quickly has run aground, as more than a dozen conservatives vowed not to support it.
Why it matters: The plan's rapid failure reflects the difficulty the GOP-led House faces in agreeing on a government spending plan: It called for budget cuts that never would have cleared the Democrat-led Senate, but wouldn't cut spending enough for compromise-resistant conservatives.
Hunter Biden sued the Internal Revenue Service on Monday, alleging the agency illegally disclosed his tax information and failed to safeguard his private records.
Driving the news: The lawsuit alleges that IRS agents "sought to embarrass" the president's son through media statements that disclosed confidential information about his taxes.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin on Monday resumed providing abortion services at its clinics, more than a year after the organization stopped performing the procedure.
Driving the news: The decisionto resumecame after a judge ruled in July that the state's pre-Roe ban didn't apply to consensual medical abortions.
Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.) announced Monday she will not seek a fourth term in 2024 after being diagnosed with a rare and debilitating neurological disorder.
Driving the news: "Taking into consideration the prognosis for my health over the coming years, I have made the decision not to seek reelection once my term is complete," Wexton said in a statement.
International Trump support reflects a global phenomenon: The hard right, once fringe, is gaining power and popularity across Europe, Latin America and elsewhere.
Why it matters: Immigration, inflation and the rising cost of climate policy are creating potent new targets for populism, the Economist reports.
With the clock ticking to fund the government and avoid a shutdown at the end of the month, Democrats are pressing House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to accept an idea that seems inevitable: You will need us, one way or another.
Why it matters: Any spending bills will need agreement from the Senate and President Biden — a challenge for McCarthy, whose right flank is steering him toward severe budget cuts while threatening to replace him and seemingly welcoming a shutdown.
Americans most often blame Mexican drug cartels for the country's opioid crisis — followed by drug users themselves, according to Morning Consult polling data provided exclusively to Axios.
Why it matters: Voters see the crisis as more of a security issue than a health issue, an accompanying analysis argues, giving Republicans an edge on the issue heading into the 2024 elections.
Tens of thousands of people marched in New York City and across the U.S. Sunday to demand President Biden and other world leaders to end fossil fuels ahead of this week's UN Climate Ambition Summit.
The big picture: Several of the speakers at the New York event that kicked off Climate Week NYC took aim at the Biden administration for approving new oil and gas drilling permits.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denied in a CBS "60 Minutes" interview broadcast Sunday ahead of his trip to the U.S. this week ordering recent drone strikes on Russian cities.
Driving the news: Zelensky said Kyiv used weapons supplied by allies "on the territory of Ukraine only," but added: "Russia needs to know that wherever it is, whichever place they use for launching missiles to strike Ukraine, Ukraine has every moral right to send a response to those places.
Only 34% of registered U.S. voters think President Biden would complete a second term if re-elected, 44% believe he'd leave before it ended and 22% are unsure, according to a new CBS News/YouGov poll.
By the numbers: That compares with 55% who think the 80-year-old's closest presidential election rival, 77-year-old former President Trump, would finish a full term if elected in 2024.
Negotiations between two factions of House Republicans have resulted in a deal on a bill to keep a government shutdown at bay for a month.
Why it matters: The deal may be dead on arrival in the Senate, but House Republicans are aiming to strengthen their hand in eventual talks with the upper chamber.
