Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for May 13, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!

THE LATEST

JD Vance laid out an ultimatum today: States must follow the Trump administration’s anti-fraud statutes or risk losing Medicaid funding. California will see $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements deferred because the state “has not taken fraud very seriously,” the vice president announced today.

• It’s the latest in a series of aggressive White House moves to target misconduct in red and blue states alike by suspending payments over noncompliance.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will pause new Medicare enrollments from home health care and hospice providers for six months, the administration separately announced. The agency, run by Mehmet Oz, will investigate suspected fraud during the freeze, though providers who are already enrolled will not be impacted.

Sen. Rand Paul’s son, William, drunkenly hurled antisemitic insults at Rep. Mike Lawler in full view of NOTUS’ Reese Gorman at a Capitol Hill bar last night. During the exchange, William Paul told Lawler that if Rep. Thomas Massie loses his Kentucky primary, it would be because of “you Jews.”

• Lawler is not Jewish and repeatedly pushed back against the diatribe.

THE HILL

The Senate rejected a war powers measure for the seventh time since the Iran war began, failing 50-49. Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins and Rand Paul broke with their party to vote in support of it, while Democratic Sen. John Fetterman opposed it. This was the Senate’s first vote since the 60-day deadline set under the War Powers Resolution expired earlier this month.

Senators also confirmed Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve chair, voting 54-45 to end a monthslong Republican standoff over the central bank’s independence. The Fed is still deciding whether to cut interest rates any time soon, though Trump wants them lowered to ease economic pressure ahead of the midterms.

One of Rep. Chuck Edwards’ young female aides feared retaliation after rejecting the North Carolina Republican’s advances, Axios reports. She and other sources told the outlet they had brought concerns about his behavior to his chief of staff, who spoke with the congressman about the matter before the staffer departed his office.

• Edwards is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee, and has repeatedly denied having inappropriate relationships with staff members.

THE ADMINISTRATION

Compliment sandwich: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s top spokesperson, Rich Danker, quit the administration in protest of a recent push to allow the sale of flavored nicotine products that he said would increase their appeal to children — but not without submitting a letter praising the president at length for “twice restoring our prosperity and national security against all odds.”

• Danker’s departure follows Marty Makary’s resignation yesterday from his post as FDA head.

THE STATES

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp called a new special session for June 17 to redraw the state’s congressional map and overhaul its Dominion Voting machine system after lawmakers failed last session to plan for new equipment.

• South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to announce a special session on redistricting to pass a map that would likely cut Democrat Jim Clyburn out of his House seat — even though state senators just blocked a White House-backed measure to redraw the map this cycle.
• Maryland could also start the redistricting process, NOTUS reports. State Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Democrat who opposed a previous redraw of the state’s congressional map last year, has been discussing the prospect with allies.

WOULD WATCH

Thank you for reading! Today’s newsletter was produced by Brett Bachman, Kelly Poe and Andrew Burton. If you liked it, please forward it to a friend. If someone shared it with you, please subscribe — it’s free! Got a tip or comments to share? Email us at finalnotus@notus.com.