… AP: “Trump has rescheduled weekend campaign rallies in a pair of critical Midwestern states that he had previously canceled. The Republican president will now visit IA and KS for back-to-back campaign rallies on Sunday. The RNC initially said in canceling the rallies that Trump would do telerallies instead to reach more voters.

… The scheduling whiplash underscored the chaotic and shifting nature of the final days of the midterm campaigns, in which Trump and Republicans are scrambling to retain their majorities in Congress in an election that has turned largely on affordability issues and the president’s favorability.”

… Politico: “Republicans are bracing for a brutal election night, convinced they’re set to face some previously unthinkable losses in deep-red Trump territory as key battleground races hang on a knife’s edge. House Republicans are privately discussing not just if they’ll lose their majority, but by how many seats.

… Imperiled GOP incumbents in once safe districts have been begging party leaders for more money in the final few days to stem the bleeding. Senate Republicans have found new cause to worry about contests in OH, KS and other red states.

… Some Republican incumbents made an eyebrow-raising emergency decision. They stopped doing their own polling weeks ago as they tried to save every dollar for swaying voters as they begged for the GOP cavalry to arrive from Trump’s political operation to the NRCC.

… One Republican strategist working on midterm races simply responded to a question about the environment with a video of a dumpster on fire that was being swept away by flood waters.

… Top GOP officials and lawmakers have long known the political landscape would be bad, amid voter anger over the cost of living and aspects of Trump’s policy agenda. But they’re facing a worse position than they expected earlier this year, with less than one week until Election Day.”

… A senior Republican: “It could be quite a brutal evening. Once the dominoes start falling it becomes hard to stop them.”

… Cook Political: “As the House battleground map has expanded, Democrats now have the potential to win their largest majority since 2009. Trump’s approval rating is underwater even in deep red seats that he won comfortably in 2024, and heavy spending from Republicans doesn’t appear to be moving the needle.

… While Democrats won’t reach the 257 seats they had following Barack Obama’s election - a high water mark for them this century - they could surpass the majorities they had following the 2006 and 2018 blue wave cycles. We’re now projecting that Democrats will flip 12-25 seats, giving them as many as 240 seats in the House.

… Under the updated ratings, if Democrats win the seats they’re favored in, along with all 18 Toss Ups, they would have 240 seats. If the bottom completely falls out for Republicans, Dems could flip some seats in the Lean Republican and Likely Republican columns as well. Republicans are particularly concerned about turnout.”

… Cook Political Report ratings change. US House 2026:

Colorado-05: Lean R —> Toss-up
Pennsylvania-01: Lean R —> Toss-up
South Carolina-01: Lean R —> Toss-up
——
Florida-07: Likely R —> Lean R
Florida-09: Likely R —> Lean R
Indiana-05: Likely R —> Lean R
——
Ohio-09: Toss-up —> Lean D
Pennsylvania-08: Toss-up —> Lean D
——
North Carolina-05: Safe R —> Likely R
North Carolina-09: Safe R —> Likely R
New Jersey-02: Safe R —> Likely R
Washington-05: Safe R —> Likely R

… Sen. Ted Cruz in a radio interview: Q - “What is your gut about where we are in these closing days? Cruz: I am deeply, deeply worried. What we are seeing around the country right now is massive, massive Democrat turnout. Democrats are showing up and they’re energized. If the election were over today and just the early votes were counted, Republicans would lose massively. It would be a bloodbath.”

… WSJ: “State election officials and the Trump admin are eyeing one another with extreme suspicion ahead of Tues’s midterms, after months of hostile interactions over the procedures for how Americans vote. Before the first ballots have been counted, the federal govt is already initiating litigation contesting the results.

… In CA, DOJ is pressing forward with its third attempt in recent days to force the state to set aside up to 20,000 ballots returned by people the admin says are ‘likely noncitizens.’ And on Thursday, top federal prosecutors sent subpoenas to state and local officials as part of a criminal probe into allegations of illegal voting.

… DOJ is also escalating its legal battle in AK, where it wants the courts to block the certification of a key Senate race if the Republican loses. And it has pledged to sue Washington state if officials there don’t agree to take steps to prevent ballots from voters the administration says aren’t citizens.

… Across the country, state officials of both parties have been bracing for their electoral processes to come under a microscope, and their contingency planning has reached new heights. Ml AG Dana Nessel said lawyers from her dept have drafted briefs ‘for virtually every set of circumstances we could think of, except the zombie apocalypse. If I was a betting woman, I would bet with my entire 401(k) that he’s going to try to interfere in MI.’

… MD’s state elections administrator said he ran a simulation earlier this year preparing for his own arrest. Jared DeMarinis met with 70 officials from around the state for contingency planning, and he asked them to consider what would happen if he is detained on Election Day.”

… DeMarinis: “Who would represent me in my official capacity for being arrested? How do I get bail? This is not like your normal daily occurrence about your job. But this election there is a possibility.”

… USA Today: “Josh Zygielbaum bristles at the idea that anyone would cheat in the election he’s overseeing. As Adams County’s elected clerk and recorder near Denver, Zygielbaum leads a small army of election workers managing the midterm election for about 554,000 residents. A retired US Marine, Zygielbaum takes his oaths seriously: to protect and defend the US and CO constitutions.

… That’s why the federal govt’s decision to dispatch about 1,000 DOJ officials to polling places in every state, including the ones Zygielbaum oversees, somehow feels wrong to him. Though DOJ hasn't yet provided a full list of locations, Zygielbaum and some of the other county clerks who have been told to expect them note they are in liberal-leaning areas with large Hispanic populations.”

… WaPo: “Pope Leo XIV cast a mail-in ballot in the US midterm elections, the Vatican confirmed Friday, making the Chicago-born pontiff the first leader of the Catholic Church to vote in the US. The Vatican did not say how he voted.”

… Journalist Marisa Kabas tracked down Tom Hoyle, who went mega-viral yesterday after a clip of his live interview on Fox at the SC Trump rally was posted on social media:

• “Tom Hoyle knew he had a chiropractor appointment, and when he remembered the office was halfway between his home in Charlotte, NC and Trump’s rally in Rock Hill, SC, he figured he might as well attend. He planned to make some good trouble at the event, but he never expected a Fox reporter would hand him a microphone.

• The reporter asked him ‘Why are you here this morning?’ Hoyle replied, ‘Well, in the late ‘70s, I was a little too young to get involved and go to South America for the Jonestown Massacre. But this is as close as I’ll ever get, so that’s why I’m here.’ Confused, the reporter says ‘Wait, the Jonestown Massacre? Hoyle fired back, “That’s right. There’s nothing like seeing a cult right up front.”

• Kabas: “So this is just your nature? It is very much. People will tell you I’ve always been a loud mouth, and I’m such an anti-bully. I become a bully with bullies. So maybe Gandhi wouldn’t approve, but, you know, maybe Malcolm X would.”

• Q - “Are you affiliated with any political party? Hoyle: I was a registered Republican for decades, but just about a year and a half ago, I re-registered as an Independent. I don’t want the stain of what used to be the Republican Party on me anymore. There is no Republican Party. It’s just MAGA, and they’re dead.”

… I love this guy.

• Q - “Going into the event today, did you know what you were going to say if you got the chance ahead of time, or was that off the cuff? Hoyle: No, that was off the cuff. The gentleman from Fox walked up to me when I was in there, for some bizarre reason. And I said well, I’m not going to be vulgar on TV. It’s not the place. I just said, I’ll just say something about it being a cult, and then the rest of it just flowed.

• Q - “Is Jonestown a comparison you’ve thought about before? Hoyle: Absolutely. I knew about Jonestown somewhat, just like I told that story, in the late 70s. I was about 10-years-old. It’s very microcosmic of this whole thing with Trump. He’s got a cult and he’s a cheapskate and he’s a crook. So I’ve seen memes before like, the difference between Jim Jones and Trump is that Trump would charge you for the Kool-Aid before you died.

