CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten voiced his own surprise on Tuesday as polls indicate that Republicans are not seeing a drop in popularity due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Enten joined CNN host John Berman to discuss the shutdown and how it might eventually come to an end — and Berman predicted that &#8220;political pain,&#8221; for one party or the other, would be what ultimately brought people to the table. Enten pushed back, noting that Democrats might be the ones feeling the pain.
WATCH:
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BREAKING</a>: Republicans&#8217; polling has improved during Democrat government shutdown
CNN: &#8220;The Republican brand in Congress has actually improved&#8221; incl. with Independents 📈
Plus alarm bells for Democrats: &#8220;The worst position Democrats have been…in the last 20 years&#8221; 🚩 <a href="https://t.co/g0hWYhsChM">pic.twitter.com/g0hWYhsChM</a>
— Ben Petersen (@bennpetersen) <a href="https://twitter.com/bennpetersen/status/1983171790601105409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;One thing that might end a shutdown is political pain, if parties start to feel that it’s hurting them. So let’s talk about that, starting with Republicans. How has the shutdown seemed to have affected their political standing?&#8221; Berman prompted.
&#8220;Yeah, you might think, given that the Republicans are in charge of both the House and the Senate, that a government shutdown might actually hurt the Republican brand. But in fact, it hasn’t!&#8221; Enten replied. &#8220;If anything, it’s been helped a little bit! Take a look here, the shift in net popularity versus pre-shutdown. When we’re looking at the Republican Party overall, that brand, actually up two points. That’s within the margin of error, but clearly it hasn’t dropped. Come over to this side of the screen, look at the net approval ratings for Republicans in Congress. It’s actually up five points since pre-shutdown! So what we’re seeing here is the Republican brand in Congress has actually improved somewhat compared to where we were pre-shutdown, despite the fact that Republicans control. And that’s the math that John Thune and Mike Johnson are looking at is, &#8216;Hey, why should we give in, electorally speaking, when our brand has actually improved a little bit?'&#8221;
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Berman pressed for details, asking whether Republicans were only getting more popular with die-hards or were they making gains across other demographics: &#8220;Now we say their position is getting better, with whom?&#8221;
&#8220;It’s rallying the base for sure. Look at this, the net approval rating up 12 points versus pre-shutdown,&#8221; Enten began — but he did not stop there. &#8220;But it’s not just with the base, it’s also with the middle of the electorate. Look at this among independents, it’s up eight points as well! So we’ve got a situation here where Republicans with the shutdown are actually rallying their base, but it’s also something that’s not hurting them with the folks in the middle. If anything, it’s helping them with folks in the middle, and this is the type of math that if you’re Republicans, you like to see, right? Because something could rally the base, but alienate those in the middle, or something could rally those in the middle, but alienate the base.&#8221;
&#8220;But the truth is, we’re not seeing that. What we’re seeing is the Republican brand has actually gotten better among independents and it’s also gotten better among Republicans as well, that Republican brand when it comes to those in Congress,&#8221; Enten added. &#8220;So again, what’s the electoral reason that Republicans would give in at this point?&#8221;
&#8220;And Democrats, of course, they have their eyes on the midterm elections. Yeah, we have elections one week from today, but what Democrats in Congress are mostly focused on are one year and one week from today, from the midterms. So how do Democrats, how are they positioned right now?&#8221; Berman asked.
Enten broke out the worst news, noting that Democrats were actually losing ground as the midterms crept closer. &#8220;You look at this point back when Trump was president the first time around, Democrats were up 11 points. Look at where it is now. Democrats are ahead, but they’re actually only up three points. This is, in fact, the worst position Democrats have been on in a generic ballot at this time in a midterm when there was a Republican president in the last 20 years. And this is no different from pre-shutdown. So Republicans aren’t losing on this metric either. They’ve become more popular, and they’re in a pretty good position for them historically when it comes to the generic congressional ballot.&#8221;
&#8220;This is a concerning number for Democrats, are you saying?&#8221; Berman tried one more time.
&#8220;This is a concerning number for Democrats, because it’s considerably worse than they traditionally do in midterm elections when there’s a Republican president,&#8221; Enten confirmed the worst.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson

‘They’ve Become More Popular!’: CNN Pollster Shocked As GOP Gets Shutdown ‘Bump’

'They've Become More Popular!': CNN Pollster Shocked As GOP Gets Shutdown 'Bump'

Government Shutdown

Harry Enten

Media

Politics

Polls

Republicans

Actor and former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) quickly terminated CNN anchor Jake Tapper&#8217;s argument that the Republican Party was largely responsible for gerrymandered congressional maps all across the United States.
Schwarzenegger, who served as California&#8217;s governor from 2003-2011, joined Tapper on Sunday&#8217;s broadcast of &#8220;State of the Union&#8221; and argued that &#8220;extreme gerrymandering&#8221; had been happening for decades and would only end up hurting the American people.
WATCH:
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NEW: Arnold Schwarzenegger claps back at CNN&#8217;s Jake Tapper, calls out &#8220;extreme gerrymandering&#8221; in blue states.
Tapper: &#8220;Do you believe that the Republican Party is starting this?&#8221;
Schwarzenegger: &#8220;No, Jake. There has been gerrymandering going on for 200 years.&#8221;
&#8220;There is such… <a href="https://t.co/ovxGJ6ll8p">pic.twitter.com/ovxGJ6ll8p</a>
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) <a href="https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/1982528723674071061?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;As you&#8217;ve acknowledged, this all started because of redistricting in Texas — and this was Trump pushing Republican-controlled states to throw out their current congressional maps so as to cook the books so that there is less — it is less likely for Democrats to retake control of the House during the next year midterms,&#8221; Tapper began. &#8220;I mean, is it fair to argue that — do you believe that the Republican Party is starting this?&#8221;
&#8220;No, Jake. No, Jake. There has been gerrymandering going on for 200 years,&#8221; Schwarzenegger replied, shaking his head. &#8220;There is such extreme gerrymandering going on that in a state like Massachusetts, it has like 40% of the people voting for Trump, they only — they have zero representatives. The Republican Party has zero representatives sent to the House. Think about that.&#8221;
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&#8220;In New Mexico, 45% of the people voted for Trump and vote Republican, and zero is sent to the House, zero representatives from the Republican Party,&#8221; the &#8220;Terminator&#8221; actor continued. &#8220;So there&#8217;s gerrymandering — crazy gerrymandering — going on all over the country, and we wanted to try to stop it in California, and we did stop it in California.&#8221;
This is not the first time Schwarzenegger has vocally opposed gerrymandering — regardless of which party was redrawing the maps. In 2019, he joined with Governor Larry Hogan (R-MD) <a href="https://schwarzenegger.usc.edu/institute_in_action/governor-arnold-schwarzenegger-took-his-mission-to-terminate-gerrymandering-to-dc/">in opposition</a> to a New Democrat-favored map in Maryland and a Republican-favored map in North Carolina.
&#8220;It is a national scandal with what is going on with the gerrymandering and the way our politicians draw the district lines. Both parties are doing it. Democrats are gerrymandering, Republicans are gerrymandering. It is a real disservice to the people. It is not a representative government, but a mis-representative government,&#8221; he said at the time.

