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Morning Report is The Hill’s a.m. newsletter. Subscribe here or in the box below:
In today’s issue:
▪ US sanctions Russian oil companies
▪ Merkley’s marathon speech
▪ The Democrats’ conundrum
▪ Texas governor goes after professors
President Trump on Wednesday took his most significant and direct action yet against Russian President Vladimir Putin in a so-far-unsuccessful push to get the Kremlin leader to end his yearslong war with Ukraine.
New sanctions, announced by the Treasury Department, are targeting Russia’s two largest oil companies, Open Joint Stock Company Rosneft Oil Company and Lukoil OAO, in addition to dozens of subsidiaries.
The news broke just before the president spoke with reporters at the White House alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, where Trump told reporters he “felt it was time” to elevate the punishments against Russia.
“It’s a very big day in terms of what we’re doing. These are tremendous sanctions. They’re big, these are against their two big oil companies and we hope they won’t be on for long. We hope that the war will be settled,” Trump said.
“We would like to see them just take the line that has been formed over quite a long period of time and just go home,” he added.
Trump had previously placed tariffs on India over its purchase of Russian oil, but Wednesday’s move marks the first direct punitive action toward Moscow since Trump returned to the White House, promising to end the war within 24 hours.
Just last week, Trump said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told him India would stop buying Russian oil, though India has not made such a commitment publicly.
The sanctions come a day after the Trump administration called off a planned meeting with Putin in Hungary.
“We canceled the meeting with President Putin,” Trump said alongside Rutte. “It just didn’t feel right to me. It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we have to get. So I canceled it, but we’ll do it in the future.”
Whether the latest developments mark a turning point in Trump’s approach Ukraine remains to be seen. But the moves are sure to spur optimism in Kyiv, which just last week had its request for Tomahawk missiles shot down by Trump.
Trump on Wednesday added a new reason to his list of justifications for withholding the long-range missiles, saying it would take too long to train Ukraine’s military to fire the weapons. He had previously indicated concern about U.S. stockpiles and the dangers of letting Ukraine strike deeper into Russia with American weapons.
Behind the scenes, the Financial Times reported that Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky‘s lunch meeting on Friday at times devolved into a shouting match over Zelensky’s pleas for Tomahawks. Prior to his appearance with Rutte, Trump rejected a Wall Street Journal report saying the U.S. had given approval for Ukraine to launch missiles deep into Russian territory.
The Ukrainian president said during a video address on Tuesday that once it became clear that Ukraine might not have access to the long-range missiles from the U.S. anytime soon, “Russia’s interest in diplomacy faded almost automatically.”
“This signals that this very issue — the issue of our deep strike capabilities — may hold the indispensable key to peace,” he added.
▪ The Hill: Trump: ‘Never discussed’ Zelensky ceding region to Putin
▪ CNBC: Russia was smug about Trump-Putin talks. Now they’re on hold, Moscow’s anxious
As Trump turns his attention to Russia and Ukraine, others in the administration are trying to hold together the ceasefire in the Middle East.
After reports surfaced that Israel launched attacks on Hamas in Gaza over claims the militant group violated the ceasefire, Vice President Vance visited Israel this week in an effort to reinforce the peace deal the Trump administration helped broker. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is planning to travel to Israel on Thursday and meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom Vance met with on Wednesday.
▪BBC: Why Trump made breakthrough in Gaza but can’t with Putin over Ukraine
▪ Financial Times: Donald Trump urged Volodymyr Zelensky to accept Putin’s terms or be ‘destroyed’ by Russia
Trump has repeatedly claimed that he ended seven wars — which is at least somewhat misleading — and, after the Gaza ceasefire was announced, added the Middle East conflict to his list of victories.
Even Trump has admitted that adding the Russia-Ukraine conflict to that list is proving a heavier lift than he expected.
But he had one of his biggest cheerleaders at the White House in Rutte. Following a meeting with senators earlier in the day, the NATO chief told reporters that Trump is “the only one who can get this done.”
Smart Take with Blake Burman
Russia, Venezuela, and China are just some of the major foreign policy issues before the Trump administration. There’s another one that’s surfaced: the moon. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says he’s reopening the SpaceX contract to deliver astronauts to the moon, saying the SpaceX work is behind schedule. That has made him Elon Musk’s new political foe, who has responded with a slew of posts on X.
I asked Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.), who’s a member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, about the latest feud. “I think if you’re to be fair about this, there isn’t one Navy contract that hasn’t fallen behind. Not one,” McCormick told me. “I just want to be consistent in our application of our laws and our contracts,” he added.
Here’s the reality: the list of those who can deliver in space is not long. The government is likely to rely on Musk for many of our out-of-this-world hopes in the years and decades to come.
