Axios

President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met for 90 minutes on Tuesday evening to discuss efforts to reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal.

Why it matters: The two leaders had dinner last night, but weren't scheduled to meet again during Netanyahu's visit to Washington. The newly added meeting came amid renewed optimism surrounding negotiations for a 60-day truce in Gaza.

A majority of Americans anticipate extreme weather is going to become more frequent in the future, according to a new USA Today/Ipsos poll.

Why it matters: The poll found that a third of Americans say they've personally experienced an extreme weather event in the past month, an occurrence that scientists predict will increase in a warming climate.

Members of the National Education Association (NEA), the nation's largest teachers' union, have voted to sever ties with the civil rights group Anti-Defamation League (ADL) over the war in Gaza.

Why it matters: The member-backed measure calls for the union to no longer use ADL material on antisemitism and Holocaust education, nor will it promote other ADL statistics or programs.

Republicans are pushing senators to more aggressively sell the "big, beautiful bill" amid concerns that the party's lawmakers aren't doing enough to promote its most popular provisions.

Why it matters: Republicans acknowledge that their prospects in next year's midterm elections will hinge on making the bill palatable to voters. Polls suggest it currently isn't.

President Trump has been touting his friendly relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin for nearly a decade, but he lamented Tuesday that Putin's warm words are ultimately "meaningless."

• "We get a lot of bullsh*t thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth. He's very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless," Trump said at a Cabinet meeting.

The Education Department dismissed more than 3,400 civil rights complaints in about three months under the Trump administration, per a July court filing.

Why it matters: The Education Department has pledged to clear its backlog of civil rights complaints despite closing half of the offices that investigate the allegations.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio's voice was mimicked in a string of artificial-intelligence-powered impersonation attempts, multiple outlets reported Tuesday.

Why it matters: The threats from bad actors harnessing quickly evolving voice-cloning technology stretch beyond the typical "grandparent scam," with a string of high-profile incidents targeting or impersonating government officials.

Copper prices notched record highs Tuesday after President Trump signaled plans to impose a 50% tariff on the commodity.

Why it matters: The price of copper figures into a wide variety of goods, including building construction, electronics, transportation equipment and industrial machinery.

President Trump shut down a question about Jeffrey Epstein during a cabinet meeting Tuesday.

The big picture: Trump's dismissal comes after his Justice Department and FBI concluded they have no evidence that Epstein blackmailed powerful figures, kept a "client list" or was murdered, which left MAGA voices stunned and surprised.

The fine print in President Trump's recently signed "big, beautiful bill" could restrict savings for some tipped workers.

Why it matters: Trump made "no taxes on tips" a centerpiece of his presidential campaign — and while a provision in the new law honors that idea on the surface, it doesn't eliminate all taxes.

President Trump revived the idea of taking over Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, saying the capital city should be run "flawlessly."

Why it matters: Trump is floating his takeover threat amid a high-profile project to build a new NFL stadium in the District and after a Capitol Hill intern was killed in a shooting last week.

President Trump on Tuesday insisted the August 1 tariff deadline set this week in letters to U.S. trading partners is firm and won't change.

Why it matters: It's the opposite of what he said Monday night.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is shaking up his communications operation, hiring a longtime Democratic campaign strategist and communicator to run his press shop, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Booker's decision to hire David Bergstein, who led communications for the campaign arm of Senate Democrats for the past two cycles, is notable ahead of 2028, when some Democrats believe Booker will again run for president.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was on a family vacation in Greece when deadly floods swept through central Texas — though his office said he flew home as quickly as possible, landing Sunday night.

Why it matters: Cruz critics still expressed deja vu over the moment. In 2021, the senator sparked outrage over his trip to Cancún, Mexico, amid an extreme winter storm that left his constituents without power.

President Trump ordered the Treasury Department to take a hard line on the new budget law's phaseout of solar and wind credits.

Why it matters: His new executive order could make it even harder to access incentives under the law, which now requires projects to start construction within a year and begin operating by the end of 2027.

The nation's hospitals rely heavily on an immigrant workforce — in some states, more than a quarter of hospital workers are either naturalized citizens or noncitizen immigrants, per census data analyzed by KFF.

Why it matters: It's a pivotal moment for the nation's hospitals.

