PUMP Newsletter

Trump Hosts Zelensky at Mar-a-Lago, Says Ukraine Peace Deal Is Getting Closer

Trump welcomed Zelensky to his Florida club for over three hours of talks in the main dining room, with flags up and the full teams there, Rubio, Hegseth, Kushner, Witkoff on the US side. Trump had just finished a long call with Putin beforehand and planned another after.

Coming out, both leaders sounded upbeat but careful. Trump called it terrific and said they're closer than ever or maybe very close, stressing progress on security guarantees (he even threw out 95% done on those) and working groups to keep momentum. Zelensky echoed that, saying about 90% of his revised 20-point plan is agreed on now, down from Trump's original 28-point version last month.

The tough parts are still territory, especially Donbas control and maybe a demilitarized economic zone there, plus the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant (Ukraine wants joint US operation) and exact ceasefire timing. No full breakthrough, and Russia kept hitting Kyiv with missiles while Zelensky was flying in, which Putin apparently doesn't want paused yet. Trump pushed the idea that Ukraine might need to deal soon before losing more ground, but he also said Putin genuinely wants peace. They'll likely set up those groups soon, and Trump left the door open to visiting Ukraine himself if it helps seal things. Feels like real movement after months of back-and-forth, but everyone knows it could still fall apart on the land issues.

Trump Pushes Republicans to Scrap the Senate Filibuster

Trump ramped this up again in an interview, telling Senate Republicans straight out that the filibuster is blocking everything and they need to kill it. He argued it would stop future shutdown threats, let them pass big health care overhauls, more tax cuts, voter ID laws, basically the full agenda without needing Democratic votes. Said if they don't, Democrats will do it first chance they get when power flips.

It's not a new pitch from him, he was hammering it during that long shutdown mess earlier this year, but pushing now feels timed for the new Congress gearing up. Problem is, a lot of GOP senators, including leader John Thune, aren't biting. They see it as a safeguard for when they're in the minority again, worried it would let Democrats run wild later. Narrow majorities make it risky too, they'd need almost everyone on board, and the votes just aren't there yet.

Immigration Crackdown Starting to Bite Across the Country

One full year into the tough policies, and the effects are showing up in everyday places. Construction in Louisiana can't find enough carpenters, hospitals in West Virginia are missing planned doctors and nurses from abroad, tech startups are struggling without overseas talent. Factories in Michigan and Kentucky lost veteran workers overnight when programs got cut. Even child care centers and preschools are short-staffed in big cities, with foreign-born folks making up huge chunks of those jobs.

Economists are warning it could slow growth, push prices higher on food and housing, maybe even cost jobs overall if shortages drag on. Some spots might see wage bumps for remaining workers, but communities are feeling the strain, festivals quieter, schools adjusting, small towns losing population. It's echoing the strict quotas from the 1920s in debates over crime, wages, and who fills these roles Americans aren't rushing into. The administration says it's about prioritizing US workers, but the real-world gaps are hitting headlines as we wrap the year.

GOP Starting to Line Up Behind JD Vance for 2028

It's still super early, but the party chatter is already all about who carries the torch after Trump. He's been pretty clear in private conversations that a third term isn't happening, the Constitution blocks it anyway, and he's floated Vance as the natural next guy. Over the weekend, things ramped up big time at Turning Point USA's big conference in Arizona. Erika Kirk, who's taken over after her husband's passing, basically gave Vance a full-throated endorsement on stage, and a straw poll there had him crushing it with 84% support. They're even talking about deploying folks across Iowa counties to build early infrastructure for him.

Polls are mixed, though. In broader GOP surveys from early December, Vance pulls around 22-47% depending on the sample, he's the clear frontrunner, often near or over 50% in some party-specific ones, way ahead of folks like Marco Rubio or Ron DeSantis. Even Rubio's been telling people privately that if Vance runs, he's the nominee and he'd back him.

Trump himself has called Vance very capable and the most likely successor. Vance is playing it smart, focusing on midterms next year, campaigning hard for Republicans to keep majorities, all while staying glued to Trump's side. Not everyone's sold, some old-school conservatives like Rand Paul are pushing back on the direction. But the MAGA base seems locked in, and that's what matters most right now.

Federal Prosecutors Say Billions Possibly Stolen from Minnesota Programs

This one's exploding into a full-blown scandal, and it's hitting hard in Minnesota with national ripples. Prosecutors just expanded the probe, estimating that up to half. or around $9 billion, of the $18 billion in federal funds for 14 state programs since 2018 might have been siphoned off. It started with the Feeding Our Future case back in 2022, where dozens were charged with stealing $250 million meant for feeding kids during the pandemic, but it's ballooned into housing, autism services, and more. Most of the defendants, over 80 out of 90 charged, are tied to the Somali community, with schemes involving fake enrollments, kickbacks, and money sent overseas for real estate or other stuff.

Over the weekend, a viral video from an independent journalist showed a supposedly active daycare in Minneapolis pulling in millions but looking completely empty, no kids, misspelled sign. That lit the fuse again. FBI Director Kash Patel announced they're surging agents and resources into the state to dismantle these networks, calling the known cases just the tip of the iceberg.

Trump's been hammering it, tying it to immigration and oversight failures under Gov. Tim Walz. Walz says he's cracking down with new oversight and investigations, but Republicans are piling on, with House probes and calls for accountability. Community leaders are pushing back hard against painting the whole Somali diaspora with this brush, it's a handful of bad actors, they say, not the 80,000-plus folks living there. Money recovery's slow, they've seized maybe $60-70 million so far. This could drag on and get ugly politically heading into 2026 races.

Mass Deportations and Raids Set to Ramp Up in 2026

Trump's team is gearing up for a big escalation next year on the immigration front. They've got massive new funding locked in, billions extra for ICE and Border Patrol through 2029, on top of their regular budgets. That means hiring thousands more agents, building out detention centers, and ramping up everything from jail pickups to partnering with private firms for tracking. Border czar Tom Homan said flat out that arrests will explode in 2026, and yes, that includes way more workplace sweeps.

This year, they've deported around 600,000 so far, focusing on criminals and border stuff, but officials admit hitting the 1 million a year goal is tough without this boost. Next year, they're planning to hit sensitive spots like farms, factories, construction, places that rely heavily on immigrant labor. Critics warn it'll spike costs for businesses, push up prices on food and housing, and stir real backlash, especially with midterms looming. Some spots have already seen protests and lawsuits over tactics. Trump's stripped temporary protections for hundreds of thousands from places like Haiti and Venezuela, widening the pool. It's part of the promise for the biggest deportation push ever, but the economic hit could make it messy fast.

That’s all for today, thanks for reading.

We’ll see you tomorrow!

— The PUMP Team