Redistricting Vote
This is the day Texas Republicans have been waiting for. After Democrats frustrated them by staying away from Austin to deny Republicans the minimum attendance needed to hold a vote, the quorum protest is over and the statehouse majority can get on with its gerrymander.
Pushed by President Donald Trump, they’re revising congressional district lines to rearrange voters in a way that creates five more GOP-leaning seats. Whether the deck-stacking is effective in 2026, though, will depend on a few unknowables, such as what turnout will look like when Trump isn’t on the ballot.
BGOV’S Greg Giroux has noted that the proposed configuration creates districts that were both very, very red in the 2024 presidential race and either a little less red or a lot less red when those same voters chose a US senator.
Though there’s no doubt about Republicans having numbers enough to get their redistricting done, the drama has continued, with House leaders ordering a police chaperone for every Democrat. Rep. Nicole Collier (D) refused to tolerate being tailed and instead had bedding, eye mask, and sleep cap brought in to overnight in the chamber.
There’ll be a little less action today in California, where, in response to Texas, Democrats are trying to place their own gerrymander on the November ballot to create five more blue seats. Andrew Oxford reports that a hearing on the potential cost is on tap today ahead of planned floor votes tomorrow.
Democrats hold supermajorities in California’s Senate and Assembly, so the outnumbered Republicans are asking the state Supreme Court to stop the redistricting vote.
Read More:
- California Democrats Advance US House Redistricting Plan
- Newsom Woos California Billionaires in Map Fight Against Trump
- California GOP Lawmakers Ask Justices to Block Redistricting
Tariff Watch
Soybean farmers are worried. They have crops in the ground and China, their largest customer, is under fire in Trump’s trade war.
“US soybean farmers cannot survive a prolonged trade dispute with our largest customer,” Caleb Ragland, president of the American Soybean Association, wrote in a letter to the president. “Soybean farmers are under extreme financial stress. Prices continue to drop and at the same time our farmers are paying significantly more for inputs and equipment.”
China hasn’t purchased a single cargo of soybeans from the next harvest, which starts in September. In typical years, the Asian nation ordered an average of 14% of its estimated purchases from the US before crop gathering began, according to an analysis by the group that was provided to the administration together with the letter. Read More
‘Kneecapping’
Kate Ackley reports that one of the most vocal detractors of Trump’s tariff agenda is making the auto industry the focus of its latest critique.
Car manufacturers paid $11.7 billion in tariff costs in the second quarter of this year, according to a memo sent to every member of Congress by Advancing American Freedom Foundation, which was founded by former Vice President Mike Pence.
“Tariff taxes are hammering the bottom lines of both foreign and domestic car manufacturers,” states the memo. “Rather than restoring America’s auto industry to international glory, tariffs are kneecapping it.” Read More
See also:
- Trump Widens Metal Tariffs to Target Baby Gear, Motorcycles
- US Roasters Shun Coffee From Brazil After 50% Tariffs Kick In
- Bessent Says Status Quo Is Working Well on China
- China’s Magnet Exports to US Hit Six-Month High After Truce
Eye on Inflation
Think of top Federal Reserve officials as a big sister who keeps her thoughts locked in a diary, and the rest of us as nosy little brothers.
Today, we’ll all see what’s been hidden from view when the Fed, per longstanding practice, releases the minutes of the July 29-30 Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
Sometimes those minutes are anticlimactic, but the ones coming out today will illuminate what happened during the first meeting since 1993 in which two Fed governors dissented and voted against the committee. Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman balked when the majority chose to wait for more tariff fallout before changing interest rates.
The Fed chair, Jerome Powell, will be in the spotlight Friday in Wyoming, and Trump kept up his pressure campaign for lower debt costs by posting on social media last night that Powell was harming the housing industry. Trump’s offensive has rattled policymakers worried that central-bank independence — seen as essential to keeping inflation in check — could be undermined. So Powell will have defenders in Jackson Hole. Read More
One ardent Trump ally is calling for a criminal probe, meanwhile, of a Democrat on the Fed board. Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte wrote a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi urging her to investigate Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook over a pair of mortgages. Read More
Also Read: Bowman Says ‘Change Is Coming’ to How Fed Views AI and Crypto
Does Peace Have a Chance?
The world’s watching for whether this week’s diplomacy will lead to a breakthrough that ends Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The latest developments include a call from Trump to Vladimir Putin urging the Russian president to start making plans for a one-on-one meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Trump told Fox News that both Russia and Ukraine must show flexibility in any talks.
Switzerland is offering to host peace talks and backed up the suggestion by saying that if that happens, it would grant Putin immunity from arrest. Putin is subject to an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court related to the alleged, unlawful deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia since the Kremlin invaded. Read More
Also Read: Israel to Start Call-Up of 60,000 Reservists for Gaza Offensive
Before You Go
Not Too Soon to War-Game Shutdown Scenarios: House conservatives increasingly are prepared to back a year-long, stopgap spending bill (with fresh earmarks attached) rather than negotiate with Democrats, Ken Tran reports. Going that route would essentially be a giant “never mind” — short-circuiting the appropriations process while also averting a government shutdown when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Read More
Can’t Touch This: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem says Trump has ordered the entire southern border wall to be painted black. The reason: migrants will be less likely to try to cross if it’s too hot to touch. Read More
Undocumented Might = Homelesss: HUD is planning to make changes to rules governing families with at least one undocumented member in the household, evicting them from public housing and rescinding their access to rental vouchers and other housing assistance. The rule could affect more than 100,000 people, half of them children. Read More
Trusting E-Verify Can Backfire: The Associated Press reports on an unusual deportation case involving a police officer in Maine. Old Orchard Beach Police Chief Elise Chard said the town submitted information via the Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify program prior to hiring the cop. Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin then accused the town of “reckless reliance” on E-Verify. The officer, who’s from Jamaica, agreed to leave voluntarily.
Shifting in Reverse: A month after he said he would form the America Party to represent voters unhappy with just red and blue choices, Elon Musk has told allies he wants to focus on his companies and is reluctant to alienate powerful Republicans, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Cost of College Crackdown: US universities have warned that first-time foreign student enrollment on campuses is projected to drop by about 30% this fall, potentially costing the education sector $2.6 billion in tuition revenue. Now, data from the International Trade Administration shows another year-over-year drop in arrivals on student visas. Read More
We Can Help You Prep For Your Day
To get Starting Line for free on weekday mornings, sign up here.