Principals

1. ‘Midwest Nice’ VP debate
2. Biden surveys Helene damage
3. The hurricane aid debate
4. Israel weighs Iran response
5. Israelis’ US approval dips
6. Harris’ possible Treasury secretary
7. Nuzzi-RFK Jr. relationship fallout continues

PDB: Shifting views of Israel’s military action in Gaza

News orgs say Vance narrowly won debate … Russia takes town in eastern Ukraine … WSJ: ‘The Profane 78-Year-Old Leading the Dockworkers Strike’

The ‘Midwest Nice’ debate

Tim Walz and JD Vance had the same mission at their only vice presidential debate Tuesday night: Sell a national audience on their running mates, and do no damage to themselves. Both tickets walked away happy, Semafor’s David Weigel writes. Vance confidently defended Trump and his own record, often dropping the combative approach of his rallies and interviews. Walz, who had talked down his debating ability when he joined the ticket, prioritized his defense of Harris and his attacks on Trump, and tripped up more when defending himself. They emphasized areas where they said they might agree, thanking each other for substantive back-and-forths that felt like they came from another era of political debates. Toward the end of the night, Walz delivered the argument that Democrats wanted to make against Vance since the summer: He passed Trump’s test of being a running mate who would not have certified the 2020 election. “When Mike Pence made that decision to certify that election, that’s why Mike Pence isn’t on this stage,” said Walz, whose jaw dropped when Vance would not say that Trump had actually lost to Joe Biden.

Biden, Harris to survey Helene damage

President Biden and Vice President Harris will land in two states ravaged by Hurricane Helene today. Biden will be in North and South Carolina for an aerial tour of the damage, operational briefings, and meetings with local officials and first responders, while Harris will travel to Georgia. North Carolina and Georgia are key swing states in the upcoming election, and the flooding in North Carolina “is already disrupting voting there and injecting new uncertainty into the state’s high-stakes elections,” Bloomberg reports. It also threatens mines that produce high-purity quartz used to make semiconductors, The Washington Post notes. More than 160 people are dead and North Carolina has 92 search-and rescue teams working to recover those still missing. “The challenges are immense,” said Gov. Roy Cooper. Biden, meanwhile, estimated restoration efforts would cost billions.

Congress probably isn’t returning early for disaster aid

A bipartisan group of senators from states ravaged by Hurricane Helene is delivering an urgent message: Congress must act quickly and may need to come back this month. Right now there’s a remote chance of an early return, though, for several reasons. It will take at least a couple of weeks for Congress to get a recovery cost estimate from Helene’s destructive path across the South. It’s a new fiscal year, which means the Federal Emergency Management Agency has billions of dollars more, and Congress gave FEMA the ability to spend more quickly. That all relieves a bit of pressure to convene an emergency session. One aide told us it’s “unlikely” the agency “would spend down $20 billion in six weeks before we’re back.” Passing any new aid before the election also will require either unanimous approval in both chambers of Congress or calling lawmakers back from their campaigns.

— Burgess Everett

US waits for Israel’s Iran response

The world is watching to see how Israel responds to Iran’s ballistic missile attack on it. The consequences Iran will face “remain to be seen,” President Biden said, noting that his team is having active discussions with Israeli officials about the way forward. Israel promised revenge; Israeli officials are considering targeting Iranian oil facilities and other strategic sites as part of what they promised would be a “significant retaliation,” but wanted to consult with the US first, Axios reported. The White House said Iran launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles toward Israeli targets after Israel invaded Lebanon to target Iran-backed Hezbollah militias. US Navy warships helped shoot down the missiles. “At this time, we do not know of any deaths in Israel,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said. “This attack appears to have been defeated and ineffective.” The attack mirrored one launched by Iran in April, after which Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the US would not support an Israeli counterattack.

Israelis view US leaders less favorably

Israelis’ approval of US leadership dropped 18 percentage points from the record high soon after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, according to new figures from Gallup. Last year, 81% of Israelis said they approved of the job performed by US leadership; now, that number stands at 63%. Meanwhile, 37% of Israelis approve of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on par with his 2023 rating (40%). Gallup’s survey focused on life in Israel roughly in the leadup to the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7. The poll, taken over the summer, found that the percentage of Israelis reporting daily feelings of stress, worry, and sadness dropped by double digits since last year.

