Principals

1. Border action imminent
2. Hunter Biden’s trial
3. Trump talks to Fox
4. Israel weighs ceasefire plan
5. Biden’s tough economic sell
6. New WaPo editor
7. Mexico elections
8. Russia’s Olympian disinformation campaign

PDB: Gina Raimondo heads to Singapore for IPEF meetings, clean economy investor forum

Fauci testifying before House … Biden fundraising in Greenwich … WSJ: Dan Sullivan assures allies on edge about Trump

— edited by Benjy Sarlin, Jordan Weissmann and Morgan Chalfant

Biden’s new border plan is coming soon

The Biden administration is expected to announce executive orders cracking down on asylum seekers at the border early this week, according to three sources familiar with the plans. Mayors from border towns are en route to Washington for a Tuesday event, the Associated Press reports. Some believe the White House is deliberately timing the order after Mexico’s presidential election. A White House spokesperson declined to answer questions on timing but told Semafor “the Administration continues to explore a series of policy options, and we remain committed to taking action to address our broken immigration system.” The orders come less than two weeks after Senate Leader Chuck Schumer failed to revive the bipartisan border agreement that collapsed in February, which the White House has blamed on partisan sabotage.

— Kadia Goba

Hunter Biden’s gun trial begins

From one historic trial to the next: Hunter Biden will be tried in Delaware starting today over charges he failed to disclose his drug abuse on federal gun forms. CNN notes it will be the “first time in American history that the child of the sitting president is going on trial.” President Biden, who was spotted biking with Hunter this weekend, is deeply concerned about his son’s legal problems, which weigh on him personally but also could be a drag on his campaign. The charges have a dramatic backstory, per the Washington Post: Hallie Biden, Beau Biden’s widow with whom Hunter had a relationship, discovered the gun in Hunter’s car in October 2018 and in a fit of anger threw it in a trash can outside a Wilmington grocery store. Hallie Biden is among the witnesses prosecutors will likely call.

Trump contemplates jail time

“I’m OK with it,” Donald Trump said on “Fox & Friends” as he discussed the prospect of prison time for his hush money conviction. He also suggested there could be a “breaking point” if he were to be jailed. “I’m not sure the public would stand for it,” Trump said in his first interview since a jury found him guilty of 34 felony charges (New Morning Consult polling shows about half of voters would oppose a sentence of jail time). Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche is also acknowledging the possibility of prison, telling the Associated Press that while it would be “extraordinary” the “very highly publicized” nature of the case might result in some arguing he deserves harsher punishment. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is wrestling with the decision of whether to recommend jail time at all, or simply leave the call to the judge.

White House waits for answer on ceasefire proposal

President Biden might not be able to count on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to get a ceasefire agreement across the finish line. Biden laid out what he said was an Israeli proposal for a phased approach to release hostages and end the Gaza war in a speech Friday. But Israel has sent mixed signals about the plan. A Netanyahu aide told Britain’s Sunday Times that Israel had previously agreed to the proposal, after Netanyahu seemed to cast doubt on it. Meanwhile, far-right Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to bring down the country’s coalition government if the ceasefire deal is agreed to. Still, the White House is projecting measured confidence. Spokesman John Kirby said on ABC that the administration has “every expectation that if Hamas agrees to the proposal … Israel would say yes.”

Media Circus of the Century, a Buzzfeed Comeback and Sleeping with Your Phone

The debut episode of Mixed Signals from Semafor Media, presented by Think With Google, is ready for your ears. Ben Smith and Nayeema Raza catch up with New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to talk about the media circus of the century, the future of Buzzfeed, and the case for sleeping with your phone, according to Editor Max Tani. Listen wherever you get your podcasts

Why Biden’s economic revival story is falling flat

Joe Biden is currently down in the polls against Donald Trump, despite presiding over a US economy in far stronger shape than when some past presidents handily won re-election. Voters awarded Barack Obama and Ronald Reagan second terms while unemployment was still above 7% (it’s under 4% today), while Reagan and Biden have overseen strikingly similar overall amounts of inflation. Biden’s problem, as Jordan Weissmann writes, is that unlike his predecessor’s he’s trying to wrestle control of an economic problem that started under his watch — and it’s hard to tell a comeback story when voters think the president is trying to recover from shooting himself in the foot.

