02b U.S. Politics – Progressive

Appeals Court Protects 20,000 Non-Citizen California Ballots

pgnewser October 29, 2026 0

A Federal Appeals court ruled 2-1 to deny the Department of Justice’s request to remove 20,000 non-citizen ballots from California’s voter rolls. The court passed on a technicality, claiming it had no power to act until a lower court had ruled. They also claimed, “The United States’s claimed emergency, at least in part, is a self-constructed one.”

Appeals court rejects White House push to set aside 20,000 California mail ballots
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EXCERPT:

A federal appeals court has rejected the Justice Department’s emergency bid to set aside thousands of mail-in ballots in California. In a 2-1 ruling Monday, the judges said the appeals court lacked the authority to intervene before a lower court had ruled.

The lower district court has a hearing scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

The DOJ wanted a faster decision, arguing that California should set aside ballots associated with roughly 20,000 registered voters it suspects are not U.S. citizens. But the two judges in the majority said the government was partly responsible for its own urgency.

“The United States’s claimed emergency, at least in part, is a self-constructed one,” the judges wrote, pointing to the department’s delay in filing the lawsuit and seeking emergency relief.

California officials have disputed the government’s list, saying it includes people who appear to be U.S. citizens.

Comey Gets New Charge Related to NY Times’ Leak

pgnewser October 29, 2026 0

James Comey will face more charges connected to an allegation he “knowingly and willingly” passed sensitive top secret national defense information to the New York Times, a flagship of the progressive state press.

The DOJ stated it filed a “waiverless criminal information to toll the statute of limitations as it relates to allegations concerning former FBI Director Comey. Filing a criminal information to toll the statute of limitations is a widely recognized practice in federal court and has been approved by multiple Circuit Courts of Appeals.”

James Comey Faces New Charges In Alleged NYT Leak– thefederalist.com
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EXCERPT:

Mr. “86 47” is facing more federal legal trouble, this time on charges related to the alleged leaking of national defense information to The New York Times a decade ago.

According to court documents filed earlier this month and made public on Monday, former FBI Director James Comey on or about Oct. 5, 2016 “knowingly and willfully” passed along or caused national defense information to be transmitted to The Times. The charges involve a story the corporate media outlet published about Yahoo’s use of a surveillance system to scan emails for child pornography and spam. The authority was meant to meet the demands of a court order directing Yahoo to track communications of a state-sponsored terrorist organization, the newspaper reported at the time.

The Obama administration’s Department of Justice obtained permission from a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court judge. Yahoo was barred from disclosing the matter, according to The Times.

Prosecutors allege the disgraced former FBI director authorized James Baker, the agency’s general counsel at the time, to provide the corporate media outlet with classified national security details. Comey, the DOJ alleges, wanted to “correct misinformation” published the previous day by Reuters.

Judge continues to block Trump admin. from cutting down trees at D.C. golf course, confirms she’s still “not the Lorax”– www.cbsnews.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Judge continues to block Trump admin. from cutting down trees at D.C. golf course, confirms she’s still “not the Lorax”– www.cbsnews.com
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EXCERPT:

A federal judge on Monday barred the Trump administration from removing trees from East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., in a colorful ruling that follows a weekslong controversy over President Trump’s plans to overhaul the publicly owned course.

“The Court earlier stated, ‘I am not the Lorax. I do not speak for the trees,'” U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes wrote. “The Court still does not speak for the trees. It speaks only for the rule of law.”

In a 70-page preliminary injunction ruling, Reyes prohibited the government from “removing or damaging” any trees on the golf course while a lawsuit challenging the renovation plan works its way through the court system. The judge also required 10 days’ notice before the government makes “any irreparable modification” to the course.

The judge had previously blocked tree removal through Monday.

In a Truth Social post, Mr. Trump called the ruling “unconstitutional” and said his administration would seek appeal. He added that the government would move forward with closing the course on Nov. 15.

