Politics

(WASHINGTON) — The Pennsylvania Senate race took a heated — and personal — turn on Tuesday as an aide to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Republican nominee and former cardiothoracic surgeon who for years offered medical advice as a popular TV host, was quoted derisively blaming Democratic opponent John Fetterman for his own stroke.

“If John Fetterman had ever eaten a vegetable in his life, then maybe he wouldn’t have had a major stroke and wouldn’t be in the position of having to lie about it constantly,” Oz communications adviser Rachel Tripp said in a statement, first reported by Insider, responding to Fetterman’s attacks on Oz as elitist and out of touch.

The Oz campaign comment drew immediate reaction on social media, including from Fetterman, who tweeted, “I know politics can be nasty, but even then, I could *never* imagine ridiculing someone for their health challenges.”

“I had a stroke. I survived it. I’m truly so grateful to still be here today,” he added.

Fetterman — who told a local outlet in 2018, when he was mayor of a small Pittsburgh suburb, that he had lost nearly 150 pounds by adopting a diet that included more vegetables — acknowledged in the days after the stroke in May that he “should have taken my health more seriously.”

But the tone of Tripp’s statement was deemed inappropriate by a group of pro-Fetterman physicians who earlier spoke out against Oz at an event organized by Fetterman’s campaign.

“No real doctor, or any decent human being, to be honest, would ever mock a stroke victim who is recovering from that stroke in the way that Dr. Oz is mocking John Fetterman,” Dr. Valerie Arkoosh, the Democratic chair of the board of commissioners in Montgomery County, said in a statement provided on Tuesday by a Fetterman spokeswoman.

The Oz campaign doubled down, however, telling ABC News in a statement late Tuesday: “Nice try. Dr. Oz has been urging people to eat more veggies for years. That’s not ridicule. It’s good health advice. We’re only trying to help.”

The latest salvo — in a race in a battleground state that could tip control of Congress — represents a departure from Oz’s other lines of attack since Fetterman’s stroke, which have involved largely dancing around it by jeering at Fetterman for his absence from the trail without referencing what sidelined him.

Oz had struck an even more sympathetic tone immediately after Fetterman announced his stroke. He tweeted then: “I am thankful that you received care so quickly. My whole family is praying for your speedy recovery.”

“I think he just had it,” Stacy Garrity, the state treasurer and a co-chair of Oz’s campaign, told ABC News on Tuesday night. “I think he just got tired. He’s probably tired of hearing about veggies,” she said, referring to the Fetterman team’s repeated swipes over a video showing Oz shopping for vegetables to make crudités and criticizing Democrats for grocery prices.

The volley of statements threatened to overshadow Fetterman’s separate appearance on Tuesday afternoon in Pittsburgh to tout a key labor endorsement — only his second public campaign stop since his stroke. With many eyes still on his health, he spoke for roughly four-and-a-half minutes and exhibited patterns similar to those he showed at a rally in Erie earlier this month, speaking often in choppy sentences. (He told a newspaper last month that he was working with a speech therapist as he recovered.)

Amid now-routine jokes about the “crudités” video and Oz’s residential history outside of Pennsylvania, Fetterman also pledged to “stand with the union way of life” before exiting the venue without answering a group of reporters who flanked him as he walked.

Among those ignored questions was whether Fetterman would agree to debate Oz this fall, an issue Oz has hammered in recent days as Fetterman has remained largely mum about his plans to share a stage with his opponent.

“We’ve said we’re open to debating Oz,” Joe Calvello, a spokesman, said in response to a question that a reporter posed to Fetterman.

Oz’s campaign says he has agreed to five debates, including one on Sep. 6. Fetterman’s campaign says it refuses to set a schedule on Oz’s terms.

But according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette report, the campaign has yet to respond to an invitation emailed nearly a month ago to both campaigns by a politics editor at KDKA, a TV station in Pittsburgh planning the Sep. 6 debate.

Oz has accepted the invitation, the station’s news director told the Post-Gazette.

Asked by ABC News to respond to that report, a Fetterman spokesperson sent a statement from Rebecca Katz, a senior adviser to the campaign, who called Oz’s focus on debates “an obvious attempt to change the subject during yet another bad week for Dr. Oz.”

