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If Not AOC, Then Who?

What do we do if Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez decides not to run for president in 2028? It makes sense that many leftists are currently focused on calling on her to take the plunge. But the absence of a Plan B, or even much discussion about one, is worrisome. The US Left can’t afford to sit out the 2028 Democratic primary. Doing so in 2024 was a disaster: our abstention self-marginalized anti-billionaire politics from the national conversation and thereby gave space for Harris to pivot to the “center” (i.e. the policy preferences of corporate donors, establishment hacks, and AIPAC). Abstaining again in 2028 would be especially counterproductive since democratic socialists now have so much wind in our sails after our big electoral wins in NYC and across the country. It’s time to deepen our momentum, organization, and profile — not to retreat to the margins during America’s single most important political battle. Even more urgently, keeping Trump’s heir out of the White House may depend on whether leftists and the party’s unprecedentedly disenchanted base can force the Democrats in 2028 to take meaningful steps towards a very angry electorate and away from the corporate-consultant blob that has helped get us into this mess. If AOC (or Abdul El-Sayed) decides to run, we should enthusiastically go all in — DSA, fighting unions, progressive organizations, anybody who wants to see a better country and world. But, as far as I can tell from the outside, there’s a real chance that she doesn’t run. And we can’t just wait and see where she lands before discussing alternatives, since AOC’s decision might not come for quite a while, giving us little time to scramble at the last minute for an alternative. So we should start working now on getting a Plan B into motion, and recruiting a good candidate for the role. Here’s one idea. A Worker Candidate — Healthcare Not Warfare 2028 Run a union worker Leftists don’t need to always run experienced, well-known socialist politicians for high-profile contests. Lula, the current president of Brazil, began his political career as a metalworker militant who ran for governor of São Paulo in 1982. Especially in an era of institutional distrust, it’s possible to lean hard into making a virtue out of a working-class comrade’s distance from traditional politics. Experience abroad shows this clearly. Rachel Kéké — an immigrant hotel housekeeper — ran as the candidate of the leftist La France Insoumise for the National Assembly in 2022, defeating a former minister in the Macron government. The Belgian Workers’ Party in 2024 won its first Flemish seat in the European Parliament by running Rudi Kennes, a three-decade veteran of the Opel Antwerp auto factory. And the South Korean left in 2024 elected auto factory militant Yoon Jong-oh to the National Assembly. If a tiny French Trotskyist organization could make such a big splash in 2002 and 2007 by running a well-spoken postal worker cadre for office — the LCR’s Olivier Besancenot received about 1.5 million first-round votes — it’s not far-fetched to expect that a much larger organization like DSA, together with a broader coalition of the willing, could run this playbook to much greater effect. This is especially the case now that almost everything DSA does immediately becomes a national news story. We don’t need someone famous. We just need a charismatic, well-vetted comrade who works in a relatable working-class occupation — e.g. a nurse, or a worker in auto or construction, or at Amazon. Ideally, they have a compelling personal story or have been part of a significant strike or organizing campaign, but even those criteria don’t necessarily have to be deal-breakers. The main lesson of the Graham Platner fiasco isn’t that we should never run outsiders for office (the momentum he generated proves the exact opposite), but that they need proper vetting and roots in democratic membership organizations like DSA or a union. In any case, there are plenty of ways to signal working-class authenticity without resorting to Platner’s or Fetterman’s performative macho white dude affect. Better to have someone of any gender or race who is actually working class, with firm socialist politics, who can speak from experience about the day-to-day realities of trying to make it in America. There are surely at least a dozen such worker leaders in our movement nationwide; we just need to sit down and convince one that their personal sacrifice for the greater good (i.e. running for president) will be worth it. If we don’t have a frontrunner with a clear path to victory like AOC (or El-Sayed, were he to win Michigan), it’s better to embrace someone whose decision to run in itself tells an important story about US politics: workers have been iced out of our political system and are now fighting hard to break back in. The novelty factor, in itself, would generate press. And it would help democratic socialists signal to the American public that our movement’s defining characteristic is that we represent workers vs. bosses, not that we’re “the furthest left” force in American politics — a framework that suggests we’re extremists and that helps our opponents isolate us from non-college-educated voters by highlighting extremely minoritarian (and misguided) stances included