”Raising Hope for Climate Justice” Conference Opens

Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminates Jake Tapper’s Effort To Blame GOP For Gerrymandering

Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminates Jake Tapper's Effort To Blame GOP For Gerrymandering

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Jake Tapper

Redistricting

Democrats and media talking heads have voiced their opposition, on multiple occasions, to President Donald Trump&#8217;s efforts to prevent narco-terrorists — by whatever means necessary — from continuing to flood the United States with fentanyl and other drugs.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
The federal government has been shut down for nearly one full month — and although Democrats have done their best to reassure the public that the blame for that lies with Republicans, the fact remains that Democrats are the ones refusing to accept a clean continuing resolution that would reopen the government or even vote on a measure that would make sure military service members continue to receive pay.
And while some of the conversation on the Sunday morning talk shows was focused on the shutdown and how to bring it to an end, a lot was also focused on Trump&#8217;s efforts to take out drug runners before they were able to reach the United States.
On ABC&#8217;s &#8220;Meet the Press,&#8221; Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) said that recent strikes on boats that reportedly contained drugs and were headed toward the United States were, at best, &#8220;questionable.&#8221;
&#8220;The White House and the Department of Defense could not give us a logical explanation on how this is legal,&#8221; he said.
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Sen. Mark Kelly tells <a href="https://twitter.com/MarthaRaddatz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MarthaRaddatz</a> that the U.S. military&#8217;s recent strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat is &#8220;questionable.&#8221;
&#8220;The White House and the Department of Defense could not give us a logical explanation on how this is legal.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/c5ou1EVNTV">https://t.co/c5ou1EVNTV</a> <a href="https://t.co/EVP53aCZfd">pic.twitter.com/EVP53aCZfd</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1982459545478709337?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) supported President Trump&#8217;s actions, telling host Margaret Brennan on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; that he believed Trump was acting well within his authority to strike the boats carrying drugs and traffickers.
He went on to tell Brennan that he saw it as &#8220;a real possibility&#8221; that Trump would also authorize strikes on land in Venezuela in order to stop the flow of drugs into the United States. Graham said that he expected the president to brief Congress about his next moves, adding, &#8220;I support that idea. But I think he has all the authority he needs.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
U.S. land strikes on Venezuela are “a real possibility,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) says, telling <a href="https://twitter.com/margbrennan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@margbrennan</a> President Trump plans to brief Congress about potentially expanding the U.S. military operations “from the sea to the land.”
“I support that idea. But I think he has… <a href="https://t.co/q7iBG7D0H7">pic.twitter.com/q7iBG7D0H7</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1982479665525613037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Graham also responded to criticisms of Trump from within the Republican Party — namely from Senators Rand Paul (R-KY) and James Lankford (R-OK) — telling Brennan, &#8220;Rand Paul, I just fundamentally disagree with. To the other senators, you deserve more information and you&#8217;re going to get more information. But there is no requirement for Congress to declare war before the commander-in-chief can use force.&#8221;
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Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is pushing back against criticism by Democrats and some Republicans, including Sens. Rand Paul and James Lankford, that the Trump administration is not providing enough information to Congress about its strikes on alleged drug boats off the coast of… <a href="https://t.co/KjrqzPW36x">pic.twitter.com/KjrqzPW36x</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1982480379844931876?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;It’s time for Maduro to go. I hope Maduro would leave peacefully, but I don&#8217;t think he&#8217;s going to stay around much longer,&#8221; Graham added. &#8220;The game is changing when it comes to drug traffickers and drug cartels. We&#8217;re going to use military force like we have in the past to protect our country &#8230; And if I were Maduro, I&#8217;d find a way to leave before heat goes down.”
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On the U.S. potentially expanding its operations to on the ground inside Venezuela and whether that would include U.S. troops, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) says “It’s time for Maduro to go. I hope Maduro would leave peacefully, but I don&#8217;t think he&#8217;s going to stay around much… <a href="https://t.co/42tYbYWOrE">pic.twitter.com/42tYbYWOrE</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1982483129349861497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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On NBC&#8217;s &#8220;Meet the Press,&#8221; Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) referred to the targeted strikes as &#8220;sanctioned murder.&#8221; He told host Kristen Welker, &#8220;This is murder. It&#8217;s sanctioned murder that he is doing.&#8221;
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Sen. Ruben Gallego on the strikes on drug boats: &#8220;This is murder. It&#8217;s sanctioned murder that he is doing.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/n4i9WWj9RA">pic.twitter.com/n4i9WWj9RA</a>
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) <a href="https://twitter.com/TPostMillennial/status/1982549544182374444?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Gallego claimed that a declaration of war would be necessary if Trump planned to continue to target such boats.
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Trump is blasting Venezuelan ships out of the water to make himself feel tough.
Either send the Coast Guard onto these ships or come to Congress for a declaration of war. Plain and simple. <a href="https://t.co/7zZ5td7RLz">pic.twitter.com/7zZ5td7RLz</a>
— Senator Ruben Gallego (@SenRubenGallego) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenRubenGallego/status/1982497980725838112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Meanwhile, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Welker on &#8220;Meet the Press,&#8221; Democrats&#8217; refusal to put an end to the shutdown are starting to cause real problems: &#8220;Chuck Schumer is trading off his polls. What&#8217;s different than when he passed a clean CR in the spring? It&#8217;s his polls &#8230; We&#8217;re starting to eat into muscle here &#8230; I don&#8217;t know what the purpose is. I&#8217;m not sure they do.&#8221;
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&#8220;Chuck Schumer is trading off his polls. What&#8217;s different than when he passed a clean CR in the spring? It&#8217;s his polls,&#8221; says <a href="https://twitter.com/SecScottBessent?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecScottBessent</a> on the Democrat Shutdown.
&#8220;We&#8217;re starting to eat into muscle here&#8230; I don&#8217;t know what the purpose is. I&#8217;m not sure they do.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/Bt0ej6d8yF">pic.twitter.com/Bt0ej6d8yF</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1982443342110613889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Spin Cycle: The War On Trump’s War On Drugs

