The Weekly List

This week, after initially taking a conciliatory tone toward working with Democrats in Congress in his final two years, Trump completely changed course two days later, elevating hard-liner Stephen Miller to become his chief of staff, and threatening Democrats. Trump also switched his position on major issues like immigration amnesty and fairness of election results, leaving even his own allies scrambling and confused. Add to this Trump’s Truth Social post on Saturday announcing Dana White, head of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, would become his next White House press secretary. Two days later, when the two appeared together, impromptu, in the White House briefing room, Trump sought to minimize the announcement as a mere joke.
Taken together, one has to question Trump’s cognitive health. While one reporter speculated that these zigzags could be Trump processing, even by his standards, his actions this week were unusually erratic and outlandish. The Times did report in Week 104 that his speech patterns at rallies could possibly be indicative of cognitive decline, but aside from that our media failed to follow up on this story, in vast contrast to their obsessive coverage of former president Joseph Biden.
The Department of Justice saw major departures this week to its already shrunken ranks, including by leaders who had pursued Trump’s personal grievances. Attorney General Todd Blanche took a hardline stance of protecting Trump and his regime from Congressional inquiries. Defense Department Sec. Pete Hegseth held his first press conference in 60 days, despite the ongoing Iran war, that seemed tailored to please a party of one, while threats of impeaching him got underway.
Finally, as the worm turned with the election result, Trump donors including billionaires, and technology, crypto, and A.I. leaders were left scrambling to reorient their approach. Democrats promised hearings and accountability for the pay-to-plays and quid-pro-quos that had become all too normalized in Trump’s first two years. Bombshell stories on Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s ties to an alleged Chinese spy, and its impact on the Trump regime’s A.I. chip policies and relationship with China, came into the spotlight.

This week, in a historic blue wave, Democrats swept races around the country, including in red states, to take control of the House, Senate, and many state governments. After Trump repeatedly told voters to pretend he was on the ballot, Trump demurred on Election Night, blaming Fox News, Republican candidates, and his not being on the ballot for the losses. Even in his final speech ahead of the election, Trump showed how completely out of touch he was with the American people, speaking in front of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, and talking endlessly and in great detail about his pet projects.
Because of the generational sweep, Trump and his regime did not have the opportunity to act on his worst impulses. Leading up to and including on Election Day, there were countless efforts at intimidating voters and election officials, and at sowing distrust in the results, including threats not to seat winning Democrats. The regime had boots on the ground, with DOJ lawyers at the ready for things to play out quite differently if the rout was not so seismic. At the time of this week’s list publication, the Alaska senate race has yet to be called, and the Trump regime had left ample room for chicanery around this and other seats that had the potential to determine the balance of power.
However, the election was a thorough rebuke of Trump. Americans were angry at higher gas prices, the Iran war, tariffs, healthcare, government corruption, and Trump, his family, and regime’s flagrant profiteering. Many voters also cited protecting our democracy, and putting a check on power, noting that Republicans had completely abdicated their responsibility to do so. The election may also mark the end of Trump’s omnipotence within the Republican Party, as Vice President JD Vance publicly distanced himself from Trump shortly after, blaming GOP losses on Trump’s Iran war, and House Speaker Mike Johnson said he would step down from his leadership position. We may well be returning to a more familiar version of democracy in the final two years of the second Trump regime.

With one week until the midterm election, multiple pollsters found the top issue on voters’ minds was corruption in government. Each week, we’ve covered a myriad of examples of Trump, his family, and regime enriching themselves, but it’s not only that. This week we see that our foreign policy, rather than being centered on traditional alliances, is instead being shaped by Trump and his allies’ financial interests.
And it’s not only Trump. This week there were also concerns over concentration of power by America’s version of the oligarchs, not just in politics, but also in shaping public opinion and foreign policy. Billionaire Elon Musk not only broke records with his political donations, but also had outsized influence and sought benefit from U.S. foreign policy. Billionaires controlling media outlets and social media took biased and inexplicable actions this week, raising public outcry.
These concerns, as well as concerns on the cost of living, were downplayed by Trump and his regime. Barnstorming the country at campaign rallies as the GOP’s prospects were fading, Trump mused about $5,000 hamburgers at Mar-a-Lago, while his chief economic advisor rejected affordability concerns as a “myth.” Meanwhile, Trump, *his* Justice Department, and far-right influencers sought any and all means to preemptively discredit the election. The DOJ used a ‘flood-the-zone’ strategy to pursue not only Trump’s grievances and perceived enemies ahead of the election, but also to sow mistrust by baselessly litigating against states while voting was already underway.
Overall, this was a dark and chaotic week. Most Americans are consumed with the election, and deeply worried about Trump accepting the results. Meanwhile, the stories this week continue to reveal widespread corruption, and disregard for the rule of law and norms. The hope of many is that midterms will at long last offer a check on Trump’s unbridled power, and accountability for those ruthlessly and lawlessly operating around him.

