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‘$30 for a hamburger’: Trump’s facing no good options on beef prices

The president is caught between pleasing ranchers, a loyal GOP constituency and addressing voters' affordability concerns.

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Ground beef is displayed at Handy Market on May 14, 2026 in Burbank, California.
Jay Obernolte speaks at a conference.

House talks look at blocking some state AI laws, including in California and New York

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Rand Paul appears on a television as he questions Markwayne Mullin.

Mullin has more work to do to repair the relationship between DHS and Congress

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The U.S. Supreme Court is seen.

Supreme Court rejects bid to revive Democrats’ Virginia redistricting plan

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RFK Jr.’s department to make it easier to fire career staff

Managers received notices Friday that job classifications were changing.

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Colorado governor says he will grant clemency to Trump-aligned election conspiracy theorist

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‘Slap in the face': Republicans skewer Pentagon over Poland move

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BEIJING, CHINA President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping tour Zhongnanhai Garden on May 15, 2026 in Beijing, China. Trump and other U.S. officials finished a visit intended to address the Iran conflict, trade imbalances, and Taiwan while establishing new bilateral boards for economic and AI oversight.

Big promises, thin results from Trump’s China trip

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Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, arrives to vote early in the Georgia Primary Election, Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Keisha Lance Bottoms’ lead is making some Georgia Democrats uneasy

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Danielle Smith and Mark Carney stand next to each other in his office.

Carney pitches Alberta pipeline pact as proof Canada still works

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Lamar Alexander talks with reporters

Column | Jonathan Martin

From JFK to Trump, a Veteran Republican Reflects on the Party He Once Knew

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Kyle Diamantas prepares for an interview.

Acting FDA leader tries to explain past Planned Parenthood work to abortion opponents

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PODCASTS

May 15, 2026

Iran’s exiled crown prince criticizes Trump’s 'half-baked' Iran strategy (with Reza Pahlavi)

Subscribe to The Conversation with Dasha Burns.
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NEWSLETTERS

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SCOTUS Preserved Abortion by Mail. Opponents Already Know Their Next Moves.

The mifepristone ruling reveals how conflicts over abortion are still evolving after the fall of Roe v. Wade.

By Alice Miranda Ollstein

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Politics Is Breaking Us — Just Ask These Therapists

The political therapy boom has arrived.

By Catherine Kim

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The Friday Read

Silicon Valley Wants to Put a Chip in Your Brain

A battle is looming not just over privacy, but the future of the human species.

By Calder McHugh

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Column | Jonathan Martin

Trump’s Redistricting Push Could Cost Republicans More Than It Gains

Republicans chasing extra House seats risk energizing Democrats and alienating key new voters.

By Jonathan Martin

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Column | Victoria Guida

‘Affection And Sympathy’: Kevin Warsh’s Friends See Threats All Around Him

In Warsh’s intellectual stomping ground, anxiety runs high about the challenges facing the Federal Reserve.

By Victoria Guida

PERSON OF INTEREST

The Man Trying to Make Trump’s Tariffs Go on Forever

The fate of the president’s economic agenda rests with this “trade nerd.”

By Daniel Desrochers

The Friday Read

Ukraine’s Weirdest Front Line

How a mint-green research base, 14 scientists, and a gentoo penguin colony became part of Ukraine’s war strategy.

By Emily Schultheis

Perspective

I Helped Craft the 25th Amendment. It Was Never Meant to Oust a President.

What began as a safeguard for continuity of government has increasingly been referred to in discussions about removing a president from office.

By John Feerick

Column | Jonathan Martin

‘We Want to Move on From Losing’: Pritzker on Antisemitism, Trump and 2028

The Illinois governor reflects on his national profile and what comes next.

By Jonathan Martin

Column | Jonathan Martin

Inside the Quiet Republican Effort to Flip Fetterman

As the Pennsylvania Democrat increasingly is isolated within his own party, Republicans are quietly trying to win him over.

By Jonathan Martin

Q&A

Why Elon Musk’s Friend Thinks He’s Wrong About AI

From autonomous weapons to workforce disruption, the stakes around AI are rising. Trump’s AI adviser insists the answer isn’t slowing down.

By Dasha Burns

The Friday Read

What Canadians Are Grudgingly Learning From Trump’s Undiplomatic Ambassador

Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has spent a year enraging Canadians. Is a détente now possible?

By Mickey Djuric and Mike Blanchfield

INTERACTIVES

Image collage of Trump walking over a line chart with selected tariffs listed.

