The A.M. Update

Aaron McIntire covers Vice President JD Vance's rally message that Democrats are barking up the wrong tree on affordability and gas prices, and President Trump's reaction to the weekend riots in France, where he blamed immigration and urged Macron to close the borders while France's prime minister blamed ultra-left radical groups. He plays House Speaker Mike Johnson telling Larry Kudlow that Republicans will defy the polls, along with pollster Frank Luntz on whether surveys are missing Republican voters ahead of the midterms, now two weeks away. Aaron also covers the Justice Department's Operation Protect the Vote, which charged more than two dozen lawful permanent residents in California with false statements or fraudulent voter registration, and Civil Rights Division chief Harmeet Dhillon's 60 Minutes interview defending the voter roll push. He reacts to Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed comparing scrutiny of his family's Muslim Brotherhood ties to attacks on JFK and Obama, and the news that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is out for the season with blood clots in his legs and lungs. Aaron plays Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying in a Breitbart interview that he doesn't think it's a coincidence that Latin American politics shifted after USAID closed, while acknowledging he can't prove a direct election impact. He closes by arguing the midterms will come down to turnout, including in Iowa, where Trump is scheduled to rally Thursday.

Aaron McIntire covers Vice President JD Vance's CBS News town hall in Michigan, where he blamed Democratic policies for high energy prices and said there's a chance he doesn't run for president in 2028. He covers the Bend, Oregon elementary school shooting that killed three children and a teacher, and the teacher and armed father who stopped the 16-year-old gunman. Aaron also covers Texas Senate nominee James Talarico saying an assault weapons ban remains on the table, Senator Elissa Slotkin's remarks about creating a deterrence message with prosecutions of Trump administration officials, and a Los Angeles Times report on advocates' claim that a surge in ICE raids aims to discourage voter turnout. He plays Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Meet the Press defending the administration's 60-day review of Russia sanctions and tariffs by pointing to Europe's continued purchases of Russian energy. Aaron breaks down the weekend's mass protests across France, where the interior minister counted 550,000 people, police made about 400 arrests, rioters looted luxury stores, a Lyon tourist office was torched and Limoges's 143-year-old city hall burned. He closes with Vance's response to a student's question about his H-1B comments and ICE, in which he said his rhetoric may have been imperfect.

Aaron McIntire covers a CNN town hall where a Catholic voter told Texas Senate nominee James Talarico that the Bible is not silent on abortion, and NBC's Tom Llamas pressing Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed over his half-sister's old tweets about their mother and the Muslim Brotherhood. He covers Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch warning of double jeopardy problems in the repeat prosecution of Mexican national Jesus Herrera-Salazar, and President Trump announcing that the December 3 firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan will not be livestreamed. Aaron also covers Giants quarterback Jameis Winston's answer about the Jameis Winston experience, in which he says he is called to be the light of the world. In AOTMA, he shares good news on listener Jimmy Moon's Bible project, a Michigan House resolution declaring October Combating Antisemitism Month, his read on the midterm polling, a question about tearing down the high places, and a listener-submitted clip of Ella Langley singing "Jesus Paid It All."

Aaron McIntire covers a new memo from Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley alleging that former special counsel Jack Smith's office and the Biden Justice Department obtained data on at least 639,000 Republican voters and donors in the Arctic Frost probe, including buyers of red MAGA hats. He plays Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky telling Piers Morgan he feels betrayed by President Trump's diesel deal with Vladimir Putin and his announced energy ceasefire. Aaron also covers a New York Post report that Rep. Ilhan Omar's staff asked Minnesota officials in 2019 to change her listed birth year from 1981 to 1982, a detail that could matter to her citizenship timeline, though the library says its original 1981 entry was undocumented. He covers HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s announcement that CMS ended Obamacare subsidies for 189,000 duplicate or deceased enrollees, and Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald's claim that fraud costs more than several federal departments' budgets combined. Aaron marks what would have been Charlie Kirk's 33rd birthday and highlights about a dozen Camas, Washington high school girls walking off a cross-country race rather than compete against a teammate who had switched from the boys' team. He closes with Jim Nantz's story about the late Mike Ditka's habit of carrying $100 bills.

Aaron McIntire covers Pope Leo XIV's lung cancer diagnosis after surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung, and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro confirming a federal investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar's financial disclosures. President Trump says he is not taking a position on the search of Omar's home, while the Justice Department has not said whether the financial probe is connected to the immigration paperwork investigation, and Omar denies wrongdoing. He covers Vice President JD Vance's Tyler, Texas rally for Ken Paxton, where he announced a Defense Production Act refinery expansion and attacked Democratic nominee James Talarico, and new White House press secretary Katie Zacharia announcing that Ambassador Kimberly Guilfoyle was asked to resign amid allegations she denies. Aaron also covers Speaker Mike Johnson's claim that polls are undersampling Republicans and the FBI arrest of OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan, a Saudi national accused of planting a hidden recording device in an executive conference room. He closes with a viral Fayette County, Indiana forum clip in which council candidate Jaime West said she would fire all Republicans and ended by saying they have guns too.

