Midterms Are Months Away But So Much On The Line For Democrats In Coming Weeks
Party's future direction hinges on these internal choices
Conservatives Are Driving Out RINOs From The Senate
John Cornyn’s defeat was another strong message sent by Republican primary voters: fail the MAGA movement at your own political peril.Spencer Pratt’s viral campaign is turning into a political nightmare for Karen Bass
What began as an unconventional celebrity campaign is quickly becoming one of the most disruptive political movements in California.
Spencer Pratt, whose home was destroyed during the Pacific Palisades Fire, has emerged as an unlikely challenger to Los Angeles’ political establishment — and his relentless viral campaign targeting Mayor Karen Bass is gaining serious traction.
And BlazeTV host Pat Gray is seriously impressed with what Pratt has accomplished so far.
“If you’ve not been following the mayoral race in Los Angeles, it has really heated up. It’s unbelievable what’s happening with Spencer Pratt,” Gray comments.
“The guy has run a brilliant campaign with these creative ads that have gone viral all over the place, and it seems like there’s a new one every day,” he says.
“And I really hope he wins because Los Angeles used to be a beautiful city, a great place to visit. I’m sure it was a great place to live. But look at it now. I mean, he pointed out some of the issues with the feces in the street and the homeless encampments,” he adds.
In the aftermath of Pratt’s creative ads, Bass is facing increasingly critical questions from the media about the state of the city.
“When you talked to Jake Tapper in 2023, you said that your goal was to end street homelessness in L.A. by 2026. It’s now 2026,” a reporter on "60 Minutes" said to Bass in an interview.
“And we haven’t ended it,” Bass interrupted, laughing.
“And we’re not close to ending it,” the reporter interjected, asking, “How were you so off?”
“Well, basically, when I said that, it was at the beginning of my term. I am very committed to achieving that goal. I didn’t anticipate some of the bureaucratic barriers that I would experience, but I am prepared to take those on now,” Bass responded.
“So,” Gray comments, “What she is saying is, ‘I’ve really sucked up until this point, but I’m going to be great.’”
In another part of the interview, Bass championed the “42,000 units of affordable housing” she has fast-tracked, claiming, “It still takes a couple years.”
“So basically the policy of L.A. city and L.A. county was we could accept street homelessness as long as we were building. We didn’t anticipate the problem metastasizing,” she continued.
Bass went on to claim that they “know what we need to do now to end street homelessness.”
“We need to end the failed policies of the past, which is, ‘All we’re going to do is focus on building. And we are going to ignore street homelessness.’ That is what the city and the county has done for years,” she explained.
“That’s insane,” Gray comments.
“If you buy into that, wow, you’ll get what you deserve,” he adds.
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Thomas Massie files for 2028 political campaign
Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky has filed for a political campaign in 2028 but says he has not decided whether to run.
Massie, a self-identified libertarian, lost the Republican primary campaign for Kentucky's 4th Congressional District to Ed Gallrein, a Navy SEAL veteran backed by President Donald Trump.
'This allows me to raise funds to continue my political operations supporting my position.'
"I filed with FEC for the 2028 House race," Massie wrote on his social media account on Tuesday.
"This allows me to raise funds to continue my political operations supporting my position as a current office holder and as a potential candidate for federal office," he added. "I haven't made a final decision about which office to seek, if I run."
The Republican campaign for the 4th Congressional District was the most expensive primary election for a House seat ever.
Gallrein is likely to easily win the seat in the heavily Republican district.
"The uniparty in D.C. finally found someone willing to be a rubber stamp for globalist billionaires, endless debt, foreign aid, and forever wars in failed candidate and Lindsey Graham donor Ed Gallrein," Massie said about his competitor.
Gallrein accused Massie of "burning every bridge" in Washington and voting against the president's political agenda.
RELATED: Thomas Massie’s viral Epstein poll reveals stunning top belief: He lives
Massie has been in office since 2012 and called the primary election an "inflection point" for the entire country. He also blamed campaign donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee for turning what he said would be an easy victory into a loss for him.
"He was a bad guy. He deserves to lose," Trump said about Massie.
Despite Massie's recent loss, his supporters still have hope for his political future. Even during his concession speech the night of the primary, the crowd encouraged him to run for president in 2028.
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GOP congressman sort of reappears after going AWOL for months, missing over 100 votes
Tom Kean Jr. — one of former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean's twin sons — secured a seat in Congress in 2022 after serving for two decades as a Republican state senator. He is now running for re-election to represent the Garden State's 7th Congressional District.
While Kean, whom President Donald Trump endorsed last May and touted as a "Tremendous Advocate of our America First Agenda," has urged constituents in social media posts to vote for him, he hasn't voted on their behalf in Congress since March 5, missing over 100 roll-call votes.
'I understand the need for public transparency.'
