| CONGRESS: Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) is showing that it doesn’t take running for president to make waves in the Democratic Party. As Jordain Carney reports, Hirono, a second-term senator, has emerged as an electrifying force for progressives as they battle with the president. The petite, generally unassuming, senator garnered national attention with her questions to Attorney General William Barr, which earned her near-universal condemnation from Republicans, but praise from all corners on the left. While six of her colleagues run for the Democratic nomination, the Hawaii Democrat has become one of the caucus's staunchest Trump critics with a penchant for making high-profile, viral moments. > Paul Kane: Shutdowns and legislative logjams stir appreciation for the once-hated earmark: “After an initial burst of optimism, most lawmakers quickly grew skeptical of the $2 trillion infrastructure framework that President Trump and congressional Democrats proposed this past Tuesday. “Most doubters pointed to the incredibly high price tag and noted that neither side settled on a way to pay for the massive program: a higher gas tax, increased taxes on the wealthy, a user fee based on how many miles you drive? But the bigger problem might be that lawmakers feel little incentive to support such a massive project because their constituents view Congress with such deep cynicism and doubt their cities and towns will see any benefits.” “This is part of the reason behind the push for the return of the once-hated E-word: earmarks.” ‘Yes — I’m talking about restoring earmarks, which I believe can be great instruments of good when done in a way that is fully transparent and accountable,’ House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) testified in March before a select committee tasked with recommending internal reforms.” Politico: “You create chaos”: Trump squeezes Dems with border demands. > Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) announced Saturday that he will not seek a fifth term in office and will retire in 2020 at the end of his term. For Republicans, any possible field will be determined by the intentions of Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), the third-ranking House Republican (Casper Star-Tribune). Although Cheney briefly sought Enzi’s seat in 2014, it is unknown if she will do so this time. She could be in line for the speakership if House Republicans take back the House in one of the coming campaign cycles, giving her enough reason to stick around in the lower chamber. Expect her to be asked about it on Capitol Hill this week. > Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) called on leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold a hearing this week with administration officials about a possible U.S. military intervention in Venezuela (The Hill). *** WHITE HOUSE & ADMINISTRATION: The United States late on Sunday said it was deploying the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a bomber task force to apply pressure on Iran. White House national security adviser John Bolton described the administration’s “response to a number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings” and said the United States would use “unrelenting force” in the case of an Iranian attack on U.S. interests or on U.S. allies. “The United States is not seeking war with the Iranian regime, but we are fully prepared to respond to any attack, whether by proxy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or regular Iranian forces,” Bolton said in a statement. He was not specific, but Iran recently warned it would block the Strait of Hormuz if it was barred from using the strategic waterway through which about a fifth of the oil consumed globally passes (Reuters). Meanwhile, Trump and Vice President Pence tweeted words of support for Israel late on Sunday. Israel and Hamas engaged in their worst fighting in nearly five years as Palestinian militants launched a barrage of more than 600 rockets and Israel responded with airstrikes on more than 300 targets. The exchange threatened a new war and an end to efforts to broker a longer-term truce. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he instructed the military to continue strikes and prepare “for the next stages” (The Washington Post). The New York Times: Pence serves as a Trump decoder but not a White House decision maker. Trade: Over the weekend, U.S.-China trade talks appeared to falter. Trump vowed to raise tariffs on Friday to 25 percent on $200 billion in Chinese imported goods because the ongoing trade talks between the U.S. and China are happening “too slowly” and he believes Beijing is trying to “renegotiate” after months of discussions. “No!” Trump tweeted. Trade negotiations were to resume in Washington on Thursday with a group from Beijing that was to include Chinese Premier Liu He. A Chinese delegation is still expected to travel to resume the talks, but following Trump’s tweet it was unclear if the Chinese premier will be among them (CNBC). The president is impatient to sign a trade and intellectual property deal later this month, if possible, with Chinese President Xi Jinping (Axios). Trump’s tweet: “For 10 months, China has been paying Tariffs to the USA of 25% on 50 Billion Dollars of High Tech, and 10% on 200 Billion Dollars of other goods. These payments are partially responsible for our great economic results. The 10% will go up to 25% on Friday. 325 Billions Dollars of additional goods sent to us by China remain untaxed, but will be shortly, at a rate of 25%. The Tariffs paid to the USA have had little impact on product cost, mostly borne by China. The Trade Deal with China continues, but too slowly, as they attempt to renegotiate. No!” MarketWatch: Stock market futures were hit hard overnight after Trump tweeted that tariffs on Chinese goods to rise this week. The Wall Street Journal: Global markets tumble. Opening losses today projected to be significant. > Related to hemispheric trade, Mexican Foreign Relations Undersecretary Jesús Seade met on Thursday with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to discuss the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Act, which must be ratified by Congress. Rafael Bernal sat down with Seade for an interview. Infrastructure: Trump on Saturday appeared to downshift from his agreement last week to a $2 trillion price tag for an infrastructure measure (The Hill). The reason? Coming up with $2 trillion to build roads and bridges, upgrade ports and airports and finance broadband is a tough sell for GOP lawmakers (The Washington Post). Naomi Jagoda and Niv Elis report where the infrastructure hurdles keep cropping up, and why such investments pose a challenge (The Hill). Education Department: Distant from Trump, disliked by many, Secretary Betsy DeVos is a Cabinet survivor (The Associated Press). Immigration: The president on Sunday selected Mark Morgan, a former chief of Border Patrol during the final months of the Obama administration, to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Morgan left government during the early days of the Trump administration, saying he had been forced to resign (The Hill). Trump later tweeted that pending Morgan’s confirmation by the Senate, “Matt Albence will serve in the role of Acting Director. Matt is tough and dedicated and has my full support to deploy ICE to the maximum extent of the law!” 
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