Top Items:
Axios:
“Brace for losing everything”: Farm crisis fears grip GOP in Iowa — Iowa is on the verge of a farm crisis that threatens to wreck the agricultural heart of the state and hurt the fortunes of Republicans at the top of the midterm ticket, GOP strategists acknowledge.
RELATED:
Politico:
‘On a scale of 1 to 10, 10’: Trump's midterm travel schedule underscores GOP troubles — President Donald Trump intends to spend the next 30 days campaigning for Republicans, many of whom are underwater in states the president easily carried two years ago. — Bastions of conservatism …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, PoliticusUSA, NewsMax.com and No More Mister Nice Blog
Marist Poll:
Midterm Elections in Ohio, September 2026 — Democrats Lead in Ohio's Senate & Gubernatorial Contests... Impressions of Trump Loom Large — Brown (51%) leads Husted (43%) among registered voters statewide in the race for U.S. Senate in Ohio. Independents break for Brown (58% to 33% for Husted).
Discussion:
Mock Paper Scissors, Newsweek and Lawyers, Guns & Money
E.J. Dionne Jr / New York Times:
Kansas Hasn't Elected a Democratic Senator Since 1932. Is This the Year?
Kansas Hasn't Elected a Democratic Senator Since 1932. Is This the Year?
Discussion:
MS NOW, Talking Points Memo and Breitbart
Politico:
Sen. Eric Schmitt pins down Jack Smith — as a Caitlin Clark fan — Sen. Eric Schmitt thought he caught Jack Smith in a lie. Instead, he outed him as a fan of former Iowa Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark. In a quest to frame former special counsel Jack Smith as a liar during his testimony …
Discussion:
Forbes, MeidasTouch, Rolling Stone, The Hill, PoliticusUSA, The Independent, twitchy.com, Mediaite and National Politics
RELATED:
Melissa Quinn / CBS News:
Watch Live: Jack Smith testifies on Trump probes at Senate hearing — What to know about the Jack Smith hearing today: — Former special counsel Jack Smith is testifying Tuesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee as part of its investigation into his probes of President Trump.
Discussion:
Scripps News, Fox News, NBC News, RedState, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Examiner, New Republic, Roll Call and Breitbart
Rebecca Beitsch / The Hill:
Jack Smith stresses strength of Trump cases, says he will not be ‘silenced’ by threats — Former special counsel Jack Smith stressed in prepared remarks that it was the evidence tied to President Trump's own actions that prompted him to bring charges against Trump.
Discussion:
Associated Press, New York Post, Washington Examiner, RedState, Los Angeles Times, Newsbusters, The Daily Wire, Straight Arrow, Mediaite and CBS News
Jeremy Roebuck / Washington Post:
Jack Smith clashes with senators over Trump probes, says he will not be silenced
Discussion:
Bloomberg
Wall Street Journal:
Homeland Security Money Financed Pro-Trump Television Ads — White House calls the spots public-service ads, but critics argue using taxpayer money for campaign-like messaging may violate federal law — WASHINGTON—The Trump administration used federal funds from the Department …
Discussion:
Bloomberg and Washington Examiner, more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:
Kristen Holmes / CNN:
Trump personally helped orchestrate taxpayer-funded ads promoting himself and his policies, source says — President Donald Trump has personally driven the controversial, taxpayer-funded video ads promoting himself and his administration's policies, including helping select the imagery and videos used …
Ali Swenson / Associated Press:
Taxpayers have funded nearly $1.5M in pro-Trump ads. Criticism is mounting, including from the GOP
Discussion:
MS NOW, Mediaite, Los Angeles Times, WTOP News, Vox, The Hill, Politico, Truthout, Washington Examiner, PolitiFact and Executive Functions, more at Mediagazer »
Will Saletan / The Bulwark:
Congratulations, You're a Trump Campaign Donor
Congratulations, You're a Trump Campaign Donor
Discussion:
MS NOW, The Message Box, Bloomberg, The Dean's Report, Military.com, The Independent, Deadline, Reason and NBC News
Paul Krugman:
The Beclowning of Scott Bessent — One iron law of current politics is that nobody who associates themselves with Donald Trump emerges with a shred of credibility. For some, that's not a big loss — it's not as if anyone respected Pete Hegseth even before he decided that the key …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com and Townhall
Filip Timotija / The Hill:
Hegseth to cut 20 percent of admirals, generals in major Pentagon overhaul — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to announce a 20 percent cut to slots slated for admirals and generals at the Pentagon as part of his push to overhaul the outlook of the department, a Pentagon official confirmed to The Hill on Tuesday.
