I love writing this newsletter \u2014 from explaining this dramatic political world we live in to delving into oftentimes quirky topics to the community we have built. Working with Matthew over the past year has been some of the most fulfilling work of my career, and I am deeply appreciative of all of you who engage with the newsletter each day.<\/p>\n
You will be hearing more from me as I take over all anchoring duties for the Early Brief, but you can plan to get the same kind of email each morning, one that contextualizes the day\u2019s top headlines and guides you through what you need to know for the day. The mission is unchanged: This newsletter will continue to explain what\u2019s happening in Washington to readers around the country and explain issues from across the country to those in Washington. And the midterms will be our dominant target over the next four months.<\/p>\n
More than anything, I want to keep hearing from all of you. Our readers make this newsletter what it is, so if you have an idea, a question, or just a comment, please email me \u2014 dan.merica@washpost.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n It was clear that Interior Secretary Doug Burgum<\/b> wanted to raise communism.<\/p>\n When CNN\u2019s Dana Bash<\/b> asked him on Sunday about the white nationalist group Patriot \u200cFront marching through Washington on Saturday, the former North Dakota governor said the group\u2019s views are \u201cnothing I could possibly agree with,\u201d but then pivoted to the newly preferred Republican talking point.<\/p>\n \u201cIn America, free speech is allowed, and this is from the whole spectrum of things. I mean, we are a country where someone can run and be elected saying they are a communist, but yet this is what our nation has stood against and fought for,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n We reached out to Burgum\u2019s spokespeople to ask who, in particular, had recently run and won a campaign while saying they are a communist. They did not respond to our request for comment.<\/p>\n But Burgum\u2019s pivot highlights a trend within President Donald Trump<\/b>\u2019s administration. Faced with the prospect of a difficult midterm election, and at a time when a number of democratic socialists are winning Democratic primaries and general elections, Republicans are invoking communism as a way to attack the Democratic Party.<\/p>\n Our colleagues Teo Armus, Mariana Alfaro <\/b>and Lydia Sidhom <\/b>have a great new piece about this topic<\/a>. And this data point stood out: \u201cFrom January to June, they used the words \u2018communism\u2019 or \u2018communist\u2019 in an average of about 626 posts per week, up from around 439 per week during the same stretch last year \u2014 a 43 percent increase.\u201d<\/p>\n A few important points:<\/p>\n That, however, hasn\u2019t stopped Trump and other Republicans from raising the communist specter.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is now a resurgence of the communist menace in our land. … These are not mere political disagreements like differences over taxes or regulations. Communism is a mortal threat to American liberty,\u201d Trump said at a speech in South Dakota<\/a> on July 3 before linking communism directly to the midterms. \u201cAmerica will never be a communist country. We can only lose the midterms if we allow ourselves to lose the midterms if we are foolish, stupid and unwise.\u201d<\/p>\n He described the issue as \u201cthe greatest threat to our country, including World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, or even 9\/11.\u201d<\/p>\n While this is pretty standard rhetoric for Trump \u2014 he has been attempting to link the Democratic Party with communism since his 2016 campaign \u2014 it does preview how the president and his administration want to use red scare rhetoric against Democrats ahead of what could be a tough midterm election for Republicans.<\/p>\n Part of this is just a necessity for Republicans. The primary piece of legislation they passed over the last two years \u2014 Trump\u2019s One Big Beautiful Bill Act <\/a>\u2014 is unpopular, and Congress has largely been stalled on a host of other issues they could run on in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a choice coming up between communism and common sense,\u201d White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt<\/b> said last week. \u201cThat\u2019s how the president views it.\u201d<\/p>\n And part of it plays into their broader messaging ahead of the midterms. As we have noted in this newsletter, Republicans nationwide want to link all Democrats with the party\u2019s far left.<\/p>\n \u201cRepublicans are drawing a clear contrast between our common sense policies versus the left\u2019s increasingly radical agenda, and that\u2019s a choice voters will hear about nonstop through Election Day,\u201d said a Republican operative working on House races.<\/p>\n As our colleagues noted in their piece<\/a>, however, part of the reason Trump has had to focus on communism now is that, while he has so thoroughly focused on socialism for years, recent polls show voters have less disapproval of the moniker than in years past.<\/p>\n And Democrats are likely to respond like Sen. Tim Kaine<\/b> (D-Virginia) did last week: Branding Trump\u2019s focus on communism \u201cgoofy word salad\u201d and pivoting to broader economic concerns.