“When former President Donald Trump looks up from his seat in Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday night during the Alabama-Georgia football game, he may see more than just 100,000 fans watching a high-stakes college football showdown. That’s because Vice President Kamala Harris plans to troll her opponent over his refusal to debate her for a second time — from the skies,” CNN reports.

“The Harris campaign has arranged to have a small plane fly over Tuscaloosa during the game with a banner declaring, ‘Trump’s Punting on 2nd Debate.’”

“It’s a challenge that won’t just be visible to those cheering on the Crimson Tide or the Georgia Bulldogs from the stands, a campaign official tells CNN. The Harris campaign will also air a national ad during one of the most highly anticipated games of college football where she calls on the former president to meet her on the debate stage one more time.”

Molly Olmstead: “They’re gathering by the thousands. They’re growing fast. They believe that Democrats are possessed by demons — and that Donald Trump must be president again at any cost.”

“Some supporters of former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who ended his White House bid and endorsed Donald Trump last month, are now backing the Republican,” Reuters reports.

“In a race that is expected to be won by narrow margins in battleground states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris are fighting over a thin slice of undecided voters.”

“That makes Kennedy’s endorsement potentially significant, as he left the race in late August with around 4% support.”

“Political polls, betting markets and statistical forecasts have become ubiquitous as November approaches. But there’s one predictive tool you may have missed: primary elections in Washington state, which took place last month,” the New York Times reports.

“It’s an indicator that election nerds pay particular attention to, for good reason: The general election results in the state a few months later tend to move in the same direction — whether becoming more Republican or more Democratic — as the rest of the country.”

“This year, results from Washington state are cause for some optimism among Democrats. They suggest a national environment somewhat similar to 2020, when Joe Biden outgained Donald Trump by 4.5 percentage points in the national popular vote and Democrats retained the House.”

“In the 2022 midterm elections, former President Donald Trump endorsed dozens of candidates down the ballot, positioning himself as Republicans’ undisputed kingmaker,” the New York Times reports.

“But in the competitive races critical to his party’s hopes of regaining control of the Senate, his picks all fell short — leaving the chamber in the hands of Democrats.”

“This year, even with Mr. Trump himself on the ticket, the Senate candidates he has backed to flip the seats of Democrats in key battlegrounds are running well behind him.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said at a Trump rally In Michigan that Democrats spent “tens of millions of dollars” to make him “look like a crazy person.”

Said Kennedy: “The Democratic Party spent tens of millions of dollars to defame me, to publish perjuries against me, to publish fake news against me, to marginalize me, to make me look like a crazy person.”

Nate Cohn: “Imagine, for a moment, that the latest Times/Siena polls in every key state were right on the mark. They won’t be, of course, but here’s the result you would get in the Electoral College: Harris 270, Trump 268.”

“In terms of the electoral count, it would be the closest modern U.S. presidential election…”

“We’ve had a lot of close elections in recent memory, but in none of them were the polls so close. In each of 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020, a candidate led by at least a few points in enough states to make one candidate a material if not overwhelming favorite. As Hillary Clinton can attest, a modest but clear lead is not a guarantee of victory. But here, neither Ms. Harris nor Mr. Trump can claim even that.”

“Kamala Harris is taking a brief break from wooing swing-state voters to attend high-dollar fundraisers in California this weekend to pad her financial advantage over Republican rival Donald Trump,” Bloomberg reports.

“Pitched by the campaign as the last chance for Golden State donors to meet with Harris before Election Day, tickets for Saturday’s event at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts and the Los Angeles fundraiser on Sunday top out at $926,600. Those who donate at least $100,000 can get a photo taken with the vice president, while those at the $250,000 level and above can attend a luncheon.”

Wall Street Journal: “Kamala Harris’s fundraising edge over Donald Trump has opened a floodgate of spending by her campaign on everything from multimillion-dollar advertising buys and payroll expenses to a six-figure investment in light-up wristbands and tens of thousands of dollars at ice cream shops.”

“North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson received burns Friday night while attending a truck show as he was campaigning for governor,” the AP reports.

Washington Post: Inside the Mark Robinson debacle: Panic, blame and pressure on Trump.

“Vice presidential debates have produced many memorable moments, but it’s hard to say any has made a decisive difference in the election outcome,” NPR reports.

“This year the anticipation may be higher than in the past, if only because the race is so close and neither candidate seems to have a clear advantage. The debate may provide the moment of decision for some voters and even a tipping point in a closely balanced electorate.”