Trump spruiks economy as farmer-funded ads attack cost-of-living record

US midterms briefing: Trump spruiks economy as farmer-funded ads attack cost-of-living record Hello! Welcome back to our US midterms briefing. It's another day on the trail in the US, so let's dive in! Click here to see how popular US President Donald Trump is today, and click here for a quick breakdown on what the midterms are all about. Here's what you need to know today - GDP vs inflation: The last economy snapshot before the midterms is out. GDP in the third quarter rose 3.4 per cent annually. "The country is doing unbelievably well," Trump told reporters while en route to a rally in South Carolina. But that message might not cut through to Americans feeling the pinch after inflation sped up in September, with prices surging 3.6 per cent annually (the central bank's target is 2 per cent). The cost of living remains the top issue for voters going into the election. - The tale of two Dans: Alaska's US Senate race involving two Dan Sullivans took another twist yesterday, when the New York Times reported Democrats sought a spoiler candidate by the same name to run against the Republican senator. House Republicans now say they will investigate Mary Peltola, the Democratic challenger who is currently leading in the polls. House Oversight Committee chair James Comer has announced an investigation into the matter and requested interviews with Peltola's former campaign manager and her former chief of staff. But legal experts say unless he concealed financial support, the challenging Sullivan likely didn't break any laws, and political parties are allowed to mislead the public. See my chat with North America correspondent Lauren Day below for another thread in this saga! - Attack ads: This midterm election cycle is the most expensive in history. Where does all that money go? Ads, mostly. And new ones are rolling out every day. A group of farmers is helping to fund $US3 million ($4.2 million) in attack ads against Republicans in some of the country's most competitive races. Trump is already facing headwinds among typically loyal rural supporters due to tariffs and high fuel costs. Meanwhile, in Texas, Elon Musk is funding an AI-powered robocall campaign that (rather ironically) attacks Democratic US Senate candidate James Talarico for allegedly taking money from "data center special interest" groups, CNN reports. Here's what that all means I messaged with North America correspondent Lauren Day about some of the key US Senate races we're watching. Here's what she had to say. We're going to hear about plenty of races in the coming days. Which do you have your eyes on? There are too many to mention but I've just been in Michigan where progressive firebrand Abdul El-Sayed is in a tight race with Republican Mike Rogers for a US Senate seat. It will be a test of whether a left-wing candidate can win in a purple state. I'm also fascinated to see whether Democrat James Talarico can turn Texas blue — a holy grail for the Dems. But the race I’ve really been obsessed with is Alaska. The Democratic candidate there, Mary Peltola, has run on a campaign of Fish, Family and Freedom and is a really fascinating character. But the weirdest thing about that race is the fact there are two men named Dan Sullivan on the ballot, including the Republican incumbent. Trump has been crying foul about "Decoy Dan" and has directed the Justice Department to file a lawsuit seeking to prevent the certification of the results if their Dan Sullivan loses. You can't make this stuff up. What does it mean for Trump if Republicans lose this election? If the Republicans lose either chamber, Trump's ability to advance his agenda through Congress could be severely limited and Democrats will have new power to investigate his administration. They could also vote to impeach the president but would need two-thirds of the Senate to remove him from office, which is very unlikely, even if Democrats win the Senate. But of course, executive orders, agency actions and foreign policy don't need congressional approval so those powers would continue, and Trump would still veto any laws Democrats tried to push through Congress. Want to read more on Lauren's time in Michigan? She wrote a brilliant deep dive on El-Sayed, which you can find here. How popular is Donald Trump today? US President Donald Trump might not be up for election at the midterms, but his popularity will have a strong influence over the outcome. The president's party almost always loses House seats in midterm elections and that trend gets steeper when the president is unpopular. Historic polling data collated by analytics firm Gallup shows presidents with approval ratings below 50 per cent have seen their party lose an average of 37 House seats. Presidents with approval ratings above 50 per cent have netted smaller loses, with an average of 14 seats. Your crash course on the midterms LoadingClick here to go back to the top. And here's how to stay up to date You can keep track of the latest out of the US here. Thanks for joining me! I'll be back at the same time on Monday with more. [Image text:] *** VOTE ***