Spin Cycle: The War On Trump's War On Drugs

ABC News

CBS News

Donald Trump

NBC News

NewsNation host Batya Ungar-Sargon mocked the weekend&#8217;s wave of &#8220;No Kings&#8221; protests, saying that what the people in the streets were actually protesting was not a king at all, but &#8220;American democracy&#8221; in practice.
Ungar-Sargon shared a clip of her appearance along with the caption referring to the mass protests — promoted and even joined by a number of elected Democrats — as &#8220;a mass therapy session&#8221; and arguing that President Donald Trump was simply doing what he&#8217;d been elected to do.
&#8220;I support white Boomers using their First Amendment rights to hold a mass therapy session about the fact that Trump won! But to call him a king is utterly preposterous. He won the popular vote. He is enacting the exact agenda he promised he would. They are actually protesting American democracy. The only appropriate response is to laugh!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I support white Boomers using their First Amendment rights to hold a mass therapy session about the fact that Trump won! But to call him a king is utterly preposterous. He won the popular vote. He is enacting the exact agenda he promised he would. They are actually protesting… <a href="https://t.co/4hOQaOYqpf">pic.twitter.com/4hOQaOYqpf</a>
— Batya Ungar-Sargon (@bungarsargon) <a href="https://twitter.com/bungarsargon/status/1980481661134381184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I want to start by saying I totally support the protests,&#8221; Ungar-Sargon began. &#8220;I think this is a very important part of what it means to be an American, to raise up your voice in any form that you wish. We have these First Amendment rights and they are precious and dear. I also think that this was not indicative or representative even of the mainstream Democratic Party.&#8221;
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&#8220;These protests were overwhelmingly white, they were overwhelmingly elderly, older people — again, white Boomers have the right to have a mass therapy session about the fact that Donald Trump won,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;But to call it a &#8216;No Kings&#8217; protest, to act like he is a king, is so utterly preposterous. This is a man who won the popular vote, he won every swing state, he is a person who is enacting the exact agenda he promised he was going to enact while he was campaigning — and so what they are actually protesting is the absolute perfection of American democracy where a person campaigned on an agenda, won the popular vote, and is now enacting that agenda.&#8221;
&#8220;So it was actually a protest of democracy, all of which is to say the only way to greet such a preposterous proposition, calling this a &#8216;No Kings&#8217; rally when it&#8217;s actually an anti-democracy rally, is to crap on it — I&#8217;m sorry — is to basically make fun of it,&#8221; she concluded.

‘We need to take back the flag’: Why patriotic symbols were all over the ‘No Kings’ protests

CNN Guest Mocks ‘No Kings’ Mob: ‘They’re Actually Protesting American Democracy’

Protesters

The latest CNN poll suggests that despite their attempts to spin a very different narrative, Democrats are not coming off as the winners as the government shutdown drags on — and President Donald Trump is not losing any ground at all.
CNN&#8217;s chief data analyst Harry Enten broke down the details alongside anchor John Berman, saying that there was a world of difference between the way voters viewed the current shutdown compared to how they&#8217;d viewed the 35-day shutdown – stretching from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019 — during President Trump&#8217;s first term.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
This shutdown is a different world for Trump than the 2018-19 shutdown. He&#8217;s in a much better spot.
His net approval is up slightly during this shutdown vs. dropping during 2018-19.
Why? The % who blame him a great deal for the shutdown is down significantly now vs. 2018-19. <a href="https://t.co/WHEqHaqo4M">pic.twitter.com/WHEqHaqo4M</a>
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) <a href="https://twitter.com/ForecasterEnten/status/1980278938044694817?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Turns out shutdowns are different the second time around when it comes to Donald Trump,&#8221; Enten declared. &#8220;Take a look here: you know, we speak about Donald Trump, shutdowns, net approval rating – we&#8217;re talking 20 days into it, in 2018 slash 2019, Donald Trump&#8217;s net approval rating was already falling. The shutdown was eating into his popular support, it was down three points already at this particular point and would fall considerably more, it was very much on the decline.&#8221;
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That&#8217;s not the case 20 days into the current shutdown, Enten continued: &#8220;This shutdown hasn&#8217;t eaten into Donald Trump&#8217;s support at all! His net approval rating is actually up a point, in terms of his popular support. So the bottom line is this: the first shutdown during Trump&#8217;s first term, 2018-2019, was hurting Donald Trump. This one is not hurting him at all.&#8221;
&#8220;There&#8217;s no real reason Donald Trump might say, at least when it comes to popular support, &#8216;I want to get out of this shutdown.'&#8221;
When Berman asked about the blame for the shutdown — and who might shoulder most of it — the numbers reflected a similar shift: fewer than half of those surveyed (48%) blame President Trump for the current shutdown compared to the 61% who blamed him in 2018.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a different world,&#8221; he said.

