… The midterms are going so well for Republicans that Trump is campaigning in Mississippi today and Vance is in Montana. Not sure if Trump will be talking about Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith’s ass or not. Seems to be his thing now. I will keep you posted.
… 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