A coalition of progressive groups is launching a multimillion-dollar ad campaign to make a closing argument that sounds suspiciously like a Republican appeal from the pre-Trump era: Your fundamental freedoms belong to you.
Why it matters: The “Protect Our Freedoms” coalition's goal is to appeal to swing voters while also reinvigorating the anti-Trump coalition that flipped the House in 2018 and delivered the presidency to Joe Biden in 2020.
Candidates from both parties are mobilizing their legal teams in last-ditch attempts to get their opponents' attack ads yanked off the airwaves, records show.
Why it matters: In a midterm cycle dominated by attempts to paint the other side as extreme, the ads in question range from disputed to outright fabrications. But almost invariably, they focus on one of two major issues driving campaign messaging: crime and abortion.
The Department of Justice weighed in on lawsuits against poll watchers in Arizona on Monday, filing a statement of interest that noted the high risk of voter intimidation posed by "ballot security forces."
A North Dakota judge affirmed on Monday his previous decision to temporarily block the state's abortion ban while an abortion clinic's legal challenge plays out, AP reports.
Why it matters: The move comes after the state Supreme Court ordered the judge to reevaluate whether he made the "appropriate" decision in rejecting the North Dakota attorney general's request to let the trigger ban take effect amid the lawsuit brought by the Red River Women’s Clinic of Fargo.
The Capitol Police is conducting a full review of the attack on Paul Pelosi to determine what, if any, policy changes should be made to further protect lawmakers and their family members, a senior aide familiar with the matter told Axios.
Why it matters: The attack on the 82-year-old husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi re-ignited concerns among members of Congress about their own security amid rising threats of violence against lawmakers and other public officials.
President Biden on Monday urged Congress to impose new taxes on oil companies if the industry doesn't take more action to lower fuel prices and boost domestic output.
Why it matters: Biden's remarks at the White House come a week before midterm elections in which elevated gasoline prices jeopardize Democrats' performance at the ballot box.
David Wayne DePape, the man accused of attacking House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, Paul, told police he wanted to hold the Democratic leader hostage and “break her kneecaps,” according to the criminal complaint released Monday.
Driving the news: DePape also told police of his plans to hold Pelosi hostage to “talk to her” and viewed her as "the leader of the pack” of lies told by the Democratic Party, according to the eight-page complaint.
A Michigan judge ruled Monday that ex-police officer Christopher Schurr must stand trial for shooting and killing an unarmed Black man during an April traffic stop.
Driving the news: Judge Nicholas S. Ayoub said there is probable cause to try Schurr for second-degree murder in the death of Patrick Lyoya, who was 26. His killing — and footage that showed Schurr lying on Lyoya's back before shooting him in the head — led to protests in Grand Rapids.
Former President Trump on Monday filed an emergency application asking the Supreme Court to temporarily block a House committee from obtaining his tax returns.
The big picture: Trump has been fighting for years to block the release of his tax returns to the House Ways and Means Committee.
The big picture: The Supreme Court said in 2003 that colleges and universities could consider race as a factor when deciding which students to admit, for the sake of building a diverse student body. But now, the much more conservative court appears to be changing its mind.
In former Vice President Mike Pence's "So Help Me God" — out Nov. 15 — he describes a scene in November 2020, just after the election, when he and former President Trump met in the Oval Office to review legal challenges with the campaign's lawyers.
An excerpt obtained by Axios: "What began as a briefing that Thursday afternoon quickly turned into a contentious back-and-forth between the campaign lawyers and a growing group of outside attorneys led by Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, an attorney who had represented General Mike Flynn."
Bono — artist, activist and the lead singer of Irish rock band U2 — will be out Tuesday with a memoir, "Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story." By arrangement with Bono's team, Axios brings you this exclusive sneak peek.
Each of the 40 chapters is named after a U2 song. Bono, 62, did the illustrations.
Working women across the country need to become loud-and-proud "mom voters," exclusively supporting politicians who promise to expand child care benefits, says Reshma Saujani, CEO and founder of the Marshall Plan for Moms.
Why it matters: Millions of mothers have left their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic because of inadequate child care, deferring their professional hopes and dreams — perhaps forever.
Threats against the lives of lawmakers and their families have been on the rise, and fears that these translate into real violence were realized on Friday, with the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, Paul. With just over a week to the midterms, the attack has Washington on edge.
Plus, a glimmer of good climate news.
And, an exclusive preview of musician Bono's upcoming memoir.
Guest: Axios' Margaret Talev and Ben Geman.
Credits: Axios Today is produced by Erica Pandey, Niala Boodhoo, Sara Kehaulani Goo, Alexandra Botti, Fonda Mwangi and Alex Sugiura. Music is composed by Evan Viola. You can reach us at [email protected]. You can text questions, comments and story ideas to Niala as a text or voice memo to 202-918-4893.
Officials and lawmakers are taking steps to prevent security failures during the midterms by studying several successful pro-Trump election breaches that have occurred across the country since 2020.
Why it matters: For all of the right's conspiracy theories and unsubstantiated claims of election fraud benefitting President Biden, four experts tell Axios the only significant, known breaches related to the 2020 election came from actors supporting former President Trump.
Wes Moore, Maryland's Democratic gubernatorial nominee, and lieutenant governor nominee Aruna Miller walk in a Labor Day parade in Gaithersburg. Photo: Bryan Woolston/AP
Maryland looks like a rare bright spot for Democrats, who are bracing for a rough midterm outcome in many other blue states across the country.
Why it matters: Black voters are poised for historic wins in a state where they make up 31% of the vote — fourth-highest in the nation — but have lagged in statewide representation.
Leftist former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil's presidential runoff Sunday, beating right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro with 50.90% of the vote, according to the country's election authority.
Why it matters: The results mark a stunning political comeback for Lula, who was sidelined during the last presidential election because of corruption convictions. But his victory will likely see an aggressive challenge by Bolsonaro, who has for months claimed without evidence that Brazil's electronic voting system can be manipulated.
Secretary of State Tony Blinken spoke with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi on matters including "the need to maintain open lines of communication and responsibly manage" the countries' relationship, per a State Department statement Sunday evening.
Why it matters: The latest of several exchanges between Washington and Beijing officials indicates a thawing of tensions between the two nations and ahead of a possible meeting between President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jingping at next month's G20 summit, notes Bloomberg.
Arizona's Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich called 2020 election deniers "clowns that throw stuff against the wall and see what sticks" in an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes" broadcast Sunday.
Why it matters: Brnovich, who voted for former President Trump in 2020, noted that Kari Lake, the Republican nominee for governor, "is a denier," adding: "It's like a giant grift in some ways."
The city of New York has agreed to pay $26 million in lawsuit settlements filed on behalf of two men exonerated last year in the assassination of civil rights leader Malcolm X, their attorney said Sunday.
The big picture: The state of New York will pay out a further $10 million over the 1966 conviction of Muhammad Aziz and Khalil Islam, who spent decades in prison, said their attorney David Shanies, per AP.
In Georgia's final gubernatorial debate, Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams sought to attack incumbent GOP Gov. Brian Kemp's controversial social policies in a rematch for the job that has appeared less competitive than their 2018 race — and even to tie him to his embattled counterpart in the state's high-stakes Senate race, Herschel Walker.
Why it matters: With polling averages continuing to show Abrams trailing Kemp, the candidates' final debate posed one more opportunity for the Democratic challenger to change the perception that momentum is not on her side while onstage alongside him.