“To have to give advanced notices to a judge who has no expertise in Golf, Architecture, Landscaping, Construction, or anything else having to do with building such a World Class Project, is not fair, appropriate, or Constitutional,” the president wrote, arguing the project is “totally ‘as of right.'”

Mr. Trump has sought to overhaul the golf course — which sits beside the Potomac River — for months, pitching a “World Class Championship Golf Course” fit to host high-profile professional tournaments instead of the current “dysfunctional” course. The D.C. Preservation League sued over the planned changes to the course, arguing the government violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to analyze the project’s impacts.

Photos show Ukraine’s Starlink was throttled during Russian strike that killed 5 in park– www.cbsnews.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Photos show Ukraine’s Starlink was throttled during Russian strike that killed 5 in park– www.cbsnews.com
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EXCERPT:

Kharkiv, Ukraine – Yulia Spichak, a 34 year-old makeup artist in Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region, dropped her son off at an English-language lesson on Oct. 19 and sat down in a nearby park to send a selfie to her sister, Alina. Seconds later, a Russian drone slammed into the park, killing Spichak and four others, including a 1-year-old girl.

The attack came six days after Elon Musk’s SpaceX throttled Ukraine’s access to Starlink, which Ukraine has been using to coordinate its defenses against Russian attacks and for some of its offensive operations. In a post on X, Musk accused Ukraine of violating Starlink’s terms of service by also using it for attacks on Russia.

Ukrainian officials told CBS News that the restrictions imposed without advance notice affected ground-based air defense radars and drone interceptors, hindering the military’s ability to stop incoming Russian strikes.

“It’s an essential part of the air defense infrastructure,” Vadym Ivchenko, a Ukrainian member of parliament on the National Security, Defense and Intelligence Committee, told CBS News Monday. “I couldn’t say that all other air defenses stopped working, no. But this part is quite essential for the defense of civilians in Ukraine.”

Lula secures victory in Brazil, but faces challenge as Bolsonaro contests victory– abcnews.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Lula secures victory in Brazil, but faces challenge as Bolsonaro contests victory– abcnews.com
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EXCERPT:

BRASILIA — President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ‘s comeback to win Brazil’s presidential runoff Sunday is already facing its first hurdle as his competitor, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, challenges the results, setting the stage for a possible showdown between the country’s two polarizing political forces.

Lula, who convinced an extra 10.4 million voters to support him in the runoff, is expected to take office on Jan. 5, 2027, for his fourth non-consecutive term. He will serve as a counterweight in a region where leaders are shifting to the right and aligning with U.S. President Donald Trump. Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, promised to cozy up to the Trump administration.

At a news conference Sunday, Bolsonaro said he planned to request an annulment of the election following a chaotic extension of voting at the request of both candidates. However, it’s unclear what legal avenue he would have to do that. His father also contested his loss to Lula four years ago and now serves a 27-year prison sentence for a coup attempt.

Early signs from Brazil’s institutions and from leaders across the region, including conservative presidents who oppose Lula, suggest the results will be respected nationally and internationally. Trump has yet to weigh in.

Even with the vote extension, Lula’s win was decisive. The soon-to-be 81-year-old incumbent won more than 64 million votes compared to just under 60 million for Bolsonaro, a margin of nearly 4%.

Extreme risk protection orders are designed to prevent gun violence. But how do they impact the people subject to them?– phys.org

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Extreme risk protection orders are designed to prevent gun violence. But how do they impact the people subject to them?– phys.org
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EXCERPT:
About 125 people die from gun violence through homicide or suicide in the United States every day. Many more are injured by firearms. Extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs), known in California as gun violence restraining orders, are designed to keep firearms temporarily away from people at risk of harming themselves or others.

