| | | | | President Donald Trump rallies Thursday for GOP Senate candidate Josh Hawley in Columbia, Missouri. Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images | | | The First Lady Isn't Campaigning: Our Daily Melania
Noted, Voted: The Trumps voted by absentee ballot a few weeks ago
These Are the TV Shows Airing the Most Political Ads in 2018: "Judge Judy" beat out "Dr. Phil," and "CBS This Morning" is No. 1 | | | What the White House Is Talking About:
President Donald Trump is to make his first public appearance today at around 2 p.m. when he departs the White House en route to West Virginia for a rally. From there, he'll head to Indiana for another rally in Indianapolis.
What the White House Press Corps Is Talking About:
Double-rally day. Fact-check overdrive.
For Example ... :
Here's a sampling of fact-checking CNN did after Trump's Thursday afternoon speech about immigration to determine which of the President's statements were "true," "unclear," or "misleading."
Jobs Friday:
The monthly jobs numbers are out, and things are going well. The economy added 250,000 jobs during October, a higher-than-anticipated number. The unemployment rate remained at 3.7%, a 49-year low. Interesting note as well: Hispanic unemployment reached its lowest rate ever, at 4.4%. Wages grew 3.1%, strong growth after years of stagnant paychecks. Rolling into the midterms, it seems like the focus for Trump should be on jobs and the economy -- but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. | | Credit: cnn.com
Our Daily Melania:
As her husband spends the next few days on a grueling schedule of rallies all over the country, Melania Trump is essentially not into carving out time for campaigning. Her spokeswoman tells me it's because she has a full schedule of being a mother and a first lady, and it's a busy period in the East Wing with travel and the holidays coming up. But, still, a lot of other Trumps are campaigning hard. Why not Melania? My story here.
Speaking Of Midterm Campaigning ... :
Barack Obama is in Florida today, working to help get Andrew Gillum elected as the first African-American governor of that state. Gillum is locked in a tight and contentious battle with Ron DeSantis. After the Florida stop, Obama will then go to Georgia and stump for Stacey Abrams, who, if elected, would be the first female African-American governor. From our CNN story, "Victory for both, as President Donald Trump's itinerary makes clear, would come as a stinging personal and political rebuke. Both Republican gubernatorial nominees, former Rep. Ron DeSantis of Florida and Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, have clung tight to the President, who has taken an obvious interest in both races and lobbed insults at Gillum and Abrams."
Iran Sanctions Back On:
This Twitter announcement from the White House not long ago. ... | | Credit: @WhiteHouse/Twitter
"Border Live" Could be Great Television, Guys:
I'm going to admit something: I am a "Live PD" addict. It's an A&E show hosted by Dan Abrams that airs live for three hours Friday and Saturday nights from law enforcement departments around the country. Like, I *stay home on weekends* to watch it. So, yeah, I'm pretty stoked for CNN's Bill Weir's new side gig hosting "Border Live," a show launching the first week of December on Discovery. Weir will embed with Border Patrol agents for live, two-hour programming.
Noted, Voted:
Per Sarah Sanders to CNN: "The President and the first lady voted with absentee ballots a few weeks ago."
Understanding CNN in the Age of Trump:
Vanity Fair has with a story about what it's like to be CNN and navigate Trump coverage. CNN President Jeff Zucker gets honest about the impact Trump has had on the network, and how audiences are demonstrably tuning in for all-Trump, all the time. "We've seen that, anytime you break away from the Trump story and cover other events in this era, the audience goes away. So we know that, right now, Donald Trump dominates," Zucker tells writer Joe Pompeo. It's a good read, not just to understand CNN's ongoing mindset about covering Trump, but to learn how it's preparing for life post-Trump. I like this quote from Jake Tapper: "I don't take any joy in saying this, but I would like to disabuse you of the notion that things are ever going back to normal." | | Dress Like the First Lady:
It's exactly like her, actually, in a look that up until now only Melania Trump has worn. Today, the first lady's stylist, Hervé Pierre, announced that his design of the navy trench dress would be available in-store at Bergdorf Goodman in New York. Pierre added the store's buyers also purchased orders for the same look in poppy red. For a designer such as Pierre, who for years worked behind the scenes helming design creation at both Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera, getting even a small collection into retail with his own name on the label is a huge accomplishment. And, with an eye for looks like this blush pink trench (my personal fave), it's well-deserved. | | What America Is Talking About: - It's four days until the midterm elections.
