If it’s TUESDAY… President Biden, Speaker McCarthy hold “productive” meeting, but remain apart on a deal… New 2024 entrant Tim Scott discusses abortion, Ukraine and Donald Trump in interview with NBC’s Tom Llamas… E. Jean Carroll seeks new damages against Trump after the former president called her a “whack job”… Nikki Haley hits New Hampshire, while Mike Pence is in Iowa… And Dem Gov. Andy Beshear launches first re-election TV ad.
But FIRST... As the Republican 2024 field grows, there’s an important question that every non-Trump candidate needs to answer.
Beyond defeating Trump in key primaries and caucuses, how do they get him to concede — and not rip the party in half if he loses?
Remember, before Trump lost his 2020 re-election bid, Ted Cruz defeated him in the 2016 Iowa caucuses, and Trump refused to admit he lost.
Also remember, like he did in 2016, Trump won’t 100% say if he’ll back any Republican nominee other than him.
So how do you beat someone who isn’t willing to play by the rules? And who’s willing to hold the political party hostage if he doesn’t get his way?
That’s one of the reasons why rank-and-file Republicans might be resigned to go with Trump, despite legitimate concerns they have with him.
He’s willing to do whatever to win. And it’s painful to get him to go away.
Then again, it remains striking to us that some in the 2024 GOP field aren’t even willing to criticize Trump.
Here was NBC’s Tom Llamas interviewing Tim Scott yesterday after the candidate’s presidential launch:
LLAMAS: What do you-- what do you think about President Trump’s behavior after the 2020 election and to-- into January 6th?
SCOTT: We can do two things here, we can have a conversation about President Trump or we can have a conversation about my vision for the future.
Headline of the day
Data Download: The number of the day is … $21.9 million
That’s how much cash on hand Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., had in his federal campaign committee at the end of March -- an unusually large number for a federal officeholder who decides to run for president.
Scott’s cash-on-hand haul at the end of March dwarfed that of all the other active candidates in the field (former President Donald Trump sent much of the money he had banked in what became his campaign account to an allied super PAC before jumping into the race).
And it’s more than all of the senators who ran for president in 2016 and 2020 had in cash on hand the quarter before they started their bids (including twice as much as Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, another prolific fundraiser, had banked away).
Scott will use his campaign cash to make his case to voters. In a wide-ranging interview with NBC News’ Tom Llamas shortly after launching his run, Scott said voters want “an optimistic, positive conservative who has a backbone but also believes that the best is yet to come.”
Other numbers to know
9: The number of days until June 1, the date that Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen reiterated on Monday is the deadline for congressional and White House negotiators to reach a deal on the debt ceiling.
7: The number of ceasefires that have been attempted in Sudan’s civil conflict since it began in April, with the latest truce starting Monday night.
More than a dozen: The number of women who have now joined a lawsuit against Texas’ abortion law, which bans the procedure unless a mother’s life is at risk, a standard that the women argue is not well-defined.
21: The number of states that now have red flag laws regarding guns, after Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed such a bill into law on Monday.
2 million: The number of people who have died due to extreme weather, climate and water-related events in the last 50 years, per the U.N.’s World Meteorological Organization.
3: The number of states that agreed to curb their use of water from the Colorado River in a deal with the Biden administration.
12: The number of weeks of pregnancy after which abortion is banned in Nebraska, after GOP Gov. Jim Pillen signed an abortion ban into law on Monday.
Eyes on 2024: Another open Senate race
Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., announced Monday that he is not seeking re-election, opening up another Senate seat in a traditionally Democratic state.
Carper and Democratic leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, quickly coalesced around Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester as Carper’s preferred successor. Blunt Rochester, the state’s only representative in the House, did not comment on a potential run, instead praising Carper in a statement, saying, “No one worked harder for Delaware than Tom Carper.”
If Blunt Rochester does run, Bloomberg reports that Democratic state Sen. Sarah McBride could run for the open House seat, and if she wins McBride would become the first transgender member of Congress.
Carper is the fourth Democratic senator to announce that he is not seeking re-election, joining Maryland’s Ben Cardin, California’s Dianne Feinstein and Michigan’s Debbie Stabenow. GOP Sen. Mike Braun is also not running for another term since he is running for governor.
But a handful of high-profile senators have still not announced if they’re running next year, including Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz.; Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.; and Mitt Romney, R-Utah.
In other campaign news…
Trump vs. DeSantis preview: With Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis expected to jump into the presidential race soon, NBC News’ Jonathan Allen and Natasha Korecki preview how both camps are approaching the primary fight. Allen writes that Trump tried to dissuade DeSantis from launching a campaign, and Trump is expected to continue hammering the governor. But Korecki reports that DeSantis will be “strategic” about his Trump criticism, and will focus on their policy differences.
Make not every state Florida again: NBC News’ Henry Gomez reports on DeSantis’ habit of declaring that he wants to “Make America Florida” has earned him some gentle ribbing from Republican leaders who think they’re doing just fine advancing conservative principles in their own state.
Can Ron teach old voters new allegiances?: The New York Times reports on how DeSantis is trying to woo older voters away from Trump with a focus on policies like lowering prescription drug costs.
Trump trial: Trump is expected to appear in court virtually on Tuesday as part of a hush money case where the former president faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, NBC News’ Dareh Gregorian and Adam Reiss report.
Round 2? Writer E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of sexual abuse and defamation in a civil lawsuit he was recently found liable for, is asking the court to update her pending defamation lawsuit to include Trump’s recent comments about her during a CNN town hall earlier this month.
A little help from his friends: CNBC’s Brian Schwartz reports on billionaire Larry Ellison’s support for Scott’s presidential bid, with sources saying the Oracle founder is ready to give millions to boost the South Carolina senator.
A leadership change: Politico reports that two of Democratic presidential longshot Marianne Williamson’s top aides have quit.
MADD drops Lamb: Pinal County Sheriff and Republican Senate hopeful Mark Lamb says that Mothers Against Drunk Driving dropped him from a speaking slot over his political views, according to the Arizona Republic. Lamb’s son, his son’s fiancé and their infant were killed last year in a car crash where the other driver faces a manslaughter charge.
Lake dries up: Arizona Republican Kari Lake, who is also weighing a Senate bid, lost another court fight related to her unsuccessful run for governor last year, per NBC News’ Vaughn Hillyard and Tim Stelloh.
A hillbilly’s elegy: Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance is backing businessman Bernie Moreno’s Senate bid in the state.
Hamm to the rescue: Actor Jon Hamm voiced a video for Missouri Democratic Senate hopeful Lucas Kunce that criticizes GOP Sen. Josh Hawley over his book about “manhood.”
Reeves on the air: Mississippi GOP Gov. Tate Reeves launched his first TV ad of his re-election bid. So far, the Reeves campaign has reserved $93,000 worth of airtime over the next two weeks, per AdImpact.
ICYMI: What ELSE is happening in the world:
TikTok sued Montana on Monday, arguing that a new state law banning the app is unconstitutional.
A suspect was arrested Monday night after crashing a truck into the security barriers near the White House. The charges include threatening to kill or harm a president, vice president or family member, and a Nazi flag was seized at the scene.
