🍻 In This Week's Hill Spill: A Congressional Soap Opera in Ljubljana, Platner's Spectacular Implosion and Matt Gaetz Has Thoughts on the Democratic Socialists

Welcome to this week's Hill Spill, it’s Thirsty Thursday and we all know what that means! Grab a drink because this week’s tea is extra strong.

We’ve got a congressional delegation in Europe that turned into pure chaos — wives giving each other the silent treatment, diplomats questioning what the hell is going on, and shrimp & grits somehow becoming a full diplomatic incident.

Meanwhile in Maine, Graham Platner went out swinging after his Senate campaign spectacularly imploded, leaving Democrats with two weeks to find a replacement and roughly 47 people suddenly announcing they’re running.

Matt Gaetz — a man who loves a congressional coup — has some takes on the incoming DSA squad eyeing Hakeem Jeffries. Plus: a Democratic operative is rating members of Congress on hotness and making the case for why it actually matters.

It may be recess, but this week has been a wild one, so grab a bev and let’s get to it!

The codel Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) attempted to kick Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) off has not gotten any less awkward, according to sources on the trip, and new details from lawmakers and staff suggest the fallout was messier and more personal than what has already been reported.

The dispute started over whether to host next year's Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly in Charleston. Wicker, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, had signed onto a letter supporting the funding request, then effectively squashed Wilson's hopes of holding it in his home state — where his son is the front-runner to become the next governor.

Semafor first broke the feud, unveiling some feisty texts between the two lawmakers in the process, including Wicker telling Wilson he was "no longer a part of CODEL Wicker" and to "please make arrangements to return to the US by other means" — a threat he later reversed.

We were sitting on the beach — where we do our best WFH work — when we got a call from Wilson, who was in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where he filled us in on his side of the story.

"There's never been a disagreement at all," he said of his relationship with Wicker. "And then suddenly, the most important issue that could possibly come up on behalf of the American people, he sabotaged it."

"I just can't fathom. I really can't. Here I am, six days later, in a state of shock. The decision solely of sabotaging and canceling Charleston is Roger Wicker," he added.

Wilson, the most senior GOP member of the House Armed Services Committee and chair of the Helsinki Commission — with Wicker serving as its vice chair — had already distributed a memo to delegates laying out his case for Charleston and planned to arrive at the session a day late so he could spend July 4 in his district. He hung up Thursday believing the two would keep talking. Wicker announced the decision before Wilson's plane landed.

One lawmaker on the trip walked us through how it all unraveled at the conference, describing walking through the venue and stumbling upon a Charleston booth promoting the 2027 assembly right before Wicker pulled them aside.

"Wilson's going around saying that there's going to be a Helsinki conference in Charleston, and that has already passed," the lawmaker — who is a fan of the city of Charleston — recalled Wicker saying: "It's been decided, we're gonna move to Serbia. There's no money there. There's no guarantees."

The tension was already visible at the ambassador's residence that night, with Wicker's wife, Gayle, and Wilson's wife, Roxanne, reportedly not speaking to each other, our sources on the trip tell us. Wicker and Wilson were keeping their distance as well

"Usually they're one and two," one person on the trip noted of the two lawmakers.

It came to a head the next day when Wicker called a closed-door delegation Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate but excluded staff.

Things got very heated, according to two people familiar with the session, with Wilson telling us he was "highly incensed" over accusations that he had not returned calls from Speaker Johnson.

Wilson pulled out his phone to prove he had no missed calls. Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), who was not on the trip, was also in the mix — one source said Hudson had been the one to kill the Charleston bid with the speaker by declining to guarantee appropriations.

"Wicker would be like, where's the money? And Wilson's like, I got Lindsey Graham. Do you know a guy named Lindsey Graham?" one person present recounted.

One lawmaker on the trip tried to play peacemaker, suggesting the group agree to move on and work toward bringing the assembly to Charleston in 2028 instead, according to a source in the room. For a moment, it seemed like it might stick. Then Wicker and Wilson went at it again with things continuing to devolve, per the source.

Not everyone on the trip was sympathetic to Wilson's account.

"It's really bad. It's been embarrassing. And it's all Joe. I've never seen anything like this in my life. And I like Joe. But he has gone too far," one lawmaker texted us. Members of the South Carolina delegation, however, told us they “stand with Joe.”

Diplomats notice the tension, according to multiple sources.

"Members of Parliament were coming up to me at the conference and asking me what was going on," one lawmaker told us. "Was a bad look for USA."

Wilson's camp disputes that the budget would be a problem.

"Funding will be in place with the passage of a budget or even a concurrent resolution, ultimately, to provide for the $4 million," Wilson told us, adding it was "totally disingenuous" to suggest otherwise. He pointed to existing unspent money in the OSCE account and informal conversations with Boeing, BMW and Michelin about stepping up as private donors if needed.

"If the money's not there, I'll go out and raise the money," he said.

His camp pointed us to a budgetary breakdown.

Wilson also pushed back hard on the staffing concerns.

"There's no place better for unpaid volunteers than Charleston," he told us, pointing to The Citadel and the College of Charleston. "I was so insulted."

Wilson told us that despite the tension, delegates on the trip would not have noticed the discord.

"They would not have the slightest knowledge that there was somewhat of a level of disagreement," he said, also copping to a failed breakfast meant to patch things up and a follow-up meeting that got canceled outright.

Wilson is not ready to call it dead.

"It's still not too late for Senator Wicker to change his mind and announce that," he said. Others on the trip said it’s unclear.

As for the ultimate insult, Wilson told us Belgrade, Serbia stepping up to host the assembly after Charleston was dropped is unconscionable given Serbia's ties to Russia.

