Good Thursday morning. I'm Jake Sherman and welcome to your political playbook audio briefing sponsored by Chevron.

And I'm Anna Palmer. We've got a sneak peek this morning into what House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy

plans to tell a group of House Republicans at an event on Capitol Hill that they are getting big checks from Protect the House,

his joint fundraising committee with Vice President Mike Pence.

McCarthy is handing out a massive $1.36 million directly to 22 members tomorrow.

The average check the members will get is $62,000.

PTH, as the committee is called internally, has handed out $3.2 million directly to members

between March and June of 2018.

President Trump did not spare his criticism when it came to Joe Crowley last night in Fargo,

North Dakota and Anna's home state.

The president said one of my biggest critics, a slovenly man named Joe Crowley,

got his ass kicked by a young woman who had a lot of energy. She had a lot of energy. I guess he didn't see it. They

couldn't find him. Ouch. And as if we needed more news, Anthony Kennedy's decision to retire in the

middle of an election year hands Capitol Hill a summer brawl that will be unlike anything we've seen

in some time. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the chamber will give Trump's nomination

quick consideration this fall. Democrats are jumping all over Mitch McConnell because he's moving

swiftly now in an election year when he left a SCOTUS seat open for months during the Obama administration because the

vacancy was in an election year. McConnell has drawn a distinction between a nomination in a presidential

year and won during a midterm election year. Senate Democrats aren't going to care much about that

argument and they're going to paint McConnell as a hypocrite.

Here's who to watch. Obviously, Senator Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski are going to be key, given their view on abortion, and the potential that a pro-life justice could overturn Roe v. Wade.

On the Democratic side, keep an eye on Joe Mansion of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana, and Heidi Height Camp of North Dakota. Something to watch in a tightest tick nomination, could the Senate

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