(AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday that he’d be open to striking a deal with Democrats on the health care subsidies they’ve made central to the shutdown fight, cracking the door slightly to negotiations that Republicans have said should only happen after the government reopens.
But Trump also said “billions and billions” are being wasted, nodding to arguments from conservatives who do not want the health subsidies extended to lessen the cost of plans offered under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare.
“We have a negotiation going on right now with the Democrats that could lead to very good things,” Trump said. “And I’m talking about good things with regard to health care.”
Trump’s comments were one of the few hopeful signs Monday as the government shutdown hit its sixth day. Negotiations between the two parties have been virtually nonexistent since the start of the shutdown despite the impact on federal services. Democrats have urged that Trump get involved, saying no deal will be possible without the president’s approval.
The two Democratic leaders in Congress, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, both denied there are any negotiations with Trump. Jeffries said the White House “has gone radio silent” since a meeting in the Oval Office last week.
“Trump’s claim isn’t true, but if he’s finally ready to work with Democrats, we’ll be at the table,” Schumer said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters “there may be a path forward” on ACA subsidies, but stressed, “I think a lot of it would come down to where the White House lands on that.”
More doomed Senate votes
The president’s comments came shortly before the Senate took another doomed pair of votes Monday on funding the federal government. Neither the Republican measure nor the Democratic proposal came close to gaining the 60 votes needed to advance.
Both parties used much of the day to ramp up the pressure on the other to end the impasse.
Thune said a critical food aid program for women, infants and children was starting to run low on funds, blaming Democrats and saying “now it’s the American people who are suffering the consequences.”
Schumer said his side was ready to work with Republicans to “reopen the government and end the health care crisis that faces tens of millions of Americans.”
“But it takes two sides to have a negotiation,” Schumer said.
Earlier in the day, the two sides dug in. House Speaker Mike Johnson said “there’s nothing for us to negotiate” while Jeffries declared the “time is now” to work out a deal on health care.
Johnson, R-La., told reporters they could stop asking why he wasn’t negotiating an end to the impasse. It was up to a handful of Democrats to “stop the madness” and pass a stopgap spending bill that had earlier passed the House, he said.
“We did the job to keep the government open, and now it’s on the Senate Democrats,” Johnson said.
The House is not expected to be in session this week, focusing attention on the Senate to take the lead on any deal in the Republican-led Congress. Yet even with House lawmakers away, the Republican and Democratic leaders have been holding almost daily briefings as they frame their arguments and seek to shift blame for the shutdown.
Democrats are insisting on renewing subsidies to cover health insurance costs for millions of households, but Republicans have insisted that can be dealt with later. They say the subsidies are a separate debate than the one on keeping the government funded for a few weeks while the two sides work out their differences on a full-year spending package.
While some Democratic senators said they viewed Trump’s comments about the status of negotiations as positive, there was also skepticism from members on both sides of the political aisle about whether they represented much of a breakthrough.
“The discussion can’t happen until we reopen the government. The Democrats want to have these talks. The president has just signaled he wants to talk, but reopen the government,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla.
“I have a hard time taking it seriously,” said Sen Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. “Because Johnson and Thune as well as Trump are all saying ‘we won’t talk until you open up the government.’”
Turmoil for the economy
The stalemate comes at a moment of troubling economic uncertainty. While the U.S. economy has continued to grow this year, hiring has slowed and inflation remains elevated as the Republican president’s import taxes have created a series of disruptions for businesses and hurt confidence in his leadership. At the same time, there is a recognition that the nearly $2 trillion annual budget deficit is financially unsustainable.
Trump had seemingly suggested Sunday night that layoffs were already taking place, but White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump was talking about furloughs. Under a furlough, workers cannot report to work, but they will return to their job and get paid retroactively after the shutdown ends. She said layoffs were still planned if the shutdown continues.
The talk of layoffs has escalated an already tense situation in which Washington lawmakers have struggled to find common ground and build mutual trust. Leaders in both parties are betting that public sentiment has swung their way, putting pressure on the other side to cave.
The Graphite One mine work camp, located on the Seward Peninusla coast about 35 miles north of Nome, is seen in this undated photo. (Photo provided by Graphite One Inc.)