Burman hosts “The Hill” weeknights, 6p/5c on NewsNation.
3 Things to Know Today
1. The Trump administration is dispatching 100 immigration agents to San Francisco, days after the president claimed residents would be welcoming of a federal presence and promised the Bay Area city will “be great again.” Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told NewsNation’s “The Hill” it’d be a “stepped-up” federal presence. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) says he’ll sue.
2. New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined former Gov. Andrew Cuomo at a Knicks game Wednesday night shortly after Cuomo appeared in the city’s second mayoral debate. Adams has not endorsed in the race after dropping his reelection bid. Cuomo, who is running as an independent, faced off against Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, who later ripped the pair’s courtside appearance. Check out takeaways from the debate here.
3. The Department of Justice announced a deal with the University of Virginia to pause federal investigations and ensure funding in the future — a first for a public university amid the administration’s clampdown on higher education.
Leading the Day
MERKLEY’S EPIC FILIBUSTER: Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) finally concluded his marathon speech on the Senate floor late Wednesday afternoon after 22 hours and 39 minutes. He was a few hours shy of Sen. Cory Booker’s (D-N.J.) filibuster record, set earlier this year.
The Hill’s Al Weaver reports that the three-term Oregon senator railed against “grave threats” presented by Trump, including the president’s recent move to deploy National Guard troops to Portland.
“I’ve come to the Senate floor tonight to ring the alarm bells. We’re in the most perilous moment, the biggest threat to our republic since the Civil War. President Trump is shredding our Constitution,” Merkley said to open his speech.
After Merkley left the lectern to applause and brief remarks by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) praising him, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) slammed the marathon speech and wondered aloud what he and Democrats hoped to accomplish.
“The government is still closed, Capitol Police officers and Senate support staffers were here for the entire 22 hours are still not getting paid,” the Wyoming Republican said.
▪ Roll Call: Merkley ties Senate in knots with marathon floor speech
12TH TIME’S (NOT) THE CHARM: Not long after Merkley concluded, the Senate again failed to approve a House-passed bill to reopen the government and keep it funded through Nov. 21.
The vote — another 54-46 tally — was more of the same on Day 22 of the government shutdown. As with previous votes, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Angus King (I-Maine) crossed the aisle to back the House-passed bill, while Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) joined most Democrats in voting against it.
▪ The New York Times: As Shutdown Drags and Trump Flexes, Congress Cedes Its Relevance
Speaking of the filibuster, Fetterman has suddenly become one of the leading proponents for Republican senators to deploy the “nuclear option” and carve out an exception to the Senate’s 60-vote threshold to reopen the government.
“I think it would be rather hypocritical for us as a party now to suddenly love the filibuster,” Fetterman told “Sunrise on the Hill” on Wednesday. “In that cycle that I ran, all of us ran on getting rid of the filibuster to enact exactly parts of our agenda. And now we can’t pretend that we love it or pretend we just were in a much different situation just a couple years ago.”
Chatter is picking up among some Republicans about overriding the filibuster, though Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) remains opposed to the idea.
THE SILENT TREATMENT: The Hill’s Alexander Bolton reports that Senate Republicans are divided over whether Trump should negotiate directly with Democrats over their demands to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies — a key impasse in the shutdown fight.
While Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) says Trump should talk to Democrats to lay the groundwork for a post-shutdown deal, other Republican leaders think the president should continue to shun Democrats.
▪ The Washington Post: Health insurance sticker shock begins as shutdown battle over subsidies rages
Some Republicans, such as Sen. Dan Sullivan (Alaska), are quietly working with Democratic colleagues to find a deal. He said Trump could make a positive difference by talking to Democrats.
“If the president gets involved on big, complicated issues, it’s always helpful,” he said.
However, Thune, who has offered Democrats a vote on ObamaCare extensions, says there’s nothing to negotiate until the government is open, a line that Trump has held — so far.
Recent polling shows Americans generally give Trump, congressional Democrats and congressional Republicans roughly equal shares of the blame pie over the shutdown.
MORE DRUG BOAT STRIKES: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced late Wednesday that the U.S. military destroyed yet another vessel accused of trafficking drugs, after confirming a separate strike earlier in the day. Hegseth said the combined strikes, both of which occured in the Pacific, killed five alleged “narco-terrorists.”
The strikes mark the eighth and ninth vessels the U.S. has targeted since September, killing dozens of people in the process. The latest strikes were the first in the Eastern Pacific. Previous strikes hit boats in the Caribbean Sea, in the Atlantic and off the coast of Venezuela.
“Narco-terrorists intending to bring poison to our shores, will find no safe harbor anywhere in our hemisphere,” Hegseth posted on X. “Just as Al Qaeda waged war on our homeland, these cartels are waging war on our border and our people. There will be no refuge or forgiveness—only justice.”
