“President Trump, defending his decision to ease tariffs and other sanctions against Russia, said on Sunday that he was making ‘great progress’ in a peace deal with the Kremlin and suggested for the first time that the process included ‘hostage negotiations,'” the New York Times reports. “He did not specify whose release he was seeking.” […]

Tom Nichols: “In the past week, the president of the United States has conclusively turned America into an ally of the Russian Federation.” “Donald Trump has now abandoned pretense and is openly aiding the Kremlin in its war against a friend and partner of the U.S. The American commander in chief has abandoned the Western […]

“Right-wing candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are locked in a tie less than a week ahead of Brazil’s runoff election, according to a new poll,” Bloomberg reports. “Bolsonaro would take 50.3% to Lula’s 49.7% of valid votes, excluding blank and null ballots, according to a BTG Pactual/Nexus survey published Monday.”

“A mysterious super PAC propping up retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan in Alaska’s closely watched Senate race is funded by progressive donors, new financial disclosures reveal,” the New York Post reports. “Dan J. Sullivan, aka ‘Decoy Dan,’ shares the same first and last name as incumbent Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R-AK) and is listed on […]

“French officials, acknowledging law-enforcement failures, rolled out tougher security measures and pledged aid for businesses after cost-of-living protests this weekend degenerated into violence, vandalism and looting,” Bloomberg reports.

Foreign Policy: “Many of the immediate consequences of the Israeli-American war with Iran are already clear. The further emergence of drones and missiles as dominant weapons of war; the danger to the global economy from the threats to vital chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb; and the inadequacy of U.S. […]

“Republicans are playing whack-a-mole with President Donald Trump in the final two weeks of the midterms,” Politico reports. “GOP candidates are desperate to stick to tax cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill, Trump accounts for children and the president’s work to lower the cost of prescription drugs.” “Instead, in the midterms’ final stretch, Trump […]

Wall Street Journal: “For 18 months, since a disastrous Oval Office meeting with Trump early in his presidency, Zelensky had been trying to court him. Now he signaled to those around him that plain speaking was needed.” “Zelensky, traveling to meet European allies in London and Brussels, decided to publicly criticize Trump’s approach, despite the […]

One of Donald Trump’s central promises during the 2024 presidential campaign was that he would bring down prices and make everyday life more affordable. He even pledged to get gasoline below $2 a gallon. Join now to continue reading. Members get exclusive analysis, bonus features and no advertising. Learn more. If you’re already a member, […]

“Republicans are already starting to blame each other as the midterm election spirals further out of their control,” Politico reports. “Everyone is bracing for President Donald Trump’s ire if the party loses big in November. House Republicans are planning to accuse the Senate side. Trump political aides have taken to directly calling campaigns they feel […]

“The money spigot is sputtering in Georgia’s Senate race amid growing expectations that Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff will win reelection,” Politico reports. “The Senate Leadership Fund, Republicans’ top Senate super PAC, did not spend on broadcast television in the state last week — the first week they were off air in the race, according to […]

“President Donald Trump and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers stepped up attacks over the weekend, attempting to link Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood, a claim El-Sayed has denied in town halls and media interviews,” the Detroit News reports. Associated Press: Bitter Michigan Senate race rattles Jewish and Muslim voters.

“Republicans are racing to shore up their red wall as it starts to crumble,” Politico reports. “In the states that propelled Donald Trump and his MAGA movement to power a decade ago, the GOP is staring down close races all over the map and bracing for the worst.” “Nowhere is this more on display than […]

“Three national polls show President Trump’s approval rating hitting new lows as Democrats lead Republicans by 8 to 10 points ahead of the midterms,” Axios reports. “Republicans need Trump’s loyalists to turn out, but embracing an unpopular president risks alienating independents they need to win competitive races.”