in DSA’s platform like prison abolition. We don’t get many opportunities to speak to tens of millions of Americans; we need to use these opportunities to broaden our appeal beyond those already in our orbit. Run to polarize the 2028 primary and general election around “Medicare for All” and “End All Aid to Israel” Why should democratic socialists use our scarce time and volunteer energy to run in a race we’re unlikely to win? Running in the 2028 primary will not only recruit us scores of members (imagine having a DSA member intervening in eleven nationally televised primary debates!), but — more importantly — it has the potential to be a decisive leap forward towards an America that finally starts meeting the needs of working people instead of HMO and AIPAC billionaire donors. Polarizing litmus tests are good, actually — as long as they’re fought for around popular demands in a thoughtful and strategic way. Democratic socialists have an opportunity and responsibility to make the 2028 primary about two of the most widely and deeply felt issues of our moment: domestically, America’s unaffordable, family-breaking private healthcare system; internationally, America’s bankrolling of the genocidal Israeli government. A candidacy relentlessly demanding Medicare for All and No Aid to Israel would pose a sharp question to the American public, the Democratic Party, and other 2028 contenders: Why can’t working-class Americans afford their healthcare bills at the same time that our government is spending at least $3.8 billion yearly to fund an Israeli regime eager to keep dragging us and the world into more forever wars? Our candidate can agitate around a clear message: I’m running to give voice to all those working-class Americans who are struggling to get by. No matter what state you live in, who you voted for in 2024, or your background, it’s just plain common sense that we should make healthcare more affordable instead of spending billions to enable the Israeli government’s crimes against humanity. Every American who agrees with me when I say ‘Medicare for All — Not a Dime for Israel’ should make their voice heard through our campaign. Racking up a high number of votes for this agenda is a crucial way to show the Democratic Party and the country as a whole that we can’t keep supporting a life-destroying status quo in our healthcare system and in the Middle East. If we want to defeat Trump’s handpicked crony this coming November, we need to speak to ordinary people’s frustrations with the status quo — we can’t keep running the same tired establishment playbook and expecting a different result. For those highly engaged voters (or skeptical media pundits) who raise concerns about wasting votes, the candidate can take the time to explain why this isn’t the case: It's true I'm a long shot. But Zohran showed anything can happen — and voting for me is a pragmatic decision, not a wasted vote. In a heavily divided primary with a large number of candidates and a very discredited establishment, my campaign and the democratic socialist movement I’m part of are positioned to be the balance of power if we can get a large enough number of voters to loudly demand Healthcare Not Warfare. Since there’s a high chance no candidate will get to 50% in the 2028 primaries, the Democrats could very well be heading towards a brokered convention, where a disciplined, principled current committed to breaking from corporate donors can play an outsized role in making sure whoever ends up with the nomination raises the banner of single-payer healthcare and cutting aid to Israel. How exactly could running this sort of primary campaign be translated into actual leverage? The candidate replies: I’m aiming to win the nomination, but if I don’t achieve that goal, my delegates and I will pledge our support in the primary only for a candidate who agrees in the general election to call for ending US aid to Israel and establishing Medicare for All at home. These are both winning planks for November against the Republicans, and the only reason I can see that other candidates haven’t yet raised these is that they’re still more scared of the donor class than they are of the people. That needs to change. If Democratic leaders want young people, workers, and those sick of the status quo to show up in big numbers this November, they need to meet us halfway. In this way, whether or not we win the nomination, democratic socialists could still play a decisive role in 2028. The approach outlined here is similar to what radical left parties periodically do in parliamentary democracies like Denmark or Sweden when they find themselves as a junior partner electorally: they dictate to center-left allies what their terms would be for enabling, from the outside, the formation of a new government. Running a Healthcare Not Warfare candidate will make it significantly more likely that the 2028 Democratic candidate stands with ordinary people instead of donors on these two pivotal planks — a shift that will, in turn, make it easier to achieve the existentially important task of defeating MAGA’s heir in November. Look at how much popular traction the Uncommitted movement got with a similar strategy in 2024 with so little on-the-ground organization — surely we can go much further with a working-class candidate, a much bigger DSA, and a Democratic Party base that has turned