From the final push for midterm votes to President Trump’s misleading claims about immigration, it’s been a busy week in American politics. Here are some of the biggest stories you might have missed (and some links if you’d like to read further).
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In tragedy’s aftermath, President Trump returned to campaign mode.
President Trump called for unity after the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue, but he quickly returned to denouncing two of his favorite adversaries: Democrats and the media. [Read the story]
His rhetoric has muddled what could have been a week of touting conservative talking points, including a glowing jobs report released on Friday. [Read the story]
It appeared that Mr. Trump, frustrated with an inability to control the news cycle, had begun throwing out new ideas to see what might stick, regardless of the political or legal reality. [Read the story]
And energized by what he sees as egregious rhetoric from Mr. Trump, former President Barack Obama hosted campaign rallies of his own, with an unusual amount of criticism for his successor. [Read the story]
Additional Reading
• News Analysis: For Trump, Dutiful Words of Grief, Then Off to the Next Fight
• Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner Shape Trump’s Pittsburgh Response
• Inside What Even an Ally Calls Trump’s ‘Reality Distortion Field’
Days before the midterms, Mr. Trump embraced a familiar refrain: Fear immigrants.
Mr. Trump pushed a dark anti-immigration message in the last full week before the midterm elections, hoping it would encourage voters to reject Democrats. [Read the story]
The nationalist message, however, has become a breaking point for some suburban voters, part of the coalition that the Republican Party is relying on as it tries to keep its congressional majorities. [Read the story]
The president also proposed denying birthright citizenship to the children of undocumented immigrants — an idea that directly contradicts the legal and judicial consensus on the 14th Amendment. [Read the analysis]
Additional Reading
• News Analysis: How Trump-Fed Conspiracy Theories About Migrant Caravan Intersect With Deadly Hatred
• Trump Sending 5,200 Troops to the Border in an Election-Season Response to Migrants
