Fog of War

Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for Sept. 3, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!

THE LATEST

JD Vance says the Iran conflict isn’t a “war.” Donald Trump says it is. The vice president’s comments during a White House press briefing today further obscured the administration’s approach to eventually ending the hostilities.

• Vance also batted away a reporter’s question about supporting potential 2028 campaigns by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) or Pete Hegseth: “I’d encourage any Republican, if you care about the country, and I think all of us do, you should be focused not on a job a few years from now. You should be focused on the midterms.”

House GOP leadership canceled the last two weeks of September votes. After members depart the Capitol in mid-September, they will not return until after the midterms — meaning the House will have been in session for just four weeks total between July and November.

• The chamber today adopted a resolution calling to block federal aid to colleges if they engage in commercial or academic boycotts against Israel, with 33 Democrats voting in favor of the GOP-led measure.

THE HILL

Hakeem Jeffries says he’s leaning toward changing the strict footwear rules for the Speaker’s Lobby should he lead the chamber next year.

• Congressional Sneaker Caucus Chair Jared Moskowitz told Final NOTUS that while members are allowed to wear sneakers, that standard doesn’t apply to staff or media. “That adversely affects the female staffers and reporters who stand there all day in heels,” the Florida Democrat said in a statement. “One could argue I could dramatically benefit from a three-inch heel, but let’s move the rules into the future.”

An increasing number of Republicans say they plan to skip Trump’s Dallas midterm convention next week.

Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-Illinois) wants to lead the centrist New Democrat Coalition next year, NOTUS’ Oriana González scooped, coinciding with an expected wave of new progressives hoping to expand the chamber’s left flank.

You have to hand it to him. Minnesota Democratic candidate Matt Little has a big goal: He wants to break the world handshake record.

• He’s going to try this weekend at the Minnesota State Fair, where he estimates he’ll need to shake an average of 29 hands a minute for eight straight hours.

THE ADMINISTRATION

The Pentagon has “temporarily rescinded” the clinical guidance draft published yesterday detailing its new testosterone screening policy for service members.

Howard Lutnick apologized for claiming no American service members have died supporting military operations in Iran, saying he accidentally conflated the conflict with the U.S. operation in Venezuela.

Excavation for Trump’s arch will start over the next two weeks, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced today.

The U.S. Forest Service will close 23 research facilities as part of Trump’s effort to trim costs and concentrate agency resources in Western states.

THE COURTS

Former U.S. Pardon Attorney Liz Oyer is suing the DOJ and Todd Blanche over being “unlawfully removed” from government service. Oyer says she was fired for not recommending actor Mel Gibson’s gun ownership rights be restored as a “political favor.”

Federal prosecutors charged an ICE officer, Christian Castro, with allegedly lying to investigators about an incident in which he was accused of shooting a Venezuelan man in the leg while on duty in Minnesota earlier this year.

AN HONOR, INDEED

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