Pete Hegseth Is Trying To Flee The Trump Administration Before He Can Be Impeached– www.politicususa.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Pete Hegseth Is Trying To Flee The Trump Administration Before He Can Be Impeached– www.politicususa.com
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EXCERPT:

 

Eight days before the midterm election, two things have become certain. Democrats are going to take back the House, and after they do, Democrats are going to impeach Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

There is a list of Trump cabinet members who are likely to quit when Democrats win back the House, because they will be facing impeachment. Pete Hegseth is at the top of the list, followed by RFK Jr., and Linda McMahon, who has destroyed the Department of Education.

There will be an exodus of people out of the Trump administration after the midterm election. Karoline Leavitt got an early start out the door, but will be far from the last person to leave.

Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM) said last month on MS NOW:

 Donald Trump himself has said it multiple times, that he’s planning to give pardons to everyone in his circle. But I actually very much disagree with the idea that we shouldn’t be trying to use every tool we have in the toolbox.

In particular, we have cabinet secretaries like Pete Hegseth, who Republicans think should be impeached at this point because of his illegal killings in the illegal war, and what we’ve seen over the last year is that when Congress did file impeachments, folks like Kristi Noem and Pam Bondi were actually fired by the President because the American people were clear they didn’t want them in those jobs of trust.

So I think there’s a number of cabinet secretaries that have blatantly broken the law, done unconstitutional things, and I think they better get ready because we’ll come for them.

Trump intensifies anti-Muslim rhetoric against Abdul El-Sayed at Michigan rally – US politics live | Donald Trump– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Trump intensifies anti-Muslim rhetoric against Abdul El-Sayed at Michigan rally – US politics live | Donald Trump– www.theguardian.com
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EXCERPT:

Donald Trump intensified his anti-Muslim rhetoric against Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed on Sunday, portraying him as a threat to national security.

The president also questioned his loyalty to the United States in remarks that drew a sharp rebuke from a former top Arab American ally. Trump called El-Sayed, a former Detroit health official, a “jihadist” who was “on the side of the terrorists” and would “have to go through a metal detector before he’s allowed to go into the Senate.”

He also repeatedly invoked 9/11, drawing a comparison between stopping El-Sayed from entering the Senate chamber and the passengers who fought back against the hijackers aboard United Flight 93, AP reported.

El-Sayed, who would become the nation’s first Muslim senator if elected, has called attacks on his loyalty to the country “shameful” and repeatedly denied any ties to extremist groups.

Trump loses ‘biggest prize’ as far-right leaders topple around the world: expert– www.rawstory.com

pgnewser October 28, 2026 0

Trump loses ‘biggest prize’ as far-right leaders topple around the world: expert– www.rawstory.com
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EXCERPT:

A stunning electoral upset just lost President Donald Trump the “biggest prize” — as his allies abroad topple, a political expert told Raw Story on Monday.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s runoff victory Sunday against Flávio Bolsonaro, the far-right son of a former president imprisoned for staging a coup, delivered a stinging blow to Trump’s plans, Berea College Professor Carlos G. Poggio told Raw Story.

“Lula’s victory represents a significant defeat for Donald Trump and [Secretary of State] Marco Rubio,” Poggio, a Brazilian political scientist, said in an email. “Brazil was the biggest prize in the conservative tide sweeping Latin America.”

The defeats for Trump are numerous and multifaceted — they span from the U.S. to Latin America and China and hit his power, and his wallet, Poggio argued.

Bolsonaro, 45, had aligned himself with Trump by pledging to mine the Amazon rainforest for critical mineral deposits, which would ease U.S. dependence on Chinese rare earth exports, limited in 2025 in response to Trump’s tariffs.

