SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
A new law on the federal books this morning. Despite a presidential protest, the 21st century ROAD to Housing Act, which aims to expand America's housing supply, automatically became law at midnight, even though President Trump refused to sign it. NPR's Ron Elving joins us. Ron, thanks so much for being with us.
RON ELVING, BYLINE: Good to be with you, Scott.
SIMON: And protest is the word the president used to describe it on social media, isn't it?
ELVING: Yes. It's an odd term, but it's the term he used about his action, or rather inaction, that resulted in this bill becoming law. It's an odd form of protest, of course, because without a veto, the bill becomes law even without being signed. And we should note, Trump has not said he's protesting the bill itself or efforts to facilitate new housing. He's called it a big yawn. But he's upset that Congress passed this legislation rather than addressing his preferred project, which is an overhaul of the voting laws.
He wants to cut way back on voting by mail. He says, without evidence, that it's more vulnerable to fraud. Election experts say it's actually the opposite. But taking control of the November midterm elections has become Trump's No. 1 priority. Yesterday, he dismissed the members of the Election Assistance Commission. That had been one more obstacle to his ability to control or contest the outcome of the midterms this fall. So that's the latest sign of his strategy toward those elections and his strategy for resisting what he's been warned could be a brutal rebuke for his party.
SIMON: The president was in Turkey this week for a summit with NATO leaders. He began with some sharp words for the group, but he wound up saying, quote, "it was a great meeting. There was a lot of love in that room. A lot of unity." But notably, no support for the U.S. in Iran.
ELVING: No new support on Iran, which is a war we had been told was over not so long ago. Now Trump says he considers the ceasefire he signed to be over. Although it does appear that talks will continue, and both sides are showing some restraint after a week of exchanging attacks, uncertainty still surrounds the Strait of Hormuz. And the status of talks about Iran's future aspirations for nuclear weapons are also in question. This week, the focus turned to Iran's alleged efforts to assassinate Trump - in part, a reaction to the days of mourning for that country's former leader killed in the early going of this spring's U.S. attacks on Tehran.
SIMON: Maine's Democratic Party will hold a nominating convention to produce a new Senate candidate July 25. Now, elsewhere on our show today, we interview a Republican consultant who says his party now has to throw out the campaign they'd planned to run against Graham Platner, of course, who was accused of sexual assault and misconduct, sexting messages and who had a Nazi tattoo from his years in the military. Could control of the Senate hinge on that race in Maine?
ELVING: Yes. They will surely have to shift gears here regarding their target. Mainers are going to hold a convention to select a new nominee. That contest will display the current tensions in that state and in Democratic politics in general. But is this the one state that will decide Senate control? It could be. So could several others. We can expect every contested Senate seat this fall to be called the one that will decide control. That's pretty standard for candidates in both parties. It helps generate campaign donations and media attention. But if it comes down to a one-vote majority, it may well be Maine, but it could also depend on any number of other close stats.
SIMON: And finally, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the longtime Republican leader, has been in the hospital for nearly a month. What do we know or not?
ELVING: We don't have a real assessment from the hospital, no. We have McConnell's successor as Republican leader, the current Senate Majority Leader John Thune. He says he's spoken with McConnell in recent days. A few others say they have too, and they say McConnell is planning to return, but still no word from the senator himself. So why the secrecy? Two years ago, Republicans in the Kentucky state legislature passed a new law stripping the governor of the right to name a senator to fill a vacancy.
We should note that they did so over the veto of the state's Democratic governor, Andy Beshear. So under the new rules, if McConnell dies before August 3, there needs to be a special election to fill his seat for the rest of this year, an election that would be open to all parties. If he dies after that, his seat can simply remain vacant until the next statewide voting this November.
SIMON: Ron Elving, thanks so much.
ELVING: Thank you, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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