For NPR, Jason DeRose covers Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico’s visit to Sunday worship at Brentwood Baptist Church in Houston, as part of his efforts to appeal to Christian Texans. Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian, has had his past comments about the Bible and God criticized by Republicans, with Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick accusing him of blasphemy. Talarico maintains that his faith is central, but that the most dangerous form of religion in government is the influence of Christian nationalism. PRRI finds that three in ten Americans (32%) qualify as Christian nationalism supporters, a percentage that rises to 38% of Texans, including 56% of Texas Republicans.
For POLITICO, Connor O’Brien and Mark Satter report the pushback Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has received from some congressional Republicans in his effort to secure funding for the Trump administration’s $1.5 trillion defense budget, the largest defense budget in modern history. Some top Republicans are wary of using the partisan budget reconciliation process to provide the increased funding, particularly as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have complained about Hegseth’s Defense Department failing to provide Congress with information about critical operations and major military decisions. PRRI finds that seven in ten Americans agree with the statement “I would prefer the U.S. to be a reliable neighbor that cooperates with other nations and only uses military force as a last resort” (70%), rather than with the statement “I would prefer the U.S. to be known as a mighty nation that does not hesitate to use military force to defend our interests” (27%).
At The Washington Post, Todd Wallack writes that the Trump administration plans to revamp a federally funded career website listing hundreds of college scholarships for women and students of color, in an effort to align the site with the president's push to end diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. The website, CareerOneStop, includes a tool letting users narrow scholarship searches by criteria such as race and sex, and lists dozens of other scholarships reserved for people with disabilities or who identify as LGBTQ. Most scholarships on the site are funded by private groups, including foundations, associations, fraternities, and unions. The 2025 PRRI American Values Survey finds that the majority of Americans (55%) say that the cuts in federal funding and grants to universities and research institutions have gone too far, compared with nearly three in ten who say this change seems about right (27%), and 15% who say it has not gone far enough.
At The 19th, Candice Norwood reports that survivors of Jeffrey Epstein attempted to block Todd Blanche’s confirmation as attorney general, arguing he’d shown no urgency in expanding the Epstein investigation and had only agreed to meet with them after Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who is retiring, made that meeting a condition of his vote. Though the Department of Justice’s handling of the Epstein case has drawn criticism from both Democrats and Trump supporters, e Senate Republicans recently confirmed Blanche with last-minute support from Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA). Liz Stein, one of the survivors, explained, “It feels like the DOJ is weaponizing this case for political reasons, and it feels like we’re the pawns being used in that game.” PRRI finds that just 28% of Americans approve of how President Trump is handling the Epstein files controversy, with Republicans (60%) more approving than independents (20%) and Democrats (6%).
Learn more about Texans ahead of the midterm elections: Data Meets the 2026 Midterms
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