Week 104 — The Return – The Weekly List

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.

On Wednesday, NYT reported that the campaign of Mary Peltola for U.S. Senate of Alaska and Democratic operatives actively worked to identify another “Dan Sullivan” to run in order to dilute the incumbent’s support, and that Peltola was aware of the effort, which she denied.
Shortly after, Trump told reporters that Peltola should be removed from the ballot, saying, “They said they didn’t do it, and they did do it, and they got caught,” calling it “voter fraud at the highest level.” Legal experts said the move was not illegal.
Later Wednesday, the Republican governor of Alaska said he had ordered an investigation into whether Peltola’s campaign should face criminal charges or civil penalties, and that if illegal conduct was found, the state could withhold certification of results, and her being seated.
On Thursday, the Justice Department escalated a criminal investigation of the Alaska election, issuing a raft of new grand jury subpoenas, as well as demands for records preservation. Trump said at a rally that Peltola “should be removed from the ballot and prosecuted.”
WAPO reported Republicans also boosted spoilers for races in Alaska, including spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on supporting two nonviable, perennial candidates in the primary, Carol Hafner and Green Partier Richard Grayson, neither of whom live in Alaska.
Hafner’s son, Eric Hafner, is another perennial candidate who ran for the House seat in Alaska from a federal prison in New York this year, and in 2024 against Peltola. Richard Grayson had also run in numerous parties in various states, saying, “I call it performance art.”
On Sunday, a federal judge rejected the DOJ’s attempt to hold the certification of Alaska’s Senate election if Republicans lost, saying she had no authority to grant a preemptive request, and that the DOJ did not have legal standing to bring the lawsuit against the state.
On Tuesday, NYT reported that the DOJ had sent letters to 20 Democrats, informing them they might be targets and asking them to preserve their records, the latest DOJ escalation in Alaska. The letters, sent days before a close election, were highly unusual.
On Tuesday, AG Todd Blanche told Fox News that the DOJ would keep fighting, and may work to hold up certification of the Alaska seat, saying, “The Department of Justice has been fighting tooth and nail to stop this process, and we’re not going to stop the fight even after today.”
On Wednesday, in a blistering ruling, a federal judge denied the Trump regime’s emergency motion to block California from counting more than 20,000 ballots, citing the allegations were “not credible,” and noting the request from the federal government was unprecedented.
On Thursday, the DOJ issued federal grand jury subpoenas to at least two local election officials in California, as part of the regime’s effort to block the state from counting 20,000 ballots and to portray elections in Democratic states as being rigged.
On Thursday, a bipartisan group of 28 former governors wrote in a brief in support of California that the lawsuit “constitutes a brazenly unlawful and dangerous effort by the federal executive to usurp states’ authority to administer elections.”
AP reported that according to a court filing by an immigrant-rights group on Saturday, 4 in 10 names flagged on the Trump regime’s list of the 20,930 noncitizens were not on California’s voter rolls.
On Thursday, secretaries of state from multiple states said they received letters from the DOJ, threatening that they could face jail time if they failed to preserve election records, an unprecedented move. State officials were already required to preserve such records for 22 months.
Late Friday, in a scathing ruling, a federal judge blocked the DOJ and Homeland Security from demanding officials in any state segregate ballots, purge voters from the voter rolls, or halt processing, and blocked threats of criminal prosecution of election officials.
The judge said in her ruling that the DOJ had “likely violated” the Voting Rights Act, “because the record shows that Defendants intimidated, threatened, or coerced election workers,” and accused it of “interfering with election administration and disenfranchising lawful voters.”
On Friday, a second federal appeals court again rejected, 2–1, the Trump regime’s effort to set aside 20,000 ballots, questioning the regime’s methodology and the short window ahead of the election.
On Monday, another federal judge ruled against the Trump regime’s effort to put aside 20,000 ballots. When the judge asked the DOJ attorney, “Would you agree there’s a high error rate?” the attorney answered, “That’s a fair statement.”
On Monday, the Supreme Court swiftly rejected the Trump regime’s emergency bid to force California to set aside the 20,000 ballots, in a one sentence, unsigned order without explanation.
On Wednesday, the Potter County Republican Party in Texas asked a federal judge to block certification of the election day vote, unless every ballot is hand counted, claiming without providing evidence that voting machines may be susceptible to outside manipulation.