Uh-Oh: CNN Poll Says Shutdown Is Not Playing Well For Dems, And Trump’s Doing Just Fine

CNN poll

Democrats

Just over a week after President Trump brokered a deal that brought home the last of the hostages held by Hamas terrorists — and laid out a plan for lasting peace between Israel and Gaza — the latest reports indicate that Hamas militants have taken to publicly executing Palestinian civilians. So of course, CNN wanted to talk about — and to — former Rep. George Santos (R-NY).
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-commutes-sentence-of-former-gop-rep-george-santos">Trump announced</a> on Friday that he was commuting the remainder of the 7-year sentence that Santos was serving after he pled guilty to aggravated identity theft and wire-fraud charges in relation to his 2022 congressional campaign. Prior to that he&#8217;d been ousted by Congress after serving less than a year of his first term: Lawmakers <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/01/gop-rep-george-santos-faces-expulsion-vote-in-house.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted</a> 311-114 to oust Santos in December 2023 after a GOP-led House Ethics Committee report accused Santos of stealing campaign donors’ money to spend on Botox, OnlyFans, and other items.
Trump swiped at Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in the Truth Social post announcing the commutation, saying, &#8220;I started to think about George when the subject of Democrat Senator Richard “Da Nang Dick” Blumenthal came up again. As everyone remembers, “Da Nang” stated for almost twenty years that he was a proud Vietnam Veteran, having endured the worst of the War, watching the Wounded and Dead as he raced up the hills and down the valleys, blood streaming from his face &#8230; This is far worse than what George Santos did, and at least Santos had the Courage, Conviction, and Intelligence to ALWAYS VOTE REPUBLICAN!&#8221;
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So on Sunday, despite the continued bloodshed in Gaza and the ongoing Democrat-driven government shutdown, much of the conversation on CNN was focused squarely on Santos.
Anchor Dana Bash started with Senator Katie Britt (R-AL), asking whether she took issue with Trump&#8217;s decision to commute the sentence of the disgraced congressman.
&#8220;[Santos] did plead guilty to defrauding his donors and constituents of hundreds of thousands of dollars, money he will no longer be required to pay back because of this commutation. Is this acceptable to you?&#8221; Bash asked.
&#8220;Look, I will let Congressman Santos speak for himself,&#8221; Britt replied. &#8220;What I appreciate is President Trump&#8217;s commitment to the American people.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
BASH: “[Santos] did plead guilty to defrauding his donors and constituents of hundreds of thousands of dollars, money he will no longer be required to pay back because of this commutation. Is this acceptable to you?”
BRITT: “Look, I will let Congressman Santos speak for… <a href="https://t.co/3SvurPWDHk">pic.twitter.com/3SvurPWDHk</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979939429633380426?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Bash then took the question to Santos directly, asking him whether he planned to make restitution.
&#8220;You were ordered by the court to pay $370,000 in restitution to the people you defrauded… Will you work to try to do that?&#8221; she asked.
&#8220;I can do my best to do whatever the law requires of me. So I don&#8217;t know what that is,&#8221; he replied. &#8220;If it&#8217;s required of me by the law, yes. If it&#8217;s not, then no.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
BASH: “You were ordered by the court to pay $370,000 in restitution to the people you defrauded… Will you work to try to do that?”
SANTOS: “I can do my best to do whatever the law requires of me. So I don&#8217;t know what that is… If it&#8217;s required of me by the law, yes. If it&#8217;s… <a href="https://t.co/EVBHKzKGTg">pic.twitter.com/EVBHKzKGTg</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979942437411057676?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Bash then pivoted to note that some were critical of Trump&#8217;s decision to commute his sentence, and Santos pushed back, essentially arguing that there would be people criticizing Trump no matter what he did.
&#8220;I&#8217;m pretty confident if President Trump had pardoned Jesus Christ off the cross, he would have had critics,&#8221; Santos said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
George Santos shrugs off criticism of Trump commuting his prison sentence: “I&#8217;m pretty confident if President Trump had pardoned Jesus Christ off the cross, he would have had critics.” <a href="https://t.co/YxjwjV5F6u">pic.twitter.com/YxjwjV5F6u</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979943369892679734?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I&#8217;m very grateful to President Trump, Dana, and I sit here quite literally, I don&#8217;t know how much more humbled I can get before people believe I&#8217;m humble or remorseful, but I can just do the best in my actions moving forward,&#8221; Santos added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
George Santos responds to former Republican colleagues who say he shouldn’t have been freed from prison: “I&#8217;m very grateful to President Trump, Dana, and I sit here quite literally, I don&#8217;t know how much more humbled I can get before people believe I&#8217;m humble or remorseful, but I… <a href="https://t.co/1TyrdeeDXl">pic.twitter.com/1TyrdeeDXl</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979943593436479708?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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He went on to say that he&#8217;d already thought of a way that he could potentially begin to give back, saying, &#8220;I told this to the president, that I&#8217;d love to be involved with prison reform, and not in a partisan way, in real human ways, in a way that we effect it, that it helps society, it helps these individuals rebuild their lives and we have a better system with less incarcerated people … If I can be a part of helping that, I think that would be a great road to follow in the future.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Santos: “I told this to the president, that I&#8217;d love to be involved with prison reform, and not in a partisan way, in real human ways, in a way that we effect it, that it helps society, it helps these individuals rebuild their lives and we have a better system with less… <a href="https://t.co/6qXkS9c3z3">pic.twitter.com/6qXkS9c3z3</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979943752346353792?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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And it didn&#8217;t end there: Santos was also the topic of a panel discussion to round out &#8220;State of the Union.&#8221;
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) said she wasn&#8217;t in favor of Trump&#8217;s decision, but that she planned to withhold judgment and give Santos a chance to prove he&#8217;d changed.
&#8220;I will give him the benefit of the doubt, and I hope he is a changed person who&#8217;s going to focus on his second chance on doing good. I do not agree with the commutation. I think it was a wrong decision, primarily because this is somebody who stole millions of dollars from his donors. He defrauded the public and his voters … I wish him well. I hope he does good, and I hope he sticks to his word that he&#8217;s a renewed person.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
New York Republican Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis on Trump commuting George Santos’ prison sentence:
“I will give him the benefit of the doubt, and I hope he is a changed person who&#8217;s going to focus on his second chance on doing good. I do not agree with the commutation. I… <a href="https://t.co/I77ZfKoMw7">pic.twitter.com/I77ZfKoMw7</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979948410368061661?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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And then Paul Begala tried to make it about Trump &#8230;
&#8220;This is a story about a con man, a liar, a grifter, somebody, a felon, disgraced his high office, and also about George Santos,&#8221; he quipped.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Paul Begala: “This is a story about a con man, a liar, a grifter, somebody, a felon, disgraced his high office, and also about George Santos.”
GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, Brad Todd, and Faiz Shakir join Dana Bash to react to President Trump’s controversial decision to commute… <a href="https://t.co/W7SQ50hJpp">pic.twitter.com/W7SQ50hJpp</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1979949001135763632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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U.S. Congressman-elect George Santos

Spin Cycle: Let’s Talk About … Santos?

