In today’s edition … an upset in Florida … Trump’s golf game … but first …
After stories about deteriorating conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln began to surface last week, President Donald Trump had a choice to make: He could attempt to comfort the sailors’ families, who were growing increasingly worried about their loved ones’ well-being, or question the veracity of the reports.
Read more 8 takeaways and surprises from Florida, Wyoming and Alaska primaries
The president went with the latter.
“The Lincoln has been out there for a period of time — a good period of time — but over the years, we’ve had them out there much longer,” Trump said Monday, later calling the reports “fake news.”
The comments echo what Trump said last week, when he again questioned whether the conditions aboard the ship were actually poor and said the sailors, who were deployed as part of the war the president began with Iran nearly six months ago, were out “not nearly long enough.”
These kinds of dust-ups have been common during Trump’s terms, and they follow a similar pattern — a few news reports lead to a controversial statement, followed by a doubling down. And they are often forgotten in a few weeks.
But what makes these comments interesting is that Trump’s rhetoric about the Lincoln might be remembered well, at least in one key part of the country.
Here is why: One of the most competitive House races is Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District in the southeastern Tidewater region. The district has one of the largest active-duty military populations in the country because of bases in the area, and it’s predominantly Navy.
While the Lincoln is based in San Diego, comments about carrier groups and conditions resonate in this part of Virginia in a way that they don’t in, say, Iowa. And the two candidates running in this district are Navy veterans. Democrats very much hope to make the comments an issue, and to make the argument that Republicans aren’t doing enough to look after American sailors.
“It hits home very much for our district,” said Elaine Luria, the Democrat running to oust Rep. Jen Kiggans. Luria said that she will “absolutely” be talking about Trump’s comments while campaigning, and that they highlight a lack of defense oversight by Kiggans and the Republican-controlled Congress.
“I’d be talking about it all day, every day” if she were still in Congress, Luria said. The Democrat, who represented the district from 2019 to 2023, lost reelection to Kiggans in 2022. After not running in 2024, she faces a rematch against the Republican.
Kiggans’s initial response to reports that the Lincoln was suffering supply and maintenance problems was to blame the media for spreading “misinformation about our great Navy” and “democrat lies.”
“They are hurting our military readiness, hurting our warfighters, and hurting our military families,” she wrote on Facebook on Friday.
Kiggans declined to speak with me for this piece. But when I asked her spokesperson whether she agrees with the president’s comments about the Lincoln’s deployment, Kiggans provided a statement.
“As a Navy veteran, Navy spouse, and Navy Mom, my top priority will always be the safety and well-being of our service members and their families,” she said. “Our sailors on the USS Lincoln have carried out their mission admirably.”
Luria told me that kind of statement is not enough and noted that Kiggans received considerable criticism in March when there were concerns about the conditions aboard the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford and Kiggans said, “This is not Carnival Cruise, this is the U.S. Navy,” before acknowledging some of the maintenance concerns.
“Concern about the war is so much more personal in our district,” Luria said. “Yes, people are fed up with paying high gas prices, but it’s more personal. They’re sending your sons, daughters, husbands, wives, into harm’s way. And they’re not even compassionate about it. So it really shows like a broader carelessness about veterans and service members.”
John Sitka III, chairman of the Republican Party of Norfolk who served in the Navy for 20 years, was skeptical that Luria’s attacks would land with military members and their families, arguing that troops are used to difficult conditions.
“For those of us who spent a career, we look at that and we kind of chuckle and think, welcome to the world we live in,” Sitka said.
But he added that the war clearly “exposes the administration” to criticism, with many voters not anticipating it would last this long.
“People are looking at their own economics. I think they would love for [the war] to hurry up and get over,” he said, before urging Trump to “Get it done, but don’t forget we have the local economy to deal with.”
State Rep. Angie Nixon, a democratic socialist, handed Alex Vindman a surprising loss last night in Florida’s Democratic Senate primary, a reminder that endorsements and money do not always mean electoral viability.
When I spoke with Vindman last week, he was clearly focused on his expected general election matchup against Republican Sen. Ashley Moody. He mentioned the Republican multiple times during our 20-minute conversation and entirely ignored Nixon’s challenge from the left. That presumptuousness was clearly a mistake.
“The whole kind of political industrial complex is missing the fact that we are very much a state in play,” Vindman said of Florida, missing his own state of play.