This story was originally published by Grist and Alaska Public Media. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here.
The Kigluaik Mountains stretch across the Seward Peninsula of western Alaska like a spine, their jagged ridges keeping a record of time. The Inupiaq have long read these ridges and valleys as a living story: Fire and fracture have marked the rock, and glaciers’ slow grind polished it. The talus slopes gleam in the low fall sun, meltwater from the snowfields spilling into streams that thread across the map of caribou trails on the tundra below.
Hidden beneath these remote valleys lies one of the world’s largest known graphite deposits. Over millions of years, carbon deep within the earth was subjected to immense heat and pressure, forming crystalline sheets black and soft as pencil lead. Canadian company Graphite One plans to mine the valuable material for batteries and strategic minerals — despite many residents’ objections, and so far, without the federally required tribal consultation with the nearby communities of Teller, Brevig Mission, and Mary’s Igloo.
The area slated for development drains into Imuruk Basin, an estuary fed by four rivers that create one of the continent’s most biodiverse ecosystems. This vital hunting and fishing area is essential to residents’ food security and the traditions that tie them to the land. As Lucy Oquilluk, president of Mary’s Igloo Traditional Council, told the federal government, sidelining her community denied it “the opportunity to have our voice heard on issues that directly impact our communities and ways of life.”
After President Trump invoked emergency powers to produce critical minerals this spring, the federal government fast-tracked the mine’s permitting. Three of the four local tribes have vehemently opposed the project, and say the public review process has been short-changed. (The fourth, Nome Eskimo Community, has not joined the opposition, and did not respond to an interview request.)
In June, Graphite One became the first Alaskan mine — and among the first in the country — to qualify for FAST-41, a process that expedites federal approval of critical infrastructure. This hastens environmental reviews to as little as 30 days. The complex choreography of federal permits — spanning the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Fish and Wildlife Service — is now moving with unprecedented speed.
The company, which did not respond to requests for comment, envisions carving a sprawling operation into the Kigluaik: To access the remote site, it will need to use 30 miles of public road and lay 17 miles of new road, cutting across salmon streams and archaeological sites. It plans to truck the ore year-round over public roads to a temporary holding facility in Nome until a deep-water port can be built. From there, the material will make its way to Ohio, where the company plans to build a processing facility on a brownfield once used by the Department of Defense.
Graphite supply is vital to both the battery industry and national defense, and China dominates the global market. Company CEO Anthony Huston said the site “is the perfect home for the second link in our strategy to build a 100-percent U.S.-based advanced graphite supply chain.” Yet the company plans to rely on a Chinese manufacturer, Hunan Chenyu Fuji New Energy Technology Co., for design, construction, and operations — underscoring how even “domestic” supply chains remain tied to global networks and exposed to geopolitical risks.
On the strength of its promises to reduce reliance on overseas sources, the venture has received significant subsidies. In 2019, Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy nominated it as a high-priority infrastructure project, streamlining permitting. Four years later, Graphite One secured pivotal support from the U.S. Department of Defense. With funds from the Inflation Reduction Act, the company received a $37.5 million grant to expedite its feasibility study. Framed as a national security measure under the Defense Production Act, the funding aimed to develop domestic supplies of critical minerals. The resulting analysis estimated the mine could generate $43 billion in revenue for the Canadian company. In 2023, Graphite One received an additional $4.7 million from the Defense Department to develop a foam fire suppressant. Earlier this month, the company received $570 million from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the official credit agency of the federal government.
This kind of governmental support has helped fuel a surge in mining across Alaska, where state officials are encouraging rapid development. Dunleavy recently decreed that if a state agency misses a permitting deadline, the project gains automatic approval — raising concerns of a regulatory free-for-all. Earlier this month, for example, the state approved a United States Antimony Corporation operation near Fairbanks, just three months after the company acquired the mine, saying it met permitting exemptions under state law.
In Graphite One’s case, fast-tracking has pushed tribal input to the margins. In September 2023, the tribal governments of three Inupiaq communities sent letters to the U.S. Department of Defense, protesting the fact they had not been consulted as legally required before the agency funded the project’s feasibility study. It did not respond until the White House intervened. “After the fact doesn’t count,” said Austin Ahmasuk, a Nome Eskimo Community tribal member.