On Friday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump regime must pull three ads funded by taxpayers, and appeared to be made for political or propaganda purposes, including one touting Trump’s claim that every American would get $5,000 if Republicans win both chambers.
On Friday, NYT reported a grand jury in D.C. rejected the DOJ’s effort to charge an individual with voter fraud for allegedly voting in two jurisdictions in the 2024 election, the latest setback in the Trump regime’s effort to baselessly prove rampant voter fraud.
All Rise News reported that in a highly unusual move, AG Blanche had himself signed off on four small-scale voter fraud cases against people in Nevada, each separately accused of one misdemeanor count of voting by alien.
On Saturday, an Idaho woman was charged with forging 10 mail-in voter signatures in Pennsylvania. The woman was an independent contractor for Mobilize the Message, a conservative voter outreach operation founded by Republican strategist Cliff Maloney.
On Monday, Douglas DePodesta, the former head of the FBI in Chicago, sued the FBI, FBI Director Kash Patel, Blanche, and the U.S. attorney for Chicago, claiming he was pressured to investigate Trump’s political opponents.
DePodesta also claimed he was made a “scapegoat” when a case against anti-ICE protesters fell apart, and called the cases against protesters “politically motivated prosecutions.” He also said the DOJ engaged in “misconduct” and “malfeasance” in its pursuit of unjust prosecutions
On Wednesday, MS NOW reported that current and former FBI agents were worried that on Election Day they could be called on to take legally questionable steps at polling places. One agent said at least one U.S. attorney and one FBI agent would be willing to sign on to actions.
NYT reported that at least 15 Trump cabinet members and other senior officials had been formally accused of violating the Hatch Act during midterms, including using their government titles while campaigning and using taxpayer funds for political advertisements.
Trump fired the head of the Office of Special Counsel, responsible for investigating Hatch Act complaints, and had yet to name a new leader. Experts say the number of violations was the highest in modern history. Regime officials called the complaints politically motivated.
Politico reported in court papers, Trump regime officials conceded that two DOGE employees may have misused Social Security data to match up against voter rolls, while seeking to “overturn election results in certain states.” Both were referred for possibly violating the Hatch Act.
NYT reported the Social Security Administration and the I.R.S. sent email blasts on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday praising Trump. Given the timing, days before midterms, and praising Trump, experts said the emails violated the Hatch Act, with one calling them “propaganda.”
On Wednesday, Google’s AI tool would not answer who won the 2020 election, instead referring users to “the certified reports published by the Federal Election Commission.” The tool did however give an answer for 2016 and 2024, saying “Donald Trump.” The ‘glitch’ was later fixed.
An NYT analysis of Trump’s rallies this year, compared to 2016, found that Trump was speaking roughly twice as long, using far more profanity, repeating the same story more than once in a speech, and his speaking was generally more incoherent and weaving than a decade ago.
Trump also used 19% more mentions of all-or-nothing words like “always,” “never,” “everything,” and “totally,” a sign of black-or-white thinking that can accompany advanced age and cognitive decline. He made references to male anatomy with increased frequency as well.
On Wednesday, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico filed an amended complaint in court, saying Trump blocking them from the Oval Office and Air Force One violated their First Amendment rights, and made it harder to cover important events “for the benefit of the American people.”
The Reuters reporter assigned as pool reporter that day wrote, “Your pooler was hustled from the rally site on to the plane with unusual speed and did not see the VP board.”
On Wednesday, AP reported the Pentagon inspector general refused to investigate the interruption of Starlink and Starshield services in Ukraine, after a request by a group of nine bipartisan Senators, raising concerns the IG was reluctant to confront the influence of Elon Musk.
On Wednesday, The Atlantic reported that when the Pentagon asked Musk’s SpaceX about the Starlink outages in Ukraine, the company advised the government that upgrading to a new contract would address the issue.
The Atlantic also reported Russian authorities were “in close touch” with Musk, whom Putin praised as “a genius, really a genius.” Musk continued to post incendiary remarks about Ukraine and its supporters on X, while his SpaceX remained the way for 90% of satellites to launch.
The Washington Sun reported that Trump aides were quietly pushing U.S. businesses to accept delivery of Russian diesel shipments already on the way. Industry groups said companies expressed concern about potential lawsuits and public backlash.
On Friday, Trump met with Stephen Hubbard, an American recently released from a Russian prison, at the White House, and said, “I think I could say that you were treated reasonably well, right?” Hubbard later said he would not have survived another year in prison.