Appeals court resists DOJ's bid to immediately segregate 20k California ballots – thehill.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Appeals court resists DOJ’s bid to immediately segregate 20k California ballots – thehill.com
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EXCERPT:

A federal appeals court appeared unlikely to immediately agree to the Trump administration’s bid to segregate 20,000 California ballots it says are likely noncitizen voters, expressing skepticism at a rare Sunday hearing that a trial judge needs to move quicker. “I don’t see how we have jurisdiction,” said U.S. Circuit Judge Mark Bennett.  The Justice Department (DOJ) sued…

Michigan Students Are All In for Abdul El-Sayed– www.thenation.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Michigan Students Are All In for Abdul El-Sayed– www.thenation.com
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EXCERPT:

The progressive Senate candidate has won over students with his politics—and, in at least one case, his protein intake.

The day after winning the Democratic primary, Abdul El-Sayed speaks to supporters in Detroit.(Jeff Kowalsky / AFP via Getty Images)

Parker Ward remembers every detail about his first time meeting Abdul El-Sayed. It was October 3, 2025, and El-Sayed was holding a town hall for Central Michigan University students, cohosted by the school’s College Democrats chapter, of which Ward is president. In the basement of a local Unitarian church, about 30 people showed up—half students, half Mount Pleasant community members.

Lula’s Suprise Win Blocks Trump’s Push for a Far-Right Brazil – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Lula’s Suprise Win Blocks Trump’s Push for a Far-Right Brazil – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com
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EXCERPT:

Two weeks before the second and decisive round of the Brazilian presidential elections in October, US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was in Rio de Janeiro for the multi-day celebration of his son Conor’s wedding. The Kennedy scion married singer Giulia Be, a pop star born into a Brazilian right-wing clan, the Marinho family, who are close allies of the disgraced former President Jair Bolsonaro. The nuptials took place at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in historic downtown Rio, which once served the Portuguese royalty that colonized Brazil for more than 300 years.

A week later, supporters of then-presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro carried an inflatable missile with the words “Trump nuke Brazil” in English at a rally in the city of São Paulo. The symbolic image—apparently welcoming a US intervention in the country—may have shocked supporters of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva or Brazilians who value the country’s sovereignty. But family ties between right-wing clans, inflatable missiles, and requests for American military action against a perceived communist threat only begin to scratch the surface of the far-right’s increasing strength in Brazilian politics and its yearning for a closer connection with the Trump administration.

NYT: Prosecuting Is ‘Accountability’ For Trump, ‘Affront’ For Omar– thefederalist.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

NYT: Prosecuting Is ‘Accountability’ For Trump, ‘Affront’ For Omar– thefederalist.com
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EXCERPT:

The New York Times’ editorial board has found a dangerous, “authoritarian” threat to the republic: investigating a politician. Readers may remember a different approach The Times’ editorial board took when the politician was Donald Trump.

“Trump Is Turning to an Old Tool of Authoritarian Repression,” headlined an editorial board op-ed Friday, warning in the article’s opening line that “[t]he revocation of a political opponent’s citizenship has long been a tool of authoritarian repression.”

The story comes as Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar is under federal investigation for alleged immigration fraud. According to The New York Post, Omar’s legal name is “Ilhan Nur Said Elmi,” yet she used the name Ilhan Omar on passports and other official documents. Further, the congresswoman could not definitely state whether she married her brother in a recent interview, whom she is alleged to have married illegally to get a green card.

This investigation into whether Omar illegally obtained U.S. citizenship, the board writes, “should disturb all Americans, regardless of whether they agree with Ms. Omar’ political views.”

The Trump administration has filed 31 lawsuits seeking states’ voter data. Here’s where they stand.– www.cbsnews.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

The Trump administration has filed 31 lawsuits seeking states’ voter data. Here’s where they stand.– www.cbsnews.com
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EXCERPT:

Washington — President Trump’s administration has mounted efforts in nearly all 50 states to obtain their complete voter rolls containing sensitive information about registered voters in their states.

The Justice Department has argued that the information is needed to ensure states are complying with two federal voting laws, the Help America Vote Act and the National Voter Registration Act, which aim to ensure states have programs in place for maintaining accurate voter rolls.