against Israel, billionaires, and the hacks in the party who prop them up. Objections and Responses There are quite a few objections to this proposal, many of which are very reasonable. Let me briefly address each here. Socialists shouldn’t waste their scarce time and resources on a candidate unlikely to win. This is a good rule in general, but there are important exceptions, and presidential elections are the main one. There’s no other political contest that gets anything like this level of attention and engagement in the US, so if you want to be a serious force in nationwide politics, you basically can’t afford not to have a candidate. Far from being an overall drain on our resources, running a dynamic 2028 campaign would likely result in a major net increase in members and capacity. In that spirit, the very pragmatic Milwaukee sewer socialists — who mostly ran to win at home in Wisconsin — supported Eugene Debs’s propagandistic presidential campaigns, which they correctly saw as a crucial means of recruiting to the Socialist Party. And now that the (post-1972) Democratic Party gives more weight to voters than party operatives in determining its presidential nomination, it’s become feasible to run as a socialist in primaries without risking a split in the vote against the Republicans in November. We should just support Ro Khanna, who also supports M4A and ending aid to Israel. I like Ro Khanna and would enthusiastically vote and canvass for him for president were he to get the nomination. But there’s a real chance that Khanna’s bid for office doesn’t catch on; he lacks the grassroots organizational apparatus of DSA, and, because he’s not really of the Left or labor (despite his current very good positions), he’s unlikely to generate the type of buy-in and enthusiasm that a DSA candidate would. Moreover, Khanna would be running as an individual, not as someone emerging from and building an organized movement — his campaign would not likely focus on building sustained power from below, nor would it likely polarize the 2028 primary around M4A and Israel aid. Also, and not inconsequentially, the poor electoral results for Tom Steyer and Saikat Chakrabarti this spring suggest that there’s perhaps not much of a popular appetite in the Democrats’ base to support multi-millionaire class traitors. Much better, then, to run a democratic socialist worker. If by Super Tuesday it’s clear that our campaign has captured the main left lane in the primary, Khanna should drop out and endorse us; conversely, if he’s managed to capture this lane, DSA could at that point transform its Healthcare Not Warfare campaign into an independent campaign to elect Ro Khanna focused on winning (and holding him accountable to) those two critical planks. An openness to consolidating an anti-corporate candidate by Super Tuesday is a necessary component of the strategy I’m proposing, because otherwise we risk splitting the primary votes (per DNC rules, you need at least 15% to get any delegates to convention). We should convince Shawn Fain or Sara Nelson to run for president instead. I agree it’d be great if either ran for president, but my impression is that there’s basically no chance that will happen in 2028, because both are firmly focused on their union leadership duties (and, in the case of Fain, beating back a federal witch-hunt). This plan could have DSA end up endorsing a non-socialist, non-DSAer for president. That’s against our principles. It’s a myth, and bad politics, that socialists can’t ever support candidates who aren’t members of their organization and/or who don’t call themselves socialists. Bernie, after all, was not a DSAer. And socialists abroad regularly make tactical decisions about if and when supporting a non-socialist candidate makes sense from the standpoint of promoting working-class interests, defending democracy, and building a socialist current in the process. If your “principles” prevent you and DSA from helping achieve the momentous stride forward of having a Democratic candidate in 2028 run on Medicare for All and ending aid to Israel, those “principles” are not very good. In fact, they actively undermine the causes they’re aiming to support. We shouldn’t confuse principles (working-class independence) with tactics (the best way to advance this in a given context). In my recent article in Catalyst on Milwaukee sewer socialism (I’ve uploaded the full text here), I have a section showing how similarly rigid rules about endorsements had to be eventually discarded in the old Socialist Party nationwide after WWI because they tended to lead socialists towards a sectarian abstention from broader anti-corporate electoral insurgencies beyond their party’s control. For what it’s worth, Lenin’s current under Tsarism frequently backed bourgeois candidates in the second round of elections and Lenin himself advocated that British Communists support Labour Party candidates; for his part, Kautsky in 1912 defended the German Social Democracy’s electoral pact with the Progressives in the runoffs. If our predecessors could be that tactically flexible in an era before the limits of their underlying strategic assumptions about intransigent class politics in capitalist democracies were made clear, then there’s no need to insist on being more tactically rigid today, after a century’s worth of accumulated experience. As long as