Live updates: Cook Political Report shifts Texas, Iowa Senate races; Bessent downplays $40 trillion debt

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report moved both the Texas and Iowa Senate races from “lean Republican” to “toss up,” a major shift for the deep-red states with less than three months until the midterm elections.

Elsewhere, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that the U.S. can “grow our way out” of the national debt, which crossed the $40 trillion mark Tuesday.

Bessent’s comments in a CNBC interview come as the U.S. economy is also flashing warning signs as some Federal Reserve officials have signaled an interest rate hike may be needed later this year if inflation continues to grow. The bond market is adding to those concerns, with long-term borrowing costs hitting their highest levels in nearly two decades. President Trump has largely brushed off the concern.

Plus, Angie Nixon’s upset win in Florida is reverberating through the Democratic Party. This evening, Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey (D) and Rep. Seth Moulton (D) will debate ahead of the state’s Sept. 1 primary.

Trump is holding policy meetings and signing time Thursday. Later in the afternoon, he will attend a Fostering the Future Together event in the Rose Garden alongside first lady Melania Trump.