President Trump blames Democrats, the shutdown and media bias for his party's shellacking last Tuesday, Axios' Marc Caputo writes.

• Why it matters: What he leaves out is his own role in Republicans' election wipeout and the contradictions in his policies and messaging.

👀 It's hard to argue you care about the working class while you're fighting to not fund SNAP payments.

• It's hard to argue Democrats are to blame for the shutdown when your party controls all of Congress.
• It's hard to argue prices are coming down everywhere when they're obviously going up for coffee, orange juice, ground beef, energy and housing.
• It's hard to argue you're fixated on economic angst at home when you spend a lot of time talking about other countries, including on an overseas trip during a domestic shutdown. And then there are the White House renovations, the weekend trips to South Florida, golfing, and a "Great Gatsby"-themed party at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.

Reality check: Trump does have one clear, consistent message — Democrats need to end the shutdown. And there's an explanation for each of his seemingly muddled positions.

• But in politics, when you're explaining, you're losing. And polls show more voters blaming Trump and the GOP for the shutdown. Public approval of Trump's job performance began to crater in late October, four weeks into the shutdown.

📊 "The president is well aware of this," a Trump adviser said of the polling. "But no one is coming out of this on the right side. People are pissed at all parties."

• Democrats are still feeling the heat, the Trump adviser said, "which is why they're coming with some very serious proposals."

Between the lines: Some Trump confidants privately admit his attention was essentially AWOL during the early part of the historic shutdown, now in its 40th day (39 full days passed). So his messaging was flabby.

• That's changing as he gets more engaged and digests last week's losses. Trump is putting more pressure on Republicans to end the filibuster and thereby end the shutdown.

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It's harder to get a job in tech — and the jobs that are available increasingly require AI skills.

• Why it matters: Businesses are beginning to see a gap between workers who embrace AI and those who use it only for basic tasks or not at all, Axios' Megan Morrone reports.

📈 By the numbers: Mentions of AI skills in job postings rose 16% in three months, even as overall tech hiring is down 27% year-over-year, per ManpowerGroup's Work Intelligence Lab.

• The fastest-growing AI jobs focus on wrangling data: data labeling, data annotation, data analysis, data science.

Reality check: Human skills still matter, says Cormac Whelan, CEO of software company Nitro.

• Upwork COO Anthony Kappus told Axios that he's seen "a rapid rise in demand for talent who can pair hard skills like design, video editing, and marketing with uniquely human skills like creativity, strategic thinking, and judgment to deliver work built with AI tools."

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More than $5 billion worth of U.S. weapon exports to support NATO allies and Ukraine have been delayed by the government shutdown, according to a State Department estimate shared with Axios' Stef Kight.

• Why it matters: "This is actually really harming both our allies and partners and U.S. industry to actually deliver a lot of these critical capabilities overseas," a senior State Department official told Axios.

Zoom in: The delivery of weapons — including AMRAAM missiles, Aegis combat systems and HIMARS — for allies such as Denmark, Croatia and Poland have been affected, according to the official.

• The ultimate destination of the exports is not clear, but arms sales to NATO allies are often transferred to assist Ukraine.

🏛️ Between the lines: The Arms Export Control Act requires Congress to review weapon sale proposals.

• Many State Department staffers whose job is to brief congressional committee staff — and ensure the process is completed — have been furloughed, causing the slowdown.

State spokesperson Tommy Pigott told Axios: "Democrats are holding up critical weapons sales, including to our NATO allies, which harms the U.S. industrial base and puts our and our partners' security at risk."

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New digital local news startups are emerging — just not always where coverage is most needed, Axios' Kerry Flynn reports.

• The big picture: Nearly half of new outlets are nonprofits that depend on philanthropy, which clusters in urban areas, leaving rural America without robust local reporting.

🚨 By the numbers: Around 50 million people in the U.S. live with limited or no access to local news, per Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism.

• But local news coverage is emerging on newer platforms like Substack and Instagram. Some news deserts also may get coverage from nearby outlets or student newsrooms.

Read the full story with Axios' Media Trends Executive membership.

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The White House is leaning into a report by ESPN that President Trump wants the Washington Commanders to name their new stadium after him.

• White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tells Mike: "That would surely be a beautiful name, as it was President Trump who made the rebuilding of the new stadium possible."

🏈 ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr. and Adam Schefter report that a decision to name the stadium after someone would likely involve the city of D.C. and the National Park Service in addition to the Commanders organization.

• Trump is also slated to attend the Commanders' home game against the Detroit Lions today at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. The organization has spent days prepping for the president, and he's expected to join halftime activities honoring the military, ESPN notes.

What to watch: Construction of the redeveloped RFK stadium starts next year and is projected to wrap in the fall of 2030. D.C. is pushing to host the 2031 Super Bowl at the new venue, Axios D.C.'s Cuneyt Dil reports.

Dozens of white clergy are signing up to run as Democrats in 2026, as progressive faith leaders push back on the political dominance of the Christian right, Axios' Russell Contreras reports.

• Why it matters: Democrats have a track record of Black clergy running for office, including Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.). But when white pastors have run, it's usually been as Republicans.

Case in point: Robb Ryerse, a Christian pastor and former Republican, is challenging Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.) as a Democrat and using the slogan "Faith, Family, & Freedom" in his campaign literature — language typically used by the GOP.

• Iowa state Rep. Sarah Trone Garriott, an Evangelical Lutheran pastor, is seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa) in one of the nation's most-watched swing House races in 2026.

"We're tracking about 30 white clergy who are running for office as Democrats around the country. That's shocking," said Doug Pagitt, a pastor and executive director of the progressive Christian group Vote Common Good.

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Media-branded sportsbooks have been a losing bet.

• Why it matters: Broadcast and print outlets hungry for revenue saw sports gambling as a potential windfall — but the first-mover advantage has proven powerful for industry leaders DraftKings and FanDuel, Axios' Nathan Bomey reports.

🔎 The sports betting landscape is pocked with a slew of high-profile branding failures:

• Penn Entertainment announced Thursday that ESPN Bet is coming to an end after an underwhelming two years.
• Barstool Sportsbook also failed to gain enough traction to justify the branding deal. It gave way to ESPN Bet in 2023.
• SI Sportsbook, Fox Bet and MaximBet all flamed out despite heavy promotion and ties to popular brands.

The big picture: DraftKings and FanDuel's fantasy-sports roots gave them a built-in following and massive head start in U.S. sports gambling.

• ESPN struck a new partnership with DraftKings Thursday, saying it will highlight the sportsbook's odds and promote DraftKings services "with a full rollout expected in 2026."

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Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in America, with millions more joining the craze every year.

• Also rising is the number of ticked-off neighbors who say it's loud and annoying. That's led to municipal disputes, lawsuits and even equipment redesigns.

🔊 Zoom in: The Washington Post's Bishop Sands and Rekha Tenjarla investigated why the sound of pickleball is so irritating — and it came down to a few factors.

1. It's unpredictable. Those playing the game know to expect the pop, but it hits everyone else out of nowhere. "I'm always anticipating I'm going to be hearing the noise — even when they're not playing," Michael Fairbairn, who lives near courts in Braintree, Mass., told the Post.
2. It's high-pitched, like a cymbal crash.
3. It's tonal, which means you can probably hum the note. Those sounds are typically more annoying than atonal noises.

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