Welcome back to The Best & The Brightest, I’m Tara Palmeri.

Tonight, a closer look at Ron DeSantis’s troubles in New Hampshire, where he once trounced Trump, then dropped to a clear second to Donald Trump, and has since stumbled to fifth place. Plus: the impolitic conversations Democrats and Republicans are really having in Washington about the shutdown.

Meanwhile, make sure to check out Tuesday’s episode of my new podcast, Somebody’s Gotta Win, where former Speaker Newt Gingrich warns that Kevin McCarthy will need 10 smoking guns from the impeachment inquiry to pull off a vote. Next week, I’ll be coming to you from the G.O.P. debates in California, where we’ll see if any candidates can punch their way out of the pack.

Before we get to the main event, here’s Teddy Schleifer with some news from the 2024 fundraising scene…

• Silicon Valley for Vivek: A Murderers’ Row of Silicon Valley heavyweights are throwing a seven-figure event for Vivek Ramaswamy next week, according to an invite that made its way to me. Billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya and his wife, Nathalie, are hosting...