“Vice President JD Vance declared it ‘really obvious’ that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is already planning a White House bid while insisting he has yet to make a decision about 2028,” Mediaite reports.
Daily Archives
October 1, 2026
90 posts · Thursday
Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 191
Blue Wave Update
Trial Balloon · Ep. 191: Blue Wave Update
Schumer Super PAC Drops $2 Million in First Texas Spend
“A new arm of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s political committee on Thursday disclosed $2.1 million in spending on an ad against Texas Republican Ken Paxton,” the Washington Sun reports.
”It’s the first major spending by Democratic leadership in the state’s Senate race — but a drop in the bucket compared to Republicans’ investments over the past month.”
Vance Predicts Tough Midterms
“Vice President JD Vance acknowledged Thursday that Republicans face an ‘uphill climb’ in next month’s midterm elections — and that the results may be a data point he reviews as he decides whether to run for president in 2028,” NBC News reports.
Said Vance: “Historically there’s always a bit of an uphill climb, and I think you definitely sense that. I also think you can sense a sense of cautious optimism, in the sense that, you know, people feel like the numbers are sort of moving, maybe in our direction.”
He added: “Politically, there’s just a recognition that it’s always going to be hard to win a midterm when you have the White House, the Senate and the House.”
Trump Likely to Pick Jay Clayton for AI Czar
“Jay Clayton will likely be the White House’s pick for AI czar, and the Trump administration has been discussing having him remain in his current role as director of national intelligence,” CBS News reports.
How Trump Uses AI Chatbots
Time: “Since returning to office, Trump has marveled at AI’s capabilities. He is increasingly in thrall to the tech executives courting him. In December 2025, Elon Musk returned to the Oval Office for a clandestine meeting. Trump spent hours asking Grok, Musk’s AI chatbot, questions about his presidency and legacy.”
“At the time, Trump was ordering missile strikes against Venezuelan boats he alleged were smuggling drugs into the U.S. He asked Grok how Venezuelans would react if the U.S. captured Maduro. According to the official present, the chatbot responded that Maduro was a repressive and deeply unpopular dictator and that many Venezuelans would likely celebrate his downfall.”
“After Trump ordered the mission to seize Maduro, the following month, celebrations broke out in the streets. Trump, according to officials, came away thinking Grok was ingenious.”
Another Bonus Quote of the Day
“There arguably could be some similarities between the ’06 cycle and the 2026 cycle. Think about the condition of the country back in ’06: an unpopular war; six in 10 Americans opposed the Iraq war at that point; gas prices had doubled. Does this sound familiar? And we ended up losing six seats.”
— Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), quoted by Mediaite.
MLB Drops Proposal for Baseball Game at National Park
“Major League Baseball has abandoned a proposal to build a ballpark in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park,” the Washington Post reports.
“League officials had approached the Trump administration about the viability of playing a game at the national park, and a National Park Service official had scouted potential locations.”
Trump Urges Voters to Back Ken Paxton
“President Donald Trump sought to boost enthusiasm for Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton during a visit to deep-red Texas, the launch of a month-long campaign blitz ahead of November’s midterm elections,” Bloomberg reports.
Said Trump: “We need Ken so badly, and that’s why I’m here.”
CNN: Trump jokingly calls Paxton a “pain in the ass” at Texas event.
Lula and Bolsonaro Neck and Neck Days Before Vote
“President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro remain in a tight race days before Brazil heads to the polls, according to a new survey,” Bloomberg reports.
“Lula would take 48% of the vote compared with Bolsonaro’s 45% in a runoff scenario, according a Datafolha survey published Thursday.”
Abdul El-Sayed Is Still Trying to Unite the Democratic Base
New York Times: “Dr. El-Sayed narrowly won a bruising primary over the summer against Representative Haley Stevens, a moderate Democrat. But along the way, he alienated Jewish voters with his criticism of Israel. He lost older Black voters to Ms. Stevens. And he drove off independents with his left-wing policy views.”
