Extensions of Tensions

Give It Some Time: In the first June of Donald Trump’s first term, Bloomberg published a video about the president’s tendency to promise action on any number of things in “two weeks.” But that promised timeline was “rarely” kept, the outlet noted.

In the first June of Trump’s second term, “two weeks” is the promise once again. If various vows made across Washington this month are to be believed, the two weeks between yesterday and July will tell us if America is formally entering a new war in the Middle East and if that “one big, beautiful bill” will pass on deadline.

First, the bill. NOTUS’ Hill team reports that attempts by House Republicans to hasten the process by telling Senators what to pass, and what not to, is not going over well. “I don’t think it’s influencing our decision in terms of what we’re going to do. ‘Oh, this guy’s not going to vote for it, we got to change that.’ They had their chance,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said.

As for war, when Karoline Leavitt on Thursday announced Trump’s two-week window for a decision, she delivered a quote from the president saying the timeline was “based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance for negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future.” Hard to disprove a sentence like that one, which seems to be the point.

It will apparently take much longer than two weeks to solve the one truly intractable problem, though: What to do about TikTok. The president again unilaterally extended the deadline for the social media service to close or be sold, as per U.S. law. On Thursday, he moved the date that law kicks in to Sept. 17.

Some Republicans are getting tired of the uncertainty. “I just want finality,” Sen. Chuck Grassley told reporters this week. “I want some certainty, and just know that the Congress isn’t being played, when we’ve made a decision.”

Wary Dems Return to Public Events: “Right now, folks are trying to figure out, straight up, ‘How do we operate in this environment?’” a Congressional Black Caucus source said of internal conversations among Democrats as they contemplate how to remain public officials after Minnesota.

A cautious return to normal. Town halls and appearances are still on, but offices told NOTUS’ Tinashe Chingarande they’re relying more on local law enforcement to appear with them.

The DCCC is stepping up efforts to educate candidates on FEC rules allowing campaign funds to be spent on security measures.

But also an acknowledgment that there is a new normal. “I was an elected official when Gabby Giffords was shot,” Rep. Jennifer McClellan said. “We have always been mindful of the potential for violence and planned accordingly, especially after the attack on Gerry Connolly’s district office.”

Bumpy Ride for Hegseth’s DOD Budget Request: “What we have in front of us is an inadequate budget request with precious little detail,” Sen. Roger Wicker, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told the defense secretary at a hearing Wednesday.

It went downhill from there. It took nearly an hour into the hearing for a Republican to “commend” Hegseth for something, NOTUS’ John T. Seward reports. Sen. Tom Cotton praised the Pentagon “for the redesignation of base names for Army bases” back to their Confederate monikers.

What the fuss is about: Some of the draft budgets the Trump administration sent to Congress have lacked details beyond top-line totals, ruffling feathers.

Budgeting Is Looking Bumpy, Generally: Energy Secretary Chris Wright is requesting more money than the budget the Trump administration requested, NOTUS’ Anna Kramer reports. “I’m actually very open to expanding the lab budget back a little bit from where the current proposal is. I’ve been voicing that,” Wright said at a hearing Wednesday.

Paging Dr. Bill Cassidy: “Naturally, he wants to be a little bit more aggressive against RFK Jr. and some of the things that he’s talking about,” a Republican strategist said of the Louisiana senator. But Trump likes Robert F. Kennedy Jr. So if Cassidy wants to fend off a primary challenger in 2026, he has to (publicly) kinda like him too, the strategist said.

It’s an awkward relationship. Cassidy has not been able to resist occasionally pointing out the benefits of public health interventions like vaccines and the pitfalls of demonizing evidence-based science. But as RFK Jr. has gutted HHS’s infrastructure, Cassidy has for the most part kept his mouth shut. He declined to talk to NOTUS’ Torrence Banks, Emily Kennard and Margaret Manto for their story.

One of his primary opponents sees an opening here. “Cassidy appears to be resistant to the reforms that RFK Jr. wants to bring,” John Fleming, the state’s treasurer, said.

Not everyone does, though. Rep. Clay Higgins considered primarying Cassidy but decided against it. He said he’s more personally aligned with Kennedy, but understands Cassidy’s “responsibility to be thorough.”

New on NOTUS

• DHS Issues New Guidance Limiting Lawmakers’ Visits to ICE Facilities: The new protocol asks lawmakers to give three days’ notice before visits.
• Rep. Mike Lawler Breaks From Trump Admin Over Shutdown of Youth LGBTQ+ Suicide Hotline: “This is wrong,” Lawler wrote on X.
• Rep. Jamie Raskin Blames the Trump Administration for Rise in Political Violence: Members of Congress have struggled to respond to the deadly Minnesota shootings. Raskin’s letter offers one path forward for Democrats.

Not Us

• The New Danger in Trump’s Washington: Honoring Federal Employees, by Russell Berman for The Atlantic
• Seventy-two hours with America’s most ambitious young conservative women, by E.J. Dickson for New York
• The U.S. is giving up on taxing inheritances, by Jeff Stein for The Washington Post

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