Lindsey’s Legacy

Today’s notice: Lindsey Graham’s legacy. South Carolina scrambles to pick a replacement. McConnell says a fall and pneumonia kept him in the hospital for weeks. Collins strategically stays out of the Platner debacle. Peters backs Stevens in Michigan. And: Who is behind the Freedom Fuel Network?

THE LATEST

Black cloth and a vase of white flowers will cover the desk of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) when the Senate gavels back in from recess this afternoon. The sudden death on Saturday of one of the most well-known senators has sent shockwaves through the chamber and will reverberate in the state he represented in Washington since first being elected to the House in 1994.

Lawmakers are pushing for tougher sanctions on Russia in Graham’s honor, since it was one of the policy goals he advocated for during his trip to Ukraine last week. “There can be no more fitting memorial to Lindsey, his legacy, or the causes he fought for than to pass this legislation and realize his long-held dream of an independent and secure Ukraine,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire) wrote in a statement.

Donald Trump, who ordered all U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff for the week, took a spin on the Sunday shows to say that Graham pushed for the SAVE America Act in their final phone call, Jenna writes.

All eyes now are on South Carolina to fill the Senate seat. A field of Republican candidates is forming fast, as Gov. Henry McMaster met with Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette on Sunday to discuss the interim appointment.

A few House members with failed bids for governor considered throwing their hats in the ring. Rep. Ralph Norman expects to make an announcement Tuesday, he told NOTUS. “Yes!!” he said when asked to confirm. Rep. Nancy Mace teased a bid on X: “just when I thought I was out… they pull me back in…” with a clip from the “The Godfather Part III.” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-New York) called her post “grotesque.”

A conversation with Trump may have dissuaded Rep. Joe Wilson from seeking the Senate seat. Wilson assured Trump that he planned to stay in his House seat “to keep his two-vote majority for the American people!!!”

The legacy Graham leaves behind is defined by his outspoken positions on foreign policy and ability to maneuver from a staunch Trump critic in 2016 to one of the president’s closest allies, NOTUS’ Paul Kane writes in his latest column.

More detail about Sen. Mitch McConnell’s weekslong absence from the Senate. The Kentucky Republican’s office issued a statement last night — paired with a photo of McConnell with his wife, Elaine Chao, and a newspaper whose date cannot be read clearly — saying he suffered a fall and a mild case of pneumonia, and still won’t be seen in public for the foreseeable future, Jenna writes. “As much as it frustrates me, this process takes time. And on the advice of my doctors, I won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet.”

Open tabs: Survivors of Iranian attack that killed 6 U.S. troops say generals ignored warnings (Washington Post); Trump defends Bondi amid MAGA fallout over her handling of Epstein investigation (CNN); Ro Khanna accuses Israeli military of ‘lying’ about West Bank incident that led to detainment (The Hill); U.S. and Iran Release Mixed Messages on Strait of Hormuz Closure (NOTUS)

From the White House

The rapper, the pardon and … the con men? “I got scammed, man,” Torence Hatch, better known as the rapper Boosie Badazz, told Jasmine last month. She and NOTUS’ Taylor Giorno have a detailed look today at Hatch’s run through the MAGA fringes in the hopes of obtaining a pardon from Trump through a murky lobbying system Hatch dumped $600,000 into. The pardon never came.

This tale features the far-right operatives Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman and the lucrative economy that has come together around this White House’s unique approach to the president’s unchecked power to alter the lives of people convicted of federal crimes.

What makes this story unique is that Hatch, feeling scorned, has opened the first known arbitration taken against a pardon lobbyist or firm during Trump’s second term. NOTUS has text messages and contracts detailing what was allegedly promised to Hatch. There are also plenty of quotes from all levels of the pardon process in Trump 2.0, including the White House.

From the campaign trail

Susan Collins’ cruise control. “She has done a really good job of making this the Democrats’ problem and not inserting herself into this, which I think a less seasoned politician would have screwed up,” a national Republican operative told NOTUS’ Al Weaver of the way the Republican senator from Maine has navigated the Graham Platner faceplant.

What’s next: Democrats open Pandora’s box on a sure-to-be chaotic and divisive mini-primary to replace Platner, losing valuable weeks of general election campaigning time in an attempt to repair their tattered Senate race plans. Meanwhile, Al writes, Collins is striding back into the Senate for a four-week sprint focused on putting her stamp on a range of spending bills.

Sen. Gary Peters gets off the fence in Michigan. For months, the retiring Democrat has stayed out of the primary to replace him — even as the party establishment (and his wife) publicly endorsed Rep. Haley Stevens. This morning, he joins them, officially calling on primary voters to back Stevens over the AOC-endorsed Abdul El-Sayed.

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Local news. Are Your Solar Panels to Blame for D.C.’s High Electricity Bills? By Martin Austermuhle

NEW ON NOTUS

‘Freedom Fuel’ mystery. The Trump administration says it’s not involved with the viral group of rebranded gas stations selling cheap gas under the “Freedom Fuel” name, NOTUS’ Angie Orellana Hernandez reports. But the White House is certainly supportive of the idea and has promoted it on its feeds. “There is no other entity or person subsidizing the lower gasoline costs,” a White House official said. “They are simply reducing their margin to make prices at the pump more affordable for drivers in Philadelphia and New Jersey. This retailer is taking the lead; others should follow.”

More: Trump Officials Have Told Agencies to Find More Workers to Make At-Will, by Eric Katz

Trump Wants to Scale Up Munitions Production, But Congress Hasn’t Yet Funded It, by Joe Gould

Warren Slams Senate Leaders over Ethics Gaps in GOP-Led Crypto Bill, by Avani Kalra

NOT US

• Why Some Women in Maine Are Mourning the End of Graham Platner’s Campaign, by Emily Davies for The New York Times
• CIA Officers Can Sense the Threat Within, by Shane Harris for The Atlantic
• DOJ investigating allegations around UAW President Shawn Fain, by Kalea Hall and Nora Eckert for Reuters

WEEK AHEAD

Today

Congress returns from July Fourth recess.

Tuesday

Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Elena Kagan testify at House and Senate Appropriations Committee hearings to consider the Supreme Court budget.

Fed Chair Kevin Warsh testifies before the House Financial Services Committee.

Wednesday

First day of Todd Blanche’s attorney general confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. It is expected to last two days.

Jay Clayton’s director of national intelligence confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

CDC director nominee Erica Schwartz’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Deadline for candidates who want to replace Platner on the Democratic ticket to announce their intentions.

Thursday

Labor secretary nominee Keith Sonderling’s confirmation hearing.

TSA director nominee David Cummins’ confirmation hearing.

Friday

House Speaker Mike Johnson addresses the Family Leadership Summit in Iowa.

National Association of Counties’ annual convention begins in New Orleans.

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The newsletter was produced by Thomas Burr, Brett Bachman and Nikie Johnson. Photo by Erin Schaff/Pool The New York Times via AP.