A Garden State gambit

Also: Rubio in the hot seat and a Gabbard replacement.

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June 2, 2026 2:06pm EDT

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On Politics

Tue Jun 2 2026

Zachary Schermele | Congressional Reporter

@zachschermele

Hello readers and welcome back to On Politics. Zach Schermele here, USA TODAY's congressional reporter. It's Tuesday, another big primary day. Let's get into it.

Trump endorses Tom Kean Jr.

Voters in several important primaries, from California to Iowa, head to the polls today.

For one of the most puzzling races of them all, look to New Jersey. In the Garden State, Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. is running unopposed. President Trump endorsed him last night , saying in a social media post he is "working tirelessly" and will "NEVER LET YOU DOWN!"

Kean's X account thanked Trump for the support.

The catch: the Republican congressman hasn't been seen on Capitol Hill since early March. He's missed more than 100 votes. He's said he's dealing with a medical issue with a positive prognosis, but he hasn't elaborated on the details of his condition. Even Speaker Mike Johnson has said Kean hasn't told him what prompted his continued absence.

Tom Kean Jr. arrives at his 2022 election party to declare victory in his race for the House of Representatives.

Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com, USA TODAY Network

Tracy DiFrancesco Zaikov, a local Republican leader in Somerset County, New Jersey, told USA TODAY in a May 26 email that she had recently spoken to him on the phone.

"I feel confident in Tom's ability to move forward and jump into the campaign grind in the coming weeks," she wrote. "While I am not privy to his medical issue, I am sure he will share that information with everyone when he returns. Meanwhile, his office has been operating, assisting constituents without skipping a beat."

Subscribe to On Politics: Stay ahead of the midterms with our daily politics newsletter.

A politics round-up

•	How California's key House primaries could reshape Congress
•	5 factors to watch in Iowa's governor and Senate primaries on June 2
•	Texas Republicans remain split over Paxton as Senate race looms
•	Los Angeles mayor election results: See who is leading in the June 2 primary

Daily photo gallery: See photos as California voters take to the polls for state primary

Rubio in the hot seat

Iran has to agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for peace talks to progress to the next phase, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a Senate panel this morning.

From there, Iran would have to commit to negotiating on the transfer of its enriched uranium, which the United States believes is underground, and severe limitations on or the cancellation of enrichment activity.

"These are highly technical matters, so I don't think you could work those out in five days," Rubio said. "But they have to commit to their willingness to do that."

Read more here from my colleague Francesca Chambers on the White House team.

Trump names Gabbard replacement

As my colleague Joey Garrison reports , President Trump appointed Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as the new acting director of national intelligence, tapping a trusted ally without any prior intelligence experience to replace Tulsi Gabbard.

Trump announced the unusual pick of Pulte in a post on Truth Social. Trump said Pulte ‒ as the top federal official overseeing mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ‒ has "deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America, the safety and soundness of the Markets."

Before you go...

💬We also want to hear from you! What questions do you have for our team as we get closer to November? Is there a race you’re watching closely? Let us know by jumping in the comments on Reddit or responding to this newsletter.

Zachary Schermele is a congressional reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.