“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.”
“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.”
“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.”
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“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.
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.”
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resources, platform, and power to stand up to the president, including, initially, the leaders of ABC—have surrendered, withdrawn, or become Trump sycophants themselves.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.”
“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.”
“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
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.
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.”
“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.”
“We have people in power making broad claims around certain drugs and autism that have been continuously disproven. The degree to which those comments can undermine public health, do harm to women who are pregnant, create anxiety for parents who do have children who are autistic – is violence against the truth.”
— Barack Obama, on X.
“New architectural renderings obtained by CBS News reveal in more detail the White House ballroom that is currently under construction,” CBS News reports.
“The Trump administration announced in July that a 90,000-square-foot ballroom with a seated capacity for 650 people will be constructed in the White House’s East Wing…”
“The new ballroom will be significantly larger than the main White House building, which comprises about 55,000 square feet over the ground floor, state floor and residence. That does not include the East and West Wings.”
“One of the most lucrative tax breaks corporate America won in Donald Trump’s signature economic legislation — worth an estimated $67 billion this year — is hitting a roadblock in a minimum tax Congress set three years ago under Democratic President Joe Biden,” Bloomberg reports.
“Trump’s recently enacted tax law sweetened a break for corporate research and development investments, a provision especially valuable to technology, pharmaceutical and manufacturing businesses.”
“But some businesses won’t be able to take full advantage of the break, thanks to the Biden-era provision that lobbyists argue threatens to curtail the economic boost in Republicans’ tax law.”
“Initial claims for unemployment insurance were well below expectations last week, helping to douse caution at the Federal Reserve and elsewhere that the labor market is in danger,” CNBC reports.
Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports the U.S. economy “grew more strongly in the second quarter than previously estimated, after figures on consumer spending were revised sharply higher.”
Variety: “Kyle and his mother go to war with prediction market apps while Donald Trump inadvertently terrorizes FCC chair Brendan Carr while trying to kill his butt baby with Satan.”
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Several defeated senators are currently running or considering runs for Senate in 2026.”
“In the postwar era, about 220 sitting senators have lost their seats in general elections or primaries, and most do not try to reenter electoral politics.”
“Still, almost 30 defeated senators have tried to return to the chamber, although only six have been successful since 1946.”
“Early this week, at an ABC affiliate owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group, the phones were ringing off the hook,” according to the Columbia Journalism Review.
“Every two minutes, someone was calling to complain about Jimmy Kimmel’s show being suspended from their local station.”
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.
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