Political Wire

Archives for 2026

A Reckoning Pushes Out Six Accused of Misconduct

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“Sexual misconduct allegations involving Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Tony Gonzales (R-TX) drove the two congressmen to resign in April and kick-started a reckoning at the Capitol,” the Washington Post reports.

”Almost seven months later, the number of House members accused of sexual misconduct or domestic abuse who have since lost their seats is up to six.”

”Two resigned. One opted not to run again. Another was defeated in his primary. And, on Tuesday, two more lost their bids for reelection.”

Democrats Plot a Unified Case Against Trump

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“Congressional Democrats see a target-rich environment next year. But they’re also worried that if they investigate everything, they may appear to investigate nothing,” Axios reports.

“Democrats want to move beyond the one-off hearings, fist-pounding document demands and subpoena threats that defined much of their oversight during President Trump’s first term.”

”The goal, according to senior Democrats, is to build a sustained narrative around the administration’s ‘cost, chaos and corruption’ — while showing voters they have legislative solutions to the problems they uncover.”

NPR: How Democrats plan to investigate the Trump administration after their midterm wins.

Historic Voter Turnout Powered Democrats’ Blue Wave

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“Turnout in the midterm elections reached its second-highest peak in more than a century — only slightly behind the 2018 midterms, during President Donald Trump’s first term — with the greatest number of voters casting ballots in states where Democrats won unexpected victories,” the Washington Post reports.

”Across the United States, 49 percent of eligible Americans voted, the second-highest turnout since 1914, when neither women nor African Americans could vote in many states, according to preliminary data from the University of Florida Election Lab.”

”Three states with the highest turnout — Maine (65.7 percent), Minnesota (65.2 percent) and Michigan (63.2 percent) — held competitive Senate races where Democrats prevailed. All three also elected Democratic governors.”

NBC News: 7 charts that illustrate the scope of Democrats’ big 2026 wave.

Beef Prices Rival Gas as Voters’ Top Complaint

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“If you had to pick one political advertisement to sum up voters’ biggest economic beef heading into the midterms, it might have been the one about, well, beef:,” Axios reports.

“A viral spot for Mississippi’s Democratic Senate candidate, Scott Colom, making fun of his opponent’s comment that people should simply ‘pick another protein’ to deal with higher beef prices.”

“The spiking cost of red meat really rankled this year — perhaps rivaled only by the price of gas as the hottest, most painful economic indicator of 2026.”

Why Trump Picked Stephen Miller

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CNN: “As he stewed over Tuesday’s historic losses and surveyed friends and allies about what he should do, he heard from a contingent who urged him to replace Wiles — and consider replacing her with Miller, people familiar with the matter said.”

“Those allies argued that Miller had already proven his ability to militantly carry out Trump’s whims and, unlike outside candidates, wouldn’t require any time to get up to speed.”

“Plus, they contended, the midterm results had revealed a Republican Party that had lost the trust of Trump’s own MAGA movement. Repairing that relationship and getting the GOP back on the winning track would require a movement figure like Miller to do it.”

“It was a diagnosis far removed from many other Republicans’ view of the midterm results, which put responsibility for the losses squarely on Trump’s agenda and decisionmaking.”

The New Republic: Stephen Miller will drag the GOP further into the electoral abyss.

Breaking the Decade-Long Trump Fever

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David Remnick: “In sheer magnitude, this week’s Democratic victory—a sweeping repudiation, above all, of Donald Trump and the low, dishonest decade he has defined—makes the post-Watergate humbling seem modest. Both houses of Congress flipped, giving Democrats a substantial majority in each.”

“The new Senate Majority Leader needn’t worry if, say, John Fetterman strolls across party lines. Nine of the ten most populous states will have Democratic governors. For those already anticipating the Presidential race in 2028, it’s significant that all the traditional battleground states (which Trump won just two years ago) have elected Democratic governors.”

“The Party scored in unlikely places, particularly in the Midwest and the South. Texas, the second most populous state in the Union and reliably red for a generation, will have a Democratic senator (James Talarico), governor (Gina Hinojosa), and state House. Kansas—seriously, Kansas—elected a Democrat to the Senate for the first time in ninety-four years. Democrats also chalked up amazing wins in both Carolinas.”

“The geographic shift was as pronounced as the demographic one. After moving toward Trump in 2024, many Latinos swung Democratic; so did many young white men. (Thanks for rethinking things, Joe Rogan!) And Black voters came out for Democratic candidates in huge numbers.”

