“This election is about whether or not you want a senator who serves you or who serves their billionaire megadonors. And Ken Paxton has the ultimate megadonor. Elon Musk is trying to buy this fantasy in Texas.”
— Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico (D), quoted by Politico.
“President Donald Trump used an antisemitic term during a rally in Kansas as he came to the defense of Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who faces a surprisingly competitive race in a deeply red state,” Bloomberg reports.
“Marshall, an obstetrician-gynecologist, has faced complaints over his old medical practice’s billing and debt collection methods. Trump on Monday said the senator had received a ‘bum rap’ and was portrayed as ‘some kind of a Shylock-type guy.'”
“Shylock is the name of a rapacious Jewish moneylender in William Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice, and the term has long been considered antisemitic.”
Dan Pfeiffer: “Two things are different from Trump’s first term. First, Trump’s corruption is more egregious. He and the Republicans aren’t even trying to hide it anymore. It’s a smash-and-grab job. Trump’s net worth has gone up nearly $3 billion since the 2024 election.”
“The second change is even more important.”
“Back in his first term, people were pretty happy with the economy. In the run-up to the 2018 midterms, Trump’s economic approval was near 50%. Now, prices are up on just about everything. People are struggling to fill their gas tanks and put food on the table, and they are furious at Trump for raising their prices with tariffs and dumb wars.”
For members: It’s the Corruption Too, Stupid
Paul Krugman: “Trump’s support for Putin is unique in American history. Previous administrations have made deals with erstwhile adversaries, as Nixon did with China, and given up on support for failing allies, as the U.S. did in Vietnam and Afghanistan. But never before have we outright switched sides, let alone supported an aggressor while vilifying that aggressor’s victim.”
“What makes Trump’s support for Putin even more remarkable is that Russia has, by many accounts, been actively aiding Iran against America in the war Trump started. Who says so? Well, among others, Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. And the aid goes beyond intelligence sharing that has helped Iran target U.S. forces. Russia has also reportedly been sending Iran explosives and weapons components.”
“About 6 in 10 Americans are confident that the midterm elections will be conducted fairly and accurately, rising to over two-thirds of registered voters. But that means nearly 4 in 10 Americans and about 3 in 10 voters are not confident elections will be conducted fairly and accurately,” according to an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll.
“Investigating President Trump, his family and allies has turned into an increasingly popular fundraising pitch for some Democrats, who in recent months have dangled the probes as a lure for campaign contributions,” the Washington Sun reports.
“California Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the investigative House Oversight Committee, sent an August fundraising email appeal to supporters with the subject line ‘Subpoena power,’ saying that as chair of the panel, he was prepared to compel testimony from members of the president’s family and inner circle.”
A new Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll in Georgia finds Rick Jackson (R) barely leading Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) in the governor’s race, 46% to 45%.
“The U.S. isn’t the only country struggling with a slice of the electorate that lacks confidence in its domestic elections,” Semafor reports.
“Ahead of an Oct. 27 vote that will decide Israel’s future leadership, Israelis’ confidence in their elections sits at an eight-year low, according to new Gallup polling that found 56% have faith in the integrity of the vote. That’s down from a high of 71% in 2023, following the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas.”
“There’s a huge confidence chasm between those who approve of the country’s leadership under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and those who don’t — just 37% of the latter have faith in the vote.”
“Former officials from the Trump, Biden and Obama administrations are warning that the U.S. is at risk of losing a technological and industrial race with China—unless it adopts a sweeping energy-permitting bill,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“China has made energy infrastructure central to its industrial strategy. By contrast, the U.S. faces lengthy delays in building the transmission lines and energy components needed to power the development of semiconductors, critical minerals and artificial intelligence.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to meet with U.S. special envoys on Tuesday after President Donald Trump aimed a fresh spate of criticism at the wartime leader,” CNBC reports.
“Zelensky will arrive in Norway on Tuesday and meet with the country’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr and President of Finland Alexander Stubb in Oslo later in the day. U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will also take part in the discussions.”
“President Donald Trump was repeatedly heckled at a rally in Kansas on Monday night, with one protester screaming, ‘I fucking hate you!'” Mediaite reports.
“This is the whole deal. It’s the whole deal. If we don’t hang on to those working-class voters, we’re dead as a party. That’s why I say with no hyperbole, if President Trump hadn’t won in 2016, the Republican Party would be dead. Because the Republican Party had abandoned working-class Americans.”
— Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH), quoted by Fox News.
“One-third of voters who supported President Donald Trump in 2024 think his presidency is going worse than expected, according to a new poll — a worrying sign for Republicans as they try to save the party’s congressional majorities ahead of next month’s election,” the Washington Sun reports.
“The survey from the center-left Democratic think tank Third Way found that the share of Trump voters who thought things were going worse than expected had swelled from 22% in their April survey to 33% in September, when the new poll was conducted.”
“The economy is reeling from inflation, tariffs, and a war in Iran that’s made it more expensive to fill your gas tank, fridge and closet,” the Washington Sun reports.
“The Trump economy is also affecting Trump merch: The cost of Make America Great Again hats and several other Trump-themed items have spiked as well.”
Punchbowl News: “There may be nothing Pete Hegseth can do to save himself from eventually being impeached by the House.”
”Yet the combative Defense secretary may relish the fight with what he sees as the woke forces trying to destroy the U.S. military.”
”Even as Democrats aren’t sold on impeaching President Donald Trump again if they regain the majority, opposition to his lightning-rod Pentagon chief has emerged as a bicameral source of party unity. Many Democrats see it as a winning issue on the campaign trail.”
“President Trump said at a rally in Kansas Monday night that the Agriculture Department would provide $8 billion in economic aid to farmers hurt by high diesel prices,” the New York Times reports.
“It was the second time in two years that the president authorized billions of dollars in bailout money for farmers harmed by his administration’s policies, and came 15 days before a midterm election in which unhappy farmers and ranchers could be the deciding votes in close races across the country.”
“Voters in Alberta chose to stay in Canada by a convincing margin in a historic referendum on Monday, according to projections from the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., staving off an economic and political crisis that Prime Minister Mark Carney argued the country could ill afford,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Bloomberg: Alberta separation vote: 68% back staying in Canada, separatists vow to fight on.
“House Republicans are quietly scaling back hopes for the 10-seat boost they sought from redistricting nationwide, amid a souring political climate and polls showing a collapse in GOP support among Latino voters in Texas and Florida,” Axios reports.
“On their down days, Republicans privately worry that the great redistricting war of 2026 will net them only one seat nationwide, according to top GOP strategists.”
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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