Principals

1. DC takeover limit
2. DOGE player returns
3. Europe phones Trump
4. GOP pushback on chips
5. Inflation update
6. Trump v. Goldman Sachs
7. DNC Gaza votes
8. Fewer US drinkers

PDB: Sherrod Brown eyes a comeback

Trump visits the Kennedy Center … Judge hands UCLA funding win … STOXX Europe 600 ⬆️ 0.5%

Trump’s DC takeover has a time limit

Democrats are gearing up to make sure that President Donald Trump’s show of force in DC has an expiration date, Semafor’s Eleanor Mueller and Shelby Talcott report. Under current law, the president can only control the city’s police force for 30 days unless the House and Senate authorize an extension, and Democrats are already preparing to thwart any Republican attempt to do so. “What Donald Trump is doing is, in some ways, a dress rehearsal for going after others around the country. And I think we need to stop this — certainly by the end of the 30 days,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., told Semafor. “This should never have started, so I definitely want to make sure it doesn’t continue.” Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md., also told Semafor she “will do everything in my power to block any effort to extend the 30 days.”

Ex-DOGE official heads to State

Brad Smith, formally a top player at Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, is returning to the administration, Shelby scoops. He’ll be leading and designing the State Department’s strategy on global health, a senior State official confirmed to Semafor. “He is uniquely qualified to spearhead the overhaul of an inefficient and often wasteful system that has the potential — with creativity and thoughtfulness — to deliver real value for the American people and our partners around the world,” the official said. Smith, an entrepreneur, left DOGE just prior to Musk’s explosive break with Trump. While at DOGE, which he helped craft from its inception, Smith worked to implement sweeping cuts at the Department of Health and Human Services.

Europe looks to sway Trump on Putin

European leaders this morning will discourage Trump from making a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin later this week without Ukraine’s buy-in. Vice President JD Vance will join Trump on a call with European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later this morning, per NBC. The White House has been playing down expectations for the Alaska summit — as Russia talks up the prospect of resetting relations with the US. “This is a listening exercise for the president,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. Moscow has shown little interest in peace talks with Kyiv and this week intensified attacks in eastern Ukraine. Zelenskyy has rejected the idea of ceding Donbas to Russia as part of a ceasefire agreement, indirectly pushing back against Trump’s “land swapping” suggestion.

GOP hawk dings Trump on chips

Some Republicans are knocking Trump for an unusual deal that will see the US government take a cut of Nvidia and AMD’s China chip sales, the latest indication of a split between the administration and the GOP’s China hawks. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., who chairs the House China select committee, publicly criticized the move and amplified concerns about whether the arrangement is legal and/or constitutional. “We should not set a precedent that incentivizes the government to grant licenses to sell China technology that will enhance its AI capabilities,” he said. The White House dismissed the criticism, insisting sales of the chips would not set the US back. “Two things can be accomplished at the same time: the Administration can find novel ways of raising historic revenue for the federal government and safeguard our national security,” White House spokesman Kush Desai told Semafor.

— Morgan Chalfant

Admin touts price data as tariff vindication

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday a key measure of inflation rose in July at the fastest pace in months, but that shouldn’t deter the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates in September or stop the Trump administration from claiming tariff warnings are overblown. “The tariffs have not generated the inflation everybody thought they would at this point in the year. And we know that the tariffs are there because we’re collecting upwards of $30 billion,” Joe Lavorgna, counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, told Semafor. “Even if at some point there is a mild price-level adjustment to come — and that’s a big ‘if,’ I don’t think it will, but if it does — it’s going to be pretty modest.”

— Eleanor Mueller

Goldman’s tariff warning provokes Trump

Trump on Tuesday took aim at Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon and his economic research team, after Goldman earlier this week issued a research note warning that consumers would bear the brunt of heightened tariffs. “David Solomon and Goldman Sachs refuse to give credit where credit is due,” Trump wrote on Truth Social of the note. “I think that David should go out and get himself a new Economist or, maybe, he ought to just focus on being a DJ.” One of the note’s authors, Goldman chief economist Jan Hatzius, has a vaunted reputation on Wall Street for forecasting parts of the 2008 global financial crisis, and Trump’s broadside is the latest indicator of his willingness to intervene in corporate affairs. Goldman declined to comment. (Solomon gave up his DJ career early on in his CEO tenure.)

— Rohan Goswami

DNC faces votes on Israel and Gaza

The Democratic National Committee will consider two Gaza-related resolutions at its meeting this month, including one that asks the party to impose an arms embargo on Israel. The draft resolutions, part of a packet shared with DNC members and seen by Semafor, also contain language that would recommend “enforceable steps” to stop super PACs from interfering in the party’s 2028 presidential primary, a position shared by chair Ken Martin and progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders. But the twin Gaza resolutions have substantial differences. One urges a ceasefire and a return of hostages held by Hamas; the other asks the party to commit to “suspension of military aid to Israel” and its elected leaders to support establishing a Palestinian state. That resolution would be a “gift to Republicans” and would “embolden Israel’s adversaries,” Democratic Majority for Israel president Brian Romick told Semafor.

— David Weigel

Fewer Americans are drinking, poll finds

A record-low number of Americans say they drink, according to Gallup polling — and that includes fewer Republicans than Democrats. Fifty-four percent of adults said they consume alcohol, the lowest share since Gallup started asking the question in 1939, and those who do partake report drinking less. Fewer than half of Republicans hit the bottle, down sharply since 2023, while 61% of Democrats still do, the same as in 2024. Overall, young adults ages 18-34 are the least likely to drink, but fewer middle-age and older adults have reported drinking alcohol in recent years. A growing body of research shows alcohol is bad for your health, no matter the quantity. Americans’ favorite libation, by an eight-point margin: beer.

From local shops to global sellers, small businesses are seizing new opportunities. They’re leveraging technological breakthroughs, innovating their business models, and navigating market shifts to compete on a bigger scale.

They remain vital engines of growth, even as they face rising costs, labor shortages, and shifting regulations. Emerging digital tools and evolving policy landscapes are opening new pathways — and presenting new challenges — to expand, reach new markets, and compete for customers.

Join Semafor as we explore how small businesses are embracing their digital potential, tackling competition in 2025, and reaffirming their role as a driving force in the U.S. and global economy.

September 10, 2025 | Washington DC | Request Invitation

Blindspot: Ships and the Smithsonian

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: The Biden White House nixed plans for then-President Joe Biden to visit a ship during a trip to a Philadelphia shipyard because of the number of steps it would’ve taken him to get onto the vessel, Fox News reported.

What the Right isn’t reading: The White House plans to review Smithsonian exhibitions to ensure that all of its museums fit President Trump’s view of American history, The Wall Street Journal reported.