During a Zoom meeting more than a year later, the department finally acknowledged the oversight, but the tribes report they never received the promised meeting notes or any follow up. The feasibility study the company produced with that federal funding explicitly tries to exclude tribes as “cooperating agencies,” limiting their ability to influence project planning and environmental assessments. (The U.S. Army Corps told Grist this was incorrect, and that relevant tribal entities have been invited into the FAST-41 process.) All of this “violates free, prior, and informed consent,” Ahmasuk said, referring to a requirement under the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, or UNDRIP, that tribes be consulted and involved in any decisions affecting their lands.
A similar pattern is emerging with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It initially estimated an environmental review would take over two years, but after a 2023 Supreme Court decision narrowed the definition of “waters of the United States,” the agency reduced the review’s scope, despite the company’s plans to expand the size of the mine, and accelerated its timeline. Tribes have insisted on the required consultation before this permit is issued, and while the Corps has agreed in principle, Graphite One submitted an application in August, while a meeting has not yet been confirmed. These expedited reviews, said Hal Shepherd, a consultant who works with tribes on water policy, turn consultation from a meaningful process into a bureaucratic checkbox. “Even if consultation does take place, the tribes are in an uphill battle to have any meaningful input for this project,” Shepherd said.
Such consultation is more than a courtesy — it is a legal and ethical requirement. Multiple federal laws and statutes require agencies to engage with tribes on projects that affect their lands. Yet across the country, critical mineral projects are pressing ahead with minimal input from the Indigenous peoples whose lands and resources they affect. In Nevada, the Thacker Pass lithium mine moved forward in February without free, prior, and informed consent. In Minnesota, tribes report being sidelined as the Department of Defense funds mineral projects, while in Arizona, a transfer of federal lands to a copper mining company was just greenlit despite a lawsuit from the Apache Stronghold.
Canada also has moved to require meaningful Indigenous consultation. Although Canadian regulations generally don’t extend to operations abroad, British Columbia, where Graphite One is based, became the first jurisdiction in Canada to enshrine Indigenous rights under UNDRIP in 2019. In 2021, Canada’s Parliament followed, requiring federal laws to align with the U.N. declaration.
Amid these broader Indigenous rights debates, Alaska Native communities are voicing their concerns: Tribal leaders from around the Kigluaik Mountains gathered September 20 to oppose Graphite One. They discussed its “irreversible damage,” the potential violence against women that often accompanies the arrival of a large workforce in remote locations, and the generational impacts to the landscape. Tribal leaders also brought up the Trump administration’s executive order eliminating federal diversity and anti-discrimination policies, which they worry will undermine potential job opportunities at the mine for community members.
Although some Nome residents support the mine for its potential economic benefits, others are upset that the Bering Straits Native Corporation, a regional for-profit entity where many tribal members are enrolled as shareholders, invested $2 million in the project without a shareholder vote. “The tribe has the treaty responsibility and the right to government-to-government consultation,” said Nome Eskimo Community tribal member Addy Ahmasuk, who is Austin’s daughter. “But the corporation has taken up a lot of power as the owner of the subsurface rights.” When corporate interests exploit divisions within Native communities, she said, sovereignty debates can turn into conflicts over profit rather than a community’s well-being.
These divisions are compounded by accelerated reviews, which Austin Ahmasuk worries means environmental risks will be overlooked. “Even now, at the exploration stage, there’s a very noticeable change in the landscape,” he said, including the construction of roads, which he said will likely damage cultural sites. “You simply cannot avoid the archeological history. You essentially stumble across it everywhere,” he said.
On a recent afternoon, he tried to imagine what his hometown would look like once the mine was built. The company plans to build a facility almost as large as the town itself to store its ore. The public road the trucks would rumble down crosses numerous salmon streams, where families go to put away fish for the winter. “This mine needs so much infrastructure,” he said. “That’s a significant change to the community.” New sections of road risk disturbing wildlife habitat and may prevent access to hunting grounds and fishing sites generations have depended on. Without these lands, he said, families risk losing their main sources of food. Oversight of the mine, he added, will fall largely on the community “to even understand potential violations,” noting that state and federal regulators are rarely present in the region, and in his experience, provide only minimal monitoring. “People who really care about this area, we feel sort of hopeless,” he said.
