Happy Thursday! Today’s forecast in DC: ☁️ 48° (Find your weather here)

In this edition:

• White House abruptly yanks CDC nominee
• Senate Dems look for cover in funding battle
• Pete Buttigieg passes on Senate bid
• Trump threatens 200 percent tariff on European alcohol
• “Queer Eye” casts in D.C.

The ball is in Senate Democrats’ court over whether the federal government will shut down at midnight on Friday.

Where things stand: Democrats had two closed-door meetings this week to debate their strategy. Help Republicans out by having at least eight from their caucus vote “yes” on their six-month government funding extension? Or refuse to help Republicans for cutting them out of the negotiations and vote “no” as a united front? The latter would shut down the government.

Senate Democrats emerged from their Wednesday meeting broadly announcing they will *not* help Republicans out by voting “yes.” This set off a frenzy of uncertainty because up until Wednesday, it didn’t appear that Democrats would let a shutdown happen. 

What’s actually happening behind the scenes: Senate Democrats are privately saying they will not let the government shut down Saturday despite pressure from progressives, reports The Hill’s Alexander Bolton. They just don’t want to do it the easy way. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) will first force a vote on a one-month extension to allow more time to negotiate. When that vote inevitably fails, at least eight Democrats are expected to then back Republicans’ proposal. 

Why are Democrats choosing the hard way?: Simply, to save face.

But here’s the problem: There isn’t much wiggle room for all of this to play out. If something unexpected happens, we could be looking at a government shutdown.

Some analysis: CNN’s Stephen Collinson argues that “Democrats’ first big chance to check Trump may make them look even weaker.”

The White House abruptly withdrew the nomination of Dave Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this morning, right before his scheduled Senate confirmation hearing.

Why?: A source told The Hill that Weldon did not have enough votes to be confirmed.

What to know about Weldon: “Weldon had faced growing scrutiny over his anti-vaccine views, including an extensive record during his time in Congress of raising questions about the safety of vaccines and their potential links to autism. That history had prompted concerns within the Senate and others close to the process, fueling constant rumors over the past several weeks that he would be withdrawn.” (Politico)

The New York Times spoke with Weldon: Weldon said that a White House official told him last night. “It is a shock, but, you know, in some ways, it’s relief,” Weldon said. “Government jobs demand a lot of you, and if God doesn’t want me in it, I’m fine with that.”

Keep in mind: This is a rare setback for the Trump team. Very few Trump nominees have been pulled from consideration.

More than 20 Democratic attorneys general are suing the Trump administration over its efforts to lay off nearly half of Education Department employees.

Backstory: Trump has tried to dismantle the Education Department. While formally shuttering it would require congressional approval, his administration has begun gutting it as much as it can. Earlier this week, more than 1,300 staffers were let go (not including the hundreds who were put on leave or took a buyout).

“The Studentaid.gov website was down for hours on Wednesday after the Education Department laid off half its workforce. Downdetector saw hundreds of users report the outage of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), used by students in or applying to college to receive financial aid.” (The Hill)

President Trump has threatened a whopping 200 percent tariff on European alcohol, including wine and Champagne, if the European Union (EU) doesn’t nix its whiskey tariff.

Trump posted on Truth Social: “The European Union, one of the most hostile and abusive taxing and tariffing authorities in the World, which was formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of the United States, has just put a nasty 50% Tariff on Whisky.” 🔎 Read Trump’s full post

What sparked this: Europe’s 27-country trading bloc has said it would allow for the current agreement to expire April 1, which would trigger a 50 percent tariff on American whiskey.

This made me lol: U.S. News and World Report’s Olivier Knox joked, “It’s only a retaliatory tariff if it comes from the Frique region of France. Otherwise it’s just sparkling protectionism.”

Tech mega-billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has posted its claimed savings within the federal government, but media outlets found several errors in the published list.

Well, DOGE’s team has now obscured some of the details of its findings — making those errors harder to find — “[but The New York Times] was still able to detect another batch of mistakes.” Read David A. Fahrenthold and Jeremy Singer-Vine’s reporting

• The Wall Street Journal: Trump Is Cracking Down on Universities. Florida Had a Head Start.
• The New York Times: Small Farms and Food Banks are Caught Off Guard by Spending Cuts
• Vox: Conservatives’ decades-long quest to destroy the Department of Education
• Axios: CEOs push for patience with Trump

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced this morning that he will *not* run in Michigan’s open Senate race.

Why this matters: Buttigieg had reportedly considered running for retiring Sen. Gary Peters’s (D-Mich.) seat. Staying out of this race would leave him free to potentially run for president in 2028. 👀

Why this may make some Democrats anxious: “Democrats are scrambling to hold onto the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Gary Peters in a crucial swing state. Republicans see it as a top pickup opportunity after coming close to flipping the state’s other Senate seat last cycle.” (Politico)

🥥 Celebrate: Today is National Coconut Torte Day.

✨ Who do you know who could use a little jeuje?: “Queer Eye” is casting people in Washington to appear on the Netflix show. (Washingtonian)

🚀 Another snag getting the astronauts home: NASA and SpaceX had to cancel Wednesday’s launch to retrieve the astronauts who have been stuck in space since June. The mission was scrapped less than an hour before the mission because of a launch pad issue. The earliest next date is Friday.

👔 Best dressed?: Derek Guy, also known as “the menswear guy” on X, created a list for Politico on the most stylish lawmakers on Capitol Hill. There may or may not be a hot take or two.

The House is out. The Senate is in. President Trump is in Washington. (all times Eastern)

• Today: Foreign ministers from Group of Seven nations meet in Quebec.
• Noon: Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are speaking at House Democrats’ annual retreat in Leesburg, Va. 💻 Livestream
• 12:20 p.m.: Trump meets with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
• 1 p.m.: Two Senate votes. Two more votes are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. 📆 Today’s agenda
• 1:45 p.m.: New Democrat Coalition members speak at Democrats’ issues conference. 💻 Livestream
• 3:30 p.m.: Congressional Black Caucus leaders speak at Democrats’ retreat. 💻 Livestream
• 5:30 p.m.: Congressional Progressive Caucus leaders speak at Democrats’ retreat. 💻 Livestream
• 11:59 p.m. Friday: Government funding expires without a deal.

To add a little zen to your day, watch this panda munch on a squash.

Miss yesterday’s 12:30 Report? Catch up with a 1-minute video recap here.

Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@digital-stage.thehill.com. A friend forward this to you? Subscribe here.

View past issues of 12:30 Report here and check out other newsletters from The Hill here. See you next time!