Trump also credited his not imposing sanctions for the return, telling reporters, “And a lot of stupid people said…‘Why aren’t you putting Russia sanctions and all this’ in the midst of a negotiation,” adding, “If I would have done that, you would not have Mr. Hubbard coming back.”
On Thursday, Musk, who had donated a record $475 million to midterms, sent a lengthy post on X predicting the end of democracy if Democrats won the midterm elections.
CNBC noted that Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, two of Trump’s biggest financial donors, had both swapped AI for “super intelligence,” as Trump had demanded, in their recent companies’ earnings calls.
Trump said on a podcast on Sunday, that he would preemptively pardon Musk and other aides if Democrats took control of Congress and targeted them. Trump also said he would block any attempts by Democrats to nationalize SpaceX, owner of Starlink.
On Wednesday, The Atlantic reported that Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth’s team fired Army Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia, the Pentagon’s chief planner. No explanation was given, and no replacement was named. Sylvia’s abrupt removal, the latest of many under Hegseth’s leadership, infuriated colleagues.
NYT reported that the firing came after Hegseth accused Sylvia of leaking classified information on Iran and Russia to the media. Accusations came after Sylvia failed a polygraph test, which the Pentagon used on senior military officials.
The use of polygraphs on military officials was unprecedented in modern times, due to the test’s unreliability. Hegseth also forced out Sylvia’s predessor, Lt. Gen. J.P. McGee, for being insufficiently loyal. Hegseth sidelined or fired 80 generals and admirals, 10% of the force.
On Thursday, asked by reporters about Sylvia’s firing, Trump misgendered him, saying, “She’s gonna have big problems. We’re very much looking for leakers. And uh, she’s going to have big problems. Long-term problems.”
NYT reported that Trump erupted last week, after learning that Alina Habba had secured a $50 million deal to get Julio Herrera Velutini a pardon (see Week 103). Trump told an ally of the Herrera family that they should not pay out the rest of the contract.
Trump also told allies and aides that Habba should donate a portion of the money to either his presidential library or another Trump-related entity, similar to James Blair and Chris LaCivita last week, after reporting in Week 101.
On Saturday, at his lavish Mar-a-Lago Halloween party, Trump strongly criticized Habba, saying her $50 million deal was “totally obnoxious and outrageous,” adding, “I thought it was terrible,” and “she used her relationship to do that. And it was far too much.”
On Wednesday, in court filings in support of Trump’s triumphal arch, Defense Sec. Hegseth and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin argued that it would be a “generational defense opportunity” to mitigate “evolving threats,” not merely decorative.
On Saturday, the attorneys general of the commonwealth of Virginia and D.C. filed a lawsuit to block construction of Trump’s arch, calling the project “flagrantly unlawful,” saying that construction, set to begin as soon as next week, would “inflict irreparable harm” on them.
On Monday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump regime must provide notice within 30 minutes of “any activity related to or in preparation for the construction of an arch on Memorial Circle,” while she weighed whether to block construction outright.
On Tuesday, the DOJ told the court that the arch would not be completed while Trump was in office, saying work would begin as soon as Thursday, but the project would take 33 to 39 months. The National Capital Planning Commission was set to approve the plan on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Trump sent a lengthy rant about the East Potomac Golf Links, claiming a staffer was “hit violently” by a golf ball, and adding, “we will hold the judge, Ana C. Reyes, responsible for anyone who is hurt, or killed” on the unrenovated course.
On Wednesday, in a court filing, the Trump regime said it would close the course starting Nov. 15 to build a championship golf course, following months of denying that Trump had a plan. The regime also planned to rebuild a cycling circuit, playground, and picnic area.
On Friday, Judge Reyes grilled DOJ officials about the timing and status of the regime’s renovation plans. At the close of the hearing, Reyes said she would “open a formal inquiry” into whether the regime had been truthful, and said she might appoint a special master to investigate.
On Friday, WAPO reported that the Trump regime submitted a 55-page plan to the National Capital Planning Commission for the overhaul of the golf course, including a new championship golf course and a $304.5 million seawall. There was no estimate of the cost of the golf course.
On Saturday, a federal judge dismissed Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the WSJ over the Epstein letter, saying Trump was “grasping at straws,” and threw the lawsuit out “with prejudice” so it could not be refiled.
On Monday, a federal magistrate judge threw out charges against former FBI agents Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, who were accused of lying to Congress, calling the case a rushed, political prosecution without showing probable cause, and saying he was “deeply troubled.”
