Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for May 6, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!

THE LATEST

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick took questions today from the House Oversight Committee about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, NOTUS’ Stephen Neukam reports.

• Outside the hearing room, Democrats bashed Lutnick’s responses, calling him “dishonest” and a “pathological liar.”
• Chair James Comer criticized Democrats for their characterizations of the interview and said Lutnick has been “very forthcoming.”
• “It’s always about Trump. It’s never about the victims. It’s never about justice for the survivors,” Comer said. “It’s always about Donald Trump. It’s always about the midterm elections.”

The FBI served more than 10 search warrants in a criminal investigation targeting L. Louise Lucas, the Democratic president pro tempore of the Virginia Senate who helped lead the state’s recent redistricting effort, a source told NOTUS’ Jose Pagliery. The investigation dates back “years,” one official said, while another said it’s “financial” in nature.

• Agents also searched a neighboring cannabis dispensary. The New York Times reported that the raid is connected to a Biden-era investigation into potential corruption and bribery in Lucas’ marijuana businesses.

THE ADMINISTRATION

Trump will ask the Supreme Court to grant him presidential immunity from writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuit, NOTUS’ Jackie Llanos reports. His personal attorney, Justin Smith, argued that Trump’s paying of the $83.3 million — determined by a civil jury in 2024 — would cause him irreparable damage. The Justice Department backed the president in a separate filing yesterday.

• “It is very unlikely that any money could be recovered because Carroll has publicly said that she plans to give away any money that she receives from this lawsuit,” Smith added.

The White House will dedicate more resources to targeting cartels, foreign terrorist organizations and “anti-American” political groups, NOTUS’ Violet Jira reports. Sebastian Gorka, a senior director for counterterrorism, identified leftist groups such as “antifa” as targets, as well as those he described as “radically pro-gender.”

THE HILL

Some Republican senators want to advance a third budget package this summer to give more money to the Defense Department, but the conference remains split over the issue, The Hill reports. Senior members of the Appropriations Committee worry it may further weaken the regular appropriations process — while those on the other side argue that it may be Republicans’ last chance to pass meaningful legislation before they could lose control of Congress after November.

• “There are some who are saying, ‘Look, we know the House is going to flip and so this is basically our last opportunity to really do anything, and so we’ve got to go for the gold ring. We’ve got to put everything that we want into a reconciliation bill because we’re not going to be legislating anymore,’” an anonymous GOP senator told The Hill.

NOTUS scoop: Sen. Cory Booker’s campaign lost more than $3,000 to an alleged hacker in December, according to a federal filing reviewed by NOTUS’ Jackie Llanos. It won’t hurt the New Jersey senator’s cash on hand: He has more than $22.1 million in his reelection war chest.

THE STATES

A new map proposed by Tennessee Republicans cuts into the state’s sole Black-majority district and would likely give the GOP full control of the congressional delegation, NOTUS’ Torrie Herrington reports. The plan is expected to pass tomorrow.

CALL THE FASHION POLICE

Thank you for reading! Today’s newsletter was produced by Kelly Poe, Brett Bachman 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.