Donald Trump wants to crush The Swamp. The leaks, the sneaks, and the secrets are all there. Our writers, David Gardner, Farrah Tomazin, Sarah Ewall-Wice, and Laura Esposito, are sifting through the ooze so you don’t have to. Don’t miss out.
Welcome to Midterms Meltdown, a special pop-up newsletter from The Swamp—bringing you up to the minute with the secrets the politicians don’t want you to know about the race to November 3.
It is the most consequential election campaign since 2024, and the nooze will be oozing around the nation to shape D.C. for the next two years and beyond. Our David Gardner, Farrah Tomazin, Sarah Ewall-Wice, and Laura Esposito, are getting down and dirty with the inside stories from the battlefields every Monday and Friday.
Melting down in The Swamp today are: Anthony Constantino, Ashley Hinson, Mike Rogers, Elise Stefanik, Andrew Tate, JD Vance, Abdul El-Sayed, Chuck Grassley, James Talarico, Josh Turek, Olivia Wales, Scott Bessent, James Bacon, Greg LoGerfo, Gavin Newsom, Michelle Martinkov, Troy Jackson, and Ken Paxton.
MAGA Candidate Steels Herself for Trump After Vance Snub
It seemed like hyperbole, but when Donald Trump predicted Ashley Hinson would become “one of the greatest politicians in America” at the White House on Monday, he may have been right.
After all, Iowa’s Republican Senate candidate found a convenient “previously scheduled event” to avoid attending a campaign rally Vice President JD Vance threw for her in her own state on Friday, September 16. No matter that the VP traveled more than 1,000 miles to boost the Iowa GOP candidates’ midterm chances. Instead, Hinson’s campaign released an ad touting her bipartisan credentials.
Despite being an avowed Trumper, she seemed concerned that the president’s deep unpopularity in the polls would rub off on her in a deep-red state that has been stained purple in recent weeks.
Fast forward a dozen days, and Hinson was front and center in the Oval Office on Monday despite the House being out of town as the aforesaid Donald Trump announced a $15 billion steel plant that he claims will bring 6,000 jobs to Iowans, her qualms forgotten. She even offered to save the president a famous Iowa pork chop as Trump vowed to return to her state before Election Day.
While Vance may have questions about why the 43-year-old former TV anchor went AWOL for his visit, Trump is still all-in on his Senate pick. Asked why Republicans appear to be struggling in Iowa, Trump insisted that “the polls are fake” and lavished praise on Hinson, who stood close to him, beaming (or realizing she’s trapped).
“We’re running against communists, lunatics, socialists,” Trump said, claiming job creation, border security, and low crime rates would win over voters. The war in Iran would soon be over, and gas prices would drop, he added (again). By implication, Hinson would take care of these small matters.
Of course, there’s the small problem that the Iowa congresswoman has just been hit with an ethics complaint over potential conflicts of interest related to her husband Matt Arenholz’s reported insurance lobbying gig.
But Hinson is managing to remain in a dead heat against Democratic challenger Josh Turek in the polls where Republicans have had a lock on the Senate seat for years. The bookies even have her a few points ahead of Turek.
So, perhaps Trump was right about Hinson. She might just be a pretty good politician, after all.
MAGA Candidate’s Past Andrew Tate Link Sticks to Him
As Anthony Constantino runs to fill the seat vacated by outgoing GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik in upstate New York, the company he built from the ground up is rushing to distance itself from controversial social media influencer—and perhaps more damagingly, accused rapist and sex trafficker—Andrew Tate.
The Republican congressional hopeful’s company, Sticker Mule, had a user profile listed as a verified account for Tate as of Monday morning, but after The Swamp asked the campaign about Tate’s user profile, the account was immediately removed.
Constantino, a pro-Trump businessman (who presented the president with a bronze statue for his golf club last year) and boxer (whose website touts his “chiseled physique”), is running in upstate New York. His company, Sticker Mule, which he built from the ground up, lets users sell their own designs online.
Among the many Sticker Mule platform-verified users listed on Monday morning was Tate, the influencer indicted in Romania for trafficking minors, money laundering, and having sex with a minor and fighting extradition to the UK on rape and sex trafficking charges. (Tate, and his brother Tristan Tate deny all charges.)
But the campaign told The Swamp the relationship was actually between Sticker Mule and the video platform Rumble before it was taken down.
“Andrew Tate’s storefront was part of a partnership between Sticker Mule and Rumble. He never took ownership of the store so we decided to take it down as we have no relationship with Andrew Tate,” Constantino said in a statement.
Before The Swamp came calling, the page had offered 13 stickers, coasters, and temporary tattoos, ranging from images of Tate’s face to a Bugatti, priced from $5 to $21 as of Monday morning.
Spot the Extremist - EXCLUSIVE!!!!
Technically, the Detroit Free Press was within its rights to brag about its endorsement for the upcoming Michigan Senate election vote as an “exclusive.” But it’s not like anyone else was going to beat them to it! Still, the Detroit outlet’s candidate choice may have raised some eyebrows.
“An extremist is asking voters to send him to Washington, masking an agenda far out of step with Michigan’s mainstream under the pretense of normalcy. If elected, this man would urge America down a dark path, changing the shape of our nation, perhaps irrevocably,” Monday’s article from the editorial board began. But it continued: that person is not Abdul El-Sayed. It turns out that the “extremist” in the eyes of the Detroit Free Press is Republican Mike Rogers.
A moment’s research reveals that the paper endorsed Democrats in the last two Michigan Senate races. So maybe not so surprising. And not really that exclusive.
Boba or Not?
The internet is losing it over a viral video of Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson sipping boba tea. People want to know why boba tea? Why not a six-pack? Is this his beverage of choice? X users were quick to debate the drink, the optics, and who he was targeting with the post. The Swamp asked. We’ll let you know when we learn more.
The Biggest Poll Loser: Ken Paxton
Donald Trump’s decision to pick Ken Paxton over sitting Sen. John Cornyn to fight for the Texas Senate seat didn’t look so good this month, with eight polls in September making Democratic Party candidate James Talarico the frontrunner in the unexpectedly tight race.
What Trump is Saying:
“I’m going to come to Iowa. We’re going to do a great rally, and we’ll all be there together. We have to get you all elected.”
What the Republicans Are Saying:
“One of the reasons that I’m worried about who’s going to be elected governor: I don’t plan on dying in office, but if I did, I don’t want a Democratic governor choosing my successor,” said 93-year-old Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa.
What the Dems Are Saying:
“Major TV networks are cashing taxpayer-funded checks to air what is literally a deranged Trump campaign ad. Time to review Fox, EVERY network, and every company knowingly profiting from this illegal scheme. Stop now—before it’s too late.” California Governor Gavin Newsom.
AND FINALLY…PLACE YOUR BETS:
Who will win the Iowa Senate race?
What they’re saying on Kalshi:
Ashley Hinson - 58 percent
Josh Turek - 42 percent
What they’re saying on Polymarket:
Ashley Hinson - 54 percent
Josh Turek - 45 percent
