May 27, 2025
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THE TOP
The Trump reassurance tour is back
Happy Tuesday morning.
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OTTAWA, Ontario — It was a hallmark of President Donald Trump’s first term. Senators from both parties – but especially senior Republicans – would travel to foreign capitals to reassure heads of state who were anxious and, in some cases, downright fearful of the wildly unpredictable new president.
Congress’ “global reassurance” tour, as it was referred to colloquially, has returned — but with a twist.
The first time around, even with total GOP control of Washington, lawmakers could credibly lean on Congress’ role as a check on presidential power to reassure U.S. allies about Trump. They can’t say the same today, making the “reassuring” a lot harder.
The new playbook: A bipartisan delegation of five senators traveled here Friday aiming to cool U.S.-Canada tensions amid unprecedented hostility from Washington. That included a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney and separate sit-downs with his top ministers.
Trump’s tariffs, paired with his brash rhetoric and musings about making Canada the 51st state, have contributed to an anti-American sentiment here that has fueled a steep drop in Canadian tourism. Four of the five senators on the trip hail from border states where that decline is being felt economically.
“It’s not like we are naive about how hard this has been. Especially the border states. Every single day we feel it,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), who joined the delegation. “We know it’s been bad. But we just want to get to a better place. That’s why we’re here.”
Yet the strategy to achieve that is much different than it was eight years ago.
In 2017, Trump’s grip on the GOP wasn’t nearly as strong as it is today. Significant contingents of both the Senate and House Republican conferences were Trump-skeptical.
As a result, Republicans embarking on “reassurance” tours could — and often did — remind skittish foreign leaders of the guardrails in place to prevent Trump from implementing some of his more drastic proposals that rankled allied nations.
This was a Congress that forced Trump to sign a sweeping Russia sanctions package he deeply opposed. Lawmakers passed it with big margins in the Senate (98-2) and House (419-3), making it impossible for Trump to fight them.
When Trump threatened to withdraw from NATO, senators revived the NATO Observer Group. Then-Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) helped introduce a bill preventing the president from withdrawing absent congressional approval.
Fast-forward to 2025. Eighty-one senators, including the majority and minority leaders, have signed onto a Russia sanctions bill as Russian President Vladimir Putin strings Trump along. But the reality of today’s Congress is that this bill is going nowhere without Trump’s signoff.
So the current version of the “reassurance tour” is rooted more in symbolism than any reality that senators will act as a check on Trump, especially the GOP ones.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), who led the delegation here and spearheaded many of those tours during Trump’s first term, vowed to bring “positive messages” from the Canada trip back to Washington. “Ultimately,” Shaheen added, “it’s the prime minister and the president who will decide to reset the relationship.”
A Canadian twist: Republicans prevented Trump from carrying out much of his trade agenda during his first term. Today, just a handful of Republican senators voted to block Trump’s Canada tariffs.
Speaker Mike Johnson also moved to prevent these votes from even happening in the House. And a bipartisan bill to reclaim Congress’ authority over tariffs has stalled out.
So it was impossible for Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) to reassure Canadian officials the same way he might have previously. In Ottawa, Kaine pitched his legislation to block Trump’s Canada tariffs, but he acknowledged it’ll only have an impact if more Republicans sign on.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (N.D.), the only Republican in the delegation, said foreign leaders often “fear Trump more than they need to.”
But senators are still trying to help reverse the Trump-fueled anger that’s causing many Canadians to scrap their U.S. vacations. It’s hurting North Dakota’s economy, Cramer said, noting that retailers are seeing a 30% decline.
“The symbolism of our trip is important. It’s not just a trifling thing,” Cramer said. “Hopefully the message of that symbol is, we want to do business with our friend Canada.”
— Andrew Desiderio
The Vault: Release the GSEs? Sure, Congress says
President Donald Trump mused last week that he was mulling the release of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from government conservatorship.
The response from Congress? Sure. Let’s see a plan. “We’ve talked for years about privatizing,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said. “I really think it’s time to take a good hard look. But I think Congress ought to be involved.”
The first Trump administration tried and failed to release the government-sponsored enterprises. The president’s announcement last week is one of the only concrete signs to come from the White House that this may be a priority.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been held by the federal government for more than 16 years, when the global financial system shuddered amid a mortgage market meltdown. Conservatives, free market evangelists and investors have been itching to split the companies back out into the private sector ever since.
Hill check: Senate Republicans are enthusiastic about pushing this effort forward, particularly those on the Senate Banking Committee.
“The question will be, how do we do it?” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) said. “I’m more than willing to work on that.”
Democrats are a mixed bag. There’s enough interest from them that a concerted effort from the Trump administration could bring in bipartisan support from the Senate, which most folks believe is necessary to finish the job.
But Democrats are far more mindful of the risks of disruption to the mortgage market. There’s real worry about whether the administration is fully weighing those dangers.
“I have some concerns about the idea that you would basically sell off, or auction off, these entities,” Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said. Trump “seems to be thinking about the money it would raise.”
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) expressed support for a “smart release plan that wouldn’t disrupt the market.”
“But the idea of a fire sale to simply grab dollars to pay for the crazy big, beautiful bill – I’ve got no interest in that,” Warner added.
