5️⃣ Trump, at 31%, tells Kansas America burns if he loses.
Trump stood in Park City, Kansas, Monday night for Sen. Roger Marshall and told the crowd the country will burn like France if Democrats win Congress, and put a price on it: "If you elect a Republican House and Senate on November 3, you'll get $5,000. And if we lose, you get nothing." Reuters/Ipsos has him at 31%. Marshall is tied or trailing Adam Hamilton in a state that last sent a Democrat to the Senate in 1932. The GOP sent Trump to a seat it has already lost. Where he can still win, he loses it for them.
4️⃣ The Pentagon's own people brace 10 states for Trump's interference.
About 10 current and former national security officials spent months quietly advising governors, election officials and lawmakers of both parties in 10 states on how to prepare for the administration interfering in the Nov. 3 vote, The Washington Post reported. The setup is already running: the Justice Department has charged 28 California voters and sued to stop the state's ballots over 20,000 names. Narativ's analysis: Russia helped Trump win in 2016 and he paid Putin afterward. Now he pays first, four favors for Russia in eleven days, because this time the help must come before Nov. 3.
3️⃣ Hormuz tankers burn, Tehran “Closest To” Moscow
Two tankers caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Revolutionary Guard said mines; US Central Command called that "incorrect." Brent touched $112 and US crude passed $101 before easing. Iran's foreign minister called ties with Russia the closest ever after Lavrov's visit. Trump waived the Russia sanctions on Friday for cheaper fuel. The shock came anyway, and Tehran answered with Moscow.
2️⃣ Three strongmen face voters in nine days.
JD Vance said he is "not getting involved in Israeli elections," a day after Trump endorsed Netanyahu, and Steve Bannon said he is "not wild" about it. Israel votes Oct. 27, Brazil decides its run-off Oct. 25, America votes Nov. 3. Netanyahu is running on the endorsement and a promise that the two go after Iran once both win. Nobody endorses Netanyahu two weeks before his own election for nothing.
1️⃣ Trump calls Russia's conduct "fine."
The administration is holding up Patriot missiles for Ukraine, The Washington Post reported, as Steve Witkoff and Zelensky opened talks in Oslo. Marco Rubio said nothing is being "deliberately denied" to Ukraine. Trump called Russia's conduct "fine" the morning after a strike on a playground outside Kharkiv killed six people, a toddler among them. Russia is the enemy. Aiding it in broad daylight, two weeks from an election, is the lowest hour of a presidency that has had many.