Spin Cycle: Let's Talk About ... Santos?

George Santos

Prison

The Democratic Party may be regretting a Wednesday night town hall that saw CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins moderating as Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — both of whom identify as Democratic socialists — fielded questions from the public about the ongoing government shutdown.
Collins pressed Sanders on his own previous statements — namely that government shutdowns were &#8220;dangerous&#8221; to the American people because they put at risk not just those who worked for the federal government and might be furloughed, but also anyone who depended on services provided by the federal government in their daily lives.
Quoting Sanders directly, Collins said he&#8217;d referred to shutting down the government as &#8220;a serious and dangerous action that we must do everything possible to prevent,&#8221; before asking, &#8220;What would you say to people who are missing their paychecks about why it&#8217;s worth it now?&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🤔 <a href="https://t.co/04CRYe4N5y">https://t.co/04CRYe4N5y</a> <a href="https://t.co/KIRQdiFH4Y">pic.twitter.com/KIRQdiFH4Y</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1978631136931656039?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Sanders, who has repeatedly voted against the clean continuing resolution that would reopen the government, claimed that he and other Democrats would &#8220;do everything they can&#8221; to get the government reopened quickly.
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Collins then asked Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez to explain what the end of the shutdown looked like to them — and they laughed off the idea of taking President Donald Trump and Republicans at their word that health care would be up for negotiations. Instead, Ocasio-Cortez made it clear that she wouldn&#8217;t vote to reopen the government — despite the fact that the CR in question has already passed the House in spite of her no vote — until she saw legislation guaranteeing what she wanted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
These losers — the leaders of the Democrat Party — are not serious people. They don&#8217;t have any clue what they&#8217;re talking about other than demanding free health care for illegals to vote to re-open the government.
Shame on them. <a href="https://t.co/IdygxnEB8r">pic.twitter.com/IdygxnEB8r</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1978633289742045298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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One question from a young woman in the audience pertained to social media messaging – and why Republicans seemed to be more effective at getting their points across. After a brief moment in which Sanders appeared to freeze like a deer in headlights, he claimed that Republicans were more effective in their messaging because their &#8220;friends&#8221; owned the big tech companies and controlled much of legacy media.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Crazy Bernie thinks Republicans are more &#8220;effective&#8221; at messaging on social media than Democrats because tech companies and the mainstream media are in the tank for us.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 <a href="https://t.co/eHDjDdKjsm">pic.twitter.com/eHDjDdKjsm</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1978635415507644451?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Sanders went on to claim — with encouragement from Ocasio-Cortez — that President Donald Trump was ordering Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers to enforce federal immigration policy because he wanted legal citizens to live in fear that they, too, could be plucked off the streets without any notice.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Crazy Bernie says ICE raids — in which some of the most dangerous criminals on earth have been taken off American streets — are “about a movement toward authoritarianism.”
Absolutely deranged. <a href="https://t.co/wUoaPsrk9v">pic.twitter.com/wUoaPsrk9v</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1978640477168578733?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Things only got worse for Sanders after that, when a member of the audience — student Rohan Naval — asked him to explain how the shutdown would ultimately reflect on Senator Chuck Schumer&#8217;s (D-NY) leadership.
&#8220;I think it reflects more on [House Speaker] Mike Johnson&#8217;s leadership,&#8221; Sanders replied, failing to mention the fact that Johnson had gotten the clean CR passed in his chamber. &#8220;And President Trump&#8217;s leadership. This is a leadership that said it&#8217;s okay to — well, how do you feel? You tell me. Do you think it&#8217;s a good idea to give a trillion dollars in tax breaks to the richest people in the country and then make massive cuts to health care for working-class people?&#8221;
&#8220;I think Chuck Schumer has voted for continuing resolutions 13 times in the last four years, and he has the opportunity to vote for one again, but he‘s refusing to come to the table,&#8221; Naval responded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Crazy Bernie just got wrecked on national television 🤣 <a href="https://t.co/G5Emm2gY6v">pic.twitter.com/G5Emm2gY6v</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1978641695760662647?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;As I have said, there are 53 Republicans in the Senate, correct? They need 60. What does that mean? It means you have to talk to the other side. Mike Johnson is not talking. John Thune is not talking. President Trump is not talking. That is the problem,&#8221; Sanders complained — but thus far, Democrats have not proposed compromises, and have instead made a list of demands that would undo provisions of duly passed legislation (the Big Beautiful Bill in particular) that they dislike.

Bernie Sanders And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Hold “Fighting Oligarchy” Rally In L.A.

Democrats Send Least Effective Messengers Possible To Defend Shutdown Stand-Off

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Chuck Schumer

Congress

Schumer Shutdown

CNN’s chief data analyst warned on Wednesday that the Democrats were quickly losing ground — and a lot of it — in their battle to retake control of the House of Representatives after the 2026 midterm elections.
Harry Enten joined anchor Kate Bolduan on CNN News Central, where he broke down the latest polls and addressed the possibility that Republicans — who currently have the slimmest of majorities in the House — could remain in control of the lower chamber after 2026.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Democrats&#8217; chance of taking the House in 2026 have plummeted, while GOP chances have skyrocketed over the last 6 months&#8230;
Why?
1. Dems aren&#8217;t keeping up with the pace they set in 2017 on the generic ballot.
2. GOP may be looking at big gains from mid-decade redistricting. <a href="https://t.co/iauGwkTmp2">pic.twitter.com/iauGwkTmp2</a>
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) <a href="https://twitter.com/ForecasterEnten/status/1978469463415755117?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“If you go back six months ago, you go back to April, Kate Bolduan, what were we looking at?” Enten began. “Well, we were looking at the Democrats with a very clear shot at taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives, according to the Kalshi prediction market odds. We saw them with an 83% chance. But those odds have gone plummeting down — now we’re talking about just a 63% chance while the GOP’s chances, up like a rocket … up from 17% to now a 37% chance.”
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“So what looked like a pretty clear, likely Democratic win in the House come next year has become much closer to a toss-up at this point, although still slightly leaning Democratic,” he added.
When Bolduan asked him to explain what was going wrong, he noted that Democrats were not gaining ground the way they did during the 2017 run-up to President Donald Trump’s first midterm elections in 2018. They also discussed the potential impact of new district maps that so far appear to favor Republicans.
The party in power — in this case, the Republican Party — typically loses seats during midterm elections, but that is not always the case. Most notably, then-President George W. Bush saw a gain of eight House seats and two Senate seats in 2002. By 2006, the political wind had changed dramatically, however, and he saw massive losses: Democrats gained 32 House seats and six Senate seats, taking control of both chambers for the last two years of Bush’s presidency.

