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Democrats’ generational battle erupts as 80-year-old senator faces younger challenger

Progressives back Sen Ed Markey while moderate challenger Seth Moulton makes generational change his centerpiece

September 1, 2026 6:00am EDT / Fox News

By Paul Steinhauser

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Top 5 moments from final Massachusetts Democratic Senate primary debate

Incumbent Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., faced off over transgender athletes, ICE, socialism and term limits in their final debate before the Sept. 1 Democratic primary. (Credit: WCVB)

Massachusetts is the latest battleground in the political fight between the left and the center for the future of the Democratic Party.

But in a flip of the script, progressives are supporting the longtime incumbent against a more moderate challenger as solidly blue Massachusetts holds primary elections on Tuesday.

The Senate nomination showdown between 80-year-old Sen. Ed Markey and 47-year-old Rep. Seth Moulton is also the latest faceoff in the Democratic Party’s push for generational change, which was fueled two years ago by then-81-year-old President Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race amid questions over his physical and mental stamina following a disastrous debate performance against Trump.

There’s a six-way scrum to succeed Moulton in the U.S. House, and four members of the state’s all-Democrat congressional delegation, including House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, are facing challenges from the left. And Bay State Republicans will choose a gubernatorial nominee to challenge Democratic Gov. Maura Healey.

THE TOP FIVE MOST HEATED MOMENTS IN THE FINAL MARKEY-MOULTON DEBATE SHOWDOWN

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Seth Moulton stand at lecterns ahead of their debate at WWLP-22News on July 8, 2026.(Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

But taking center stage on Tuesday is the battle between Markey and Moulton.

Markey, who served 37 years in the House before winning election in the Senate in 2013, is backed by progressive champions Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who seven years ago teamed up with Markey to co-sponsor the Green New Deal.

The senator is vowing to keep fighting for a left-wing agenda that along with the Green New Deal includes Medicare for All, a Trans Bill of Rights, taxing billionaires, and slashing military spending.

WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE MIDTERM RACES SHOW

U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) hugs Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) as they speak at a news conference on the launch of the American Climate Corps outside the U.S. Capitol building on September 20, 2023 in Washington, DC. Ocasio-Cortez recently endorsed Markey’s bid for re-election.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Moulton, a Marine Corps combat veteran, is backed by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, a Naval Academy graduate who piloted helicopters, and recently landed the endorsement of the Boston Globe, the state’s largest daily newspaper

Moulton has made generational change a centerpiece of his primary challenge,

“I served with some of the most amazing leaders in my life in the Marines, but at 23 years old, they don’t get to run for Congress,” Moulton said at last week’s final debate. “I think we should have upper age limits as well.”

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

Rep. Seth Moulton, seen speaking at the Massachusetts Democratic Party convention in Worcester, on May 30, 2026, is primary challenging Sen. Ed Markey.(Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Markey responded, “I think everyone watching this debate can see that I’m more energized than I’ve ever been before and in my life.”

“Congressman Moulton has a hard time keeping up with me,” the senator added.

But Markey seemed unclear of the topic when asked whether he uses A.I. platforms like Claude or ChatGPT in his work. The senator answered that he uses “whatever is inside of my iPhone or my iPad — whatever comes up.”

The two rivals agree on many issues, including abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and allowing biological males to participate in female sports. But Moulton during the primary campaign was forced to apologize for his past remarks that he did not want his young daughters “getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete.”

Markey was the clear polling and fundraising frontrunner heading into the primary election.

The winner will be considered the overwhelming favorite to win the general election against attorney John Deaton, the presumptive Republican Senate nominee.

Six candidates are facing off in the battle to succeed Moulton for the Democratic nomination in Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional District, including former Andover Selectman Dan Koh, financial technology executive John Beccia and state Rep. Tram Nguyen.

Koh, who served in then-President Joe Biden’s administration, is showcasing endorsements from Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Micah Q. Jones, who is unopposed for the nomination.

THESE 12 MIDTERM RACES WILL DECIDE WHICH PARTY CONTROLS THE SENATE

House Democratic Whip Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts is facing two longshot primary challenges from the left as she seeks renomination.(Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Among the incumbents facing primary challenges from the left is Clark, who is the second-ranking Democrat in the House. So are longtime Democratic Reps. Stephen Lynch and fellow septuagenarian Richard Neal, who are both facing challenges from 39-year-old rivals who say it is time for new blood.

Three-term Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss, a Marine Corps Reserve officer, is also facing a primary challenge.

In the race for the Republican nomination for governor, Army veteran, businessman, and former CEO Mike Minogue is facing off against Briani Shortsleeve, a Marine Corps veteran, businessman and chief administrator and a former acting general manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

Minogue has the backing of the Massachusetts GOP.

