by Steve Benen | Nov 6, 2026 | Maddowblog
Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A bold move in Sacramento: “California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday he is commuting all death sentences in the state, sparing roughly a quarter of the nation’s entire death row population in a move he acknowledged ‘may surface excruciating memories for victims’ families.’ The decision shifts ‘all Californian death sentences to life without the possibility of parole,’ and applies to 548 people, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.”
* It’s probably not a good day to check on your 401(k): “Stocks had their worst day in nearly two years as investors’ concerns about weaknesses in the A.I. industry re-emerged after Democratic midterm victories raised the prospect of tighter regulation. The S&P 500 fell 4.3 percent on Thursday, marking the most severe drop for the index since April 2025, when President Trump unveiled sweeping global tariffs.”
* SCOTUS news: “It’s looking more and more like President Donald Trump will be stuck with only having appointed the three Supreme Court justices at whom he has lashed out for not siding with him in every single case. Despite Democrats winning Senate control this week, Justice Samuel Alito has reportedly discussed his intention not to retire immediately and give Trump a chance to have the outgoing GOP-controlled Senate confirm his successor in the lame-duck period.”
* Document retention matters: “A top House Democrat is warning members of the Trump administration not to hide or destroy documents as the party plans to investigate top officials in the next Congress. Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott, who is primed to lead the House Education and Workforce Committee next year, sent letters to the heads of
by Steve Benen | Nov 5, 2026 | 2026 election, elections, Maddowblog
Earlier this year, longtime Republican Rep. Mark Amodei of Nevada unexpectedly announced his retirement, though his party wasn’t too concerned about holding on to the seat. Not only is this a congressional district that Donald Trump carried two years ago by 14 points, but voters in Nevada’s 2nd District have also quite literally never elected a Democrat.
That is, until now. The Nevada Independent reported:
Teresa Benitez-Thompson became the first Democrat ever to win Northern Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District as a nationwide blue wave slammed into Nevada.
The social worker, former pageant queen and former Assembly majority leader defeated small-business owner David Flippo (R) in a district President Donald Trump won by double digits.
With roughly 93% of the ballots tallied, Benitez-Thompson appears to have prevailed by a roughly 6-point margin, and MS NOW has called the race.
The results come a few weeks after Amodei, the outgoing congressman, reiterated that he would “absolutely not” vote for Flippo, his own party’s nominee.
Why not? As it turns out, Flippo has been accused of repeatedly exaggerating his military record — he’s said he received a Bronze Star for valor, for example, which did not happen — and falsely having claimed to have served during Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990s. (Flippo denied any wrongdoing and blamed his claims about his military record on clerical errors.)
Mother Jones also reported last month on Flippo having been fired as a financial adviser two years ago, after his employer accused him of “willful misrepresentations and/or omissions of material fact” (Flippo’s campaign did not respond to Mother Jones’ request for comment about his firing).
Amodei nevertheless called his own party’s nominee to
by Steve Benen | Nov 5, 2026 | 2026 election, elections, Maddowblog
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s tenure has been scandalous for a great many reasons, but among the former Fox News host’s more controversial moves is the aggressive purge campaign he’s led. Just two months ago, The New York Times reported that Hegseth’s firings have been so dramatic that he’s left the U.S. Army “essentially rudderless” during an ongoing war in the Middle East.
Political scientist Caitlin Talmadge, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor who specializes in foreign policy and military operations, noted via social media earlier this year, “Firing senior officers for cause is one thing. Firing them repeatedly on this scale and with no explanation is unprecedented in our nation’s history.”
The list is not short, though among the notable names is retired three-star Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore, who led the Navy Reserve and whose lengthy and decorated career came to an abrupt and unexpected end in August 2025, when Hegseth fired her without cause.
“I was one year into what is normally a four-year job [and] was notified that I was being relieved, effective immediately,” Lacore later told MS NOW’s Jen Psaki. “I struggled to figure out what was next for me. But the one thing I couldn’t shake was this feeling that I wasn’t done serving.”
Lacore added, “I can’t sit on the sidelines. I can serve differently.”
At that point, the retired Navy admiral took on a different kind of challenge: She decided to launch a Democratic congressional bid in an open South Carolina district. The odds were most definitely against her. Outgoing Republican Rep. Nancy Mace was re-elected by nearly 17 points in this same district two years earlier. Donald Trump
by Steve Benen | Nov 5, 2026 | Congress, elections, Maddowblog
Donald Trump has spent years attacking the Democratic Party’s religiosity, repeatedly insisting that the party’s officials and candidates “hate God,” “oppose God,” and deserve to be seen as “godless.” As recently as last year, the president, who has never demonstrated any real interest in matters of faith, went so far as to insist that Democrats were “evil” and members of “the party of Satan.”
