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In today's issue:

▪ Trump, Starmer meeting in Scotland

▪ Digging into the US-EU trade deal

▪ Courts hand Trump more wins

▪ Israel pauses Gaza fighting for aid

Fresh off announcing a U.S.-European Union trade deal, President Trump is looking to clinch more bilaterial agreements this week before his Friday tariff deadline.

The president on Sunday touted the EU trade deal, struck during talks with European officials after a round of golf at one of his clubs in Scotland, and urged the Senate to confirm more nominees before starting their August recess.

Trump will play host again today, meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at his golf clubs in Scotland for talks ranging from their recent bilateral trade deal to the worsening hunger crisis in Gaza. Follow along with The Hill’s live blog.

But the protesters who have gathered across Scotland for Trump's visit — including outside the U.S. Consulate in Edinburgh — offer a preview of the headwinds the president faces back home.

POLLING NUMBERS: Trump saw some of his lowest approval ratings of his second term over the past week, with his net approval in the Decision Desk HQ average falling to more than 9 points underwater. As part of the drop, he’s seen declines in particular among independents and on his handling of certain key issues like immigration.

Lee Miringoff, the director of the Marist University Institute for Public Opinion, told The Hill's Jared Gans that Trump’s quickly shifting political fortunes are part of his skill at “keeping the focus moving all the time,” which requires redirecting people’s attention to his benefit.

“But you do take a cost that your victories are short-lived, and the net effect is there’s still an awful lot that people feel has not been accomplished and that he hasn’t fulfilled a lot of campaign promises,” he added.

At the same time, Trump is trying to ease an ongoing headache stemming from the controversy surrounding his administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. While his numbers certainly haven’t bottomed out, they add up to a rough patch for Trump after a series of major victories just a few weeks earlier.

The president has expressed his frustration with how aides are handling the backlash, The Washington Post reports, as the White House and Department of Justice’s response to the crisis lacks any apparent strategy.

“This is a pretty substantial distraction,” a source told the Post. “While many are trying to keep the unity, in many ways, the DOJ and the FBI are breaking at the seams.”

▪ The Hill: Five unanswered questions around Trump and the Epstein saga.

▪ CNN: Trump’s Scotland trip is the latest example of blending private business with presidential duties.

▪ Politico: Speaker Mike Johnson(R-La.) panned a discharge petition from Reps. Thomas Massie(R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) designed to force the release of more files on Epstein.

DEMOCRATS ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE of the widespread disapproval of the White House’s handling of the Epstein case. A recent Emerson College Polling survey found 51 percent of registered voters disapprove of the administration’s handling of the Epstein files, while 16 percent approve and a third said they’re neutral.

Trump’s refusal to release federal files put him at odds with the same core MAGA loyalists who helped propel him to power. Democrats are only happy to watch the unraveling, however long it endures, and goad it along when the chance arrives.

“Let them destroy each other. If we have to throw a log on the fire, we’ll do it,” one House Democratic aide told The Hill’s Mike Lillis.

House Democrats are using their long summer recess to ramp up their blitz of town halls in GOP-held districts. The strategy is not new, but this time they’re armed with a powerful new talking point: Trump’s defiance on the Epstein issue.

“People … want someone to listen,” said Rep. Suzan DelBene (Wash.), the head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “And if their member of Congress isn’t going to listen, they want to make sure their voices are heard.”

Republicans are also going on offense. Vice President Vance will be at a steel plant in Canton, Ohio, today to kick off an effort to promote the “one big, beautiful bill” that the White House pushed through Congress this month.

▪ The Wall Street Journal: A Wall Street Journal poll found 52 percent of respondents oppose the GOP funding bill, showing the party's challenges in touting its benefits ahead of the midterms.

IT’S ALL ABOUT 2026: The polling numbers and town halls all lead to the next big political target — the midterm elections. Democrats are looking to claw back a majority in one, or both, chambers of Congress, while Republicans are trying to buck the historical trend of a midterm disadvantage for the party in charge.

This election cycle, Trump is using his influence to help Republicans avoid messy primary fights. The president recently waded into Michigan’s Senate race and the New York gubernatorial contest in an effort to convince notable potential........

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