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At Puck, we don’t just report the news—we uncover the power moves, backroom deals, and insider machinations that actually drive decisions across Wall Street, Washington, Hollywood, A.I., fashion, media, sports, and the art world.

With Election Day just three weeks away, and Republicans privately freaking out about the polls, President Donald Trump seems to be preparing a scapegoat should the midterms go south. In her latest dispatch, Leigh Ann Caldwell, Puck’s chief Washington correspondent, reveals the operative whose fingerprints are all over the party’s midterm strategy—and why he’s such an easy target. 

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The Blair Witch Project

LEIGH ANN CALDWELL

Inside Trump’s orbit, the midterm blame game has already found its victim: James Blair, the architect of the G.O.P.’s misbegotten redistricting campaign. “Trump is just setting James up to take the fall,” said one operative close to the White House. And, in many ways, Blair made it all too easy.

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The Midterms, by the Numbers

LEIGH ANN CALDWELL & MARIANNA SOTOMAYOR

A primer on the essential figures you need to know about the midterms: the record-breaking ad spending, the G.O.P.’s shrinking house odds, and the battleground state costing more than anywhere else. Plus, a bonus from Trumpworld.

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The Worst Democratic Candidates of 2026 (According to Democrats)

LEIGH ANN CALDWELL

Even as the party cruises toward retaking the House and possibly the Senate, Democratic insiders are already griping about the races that could’ve gone better. Herewith, a dozen strategists weigh in on the four lousiest candidates so far.

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