June 22, 2026 | By Cate Martel
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Happy Monday. It’s officially summer! 🌞Did you know that every day for the next week is a palindrome? For example, 6/22/26 is the same backwards!
Oh, and Mars will debut new M&Ms without artificial dyes, but they’ve been unable to recreate two iconic colors. What colors do you think they’ve nixing? Let me know your guess! Now, keep reading for the answer — I’m surprised by one of them.
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Vance touts major progress in Iran talks Trump fumes over Reflecting Pool algae, peeling paint Congress poised to pass bipartisan housing bill World Cup viral moments over the weekend UK prime minister to resign
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Switzerland must be beautiful this time of year: |
Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP
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Vice President Vance reports major progress in peace talks with Iran. He’s in Switzerland today to hash out details with Iranian officials — and says that “a very good foundation” has been laid.
He says he’s now heading back to the United States to let technical teams negotiate.
Who is with Vance?: President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, are also in Switzerland for talks.
Remember: Last week’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) established a framework for a peace agreement. Now, officials have 60 days to spell out those details and negotiate a deal for Iran’s nuclear program.
💬 Follow today’s live blog
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Several of The Hill’s editors, including editor-in-chief Ian Swanson, are taking live questions about what’s happening in Washington. Submit your question!
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Reflecting Pool, Reflecting Pool on the mall. Who’s the greenest of them all?: |
The Reflecting Pool renovation has become quite the saga. Just a few days after completing a nearly $15 million project to renovate and repaint the water display on the National Mall in Washington, the issues that long plagued the iconic Reflecting Pool returned.
The water turned bright green with a massive algae bloom. Crews deployed by the Interior Department began using hydrogen peroxide and nanobubble technology in an attempt to combat the algae bloom.
The "American flag blue" paint, handpicked by President Trump, also began to peel off in large chunks.
This has infuriated the president, who claims vandals must have tampered with the water. Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, says her office would prosecute anyone caught vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
An Olympian was arrested: A former U.S. Olympic canoe slalom racer, who was on a bike ride, reached his hand in to touch a detached piece of the pool liner, per The Washington Post. He was then arrested, detained for nearly five hours and charged with destruction of government property. He denies any wrongdoing.
In fact, Trump claims there have been multiple arrests.
The water will be drained once again: Trump signaled the pool will likely be drained for repairs.
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Follow Washington closely? Something new is coming
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The Hill Insider launches July 2026. Premium access to the reporting and analysis most readers never see. Be among the first inside.
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Ayyy, Congress is about to pass a bipartisan housing bill: |
“Congress is on the verge of passing a bipartisan housing package after months of often tense negotiations between House and Senate Republicans, a significant achievement that lawmakers in both parties are eager to tout back home,” The Hill’s Helen Huiskes reports.
What to know about the bill: “The bill, titled the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, would roll back some permitting regulations and limit corporations from buying up single-family homes, among other things.”
Why this is a big deal: “It’s the first big push in decades to change regulations and address problems that have limited the nation’s housing supply and led to high costs of homeownership and renting nationwide. … In a year where Congress has been mired in shutdowns and there has been little progress in legislating, the housing bill stands out as a way for members of both parties to declare victory.”
🔎 Read more on what the bill would do
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The World Cup has not disappointed so far: |
The FIFA World Cup has been so fun to watch this year. Fans from other countries have brought their fun traditions to U.S. cities, and, in return, they have experienced the indulgent magic that is American fast food.
I saw one person joke on social media that the “World Cup is just the US having a giant sleepover with the cousins we never see because our parents hate each other."
Here are some of my favorite moments that happened over the weekend:
Norwegian fans took over Times Square: Hundreds of Norwegian soccer fans performed a “Viking row” in Times Square. The video is incredible. 🎥 Watch
🎥 A duck in a Scottish flag led a bagpipe March in Rhode Island — yes, really.
This was a cool moment: American soccer fans sang “Take Me Home, Country Roads” after winning their game on Friday. 🎥 Watch
🫙 A new way to travel internationally with ranch dressing: Kraft is releasing a “TSA-compliant” ranch dressing kit for international soccer fans to bring it back to their home countries.
WORLD CUP READS:
Politico: What does it cost to air-condition a World Cup?
The Wall Street Journal: The Nerviest Race at the World Cup: Iran’s Sprint to Leave U.S. Soil
The Associated Press: Come inside Iran’s World Cup hotel in Tijuana, Mexico, where fans turn out to cheer
USA Today: A FIFA World Cup soccer ball reaches space for astronauts to study
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Keir Starmer will resign: |
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced today that he will resign as the leader of the Labour Party once a new leader is elected.
Back story: “Starmer took office as prime minister in July 2024, ending 14 years of Conservative Party leadership in the U.K. But the British public’s view of him quickly soured — a recent Ipsos survey found that two-thirds of respondents believed Starmer should not lead Labour into the next general election. The prime minister was mired by his appointment of Peter Mandelson as British ambassador to the U.S., whom Starmer later dismissed due to revelations about Mandelson’s ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.”
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— Former Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan has died at the age of 100. His wife, longtime NBC News journalist Andrea Mitchell, says he died from complications of Parkinson’s disease.
— Millions more Americans voted in Democratic primaries than in Republican races, according to a new Washington Post analysis, giving Democrats optimism for the November midterms.
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The Washington Post: Tulsi Gabbard, her guru and the mysterious messages that helped shape her political career
The New York Times: The Deadly Rise of Giant Trucks and S.U.V.s
The Atlantic: The Election System Wasn’t Built for This: The fight playing out in Maricopa County could be a harbinger of things to come.
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The House is out until tomorrow. The Senate is in. President Trump is at the White House with no public events scheduled. (All times EDT)
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3 p.m. Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner holds a news conference. 💻 Livestream
3:30 p.m. Trump signs executive orders.
5 p.m. Trump holds policy meetings in the Oval Office.
5:30 p.m. The Senate holds a procedural vote on the housing bill. 📆 Today’s agenda
Tuesday The House returns from recess. 📆 This week’s agenda
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🧅 Celebrate: Today is National Onion Ring Day!
🍬 Dye-free M&Ms: Mars will introduce dye-free version of M&Ms in August. However, the new mix will *not* include blue or brown candies. The company says it couldn’t recreate those colors at a reasonable cost. Read more: ‘Mars Is Spending Millions to Give M&M’s a MAHA Makeover’
🎾 Serena Williams is back!: Tennis star Serena Williams will compete in the singles’ competition at Wimbledon as a wild card!
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📺 Miss the previous issue of this newsletter? Catch up with a 1-minute video.
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