Zachary Basu / Axios:
Corporate America's Trump trap  —  America's corporate titans greeted President Trump's 2024 victory with open checkbooks, 12-figure investment pledges and fawning tributes to his coming “Golden Age.”  — Two years later, on the eve of a potential blue wave, Democrats are preparing to greet …

Politico:
Trump turns defense into midterm campaign pitch — never mind Iran  —  Most Republican candidates don't want to talk about the Iran war.  Instead, the president and his allies are pitching a different security message to voters — the economic benefits of American military might.

Stephen Neukam / The Washington Sun:
The Unlikely Resurgence of Kirsten Gillibrand  —  The prognosis was brutal nearly two years ago when Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand told colleagues and staff that she wanted to run the Senate Democrats' campaign arm.  Reeling from losing their majority in their colossal 2024 losses …

Kathy Gilsinan / Politico:
Josh Shapiro's Midterm Gambit Could Set Him Up for 2028 — Just Don't Ask If He's Running … In a side room of a historic railway station in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, Gov. Josh Shapiro took off his glasses and wiped his eyes.  I'd been teeing up a question about the geographic diversity …

Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
‘It could be quite a brutal evening:’ GOP braces for some once-unthinkable losses  —  Republicans are bracing for a brutal election night, convinced they're set to face some previously unthinkable losses in deep-red Trump territory as key battleground races hang on a knife's edge.

Politico:
‘Folks are nervous’: Congress and K St expect Trump to come out firing after midterms  —  Voters are expected to send a very clear message on Tuesday that they want the U.S. to stop fighting wars — on the military and economic front.  President Donald Trump is unlikely to listen.

Hamed Ahmadi / The Washington Sun:
Trump Administration Halts Funding for Key Ukraine Security Programs  —  The Trump administration has halted future aid to Ukraine through the International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement program, even as Russia intensifies attacks on the country's energy infrastructure ahead of winter.

Gavin J. Quinton / The Washington Sun:
Ramaswamy Pulls Controversial Ad Featuring His Opponent's Estranged Mother  —  Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign will no longer air a controversial ad that features Democrat Amy Acton's estranged mother saying her daughter is a “liar” and “needs help.”

Jennifer Scholtes / Politico:
‘Look what I brought home for you’: GOP embraces earmark revival as Election Day looms  —  With voters sour on Republican governance, GOP candidates in the most competitive House and Senate races are reaching for a time-tested message that has grown out of fashion in their party: bringing home the federal bacon.

Noah Shachtman / New York Times:
Is This the End for Trump's Princelings?  Or Just the Start?  —  America has always had oligarchs, but for most of the past century or so, they steered the country in relative quiet.  They knew how to support the right politician or use the law to protect their edge.

Politico:
GOP lawmakers start contemplating a diminished Donald Trump  —  Donald Trump will have his ironclad grip on congressional Republicans tested like never before if the party loses one or both chambers Tuesday.  —  Trump already appears to be gearing up to blame others if Democrats retake the House or the Senate.

Calen Razor / Politico:
Capitol agenda: House Democrats' next big battle  —  A battle of the competing factions of a potential House Democratic majority is already underway.  An expected wave of both progressives and moderates in the midterms has members of both contingents feeling strongly that any 2026 gains …

Ashley Ahn / Politico:
Oklahoma's next senator can be seated immediately after election, state AG rules  —  The winner of next week's Oklahoma Senate race will be able to take office immediately after the election, effectively ending Republican Sen. Alan Armstrong's appointment before the current session of the Senate concludes …

Mia McCarthy / Politico:
This Reagan Republican is not amused  —  Campaigning in northwest Ohio this week, Speaker Mike Johnson took a shot at long-tenured Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur, saying, “I love the [Ronald] Reagan years, but I don't want to be serving with somebody who was there during the Reagan years.”

Barak Ravid / Axios:
After losing his majority, Netanyahu tries to delegitimize election results  —  After his far-right coalition lost 11 seats in the election, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to discredit the results by claiming there was mass voting fraud in Arab communities.

Raquel Coronell Uribe / NBC News:
Trump cancels weekend rallies in Iowa and Kansas in favor of holding numerous tele-rallies  —  Senate races in both states are considered toss-ups and could be key in either party's path to control of Congress.  —  President Donald Trump announced Thursday he is canceling his rallies in Kansas …

Mark Walker / New York Times:
Georgia Republican Donor Sentenced to 15 Years in $76 Million Ponzi Scheme  —  Federal prosecutors said Edwin Brant Frost IV lured investors with promises of high returns, but used new money to pay earlier investors and fund personal expenses.  —  A high-profile Georgia Republican who ran …

Anniek Bao / CNBC:
Israel faces weeks of coalition haggling as Netanyahu's party claims election ‘stolen’ … Israel's final election count left both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing bloc and the opposition led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot short of the 61 seats needed to form a government.

Wall Street Journal:
Ukraine Pauses Strikes on Russian Refineries After Pressure From U.S.  —  Kyiv has temporarily halted one of its most effective operations against Moscow after complaints from Trump  —  KYIV—Ukraine's military has paused its strikes against Russian oil refineries, people with knowledge …

930 WFMD Free Talk:
Nancy Pelosi calls Mamdani, El-Sayed's past comments on Israel ‘concerning’ and ‘wrong’  —  Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed over their views on Israel Thursday …