GoKawiil
Tech News
A new AP-NORC poll finds just 17% of U.S. adults approve of President Trump's handling of the cost of living, while only 26% approve of his overall economic performance, a new low. The survey also found 65% of adults blame Trump's policies, including tariffs, for persistently high prices rather than outside factors.
White House aides say they are increasingly worried about the 2026 midterms, with national polling showing a historically low 37 percent approval rating for Trump in a Wall Street Journal survey. Trump has told aides he believes Republicans could still outperform expectations, citing internal polling showing narrower deficits in individual House races, while some advisers privately predict heavy losses. Officials reportedly began seeking foreign policy wins, including a US-Denmark agreement on Greenland and a touted Venezuela oil deal, to help drive midterm turnout.
A WIRED analysis of candidates for statewide, federal and state legislative races found hundreds of Republicans linked to hateful ideologies, white supremacist and antisemitic figures, or far-right online groups. The outlet cites data from the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights showing over 500 state legislative candidates belong to Facebook groups promoting militias, gun rights and Christian nationalism. Some prominent extremist candidates lost their primaries, but many others advanced to the general election and are considered likely winners.
The House of Representatives left Washington on Wednesday, effectively delaying any legislative response to mounting warnings about artificial intelligence risks until after the November midterms. Speaker Mike Johnson canceled planned Thursday work, telling reporters lawmakers needed to return home to campaign, and pointed to the Senate to take up any AI legislation instead. The move comes despite pleas from executives at Anthropic, OpenAI and xAI for federal oversight after an Anthropic researcher's resignation warning about AI's existential dangers.
A Fast Company panel featuring executives from Lyft, All Voting Is Local, and the ACLU discussed how the 2026 midterm elections could reshape federal and state policy in ways that directly affect companies. Moderated by Fast Company's Amy Farley, the discussion focused on how shifting political control could influence trade, immigration, technology, and economic regulation. Panelists also highlighted the growing role of state governments in setting rules on AI, data privacy, climate, and energy.
A new Nature study by Egan, Bisbee and Tucker surveyed US voters and found that 4.9% of white adults overall, and 13.5% of young white men specifically, agreed with statements framing demographic change as an existential threat to their race and endorsing white cultural superiority. The researchers argue this trend deserves as much scrutiny as the widely discussed rightward political shift among Latino voters ahead of the 2026 midterms.
The Supreme Court denied the Trump administration's emergency request to impose new restrictions on mail-in ballots ahead of the midterm elections, allowing states to keep using their existing mail voting procedures. The unsigned majority order found the administration's legal case unlikely to succeed, while Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented, with Alito arguing the Postal Service has broad authority to enforce such limits.
President Trump said Wednesday that oil prices, driven up by the ongoing Iran conflict, will likely stay elevated until after U.S. midterm elections. His remarks came as Brent crude topped $100 a barrel for the first time since July, with prices jumping over 3% amid escalating U.S.-Iran military exchanges.
President Trump promised at a GOP midterm convention that every American adult would receive a $5,000 payment, dubbed the 'Trump Dividend,' if Republicans keep control of Congress in November. The proposal, estimated to cost over $1 trillion, would require congressional approval and has no clear funding source, though Vice President JD Vance suggested tariff revenue and hinted wealthy Americans might be excluded.
At a Republican midterm convention in Texas, President Trump promised a $5,000 'dividend' to every adult American citizen if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate this November. He framed the pledge as a turnout booster, saying it alone should secure the midterms for his party.
One year after cofounder Charlie Kirk's assassination, Turning Point is preparing to spend tens of millions of dollars backing Republican candidates in the 2026 midterms. Its super PAC is targeting $15-20 million in ads across three priority states—New Hampshire, Arizona and Nevada—while a separate nonprofit arm funds full-time field staff there and in seven other states where Democrats could flip seats. Key races include the New Hampshire Senate contest between John Sununu and Chris Pappas, and the Arizona governor's race pitting Katie Hobbs against Andy Biggs.
Over Labor Day weekend, President Trump and the White House posted a wave of AI-style memes depicting him as an all-powerful superhero, including building walls and factories with a Green Lantern ring, towering over Canada's prime minister on a hockey rink, and commanding a warship in battle. The imagery arrives as Trump's approval ratings decline amid struggles with inflation, the Iran conflict, and manufacturing promises.