Axios

House Republicans will decide a contentious battle over who will attempt to lead them out of the political wilderness when they select a new top leader Tuesday morning.

Why it matters: Majority Leader Steve Scalise (La.) and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (Ohio) will headline the battle for control of what's left of the Republican conference — with every other top position also up for grabs.

Sen. Ted Cruz is wasting no time on a campaign to win Texas back for Republicans, announcing a new Austin headquarters for his group Saving Texas.

Why it matters: The midterms left Texas as ground zero for the GOP. National debates will begin and end there for both parties over the future of immigration policy, AI and the Latino vote.

Intalus, an advanced materials company, is growing its production footprint with financing from Rochefort, a firm licensed under the Small Business Administration and the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital.

Why it matters: "We're turning myths about American manufacturing on their head," Steve Place, the company's head of corporate strategy, told Axios.

• "We can still make world-class manufacturing technology in this country."

Allen Control Systems, maker of the Bullfrog autonomous turret, is opening a directed-energy division.

Why it matters: The $2.2 billion startup is diversifying, as demand skyrockets for drone countermeasures and the Pentagon doubles down on microwaves and lasers.

Primordial Labs raised $18 million in equity and will use the money to deepen its engineering, product and growth teams as well as speed deployment of Anura, its human-machine interface, CEO Lee Ritholtz told Axios.

Why it matters: Success on the battlefield is increasingly defined by how smoothly troops interact with and operate alongside robotics, whether that's on land, in the sea or in the air.

Calley Means quickly rose from wellness entrepreneur to senior Trump health adviser — and now he's attacking the White House and suggesting top aides undermined the president's health agenda.

Why it matters: His scorched-earth campaign — which continued Monday in comments to Axios — marks a stunning turn for a figure who was the administration's most vocal advocate of the "Make America Healthy Again" agenda.

Democrats swept into power last week as voters also embraced tougher criminal penalties and restrictions on bail.

Why it matters: Six years after the George Floyd protests, Democrats won big without promising a return to sweeping 2020-era reforms. Some even adopted border-security rhetoric associated with Republicans.

State Department officials have quietly raised objections to El Salvador's gang-fighting efforts in Haiti — even as President Trump has offered his full support, according to diplomatic notes and informed sources.

• On Monday, El Salvador issued a formal rebuke that questioned the "credibility" of the top U.S. diplomat in Haiti.

Why it matters: The controversy exposes the tension between Trump's MAGA foreign policy objectives and the professional diplomatic establishment in the State Department.

A political backlash against AI and data centers — now compounded by a crisis facing the technology's most influential champion — could help force a slowdown that industry leaders have struggled to achieve voluntarily.

Why it matters: Tapping the brakes on AI development — which frontier AI developers claim to want but have so far failed to do given the risk of offering an advantage to a competitor — could give society more time to prepare for economic upheaval and the risks of superintelligent systems.

Democrats will charge into January with a sweeping mandate — but as President Trump has repeatedly noted, his veto power can deliver a robust roadblock to his opponents' agenda.

Why it matters: Democrats may be forced to compromise to get legislative priorities through. Trump will have to decide how frequently he'll use the power — and whether he'll strike down bills popular among Americans.