Aaron McIntire covers federal agents searching the Washington home of Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar as part of an ongoing criminal investigation, which Fox News, citing anonymous sources, ties to immigration paperwork her father filled out when she was a child. Omar's allies, including Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, called the search an abuse of power, while the Justice Department says it was carried out under a judicially authorized warrant. He also covers unofficial Border Patrol figures showing September border arrests down nearly 95% from the Biden-era peak, and a federal judge halting tree cutting at East Potomac Golf Course after at least 430 trees were felled over the holiday weekend, saying the government had violated an understanding about advance notice. Aaron plays Texas Senate nominee James Talarico's differing accounts of where he was treated for the flu during his two week absence, and Minnesota Republican Senate nominee Michele Tafoya's new ad calling herself a pro-choice Republican in a race a new Minnesota Poll shows within four points. He closes with a clip of Charlie Kirk and Michael Knowles discussing the death penalty, tied to the debate over the planned execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan.

Aaron McIntire covers President Trump's diesel supply deal with Vladimir Putin, which the White House says will bring more than 300,000 tons of Russian diesel to market with more promised in November, and Trump's suggestion that Ukraine get a new leader. He covers the Pentagon's plan to execute Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan by firing squad on December 3 and livestream it, a proposal drawing bipartisan criticism as Trump says he has not made a final decision on the livestream. Aaron also covers Vice President JD Vance's suspension of Microsoft and seven other companies from the Labor Department's PERM green card program, with Vance alleging abuse of the H-1B system and Microsoft disputing his figures. He plays Trump's Tennessee rally impression of Iranian leaders, the return of Texas Senate nominee James Talarico after a two week absence his campaign blamed on the flu, and the Michigan Senate debate clash between Mike Rogers and Abdul El-Sayed over the October 7 anniversary. Aaron closes with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller's criticism of Democrats on Islamist extremism and refugee policy.

Aaron McIntire covers President Trump saying he doesn't think the suspected plague case at a Siberian lab is a bioweapon, even as Russia says it's under control, and the FBI sting that stopped an alleged ISIS-inspired plot against the Mall of America. Prosecutors say 18-year-old Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud bought an inert AK-47 and about 200 rounds from an undercover agent, and he is charged with receiving a firearm to commit a federal crime of terrorism. He also covers the White House announcement that about 70 million children are now automatically enrolled in Trump Accounts, and an undercover video in which a Talarico campaign organizing manager says most of her coworkers are Marxists. Aaron plays Senator Thom Tillis defending Mitch McConnell's mental sharpness, an Ottumwa, Iowa city council meeting that opened with a Satanic invocation, and Zach Lahn's debate confrontation with Rob Sand over residency attacks. He closes with Secretary of State Marco Rubio's speech in Athens warning that the West faces a choice between renewal and decline.

Aaron McIntire covers President Trump's midterm rally tour, including his line about asking world leaders who thank him for the Iran war when they plan to pay for it, and his Baltimore announcement of a $6.6 billion Navy and Anduril submarine parts factory. He plays Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on Russia to share more information after a lab worker's death at a Siberian anti-plague institute, and Congressman Brandon Gill's remarks on conserving American culture and heritage. Aaron also covers former senior CIA official David Rush pleading guilty to a $194 million fraud scheme that included 298 gold bars, and newly circulating video of Texas Senate nominee James Talarico telling educators that white supremacy and heteropatriarchy have colonized their minds. He shares a Pennsylvania construction worker's blunt take on data center jobs, then covers Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike, convicted in the 1995 killing of classmate Colleen Slemmer, who her attorneys say is conscious and speaking after surviving a failed lethal injection last week. Aaron closes with Chris Rock's New York Times interview comparing wokeness to the Salem witch trials and asks whether woke is really dead.

Aaron McIntire breaks down the mixed messages from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who downplayed the U.S. bomber withdrawal from RAF Fairford as routine rotation, and President Trump, who said there was a threat, while Vice President JD Vance cited an abundance of caution. He covers Trump blaming refinery shortages for high gas prices before his Nebraska campaign trip, and Vance's Alaska rally for Senator Dan Sullivan in a toss-up race against Mary Peltola. Aaron plays a 2015 clip of Bernie Sanders rejecting open borders alongside his recent call for comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship, then reacts to Paramore singer Hayley Williams calling Christian nationalism the greatest threat to American democracy and Mark Ruffalo's remarks on election cybersecurity at a Hands Off Our Vote rally. He also touches on a poll ranking NFL fan bases by party and closes with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's Axios interview, where he was asked what happened to the golden age after an AP poll found just 17% approve of Trump's handling of the cost of living.