Reuters: “The groundswell building against data centers during election season has given Democratic candidates a new opening in the rural U.S. Midwest, where they have struggled to compete during Donald Trump’s presidency.”
Bill Cassidy Won’t Endorse Julia Letlow
“Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) said he won’t endorse Congresswoman Julia Letlow in her Senate campaign, but predicted that she will easily win the Nov. 3 election to replace him,” the Shreveport Times reports.
Said Cassidy: “She hasn’t asked me for my endorsement. She doesn’t need my endorsement. She has President Trump’s endorsement, and that what matters in our state.”
The Factions Driving the Democratic Socialists of America
“Democratic socialists are having a breakout year, including a win in a mayoral primary in Providence, R.I. on Wednesday. Though many of the group’s contenders have fallen short, candidates recommended or endorsed by a chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America have tallied several high-profile congressional primary victories and about 100 state and local primary wins, according to an August Brookings Institution analysis,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Yet the public is still trying to learn what the movement believes, how it is organized and the level of its followers’ involvement.”
Republicans Look to Trump to Drive Turnout
“Republicans are hoping the Trump-centric midterm convention kicking off in Dallas today reminds their base why they fell in love with the president in the first place,” Politico reports.
“The next 48 hours are geared in part toward turning out low-propensity voters who are loyal to Trump but tend to skip midterm elections. If they turn out, it won’t be because these voters like a particular congressman but because of their affinity for the president.”
“That means Trump’s speeches tonight and tomorrow should lay off talk of reflecting pools and helipads and focus on his signature achievements, the threat that Democrats are racing toward socialism and that the economy is better off in the hands of Republicans.”
Democrats Projected to Flip Pennsylvania House Seat
“With all precincts reported but still some ballots left to count, Democrats appear to have flipped a conservative state House district north of Pittsburgh,” Axios reports.
“Democrat Brandon Dukes led by 88 votes against Republican Scott Timko on Tuesday night with over 99% of the votes counted.”
Washington Post: What it means that Democrats are winning special elections in Trump country.
Was Darline Graham’s Dumb Debate Answer Just an Act?
Ed Kilgore: “Throughout her brief career as a senator and as a candidate to remain one, Darline Graham has gone to some lengths to distance herself from the legacy of her late brother while snuggling up to Donald Trump as closely as possible. That reflects a political shrewdness that Lindsey Graham himself might have ruefully endorsed.”
“After all, the very distinguished senior senator from South Carolina was never entirely trusted by the conservative ideologues of his state. A lot of the voters likely to dominate a low-turnout special-election runoff in the hellish heat of late August probably suspected smart-ass Lindsey looked down on them as knuckle-dragging rubes.”
“Darline needs to steer clear of such associations, and she also needs to make herself less the biological sister of Lindsey Graham than the political stepdaughter of the 47th president, whose endorsement improbably lifted her from caretaker status to a viable candidacy for six years in the Senate.”
Francesca Hong Ran No TV Ads in Narrow Loss
“Francesca Hong’s Wisconsin gubernatorial campaign embraced the new era of campaigning for progressive candidates, from a social media-dominated bid to her democratic socialist-influenced policy platform,” NOTUS reports.
“But part of her razor-thin loss to David Crowley on Tuesday could be explained by the traditional, or a lack thereof: broadcast TV ad spending.”
“Despite leading the Democratic field by double-digit margins before the primary, Hong was the only active candidate to seek the governorship without running broadcast TV ads, according to ad-tracking service AdImpact.”
AOC Knows a Lemon When She Sees One
Helen Lewis: “Francesca Hong lost the race to be the Democratic candidate for governor of Wisconsin. This is great news for American democracy.”
“Sorry if that seems harsh—she certainly ran an energetic campaign and came close to winning the nomination—but Hong was a profoundly flawed candidate in an important race. Even the leaders of her own faction of the Democratic Party recognized it, and stayed away: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders apparently know a lemon when they see one.”
“Her narrow loss is a positive reflection on the progressive luminaries’ judgment, as well as a demonstration that the party mainstream eventually managed to sort out a messy and dispiriting primary.”
Josh Shapiro’s Early Embrace of Data Centers Tests Him
Philadelphia Inquirer: “It was with this same spirit last summer that Shapiro announced the largest single private sector investment in Pennsylvania history: Amazon committed $20 billion in Pennsylvania that included two data center campuses in Luzerne and Bucks Counties. Pennsylvania scored the project because of its promise to fast-track permitting and use tax breaks for the massive developments.”
“But in a year’s time, the politics — and public opinion on both sides of the aisle — have dramatically shifted on data center development. Shapiro’s early welcome of data centers has created an opening for criticism from his gubernatorial opponent and members of his own party.”
The People Who Bet Big On MAGA’s Future — and Lost
David Graham: “When Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025, he was nursing grudges and claiming a mandate. The institutions he saw as his enemies—in politics, business, and education—faced a dilemma about how to respond.”
“A few concluded that they should resist the president’s demands of fealty and collaboration. Another group tried appeasement, seeking accommodation that would allow them to otherwise operate as usual. And some looked at the landscape and concluded that something fundamental had shifted in American politics. They saw the MAGA movement as a lasting change, and decided that their best move was to make their own radical shift to adjust.”