Protesters Demonstrate In Philadelphia During The Democratic National Convention

‘Odds Have Gone Plummeting Down’: CNN Data Guru Says Democrat Hopes Of Flipping House Are Fading

CNN Data Guru Says Democrat Hopes Of Flipping House Are Fading

2026 Midterms

Washington Post columnist Shadi Hamid said on Monday that Israel cannot — and should not — root out every member of the terrorist group Hamas as it begins to implement the provisions of the peace deal brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Hamid was speaking with CNN anchor Brianna Keilar about the still-unfolding situation in Gaza when he argued that Israel should offer amnesty to &#8220;low-level&#8221; members of Hamas who have agreed to lay down their weapons — and those &#8220;who were not implicated in October 7.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
On CNN, Washington Post columnist Shadi Hamid says Israel &#8220;shouldn&#8217;t kill low-level members of Hamas, people who where not implicated in October 7&#8221; because &#8220;Hamas is a popular movement&#8221; and must be integrated into the new Gaza government. <a href="https://t.co/27I823cqHN">pic.twitter.com/27I823cqHN</a>
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickFondacaro/status/1977808584512844004?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;How do you disarm Hamas – that is not quite clear how that&#8217;s to be worked out,&#8221; he began. &#8220;But also it&#8217;s good that in the 20-point plan there is a path for Hamas who commit to peaceful coexistence and give up their arms to get amnesty or to get safe passage out of Gaza, because at the end of the day, there are still going to be – there still will be a significant Hamas presence, so you can&#8217;t just pretend they don&#8217;t exist. And you can&#8217;t eradicate every single member of Hamas, nor should you, that would just be — that didn&#8217;t even happen, not that I like this comparison too much —&#8221;
&#8220;You say &#8216;nor should you,'&#8221; Keilar appeared to be taken aback. &#8220;Your case for that is what?&#8221;
&#8220;I mean you can&#8217;t — you shouldn&#8217;t kill, like, low-level members of Hamas, people who were not implicated in October 7th,&#8221; Hamid asserted. &#8220;October 7th was done by a small group of senior military commanders — Israel should have the right to kill them, and has killed many of them if not most of them, right? So — but Hamas is a popular movement and there has to be some way to bring in the low-level members into the political process because you don&#8217;t want them to play spoiler.&#8221;
&#8220;If they feel like they have no path forward, if they feel — you don&#8217;t want them to go back to arms again or to find ways to kind of undermine the path toward a kind of peaceful settlement,&#8221; he continued, comparing Hamas to the Nazis in post-war Germany. &#8220;And even if you take the example of denazification, low- and mid-level members of the Nazi Party were reintegrated into German society. It&#8217;s not as if everyone was imprisoned or executed, because you can&#8217;t do that at such a large scale. If you&#8217;re talking about a movement that has tens of thousands of people and many more sympathizers, you have to find a way to bring people into the process and integrate them.&#8221;
The peace deal currently being implemented stops short of forcing Hamas out altogether despite Israel&#8217;s repeated insistence that Hamas cannot be allowed to govern in Gaza.

TRT World Forum 2019

‘Hamas Is A Popular Movement’: WaPo Reporter Tells CNN ‘Low-Level’ Terrorists Should Get To Stay

'Hamas Is A Popular Movement': WaPo Reporter Tells CNN 'Low-Level' Terrorists Should Get To Stay

Hamas

Israel

October 7

Veteran CNN international anchor Christiane Amanpour claimed that she believed Israeli hostages — released on Monday after just over two years in captivity under the control of Hamas terrorists — were likely treated better than Gazan civilians as Hamas and Israel waged war on each other.
Amanpour argued that the hostages, to Hamas militants, had more value than civilians did because they could be used as leverage in negotiations. She left out the fact that Hamas had killed a number of the hostages outright, leverage or not.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
CNN’s Christine Amanpour: “The Israeli hostages have probably been treated better than the average Gazan because they are the pawns &amp; chips that Hamas had.”
Evyatar David was quite literally forced to dig his own grave.
Absolutely unacceptable from CNN.<a href="https://t.co/ji5ShHpeOG">pic.twitter.com/ji5ShHpeOG</a>
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) <a href="https://twitter.com/EYakoby/status/1977766186692538620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I pretty much can assure you that one, that once those doors are opened, it will be a scene of absolute, abject horror,&#8221; she began. &#8220;And I think for sure, people who start to talk to the hostages who have only just been released, will find that it will take a long, long time for them to recover physically, but also mentally.&#8221;
&#8220;It’s been a terrible, terrible two years for them, because not only are they there — you know, they’re probably being treated better than the average Gazan, because they are the pawns and the chips that Hamas had,&#8221; she added. &#8220;Now, Hamas has given up all of its leverage, by the way, by giving them all up. So that is a victory for the Israeli side. But they will have had so much horror and terror as well, because they were also in the war zone, many of them underground, we understand.&#8221;
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A number of critics pushed back on Amanpour&#8217;s assessment, sharing photos and stories of hostages who might take a different view.
&#8220;CNN’s Christine Amanpour said that the Israeli hostages were treated well. Here is Evyatar David completely emaciated, as Hamas forces him to dig his own grave,&#8221; one posted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
CNN’s Christine Amanpour said that the Israeli hostages were treated well.
Here is Evyatar David completely emaciated, as Hamas forces him to dig his own grave. <a href="https://t.co/9AhVAEZNkw">pic.twitter.com/9AhVAEZNkw</a>
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) <a href="https://twitter.com/EYakoby/status/1977739182706495709?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;What on earth are you talking about?? The hostages were starved, tortured, and subjected to sexual violence. Your words are Hamas propaganda on steroids,&#8221; a post from Israel&#8217;s Foreign Ministry declared.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/amanpour?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amanpour</a> what on earth are you talking about?? 
The hostages were starved, tortured, and subjected to sexual violence. 
Your words are Hamas propaganda on steroids. <a href="https://t.co/hGQepIZNot">pic.twitter.com/hGQepIZNot</a>
— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) <a href="https://twitter.com/IsraelMFA/status/1977777212829979028?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;@amanpour knows the hostages did not receive the aid Israel allowed into Gaza or medicines that were specifically sent to them. This is either just a brain malfunction or something much more disturbing,&#8221; Joel Pollak posted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/amanpour?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amanpour</a> knows the hostages did not receive the aid Israel allowed into Gaza or medicines that were specifically sent to them. This is either just a brain malfunction or something much more disturbing. <a href="https://t.co/Cs0AFVc5gK">https://t.co/Cs0AFVc5gK</a>
— Joel Pollak (@joelpollak) <a href="https://twitter.com/joelpollak/status/1977747024821834039?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Christiane Amanpour

