Political Wire

Political Wire Members get the complete experience: exclusive analysis, a 24/7 trending news, no advertising, the weekly news quiz and more.

Stay ahead of politics without spending all day following it.

Join today for instant access.



Trump Steps Up Stunts as U.S. Midterms Loom

By Leave a Comment

“From trolling Canada about a lake to suddenly talking about Kim Jong-un, U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent distractions speak louder than words,” AFP reports.

“The former reality television star has long been known for his reliance upon a simple tactic: when you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.”

“But the 80-year-old’s recent stunts appear to be even more targeted than usual at wrestling the news away from the Iran war and the economy as difficult midterm elections loom in November.”

CNN: Trump is preparing to blame the GOP for the midterms.

Mike Johnson Planning to Meet with Elon Musk

By Leave a Comment

“Speaker Mike Johnson is planning to meet with GOP megadonor Elon Musk in Texas,” Politico reports.

”The effort comes as Johnson stumps for Republican candidates across the Lone Star State ahead of the midterms. It’s the latest sign that GOP leaders hope Musk will spend heavily to help the party keep control of Congress.”

British Far-Right Provocateur Deported by ICE

By Leave a Comment

“Milo Yiannopoulos, the British far-right provocateur and former Yeezy executive, has been deported to the United Kingdom, the Department of Homeland Security said Saturday,” the Washington Post reports.

”U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Yiannopoulos on Thursday at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, according to a statement from a DHS spokesperson. The statement referred to him as an ‘illegal alien from the United Kingdom’ who legally entered the United States in 2019 but then ‘chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws.'”

Republicans See Trump’s Unceasing Iran War as Threat

By Leave a Comment

“Six months into a conflict that President Donald Trump predicted would last ‘four to five weeks,’ Republican strategists worry there’s no way to keep the Iran war from hurting the party’s prospects in November’s midterm elections,” Bloomberg reports.

“The continuing hostilities have demoralized GOP voters, who sent Trump to the White House in order to tame inflation and keep the U.S. out of overseas conflicts.”

“Compounding Republican fears is the president’s apparent lack of concern, even as the unpopular conflict drags down his approval rating and polls showing rising voter frustration with the war and the high gas prices and stubborn inflation it’s fueled.”

Ukraine Says Russia Planning Ground Offensive On Kyiv

By Leave a Comment

“Ukraine has received intelligence that Russia is preparing for a possible new ground offensive toward Kyiv as well as Chernihiv in the nation’s far north, a top official said,” Bloomberg reports.

“There are no concrete dates or signs that Russian striking units are gathering near Ukraine’s northern borders. However, certain assessments are being made by Moscow’s military leadership.”

Trump Keeps Building His Ballroom

By Leave a Comment

“Construction on President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom shows no signs of slowing down. And the U.S. Supreme Court shows no signs of wanting to stop it,” Bloomberg reports.

“More than a week has passed since Chief Justice John Roberts issued an interim order letting work continue while the court considers the case. Two lower courts said Trump flouted the law by starting the project without congressional authorization.”

“On its face, Roberts’ order was neutral. The one-page administrative stay gave no explanation and said nothing about the likelihood of Trump securing the necessary five votes for a longer-term order to let construction continue without restriction while the litigation proceeds.”

“But the practical consequences are clear.”

Fed Chief Kevin Warsh Turns to Central Banking 101

By Leave a Comment

“With markets wobbling and the world watching, Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh went back to basics yesterday morning: He affirmed that the Fed is determined to get inflation down and may have to raise interest rates to accomplish it,” Axios reports.

“If the Warsh Fed follows through with rate hikes, it would increase borrowing costs for Americans and potentially put him in the crosshairs of the rate-cut loving president who appointed him.”

Government Equity Stakes Face Election Risks

By Leave a Comment

“Traders have made a bundle over the past year following President Donald Trump as the U.S. government pursues an unprecedented strategy of taking ownership stakes in publicly traded companies,” Bloomberg reports.

“But with the deeply polarized midterm elections approaching and polls suggesting the Democratic Party is likely to win a majority in at least one house of Congress, market strategists see rising risks of the administration’s equity positions.”

Trump Deportations Take a Bite Out of Fast Food

By Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is eating into sales at U.S. fast-food restaurants, eroding a source of growth the industry long relied on,” the Financial Times reports.