you maintain your own political profile and organization while engaging in broader coalitional efforts, there’s zero inherent contradiction with the principle of political independence. More specifically: DSA and allied organizations should enthusiastically back Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed if AOC declines to run and he throws his hat in the presidential ring. (I have no idea whether he’s even considering this path, but there’ll surely be chatter about it if he wins his Senate race this November.) Though he doesn’t call himself a socialist, El-Sayed is a principled Berniecrat, a consistent fighter for Palestine, and would have a clear path to victory. Using the “s” word is far less important than whether a campaign fights for the interests of working people at home and abroad — and whether actively participating in it can grow the organized working class and the Left. And the same holds true if a less anti-corporate candidate were, under pressure, to adopt our two Healthcare Not Warfare planks. Why focus only on M4A and ending US aid to Israel? There are so many other important issues to fight for! Obviously there are many pivotal issues beyond healthcare and Israel, and our candidate — and especially our organizations involved in the campaign — should be prepared to speak on all of these. But one of the crucial lessons of the Zohran campaign is that you have to relentlessly stay on message if you want to cut through the noise. CNN and Fox News will want to talk about DSA’s views on Venezuela and abolishing the police; we need to polarize the debate on the widely and deeply felt issues that are most favorable for growing the Left, isolating our opponents, and winning urgently needed changes. One recent poll found 63% of Americans support M4A, even after respondents were told it would raise taxes and eliminate most private insurance. Another found that 74% of Democrats opposed “providing additional economic and military support to Israel.” And focusing on two demands sets the campaign up to be able to leverage its mandate to make clear demands upon other candidates (which we can’t do if we run with a laundry list of demands). Talking about a Plan B is a distraction from the more urgent work of building a groundswell of calls on AOC to run. It’s good for DSAers, fightback unionists, and progressive organizations to try to convince AOC to run. This proposal is meant as an addendum to pushes to get AOC to run and to line DSA up for that eventuality, not as a substitute for those efforts. But I’m worried that, like in 2024, we might eventually find ourselves with no time to find a viable alternative unless we start now. DSA, with its abundant deliberative processes, moves slowly. The approach you’re suggesting seems risky. If a DSA candidate runs but doesn’t receive a lot of votes, it’ll undercut our current national momentum. This is a reasonable worry. All big initiatives always carry risks, and the path I’m advocating is certainly not free of these. That said, if a Healthcare Not Warfare campaign doesn’t catch on like we envisioned, it’s a pretty simple pivot in March 2028 to explain that in the future we really need our standard-bearers like AOC, or our growing bench of national electeds, to step up in presidential primaries. Moreover, it’s worth noting that the risk of my Plan B proposal is on the whole significantly less than the risk entailed by an AOC run. We should all back her if she runs, since she’d fire up the base, provide huge openings for organizing, have a real shot at defeating a Republican (especially given MAGA’s unpopularity), be a great standard-bearer for our issues, particularly M4A and ending aid to Israel, and be less willing than mainstream candidates to capitulate to any anti-democratic machinations from Trump and co. But it’s also true that AOC could lose, which would be a devastating setback to the country and the Left. Or she could win and find herself unable to pass much, if any, of her (and our) program, a demoralizing prospect. So if we’re willing to take these risks with AOC (and we should), it follows that we should be able to take lower-level risks if she doesn’t throw her hat in the ring. What’s Your Plan B? The US Left is facing its biggest opening for growth and influence since the 1930s. Initiatives that would have been impossible a few months ago are now potentially feasible. A President AOC is now easier to imagine, but if she ultimately assesses that the risks aren’t worth the potential reward in 2028, we can’t be left flat-footed. So even if you’re not convinced by the specifics of my Plan B, I hope you can at least agree that it’d be a disaster for us not to have one — and not to start getting a Plan B into motion. Hopefully other organizers and political currents will put forward their responses and alternative ideas ASAP. The stakes are too high to just wait and see. More As always, please share this article widely. This newsletter depends on all you lovely people to get the word out. Thank you! I uploaded the full text of my Catalyst article on Milwaukee sewer socialism here (it’s updated and 3x as long as the version published earlier on this substack). If you haven’t yet, please make sure to subscribe to Catalyst here; I read every issue front to back, highly recommend. 🌹🎵 Ivan Lins (arranged by Arthur Verocai) — “General da Banda” 🌹🎵