On Thursday, Trump’s Qatari-gifted Air Force One did a flyover the White House, twice, at extremely low altitudes, alarming many Washington D.C. residents.
On Wednesday, at a rally in Ohio, Trump was frequently interrupted by protestors. One protestor yelled, “Trump went on the Jeffrey Epstein plane!” repeatedly. Although Trump claimed his rallies drew the “biggest crowds in history,” the rally had roughly 2,000 attendees.
On Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social, lying that, “We are drawing the BIGGEST CROWDS at Trump Rallies in the history of Midterm Elections,” and “My Approval Rating in the Republican Party is now at 99%.”
On Friday, Trump was also frequently interrupted by protesters at a rally in Florida, yelling at one, “Shut up! Shut up, dope!” Trump raged, “Shut up, loser! What a loser,” and “Get him out of here,” and later claimed that protesters were paid.
On Sunday, Trump was also heckled at a rally in Iowa, as he was talking about the Republican candidate for Senate, saying, “I knew Ashley for a long time and she was a little bit heavier…she knew the weight that was on her.” He was then heckled, and he said, “they’re paid protesters.”
On Thursday, NYT reported that the mood was grim at the White House ahead of midterms. Many Republicans in close races tried to distance themselves from Trump’s policies, his behavior, and self-dealing, and warned his aides that he would do more harm than good holding rallies.
Aides were feeding Trump flattering press coverage and photos, AI slop, and disparaging coverage of his enemies. Trump believed that his dominant place in the party, and his appearances at rallies, would be enough to mitigate the tough political climate for Republicans.
Late Thursday, Trump canceled planned rallies in Kansas and Iowa over the weekend, instead hosting a series of tele-rallies, addressing voters by phone, as his approval hit historic lows. Vice President JD Vance also canceled a scheduled rally in Minnesota.
Asked by a Reuters reporter if he was sick of traveling, Trump castigated him, saying, “You’re sick to ask that question. You are sick,” and adding, “You’ve been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell.”
A coroner in Clark County, Ohio ruled the death of Haitian college student Pierre Damas Bel, 20, a suicide, finding he was distraught over being outfitted with an ankle monitor after Trump ended temporary protected status that allowed him to live and work in the U.S.
NYT reported that after Trump had given orders, Trump aide Jason Miller arranged for a jet for Flávio Bolsonaro and his family to flee Brazil, and the State Department gave “a pass” for them to enter the U.S. They will likely be granted permanent residency later.
Newly disclosed records revealed after a vacant private prison owned by CoreCivic in Appleton was offered to the Minnesota Department of Corrections in 2025 for $75 million, and the state declined, DHS paid $495 million for the property last summer.
NYT reported that after a Chinese businesswoman, who developed a close relationship with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, was found by U.S. intelligence to be part of a spy plot, Trump chose not to inform Huang for fear of impacting the stock market and the country’s trading relationship with China.
The Washington Sun reported according to financial disclosures filed after receiving a 90-day extension, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro reported 140 trades since April, including purchases of stock in two companies run by Musk.
On Friday, at the G20 meeting hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Atlanta, European leaders refused to be photographed with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, after Russia was invited by Trump, as Europeans refused to normalize relationships with Russia over Ukraine.
Reuters reported that Pentagon officials were telling NATO allies, including Baltic states, to tone down their rhetoric on Russia, as the Trump regime tried to negotiate a deal. The request came as a surprise, as European officials noted their tones were already measured.
WSJ reported that top admirals briefed Trump on options for a short but significant strike on Iran after midterms. Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy, who had been briefed, said, “It will lead to devastating escalation and the likely destruction of our commitment to the rule of law.”
An AP analysis based on satellite imagery found that through August, Iran or Iranian-back groups had hit U.S. bases in the Middle East more than 115 times with drones or missile strikes, damaging or destroying 26 military bases and other sites, and causing billions in damage.
NYT reported the Trump regime detained dozens of Afghan immigrants in Louisiana, and planned to deport them back to Afghanistan, even as many would face persecution. Since the U.S. did not have a relationship with Afghanistan, Pakistan will oversee their expulsion over the border.
USA Today reported some Afghan nationals, including many who had helped U.S. troops, told courts that if they returned they would be killed. A bipartisan group of 66 House members called on Rubio to cancel the flight, citing not to hand over people who stood with our troops.