<\/p> Read more Democrats invoke \u2018big, beautiful bill\u2019 far more than Republicans as midterms near<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t really explain, you know, what\u2019s on the voters\u2019 minds in New York City congressional races, but I know what\u2019s on Virginians\u2019 minds,\u201d said Kaine<\/a>, \u201cand I think I know what\u2019s on Americans\u2019 minds. Let\u2019s focus on the economy and bringing costs down, not foolish wars and chaos.\u201d<\/p>\n League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund, the political action committee for the left-leaning environmental group, will spend $4 million on digital ads in congressional districts Trump won in 2024, taking a message focused on affordability and rising energy prices into races that could be in play in a strong year for Democrats.<\/p>\n \u201cVoters are angry about rising costs across the board, with energy costs being a top concern for many,\u201d said Sara Schreiber<\/b>, the head of campaigns at the committee.<\/p>\n The districts are varied and include Rep. Eli Crane<\/b> (R-Arizona) in a district that stretches around Phoenix and into Northeast Arizona, Rep. Cory Mills <\/b>(R-Florida) in a district in the Orlando suburbs and along the state\u2019s Atlantic coast, Rep. Chuck Edwards <\/b>(R-North Carolina) in a district that stretches across much of Western North Carolina, Rep. Bill Huizenga <\/b>(R-Michigan) in a <\/b>district in Western Michigan and Rob Wittman <\/b>(R-Virginia) in a district around Richmond and along the Chesapeake Bay.<\/p>\n The ad, titled Skyrocket<\/a>, features a narrator hitting each Republican for voting to \u201ccut our clean energy supply, making our utility bills skyrocket.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe feel it at the grocery store, and when we\u2019re paying medical bills, and at the gas pump,\u201d the narrator says. \u201cEverywhere you go, we\u2019re getting crushed with higher prices.\u201d<\/p>\n The group had earlier outlined the kind of voter they are looking to target this year, calling that person the \u201cEnergy Bill Voter<\/a>.\u201d Their research finds these voters, who are moved by rising energy prices, finds them to be swing voters who are \u201cmore likely to be women, Black and\/or Latino, non-college-educated, less engaged with politics, independent, moderate, or soft partisan voters.\u201d<\/p>\n Detroit News<\/b>: State Senator Mallory McMorrow<\/b> is ending her Democratic Senate campaign in Michigan<\/a>, setting up a two-person race for the party\u2019s nomination in a state that will be key to Democratic attempts to win back the Senate in November.<\/p>\n The Blade (Toledo)<\/b>: Will voters in Northwest Ohio get behind a .25 percent municipal income tax<\/a> to avert cuts to fire and police services in Toledo? \u201cEverything has been under consideration,\u201d said Vanice Williams<\/b>, the council president in Toledo. \u201cWe\u2019ve exhausted everything to try to cut this deficit in half.\u201d<\/p>\n We got an interesting question from Kevin Seraile <\/b>last week and we wanted to answer it today.<\/p>\n \u201cTrump seems to declare emergencies and take on additional powers whenever the feeling hits him,\u201d Seraile wrote. \u201cAre there any requirements before declaring an emergency that augment the President\u2019s power?\u201d<\/p>\n The short answer is no.<\/p>\n The main law that governs this issue is the National Emergencies Act<\/a> of 1976, which sought to restrain some of this presidential power by giving Congress the authority to terminate such orders. But the law does not define what constitutes an emergency.<\/p>\n According to Elizabeth Goitein<\/b>, a senior director at the Brennan Center for Justice, the president\u2019s decision to declare a national emergency establishes \u201ca parallel legal regime<\/a>\u201d that gives the president the ability to \u201csidestep many of the constraints that normally apply.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe moment the president declares a \u2018national emergency\u2019 \u2014 a decision that is entirely within his discretion \u2014 more than 100 special provisions become available to him,\u201d Goitein wrote.<\/p>\n Trump has certainly used this power \u2014 some of which has since been constrained by the Supreme Court. He cited an economic emergency to impose his tariffs, an immigration emergency to step up deportations and an energy emergency to ease regulations.<\/p>\n As our colleague Naftali Bendavid<\/b> put it<\/a>, \u201cTrump declares an emergency or crisis where many others do not see one, enabling him to take sweeping actions, rally supporters and fight on political terrain he finds favorable.\u201d<\/p>\n Joe Heim <\/b>and Mariana Trujillo Valdes<\/b> asked Americans over the weekend how they feel about their country<\/a>. They spoke about their view of freedom, their hope for change, and some of their fears. So we wanted to ask you: How do you feel about your country? What gives you hope? What concerns do you have? Most of all, we hope you had a great Fourth of July. Let us and your fellow Early Brief readers know at earlytips@washpost.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Thanks for reading. You can follow Dan and Matthew on X: @merica<\/a> and @matthewichoi<\/a>.<\/p>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/9f4238bc46163846a6ae19cb303fcbee-1024x678.jpg\")
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