Ex-Amex CEO is a top candidate for Harris jobs

Former American Express CEO Ken Chenault is a leading candidate to serve in a top position in a Harris administration like Treasury secretary, Semafor’s Liz Hoffman reports. Chenault, who has known the vice president for years, is a major Democratic donor — he gave more than $100,000 to a PAC associated with the Biden-Harris campaign — who vouched for Harris as a presidential candidate who is “both pro-business and pro-worker” in a speech at the Democratic convention in August. The nomination of Chenault to a top role would be a boon for the corporate class, which has largely been shut out of power since the mid-2000s. Harris surrogate Robert Wolf called Chenault “one of the most well-respected business leaders whether you are right, left or center.”

New York magazine writer accuses ex-fiance at Politico of harassment

The fallout of the relationship between journalist Olivia Nuzzi and former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to roil Washington media. The New York magazine writer filed a restraining order against ex-fiance Ryan Lizza, the co-author of Politico’s Playbook, accusing him of surreptitiously orchestrating a harassment and blackmail campaign against her, CNN reported. Lizza denied Nuzzi’s claims. Semafor later reported that Lizza and Politico mutually agreed for Lizza to take a leave of absence while an investigation is conducted. The inquiries are adding up: In addition to claims by Nuzzi in court and to the FBI last month, Politico will launch its own investigation into her allegations while law firm Davis Wright Tremaine continues to conduct independent investigation on behalf of New York magazine into Nuzzi’s conduct after she admitted to a personal relationship with Kennedy.

— Max Tani

Beltway Newsletters

Punchbowl News: Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan is hitting the road with Democrats, appearing at an event today in Austin with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. and Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas as well as a Phoenix stop with Democratic Senate candidate Rep. Ruben Gallego later in the week.

WaPo: Progressives aren’t the biggest fans of Kamala Harris. They felt a stronger bond with President Biden and are worried about Harris moderating her stances on fracking and immigration. “I think lots of people are holding their nose because they’re, like, whatever it takes to get you to win,” a Democratic strategist said. “I have no doubt they’ll duke it out after the election.”

Axios: The debate between JD Vance and Tim Walz “offered a rare lesson in civility — a reminder of what politics used to be, and what it hopefully still can be.”

Congress

• Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said this election will be his last.
• Senate Democrats asked the Justice Department inspector general to investigate whether Trump appointees interfered with a probe into Donald Trump and Egypt. — WaPo

Economy

• Job openings rose in August.
• High prices are keeping consumers from buying new cars.

Business

• Amtrak refreshed its marketing strategy to highlight upgrades made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure law. — WSJ
• The National Transportation Safety Board warned that foreign operators may be using Boeing 737 planes with risky components.

Polls

• Views about Israel’s military action in Gaza have fluctuated in the past year, though the percentage saying it had gone too far declined between January and September, according to a new Pearson Institute/AP-NORC poll.
• Kamala Harris leads Donald Trump narrowly in Pennsylvania 50% to 47%, but the former president holds an 8-point edge among older voters, according to a new AARP poll.
• The race for North Carolina is neck-and-neck, with Trump leading Harris 50% to 48% among likely voters in the state, according to a Washington Post poll.

On the Trail

• The Cook Political Report shifted the Texas Senate race from “likely Republican” to “lean Republican.”
• A new ad from Kamala Harris’ campaign hits Donald Trump on his age by suggesting JD Vance could be a “heartbeat” away from the presidency.

Foreign Policy

• Secretary of State Antony Blinken defended the Biden administration’s foreign policy in an essay in Foreign Affairs.
• The US Treasury Department imposed new sanctions on a West Bank settler group.

Technology

• OpenAI is giving outside developers access to its most advanced voice feature, currently exclusive to ChatGPT, allowing any app to incorporate human-like AI assistants that can make phone calls and use natural conversation to navigate complex software, Semafor’s Reed Albergotti reports.
• Apple has been accused by the National Labor Relations Board of violating workers’ rights to unionize and to advocate for better working conditions.

Media

• CNN launched a digital paywall for the first time.
• Taylor Lorenz left The Washington Post to launch her own publication on Substack.

Blindspot

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer subpoenaed Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for information about Tim Walz and China.

What the Right isn’t reading: A Justice Department probe found that Georgia is “indifferent” to unsafe conditions in its prisons.

Principals Team

Editors: Benjy Sarlin, Elana Schor, Morgan Chalfant

Reporters: Burgess Everett, Kadia Goba, Joseph Zeballos-Roig, Shelby Talcott, David Weigel

Tina Smith is a Democratic senator from Minnesota.

• South African economy rides coalition’s positivity wave.
• Dockworkers strike poses political dilemma just before election.
• Nvidia and VAST pitch new AI method for companies to access their data.