▪ The Guardian: CIA playing ‘most important part’ in US strikes in the Caribbean, sources say
The Trump administration has received some bipartisan pushback over the attacks. Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, on Monday called for a hearing on the deadly strikes. Kentucky’s Paul, who is a frequent Trump critic and was not invited to a White House luncheon for Republican senators on Tuesday, said Sunday that the recent strikes “go against all our tradition” in the U.S.
When & Where
The president will make an announcement at 3 p.m., with details still to come.
The Senate has several hearings scheduled in the morning, including sessions to consider some nominees.
The House is out.
Zoom In
DEMOCRATS: LEFT OR CENTER? Coming off a brutal defeat in the 2024 presidential election and now taking attacks from Republicans over the weekslong government shutdown, the Democratic Party’s soul-searching is very much ongoing.
The Hill’s Amie Parnes reports that party officials are wrestling with whether they need to move further to the left, or more to the center, to win over voters.
She points to two figures who represent these Democratic poles: Zohran Mamdani, the self-described democratic socialist who is the heavy favorite to become New York City’s next mayor, and Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego, a moderate who managed to win over some Trump voters last fall.
However, political strategists said that talk about where voters are leading politically is missing the point.
“Saying a candidate or the party overall needs to fall in the correct place on a left to center policy spectrum is an outdated way to look at things that no real voter thinks about,” Democratic strategist Eddie Vale told Parnes. “Voters don’t care what DC think tank your views line up with. They are looking for authenticity and people who will help them.”
“The biggest factor for presidential candidates running in 2028 won’t be whether they are labeled left or centrist,” added Democratic strategist Rodell Mollineau. “Presidential politics has become all about cult of personality.”
▪ NPR: Mamdani’s rise in NYC reflects a generational fight within the Democratic Party
▪ Puck: The Zohran Red Line
Gallego, alongside his fellow Arizona moderate Democrat Sen. Mark Kelly, made headlines earlier this month when he confronted Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) outside his office over — partially — the delay in swearing in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.).
Asked about Mamdani, Gallego acknowledged that he disagrees with some of his positions, including gove rnment-run grocery stores. But he said Democrats had plenty to learn from Mamdani.
“I think there’s a lot of Democrats that are missing the boat,” he said. “We don’t have to support Mamdani on everything; we could just disagree on some areas. But the fact is that he talks about affordability. He talks about trying to make people’s lives better. That’s resonating. And now we may not agree how he’s going to get there but let’s not ignore the lesson that he’s showing.”
▪ NPR: New to the Senate, Gallego challenges Democrats’ views on ‘working-class Latinos’
Elsewhere
ABBOTT TARGETS PROFESSORS: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has rattled academia over his pronouncement that the state government is targeting professors with “leftist ideologies.”
“We must end indoctrination and return to education fundamentals at all levels of education,” Abbott said Sunday in a post on X.
The GOP governor also shared an Axios story, which reported that a University of Texas professor said the school’s leadership dismissed him from his administrative role in September “due to ideological differences.”
▪ The Texas Tribune: Gov. Greg Abbott names head of new office to investigate higher ed complaints
The Hill’s Lexi Lonas Cochran reports that academic and legal experts are concerned about Abbott’s moves and the implications for academic freedom.
The GOP governor appears to be following Trump’s lead, as the president has set his sights on higher education since returning to the White House, largely focusing on campus protests, alleged antisemitism and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Most recently, several institutions have rejected a compact that the administration sent to nine universities that guaranteed funding advantages if they agreed to certain policy changes.
But some universities, including the University of Virginia on Wednesday, have struck deals with the administration.
▪ The Hill: Here are the colleges rejecting Trump’s funding compact
Opinion
Fellow Republicans, fellow Hoosiers: Redistricting now is a bad idea, former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) writes in The Washington Post.
Thanks to Trump, Putin is winning, BYU professor emeritus Richard Davis writes in The Hill.
The Closer
And finally … The makers of the popular game Cards Against Humanity settled their lawsuit against Elon Musk’s SpaceX company, according to the AP. And no, the lawsuit didn’t have to do with any edgy insults hurled in either direction.
Cards Against Humanity, which sued SpaceX for $15 million, alleged SpaceX trespassed on and damaged some of their property along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The card game company had purchased a plot of land in Cameron County, Texas, as part of a campaign to “make it as time-consuming and expensive as possible for Trump to build his wall” along the southwest border during the president’s first term. They then accused SpaceX of acquiring “many of the vacant lots along the road” next to the property and eventually “changing the entire dynamic of the area.”
The terms of the settlement were not disclosed by either party.
“We’re happy to have stood up to a bully like Musk,” Cards Against Humanity said in a statement to The New York Times.
