Former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) wrote a letter to the South Shore Press asking President Trump to “intervene” and “help me escape” from prison.
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Microsoft Disables Services for Israel’s Defense Ministry
“Microsoft has disabled certain services and subscriptions by Israel’s defense ministry, after finding evidence that it used the tech company’s cloud services to surveil Gaza citizens,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Trump Says He Doesn’t Know If Comey Will Be Indicted
President Trump said he didn’t know if former FBI Director James Comey would be indicted after issuing a direct call for Attorney General Pam Bondi to do so over the weekend, The Hill reports.
Said Trump: “I can only say that Comey’s a bad person, he’s a sick person. I think he’s a sick guy actually, he did terrible things at the FBI. But I don’t know, I have no idea what’s going to happen.”
Official Who Put Trump Bibles in Schools Quits
“Oklahoma’s superintendent, who has attracted national attention as he sought to install religion and rightwing viewpoints in Oklahoma schools, will resign to run a conservative education non-profit,” The Guardian reports.
“Ryan Walters, who has led public schools in Oklahoma since 2022, has in the past tried to put Donald Trump-branded Bibles into classrooms and to require teaching 2020 election conspiracies.”
Mikie Sherrill Didn’t Walk with Class at Naval Academy
“Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee for governor of New Jersey, was barred from walking with her class at the U.S. Naval Academy in 1994 as a punishment connected to the massive cheating scandal that implicated over 130 midshipmen in her class,” the New Jersey Globe reports.
Said Sherrill: “I didn’t turn in some of my classmates, so I didn’t walk, but graduated and was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Navy, serving for nearly ten years with the highest level of distinction and honor.”
Super PACs Pay Penalty for Coordinating with Zeldin
“Two Republican super PACs paid nearly $1 million this month to quietly settle an inquiry into whether they illicitly coordinated with the campaign of Lee Zeldin, a member of President Trump’s cabinet, during his 2022 run for governor of New York,” the New York Times reports.
Jeffries Says Republicans Won’t Succeed in Redistricting
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) told Punchbowl News he doesn’t foresee “any circumstance” where Republicans will net 10 new seats through their unprecedented nationwide mid-decade redistricting push.
“As of now, Republicans have drawn five new red seats in Texas. GOP leaders are aiming for at least two in Ohio, two in Indiana, one in Missouri, possibly three in Florida and potentially one in Kansas.”
Said Jeffries: “They may not net any as far as I’m concerned because Democrats are fighting back hard. The Republicans were expecting that we would just roll over and play dead. And instead, California has responded aggressively.”
“Jeffries also said Democrats hope to strike down the map in Texas, arguing it violates the 14th Amendment and the Voting Rights Act. And he predicted Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez in South Texas would win reelection even in redder districts.”
Democrats Dig In On Shutdown
“If the White House thought its threat to fire federal workers during a government shutdown would spark a Democratic retreat, so far, it’s not happening,” Politico reports.
“Instead, multiple congressional Democrats brushed off the prospect of mass layoffs as a negotiating tactic and vowed not to bend as a midnight Sept. 30 shutdown deadline approaches.”
Archives Released Too Much of Sherrill’s Military Record
“A branch of the National Archives released a mostly unredacted version of Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s military records to Nicholas De Gregorio, an ally of Jack Ciattarelli, her GOP opponent in the New Jersey governor’s race,” CBS News reports.
“The disclosure potentially violates the Privacy Act of 1974 and exemptions established under the Freedom of Information Act.”
U.S. Strikes Deal with Elon Musk’s AI Company
“The Trump administration has signed a deal with Elon Musk’s xAI that would allow the artificial intelligence tool to be used widely across government, signaling a thaw in relations between the president and his billionaire backer,” the Financial Times reports.
Said Musk in a statement: “Thanks to President Trump and his administration, xAI’s frontier AI is now unlocked for every federal agency empowering the U.S. Government to innovate faster and accomplish its mission more effectively than ever before.”
Pam Bondi Has Concerns Over Indicting James Comey
“Attorney General Pam Bondi and other federal prosecutors have concerns about the case against former FBI Director James Comey, though an indictment could come as soon as Thursday,” CNN reports.
Democratic Anger at Their Own Party Fuels Primaries
NBC News: “Whether she intended it or not, the 39-year-old McMorrow started a trend of Democratic outsiders end-running party leaders to launch their campaigns, sometimes in explicit opposition to them. The movement is fueled by a crisis of confidence among Democratic voters in their own party, which is giving encouragement to the types of nontraditional candidates who have been walloped by leadership-aligned rivals in the past.”
“Altogether, ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, the moves have created a number of crowded and competitive-looking Democratic Senate primaries — contests that have often seen party leaders leap in to anoint favorites in recent years.”
Lower Than Cowards
Adam Serwer: “Kimmel’s refusal to capitulate stands out because so many other well-situated people—those with the resources, platform, and power to stand up to the president, including, initially, the leaders of ABC—have surrendered, withdrawn, or become Trump sycophants themselves. One by one, American leaders supposedly committed to principles of free speech, due process, democracy, and equality have abandoned those ideals when menaced by the Trump administration.”
“These cascading acts of cowardice from the people best positioned to resist Trump’s authoritarian power grabs have made Trump seem exponentially more powerful than he actually is, sapping strength from others who might have discovered the courage to stand up.”
“Defending democracy requires a collective refusal to acquiesce to lawless behavior from many different sectors of society. All of these powerful people trying to save their own skin have effectively multiplied Trump’s attacks on constitutional government, by enhancing a false sense of inevitability and invincibility.”
Justice Department Orders Probe of George Soros
“A senior Justice Department official has instructed more than a half dozen U.S. attorney’s offices to draft plans to investigate a group funded by George Soros, the billionaire Democratic donor whom President Trump has demanded be thrown in jail,” the New York Times reports.
“The official’s directive suggests department leaders are following orders from the president that specific people or groups be subject to criminal investigation — a major break from decades of past practice meant to insulate the Justice Department from political interference.”
“The move is the latest instance of the Justice Department moving against Mr. Trump’s perceived enemies.”
One Fifth of Americans Get News from TikTok
“A fifth of U.S. adults now regularly get news on TikTok, up from just 3% in 2020,” according to a new Pew Research survey.
“In fact, during that span, no social media platform we’ve studied has experienced faster growth in news consumption.”
For members: Another Trump Power Grab
Democrat Moves to Impeach RFK Jr.
Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) announced she would introduce articles of impeachment against Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. due to the “health care chaos” and “reckless cuts” he’s brought under his tenure.
Hollywood’s Face of Free Speech
Elizabeth Wagmeister: “Last week, Disney was on the verge of a Hollywood boycott… today, Hollywood is rallying around Kimmel with open arms.”
“Hollywood’s new crusade is fighting against government censorship and suddenly, Kimmel is the industry’s face of free speech.”
Hegseth Orders Rare, Urgent Meeting of Generals
“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered hundreds of the U.S. military’s generals and admirals to gather on short notice — and without a stated reason — at a Marine Corps base in Virginia next week, sowing confusion and alarm after the Trump administration’s firing of numerous senior leaders this year,” the Washington Post reports.
“The highly unusual directive was sent to virtually all of the military’s top commanders worldwide.”