Addy Ahmasuk, meanwhile, fears the toxic tailing ponds mining creates will pollute Imuruk Basin, which sustains the surrounding communities. Graphite One plans to mill and burn the ore to concentrate it prior to shipping, releasing graphite into the wind near a lagoon many families depend on for potable water, especially communities like Teller that lack running water. “Graphite dust makes water undrinkable,” she said. The ground naturally contains sulfides that, when disturbed by mining, will create a significant risk of acid drainage that will require long-term management. “Pretty much every mine that’s mining in sulfide material has some sort of water quality impact,” said Dave Chambers, founder of The Center for Science in Public Participation. The nonprofit provides technical support on mining and has been following the project closely.
He notes faster permitting has historically led to mining projects that go awry, pointing to the Rock Creek Mine, an open-pit gold mine near Nome that benefited from accelerated oversight. “Not only did the mine not even open because their engineering was so sloppy, but they killed a couple people,” Chambers said. “That’s a really good example of what happens when you try to grease the skids and get a project through as fast as possible.”
For Addy Ahmasuk, the lesson isn’t just to slow down, it’s to rethink what activism can look like. This land is central to her tribe’s creation myths. She’s launched a grassroots organization, Sacred Kigluait, aimed at restoring and sharing the stories that colonization and boarding schools sought to erase. In doing so, she hopes to protect more than just the land under threat from Graphite One — she’s fighting for the living traditions rooted in it. “The center point isn’t stopping a mine,” she said. “The center point is coming together to remember our creation stories and start telling them again.”
NOTN- Juneau voters are wrapping up CBJ’s municipal election that will decide three Assembly seats, three School Board positions, and a trio of ballot propositions.
Ballots were mailed to all registered voters on Sept. 19 and must be returned by 8 p.m. tomorrow, Oct. 7.
Ballots can be dropped in one of five secure drop boxes across Juneau, including City Hall, Douglas Library, Mendenhall Valley Public Library, Alaska Electric Light & Power, and Statter Harbor, or mailed with an Oct. 7 postmark. Voters may also cast ballots in person at City Hall or the Mendenhall Valley Library, both of which will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day.
Three Assembly seats are on the ballot this year are, Areawide Assembly, Ella Adkison, District 1, Greg Smith, District 2, Wade Bryson and Nathaniel “Nano” Brooks.
The Board of Education race includes Steve Whitney, Melissa Cullum, Jenny Thomas, Jeremy “JJJ” Johnson, and Deedie Sorensen.
Voters will also weigh in on three propositions.
Proposition 1 asks whether to amend the city charter to lower the property tax cap from 12 mills to 9 mills, according to a voter Q&A posted to CBJ’s website, Proposition 1 would not change the FY26 mill rate, however, assuming no changes to values or budgets for the FY27 budget process, the City and Borough would plan for a revenue reduction of $1,050,716 based on reducing the mill rate to 9.0 mills.
Proposition 2 would exempt groceries and residential utilities from local sales tax, potentially reducing tax collections by an estimated $9–11 million per year.
Proposition 3 would create a seasonal sales tax, setting rates at 3% in the winter and 7.5% in the summer , repealing the existing 5% sales tax.
If both Propositions 2 and 3 pass, city officials estimate the overall impact on revenue would be minimal, with residents paying roughly $300 less per year on average in sales tax.
Voters who have not received a ballot or who require accessible voting assistance can vote in person at City Hall or the Mendenhall Valley Library. Ballots sent by mail must be postmarked by Oct. 7 and received by Oct. 20. Final certified results are scheduled for release Oct. 21.
Full candidate profiles, sample ballots, and proposition details are available at CBJ’s website.
Bad Bunny brought the funny as host of this weekend’s season premiere of Saturday Night Live.
He also brought a message to all the racists and haters out there.
As you likely know at this point, the rapper was chosen several days ago to serve as the halftime performer at February’s Super Bowl… joining such stalwarts as Rihanna, Prince, U2, Beyonce and countless others in this role.