“Now, he is working to mend fences and convince the party’s wary establishment that he is capable of winning a general election. It’s something of an about-face for a candidate whose earlier political identity — he ran for governor in 2018 as a left-wing agitator, and was a vocal surrogate for Senator Bernie Sanders in the 2020 presidential election — was combative outsider.”
Talarico Leads Paxton in Texas Senate Race
A new Fox News poll in Texas finds James Talarico (D) leading Ken Paxton (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 51% to 49%.
Texas Senate Race
James Talarico (D) 51%
Ken Paxton (R) 49%
The same poll in Texas finds Greg Abbott (R) leading Gina Hinojosa (D) in the governor’s race, 52% to 47%.
Texas Governor’s Race
Greg Abbott (R) 52%
Gina Hinojosa (D) 47%
Turek Leads Hinson in Iowa Senate Race
A new Fox News poll in Iowa finds Josh Turek (D) leading Ashley Hinson (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 49% to 47%.
Iowa Senate Race
Josh Turek (D) 49%
Ashley Hinson (R) 47%
The same poll in Iowa finds Rob Sand (D) leading Zach Lahn (R) in the governor’s race, 53% to 44%.
Iowa Governor’s Race
Rob Sand (D) 53%
Zach Lahn (R) 44%
Democratic Challengers Rake In Serious Money
Punchbowl News: “House Democratic candidates are reporting bonkers Q3 fundraising as a wave of small-dollar donations propel them through the final weeks before the midterms.”
“Campaigns have 15 days to report total earnings from the third quarter, which spanned from July 1 to Sept. 30. But Democrats with strong numbers are providing an early look. These numbers are a big warning sign for the GOP.”
Trump Diverts Aid for Europe to Latin America
“The Trump administration, acting in defiance of top Democrats on the House and Senate foreign affairs committees, has stripped tens of millions of dollars in U.S. military assistance from European and Middle Eastern countries and will give those funds instead to conservative-leaning governments in Latin America,” the Washington Post reports.
Why the Country Should Be Split Up
Coming soon: Secession: Why Our Country Should Split Up (And How to Do It Peacefully) by Kent Greenfield.
A law professor makes the case for secession, arguing that the fractures within the US run so deep, rendering our politics so dysfunctional, that the best way to heal is to initiate a nonviolent national divorce between the blue and red states.
Trump Dumbfounded On Why Inmate Couldn’t Be Executed
“President Trump expressed disbelief about Christa Pike’s botched execution, wondering how it could happen given that the lethal drugs should be ‘easy’ to administer,” the New York Post reports.
“Pike survived the two rounds of lethal injection, becoming the first person in history to survive that death penalty method.”
Said Trump: “How does that happen? Should be easy to do. It shouldn’t be very difficult.”
Trump Illegally Fired Seattle’s U.S. Attorney
“A federal judge ordered the Justice Department on Thursday to provisionally reinstate the judicially appointed U.S. attorney in Seattle, who was fired this summer amid a larger dispute over the president’s authority to fill key prosecutorial posts with candidates of his choosing,” the Washington Post reports.
8 in 10 Americans Disapprove of Trump On Inflation
Aaron Blake: “What we can say right now is that President Donald Trump’s handling of inflation is a historic liability — the likes of which we’ve rarely seen in modern American politics.”
“As many as 8 in 10 Americans now disapprove of Trump on that issue. That’s more than disapproved of presidents for wars gone wrong, botched crisis responses and even major scandals like Watergate.”
“A new AP-NORC poll on Thursday was the latest ugly data point for Trump. It showed Americans disapproved of him on cost-of-living issues by a stunning margin: 82% to 17%.”
“It’s rare to get even 70% of Americans to agree on anything political. But Trump has managed to unite 8 in 10 Americans against his handling of one of the country’s most important issues.”
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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 →