SCOOP: House Democrats suspected a few in their caucus would support a bill criminalizing gender-affirming care for trans youth So Sarah McBride reached out to Republicans Four Rs — Fitzpatrick, Lawler, Kennedy, Evans — joined Dems in opposing the bill www.notus.org/congress/mcb...

Former Sportscaster Michele Tafoya Considering Run for Senate in Minnesota www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Vulnerable GOP Rep. Andy Ogles blamed local judges for a rape in Nashville and posted their names and photos online. The courthouse had to increase its security in response given the risk of violent reprisals. The full story at @notus.com.

NEW: White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller scored a big cash bonus from America First Legal before joining the second Trump administration. www.notus.org/money/stephe...

New: Republican Matt Van Epps Wins Tennessee House Seat by Slim Margin Bottom line: GOP avoids catastrophe, can be happy about late effort to juice turnout, but still eyeing a ~15-point shift from DT's in '24, which should further concerns about '26 www.notus.org/campaigns/re...

Vaccines.gov, the CDC's vaccination site search engine, got a MAHA makeover in June. Then it stopped working altogether. New from me: www.notus.org/health-scien...

Is 2026 going to be a 2018 redux? There's a raging debate about whether the current Trump midterm is going to be like the last one www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Haley Stevens’ Campaign Is Underwhelming Democrats Democrats say the establishment favorite’s Michigan Senate campaign isn’t ready for primetime — and it could cost the party the general election. w/@daniellamicaela.bsky.social www.notus.org/2026-electio...

New: The largest union of federal workers says Senate Democrats should support the GOP funding bill to end the shutdown But Democrats say they don't *actually* mean that "I work very closely with them," Sen. Tim Kaine said, "the AFGE would not want us to cut a deal" www.notus.org/democrats/de...

BREAKING: Arizona has officially sued the House of Representatives over Mike Johnson's decision to not swear in Adelita Grijalva, who was elected in a special election one month ago www.notus.org/house/adelit...

57% of the ads from Republicans in the Virginia governor's race have focused on transgender issues. Sign of things to come from the GOP in 2026. W/ @oriana.bsky.social www.notus.org/2025-electio...

NEW: Republicans are going all in on anti-trans messaging in Virginia’s governor race, even more than Trump did in 2024 57% of their ads have focused on trans issues It’s a blueprint for 2026 — but not all Republicans think it’s a good idea w/ @alexroarty.bsky.social www.notus.org/2025-electio...

Dunlap defies national Democrats, makes primary bid against Golden official in Maine’s right-leaning 2nd district. The dccc is threatening to pull ad $$$ in the battleground district if Golden loses his primary, saying the race might be unwinable in a general election www.notus.org/2026-electio...

New: The Supreme Court tentatively green-lit Trump's pocket rescissions, which will make ending a shutdown hard — and the *entire* approps process harder "What’s the point of passing a bill if they just do whatever the hell they want to do anyway?," one Senate Dem said www.notus.org/courts/scotu...

New from @alexroarty.bsky.social at @notus.com on the D primary for #IASen: "In interviews with NOTUS, several Iowa Democratic insiders said they believed that [state Rep. Josh] Turek has the tacit backing of Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee."

Senate Democrats desperately want Mary Peltola to run for Senate. But a gubernatorial bid, according to just about everybody, would offer a much easier pathway back to elected office On the Peltola dilemma, the talk of Alaska politics w/ @riley-rogerson.bsky.social www.notus.org/2026-electio...

"A CDC employee sent NOTUS photographs of windows still pockmarked with bullet holes on Monday afternoon. Handwritten signs taped to chairs warned employees to avoid glass on the carpet." www.notus.org/health-scien...

A new Senate candidate in Maine is going to test the appetite of Democratic voters for someone new, previously apolitical, and decidedly progressive www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Rep. LaMonica McIver is urging a federal court to dismiss the federal charges against her — and using the dismissed cases of over 160 Jan. 6 rioters as the reason why www.notus.org/courts/mcive...

🚨 At least 10 scientists, all cited in the Trump admin's new climate change report, told me that the report completely mischaracterizes their research. I also found five citations with significant errors, and a paragraph missing an important citation.

“I love and loved my job, we did good work with some of the smartest people, and they’re being routinely disrespected and lied to." Inside the FDA's AI push, w/ @taylorgiorno_ www.notus.org/health-scien...

NEW: The White House is pressuring Republicans to 'defund' gender-affirming care through the appropriations process, after they failed to ban Medicaid from covering these treatments in reconciliation Trump "is very committed to this," one House R said www.notus.org/congress/whi...

Senate Dems had three major recruitment targets when the cycle started. One of them, Roy Cooper, just announced he’s running. But in a year with a very tough map for Dems, even getting their best recruits is no guarantee of success www.notus.org/north-caroli...

