Analysis by Matthew Choi and Dan Merica

Good morning, Early Birds. A very happy birthday to our own Dan Merica! Send tips to earlytips@washpost.com. Thanks for waking up with us.

In today’s edition … Trump uses tariffs to help out a political ally … Tennessee’s gubernatorial primary will be one to watch … but first … Subscribe for unlimited access to The Post You can cancel anytime. Subscribe

The big news

President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin plan to meet as soon as next week to discuss a path toward ending the war in Ukraine, the White House announced yesterday. The meeting will be Trump’s first with Putin since he retook the White House. A summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could soon follow.

“The Russians expressed their desire to meet wi

See Full Page