Playbook: Can Dems flip the border script?  —  With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  I'VE GOT A BLANK SPACE, BABY — The NYT takes a close look this morning at President JOE BIDEN's general election battle plan, which will “couple a direct assault on …

GOP hawks press Biden to target Iran directly over soldiers' deaths  —  President Biden is facing calls from congressional hawks to escalate attacks on Iran-linked targets, including within Iran itself, in response to the deaths of three U.S. service members in a drone attack in Jordan.

Nikki Haley Explains Why ‘Insecure’ Trump Is His ‘Own Worst Enemy’  —  “When he feels insecure, he starts to rail, he starts to rant, he starts to flail his arms and he starts to get upset,” Haley said in a recent “Meet the Press” interview.  —  LOADING  —  Nikki Haley called Donald Trump his …

Pelosi Wants F.B.I. to Investigate Pro-Palestinian Protesters  —  The former House speaker suggested without offering evidence that some protesters calling for a cease-fire in Gaza had financial ties to Russia and Vladimir V. Putin.  —  Representative Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California …

Dems make early ad reservations in key Senate races  —  Senate Majority PAC is booking early to lock in lower rates in Montana and Nevada, two states that are crucial to a brutal Senate map.  —  The Senate TV ad wars are beginning.  —  Senate Majority PAC, Democrats' largest outside group focused …

Brussels threatens to hit Hungary's economy if Viktor Orbán vetoes Ukraine aid  —  EU strategy aims to spook investors by cutting off funding to Budapest in stand-off over €50bn package  —  The EU will sabotage Hungary's economy if Budapest blocks fresh aid to Ukraine at a summit this week …

Quiet rebellion threatens House GOP chair over surprise tax deal  —  The House GOP's top tax writer doesn't just face blowback over the surprise deal he unveiled this month: Now the background chatter suggests Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) could lose his gavel.

Biden marks 15th anniversary of landmark pay equity law  —  President Joe Biden is marking the 15th anniversary of a landmark pay equity law with new steps to tackle persistent gaps in pay for federal government employees and those who work for federal contractors

Climate activists hurl soup at the Mona Lisa at the Louvre Museum in Paris  —  Two protesters from a climate and agricultural NGO hurled soup onto the bulletproof glass protecting Leonardo da Vinci's “Mona Lisa” painting in Paris, demanding the right to “healthy and sustainable food”.  —  By: FRANCE 24

Trump's candidacy on the Illinois ballot should be decided by the courts, an elections board hearing officer says  —  The hearing officer, a retired Republican judge, wrote a scathing assessment of Trump's involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection, but said the courts ultimately should decide.

Ilhan Omar condemned on social media after passionate speech supporting Somalia  —  Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was harshly criticized by conservatives on social media Sunday after a video was shared showing her speaking about her support for Somalia, the nation from which she hails.