📝 The Readback: SCOTUS v Tariffs

IN THIS EDITION

A huge moment for Trump’s tariffs — and for Congress

Dems start dreaming of a 2018 repeat

10 Episodes of Fly Out Day

Shutdown slices with Hill staff

THE TOP

A huge moment for Trump’s tariffs — and for Congress

Welcome to The Readback, our weekend digest featuring the best of Punchbowl News this week – a quick roundup of all our scoops, analysis and Capitol Hill insight you won’t find anywhere else. We’ve also included a few of our favorite outside reads from the week.

Tariffs v SCOTUS. Congress’ attention — and ours — has been laser-focused on what’s now the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.

But something else happened this week that drew lawmakers’ focus. The Supreme Court took up a case challenging President Donald Trump’s tariffs. How the court rules could have massive implications for Trump’s agenda and for Congress.

As a reporter, I’ve gotten the chance to cover the latest news beyond Capitol Hill, including at the White House, Treasury Department and SEC. But this was my first time listening to Supreme Court arguments, and it was fascinating.

My first lesson, one I picked up on quickly, is to be very grateful for CSPAN, which has a livestream identifying who’s speaking. The Supreme Court provides real-time audio of oral arguments, but it’s tough to tell who’s talking if you don’t know the justices’ voices well. I’m not quite there yet.

Trying to suss out how the justices were leaning from their questioning was also a new one for me, but the arguments were ultimately telling.

Three conservative justices seemed very skeptical of the government’s arguments, though they also poked at the case against the tariffs. It could be weeks or months until there’s a ruling. Supreme Court results involve a lot more wait-and-see than things around the Hill often do!

But whenever the court eventually rules, the stakes for Congress are momentous. If the tariffs go down, that would be a big blow to Trump’s agenda. Still, the president could call on Republicans to step in and act, an option that’s on some GOP lawmakers’ minds. That would be politically brutal for the GOP to contend with.

One more note on the case — it drew quite the audience. Comedian John Mulaney caused a stir with his attendance.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and Ways and Means Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-Mass.) were all there, plus more lawmakers per Mulaney’s notes.

What I’m watching: ”Mob War: Philadelphia vs. The Mafia” on Netflix. My uncle is in the show, and it was so cool hearing about how this chapter in Philly’s history went down.

– Laura Weiss

You can find The Readback in your inbox every Saturday at 8 a.m. And don’t hesitate to reach out to [email protected] with feedback. Enjoy The Readback.

Dems start dreaming of a 2018 repeat

We are one year out from the 2026 midterm elections. Time really does fly in politics!

To mark the occasion, we launched our first Tally newsletter of the cycle. For those new to Punchbowl News, the Tally is our special elections newsletter. We’ll be releasing them in increasing frequency as we approach November 2026.

This week’s edition came out the morning of Tuesday to coincide with Election Day. By Wednesday, a lot of what we wrote about Democrats was looking even more relevant.

Democrats broke out of their funk on Tuesday, with candidates cruising to victory in the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial elections by wide margins that few saw coming. California voted overwhelmingly to redraw its House map to add more blue seats. Democrats also won statewide elections in Georgia and beat back a potentially damaging voter ID measure in Maine.

In the Tally, we looked into the possibility of Democrats winning the Senate. By the end of Tuesday, the outside chance looked slightly more plausible.

Another relevant story was our summation of how Democrats are running on health care. Democratic leadership has focused the ongoing shutdown on a standoff over extending Affordable Care Act subsidies. The fight for the ACA, twinned with attacks on the reconciliation bill’s Medicaid cuts, will form the main plank of the Democratic argument to voters next fall.

There’s still a long way to go until voters start casting ballots in the battle for the House and Senate. But with an engaged liberal base eager to vote in off-year elections, one can see the beginning of a blue wave on the horizon.

The obstacle to Democrats in the House? The Republican redistricting play. While Democrats are fighting back in the states where they can, we reported how the GOP has a higher ceiling of seats they can gerrymander.

What I’m reading: To prep for Fly Out Day, I read Kara Voght’s deeply reported profile of Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). A fascinating look inside one of the most visible Senate Democrats of the moment.

– Max Cohen

10 Episodes of Fly Out Day

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard Fly Out Day. We’ve officially reached our tenth episode, and we’re cruising smoothly.

This week, we welcomed Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) into the Townhouse for a lively discussion on Day 37 of the government shutdown.

While words of course matter, I often find myself looking more at the body language and posture of our guests. And Murphy is as dug in as ever. He made it clear Democrats need to keep fighting even though the pain felt across the country will be immense.

The Connecticut Democrat also didn’t exactly close the door on running for president in 2028. When Punchbowl News founders, Jake Sherman and Anna Palmer, asked multiple times, Murphy demurred.

“I’m certainly not planning on it right now,” Murphy said, “because I’m not sure we’re going to have a free and fair election in 2028. So for me, the project is to save democracy and if democracy is still alive and well in 2028, then everyone’s going to have a decision to make.”

We were thrilled to hit a few milestones this week, including completing our tenth episode of Fly Out Day. We’ve had some illuminating conversations, plus some fun along the way.

We’re just getting started. Our goal for the next ten episodes is to climb higher by bringing you deeper, more candid conversations with the people steering Washington through the ever-present chaos. We’ll keep expanding the flight map with powerful guests, policy moments and more of that authenticity that we don’t always get to see.

On behalf of the entire Fly Out Day crew, thanks for flying with us. Until next time, we’ll see you at the gate.

What I’m reading: I’m currently reading Ron Chernow’s “Alexander Hamilton” among other biographies on him. The book is a fascinating look at how Hamilton’s relentless energy and ego built the foundation of America’s economic system — and how much of that spirit still echoes in Washington today.

– Haley Talbot

Shutdown slices with Hill staff

Nothing brings people together like free pizza and drinks. That’s especially true when your guests aren’t getting paid at work.

We hosted congressional staff at our Capitol Hill townhouse for a happy hour on Wednesday, the day the government shutdown officially set the record for being the longest in history.

It was a great show of community at a time of uncertainty for many. The night featured lots of gallows humor, debates about the best pizza in D.C. (verdict for fellow Capitol Hill residents: The Little Grand) and more.

Typical reporter-staffer interactions often involve repeated emails, texts or calls asking for a quote, an interview with their boss or some tidbit of information.

But these types of events are an opportunity to break out of that cycle and chit-chat about things beyond Beltway politics.

Wednesday was also my first foray into the famed townhouse, where we tape Fly Out Day, since I first started at Punchbowl News two months ago.

What I’m reading: I haven’t opened a thriller in a while, but last week I started Alex Michaelides’ “The Silent Patient,” and it hasn’t disappointed me yet. If you, like me, have been searching for a book to get you back into reading for fun, this isn’t a bad place to start.

– Briana Reilly