Amid mounting speculation about his disappearance from work and public life, the 57-year-old Republican released a statement in late April thanking his "constituents and colleagues for their patience" as he addresses "a personal medical issue."
"My doctors continue to assure me that my recovery will be complete and that I will be back to the job I love very soon," said Kean. "I expect to return to a full schedule and be at 100 percent. I take my responsibilities seriously and have a strong record of showing up and delivering, which makes this absence all the more difficult."
Neither Kean nor his campaign have revealed the nature of the medical issue. His office did not respond to Blaze News' request for comment.
"Nobody knows what's going on," Mary Melfoi, the Republican clerk of Hunterdon County, told Politico. "I've never seen a lid on anything tighter in my life."
"Everybody's hopeful that whatever's going on is being addressed and he's going to come back," continued Melfoi. "But we're not going around saying 'Who do you think we should replace him with?'"
RELATED: Democrat voters in Georgia want nothing to do with Trump-hating ex-Republican
Although apparently still actively trading stocks, Kean wasn't seen or heard from for nearly another month after issuing the April statement. This continued absence prompted Democrats to increasingly like their chances of flipping the seat — an apparent "toss-up" even before he took a leave of absence — that Kean took in the last election with 51.8% of the vote.
Zoe Heath, Democrat chair of Sussex County, said that some of her fellow travelers figure Kean is doomed to lose, noting that "some Democrats are being incredibly cocky about this."
Tina Shah, an anti-ICE liberal supported by the Hindu America PAC and Indian American IMPACT who is among the Democrats vying to face off with Kean, evidenced a willingness to politically exploit the Republican's absence.
"What we are being assured is that his team is carrying the torch," Shah said during a debate earlier this month. "But we elected Tom Kean Jr., not his team."
Kean finally piped up last week, reaching out to a handful of Republican allies and telling the New Jersey Globe in a May 21 phone interview, "My doctors are confident that I’m on the road to a full recovery."
The congressman claimed that his medical issue would not affect his cognitive health, that he is not expected to suffer any long-term effects or chronic health complications, and that he plans to "return to voting and to the campaign trail" sometime in the next couple of weeks.
"I understand the need for public transparency, and I appreciate the support of my constituents," added Kean.
The Globe reported that Kean also spoke last week with Hunterdon County GOP Chairman Gabe Plumer, who said the congressman "sounds great and energized."
Sussex County Republican Chairman Joseph LaBarbera also received a call from the absent congressman last week.
"I asked him if he needed anything," LaBarbera told the Times. The chairman recalled Kean replying, "Just your prayers."
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'Friend' of President Trump advances to Georgia Republican Senate primary runoff
The president likes him "a lot," but Georgia voters still have to prove they agree.
Sitting U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) took home the most votes in the Georgia GOP primary for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, but it was not enough to secure an outright nomination.
'28 more days of putting the hammer down!'
Collins was first in the primary, but since he did not garner 50% of the vote, he will have to go head-to-head against runner-up Derek Dooley in a runoff election on June 16. Collins finished with nearly 41% of the vote, while Dooley had about 30%, according to CBS News.
"Thank you, Georgia. Love y'all. 28 more days of putting the hammer down!" Collins wrote on X after securing the most votes in the primary.
Collins was considered the favorite as a MAGA-style Republican and led polls by an average of 11.5 points between April and May.
The 58-year-old also received an unofficial endorsement from President Donald Trump in February, but it is unclear how much that endorsement helped him.
A video posted February 19 showed Trump telling supporters, "He's a friend of mine. He's a good guy."
"I like him a lot," Trump added.
RELATED: Early red flag for GOP? Democrats rack up massive Q1 fundraising hauls
The video garnered nearly 1 million views on X, but subsequent polls showed Collins' lead shrank from about +25 in mid-February to just +14 by the end of the month.
Still, Collins was considered to be Trump-aligned, having similar views on immigration and spearheading the Laken Riley Act. As well, Collins voted against aid to Ukraine in October 2023, but voted in favor of Israeli aid the same month.
Dooley, a former football coach for the Tennessee Volunteers, was consistently second or third in polling and was endorsed by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R).
Dooley put out a statement late on Tuesday thanking his voters for their support.
"This campaign has been about putting the people of Georgia first and sending a new type of leader up to D.C. who's in it for the right reasons, and that's to serve," Dooley wrote on X.
"Let's get to work and win this runoff!" he added alongside a photo that featured Gov. Kemp.
Third place went to Rep. Earl "Buddy" Carter (R-Ga.), a former pharmacist and mayor who received approximately 25% of the vote.
Other candidates included businessman and real estate developer John Coyne, as well as Jonathan McColumn, a retired U.S. Army Reserve brigadier general and pastor. Both got less than 5% of the vote.
The winner of Collins vs. Dooley will face off against Democrat Senator Jon Ossoff in November. Ossoff went unopposed in the Democrat primary and has been in office since 2021.
