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2:45 PM ET, October 21, 2026

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
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
RELATED:
Alex Isenstadt / Axios:
Exclusive: Ramaswamy doubles down on explosive ad featuring rival's mother, despite backlash  —  Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign for Ohio governor is pouring $4 million into a bombshell ad in which his opponent's estranged mother attacks her daughter — doubling down on the message despite fierce bipartisan backlash, Axios has learned.
Politico:
Republicans' mom burn messaging  —  With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco and Irie Sentner  —  Good Wednesday morning.  Days after Bradley Whitford blew off steam in “The Diplomat's” White House swimming pool, a new round of renovation murmurs are brewing around the briefing room.  Coincidence?
Discussion: The Hill and New York Post
Julie Carr Smyth / Associated Press:
Democrat in Ohio governor's race pushes back against unattributed ad featuring her estranged mother
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: RedState and Forbes
RELATED:
G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:
Poll: Democrats post their biggest generic-ballot lead yet, two weeks out  —  Democrats lead by 10 among registered voters and 12 among likely voters, both highs for our poll, as Trump sets new lows on immigration and border security … Just under two weeks before Election Day …
New York Times:
Trump Approval Hits New Low Two Weeks Before Midterms, Poll Finds  —  Likely voters favored Democratic candidates over Republicans by 11 percentage points in their congressional district, a New York Times/Siena poll found.  —  President Trump's approval rating hit a new low just a few weeks …
Discussion: The Guardian, The Hill and Reason
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 …
RELATED:
Kathryn Watson / CBS News:
Witkoff faces backlash for calling Putin a “humanitarian”: “Embarrassing and outrageous”
Reuters:
US envoy Witkoff arrives in St Petersburg for talks with Putin
James Romoser / Wall Street Journal:
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 …
RELATED:
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Supreme Court blocks Trump admin's limits on transgender care for prisoners
Discussion: MS NOW and Advocate
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 …
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
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.
Discussion: New York Post
RELATED:
Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:   The Hunting of Ilhan Omar
Mary Radcliffe / FiftyPlusOne:
FiftyPlusOne just caught a pollster faking data — and they copped to it  —  On Tuesday, Oct. 20, FiftyPlusOne reached out to Wedgewood Polls, a self-professed polling firm, with a request for comment on an investigation we had conducted into their alleged survey research.
RELATED:
Michelle Del Rey / The Washington Sun:
George W. Bush's Brother Backs Talarico and Bashes Ken Paxton  —  Neil Bush, the brother of former President George W. Bush, said this week that he voted for James Talarico, breaking with his family's Republican political dynasty.  —  Bush, the fourth of former President George H. W. Bush …
RELATED:
The Washington Sun:
How Rough Is It for Republicans?  Look at This North Carolina District.  —  North Carolina's 11th Congressional District sits in a rural and conservative region of the state, has been held by a Republican for more than a decade and backed Donald Trump by a nearly double-digit margin in 2024.
Discussion: Washington Examiner and Reuters
RELATED:
Elena Schneider / The Washington Sun:
A Major Democratic Super PAC Begs Donors for More Cash as the Map Expands
Discussion: NRCC and Axios
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 …
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.
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: WTOP News
Tyler Pager / New York Times:
A Billionaire Wanted a Trump Pardon.  His Family Gave Alina Habba a $50 Million Deal.  —  A Billionaire Wanted a Pardon.  His Family Gave Alina Habba a $50 Million Deal.  —  A prominent Venezuelan was seeking clemency.  He got it not long after his daughter gave Ms. Habba, a lawyer close to President Trump, a lucrative job.
John McCormick / Wall Street Journal:
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.
Emma Graham-Harrison / The Guardian:
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 …
Andrew Feinberg / The Independent:
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
Washington Post:
How ex-cops gained access to a massive surveillance network … When Andrae Wright left his job as an investigator at the Effingham County Sheriff's Office in 2021, he handed in his gun and badge.  But he kept something powerful: his log-in credentials for Flock, a police tool he used to search …
Discussion: NewsMax.com
Politico:
Scalise heads to Florida to boost several GOP candidates  —  House Majority Leader Steve Scalise is heading to Florida to boost a raft of Republicans as the House GOP campaign arm launches new spending across the ruby-red state.  Republicans are working to ensure they prevail in a series …
Dan Mangan / CNBC:
New Mexico AG lawsuit accuses Epstein's attorney and accountant of facilitating sex trafficking … New Mexico's attorney general on Wednesday filed a lawsuit accusing Jeffrey Epstein's long-time personal lawyer and accountant of facilitating Epstein's sex trafficking operation.
Whitney Curry Wimbish / American Prospect:
ICE Profiteers Trying To Buy the Senate for Republicans  —  Read the top story of the day in your inbox.  Sign up for the Daily Prospect newsletter here.  —  Only three months had passed since Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero was killed by a federal immigration agent in Maine …
City of Toledo:
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.
MS NOW:
Trump is the ‘principal enemy of the U.S.’ for helping Russia, veteran foreign analyst says  —  Lawrence: Trump and Hegseth ‘not telling how much damage there really was’ by Iran war to Navy base  —  Trump desperate to save ‘yes man’ senator in Kansas, says Democratic Senate candidate
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Israeli military conducts massive “power projection” operation near Iran's border  —  Dozens of Israeli Air Force fighter jets conducted a sortie on Monday, flying as far as the Iranian border, according to Israeli and U.S. officials. … The sortie wasn't connected to Hegseth's visit.
Jeff Green / Bloomberg:
Trump Voters Who Listen to Joe Rogan Take a Page From The Matrix for Midterms  —  Frustrated by the war in Iran and rising costs, the coalition of young men courted by the GOP is poised to sit out the midterms  —  “I've checked out.”  —  That's how Dallas Cruze sums up his political journey …
The Hill:
Watch live: Trump hosts roundtable on protecting Americans from cybercrime  —  President Trump is set to host a roundtable on Wednesday afternoon focused on protecting American families and seniors from cybercrime.  —  “President Trump is unleashing every available tool …
 
 
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 More Items: 
Joseph J. Schatz / Politico:
Michigan's sleeper race is waking up
Politico:
‘This is how you blow up a permitting deal’: Sen. Whitehouse slams Trump over offshore wind
Jan Philipp Burgard / Politico:
Trump throws Netanyahu a last-minute lifeline. It may not be enough.
 Earlier Items: 
Jennifer Bendery / HuffPost:
Trump Axed Her CDC Job. Now She Might Help Democrats Take The Georgia House.
Alex Miller / Fox News:
Thune makes bold prediction about Republicans' Senate chances as GOP pulls millions from key races
David Kaye / Slate:
America Needs to Reckon With What Trump 2.0 Has Done. Planning Should Start Now.
Natasha Sarin / New York Times:
Everything Feels So Expensive. Here's What's Really Going On.
Paul Krugman:
Trump is Destroying Americans' Healthcare
Discussion: Mercury News
Kevin Frey / MS NOW:
Weeks before Election Day, Sen. Roger Marshall's campaign still had no one on payroll
Discussion: The Hill
Lindsay Whitehurst / Associated Press:
Justice Kagan Warns Supreme Court Rulings Are Fueling Polarization