Top Items:
Associated Press:
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 …
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Zachary Pleat / Media Matters for America:
Here are the right-wing media figures endorsing “despicable” ad from Ohio Republican gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy — The ad features Democratic nominee Amy Acton's estranged mother, who defended her husband's reported sexual assault of Acton when she was a child
Discussion:
Cleveland 19 News, CBS News, The Downballot, Mediaite, The Message Box, MeidasTouch, Daily Mail, Newsweek, The Hill, Mother Jones, MS NOW, No More Mister Nice Blog and Scripps News
Julie Carr Smyth / Associated Press:
Democrat in Ohio governor's race pushes back against unattributed ad featuring her estranged mother
Discussion:
NBC News, Chicago Tribune, The Bulwark, Wonkette, Washington Examiner, MS NOW, The Independent, Bloomberg, Abortion, Every Day, Newsweek, Nightcap, The Status Kuo, Liberal Currents, The Daily Wire, The Hill, Adam Kinzinger, WTOP News, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, CNN, CBS News, New York Post, Media Matters for America, WOSU Public Media, The Washington Sun, Forbes and WKMG
New York Times:
Vance Defends Ramaswamy's Ad as Backlash Threatens Ohio Campaign
Vance Defends Ramaswamy's Ad as Backlash Threatens Ohio Campaign
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, The Hill and Tangle
Gregory Svirnovskiy / Politico:
‘Stop whining’: Vance dismisses Republican criticism of Ramaswamy ad
‘Stop whining’: Vance dismisses Republican criticism of Ramaswamy ad
Discussion:
National Politics, The Guardian, Mediaite, NewsMax.com, twitchy.com, Media Matters for America, Washington Examiner, Reason and CBS News
Steph Whiteside / NewsNation:
Ramaswamy attack ad ‘backfiring’: GOP strategist
Ramaswamy attack ad ‘backfiring’: GOP strategist
Discussion:
Political Wire
Nate Cohn / New York Times:
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 …
Discussion:
New York Magazine, Daily Kos, RedState and Forbes
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Vox:
This Democrat's accountability plan has Trump fuming — The 2026 midterms are less than two weeks away, which means we'll soon have a better idea of what the next two years of American politics could look like. If Democrats win at least one chamber of Congress — and they're comfortable favorites …
G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:
Poll: Democrats post their biggest generic-ballot lead yet, two weeks out
New York Times:
Trump Approval Hits New Low Two Weeks Before Midterms, Poll Finds
Trump Approval Hits New Low Two Weeks Before Midterms, Poll Finds
Discussion:
Washington Post, Politico, NPR, Newsweek, DCCC, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, The Hill and Reason
CNN:
Desire for change, anti-Trump feelings fuel Democrats' midterms advantage: CNN poll
Discussion:
Fox News, Marist Poll, Washington Post, Daily Kos, The Guardian, NewsMax.com, The Hill, New York Times, MS NOW and Florida Politics
Irie Sentner / Politico:
Impeachment is back on the menu — Impeachment dominated much of Donald Trump's first presidency.
Impeachment is back on the menu — Impeachment dominated much of Donald Trump's first presidency.
Discussion:
PoliticusUSA
Politico:
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 …
Discussion:
Wired, The PHP Foundation, The Hill, Wall Street Journal, The Verge, Associated Press, Gizmodo, Mother Jones, NewsMax.com, Wiz Blog, OpenAI, Yle News, The Atlantic, TechCrunch, Cloudflare, CBS News, Reuters, Krebs on Security, Mashable, Forbes, KIFI-TV, Blaze Media, Insurance Journal and The Register, more at Techmeme »
NBC News:
U.S. troops and diplomats evacuating Middle East posts, sources say — The drawdowns are in response to ongoing threats in the region, sources say, and are taking place as President Trump weighs new military action in Iran. — DOHA — The U.S. military has quietly been scaling …
Discussion:
Politico, CBS News, Reuters and NewsNation
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New York Times:
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 …
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Peter Baker / New York Times:
In Trump's World of International Diplomacy, Insults Are a One-Way Street
Discussion:
Foreign Policy, Axios, France 24, BBC, NewsMax.com, Associated Press and Al Jazeera
Paul Dallison / Politico:
Witkoff to Putin: ‘You are a humanitarian ... I salute that’
Witkoff to Putin: ‘You are a humanitarian ... I salute that’
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, CBS News, New York Post, Associated Press, The Guardian, NewsNation, NewsMax.com, CNBC, Foreign Policy, Bloomberg, MS NOW, The Independent, Patterico's Pontifications, The Parnas Perspective, Wonkette, Rolling Stone, KIFI-TV, Mediaite, Reuters, New Republic, France 24 and News Talk 105.9 WMAL-FM
Axios:
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.
Robert E. Rubin / New York Times:
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 …
Discussion:
Mediaite and DeLong's Grasping …
New York Times:
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 …
Discussion:
Axios, Politico, Gizmodo, Associated Press, Reuters, Source New Mexico, Washington Examiner, MS NOW, Los Angeles Times, KIFI-TV, Straight Arrow, CBS News, Fox Business, Mashable, Deseret News, Courthouse News Service, TheDesk.net, Variety, TechCrunch, The Verge, The Information, CNBC, The Wrap, WTOP News, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite and Fox News, more at Techmeme »
Luke Fountain / CNBC:
AIPAC retreats from candidate endorsements and direct giving as political backlash grows … The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, better known as AIPAC, plans to stop endorsing candidates, making direct PAC contributions and earmarking contributions to candidates.
