The White House announced a $90 payment for around 20 million seniors enrolled in Medicare Part B as President Donald Trump campaigned in Alabama and Ohio, where Republicans face competitive races. Trump has also promised every American adult $5,000 if Republicans win the midterms. At the Ohio rally, where he won by 11 points in 2024, he told supporters, “We’re going to win big, and we’re going to shove it up their ass.” The state’s Senate race was too close to call.
Prices at the Center of the Campaign
Polls show voters connecting the economy to the costs they face. A CBS News poll found 70% of voters said Trump’s policies were pushing prices up; 56% attributed the current economy to his policies and 20% to former President Joe Biden. An AP/NORC poll found 69% of adults said Trump’s handling of the cost of living was worse than expected. A Quinnipiac University poll found 62% opposed his handling of the economy.
An Associated Press/NORC Research Center survey found 65% said the president’s policies were behind high prices, and more than half said the national economy and the United States overall were worse off since he returned to the White House. Trump’s overall approval rating stood at 38.5% in a Decision Desk HQ polling average on Sunday morning. CNN reported his approval ratings in the 30s.
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly said on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” “People can’t afford their lives,” and called Trump’s promised payments “trying to buy votes.” GOP Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana called the cost of living the biggest election issue. “We have to tell the American people the truth,” he said. On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Kennedy said, “we (keep) telling them not to believe their own lying checkbooks.” He added, “The American people, both sides, feel anger. If they don’t feel anger, they feel deep melancholy.”
Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” that reports of deep economic pessimism were a “classic Democrat move.” Hassett blamed former President Joe Biden for high grocery and food prices and dismissed the government report of 29,000 jobs created in September as an outlier. On The Hill, he said, “I just don’t buy it,” arguing consumption data would show whether consumers weren’t spending. “But, in fact, the retailers are doing well.”
Races Tighten on Republican Turf
New York Times/Siena polls published Saturday showed Democrats leading in contests for Republican-held Senate seats in Alaska and Texas, with no clear leader in Ohio, Kansas and Iowa. Trump’s approval rating on the economy was at or below 40% in each of those states, and roughly half of surveyed voters wanted a candidate who would check Trump. A GOP super PAC paused spending Friday on a Republican-held North Carolina seat, where Michael Whatley trailed in polls.
Democrats need a few gains to retake the House, where they have 214 seats to Republicans’ 219, including one independent who caucuses with the majority. They need a net gain of four seats to win the Senate. Democrats would likely use majorities in both chambers to investigate the White House and Trump family finances during the final years of his term. A Senate contest could also lead to a Supreme Court nomination fight: conservative Justice Samuel Alito told CBS News he now considers retirement every term.
Fuel Costs and Voter Shifts
The Iran war and high gasoline and diesel prices were cited as challenges for Republicans, with few signs fuel costs would fall before November 2. The war closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil-industry waterway. AAA said U.S. gasoline had consistently averaged more than $4 a gallon during the war; regular gas averaged $4.37 on Sunday morning.
A new NBC/Telemundo poll released Sunday found Latino voters favored Democrats winning Congress by 24 points. Twenty-seven percent approved of Trump’s overall job performance, and 20% approved of his handling of the cost of living. Trump made gains across Latino communities in 2024, prompting hopes among some Republican strategists of a lasting realignment, but the White House’s deportation campaign faced a backlash. In Texas, Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico was raising hopes of the party’s first statewide victory there in more than 30 years.
Democrats were nervous despite the polling, which came four weeks from Election Day and didn’t directly predict the result. Trump said pollsters understate MAGA support, and the report noted voter sentiment could change in the final weeks and key races could tighten. Trump campaigned in Alabama and Ohio and urged Deep South voters to “pretend I’m on the ballot.” He described an unprecedented “golden age” that he says he created and promised “unbelievable progress” and “new levels of greatness.”