The winner will face an uphill climb in the general election against Healey in a state dominated by Democrats but where Republicans have had success in gubernatorial showdowns.

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Democrat Gov. Maura Healey, seen on August 5, 2026 signing the PROTECT Act, which keeps ICE out of courthouses, schools,child care centers, hospitals and healthcare facilities, is running for re-election this year.(Lane Turner/The Boston Globe)

Tuesday’s primary could potentially be the last under the current system.

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That’s because Massachusetts voters will decide during the general election on a ballot initiative that would get rid of the state’s current primary system and replace it with a single, all-party primary.

Under that system, the top two vote-getters would advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation.

Paul Steinhauser covers the national campaign trail from coast to coast for Fox News

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6403820098112

日本男子涉嫌虐杀数十只仓鼠被捕

2026年9月1日 16:50 / 联合早报

日本警方星期二说，一名36岁男子因涉嫌在旅馆杀害约30只仓鼠被逮捕。图为一只仓鼠在啃咬胡萝卜。 （档案照片）

日本警方星期二说，一名36岁男子因涉嫌在旅馆杀害约30只仓鼠被逮捕。数周前，他已因另一起踩死约20只仓鼠的案件被拘留。

法新社报道，警方星期二（9月1日）透露，被捕男嫌犯来自日本北部岩手县，是一名高中工作人员。

他涉嫌分别与两名女性在所谓“爱情酒店”屠杀仓鼠，违反了动物保护相关法律。涉案的两名女性也已被捕。

警方说，主嫌犯于星期一（8月31日）被捕，原因是他在今年3月下旬与一名20岁女子合谋，“无故杀害”约30只仓鼠。

警方在扣押嫌犯手机后发现，手机内存有拍摄杀害仓鼠过程的视频，还有他与上述女子策划作案的短信内容。其中一条信息称：“我们要去哪里杀仓鼠取乐？

这名嫌犯最早于7月被拘留，原因是涉嫌今年2月与一名19岁女子另行杀害约20只仓鼠。

警方强调，将继续对这名嫌犯展开调查，以查明他是否还涉及其他类似案件。

USPS whistleblower says system for Trump mail ballot rules could fail at multiple points

2026-09-01T10:01:29.078Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/01/politics/usps-whistleblower-mail-ballot-rules-trump

The US Postal Service effort to develop a sweeping new system for verifying mail ballots has invited a host of IT concerns among agency officials, with some describing the process internally as a “sh*t show,” according to a new whistleblower report released Tuesday by a Democratic senator.

The unnamed whistleblower is alleging that some of the procedures USPS is planning – under mandates put forward by President Donald Trump – have been hidden from the public. Those procedures will make an already complicated and risky plan even more vulnerable to potential mass disenfranchisement, the whistleblower says.

The new report – which was assembled by the whistleblowers’ lawyers and released by Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal – comes as multiple courts are considering the legality of the proposal, which would require that states submit to USPS lists of their mail-in voters. The agency will not deliver ballots for states if there are any discrepancies between the voter information in the USPS system and what’s picked up by agency scanners on the envelopes of the ballots.

“USPS leadership, it appears, has discarded all best practices as they speed the project to be ready for a September 1 implementation – raising questions about whether catastrophic failure would be a feature rather than a bug,” said the report.

CNN has reached out to USPS for comment.

Trump signed an executive order in March that gave the USPS an unprecedented role in screening states’ mail ballot programs. Election officials have already expressed deep concerns about having to use a system that has not gone through extensive testing and training procedures

Internally, according to the whistleblower, USPS’ IT teams were going to be given less than a week to test the system once it was finished, due to the time crunch of the electoral calendar; North Carolina begins sending ballots this week and other states join it later this month.

It’s not clear whether the portal is ready to be launched on Tuesday, as was the goal, according to the whistleblower report. A judge last week froze the mandates that the states use the system if they want USPS to deliver their ballots, but said USPS could still offer the portal to states that voluntarily want to upload the mail voter information. The Justice Department is appealing that ruling.

Haphazard development and testing process

In the final week of testing, the phrase “sh*t show” was used by multiple people to describe the process, the whistleblower alleges in the report, which identifies other examples of USPS barreling through the process of creating the system. The plans the IT staff were shown for the system were “constantly changing” from the beginning, and systems’ requirements were not clearly put in writing for the development staff, the whistleblower says.

USPS leadership was dismissive of concerns, and, according to the report “insisted that it was easy to understand what was needed and also that there was no time to write down the requirements.”

