Welcome to Tuesday, November 5th, red and blue and purples...

Though the big one is still a year off, voters in several states are heading to the polls today, participating in elections that could shift the blue-red power dynamic.

• In Kentucky and Mississippi, voters are choosing a new governor, maybe Democratic. President Donald Trump, who carried both states in 2016, visited Kentucky Monday night to boost voter turnout for two candidates he endorsed.
• In Virginia, the electorate is picking new members of their state legislature—potentially flipping the House and Senate from red to blue.
•  In South Bend, Indiana, Hoosiers are choosing a replacement for Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Will the federal impeachment probe impact local elections? Will Democrats flip two governorships from red to blue? Don’t let today be the only bellwether— tell your reps what matters to you.

How are you feeling about the 2019 elections?

On the Radar

Trump Tax Returns Fight Headed to Supreme Court

A federal appeals court on Monday ruled that President Donald Trump must turn over eight years of tax returns to a New York state grand jury.

Jay Sekulow, Trump’s attorney, said they’ll appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

The three-judge appeals panel rejected Trump’s argument that he is immune to criminal investigation while in the White House.

“Any presidential immunity from state criminal process does not extend to investigative steps like the grand jury subpoena at issue here,” the panel wrote.

“The decision of the Second Circuit will be taken to the Supreme Court. The issue raised in this case goes to the heart of our Republic. The constitutional issues are significant,” Sekulow said in a statement.

Should Trump be allowed to keep his tax returns private?

Ending Wildfire Aid for CA

President Donald Trump has threatened to cut off federal funding for the wildfires plaguing California, claiming its democratic governor “has done a terrible job of forest management.”

The president continued: “Every year, as the fire’s [sic] rage & California burns, it is the same thing-and then he comes to the Federal Government for $$$ help. No more. Get your act together Governor. You don’t see close to the level of burn in other states.”

Golden State Gov. Gavin Newsom fired (sorry) back, telling Trump, “You don’t believe in climate change. You are excused from this conversation.”

Should Trump end wildfire aid for California?

Under the Radar

Partial-Birth Abortion Ban

On November 5, 2003, President George W. Bush signed the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act into law, prohibiting a type of late-term abortion that removes an intact fetus from the uterus. 

Partial-birth abortions involve delivering a living fetus until its head or torso is outside of the mother when it is then killed. The law ultimately survived a challenge that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, but debate over partial-birth abortions continues to this day. We take a look at this ongoing debate on the bill's anniversary.

How do you feel about the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act on its anniversary?

What You're Saying

Here's how you're answering Should Congress Prohibit the President From Redirecting Military Construction Funds by Declaring a National Emergency?