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(WASHINGTON) — As another deadline nears on the restart of payments for America’s $1.7 trillion in federal student loans, President Joe Biden is poised to decide whether to cancel debt for a subset of Americans and continue to keep a pandemic-era pause on the repayments — a sweeping move he has openly weighed in some form or another since his time as a candidate.

Without action, numerous Americans will — for the first time in two years — have to start paying their student loans on Sept. 1.

But multiple people familiar with White House policy discussions told ABC News that the loan pause, first put in place under President Donald Trump during the disruptions of COVID-19’s onset, is expected to be extended. Talks about debt cancellation, which were still underway Tuesday, have so far coalesced around forgiving approximately $10,000 for people who make less than $125,000 a year — though details are still being worked out.

An announcement on the federal student loans could come as early as Wednesday, sources familiar with the plan said.

In an interview on Tuesday afternoon, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona told ABC News that the much-anticipated decision on loan forgiveness would come “soon” but was vague on details.

“We recognize it’s an important issue for many families. And we want to make sure that they get the information directly from the president,” Cardona said.

The White House did not confirm any further details, saying only that the president would have more to say on this before Aug. 31.

“As a reminder, no one with a federally-held loan has had to pay a single dime in student loans since President Biden took office, and this Administration has already canceled about $32 billion in debt for more than 1.6 million Americans — more than any Administration in history,” White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan said, referring to debt relief for people who went to fraudulent universities and a restructured program to forgive debt for people who work in public service for 10 years.

But more specific details on how much money will be forgiven and for who are in high demand for the more than 45 million Americans who still have federal student loan debt.

One-third of federal loan borrowers have less than $10,000, meaning they could see their debts completely wiped out should this policy come to fruition. Another 20% of borrowers, around nine million people, would have their debt at least slashed in half.

Such a major cancelation may seem like a big step for Biden to take without Congress, but legal and policy experts say it’s clearer: The move would be well within the president’s authority — it just hasn’t been wielded before because of the political implications.

“The president has some pretty broad authority under the Higher Education Act,” said John Brooks, a law professor at Fordham University who focuses on federal fiscal policy.

“A lot depends on the size of the cancellation. The smaller the amount of cancellation, the easier the question is,” Brooks said. “Wiping out all student debt with a single stroke might be tougher, but the president through the secretary of education does have the power to adjust the amount of loan principle that any borrower has.”

Still, Biden could get taken to court — possibly by loan servicing agencies who would lose revenue or by members of Congress who may believe Biden is spending money in a way that hasn’t been appropriated by legislators.

Outside experts also wonder how long the processes would take to cancel student loans once a policy is announced — and how complicated it would be for borrowers to work their way through it, which are details that have yet to be released.

Some fear that people might fall through the cracks if applications to cancel debt become too labor-intensive because of the prospective income cap.

“The White House is about to ask the Education Department to do something that is extraordinarily difficult, and that is going to have the effect of denying debt relief to low-income folks, economically vulnerable folks, who have the hardest time navigating these complicated paperwork processes,” Mike Pierce, executive director and co-founder of the Student Borrower Protection Center, a think-tank that advocates for universal debt cancellation, told ABC News in an interview.

Pierce and other supporters for more progressive debt cancellation, including the NAACP, said the smoothest path would include full and universal cancellation for everyone.

“If the rumors are true, we’ve got a problem. And tragically, we’ve experienced this so many times before,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement Tuesday, reacting to the details of the potential policy announcement.

“President Biden’s decision on student debt cannot become the latest example of a policy that has left Black people – especially Black women – behind. This is not how you treat Black voters who turned out in record numbers and provided 90% of their vote to once again save democracy in 2020,” Johnson said.

But for many borrowers and advocates for canceling student debt — particularly the nearly half of people with federal student loans who would see their debt extinguished or cut significantly — Biden’s policy would still be cause for major celebration and be seen as a start to reforming the college and university system, where rising costs have become a major area of focus.

For Michigan teacher Nick Fuller, a possible Biden announcement on student loans could come just before the financial crunch of winter, when his heating bills skyrocket.

Though Fuller worked hard his first few years out of school to pay down his school debt, and then had his loan frozen for much of the pandemic, he’s concerned that restarting payments on top of monthly living costs could put him over the edge.

