Last week in one sentence: Trump said the U.S. would not attack Iran before the midterm elections; Trump made his third trip to Texas in less than a month to campaign for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton, who is trailing Democrat James Talarico in recent polls ahead of the midterms; Trump’s super PAC doesn’t plan to reimburse taxpayers for the more than $10 million spent on TV ads promoting him; the World Health Organization couldn’t assess the risk of a possible plague outbreak after a Russian anti-plague institute researcher died of pneumonia of unknown origin; Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito considered retiring this year, but decided to stay so he could make “a valuable contribution”; and Trump plans to send $90 to 20.8 million Medicare beneficiaries to help offset their Part B premiums.

1/ Trump said the U.S. would not attack Iran before the midterm elections. He claimed the U.S. and Iran were having “productive discussions.” The Pentagon, meanwhile, instructed U.S. Central Command to prepare to resume major combat operations, with options under discussion ranging from limited strikes to large-scale attacks on Iranian energy, infrastructure, and nuclear targets. (Day 2085 / Day 2086 / Day 2088)

2/ Trump made his third trip to Texas in less than a month to campaign for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton, who is trailing Democrat James Talarico in recent polls ahead of the midterms. Trump won Texas by more than 13 points in 2024, but Republicans have spent more than $200 million on the race to defend a state that hasn’t elected a Democratic U.S. senator since 1988. Trump praised Paxton as a “fantastic man” and warned that voting for Talarico would turn Texas into a “dirty, failing, crime-ridden third-world dumping ground.” Paxton, meanwhile, was recorded privately blaming Trump’s war with Iran and high fuel prices for his campaign’s struggles. In another leaked recording, Paxton called for “reasonable cuts to mandatory spending” without identifying which programs he’d cut. About three-quarters of mandatory federal spending goes to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. (Day 2087 / Day 2088)

3/ Trump’s super PAC doesn’t plan to reimburse taxpayers for the more than $10 million spent on TV ads promoting him. The White House said Trump’s pledge to pay for his “Patriotic Ads” with money raised for MAGA Inc. applied only to ads “moving forward” and “was not referring to reimbursement.” Asked whether he would repay the government for ads that had already aired, Trump said, “We’ll decide.” The ads aired under a $20 million Department of Homeland Security contract and carried “Paid for by the U.S. Government” disclaimers. (Day 2086)

4/ The World Health Organization couldn’t assess the risk of a possible plague outbreak after a Russian anti-plague institute researcher died of pneumonia of unknown origin. Russia denied any accident at the lab and said “there are no epidemic risks,” despite quarantining or monitoring about 200 of her contacts. The WHO is seeking clarification about unconfirmed reports that a second lab employee developed pneumonia of unknown cause. The U.S. sent Moscow a formal diplomatic warning over its failure to disclose details, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the information Russia had shared was “still quite limited.” Trump said the U.S. didn’t believe the incident involved a bioweapon and claimed he had a call scheduled with Putin. The Kremlin, however, denied that a call had been arranged. (Day 2085 / Day 2087)

5/ Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito considered retiring this year, but decided to stay so he could make “a valuable contribution.” Alito, 76, said presidential politics shouldn’t dictate when he leaves because it’s “too hard to predict what the political situation will be.” If he retires in 2027, Trump could nominate a fourth Supreme Court justice. Democrats, however, have threatened to block Trump’s judicial nominees if they win the Senate in November, and Sen. Richard Blumenthal said the chances of confirming a Supreme Court nominee would be “slim to none.” (Day 2085)

6/ Trump plans to send $90 to 20.8 million Medicare beneficiaries to help offset their Part B premiums. The one-time payments are set to arrive before the Nov. 3 midterm elections and would come from roughly $2 billion in the Medicare Improvement Fund. The standard monthly Part B premium rose nearly 10% in 2026 to $202.90, despite Trump’s claim that he had reduced premiums “by significant amounts.” Trump also renewed his promise to send $5,000 to every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans retain control of Congress, but hasn’t said how he would fund the roughly $1.2 trillion proposal, which requires congressional approval. (Day 2085)

⏰ Dept. of Since I’ve Been Gone.

  • Trump directed the Treasury to temporarily waive sanctions on Russian diesel and said Putin agreed to supply U.S. markets, weeks after Trump signed a law to impose tariffs of up to 100% on buyers of Russian oil and gas. Russia will supply more than 300,000 tons immediately, with additional shipments in the coming months. Meanwhile, Trump blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and suggested the country should “get a new leader who can make a deal.” (New York Times / Washington Post / Wall Street Journal / Politico / Associated Press / CNBC / CBS News)

  • JD Vance suggested that the government might not livestream Nidal Hasan’s firing-squad execution, contradicting Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Pope Leo XIV, meanwhile, called the death penalty “inadmissible” without mentioning Hasan’s case. (NBC News / Associated Press / NBC News / Reuters)

  • Trump complained that Norway has left an “indelible stain” after not awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize. Hours after the committee ​awarded Navi Pillay the Peace Prize, Trump called ​Pillay a “mystery person,” adding: “I never heard of the person. Nobody did.” Pillay is a former ⁠International Criminal Court judge who led a United Nations panel that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza. Nevertheless, Trump claimed, “I should have won 8 Nobel Peace Prizes, not just 1.” (Reuters / Axios / NBC News)

📊 The Dept. of Numbers.

  • 59% of Latino voters prefer a Democratic-controlled Congress, compared with 35% who favor Republican control. 25% of Latinos approve of the job Trump is doing as president, while 69% disapprove.

  • The primary Senate Republican super PAC plans to spend $5 million to defend Sen. Darline Graham in South Carolina. Trump won the state by about 18 points in 2024.

  • Kimberly Guilfoyle reportedly urged a Trump donor to pay her $100,000 American Express bill. “It won’t show up anywhere if you wire money to American Express,” Trump Jr.’s former fiancée texted Eric Deters days before her Senate confirmation hearing as ambassador to Greece. “Honey please I need you to get this done for me today,” she added. Deters never made the payment.

  • 86% of Americans disapprove of using taxpayer money for the Trump’s $20 million campaign-style TV ads, while 9% support it.

  • A former CIA official pleaded guilty to wire fraud after diverting about $194 million in government funds, which he used to buy Florida mansions and gold. David Rush also admitted in his plea agreement that he disclosed “certain descriptive information of a U.S. government clandestine human source” that could “endanger the safety and life of the human source and the U.S. government officers working with the source.” He faces up to 20 years in prison.

👀 Most clicked.

  1. ‘Honey please’: Kimberly Guilfoyle pushed donor to wire $100,000 to her Amex account. “Text messages with a MAGA ally show Guilfoyle seeking funds and offering access to top administration officials before becoming ambassador to Greece.” (Wall Street Journal)
  2. Ex-C.I.A. officer who stashed gold bars admits to far larger $145 million scam. (New York Times)
  3. Fury in California after Trump suggests Iran ‘Take out’ L.A. or San Diego. (New York Times)
  4. Trump stumps for embattled Texas Senate candidate at raucous rally. (CNN)
  5. CIA officer arrested with gold bars admits he exposed secret intelligence source to a foreign official. “David Rush, who was fired, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and will be sentenced Jan. 28.” (NBC News)
  6. Republicans to spend $5 million in South Carolina Senate race as Trump plans trip there. (Associated Press)

🧩 The news quiz.

What did the White House say about reimbursing taxpayers for more than $10 million already spent on Trump’s “Patriotic Ads”? That and seven more questions about this week’s news. Answers and explanations as you go.

Take the Last Week in WTF News Quiz

📰 Daily editions.