Bob Woodward spills the beans in his new book: “Richard Darman was what I call a ‘hide in plain sight’ source, because it was widely known that we were close friends. Not known, but perhaps suspected, was that he was a pipeline for me into the White House during the Presidencies of Ronald Reagan and […]

“After months absent from the campaign trail, Democrat Xavier Becerra has increased public appearances and began airing television ads as mail ballots reach California voters,” the Los Angeles Times reports.

“Tech billionaire Elon Musk said on Monday that he would give every child in the United States a share in his SpaceX rocket company,” Agence France-Presse reports. Said Musk: “Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many.”

“Trump administration officials are preparing to impose financial penalties on millions of Americans in default on their federal student loans next year,” the Washington Sun reports. “The Treasury Department is moving forward with plans to hire private debt collectors, three of the sources said, possibly as soon as November. The sources said those plans are […]

New York Times: “While it’s difficult to pinpoint the number of MAHA supporters who are pulling their support from the Republican Party, nearly 70 percent of rural supporters of the movement said the Trump administration’s policies have had an adverse effect or no impact on the health of people where they live, according to a […]

“If the United States will officially take the side of Russia, of course if these two countries will be together, of course we will not prevail and we will not be able to stand. If United States will support Putin, I mean, it’s unbelievable. It’s a tragedy. It’s a historic mistake and a big tragedy.” […]

Punchbowl News: “With just two weeks until Election Day, Trump is hardly sniffing any House district that’s in play for Republicans, even though he’s headed to some reliably red states with toss-up Senate races (hello Iowa and Kansas and closer-than-usual South Carolina!) This is a far cry from how Trump said he’d be spending the […]

“President Donald Trump defended his decision to ease pressure on Russia and accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of prolonging the war Sunday, hurling blame across the Atlantic even as members of his own party criticized Trump’s approach to Moscow,” the Washington Post reports.

“Trump administration officials and allies are starting to debate who will shoulder the blame if Republicans perform poorly in November,” Semafor reports. “The White House has witnessed an uptick in drama driven by the midterms, from maneuvering to replace chief of staff Susie Wiles to finger-pointing at James Blair, President Donald Trump’s outside adviser whose […]

Nate Cohn: “Are the midterm polls overestimating the Democrats?” “It’s hard not to wonder. We’ve seen the polls inflate Democrats’ chances many times, but we’ve never seen Democratic candidates doing this well in red states during the Trump era. Recent polls have shown them leading in enough states to take the Senate.” “Let’s state it […]

“Just two volunteers showed up on a recent weekday at a Republican Party campaign office near Cleveland that in 2024 was brimming with activity every night,” the New York Times reports. “One of the two, Tanya Karabanovs, 54, sat among stacks of untouched yard signs and brainstormed new ways to convince her neighbors to vote […]

“The time has finally come: Texans can begin casting ballots on Monday, and their early votes will help determine whether a prospective Democratic revival nationwide will upend three decades of statewide Republican rule,” the New York Times reports. “Most votes in Texas tend to be cast early, with 80 percent coming before Election Day in […]

“Republicans have an enormous financial edge in this year’s midterms. But with two weeks until the election, it is now clear that their spending advantage is overwhelmingly playing out only in the advertising battle for the Senate — not the House,” the New York Times reports. “In the seven Senate races that the Cook Political […]

“For the next two weeks, Vice President JD Vance’s job is to save Congress for Republicans,” CNN reports. “But then he’ll turn to another political project — himself.” “Vance’s 2026 closing arguments on the Iran war, high energy prices and immigration are becoming an early test of whether and how, as a 2028 presidential contender, […]

“Once Kimberly Guilfoyle saw the walls closing in on her tenure in Athens, she breathlessly sought a lifeline to save her ambassadorship,” the Daily Mail reports. “Three powerful men sat atop her list of frenzied calls, according to two sources: U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Rupert Murdoch, the […]

“In the past two elections that I oversaw as lieutenant governor, the threats were all external: non-state actors, cyber security threats and other things. But now we also have threats coming from within our own government.” — Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson (R), quoted by CBS News.