“I think things will get really tight in the winter because my utility bills are higher,” Fuller told ABC News. “I mean for January and February — the highs are zero and the lows are -20 [degrees] for almost two months.”

The frozen temperatures might sting a little bit less if Biden forgives $10,000 of Fuller’s remaining student loan bills, he said.

“It’s about two-thirds of the debt that I have left,” he said.

That would make payments “a lot more affordable and a lot more manageable in my situation,” he said.

Easing the student debt crisis — which is also how Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos described the issue in 2018 — could also aid a crippling teacher shortage that has caused thousands of staff vacancies at the start of the latest school year, something Fuller has seen himself.

Pinched salaries and rising inflation have had many teachers on edge with the loan forgiveness deadline approaching.

And because Black students are among the fastest growing group of people taking on debt, advocates argue that canceling some student loans could also begin to address racial inequities.

Shareefah Mason, the dean of Educator Certification at Dallas College, feels this impact firsthand as a Black woman with student debt. She leads the apprenticeship component of a program that pairs students with residency partners to ensure they earn while they learn, effectively reducing education debt for aspiring teachers.

“I bear the weight of $70,000 in student loans,” Mason told ABC News. “The data shows that student loan debt exponentially impacts and disproportionately impacts Black women.”

The average amount of student debt accrued by Black women is more than any other group at $38,800, according to Education Trust, a nonprofit focused on education reform.

But Mason’s program, the very first full-time paid teacher apprenticeship in the state of Texas, allows students to earn one of the cheapest bachelor’s degrees in the state, Mason said.

The goal, she said, is to aid future educators in breaking the generational barriers that she has faced as a Black woman.

Mason said “they will not have to worry about student loan debt,” which could open more doors for minority communities that have historically lacked the means to access higher education.

“My students will be able to earn, as a first year teacher in the city of Dallas, upwards of $60,000,” Mason said.

For the nation’s most impacted borrowers, Mason said, “there needs to be a space created for them to make enough money to pay their student loans without having to sacrifice their ability to create generational wealth for their families.”

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(WASHINGTON) — Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday responded to Republican vows to investigate him after he steps down from his government roles in December, saying he would consider testifying but not submit to “character assassination.”

Top Republicans in Congress pounced on the news of his planned departure, saying if they retake the majority in the upcoming midterm election, they will grill the nation’s leading infectious disease expert about his role during the COVID pandemic.

“Dr. Fauci lost the trust of the American people when his guidance unnecessarily kept schools closed and businesses shut while obscuring questions about his knowledge on the origins of COVID. He owes the American people answers. A @HouseGOP majority will hold him accountable,” House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy tweeted.

Sen. Rand Paul, who has had many public squabbles with Fauci, pledged to hold a “full-throated investigation into the origins of the pandemic.”

“He will be asked to testify under oath regarding any discussions he participated in concerning the lab leak,” he tweeted.

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas also weighed in, saying on Twitter: “In January, a GOP Congress should hold Fauci fully accountable for his dishonesty, corruption, abuse of power, and multiple lies under oath.”

“Retirement can’t shield Dr. Fauci from congressional oversight,” House Oversight and Reform Committee ranking member James Comer said in a statement Monday.

Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases who became a household name during the height of the coronavirus pandemic and later served as chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, announced on Monday that he would be stepping down to pursue the next phase of his career after serving nearly 50 years in the federal government.

“While I am moving on from my current positions, I am not retiring,” Fauci said in a statement. “After more than 50 years of government service, I plan to pursue the next phase of my career while I still have so much energy and passion for my field.”

Fauci, who turns 82 in December, has said for months that he plans to step away from his public role as a national leader on the pandemic once COVID-19 reaches a “steady state.”

Louisiana GOP Sen. John Kennedy had strong words for Fauci, saying Republican lawmakers could eventually subpoena him.

“Well, unless Dr. Fauci decides to seek asylum in some foreign country whose Powerball jackpot is 287 chickens and a goat, and therefore, which won’t enforce a subpoena from the United States Congress, then, Dr. Fauci, retirement or not, is going to be spending a lot of time in front of a congressional committee and committees if Republicans take back control,” Kennedy said during an interview with FOX News Monday.