• But yeah, I’ve thought about that quite a bit at how cults are crazy, and that’s what MAGA is—a cult. Trump can take a whiz down their neck and they say, ‘No, I don’t know what you’re talking about. That’s rain.’”

… Legend.

… SC Democratic nominee for senate Annie Andrews was interviewed on Fox by Bret Baier:

• Q - “Darlene Graham says that you have earned more money from a gun control group than you have as a pediatrician. Andrews: I’m a board-certified pediatrician and have taken care of children for 20 years. I’m also proud of the work I did in the gun violence prevention space.

• My role at Everytown was actually to develop a program to educate medical students on how to talk to parents about the importance of secure firearm storage. As a pediatrician I’ve cared for young toddlers who have found unsecure loaded firearms in their homes and unintentionally shot themselves. It really only took one of those tragedies to compel me to want to do something.”

• Q - “You have these mailers that say, ‘No PAC money, not a dime.’ But you took money from abortion rights groups, gun control and environmental groups. Andrews: Yes, I’m really proud to not take any corporate PAC money unlike my opponent who’s taken $27 million in corporate PAC money. My average donation is $30. Darlene has not raised very much money on her own so she’s being propped up by data center and insurance PACs.”

• Q - “What’s your number one priority if you win? Andrews: As a physician, Medicaid is the backbone of children’s healthcare here in SC. I look forward to working with Sen. Tim Scott on that issue. If these budget cuts go through, rural hospitals will close, and tens of thousands of S. Carolinians will lose their insurance.”

… What a contrast between Dr. Andrews and Darlene Graham, who knows absolutely nothing about being a competent US senator and can’t answer a single policy question coherently.

There is no Bulletin tomorrow because I’m off Saturdays. Next one will be out on Sunday night recapping the last weekend in politics before the big midterms.

Big day tomorrow as the street in our historic Maine neighborhood is closed at 4:00 for the night as 600+ trick or treaters from around the area descend upon us. My two daughters flew up here from FL to help us out. Our yard, as well as those of our neighbors, are looking pretty crazy. We will have a fire pit going since the forecast is 45 degrees.

If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here.

… AP: “Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola denied that she knew anything about an effort to put another candidate on the AK ballot with the same name as the Republican incumbent as DOJ escalated a criminal investigation with new grand jury subpoenas.”

… Peltola at a speech in Juneau: “I just want to clear the air. I knew nothing about any

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Bassin outlines the three-stage playbook used by autocrats to subvert elections, breaks down ongoing legal battles protecting voter access, and shares practical, high-impact reforms—such as proportional representation—that could help repair the nation’s political landscape.

Key Takeaways & Discussion Highlights

• The Global Democratic Recession: The United States has dropped in ratings by major indices (e.g., Freedom House, Economist Intelligence Unit, V-Dem) from a full democracy to a “flawed democracy”.

• The “3 Ds” Authoritarian Playbook: Autocrats attempt to dismantle free systems using a predictable pattern: Deceive (spread voter fraud pretexts), Disrupt (interfere in election administration/processes), and Deny (reject election results when defeated).

• Local Election Resilience: Despite federal-level degradation, state and local election workers, nonpartisan volunteers, and decentralized voting systems provide critical redundancies that protect election integrity.

• Structural Political Reforms: Ending gerrymandering through proportional representation (multi-member districts), codifying executive branch norms into law (such as the Protecting Our Democracy Act), and restoring congressional authority relative to the executive branch.

• Civic Renewal: Democratic advances throughout American history have historically emerged from periods of deep political crisis. Re-engaging in local civic life is essential to long-term democratic health.

Episode Outline

• Introduction & Global Democracy Ranking

  • The top-line status of U.S. democracy compared to international benchmarks.

  • How the 21st-century “democratic recession” ended the post-Cold War expansion of liberal democracy.

• The Seven Signs of Competitive Authoritarianism

  • Politicizing independent institutions, government disinformation, power executive concentration, quashing dissent, scapegoating, violence, and election corruption.

• Historical Cycles: War, Peace, and Democratic Incentives

  • Why democracy is an intentional, often difficult exception to historical norms rather than a default state.

  • How complacency during periods of prolonged peace can erode commitment to democratic guardrails.

• How Democratic Erosion Impacts Everyday Life

  • The weaponization of the Department of Justice and the erosion of equal justice under the law.

  • The danger of unilateral executive decisions over war and economic policy without legislative oversight.

• The “Deceive, Disrupt, Deny” Framework

  • Breaking down the subversion playbook and why independent state administration blocks these efforts.

  • The role of jury duty and local election administration in fostering civic trust.

• Post-Election Threats & Litigation Updates

  • Legal challenges to unlawful voter intimidation and misuse of federal agencies.

  • The importance of paper trails, audits, and cure procedures (highlighting California’s voter counting policies).

• Solutions & Future Reforms

  • Replacing single-member, first-past-the-post districts with proportional representation to eliminate gerrymandering.

  • Passing the Protecting Our Democracy Act to codify executive branch ethics and restore balance between Congress and the White House.

• Closing Thoughts & How to Get Involved

  • Alexis de Tocqueville, everyday democratic habits, and why there is cause for guarded optimism.

Featured Guest Information

• Ian Bassin: Executive Director of Protect Democracy and former Associate Counsel to the President of the United States.

Resources & Recommended Links Mentioned

• Protect Democracy: protectdemocracy.org

• The “3 Ds” Report: Read the full report at protectdemocracy.org/ddd

• Weekly Newsletter: Sign up at ifyoucankeepit.org

• Voter Resources & Volunteering:

  • powerofthepolls.org (Local election worker recruitment)

  • www.VetThe.Vote (Mobilizing military veterans for election administration)

  • vote411.org & vote.org (Voting rules, deadlines, and state guidelines)

• Connect with Ian Bassin: Follow on X (formerly Twitter) @IanBassin

  Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

  Leave a comment

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Here are the top headlines:

• Trump’s rambling Iran interview as tankers get hit in the Strait of Hormuz

• The rally cancellation and the rally un-cancellation

• Trump insulting a Reuters reporter’s weight, and the White House piling on

• A federal judge launching an investigation into Trump DOJ attorneys over the East Potomac golf course

• Ted Cruz warning of a Republican “bloodbath”

• A DOJ criminal probe into California voter rolls

• JD Vance’s disastrous Fox town hall

• The Pentagon telling Europe to go easy on Russia

• Trump amplifying calls to court-martial a fired general

• Trump relitigating the “Russia hoax” as his regime embraces Russia

Trump on Iran: “Minor Details”

Trump called into KCMO’s “Mundo in the Morning” in Kansas City and said that if Iran had a nuclear weapon, he’d be addressing them as “sir,” and he refuses to do that. This has to be the WORST message I’ve ever heard. Trump is telling the entire world if you want respect, get a nuclear weapon. That’s how you incentivize proliferation.

He also said the U.S. needs a guarantee Iran will never build a nuclear weapon. That guarantee existed. It was called the JCPOA, AKA the Obama nuclear deal, and Trump ripped it up. He then claimed that Iran’s leaders are “so gone, we don’t know who to negotiate with,” and called that a minor detail. He also claimed he didn’t start this war because Iran started it in 1979.

Meanwhile, the war Trump says is wrapping up keeps escalating. The IRGC says a supertanker was struck in the Strait of Hormuz this morning, the third oil tanker hit today. A UAE-managed tanker called STONE was hailed by the IRGC Navy and slowed from about 14 knots to 4.5. Iranian state news agency IRNA confirmed Qatari mediators arrived in Tehran, led by a senior adviser to Qatar’s prime minister, as the regime scrambles for something to show before Tuesday.

CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper posted a video saying he flew over the Strait, saw no IRGC, and that the U.S. has helped Gulf partners export more than 1.5 billion barrels of crude. Diesel and gas still near record highs and there’s no plan to end this. Propaganda videos aren’t going to fix that.

Even worse, as we reported yesterday, the U.S. Army is training soldiers to dig mass battlefield graves for American troops for the first time in decades, something the Army says it hasn’t needed at scale since the Korean War. More on that here.

