The Republican field grows to twelve as the RNC sets new criteria for the first debate. Donald Trump prepares to be indicted again. Ron DeSantis tests out new attack lines in Iowa. Nikki Haley does a CNN Townhall that no one noticed. And Joe Biden takes a debt ceiling victory lap with an Oval Office address, while his anti-vax Democratic challenger RFJ Jr. does a Twitter Spaces event with Elon Musk. Then Washington Post writer Ben Terris stops by to talk about his new book The Big Break.

Show Notes

ROUND UP 

• NYT: R.N.C. Rules for First Debate Pose Challenge for Underfunded Candidates
• NYT: Republicans Gather in Iowa to Ride, Eat and Disagree
• Playbook: Christie. Pence. Burgum?
• NBC: Trump and DeSantis spar over how long they could serve as president
• NYT: DeSantis Relied Heavily on Big Donors in Initial Money Haul
• ABC: Transgender adults in Florida ‘blindsided’ that new law also limits their access to health care
• NYT: Takeaways From Nikki Haley’s Mild CNN Town Hall 
• WaPoOpinion: Biden has a theory of MAGA that just might be working
• NYT: Biden Lets Others Spike the Ball but Notches a Win
• WaPo: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tests the conspiratorial appetite of Democrats