Washington, DC

1. $1.8 billion fund off table
2. Stone pushed for Pulte
3. Oz may extend hospice moratorium
4. Rubio pressed on Iran
5. Energy stores dwindle

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Blanche announces end of Trump’s $1.8 billion fund

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice is nixing the president’s “anti-weaponization” fund. When asked about the $1.8 billion fund by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., this afternoon, Blanche said, “We are not moving forward with the fund.” Clarifying, Meng asked: “Ever?” Blanche replied: “Correct.” The news could now unlock relatively quick action on Senate Republicans’ party-line immigration enforcement bill, possibly this week. Majority Leader John Thune spoke to Blanche earlier today, and said he “previewed what he was going to say. And I think his statements are going to be very definitive, very clear, and create the certainty [needed] for us to proceed.” Thune said it was “correct” to assume the fund is now dead. The majority leader needs 50 senators to vote to proceed to the $70 billion immigration funding bill — and then stick together to fend off Democratic amendments.

Stone swayed Trump on unorthodox intel pick

President Donald Trump installed Bill Pulte, his top housing regulator, as acting director of national intelligence today — a decision swayed by longtime Republican operative Roger Stone and other MAGA forces inside the administration, multiple sources told Semafor’s Shelby Talcott and Eleanor Mueller. Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is far from a natural choice for the role, as he brings no experience in the intelligence field, but he is close with departing DNI Tulsi Gabbard. Perhaps more importantly, Stone and other Trump allies see Pulte’s attack-dog mentality as critical in waging an internal war to ramp up the declassification of sensitive information. “He’s like a bulldozer,” one source familiar with the situation told Semafor of Pulte. Pulte’s critics see that approach as a potential liability even as they celebrate his withdrawal from housing policy.

Oz: ‘We’re going to slow down’ hospice and home health

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz today signaled he could extend the Trump administration’s nationwide six-month moratorium on new Medicare enrollments by hospice and home health agencies, despite concern from industry groups over the effects of a longer pause. Responding to a question from Semafor at the White House press briefing today, Oz said that his agency’s goal is not “to hurt the folks who are earnestly involved in” the affected industries. But he argued that some key whistleblowers the administration has already seen come forward as part of its new anti-fraud task force “have been members of industry.” “There are good people in these businesses, but we’re going to slow down the growth of these sectors so we can get our arms around the problem,” he said.

— Shelby Talcott

Rubio says Iran deal timeline uncertain

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told senators today that the path to an interim deal with Iran requires two things from them: “They have to announce very clearly that the strait is open,” Rubio told Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. And “they have to commit to very specific negotiations on highly enriched uranium.” But even he isn’t sure of the timing: It “could happen today, could happen tomorrow, could happen next week,” Rubio said. Murphy called the state of negotiations “indecipherable.” Rubio said part of that uncertainty is that talks occur through intermediaries and can take five or six days to get a response from Iran. Hawks are skeptical of these talks, but Trump and Rubio got an attaboy from Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky: “Frankly I’m glad to hear the administration is negotiating and I wish you luck.”

— Burgess Everett

Oil execs warn supply crisis is knocking

If US negotiations with Iran drag on a few more weeks, Trump could find himself under even more intense pressure to make a deal, as oil executives and analysts predict dwindling global energy stocks will reach the equivalent of “living paycheck to paycheck.” Neil Chapman, an ExxonMobil executive, said at the Bernstein Conference late last week that crude could reach $150-$160 per barrel soon if supply doesn’t rebound. “We’re approaching unheard-of inventory levels,” he said. “You can debate whether that’s going to hit those really low levels in two weeks or three weeks. Once you get to that point, then you’ll see prices shoot up.” Last week American drivers got a reprieve at the pump of about 10 cents per gallon, but as hopes of a deal faded, prices reversed and analysts predict they will continue to rise.

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White House

• Ken Paxton, the Republican candidate for Senate in Texas, plans to meet with President Trump at the White House tonight. — Politico
• Trump signed an executive order on AI today that includes lighter-touch government scrutiny than a version the White House planned to impose last month. — Politico
• The White House proposed new rules that would require federal grants to align with Trump’s policy priorities, giving political appointees greater control over funding decisions.

War in Iran

• President Trump denied a report from Reuters that Tehran has not communicated with Washington “for a few days,” posting on Truth Social that “the conversations between us have been going on continuously.”

Congress

• The House Ethics Committee is investigating Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., over allegations of sexual misconduct. — CNN
• More than a dozen female staffers on Capitol Hill told CNN they fear reporting sexual harassment from House members or other senior congressional staff.
• Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., posted that “homosexuality has no place in America,” drawing a rebuke from swing-seat Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y.

Economy

• Beth M. Hammack, Cleveland Federal Reserve president, said if economic trends continue, rate hikes may be appropriate “soon.”
• US job openings hit their highest level in nearly two years in April, increasing more than expected.

Intelligence

• The CIA has stopped contributing to some intelligence assessments produced by the Office of the ​Director of National Intelligence, including those related to the Iran war, amid disputes over intelligence-sharing and areas of responsibility. — Reuters

Courts

• A federal judge ruled that protesters near the Capitol could not be forced to take down a flag that said “86-47,” finding no threat against the president’s life.

World

• Kenya’s high court postponed consideration of an Ebola quarantine facility for Americans by another three weeks and ordered the government to disclose the details of the agreement with the US. Two Kenyans were killed in protests against the facility.
• Russia launched one of its biggest drone and missile attacks on Kyiv in months.

Environment

• The Trump administration is dismantling a $368 million deep-ocean observation system that has monitored ocean ecosystems, fisheries, and flooding risks for a decade.

Media

• The White House Correspondents’ Association rescheduled its annual dinner for July 24.

Influence

• The National Rifle Association’s charitable foundation is separating from the NRA and rebranding as the 1791 Foundation, as the lobby group faces legal and leadership struggles.

— Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., raising whether Graham Platner, a Democratic Senate candidate in Maine caught up in a sexting scandal, has more skeletons in his closet.

Laura McGann, editor

With help from Elana Schor, senior Washington editor, and Morgan Chalfant, Washington briefing editor

Graph Massara and Lauren Morganbesser, copy editors

Contact our reporters:

Burgess Everett, Eleanor Mueller, Shelby Talcott, Nicholas Wu, David Weigel