Rounds countered that he believed the Trump administration would take its cues from the market. “You don’t do it in a vacuum,” the South Dakota Republican said. “You do it talking to the markets, to the folks that are impacted by it. We need a good solid secondary market.”
There’s also the matter of personnel. Warner told us he had faith in someone like Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to lead that process.
“I’ve worked fairly well with Mr. Bessent,” Warner said. “But the others – I mean, I don’t have a lot of confidence.”
– Brendan Pedersen
PRIMARY WATCH
Inside the ASPIRE PAC’s endorsement slate
Exclusive: The political arm of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus is seeking to assert its power by endorsing in a string of competitive House Democratic primaries.
From deep-blue safe seats to some of the most competitive districts in the country, ASPIRE PAC is backing a slate of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander candidates.
The group, chaired by Rep. Marilyn Strickland (D-Wash.), is hoping to build on the success of last cycle, when Democratic Reps. Derek Tran (Calif.) and Dave Min (Calif.) won competitive races.
“Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders represent over 25 million Americans, making us the fastest-growing voting bloc in the country,” Strickland told us. “This slate of candidates shows that our community is not a monolith and deserves early and consistent engagement.”
Here are the candidates ASPIRE PAC is endorsing:
Amish Shah in Arizona’s 1st District: Shah, an emergency room physician and the party’s 2024 candidate, lost last November to Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) by four points. Democrats are again targeting Schweikert’s seat in the midterms, as the suburban Phoenix seat has shifted away from Republicans in recent cycles.
Shah will have tough competition in the primary, with 2024 hopeful Marlene Galán-Woods mounting another run.
Deja Foxx in Arizona’s 7th District: Foxx is running to succeed the late Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) in one of Arizona’s most Democratic districts. Foxx, 25, worked on former Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign. She’s a distinct underdog against Grijalva’s daughter, Adelita Grijalva, who has secured the endorsements of both of the state’s Democratic senators.
State Rep. Daniel Hernandez is also running in the special election primary.
Esther Kim Varet in California’s 40th District: Kim Varet was one of the few Democratic challengers to raise over $1 million in the first quarter of 2024. Kim Varet is an art gallery owner vying to knock off Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.), who handily beat her Democratic challenger last cycle.
Anuj Dixit in California’s 41st District: After Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) beat back challenges from Democrat Will Rollins in successive cycles, Democrats are ready to turn to new candidates in the bid to unseat Calvert. Dixit is a local lawyer who grew up on March Air Force Base in Riverside County.
Sanjyot Dunung in Illinois’ 8th District: Dunung is a small business owner aiming to fill Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi’s (D-Ill.) House seat, which the incumbent is vacating due to his Senate run.
Eric Chung in Michigan’s 10th District: The seat, currently represented by Rep. John James (R-Mich.), will be a battleground now that James is running for governor. Chung is a former Commerce Department official and Hill staffer.
Tim Greimel, former mayor of Pontiac, Mich., and former prosecutor Christina Hines are also in the Democratic primary.
— Max Cohen
PRESENTED BY DISNEY
SPECIAL PROJECTS
The Future of Medicine: A Leading Voice
We spoke with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to get a perspective from a prominent Capitol Hill voice for the third segment of our ongoing series, The Future of Medicine.
As a medical doctor, Cassidy often finds himself at the center of debates and conversations in Congress about health care policy. Cassidy leads the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, where he uses his medical expertise to drive legislation.
Cassidy discussed several issues, including how Congress can help spur innovation to fast-track medical cures, Medicaid spending and the 340B Drug Pricing Program.
Cassidy emotionally recalled treating HIV/AIDS patients in the 1980s, when there wasn’t a viable treatment option. That’s no longer the case today, Cassidy said, because drug companies were able to lead those advancements.
Cracking down on drug companies’ profits has been a major debate over the years within the HELP Committee.
Cassidy also pitched his plan to reform the 340B program, arguing that pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) have taken advantage of it to juice their own profits.
Read the rest of our conversation with Cassidy here.
— Andrew Desiderio
THE CAMPAIGN
How Republicans hope to sell the big, beautiful bill
House Republicans are leaning into Medicaid work requirements as they attempt to sell voters on their reconciliation bill.
Party strategists believe that the issue can help insulate them from accusations that they are ripping away health care from low-income adults. And they think it will play well with working-class voters who have been fleeing the Democratic Party.
In a recent internal GOP survey, 72% of voters across 72 targeted House districts support “requiring able-bodied, working-age adults who receive Medicaid to at least look for work or participate in community service part-time,” per a memo obtained by Punchbowl News.
The poll of 1,200 registered voters was conducted by Fabrizio, Lee & Associates for the American Action Network, a nonprofit aligned with House Republican leadership.
Work requirements tested higher than ending the federal income tax on tips and overtime pay.
Of course, this is a Republican survey and should be viewed with some skepticism. But it offers insight into how GOP congressional leaders are thinking about messaging the legislation.
Other data from the poll showed immigration is also a selling point: 68% support “providing funding and equipment” to the military to help it fight drug cartels. Republicans are also highlighting that the bill will prevent undocumented immigrants from receiving Medicaid.
— Ally Mutnick
PRESENTED BY DISNEY
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