8/12/26: Major Wisconsin Elections, Trump National Emergency Before Midterms, Zohran Targets Wealthy NYers

Wisconsin governor primary polling miss6:16

• Krystal/Saagarassertion

  Polling badly overestimated Hong's support; the race was called for Crowley by under a percentage point

• David Crowleyclip

  Recounts a prayer-guided decision with his wife to re-enter the race after initially declining

• Francesca Hongclip

  Defends her past tweet by saying her views can evolve without directly disavowing the statement

• Krystal/Saagaropinion

  Hong's rehearsed, non-committal answer on Thanksgiving was worse than the original tweet and revived electability anxieties

National left figures skipped Wisconsin24:10

• Saagarspeculation

  Sanders and AOC avoided Wisconsin because they feared, not doubted, that their support could get Hong elected

• Ken Klippenstein (leaked memo, per hosts)clip

  Republicans reportedly feared Hong as a sleeper candidate who could rally independents via data-center opposition

Rural voters and GOP's opening in Wisconsin25:24

• Brian Reisingeropinion

  Hong's Madison-centric, culturally extreme candidacy squandered an opening to tap working-class economic populism

• Saagaropinion

  Rural Wisconsin voters generally oppose data centers and are squeezed by fertilizer and diesel prices, a problem for Republicans this fall

• Brian Reisingerassertion

  Rural America has lost roughly 45,000 farms per year for a century, producing deep economic decline independent of national indicators

Kansas Senate race tightens31:12

• Krystalassertion

  Reports an internal Democratic poll showing Marshall and Hamilton in a near statistical tie in normally safe-red Kansas

• Brian Reisingeropinion

  The tight Kansas numbers reflect a tough national midterm environment and will hinge on which side owns economic messaging

Minnesota Senate primary blowout38:28

• Krystal/Saagarassertion

  Flanagan won by about 20 points despite late polls showing Craig briefly ahead. Craig received AIPAC-organized fundraising help and tens of millions in dark money from Center Forward whose funding source is undisclosed

Minnesota House primary: Matt Little wins39:42

• Krystal/Saagarassertion

  Little's win matches internal May polling despite millions spent by opponents' PACs afterward

• Krystalopinion

  Groups that take AIPAC money can't avoid being associated with AIPAC just by routing funds through other PAC names

Mike Lindell loses Minnesota GOP primary44:09

Mike Lindell reportedly lost the Minnesota Republican gubernatorial primary but is refusing to concede, having won roughly a third of primary voters despite stepping back from Lindell TV to focus on the campaign.

Trump floats national emergency over elections45:40

• Wayne Allen Rootclip

  Urges Trump to declare a national emergency to impose voting restrictions unilaterally within a month

• Donald Trumpclip

  Responds noncommittally that 'stranger things have happened,' declining to rule out the idea

• Krystalopinion

  Trump's refusal to dismiss the idea, plus past remarks about nationalizing voting, suggests he is seriously considering it

• Ryan/Saagarspeculation

  Such a declaration would mainly target competitive states and could backfire by further discouraging disillusioned Republican voters from turning out

ProPublica report on Trump's own mortgage practices52:09

• ProPublica (per hosts)clip

  Records show Trump declared two neighboring Palm Beach homes as his principal residence weeks apart while a real estate contact says both were rentals he never lived in

• Krystalopinion

  This is a textbook example of exactly what Trump accuses Lisa Cook of doing, apparently done to secure a lower interest rate

• Saagaropinion

  Banks that lent to Trump in the '90s deserve little sympathy, and the Cook case is a raw exertion of political will

Mamdani's pied-à-terre tax under attack59:14

• Donald Trumpclip

  Claims the pied-à-terre tax will cause wealthy flight and 'financial and social ruin' for New York, calling it a radical-left policy alongside congestion pricing

• Andrew Bard Epsteinassertion

  The lawsuit only challenges the tax's confusing rollout, not its legality, and the tax closes a real fiscal gap while funding Mamdani's affordability agenda

• Krystal/Saagaropinion

  It's hypocritical that the lawyer leading the anti-tax fight, Randy Mastro, owns a multi-million dollar underused second home himself

• Andrew Bard Epsteinassertion

  The tax rollout has also surfaced potential fraud by people falsely claiming Florida residency to dodge New York income tax

Mamdani's approval rises; Amazon accountability bill1:11:11

• Andrew Bard Epsteinopinion

  Rising approval reflects visible delivery on campaign promises like child care, rent freeze, and bus speed more than ideological alignment

• Krystal/Saagaropinion

  Other cities are experiencing 'mayor envy' as New Yorkers see basic government functions actually get fixed

• Andrew Bard Epsteinassertion

  Amazon uses subcontractors to escape accountability for drivers whose uniforms, routes and hours it directly controls

• Andrew Bard Epsteinspeculation

  Amazon's lobbying against the bill, reportedly including a campaign led by Jessica Schumer, will likely focus on the City Council rather than the mayor

Post-mortem: why insurgents split results1:20:55

• Andrew Bard Epsteinopinion

  Electability fear remains the establishment's most effective weapon against the left, but this cycle's mixed results don't disprove ongoing insurgent momentum

• Krystalopinion

  Hong's rehearsed non-answer on the Thanksgiving tweet, more than the original tweet, is what revived voters' electability anxieties

• Andrew Bard Epsteinspeculation

  Whether the insurgent movement is truly winning can't be assessed until primary winners prove they can beat Republicans in the general election