Elon Musk Doubles Down in Fight with Sean Duffy
“Over the next several years, Elon Musk aims to take astronauts to the moon using a 403-foot rocket, launch a fleet of autonomous vehicles that lack a steering wheel or pedals, and turn millions of existing Teslas into self-driving cars overnight,” the Washington Post reports.
“Musk has acknowledged his ambitions require overcoming regulatory hurdles, roadblocks presented by NASA, the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.”
“Throwing caution to the wind, Musk took aim at the man overseeing each one of those agencies in X posts this week — Transportation Secretary and acting NASA administrator Sean Duffy — igniting a new public feud with the Trump administration through an official who possesses direct oversight of his business empire.”
Support for Jay Jones Collapses in Virginia
“Support for Democratic attorney general nominee Jay Jones has tumbled among Virginia voters in the wake of a texting scandal that broke three weeks ago, but likely voters have not transferred much support to his opponent — Republican incumbent Jason Miyares — and the race is a tie,” according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll.
“The scandal has not affected the contest for governor, where Democrat Abigail Spanberger continues to hold a 12-point lead over Republican Winsome Earle-Sears despite GOP efforts to tarnish the Democrat for her ballot-mate’s problems.”
Virginia Democrats Plan to Redraw House Maps
“The next front in the nation’s pitched battle over mid-decade congressional redistricting is opening in Virginia, where Democrats are planning the first step toward redrawing congressional maps, a move that could give their party two or three more seats,” the New York Times reports.
Pritzker Creates Watchdog for Federal Immigration Actions
“Gov. JB Pritzker said Thursday he would establish an independent commission to document aggressive federal immigration enforcement in Illinois and use the findings to hold agents and officials accountable,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Trump Pardons Convicted Binance Founder
“President Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the convicted founder of the crypto exchange Binance, following months of efforts by Zhao to boost the Trump family’s own crypto company,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt: “The Biden Administration’s war on crypto is over.”
Trump Says He’s Better Than Washington and Lincoln
President Trump couldn’t help but favorably compare himself to George Washington and Abraham Lincoln in a rambling speech in the Rose Garden, the Daily Beast reports.
Said Trump: “Hey, they didn’t put out eight wars, nine coming. We put out eight wars, and the ninth is coming, believe it or not.”
Eric Adams Will Endorse Andrew Cuomo for Mayor
“Mayor Eric Adams will endorse former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the New York City mayor’s race on Thursday, casting aside months of bitterness to try to stop the momentum of Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee,” the New York Times reports.
“Mr. Adams, a Democrat, ended his re-election campaign last month after it became clear that he did not have a path to victory in the November election. He lashed out at Mr. Cuomo for pressuring him to leave the race, calling him ‘a snake and a liar.'”
Trump’s New Ballroom Has a Name
Potential donors for President Trump’s planned ballroom have received a pledge agreement for “The Donald J. Trump Ballroom at the White House,” CBS News reports.
The Shutdown Cliff that Could Hit Democrats Hard
“Missed paychecks, canceled infrastructure projects and mass firings haven’t yet convinced congressional Democrats to change their government shutdown stance. But they are now facing down another pressure point threatening a program they’ve long championed benefiting millions of Americans,” Politico reports.
“The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps feed more than 40 million people, will start to run out of funds Nov. 1.”
Spanberger Comfortably Ahead in Virginia
A new Suffolk University poll in Virginia finds Abigail Spanberger (D) leading Winsome Earl-Sears (R) in the race for governor, 51% to 43% among likely voters.
Trump’s Cabinet Officials Sought to Sabotage Each Other
“To sabotage a fellow Cabinet secretary, Howard Lutnick dug up a decade-old comment critical of Donald Trump made by Sean Duffy to sink his chances of being named secretary of transportation, according to a new book about the 2024 election,” ABC News reports.
“The attempt ultimately failed, but the incident was one of many instances of sabotage and infighting between potential Cabinet officials that came to define Trump’s presidential transition…”
“The book details the frenzied process when billionaires, politicians and television stars flocked to Trump’s Florida club and residence, Mar-a-Lago, to rub shoulders with future leaders of government and increase their chances of being tapped by Trump.”
Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Karl, Jonathan (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 448 Pages - 10/28/2025 (Publication Date) - Dutton (Publisher)
JD Vance Says He Was ‘Insulted’ by Vote in Israel
“Vice President JD Vance said on Thursday before leaving Israel that he was ‘insulted’ by the Knesset vote on annexing the occupied West Bank, which took place while he was visiting the country this week,” Axios reports.
“Netanyahu has control over the majority in the Knesset and could have stopped the vote by taking it off the agenda or ordering the members of his party to vote against it. He chose not to in order to avoid a confrontation with his ultranationalist coalition partners.”
Graham Platner Holds Huge Lead Over Janet Mills
A new University of New Hampshire poll in Maine finds Graham Platner (D) leads Gov. Janet Mills (D) in the Democratic race for the U.S. Senate nomination, 58% to 24%.
Platner’s lead is fueled by self-described socialists and progressives along with young people.
Minnesota Senate Race Moves to Likely Democrat
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Republicans have a couple of open-seat Senate targets in Kamala Harris-won New Hampshire and Minnesota.”
“History suggests Democrats should be able to hold both races, but Minnesota has clearly become a less attractive target for Republicans than New Hampshire.”
Quote of the Day
“I have no respect for Speaker Johnson not calling us back to Washington because we should be passing bills.”
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), on the Tucker Carlson Show.
George Santos Settles Down
Former Rep. George Santos (R-NY), fresh out of prison on a pardon, told New York Magazine he plans to name any future kids Donald and Marjorie.
Platner Admits to Using ‘Indefensible’ Antigay Slurs
Maine U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner (D), who has already apologized for earlier misogynistic and racially insensitive remarks and said he did not realize that a tattoo on his chest resembled a Nazi SS emblem, is again under scrutiny, this time for anti-LGBTQ+ comments, the Advocate reports.
Platner confirmed that he authored a series of Reddit comments that include homophobic slurs, anti-LGBTQ+ jokes, and sexually explicit stories denigrating gay men.
Said Platner: “It’s indefensible.”