CNN Reporter Claims Israeli Hostages Were Likely ‘Treated Better’ Than Gazan Civilians

CNN Reporter Claims Israeli Hostages Were Likely 'Treated Better' Than Gazan Civilians

Global Politics

World

President Donald Trump left for Israel on Sunday to celebrate the deal he&#8217;d brokered just days earlier between Israel and Hamas, the terrorist group responsible for the brutal massacre on October 7, 2023. In the days since the agreement was reached, the litmus test has been a simple one: who is willing to give Trump credit for the work he&#8217;s done — and who isn&#8217;t?
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
While there were some on both sides of the political aisle who were willing to acknowledge Trump&#8217;s role in securing a deal to bring the hostages home and ultimately end the war entirely, others tried to qualify his success — or even omit him from the conversation.
Vice President JD Vance, of course, was firmly in Trump&#8217;s corner as he made the rounds on the Sunday morning shows. On ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week,&#8221; he spoke with anchor George Stephanopoulos about phase one of the deal and the return of the last remaining hostages held in Gaza.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Vice President JD Vance confirmed to <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ThisWeekABC</a> anchor George Stephanopoulos that Hamas has said they are holding 20 living hostages, and that those hostages are expected to be released in the next 24 hours. <a href="https://t.co/UfEwC9T1VW">https://t.co/UfEwC9T1VW</a> <a href="https://t.co/m2YM0mFINZ">pic.twitter.com/m2YM0mFINZ</a>
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1977374051581530562?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Vance took a similar tone with &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; host Margaret Brennan on CBS, telling her, &#8220;The president is actually traveling to the Middle East, likely this evening, in order to meet them and greet them in person. It&#8217;s a big day for their families, but I think more importantly, it&#8217;s a big day for the entire world.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Vice President JD Vance says he is “very confident” the Israeli hostages will be released by Monday’s deadline.
“The president is actually traveling to the Middle East, likely this evening, in order to meet them and greet them in person. It&#8217;s a big day for their families, but I… <a href="https://t.co/GHr02lZ1z6">pic.twitter.com/GHr02lZ1z6</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1977386745722245598?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also spoke to Brennan and expressed confidence in Trump&#8217;s deal. &#8220;We are very hopeful that the first phase will be completed in all honesty,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We are in full contact with the Palestinians, with Hamas, because it’s all about, of course, releasing the hostages and for Israel, releasing some of the Palestinian detainees.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty says Egypt is “confident the first phase of the Trump peace plan will be implemented,” telling <a href="https://twitter.com/margbrennan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@margbrennan</a> “we are very hopeful that the first phase will be completed in all honesty” from Israel and Hamas.
“We are in full contact with… <a href="https://t.co/J1ncn5MvTq">pic.twitter.com/J1ncn5MvTq</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1977400339612483731?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Senator Chris Murphy, however, couldn&#8217;t bring himself to directly credit Trump with the win — even when asked point blank by Brennan whether the deal marked something upon which he could agree with the president.
&#8220;I congratulate the negotiators on getting this done. There&#8217;s no politics about this moment,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But you watch those devastating images of what Gaza looks like today, and it&#8217;s both heartbreaking and infuriating that this deal has been on the table for over a year. So again, this will be a good week, but as you have reported, there are big issues to come. Israel is not fully pulling out of Gaza. There is no clear path forward on what the security and governance force is going to look like inside that country.&#8221;
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In reaction to the first phase of the peace deal between Israel and Hamas, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) says “I congratulate the negotiators on getting this done. There&#8217;s no politics about this moment.”
“But you watch those devastating images of what Gaza looks like today, and it&#8217;s… <a href="https://t.co/Yz2SjimNgv">pic.twitter.com/Yz2SjimNgv</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1977408024877707484?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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CNN anchor Dana Bash also asked her guests whether Trump deserved some credit for securing the deal. Senator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/he-worked-this-out-senate-dem-admits-trump-deserves-a-lot-of-credit-for-gaza-deal">Mark Kelly</a> (D-AZ) told her that Trump &#8220;should get a lot of credit&#8221; for making it happen.
&#8220;I think he should get a lot of credit. I mean, this was his deal,” Kelly replied. “He worked this out. He sent [Middle East Envoy] Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner over to negotiate this. And so far, it’s gone well. Hopefully, the hostages get released here — might not be within 24 hours — but certainly, I think, by Monday. And that’s progress. And now we’re going to have to see what happens next.&#8221;
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Sen. Mark Kelly on ceasefire deal in Gaza: I think Trump &#8220;should get a lot of credit.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/iFopebsXTI">pic.twitter.com/iFopebsXTI</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1977373195628941468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Former President Joe Biden&#8217;s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan was also quick to agree that Trump had earned credit by securing the ceasefire. Bash recalled Kelly&#8217;s interview and asked Sullivan whether he agreed that Trump should be lauded for getting the deal across the finish line. &#8220;Of course he does,&#8221; Sullivan said.
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Former Biden National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on whether Trump deserves credit for ceasefire deal in Gaza: &#8220;Of course he does.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/enthxBCStL">pic.twitter.com/enthxBCStL</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1977380978344538545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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CNN guest Jamal Simmons attempted to split the baby, qualifying Trump&#8217;s success: &#8220;The problem that we see is, on one side is Donald Trump solving or doing a great job in bringing people together around the world around some of these peace issues, while at the same time dividing people at home.&#8221;
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“The problem that we see is, on one side is Donald Trump solving or doing a great job in bringing people together around the world around some of these peace issues, while at the same time dividing people at home.”
Jamal Simmons, Scott Jennings, Nayyera Haq, and Rebeccah… <a href="https://t.co/TfVoGrgFyO">pic.twitter.com/TfVoGrgFyO</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/1977392744906502336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Even former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/obama-snubs-trump-over-israel-hamas-peace-deal">Barack Obama</a> took some heat for praising the deal without even acknowledging who had brought it about.

