Portnoy Absolutely Wrecks Platner’s Campaign After They Asked Him to Play Footsy With Nazi-Tattooed Dem

Graham Platner Won't Apologize for His Offensive Posts

Hero Purple Heart vet whom Graham Platner said ‘didn’t deserve to live’ slams Dems backing him: ‘Say that to my face’

"It's easy for them to shoot a mouth off behind a keyboard, but face to face, it's crickets, and I kind of wonder what Graham Platner's response would be if he were face to face with me," he mused.

Dem NJ Sen. Cory Booker trashes own party: ‘Desperately needs new leadership’

"I am tired of all this machination about party politics."

Trump asked Muslim leaders to sign peace deal with Israel after Iran war ends

President Trump told leaders of several Arab and other Muslim countries during a Saturday conference call that if a deal to end the Iran war is achieved he wants their nations to sign peace agreements with Israel, per two U.S. officials with direct knowledge of the call. Why it matters: Trump's remarks on Israel and the countries signing onto the Abraham Accords during the call signal the next big step he wants to take in the Middle East after the war. Trump is aiming mostly at a historic Saudi-Israeli peace agreement, but the current political climate in the region and the upcoming Israeli election make any near term breakthrough extremely difficult. Driving the news: On Saturday, Trump held a phone call with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain to discuss the emerging deal with Iran.Leaders including UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed, who has had a more hawkish view on the Iran war, said they support it."They all said we are with you on this deal. And if it doesn't work we will be with you too," a U.S. official said.Behind the scenes: A U.S. official with knowledge of the conversation said Trump told the leaders that he would call Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu next and stressed that he hoped that in the near future Israel's leader would be on the same call.Trump told the leaders that after the war with Iran ends he expects all of them who are still not part of the Abraham Accords or don't have peace agreements with Israel to join and normalize relations with the Jewish state, two U.S. officials said. The leaders, especially those of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Pakistan who don't have formal diplomatic relations with Israel, were surprised by Trump's request. "There was silence on the line and Trump joked and asked if they are still there," one of the U.S. officials said. Trump then told the leaders that his envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff will follow up on this issue in the coming weeks. What they are saying: "I would like to thank, thus far, all of the countries of the Middle East for their support and cooperation, which will be further enhanced and strengthened by their joining the Nations of the historic Abraham Accords," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Sunday. He floated the idea of Iran joining the Abraham Accords one day. It would require Tehran to recognize Israel, something it has refused to do for decades. The current Iranian regime sees Israel as an enemy and is committed to its destruction. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) who criticized the emerging deal with Iran and is a leading force in Congress for the expansion of the Abraham Accords wrote on X on Sunday that he supports Trump's request to the Arab and other Muslim leaders. "If in fact as a result of these negotiations to end the Iranian conflict, our Arab and Muslim allies in the region agreed to join the Abraham Accords, it would make this agreement one of the most consequential in the history of the Middle East," he said. Graham called on Saudi Arabia and other countries to adhere to Trump's request. "If you refuse to go down this path as suggested by President Trump, it will have severe repercussions for our future relationships and make this peace proposal unacceptable. Further, it would be seen by history as a major miscalculation," he wrote. Yes, but: Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman had expressed willingness to normalize relations with Israel, but over the past year he has cooled down on this issue. Trump asked Bin Salman to join the Abraham Accords during their Oval Office meeting last November. The Saudi crown prince pushed back and the meeting got tense. The Iran war and Saudi Arabia's rift with the UAE have pushed the Kingdom to take a more skeptical and tough position towards Israel's far-right government. Saudi officials still demand that Israel commits to an irreversible and time-bound path for a Palestinian state as a condition for them normalizing relations. The Israeli government refuses this. Israeli and U.S. officials think Riyadh will not take any steps on this issue ahead of Israel's elections planned for September and before it sees which government is sworn in.