RELATED:
Morgan Phillips / Fox News:
EXCLUSIVE: Hegseth to double cuts to generals, admirals in major Pentagon shakeup — The War Secretary's State of the Force address doubles last year's 10% reduction target, with changes due by Jan. 1, 2027 — War Secretary Pete Hegseth will announce plans to reduce by 20% the number …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, War on the Rocks, Stars & Stripes, RedState and The Post Millennial
Jay Willis / Slate:
It Was the Essential Home of Supreme Court News. Now It's a Joke. What Happened? — Earlier this month, SCOTUSblog hosted its annual Supreme Court “summit” in Washington. For nearly a quarter century, SCOTUSblog has been the go-to outlet for information about the court and its docket …
David Gilbert / Wired:
A Pentagon Influencer Called Liberal Women a ‘Pestilence’ Who Will End Western Civilization — Kurt Schlichter was part of a task force rooting out so-called woke ideologies at the military's war colleges. He has called to bar childless adults from voting.
Associated Press:
Federal prosecutors charge Venezuelan man shot by ICE agent in Texas with assaulting an officer — Federal prosecutors in Texas announced on Tuesday assault charges against a Venezuelan delivery driver who was shot in the back by immigration enforcement agents on Sept. 20.
Discussion:
Breitbart
RELATED:
Asher Price / Axios:
How Paxton vs. Talarico compares to Cruz vs. O'Rourke … The similarities … Talarico, a state legislator from Austin, was relatively unknown outside of Central Texas before he launched his Senate bid. — Cruz first won election to the Senate as a tea party insurgent who defeated a better-funded …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner
RELATED:
Dan Merica / Washington Post:
Democrats coalesce around a message about the cost of corruption
Discussion:
GAB
Kevin Breuninger / CNBC:
New AI-powered government website uses Gemini, Grok, Trump official Gebbia says … The Trump administration's new chatbot aimed at helping Americans navigate official government websites is powered by artificial intelligence from Google's Gemini and Elon Musk's Grok, U.S. Chief Design Officer Joe Gebbia said Tuesday.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Independent, New Republic, Forbes, The Gateway Pundit, CBS News and Google, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Jenna Monnin / The Washington Sun:
Lone Republican Senator Derails a Bill to Prevent Demolition of the Kennedy Center — Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) blocked a bipartisan bill that would have prohibited the destruction of any national memorial honoring a U.S. president — a measure meant to protect the Kennedy Center from a full demolition — without congressional approval.
Discussion:
The Guardian, Washington Examiner, Merkley, Deseret News and New Republic
RELATED:
Jonathan Edwards / Washington Post:
GOP senator blocks bill to stop Trump from demolishing Kennedy Center
Echo Wang / Reuters:
Anthropic's IPO prospectus shows sweeping AI vision, surging costs — Anthropic is making a massive bet that AI will transform the global economy more profoundly than industrialization, electricity and the internet, according to its IPO prospectus seen by Reuters. — But the cost to get there will be staggering.