Aug 3 • 12:50 PM EDT • Politics • laborpolitics.com

THE WEEK OF AUG 3, 2026

- Senate stopgap bill counters OMB grantmaking rule - State Dept proposes changes to J visa cancellations - FCC bans foreign robots

Aug 3 • 12:18 PM EDT • Science • aip.org

Democrats' future is on the line as El-Sayed and Stevens make final push in Michigan primary

The Democrats running for U.S. Senate in Michigan spent one of their final days campaigning in Detroit-area churches and union halls.

Aug 3 • 11:56 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Gov. Beshear discusses potential Senate vacancy in relation with Sen. McConnell’s health status

Gov. Andy Beshear made a Facebook post addressing potential vacancy in the Senate.

Aug 3 • 9:46 AM EDT • Health • wkyt.com

Blanche rescinds fund for Trump allies after senators threaten to block AG bid

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Aug 3 • 7:50 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

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Aug 3 • 6:18 AM EDT • Politics • thehill.com

AIPAC Spending Dominates Michigan Senate Campaign Race

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Aug 3 • 5:46 AM EDT • Politics • politicstoday.org

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Aug 3 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

Corporate law firms funnel nearly $1M to Democratic incumbents

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Aug 3 • 4:57 AM EDT • Politics • delawareonline.com

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Aug 3 • 4:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

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Twenty members of the House and five members of the Senate disclosed income or a financial interest in companies that had overdue filings.

Aug 3 • 3:55 AM EDT • Business • penncapital-star.com

Blanche rescinds Trump’s ‘anti-weaponization’ fund, removing hurdle from attorney general nominee’s confirmation

Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche, said late Sunday he is formally rescinding the president’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund, after Senate Republicans threatened to block his nomination over the controversial agreement.

Aug 2 • 11:57 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Blanche rescinds Trump’s ‘anti-weaponization’ fund, removing hurdle from AG pick’s confirmation

Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche, said late Sunday he is formally rescinding the president’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund,” after Senate Republicans threatened to block his nomination over the controversial agreement.

Aug 2 • 11:57 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

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Aug 2 • 8:59 PM EDT • Science • washingtonpost.com

Big 10, SEC Back Senate’s College Sports Overhaul

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Aug 2 • 8:00 PM EDT • Sports • insidehighered.com

Senate leaders reach funding deal to avoid shutdown during campaign season

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Aug 2 • 6:49 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Entire Squad endorses Abdul El-Sayed days before Michigan Democratic Senate primary

Every Squad member has endorsed Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate primary, even as he distances himself from the Democratic Socialists of America.

Aug 2 • 2:41 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com

Democrats’ path to win the Senate runs through the Midwest

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Aug 2 • 2:00 PM EDT • Politics • politico.com

Democrat U.S. senate candidate Stevens campaigns at Detroit church

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Aug 2 • 1:30 PM EDT • Politics • detroitnews.com

Senate Panel To Examine Biotech's Role in U.S. Health Resilience

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Aug 2 • 8:24 AM EDT • Health • legis1.com

Abdul El-Sayed, accused of sexism, says his contempt is for most everyone

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Aug 2 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

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Aug 2 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

College sports legislation moves forward

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Aug 1 • 9:08 PM EDT • Sports • arizonasports.com

Darline Graham promotes Trump's agenda in her political debut ahead of special Senate primary

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Aug 1 • 6:07 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Darline Graham promotes Trump’s agenda in her political debut ahead of special Senate primary

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Aug 1 • 5:25 PM EDT • Politics • wtop.com

Darline Graham promotes Trump's agenda in her political debut ahead of special Senate primary

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Aug 1 • 5:19 PM EDT • Politics • abcnews.com

Darline Graham promotes Trump's agenda in her political debut ahead of special Senate primary

Sen. Darline Graham has made her political debut in South Carolina, stepping into the spotlight after her brother Lindsey Graham's death to advocate for President Donald Trump's policy priorities.

Aug 1 • 5:19 PM EDT • Politics • wsls.com

Big Ten, SEC conferences endorse Senate college sports bill

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Aug 1 • 4:21 PM EDT • Entertainment • thederrick.com

Trump Calls for $1.8 Billion Fund Over Blanche Attorney General Fight

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Aug 1 • 4:14 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

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Aug 1 • 1:38 PM EDT • Entertainment • ew.com

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When President Donald Trump helped orchestrate Darline Graham’s appointment to finish Sen. Lindsey Graham’s term, many Republicans in South Carolina saw it as a fitting tribute to her late brother.

