MIDTERM MADNESS: How to stave off a blue wave in November

“The House GOP’s campaign arm is facing tough choices about where to shift precious resources in the midterm elections, as Republicans desperately try to stave off a potential blue wave this November,”The Hill reports.

AZ-SEN: The Washington Post reports on the private concerns among the GOP that Sen. McCain will not return to the Senate, and the party will be forced to defend two seats in Arizona.

AZ-8: Doug Jones, Conor Lamb, and ….Hiral Tipirneni? The Democrat running for the seat vacated by GOP Rep. Trent Franks is hoping to become the party’s next special election victor.

FL-GOV: GOP gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis said Trump is heading south to campaign for him soon, though he declined to discuss any details, Politico reports.

FL-26: GOP Rep. Carlos Curbelo, an outspoken critic of EPA head Scott Pruitt, called on the embattled agency head to resign.

MS-SEN: Jason Shelton, the Democratic mayor of Tupelo, Miss., became the fourth candidate to enter the race for former Sen. Thad Cochran’s seat in November.

TX-SEN: Democrat Beto O’Rourke raised a whopping $6.7 million the first quarter of his campaign to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz.

WI-GOV: GOP Gov. ScottWalker is warning of a blue wave in Wisconsin after liberal judge Rebecca Dallet’s convincing victory.

TRUMP AGENDA: Begun the trade war has

China announced tariffs on 106 more U.S. products, CNBC reports.

Stocks are on course for a steep drop, the Wall Street Journal writes.

The Washington Post: “Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III informed President Trump’s attorneys last month that he is continuing to investigate the president but does not consider him a criminal target at this point, according to three people familiar with the discussions.”

Mueller’s probe scored its first prison sentence Tuesday; a lawyer who lied to investigators received 30 days in prison.

From the New York Times:“Far from learning on the job or modifying his views to fit the imperatives of America’s global role — as did so many of his predecessors — Mr. Trump is falling back on the familiar mix of belligerence and isolationism that fueled his “America First” campaign.”

“President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he wanted to get out of Syria and bring U.S. troops back home — only moments after his top advisers said publicly that the fight against ISIS was not finished,” NBC’s Abigail Williams reports.

The president now wants to send the National Guard to the southern border.

Embattled EPA Administrator Pruitt told the Washington Examiner his critics will “resort to anything” to stop the Trump agenda.