“As I wrote last week, predictions of a Trump-driven realignment of the electorate now look extremely shaky.”
Quote of the Day
“I had some hot takes, some bad takes on Twitter, but when you’re a business owner running a restaurant during Covid, trying to pay bills as a student, you’re putting feelings out there into the world. But I’ve evolved, I’ve learned. I think it’s more dishonest not to learn.”
— Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong (D), quoted by Politico, on being dogged in her campaign by past statements.
Americans Are Turning On Trump
David Graham: “The Democratic Party’s problems remain very real, but for the moment, Trump and the GOP have more serious ones. The most glaring one is Trump’s deep personal unpopularity. In the current polarized and dyspeptic political environment, all presidents seem to be unpopular, but Trump is in a different league.”
“A CNN poll released last week measured Trump at 34 percent support, matching the low he reached in that poll following the January 6 insurrection. Still, that was better than his showing in the AP-NORC survey, which found his approval at 33 percent, just one point above a 2017 low. Quinnipiac University found Trump at 32 percent, the lowest ever in that poll.”
“These broad strokes are ugly enough, but digging into polling results shows particular deterioration with the particular groups that were supposed to be at the center of the Trump 2024 realignment.”
Trump and Graham Dominate South Carolina Debate
“Senator Darline Graham sought to introduce herself to Republican voters in South Carolina on Monday, in the first debate of a condensed special primary election to succeed her brother, Senator Lindsey Graham, who died last month,” the New York Times reports.
“In the whirlwind few weeks since Mr. Graham died of an aortic tear, Ms. Graham was picked to serve the remainder of his term — and then made the surprise decision to run for the seat, with President Trump’s support.”
“The special primary election is Aug. 11, with a second debate scheduled for Tuesday night.”
Fox News: GOP party fissures exposed in battle for S.C. Senate seat to replace Graham.
Is Michigan a Reckoning for the Democratic Establishment?
Dan Pfeiffer: “It’s been a long time since a statewide Democratic primary brought out so much intensity and where the stakes felt so high. There is, of course, the question of whether Michiganders will pick the best candidate, something people have been debating on social media for months, and both sides could not be more dug in. But the race feels bigger than that. It has become a proxy war for the future of the Democratic Party — the most important battle in the Democratic civil war that has been taking place since at least 2024.”
“The fact that the primary is taking place in Michigan, a major swing state and now one of the five early states that will help determine the Democratic nominee in 2028, only magnifies the stakes. This isn’t one of those congressional districts that Kamala Harris won by 50 points. It’s a major swing state, so what happens tonight and in November is going to have major influence on the 2028 primary.”
Wisconsin Dems Are in Chaos Over Their Governor’s Race
“Tony Evers is trying to play kingmaker in Wisconsin’s pivotal governor’s race. So far, it’s not working,” Politico reports.
”Instead of cutting through the chaos of a messy Democratic primary, the sitting governor’s endorsement of Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley has so far only further inflamed what has become a major ideological battle between party factions. But with just nine days to go, Evers isn’t giving up. In fact, he’s digging in on the legacy project to hand-pick his successor.”
“Evers, who returned from a nearly two-week trade mission to Africa earlier this week, is now hitting the campaign trail with Crowley in one final push as they try to head off democratic socialist Francesca Hong — who is leading Crowley by a wide margin.”
New York Post: Socialist Wisconsin Dem Francesca Hong in hot seat after “Cancel Thanksgiving” post emerges online.
America’s Most Divided State Loves Its Extremes
The Atlantic: “Wisconsin has been the nation’s most closely divided state for a quarter century. Since 2000, only one presidential candidate—Barack Obama, twice—has carried the state by more than a single percentage point. But despite its status as a battleground, America’s Dairyland has never been a bastion of milquetoast moderation. Wisconsin has produced both a father of progressivism, Robert La Follette, and the red-baiting conservative Joseph McCarthy. More recently, its voters have backed the liberal stalwarts Russ Feingold and Tammy Baldwin as well as the right-wing Republicans Scott Walker and Ron Johnson.”
“Francesca Hong is keenly aware of this history. Indeed, she’s relying on it as she tries to persuade Democratic voters to trust her with the party’s nomination for governor later this month.”
Mandela Barnes Ends Campaign for Wisconsin Governor
“Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes (D) has ended his campaign for governor,” the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
“The decision by Barnes came amid reporting into allegations that Barnes was taking advantage of his role in the party to have sexual encounters with young adult women, which promoted an investigation last year by the state Democratic Party.”
NOTUS: Mandela Barnes drops out of chaotic Wisconsin governor’s race.
Barnes’s withdrawal does not answer the more uncomfortable question of why allegations serious enough to prompt a party investigation did not prevent his campaign from launching in the first place.
Two Advance to a Runoff in Georgia Special Election
“Marcye Scott, the daughter of the late Rep. David Scott, and fellow Democrat Everton Blair advanced to a runoff Tuesday in the Georgia special election to fill the final months of the longtime congressman’s term in the House,” NBC News reports.
“The two candidates finished atop a five-candidate, all-party special primary election for Georgia’s 13th District. But since no one got majority support, the race will go one more round.”
Fox News: Daughter of late House Dem forced into runoff after falling short in special election.
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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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