Trumps endorsements and polls shape tight GOP races amid legal and redistricting battles.

Trump delivers 11th-hour endorsement to Paxton in Texas Senate runoff President Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Texas Republican Senate runoff on Tuesday, a day after the start of early voting.Why it matters: Senate Republicans spent months pleading with Trump to endorse incumbent Sen. John Cornyn over Paxton.Trump had posted that an endorsement was coming after the March 3 primary and said whoever didnt get his endorsement should drop out. That endorsement didnt materialize at the time. But the president faced significant pushback from MAGA allies at the idea of a Cornyn endorsement.Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and leadership-allied super PACs spent tens of millions backing Cornyn. Flashback: Cornyn received the most votes in the primary but did not get a majority. Polling has indicated a tight runoff race.The big picture: Whoever wins the May 26 runoff will face Democratic nominee James Talarico, who has led both Cornyn and Paxton in recent polling and holds a wide fundraising advantage.The Texas Senate race is rated likely Republican by Cook Political Report.Whats next: Early voting ends Friday. Election Day is May 26.

axios · 1 day ago

RFK Jr debuts his own hand bruise after Trump has been sporting one for months Health secretary appears with discoloration on left hand at White House event

independent · 1 day ago

Voters in six states head to polls as Trump attacks Massie as worst congressman – US politics live Contest seen as latest test of presidents grip on GOP as he tells reporters at White House that he will be endorsing candidate for senate race in TexasSign up for the Breaking News US emailThe president held an impromptu news conference against the backdrop of the White Houses proposed ballrooms construction Monday morning. He spoke about the ballroom, Iran, Cuba, the Kentucky congressional race, and the new reflecting lake, which he wants to inaugurate before July 4.While showing reporters how the construction of the ballroom was coming along, he said: This is all my money and donors money. This is tax free. Continue reading...

theguardian · 1 day ago

Kentucky primary tests Trumps hold on Republican base President Donald Trump is targeting one of his strongest critics within the Republican Party: Representative Thomas Massie, currently running in a primary race in Kentucky. The contest has become the most expensive US House of representatives primary in history, and will test Trumps hold over the Republican party, after he successfully pushed out another key critic in Louisiana.

france24 · 1 day ago

Senate leader Thune splits with Trump over $1.776B DOJ weaponization slush fund in first sign of major party rift The top Senate Republican says he is not a big fan of the new anti-weaponization fund

independent · 1 day ago

The Republican project isnt to win in November. Its to make November cease to matter | Jamil Smith New electoral maps are erasing Black representations. The effort takes its cues from American historyEarly this month, a single pen stroke effectively ended representative Steve Cohens career in Congress. The man who has represented Memphis for 19 years will turn 77 later this month, but he wasnt planning on retiring. He hadnt lost any primary. The reason was that his district had been erased around him.A new electoral map, passed by the Republican-led state legislature and signed by Bill Lee, the governor, divides the ninth district three ways. Last week Tennessee Republicans silenced the Black vote here in Memphis to make Republican victories likely, Cohen said in his statement. Thats succinct and accurate.Jamil Smith is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

theguardian · 1 day ago

Daniel Băluță pune cetățenii din Sectorul 4 să decidă dacă un parc va purta numele lui Donald Trump. Preferințele oamenilor merg către Maia Sandu Locuitorii din Sectorul 4 pot decide prin vot online dacă extinderea Parcului „Tudor Arghezi va purta numele președintelui american Donald Trump, după ce primarul Daniel Băluță s-a răzgândit și a anunțat că decizia finală va aparține cetățenilor.

adevarul · 1 day ago

Voters in six states head to polls with Kentuckys Massie facing Trumps fury – US politics live Contest seen as latest test of presidents grip on GOP as he urges voters to reject one of the few senior Republicans who has defied himSign up for the Breaking News US email Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Voters will head to the polls in primaries across six states today, with the contest in Kentucky seen as a test of Donald Trumps grip on the Republican party.Police are investigating a deadly shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego as a hate crime, after three people were killed and two dead suspects were identified near the scene. Democratic leaders from across the country issued statements in the wake of the shooting calling out Islamophobia and advocating for stricter gun laws.At a healthcare affordability event, Donald Trump announced that his website TrumpRx.gov will now include a catalog of generic drugs. Trump touted the move as increasing the number of drugs available on TrumpRx by nearly seven times, adding over 600 affordable generics to the website.Trump moved to dismiss a $10bn lawsuit against the Interal Revenue Service and his administration created a $1.776bn anti-weaponization fund to compensate his allies for supposed persecution by the government. Democrats harshly criticized the settlement, saying it amounts to the creation of a slush fund for the presidents allies.An effort to reshape South Carolinas congressional districts got its first full airing Monday in the state House. Lawmakers launched a lengthy discussion over the consequences of acceding to Trumps calls for a US House map that could yield a clean sweep for Republicans.Trump also said he is requesting the attorney general and Justice Department investigate mail-in voting in Maryland. In a post on Truth Social, Trump alleged that Maryland had sent out 500,000 Illegal Mail In Ballots and blamed the Corrupt Governor of the State, Wes Moore, a Democrat, who allowed this to happen in order to make sure that Democrats win.Nancy Pelosi has endorsed San Francisco supervisor Connie Chan in the race to fill the seat Pelosi will vacate at the end of her term.The Trump administration has proposed allowing up to 17,500 white South Africans to enter the United States as refugees, beginning in the new fiscal year, CNN reports, citing an emergency determination letter sent to Congress that it obtained. Continue reading...

