The Pentagon is urging the Senate to confirm Lt. Gen. Ronald Clark to a top Army role after Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) announced he's blocking the nomination over concerns about details surrounding Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's hospitalization.
Why it matters: Tuberville's decision stalls in the Senate the promotion of Austin's senior military assistant Clark as the four-star commander of U.S. Army Pacific force just weeks out from the presidential elections, per the Washington Post, which first reported the news.
Democratic members of Congress are ditching the usual pre-debate game of lowering expectations and openly saying they expect Vice President Harris to wipe the floor with former President Trump on Tuesday night.
Why it matters: Several Democrats acknowledged that President Biden's disastrous debate performance in June makes it difficult to take the standard tack of downplaying expectations for Harris.
The big picture: Harris and her team have been studying the roughly half-dozen televised presidential debates her opponent has participated in. Trump's approach has been less formal, with those close to him avoiding the word "preparation," CNN reported.
Why it matters: Rep. Jared Golden's (D-Maine) defiance undercuts Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' (D-N.Y.) attempts to keep his caucus unified and deny Republicans any votes they may need to pass the measure.
Bipartisan attorneys general in 42 states and D.C. support a federal effort to add a surgeon general warning to social media platforms for risks to youth wellbeing, they said in a letter on Tuesday.
Why it matters: This demand shows mounting support for U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy's plea to Congress.
Former President Trump drew near instantaneous pushback from establishment Republicans for pressing GOP lawmakers to take a hard line on shutting down the government.
Why it matters: Trump dropped a bomb into the government funding fight Tuesday by urging Republicans to hold out for "election security" language that Democrats will never accept.
Former President Trump on Tuesday pushed House Republicans not to accept any measure to avoid a government shutdown without legislation that he said would ensure "election security" ahead of November.
Why it matters: The ex-president's declaration makes it harder for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to reach a spending deal with Democrats in time to avert a government shutdown.
Why it matters: The debate comes after a major upheaval in the presidential race following President Biden's withdrawal and will mark the first time voters will have the chance to compare Trump and Harris side by side.
Vice President Harris will have a shorter podium than Donald Trump during Tuesday night's debate, a person familiar with the matter told Axios and ABC News video revealed.
Why it matters: Harris and Trump have one of the biggest height differences among presidential nominees in U.S. history, and Harris' team is wary of her appearing small in comparison to Trump.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) is cutting a $4 million check for the GOP's campaign arm, as he seeks to woo support for his bid to replace Mitch McConnell.
Why it matters: Thune's move — which he announced to his colleagues in a closed-door lunch Tuesday — is the single largest transfer ever to the National Republican Senatorial Committee. It comes as the long, until now sleepy race for GOP leader kicks into gear.
White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby condemned "dangerous" false claims shared by a number of Republican officials, including GOP nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), that Haitian immigrants are killing and eating pets in an Ohio town.
The big picture: The rumors spread rampantly on social media — amplified by several lawmakers and public figures criticizing Vice President Kamala Harris' record on the border — but Springfield, Ohio, officials have said they received no credible reports substantiating the accounts.
Prosecutors in Michigan and Georgia used tools that have long existed to hold parents accountable for actions that allegedly contributed to a school shooting.
The big picture: The parents' alleged negligence was central to charges in school shooting cases in both states, but it's unclear whether a precedent is now set for future mass shootings.
Russian disinformation warfare is more calculated and intentional than ever — as it employs more strategies that require hefty financial investments and long-term planning.
Why it matters: These new tactics make it much harder to decipher between a legitimate U.S. influencer posting about the election and a Russian operative posing as an American pundit.
House Democrats hammered out a clear strategy for taking down Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) short-term spending proposal during their closed-door meeting Tuesday morning.
Why it matters: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other Democratic leaders pressed their members to deny Republicans the help they need to make up their vote shortfall on the bill, according to multiple senior House Democrats.
Support for Venezuela's opposition coalition could lose steam after leader Edmundo González Urrutia had to flee the country, analysts say.
Why it matters: The departure of González, who the U.S. and others consider the rightful winner of the July 28 presidential elections, signals that repression of dissent under the regime of President Nicolás Maduro is more dangerous than it's been in many years.