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John Cornyn’s Failure To Fight For The SAVE Act Cost Him Trump’s Endorsement
Republican primary voters want candidates who will fight for the MAGA movement, not institutionalized RINOS who won't.Ex-GOP congressman tries to save Democrats from losing redistricting war — but Hakeem Jeffries doesn't want his help
Rep. Kevin Kiley was elected as a Republican in 2022 to represent California's 3rd district in the U.S. Congress.
After the Golden State's Democratic gerrymander effectively reduced to nil his chances of getting re-elected with an "R" next to his name, Kiley filed to run as an independent in the nonpartisan primary for California's newly drawn 6th district.
'This arms race could create a new norm.'
"I've always seen my role as being an independent voice for our community, holding politicians in Sacramento and Washington accountable to serve my constituents. I answer to you, not party leaders," said Kiley, who had a 77.42% lifetime score in Turning Point Action's rating system.
On his way out the GOP door, the newly minted free agent complained about gerrymandering, noting that "both parties are complicit" and that "political division has become a serious problem for our country."
Kiley — one of the few casualties on the right of the redistricting war that Republicans are now winning in a big way thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Callais — is asking Democrats to help him pass a bill that would prohibit states from engaging in mid-cycle redistricting and changing their congressional maps more than once a decade.
The former Republican told Axios on Wednesday that he has written to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, asking the radical Democrat and his cronies to support a discharge petition that would force a vote on his ban.
"This arms race could create a new norm where maps are redrawn to gain a temporary advantage every two years," Kiley wrote to Jeffries. "The result will be chaos for our democracy: a weakening of representation, a further polarization of Congress, and a deepening of the distrust and division that threaten our country's future."
Some Democratic lawmakers who, like Kiley, are on tilt after having their districts redrawn, are receptive to the idea of a ban.
Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio), for instance, said he'd sign on, noting, "Why wouldn't I? Both parties need to get behind ending this. It's gonna kill the democracy."
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D), whose Kansas City-based district lawmakers transformed last year into a GOP-leaning Missouri seat, is another desperate lawmaker supportive of the ban, stating that "of course" he would sign onto the discharge petition.
Jeffries — whose help Kiley acknowledged was critical to the petition's success — apparently has no interest in helping the independent with his crusade.
Christie Stephenson, a spokeswoman for Jeffries, told Axios, "Kevin Kiley's unserious legislation would supercharge partisan gerrymandering by Red states while putting Democratic-led ones at a serious disadvantage."
"Leader Jeffries has no plans to support it," Stephenson added.
This is at odds with Kiley's statement earlier this month, where he noted, "Minority Leader Jeffries has announced he supports my proposal to prohibit mid-decade redistricting."
Former Democratic Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee (Texas), who passed away in 2024, introduced the same legislation to ban mid-cycle redistricting in the last Congress.
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Republican Indiana state senator has no regrets about redistricting vote
After several of his colleagues in the Indiana state Senate were wiped out in the Republican primary this week, one senator says he has no regrets about his redistricting vote.
Shortly after state Sen. Ron Alting (R-Lafayette) was declared the winner of his primary for District 22 on Tuesday, Alting discussed his vote back in December in favor of a new congressional district map for Indiana, claiming that he hopes some of his constituents will "forgive" him for it.
'I do not regret my vote in favor of redistricting and would vote the same way again if asked to do so.'
"I feel terrible that I let some people down on my vote on redistricting. I hope that I'll be able to make that up to them. But it's an honor, an incredible honor, to represent my hometown and Carroll County," he said, according to Star City News.
On account of these comments, some on social media accused Alting of "flip-flopping" on redistricting and of stabbing President Donald Trump in the back. On April 7, Trump gave Alting his "Complete and Total Endorsement for Re-Election," assuring MAGA voters that Alting "WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!"
RELATED: ‘RINO’ Indiana Senate incumbents lose BIGLY to Trump-endorsed challengers
On Friday, Sen. Alting confirmed to Blaze News that his comments on redistricting had "been taken out of context" and that he still believes voting for redistricting was the right call.
"I know many people were disappointed with my vote in favor of redistricting in December, and I apologized to them for letting them down. I hope they will forgive me for voting in a way that I believe would be beneficial for the entire state," Alting said in a statement.
"However, I do not regret my vote in favor of redistricting and would vote the same way again if asked to do so."
Alting then reiterated that he remains in Trump's corner: "I'd like to thank President Trump for his efforts to keep America strong. I’m extremely proud of his endorsement and have spent a great deal of time promoting his support. Under no circumstances will I distance myself from him."
Trump had previously warned Indiana Senate Republicans that if they did not vote in favor of the new congressional map, he would work to defeat them in the 2026 Republican primary.
He was as good as his word. At least five of the eight "RINOs" who voted against redistricting lost their primary re-election bids, most by significant margins.
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