Aug 1 • 6:30 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

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Trump urges John Thune to eliminate the Senate filibuster or cancel August recess until lawmakers pass the SAVE Act election integrity bill.

Aug 1 • 4:23 AM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com

SENATE IN PLAY: Bray’s step back raises stakes on political direction of Indiana’s upper chamber

By Sydney Byerly and Marilyn Odendahl The Indiana Citizen July 31, 2026 Noting Republican lawmakers could put their political careers in jeopardy simply for supporting him, Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray announced Friday he will be stepping down from his leadership position. Bray, R-Martinsville, who has served as Senate president since 2018, will not

Jul 31 • 11:05 PM EDT • Politics • indianacitizen.org

Why Mitch McConnell isn’t giving up his Senate seat

McConnell is just the latest senator to be absent for an extended period. But demands regarding his tenure have intensified.

Jul 31 • 10:50 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com

SEC, Big Ten agree to support historic 'Protect College Sports Act' after intense negotiations

The retention pool jumped to $22.5 million as Senators Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell secured support from Big Ten and SEC before the August recess.

Jul 31 • 10:50 PM EDT • Sports • foxnews.com

Big Ten, SEC support college sports bill, reviving Senate chances

The Big Ten and SEC conferences agreed Friday night to support a Senate bill that seeks to regulate college sports.

Jul 31 • 10:22 PM EDT • Sports • espn.com

Big Ten, SEC finally green-light college sports bill, teeing up historic trip to Senate floor

With the Big Ten and SEC now on board, the bill has a chance of getting to the Senate floor next week for a vote.

Jul 31 • 10:04 PM EDT • Sports • nytimes.com

SEC and Big Ten agree to support college sports bill after weeks of negotiations

University leaders voted to back the long-percolating deal late Friday, but it’s unclear how soon it could hit the Senate floor.

Jul 31 • 9:57 PM EDT • Sports • politico.com

Giuseppe Costanzo, onetime phantom candidate, says he's finished with politics

Former phantom State Senate candidate Giuseppe Costanzo said today that he has no plans to seek public office again and declined to identify who recruited

Jul 31 • 4:53 PM EDT • Politics • newjerseyglobe.com

Federal 'Science of Reading' Bill Advances

A Senate committee also passed a proposal to classify dyslexia separately under federal disability law.

Jul 31 • 4:44 PM EDT • Science • edweek.org

Todd Blanche’s Loyalty to Trump Is Putting His Attorney General Confirmation at Risk

Todd Blanche’s approach has collided with the jury-of-two reality in the Senate that has, thus far, kept him from the prize he covets: the stability and status conferred by a Senate confirmation.

Jul 31 • 2:44 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

SCGOP plans televised Republican Senate candidate debate for Aug. 3

A televised debate will give voters the opportunity to hear from candidates in the special Republican Senate primary race.

Jul 31 • 2:09 PM EDT • Politics • greenvilleonline.com

WA ‘millionaires tax’ critics target Jamie Pedersen with mailers

Conservative donors including Brian Heywood are targeting Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen with new mailers over his role in the 'millionaires tax.'

Jul 31 • 1:00 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com

Kentucky’s Other Senator Flees Questions About McConnell

Rand Paul doesn’t want to talk about his Senate colleague.

Jul 31 • 12:56 PM EDT • Health • thedailybeast.com

Fauci praised as 'hero' by public health experts after Senate hearing

Public health experts and advocates are defending Dr. Anthony Fauci after he faced fierce criticism from Republicans at a Senate hearing.

Jul 31 • 12:23 PM EDT • Health • usatoday.com

Republican Victor Marx taps George Markert as his lieutenant governor pick in Colorado’s gubernatorial race

Colorado Republican gubernatorial nominee Victor Marx named George Markert, a retired Marine colonel, as his running mate for lieutenant governor Friday morning, saying the former U.S. Senate candidate will bring “exceptional character, proven leadership and a lifetime of serving others” to the ticket. Marx is facing Democratic nominee Phil Weiser, the state’s attorney general, and […]

Jul 31 • 10:38 AM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

Federal government could improve infectious disease monitoring, says federal government

The new CDC director nominee moves to the full Senate vote, Medicaid work requirements will not be delayed, and more health news