“The vast majority of those targeted for deportation are from Latin American countries — a crucial segment of the fast-food industry, with 35 percent of Latino people in the U.S. consuming fast food on any given day, according to a 2018 study by the health department.”

How Karoline Leavitt Debased Her Job

By Leave a Comment

Jonathan Chait: “The lie is the elemental matter of the Trump administration. The value of lying is Donald Trump’s deepest belief. He built his celebrity image through shameless and constant deceit that permitted him to bounce from blunder to blunder while constantly reeling in new suckers. Lying is also what binds his loyalists to him: The highest calling of any figure in Trump world is to refuse any concessions to reality when Trump commands it, and the surest ticket to oblivion is to speak the truth.”

“All of this has made the job of press secretary in a Trump administration less, not more, important than it normally is. In most administrations, the White House press secretary has a unique role in shaping public opinion, whereas the other staffers are concerned principally with governing. In Trump’s White House, distorting reality, rather than trying to improve it, is the highest priority for every official, including and especially the president himself. In an administration where everybody’s main priority is to lie on television, the role of the press secretary is redundant.”

America’s Data Center Revolt Gets Boost From China Bots

By Leave a Comment

“Roughly 200 accounts from a suspected Chinese bot farm have quietly tried to influence Americans to oppose AI data centers on social media,” Axios reports.

“The U.S. and China are racing to build the world’s most advanced AI systems — and it appears Chinese propaganda has infiltrated American circles with the hope of slowing the U.S. down.”

Political Campaigns Are Quietly Paying Influencers

By Leave a Comment

New York Times: “As more people spend time scrolling on their phones, campaigns view these shows of support from influencers as a vital way to reach voters. They are also significantly less expensive than traditional advertising.”

“But unlike campaign mailers, billboards and television spots, these messages fall into a legal gray area.”

“There are no federal regulations requiring disclosure of payments for political support on social media, and only a few states have such rules. That allows influencers, in most instances, to endorse candidates for a fee without ever disclosing those payments in their posts. Creators say some campaigns have even asked them to actively conceal the fact that they’re being compensated, making it impossible to know what’s genuine support — and what is pay-for-play.”

Jon Ossoff Courts Broad Appeal with an Anti-Trump Script

By Leave a Comment

“Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia entered this election cycle with every reason to tack to the political middle,” the New York Times reports.

“He is the only Senate Democrat seeking re-election this year in a state President Trump carried in 2024, making him one of the most vulnerable incumbents in his party and an obvious Republican target from the start.”

“But Mr. Ossoff hasn’t moderated his votes or his message to appeal to a broader swath of voters, as Democrats in competitive statewide races often do in the conservative-leaning South. Instead, he has dived into his party’s efforts to thwart the president’s agenda in Congress, and sharpened his attacks on Mr. Trump and Republicans on the campaign trail.”

High Debt and Rising Prices Catch Up to Trump

By Leave a Comment

“In the nearly two years since President Trump clinched his return to office, the U.S. economy has come under great duress, leaving families and businesses to suffer through the expensive consequences of constant global conflict and soaring government debt,” the New York Times reports.

“It was the financial frustration of a pandemic-weary electorate that helped to catapult Mr. Trump and his fellow Republicans to a rare supermajority in 2024, which they promised to use to defeat the scourge of inflation and slash the profligate government spending they saw as the root of the problem.”

“But Mr. Trump’s actions in office have complicated — if not undermined — those pledges. With two months until the midterms, some of his policies have prolonged or worsened the economic fortunes of those he promised to help.”

Judge Throws Out Confession by Alleged 9/11 Mastermind

By Leave a Comment

“A military judge on Friday tossed out a confession that alleged Sept. 11 attacks mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed delivered to FBI agents almost 20 years ago, finding it was not given voluntarily,” CBS News reports.

“The ruling marks a blow to the federal government’s long-delayed effort to prosecute Mohammed, who is accused of developing the plot to crash planes into the Pentagon and World Trade Center. He is being held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, along with several other defendants who are awaiting trial.”

About Political Wire

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

Praise for Political Wire

“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”

— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”

“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”

— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report

“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”

— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report

“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”

— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia

“Political Wire is a great, great site.”

— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”

“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”

— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post

“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”

— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit

“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”

— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.