The Political Markup for August 19, 2026
Politics
Trump’s approval rating tanked to just 33 percent, a new low for him that’s among the lowest ratings in history.
The person who admitted to wanting to kill Scott Bessent last year at the U.S. Capitol got six years in prison.
Usha Vance is profiled in Vanity Fair by Kate Andersen Brower, who wonders how the Second Lady balances her personal views, her husband’s ambitions, and the Trump Administration’s policies.
Deb Haaland, the former congresswoman and Interior Secretary under Joe Biden who is running for New Mexico Governor, recently had a profile in Vogue.
The RNC chairman’s wife won a U.S. House primary in Florida.
Economy
World Liberty Financial, the crypto company owned by the Trump and Witkoff families, is doing business with Chinese AI models that the U.S. government says are national security and intellectual property threats.
Disney is suing the FCC for threatening to revoke ABC’s licensing because Trump dislikes the network’s shows.
Andreesen Horowitz is under a DOJ investigation for having partners sit on the boards of competing AI companies.
U.S. national debt is rising faster than expected.
International
Russia threatened Britain after Ukraine used British drones in attacks. It also accused the U.S. of providing intelligence to help Ukraine with strikes, is facing speculations over explosions at Italian and Bulgarian munitions plants which supply Ukraine, and wants to create a new world order with North Korea.
A Ukrainian nuclear power plant controlled by Russia was almost hit by a drone.
Russian sentenced an anti-war politician to 11 years in jail for his views. A Russian state bank economist was also fired for saying Russia won’t win its war with Ukraine and that its economy is trailing the U.S. and China. He seems to be right, as Russians are increasingly and rapidly pulling their money out of banks.
A Chinese company copied U.S.-funded technology and designs to build and sell effective robots.
Trump is allowing future Navy ships to be built aboard, creating a new national security threat.
Jared Kushner’s father is Trump’s ambassador to France, where he focuses on advocating for Israel. Kushner was notoriously imprisoned after he hired a prostitute to entrap his brother-in-law for informing authorities that Kushner was evading taxes. Trump pardoned him.
The WHO thinks the Ebola outbreak in Africa could be controlled within three months. Nearly 2,500 people have died.
Hungary has filed a criminal complaint over $13 million in government funds spent on social media content for Viktor Orban, the country’s corrupt former prime minister.
Minnesota
The state sued Texas governor Greg Abbott for refusing to transfer an ICE agent who has been charged by Minnesota officials with shooting a man in Minneapolis and lying about it.
Karen Tolkkinen assesses how Michele Tafoya would support different size farms as a U.S. Senator and encourages those opposed to “Big Ag” to vote for Peggy Flanagan.
The Star Tribune hosts its annual North Star Summit on September 21-23. Speakers include Ro Khanna, John Phelan, Rebecca Cunningham, Rob Vischer, Kathleen Hennessey, and Marc Lacey.
Michelle Fischbach is doing a roundtable meeting with Fargo-Moorhead-West Fargo Chamber members.
Ed Bastian is speaking at the Economic Club of Minnesota.
Culture
American Pope by Daniel Burke and Scott Detrow comes out from Macmillan on October 6.
A book on Zohran Mamdani set to be published in October has been canceled over allegations of plagiarism by the author.
The Social Reckoning by Sony Pictures premieres in theatres on October 9. Written and directed by legend Aaron Sorkin from, of course, The West Wing, The American President, Steve Jobs, and Charlie Wilson’s War. Mark Zuckerberg is portrayed by Jeremy Strong from Succession and The Big Short. Jeremy Allen White plays Jeff Horwitz, a real-life Wall Street Journal reporter who wrote a series of investigative reports on Facebook. Billy Magnussen, who was in No Time to Die as a CIA operative, plays an advisor to Zuckerberg. Peter Rice, one of the film’s producers, previously worked on Civil War, Romeo + Juliet, and Sideways.