The guy is one of the most popular artists in history. It makes sense, right?
Nope. Not to a certain group of people out there who are offended by the fact that Bad Bunny sings nearly all of his songs in Spanish.
The 31-year-old — who, for the record, is a Puerto Rican native and therefore an American citizen — said on the SNL stage that he was “excited” to be named the headlining act for the big game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.
He then made a sharp joke at these critics’ expense.
The artist broke out his native tongue for a 30-second message that went as follows… in Spanish:
“Especially all of the Latinos and Latinas in the world here in the United States who have worked to open doors. It’s more than a win for myself, it’s a win for all of us. Our footprints and our contribution in this country, no one will ever be able to take that away or erase it.”
(Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
The music producer then teased the non-Spanish speakers, telling them they needed to study the language to enjoy the upcoming performance.
“If you didn’t understand what I just said. You have four months to learn,” he quipped.
During the monologue, the show cut to an edited video montage of Fox News personalities and guests saying that “Bad Bunny is my favorite musician and he should be the next president.”
In reality, of course?
The Donald Trump administration has threatened to place ICE officers in and around the Super Bowl to arrest, presumably, illegal immigrants who attend the big game.
Seems totally fair and sane and legal and like the exact sort of reaction one would want from a President in response to a Super Bowl halftime act, no?
Bad Bunny attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 5, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
Bad Bunny recently completed a 31-show residency in Puerto Rico.
He’s been hesitant to perform in the United States due to the ongoing ICE raids and crackdowns on pretty much anyone in this country with Brown skin.
“There is nowhere you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally,” Trump advisor Corey Lewandowski said on The Benny Show last week.
“Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you and apprehend you and put you in a detention facility, and deport you. Know that is a very real situation under this administration, which is contrary to how it used to be.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also said NFL officials wouldn’t be able to sleep because of their decision in choosing Bad Bunny.
“They suck, and we’ll win, and God will bless us, and we’ll stand and be proud of ourselves at the end of the day,” Noem said, adding:
“The Department of Homeland Security is responsible for keeping it safe. So I have the responsibility for making sure everybody goes to the Super Bowl, has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave, and that’s what America is about.”
Fan speculation that Taylor Swift is pregnant has been spiking.
Over the summer — long before the release of The Life of a Showgirl — Taylor kept a lower profile than usual. That’s in stark contrast from recent public appearances.
There can be a few reasons for that, but it’s a tried-and-true method of hiding a baby bump. We’ve seen it before.
Is Taylor pregnant? Is she hiding relationship troubles? Or is this something else? Here’s what we know:
Taylor Swift arrives before the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay buccaneers at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on November 04, 2024. (Photo Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Where in the world is Taylor Swift?
Back in July, a super rare video of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce hit the internet. Fans spotted the two in Park City, Utah.
Just days later, the two again went on a low-key outing. This time, a dinner date in New York.
In late March, reports had Taylor and Travis dining with Erin Andrews in Big Sky, Montana.
Notably, she apparently encouraged the two to date in the first place.
Sometimes, when a couple who was once virtually omnipresent starts acting private, it’s a red flag.
When a romance is on the rocks, people try to avoid public fights.
Especially when they are in the spotlight. Taylor and Travis are one of the planet’s most famous couples, and she’s someone who likes to plan ahead.
On the flip side, sometimes there’s a very different reason to hide.
When you want to hide your baby bump, you’d hide your whole body. And some fans wonder if Taylor is doing just that.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce attend the Men’s Singles Final match between Taylor Fritz of the United States and Jannik Sinner of Italy on Day Fourteen of the 2024 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 08, 2024. (Photo Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Apparently, this famous couple just wants some peace and quiet
According to a report by Life & Style, an inside source assures that Taylor and Travis “are still very much in love.”
The insider characterized: “They’re simply recharging their batteries.”
Just as many introverts might need some alone time after a busy social event, some famous couples need to back down from whirlwind public appearances to nurture their relationship.
Taylor Swift attends the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards at UBS Arena on September 11, 2024. (Photo Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
“Taylor’s been in rest-and-relaxation mode since she wrapped her Eras Tour in December,” the source shared.