Sen. Chris Murphy said this week that after a briefing on the administration’s plan for restarting military operations, he considers the plan insane and expects it to cause devastating escalation. Murphy said the plan involves the destruction of civilian infrastructure: power plants, bridges, etc… In other words, blatant war crimes.

Voters are noticing. On MS NOW’s “State of Play,” a North Carolina Trump voter said it breaks her heart that Trump is starting wars that are destroying the economy. Another, asked for one word to describe the war, chose one I won’t print here. But you can watch for yourself:

Another 2024 Trump voter, asked what she would tell herself if she could go back to Election Day, said: “Don't [vote for Trump]. I didn't use my better judgment.”

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The Rally Flip-Flop

Last night, Trump’s team scrapped in-person rallies this weekend in favor of “tele-rallies,” and MAGA Inc. announced phone rallies across 19 states. CNN reported Trump dropped a Kansas trip for Sen. Roger Marshall, who explained Trump was probably skipping him because Marshall is doing so well in the polls. Yeah, I’m sure that’s it.

When a Reuters reporter asked Trump why he was no longer going to Kansas, Trump snapped, calling the reporter disgusting and telling him to get in shape because he looked like hell. Then the official White House Rapid Response account posted images of a man, apparently that reporter, eating snacks in a car with the caption “Sloppy!”

Here’s a photo of the “man” who berated a reporter for being overweight yesterday:

By this morning, per CNN’s Kaitlan Collins and Fox News, the Kansas and Iowa rallies were apparently back on for Sunday. Trump probably didn’t like the optics of him appearing to throw in the towel days before midterms. This comes after weeks of Trump speaking in small high school gyms, often to hecklers demanding the Epstein files, while Barack Obama fills arenas.

Judge Launches Investigation Into Trump DOJ Attorneys

I wrote about this one today for MeidasNews, based on live courtroom reporting from our own Scott MacFarlane. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes will appoint a special master to investigate whether Trump administration attorneys misrepresented facts about closing and renovating the East Potomac Park golf course, including whether they advised a National Park Service official to leave details out of an October 9 declaration. She also ordered evidence preserved. Work at the park is already frozen by court order.

The core issue is simple. On October 18, Trump posted that the course would close November 15. The next day, DOJ said there was no such plan. Days later, the administration admitted there was.

Reyes opened by reading the rules against misleading the court. One DOJ attorney said he’d made no false statements “to my knowledge,” explaining he was new and they have lots of binders. An Interior official asked what Reyes meant by “involved,” so she pulled out a dictionary. When Assistant AG Stanley Woodward suggested interpreting Trump’s public posts implicated executive privilege, Reyes pointed out that Trump posted it and called that an extraordinary view of privilege.

Then the money. DOJ disclosed the seawall alone could cost $150 million to $400 million. No one has appropriated it. Asked for a total estimate, an attorney said there wasn’t one and asked why she’d assume there was. When Reyes said someone at Interior must have thought about the cost, the attorney called that “deliberative.” Reyes asked whether Interior doesn’t want the American people to know what this costs. As MacFarlane noted, Trump is poised to spend roughly half a billion dollars on a golf course on the eve of an election about affordability.

Midterms: Four Days Out

More than 23 million mail ballots have been cast, per CNN/AP/Catalist data. In Texas, Ted Cruz warned Republicans could lose every statewide race and said that if the election were today it would be a bloodbath. At a Ken Paxton event, a speaker begged attendees not to leave so the media wouldn’t report that people don’t like Paxton.

I’ve been enjoying showing you these funny clips:

In Alaska, Trump claimed you need a 190 IQ to understand the ballot because people don’t know what “incumbent” means. He thinks so highly of the intelligence of his own voters, doesn’t he?

An Anchorage voter told CNN it was clear in black and white, without her glasses on. No confusion whatsoever. Alaska’s courts and elections board have already weighed in. This is a manufactured election attack.

In Ohio, pop superstar Olivia Rodrigo wore an “Amy Acton for Governor” shirt at her concert, a major endorsement for Acton ahead of the gubernatorial election.

Also in Ohio, Canton farmers Anita and Sam Smith told CNN a proposed data center next door will bring nothing but destruction to the life they planned at 70.

Also: The New York Times reports the DOJ has opened a criminal investigation and issued grand jury subpoenas to California election officials in its push to claim noncitizens are on voter rolls, days before the election.

Expect a lot from the Trump regime working to delegitimize and attack these elections. But don’t let them scare you. Ignore the noise and vote.

Vance’s Fox Town Hall

At Jesse Watters’ Fox town hall in Fort Worth, a TCU Turning Point USA leader asked JD Vance how her generation can afford homes and families. It was a genuinely good question, which demanded a serious answer.

Vance opened by noting he was disappointed he’d only been asked about Jon Husted’s ass once. He also attacked Obama as elitist over the Cheesecake Factory jab and fielded a question about Halloween costumes.

Here’s the Vance “ass” joke. Buckle up for second-hand embarrassment.

A Texas mom said her daughter received a letter about transitioning, and Vance said he wants DOJ to investigate. These fliers have already been found to be sent by a REPUBLICAN group in order to scare voters.

Quick Hits

• Russia: Reuters reports Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby urged NATO allies to stop “poking” Moscow. Meanwhile, reports say Russia fired around eight Iskander ballistic missiles at Kyiv in minutes.

• Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia: Trump reshared influencer smears that Hegseth fired Sylvia over alleged leaks, plus a Catturd post demanding a court-martial and Leavenworth.

• “Russia hoax”: Trump was sharing posts from allies about the “Russia hoax” on the same day his Pentagon was asking Europe to be nicer to Russia.

• Mississippi: A viral clip with millions of views shows a woman reading Trump’s Corinth rally remarks verbatim. You have to watch this.

P.S. Thank you to a Meidas Mighty by the name of Tracy who posted a video and photos about WTF America?! We’re loving the book collection (see below)!

WTF America?! The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy is now officially a best seller on The New York Times (debuting at No. 2), USA Today, The Globe and Mail, Toronto Sun, and Publishers Weekly best seller lists. YOU made this happen! THANK YOU!!! Lets keep it going!

That’s where things stand for now. We’ll be reporting all day and all weekend into Tuesday and beyond.

Shoutout to the Meidas Mighty!

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You can also listen to the episode free on podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else podcasts are found.

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In the Western world, it is very easy to view comments made by individuals in the Iranian government and extrapolate conclusions that seem logical on their own. But in order to fully grasp the complete understanding of Iran’s negotiating rhetoric, particularly in recent days when all signs point to escalation on the horizon, you need to look beyond just the individual words and examine the complete picture.

On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi released a statement that said:

“While our Brave Armed Forces are fully prepared to defend the Homeland, Iran continues to give diplomacy a chance to succeed.

We remain in close and ongoing contact with intermediaries to review ideas that can ensure implementation of our 7-Day Plan in even less than a week.”

It would be entirely reasonable to look at this statement without the deeper context and come to the conclusion that Abbas Araghchi is stating that Iran is desperate for a deal with the United States.

But unfortunately for the Trump Administration… that’s not what Araghchi is saying here at all.

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• Q - “Why are you here today? Attendee: Well, in the late 70s I was a little too young to get involved and go to South America for the Jonestown Massacre, but this is as close as I’ll ever get so that’s why I’m here. Fox reporter: Wait, the Jonestown Massacre? Attendee: That’s right. Because there’s nothing like seeing a cult right up front, man. Fox reporter: Alright, well maybe this is not a Trump supporter!”

… The Fox guy then walked away looking for someone in a red hat.

… After just 6 hours on Twitter, this clip got over 10 million views, 3,800 comments, 40,000 retweets, and 239,000 likes! Possibly heading towards the most viral tweet of all time.

… Fox News ratings change. US Senate SC:

• Lean R ---> Toss-up

… Trump in his SC rally speech: “If you’re Black, or if you’re Jewish, and if you vote for Abdul, you’re crazy, okay? You’re crazy.”