theguardian · 1 day ago

Răsturnare de situație: Daniel Băluță s-a răzgândit și îi pune pe oameni să decidă dacă parcul va purta numele lui Donald Trump: „Decizia vă aparține Locuitorii din Sectorul 4 pot decide prin vot online dacă extinderea Parcului „Tudor Arghezi va purta numele președintelui american Donald Trump, după ce primarul Daniel Băluță s-a răzgândit și a anunțat că decizia finală va aparține cetățenilor.

adevarul · 1 day ago

PAC doubles spend in key Democratic primary races to fight Trump and RFK Jrs war on science Exclusive: 3.14 Action Fund says has backed candidates with $7.9 million spent thus far in key primaries in an effort to elect more Democratic scientists and physicians to public office

independent · 1 day ago

Trumps revenge tour comes for Massie Todays Kentucky primary is President Trumps biggest test yet of whether his iron grip on the Republican base can hold even as war and inflation batter his national standing.Why it matters: Trump is trying to take out longtime antagonist Thomas Massie in the most expensive House primary in history — a contest that will show whether his iconoclastic brand of libertarian politics still has a place in the GOP. Until now, the seven-term Massie had never faced a serious threat to reelection. Trump changed that.Trumps political operation launched an aggressive effort to unseat Massie last year, its first such effort to defeat a sitting Republican incumbent.The fight between Massie and Trump-backed rival Ed Gallrein has drawn more than $32 million in ad spending, according to AdImpact.Driving the news: Trump has spent months portraying Massie as disloyal to the MAGA movement. Hes called Massie a moron, a nut job and major Sleazebag.He is the Worst Republican Congressman in History, Trump posted on Truth Social Sunday.At a March rally in Massies district, Trump said: Give me somebody with a warm body to beat Massie, and I got somebody with a warm body, but a big, beautiful brain, and a great patriot.The other side: They want 100 compliance, Massie said of the White House.I vote with the President 90 of the time. I voted for the SAVE Act. I voted for DHS. In fact, by most scorecards, Im the most conservative Republican, so its only the 10 of the time theyre mad about.Between the lines: Trump has taken out a number of Republican politicians who cross him.Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a top target of the president, lost his reelection bid when he failed to finish in the top two in a primary Saturday.Trump also exacted retribution on a group of Indiana Republican state legislators who blocked his push to redraw the states congressional map. Five of the seven lost their primaries last month.And Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), who spent the weekend campaigning with Massie in his district, has now caught the ire of Trump. The president invited a primary challenger to run against her in a post on Truth Social Saturday, calling Boebert weak minded.Catch up quick: Massie and Trumps contentious relationship dates back to Trumps first term.In 2020, Massie opposed Trumps Covid relief package, leading the president to call for Massie to be thrown out of the Republican Party.Massie was also one of only two House Republicans to vote against Trumps big, beautiful bill.Last summer, Massie sought to repair his relationship with the president, and Speaker Mike Johnson was able to broker a truce, Axios previously reported.The ceasefire didnt last long. Days later, Massie ramped up his public criticism of the administrations handling of the Epstein files, and later led the push to release the files in defiance of Trump.Zoom in: The race has spiraled into an especially nasty and personal fight, with both sides trying to portray the other as out of step with the GOP base on a range of culture-war issues.Outside groups aligned with Trump and pro-Israel donors have spent millions attacking Massie over his criticism of Israel and opposition to some foreign aid packages.Pro-Massie groups, meanwhile, have labeled Gallrein Woke Eddie and aired an AI-generated ad depicting the retired Navy SEAL abandoning Trump on a battlefield.One pro-Massie ad attacked Gallreins ties to GOP megadonor Paul Singer — who is Jewish and supports LGBTQ rights — by featuring a rainbow-colored Star of David and warning that the LGBTQ mafia was trying to take over the district. If Gallrein wins, the weirdos take over, the ad says.The bottom line: A loss for Massie would send another warning to Republicans about the dangers of crossing Trump — and show that the presidents broader political problems havent diminished his power with the base.If I lose, I think its going to disenfranchise a large part of the coalition that was formed to give us the majority here and to give us the White House, Massie told reporters at the Capitol last week.