TOPSHOT-US-ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-TRUMP-NETANYAHU-CONFLICT-DIPLOMACY

Spin Cycle: The Gaza Litmus Test — And Who Is Passing It

Benjamin Netanyahu

Fox News Sunday

Hostages

Legacy media outlets appear to have absolutely zero curiosity when it comes to the text-message scandal building around Jay Jones — the current Democratic nominee for state attorney general in Virginia — as evidenced by the glaring lack of coverage they gave it on the Sunday morning political talk shows.
For those who don&#8217;t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week&#8217;s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.
This week, what was most notable about media coverage across the networks was not where the spin was so mush as where it wasn&#8217;t. Less than 48 hours had passed since the texts — sent by Jones in 2022 and containing overt statements advocating for the assassination of a political opponent — went viral, and in that time, not one national Democrat had publicly condemned Jones or called for him to step out of the race. Despite all that, not one host of one show — &#8220;This Week&#8221; on ABC, &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; on CBS, &#8220;Meet the Press&#8221; on NBC, or &#8220;State of the Union&#8221; on CNN — raised the question with their guests.
The topic did come up once — on &#8220;Meet the Press&#8221; — but it was one of the guests who mentioned it during a panel discussion. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-biden-adviser-blows-off-despicable-jay-jones-texts-a-private-conversation">Marc Short</a>, who served as former Vice President Mike Pence&#8217;s chief of staff, mentioned Jones in the context of the many Democrats who had spent days in a public group meltdown over a few memes featuring House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) with a fake mustache and a sombrero.
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BONKERS. Neera Tanden excuses Virginia Democrat AG candidate Jay Jones calling for the assassination of a Republican leader and his kids as just merely just a “private conversation.”
Utterly disgraceful. 🤡🤡🤡🤡 
<a href="https://t.co/N5KEyFZHPU">pic.twitter.com/N5KEyFZHPU</a>
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) <a href="https://twitter.com/SteveGuest/status/1974871008147616176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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“Can we stop with the pearl-clutching about the mean tweets and the sombrero tweets?” he asked. “This week it came to light that a Democrat candidate for attorney general in the state of Virginia called for the assassination of a political opponent, called for the assassination of that political opponent’s family, and there’s not one national Democrat calling for him to step aside — not one! It’s disgraceful.”
Host Kristen Welker conceded that the text scandal was likely to become a bigger story — but gave no insight as to why, if she believed that to be true, she had not raised the question herself. She then pivoted to Neera Tanden, who worked in former President Joe Biden&#8217;s White House, to address the situation.
&#8220;I mean, I absolutely think people should criticize that, 100%,” Tanden began, but then almost immediately attempted to turn the argument back on President Donald Trump. &#8220;I think it was a private conversation he had, but still awful and disgusting … it should be condemned, but then we should condemn that, but then you should condemn when the president calls the Democratic Party the ‘party of satan.&#8217;”
After some cross talk from both Short and Tanden, Short once again stressed his original point: that not one national Democrat had come out to condemn Jones or call for his resignation.
&#8220;The fact that not one Democrat has stood up when he called for a political assassination in this moment of political violence is crazy,&#8221; he said.
Jones had sent the texts in question three years earlier, in 2022, calling for former state House Speaker Todd Gilbert (R-VA) to be murdered. “Three people, two bullets. Gilbert, Hitler and Pol Pot. Gilbert gets two bullets to the head,” Jones texted to Del. Carrie Coyner (R) at the time. “Spoiler: put Gilbert in the crew with the two worst people you know and he receives both bullets every time.”
In other messages, he&#8217;d also claimed that Gilbert would not change his political positions unless he and his wife had to watch one of their children die — and that he&#8217;d attend the funerals of Republican lawmakers in order to &#8220;piss on their graves.&#8221;
Vice President JD Vance also noted the lack of Democrats distancing themselves from Jones and his vile text messages, saying, &#8220;The Democrat candidate for AG in Virginia has been fantasizing about murdering his political opponents in private messages. I&#8217;m sure the people hyperventilating about sombrero memes will join me in calling for this very deranged person to drop out of the race.&#8221;
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The Democrat candidate for AG in Virginia has been fantasizing about murdering his political opponents in private messages. I&#8217;m sure the people hyperventilating about sombrero memes will join me in calling for this very deranged person to drop out of the race. <a href="https://t.co/ZapsWc9VFG">https://t.co/ZapsWc9VFG</a>
— JD Vance (@JDVance) <a href="https://twitter.com/JDVance/status/1974549343744205204?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2025</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/not-funny-trump-trashes-jay-jones-over-sick-and-demented-texts-advocating-political-violence">President Trump</a> also called for Jones to exit the race &#8220;immediately,&#8221; endorsing his opponent Attorney General Jason Miyares (R-VA) and adding, &#8220;It has just come out that the Radical Left Lunatic, Jay Jones, who is running against Jason Miyares, the GREAT Attorney General in Virginia, made SICK and DEMENTED jokes, if they were jokes at all, which were not funny, and that he wrote down and sent around to people, concerning the murdering of a Republican Legislator, his wife, and their children.&#8221;
And in the state of Virginia, the situation is even worse — in addition to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-dems-say-candidate-who-fantasized-about-murdering-gop-leader-is-better-than-republicans">not condemning Jones</a>, a number have either remained entirely silent on the issue or have come out and said that no matter what he&#8217;d said in the past, the current race was too important to allow a Republican to win.
<a href="https://x.com/jaaavis/status/1974237981268381718?s=46" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Louise Lucas</a>, president pro tempore of the Virginia Senate and a marijuana dispensary co-owner, said in a statement, “There is no place for political violence or violent rhetoric in our public discourse, and Jay must take accountability for his actions. But we will not allow this moment to overshadow the stakes of this election. … The choice before us is far bigger than this mistake.”

Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) campaigns as the Democratic nominee in the Virginia’s governor’s race.

Spin Cycle: Jay Who? Sunday Shows Black Out Dem Scandal Rocking Virginia

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