Dems laughed at a once-dismissed theory — now it's their secret weapon for midterms: Axios

When Rep. Ro Khanna began pushing to release the Jeffrey Epstein files, his own party thought he was wasting everyone's time."The establishment class thought I was crazy," Khanna told Axios. "They said nobody would care. Nobody would vote based on it."They were wrong. With midterm elections approaching, Democrats across the country are pouring money into ads tying their Republican opponents to Epstein — betting that Trump's continued refusal to release the files has left a wound that voters haven't forgotten."What they missed," Khanna said, "is that Epstein goes to the core of what people hate about Washington: a rigged system where the rich and powerful play by different rules."The clearest sign of how seriously Democrats are taking the issue: in Ohio's hotly contested Senate race, every single ad that veteran Democrat Sherrod Brown has aired this year has been an Epstein ad. Brown has spent nearly $1.5 million attacking freshman GOP Sen. Jon Husted over donations he accepted from Leslie Wexner, a financial client of Epstein's. Husted's campaign says it has donated those funds to an anti-human trafficking charity — and has noted that Brown himself previously accepted donations from Wexner's wife.The stakes are highest in Maine, where Democrat Graham Platner is running in what both parties consider a must-win race for Senate majority control. In a six-figure TV ad, Platner accuses Republican Sen. Susan Collins of selling out voters to "the president and to the Epstein class," as footage of Epstein and Trump plays on screen.In Georgia — one of Republicans' best pickup opportunities this cycle — Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff has made "the Epstein class" a centerpiece of his stump speech and media appearances, arguing it captures the broader corruption of the Trump era. The phrase has drawn some criticism as a potential antisemitic dog whistle, though that charge has been disputed — and notably, Ossoff himself is Jewish.Democrats and allied groups have also aired Epstein-linked ads in Wisconsin, Tennessee, and New Mexico, where the issue has even spilled into an intraparty fight: in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, an outside group ran ads falsely linking former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to Epstein — ads a local news station rated "false and misleading."Republicans are pushing back. RNC spokesperson Kiersten Pels accused Democrats of "cynical political theater," pointing to the party's own historical ties to Epstein donors. "The same party now trying to weaponize Epstein to distract from their own failed policies spent years cashing Epstein-linked checks," she said.Whether the strategy will work remains an open question. Despite Khanna and Rep. Thomas Massie's bipartisan push to release the files, Massie was unable to turn Epstein into a winning issue in his own GOP primary — and was defeated last week after being targeted by Trump's political machine.But Democrats say the general electorate is a different audience entirely. And Khanna, for one, is no longer being laughed at, according to Axios.

Fox News defies Trump by inviting mortal enemy – who goes on to ask for White House invite

President Donald Trump demanded on Saturday that Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) not be allowed back on the Fox News, but on Sunday, not only was Khanna invited back on the right-wing network, but the California Democrat expressed hope that the president may be watching and extend him an invitation to the White House.Trump’s demand to Fox News was made on his social media network Truth Social, in which he shared an image appearing to be created with generative artificial intelligence depicting Khanna with fangs and horns. Trump also labeled Khanna as a “sleazebag” and a “Dumocrat.”Yet, despite Trump’s demand, Khanna was featured the very next day on Fox News’ “The Big Weekend Show,” during which the California Democrat expressed thanks to the network for defying the president.“First of all, thank you for having me on despite President Trump posting on Truth Social that I shouldn't be allowed back on Fox!” Khanna said. “He didn't like last time I came on and talked about Chinese steel in Ohio and talked about a vision for bringing steel and shipbuilding back.”Fox News host and retired U.S. Marine Johnny Joey Jones gave Khanna praise for his “amicable personality,” and suggested that it could be a powerful tool for bi-partisanship.“If you bring this amicable personality to the White House, I think you might find someone in President Trump that would sit down and talk with you,” Jones said. “Maybe that'll happen soon.”Khanna replied, “Maybe after, maybe he's watching your show and I'll get an invitation, I hope he invites me!”

