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🎧 The White House is trying to create a sense of momentum after talks with Putin, Zelenskyy and the European leaders, NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben tells Up First. Yesterday, leaders discussed security guarantees to keep peace in Ukraine if there is a deal. Trump said a guarantee would require “coordination” from the U.S., and that Putin would be open to one. The European leaders also discussed the return of Ukrainian prisoners held in Russia, including children, which Trump thinks Putin would be open to. Ukraine wants a ceasefire before any more talks because it's concerned that Russia could drag out the war without one. Trump says he doesn’t oppose a ceasefire but that it’s not necessary. 
🎧 Late last night, Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed that Trump and the Russian leader discussed the possibility of direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv. Trump is moving fast and operating in broad agreements, whereas Putin focuses on the details, which can slow down the process, NPR’s Charles Maynes says. Maynes says he heard several Russian red lines during the talks in Washington, D.C., yesterday. This includes European troops on the ground in Ukraine and Zelenskyy’s call for arms sales, which would contradict Putin’s demands for Ukraine to demilitarize. 

🎧 Democrats in California say they plan to vote on the map this week and get it in front of voters in November. In order to do that, lawmakers have to pass the bill by a two-thirds vote. The passage is likely because Democrats hold a supermajority in the state, says Laura Fitzgerald with CapRadio in Sacramento. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Democratic lawmakers and other leaders have launched a campaign urging voters to support the measure. Republicans are threatening to file lawsuits challenging the ballot measure, as they say Democrats are sidelining California’s independent redistricting commission, which is in the state’s constitution, by going to voters. 
➡️ Here's how redistricting in Texas and California can change whose votes really matter in the 2026 congressional elections.