Trump’s West Wing Has ‘Knives Out’ Vibe

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“The West Wing of the White House has taken on a ‘knives out’ atmosphere not seen since the early days of President Donald Trump’s first administration, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins said,” Mediaite reports.

Said Collins: “It’s hard to overstate, really just how factionazed that environment has become in the last several days alone. Aides that’ve spoken with have described workplace that is filled with tension and infighting, likening it to the knives out days of the president’s first term.”

The Wrap: Trump signals more White House shakeups amid Susie Wiles’ exit — but one Cabinet member is safe.

DeSantis Denies Report On a 2028 Presidential Bid

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“Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis fired back Friday at a report that he is preparing another White House bid in 2028, accusing The Washington Post of fabricating claims that he has started reaching out to political consultants about a potential campaign,” Fox News reports.

Said DeSantis: “The Washington Post is fabricating this out of whole cloth. I have not reached out to anybody about running for anything.”

He added: “Just another pathetic attempt to garner clicks. Using anonymous sources of course!”

Mediaite: Race to replace Trump officially starts as Ron DeSantis reportedly explores 2028 run.

The Senate’s Average Age Barely Budges

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New York Times: “When the new Senate convenes in January, it will welcome some (relatively) young new legislators. A few are even millennials, including James Talarico of Texas, 37, and Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, 42, two Democrats who may have energized young voters to turn out.”

“But their effect on the average age of the Senate — which has crept up over the last few decades — will be small. The senators of the 120th Congress will be less than a year younger, on average, than the Senate’s current members were at the start of the 119th Congress two years ago. That’s because so many sitting senators are old, and getting older.”

Democrats Begin a Fight to Shape the Party’s Future

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“Democrats expanded their map this week with big wins in traditionally red states that the party had all but written off for years by making appeals to moderate, independent and Republican voters,” the New York Times reports.

“At the same time, progressives won key races in two purple states, Michigan and Maine.”

“The combined victories amounted to a sweeping triumph that will send an ideologically diverse crop of new Democratic lawmakers to Congress in January, but internal debates are already emerging about what lessons the party should draw ahead of the 2028 presidential campaign.”

Big Business Loses a Sympathetic Ear

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“Lobbyists and surrogates for some of the world’s largest companies had a go-to strategy when they saw no other path to head off a damaging policy from President Trump: call Susie Wiles,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Throughout her tenure, Trump’s departing chief of staff became a sounding board for corporations and advocacy groups trying to influence the administration, according to people familiar with the matter. Her departure, announced Friday, will leave many businesses searching for a new interlocutor within the White House.”

19-Year-Old Wins Race for Maricopa County Clerk

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“If you live in Arizona’s Maricopa County, Sebastian Matta will soon be in charge of your court records, restitution payments, child support, wills and marriage licenses, among other filings,” the New York Times reports.

“For now, though, he’s a sophomore at Arizona State University, with a reflection paper about a jury trial due this month. That’s because Mr. Matta is 19.”

“His grade point average, around 3.25, is not extraordinary, but his ambition certainly is.”

“In the midterm elections on Tuesday, Mr. Matta, a Democrat, won more than 740,000 votes to become Superior Court clerk in Maricopa County — the country’s fourth-largest county by population.”

Mysterious Request Scrambles Supreme Court Gun Case

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“The Supreme Court received an unusual request late last week in one of its biggest cases this term, a challenge to state and local bans on AR-15s and other semiautomatic weapons,” the New York Times reports.

“In a one-paragraph filing, the lead plaintiff, Cutberto Viramontes, asked to be dismissed from the case. The 36-year-old Illinois resident had sued officials in Cook County in 2021, arguing that a local ban on semiautomatic rifles violated his Second Amendment rights, a dispute that spiraled into the Supreme Court case the justices have agreed to hear next month.”

Trump Still Defiant After a Bruising Week

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“Between the GOP’s thrashing at the polls, another one of President Trump’s planned D.C. construction makeovers being halted and an uphill battle to overturn his conviction on 34 felony counts, this week has netted a string of setbacks for the president,” Axios reports.

“Trump’s administration is entering its lame-duck era, facing criticism and potential investigations as its power to reshape the federal government dwindles.”

”But Trump is showing little inclination to change course.”

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.

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