According to the insider, “the plan has always been to enjoy the off-season with Travis by packing in a lot of travel.”
The sole exception to this downtime was the Grammy Awards in February.
That’s pretty can’t-miss for Taylor, for obvious reasons, even if she doesn’t always win.
Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs and Taylor Swift embrace after defeating the San Francisco 49ers in overtime during Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024. (Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
But is she hiding a baby bump amidst all of this R&R?
The source went on to say that, after the Super Bowl “and all the pressure that went with it,” Taylor and Travis needed a long break.
“He desperately needed a break,” the insider dished. “So Taylor surprised him with a super private trip.”
The source elaborated: “They’ve been hitting the slopes in Park City and Big Sky, where they blended right in. It helps that they can cover up their faces when they’re skiing, since most people are wearing helmets, goggles or face coverings. They love the anonymity.”
Taylor Swift performs on stage during the “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at Wembley Stadium on August 15, 2024. (Photo Credit: Kate Green/Getty Images)
Simply put, there is absolutely no proof of a Taylor pregnancy.
There have been no baby bump sightings.
Taylor is a conspicuously tall (relatively) and slender woman. Pregnancy would not hide for long.
If some sort of exciting news leaks, we’ll be thrilled to share it.
But for now, it sounds like Taylor and Travis are just trying to take it easy.
Voters under 50 are the least open to electing a female president, and four in 10 Americans personally know someone who would not elect a woman to the White House, a new poll finds.
The American University poll, shared first with POLITICO, reveals a complicated portrait of how voters view women in politics. A majority supports electing more women to office, yet female politicians face persistent headwinds over trust on key issues like national security. They also run up against double standards, with voters saying a female president must be both “tough” and “likable.”
Nonetheless, most voters support electing more women and believe the government gets more done with women in office, according to the national poll of 801 registered voters conducted last month. It was commissioned by the university’s Women and Politics Institute and had a 3.5-point margin of error.
Nearly one in five voters said they or someone they are close to would not elect a woman presidential candidate. That includes one-quarter of women under 50 and 20 percent of men under 50, who said they would not back a qualified female candidate for president, while 13 percent of men and women over 50 said they wouldn’t be open to supporting a woman for president.
“This survey reveals a powerful paradox,” said Viva de Vicq, the survey’s lead pollster. “Voters trust women on the issues that matter most and want to see more women in office. Yet when asked about the presidency, bias and narrow expectations resurface.”
The survey comes nearly one year after Kamala Harris lost the presidential race, raising questions about female electability in a country that has only chosen men for the White House.
Voters are divided over how the former vice president’s candidacy impacted future female contenders. More than 40 percent of independent voters believe Harris complicated others’ paths — pessimism that pervaded much of the upper echelons of Democratic politics after the election, when Harris lost to Trump by wider margins than Hillary Clinton did eight years prior.
Reflecting on the 2024 election, the poll found that only one-third of voters listen to “bro culture” podcasts. Of those who do, four in five believe those podcasts affected the election. Half of those surveyed said former President Joe Biden hurt the Democratic Party.
The poll said voters trust female politicians more than men to advance women’s equality, abortion and childcare. But more voters trust men than women to handle global conflicts. The “‘old boys club’ culture in politics” was cited as the biggest deterrent for women running for office, closely followed by negative media portrayal.
Of the 2025 landscape, women surveyed are generally more pessimistic about the economy than they were in 2024. Women under 50 are particularly feeling the pinch with a 15-point jump in negative views of the economy.
Roy Cooper raised $14.5 million during the first 65 days of his campaign — a record-breaking total for a Senate challenger in their first fundraising quarter in one of the most competitive races of 2026.
The fundraising haul, shared first with POLITICO, includes $10.8 million into the former North Carolina governor’s campaign account. Another $3.7 million was raised into joint fundraising committees with the party, which allows for bigger contributions. Of the donations, more than 90 percent were $100 or less, Cooper’s campaign said.
Whatley, who’s been endorsed by President Donald Trump, and Cooper are expected to face off next fall.
Cooper and Whatley, a prodigious fundraiser with his own national network of donors, have turned this already marquee contest into what is expected to be the most expensive Senate race in history. Operatives in both parties estimate spending to reach $650 million to $800 million.