He added: “We’re going to have a lot of questions and we’re going to subpoena him and expect him to answer. And I would not advise Dr. Fauci to put down a nonrefundable deposit on a cruise.”

Republicans – some of whom could become future committee chairs if Republicans retake the majority this fall — have also vowed to hold hearings to determine the origins of COVID and have said they believe Fauci may have concealed information and has told “multiple lies under oath” regarding the novel coronavirus’ origination. The pandemic’s origins remain controversial.

“It’s good to know that with his retirement, Dr. Fauci will have ample time to appear before Congress and share under oath what he knew about the Wuhan lab, as well as the ever-changing guidance under his watch that resulted in wrongful mandates being imposed on Americans,” House Minority Whip Steve Scalise said in a statement.

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said in a statement that the committee will pursue answers and accountability regarding Fauci’s tenure with the NIH.

“As he prepares to leave his leadership positions at the White House and at the National Institutes of Health, I hope Dr. Anthony Fauci will work to provide more transparency to the American people. We need answers to many questions around the government’s failed COVID-19 pandemic response, how this pandemic started, and his role in supporting taxpayer-funded risky research without proper oversight in China…We need a full accounting of actions taken and decisions made to ensure these mistakes never happen again,” Rodgers said in a statement.

“To that end, House Republicans on Energy and Commerce will continue to pursue answers and accountability. Our oversight of Dr. Fauci’s tenure with NIH, the White House and leading NIAID will continue past his departure and until the American people have the answers they need,” she said.

Other Republicans have questioned the timing of Fauci’s departure, with some accusing him of “conveniently resigning” before a potential red wave of Republicans in the coming midterm election.

“Dr. Fauci clearly knows the Red Tsunami is coming this November which is why he is retiring before Republicans gain control of the House. Dr. Fauci, the highest paid US government official who has been in his appointed bureaucratic position since before I was born, is an example of an unelected Washington bureaucrat who was given far too much power throughout his career and caused irreparable harm to the American people,” House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik said in a statement.

Rep. Andy Biggs, the former chair of the House Freedom Caucus, called Fauci a “coward” and said Fauci is “conveniently resigning from his position in December before House Republicans have an opportunity to hold him accountable for destroying our country over these past three years.”

Fauci responded to Republican critics on Tuesday saying he would “certainly” consider testifying before Congress after he steps down at the end of the year and dismissed their plans to conduct oversight as a “character assassination.”

“I certainly would consider that… I believe oversight is a very important part of government structure, and I welcome it and it can be productive. But what has happened up to now, is more of a character assassination than it is oversight,” Fauci said during an interview with CNN on Tuesday.

“So, sure, I would be happy to cooperate, so long as we make it something that is a dignified oversight, which it should be, and not just bringing up ridiculous things and attacking my character. That’s not oversight,” he added.

Fauci said the animosity towards him from some Republicans played no role “at all” in his decision to depart his role in government.

“Really, none at all. Not even a slight amount. I have nothing to hide. And I can defend everything I’ve done. So that doesn’t phase me or bother me. My decisions of stepping down go back well over year,” Fauci said.

He further reiterated that he had hoped to leave his post at the end of the Trump administration but stayed after Biden personally asked him to remain on board to support his administration’s COVID-19 response.

“I thought that was going to last about a year… that we would be having COVID-19 behind us after a year. But obviously painfully so, that’s not the case,” Fauci said. “I think we’re in a relatively good place with regard to COVID, if we utilize and implement the interventions that we have, and I just felt it was the right time.”

ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos and Cheyenne Haslett contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — Rep. Charlie Crist on Tuesday defeated Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried in Florida’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, ABC News projects, setting up a high-profile matchup against Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in the fall.

With about 92% of the expected vote counted, Crist won with roughly 60% of the vote, while Fried trailed in second with about 35%.

Crist will next face off against DeSantis, a top Democratic boogeyman who has emerged as a major GOP culture warrior, forcing through several policies through in Florida on issues like discussing sexual orientation and gender topics in public schools.

