GOLDEN BOY? — Jared Golden has an independent streak and on the campaign trail he's reminding Mainers that sometimes he's as fed up with his party as they are. The Maine Democrat who bucked his party on guns, but backed Dems' sweeping climate, health and tax bill is hoping to show his tough battleground district he's still their man in a tough election year for Democrats. Golden typically skips the caucus's weekly strategy meetings. And the memos from the party's campaign arm? Those go straight "in the dumpster," he told Sarah. "I think, sometimes, I don't agree with my party's characterization of what are the most pressing needs at the moment," he said while Sarah rode shotgun while he drove a 2003 Chevy pickup on the University of Maine's campus. Golden faces former GOP Rep. Bruce Poliquin, who lost by a single percentage point in 2018 and opted out of running in 2020 but is trying to stage a comeback. Sarah talked to them both, along with plenty of Mainers: The Golden ticket to win a Trump district COONS IN KENYA — Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) is leading a delegation in Kenya, where protests are underway and a court challenge is expected following the country's presidential elections. The delegation will meet with outgoing Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta. More from The Associated Press . Coons is a repeat visitor to Kenya, and most recently made trips in 2020 and 2017. He spent his junior year of college at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. The delegation includes Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.), plus Reps. David Joyce (R-Ohio), Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and David Price (D-N.C.). The group has also visited Cape Verde and Mozambique and have plans to stop in Rwanda. CHAOTIC ENDORSEMENTS — If you thought Trump's endorsement of "Eric" for Missouri Senate was chaotic, get a load of where he's throwing his weight in New York City. The former president weighed in with farcical endorsements in two Democratic primaries in NY. He is "backing" Carolyn Maloney over Jerrold Nadler in NY-12 and Daniel Goldman in NY-10 , he announced in posts on his own social media app Truth Social. Yes, Goldman, a key lawyer in the House's first impeachment of Trump and Maloney, who chairs the Oversight panel that has also dug into Trump. Confused? That's how Goldman thinks Trump wants New York voters to be. "This is a pathetic attempt at fooling Democrats who are far smarter than Trump," Goldman's campaign said in a statement. "It's clear that only one candidate in NY-10 is living rent-free in Trump's head." (Rent-free? In NYC?) Maloney rejected Trump's endorsement, calling it "laughable" and saying "Thanks, but no thanks. I'll pass." SENATORS PUSH FARA QUESTIONS — Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee want to know more about the now-ended partnership between the Brookings Institution and the Qatari government and whether Brookings operated within bounds of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking for info on the think tank's past interactions with DOJ's FARA Unit and registration obligations. Background: There's already a federal probe into whether retired Marine Gen. John Allen, who resigned from Brookings in June, illegally lobbied for Qatar. POLITICO Influence has more. EXPLORE THIS — Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) plans to hold a news conference today at the Exploratorium in San Francisco on the CHIPS bill. (We would like to hear what the kids running around the science museum have to say about CHIPS.)
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