… JD Vance at his rally in TX today for Ken Paxton: “Anybody who would divide us by the color of our skin and say that you're more or less American - that person is a scumbag.”

… Trump and Vance were saying those two things at nearly the exact same time.

… Trump took questions on tarmac heading to his rally in SC for Darlene Graham:

• Q: “Who in your mind is the legitimate winner of the Brazilian election? Trump: I don’t want to comment, but I thought the election was a very great embarrassment to the people of Brazil.”

• On CA: “They have very very corrupt elections. If CA were honest - if they had an honest vote count I would have won it by a lot.”

… Trump lost CA 58-38%.

… New CNN poll on some key US Senate races:

🟦Kansas: Adam Hamilton +4 (49-45)
🟦Maine: Troy Jackson +4 (49-45)
🟦Michigan: Abdul El-Sayed +7 (49-42)
🟦Texas: James Talarico +6 (49-43)

… KS Democratic senate nominee Adam Hamilton: “I considered it a great compliment that the president’s been here now twice in two weeks. And the VP as well. And it tells me that they are terrified that they’re going to lose this race. And they should be. The fact that they sent the most powerful man in the world twice here in a week to beat little old me, and the VP, I take that as a great compliment.”

… An increasing desperate Sen. Roger Marshall claimed at a small campaign event that Hamilton is facilitating child sex trafficking: “He pushes drag shows for kids - is that grooming? Yeah, he probably is grooming.”

… James Tararico at a campaign event: “Every Texas bar has that one guy. He’s loud. He’s obnoxious. He makes all the women feel uncomfortable. He adds his drink to your tab when you’re not looking. That’s Ken Paxton - and I don’t know about y’all, but I’m done picking up his tab.”

… NPR: “In the final week of the 2026 midterm election, ad spending data suggests the core battle is less about stopping a Democratic wave in the House, and more about figuring out how high it crests. The final competitive House landscape is expansive, including 70 districts where both parties are investing at least 6 figures per district into their final days of messaging.

… That includes more than $10 million each in toss up districts in MI, NC, NY and FL; 7 figure ad buys in deep-red communities across TN, OK and AR and last-minute resources to districts where gerrymandering by Republicans could backfire.

… Republicans’ narrow 218-214 seat advantage in the House appears all but certain to give way to Democratic control. The latest ratings from Cook Political finds Democrats favored in 220 seats, 17 listed as ‘toss-ups’ and another 30 that are potentially competitive but lean toward the GOP.”

… Campaign sign in Kennebunk, Maine.

… Axios: “MS’s Shockingly-Competitive Senate Race. The most-aired ad in the closing stretch of MS’s Senate race features a Jeffrey Epstein survivor attacking Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith for voting against releasing files related to the convicted human trafficker. In the past week, Hyde-Smith has been outgunned on the airwaves. Only 1 of the 8 most-aired spots portrays her positively.

… 5 of the ads either positively portray her Democratic challenger, Scott Colom, or attack Hyde-Smith for her Senate record, largely painting her as an out-of-touch senator who cares more about her rich donors. The other two ads are for down-ballot races.”

… Trump was heckled by activist Robby Potylo at his rally in OH, who waited until Trump paused in his speech so the venue was quiet before yelling: “Trump went on the Epstein plane! Butterscotch Hitler!” He was apprehended by police and escorted out.

… Trump responded: “Right out of the Democratic playbook. He mentioned Epstein. Epstein was a Democrat. I was totally exonerated.”

… From Trump’s speech: "Until I came around Ohio was not a successful state. We really turned things around in 2016.”

… Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH): “Abdul El-Sayed can be nowhere near DC. Do you think he understands the concept that our rights come from God almighty? That Jesus came here for our salvation? Mike Rogers is gonna kick his ass.”

… Vivek Ramaswamy: “Look at what's happening in Dearborn, MI. We're not going to let that come to our state of Ohio.”

… 54% of Dearborn is of Middle Eastern descent. Ramaswamy, who is seems to have a problem with that, is a Hindu and the children of Indian immigrant parents.

On my weekly podcast Uncovered last night, I gave my take on the situation with the AK senate race, the Susan Collins ad that could end her career, Trump’s new windmill conspiracy, Trump and Fox melting down over Obama’s Cheesecake joke, Vivek’s ad imploding his campaign, Marco Rubio’s plan to take over Cuba, Trump’s cognitive glitches and his rallies, much more! Link to the show is here.

5 days out from this massively important election. I will be joining the NYT Bestselling Author Meiselas brothers on their Emmy Award Winning live podcast on election night to give my commentary. I also voted early today for Troy Jackson in the ME senate race and for the Pingrees (mom for Congress, daughter for governor). I can’t tell you how badly I want Susan Collins to lose.

Link to Friday’s Bulletin is here.

… Barack Obama headlined a rally in Atlanta for Democratic candidates in GA:

• “Trump is spending time super gluing gold medallions to the mantle in the Oval Office. He is literally doing arts and crafts while we are fighting a war. I know we’re in Atlanta. And I want you all to know, Michelle has love for The Real Housewives. But we've got to keep reality TV on Bravo. Leave it to the professionals. We don't need it in the WH.”

• On GOP nominee for governor Rick Jackson: “You can always tell a politician is really in touch with working folk when he calls a gas station a gas store.”

• “I heard Trump when I joked over the weekend that he's got the WH looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory. I am the father of two daughters. Do you think I could have survived their childhood without going to the Cheesecake Factory? I lived at Chuck E. Cheese and the Cheesecake Factory. Of course the real problem is prices have gotten so high a lot of folks can barely afford to go out to eat.”

• “The president wasn't even mad about the Saddam Hussein comparison! That part didn't bother him. But he was very upset about The Cheesecake Factory. He took great umbrage. He said I didn't understand the work of the artisans in the

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That’s why campaigns are spending millions of dollars to define the stakes for energy affordability and make their case to , while voters on ads referencing the costs drowning voters across the country.

Luke talked to two of them and learned how even things like getting a ride to a critical medical appointment have gotten more complicated. He also talked to U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, one of the founders of the People’s Environmental Justice Caucus.

How are affordability issues affecting you in your backyard? Let us know in the comments so we can discuss on the other side of the elections.

Watch more episodes of In Your Backyard:

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It’s Thursday, October 29. Five days until the midterms. It’s happening, folks.

Before we dive in, I want to announce something absolutely huge.

WE DID IT!!! You made HISTORY!!! We got word yesterday that our book WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy is officially a New York Times Best Seller! WTF America?! debuted at number two on the charts, ahead of MAGA favorites like Newt Gingrich and Fox host Brian Kilmeade. Fox was pushing the heck out of those books, but this community defeated the Fox machine. They had Fox. But we had YOU.

Now let’s keep WTF America?! on the Best Seller list and get this message to as many people as possible. Every copy matters. Get yours today if you haven’t yet and let’s show them what this movement can do! You can also buy copies to donate to your local library or give as gifts. THANK YOU!!!

Now to today’s headlines:

• New CNN polls show Democrats leading Senate races in Texas, Michigan, Kansas, and Maine

• Trump had a meltdown on the tarmac where he engaged in Brazil election denial, impeachment threats, and was confused about a general he just fired

• Trump’s tiny Ohio gym rally vs. Obama’s packed arena in Georgia

• JD Vance’s secret letter to Iran (and a fireworks injury?)

• Pentagon investigating suspected cyberattacks on military base freezers

• Republicans openly admitting they are losing the turnout fight

• Katie Phang’s latest court win on the Epstein files

AND MORE!

The Polls That Ruined Trump’s Morning

If these polls are to be believed, they are truly earth shattering.