Jul 31 • 8:28 AM EDT • Health • statnews.com

As progressives seek to take on inequality, some cite religion as a motivating factor

Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed says his Muslim faith shapes his progressive views

Jul 31 • 7:30 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

CDC, public health preparedness nominees advance in Senate

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday approved President Donald Trump’s nominees to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and to serve as a key assistant secretary, two leadership roles that the administration has struggled to fill. The committee voted 12-11 along party lines to advance Sean Kaufman to serve […]

Jul 30 • 7:28 PM EDT • Health • rollcall.com

‘There was no other option’: Inside Fauci’s intensely planned hearing strategy

Dr. Anthony Fauci arrived at a high-stakes Senate hearing on Wednesday with a single, modest goal: Survive. The former top government scientist felt he accomplished that mission, people close to Fauci told CNN.

Jul 30 • 6:09 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Senate adjourns without scheduling vote Protect College Sports Act

The U.S. Senate adjourned for the week Thursday without scheduling a vote for the Protect College Sports Act, a bill aimed at reforming college sports.

Jul 30 • 5:15 PM EDT • Sports • espn.com

Lawmakers set to leave for August break with few legislative wins

Some legislation passed the House but is unlikely to advance in the Senate, while other must-pass bills, including a full federal budget, have not passed either chamber.

Jul 30 • 5:10 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumnews1.com

Senate Punts on College Sports Bill Vote Without Big Ten, SEC Approval

The conferences still haven’t made up their minds.

Jul 30 • 4:58 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com

Fox News Poll: GOP divisions shape Texas Senate race

Ken Paxton trails James Talarico by 3 points in the Texas Senate race as character concerns and a GOP unity gap reshape the 2026 midterm battle.

Jul 30 • 3:22 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com

ICYMI: Sen. Banks Joins Kudlow on Fox Business Network

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.) joined Kudlow on Fox Business Network to discussIran’s failed attack on U.S. military forces, the impending American response, the Republican agenda ahead of the 2026 Midterms, and the importance of passing the SAVE America Act. Click the image above for the full discussion. Key Excerpts on Iran strikes: Sen. Jim Banks (R-Ind.): “It’s the […]

Jul 30 • 3:05 PM EDT • Business • banks.senate.gov

Sen Darline Graham drops campaign video on heels of brother's funeral services amid tight primary timeline

Sen. Darline Graham, the sister of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, dropped a campaign video as she runs for U.S. Senate with President Donald Trump's endorsement.

Jul 30 • 2:55 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com

Senate Panel Advances Science of Reading, Dyslexia Bills with Bipartisan Support

Two bills passed out of the Senate HELP Committee Thursday, advancing the federal government’s oversight of literacy instruction and intervention.

Jul 30 • 2:42 PM EDT • Science • the74million.org

Senate Panel Advances Science of Reading, Dyslexia Bills with Bipartisan Support

A bill that would require states to only use the science of reading in classrooms in order to qualify for a multi-million dollar funding grant passed with bipartisan support from a committee of federa...

Jul 30 • 2:42 PM EDT • Science • yahoo.com

Senate committee looks to stop AI-enabled fraud against older adults

AI-enabled fraud is projected to reach $40 billion in the United States next year

Jul 30 • 1:15 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Health Privacy Legislation Advances in the Senate

CDT supports stronger privacy protections for consumer health data that falls outside of HIPAA. We’ve consistently called for privacy protections that move away from outdated notice and consent regimes and instead embrace limitations around corporate data practices that limit data collection, retention, sharing, and use of data that is necessary for the products and services […]

Jul 30 • 1:12 PM EDT • Health • cdt.org

Senate committee advances nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz for CDC director

Dr. Erica Schwartz’s nomination to be director of the nation’s top public health agency advanced on Thursday, setting aside concerns that she will not stand up to political meddling.

Jul 30 • 12:03 PM EDT • Health • pbs.org

Senate committee advances nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz for CDC director

Dr. Erica Schwartz’s nomination to be director of the nation’s top public health agency advanced on Thursday, setting aside concerns that she will not stand up to political meddling.

Jul 30 • 12:03 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Senate committee advances nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz to be CDC director

If confirmed by the full Senate, she would become the 22nd director of the agency

Jul 30 • 11:12 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Key Senate panel backs Trump’s picks for CDC, pandemic preparedness

In win for RFK Jr., Senate committee sends nominations of Erica Schwartz for CDC director and Sean Kaufman for ASPR to full Senate.

