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President Donald Trump held back-to-back rallies in Texas Tuesday, where he falsely claimed Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico is vegan and gushed over Ohio GOP Sen. Jon Husted’s rear once again.
At his first stop in Corpus Christi, Trump mocked Talarico: “You ever see him go to a barbecue and he’s trying to show, ‘I love the meat. Ahhh.’ And then you see him – where is he? He’s behind the tent puking.”
Talarico has denied claims that he is secretly vegan, a grave offense in America’s barbecue heartland.
At the same event, Trump suggested making Venezuela the “51st state.”
He then appeared in Lubbock, where he couldn’t help but revisit his story about examining Husted’s body.
“I made the mistake of saying – that I started off by studying his a**,” the president said. “And then I looked at his feet, and they were massive. Then I looked at his hands… He has fingers like sausages.”
The president was in Texas to drum up support for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton and others ahead of next week’s midterm elections.
Surveys indicate the Republican Party could sustain severe losses on November 3, potentially costing them their congressional majorities.
Former press secretary Katie Zacharia says she would do it all again
The president’s short-lived spokeswoman continues to make conservative media appearances insisting she nurtures no ill feelings about her five days in the White House.
Joe Sommerlad28 October 2026 11:00
Trump’s energy secretary said president is about ‘driving energy prices down’ as Iran war keeps them high
Chris Wright defended the Trump administration’s economic record during a Tuesday appearance on Fox News, arguing that the president was focused on lowering energy costs – despite high gas prices being driven by the Iran war.
Jasmine Fernandez has the story.
Joe Sommerlad28 October 2026 10:30
Watch: Trump talks Iran, ‘environmental horses***’ and pirate ships at Texas rallies
The president was on typically idiosyncratic form last night and here are a few choice clips you might have missed from his appearances in Corpus Christi and Lubbock, covering such topics as the above mentioned plus Abdul El-Sayed, how to spell “Dumocrats” and the plot of Les Miserables.
Joe Sommerlad28 October 2026 10:00
Trump says oil-rich Venezuela could soon become America’s 51st state
Here’s more on the president’s suggestion that the Central American state whose president he captured and extradited in January could join the United States, a comment made as part of a brag about an oil tanker that, he said, can hold a million barrels of oil.
Joe Sommerlad28 October 2026 09:30
Trump takes credit for Netanyahu election performance
Over on Truth Social, the president has been taking credit for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanayhu’s performance in Tuesday’s Knesset election.
There is not yet a clear winner in the election, which is the first time Israelis have headed to the polls since the October 7 attacks.
Trump nevertheless posted a quote attributed to one Irving C Schwartz that read:
“When President Trump endorsed Bibi Netanyahu, the whole tide turned, and now, rather than a decisive defeat for a Great Prime Minister, it looks like a big come-from-behind stalemate, or even a WIN for Netanyahu. It all took place AFTER the Endorsement by President Trump, who only wants what is good for the Middle East, Israel, and the United States of America!”
Here’s more from Owen Scott.
Joe Sommerlad28 October 2026 09:00
Democrats are leading Republicans by 11 points in House races
More likely voters would vote for the Democratic candidate, 52 percent, than the Republican candidate, 41 percent, in races for the House of Representatives in their district, according to a new New York Times/Siena University poll.
Some House Republicans have secretly admitted that they will lose the majority this November, according to a Politico report published earlier this month.
“President Trump has made this election all about himself,” one GOP lawmaker said. “Now we have to survive that political storm.”
Rachel Dobkin28 October 2026 08:30
Seeing double? Paxton makes brief remarks at rally dressed like Trump
After Donald Trump repeatedly mocked Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s fashion sense, the Republican Senate candidate showed up at a rally dressed like the president.
Both of them wore a navy blue suit with a red tie as they stood on stage in Corpus Christi Tuesday afternoon.
“Isn’t he amazing?” Paxton said of Trump to cheers from the crowd. “Mr. President, I’m so grateful to have you here in Texas.
“You are making a difference, not just for Texas, but he’s traveling the country. I’ve never seen anybody work harder.”
Rachel Dobkin28 October 2026 08:02
Trump says his supporters wouldn’t be able to afford a hamburger at Mar-a-Lago
President Donald Trump invited his Texas supporters to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida — then he retracted the offer, saying they couldn’t even afford a hamburger there.
As Americans struggle to afford necessities like gas and groceries, Trump told the crowd at a rally in Corpus Christi not to go to Mar-a-Lago, saying, “It’s not a good place if you’re price-conscious.”
The president was talking about his promise of $5,000 checks to Americans if Republicans keep control of Congress after next week’s midterm elections.
“You could even come to Mar-a-Lago,” Trump said Tuesday afternoon. “You’ll be my guest at Mar-a-Lago. The problem is that for $5,000 the most you’ll be able to buy is a hamburger and maybe a small dessert.
“I’m not even sure you could buy that! No, don’t go there. It’s not a good place if you’re price-conscious.”
Rachel Dobkin28 October 2026 07:06
Democrats’ two-word response to JD Vance asking Americans for ‘another chance’ ahead of midterms
The Democratic Party gave a two-word response to Vice President JD Vance asking Americans for “another chance” ahead of the midterm elections.
The party’s X account reacted to clip of Vance on the All In podcast last month, in which he asked voters, “Give us another chance or give us another couple of years to continue to work on the amazing things we’ve been doing for the last two years.”
”Absolutely not,” the Democrats told Vance in an X post Tuesday.
Rachel Dobkin28 October 2026 06:03
Jon Husted makes Trump the butt of the joke
Republican Ohio Senator Jon Husted joined in on the jokes about his body, telling supporters that he’s been “working out” ahead of President Donald Trump’s latest visit.
Trump has repeatedly commented on Husted’s looks, saying that he “examined his a**.”
“The president is coming in tomorrow again to Ohio,” Husted said at an event Tuesday. “Don’t worry, I was in the weight room this morning working out. I don’t want to let him down.”
Rachel Dobkin28 October 2026 05:01