Democrats are poised to romp in today’s election — easily winning the House and, according to most forecasts, flipping the Senate, too. Yet the party itself is less popular than the IRS. Even the GOP has a better brand, Axios’ Mike Zapler, Alex Thompson and Holly Otterbein write.
Why it matters: There’s a difference between a blowout and a mandate. Confusing the two could tempt Democrats to overread the results and forget the serious credibility problem they still face heading into 2028
The big picture: Democrats have done a lot of things right to position themselves for a big night.
They recruited candidates who’ve put red-state Senate races within grasp. Many of those candidates vastly outraised their Republican opponents.
But polls across the board still show a lesser-of-two-evils election — or, as one Republican tied to President Trump’s political operation described it, a contest of which party voters hate more. Voters are more eager to disempower Trump than to empower Democrats.
By the numbers: Just 29% of registered voters have a positive opinion of the Democratic Party, compared with 38% who view the Republican Party positively, according to a pre-election NBC News poll.
Yet the same poll shows Democrats leading the generic congressional ballot by 7 points, 52% to 45%.Mail-in ballots are processed leading up to the midterm elections at a USPS sorting facility in Golden, Colo., last week. Photo: Kevin Mohatt/Reuters Zoom in: Many Democrats say they’re determined not to repeat the mistake they made after the 2022 midterms. They defied predictions of a red wave and saw it as an endorsement of Joe Biden and their party.
Voters were actually growing angrier, setting the stage for Trump’s comeback in 2024.
Democrats won the House in 2018 and impeached Trump the next year. This time, likely Speaker Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is steering clear of impeachment talk, and his 100-day agenda is focused on affordability.
Others say the party still lacks a winning pitch. “We have no economic message. And if we don’t get one, we’re not going to win,” Democratic strategist Jim Messina told party leaders and operatives at a Third Way gathering in South Carolina earlier this year.
The bottom line: Many top Democrats believe it’ll take a new presidential nominee — and likely one who wins in November 2028 — to fully repair the party’s damaged brand.
Trump: FAKE ALASKA CANDIDATE DANIAL J. SULLIVAN, JR., IS MISSING IN ACTION! HE HAS TOTALLY DISAPPEARED, GONE! NOBODY HAS BEEN ABLE TO FIND HIM. MAYBE HE HAS BEEN “KIDNAPPED” BY THE CORRUPT DUMOCRAT LAWYERS??? THEY ARE SCARED STIFF OF BEING PROSECUTED FOR ELECTION FRAUD!!!
The history of ancient pools and baths spans thousands of years, evolving from sacred ritual tanks to grand social and engineering marvels…
As people have loved swimming and soaking in water since… well, humans have always loved water, from what historical records show. History of pools is a fascinating story in and of itself. From when pools were invented, who first decided that artificial pools were a great idea, and how the swimming pool has evolved since its early beginnings, the history of the swimming pool is a story worth diving into.
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The earliest man-made pools of note were the Great Baths of Mohenjodaro in Pakistan.Built in 2600 BC, give or take a few centuries, the Great Baths were constructed from plaster-covered bricks, sealed with a tar sealant, and surrounded by terraced decks. While the Great Baths certainly sound like a swimming pool, it’s thought people used them primarily for religious reasons. No one was swimming laps at Mohenjodaro, so while definitely an ancient, artificial pool, the Baths don’t quite fit the modern swimming pool definition.
Historians often point to the Greeks and Romans as the first cultures to build pools designed specifically for swimming. In both cultures, bath houses existed, but like Mohenjodaro, they weren’t exactly swimming pools… or were they? According to Archaeology Magazine, Roman culture prioritized physical fitness. Romans in particular were known to exercise at bath houses, even incorporating games (especially ball games, so beach ball isn’t necessarily such a modern concept!) into their visits. Some baths, such as the natatio in Pompeii, are even visually similar to pools today, complete with tile work and decoration.Interestingly, very word natatio exists in modern languages descended from Latin. Natación is the word for swimming in Spanish, and English has its own similar word – natation, though its use has declined significantly since late 1800s.
