Welcome to the online version of Of the policy desktopA bulletin that gives you the latest report and analysis of the NBC News Politics Team of the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign.
In today’s edition, Kristen Welker breaks down his interviews today with Vice President JD Vance and key officials in Russia and Ukraine. In addition, I examine how the Democrats face a structural disadvantage in the National Distriction Redistribution struggle in response to this week’s reader’s question.
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– Adam Wollner
Where the peace conversations of Russia-Ukraine range from here
By Kristen Welker
A Friday full of great developments, I spoke exclusively with Vice President JD Vance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Sergiy Kyslytsya, the first Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
In spite of everything, one thing caught my attention: how far from the other, Vance and Lavrov seemed in conversations to end the war in Ukraine.
During my early conversation with Lavrov, the main Russian diplomat repeatedly emphasized that the conditions are not yet suitable for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He suggested that it was Ukraine, not Russia, who was blocking progress in a peace agreement, and repeatedly rebuked Zelenskyy for prioritizing theatricality over the substance.
“How can we meet with a person who intends to be a leader?” Lavrov said about Zelenskyy.
Kyslytsya hit a bit of a midpoint. He praised the work of the Trump administration to take the two countries to the table and reproached himself to the side of Moscow’s burning rhetoric. But he accused Russia of trying to manipulate the United States and said he does not see “there are no signs that there is a arrangement on the Putin side to have significant conversations.”
As for a key question, the debate on territorial lines, Kyslytsya added that the “Ukraine public is categorically against exchanging our land for peace”, and “when we talk about territorial issues, I think President Zelenskyy made it very clear that he is ready to sit with the president and discuss it, and the beginning of the conversations in the question is the contact line that is currently there.
Vance wore the most optimistic tone of the three leaders.
Even when he admitted that negotiations can be a roller coaster, Vance praised Russia and Ukraine for making significant concessions. He framed the role of the United States as one of a mediator, not trying to force aside to take terms that cannot be supported, but tries to keep the door open to good faith negotiations. And he framed the administration’s negotiation position as persistent, ready to move forward even if they hit a brick wall.
I hope you join me on Sunday morning at “Meet The Press” to see more of our interviews with Vance and Lavrov.
More from Vance’s interview: The vice president confirmed that the administration is “in the early stages of an ongoing investigation” on former national security advisor John Bolton, whose house was sought this morning by the FBI. But Vance denied that the investigation was compensation for Bolton’s criticism to Trump. Read more →
✉️ Bagbag: Disadvantage of Districts of Democrats
Thanks to all those who sent us an email! This week’s question is in the Battle of Redistribution of National Districts:
“My question is whether all red states and all blue states follow the redistribution solution of districts, what part comes out at the top? How many seats would they be at stake?”
Republicans have a clear advantage in the rodistribution career of districts simply because there are more states in which they have full power. And in the vast majority of those states, legislators are in charge of drawing the maps, promoting the edge of the Republican party.
In total, Republicans have a triumph, which means that they control the governor’s office and the legislature, in 23 states, compared to 15 for Democrats, according to Ballottpedia.
In 18 of the 23 states led by the Republican Party, the state legislature has at least some role, if not a leader, in the drafting of the limits of Congress. And in all those 18 states, there are 44 districts represented by Democrats so that Republicans are theoretically later. As for the other five states, Republicans already have total control of their Congress delegations. Three are small states with individual districts, and two have independent commissions that draw their lines.
The group of 18 includes the states that Republicans are currently directed in their redistribution effort of districts of the decade: Texas (13 democratic control seats), Florida (8), Indiana (2) and Missouri (2). Ohio (5) is also included, where the law requires legislators to draw new maps since the latest version was approved without bipartisan support.
As for the Democrats, they have much less objectives as they fight to counteract the impulse of the Republican Party before the mid -period elections of 2026.
In the 15 Democratic states, the legislature is involved in drawing Maps of Congress in nine of them. Five of them have independent or policies that handle the lines, while the sixth, of Delaware, has only one district.
From the group of nine, the Democrats have total control of the Congress delegation in five of them (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Mexico and Rhode Island). And in two of them (Maryland and Oregon) the Republicans have only one seat in each.
That leaves Illinois and New York. The governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, has left the door open to re -draw the state map, but the Democrats already represent 14 of 17 districts.
And in New York, where Republicans represent seven districts, the process comes with significant warnings. An independent commission initially attracts maps, to which legislators can make changes with the support of the Supermayoria. Democratic legislators introduced a bill that would allow them to overcome the commission and the state constitutional requirement that maps are only drawn every 10 years. But it would have to go through two consecutive legislative sessions and be approved by the voters, which means that a new map would not enter into force until the 2028 elections as soon as possible.
All this explains why the Democrats have focused on California, where Republicans have nine seats, but an independent commission generally controls the process of redistribution of districts. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the legislation on Thursday that he established a special election this fall in which voters will be asked to approve a new map of Congress that could generate the Democrats five more seats, potentially compensating the movements of the Republican Party in Texas.
– Adam Wollner
Last Texas: Democratic representative Lloyd Doggett, the oldest member of the Delegation of the Texas Congress, announced that he will retire if the new state map is not rejected in court after the Republicans got into their district. Read more →
🗞️ The other main stories today
- 📝 Epstein Saga: The Department of Justice published a transcription of an interview between a senior administration official and Ghislaine Maxwell, the former imprisoned associate of Jeffrey Epstein. Maxwell insisted that he was never witnessing that Trump or former President Bill Clinton did something inappropriate. Follow live updates →
- 📝 Epstein Saga, Cont. The Chamber’s Supervision Committee received the first section of documents from the Department of Justice related to the Epstein case. Read more →
- 🏦 Fed watch: The president of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, seemed to open the door to the cut of the first rate of the Central Bank of Trump’s second term, indicating that current monetary policy may be restricting economic activity. Read more →
- 💼 Even business: The Trump Administration said it had taken a 10% participation in Intel, the president’s last extraordinary movement to exercise federal government over private business. Read more →
- ⬅️ The purge: The Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegesh, dismissed Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse, the head of the Pentagon Defense Intelligence Agency, making him a series of superior officers who have been withdrawn under the surveillance of Hegseth. Read more →
- ➡️ Deportation Agenda: Kilmar Abrego García was released from federal custody, months after being unfairly deported to a prison in El Salvador and accused of being a member of the gang. Read more →
- ⚖️ In court: A federal judge ruled that “Cocodrilo Alcatraz”, the migrant detention center challenged in the Everglades of Florida, can remain operational for now, but that it cannot be expanded and that additional detainees cannot be brought. Read more → →
- ⚖️ In court, cont. The Supreme Court allowed the broad cuts of the Trump administration to the subsidies of the National Health Institutes as part of the Federal Government campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion policies. Read more →
- 📦 Commercial wars: Canada eliminated many of its retaliation rates in the US., Marking a significant step forward in the relationship of the two countries. Read more →
- 🗳️ 2026 clock: The busy republican race to be the next governor of South Carolina has exploded in an early and total battle to ensure Trump’s support. As a person close to the candidate Nancy Mace said: “This is the first race for a support, and second, a career for the governor.” Read more →
- 🔴 Florida Man: Joe Gruters, a Florida state senator and former Trump ally, was elected president of the Republican National Committee. It happens to Michael Whatley, who is postulated for the Senate in North Carolina. Read more →
That’s all of the politics desk for now. Today’s bulletin was compiled by Adam Wollner.
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