Big, Beautiful, Liked by Dems?

Today’s notice: They like it, but they didn’t vote for it. The House Freedom Caucus says hell no. The case for a Social Security election. Conservatives organize against a Trump nominee. And: An interview with Rep. Michael McCaul.

THE LATEST

When Democrats tout the OBBB: The signature act of this Congress did not involve Democratic votes. But it did include some priorities Democrats like, NOTUS’ Riley Rogerson and Em Luetkemeyer report, and they have been touting them publicly.

“It was never tempting to vote for the bill,” Rep. Emanuel Cleaver told NOTUS. But he likes the provision allocating security funds for FIFA World Cup host cities like his Kansas City. “I did everything except vote for it,” Cleaver said. “And it was an awkward vote.”

Among other things Democrats like talking about: The law also extends the 2017 tax law’s boost to the child tax credit extension; there’s an expansion of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, which has had bipartisan support; there’s funding to update air traffic control; and “no tax on tips.”

They did not vote for this bill, as Republicans note. “House Democrats voted against historic wins for working Americans, smeared them as ‘extreme’ and ‘cruel,’ and now are shamelessly running home to take credit,” NRCC spox Mike Marinella told NOTUS.

DCCC response: “Even a broken clock is accidentally right twice a day,” spox Viet Shelton told NOTUS. “That still doesn’t change the fact that it’s broken and should be replaced.”

Open tabs: White House: Israel’s Strike on Qatar Was ‘Unfortunate’ (NOTUS); DNI Gabbard recalls classified report on Venezuela (CNN); ICE scraps paperwork officers once had to do before immigration arrests (NBC); Supreme Court Fast-Tracks Trump Tariffs Case (NOTUS); Judge Blocks Trump’s Removal of Fed Governor (NOTUS)

From the White House

MAHA Report 2.0 was light on details, but heavy on recommendations. “A lot of these 128 recommendations are things I’ve been dreaming about my whole life,” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said at an event announcing the new strategy report to address chronic disease among children.

Among the recommendations: A “vaccine injury research program,” shaking up the medical school accreditation process and zeroing in on fertility issues.

When pressed, Kennedy said on Tuesday that he agreed with Donald Trump’s comments that, “You have vaccines that work.”

From the Hill

We’re expecting fireworks next week on all things MAHA, with Sen. Bill Cassidy announcing that the Senate HELP Committee will be hearing from ousted CDC Chair Susan Monarez and the CDC’s former chief medical officer, Debra Houry, on Sept. 17 to discuss the “high-profile departures from the agency.”

Freedom Caucus flexes: “My take is, ‘Hell no,’” HFC member Eric Burlison told NOTUS’ Reese Gorman as House leadership wrestles with extending enhanced ACA subsidies set to expire soon. That expiration would result in millions of Americans’ health care costs spiking, a situation vulnerable Republicans are trying to avoid.

From the campaign trail

Social Security election? “This is the first time since 2006 that I would say Republicans went ahead and grabbed the third rail of politics,” DCCC’s Will Van Nuys told NOTUS’ Alex Roarty in a preview of Democrats’ midterm strategy, which has been under the radar until now.

Expect Social Security to be woven into Democrats’ message that Republicans have made it harder for Americans to get ahead. They cite DOGE’s disruptions to Social Security’s customer service, top Trump officials indicating an interest in privatizing the program and findings that Republicans shortened the program’s solvency.

From the courts

Trump judicial nominee takes conservative flak: Federal prosecutor Rebecca Taibleson became famous in conservative circles in 2018 when, during his SCOTUS confirmation hearing, she defended Brett Kavanaugh’s record of working with women. That almost got her a judicial appointment from Trump in 2019.

But the generally pro-Trump legal group First Liberty Institute says Taibleson is an ideological squish at best, making her nomination to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals the first one from this administration to face organized opposition from the right, NOTUS’ Jose Pagliery and Reese Gorman report. Among the group’s complaints: past donations to the Milwaukee Jewish Federation, which supports LGBTQ+ group J-Pride Milwaukee.

View from the White House: “President Trump only selects the most qualified and talented judicial nominees who will uphold our Constitution and the rule of law, which is why he nominated Rebecca Taibleson,” spokesperson Abigail Jackson told NOTUS.

Speaking of responding and judges, Jose and NOTUS’ Oriana González report that the White House quietly gave $4.8 million to El Salvador to pay for the imprisonment of hundreds of deportees at CECOT — after a federal judge ordered the administration to halt deportations to the notorious prison.

Nothing to see here: Documents show that federal prosecutors in a separate case were actively casting doubt on the existence of any such monetary deal just a day after the Trump administration had signed the paperwork.

NOTUS Interview: Rep. Michael McCaul

Our Haley Byrd Wilt sat with House Foreign Relations Committee chair emeritus Michael McCaul and Institute of World Politics dean James Robbins on Tuesday for a conversation about “Defining America’s Priorities in the Middle East” at an event jointly hosted by NOTUS and IWP. Watch the whole thing here.

On Israel’s plans in Gaza: “I don’t know if this sort of revisiting occupying Gaza, I’m not sure that that has a good optic to it,” McCaul told Haley. “I, as did others, tell them, ‘You’re winning the war, but you’re kind of losing the public-relations battle right now.’”

NOTUS’ Haley Byrd Wilt, left, interviews House Foreign Relations Committee chair emeritus Michael McCaul and Institute of World Politics dean James Robbins during a conversation about “Defining America’s Priorities in the Middle East.” IWP

“The real problem” is the remaining hostages held by Hamas, he said. But he criticized some Israeli plans that have been discussed for a postwar Gaza.

“The other final point that disturbed me a little bit … was this idea of displacement of the Palestinians to Uganda or other African nations,” McCaul said. “I’m not sure that that has a good optic to it.”

On what brings this war to an end: “As long as [Hamas] have hostages, the war continues,” he said. “It’s the hostages that keep perpetuating this conflict.”

NEW ON NOTUS

Slow your roll: Republicans have latched onto a stabbing in Charlotte, North Carolina, as a perfect image of why their nationwide tough-on-crime agenda is needed. But one of the state’s senators, Thom Tillis, doesn’t want the city to be next on Trump’s list for a federalized crackdown.

“We do have challenges, but there are far more major metropolitan areas that we could focus our attention on before you go to Charlotte,” Tillis said. “I hope that people don’t amplify this into something.”

Here we go again: Missouri’s state House gave the green light Tuesday to a new, Trump-approved U.S. congressional map that would likely hand Republicans a 7-1 majority in the state.

Democrats aren’t happy: State Rep. Mark Sharp argued the new maps would push Cleaver into “early retirement.”

“Democracy is taking a devastating blow, one it might not recover from,” Sharp added. “My city, Kansas City, hangs in the balance right here, right now. I can’t tell you how angry I am.”

More: Gerry Connolly’s Ex-Chief of Staff Wins Special Election for Late Boss’s Seat, by Amelia Benavides-Colón

Alex Padilla Won’t Rule Out a Gubernatorial Run in California, by Samuel Larreal

Schumer Meets With Mamdani but Doesn’t Endorse Him, by Amelia Benavides-Colón

NOT US

• Trump’s DC Takeover Has Turned Traffic Stops Into a Deportation Pipeline, by Evident Media
  
• See More Pages From Epstein’s 50th Birthday Book, by Khadeeja Safdar and Joe Palazzolo for The Wall Street Journal
  
• House defers to Trump on curbing investments in China, by Eleanor Mueller for Semafor

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