The Washington Post gets a leadership shakeup

Sally Buzbee’s turbulent run at the Washington Post is ending. The executive editor stepped down, “effective immediately,” CEO Matt Lewis announced in a Sunday night note to staff that outlined a restructuring plan for the troubled newspaper. Buzbee will be replaced by former Wall Street Journal Editor-in-Chief Matt Murray through the end of the 2024 election. Then in the Fall, Telegraph Media Group’s Robert Winnett will become editor of the paper’s “core coverage,” while Murray will move over to a separate, social media-oriented “third newsroom” that will focus on “video storytelling, embracing AI to help, and flexible payment methods.” The Post is trying to shake off a post-Trump hangover that saw tumbling subscriptions, mounting losses, and significant layoffs — as well as Buzbee herself openly wondering to staff whether she’d be better off quitting.

Mexico elects first woman president

Claudia Sheinbaum was elected as Mexico’s first female president. Her landslide victory — preliminary results showed her winning around 60% of the vote — could also herald a congressional supermajority that would allow the ruling coalition to change the constitution. Sheinbaum, the former mayor of Mexico City, has vowed to build on the legacy of populist President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, including a proposal to weaken the Supreme Court and national electoral body, a move that opponents say poses a threat to the country’s democracy. Security will top her agenda, followed closely by the need to spur economic growth and accelerate Mexico’s green transition. “This is a recognition by the people of Mexico of our national project,” Sheinbaum said.

Russia spreading lies about violence around Paris Olympics, Microsoft says

Russians are using artificial intelligence tools to wage elaborate online disinformation campaigns against the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, according to new research from Microsoft. The efforts included a fake documentary called “Olympics Has Fallen” — complete with AI-generated audio impersonating Tom Cruise’s voice and fake media endorsements — that was released on Telegram last summer to discredit the International Olympic Committee. Russian trolls are also spreading fake videos and images suggesting the Games are at risk of a terror attack, including digitally altered images of graffiti that threatened Israeli attendees. Microsoft expects the activity to intensify and expand to other languages as the July events draw closer. The Russian Olympic Committee is banned from the games over doping violations and the war in Ukraine, though the country’s athletes can still compete independently.

— Morgan Chalfant

Beltway Newsletters

Punchbowl News: Three-quarters of leaders on K Street are worried about foreign interference in the upcoming election, and 63% predict that President Biden will be re-elected.

Playbook: Montana GOP Senate candidate Tim Sheehy’s campaign is rolling out an ad focused on Donald Trump’s conviction in Manhattan accusing his opponent, Sen. Jon Tester, of standing by a “state-sponsored political persecution.”

Axios: Speaker Mike Johnson has quietly been getting advice from former Speaker John Boehner. “For a guy who doesn’t drink, smoke, or cuss,” Boehner said, Johnson is a “really an affable guy.”

WaPo: Republican lawmakers are planning investigations and other legislative actions to exact revenge for Trump’s conviction.

White House

• President Biden will spend most of the day at his home in Wilmington, Del. — which The Washington Post notes is miles from the courthouse where Hunter Biden’s gun trial will take place — before leaving for a fundraiser in Greenwich, Conn.
• Biden vetoed Congress’s attempt to overturn a Securities and Exchange Commission guidance on crypto widely disliked by the industry.
• Biden and first lady Jill Biden mourned the passing of Marian Robinson, Michelle Obama’s mother.

