Hey folks,

This week, I’m sending you a bonus edition of this private email to introduce you more fully to one of my colleagues here at Puck: Tara Palmeri. Tara joined us this spring to cover the real intrigue inside D.C.—from the Hill to K Street to the Post—and writes a fantastic biweekly column called The Washington Mall that you should sign up for here.

Some of the Washington and Silicon Valley characters discussed in our back-and-forth today include Ron DeSantis, Joe Lonsdale, Larry Ellison, Eric Greitens, Blake Masters, Mark Halperin,and Kirsten Gillibrand. It’s also a reminder that as a subscriber to Puck, you’re getting the work of a dozen or so authors in our newsroom, including me and Tara. And much more to come.

P.S. As a reminder, you’re receiving the free version of The Stratosphere at . For full access to Puck, and to each of my colleagues, click to subscribe here.

Teddy Schleifer: I don’t want to say this is quite a Shakeperean tale of unrequited love, but it does feel, at least for the moment, that the G.O.P. donor establishment loves DeSantis more than DeSantis loves them. But hey, every romance has imbalances from time to time, and the governor could do a better job of glad-handing and back-slapping. It came up in nearly every conversation for my piece. It’s not that there is some fundamental fissure between DeSantis and big donors per se—it’s just that DeSantis is universally described as a somewhat awkward guy, without the Bill Clinton charm or social graces. The good news is that he can work on that, no? Obviously it matters not just for donors, but for, you know, voters too...