Political Wire

Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 190

Trump Is Everywhere

A new episode of Trial Balloon just dropped for Political Wire members. Log in or become a member

Trial Balloon · Ep. 190: Trump Is Everywhere

Trump Suggests ‘Ocean of Americas’ as New Name

· Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump on Saturday floated the idea of renaming more bodies of water, following his efforts to change the names of the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario,” the Washington Post reports.

Said Trump: “We’ve got the gulf. We’ve got a beautiful lake. Now, somebody said, you need a river. … We need a river. We need an ocean.”

“Trump mused that he could rebrand either the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean, and he appeared to joke that the new name could be in honor of him.”

He added: “We call it ‘Trump Ocean’ or, or, ‘Ocean of the Americas,’ something like that. Before I get out, I think we should have an ocean. And we need a great river.”

Donors Strike New Tone About Helping Paxton

· Leave a Comment

“For months, Republican donors insisted they didn’t want to bankroll Ken Paxton’s Texas Senate race after President Donald Trump endorsed him over long-time incumbent John Cornyn,” Politico reports.

“To them, that decision made bailing out Paxton the president’s responsibility.”

“But polls have deteriorated in the weeks ahead of the midterm election so much so that many of these same donors are dropping their objections. The only thing that matters now, they say, is keeping the Senate – by whatever means necessary.”

AI Agents Tried to Fill Out Visa Forms

· Leave a Comment

“Artificial intelligence agents created by Anthropic, acting on their own, tried to gain access to a range of government websites, filled out visa applications on the State Department’s website and sent a fake homicide tip to Philadelphia’s Police Department,” the New York Times reports.

This Is About Much More Than Just Diesel

· Leave a Comment

Phillips O’Brien: “Since Trump became president for the second time, the USA has moved steadily to support Putin in his war to wipe out Ukraine. For most of the time that has been through limiting Ukraine and leaving Ukraine defenseless—so that Russia can bombard Ukraine mercilessly (which we are now seeing).”

“However, that has not been all. The U.S. aid for Russia has extended to outright diplomatic support (all those UN votes, the Putin red-carpet visit, etc.), to spreading Russian disinformation (most recently by Marco Rubio this week), to even manipulating Ukraine and Ukrainian allies into doing what Russia wants (hopes and dreams in the USA). Yes, there have been limited crumbs thrown Ukraine’s way, but these have been to keep leverage over the Ukrainians, to see if they can be bullied into doing what Putin wants because of some deeply misguided hope and belief in the USA.”

“The truth of U.S. behavior has been that the U.S. has been helping Russia, but until now more by hobbling Ukraine and its partners. Now, the U.S. is coming out as a more direct supporter of Russia—and in the process it is blaming the Ukrainians for that. The diesel issue is not an end in itself, it is a means to an end. Understand that, and you understand it all.”

Pentagon Raises Count of Troops Who Died

· Leave a Comment

“The Pentagon acknowledged late Friday that the number of troops who have died in the Middle East during its operations against Iran is higher than previously reported, and updated the official count to include two more noncombat deaths,” the Washington Post reports.

In case you missed it

Just for Members

Become a member to read them →

A Bad Election Night for the GOP or a Catastrophic One?

· Leave a Comment

Amy Walter: “With just under a month until Election Day, the political environment is as brutal for Republicans as any I’ve seen in at least 20 years.”

“The structural advantages Republicans counted on to protect them from big losses in this election — a favorable Senate map, redistricting wins, and a huge financial edge — are no longer holding. Middling Republican enthusiasm, as well as massive defections from the Trump 2024 coalition’s Latino voters and independents, have turned many safe GOP seats into nail-biters. Meanwhile, Democrats’ willingness to crawl over proverbial hot coals to send President Donald Trump a message at the ballot box has been elevated all cycle and shows no signs of abating.”

“The difference between a bad loss and a catastrophic one for Republicans this fall now depends almost entirely on their ability to get their disaffected voters in traditionally red states and districts to the polls. In other words, will negative partisanship be a more powerful force in this election than high energy prices and inflation? Today, the economic environment feels like a more powerful force.”