On Tuesday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump regime from deporting detained Afghans to Afghanistan or Pakistan, citing the letter from members of Congress saying the Afghans’ lives were at risk.
Politico reported that Cleveland Meredith, a Jan. 6 insurrectionist who threatened to “put a bullet” in then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s head, and was pardoned by Trump, faced new charges after threatening to murder federal judges.
WSJ reported drone company Powerus, a start-up backed by Donald Jr. and Eric, was able to secure a $90 million Air Force contract and a $22 million Middle East defense job, growing to a $300 million valuation in months, and was staffed with employees with no relevant experience.
NYT reported the Trump regime had dismantled American research through three means: sweeping job and grant cuts by DOGE; pressure on universities to adhere to Trump’s agenda; and the budget director taking more control over how Congressional funds are appropriated.
Firings and resignations have significantly shrunk the scientific workforce at federal agencies, including the Pentagon and Energy Department. The National Science Foundation withheld $1 billion in funding, and the National Institutes of Health delayed or canceled 2,000 grants.
Ph.D. applications from foreign students for U.S. universities fell 21%, while other countries like China have seen their ranks and stature increase. The implications of these cuts may take generations to unfold, and could result in the U.S. losing its scientific leadership position.
On Monday, the Washington Sun reported Trump appointed David DeArmas as acting inspector general for the Education Department. DeArmas was a former middle school principal and football coach, who had no relevant experience for the position.
On Monday, an unvaccinated infant died from the measles in upstate New York, the state’s first fatal case in 30 years.
On Monday, Trump gave his closing speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, spending 21 minutes on the pool itself, which had been the subject of so much controversy, including details on caulking and claiming it was “more beautiful than it’s ever been before.”
Trump’s first mention of the midterms came at the 23 minute mark, calling them “the most important midterm, I believe, in our lifetime.” He touted his regime’s record, lashed out at Democrats, and promised if Republicans win, “everybody is going to get $5,000.”
Trump closed by speaking more about the reflecting pool, discussing his plans to build the triumphal arch, his plans to build a promenade along the Potomac River, his plans to renovate the public golf course, and his plans to build a “National Garden of American Heroes.”
On Tuesday, Trump’s DOJ deployed roughly 1,000 election monitors to all 50 states, an unprecedented number of agents and locations. The roughly 100 jurisdictions were mostly Democratic strongholds, or districts with toss up races in the midterm elections.
On Tuesday, a federal judge denied the NAACP’s request to block the DOJ from sending election monitors, but did instruct the department to ensure monitors were not sworn law enforcement officers and that they could not make arrests.
On Tuesday, Election Day morning, Trump told Fox News that Israel would stop getting $4 billion military aid because they no longer need it (a decision by Congress not him) and that “if people ever got tired of me in the U.S., I’ll move to Israel and become prime minister.”
Trump also lied, “Remember, [Europe] just gave the United States the greatest gift we were ever given…Greenland. We just got Greenland.” The State Department also reposted Trump’s lie. Trump also lied that “inflation is solved.”
On Tuesday, the DOJ continued to appeal court decisions allowing it to resume pressuring state and local election officials to prevent voting by alleged noncitizens. Later in the day, in a 6–5 ruling, an appeals court lifted restrictions on the DOJ to do so.
On Tuesday, in a rebuke of Trump, Democrats routed Republicans across the country, including in red states, taking control of both the House and Senate, and of many state governments. The 13 point national vote for Democrats in House seats was the highest since 1976.
Trump, who had said scores of times in the fall leading up to the election, “pretend I’m on the ballot,” was the object of voter ire on issues including higher gas prices, the Iran war, health care, allegations of flagrant corruption and profiteering by him, his family, and regime.
As results were coming in Tuesday night, Trump posted on Truth Social, “I wasn’t on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!” a statement he repeated in interviews Tuesday night and on Wednesday morning.
Trump also blamed Fox News, posting, “FoxNews Ratings are way down because they’re spending too much time covering the Trump Deranged Dumocrats!…people who used to watch Fox, and no longer do…It’s them, not me — My numbers are better than they have ever been.”
Trump also posted a meme with the word, “VETO” on it, and told Fox News that Democrats are “in control, but they’re really not in control because they can send over, you know, 50 different great bills…and I send them back with a nice stamp veto.”

South Carolina Democratic Senate candidate Dr. Annie Andrews speaks at an election night event Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, in Charleston, S.C. (AP Photo/Mic Smith)