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Having failed to bomb Iran out of its nuclear ambitions, Trump decided on Tuesday that he would charm Kim Jong Un into giving up North Korea’s nuclear weapons. While he is at it, he should try to convince water to run uphill and sunlight to slow down. He has about as much chance of succeeding with either of those as he does of convincing Kim to give up one of the few assets that give North Korea any leverage on the global stage. See WSJ, Exclusive: Trump Pushes for Kim Jong Un Meeting This Year (Gift link.)

Per the WSJ,

President Trump is pushing aides for a meeting as soon as this fall with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, U.S. officials said, seeking to revive a dramatic diplomatic quest from his first term to convince Kim to abandon his country’s nuclear weapons program.

The Journal notes that Trump is “searching for a crowning foreign policy achievement as victory in Iran remains elusive.” An intelligence expert quoted by the Journal says that Trump is acting on the “misperception that a personal relationship will actually achieve U.S. foreign policy objectives.”

Of course, we have seen how well his personal relationship strategy has improved relations with important US allies such as . . . such as, um . . . . well, Russia? Oh, and Venezuela- if you ignore the kidnapping of Venezuela’s president. Saudi Arabia doesn’t count because that relationship is based on an exchange of Saudi money for access to the White House. In short, Trump is delusional if he thinks he can charm Kim Jong Un into giving up North Korea’s nuclear weapons.

Indeed, the meeting between Trump and Kim presents the risk that Trump will agree to withdraw the US military from South Korea. That well-grounded fear prompted South Korea’s president to call for that country to consider a future without the US as an ally. See The Guardian, South Korea president calls for military independence in wake of Trump call to cut joint drills.

Why does this story matter? After all, the story expresses only Trump’s desire to meet with Kim sooner rather than later. The meeting might not materialize before the midterms. Nonetheless, the story matters because it shows that Trump is desperate to create the perception that he is winning at something. He is on an epic losing streak, reinforcing his brand as a loser who cannot deliver on his promises.

Indeed, Trump’s pathetic hope that he will sweet-talk Kim Jong Un into giving up North Korea’s nuclear weapons was punctuated by another “TACO Tuesday” story: See CBC News, Trump pauses 50% tariffs on Canadian goods for 3 days. While the pause is temporary, the Canadian press was reporting days ago that Canada’s exporters were not panicking over the threatened tariffs—because the general perception is that “Trump always chickens out.” See this story from four days ago: National Observer (8/14/26), Anxious Canadian firms bet Trump will buckle ahead of 50% tariff deadline.

Trump’s status as a loser was also reinforced on Tuesday evening as he again demonstrated that his endorsement cannot reliably lift primary candidates to victory. In Florida’s Tuesday primary, high-profile Trump-endorsed candidates Cory Mills and Catalina Lauf lost their primary bids. While it is true that Byron Donalds won the Republican primary for governor of Florida, Donalds made a comparatively weak showing, capturing less than 50% of the primary vote (as of 11 PM ET). In contrast, David Jolly, the winning Democrat in the primary for governor, captured 61% of the Democratic primary vote.

A careful reader will note that the Republican and Democratic primaries each had confounding factors that make direct comparisons tricky and possibly misleading. That is true, but my limited point is that in high-profile races where it mattered, Trump’s iron-fisted control over his base is loosening. The explanation for his weakening grip is open to interpretation, but I believe it is because enough Trump voters are disillusioned by Trump’s broken promises and are, therefore, unwilling to believe that the solution to every problem is to elect “mini-me Trumps” to office.

Likewise, the Trump-endorsed candidate for Wyoming governor lost the GOP primary on Tuesday. See Politico, Trump’s pick for Wyoming governor is the latest endorsee to lose primary. There is now a trend of Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidates losing primaries. See Newsweek, Trump’s Kingmaker Status Under Threat in Governor Races.

Per Newsweek (above), the Trump-endorsed candidates for governor lost in four of ten primaries over the last two weeks. While a 60% success rate may sound good, Trump boasted last September that his endorsement was a Golden Ticket to success.

Trump said:

Do you know, almost every single person I’ve endorsed has won? I can’t think of anyone who hasn’t. If I endorse a person, they win. … With the Republican Party, it’s like 399-0. Think of that. [MSNBC (8/5/26, Trump-endorsed candidate loses congressional primary to a rival who had quit the race.]

