©  AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

BOTH PARTIES are seeking to put their spin on the results of this week’s special election in New York, which flipped a red seat blue and has each side tangling over whether it represents a sign of what’s to come in November.

For Democrats, Tom Suozzi‘s (D) win in New York’s 3rd District represented a rejection of the GOP over Congress’ failed border deal, which Senate Republicans blocked amid stringent Republican opposition in the House.

Republicans, meanwhile, played down the results, noting President Biden won the district in 2020. It was also most recently represented by scandal-plagued former Rep. George Santos (R), who was expelled late last year.

Suozzi on Tuesday defeated Republican candidate Mazi Pilip, a Nassau County legislator, by around 8 percentage points in a race that heavily centered on immigration policy.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said the result was a “devastating repudiation of congressional Republicans,“ adding “Suozzi put support for the bipartisan border legislation — and congressional Republicans’ killing of it for politics — at the forefront of his case.”

Suozzi emphasized his support for the border deal as well as his record of supporting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when some Democrats were vocal against the agency.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), meanwhile, said Suozzi ran “like a Republican” on immigration, arguing the election was “in no way a bellwether” for other congressional races this fall.

The GOP Speaker also noted the imbalance in name recognition between Suozzi, a previous House member who ran for governor in 2022, and Pilip, who was “relatively unknown” and “had a very short runway.”

Bellwether debate aside: Suozzi’s win has a more immediate meaning, as The Hill’s Mychael Schnell noted: “The breakdown in the House once Suozzi is sworn in will be 219-213, meaning Republicans will only be able to lose two GOP lawmakers on any party-line vote with full attendance.”

MORE: 5 takeaways from Democrats’ special election victory in New York

Welcome to Evening Report ! I’m Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here.

• A new Monmouth University poll finds nearly 1 in 5 Americans say they think there’s a “covert government effort” for Taylor Swift to help President Biden win reelection.
  
  

• Progressive group Our Revolution is urging people to vote “Uncommitted” on Michigan’s Democratic primary ballot on Feb. 27 in an effort “to push the President to change course in Gaza.”
  
  
• Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said there’s “no need for public alarm” after a cryptic call from the House Intelligence Committee chair for the president to declassify info about a “serious national security threat.”

© Evan Vucci/Associated Press

President Biden shared an old photo of himself and first lady Jill Biden on X, formerly Twitter, writing, “Jilly, you’re the love of my life and the life of my love. Happy Valentine’s Day.”

The fist lady celebrated with a Valentine’s Day lawn display at the White House.

From some former commanders-in-chief:

• Former President Trump: “Dear Melania, I LOVE YOU. Even after every single INDICTMENT, ARREST, and WITCH HUNT, you never left my side. You’ve always supported me through everything. I wouldn’t be the man I am today without your guidance, kindness, and warmth.”
  
  
• Former President Obama: “How did I get so lucky? Happy Valentine’s Day to my best friend, @MichelleObama!”

Two significant hearings take place Thursday in separate cases against former President Trump:

• In Georgia, Trump and some co-defendants are seeking to disqualify two top prosecutors in the election subversion case over an alleged romantic relationship.
  
  
• In New York, a judge will consider Trump’s request to dismiss the hush money case against him.

Read the full report from The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld and Ella Lee.

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Former President Trump recently suggested foreign aid should only be given in the form of a loan. The idea piqued the interest of some Republican senators just ahead of the chamber passing a $95 billion aid bill for Ukraine, Israel and more earlier this week.

We asked experts what such a loan could look like and what results it could have:

📣 Dalibor Rohac, American Enterprise Institute senior fellow: “ It’s not unreasonable to have a discussion about the financing of US assistance to Ukraine through a loan program, especially if it were to help US politics around the issues. However, it is not without its risks. Ukrainian government has to be careful about new borrowing … A loan of, say, $20 billion to contribute towards the cost of this supplemental bill, would be equivalent to some 10 percent of their GDP. Moreover, it would be unreasonable to think that the supplemental bill would somehow pay for itself that way.”

📣 Thomas Duesterberg, Hudson Institute senior fellow: “ For the Second World War, President Roosevelt was able to overcome isolationist opposition to get timely aid to Great Britain and other allies in the form of Lend-lease, with repayment in kind only if the equipment survived, and later with long term, low interest loans which took the victorious British 61 years to repay. If Trump provides support for no interest, no term loans with repayment ‘if Ukraine strikes it rich,’ we should move ahead and take the deal. Ukraine would prefer an outright grant, but let’s not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” 

📣 Michael O’Hanlon, Brookings Institution senior fellow: “ Loans are fine for middle-income countries that are on good growth paths and just need liquidity. Otherwise, they can be problematic, burdening countries with debt that impedes the very growth the loan was designed to spark. Ukraine will have a reconstruction bill of more than $500 billion. So adding loans and thereby worsening the fiscal outlook as well as the financial burden makes little sense to me in this case.”

© AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg, Pool

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday “Israel will not give in to Hamas’s delusional demands” as the nation left talks in Cairo, Egypt, without a hostage release deal.

The U.S., Egypt and Qatar were involved in the talks aimed at securing the release of hostages and a six-week truce between Israel and Hamas.

NewsNation has signed Geraldo Rivera as a correspondent-at-large, the cable news channel announced Wednesday. Both NewsNation and The Hill are owned by Nexstar Media Group.

“The stakes in Ukraine are too high for the House GOP’s partisan nonsense”

“Biden’s open border is a boon for human traffickers; we must stop them”

10 days until South Carolina’s Republican presidential primary.

13 days until Michigan’s Democratic and Republican presidential primaries.

Friday: President Biden travels to East Palestine, Ohio , near where a Norfolk Southern train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in February of last year.

You’re all caught up! Stay with TheHill.com for the latest and recommend this newsletter to others: TheHill.com/Evening. See you tomorrow!