Saturday, October 17, 2026 · Morning Edition

Today

By StaffNews Desk

Good morning. Trump signed an executive order Friday night [exempting Russia from a sweeping package of penalties Congress passed last month, just two days before they were set to take effect](https://www.rawstory.com/trump-russia-sanctions-2678099853), telling Congress the pause was in the national interest. Stripped of euphemism, he waived tariffs on the largest buyers of Russian oil and moved to tap Russian energy to ease prices, sealing it with a deal to buy Russian diesel. It may do little for Russia's finances, but it raises hard questions about Ukraine's leverage and U.S. support as Putin weighs his next move. Capital is in on it too: Elon Musk reportedly pushed Trump to throttle Starlink over Ukraine.

At home the administration is turning the state against its own voters. Trump is reviving 2020 election conspiracies with help from the federal government, which voting-rights advocates fear will be used to cast doubt on the vote, suppress turnout and delegitimize the result. The courts clear the path: in April the Supreme Court dismantled Rep. Cleo Fields' majority-Black 6th Congressional District in Louisiana — the second time a district he served was broken up.

Against this, the organized opposition is betting on turnout. The No Kings coalition is turning Saturday's nationwide events toward getting people to the polls. The margins are narrow — polling in the key toss-ups is tight, leaving the Senate too close to call.

Democrats hold leverage they may not use: advocates want them to risk a lame-duck shutdown to force an end to the Iran war they campaigned against. The rot is structural. Half of Trump's female cabinet officials have been replaced by men while men facing misconduct allegations stay; his team has collapsed into chaos as the midterms close, one press secretary gone after five days. And union leadership offers no refuge, with the AFT's AI safety standard exposed as a corporatist pact with Microsoft.