The rhetoric was ridiculous, but the president was hardly alone. Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, who was just elected governor, has repeatedly and publicly declared that the Democratic Party is “a Satanic cult,” adding, “There’s not one Democrat that can tell you they stand up for God.”
This nonsense was likely news to Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia, who is an accomplished Christian pastor who “stands up for God” during his weekly sermons. But as the dust settles on the midterm elections, I’m struck by just how much company Warnock will soon have on Capitol Hill:
Democratic Sen.-elect Adam Hamilton of Kansas, the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate race in his home state since 1932, is the senior pastor of Kansas’ largest church.
Democratic Sen.-elect James Talarico of Texas is a Presbyterian seminarian.
Democratic Rep.-elect Sarah Trone Garriott of Iowa is a Lutheran minister.
Democratic Rep.-elect Lindsay James of Iowa is a Presbyterian minister.
Democratic Rep.-elect Frederick Haynes III of Texas is the senior pastor of a Baptist church in Dallas.
Highlighting the pattern, a Vox analysis noted that these incoming lawmakers “belong to a rising tide in American politics: the emergence of a religious left that marries moderate or liberal strains of Christianity with Democratic policy and political priorities.
by Steve Benen | Nov 5, 2026 | Maddowblog
Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A rising death toll following Russian brutality: “The death toll from a Russian bombing of an aid distribution point in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region on Monday has risen to 40, with dozens still missing, officials said, in one of the deadliest strikes on civilians this year.”
* Attacking grocery freezers? “Two major cyberattacks on European supermarkets in a matter of weeks have exposed the vulnerability of the EU’s critical infrastructure. Cyber experts are raising the alarm that the attacks may be part of Russia’s ongoing hybrid warfare against Europe.”
* Crisis conditions in Yemen: “Renewed war between Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and Yemen’s Saudi-backed government has plunged the country into a deepening humanitarian crisis.”
* This guy is having quite a week: “Elon Musk spent nearly $500 million supporting Republican candidates in the midterm elections, especially in his home state, Texas. After Democrats won sweeping victories, gaining control of both houses of Congress and capturing other important state races, shares of SpaceX and Tesla, which are both run by Mr. Musk, fell sharply on Wednesday.”
* The election results did not go unnoticed on the other side of the Atlantic: “For Europe, which has weathered Trump’s incessant verbal attacks and tariff threats for the last two years, it was a rare ray of hope in transatlantic politics — if not because Washington would become a more predictable partner, then at least because the U.S. president might be too distracted to focus his usual ire on Europeans.”
* The latest on oil prices: “Oil prices dropped sharply Wednesday, propelled by growing hopes for a resolution in the Iran war. European Brent crude
by Steve Benen | Nov 4, 2026 | 2026 election, elections, Maddowblog
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* As Wednesday morning has progressed, Democrats have continued to receive some good news about highly competitive races, including Nevada’s gubernatorial race, which state Attorney General Aaron Ford has won, defeating incumbent Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo.
* On a related note, the Democratic Party will now control a majority of the nation’s governors’ offices for the first time in nearly two decades.
* Democrats also scored a series of important state legislative victories in the midterms, flipping 12 state legislative chambers according to a tally from the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.
* In Texas, Democrats won five of the state’s most powerful elected offices for the first time since 1961. That list includes Jon Rosenthal defeating Bo French in the race for railroad commissioner, which is a powerful position that regulates the state’s oil and gas industry.
* There were all kinds of important ballot measures worth watching in the midterm cycle, including four focused on abortion rights. As MS NOW reported, sizable majorities in Virginia and Nevada backed constitutional amendments to protect reproductive rights, and in Missouri, 55% of voters opposed reinstating an abortion ban that voters struck down through a ballot measure in 2024.
The exception was in Idaho, where an abortion rights measure was defeated.
* In Ohio’s U.S. Senate race, Democratic Sen.-elect Sherrod Brown is returning to Capitol Hill, just two years after losing a re-election bid. His race was technically a special election, and unlike other Senate winners from the midterms, Brown will take office in December, during the lame-duck session, narrowing the Republican majority to 52-48 in the current Congress’ remaining