With two weeks left until the midterm elections, concerns about what Trump and his allies might do to interfere with voting and election outcomes were front and center. A poll by WAPO-ABC News-Ipsos found that 7 in 10 Americans believed the election would be fair and accurate, while 7 in 10 also believed that if the GOP lost, Trump would not accept the results.
Trump continued his not-so-subtle efforts to promise cash and bailouts in an effort to woo voters, as he and his party’s polling numbers continued to fall, and the prospects for Republicans looked increasingly bleak. Trump traveled to multiple states, including Kansas, where a Democrat had last won a Senate race in 1932, to encourage his voters to show up and vote, but already the blame game and circular-firing squad were underway within the regime.
A Fox News poll found 88% of Americans were “extremely/very concerned” about corruption in government, the top key issue in the poll. Yet, once again, this week’s list is chock full of breathtaking examples of corruption by both Trump and his allies. Trump reportedly complained to allies that information is not reaching him — something we have repeatedly speculated about in this project. That disconnect from reality may help explain how out of touch and tone deaf Trump has become to the reality of most Americans.
Finally, Trump’s strange bromance with Russian President Vladimir Putin took a dangerous turn, as he inexplicably shifted back to siding with Russia over Ukraine, in the war Putin started. Former house speaker Nancy Pelosi reposted her infamous October 2019 quote to Trump, “With you, Mr. President, all roads lead to Putin.” Meanwhile, a report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence found that Russia was the most active foreign adversary in using digital tools to try to undermine confidence in election integrity.

With three weeks until midterms, and Trump’s approval at an all time low amid rising inflation, plunging consumer confidence, and an endless unpopular war with Iran, Trump offered a new giveaway in his effort to buy votes. At a rally in Alaska, Trump started awarding pardons on stage, while continuing to promise $5,000 checks if Republicans held the House and Senate, all while his regime sent $90 and $500 checks to millions of Americans. Trump spent much of the week jet-setting to rallies, many in states that had not gone for Democrats in decades, only to find empty seats and, at times, empty sections in venues smaller than those he filled in 2024 — a testament of how out of touch he has become with the electorate.
In his desperation to staunch the spike in diesel prices, Trump inexplicably agreed to buy energy from Russia, giving Russian President Vladimir Putin not only billions to spend on the war, but also an upper hand in what had become a stalemate. Trump also pulled back other support, and chastised Ukraine. Bipartisan Senators objected, but with Congress out of session until after midterms, their pushback was toothless, once again abdicating power to Trump.
This week, Trump remained focused on targeting his perceived enemies and his petty grievances, targeting Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, and former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson. Corruption continued to run rampant among Trump, his family, and his regime, with backroom deals being made and investigations dropped. Kimberly Guilfoyle was the sacrificial lamb this week, forced to resign as U.S. Ambassador to Greece. Notably, Guilfoyle’s resignation, amid reports of far worse among Trump’s family and his regime, marked the fifth major firing of a high profile woman in Trump’s orbit, while the men played through.
Some other of the autocratic acts this week were especially alarming. Defense Department Secretary Pete Hegseth promised to livestream a firing squad execution. Trump continued to use taxpayer money to broadcast propaganda ads. Trump spent days stewing about not being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Trump’s regime continued to thumb their noses at federal judges, including in their targeting of media outlets, and more. An alarming week with three weeks until the election.