Axios

Democrats are indicating to their Republican counterparts that they are prepared to vote as early as next week on a Russia sanctions package that includes an 11th-hour demand from President Trump that the bill also include Iran, according to people familiar with the matter.

Why it matters: It would mark a rare bipartisan breakthrough on legislation to help end the war in Ukraine in a Senate that has spent much of the year engaged in partisan combat.

The government will withdraw subpoenas from New York Times journalists over their reporting on President Trump's Qatari-gifted jet, the Justice Department said in a Thursday court hearing.

Why it matters: The administration backed down in a battle with the media on the eve of the rescheduled White House Correspondents' Association Dinner where Trump is expected to speak.

Vance Boelter, the man who dressed up like a police officer and killed former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark last summer, was given two life sentences followed by 40 years in prison by a federal judge Thursday.

The big picture: The sentence puts Boelter behind bars without a possibility of parole and brings some resolution to a politically motivated crime that rocked Minnesota.

President Trump claimed Thursday the new nuclear deal the U.S. signed with Saudi Arabia will not include uranium enrichment and requires the kingdom normalize its relations with Israel.

Why it matters: Trump is responding to two of the bigger criticisms of the deal: that it could open the door to nuclear enrichment and that Washington gave up leverage to push a peace deal with Israel.

House Democrats are publicly and privately pushing for changes at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee after it spent more than $500,000 backing a failed primary candidate in Arizona.

Why it matters: The House Democratic campaign arm has faced persistent criticism this year from its members for getting more heavily involved in primaries than in past election cycles.

The House on Thursday passed a resolution to rein in President Trump's military campaign in Iran.

Why it matters: It's Congress' second successful rebuke of Trump's Iran war effort, reflecting growing GOP unease with the conflict.

The Democrats' main Senate super PAC is booking another $54 million in TV ads for the midterm campaign's final stretch, targeting four Republican-held seats.

Why it matters: The new reservations offer a roadmap to where Democrats think they can flip seats.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang wants Washington to stop letting "science fiction" about AI influence policy — telling me in an hourlong interview that overreaction could slow adoption and weaken America's competitive edge.

• Why it matters: Huang is influential with the Trump administration, putting him at the center of a debate with enormous consequences for America's AI future.

A markets mystery has perplexed some analysts this year: Why are stocks sitting near all-time highs while the global economy is rocked by geopolitical conflict and inflation pressures?

Why it matters: The usual retort is that the stock market is not the economy, but a new report from Moody's offers a more nuanced explanation.

• Markets have adjusted to the new economic world order — you just have to know where to look.

A long-simmering feud between Black and Latino leaders in the Democratic Party exploded into the open Wednesday over which state should vote first in the 2028 presidential primary — South Carolina or Nevada.

Why it matters: The racially fraught battle could help determine which candidates will have an early edge in the race to be the party's next nominee for the White House.