After Romans, there’s a bit of a gap in history of swimming pools, at least in Western culture. Turns out wars, plagues, and general unrest of Middle Ages weren’t conducive to advances in swimming facilities. It was back to lakes and oceans for swimming fans until middle of 19th Century. The first public indoor swimming pool in England was a salt-water pool called St. George’s Baths, which opened in 1828. By 1837, London boasted six indoor pools. Of course, one can’t talk about swimming in that era without also commenting on the unique poolside fashions of the era. In Bath, ancient peoples embraced the natural hot mineral springs for relaxation and recreation alike. As English community continued to enjoy the waters, local leaders eventually called for some sort of designated swimwear.
Term bathing suit was born out of this… Early bathing suits were, especially for women, on the cumbersome side. They tended toward modesty, and often were constructed with heavy materials like wool. Of course, women eventually rebelled against this heavy, inconvenient fabric, but we’ll wade into that topic shortly.
SAUDI ARABIA TELLS IRAN: WE WILL NOT JOIN A WAR AGAINST YOU. According to Israeli media, Saudi Arabia delivered a clear message to Iranian officials during the recent high-level meeting in Tehran involving representatives from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey: Riyadh does not intend to participate in a war against Iran and will not allow Saudi territory or airspace to be used to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic. In return, Saudi Arabia expects Iran not to attack the Kingdom.
@Beilinson_ENG, performed a lung transplant using robotic surgery — without the traditional opening of the chest and ribs. Through several small incisions, surgeons used the robot to connect the transplanted lung to the patient’s blood vessels and airways. The minimally invasive approach is designed to reduce surgical trauma and potentially improve recovery compared with conventional open-chest transplantation. Another remarkable step forward for Israeli medicine.
ISRAEL PERFORMS ITS FIRST ROBOTIC LUNG TRANSPLANT For the first time in Israel, surgeons at Berlin son Hospital,
@Beilinson_ENG, performed a lung transplant using robotic surgery — without the traditional opening of the chest and ribs. Through several small incisions, surgeons used the robot to connect the transplanted lung to the patient’s blood vessels and airways. The minimally invasive approach is designed to reduce surgical trauma and potentially improve recovery compared with conventional open-chest transplantation. Another remarkable step forward for Israeli medicine.
As Americans prepare to vote in the November 3 midterm elections, the FT’s chief economics commentator Martin Wolf asks what the result will mean for Donald Trump, the future of US democracy and America’s place in the world. In the third of a six-part series, Martin speaks to political scientist and author Barbara F Walter, an expert on civil wars and political violence, about the risk of unrest surrounding the elections. Drawing on her research into countries around the world, Walter explains the warning signs of political violence, and why America’s changing demographics and the struggle to hold on to political power are fuelling divisions. How close is the US to a dangerous tipping point? And can American democracy emerge from the midterms stronger rather than more divided? To enjoy future episodes, be sure to subscribe to ‘Martin Wolf on the World’ wherever you get your podcasts. Host: Martin Wolf Producer: Mischa Frankl-Duval Senior producers: Laurence Knight and Edwin Lane Executive producer: Manuela Saragosa Video editor: Richard Topping Senior Audio Engineer: Breen Turner Broadcast engineers: Andrew Georgiades Podcast development: Laura Clarke FT Global Head of Audio: Flo Phillips
The big picture: Democrats have done a lot of things right to position themselves for a big night.
Mail-in ballots are processed leading up to the midterm elections at a USPS sorting facility in Golden, Colo., last week. Photo: Kevin Mohatt/Reuters
Zoom in: Many Democrats say they’re determined not to repeat the mistake they made after the 2022 midterms. They defied predictions of a red wave and saw it as an endorsement of Joe Biden and their party.