"Of all countries in Europe to move the Parliamentary Assembly, the ultimate insult to America is to move from the United States to a country that has significant Putin influence," he told us.

Wicker, Hudson and Johnson did not respond to requests for comment.

Elisabeth Carroll contributed to this report.

Matt Gaetz led the charge to force a sweeping overhaul of House rules to get Kevin McCarthy the gavel and then led the coup that took him down months later. With chatter swirling about the incoming class of democratic socialists plotting to make demands of Hakeem Jeffries before deciding whether to back his speakership bid, we figured we'd get his take.

A recent Puck piece reported that the incoming DSA bloc, including Darializa Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez in New York and Melat Kiros in Colorado, has already been plotting to leverage a small majority and make demands of Jeffries before supporting him for speaker, sending anxious House Democrats into a quiet tailspin over whether their future majority could be held hostage the same way a small group of conservatives have repeatedly complicated life for Republican leadership.

Nobody found that more amusing than Gaetz.

"I feel like it's gonna be fascinating," he told us. "So will they make a demand for single subject bills? Will they make a demand for one member motion to vacate?"

The former congressional rabble-rouser turned conservative cable-news anchor told us he isn't fully surprised by progressives eyeing the same playbook."

"AOC and Ilhan (Omar) both came up to me and said, we wish we'd have had the guts to do this our first go around with Pelosi," he told us.

"They expressed admiration for it. And AOC even did some of that on TV." He added that the parallels between what the DSA bloc might demand and what he demanded of McCarthy are not lost on him. "There were the same demands I made that they might make," he added.

Jeffries has been telling his members to calm down and focus on winning the majority, brushing off questions about the DSA dynamic with a simple "let's cross that bridge when we get to it." Not everyone in the caucus is content to wait…

Either way, Gaetz will be watching.

Graham Platner suspended his Senate campaign Wednesday night following a rape allegation, leaving Maine Democrats with just over two weeks to identify a replacement by the July 27 deadline. The party announced a 600 person nominating convention would decide the pick but offered no further details, which is a great way to kick off what is already shaping up to be a chaotic process.

The stakes are high. Whoever emerges will have to ramp up quickly, raise money fast and take on Sen. Susan Collins, a five-term incumbent who has repeatedly defeated well-funded Democratic challengers in a state that typically leans blue

Here is who is in the mix:

Troy Jackson, a progressive logger from rural Aroostook County and former president of Maine's State Senate, was Platner's own top pick for governor before the primary. He announced Wednesday he is running.

Nirav Shah, former director of Maine's public health agency and CDC deputy director, ran for governor and nearly won before losing in the ranked-choice runoff. He announced Thursday he is in.

Shenna Bellows, Maine's secretary of state, made national headlines in 2023 when she moved to bar Trump from Maine's presidential primary ballot. She has actually been here before, winning the Democratic Senate nomination in 2014 before losing to Collins 68% to 31% in a landslide. She announced Thursday she is running.

Jordan Wood — former chief of staff to Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), not to be confused with Jordyn Woods of Kardashian feud fame — briefly entered the Senate race before pivoting to the congressional race earlier this year. He announced Wednesday he is back in.

Dan Kleban, co-founder of Maine Beer Company, briefly ran in this year's Senate primary before dropping out. He told his Substack readers Wednesday he is jumping back in, which is a very 2026 way to announce a Senate campaign.

David Costello, an environmental policy consultant who won 8% in the primary against Platner, told the Times Thursday he is re-entering the race.

Valli Geiger, a state representative and registered nurse who notably defended Platner from criticism earlier this year, is in conversations about potentially joining the race.

Paige Loud, a 29-year-old social worker and Cherokee Nation citizen who came in last in the congressional primary, filed with the FEC on Tuesday.

Democrats will be navigating a tug of war between moderates and progressives over who gets the nod, all while trying to do better vetting than they did with Platner. As for Platner himself, he did not go quietly — he denied the allegation in his suspension video and said he was dropping out because the Democratic establishment pulled its support, not because he believed he did anything wrong. He is expected to formally submit the paperwork to withdraw by Monday.

Boy, byeee 👋.

This week on the pod, Monica Vensky, Democratic operative and the woman behind one of the most entertaining political accounts on X, Boyfriends We Deserve, joins us to tackle what we would argue is one of the most important topics of the cycle — which candidates are hotties. Monica breaks down her endorsements, explains her vetting process, rates the current Congress on a scale of one to ten and makes a surprisingly compelling case for why attractive candidates actually move the needle electorally. She also has thoughts on Pete Buttigieg's beard, the importance of a good tailor and why knowing your look matters more than you think. We love a fellow blonde on the pod! Grab your bev of choice and tune in! 🎙️

One of our readers — who clearly has excellent taste — has nominated "Leak It" by FLO as the new unofficial theme song of the Hill Spill, and honestly we don't hate it. Yes, it has some NSFW lyrics and it has absolutely nothing to do with political news. But we are fully embracing it and encourage all our sources to do exactly what the title directs.

If you have receipts, tips, hot gossip or anything else that needs to see the light of day, you know what to do. Leak it. That is quite literally our entire mission statement. Give it a listen if pop music is your thing and send us your tips.

Honestly, after this week, we wish we were sitting on a terrace in Ljubljana sipping one of these instead of covering the chaos (though we can't complain too much since we are out of town). Between the congressional delegation soap opera and Graham Platner's spectacular implosion in Maine, an Aperol Spritz felt right and matches our current outfit and we love when that happens. It's bittersweet, it's a little extra and it goes down easier than you'd think. Much like this week's news!

Fill a large wine glass with ice, pour in the Prosecco first, then the Aperol, then top with a splash of soda water. Give it a gentle stir and garnish with an orange slice.

Cheers until next week, babes! 🍹