Cooper’s first-quarter total beat the record set by Amy McGrath, the former Marine fighter pilot who challenged Sen. Mitch McConnell in 2020 and raised $10.7 million.
Democrats, locked out of power at every level in Washington, see North Carolina as their top offensive target, particularly after Cooper entered the race following the announced retirement of Republican Sen. Thom Tillis. Even so, Democrats face longshot odds in flipping control of the Senate in 2026.
CHICAGO — Jesse Jackson Jr., once a rising Democratic star who saw his congressional career unravel in scandal, is returning to the political stage. He will announce his bid this week for the same Illinois congressional seat he vacated over a decade ago.
“Jesse has been meeting with residents whose concerns about the economy convinced him to run,” according to a person close to his campaign granted anonymity to speak freely. “He feels the district needs results fast and he is uniquely qualified to deliver.”
Jackson will spend the coming weeks unveiling his economic plan and policy platforms to address the cost of living, joblessness and health care access, according to the person.
It’s a dramatic twist for a man whose life once seemed destined for the national spotlight. The son of civil rights icon Rev. Jesse Jackson, he was first elected to Congress in 1995 and held his position for 17 years before it all came crashing down.
Jackson, whose brother is Illinois Rep. Jonathan Jackson, is now running for the seat currently held by Rep. Robin Kelly, who is stepping down to run for U.S. Senate in 2026. Kelly joins Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi in a competitive primary race to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin, who announced he will not seek reelection — setting off a wave of political jockeying across Illinois.
Illinois is undergoing a rare political transformation, marked by a generational shift in leadership. Alongside Durbin, longtime Reps. Jan Schakowsky and Danny Davis have announced they also won’t seek reelection — creating an extraordinary power vacuum in the state’s Democratic establishment. This moment of transition has opened the door for a new wave of ambitious contenders and a few familiar names, including former Rep. Melissa Bean and Jackson.
The Illinois Democrat is one of a long line of Illinois pols who’ve been caught up in corruption over the years. Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich went to prison before being pardoned by President Donald Trump. And former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is scheduled to report to prison next week on his corruption conviction.
Jackson also wouldn’t be the first high-profile politician to seek retribution. Following his 2021 resignation as governor amid sexual harassment and nursing home scandals, Andrew Cuomo is also pursuing a political comeback with a run for New York City mayor.
In 2012, Jackson abruptly exited his seat, citing health reasons. A federal investigation revealed a misuse of campaign funds. Jackson pled guilty to siphoning $750,000 for personal luxuries, from Rolex watches to Michael Jackson memorabilia, leading to a prison sentence and a fall from grace.
Jackson served his time and then retreated to Chicago’s South Side, where he embarked on a redemption journey that he often shared in commentaries on Black radio stations. It drew the attention of former Rep. Bobby Rush, the longtime South Side congressmember who retired in 2024. He urged Jackson to get back into politics.
Over the summer, Jackson embarked on a “listening tour,” connecting with constituents. He saw it as a way to introduce himself to new voters to the Chicago South Side and south suburban district that has been redrawn since he left Congress.
Last week, Jackson returned to Washington for a fundraiser in his honor with some members of the Congressional Black Caucus.
And a recent poll showed he has high name recognition in a crowded field.
Still, his path may not be smooth. Jackson’s opponents include notable Democrats in the state, including state Sen. Robert Peters, who’s been endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and David Hogg’s political group. Also running are state Sen. Willie Preston, Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, Water Reclamation Board Commissioner Yumeka Brown, management consultant Eric France, policy expert Adal Regis and community engagement expert Jeremy Young.
Democrats are pushing their candidates to go on the offense on crime ahead of the 2026 midterms, seeing upside in what’s been one of their weakest electoral issues.
A private polling memo that shows potential openings for the party to peel voters away from Republicans on one of their core issues is being distributed to House Democrats and their campaign committees, and was shared exclusively with POLITICO.
The battleground-district survey from Global Strategy Group — commissioned by gun-safety advocacy group Giffords and House Majority Forward, a nonprofit aligned with House Democratic leadership — offers a bleak assessment of Democrats’ starting point: 89 percent of the 1,200 likely voters surveyed want their Congress member to take steps to keep them safe, but only 38 percent trust Democrats over Republicans with that task.
