Politics and views in the United States

Trump levels anti-Islamic and anti-communits attacks. A Montana Democratic candidate refuses to clear the way for a popular independent and dark money floods into Minnesota.

Transcript

Welcome to 2026 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

Well, the one thing is we have jihadists being elected all over the place.

We have this, whether it's communism, jihadism.

President Donald Trump leveled new versions of old attacks on surging Democratic progressives.

The president accuses Michigan Senate nominee Dr. Abdul El-Sayed of being both a jihadist and a communist, even though those are contradictory.

With personal insults also hurled at Georgia Senator John Ossoff and Texas nominee James Tallarico, Democrats say the campaign is already taking an ugly and desperate tone.

Democratic Senate nominees in Idaho, Nebraska, and South Dakota have all stepped aside to make way for independent candidates with a good chance of beating their Republican opponents.

But that's not happening in Montana.

Democrat and Air Force veteran Alani Bankhead says she's staying on the ballot against Republican Kurt Almy and independent Seth Bodner, who also says he's staying in the race.

My commitment to this race never depended on who was in or who was out.

My commitment is and always has been to the people of Montana.

Bodner, an Army veteran and president of the University of Montana, nearly won a Senate seat last time.

He's been endorsed by former Senator John Tester, and polling shows he has a small edge in a head-to-head matchup with a Republican.

Last week's Michigan Democratic Senate primary broke a record for spending, with outside groups and super PACs putting in nearly $70 million.

That pattern is continuing in the Minnesota Senate primary.

Outside groups have spent more than $20 million in the contest between Progressive Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan and moderate Congresswoman Angie Craig.

The split in the Democratic Party has drawn a lot of heat, but Mary Hartnett with Clean Elections Minnesota says the trend dates back to Citizens United.

It's one of the biggest issues that we have in this country.

I think it's just been a steady beat and it just continues to get worse.

A Washington state ballot measure backed by a hedge fund manager that aims to repeal Washington's millionaire tax has suffered a setback.

A court there just approved its ballot description that says it would cut funding for education and human services.

Andrew Villeneuve with the Northwest Progressive Institute says voters need to understand its real financial impacts.

Once they're told how the services are affected, it changes how they think about the measure because now they have a balanced look at it.

And with that balanced look, they can make a decision that's far more informed than they would have made otherwise.

Cook Political Report has shifted Ohio Republican Congressman Max Miller's race to a toss-up.

Miller is refusing calls from his own party to quit the campaign, denying serious accusations from his wife that he physically abused her and their daughter.

Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy is opposing a Trump executive order changing childhood vaccine recommendations.

Cassidy, a doctor, says Trump has no expertise and calls the order wrong.

Florida's attorney general is using a unique workaround to try and access internal New York Times editorial documents.

Since the state's retirement fund holds Time stock, Florida says they have a right to see how stories are reviewed, arguing it could open them up to lawsuits.

I'm Zamone Perez for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.