President Trump has done 33 #MAGA campaign rallies in 17 states, including last night in Kentucky. In addition, he attended rallies for two GOP candidates (in Alabama and South Carolina), according to a tally by Mark Knoller of CBS News.
The other side: At the same point in his presidency, Obama had done nine political rallies for Democratic candidates and the DNC, and one for his health insurance plan.
As President Trump builds his team for 2020, he has asked Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel to serve a second term, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
The big picture: The source said Trump praised McDaniel's work on behalf of the America First agenda, effective management of the party infrastructure, and record grassroots engagement and fundraising.
Democratic hopefuls for 2020, who had been expected to wait until after midterms to begin overt campaigning, are jumping the gun and flooding into Iowa, New Hampshire and other early-voting states to begin building support.
What they're saying: Jeff Link, a top Iowa operative who has worked in Hawkeye State politics since he joined Joe Biden in 1987, said it's like a poker game: "No one wanted to jump in, but once [New Jersey Sen. Cory] Booker broke the seal (and had a good trip), it's forcing everyone else's hand."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who is publicly considering a 2020 presidential run, has been positioning herself for a bid in recent months by crisscrossing the country to coordinate with local and state campaigns to help elect Democrats nationwide, the Washington Post's Matt Viser writes.
The state of play: Her ongoing efforts have reportedly encompassed all 50 states, including direct coordination with more than 150 political campaigns, Viser reports. Most notably, Warren — one of Democrats' top 2020 favorites — is targeting some of the early-primary states during a presidential run, deploying staffers to New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina and Nevada, as well as battleground states like Ohio, Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin.
For a great indication of how much the Trump brand is worth, look no further than the retail price of the New World Red Reserve wine from Trump's very own winery in Monticello, Virginia.
Reproduced from American Association of Wine Economists; Chart: Axios Visuals
By the numbers: Before Trump ran for president, his flagship red generally priced around 25% higher than other Bordeaux-style blends from the region. Now, it sells at roughly a 20% discount.
A new CNN poll shows former Vice President Joe Biden leading a crowded Democratic field of potential 2020 presidential contenders — with Sen. Bernie Sanders in a distant second.
The big picture: While a poll this early doesn't really have any predictive value for the Democrats' eventual nominee, the fragmented, wide-open field is most notable. As the Washington Post's Dave Weigel points out, with 65% of the party's support, Hillary Clinton led a much smaller field by a much greater margin in the same poll in December 2014.
Investor appetite for cryptocurrencies and blockchain tech continues, with the arrival of Dragonfly Capital Partners this week, but that's not all the news you should know about.
President Trump told CBS News' Lesley Stahl in a "60 Minutes" episode, which airs Sunday night, that he thinks Secretary of Defense James Mattis is "sort of a Democrat, if you want to know the truth."
The big picture: While Mattis has denied reports that he's thinking of leaving his post at the Pentagon, Trump says on "60 Minutes" that while he hasn't been told anything, "[h]e may leave. I mean, at some point, everybody leaves." Trump also said he has "people now on standby" to fill administration positions.
President Trump was interviewed by "60 Minutes'" Lesley Stahl Thursday for an episode airing on Sunday and discussed how the Saudis could be behind the disappearance and possible murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The details: In this interview, the president also talks tariffs, China, North Korea, Russia, NATO, global warming, his treatment of the Brett Kavanaugh accuser, according to CBS. Though this will be Trump's first interview with the program as president, it won't be the first time he's been featured on "60 Minutes."
After a meeting with recently-released American Pastor Andrew Brunson, who was imprisoned by Turkey for two years, President Trump said it was "too early" to conclude what happened to missing reporter Jamal Khashoggi.
The state of play: Trump echoed the sentiments of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, saying that Saudi Arabia has been a good partner. Trump said the administration worked hard for the Saudi arms deal and that pulling out of it would "be punishing ourselves." Though he didn't give specifics, the president said there are other "very powerful" punishments they could do if punishment is required. Go deeper: Khashoggi intrigue: A text from the Saudi ambassador, then silence
Like everything in our lives these days, the midterms on Nov. 6 (just 24 shopping days away) are all about President Trump.
The bottom line: Trump wants the elections to be about Trump, and makes that plain in the mad rush of rallies heading into voting day. The gender gap is off the charts wide — due to Trump.
Washington litigator Pat Cipollone is expected to be President Trump's pick to replace Don McGahn as White House Counsel, according to four sources familiar with the sensitive internal conversations.
Cipollone has already begun the process of filling out his necessary paperwork, according to one of those sources. (As with any decision in Trumpworld, the president could reverse it or some other obstacle could emerge in the paperwork process. But as of today, it's expected to be Cipollone.)
Democrats are generally pro-immigration, but many of the elected officials in the party are wary of saying so because they don't have specific, drawn out policies addressing the flaws in the country's immigration system, Robert Draper writes in N.Y. Times Magazine.
Why it matters: Democratic voters don't reward their candidates for being pro-immigrant, Draper says. Generally their concerns about immigration and policies are placed on hold because it doesn't lead to an immediate benefit.
First Lady Melania Trump told ABC News in an interview that aired Friday that the jacket she wore when boarding a plane to visit an immigrant children's shelter, that read "I really don't care. Do U?" was a message to the media.
Why it matters: The First Lady's team maintained at the time that the jacket had no hidden message, but Trump said it was meant to show critics "that I don't care. You could criticize whatever you want to say...but it will not stop me to do what I feel is right."
President Trump clarified in a tweet Saturday morning that there was "no deal" made with Turkey for the return of Pastor Andrew Brunson, who was released from the country on Friday after being held since 2016 for terrorism charges.
Why it matters: Trump has maintained that he doesn't make deals for hostages, however it was previously reported by NBC News that the United States had been in negotiations with Turkey looking for the pastor's release and ultimately reached a deal. Trump suggested that the pastor's release could foster "great relations" between the U.S. and Turkey. Brunson is expected to meet with Trump at the White House this afternoon.
President Trump believes there will be "severe punishment" for the Saudis if proven they killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but that there are "other ways of punishing" besides stopping arms deals, according to an exclusive interview, and rare sit-down with 60 Minutes which airs on Sunday.
Why it matters: Pressure is mounting on the White House to act as the situation surrounding Khashoggi, and his possible murder at the hands of Saudi Arabia, develops. But Trump said earlier this week that cutting off the $110 billion arms deal with the Saudis is "not acceptable." Trump told 60 Minutes that there's a lot at stake because of Khashoggi's profession: "[T]here's a lot at stake...especially so because this man was a reporter. There's something-- you'll be surprised to hear me say that, there's something really terrible and disgusting about that if that was the case."
Former Vice President Joe Biden urged his party on Friday to reclaim the white working-class vote, and said the Democrats would lose 2020 unless they do so, the New York Times reports.
The big picture: Axios Mike Allen reported this summer that a 2020 challenge from Biden makes Trump nervous, because of Biden's ties to the working class in Pennsylvania. While campaigning for congressional candidate Amy McGrath in rural Kentucky, Biden said that Trump's appeal to the working class is "an old, old method," that hones in on their frustrations "by finding a scapegoat, the 'other.'" Biden also said Trump is "trashing American values," and that he doesn't believe there's a divide among the white working-class on economic and progressive issues.