Jul 30 • 10:17 AM EDT • Health • statnews.com

Senate panel delays vote on Blanche attorney general nomination

Key Republicans have demanded more assurances about the settlement of President Donald Trump's lawsuit against the IRS

Jul 30 • 8:26 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Colorado’s 72-hour social media warrant law takes effect Aug. 12

A law requiring social media platforms to respond to search warrants within 72 hours goes into effect on Aug. 12. Senate Bill 011 also requires platforms to create a staffed hotline for Colorado law enforcement agencies to contact regarding pending search warrants. The bill is a pared-down version of last year’s Senate Bill 086, which […]

Jul 30 • 7:00 AM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

How Haley Stevens’s Accent Became a Flashpoint in Michigan’s Senate Race

How the politics of raised a’s and disappearing g’s briefly came to dominate the Michigan Senate race.

Jul 30 • 5:03 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Obama makes one of his first midterm endorsements with a basketball video

The former president is trying to help Josh Turek net a Senate seat in Iowa, which Democrats see as one of their best pickup opportunities of the midterms.

Jul 29 • 9:05 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com

Senators still working with SEC, Big Ten on issues involved in college sports bill

Senate negotiators are working to resolve thorny differences with leaders of the Southeastern and Big Ten Conferences over revisions to a bill designed to regulate college sports that sponsors want a vote on before the chamber goes on summer break next...

Jul 29 • 6:35 PM EDT • Sports • abcnews.com

Supreme Court decision could help Whatley financially in Senate race

The court struck down federal limits on how much money political parties can spend in coordination with federal candidates, eliminating limits.

Jul 29 • 6:06 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Oldest Congress ever faces fresh scrutiny over their health

Pressure is building on Sen. Mitch McConnell after more than six weeks away from the Senate with little public information about his condition.

Jul 29 • 6:01 PM EDT • Health • wcyb.com

Oldest Congress ever faces fresh scrutiny over their health

Pressure is building on Sen. Mitch McConnell after more than six weeks away from the Senate with little public information about his condition.

Jul 29 • 6:01 PM EDT • Health • foxbaltimore.com

John Thune Isn’t Bowing to Trump’s Pressure: ‘Show Me How This Ends’

A standoff over the restrictive voting bill Trump is pushing has left nerves raw at the Capitol, with even the typically staid Thune showing signs of frustration.

Jul 29 • 5:31 PM EDT • Politics • time.com

Anthony Fauci’s Silence

Senate Republicans had many questions. Fauci had one answer.

Jul 29 • 5:01 PM EDT • Health • theatlantic.com

Anthony Fauci’s high-profile Senate hearing: what we learned

Six years on from Covid crisis, Republicans still politicizing science – and Fauci remains a political punching bag

Jul 29 • 4:02 PM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com

Can a Democrat buck history and win a Mississippi Senate seat for the first time in 44 years?

Jul 29 • 1:36 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

NC budget funded a legislator's gated community, but the money could be taken back

The N.C. Senate has passed a bill that would take back a budget allocation for state Rep. Joe Pike's neighborhood in Harnett County.

Jul 29 • 1:33 PM EDT • Politics • wunc.org

Fauci invokes Fifth Amendment in heated COVID-19 Senate hearing

Physician declines to answer Senate questions as Republicans like Rand Paul accuse him of covering up COVID's origins.

Jul 29 • 1:32 PM EDT • Politics • aljazeera.com

With Blanche Nomination at Stake, Payouts to Trump Allies Continue

A seven-figure settlement is announced two days before a scheduled Senate committee vote on Todd Blanche’s nomination to be attorney general.

Jul 29 • 12:15 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Obama Endorses Josh Turek in Iowa Senate Race With Basketball Video

The former president is trying to help Josh Turek net a Senate seat in Iowa, which Democrats see as one of their best pickup opportunities of the midterms.

Jul 29 • 12:02 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Anthony Fauci Finally Turns Down an Interview Request

The doctor, not known to shy from a spotlight, invoked his Fifth Amendment rights rather than answer loaded questions from Senate Republicans.

Jul 29 • 11:11 AM EDT • Politics • nymag.com