“President Donald Trump met privately with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman backstage at the Republican midterm convention on Thursday, days after a former researcher for the company publicly accused both it and rival Anthropic of acting irresponsibly and ‘gambling with our lives,'” MS NOW reports.
Trump’s Effort to Assert Control Over Elections Continues
“The Supreme Court on Monday dealt President Trump a major blow when it blocked his executive order to restrict mail ballots. But Mr. Trump’s battle to assert control over the election process is far from finished,” the New York Times reports.
”The stymied attempt to have the U.S. Postal Service screen mail ballots was just one piece of a broader effort involving the full power of the federal government to take more control of state-run elections.”
”Just days before the Supreme Court blocked Mr. Trump’s mail ballot order, the Justice Department sent threatening letters to at least 30 top election officials across the country, escalating a fight to gain access to private voter data and election records.”
”Federal agents are scouring voter rolls managed by states for noncitizens, despite a lack of evidence of widespread fraud.”
Dead Heat in the New Hampshire Senate Race
A new co/efficient poll in New Hampshire finds John Sununu (R) and Chris Pappas (D) tied in the U.S. Senate race, 46% to 46%.
New Hampshire Senate Race
John Sununu (R) 46%
Chris Pappas (D) 46%
China Rejects ‘Fearmongering’ Over AI
“China criticized calls from leading U.S. technology executives to put the brakes on artificial intelligence development and impose tighter curbs on Chinese model makers,” Bloomberg reports.
Said Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun: “Fearmongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only disrupt the process of global AI governance and serve the interests of no one.”
Would-Be Trump Assassin Used ‘Bob Dole’ Pseudonym
“Wannabe presidential assassin Thomas Crooks used a pseudonym to conceal his purchase history and obsessed about keeping his digital footprint to a minimum,” the New York Post reports.
“The 20-year-old made many Amazon or online purchases under the name ‘Bob Dole’ to have packages delivered to his parents’ house, his dad Matthew Crooks told the FBI in an interview two days after his son shot former President Donald Trump in the ear at a campaign rally in July 2024.”
Supreme Court Rejects Trump’s Mail Ballot Restrictions
“The Supreme Court on Monday rejected President Donald Trump’s mail ballot restrictions for now, capping a flurry of last-minute legal action with voting in the midterm elections already underway,” the AP reports.
“The decision allows states to continue sending out mail ballots under the same processes they’ve used for years.”
Axios: Supreme Court strikes down USPS mail-in voting rule.
With ballots already going out, even this conservative Court appears unwilling to let a president rewrite election procedures in the middle of an election.
Democrats Ahead on the Generic Ballot
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll finds Democrats leading Republicans on the generic congressional ballot, 44% to 37%.
Generic Congressional Ballot
Democrats 44%
Republicans 37%
Trump’s Approval at Just 35%
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll finds Trump’s approval at 35%, while 63% disapprove.
Trump Approval
Approve 35%
Disapprove 63%
Karl Rove Will Vote for a Democrat
Karl Rove, former adviser to President George W. Bush, said he will vote for Jon Rosenthal (D) to serve the Texas Railroad Commission after Bo French (R) posted racist comments about South Asian students at the University of Texas, Texas Tribune reports.
This marks Rove’s first public vote for a Democrat since he began working in Republican politics in the 1970s.
Mitch McConnell Returns to the Senate
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) returned to the Capitol Monday evening for his first vote in three months, Punchbowl News reports.
McConnell spoke to reporters from a wheelchair and said it’s “time to get back to work.” His speech was slow and he looked frail.
CNN: Mitch McConnell returning to the Senate after three-month absence due to health issues.
GOP Candidate Calls Himself a ‘Reverse Coconut’
Colorado gubernatorial candidate Victor Marx (R) explained on unearthed audio why he’s comfortable around minorities.
Said Marx: “My background, my father was a drug dealer and a pimp… I tell people I’m a reverse coconut. Brown on the inside, white on the outside. I’m very comfortable around people of color.”
U.S. Sanctions Russian Bank for Iran Ties
“The Treasury Department on Monday identified Russia’s second-largest financial institution, VTB Bank, as a key financial node for Iran’s Islamic Republic and put further sanctions on the bank,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The new sanctions on VTB are a bid to pressure international partners to cut off dealings with it… Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has repeatedly threatened secondary sanctions against foreign companies that help Iran to evade U.S. economic restrictions.”
Wall Street Is Blowing Off Fears of an AI Apocalypse
“Equity investors largely yawned Monday at warnings about AI wiping out humanity, suggesting traders aren’t pricing in an existential threat,” Axios reports.
It’s odd when a technology supposedly capable of wiping out humanity is also one of Wall Street’s favorite investments. Either investors think the warnings are wildly overstated — or this is one risk markets have no idea how to price.
Trump Calls AI Warnings a ‘Hoax’
“President Donald Trump unexpectedly called into a business and technology conference through Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s cell phone and dismissed urgent warnings from those inside the artificial intelligence industry as a ‘hoax,'” the Washington Sun reports.
Said Trump, on speakerphone: “The robots will not be taking over. The AI will not be taking over the rest of the world. The whole thing is a hoax.”
Bloomberg: Nvidia CEO puts Trump on speakerphone while downplaying AI risks.
Trump Picks Wesley Hunt as Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
“President Donald Trump nominated Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX) to be the next U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia on Monday, part of a spate of nominations sent to the Senate less than two months before the midterms decides the fate of the GOP’s control of the chamber,” Politico reports.
Democratic Candidate Defends Resurfaced Explicit Photos
“A Democrat running for a U.S. House seat representing Long Island said he is ‘not embarrassed or ashamed’ after explicit photos resurfaced over the weekend,” the Washington Sun reports.
Said Chris Gallant: “I have always been unapologetically me. These attacks on my identity have just made me stronger in my values and convictions.”
“The photos, which circulated as advertisements for a sex store in San Francisco up until 2020, depict Gallant modeling in a leather posture collar and metal chains.”
Another Bonus Quote of the Day
“While it adheres to all federal standards for criminal confinement, we’d make it even smaller if we could.”
— Alex Lanfranconi, an aide to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), talking to NBC News about the small cages used to hold immigrants at Alligator Alcatraz.
GOP Candidate Doubles Down On Racist Post
“Bo French, the Republican nominee for Texas railroad commissioner, stood by a series of racist social media posts he sent targeting Asian students at the University of Texas, dismissing criticism from fellow Republicans as he campaigns for a seat that oversees the state’s oil and gas industry,” the Washington Sun reports.
“French dismissed the backlash he garnered over his post on X showing a photograph of students celebrating Texas’ football victory over Ohio State, and suggested the students pictured benefitted from discriminatory admissions practices designed to exclude American-born students.”
Wrote French: “Social media is exposing how many Americans have been displaced by foreigners. It’s everywhere and far worse than any of us could imagine.”
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