The Archive

IN THIS EDITION

How the Trump assassination task force is moving forward

Pro-Ukraine Republicans look to avert a funding ‘lapse’ in January

The Vault: Crypto’s electoral case for Harris-Walz

A big recess week of fundraising

THE TOP

How the Trump assassination task force is moving forward

Happy Monday morning.

Programming note: We are only publishing AM editions this week. Of course, if there’s breaking news, we’ll be there for you.

One quick bite of news: Several sources tell us that George Helmy, the former chief of staff to New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, is a top candidate to fill the Garden State’s soon-to-be-vacant Senate seat.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) announced he would resign Aug. 20 following his conviction on 16 federal bribery and corruption counts. Whoever is appointed to replace Menendez will serve until January. Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) is favored to win the race to succeed Menendez.

First in Punchbowl News: The House’s bipartisan task force to investigate the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump is taking its first official act today, kicking off a four-month sprint that will put several key agencies in the hot seat.

Task force chair Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) and ranking member Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) are sending a pair of letters to the Justice and Homeland Security departments today requesting all information and records that have already been produced for any House or Senate committees in relation to the shooting.

The panel is also requesting a staff briefing from both DOJ and DHS no later than Aug. 16 “to discuss the Task Force’s priorities with respect to documents and information moving forward.”

One letter is addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray. The other was sent to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secret Service acting Director Ronald Rowe Jr.

Kelly and Crow also make clear that their panel is taking the reins of the investigative effort in the House, writing that “the Task Force’s requests for documents and information henceforth supersede all other requests from House Committees and Members” and that the agencies “​​should produce documents and information directly to the Task Force from this point forward.”

Before the task force was established late last month, several committees had already started investigating the security failures surrounding the Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pa., where a gunman opened fire from a rooftop 150 yards away from the stage. Two people were killed, including the gunman, while Trump was injured in the attack.

Some disturbing details have already emerged from briefings, hearings and media reports, including about an apparent breakdown in communication between local law enforcement and the Secret Service on the day of the attack. Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned one day after a disastrous performance in front of the House Oversight Committee.

But the task force will now supersede those investigations and begin its own work on the July 13 shooting. Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries were heavily involved in the creation of the task and jointly announced their selections for the panel.

For Republicans, it’s an opportunity to put a high-profile spotlight on an issue that is deeply personal to Trump. And Democrats, who strategically decided to participate in the task force, will have a key window into the work.

While Republicans have ultimate control over the direction of the probe given the partisan 7-6 split on the committee among Republicans and Democrats, Kelly and Crow are sending a strong signal that they anticipate working in lockstep with one another.

The task force has until Dec. 13 to produce a report with potential legislative recommendations. The brunt of the work will take place behind the scenes, but Kelly told us earlier this month he anticipates having some hearings to showcase their findings.

Kelly, whose district includes Butler, also wants to schedule a site visit for task force members, though the timing is still being worked out and may need to wait until after the Democratic National Convention in Chicago next week.

Staffing update: Democrats have tapped Giancarlo Pellegrini to be their staff director, we’re told.

Pellegrini, a Harvard Law grad, has served as counsel for several House committees, including the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. Pellegrini also previously worked for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

– Melanie Zanona and Max Cohen

New: We’re heading to Alabama next month for an event with Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.). Punchbowl News founder and CEO Anna Palmer will sit down with Britt on Friday, Sept. 6 at 1:15 p.m. CT/2:15 p.m. ET to discuss the small business ecosystem in Alabama and the state’s economic future. The conversation will be part of a larger event presented by Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices. RSVP here to join us in Birmingham or on the live stream.

WASHINGTON X THE WORLD

Pro-Ukraine Republicans look to avert a funding ‘lapse’ in January

The war in Ukraine could return to the forefront on Capitol Hill as early as January, at a time when a new administration will be coming in and the Senate will be busy confirming the incoming president’s Cabinet nominees. That’s when lawmakers believe the most recent $60 billion U.S. aid package will start to dry up.

So pro-Ukraine Republicans are already batting around ideas about how to get Congress some additional time in early 2025 — regardless of who wins the presidency and which parties control the Senate and House.

“What we don’t want to have is a lapse,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a member of the Senate GOP leadership team, told us. “And we’re going to have to build a case for the Trump administration — I’m presuming he’s going to win, I think he’s the odds-on favorite — but I’d like to have some flexibility depending on how long it takes.”

While Tillis said he’s confident that the United States will “sustain the investment in Ukraine” under a second Donald Trump presidency, the North Carolina Republican acknowledged that he and other GOP defense hawks will have some work to do.

“We don’t want [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to see the risk of some sort of lapse or a loss of momentum,” Tillis added. “And the best way to do that is to build up results toward the end of this Congress, leading into the next one.”

Of course, Trump has been hostile to continuing U.S. aid for Ukraine, insisting that he could quickly broker a peace deal. Ukraine’s leaders have said they won’t negotiate with Russia, noting this would almost certainly require them to give up territory.