Discussion:
Financial Times, Gizmodo, The Daily Caller, The Guardian, The Register, The Information, The Verge, TechCrunch, Blue Virginia and Semafor, more at Techmeme »
Jim VandeHei / Axios:
Sen. Eric Schmitt is drawing buzz as a possible Vance VP in 2028 — First-term Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) — who was a tough-on-crime state attorney general, and now is vice chair of the Joint Economic Committee — has grown close to Vice President Vance and is seen as a top prospect to become a potential 2028 running mate.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and NewsMax.com
Washington Post:
Tennessee to execute a woman for first time in over 200 years — Christa Pike was convicted in a brutal 1995 killing committed when she was 18. Advocates pushing for her life to be spared point to abuse she suffered as a child. — SummaryLoading... A Tennessee woman scheduled …
Discussion:
CBS News, Washington Examiner, The Daily Wire, The Guardian, Straight Arrow, Althouse, NBC News, Associated Press, TMZ.com and New York Times
Sabrina Rodriguez / Wall Street Journal:
I Went Home to Miami to See How Hispanic Voters Feel About Trump and Immigration — Watch as a WSJ reporter visits Miami-Dade County—which Trump flipped red in 2024. Now, many voters are frustrated with some of his policies. — Click for Sound — This is an episode of Rooted In …
Discussion:
Washington Post
Lisa Song / ProPublica:
“A Massive Power Grab”: White House Proposal Threatens Funding That Helps Disabled Americans Vote — Without Amy Miller, some elderly and disabled people wouldn't be able to vote. — The attorney for Disability Rights Nebraska travels the state, investigating the quality of nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
Discussion:
Rough Draft
Associated Press:
Trump touts America.gov, but its government-sourced AI answers undercut many of his statements — The Trump administration has lauded its revamped website America.gov as a way to simplify Americans' access to information and services scattered across a plethora of agency sites …
Discussion:
Politico, Associated Press, The Hill, Mediaite, CNN, National Politics and New York Magazine
Washington Post:
How Trump's sweeping changes are remaking Washington — June 3, 2025. Sept. 1, 2026. — President Donald Trump has focused on remaking Washington in his second term, from blades of grass on the White House lawn to new monuments around the city. — He regularly directs the presidential helicopter …
Jennifer Scholtes / Politico:
Federal watchdog says Trump's $810M funding cancellation is unconstitutional — The federal government's internal watchdog told Congress Tuesday that it has concluded President Donald Trump acted unlawfully in unilaterally canceling $810 million in federal funding.
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, Washington Examiner and News Talk 105.9
Max Rego / The Hill:
Trump administration ban on $1B in Canadian imports goes into effect — President Trump's ban on nearly $1 billion worth of Canadian goods went into effect Tuesday, marking the latest salvo in a trade war between the U.S. and its longtime ally to the north.
Discussion:
New York Times, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, The Independent and Canadian Press
Jonathan Bernstein / Good Politics/Bad Politics:
What's Gone Wrong For the GOP — And some speculation about why. — A two-part item today: I'm looking again at the state of the election, focused this time mainly on the Senate, and then shifting to some first thoughts about why things have gone so badly so far for Republicans.
Discussion:
The Hill
Amber Neely / AppleInsider:
Unsurprisingly, Meta's new Muse AI agent blatantly ignores users permissions — In a completely unsurprising turn of events, Meta's Muse AI is stealing Apple Messages, past and present, and uploading the contents to its cloud, even if explicitly told not to.
Discussion:
Gizmodo
CBS News:
Watch: Kennedy questions Jack Smith about his wife's views on Trump, Obamas — GOP Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana questioned former special counsel Jack Smith about his wife's political views. Smith told Kennedy he wasn't at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to talk about his family.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, RedState and Mediaite
Wall Street Journal:
Treasury Will Auto-Enroll 60 Million Children in Trump Accounts — New rules also ease path for wealthy donors to contribute stock — The Treasury Department will automatically enroll tens of millions of children in the government's new Trump Accounts as soon as this week …
Discussion:
The Hill


