Top Items:
Liz Crampton / Politico:
Greg Abbott's Texas Empire Is Showing Cracks … The Texas governor pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. — “Steve Radack Community Center, 18650 Clay Road, Houston, 1.2 miles away,” he read, identifying the precinct's nearest polling location. “Listen, I can roll over there in five minutes …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, The Texas Tribune and Conservative Brief
RELATED:
New York Times:
Led by Trump, Republicans Close Midterms With Ugly Personal Attacks — Facing backlash over inflation and anger with the president, Republicans have turned to an onslaught of baseless claims about Democratic candidates. — In Kansas, Senator Roger Marshall, a vulnerable Republican …
Michelle Goldberg / New York Times:
Republicans Tried to Turn the Cheesecake Factory Against Democrats. It Flopped.
Discussion:
DeLong's Grasping …
Robert Draper / New York Times:
Talarico Makes Final Pitch to Texans: ‘You Are My Slingshot’
Talarico Makes Final Pitch to Texans: ‘You Are My Slingshot’
Discussion:
Fox News
Nancy Cook / Washington Post:
Trump's economic message on eve of midterms: It's better than you think
Diana Paulsen / ABC News:
Texas Democrats see data centers as a winning issue
Texas Democrats see data centers as a winning issue
Discussion:
The Hill and The Verge, more at Techmeme »
Jamison Foser / Finding Gravity:
The New York Times invents a Democratic scandal while ignoring a new Trump rape allegation — America is four days out from the end of an election in which America's deeply unpopular fascist ruling party is trying to retain control of Congress. The week began with yet another new rape allegation …
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog, Althouse, Fox News and The Nation
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Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Let's Talk About Alaska — I was at the gym this afternoon when a press conference came on with the U.S. Attorney in Alaska floridly introducing a criminal investigation into this “Dan Sullivan” issue. One of my colleagues just noted that to do this, U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman “unrecused” himself from this case.
Discussion:
OutsideTheBeltway, NewsNation, Alaska Public Media, The Gateway Pundit, CBS News and The Guardian
Jay Willis / Slate:
The Truth About the Alaska Dan Sullivan Shenanigans — Earlier this week, the New York Times published a splashy feature detailing how allies of Mary Peltola, the Democratic nominee in this year's Senate race in Alaska, worked to “stack” the ballot with candidates who could help her defeat the Republican incumbent, Dan Sullivan.
Discussion:
The Hill, Conservative Brief, FactCheck.org, New Republic, HotAir, Political.org, Breitbart, TMZ.com, WBAL, Axios, New York Magazine and NewsMax.com
Washington Post:
D.C. and Virginia sue to block Trump's proposed triumphal arch — The lawsuit increases legal pressure against the president's planned 250-foot-tall project. — SummaryLoading... The D.C. government and the commonwealth of Virginia sued Saturday to block construction …
RELATED:
Ford McCracken / The Hill:
DC, Virginia sue to block Trump's triumphal arch
Discussion:
The Washington Sun, NBC News, Associated Press, New York Times, Washington Examiner, Politico, The Independent, KDFX-TV, Political.org, HotAir and Washington Post
Ben Berkowitz / Axios:
D.C., Virginia sue to block Trump's 250-foot arch
Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:
Why Haley Stevens Can't Stop Talking About Abdul El-Sayed — In a frank interview, she described her disappointment and also said she was considering converting to Judaism. Her fiancé had thoughts, too. — Representative Haley Stevens of Michigan stood up from her dining table …
RELATED:
Samuel Benson / Politico:
The last weekend of midterm campaigning begins — With just three days to Election Day, campaigns are scrambling to get out their closing messages. — Are you a player in Democrats' civil war? We want to hear from you! — Are you Haley Stevens, who Abdul El-Sayed's allies are sidelining …
Discussion:
The Washington Free Beacon, Political.org, NRSC, The Hill, Fox News and Mediaite
Salvador Hernandez / Los Angeles Times:
Video shows ICE agent pointing handgun in face of North Hollywood bystander — 6 min Click here to listen to this article — A federal immigration agent pulled out a handgun and pointed it just inches from the face of a bystander during an apparent operation in North Hollywood on Friday morning …
Discussion:
Newsweek
Hans Nichols / Axios:
Your election night cheat sheet — You won't need to stay up all night Tuesday to spot a big Democratic wave in the 2026 midterm elections. — But it could take days — or even weeks — to know whether Republicans have survived a smaller one and held on to the House or Senate.