Read more

• Flávio Bolsonaro flees Brazil for Miami after losing to Lula

• Israel’s election ends with no winner, and Likud is already calling it “stolen”

• MAGA influencers charged with two felonies over a voter fraud stunt in Minnesota

• Katie Phang wins at the DC Circuit as CBS exposes huge gaps in the Epstein files

• Iran rejects a Qatari ceasefire framework as war spending tops $47 billion

• Midterms are six days out, and the polls are moving our way in Ohio and Alaska

• Hasan Piker sues Scott Jennings for $72.5 million

• The State Department declares America a gospel-spreading nation

• Putin praises Elon Musk as Europe builds alternatives to Starlink

• Civil rights icon Dolores Huerta dies at 96

  Meidas+ is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Also, HUGE NEWS before we dive in. Our book WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy is officially the #1 USA TODAY Bestseller in the politics category, and #12 of all books nationwide! The book is also the #3 Bestseller on Audible!

You stepped up and broke through Elon’s suppression. You made this happen. THANK YOU!!! We’ll have more updates soon—but this is a MASSIVE deal. Remember to pick up your copy today if you haven’t yet.

Let’s get into it.

Trump Rolls Out the Umbrellas for Bolsonaro

Donald Trump spends every waking hour railing against immigrants, and this morning his regime was rolling out the red carpet for one. Defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and his family landed in Opa-locka, Florida, a day after the Trump regime granted them U.S. visas (Brazil had reportedly revoked Bolsonaro’s passports due to criminal investigations into him). AP footage shows customs agents rushing them in and out while holding umbrellas to shield them from cameras, and Bolsonaro ducked reporters like the coward he is. Here’s a screenshot captured as he got off the plane in the U.S.:

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… The ad essentially says that the 5th generation logger and former state senate president is unqualified to do more than sell people firewood.

… Former Susan Collins staffer and conservative Maine Wire editor Sam Patten: “I didn’t believe this ad was real. Why does it matter? For more than 30 years, Susan Collins has carefully concealed her intrinsic arrogance because she’s very smart and she knows that in ME politics that would be fatal. With this ad, she gave that act up. The race is over.”

… Former ME congressional candidate Jordan Wood: “Bill Green’s latest ad for Susan Collins made my jaw drop. A pathetic end to both of their careers. Mainers will reject these despicable attacks next Tuesday.”

… AFL-CIO of Maine: “Susan Collins has spent so much time in Washington she thinks working-class Mainers are beneath her. We don’t need anymore millionaires in Congress. Troy Jackson is a true blue collar Mainer who will put working people first!”

… Troy Jackson to Ben Meiselas:

• “Just another day for me being a working class person. It's not the first time I've had someone that thought they were better than me talk down to me, and it’s something Collins has been doing to me throughout this campaign.

• But it is kind of funny though because this election actually it IS about a cord of wood. Right now, because of her and Trump, people can't afford to heat their homes. Yeah, I do know how to buy a cord of wood. I know how much it costs, and I know how to use it to heat your home.

• So I just find it so ironic that this is what she chose to use because right now it is about people who know how to buy a cord of wood. I spent 20 years in the state legislature helping people. So it is time to have a working-class person that knows how to buy a cord of wood in the US Senate.”

… Ohio’s largest newspaper, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, abandoned its policy against gubernatorial endorsements to back Democrat Amy Acton:

• “There are moments when a community must decide what it stands for, when its institutions have a duty to speak and when silence itself becomes a statement. OH has reached such a moment.

• Vivek Ramaswamy, seeking the highest office in this state, has produced a campaign ad that weaponizes the sexual abuse his opponent, Amy Acton, suffered as a child. People across the political spectrum have rightly condemned it.

• But condemnation has to mean something. Our politics have been debased for a decade, but this we will not accept. A candidate who uses childhood sexual abuse as a weapon against the person who endured it has crossed a line that Ohioans should defend, whatever their party.

• We are better than this. We have a responsibility to show it. Today, we endorse Amy Acton for governor. And our endorsement of Acton rests on more than Ramaswamy’s failure to meet a basic standard of decency. She has earned consideration on her own record, her preparation and her commitment to the people she seeks to serve.

• For the better part of two years, Acton has traveled OH, meeting with people in small groups. Rural OH. Urban OH. Communities in between. Places where Democrats can expect a welcome and places where they must work hard to earn a hearing. She has kept showing up.

• Ramaswamy has offered Ohioans far less reason to trust him. He has focused much of his attention on wealthy donors while steadfastly refusing to explain what he would do about many of the issues he would face as governor. When our readers identified the questions they wanted answered, we devoted a 15-part series to seeking those answers. Acton participated. Ramaswamy refused.

• Those were Ohioans asking about OH’s future. Someone seeking the authority to govern them owed them answers. He also moved his business out of OH, to TX. For a candidate asking voters to entrust him with this state’s future, that was an extraordinary demonstration of his own lack of faith in it.

• Trump’s endorsement cannot substitute for accountability, preparation or judgment. And Ramaswamy’s decision to release this vile ad reveals a failure of judgment that OH cannot afford in its governor.”

… Kansas City Star reporter David Hudnall: “I spent 3 days last week in Roger Marshall’s longtime home of Great Bend. I talked to women whose babies he delivered, people who’ve known him 30 years, Dems, Republicans, a guy Marshall once tried to talk into buying a bird dog from his litter.

… Marshall has found himself in an unexpectedly close race to retain his US Senate seat in KS against Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton, a Methodist megachurch minister. I had come out to see what Marshall’s support looked like in the area where he’d built his professional career as a doctor and lived for some 30 years.

… I eventually fell into a conversation with a retired Farmers Bank and Trust banker named Craig Neeland. He’d known Marshall for decades. ‘I was Roger’s loan officer,’ Neeland said. Neeland voted for Marshall when he ran for Congress in 2016, and again when he ran for the Senate 4 years later. But he won’t be voting for him this Nov.”

… Neeland: “He gives Trump free rein every time. I voted for him to represent KS, not Trump.” Neeland was particularly bothered by Trump’s recent attempt to collect $1.8 billion in taxpayer money to settle a lawsuit against the IRS over the leaking of his tax records. “Not a single representative from KS stood up and said, ‘You’re trying to rob the bank.’”

… Great Bend Mayor Alan Moeder was asked how residents felt about Marshall. He said he hadn’t seen him since he was elected to the Senate: “Look, it’s quite obvious he doesn’t live here anymore. He lives in FL. He has a little hunting lodge in Stafford County. And I think that’s an issue for people, from what I hear. He’s become disconnected with a lot of people around here.”

… Herb Phillips, a retired Republican who ran a trash collection company in Great Bend for many years, said Marshall was one of his customers. He carried an old grudge relating to Marshall once trying to overcharge him for a bird dog: “He’s always just been kind of a dick.”

… Republican pollster Matt Towery:

• “As we look at early voting it is becoming clear that a certain portion of the GOP base is not planning on voting. The GOP message in terms of paid ads has failed to explain why action on Iran was needed and what the consequences of a nuclear Iran would be. It is the ‘elephant in the room’ that must be addressed big time as the closing message. We have too many polls in too many states with Democrats leading and the GOP is running out of time.”

… Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) denounced Trump’s support of Sen. Darlene Graham to CNN:

• “The voters in SC are not buying the argument that everyone has to ‘settle’ for a candidate that has been propped up by special interest groups and a Republican president spending millions of dollars spreading false narratives about why Darline Graham is qualified to be elected to the US Senate for the next 6 years.”

• “This election is about attempts to ‘force’ a candidate on the voters of SC. And regardless of the outcome, it didn’t have to be this way as the great people living in SC deserve ‘better!’ Bottom line! Elections have consequences!”

… Fox has shifted 19 more races in favor of Democrats.

… Fox News ratings change:

US Senate
Ohio: Toss-up —> Lean D
South Carolina: Likely R —> Lean R
Mississippi: Solid R —> Likely R
——
US Governor
Ohio: Toss-up —> Lean D

… Cook Political Report ratings change:

Kansas Governor:
Lean R —> Toss-up
——
Nebraska Governor:
Likely R —> Lean R

… Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball ratings change:

US Senate:
Florida: Safe R —> Likely R
North Carolina: Lean D —> Likely D
South Carolina: Likely R —> Lean R
——
US Governor:
Arizona: Lean D —> Likely D
Vermont: Likely R —> Lean R

Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I do my weekly podcast Uncovered on Wednesdays, where we do a deep dive into the top stories of the week.

