Story summary
Sen. John Fetterman, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, faced backlash after appearing in a surprise video at the Republican midterm convention to endorse his state's Republican senator, Dave McCormick. While Fetterman emphasized their work together on preserving steel jobs and called McCormick "the kind of senator that gets the job done," Democrats criticized him for undermining his party’s message. Former Rep. Conor Lamb and Rep. Brendan Boyle accused Fetterman of prioritizing personal political gain over standing by Democratic principles, with Lamb comparing Fetterman's appearance to a North Korean newscast.
Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance, floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, addressed the Republican midterm convention in Dallas on October 26, advocating for nationalist pride and attacking Democrats. Despite Cruz speaking immediately before him, Vance sought to solidify his position as Trump's favored successor within the GOP. The convention aimed at rallying support for Republicans ahead of November’s midterms but faced challenges, such as low Hispanic voter support, which currently stands around 35%. Additionally, John Thune, Senate Majority Leader, opted not to deliver a speech to give candidates more stage time, focusing instead on fundraising efforts. Overall, the event highlighted internal divisions and external electoral pressures within the Republican Party.
Written for “Republican Midterm Convention” on 2026-09-17,
grounded in this article and the 63 other(s) covering the same event.
THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE decided this spring against hosting a midterm convention to counterprogram the one Republicans are set to have this evening and the next.
asserted
Republicans → decide → one
By deciding against a convention, the party forfeited an opportunity to rally the base and showcase a new crop of party leaders ahead of the midterms.
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party → decide → midterms
But the party also faced significant fundraising challenges, and the idea of directing resources away from competitive races seemed unjustifiable.
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idea → face → races
But the biggest question Democrats had to tackle was whether it actually might be strategically smart to cede the stage to Donald Trump in hopes that he would dig his own political grave.
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he → have → grave
As Republicans arrived Wednesday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas for the GOP’s midterm convention, Democratic officials seemed thrilled to let the president soak up the spotlight.
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president → arrive → spotlight
“This convention is entirely about a delusional president who just wants to be the center of attention in every setting,” Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.) told me in a phone interview.
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Dean → want → interview
Dean is one of four Democratic members of Congress who have traveled to Dallas as part of a delegation making the case that this election is indeed about the Trump bonanza on display there.
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election → travel → display
Instead of addressing the cost of living or the war in Iran, they will argue, the president is focused plainly on himself.
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president → address → himself
This is and always will be, in Donald Trump’s mind, about Donald Trump,” Colorado Rep. Jason Crow, who is part of the delegation with Dean, told me in a phone call.
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who → tell → call
“He wants to bring everybody together and to take a victory lap and try to create the fantasy version of what’s happening in the country, and to pat himself on the back for it.
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what → want → it
There are several counterprogramming efforts that Democrats have planned for the week.
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Democrats → be → week
But they will be less about proactively arguing for individual candidates on the ballot than about prosecuting the case that Trump is vaingloriously failing at the job.
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Trump → argue → job
In addition to the congressional delegation, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker also traveled to Dallas on Wednesday to speak at a press conference with Texas Democrats.
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Pritzker → travel → Democrats
Texas Senate candidate James Talarico hosted a food drive to highlight the cost of groceries.
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Talarico → host → groceries
And local progressive groups are hosting a number of events throughout the week, including a rally on the steps of Dallas City Hall shortly before Trump is set to speak on Thursday.
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Trump → host → Thursday
Just announced: Pete Buttigieg will join us for Bulwark LIVE: Charlotte on Sunday, October 18 at the Carolina Theatre.
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Buttigieg → announce → Theatre
At a Bulwark LIVE event we can promise you a fun night of smart analysis and a community built on good faith.
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we → promise → faith
Democrats’ current tactic of getting out of Trump’s way when he’s making a mistake speaks to the growing belief top officials have that the more Trump nationalizes the midterms, the better it is for them.
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it → get → them
“This [convention] is such an own goal that we’re really just looking to amplify it,” Pat Dennis, the president of the Democratic opposition-research firm American Bridge 21st Century, told me.
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Dennis → look → me
Trump’s approval rating has hovered around 38 percent for most of the summer and polling suggests that voters who say their vote is about Trump are more likely to back Democrats.
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vote → hover → Democrats
Ahead of the convention, American Bridge launched the satirical RNC2026midterm.com poking fun at the GOP.
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Bridge → launch → GOP
For good measure—and to stir the pot—it also sent trackers1 to hang out at Dallas bars in hopes of capturing footage of a Republican official saying something politically problematic.
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official → stir → something
The North Carolina Democratic Party is also running ads on conservative platforms like Rumble and Fox News Digital trolling GOP Senate candidate Michael Whatley.
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Party → run → Whatley
The Texas Democratic Party is similarly displaying a mobile billboard around the Dallas convention accusing Senate candidate Ken Paxton of protecting “pedos.”
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Party → display → pedos
Some more conventional political activity will be taking place as well.
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activity → take → place
A Democratic National Committee official told me that the DNC’s rapid response team is gearing up to run fact checks during the RNC’s programming and plans to upload snippets of the convention to a clip library the DNC shares with over 450 creators in the hopes of flooding social media with the convention’s cringier moments.
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DNC → tell → moments
The DNC is also launching a mini-documentary tied to the Dallas convention focused on how Trump’s policies have impacted Texans.
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policies → launch → Texans
Democratic officials and operatives told me that they believed the convention would be an especially good opportunity for the party to hammer their message of Trumpian corruption.
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party → tell → corruption
While some vulnerable Republicans aren’t attending the convention, there was surprise (and a touch of glee) when it was announced that others such as Reps. Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania and Mike Lawler of New York were scheduled to speak at the event.
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others → attend → event
Democrats have interpreted the decision by these vulnerable Republicans to attend as an effort to please Trump, perhaps in hopes of getting him to spend some of his $400 million war chest defending their seats.
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him → interpret → seats
As Viet Shelton, a spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, put it in a statement: “This is the problem with running as a Republican these days.
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This → put → Republican
You don’t work for the American people, you only exist to make Trump happy.
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Trump → work → people
So when he demands Apprentice-style auditions in front of him for campaign cash—Republicans will gladly ditch their districts to bend the knee and remind voters back home where their true loyalties lie.”
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loyalties → demand → voters
It’s become a cliché in Democratic circles to joke that Trump is trying to lose the midterm elections—from his comments last week about how great data centers are to his remark earlier this summer that he “love[s]” inflation—but Dean and others argue that there’s actually a serious case to be made that Trump is losing his grip on reality.
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Trump → become → reality
While Trump once had the pulse of the electorate and knew how to appease his base, they argue the convention is just the latest sign that he has lost his touch.
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he → have → touch
“He used to be much more apt and quick,” Dean told me.
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Dean → use → me
“He is losing his grip.”
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He → lose → grip
The Aporia
