Thursday, June 4, 2026

These 4 Republicans are now in Trump's crosshairs

Plus: Vote-a-rama drama ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌  ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ 
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On Politics

Thu Jun 4 2026

 

Zachary Schermele Congressional Reporter

@zachschermele

Hello readers and welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele  here, USA TODAY's congressional reporter. It's Thursday, and an unusually busy day in the Senate. Let's get into it.

Trump blasts 'bad Republicans' who voted against Iran war

After the House of Representatives voted for the first time yesterday in support of ending the Iran war,  President Donald Trump berated the four Republican lawmakers who caused him another stinging political loss on Capitol Hill.

"Who would do such an unpatriotic thing?" he asked on social media today. "They know where the negotiations stand."

The public tongue-lashing represented a typical response to GOP resistance to Trump's second-term White House, particularly to the president's Middle East intervention. Whether the bashing has any immediate political implications for the lawmakers remains to be seen.

Mostly, the post demonstrated how the president, who has flexed his political muscle in recent primary races, is not taking kindly to growing congressional unease with the conflict.

The offenders in Trump's eyes were: Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. The president called them "bad Republicans."

Usa Election Gas Republicans

Republican Rep. Tom Barrett addresses supporters at his campaign office in Brighton, Michigan, on April 17, 2026.

Rebecca Cook, REUTERS

Enjoying On Politics? Subscribe here: Stay ahead of the midterms with our daily politics newsletter.

A politics rundown

Trump hit with series of setbacks before birthday bash, midterms
Most Americans think Trump usually wins at Supreme Court, survey says
Top Texas election official to resign ahead of November elections
Greenland is part of Denmark 'for now,' Rubio says

Daily photo gallery: From the DNC to HHS, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s political career in photos

Vote-a-rama drama

The Senate kicked off a legislative marathon this morning to try to pass more than $70 billion in immigration enforcement funding.

Democrats are using the opportunity to force Republicans into tough votes in a midterm year. Case in point: Much of the morning was spent considering an effort led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, to effectively kill President Trump's so-called "anti-weaponization" fund.

Though the fight wasn't over by the time this newsletter went out, Schumer's amendment had narrowly failed, 49-50. Three Republicans, all in competitive contests, crossed party lines: Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Jon Husted of Ohio.

Don't let that vote deceive you, though. More Republican senators are open to banning the fund through legislation.

Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana had already offered their own amendments to ban the fund. We'll see how those play out. (Tillis' try, which would've rerouted money to the DOJ's anti-fraud division, failed.)

Former Trump adviser John Bolton reaches plea deal in documents case

Former National Security Adviser John Bolton, a fierce critic of President Trump, has reached a plea deal in the criminal case over his handling of classified information, a person familiar with the deal told my colleague Aysha Bagchi, our Justice Department correspondent.

Bolton has agreed to plead guilty to one count of retaining national security information, the person said. If a judge accepts the deal, Bolton will pay a $2.25 million fine and may serve up to five years in prison, although he could avoid prison altogether.

The Justice Department declined to comment and referred USA TODAY to the docket for Bolton's criminal case, which states that he will have a "rearraignment" on June 26, but doesn't provide details about any plea agreement. 

Before you go...

💬We also want to hear from you! What questions do you have for our team as we get closer to November? Is there a race you’re watching closely? Let us know by jumping in the comments on Reddit or responding to this newsletter. And you can find our answers here, including my explainer on each party's views on ICE funding.

Zachary Schermele is a congressional reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton listens to a question from a student at the John F. Kennedy Jr Forum at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., September 29, 2025.

Former National Security Adviser John Bolton has reached a plea deal in the criminal case over his handling of documents.

President Donald Trump speaks to the press in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026.
 

For Trump, the setbacks keep piling up before birthday bash, midterms

A series of setbacks for Trump with Republicans in Congress and in the courts have plagued a president already struggling in polls.

USA TODAY
 

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Retirement: A $500 Social Security pay cut?

Also: What will older Americans do with their homes? ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌  ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ ͏‌ 
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Retirement

Thu Jun 4 2026

 
The Social Security Administration's Thousand Oaks, Calif. office.

Also: What will older Americans do with their homes?

The scenic coastline of Ermoupolis, the capital city of the Syros island in Greece.
 

Retire overseas and keep Social Security? It depends where you live

With more Americans moving outside the U.S., it's important to know whether they can count on their Social Security benefits.

Seniors listen during a community conversation with U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Columbus, at the Fran Ryan Center about the threats to Social Security on Aug. 11, 2025.
 

A $500 monthly pay cut? What Social Security recipients face in 2032

Social Security beneficiaries face, on average, a $500 monthly cut in benefits if Congress doesn't act soon, a new analysis shows.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks at Rustico restaurant during a stop on the “Trump Accounts Tour” on May 29, 2026 in Westlake Village, California. Bessent held a discussion with local leaders focused on Trump Accounts and their benefits for American children.
 

Trump's bill changed 529 plans. How does it compare to Trump Accounts?

President Donald Trump's backed 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' created the upcoming Trump Accounts. Also for education savings, it changed 529 plans.

Person using smartphone and laptop.
 

Inheriting a spouse’s IRA while grieving? It can backfire

Losing your spouse is one of the most difficult experiences anyone can go through. You're grieving, but you're also trying to sort out their affairs.

 

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