Countdown to the public hearings

It was a political roller coaster of a week. Primary elections in five states on Tuesday resulted in the thrill of victory (Doug Mastriano, Gov-PA), the agony of defeat (Rep. Madison Cawthorn, NC-11), and the pain of waiting (Mehmet Oz, U.S. Senate-PA) for Donald Trump, who endorsed all three of the radical candidates. While the ballots are still being counted in Oz’s race—yes, MAGA fans, close races sometimes mean waiting days for results, and that's normal—Trump has characteristically encouraged the TV doctor to declare a premature victory. To his credit, Oz has thus far declined to do so, exhibiting at least a modicum of grace that his endorser does not have. As for Cawthorn, his reaction to his loss was anything but graceful. In a bitter social media post yesterday, he claimed that the GOP establishment “turned their guns” on him. “It’s time for Dark MAGA to truly take command,” he wrote, referring to a far-right movement that wants Trump to return to office and take revenge on his enemies. He then claimed that “the cowardly and weak members of our own party” must be “defeated.” He concluded that the unnamed individuals' "days are numbered," and that "we are coming." We can only speculate what that means, but it certainly fits within the long, sad downward spiral of the GOP, which has increasingly embraced such violent extremist rhetoric. Rep. Cawthorn’s departure from the House of Representatives will be a boon to the pro-democracy movement, and his brief presence there will not be missed. —Melissa Amour, Managing Editor

• Biden invokes Defense Production Act for formula shortage —Associated Press

• Fiona Hill says Putin ‘had to keep explaining things’ to Trump —The Hill

• Expert hired to run DHS' newly created disinformation board resigns —CNN

• Oklahoma legislature passes bill banning almost all abortions —The New York Times

• Ballot fiasco delays results in Oregon, vote-by-mail pioneer —Associated Press

Overwhelming evidence

With public hearings set to start in less than three weeks, the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol is completing its final study of the evidence. And oh how much evidence there is. Yet, somehow, it seems to keep coming. Today, a Washington Post report reveals that Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, the conservative activist and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, pressed Arizona lawmakers after the 2020 election to set aside Joe Biden’s victory and choose “a clean slate of Electors.” A trove of emails, sent by Ginni Thomas to a pair of lawmakers on Nov. 9, 2020, argued that legislators needed to intervene because, she claimed, the vote had been marred by fraud. —The Washington Post

• Innocent tour or reconnaissance? The panel revealed yesterday that it has evidence in its possession that Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk personally led a tour through parts of the Capitol the day before the attack. The committee has requested more information from Loudermilk about the tour, which the Committee on House Administration, of which he is a member, originally denied knowledge. —Newsweek

• A request from the DOJ. Earlier this week, news broke that the Department of Justice had asked the select committee for transcripts of its closed-door interviews, including those with direct associates of Donald Trump. The committee has interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses so far, and the transcripts could be used as evidence in potential criminal cases. The DOJ has prosecuted more than 800 people on charges related to the insurrection, but it has widened its focus to look at planning for the rally that preceded the riot as well as broader efforts to overturn the election. —The New York Times

• Odds and ends. One of the transcribed interviews may be that of former Attorney General Bill Barr, who is said to be in active discussions with the committee regarding a meeting. It is unknown—though doubtful—whether he would appear at a public hearing. Among the other evidence collected by the panel is a batch of official White House photographs from Jan. 6, which may provide the committee with real-time visual evidence of Trump’s actions and movements during the attack. Trump attorney John Eastman, who wrote memos arguing then-Vice President Mike Pence could overturn the 2020 election, is seeking to stop the committee from obtaining two handwritten notes from Trump, arguing that they are protected by attorney-client privilege. Stay tuned. —NBC News

MORE: Group chat linked to Roger Stone shows ties among Jan. 6 figures —The New York Times

Taylor: Why I left the GOP

“The party of Lincoln once stood on granite-solid ground—promoting free minds, free markets, and free people—but no longer. The GOP is now a party of misinformation and false grievances, of protectionism and nativism, of election subversion and anti-democratic sentiment. … Make no mistake: There are good people such as [Rep. Liz] Cheney in the GOP trying to restore sanity, but I believe that change from inside the party is a lost cause. Real reform—the kind that is needed to restore the soul of our political system—can only be achieved from the outside. Accordingly, conservatives of conscience must quit the GOP and oppose the Republican Party until it is rehabilitated or a suitable alternative is created.” —Miles Taylor on NBC News

Miles Taylor is the co-founder and executive director of the Renew America Movement and the former chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security.

MORE: Jamie Dupree: The voters will only tolerate so much —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Tharoor: Is this the Orbanization of America?