Trump’s exaggerated 399-0 record is now a distant memory for a weakened leader who is spitballing desperate ideas in search of a Hail Mary foreign policy victory before November. That won’t happen; instead (sadly), the economy will continue to deteriorate, and Trump will further damage the standing of our military and the US as a reliable ally. Those are issues that Democrats can and will exploit as we head into the midterms.

During last Saturday’s livestream, a reader posted a question: “What are the positive signs for the midterms?” I stumbled through an answer, saying that Democratic enthusiasm has been strong in the primaries, which I said was a positive sign for the midterms. I wished I had more specifics to support my point, but the answer was the best I could do on the fly.

On Tuesday morning, another reader sent me a recent Substack article by Adam Kinzinger, 2026 Could Be Another 2018.

Kinzinger argues that Democratic enthusiasm has been similar to the Democratic wave election of 2018. But, unlike me, Kinzinger came with the receipts.

Kinzinger writes:

Last Tuesday, nearly 800,000 Democrats voted in Wisconsin’s primary for governor, the state’s highest midterm-primary turnout in more than 20 years. David Crowley won a close race, a result that is already becoming old news. The turnout should not be. There was no presidential candidate on the ballot and no national convention waiting at the end. It was the kind of election Americans usually ignore. This time, they showed up.
The same thing is happening across the country. More than 1.5 million Democrats voted in Michigan, a state record for a midterm primary. Georgia drew just over a million voters to its Democratic governor’s primary, while about 2.3 million Texans voted in the Democratic Senate primary. Both states recorded their highest Democratic midterm-primary turnout rates since at least 2002.

Kinzinger continues with other examples of record-level Democratic enthusiasm and then notes that Republican turnout has remained steady in primary elections over the spring and summer. He cautions, however, that Republicans have a fundraising advantage and that primary turnout does not necessarily predict success in the general election.

Still, Democratic enthusiasm is an additional signal that something is happening on the ground in America. Elections are won by two factors: (a) the relative level of support of candidates, and (b) turnout. Although Kinzinger’s cautionary notes are prudent, primary turnout is a rough proxy for general election turnout.

Imagine, for example, if Democratic primary turnout was depressed; the media would be predicting doom for Democrats. So, without overdoing it, we should take confidence from the fact that Democratic primary turnout has been strong (and stronger than Republican turnout)—a signal that aligns with a coming wave election for Democrats.

Let me add my own note of caution: I received a copy of Kinzinger’s article this morning and (as I often do) immediately wrote the newsletter story in my head for inclusion in today’s edition. Tonight, in Florida, it appears that both Republicans and Democrats turned out at levels consistent with historical averages. (Note: the final vote has not been tallied, so the percentages may change.)

Because Republicans have a registration advantage in Florida, Democrats (and independents) really need to turn out in greater numbers than Republicans in the general election in order for Democrats to score upset victories.

But . . . Independents make up about 30% of the electorate in Florida, which has a closed primary system, meaning that independents did not vote in Tuesday’s primaries. See Independent Voter Project, FL Voter Data: Registration by Party:

The chart above clearly shows the outsized role that independents will play in the Florida midterms.

The good news (for Democrats) is that independents view Trump unfavorably by a wide margin. See the right-leaning Issues & Insights, Is Trump’s Flat Voter Favorability In August Bad News For GOP’s Midterm Hopes?

The Issues & Insights poll found that 61% of independents view Trump unfavorably, while only 28% view him favorably.

So, although Republicans hold a registration advantage in Florida, if Democrats can get independents to turn out in the midterms, they can overcome the GOP registration advantage. The same is true for many red and purple states. The media likes to portray the American electorate as a binary choice between Democrats and Republicans. While that may be an accurate description of the ballot, it does not reflect the electorate's composition, one-third of which self-identifies as independent.

My takeaway? We have every reason to be hopeful, but no reason to be complacent. Keep that thought top of mind as the media and GOP operatives try to tell us that the Democratic Party is in disarray because its primary voters are signaling a strong desire for change—a very bad message for Trump and the GOP.

Talk to you tomorrow!