Discussion:
Denver Gazette
RELATED:
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Iran's supreme leader orders “maximum” response to any U.S. attack — Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei told the country's top three military commanders that a renewed attack by the U.S. and Israel ״must be met with an immediate and effective response, without geographical limitations״ …
RELATED:
Sarah Davis / The Hill:
Iran's Supreme Leader threatens US with response if strikes are launched after midterms
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, RedState, KRDO, Mediaite, Political.org and MS NOW
Yeganeh Torbati / New York Times:
Iran Braces for More War, No Matter the Outcome of the U.S. and Israeli Elections
Iran Braces for More War, No Matter the Outcome of the U.S. and Israeli Elections
Discussion:
Truthout
New York Times:
How Trump Is Dismantling America's Scientific Research Machine — The system that has driven life-altering discoveries and helped make the United States a superpower is now under intense strain. — The warning, buried in an obscure government report this summer, was unflinching.
Discussion:
The Hill
U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Russia:
Security Alert: Threat to Tsaritysyno Museum Reserve in Moscow (October 31, 2026) — The U.S. Embassy in Moscow is aware of a credible threat of a mass casualty event TODAY October 31, at the Tsaritsyno Museum Reserve in Moscow at Dolskaya Ulitsa 1, Moscow, Russia 11569.
Discussion:
Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Legal Insurrection, Human Events, Fox News, Political.org and The Kyiv Independent
RELATED:
Ros Krasny / Bloomberg:
US Embassy Warns of Mass Casualty Threat at Moscow Museum
US Embassy Warns of Mass Casualty Threat at Moscow Museum
Discussion:
Townhall and Global News
Kyle Chouinard / The Washington Sun:
A Super PAC Army Is Spending Millions on ‘Spoiler’ Candidates — Last week, a tsunami of outside spending surged onto Bill Redpath's ultra-longshot campaign for Ohio's U.S. Senate seat. — A single super PAC created in early October began spending $1.7 million in support of the little-known libertarian …
RELATED:
Luke Fountain / CNBC:
‘Pop-up’ super PACs pour $637 million into 2026 midterm races
‘Pop-up’ super PACs pour $637 million into 2026 midterm races
Discussion:
The San Francisco Standard
Brynn Tannehill / Public Notice:
Move fast, break things — Public Notice is proudly celebrating five years of independent journalism. This special Saturday edition is possible thanks for paid subscribers. Become one ⬇️ — 💥 Subscribe to PN 💥 — Last week, the Washington Post reported …
Jonathan Edwards / Washington Post:
Kennedy Center leaders threatened payroll to push Trump naming, lawmaker alleges — A court brief says that foundation funding was tied to keeping Trump's name on the Kennedy Center, leaving officials warning that repayment would force immediate furloughs. — SummaryLoading...
Michael Luciano / Mediaite:
Tucker Carlson Gets Personal on ‘Sad, Greasy’ Ted Cruz: ‘His Personal Life Is a True Disaster’ — Tucker Carlson got personal on Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), claiming that the senator is a “sad, greasy” man who “doesn't know how absurd he is.” — On his show Friday, Carlson was asked by a viewer …
Discussion:
Media Matters for America
Jacob Knutson / Democracy Docket:
Judge orders DOJ to stop threatening election officials — A federal judge in California barred the Department of Justice (DOJ) from threatening to prosecute state and local election officials who do not follow the department's directives for handling ballots.
Discussion:
CBS News, NewsNation, The Independent, Fox News, The Gateway Pundit, Reuters, Political.org, MS NOW, NBC News and New York Times
RELATED:
Tierney Sneed / CNN:
Judge imposes sweeping emergency order halting DOJ pressure campaign on election officials
Judge imposes sweeping emergency order halting DOJ pressure campaign on election officials
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Daily Wire, Political.org, Politico, RedState, NewsMax.com, Axios, KDFX-TV and Protect Democracy
Wall Street Journal:
How Iran Battered U.S. Bases and Caused Billions in Damage — Satellite imagery shows hundreds of damaged buildings at more than two dozen installations, in the fullest accounting of the destruction yet — | Graphics by Carl Churchill and Katherine Chui — Three American servicemembers …
Discussion:
Associated Press and Middle East Monitor
Phillips P. OBrien / Phillips's Newsletter:
The US Military Is On A Precipice — The US military is standing on a precipice, and it is not clear which way it will jump. It has been used, tragically, for a series of appalling and in some cases criminal campaigns over the last few years. It has been and is being purged of talent …
Discussion:
Fox News and Global Arab Network
Mike Konczal:
2028 Won't Be the 2020 Ideas Primary Again — The immediate demands, incentives, governing lessons, and economic constraints shaping Democrats' next policy agenda. — In my little world, people are talking a lot about an “ideas primary” taking place following the midterms and going into the 2028 Democratic primary.
Discussion:
Politico

