Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 192
November Surprises
Wall Street Journal: “Trump and White House aides have privately expressed frustration about the negative headlines that have been plastered across newspaper front pages and on cable news in recent weeks.”
”The stories have prompted hand-wringing from Republican campaign operatives, who worry that the alleged self-dealing could make an already challenging midterm election even more difficult for GOP candidates.”
Cook Political Report: “The trajectory of Vivek Ramaswamy’s odds in the Ohio governor’s race has been clear to us for the last few weeks. But the campaign’s decision this week to air a deeply personal attack ad against opponent Amy Acton confirmed that the race is slipping away from him — and perhaps creating some collateral damage for fellow Republicans on the way. We are moving this race from Toss Up to Lean Democrat.”
Bloomberg: Trump defends Ramaswamy ad as backlash endangers Ohio GOP ticket.
“Former ESPN reporter Britt McHenry resigned Friday from her position as a State Department press adviser following an altercation at a basketball game this week,” ABC News reports.
“McHenry was captured on camera appearing to throw a drink on someone during a Washington Wizards vs. Milwaukee Bucks NBA game on Wednesday.”
“Over the years, Corey Lewandowski has had no shortage of rivals in President Trump’s orbit,” the New York Times reports.
“Fighting for control of Mr. Trump’s campaigns, Mr. Lewandowski has been at odds with Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law; Paul Manafort, Mr. Trump’s former adviser; and Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff.”
“But through a combination of one-on-one flattery and fierce defenses of Mr. Trump on television, Mr. Lewandowski has always managed to stay on the president’s good side.”
“Until now.”
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“Prediction markets about the 2026 midterm elections have surpassed $1.4 billion in trading volume as Election Day fast approaches,” CNN reports.
“This year has seen massive growth in the prediction industry, where people can bet on real-world events like sports, entertainment and the weather. While small-scale election markets have been around for a while, they gained traction before the 2024 presidential election and have seen huge numbers for the 2026 midterms.”
“Elon Musk has cemented his record as the largest individual political donor in modern American history. The world’s richest man poured $446 million of his own money into this year’s midterm elections, mostly aimed at preserving the Republican Party’s control of Congress, recent election filings show,” the Washington Post reports.
“President Trump said on Friday that he directed the Justice Department to block certification of the coming Senate election in Alaska if the Republican incumbent were to lose by a narrow margin,” the New York Times reports.
“The highly unusual move heightens concerns from election officials and Democrats about Mr. Trump’s efforts to undermine the midterm elections, and at least one election expert said he expected the courts to reject the lawsuit.”
CNN: Why Trump’s dubious election lawsuit in Alaska should raise eyebrows.
Georgia Republican nominee for governor Rick Jackson (R) “has reversed course and will attend President Donald Trump’s Saturday rally after initially planning to skip it to campaign with Gov. Brian Kemp (R) instead,” the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
“The about-face comes amid growing GOP anxiety over sluggish early voting in rural Georgia, raising the stakes for Jackson as he scrambles to mobilize supporters in a tight race against Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms.”
Iowa Lt. Gov. candidate Derek Wulf (R), who is 45 years old with a wife and two children, is being sued by his parents for $275,000 in unpaid rent, the Des Moines Register reports.
“House Democrats are setting their political sights on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, pushing for his removal as the first spoils from anticipated wins in the midterm election,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“House Democratic Party leaders and candidates in competitive districts have avoided committing to a third impeachment of President Trump if they flip the GOP-led chamber, seeing it as potentially counterproductive. But lawmakers are ready to go after Hegseth as soon as they can, with a vote likely next month while Republicans are still in charge and another crack at it next year—when Democrats hope they are running the chamber.”
Said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY): “One of the first things we’re going to do in the majority, we’re going to run Pete Hegseth out of town.”
A new 365 Project/Change Research (D) poll in Mississippi finds Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) leading Scott Colom (D) in the U.S. Senate race, 43% to 40%, with Ty Pinkins (I) at 6%.
For members: Could Mississippi Deliver a November Surprise?
A new The Oregonian/OregonLive/DHM Research poll in Oregon finds Tina Kotek (D) leading Christine Drazan (R) in the governor’s race, 46% to 44%.
“President Donald Trump said Friday that he is no longer looking into the outside consulting work conducted by a pair of his top political advisers after they donated to his presidential library,” the Washington Sun reports.
“Following reports of Chris LaCivita and James Blair’s consulting work for a pro-Russian nationalist government in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Trump vowed to investigate their work for foreign entities — going so far as to suggest that he might ‘terminate them’ if any conflicts of interest were discovered.”
Said Trump: “They took the money and they gave it to essentially a charity. I think it was a very nice thing to do.”
“The U.S. is expected to remove 50% tariffs on some Canadian products in a bid to help Maine Sen. Susan Collins and other Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The proclamation altering the tariffs, which could come as early as Friday, will likely remove 50% tariffs on certain agricultural and forestry products.”
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“Republicans and Democrats in the Senate have told top White House officials they will block President Trump’s nominees pending on Capitol Hill until the administration ensures the restoration of critical satellite communications capabilities used by Ukraine’s military,” the New York Times reports.
“With Democrats increasingly confident they will win control of the House next month and hopeful of a majority in the Senate, party leaders are turning to the next challenge: deciding what they will do with their power if they get it,” the New York Times reports.
“For months, they have promised voters they will address an ‘affordability crisis’ they blamed on failed Republican policies, pledging to lower the high cost of groceries, gas and health care. And they have vowed to combat what they say is rampant corruption by President Trump and his administration, though they have shied away from promising an impeachment after their first two efforts to remove him from office failed.”
“Should they win in November, top House Democrats are planning a shock-and-awe legislative sprint to demonstrate within hours of taking power that they are passing bills to deliver on their promises, including restoring health care subsidies and Medicaid resources and moving to end Mr. Trump’s tariffs and the war with Iran.”
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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