- Early voting among those 50 and older is down in Texas and Georgia, while it's up for younger voters.
- US Rep. Liz Cheney, the daughter of Dick Cheney, is running for Republican Conference chair, sources told CNN.
- Obama is campaigning today for Andrew Gillum in Florida and Stacey Abrams in Georgia.
- Former President George H.W. Bush voted early.
- Gymnast Simone Biles won a record fourth all-around title at the world championships.
- The new woozy face emoji.
Poll of the Day:
When asked who's to blame for the negative tone and lack of civility in Washington, an NPR/PBS/Marist poll found 40% blame Trump, 29% blame the media, 17% blame congressional Democrats, and 7% blame congressional Republicans. | | Credit: NPR
These Are the TV Shows Airing the Most Political Ads in 2018:
My colleague Aaron Kessler and I looked through the TV shows that have aired the highest number of political ads this midterm season. You can read more about them here, but this is the Top 10:
10. "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert"
9. "The Big Bang Theory"
8. "Family Feud"
7. "Jeopardy!"
6. "Dr. Phil"
5. "Wheel of Fortune"
4. "Judge Judy"
3. "Today"
2. "Good Morning America"
1. "CBS This Morning"
How Hollywood Is Getting Out the Vote:
A number of entertainment industry figures have lent their time and talents to ads encouraging voting and volunteering in the closing days of the midterm campaign. One of the campaigns, "The Last Weekend," includes ads released this summer starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Rashida Jones and Kevin Bacon, urging people to use the last weekend before the election to volunteer, and an all-female cast (including Cher) turned out for an ad for Independence USA, Michael Bloomberg's group. | | Credit: Independence USA/YouTube
Oprah Campaigns for Abrams:
Oprah Winfrey stumped for Stacey Abrams on Thursday in Georgia, canvassing for her (imagine getting a knock on your door from the media titan asking if you're voting), and speaking at events in Marietta and Decatur, outside Atlanta. Here's what she said about people who choose not to vote:
"For anybody here who has an ancestor who didn't have the right to vote, and you are choosing not to vote -- wherever you are in this state, in this country -- you are dishonoring your family. You are disrespecting and disregarding their legacy, their suffering and their dreams, when you don't vote."
Winfrey wore a $68 limited-edition Tory Burch "Vote" T-shirt. All proceeds from the shirt go to Eighteen x 18, a campaign to encourage young people to register and vote. | | Credit: Jessica McGowan/Getty Images
Facebook Hasn't Fixed Political Ads on its Platform:
Despite a "war room" touted to protect elections, Facebook has a political ad policy that's broken, CNN's Donie O'Sullivan writes. Vice News posed as an ad buyer and got approval to run ads on behalf of every US senator and for one claiming to be "paid for" by ISIS and Vice President Mike Pence, and CNN found a page called "Crush Cruz" spent $6,000 on ads without disclosing who was behind them. Facebook didn't take the ads down until CNN Business reached out to the company to ask about them twice.
A 49ers Cheerleader Knelt During the Anthem:
In what is believed to be the first instance of an NFL cheerleader kneeling during the National Anthem to protest racial injustice, a cheerleader for Colin Kaepernick's old team, the San Francisco 49ers, knelt before Thursday's game against the Oakland Raiders. The cheerleader has not been identified. | | Credit: @GatorLenny/Twitter
Street Art Sighting:
Brands are getting into street art to encourage their users to vote. Lyft, which is offering 50% off rides to voting places on Election Day, installed a wall of mock ballots stapled on the side of a building at Rivington and Chrystie streets on New York's Lower East Side. | | Credit: Hunter Schwarz
The ballots represent the 15 million voters who couldn't get to the polls because of transportation issues, according to data from the Tufts University research center CIRCLE. By the time I got to see it, the "m" in "Don't leave 'em hanging" was half-missing. | | Credit: Hunter Schwarz
And at Bushwick Collective in Brooklyn, there's an "Every Single Vote Counts" ad up from Tinder, which promoted an online Rock the Vote registration drive this year. It's part public service announcement, part ad. | | Credit: Hunter Schwarz
If you spot political street art, tweet me @hunterschwarz, tag me on Instagram @hunterschwarz or email me at coverlinehunter@cnn.com with your sighting so I can feature it in COVER/LINE. | | | | | | |