Congress

• Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that the Senate will vote on the Right to Contraception Act on Wednesday, ahead of the two-year anniversary of Dobbs.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci will testify publicly today before the House select committee investigating the response to COVID-19.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepted an invitation to address a joint session of Congress. The address is expected to take place sometime between now and when lawmakers return from the August recess. — The Hill
• Speaker Mike Johnson told a group of donors in Illinois that the hush money verdict has turned Donald Trump into a “symbol.” — Politico
• Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, announced late Sunday that she has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She said she is undergoing treatment.
• Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. pressed former Trump administration official Russ Vought on Trump’s commitment to decreasing government spending. — Axios

Economy

• The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies on Sunday agreed to extend production curbs into next year in a deal that likely indicates oil prices will remain higher through the US presidential election.
• Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is traveling to Singapore this week to take part in a ministerial meeting for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, the administration’s signature economic initiative for the region. She’ll also be attending a forum on climate investment with companies including BlackRock, Carlyle, Microsoft, Citi, JPMorgan, KKR, Google, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs.

Courts

Both judges overseeing Hunter Biden’s two trials are appointees of Donald Trump. — Politico

Polls

• Just 10% of Republican registered voters said they are less likely to cast ballots for Donald Trump after he was convicted in Manhattan, while 35% said they are more likely to support him, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted following the verdict. Among independents, 25% said they were less likely to support him post-verdict, versus 18% who said they were more likely
• Meanwhile, a Morning Consult poll found that 15% of Republican voters want Trump to end his presidential bid following the verdict.
• Fifty-six percent of American voters believe Trump got a fair trial in Manhattan, according to a CBS/YouGov poll, a result unchanged from when the same question was asked before the verdict.

On the Trail

• Donald Trump joined TikTok to court younger voters, despite his previous efforts to ban the app during his administration on national security grounds.
• Trump claimed during his Fox interview that he never said “lock her up” in regards to Hillary Clinton, despite doing so repeatedly on the campaign trail in 2016.
• RNC co-chair Lara Trump criticized Maryland GOP Senate candidate Larry Hogan for saying the American public should respect the verdict in Trump’s hush money trial (comments he made before the verdict was issued). “He doesn’t deserve the respect of anyone in the Republican Party at this point, and quite frankly, anybody in America, if that’s the way you feel. That’s very upsetting to hear that,” she said on CNN.

Foreign Policy

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused China of helping Russia to dissuade countries from attending a peace summit scheduled for later this month in Switzerland, after Beijing said it would not send representatives to take part.
• A potential gas pipeline deal between Russia and China has stalled over “what Moscow sees as Beijing’s unreasonable demands on price and supply levels.” — FT

Technology

• The DNC tried — and failed — to get campaign committees to sign a pledge on responsible use of artificial intelligence. — AP
• Deepfake video appeared online of a State Department spokesman discussing the Biden administration’s decision to relax restrictions on the use of American weapons by Ukraine to strike inside Russia, raising concerns among US officials. — NYT
• Elon Musk and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon are patching things up after a feud that began in 2016. — WSJ

Media

Rupert Murdoch has married for the fifth time.

Big Read

Thursday’s 80th D-Day anniversary commemoration will likely be the last major one with living veterans attending, and organizers tell CNN they’re going all out. Major observances are held every five years. “We are perfectly aware that for these centenarians, this is maybe the last chance to return to the beaches where they landed, where they fought and where their brothers-in-arms fell,” according to Gen. Michel Delion, the CEO of the French government agency in charge of the French commemoration efforts. Thursday’s event is expected to be the most extensive observance. About two dozen American veterans who fought on D-Day are expected to attend, American Battle Monuments Commission Secretary Charles Djou said. The youngest is 96. Twenty-five world leaders are expected to join the vets, including President Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Blindspot

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: The Justice Department said it was concerned about possible AI-enabled “malicious manipulation” of the audio of President Biden’s interview with former special counsel Robert Hur in seeking to prevent its release to the public.

What the Right isn’t reading: Philadelphia set a record for the largest drag queen storytime.

Principals Team

Editors: Benjy Sarlin, Jordan Weissmann, Morgan Chalfant

Editor-at-Large: Steve Clemons

Reporters: Kadia Goba, Joseph Zeballos-Roig, Shelby Talcott, David Weigel

Vince Fong is a Republican who was elected to replace Kevin McCarthy. He will be sworn in later today.