COURIER covers the GOP’s midterm problems from Pennsylvania to Texas

From scrubbed campaign websites to the Epstein files, we’ve got the receipts.

We’re fewer than 7 weeks away from Election Day, and with each passing day, the news gets worse for Republicans. A bevy of recent polling finds Americans broadly unhappy with the state of the country under President Trump, and Republican candidates are paying the price for it.

Gas prices keep going up and every day brings a new story of astonishing political corruption from the Trump family, all while the president keeps taking unpopular stances on AI and the conflict in the Middle East spirals even further out of control.

Will it all be enough to help Democrats overcome a gerrymandered House map and perenially unfriendly Senate map to win control of Congress?

There’s still a long way to go—and a lot of money to overcome—but as we’re seeing from our local reporting across the country, Americans are fed up with the Republican trifecta and what it’s meant for their lives, and Republicans are struggling to make the case that they should remain in power.

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A Tucson mom lost SNAP for 2 months. She confronted Rep. Ciscomani

By Sahara Sajjadi, The Copper Courier

Angelica Garcia struggled to feed her family for two months as Arizona overhauled the food program Rep. Juan Ciscomani voted to cut.

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Record ICE arrests divide this San Diego house race

By Michelle Zacarias, Courier California

ICE arrests are surging in Southern California—and the candidates running for an open congressional seat there are split over how local government should respond.

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Rick Jackson says communities should decide on data centers. But his own data center project in Texas is under fire from locals

By Colleen Hamilton, Courier Georgia

Rick Jackson has built his campaign on the idea that communities should decide their own fate on data centers. A Texas resident says the sale of land tied to Jackson’s own company shows what happens when that promise isn’t kept.

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Is Zach Lahn 'Iowa First'? His Cyhawk game tailgate suggests otherwise

By Zachary Oren Smith, Iowa Starting Line

An “Iowa First” tailgate with Republican gubernatorial nominee Zach Lahn had one problem: it wasn’t actually happening on the day of the Iowa-Iowa State game. Iowa Starting Line looks at the scheduling mix-up—and Lahn’s longstanding ties to Kansas.

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Bombshell report ties Mike Rogers campaign donors to Jeffrey Epstein files

By Kyle Kaminski, The ‘Gander

A review of federal filings shows seven Mike Rogers donors are named in the Jeffrey Epstein files. They’ve given nearly $5 million to his campaign and committees since 2023.

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Dan Osborn, Denise Powell meet with Epstein survivors and browse files in Omaha

By Chase Porter, Courier Nebraska

Millions of pages from the Epstein investigation are hitting the road. A bookmobile carrying 3.5 million public documents stopped in Omaha, where Nebraska candidates Dan Osborn and Denise Powell met with survivors and called for greater accountability.

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Lawler took cash from a lobbyist who opposed 9/11 families suing Saudi Arabia

By Audrey Kemp, Courier New York

FEC and FARA filings show Lawler’s campaign took a $500 donation in April 2023 from a former Saudi-registered lobbyist whose firm fought the bill letting 9/11 victims’ families sue the kingdom.

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Ryan Mackenzie removes conservative positions from campaign website

By Sean Kitchen, The Keystone

Pennsylvania Rep. Ryan Mackenzie spent years touting his anti-abortion endorsement, gun rights record, and votes on immigration and elections. Now, those positions have disappeared from his campaign website, replaced with a new section highlighting his work “across the aisle.”

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Bo French faces backlash for racist post about UT students, but not from Abbott

By Courier Texas, Courier Texas

Texas Republican Bo French turned a photo of UT students celebrating a football win into an attack on immigrants. And though the post drew condemnation from several Republicans, French doubled down.

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Musk, Trump, Thiel: Meet the billionaires backing Jen Kiggans

By Michael O’Connor, Dogwood

Elon Musk is boosting a Virginia Republican’s efforts to get reelected in a competitive race this fall.

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That’s it for ROUNDUP this week. This email was sent to 51,344 readers. If you enjoy reading this newsletter each week, would you mind sharing it on X/Twitter, Threads, or Bluesky? Have a tip, idea, or feedback? Reply directly to this email.

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