“Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on Wednesday that he would allow widespread patient access to unapproved peptide injections made popular by internet influencers, sparking serious concern among drug safety experts,” the New York Times reports.
“The plan would bypass the most standard Food and Drug Administration safeguards for approving drugs, such as tests to see if the compounds work better than a placebo and whether they might cause cancer or birth defects.”
Wall Street Journal: “As Texans head to the polls to decide some of the nation’s most closely watched races, Latino voters—who helped propel Trump’s return to the White House in 2024—once again could play a decisive role, this time in determining whether Democrats win majorities in the House and Senate.”
“A recent Wall Street Journal poll found a majority of Latino voters picking a Democrat for Congress over a Republican, 53% to 35%. On Trump’s job approval among Latinos, only 26% approve while 68% disapprove—significantly lower than his approval of 37% with voters overall, the poll found.”
The Atlantic: “Earlier this week, the Pentagon’s chief planner, Army Lieutenant General Brett Sylvia, was ousted from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. No explanation was given. This comes at an inopportune moment, given that President Trump may be planning to relaunch the war on Iran.”
”Sylvia, the former commander of the 101st Airborne Division, becomes the latest in a long line of senior officers who have been shown the door since Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrived at the Pentagon almost two years ago.”
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“I started by looking at his ass and it was strong as hell.”
— President Trump, at a campaign rally.
“A U.S. judge blasted the Trump administration’s effort to force California to set aside as many as 20,000 mail-in ballots from people who it claims are likely non-citizens, saying that doing so would ‘wreak havoc’ on the midterm elections that are already underway,” Bloomberg reports.
NPR: Judge denies the Justice Department’s bid to stop processing California ballots.
“President Donald Trump decried critics of Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy over a provocative campaign ad that threatens to damage the party’s midterm election prospects,” Bloomberg reports.
“But Trump made clear he had no intention of trying to move past the furor, repeating the claims made in the video despite misgivings from many in his own party.”
Mediaite: New internal polling shows Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign sinking after controversial ad.
“An activist group published a searchable database of more than 41,000 Department of Homeland Security employees and contractors on Wednesday, exposing the identities and contact information for immigration officers, border agents and undercover investigators,” the Washington Post reports.
New York Times: “Such appearances have become commonplace as nearly all of Mr. Trump’s top deputies fanned out to promote Republican candidates facing difficult election odds. But they have alarmed government ethics experts who say administration officials are running afoul of the Hatch Act, an 87-year-old law that limits how executive branch employees can participate in political activity.”
“In the past few months, at least nine of 15 cabinet secretaries and several other senior Trump deputies have been formally accused of Hatch Act violations, such as using official government titles while engaging in campaign activities and using taxpayer funds to pay for political advertisements.”
“One woman at a rally in New Jersey told me last week that she was ‘nauseously optimistic.’ That may capture a lot of people’s last-minute jitters.”
— Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), quoted by Axios, on what Democrats feel ahead of the midterm elections.
New York Times: “Many GOP candidates in tight races have tried to distance themselves from Mr. Trump’s policies, his behavior and the widespread allegations of self-dealing in his administration. Behind the scenes, some political advisers and outside Republican groups have warned the president’s aides that Mr. Trump could do more harm than good by holding rallies in battleground states with uncomfortably close races, according to people with knowledge of the conversations.”
“But the president, under pressure and angry with naysayers, has dismissed polls that reflect his unpopularity, and has raged against unflattering stories that plunge him into a dark mood. Determined to win by turning the midterm season into a referendum on himself, he is set to headline rallies around the country all week, including in Ohio on Wednesday.”
“Mr. Trump remains convinced that his dominant place in the Republican Party is enough to mitigate a tough political climate. But a grim mood has set in around the White House, which has been rocked by turnover, tension among internal factions and anxiety over what happens should Republicans lose legislative control in Washington.”
“Flávio Bolsonaro, the candidate defeated in Brazil’s elections, landed in Miami on Wednesday, declaring himself the legitimate leader of the nation he fled after Brazilian authorities asked him to surrender his passports as part of a money-laundering investigation,” the New York Times reports.
Bloomberg: Trump shelters Flávio Bolsonaro, risking tensions with Brazil.
“Thousands of Election Day observers are expected to be dispatched by the Democratic Party to monitor potential voter intimidation at polling places around the country,” MS NOW reports.
“The Association of State Democratic Committees, a branch of the Democratic National Committee representing state-level parties, trained more than 4,000 volunteers to notify the party’s voter protection programs if federal law enforcement is deployed while voters are casting their ballots on Tuesday. The individuals will be wearing blue on Election Day.”
“New Hampshire Senate candidate John Sununu is a Republican. You’d be forgiven for thinking otherwise based on his latest ads,” Bloomberg reports.
“In the race’s final days, Sununu has started ending his television spots with ‘Independent for New Hampshire’ underneath his campaign logo. The once and potentially future senator hasn’t abandoned his party. Rather, he’s signaling to voters that he’s not beholden to President Donald Trump.”
“It’s a message that Republicans in competitive races nationwide are trying to send, given Trump’s low approval rating amid inflation and the war in Iran. But it may be especially important in a state the president has lost three times and where polls show he’s less popular than ever.”
A new CBS Detroit/Mitchell Research & Communications poll in Michigan finds Abdul El-Sayed (D) leading Mike Rogers (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 51% to 44%.
“Republicans are spending the final week ahead of the midterm elections defending historically red Senate seats that have suddenly become competitive,” Wired reports.
“A significant focus is now on four Senate races in Kansas, South Carolina, Nebraska, and even Mississippi, all traditionally red seats, in what’s an ominous development for Republicans in their effort to at least keep control of the upper chamber.”
“Trump operatives say they do not expect Democrats to win those Senate seats and that they have mainly directed GOP outside groups to spend there to help boost incumbents that only have a narrow lead.”
“Days before the Nov. 3 election, the Democratic fiancé of former Senate hopeful Haley Stevens declared he intends to vote for Republican Mike Rogers for U.S. Senate, saying he’s become convinced over the last three months that Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is an antisemite,” the Detroit News reports.
“President Trump on Wednesday called for Alaska Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola to drop out of the race and be criminally prosecuted after it was revealed that her allies were behind an effort to bring a candidate into the race that had the same name as her GOP opponent,” the New York Post reports.
Said Trump: “Mary Peltola should resign from the race. I think she should be prosecuted criminally for what she did.”
ABC News: Peltola campaign under fire after report that it recruited second Dan Sullivan for Alaska Senate race.
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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