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Biden Administration: President Biden is scheduled to meet with Spanish President Pedro Sanchez at 2 p.m. ET in the Oval Office.

China: An unexpected burst of diplomacy between Washington and Beijing this week points to a growing desire in both capitals to begin stabilizing relations after months of free fall.

Russia-Ukraine War: The Ukrainian government said its troops had advanced on Russian forces on the Bakhmut front as Kyiv seeks to turn the tide around the embattled city after months on the defensive.

The bill would make it harder to seek asylum and codify Trump-era policies such as resuming construction of a southern border wall, reports Siobhan Hughes. The vote is the GOP response to the end Thursday night of pandemic-era powers the Biden administration had used to quickly expel migrants for public-health reasons. Senate Democratic leaders said that they had no intention of scheduling a vote on the bill, and the White House said it would be vetoed if it went to the president's desk.

• Pandemic-Era Border Policy Expires Amid Migrant Surge (Read)

The delay until next week will give White House and congressional staff more time to make progress in their closed-door spending talks, officials said, adding that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) was unable to attend the Friday meeting because of a scheduling conflict, report Andrew Restuccia, Natalie Andrews and David Harrison.

• Debt-Ceiling Fight Weighs on Defense Industry (Read)

The former president’s punchy performance in a live town hall thrilled supporters, repelled his critics—who questioned whether he could win a general election with such a message—and underscored his front-runner claim to the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, report Alex Leary and John McCormick.

• Trump’s Indifference on Ukraine War Sets Stark Choice for U.S. Voters in 2024 (Read)

• CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Ascends, as Network Takes Heat for Trump Town Hall (Read)

In other politics news...

• Rep. George Santos Strikes Deal to Resolve Brazil Criminal Charges (Read) (🎧Podcast)

• Santos Follows Others in Congress Who Have Confronted Legal Troubles (Read) (▶️Video)

• FDA Updates Blood-Donation Policy (Read)

The producer-price index, which generally reflects supply conditions across the economy, increased 2.3% in April from a year earlier, the Labor Department said. That marked the slowest pace since January 2021 and an easing from March’s 2.7% rise, report Harriet Torry and Sarah Chaney Cambon.

In other economic news...

• The Numbers: Stop Comparing Latest Bank Failures to the 2007-09 Financial Crisis (Read)

• More Wives Now Outearn Their Husbands. They Also Stay Together Longer (Read)

• Fed Official Signals Support for Further Rate Increases (Read)

At the start of 2019, Daniel Swift was struggling to settle back into civilian life, his SEAL colleagues in San Diego said. His marriage had failed and he was facing legal troubles. He disappeared, only to resurface in March 2022, saying he was fighting Russians in Ukraine. Mr. Swift was one of thousands of young men who flooded to Kyiv from the West, including American veterans of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, report Ian Lovett and Brett Forrest.

In other national security news...

• NSA Chief Paul Nakasone Has Said He Expects to Step Down in Coming Months (Read)

A multifaceted, multilateral exchange, which could include other Americans detained in Russia, could break some of the constraints that ensnared previous U.S. efforts to broker a deal with Moscow to free Paul Whelan, a Michigan corporate security executive held for more than four years, report Louise Radnofsky, Brett Forrest and Nancy A. Youssef.

• Congress Writes to Jailed WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich in Show of Support (Read)

In other world news...

• U.S., China Senior Officials Meet in Tentative Effort to Restart Ties (Read)

New limits on greenhouse gas emissions from the Environmental Protection Agency announced this week are part of the administration's pursuit of a carbon-free electricity grid, reports Eric Niiler. Only one commercial power plant in North America is currently operating with carbon capture. Its experience hasn’t been as smooth—or climate-friendly—as proponents of the rules might hope.

In a pair of rulings, the court threw out convictions emerging from former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s crackdown on what he called a “show-me-the-money culture in Albany” during the tenure of former Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, reports Jan Wolfe.

• High Court Rejects Pork-Industry Challenge to California’s Animal-Cruelty Law (Read)

• A Texas mall mass shooter with neo-Nazi views is the latest in what experts say is a growing number of Hispanics pushing the doctrine of white supremacy.  (Axios)
• Another round of federal grand jury subpoenas went out this week in connection with the corruption investigation into Sen. Bob Menendez (D., N.J.). (NBC News​)
• Former President Donald Trump’s campaign used images from Ukraine to depict Americans suffering under President Biden in an ad. (New York Post)

Here's a weekend recipe that showcases the fresh produce of spring. Chef Ali Saboor notes that his spiced new potato salad with feta, olives arugula and herbs strikes the balance that Persian food is known for: sharpness, bitterness and sweetness, courtesy of the honey in the dressing. 

This newsletter is written by the WSJ Washington bureau. Send feedback to politics@wsj.com. You can follow politics coverage on our Politics page and at @wsjpolitics on Twitter.