Catch up quick: After being threatened with arrest on "terrorism" charges by the Maduro regime, González was granted political asylum in Spain, where he arrived Sunday.
María Corina Machado, who was last year elected to represent the opposition in the presidential elections but who was barred from running, is one of the last major opposition figures remaining in the country.
What they're saying: Even as González vowed Monday to keep fighting from Spain, Venezuelans might be too demoralized to keep putting pressure on Maduro to step down, says Ryan C. Berg, director of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
"We can't underestimate how much fear there is now in Venezuela," Berg says.
If the opposition calls for another protest, "it's unclear if people will show up in droves like they had earlier and how that could affect" international support, he adds.
Zoom in: Maduro's regime, which claims without evidence that he won a third term, has increased mass arrests and threats against dissidents hiding in foreign embassies and has tried to shut down NGOs in the face of protests against his government.
Authorities have arbitrarily detained almost 2,000 people since July 29, human rights organizations say.
Paramilitary groups linked to the ruling PSUV party have been marking the doors of suspected Maduro critics to indicate they're being watched, while security forces have been checking people's phones and social media.
González says "coercion and threats" from the Maduro government led him to leave.
What we're watching: Some Venezuelan analysts say the opposition could create a government in exile in Spain.
In the meantime, Chile is among the countries that has been sketching out tentative policies to deal with an even greater influx of Venezuelans, as Berg says it's highly likely more people will try to leave the country in the coming months.
Former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have both been in national politics for the better part of the last decade. Their first face-to-face meeting will be at Tuesday's presidential debate.
Why it matters: The debate will give U.S. voters the first opportunity to see the two candidates interact, answer questions and likely trade insults in real time.
Every Jewish Democrat in the House of Representatives signed onto a joint statement Monday denouncing right-wing media host Tucker Carlson for interviewing a historian who downplayed the Holocaust.
Why it matters: It is exceedingly rare for all 24 of the House's Jewish Democrats, a fractious group containing some of Congress' most progressive and most moderate Democrats, to take public action as a group.
"Election markets are coming!" That was the message splashed across the prediction market Kalshi homepage on Monday, along with a note saying, "Election markets are now legal for the first time in 100 years."
Why it matters: At stake is the ability of the general public to profit from election outcomes — and, if you believe the U.S. government, the integrity of U.S. elections themselves.
The big picture: This highly anticipated event could help show voters how Harris and former President Trump answer questions on key issues in real time, skirt them entirely, and of course give us memes.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump are set to face off in their first presidential debate on Tuesday, giving voters a chance to finally compare the them side-by-side.
Why it matters: This is the only presidential debate scheduled between Harris and Trump so far, making it a high-stakes opportunity for both candidates to lay out their priorities as voters begin casting ballots.
For Vice President Harris, tonight's debate against Donald Trump is a high-risk, high-reward moment that will test whether her re-introduction to voters can carry her to the White House.
Why it matters: Most voters already know how they feel about Trump, but fewer know how they feel about Harris.
The Miami Dolphins criticized police for officers' treatment of Tyreek Hill after body camera footage was released Monday of the receiver being stopped and detained this week.
The big picture: The Miami-Dade Police Department has opened an investigation into Sunday's traffic incident that's raised concerns about police use of force after the MDPD released video showing Hill, who is Black, being dragged from his car and forced face-down on the ground.
It's already clear that House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is going to have a hard time securing the votes he needs to pass his chosen bill to avert a government shutdown.
Why it matters: Johnson will have little margin for error to pass the measure with his five-vote majority as he faces an internal revolt and top Democrats pressing their members to oppose it.
Why it matters: For Schumer and President Biden, the judiciary is personal. But Democrats have two challenges in surpassing Trump's 234 mark: a clock that's ticking and a Senate that's functionally 50-50 on judicial nominations.
Republicans vying for the top two positions in Senate leadership were noncommittal on Monday about former President Trump's newly-floated plan to require insurance companies to cover the cost of IVF treatments.
Why it matters: The details of Trump's proposal aren't clear, but itcould require buy-in from Congress to make a reality. Republican senators are hesitant.
