Welcome to the online version of Political officeAn evening newsletter that brings you the latest report and analysis of the NBC News Policy team from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign campaign.
In today’s publishing, Bridget Bowman explores how Democrats use Elon Musk in campaign attacks against each other, not just the Republicans. In addition, Andrea Mitchell plunges into another confrontation of the oval office between President Donald Trump and a world leader.
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– Adam Wollner
Elon Musk says he reveals, but the countryside attacks invoking him can simply start
Elon Musk withdrew from his initial leading role in the Trump administration and said that he would spend “much less” for politics in the future. But he is still sure of a major figure on the campaign track in the coming weeks and months.
The latest example comes in New Jersey, where the governor’s primary is in less than three weeks, as Bridget Bowman reports. Two new attack announcements were launched this week noted that the campaign of the Democrat House Mikie Sherrill received donations from a company PAC for the Musk Spacex company.
This underlines how Democrats seek to invoke musk in attacks, not only against Republicans – as they did in Wisconsin Supreme Court breed – But also against the members of their own party. And it offers a potential overview of what will arise in the Democrats competitions before the mid-term elections of 2026, with Musk emerging as a political Boogeyman for the left following its roles as a major GOP donor in 2024 and with the government’s efficiency department.
The Sherrill campaign was one of the nearly 180 Congress democratic campaigns to receive donations from the SpaceX company PAC since 2008, according to campaign financing files. The corporate CAP also donated to around 240 republican congress campaigns during the same period.
If the New Jersey race is an indication, donations could become political responsibilities for Democrats this year. And the list of recipients includes some who are competitive Senate primaries in 2026. This includes the Angie Craig representatives of Minnesota and Haley Stevens of Michigan, as well as representatives. Robin Kelly and Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois.
Craig campaign before said he donated The SpaceX contributions from his campaign to charity. According to his campaign.
Sherrill did the same, giving the $ 24,000 that his campaign had received Corporate Pac spacex since 2019 to the Community Food Bank of New Jersey on March 20, according to A recent campaign financing report.
One of the rivals of Sherrill in the governor’s primary, representative Josh Gottheimer, also received a donation of $ 2,500 from Musk last year. Gottheimer Campaign spokesperson Peter Opitz said in a statement at NBC News that Gottheimer “gave the contribution last year to help New Jersey Democrats beat Republicans in the polls.”
Trump initiates another confrontation from the oval office with a foreign leader
By Andrea Mitchell
The unique method of President Donald Trump to conduct public diplomacy – in particular when entering the advantage over a less powerful foreign leader – was in the midst of exposure in the oval office Today in what is largely described as a political ambush of the South African president Cyril Ramaphosa.
Recalling the house of the White House of the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in FebruaryTrump – flanked by vice -president JD Vance, deputy chief of staff Steven Miller and the South African native Elon Musk – started politely, as Ramaphosa was trying the flattery. He spoke of the trade agreements and brought with him the legend of the South African golf course Ernie Els and a book displaying the attractions of the golf courses in his country.
But instead of listening to Ramaphosa in private by defending his government against the baseless American accusations, he commits a genocide against the minority white farmers, Trump has attenuated oval office fires to show videos promoting these claims.
The State Department did not designate genocide in South Africa, as it would be required by law, but a spokesperson says that it is enough that the president said that one takes place. Musk has also posted several times on X that the South African law authorizes the confiscation of land belonging to whites. This is correct, in some cases, but it requires a judicial examination. The United States has also reduced $ 400 million in foreign aid to South Africa, including funding from the US President’s emergency plan for the relief of AIDS (PEPFAR) which saved millions of lives by preventing the spread of HIV.
Several Democratic senators challenged Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a foreign relations committee on Tuesday hearing the accusation of genocide. Standing today, Senator Chris Van Hollen, D-MD., Told NBC News that no one wonders that South Africa had a terrible crime problem, but that the accusation of genocide is “manufacturing Trump by Trump to justify 59 white South Africans in the United States as refugees” last week.
This decision came after Trump had suspended the refugee asylum program In an executive decree of January 20 and last week canceled temporary protection status to thousands of Afghans living in the United States since the Taliban takeover.
On a separate but related question, a spokesperson for senator Tim Kaine, D-VA., Told NBC News that the senator presents a privileged resolution denouncing the recent flight flight from the administration with eight migrants who would have been intended for South Sudan. A federal judge ruled on the Trump administration had violated an order from the previous court With this expulsion flight. The resolution, which would require a simple majority for adoption in the Senate led by the GOP, should be elected after the recreation of the Memorial Day.
🗞️ The best stories of today
- 📝 Megabill Mania: The Republican leaders of the Chamber are still ahead with plans to organize a floor vote on Wednesday evening on a scanning package for Trump’s agenda, even though they have trouble arguing the holplips. Learn more →
- 📉 Market mania: The fears of a world government borrow from the overabundance – likely to be aggravated by the GOP bill – have contributed to fuel an unusually low auction for the US government obligations that have sent markets to a flesh. Learn more →
- 🛬 Land the plane: The Pentagon confirmed that he had officially accepted a luxury jet plane in Qatar to use it as a new Air Force One for Trump. Learn more →
- 🔎 New probe: The Ministry of Justice conducts a criminal investigation into former governor Andrew Cuomo, one of the main competitors of the New York town hall race, on his testimony to Congress last year linked to the cocovid pandemic. Learn more →
- ☀️ He’s back?: The former representative Matt Gaetz did not close the door to the race for the post of Florida governor, a touch that could complicate the GOP primary there. Learn more →
- 🗳️ The Holder: The mayor of Pittsburgh, Ed Gainey, has lost a main challenge to the controller of the County of Allegheny, Corey O’Connor, in a power struggle between the progressives and the Democrats of the center-left. Learn more →
- ⚫ RIP: The representative Gerry Connolly in Virginia, the best democrat of the Chamber’s supervisory committee, died at the age of 75. Learn more →
- Follow the Updates of Live Policy →
It’s all of the political bureau for the moment. Today’s newsletter was compiled by Adam Wollner and Ben Kamisar.
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