axios · 1 day ago

Im allowed to: Trumps presidential profit machine bursts into the open Democrats erupted Monday over President Trumps $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund for MAGA allies who claim political persecution, vowing to investigate what they called textbook corruption.Why it matters: With each passing month, Trump is weaving the financial interests of his family, his allies and his political movement more tightly than ever into the fabric of the American presidency.Driving the news: The weaponization fund grew out of an extraordinary legal conflict: Trump sued the IRS for $10 billion in January while simultaneously controlling the agencies and lawyers on the other side of the case.The taxpayer-backed fund will be overseen by a five-member commission appointed by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trumps former personal attorney.Bypassing congressional approval, the fund could extend compensation to Jan. 6 defendants, conservative activists, former Trump aides and other allies who have faced investigation.What theyre saying: The machinery of government should never be weaponized against any American, Blanche said in a statement, calling the fund an effort to make right the wrongs that were previously done.In a legal filing, 93 House Democrats argued the arrangement raises the specter of corruption unparalleled in American history. Some have signaled they will impeach Trump if Democrats win the House in November.Zoom in: The Justice Departments announcement came amid mounting scrutiny of Trumps most recent financial disclosure, which revealed more than 3,700 individual stock trades last quarter.The trading activity — involving some companies heavily exposed to federal policy decisions — represented a staggering escalation from the previous quarter, when Trump disclosed just 380 transactions.Popular Informations Judd Legum reported that Trump publicly praised or promoted several companies, including Apple, Dell and Thermo Fisher, about the same time he was buying their stock.Between the lines: The Trump Organization says outside advisers control the presidents investments. Neither President Trump, his family, nor the Trump Organization plays any role in selecting, directing, or approving specific investments. They receive no advance notice of trading activity and provide no input regarding investment decisions or portfolio management of any kind, a Trump Organization spokesperson told Axios.White House spokesperson Anna Kelly added in a statement: President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public — which is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this office, despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his businesses from the fake news media. There are no conflicts of interest. Flashback: Federal conflict-of-interest laws generally do not apply to the president, leaving the office heavily dependent on voluntary norms and political restraint.Trump is the first president whose trading triggered the disclosure requirements of the STOCK Act, the 2012 law written for Cabinet officials and members of Congress.The big picture: Trumps first term generated recurring conflict-of-interest scandals around hotels, golf clubs and foreign patronage. His second has produced a far more sprawling ecosystem for enrichment.At the center of the gold rush is crypto: Trump-linked meme coins have minted billions for the family and its inner circle, with top holders unlocking dinners at Mar-a-Lago and private events with the president.World Liberty Financial has rapidly become one of the Trump familys most lucrative and controversial ventures, placing the presidents political brand and influence at the center of a fast-growing crypto empire.The intrigue: Crypto billionaire Justin Sun, who helped bankroll World Liberty Financial, is now suing the Trump-linked company over an alleged illegal scheme to seize and freeze his tokens.World Liberty Financial has denied the allegations and is suing Sun for defamation.Zoom out: Since Trump took office, his sons have become investors in a range of new industries, including AI, drones and critical minerals. Their overseas real estate portfolio has also expanded dramatically.Donald Trump Jr. is a partner at 1789 Capital, which has grown from $200 million to $3.5 billion in assets over the past year while backing AI and defense companies that have won federal contracts.Trump Jr. also has gotten involved in the booming prediction-market industry through advisory roles with Kalshi and Polymarket. The Trump administration is currently suing three states to defend the platforms from state-level enforcement.Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner has continued to raise billions from Persian Gulf governments while serving as the presidents peace envoy for the Middle East.What to watch: A pattern of well-timed trades around the Iran war — now under federal investigation — have emerged as one of the most politically explosive storylines of Trumps second term.Theres no evidence that Trump has had personal knowledge of the billions of dollars in oil futures and prediction-market bets placed shortly before his market-moving announcements.Still, the phenomenon has reinforced a growing public perception that the people closest to power operate under a different set of rules.The bottom line: Asked in January why his family is doing deals abroad after refraining in his first term, Trump told the New York Times: Because I found out that nobody cared. Im allowed to.

axios · 1 day ago