White House personnel drama puts Trump on defense

It’s Friday. Just more than two weeks until we change the clocks back to standard time. Anyone else ready for that “extra hour” of sleep? 😴

Hegseth’s execution livestream plan scrapped

Republicans face mounting midterm pressure

Programming note : Hello! We are Colin Meyn and Steff Danielle Thomas filling in for Cate. Please send your tips, comments and story ideas to cmeyn@thehill.com or sthomas@thehill.com .

That’s the question swirling around the White House as the preemptive blame game begins for what could be a tough Election Day for Republicans.

Among those angling for the chief of staff position if Susie Wiles departs: deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller , home finance chief (and briefly director of national intelligence) Bill Pulte and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin , according to The Washington Post .

Also in the mix is Jay Clayton , who was just moved from U.S. attorney to director of national intelligence, Politico Playbook reported this morning . That followed Playbook’s reporting on Thursday that broke the seal on the Wiles drama, with sources saying President Trump was making calls about potential replacements.

The White House says it’s all fake news.

“Susie Wiles is my loyal and longest serving Chief of Staff — there is a reason for that,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Thursday.

Anthony Scaramucci lasted 11 days as Trump’s communications director during his first term.

It’s now been seven days since the president announced that Katie Zacharia would replace Karoline Leavitt — and it’s not going well.

Zacharia faced tough questions on Fox News last night and again this morning as she seeks to clear up confusion around her legal credentials.

She admitted to Sean Hannity last night that she did not pass the bar exam. And in an interview with “Fox & Friends” this morning, she said the issue didn’t come up in her conversations with Trump about the job.

Zacharia also went to the “sticks” today outside the White House, where Trump officials typically take questions from reporters.

“I’m not taking any questions, but I want to let you know that I’m looking forward to working with all of you so much,” she told reporters. “Please get my number, reach out to me, call me, text me, email me.”

Another question a lot of people around here are asking today: Who decided to throttle Ukraine’s access to Elon Musk ’s satellite network earlier this week?

Musk said it wasn’t him , pointing the finger at the Trump administration. But still no word on where exactly the order came from.

Reuters reported last night that it came from inside the White House, and that the Pentagon “received a message that the SpaceX Starshield service for the Ukrainian military needed to be slowed.”

A U.S. official told NewsNation this morning: “No such request was ever made by the President.”

The Hill’s Alexander Bolton is all over the Republican reaction to the Starshield drama.

Four Republican senators signed a bipartisan letter to the Pentagon’s inspector general, demanding he investigate whether any U.S. government officials “directed” or “authorized” changes to intelligence-sharing arrangements or Starlink services affecting Ukraine.

Among the four were two members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and John Cornyn (Texas), along with Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Thom Tillis (N.C.).

John Ullyot , a former spokesperson for the Senate Armed Services Committee and former deputy assistant to Trump, said senators have good reason to suspect the Pentagon’s involvement in the decision.

“Hegseth reportedly cut off weapons to Ukraine without the President’s sign-off three times in his first six months on the job, so it’s not surprising senators want to know if he was involved here as well,” Ullyot said.

Trump’s decision to scrap Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ‘s plan to livestream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan followed days of bipartisan backlash , public opposition and questions from within his own administration.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle pushed back on the original proposal, with some Republicans warning that the footage could become a recruiting tool for terrorists.

Even Vice President Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) made clear they had no interest in watching.

The public wasn’t exactly enthusiastic, either. A recent YouGov poll found 71 percent of Americans opposed livestreaming executions, including a majority of GOP respondents.

Trump himself had been noncommittal about the plan before pulling the plug Thursday.

Hasan’s execution is still scheduled for Dec. 3, with only immediate family members of the victims allowed to attend.

And Hegseth? : The Pentagon says he and Trump are “ completely aligned ” on the decision.

🔍 Read more about the decision from The Hill’s Mallory Wilson .

Trump is headed to Georgia today, hoping to give Republicans a much-needed boost as the clock ticks down to the midterm elections.