Tillis wouldn’t go as far as to suggest that his efforts amount to contingency planning specifically in case Trump wins. But Tillis said he wants to do whatever it takes before the end of this year to “give us some more runway” come January and avoid a situation in which Congress’ dysfunction isn’t once again harming Ukraine on the battlefield.

What that could entail: Let’s start off by saying anything related to Ukraine is going to be a lightning rod politically. So sneaking new authorities or funding into the end-of-September CR or another must-pass measure in the lame-duck session isn’t going to be easy.

New funding before the end of the year is going to be nearly impossible. That’s mostly because House Republicans would never go for it.

But Tillis’ goal of extending the runway for the current aid package could be met by tweaking existing Pentagon authorities that would give the Biden administration more flexibility to continue sending weapons to Ukraine, potentially by drawing from other funding streams or expanding presidential drawdown authority.

This could be achieved through the annual must-pass defense authorization bill. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) told us he wants to see Congress “play a bigger role in these issues” regardless of who’s in the White House.

“Ukraine has shown, if we give them the resources, they’ll fight for their own country very effectively,” added Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee.

This has been a criticism of the Biden administration from Democratic hawks too, that the White been too slow in transferring more sophisticated weapons and equipment to Ukraine.

View from leadership: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told us in a recent interview that the United States is “going to have to keep funding” Ukraine, and that he’s willing to do it.

“I’ll work with whoever to get that done,” Schumer added, citing the fact that he’d have GOP cooperation.

But Schumer may not be in charge come next year, with Republicans favored to win control of the chamber. And Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has taken on his own party in support of Ukraine, will no longer be the GOP leader.

Two of McConnell’s potential successors are in his camp when it comes to Ukraine, but the outlook for Kyiv will heavily depend on who wins the presidency.

— Andrew Desiderio

The Vault: Crypto’s electoral case for Harris-Walz

First in the Vault: Crypto advocates will publish polling today that suggests a warmer industry embrace from Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign could win over some on-the-fence Democrats.

The survey, performed by Mercury Analytics and sponsored by the crypto-focused investment firm Paradigm, has some interesting kernels for Democrats and the Harris campaign to chew on.

Among the findings: Undecided Democratic voters were more likely to own crypto than the coconut-pilled among us. The Mercury poll found that 13% of the 804 registered Democrats surveyed were undecided about backing Harris. Among those voters, 18% said they owned crypto, and 21% said the Biden administration has been at least somewhat “too hostile” towards digital assets.

The poll also found that crypto continues to be more popular among Democratic voters of color than white voters. Just 13% of white Democrats polled by Mercury own crypto, compared to 28% of Black Democrats, 32% of Hispanic Democrats and 27% of Asian American and Pacific Islander Democrats.

The poll has a margin of error of 3.5% and was done in the days immediately following President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw his reelection bid, from July 25 to Aug. 1.

These numbers aren’t earth-shattering. But they’re not nothing, either — especially in an unsettled, potentially close presidential contest likely to come down to a handful of key swing states.

The crypto industry has had more luck influencing politics this cycle with cold, hard campaign cash than appeals to policy. But the poll also previews how some crypto pluses could dovetail with standard Democratic campaign planks, including abortion access.

Without being asked about crypto specifically, 79% of Democratic respondents said it was at least “very important” to be able to “pay for reproductive care without making their transactions known to their state government or the federal government.”

— Brendan Pedersen

THE MONEY GAME

A big recess week of fundraising

We’re in the thick of the August recess now. So get your wallet open for a hell of a week of supporting peoples’ political ambitions.

Tuesday: Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) has a “summer celebration” at a private home in the Oak Bluffs section of Martha’s Vineyard. Remember – there are direct flights from DCA to MVY! This event will cost you between $500 and $5,000.

Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) won’t be far away. She’s hosting a happy hour in Edgartown, which is the main, central village in Martha’s Vineyard. This one will cost you between $250 and $3,300.

Thursday: Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who has been out while being treated for lung cancer, has a virtual event that will cost between $250 and $2,500.

Friday: What’s better than this? Rep. Nikema Williams (D-Ga.) is hosting a fundraiser in a private suite at the Usher show at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

– Jake Sherman

THE CAMPAIGN

Do you know who Glenn Jacobs is? He’s better known as the wrestler Kane from WWE. He’s now the mayor of Knox County, Tenn. Jacobs has a new ad up for Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) across the state, in which he likens being a public official to being a professional wrestler.

Monica Tranel, the Democrat challenging Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), has a new six-figure digital and television ad targeting the Republican incumbent’s embattled tenure serving as former President Donald Trump’s Interior secretary. The ad centers around a real estate project Zinke was negotiating in his hometown while secretary. The Interior Department’s watchdog found those negotiations broke federal ethics rules.

“As Interior secretary, he tried to sell off Montana open space for his own financial gain,” the ad reads. “He would make a fortune while Montanans pay more for housing. Ryan Zinke sold out Montana.”

The ad also notes that Zinke has been under 18 federal investigations. Zinke resigned as Interior secretary in 2018 amid those numerous probes revolving around his travel and possible conflicts of interest. Zinke was reelected to the House in 2022.

— Jake Sherman and Mica Soellner

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