The Eagle Nebula is about 6,500 light-years away from Earth and is an active stellar nursery. It is about 70 light-years across.

I am a weekly Bridge Brigader in Needham, MA. That said, my favorite “resistance work” is my Toyota mini van that I have been writing resistance messages on with liquid chalk for 4 months. I change the messages when needed. You mentioned we need to tie the GOP to our messages and I just made new messages this week that did just that. Liquid chalk does not damage the car and is easily removed. I can’t tell you how rewarding it is to be driving on the highway and have people honk, do a thumbs up and wave! I am a traveling billboard, even when parked at my health club.

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Moretown Standing Tall Together in love and resistance. since March 2026 every Wednesday

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Annandale, VA, over the I-495 Beltway!

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Attached is a photo of our message in support of this week’s national week of action regarding Flock cameras (ALPRs - automated license plate readers). See deflock.org or noalprs.com.

Baltimore Bridge Brigade on the W 41st St Bridge over I-83, Baltimore, MD

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Pasadena, CA 8/18/26

Rally tomorrow at Pasadena City Hall 4:45 pm’

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Within the last month I had sent you a video that Maggie Goodlander made (guessing I’m not the only one to have sent it) encouraging N.H. Bridge Brigades (our small group holds 3 every weekend). You included it a newsletter and discussed it. I sent Maggie’s team a link to the newsletter in case they had missed it, with no expectation of a reply. I’m a jewelry artist and was in my craft show booth on day 4 of a 9 day craft fair (the League of NH Craftsmen Sunapee Fair) when my phone rang and it was Maggie calling bc I had sent your newsletter! We had a 20 minute conversation about North Country Resilience. And today she met with our group (20+ were there) in Franconia, an event that she and her team initiated!

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The following photos were taken on 15 August 2026 at 16th & Multnomah in Portland, Oregon.

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Photos from the Rally for Democracy, August 15, 2026. You can join the rally every Saturday from 1-2 in front of the Mount Kisco Town Hall. Their YT channel is https://www.youtube.com/@RallyforDemocracy

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Three protesters have shown up weekly since September 2025

ICE OUT of SD, Thursdays, San Diego, CA

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This week’s Tyranny Tuesday Protest. The theme was supporting our service members on the USS Abraham Lincoln. We collected toiletries for them. At the end of the hour when we gather for our group photo on the federal courthouse steps, we finish by yelling: “Resist!”

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The following photos were taken on 15 August 2026 at 82nd & Siskiyou Street in Portland, Oregon.

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August 18, 2026, Burlington, VT: Photo is of Resister Sisters working on a banner in support of Pastor Steven Tendo, a Vermont resident who has been seeking asylum from Uganda since 2018.

The banner will be displayed outside the ICE Field Office in St. Albans, VT at 8:30am tomorrow, Wednesday, Aug 19. Pastor Steven will be attending his check-in hearing during which he is at risk of being deported.

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Pictures from the “Signs of Corruption” rally in Seaside, Oregon, Tuesday, 08/18/2026.

Lots of positive responses from passing motorists.

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we’re working to get EVERY BODY out to vote. From now till the midterms we’ll be reminding people their vote matters. Providence RI.

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Worthington, OH: This week, our protest crowd was bigger than I’ve counted before (at least 48 spread across all four corners of the intersection). I notice most of the pictures submitted to your newsletter, Robert, are from the east and west coasts -- but we on the north coast are out there, too!

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The One Million Rising Alliance of Leisure World of Silver Spring, MD had another great weekly protest Saturday the 15th of August in front of our 55 & older community. We have been doing these since February of this year. We were joined by “Bob” from Baltimore with his Euphonium, on which he played protest songs. Honking gets more enthusiastic every week!

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Photos of Petaluma, CA Visibility Brigade, Signs of Fascism action 8/18/26

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San Jose, CA. 13 indivisible San Jose members and friends tried out a new overpass today - temps were in the high 80’s with a breeze and the traffic was lighter. But, the lighter traffic didn’t stop younger white guys from “saluting” us as they passed under the Turning 18 by Nov 3 message. Interestingly, the LEAVINGMAGA.ORG message was met with honks and more silence than usual. Perhaps some w

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