The administration sent letters to most of the states last year seeking unredacted electronic copies of their statewide voter registration lists, which include voters’ birthdates, addresses, partial Social Security numbers and driver’s license numbers.

A number of states have turned over publicly available versions of their voter rolls, but have declined to provide their complete lists. In response, the Justice Department has filed lawsuits against 30 states and the District of Columbia in an effort to force them to hand over the voter data.

Donald Trump insists polls are fake and claims his approval rating is really at 60%– www.independent.co.uk

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Donald Trump insists polls are fake and claims his approval rating is really at 60%– www.independent.co.uk
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President Donald Trump dismissed polls showing his approval rating falling ahead of November’s midterm elections, insisting Americans should trust his claim that his support is closer to 60 percent.

In an interview with The Washington Examiner’s Byron York, published Saturday, Trump called the polling figures “fake” when asked about a RealClearPolitics average showing 38.8 percent of Americans approved of his job performance, while 60.4 percent disapproved.

“It’s fake,” Trump said.

When York pressed him on what he believed his actual approval rating was, Trump rejected the figures and insisted his support was much higher.

“The job approval, they said it’s 37, 38?” Trump asked. “I’m not at 38.”

Trump’s Michigan Rally Was A Total Racist Disaster For Republicans– www.politicususa.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Trump’s Michigan Rally Was A Total Racist Disaster For Republicans– www.politicususa.com
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EXCERPT:

This is what a political party with no ideas and no plan for the future looks like. After refusing to say that he is a MAGA Republican on Meet The Press, US Senate candidate Mike Rogers brought Donald Trump to Michigan, and the point of the rally was clear from the moment that the president began speaking.

Trump came to Michigan to smear Abdul El-Sayed and scare voters into supporting Rogers.

The rally was some of the most direct and vile racism and bigotry that Americans will see in any campaign.

Trump, who stole classified documents, suggested El-Sayed would be a national security threat:

 He certainly should not give him a seat in the United States Senate. He would be the only senator that will have to go through a metal detector before he’s allowed to go into the Senate. I want him to have a metal detector.

If Abdul gets to the Senate, he would have access to our nation’s most closely guarded national security secrets And his vote would wield power over our military, our borders, our homeland security, and much more than that. And to think that so much of our military equipment is made in Michigan.

‘Not an accident’: Marco Rubio sends shockwaves with ominous ‘coup’ comment– www.rawstory.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

‘Not an accident’: Marco Rubio sends shockwaves with ominous ‘coup’ comment– www.rawstory.com
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EXCERPT:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly invited Cubans to work with the CIA on Friday, and the reaction across the political spectrum was immediate.

“To those who seek to create positive change in Cuba – now is the time,” Rubio wrote on X. “The disappointment of failed promises, corruption, and the privileged lives of only a few; seize this opportunity to create the change you desire through a discrete partnership with the CIA.”

A few hours later, the CIA’s official account posted the same message in Spanish. It included a video ending with the words “Contacte a la CIA” (“Contact the CIA”).

Many people were stunned that the message was public at all.

As Trump fights over what America owes, slavery descendants organize for the future– abcnews.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

As Trump fights over what America owes, slavery descendants organize for the future– abcnews.com
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EXCERPT:

WASHINGTON — N’nanba (Robin Rue Simmons) has spent years trying to answer a question that has vexed the United States since the abolition of slavery: What would it actually look like to repair the damage?

In Evanston, Illinois, she helped turn that question into a $25,000 housing grant for Black residents whose families were harmed by discriminatory housing policies. Now, Rue Simmons is spreading the nation’s first municipal reparations program to more than 100 communities across the country.

But as America celebrates its 250th anniversary, there is a formidable hurdle: President Donald Trump’s administration.

The administration’s campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and its broader efforts to curtail federal support for race-based initiatives and Black history, have prompted some institutions to reconsider or quietly scale back reparations work.