Here’s how different US tariff revenue was in 2025

By , , Paula Friedrich and

A collage of image snippets on a green background

How a major DOE report hides the whole truth on climate change

By Chelsea Harvey, , and Paula Friedrich

CARTOON CAROUSEL

political cartoon

The nation’s cartoonists on the week in politics

By POLITICO Staff

Congress

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Tennessee Democrat Steve Cohen announces retirement

By Sabrina Lam

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Johnson: House will amend stalled housing bill despite White House, Senate GOP pushback

By Meredith Lee Hill

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Capitol agenda: Nervous GOP weighs options on ballroom

By Mia McCarthy

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Nervous Republicans weigh their options amid White House’s ballroom lobbying blitz

By Jordain Carney and Meredith Lee Hill

White House

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Trump noncommittal to continued Taiwan arms sales after meeting with Xi

By Gregory Svirnovskiy

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White House, Senate skeptical about House’s amended housing bill

By Katherine Hapgood

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Bessent discusses investment board, expanding US-China trade with Trump in Beijing

By Gregory Svirnovskiy

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Trump invites Xi to Washington in September

By Alex Gangitano

Legal

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Texas Supreme Court rejects bid to oust House Democrats who fled state over redistricting

By Gregory Svirnovskiy

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Man convicted of running secret Chinese spy outpost in New York City

By Associated Press

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Judge overturns US sanctions on UN official who called for war crimes prosecutions over Gaza

By Josh Gerstein

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Explore the data: 10,000 rulings against Trump in ICE cases

By Kyle Cheney and Jessie Blaeser

States

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New York lawmakers eye multiple redistricting amendments

By Nick Reisman

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Newsom says Dems have ‘break-the-glass’ contingency plan for California gov’s race

By Melanie Mason

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The forever campaign: Mamdani brings DSA-style organizing to City Hall

By Joe Anuta

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NYPD making little progress on reducing overtime despite Mamdani pledge

By Chris Sommerfeldt

Elections

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The number of competitive House districts is getting smaller and smaller

By Jessica Piper

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Landry wants to be kingmaker in Louisiana. He’s annoying other Republicans.

By Liz Crampton

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How the largest LGBTQ+ rights group is approaching the midterms — and anti-trans attacks

By Samuel Benson

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Poll: Democrats would give up Black voting power to beat the GOP

By Erin Doherty, Andrew Howard and Riley Rogerson

Foreign Affairs

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Germany’s Merz wouldn’t tell his kids to move to America anymore

By Milena Wälde

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Germany’s spy agency picks French AI firm over Palantir

By Anouk Schlung

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Poland scrambles to respond after Pentagon ditches troop deployment plan

By Jan Cienski

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Gen Z rising star resigns, adding to Starmer crisis

By POLITICO Staff

Earlier

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A closely guarded plan to cool Earth is revealed

By Corbin Hiar

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‘20 years is enough’: Trump puts a timeline on limiting Iran’s nuclear program

By Alex Gangitano

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Xavier Becerra’s frontrunner glow meets a harsh spotlight

By Melanie Mason and Blake Jones

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‘A lot of good has come of it’: Trump is bullish on China visit

By Alex Gangitano

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Iran is Europe’s war too, argues Trump’s former national security adviser

By Anne McElvoy and Peter Snowdon

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Senate rulekeeper deals blows to GOP’s immigration enforcement package

By Jordain Carney and Jennifer Scholtes

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CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Raul Castro’s grandson in Havana, US and Cuban officials say

By Associated Press

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Newsom tries to balance California’s books — and head off 2028 liabilities

By Jeremy B. White

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Key Jeffries ally endorses aggressive tactics to create more blue seats

By Riley Rogerson

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Green New Deal champion AOC absent as New York weakens climate law

By Marie J. French

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Supreme Court extends order maintaining abortion pill access

By Alice Miranda Ollstein and Josh Gerstein

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House barely rejects limits on Iran war as GOP defections grow

By Connor O'Brien

WUERKER

POLITICAL CARTOON

MOST READ

Soldiers of the U.S. Army engage during a live fire day.

  1. Pentagon officials stunned by Hegseth decision on troops in Poland

  2. ‘Slap in the face': Republicans skewer Pentagon over Poland move

  3. Keisha Lance Bottoms’ lead is making some Georgia Democrats uneasy

  4. ‘20 years is enough’: Trump puts a timeline on limiting Iran’s nuclear program

  5. Texas Supreme Court rejects bid to oust House Democrats who fled state over redistricting

TALKERS

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins speaks to the press.

USDA employees allege Easter religious message violated First Amendment

Donald Trump holds up paper bag in fast food restaurant.

‘Out of control’: Inflation surges to highest point in 3 years, driven by energy

An American Airlines jet takes off.

AI in the sky: Inside the FAA plan to overhaul air traffic

Sens. Mitt Romney and Susan Collins stand in an elevator.

Mitt Romney is back (sort of)

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice David Wecht attends a ceremony at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Jan. 5, 2016.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice leaves Democratic Party over antisemitism concerns

VIDEO

The West’s most important river is in trouble

The West’s most important river is in trouble

Can America trust AI? David Sacks makes the case.

Can America trust AI? David Sacks makes the case.

Does climate still matter to voters in 2026?

Does climate still matter to voters in 2026?

America’s data center surge is about to face a big test

America’s data center surge is about to face a big test

Mark Cuban talks Trump's HHS, says drugmakers are afraid of PBMs

Mark Cuban talks Trump's HHS, says drugmakers are afraid of PBMs

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