1. Trump wants to set up a naval blockade along the Venezuelan coastline to prevent goods from coming in and out of the country. Trump suggested the blockade to national security officials as recently as a few weeks ago, and has been raising the idea periodically for the last year and a half. Senior Pentagon officials believe a naval blockade is impractical, has no legal basis, and would drain additional resources from a U.S. Navy that is already stretched in their attempts to counter China and Iran. “He literally just said we should get the ships out there and do a naval embargo,” said one source who heard Trump’s suggestion. (Axios)

  2. Trump falsely claimed that he has the authority to make decisions about which networks can host the presidential debates during the general election. While complaining that Democrats had barred Fox News from hosting or televising the 2020 Democratic primary debates, Trump warned that he could do the same to Fox News in the general election if the polls about his reelection chances coming out of the network don’t change for the better. “My worst polls have always been from Fox,” Trump said. “And I think Fox is making a big mistake, because, you know, I’m the one that calls the shots on that — on the really big debates.” The non-partisan Commission on Presidential Debates has sponsored general-election presidential debates in every election since 1988. (Politico)

  3. Thousands of union workers at a Pennsylvania petrochemical plant were ordered to attend a Trump speech on Wednesday or lose some of their weekly pay. The rules given to workers stated that attendance was “not mandatory,” but only those who arrived at 7 a.m., swiped in with their work IDs, and stood for hours waiting to hear Trump speak would be paid for their time. “NO SCAN, NO PAY,” said the memo, which also prohibited the workers from doing “anything viewed as resistance” during the event. (NBC News)

  4. Trump still wants to buy Greenland. He confirmed to reporters on Sunday that he has asked his administration to explore the possibility of purchasing the island from Denmark, even though officials in Greenland have repeatedly stated that it is not for sale. “Greenland is not Danish,” said Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. “Greenland belongs to Greenland. I strongly hope that this is not meant seriously.” Trump, however, said the he is still considering it. “Essentially,” he said, “it’s a large real estate deal.” (NBC News / Washington Post)