YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST: The Washington Reporter was the first outlet to report that disgraced Senate candidate Graham Platner will drop out this week, giving Democrats time to replace him on the ballot.
RED FLAG: State Armor, a national security group with a hawkish stance on China, released a bombshell report that it sent to five House and Senate Committee chairmen about the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) and its “relationships with entities affiliated with Communist China,” State Armor noted. State Armor released a new website, ELIandChina.com, along with a mobile billboard calling for an investigation into the organization. State Armor’s report claims that “ELI’s activities extend beyond environmental advocacy and raise broader questions involving foreign influence, judicial bias, and strategic competition with China.” State Armor’s new microsite notes that “ELI provides information and analysis directly to Chinese universities and organizations, many of which have direct ties to the CCP, including its united front and intelligence operations.”
GOING OLD SCHOOL: The Republican National Committee (RNC) released a 1950s-themed video on “how to spot a socialist.” The video targets several of the most prominent socialist voices in America, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), Reps. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.), Pramila Jayapal (D., Wash.), as well as incoming members of Congress like Darializa Avila Chevalier, Melat Kiros, and Claire Valdez. “Democrats can gaslight Americans all they want, but history is a great teacher,” the RNC said.
RESULTS DELIVERED: Pine Tree Results PAC, which was on air targeting Graham Platner, is canceling some of its scheduled ads, with Platner poised to exit the race any day now. The group still has millions of dollars to back Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine).
HAPPY HOUR HOSTED: Save Our States completed its takeover of Hawk ‘N Dove on the Hill with its happy hour last week, during which the group spoke with attendees in the media and from the Hill and Trump administration about its latest report, “Glitz and Glam of Tax Exempt Hospitals.”
SHE’S OUT: Democratic state Senator Mallory McMorrow dropped out of the contentious Michigan primary. Former Rep. Mike Rogers (R., Mich.), the GOP’s likely nominee, had a field day, posting multiple videos commemorating McMorrow’s short-lived campaign. Both Rep. Haley Stevens (D., Mich.) and Abdul El-Sayed remain in the race for the Democrats. El-Sayed is facing renewed scrutiny for his past calls to defund the police. “Abdul El-Sayed has insisted he ‘never, never called for defunding’ police and said deleted tweets were taken out of context,” CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski reported. “But new audio hows that in 2020 he defended the idea in interviews saying, ‘I believe that we do need to defund the police.’”
OKIE TAKEOVER: The Oklahoma State Society hosted its Boots and Ball party, one of the best America 250 events of the weekend. Among those spotted were Ainsley, Stephanie, Geoffrey Bice, Miranda Dabney, Markwayne and Christie Mullin, Zack Lissau, Morgan Money, Ali Booth, Payton Martin, Bailey Dabney, Taylor Dabney, Shelby Fleshood, Wesley Harkins, Natalie Bauman, Matthew and Kate Brownlee, Sofia Deiro, John Bachman, Sarah Ferrell, Henry Kane, Hunter Foster, Chase Gurey, Noelle Hargrave, Brooke Starr, Charles Correll, Cambridge Neal, Chandler Rebel, Bryce Slagell, Margaret Woolf, Erika Bone, Jenna Cooper, Logan Luse, Paul Foldi and Bonnie Glick, Matthew Foldi, Zach Halaschak, Bryn McCarthy, Robert McIntosh, Collyn Davis, Marisela Ramirez, Lorenzo Riboni, Logan Holt, Aubrey Ruffin, Enrique Martinez, Stephan Kapustka, Micah Rea, and Enes Freedom.
CRUEL KIDS PARTY: Another one of the most sought after invites for the America 250 weekends was CJ Pearson’s latest Cruel Kids Party, which featured a live performance from rapper Moneybagg Yo at the Pierce School. Among those spotted were Lexi Hamel, Ainsley Bice, Emily Fehsenfeld, Grace Newton, Hannah Eddins, Logan Luse, Sarah Frances Morris, Emily Sturge, Virginia Grace McKinnon, Jenna Cooper, Maura Schlee, Ali McDaniel, Brock Pierce, Mary-Frank Moorer, Maggie Waldrop, Ja’Ron Smith, Ryan McClain, Chrissy Clark, Maria Giannopoulos, Gianno Caldwell, Kennedy Chambers, Adam Brown, James O’Keefe, and a lot of McDonald’s.
HAPPY BIRTHDAYS: The Washington Reporter wants to wish the happiest of birthdays to Miranda Dabney, Charlie Roth, Ben Rajadurai, and Taylor Dabney!