We are now one week out from the massively important midterms. I posted on Twitter two days before the 2020 election that Trump was not going to accept the results and we were heading for a big drama, and I think the same on a smaller scale now.

I think that Trump is going to claim that elections were rigged and is likely to use DOJ and DHS in some way to contest results. So I don’t think all of this will be over when the votes are counted. But I also don’t think he will be quite as manic as 2020 since that election directly involved him.

As someone who predicted violence in DC on social media in the days leading up to J6, I just believe his attempt to delegitimize the election this time will be less virulent and at some point he will revert to just blaming on Republicans who didn’t listen to him and didn’t use him in their ads.

Also a reminder that for 6 weeks leading up to the midterms we made all our content available to free subscribers. After that we will revert back to the policy where about the first third of these will be available to free subscribers. If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here. If you missed Ask the Editor show, that is here.

… Democratic congressional nominee Rebecca Cooke to Ben Meiselas on her opponent Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI): “He’s gotten drunk in his official office, yelled at Senate pages, carried a loaded gun through TSA. I mean, he’s really out there.”

… A protester loudly interrupted Trump’s rally in MS, which was picked up on the audio feeds from various media outlets: “Hey, bone spurs! Release the Epstein Files!

Read more

Before we get into the news, some exciting personal news. Our book WTF America?!: The Way Out of This Hell and Back to Democracy is now officially an Audible best-seller! Thank you to everyone who’s been reading the book, whether in hardcover, e-book, or audiobook. Your feedback has been so amazing to see. If you haven’t ordered yet, you can do so here or find it in your local bookstore.

Here are the top headlines so far:

• Trump is predictably refusing to commit to accepting the midterm results

• JD Vance says Alaskans are too busy to read the word “incumbent” and attacks Dr. Abdul El-Sayed

• A Texas court finds Greg Abbott is illegally blocking the release of his emails with Elon Musk

• Don Jr. caught hunting in Mongolia with the Russian who helped pay for his wedding

• Trump calls Venezuelan oil “a gift” to him

• Mike Waltz gets into a shouting match with Cuba’s foreign minister at the UN

• Diesel hits $6.35 and a GOP congressman thanks God for Trump

• Iranian attacks on Hormuz shipping hit a record

• Oman calls for a Gulf security pact without the U.S.

• Netanyahu claims “they” are trying to steal Israel’s election as turnout hits a 57-year high

• Flávio Bolsonaro faces a passport seizure and two Supreme Court probes, and police are checking on whether or not he fled Brazil

• Serbia’s state broadcaster apologizes for years of propaganda after Vučić’s defeat (hello, Fox News)

Trump’s Midterm Hedge

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You can also listen to the episode free on podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else podcasts are found.

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With Election Day rapidly approaching, this week’s conversation looked beyond the midterms to examine what Democrats could actually accomplish if they regain control of Congress, whether Trump administration officials could face state prosecutions despite presidential pardons, and what can be done about Elon Musk’s extraordinary influence over American communications and national security.

Ron and Pablo also discussed Sen. Raphael Warnock’s proposal to rebuild the Democratic Party in traditionally Republican states and Ron’s theory about why Trump’s increasingly bizarre campaign appearances could be hurting his own party.

Paid Meidas+ subscribers can submit questions for future editions of Ask the Editor in the comments section of Ron’s Daily Bulletins.

Let’s dive in.

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… 8 days out from the midterms, and Real Clear Politics average spreads by state for the competitive senate races are:

NC: Cooper +10.6
GA: Ossoff +8.2
NH: Pappas +6.5
MN: Flanagan +3.4
OH: Brown +3.3
MI: El-Sayed +1.9
TX: Talarico +1.5
ME: Jackson +1.4
AK: Peltola +1.2

KS: Marshall +0.3
IA: Hinson +0.6
SC: Graham +2.7
FL: Moody +7.3
MT: Alme +12.0

… CNN: “In the final sprint to the midterms, Speaker Mike Johnson went to Trump with a crucial ask. Johnson’s message: Could Trump spare more cash to help House Republicans in this tough political climate? He wasn’t the only one making the case: Donors and lawmakers themselves have also been pleading with Trump’s inner orbit for more resources in key races.

… Within days of Johnson’s ask, Trump’s political war chest dumped nearly $30 million into dozens of House races in a final push to help a jittery Republican Party avert disaster next month.

… But as political conditions have deteriorated for House Republicans in recent weeks, GOP campaign operatives have been forced to abandon places where they usually go on offense, as they focus instead on protecting dozens of unexpectedly imperiled incumbents in traditionally red turf like AZ, OH, FL and WI.

… With just over a week to go, multiple GOP operatives said there is growing uncertainty about incumbents in unexpectedly competitive seats if the party base does not turn out – a factor that Republican leaders know will determine whether the Democrats can create a real blue wave.

… The party is also shifting resources away from several seats that were redrawn to favor Republicans in the nationwide mid-decade partisan redistricting push. In the eleventh-hour, House GOP groups and their allies are pouring in millions to defend core incumbents in an attempt to hold onto a bulwark of traditionally red seats.”

… A GOP operative working on House races: “This is just a ‘batten down the hatches’ situation.” The operative noted they have not seen an incumbent in a competitive district crack the 50% threshold in any recent internal polling.

… Vivek Ramaswamy was on Fox trying to defend his ad using Amy Acton’s mother: “You never start a fight, but if you find yourself in one you finish it and you have to stand for what is right. They’ve attacked me to media silence - it’s unbelievable. We’re standing for truth. They’re lying about an ad that was about her lying. I’m running against someone who is crazy, unsteady, and dishonest.”

… There are several people who could lose next week that I would celebrate much more than others. Ken Paxton is one. Roger Marshall is another. The list is long. But Vivek is definitely in my Top 5.

… Cincinatti Enquirer: “Outside a Vivek Ramaswamy campaign appearance in suburban Cincinnati, an unusual protester showed up: a former teacher of Ramaswamy who said he was ‘disappointed’ in his one-time star pupil.

… Michael Pogue, who taught Ramaswamy when he was in 8th grade at Princeton Junior High, sat with signs reading ‘You owe Dr. Acton a full retraction and sincere apology!’ and ‘Shame on you, Vivek! I taught you better!’ outside a campaign event at Izzy’s Deli on Oct. 24 in Monroe.

… Pogue: “This latest attack on Dr. Acton hits home. I had too many students who were raped.”

… Abdul El-Sayed at a campaign rally:

• “In my Neurology unit, I would have to give that MOCA exam, that cognitive test Trump is so proud of. The only people you give that test to are people who you worry may have cognitive deficits. By definition, if you’re taking one of those tests, something is wrong. And you know the doctor who gave it to him was like, ‘I just want to see how smart you are, sir.’ And he’s like, me too.

• He brags about having taken it. He’s like, ‘I remembered the rhinoceros.’ Everybody remember the rhinoceros. And the funny thing about it is, you know, he’s taken it multiple times. So he’s not even bragging about the first time he took it. He’s like, I took it the 1st time and then I took it the 2nd time. So with Trump, you can’t blame him for this, he’s just dumb.

• But for Mike Rogers, can you imagine how small of a human being you have to be to know that he has real deficits and to just nod your head approvingly at the most ridiculous shit that the man proposes?”

• “I get that the President takes personal offense to my first name. He doesn’t mind as much when it’s the Saudis who are funding his son-in-law’s private equity. Doesn’t seem to mind as much when it’s the Qataris who are giving them a $400 million private jet. He just seems to have trouble pronouncing it when it’s my name.

• I don’t care how he pronounces my name. I don’t even care that he remembers my whole name. Because he can just go on and call me senator after Nov.”