Crist previously served as governor himself — but as a Republican before becoming an independent once leaving office and ultimately running for the House as a Democrat. Running against Fried, Florida’s only statewide elected Democrat, he insisted he could appeal to a broader swath of the electorate with his more moderate “happy warrior” persona.

DeSantis, who narrowly won his 2018 race, heads into the general with a war chest of over $130 million — and a rising national profile.

Democrats hope to unseat him in an attempt to not only win back the governor’s mansion but also cut off a potential 2024 presidential bid by the first-term governor.

In the primary, Crist and Fried battled over their ideological purity and ability to defeat DeSantis.

Crist also criticized Fried for her ties to the Republican Party. As a lobbyist for a medical marijuana company, she campaigned for former State Sen. Manny Diaz of Miami, the current education commissioner and staunch ally of DeSantis. Fried also was college friends with Trump-ally Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Fried lambasted Crist’s party switching, casting him as soft on key Democratic issues like abortion access and argued that she could produce a groundswell of Democratic voters this November.

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(WASHINGTON) — The Internal Revenue Service said it is conducting a comprehensive review of its security systems amid recent threats against IRS employees.

Some of the rhetoric comes after many Republican lawmakers and media figures claimed, without evidence, that the $78 billion being sent to the IRS over 10 years as part of the Inflation Reduction Act is so more agents can be hired to audit the middle class.

“This includes conducting risk assessments based on data-driven decisions given the current environment and monitoring perimeter security, designations of restricted areas, exterior lighting, security around entrances to our facilities and other various protections,” IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig wrote to employees and obtained by ABC News.

“We also monitor threat intelligence and have increased engagement with TIGTA, Department of Homeland Security and local law enforcement officials so we’re ready to implement additional countermeasures and notifications to employees if circumstances warrant,” Rettig wrote.

The commissioner said it is personal.

“I’ll continue to make every effort to dispel any lingering misperceptions about our work. And I will continue to advocate for your safety in every venue where I have an audience,” he said. “You go above and beyond every single day, and I am honored to work with each of you.”

There has been much debate about an increase in IRS agents.

The Internal Revenue Service does not plan to use the nearly $80 billion it’s set to receive in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to hire 87,000 new agents in order to target middle class Americans, a Treasury Department official told ABC News last week and documents verify, rejecting a claim widely circulated by Republican lawmakers and right-wing media personalities.

In a letter to Rettig, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the agency is planning on hiring auditors who can enforce the tax laws against high-income Americans and corporations, not the middle class, along with employees to provide customer service to taxpayers. The majority of hires will fill the positions of about 50,000 IRS employees on the verge of retirement, which will net about 20,000 – 30,000 workers, not 87,000.

“New staff will be hired to improve taxpayer services and experienced auditors who can take on corporate and high-end tax evaders, without increasing audit rates relative to historical norms for people earning under $400,000 each year,” Treasury Department spokesperson Julia Krieger said in a statement last week.

The billions heading toward the IRS are part of the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law by President Joe Biden earlier this month.

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(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump allegedly had more than 700 pages of classified material in his possession, according to a May 10 letter from the National Archives to a lawyer representing Trump.

The text of the letter was posted by conservative journalist John Solomon on Monday evening.

The National Archives then posted a link to the letter on its FOIA website early Tuesday afternoon.

The 700 pages of classified material referenced were found in the 15 boxes that the Archives retrieved from Mar-a-Lago in January, according to the letter.

Trump had authorized Solomon as one of his liaisons to the National Archives to review documents from his presidency.

The posted version of the letter confirms ABC News’ previous reporting that documents with the highest levels of classification, including some labeled “Special Access Program” were found.

“As the Department of Justice’s National Security Division explained to you on April 29, 2022: There are important national security interests in the FBI and others in the Intelligence Community getting access to these materials. According to NARA, among the materials in the boxes are over 100 documents with classification markings, comprising more than 700 pages,” the letter reads.

“Some include the highest levels of classification, including Special Access Program (SAP) materials. Access to the materials is not only necessary for purposes of our ongoing criminal investigation, but the Executive Branch must also conduct an assessment of the potential damage resulting from the apparent manner in which these materials were stored and transported and take any necessary remedial steps.”