“‘The temperature in the United States is no doubt increasing, particularly on the right. Each new election cycle turns up more and more extremist Republican candidates who say they don’t believe in the legitimacy of President Biden’s 2020 victory and who explicitly call for new legal measures to restrict the franchise in various states and tip the scales for a Republican presidential candidate. Both Orban’s Fidesz party and the U.S. Republicans have changed electoral rules to ensure that their party gets the disproportionate proportion of seats,’ [says] Lee Drutman, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation and an advocate for proportional representation.” —Ishaan Tharoor in The Washington Post

Ishaan Tharoor is a foreign affairs columnist at The Washington Post, where he anchors Today’s WorldView, the Post’s daily column and newsletter on global politics. 

MORE: Midterm stakes grow clearer: Election deniers will be on many ballots —The New York Times

This week on the Hill

Congress voted on a flurry of legislation this week to address a number of high-profile concerns. First, the baby formula shortage that has been impacting families across the country prompted the Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act, which grants the Food and Drug Administration $28 million in emergency funding to respond to the crisis. It passed along party lines, with 192 Republicans voting against it. In a smaller, related bill, the House voted 413-9 in favor of ensuring that families in need can continue to buy baby formula with WIC benefits during a public health emergency. The nine nays were Reps. Louie Gohmert, Clay Higgins, Thomas Massie, and Chip Roy, as well as Divider Reps. Andy Biggs, Lauren Boebert, Matt Gaetz, Paul Gosar, and Marjorie Taylor Greene. No surprises there. —The Hill

• Ukraine aid. A $40 billion Ukraine aid package passed the Senate 86-11 on Tuesday. The package will give Ukraine another round of military and humanitarian assistance as the war with Russia drags on. The following 11 Republican senators voted against it: Marsha Blackburn, John Boozman, Mike Braun, Mike Crapo, Bill Hagerty, Josh Hawley, Mike Lee, Cynthia Lummis, Roger Marshall, Rand Paul, and Tommy Tuberville. —The Hill

• Domestic terror. In the wake of the mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, last weekend, the House on Wednesday passed new legislation designed to deal with the threat of domestic terrorism. Just one Republican—Rep. Adam Kinzinger—voted with Democrats in favor of the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, which would create an office of domestic terrorism in the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, and FBI. It now heads to the Senate. —Newsweek

• Gas prices. Also on Wednesday, the House passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which seeks to combat gas price gouging. In all, 217 Democrats voted in favor of the bill; every Republican voted no. Four Democrats—Reps. Lizzie Fletcher, Jared Golden, Stephanie Murphy, and Kathleen Rice—broke from the Democratic caucus and voted against the measure as well. The bill would ban the sale of fuel at an “excessive” price during times that are considered an energy emergency, but it does not offer particulars on what the price threshold would be. —The Hill

MORE: Senate falls short on 'last opportunity' to send billions to help pandemic-hit restaurants —Yahoo! News

Ghitis: U.S. is a study in contradictions 

“Today, Russia looks like a paper tiger, albeit a brutally destructive one. China is surely less enthusiastic about its ‘no limits’ friendship with Russia. And the United States has regained its undisputed place as the leader of a mighty alliance of democracies. And yet, when the world looks at what is happening in the U.S., it sees a struggling democracy riven with violence, hate, and division. This is a high point in America's global leadership, but only if you look at it with one eye closed." —Frida Ghitis on CNN

Frida Ghitis is a world affairs columnist and a regular contributor to CNN and The Washington Post. She is a public speaker on world affairs and the author of “The End of Revolution: A Changing World in the Age of Live Television.”

MORE: Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly meets with Ukrainian refugees —The Gila Herald

Schmidt: Bring back rhetoric that inspires 

“America needs to find leaders who are skilled at the art of rhetoric while promoting our democratic principles, and not just divisively communicating via social media or cable news clips. For naysayers who contend that America is too polarized to listen, I suggest reading any of Lincoln’s speeches. Lincoln showed us the way with his words and deeds. True leaders speak to all of us, as one country, as one people, as Americans—always reminding us of what that means.” —Lynn Schmidt in St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Lynn Schmidt is a Renew America Movement Fellow and a member of the editorial board at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

MORE: Rise of ultra-MAGA right could play into Dems’ hands —Axios

On Tuesday, I "went back" to the GOP. Idaho voted for Republican primary candidates, so I changed from unaffiliated to Republican to hopefully help more moderate candidates win. I can't sit by and hope for ranked-choice voting when Janet McGeachin and Ammon Bundy are running for governor. And I'm sick of the "Idaho is Trump country" ads. Not if I can help it! —Amanda K., Idaho

Elise Stefanik's district is close to where the Buffalo shooter lives. She articulated the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory just a day or two before the murderer committed his heinous act. A coincidence? —Ron W., New York

The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff, the Renew America Movement, or the Renew America Foundation.