GOP senator's 'Hitler' attack against Dems backfires — and pummels JD Vance

A GOP senator's call to stop comparing Donald Trump to Hitler backfired this weekend — because JD Vance did it first.Sen. Mike Lee's attempt to put Democrats on the defensive over comparisons between Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler blew up in his face on Saturday and into Sunday when critics quickly pointed out that the most prominent person to make that comparison was Trump's own vice president."When you compare Trump to Hitler, you encourage assassination attempts," Lee posted. "Stop it. There's zero legal or moral justification for violence against him. I invite all Democrats to echo this message."The response was swift — and awkward for Lee."The only major figure in American politics right now who compared Trump to Hitler is JD Vance," wrote activist Harry Sisson, cutting to the heart of the problem with Lee's framing.Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) was equally direct: "Trump's own Vice President literally compared him to Hitler. Spare me the hypocritical finger-pointing. Let's just agree political violence is never justified."Vance, of course, made his now-famous remarks about Trump in 2016, writing in a private message that Trump might be "America's Hitler" — a comment that surfaced publicly and that Vance has since disavowed as he transformed himself into one of Trump's most loyal allies.Some respondents agreed with Lee's core point while rejecting his premise. "There is zero justification for violence against any political figure, full stop," wrote Mike Young. "But historical comparison to authoritarian patterns is not incitement — it is analysis. The men who attempted to kill Trump in 2024 were not motivated by Hitler comparisons. Lee knows that. The invitation to echo a false premise is the setup, not the principle."Spencer Hakimian simply replied: "Agreed" — appending Vance's original Hitler comparison to his post.The only major figure in American politics right now who compared Trump to Hitler is JD Vance… https://t.co/eSxKdEijJa— Harry Sisson (@harryjsisson) May 24, 2026

Dems weaponize Epstein in anti-GOP midterm ads

Several top Democratic candidates in the midterms are airing scathing ads linking their Republican foes to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal — betting that the Trump administration's reluctance to release the Epstein files still resonates with voters.Why it matters: Democrats are mostly focusing on high prices, health care and Trump's war against Iran, but some also are trying to tie Republicans to the late sex offender as part of a broader message accusing the GOP of protecting the corrupt elite.Zoom in: In the hotly contested Ohio Senate race, Democrat Sherrod Brown has spent nearly $1.5 million on TV ads slamming his GOP rival, freshman Sen. Jon Husted, for previously taking donations from Epstein financial client Leslie Wexner, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact.In fact, the only two ads Brown has aired this year have attacked Husted over Epstein, per AdImpact.Husted spokesperson Amy Natoce told Axios the campaign has "donated all available funds" from Wexner "to an anti-human trafficking charity."Husted's campaign has also noted that Brown previously accepted donations from Wexner's wife. Wexner, for his part, has said that Epstein conned him.Graham Platner, the presumptive Democratic nominee in the Maine Senate race — a must-win contest for the party's hopes of gaining a majority in the Senate — also is making anti-Epstein messaging part of his strategy to unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins.In a six-figure TV ad, Platner accuses Collins of selling out voters to "the president and to the Epstein class," as an old video of Epstein and Donald Trump flashes across the screen.In Georgia's Senate race — one of the GOP's best opportunities to flip a seat this year — Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) likewise has argued in speeches and media interviews that Trump's administration is made up of "the Epstein class."What they're saying: Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat who spearheaded the push to release the Epstein files alongside Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), feels vindicated by the anti-Epstein ads."The establishment class thought I was crazy when I first pushed to release the Epstein files," he told Axios. "They said nobody would care. Nobody would vote based on it.""What they missed is that Epstein goes to the core of what people hate about Washington: a rigged system where the rich and powerful play by different rules."Republican National Committee spokesperson Kiersten Pels responded to a request for comment by accusing Democrats of hypocrisy because of their own ties to Epstein: "The same party now trying to weaponize Epstein to distract from their own failed policies spent years cashing Epstein-linked checks.""Their outrage is nothing more than cynical political theater from a party with no message and no credibility," she added.Zoom out: Democrats and their allies in state and federal races this cycle in Wisconsin, Tennessee and New Mexico also have aired ads tying their rivals to Epstein, or mentioning him while making a larger anti-Washington argument.It's unclear whether such spots will resonate with voters. Despite loud voices on the right bashing Trump over his handling of the Epstein files, Massie was unable to use the issue to rally many Republicans to his side.Massie was targeted by Trump's political machine and lost his bid for reelection in last week's GOP primary.Even so, many Dems believe an anti-Trump, anti-GOP Epstein argument will register with the overall electorate.The other side: Some critics have argued that the phrase "Epstein class" is an antisemitic dog whistle. Others have pushed back on that notion and pointed out that Jewish politicians, such as Ossoff, are among those saying it.The intrigue: Democrats aren't just slamming Republicans over their supposed ties to Epstein — they're bashing fellow Democrats, too.In New Mexico's gubernatorial election, an outside group ran negative advertising linking ex-Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (D) to Epstein. Her Democratic opponent, former Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman, also said in a spot, "Unlike others, I'm not in the Epstein files."Haaland aired a six-figure ad that pushed back, calling her opponents' claims "lies."A local news station reported that the outside group's ad was "false" and "misleading."