Vance says he's ‘disgusted’ by GOP pushback to Ramaswamy ad featuring Amy Acton's estranged mother  —  Vice President JD Vance said during a campaign visit to Ohio on Wednesday that he is “disgusted” by the Republican pushback against an ad by Vivek Ramaswamy that features the estranged mother …

Democrats Have a Wide Lead in Our New Poll as Trump Slides  —  The map favors Republicans, but cracks in their base are leaving them vulnerable in defending House and Senate control.  —  The final New York Times/Siena University national poll of the 2026 midterm campaign finds Democrats leading nationally …

Russia Releases American Who Was Jailed for 4 Years, State Media Reports  —  The move buys good will with President Trump while costing the Russian leader, Vladimir V. Putin, little.  —  Russia on Wednesday released an American man who was held for four years on what the State Department …

DCCC Gets a $25 Million Credit Line  —  House Democrats' campaign arm signed off on a $25 million line of credit — among the largest it's ever opened — early last week as the party stretches itself to take advantage of an increasingly favorable electoral environment.

In Six Decades of Public Life, I Never Thought I Would Write This Piece  —  The economy has been voters' top issue in four of the six midterm elections this century — and 2026 appears all but certain to make it five of seven.  Beyond the cost of living, the war in Iran and tariffs …

Meta Ordered to Pay $25 Billion for Deceiving Users on Privacy  —  The penalty, one of the largest levied against the tech giant, stemmed from a lawsuit by New Mexico claiming the social media company had misled users about their data privacy.  —  A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay $25 billion …

US, allies warn of critical vulnerabilities in programming underlying 70% of the internet  —  The National Security Agency and cyber agencies in Europe, Australia, Canada, and elsewhere on Wednesday urged organizations to take their websites offline immediately after OpenAI tools found critical bugs …

Federal agents knock on doors to track down possible noncitizen voters ahead of midterms  —  Armed and in uniform, federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security have been knocking on doors in several states to ask residents about their immigration status — and to inquire …

Bush's brother crosses party lines to vote for James Talarico for Senate  —  Republican Neil Bush says he was ‘deeply troubled’ by Ken Paxton's conduct and ‘enormously impressed’ with Talarico  —  Neil Bush, a son of former president George HW Bush and a lifelong Republican …

Pentagon grants DHS permission to test heat ray weapon for potential use at border  —  Federal agencies US military Pete Hegseth National security  —  The Pentagon has given the Department of Homeland Security permission to test a military-grade heat ray and develop tactics to potentially use …

Brendan Carr takes up Trump's ‘fake polls’ fight  —  Brendan Carr warned broadcasters Wednesday to vet their polling carefully, suggesting his Federal Communications Commission could punish outlets for sharing results the administration believes deceive viewers.

Electronic Arts to Shed 400 Jobs, Shut Down BioWare to Cut Costs  —  The next ‘Mass Effect’ will be canceled as part of the layoffs  —  Electronic Arts Inc. said it will lay off staff and shut down BioWare, the long-running development studio behind roleplaying games such as Dragon Age and Mass Effect.

Big Win for Federal Workers: Federal Court Rules OPM Broke the Law by Handing DOGE Access to Sensitive Data  —  U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York rules OPM unlawfully disclosed records belonging to tens of millions of current, former, and prospective federal workers

US preparing to issue ordered departure of some personnel from Gulf embassies, say US officials  —  The US State Department is preparing to issue an ordered departure of some personnel and family members from US embassies across the Gulf region, three US officials said on Wednesday.

The House GOP's imminent decision on the Omar raid  —  House Republicans have publicly cheered on the Trump administration's investigation of Rep. Ilhan Omar.  But underneath the posturing, the raid raises thorny nonpartisan questions about how aggressively Congress wants to defend itself from encroaching federal prosecutors.

Six Charged in Large Scale Marriage Fraud Ring  —  For Immediate Release  —  U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts  —  For over a decade, alleged leader earned millions, arranging sham marriages between illegal aliens and U.S. citizens in Massachusetts; defendant bragged about Massachusetts being a “sanctuary”

Scoop: Senate Republicans fear Mississippi is in play  —  Senate Republicans are weighing three last-ditch spending moves that would have been unimaginable six months ago: a cash infusion for Mississippi and even more money for South Carolina and Kansas. … But panic is spreading through the Republican Party.

Trump lost control and ordered me to be ‘quiet’ in the Oval Office.  Then it got personal  —  What was supposed to be an announcement on fraud quickly devolved into Trump vs The Independent.  Andrew Feinberg details how it all happened in the Oval Office  —  Leer en Español

Israeli military detains US politician Brad Lander and rabbis at olive harvest  —  About 80 US, Israeli and British volunteers held near Nahalin in West Bank and taken to police station  —  The Israeli military has detained about 80 US, Israeli and British volunteers helping Palestinians …

Michigan's sleeper race is waking up  —  It's nearly impossible to break through the political media maelstrom in Michigan right now if your name isn't Abdul El-Sayed or Mike Rogers.  —  But GOP and Democratic operatives in Lansing, Washington and beyond — not to mention utilities …

Hazardous Materials Evacuation and Shelter-in-Place Orders in Effect for North Toledo  —  What happened?  —  At 10:48 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 20, Toledo Fire & Rescue ordered everyone within a 1-mile radius of 1266 Progress Ave (MC Tank Terminal) to evacuate. because of a hazardous materials release.

The DNC Says MAGA Inc. Is Airing Another Ad Created With Taxpayer Dollars  —  Critics, including the DNC, have called the ads “propaganda.”  — Copy  —  The Democratic National Committee flagged to a federal judge this week that a super PAC linked to President Donald Trump paid to air …

Minnesota's Democratic U.S. Senate Nominee Inflated Academic Record  —  Peggy Flanagan said she ‘graduated Phi Beta Kappa,’ but records raise questions about claim  —  Peggy Flanagan said she “graduated Phi Beta Kappa” while arguing a decade ago for legislation to encourage greater teacher diversity in Minnesota's public schools.

Gov. Stein criticizes absentee ballot rejection rate, urges voters to plan ahead  —  Gov. Josh Stein is criticizing recent State Board of Elections changes for mail-in ballots, saying the changes have contributed to thousands more absentee ballot rejections.

Arrests: Kissimmee, FL Mayor on Grand Theft Charges; NJ Deputy AG for Child Sexual Abuse Materials  —  Gracious, it's been a banner run for Democrats over the past five days or so.  —  The breaking news this morning was the arrest of Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa, who seems to have gotten caught …

Supreme Court Maintains Access to Transgender Medical Care in Federal Prisons  —  Court blocks the Trump administration from banning hormone treatment and gender-related accommodations for federal inmates  —  WASHINGTON—The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that the Trump administration …

The Bill for Trumpism Comes Due  —  Budget promises made, budget promises broken  —  “BALANCED BUDGET!!!  DJT” Donald Trump posted that promise on February 7, 2025, the 18th day of his current presidential term.  During the 2024 campaign, he had promised even more: the elimination …