Washington, DC

1. Stocks hit record high
2. Blanche’s hunt for 50
3. Venezuela oil questions
4. Miller faces deadline
5. Democrats unveil reform bill

The S&P 500 ▲ 2% on hopes for a deal to end fighting with Iran.

Stocks open at a record on talk of reopening Strait of Hormuz

President Donald Trump might have a hard time selling an emerging deal that allows Iran to maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz as a victory for the US, but Wall Street doesn’t mind. Stocks opened to a record high this morning on comments from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on CNBC that the US may have “a deal today or tomorrow.” Iran and neighboring Oman are reportedly close to finalizing a plan to jointly manage traffic through the strait, an effort that will involve charging shippers a “user fee.” Before the war, Iran had no authority over the waterway, which was open to international trade. When asked on CNBC if the US would allow Iran to charge a “toll” for use of the strait, previously a nonstarter with the US, Bessent said only that the plan will restore “freedom of movement.”

Republicans hunt for Blanche’s 50th vote

Todd Blanche’s confirmation prospects are picking up steam. His nomination to become attorney general is ready for a floor vote having cleared the Judiciary Committee. Once-undecided Utah Sen. John Curtis told Semafor he now plans to back Blanche after meeting with him twice and reviewing the deal on Trump’s “anti-weaponization” fund negotiated by fellow Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. “Having an attorney general that has his own mind and his own thought process is important. And I actually like the answers that I heard in regard to that,” the Utahn said. Between Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Republicans need one more vote to clinch it for Blanche. Cassidy said “no comment” when asked, Murkowski told reporters she has “not determined … whether I’m going to talk to you guys,” and Collins is undecided.

— Burgess Everett

Democrats want Venezuelan oil revenue details

The Trump administration is under increasing pressure to answer questions about the management of Venezuela’s oil revenue. House Oversight Committee Democrats wrote to the Treasury, Energy and State departments and asked what they’ve done with the $13 billion that Trump said the US has collected from selling Venezuelan oil. “If this Administration has nothing to hide, it should immediately provide the transparency and answers the American people deserve,” California Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the committee, said in a statement to Semafor. Treasury previously told panel Democrats that the department “custodies these funds for the benefit of the Venezuelan people” and would release them for “approved purposes,” according to a portion of a letter put out by the panel. Treasury said it’s made disbursements “quickly.” Energy and State did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

— Nicholas Wu and Eleanor Mueller

Why some Democrats may hesitate to push Max Miller out

Several Democrats are pushing for Ohio GOP Rep. Max Miller to resign or face expulsion over allegations of domestic abuse, but privately some wouldn’t mind if he stuck around for now. Democrats think Miller is the weakest nominee that ironworker Brian Poindexter could face this fall in a district Trump won by 11 points in 2024. Miller has denied any wrongdoing and said today that he’d ask the House Ethics Committee to preemptively look into him; the panel replied that it was reviewing allegations already. House Majority PAC has ad space reserved in the Cleveland media market that could be used for Miller-related ads (or for other races in the region). But Democrats might opt to wait until they have a clearer sense of who their general election opponent will be before deciding whether it’s even worth spending money in the race.

— Nicholas Wu

Senate Democrats unveil bill limiting executive power

As a debate emerges on the left over whether Democrats should shore up government institutions should they win a majority this fall, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., rolled out a bill he said is designed to curb the “erosion of our constitutional framework.” Merkley, along with cosponsors Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said the bill would boost protections for independent government watchdogs and civil servants, reassert Congress’ power of the purse, and bar the federal government from meddling in states’ elections. Merkley acknowledged he’s unlikely to win Republican support: “It has been extraordinarily difficult for my Republican colleagues to speak out about the attack on the Constitution,” he said. The bill lays down a marker on executive power, but it does not include all of the proposals circulating on the left, which include eliminating the filibuster and packing the Supreme Court.

— Lauren Morganbesser

White House

• The extended National Guard deployment in DC is set to cost an additional $1.4 billion through the end of the Trump administration. — WaPo

National Security

• The Army has used “virtually all” of its long-range precision missiles in the Iran war. — Reuters

Economy

• Job openings slid in June, but the labor market showed continued resilience through the upheaval of the Iran war, according to new data from the Department of Labor.
• The US trade deficit shrank in June as imports fell.
• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent didn’t rule out additional US intervention to stabilize the yen.

Congress

• Telecommunications companies exposed themselves to potential China hacks after connecting to data centers and other infrastructure, a report by the Select Committee on China found. — Bloomberg

Campaigns

• Former Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., endorsed Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., today, saying that “character matters.” — Atlanta Journal Constitution
• Ronald Lauder, heir to the Lauder cosmetics fortune, has closed his wallet to GOP candidates this cycle. — NYT

Health

• Chipotle removed jalapeños from several of its Minnesota stores following a salmonella outbreak. — Bloomberg
• The CDC plans to expand the scope of the cyclosporiasis outbreak to 15 states, adding six additional states. — WaPo

— Senate Majority Leader John Thune.

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