While Solomon framed this as President Joe Biden taking a more direct role than previously known in Justice Department’s investigation of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, the letter actually shows how Biden deferred all decisions regarding executive privilege assertions entirely to top DOJ lawyers.

A lawyer for Trump did not respond to a request for comment. The White House did not immediately return ABC’s request for comment.

The letter provides insight into the back and forth between Trump’s team and the National Archives and shows that even though the original 15 boxes were retrieved from Mar-a-Lago in January, federal investigators did not ultimately gain access to them until months later because of negotiations with Trump’s lawyers.

The letter also reveals that DOJ and National Archives determined that there is no basis to assert privilege over the 15 boxes of records obtained.

The letter also makes clear that Trump’s representatives for the Archives must have the proper level of security clearance to review documents they request to review.

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A former speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives and his chief of staff were indicted on Tuesday on corruption charges, according to the Justice Department.

The charges allege that former speaker and current State Rep. Glen Casada and his former chief of staff Cade Cothren created a company and a fake persona to receive state funds.

The indictment alleges that Casada and Cothren said the political consulting business they actually owned and profited from was run by a “Matthew Phoenix,” but in reality there was no Matthew Phoenix and the men were profiting by diverting state funds to the business.

Casada, a Republican, said earlier this year he would not seek reelection, had resigned from House leadership in August 2019.

The Justice Department alleges the state mailer program was at the center of the corruption. The program allowed $3,000 to be used for sending constituent mail and said any other expenses could be offset by campaign funds.

“Casada and Individual 4 would and did receive kickbacks from Cothren in exchange for using their positions as members of the Tennessee House of Representatives to perform official acts, including pressuring the Tennessee House Speaker’s Office and other State officials to approve Phoenix Solutions as a Mailer Program vendor and to disburse State funds to Phoenix Solutions,” the indictment said.

Another Tennessee state lawmaker was charged in March with similar crimes, according to DOJ.

They are also charged with bribery and kickbacks concerning programs receiving federal funds, honest services wire fraud; and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The scheme, DOJ said, also involved other state representatives but they were not named nor charged in court documents, and the scheme went on for almost three years, according to court documents.

Both men were arrested by the FBI at their houses Tuesday morning, the Justice Department said in a release.

In 2020, these companies and Phoenix Solutions received approximately $51,947 from the State in payments associated with the mailer program, DOJ alleges.

The money laundering charges carry a 20-year prison sentence if those indicted are found guilty and the public corruption and bribery charges carry 10-year sentences.

Casada has not returned ABC News request for comment and there was no lawyer listed on the court docket for Cothren.

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, pleaded guilty Tuesday to DUI causing injury in connection to a May car crash, prosecutors said.

Based on Paul Pelosi’s guilty plea, the second charge — driving with a .08% blood alcohol level or higher causing injury — was dismissed, the Napa County District Attorney’s Office said.

Among the requirements of Judge Joseph Solga’s sentence are: serving five days in jail; paying victim restitution and a court fine; completing a three-month DUI program; and completing three years of probation.

He received credit for four days served: two for the two days he served in jail following his arrest and two days’ time for good conduct. The fifth day of the sentence will be served on a court work program, so the 82-year-old will not serve any more time in jail.

Paul Pelosi was not present in court for Tuesday’s plea; his attorney appeared on his behalf.

The House Speaker’s husband had a 0.082% blood alcohol content when he was arrested on May 28 in Napa County, California, prosecutors said. He was trying to cross State Route 29 when his Porsche was hit by a driver heading north, the California Highway Patrol in Napa said at the time.

 

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(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump allegedly had more than 700 pages of classified material in his possession, according to a May 10 letter from the National Archives to a lawyer representing Trump.

The purported text of the letter was posted by conservative journalist John Solomon on Monday evening

The 700 pages of classified material referenced were found in the 15 boxes that the Archives retrieved from Mar-a-Lago in January, according to the letter.

Trump had authorized Solomon as one of his liaisons to the National Archives to review documents from his presidency.

The posted version of the letter confirms ABC News’ previous reporting that documents with the highest levels of classification, including some labeled “Special Access Program” were found.

“As the Department of Justice’s National Security Division explained to you on April 29, 2022: There are important national security interests in the FBI and others in the Intelligence Community getting access to these materials. According to NARA, among the materials in the boxes are over 100 documents with classification markings, comprising more than 700 pages,” the letter reads.