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Part of the Vindman campaign’s confidence came from the sheer amount of money Vindman had banked. He ended July with a staggering $7.2 million in the bank compared with Nixon’s $264,978, according to the Federal Election Commission, and spent over $9 million compared with Nixon’s $700,000.
Throughout our conversation, Vindman hinted that national Democrats, like Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, were behind him.
“Did they want Florida in play and want me to put Florida in play? Yes,” he said when asked specifically about Schumer and the committee.
Now, the race has become another example of Democratic voters rejecting the party’s establishment.
“Florida, we did it,” Nixon said in her victory speech last night. “We have proved that everyday people are more powerful than the corporations and billionaires. Together we went up against a political establishment, against millions of dollars out-ofstate spending … and we won.”
So what does this mean for Florida? Nixon’s inability to raise money will worry Democrats, who were already noncommittal about helping in the state, which is generally seen as solidly Republican. Donors will probably be even more reluctant now that Vindman’s campaign war chest isn’t behind their nominee. Then there is the democratic socialist of it all — Republicans are already salivating at the chance to run against Nixon.
Rep. Cory Mills, a Republican facing allegations of sexual misconduct and domestic violence — which he denies — lost his bid for reelection in the Republican primary, falling to Ryan Elijah, a former news anchor. Trump endorsed Mills earlier in the campaign. My colleague Anna Liss-Roy has more on Mills’s loss.
Farther south in Florida, two Democratic incumbents — Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Debbie Wasserman Schultz — fended off challengers in their respective Democratic primaries. Teo Armus has more on each race.
And in the governor’s race, Rep. Byron Donalds will be the Republican nominee to replace term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis. Republican turned independent turned Democrat David Jolly, a former GOP congressman, will be the Democratic nominee. More on that race here.
In Alaska, Sen. Dan Sullivan and former representative Mary Peltola advanced to the general election, as expected.
And strikingly, Trump had a bad night. In addition to the Mills loss, his preferred candidate to replace Donalds, Catalina Lauf, lost to Jim Schwartzel in the primary for the Gulf Coast district. And in Wyoming’s gubernatorial primary, Megan Degenfelder, the Trump-backed candidate, lost to state Sen. Eric Barlow.
South Carolina Daily Gazette: How far are utilities willing to go to raise prices on consumers? Duke Energy, a utility in South Carolina, is going to the state’s Supreme Court to be allowed to raise prices 4 percent in northeastern South Carolina. State regulators denied the rate increase.
New Hampshire Bulletin: Screen usage became commonplace in schools during the pandemic. But a growing movement is trying to claw back screen use, from phones to laptops.
Rick Reilly is a fantastic writer, and his piece on Trump’s golf fibs has many of you talking — and emailing me.
Many of you asked whether I’m a golfer. I am not. I could never really get into it, although I do enjoy watching a few tournaments each year.
Here is what Reilly wrote: “Trump says he “won” both the senior (over 50) and super senior (over 60) titles by shooting 10 strokes below his age — which is like kicking a 120-yard field goal in snowshoes.” In short: Trump may have lied about his golf scores.
“If you cheat, lie, or act immorally on one aspect of your life, you probably do the same in many others,” wrote Kurt Sauer. “While a golf score isn’t important in the overall scheme, how he acts in that respect speaks volumes about many other critical national matters.”
“Trump’s stating he won two championships at his own golf course is highly indicative of Trump’s willingness to bend the truth (lie) to satisfy his own ego,” added Nels Johnson.
And Paul Gutermann chimed in: “Trump cheating at golf the way he does so he can claim to win championships at the clubs he owns tells you everything you need to know about him.”
Finally, Warren Lowder highlighted how golf can tell you a lot about someone.
“I have played golf for 60 years and have long believed that after playing 18 holes with a stranger, I will know everything I need to know about the strength of character of that individual,” wrote Lowder. “Golf is a game which relies on self-regulation, ethical responsibility, and respect for others. … The fact that Trump so blatantly cheats tells me he is not to be trusted, has zero personal integrity, and has zero respect for others.”
What do you think about license-plate cameras? My colleague Annie Gowen had a fascinating piece about how vandals are destroying them as anger over their use rises. Some argue they keep people safe; others say they are just a tool of a surveillance state. What do you think? Have you had experience with them? Let me and your fellow Early Brief readers know at [email protected].
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