… This is Trump’s updated rally schedule for the week:

Tonight: Corinth, Mississippi
Tues: Corpus Christi, Texas
Tues: Lubbock, Texas
Wed: Chillicothe, Ohio
Fri: Daytona, Florida
Sun: Dubuque, Iowa

… Huff Post reporter S.V. Date: “In early Sept, Trump pledged to visit all 35 swing House districts. So far he has visited zero.”

… Telegraph: “Doug Pagitt is used to people confiding in him. The pastor of Solomon’s Porch in Minneapolis has remained tight-lipped about the many secrets confessed to him. But there is one confidence he cannot stop himself from sharing. In April, one of his parishioners, a plumber and lifelong Republican, whispered the words he was too scared to utter in public: he could no longer support Trump.

• “Look, Trump’s been my guy. I voted for him 3 times. I’ve defended him, and I can’t do it any more.”

… Pagitt can recall many encounters with disillusioned Christians across America turning their back on the president before the midterm elections. The mishandling of the Epstein files, the decision to go to war with Iran and allegations of corruption have left Trump’s core base facing a dilemma: back their former political hero or cross the aisle?

… During the 2024 presidential election, 80% of white evangelicals voted for Trump, a self-described non-denominational Christian, propelling him to the WH for a second time. Protestants make up the core of his Christian voter base. In 2024, 43%, were Protestants, while 24% were religiously unaffiliated and 20% were Roman Catholics.

… Trump’s approval rating has fallen among every religious group since the start of his second term, including white evangelical Protestants, whose support has dropped from 78% in January 2025 to 58% in October 2026.”

Thank you once again on your excellent questions for today’s Ask the Editor show. I had 11 finalists written down from yesterday’s comments section and it was difficult to choose just 5. These are the questions I answered. The show will be out shortly after this Bulletin:

• We have all heard about Dems intending to launch investigations to hold the Trump admin accountable after the midterms, but is there an actually policy agenda on the table to address the affordability issues?

• Can Trump or his henchmen be prosecuted under state laws as a way to bypass any preemptive pardons they may receive?

• Is nationalizing Starlink possible? What is the best way to deal with the many problems Musk is causing?

• Is there any chance that Democrats going forward will adopt the “Red State Strategy” that Raphael Warnock is urging across the south?

• What is your theory on Trump’s increasingly bizarre behavior at his campaign rallies?

If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin recapping the weekend, you can find it here.

… Attorneys for Mary Peltola’s senate campaign filed a petition to immediately dismiss Trump’s lawsuit against the AK election process:

• “DOJ filed this lawsuit in the midst of the ongoing general election, less than two weeks before election day, raising issues governed exclusively by state law that were definitively resolved by the AK Supreme court. DOJ seeks an unprecedented order

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It’s Monday. Eight days until midterms. Here’s what’s going on:

• House Judiciary Democrats just released a 53-page Epstein report with accounts from 11 women and a call for a special counsel

• Lula wins a fourth term in Brazil, and Flávio Bolsonaro and Trumpworld cry “stolen”

• Serbia’s students beat Vučić’s party, and María Corina Machado returns to Venezuela

• Netanyahu reportedly clashes with his own army chief over Iran ahead of Tuesday’s election

• CNN says Trump is prepping major Iran strikes, likely after the midterms

• Gas prices are on track for the priciest Election Day in history

• Early vote numbers look brutal for Republicans

• A federal judge rules Trump’s DOJ illegally fired Maurene Comey

The Epstein Report

This morning, House Judiciary Democrats under Ranking Member Rep. Jamie Raskin released a report titled “‘We Have Certain Things in Common, Jeffrey’: The Case Against Donald Trump Emerging in the Epstein Files and DOJ’s Desperate Efforts to Cover it Up.”

It draws on accounts from 11 women, FBI records, and documents released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The central claim is that Trump was an active participant in Epstein’s abuse of young women in the 1990s.

You can read the full report in its entirety here:

Read more

• “I looked at his ass, and I've never done that with a man before. By the way, I looked at one hell of a beautiful ass before: Nicki Minaj. That's hard to miss.”

… Trump also claimed on Fox that Husted went up in the polls after he told people that Husted has a nice, muscular ass: “He went up 14 points or something. That was when I said the A-word. I looked at his body.”

… Trump at his rally in GA:

• On gas prices: “We’re making money like we’ve never made before. They’ll say: ‘Trump is bragging about all the money they’re making while people are suffering at the pump.’ I don’t give a damn. We’re making a freaking fortune.”

… Who is ‘we’?

• Comparing senate nominee Mike Collins to Sen. Jon Ossoff: “He’s a big, strong guy—that is what you want as opposed to a tiny person, but tiny in the sense of his arms, his legs.”

• “Why do we always had take people from shit house countries? Why can’t we take people from Norway, Sweden, Denmark? By the way, they gave us Greenland. We got Venezuela and Greenland.”

… Barack Obama at a rally for Democratic candidates in MI:

• “Whenever a movement builds to challenge that broken system, the people who benefit from the status quo will say and do anything to stop that train from coming. They will use lies and they will use fear and they will use division. And they may even use your name to suggest that you are dangerous and less than trustworthy and less patriotic and less American than they are.”

• “We have seen this movie before. I starred in it. I've got a long form birth certificate to prove it. This stuff didn't work on me, not in MI. It's not going to work on Abdul. He is as MI as it gets. Abdul was born here. He was raised here.”

• “Some people say, ‘Abdul didn’t like some of the things you did as president.’ So Abdul didn’t agree with some things. You know who else doesn’t agree with everything I do? Michelle Obama.”

• “When I was president, all these Republicans are all, ‘deficits, deficits, debt, debt. You got to do something about it.’ And now—$40 trillion—crickets. Somehow deficits only matter when a Democratic president is in office.”

… Abdul El-Sayed: “Trump's bill gutted health care for millions. President Obama passed the legislation that expanded it.” Crowd member yells out: “Obama is not in the Epstein files either!” Crowd cheers.

… Democratic nominee for governor Jocelyn Benson:

• “Who do you want leading the state when Trump tries to pressure the governor to overturn an election or to turn over your private voting info in the lead up to that election?

• I will proudly stand up to anyone anytime anywhere who tries to stand in the way of your rights, your freedoms, your privacy, and our democracy. I have done that as your secretary of state, and I'm ready to do it as your governor.”

… Obama in OH:

• “I don’t know if you noticed, but the guy in the WH seems very focused on home renovations. He should be on HGTV. He’s building a ballroom that’s bigger than the WH - paved over the Rose Garden. Put a helicopter pad on the south lawn. And he’s got gold everywhere. What’s up with the gold? He's got the WH looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory. It's gold everywhere!”

• “He pulled out of the JCPOA, starts this war. 7 months later, 6 months after they declared victory, how's that war going? Our allies and our bases have been attacked. Americans have been killed. Hundreds of Americans have been wounded. We have run down our stock of missiles. And Iran now has veto power over the Strait of Hormuz.”

• “This is the reason why the price of oil is up. Nobody disputes that. This is the reason the price of diesel is up. This is the reason why the price of just about everything is up. Meanwhile, you got the defense secretary who's squarely focused on important matters: the jawlines and testosterone levels of our troops.”

• “How much time do you think this Defense Secretary spends looking at himself in the mirror in the morning? These are not serious people. And the problem is you end up having to pay the price for their lack of seriousness.”

• “Iran didn't have nuclear weapons because I had put a deal in place and I didn't have to fire a missile to do it. I just had to engage in diplomacy.”

• “This admin's actions are directly responsible for rising costs. The current president chose to make a series of bad decisions. Most importantly, he decided to start an unnecessary war that nobody asked for and nobody voted for

• On Democratic nominee for senate Sherrod Brown: “This is not a guy who enriched himself cozying up to corporations. He's still wearing the same suit he was in when I met him 20 years ago.”

• “Remember that whole thing about drain the swamp? The only thing that got drained. was the reflecting pool after some no-bid contract got it all messed up. And then they tried to blame a 3-time Olympian by claiming he vandalized it.”