Trump Says He Should Have Won ‘8 Nobel Peace Prizes’

· Leave a Comment

“President Trump returned to a familiar line of attack on Friday morning and Saturday night, castigating the Norwegian Nobel Committee for awarding the 2026 Peace Prize to Navi Pillay, a South African human rights lawyer and international judge,” the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Trump, who has openly campaigned for the honor to be bestowed on himself, made his case in a nearly 600-word Truth Social post at 11:39 p.m. on Friday, arguing that he had settled eight wars and ‘should have won 8 Nobel Peace Prizes, not just 1.'”

Trump Calls for Zelensky’s Removal

· Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump urged Ukrainian citizens to replace Volodymyr Zelensky, saying he has not done enough to ‘make a deal’ to end the war with Russia and bring down diesel prices,” the Washington Sun reports.

Said Trump: “I think it’s time for Ukraine to get a new president.”

Kimberly Guilfoyle Boasted of Private Jet Trips

· Leave a Comment

“Kimberly Guilfoyle, as America’s newly minted ambassador to Greece, boasted at Davos about her close ties to two Greek tycoons and said they were bankrolling her high-rolling trips around the world,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Guilfoyle was flexing her connections to wealthy Greek businessmen in January as she made an urgent request. She was being blocked from attending an upcoming dinner being held for Eric Trump, and she wanted to enlist an American businessman who was on the guest list to help get her in the door.”

Said Guilfoyle: “You know, I can deliver the world to you. Which you deserve. I’m going to make you a lot of fucking money.”

New York Times: Exasperation and resignation in Greece over allegations against Kimberly Guilfoyle.

Trump to ‘Make a Decision’ On Live-Streamed Execution

· Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump on Saturday said he would decide whether to live-stream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan, two days after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it would be publicly shown,” the Washington Post reports.

Said Trump: “There are two thoughts: don’t show it, and show it. By showing it, maybe other people won’t be doing what he did. I’ll make a decision, ultimately.”

The Conspiracy Probe of Trump Foes Is Faltering

· Leave a Comment

“Last year, Justice Department officials said a sweeping investigation would unravel a grand conspiracy by a cabal of national security officials who sought to undermine President Trump,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Trump allies hoped it would definitively confirm what they have been alleging for years: Officials who investigated the president over the last decade engaged in what was essentially a coordinated effort to violate his civil rights.”

“Instead, the probe has been beset by departures, infighting and inexperience.”

Federal Judge Blocks DOJ From Accessing State Voter Rolls

· Leave a Comment

“A federal judge has blocked the Justice Department from accessing state voter rolls to find noncitizen voters and bar them from casting ballots,” the Washington Sun reports.

“Shortly after President Donald Trump authorized the attorney general to contact states for information on suspected election law violations in March 2025, the DOJ began requesting complete and unredacted copies of states’ computerized voter registration lists. The department has filed dozens of lawsuits in attempts to compel enforcement — all of which have been blocked or dismissed by other district courts so far, with a handful of decisions outstanding.”

Trump Denies Role in Plan to Livestream Execution

· Leave a Comment

“President Trump said he wasn’t involved in the plan to livestream the execution by firing squad of Fort Hood killer Nidal Hasan, while stressing that he understands the decision to make an ‘example’ of him,” the New York Post reports.

Said Trump: “They want to do that because they want to set an example. I wasn’t involved in that decision, but I understand the decision.”

Kimberly Guilfoyle Scandal Furor Rumbles On

· Leave a Comment

“The uproar isn’t dying down over U.S. Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle and her reported request to have a MAGA donor pay down her personal credit card debt,” The Hill reports.

“President Trump, when asked about the matter as he prepared to leave for New York Friday, was conspicuously noncommittal.”

Said Trump: “I just heard about it: Too bad. I don’t know too much. But she was always very nice.”

MS NOW: Trump donor accuses Kimberly Guilfoyle of quid pro quo: ‘She’s a grifter.’

Taegan Goddard

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.

More about Taegan Goddard →