Cole Leiter
@coleleiter
#Tookitback @DCCC alum. Did: @USDOTFHWA comms & big brands. Likes: wool, mornings, life on two-wheels. Dislikes: lack of butter & or salt.
We always tell young staff not to put anything in writing that they wouldn’t want to read in the paper. If someone on my staff had written this email and POLITICO ran it, I would be proud.
A top staffer to Sen. Tina Smith emailed Sen. Mike Lee’s top staffers on Monday about “how much additional pain you’ve caused on an unspeakably horrific weekend” Full email below
Not that anyone cares, but now that JD Vance has cast the tiebreaking vote for $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts, I'm reupping these Vance quotes from 2017, in which he flatly declared that cuts like these betray Trumpism's promises to the working class: newrepublic.com/article/195499…
Eye don’t believe you.
Pam Bondi abruptly cancels her appearance at the CPAC "Summit on Human Trafficking" due to a 'torn cornea.'
On a state level, renewable-heavy grids aren't more expensive and they're not particularly concentrated in blue states — building renewables where the geography is friendly to them is a clear winner. slowboring.com/p/trumps-insan…
This is the LITERAL Epstein coverup version of “why don’t you just Call Taylor up” newsweek.com/roy-black-dead…
I had an extremely meeting packed day and am a few hours into catching up on what happened on the internet today. And let me just say, keep me in your thoughts.
Put another way, we've raised taxes on Americans by $106.1 billion dollars.
🇺🇸As of the 1st of July, our country has brought in $106.1 billion in tariff revenue. We’re just getting started.
Just so I’m clear… he’s introducing a bill….to repeal the bill… he voted for….two weeks ago?
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduces a new bill to repeal some of the Medicaid cuts in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which he voted for. "Now is the time to prevent any future cuts to Medicaid from going into effect," Hawley says. Full text 👇
🚨BREAKING EXCLUSIVE: Speaker Mike Johnson says he supports Ghislaine Maxwell testifying to Congress and demands the DOJ release everything they have on Epstein: "I’m for transparency. We should put everything out there and let the people decide. Pam Bondi needs to come forward…
If you read the Fabrizio memo in Playbook & it felt revelatory, peep this doc that was floating around Dem circles on (checks notes NOV 12, 2024) calling on progressives to get up off the mat + fight on taxes / health care (Medicaid and ACA tax subsidies) docs.google.com/document/d/133…
When I used to work through campaign things w/Josh he always asked what about the election kept me up at night. My answer was always the same, “the @Nationals bullpen.” Plz let this be an opportunity for the Lerners to reassess + invest in — among other things — middle relief.
“It’s imperative that the Lerners make a thoughtful, fully vetted hire to lead the baseball operations department — and then provide that person with resources to compete” washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/07…
Bookmark this. 64% of Congressman Valadao’s district relies on Medicaid.
NEW -- DAVID VALADAO has voted YES on the rule. It's now 208-216 with eight still outstanding.
48 hours. No sleep. Just the crushing weight of what the Republicans did and the millions of people who will be impacted.
.@RepJimmyGomez is all of us right now 📷by Kayla Bartkowski / Getty
Im no good at math, but 16 is way less than the number of seats that Dems need to flip to win back the gavel.
That letter from 16 vulnerable House Republicans — about how they won't vote for the Senate's Medicaid cuts — is a pretty crazy read today. Everyone on this letter voted for the bill. notus.org/congress/the-s…
That is just a stunning number of people Washington politicians just voted to rip from their health insurance.
🚨🚨🚨17 million projected to lose health insurance, @yabutaleb7 reports
Sometimes it’s actually ok for your organization to reject cutesy social media pitches from the boss (particularly when you’re about to take health care away from millions of Americans. Exhibit A:
Every single Senate Republican was the deciding vote for the largest Medicaid cut in American history.
🚨SENATE PASSES RECONCILIATION 51-50, VANCE BREAKS THE TIE GOP NO VOTES: COLLINS TILLIS PAUL
Point: Journalism has never been healthier and more relevant. Counterpoint:
Point: Journalism has never been healthier and more relevant. Counterpoint:
Conservatives keep talking about the ‘core’ Medicaid population like the expansion hasn’t been in place for 13 years. Give me a fucking break.
*Very* reasonable reform. -Doesn't affect the core Medicaid population -Brings expansion subsidy in line with core Medicaid subsidy -States take more responsibility for marginal welfare spending, not a federal govt over $100 trillion in the red