“Some include the highest levels of classification, including Special Access Program (SAP) materials. Access to the materials is not only necessary for purposes of our ongoing criminal investigation, but the Executive Branch must also conduct an assessment of the potential damage resulting from the apparent manner in which these materials were stored and transported and take any necessary remedial steps.”

While Solomon framed this as President Joe Biden taking a more direct role than previously known in Justice Department’s investigation of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, the letter actually shows how Biden deferred all decisions regarding executive privilege assertions entirely to top DOJ lawyers.

The Archives did not respond to ABC’s request for comment on the letters’ authenticity. A lawyer for Trump also did not respond. The White House did not immediately return ABC’s request for comment.

The letter provides insight into the back and forth between Trump’s team and the National Archives and shows that even though the original 15 boxes were retrieved from Mar-a-Lago in January, federal investigators did not ultimately gain access to them until months later because of negotiations with Trump’s lawyers.

The letter also reveals that DOJ and National Archives determined that there is no basis to assert privilege over the 15 boxes of records obtained.

The letter also makes clear that Trump’s representatives for the Archives must have the proper level of security clearance to review documents they request to review.

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(NEW YORK) — Democrats are trying to keep control of a House remade by the once-a-decade redistricting process.

Tuesday will offer perhaps the most visible display of the impact that post-census redistricting has had — especially on their party and their chances of maintaining a mere five-seat majority.

Democrats initially saw New York state as an opportunity to wipe out GOP gains elsewhere in the country. But the courts said that they went too far, ruling their maps were unconstitutional and demanding the districts be redrawn.

As a result, the New York House races were pushed back two months, putting the primaries on the same date as Florida’s, where Gov. Ron DeSantis also inserted himself into his state’s redistricting process, proposing a congressional map that experts say was designed to elect as few Democrats to Congress as possible and guarantee a victory for Republicans. (Florida’s redistricting had legal drama of its own.)

The new map in New York forced perhaps the most highly anticipated matchup of the primary season. Veteran Reps. Jerry Nadler and Carolyn Maloney are going head-to-head for the chance to represent the new 12th Congressional District, with a young progressive challenger, attorney and former Obama staffer Suraj Patel, also in the mix.

Nadler and Maloney have largely similar voting records. Nadler has highlighted his work as Judiciary Committee chairman, leading the committee during Trump’s impeachments, while Maloney has chaired the Oversight Committee since 2019.

Maloney found herself in hot water earlier this month when she pooh-poohed President Joe Biden’s stated plan to run for reelection. Maloney eventually walked back the comment, tweeting that she would support Biden if he decides to run again.

“Biden’s leadership securing historic investments for healthcare, climate & economic justice prove once again why he is the strong and effective leader we need right now,” she wrote.

Meanwhile Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, the head of the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee, upset progressives with his decision to run in the new 17th District, causing a chain reaction that has other incumbents imperiled, such as freshman Rep. Mondaire Jones, who is seeking reelection in the 10th District in what is expected to be a bitter proxy fight between moderate and progressives and has already drawn grievances from other Democratic members of Congress.

In Florida, DeSantis will find out which Democrat he will face on his road to possible reelection, which could then lead straight to a 2024 presidential run. Rep. Charlie Crist is seen as the favored candidate to challenge DeSantis for the office Crist himself once held as a Republican. But to make it to November, Crist must defeat progressive Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried, his biggest competitor.

In the Seventh Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Stephanie Murphy decided not to seek reelection — which would have been a challenge: A few months after Murphy’s announcement, the state legislature tilted her seat bright red, according to FiveThirtyEight. Even though several candidates are running in the GOP primary there, the race comes down to two candidates: Army combat veteran Cory Mills, endorsed by Sen. Ted Cruz, and state Rep. Anthony Sabatini.

And the Senate primary is setting up a battle between GOP incumbent Marco Rubio and Democratic Rep. Val Demings. Demings is expected to win her primary and go head-to-head with Rubio (unopposed in his primary) in the general election. Currently, FiveThirtyEight’s Senate Forecast has Rubio favored to win the seat, keeping it in Republican control.

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