“I can’t see how they couldn’t pay a price for it,” one conservative ally said. Republicans embrace a huge political risk: Trump’s reconciliation bill. www.notus.org/2026-electio...

NEW: Democrats have been struggling to figure out how to message on trans issues — but they quietly killed the GOP's Medicaid ban on gender-affirming care in reconciliation Here's an inside look into how Dems, led by Rep. Sarah McBride and Sen. Tammy Baldwin, did it www.notus.org/congress/dem...

"Make no mistake about it: They just cut their own throats, they just slit their own throats with the very people who got them elected" On the political risk of the GOP's reconciliation bill, a challenge they embrace but remains daunting nonetheless www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Dems already turning to JD Vance's role in passage of the reconciliation bill, with an eye on 2028. Ken Martin: “Of all the people who betrayed folks this week and today, the one we’re going to make sure pays for it is JD Vance." www.notus.org/trump-white-...

Collin Allred will once again run for a Texas Senate seat, despite losing to Sen. Ted Cruz in 2024 by nearly 9 percentage points. www.notus.org/2026-electio...

NEW: Democrats have used SCOTUS rulings to galvanize their base — but they won’t do that with Skrmetti, which green lit gender-affirming care bans One Dem said it’s now a states issue Another said trans issues don’t poll well A third pointed me to the Cass report www.notus.org/democrats/tr...

Thom Tillis will NOT run for re-election, opening an opportunity for Dems in a state they already considered their top pickup target of '26 www.notus.org/senate/thom-...

i wrote a whole story about this! www.notus.org/biden-2024/v...

“I still, if I wanted to, could go post to Facebook as Congressman Young — I could still tweet today as Congressman Young. And nobody from archives or records or from House administration, or anybody, seems to give a shit.”

Omaha's Republican House member, Don Bacon, announces he is retiring, so the seat immediately catapults near the top of Democratic pick-up opportunities: www.notus.org/republicans/...

Surely Bacon was aware of what happened in his district a few months ago: bsky.app/profile/tani...

Per our calculations, Don Bacon sits in the bluest district held by a Republican anywhere in the nation. Kamala Harris carried #NE02, which includes Omaha and some surrounding communities, by a 52-47 margin last year. Full data set here: www.the-downballot.com/p/the-downba...

New: SCOTUS' decision in Trump v. CASA has made Dem AGs the most important people in the Trump resistance AGs are now "in the unique position of retaining the ability to secure injunctions that protect the rights of all," Jamie Raskin said w/ @annackramer.bsky.social www.notus.org/courts/democ...

Don Bacon will NOT seek re-election, imperiling GOP control of a battleground district Democrats were already targeting next year. from me and @reesegorman.bsky.social www.notus.org/republicans/...

NEWS: Mike Lee’s public land sales are likely going to fail. Montana Sen. Steve Daines told me he’s prepared to offer an amendment to kill the plan if he must, and he says he has the votes to win.

NEW: “The rhetoric is quite different, but it doesn’t seem like the reality is obviously different." RFK Jr. promised to end the "corporate capture" of the health agencies. But lobbyists and experts said for the most part, it's still business as usual. www.notus.org/health-scien...

‘People Are Bed-Wetting': Zohran Mamdani’s Win Has Become a Democratic Reckoning My story on how Democratic strategists can’t agree on what lessons to take from New York City’s primary. www.notus.org/democrats/ne...

Dems are getting started with their mid-term campaigns and they're looking to military vets to try and flip the House. www.notus.org/democrats/mi...

New: House Democrats are turning to a tried and true strategy in 2026 ---> recruiting and running military veterans my story with @johnsewarddc.bsky.social on the candidates already lining up to run next year www.notus.org/democrats/mi...

Pete Hegseth Sold Tons of Stock the Week Before ‘Liberation Day’ Stock Market Plunge www.notus.org/defense/pete... @notusreports.bsky.social

No, the DNC doesn’t have any regrets over the “cuck chair photo” it posted about a top White House official — it’s all part of a new approach from the committee’s social media team My story on the DNC (shit)posting through www.notus.org/democrats/dn...

The normally buttoned-up social media accounts at the Democratic National Committee have leaned into shitposting.

New from me and @kevrector.bsky.social: California will sue Trump over “unlawful, unpredecented” National Guard deployment during immigration protests www.latimes.com/politics/sto...

NEW: Republicans have found a new way to go after abortion access in states that protect it If enacted, the reconciliation bill would withhold federal ACA funds from states where insurers cover abortion — and 13 blue states currently mandate insurers to do so www.notus.org/health-scien...

The latest from #LosAngeles: our reporting from DC and LA, plus an interview with Mayor Karen Bass. open.spotify.com/episode/4fwh...

We've been subject to endless hot takes about last year's elections, but @catalist.bsky.social has much more compelling answers. CEO Michael Frias joins us on this week's episode of The Downballot podcast to explore his firm's detailed new report detailing how things really went down -->