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Marc Rod / Jewish Insider:
AIPAC to end candidate endorsements, PAC contributions to allies
AIPAC to end candidate endorsements, PAC contributions to allies
Discussion:
NBC News, Washington Examiner, VINnews, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Mediaite
John Hendel / Politico:
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.
Discussion:
Reuters, Protect Democracy, TheDesk.net and New York Post
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Luke Broadwater / New York Times:
Trump Says He'll Decide Who Gets Rewards From New Whistle-Blower Program — President Trump's announcement raised concerns that he would use the program seeking information on fraud for political purposes. — President Trump this week announced a new $25 million whistle-blower incentive program …
Discussion:
RedState, Daily Caller News Foundation, Daily Kos, American Greatness, News Talk 105.9 WMAL-FM and MPR News
RELATED:
Andrew Feinberg / The Independent:
Trump lost control and ordered me to be ‘quiet’ in the Oval Office. Then it got personal
Trump lost control and ordered me to be ‘quiet’ in the Oval Office. Then it got personal
Discussion:
emptywheel, Mother Jones, Daily Kos, Wonkette, Blaze Media, HuffPost, Crooks and Liars, The Wrap, Daily Mail, The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, Breitbart and CBS News, more at Mediagazer »
Madeleine May / CBS News:
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 …
Maggie Miller / Politico:
Russia launched covert influence campaign to undermine US candidates supportive of Ukraine, lawmakers say — The Russian government has launched a covert online influence campaign to sway public opinion and undermine both Democrats and Republicans sympathetic to Ukraine ahead of the midterms …
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Eric McDaniel / NPR:
Top 2 Democrats on Intel say they're preparing for Trump to claim foreign meddling
Top 2 Democrats on Intel say they're preparing for Trump to claim foreign meddling
Discussion:
The Guardian
CNN:
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 …
Discussion:
Axios, Stars & Stripes, The Daily Caller, NewsMax.com, The Independent, WTOP News and Military.com
Mona Charen / The Bulwark:
The Real Lessons of the French Riots — POLLS BEING WHAT THEY ARE, Republicans and their supporters must be feeling a bit like the condemned Frenchmen who rode to the guillotine during the Reign of Terror. It's fitting, then, that they are seizing on unrest in France as a desperate campaign gambit.
Discussion:
Agence France-Presse
US Department of Justice:
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”
Discussion:
The Post Millennial, Breitbart, Legal Insurrection, RedState, Fox News, The Gateway Pundit and Washington Examiner
Democracy Defenders Fund:
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
Alexander Hall / New York Post:
Americans who moved to Europe after Trump win now say they regret leaving — Liberal Americans who fled to Europe after President Trump's re-election shared how the grass is not always greener on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. — Wired Magazine released an article Thursday headlined “They Fled Trump's America.
Discussion:
The Daily Wire, Breitbart, One America News Network, Mediaite and The Daily Caller
Marc Caputo / Axios:
White House to Politico: Retract stories or face “consequences” — The White House counsel's office warned Politico in a Monday letter that it had 48 hours to retract or correct recent stories about alleged staff drama, or it would suffer unspecified consequences. — That deadline expires Thursday.
Ariana Baio / The Guardian:
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 …
Discussion:
The Washington Sun, The Hill, CBS News, New York Times, The Texas Tribune, The Independent, Breitbart and HuffPost
Max Fillion / Wall Street Journal:
The Trump Administration Wants More Tax Charges. It's Going to Be Tough. — The Justice Department has told its overworked fraud prosecutors to look for tax charges wherever they can, but law enforcement is already straining — The Trump administration wants to bulk up its antifraud push …
Discussion:
The Hill
Alex DeLuca / Washington Post:
Why a recent college grad wants Republicans to ‘step it up’ on affordability … Michael Fusella supported President Donald Trump for nearly a decade — starting around age 12. — Passionate about politics since high school, Fusella regularly debated fellow students about immigration and gun rights.
Jason Schreier / Bloomberg:
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.
Discussion:
Gizmodo, New York Post, Ars Technica, Mashable, Electronic Arts, CityNews Edmonton, The Verge and Variety, more at Techmeme »
Josephine Walker / Axios:
Democrats sue Trump over alleged voter intimidation campaign — Democratic groups sued the Trump administration Tuesday, accusing it of using unfounded voter fraud claims to muscle its way into how states run elections. … - They're asking a judge to declare the administration's actions unlawful and block further interference.
Discussion:
Washington Post, MS NOW, New Republic and NewsMax.com
Abbie VanSickle / New York Times:
Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow Border Wall Construction — A lower court judge had halted the administration's plan to erect hundreds of miles of barriers in the Big Bend region of Texas. — The Trump administration on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to allow …
Discussion:
CBS News, Reuters, Washington Examiner, The Washington Sun, The Hill, Associated Press, Courthouse News Service and The Independent