Those reversals come while at least part of the world community is reexamining the past. In March the U.N. General Assembly issued a resolution declaring the trafficking of millions of enslaved Africans “the gravest crime against humanity” and calling for reparations. More than 120 countries supported the resolution — only three voted against it — Argentina, Israel and the U.S. Fifty-two, including England and 27 members of the European Union, abstained.

“Under this administration, of course, there are many barriers to achieving that, but we still stand on federal redress as our collective north star,” Rue Simmons, the chairman of Evanston’s Reparations Committee and a former city councilwoman, told The Associated Press.

Ana Navarro Compares French Riots to January 6 Claims Misleading Damage– www.newsbusters.org

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Ana Navarro Compares French Riots to January 6 Claims Misleading Damage– www.newsbusters.org
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EXCERPT:

Last weekend’s riots across France were simply brutal, with a reported 2,500 arrests,1000 police officers injured, some 3,000 businesses trashed and looted with damage estimated at over one billion dollars, and multiple  attacks on official buildings like the historic city hall in the French town of Limoges, built in 1883, which was burned down. This was nothing like January 6th, but it didn’t stop CNN’s Ana Navarro from claiming that it was, as she ripped Trump and ICE on Tuesday’s The Situation Room.

Co-host Wolf Blitzer began the segment with a clip of President Trump warning that what happened in France could happen here if Democrats win the midterms.

TRUMP CLIP: If you want to see what is at stake in this election, just look at what’s happening in France, a once great nation that is being conquered, looted, and burned to the ground by migrants, jihadists, and communists who hate Christianity, and they hate, frankly, the Western civilization itself.

When you see burning steeples and raging fires in France, just remember, that is what the radical Democrats want to do to America.

A vote for any Democrat this year is a vote to let that small and dangerous group of extremists hold all of us hostage in America. They’re not going to hold us hostage.

Ballot Measures Will Impact LGBTQ+ Rights in 7 States This Election

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Blurb:

Voters in seven states this fall will weigh more than half a dozen ballot initiatives with direct bearings on LGBTQ+ people — disproportionately on transgender youth. They come as LGBTQ+ rights issues feature heavily in campaigns for candidates on either side of the aisle in the final stretch of November’s midterm elections, which will determine party control of Congress and several key governorships.

Nearly half of LGBTQ+-related ballot initiatives this year would restrict trans student-athletes from competing in line with their gender identity, an issue championed overwhelmingly by Republicans and by a rising share of Democrats. Others would ban certain transition-related treatments for minors — another focus of conservative candidates and President Donald Trump’s second administration.

Since 2021, more than half the nation has adopted laws barring trans students from playing on school sports teams matching their gender identity, and 27 states have banned gender-affirming care for trans youth. Nationally, the number of trans students who participate in school sports is unknown, but is believed to be relatively low: The Williams Institute estimates that just over 300,000 13- to 17-year-olds in the United States are trans, and not all of them will play sports.

Abortion Rights Are on the Ballot in 4 States in the 2026 Midterms

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Blurb:

Abortion is once again on the ballot. While the fate of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House both hang in the balance, the Trump administration can still wreak havoc on abortion rights with or without congressional approval, including a backdoor ban on medication abortion. That’s why state-level measures on abortion in the 2026 midterms elections will be so consequential in the fight for reproductive rights.

This November, voters will decide the fate of abortion rights in four states. Three of those states — Idaho, Nevada, and Virginia — have initiatives that would protect abortion rights in the state. Missouri has an amendment on the ballot that undoes the results of the referendum two years ago, in which voters approved a measure to enshrine reproductive freedom in the state constitution.

Missouri’s GOP Has a New Strategy to Ban Abortion—Attack Trans Kids – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Missouri’s GOP Has a New Strategy to Ban Abortion—Attack Trans Kids – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com
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EXCERPT:

Get your news from a source that’s not owned and controlled by oligarchs. Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily.

