Vice President JD Vance will meet with Senate Republicans during their weekly lunch Tuesday before key tariff votes this week, a person familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to share the plans told POLITICO.

Kemp, a popular Republican governor with a prebuilt fundraising machine, was the top recruit of national Republican organizations looking to snag a primary field-clearing candidate to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in a state that will present one of the most challenging and expensive races of the 2026 midterms.

Democratic candidates outraised Republicans in four of the five most competitive Senate races in recent months, new campaign fundraising reports show – as they scrambled to build cash reserves for next year’s high-priced midterm battles.

Senate Republicans are set to face their latest unity test this week on President Donald Trump’s tariffs and import taxes, which have created heartburn for GOP lawmakers since the White House imposed them earlier this year.

Government shutdown enters Day 28, with Senate Democrats rejecting House-passed bill while federal workers face missed paychecks and nutrition benefits head for cliff.

TRUMP IN JAPAN: President Donald Trump is in Japan, the second stop of his three-country tour of Asia. He met with newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi this morning, and will soon address U.S. troops on board the USS George Washington.

The president of the Kansas Senate said Monday a sufficient number of Senate Republicans signed a petition to call a special session of the Legislature to consider new congressional district boundaries to improve odds of defeating Democratic U.