With just more than two weeks to go, the president is trying to help Rep. Mike Collins (R) unseat incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) in a race that could help determine control of the Senate next year.

The final push: The Peach State is the latest stop in Trump’s campaign blitz , which has taken him to Ohio, Arizona and Montana in recent days.

And the president is keeping his foot on the gas, with Kentucky next on his schedule Saturday. Vance has also been hitting the trail, including a stop in Michigan on Thursday.

Meanwhile, in other races: Trump is doubling down on his endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton after taking shots at Cornyn, keeping the spotlight on a messy GOP fight. In an interview Thursday, he told Newsmax that he has no regrets about his decision to back Paxton in the Texas Senate race.

“I think Cornyn would have lost,” he said. “Here’s the way I look at it: Ken Paxton, some people don’t love him, but everybody admits he was the best attorney general in the history of Texas, one of the best in the country.”

His remarks also come as polls show Paxton’s Democratic challenger James Talarico with a slight lead .

And things are getting heated in Maine, where Democrat Troy Jackson told Collins to “shut up” during a debate Thursday evening. 👓 Read some other takeaways from the forum here .

The data tells the story : National Republican groups are pulling money from some battleground races to shore up others, raising questions about just how wide of a map the party can defend.

Add in Democrats’ lead on the generic congressional ballot, and Republicans have their work cut out for them.

Decision Desk HQ gives Dems a 77 percent chance of taking the lower chamber of Congress and a 56 percent chance of winning the Senate majority .

The Cook Political Report shifted 11 more House races toward Democrats on Friday, including GOP-held districts in Minnesota and Ohio.

Montana’s open 1st Congressional District also moved into toss-up territory, putting another traditionally Republican seat in play.

The move shows just how much ground Republicans need to defend to stay in power — and how little time they have left.

💰 Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh isn’t tipping his hand on future interest rate hikes, declining to predict the central bank’s next move ahead of its meeting later this month. Inflation remains stubbornly high, complicating the Fed’s next decision.

⚖️ Trump is taking another swing at judges’ power to block his agenda, asking the Supreme Court to limit nationwide rulings against federal regulations. But two conservative justices have previously pushed back on the argument. The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld breaks it down here for Insiders.

👀 The president also signaled he could pursue criminal investigations into former Presidents Obama and Clinton , as well as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton , claiming he has information on all three. Trump suggested he probably wouldn’t but left the door open if he’s impeached again.

📊 Democrats are gaining ground with young voters as affordability concerns weigh on Republicans ahead of November. Meanwhile, Generation Z candidates are running for Congress, but more than 80 percent are men. Insiders can read The Feed here .

🎓 Cornell University is ramping up sexual assault prevention efforts amid scrutiny over an alleged gang rape. But research suggests such programs may improve awareness without doing much to prevent sexual violence.

The New York Times : ‘No Kings’ Events This Weekend to Focus on Voter Turnout, Organizers Say

The Washington Post : How the White House Historical Association is trying to survive Trump

The Wall Street Journal : The Immigration Crackdown Is Making It Much Harder to Build Houses

Axios : Trump’s MAGA allies openly discuss martial law

The House and Senate are out. President Trump is in Washington, Georgia, Florida and Kentucky. (All times EDT)

2:45 p.m.: Trump gives remarks at campaign event in Dalton, Ga.

7:30 p.m.: The president participates in a Republican National Committee event in Palm Beach, Fla.

SATURDAY: Trump has executive time before traveling to Highland Heights, Ky., for a campaign rally. He heads back to Palm Beach in the evening for MAGA Inc. events. SUNDAY: The president holds executive time before returning to the White House.

📖 Celebrate : Today is National Dictionary Day! Why not freshen up your vocabulary with a quick look through the dictionary? Some new words added to Merriam – Webster this year include: l ooksmaxxing, rickroll and meme coin.

A quick look at what happens when your Dr Pepper obsession gets out of hand.

🤓 Miss a recent newsletter? Catch up here .

Check out some of our other newsletters here . See you next time!