When Vice President Harris reached President Trump to concede the day after last year's election, her aides had trouble merging her into the call, political reporters Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager and Isaac Arnsdorf write in their new book "2024," which draws on 350+ post-election interviews and is out Tuesday.

• "Phone service isn't what it used to be," Trump quipped.

Elon Musk's push to form a new political party is fielding offers for help from Andrew Yang's Forward Party, the Libertarian Party and several consultants, Axios has learned.

• "I'm in touch with Elon and his team, and I've said to them, 'Look, anyone who wants to challenge the duopoly has a friend in me,' " Yang said in an interview with Axios.

Why it matters: Musk has said he wants his America Party to be a political disruptor in the 2026 midterms — a likely outlet for the billionaire's push to cut the nation's runaway debt and boost sustainable energy.

Federal immigration agents would be banned from wearing most face coverings but be required to wear visible ID during public enforcement operations, according to a proposal from Democratic U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

Why it matters: The long-shot proposal comes following images of masked, heavily armed immigration agents snatching people off the streets and taking them away in unmarked cars have shocked many Americans.

Elon Musk's empire isn't exactly crumbling, but it looks increasingly vulnerable as his falling out with President Trump intensifies.

Why it matters: The world's richest person enjoyed ballooning wealth in the early days of his alliance with the president, but their partnership has collapsed after Musk assailed Republican spending plans.

The Senate GOP's top super PAC and affiliates have more than doubled their fundraising record for the first half of an off-year — bringing in $85 million, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Senate Leadership Fund is a campaign powerhouse for the GOP. But its new leaders want to shake things up after a decade of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and his allies at the helm.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is bracing Democrats for a government funding fight, foreshadowing "grave implications" if Republicans pass President Trump's $9.4 billion rescissions package.

Why it matters: The Democratic leader holds significant leverage over an upcoming government shutdown fight, and is monitoring closely how GOP leaders handle the measure to claw back billions in government funding.

President Trump's signature tax and spending legislation, the "big beautiful bill," is now law, and that means cuts to Medicaid spending.

The big picture: The law sets in motion almost $1 trillion in slashes to Medicaid and other health policy changes, likely forcing states to make corresponding reductions to their programs or to pick up a greater share of obligations.

Kerr County, Texas, officials have recovered 84 people following catastrophic flooding throughout Central Texas that washed through an all-girls summer camp and sparked a desperate, days-long search for survivors.

The big picture: Across the state, more than 100 people have been killed in the flash flooding that began early Friday on the Guadalupe River, where the water surged by more than two dozen feet in less than an hour.

President Trump said Monday the U.S. will send more weapons to Ukraine.

Why it matters: Trump's pledge comes after the Pentagon last week paused some shipments of precision munitions to Ukraine that included air defense missiles amid concerns about declining U.S. stockpiles.

The Trump administration will remove Syria's Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from its list of designated "Foreign Terrorist Organizations," effective Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced.

Why it matters: Rubio noted in his announcement Monday that the action is in line with President Trump's pledge in Saudi Arabia in May ahead of a meeting with HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria's former rebel leader-turned-interim president, "to deliver sanctions relief" to the war-torn country.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed during his meeting with President Trump on Monday that he's nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize.

What they're saying: Netanyahu said during their dinner at the White House he was presenting Trump with a copy of the "well-deserved" nomination letter that he sent the Nobel Prize committee because the president has "forged the Abraham Accords. He's forging peace as we speak in one country and one region after the other."

President Trump said at the top of his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he thinks Hamas and Israel "want to have that ceasefire" in Gaza.

Why it matters: Trump has been pressuring both Israel and Hamas — through Qatari and Egyptian mediators — to agree to a deal that includes a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and the release of 10 living hostages and 18 bodies.

After a short-lived rebellion against President Trump's "big, beautiful bill," members of the House Freedom Caucus are redirecting their wrath to the next reconciliation bill.

Why it matters: Armed with handshake agreements, these hardliners claim they're poised to get their wishlists passed. They're optimistic that next time, Trump and congressional leaders will follow through.

President Trump's former national security adviser Mike Waltz is scheduled to appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee next Tuesday or Wednesday for his confirmation hearing to be ambassador to the UN, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Waltz's hearing will give Democrats an opportunity to put Trump's foreign policy on trial and grill the former Florida congressman and Green Beret on everything from his role in Signalgate to the White House's long-term goals on Iran and China.