… Trump responded on Truth Social: “Obama was a grossly incompetent President! He said that Crooked Hillary Clinton was going to WIN, he campaigned hard for her, and she lost in all directions and ways. He then campaigned full out for Kamala, and likewise, she lost. Now he’s campaigning for a Muslim Brotherhood Jihadist, who hates Jews and Blacks and AMERICANS and TRUMP, and he is going to lose, also.”

… Democratic nominee for governor Amy Acton:

• “My opponent has chosen to exploit my childhood to save to save his struggling campaign, but it's not going to work.”

• On Obama: “Our guest today knows a little something about hope. Hope is a very powerful thing. It's what got me through living in a cold, dark basement when I wasn't sure where my next meal was coming from. Hope is what got me through sexual abuse, living through cold nights where all I could think about was how to keep my brother safe and warm.”

Reminder that tomorrow is Ask the Editor where I choose 5 of your questions to answer on the podcast. Please leave your question or topic you would like me to talk about more on the show in the comments section of this Bulletin below.

We are now in an all-out sprint to these very crucial midterm elections, so the overwhelming focus of these Bulletins for the next couple of weeks will be on those. Knowing Trump, I suspect that there will be considerable drama in the immediate aftermath so buckle up. And get people out to vote!

If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here.

… NYT reporter Shane Goldmacher: “Just how much has the Vivek Ramaswamy ad broken through? His rival, Amy Acton, became today the first Dem candidate for governor since April to be the top fundraiser on ActBlue over the preceding week.
(The top spot had been entirely held by Senate candidates.)”

… OH reporter Karen Kasler: “Update: there is now a 30 second version of the Vivek Ramaswamy ad featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother.”

… Community Note on X: “The 30-second version removes the mother’s specific claim from the longer original ad that Acton lied about living in a tent as a child, which is contradicted by court records and other evidence supporting her account of

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As you know, this is my favorite post I do every week, where we get to have a cup of coffee together, reflect on the week, and look at what’s ahead.

I think this was one of the most important weeks in the history of the MeidasTouch Network. I’m so proud of our editorial team and our collaborations, which got out news that we’re really not seeing anywhere else.

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The report by Aaron Parnas and Ken Harbaugh of Valor Media for the MeidasTouch Network on the true conditions at U.S. military bases in the Middle East, and on the experience of service members, contractors, and their families, is one of the most important stories of the year.

We shared video footage that had never been seen before of the Iranian ballistic missile and drone strikes on U.S. bases in Jordan, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates, bases that were left largely undefended against these strikes. And we told the stories of these service members before, during, and after.

When I think about getting this story out, I think about the vision for this network. It’s decentralized, but it links the entire independent media landscape. People have their own platforms, and they also come together under the MeidasTouch umbrella to get out these critical stories.

When it comes to cutting-edge independent reporting, there’s really no reporter today with a bigger or more dedicated following than Aaron Parnas. Then you have Ken Harbaugh and Valor Media, which has built a strong and loyal audience in the veteran and military community because it’s run by veterans. They’re speaking with members of our military every day. And it’s about trust.

That’s what we’ve set up across every discipline. When it comes to economics, who better to get us the best information than Justin Wolfers? When it comes to legal news, who better than Michael Popok, Judge Luttig, and Harry Litman, who clerked for two Supreme Court justices and served as a U.S. Attorney? Or Karen Friedman Agnifilo, one of the top lawyers in private practice today, who was the acting district attorney in Manhattan.

When it comes to health, we have Dr. Gupta leading MeidasHealth.

It’s important to have people who actually walk the walk, who can now talk the talk while still walking the walk, if that makes sense. Our reporters are in the field doing the work.

And then we have this broader network to distribute it across all of the Meidas platforms, from MeidasTouch itself with our YouTube channel and our reach, to the other platforms linked with us, just like we did with this story working with Aaron and others.

I wanted to lay out that vision because I want you to know it’s very intentional. The architecture is intentional. We’ve analyzed this landscape, and we need a fire hose of truth to fight the fire hose of disinformation, especially when oligarchs control the algorithms. We need a guerrilla warfare of truth that builds vast repositories of information and truth, so that we’re everywhere. Local and embedded in the communities we talk about, national, and global too. That’s why MeidasCanada and our international expansion matter so much.

As we talked about in WTF America, and thank you to everybody who’s gotten it, right-wing media has been building for more than half a century. The Roger Ailes memo in 1970, talk radio, Fox News in the 90s, and the whole right-wing propaganda ecosystem. It’s a system. So the way we fight it is by building systems and structures, and then focusing on carrying them out generation after generation.

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One of the problems we’ve diagnosed is that people on the pro-democracy side took for granted that people would always support democracy. They assumed what was coming out of right-wing propaganda was so outrageous that it would be dismissed as absurd. But repetition works. Right-wing authoritarian propaganda spreads those lies over and over again. The right wing built systems and structures while the pro-democracy side was talking about winning an election 90 days out or 60 days out.

And by the way, winning elections matters. It’s important to have a game plan and finish strong in those final 60 days, the way you preserve your energy in a marathon so you can finish strong instead of burning out early. But we have to recognize this is a marathon and not a sprint. We have to be there not just for the first few miles, which can be exhilarating, but for miles 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. Otherwise people won’t recognize you when you show up for the final stretch.

That, to me, is building independent media. It’s relentless. It’s getting out the truth every single day, a fire hose of truth every single day. That’s what we’re doing at this network, and that’s what we’re focused on.

So those are my ruminations. Now, where are we as we approach the election? Folks, we’re here. This is the home stretch, and now we push harder than ever.

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We’re seeing Trump flail. We’re seeing MAGA get nervous and more and more desperate, and desperate people do desperate things.

We’re seeing an unprecedented, corrupt action by Trump’s DOJ in Alaska, demanding that a federal judge decertify election results before the results even come in. We’re seeing Trump harass and attack California, and they’re going to go state by state. They’re going to do what they did in 2020 and 2021, but on a much grander, Project 2025 style scale, because they’re pathetic fascists. But they’re going to lose.

And in their desperation, they’re going to turn more and more people against them. That’s what we’re seeing.

So as we head into these final days before the election, I want us all to take inventory of where we are. It was not a foregone conclusion that we’d get here, but we’re actually stronger than ever. I think you all feel more confident. We all feel more confident having each other, even if we’re tired. Let’s admit it, we can be tired. Going back to the marathon, it’s exhausting at mile 26. That’s normal. But we’ll lean on each other, and we’ll get across the finish line.

And the cavalry has arrived. Obama is out traveling the country, and it’s incredible to see his speeches. But you can’t expect him to be out there every day for the years leading up to an election. That’s why we have to take the power ourselves, so that when he comes in at the end, which he’s doing now, we’ve already mobilized. We’ve already gotten out the word. We’ve been ambassadors of truth for a long time.

And we’ve been covering all of these rallies. Whether it was President Obama in Cleveland with Sherrod Brown, who’s running for Senate, and Dr. Amy Acton, who’s running for governor. Or President Obama in Detroit with Jocelyn Benson, the Democratic nominee for governor, and Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for Senate. Or Senator Bernie Sanders in Duluth, Minnesota, with Senate candidate Peggy Flanagan and Attorney General Keith Ellison. Or Senator Sanders in Michigan, joining Abdul El-Sayed for a rally in Grand Rapids today. With our massive platform, we’ve been putting all of these rallies out for people to see, which really hadn’t been done before.

So look, Trump will keep doing these rallies where he talks about cognitive exams and men’s asses and makes weird grunting noises.

But we’ll stay focused every day on building the structures and systems, not just for a good result in one election cycle, but for generations. That’s what we’re building here. That’s the plan. That’s what this community is all about, and we’re so grateful for all of you.

So let’s keep on fighting. Subscribe to the Substack, and become a paid subscriber if you can. I’m going to put down my coffee and go do a video. Thanks, everybody.

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Speaking to the press yesterday, President Trump stated that the United States may return to war with Iran for a “little” Epic Fury. While this may sound better than what many people had feared, it is also entirely absurd and detached from easily observable shifts in the strategic landscape since Epic Fury initially began.

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