Voters also reported preferring Republicans to Democrats with preventing and reducing crime and cracking down on violent crime — gaps that grew among swing voters.
But, in a hint of hope for the party looking to neutralize a weakness President Donald Trump will exploit next year, those voters swung toward Democrats in all four categories after hearing messaging acknowledging crime is a problem and showing steps the party has taken to increase safety. Specifically, pollsters cited cracking down on gun trafficking and strengthening firearm background checks. The persuasion effort included criticisms of GOP cuts to gun-violence prevention funding, the Trump administration’s attempts to roll back firearm regulations and Republicans’ ties to pro-gun groups.
The double-digit swings gave Democrats a 2-point advantage when respondents were asked about crime reduction, 4 points on keeping people safe and 6 points on crime prevention. The shifts were even more pronounced among swing voters.
Democrats also shrunk the GOP advantage on preventing violent crime to 1 point.
Giffords, House Majority Forward and Global Strategy Group pollsters are in the midst of briefing top House Democrats, frontline candidates and party committees about the poll, which was conducted in July. The groups are angling to revamp Democrats’ crime messaging, urging candidates to project toughness on crime and campaign against traditionally law-and-order-focused Republicans for making cities less safe by slashing federal funding.
And they want the party to shift quickly, lest they give Republicans a runway to ramp up their attacks in the upcoming midterms, when Democrats look to deny the GOP its slim advantage in the House.
“We do not want people to get shot or stabbed or carjacked. We want to hold people accountable when they break the law. None of that is revolutionary. But we do have to actually say that,” Emma Brown, Giffords’ executive director, said.
Doug Thornell, the CEO of consulting firm SKDK, who advised the polling project and works with Democrats including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, called crime “personal and emotional to voters, and they expect their leaders to make it a serious priority.”
But Democrats face a difficult task in trying to figure out how to handle voters’ concerns over crime, with Trump fomenting those worries by sending the National Guard into blue cities across the country as part of a broader law-and-order crackdown.
Democrats are responding to the push with recent statistics that show violent crime falling from a pandemic-era spike and touting their investments in anti-violence initiatives. But they have struggled to change voters’ perceptions that they’re weak on crime — a belief that helped Trump’s 2024 victory.
And Democrats have spent years trying to distance themselves from the “defund the police” slogan that hurt them with their own constituents — touting support for law enforcement and tough-on-crime tactics in an acknowledgment they need to retool their approach to criminal justice.
“Anytime Republicans make an aggressive stance and the Democrats criticize it, it looks like the Democrats are defending the status quo. And no one believes the status quo is acceptable when it comes to crime,” GOP pollster Whit Ayres said.
The Democratic groups that commissioned the poll see political openings on crime and on gun violence. Mass shootings topped the list of crimes voters worry, and neighborhood shootings ranked third. Majorities of respondents said easy access to guns and illegal gun trafficking contribute heavily to crime.
Operatives point to Moore, as well as Mayors Justin Bibb of Cleveland and Michelle Wu of Boston, as Democrats who’ve prioritized public safety while parrying Trump’s National Guard push.
But Democrats are not unified.
Some battleground-district Democrats are imploring party leadership to do more to defend law enforcement funding, while others in the emerging slate of populist candidates hardly mention public safety as they position themselves to win back working-class voters on economic messaging.
Democratic-aligned think tanks and strategists disagree on the specifics of what more proactive messaging should look like.
A recent Vera Institute polling presentation to Democratic National Committee members suggested the party use “serious about safety” messaging instead of “tough on crime” talking points and was quickly panned by more centrist Democratic figures — even as other aspects of the progressive criminal justice group’s argument aligned with advice being doled out across the party.
“This is where we should be unifying,” Kim Foxx, a former state’s attorney in Cook County, Illinois, said. “It’s right there that we don’t have transparency on police killings anymore, that in [the Trump administration’s] effort to go after immigration, they’re cutting funding to strategies that work to reduce violence. … We just have to be bold and call it out with a consistent message.”
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