Dr. Jennifer Smith remembers canvassing to overturn Missouri’s abortion ban back in 2024. Now she’s spending her weekends knocking doors in her white coat to make sure her home state doesn’t ban abortion again.

Smith, an OB-GYN, had seen what happened to her patients after Roe v. Wade was overturned and a “trigger” law immediately went into effect banning virtually all abortions in the state.

“You could see how scared people were to just consider being pregnant in the state of Missouri,” she said. “I had husbands feel the need to tell me that I should save their wives if something should happen in the pregnancy. And that’s a pretty terrifying place to be.”

Even before the fall of Roe, abortion access in Missouri was extremely limited. The state is home to some of the most vociferous abortion opponents in the country. Among them are Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, who has made himself a leading figure in the national push to ban abortion pills; his wife Erin, a top attorney at the Alliance Defending Freedom; and Ed Martin, a stop-the-stealer who helped craft the GOP’s fetal personhood platform in 2024.

Cook Political Report Moves 19 House Seats In Dems’ Direction– crooksandliars.com

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Cook Political Report Moves 19 House Seats In Dems’ Direction– crooksandliars.com
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EXCERPT:

Cook Political Report election forecaster Dave Wasserman delivered more bad news for Republicans on the midterms.

Wasserman discussed their report on this Friday’s Erin Burnett OutFront on CNN, and called some of the numbers “shocking.” After discussing how toxic the Ramaswamy ad has been, and its potential to infect other races in Ohio, Burnett asked him about their report.

BURNETT: I like the word you just used. That ad has the potential to infect other races. You know, you also shifted 19 House races toward Democrats, and that covers the map, right? We’re going beyond Ohio here, Dave. Texas, North Carolina, obviously states that Trump himself won easily two years ago, now leaning Dem.

I guess the bottom line is, when you look at all of this, does Trump have a chance at this point still to hold on to the House?

WASSERMAN: Not realistically. This is a question of how high this blue wave is going to go and how many Republican seats get swept up. And we’re looking at shocking polling numbers for Republicans, not only in districts that Trump carried by five or 10, but 15 or 20 points.

And I think to the extent there are going to be surprises on November 3rd, I’d look to places with high numbers of secular white voters and also independents. And that points to the Midwest, Iowa, Ohio. Kansas, Nebraska, more so than the Deep South, where things are more racially polarized and it’s more difficult for Democrats to win on turnout alone.

And on a really strong night for Democrats, it’s easy to see how they could exceed the total number of seats they won in 2006 and 2018, given that President Trump’s approval rating today is lower than where it was eight years ago and where George W. Bush’s approval rating was amid the Iraq war. This could get to 235 seats or more.

American women stripped of rights to medical care are forced to have unwanted children

pgnewser October 26, 2026 0

Blurb:

WASHINGTON — Millions of American women have lost a fundamental measure of control over their reproductive lives as abortion bans across much of the United States transform a common medical procedure into a legal, financial and logistical ordeal.

The restrictions have created a divided nation in which a woman’s ability to obtain an abortion depends increasingly on where she lives, how much money she has and whether she can afford to travel to another state.

For women living in states with near-total bans, obtaining an abortion can mean taking unpaid leave, arranging child care, finding transportation, paying for lodging and locating a medical provider willing and legally able to treat them.

For patients experiencing pregnancy complications, the consequences can be even more serious. Physicians and hospitals must navigate laws that may impose severe penalties for performing abortions outside narrowly defined exceptions, raising concerns about delays in medically necessary care.

The restrictions followed the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the constitutional abortion protections established by Roe v. Wade in 1973.

The ruling ended nearly half a century of federal constitutional protection for abortion before fetal viability and returned broad authority over abortion regulation to individual states.

Although abortion remains legal in many states, the decision has produced stark differences in access to reproductive health care, particularly for low-income women, rural residents and people facing medical emergencies.