The report describes a haphazard effort to test the parts of the system as they became ready. Under the timeline sketched out to meet the September 1 deadline, there would only be four days allotted for it to go through a stage in the development process in which potential users of the system can test it out.

“For a system that manages something as important as handling voting and ballots, 4 days of user testing is entirely unreasonable,” the whistleblower report said.

The concerns about the untested nature of the system are particularly acute because if there are any discrepancies between the voter lists that election officials have submitted and the ballots they’re seeking to send, USPS could reject the entire batches of ballots – meaning tens of thousands of ballots could go unsent at a time – until the discrepancy is fixed.

The whistleblower says that there will be a first round of verification – in a process not spelled out in the public regulations – comparing the voter information in the portal with “manifests” election officials must also submit for each batch of ballots they intend to drop off. The information on the manifests – including unique bar codes election officials are required, under the rules, to assign each voter – must match perfectly with the information in the portal before election officials are allowed drop off the ballots, the report says.

When election officials bring ballots to their USPS site for delivery, either the entire batch of ballot envelopes or a sampling will be physically scanned – depending on where the ballots are being dropped, according to the whistleblower. If just a single ballot envelope scan does not align with the information in the portal, USPS will refuse to deliver the entire batch of ballots while the discrepancy is being sorted out.

“As designed, the process is entirely unforgiving. It could delay ballots by the thousands in repeated verification cycles – and thus prevent states from mailing enormous numbers of ballots,” the report says.

西班牙今夏逾5000人死于高温相关原因 创10年来新高

2026年9月1日 17:37 / 联合早报

西班牙一项最新数据显示，今年6月至8月，西班牙因高温导致死亡的人数超过5000人，创下10年来新高记录。7月29日，西班牙民众在热浪来袭期间，在喷泉旁纳凉消暑。 （路透社）

西班牙一所公共卫生机构数据显示，今年6月至8月，西班牙因高温导致死亡的人数超过5000人，创下10年来新高记录。

法新社报道，欧洲气候监测机构称，西欧经历了有记录以来最热的6月至7月。

西班牙卡洛斯三世卫生研究所星期二（9月1日）发布的数据显示，今年6月至8月的高温相关死亡人数达5111人，超过2022年同期4652人的前最高记录；这也高于去年同期的3651人，及2024年同期的1977人。

这些数据基于西班牙死亡率监测系统（简称MoMo）估算得出。这个系统追踪全国每日死亡人数，并与历史趋势进行比较，同时纳入国家气象局提供的天气数据等外部因素，以评估死亡人数激增的可能原因。

尽管MoMo无法确认高温与死亡之间存在直接因果关系，但它被认为是估算高温可能作为决定性因素导致死亡的最可靠来源。多数高温相关超额死亡源于人体维持体温稳定时承受压力，引发心脏病发作和中风。

科学家长期警告，人类燃烧化石燃料导致的气候变化，正使欧洲遭遇的极端高温天气持续更久、强度更高且更加频繁。

高温和干燥天气也为野火创造了条件。西班牙7月遭遇近年最严重野火灾害之一，马德里附近数十公里处有数万人被迫疏散。预计本周西班牙还将遭遇异常高温，南部和西部部分地区气温可能超过40摄氏度。

西班牙今夏逾5000人死于高温相关原因 创10年来新高

2026年9月1日 17:37 / 联合早报

西班牙一项最新数据显示，今年6月至8月，西班牙因高温导致死亡的人数超过5000人，创下10年来新高记录。7月29日，西班牙民众在热浪来袭期间，在喷泉旁纳凉消暑。 （路透社）

西班牙一所公共卫生机构数据显示，今年6月至8月，西班牙因高温导致死亡的人数超过5000人，创下10年来新高记录。

法新社报道，欧洲气候监测机构称，西欧经历了有记录以来最热的6月至7月。

西班牙卡洛斯三世卫生研究所星期二（9月1日）发布的数据显示，今年6月至8月的高温相关死亡人数达5111人，超过2022年同期4652人的前最高记录；这也高于去年同期的3651人，及2024年同期的1977人。

这些数据基于西班牙死亡率监测系统（简称MoMo）估算得出。这个系统追踪全国每日死亡人数，并与历史趋势进行比较，同时纳入国家气象局提供的天气数据等外部因素，以评估死亡人数激增的可能原因。

尽管MoMo无法确认高温与死亡之间存在直接因果关系，但它被认为是估算高温可能作为决定性因素导致死亡的最可靠来源。多数高温相关超额死亡源于人体维持体温稳定时承受压力，引发心脏病发作和中风。

科学家长期警告，人类燃烧化石燃料导致的气候变化，正使欧洲遭遇的极端高温天气持续更久、强度更高且更加频繁。

高温和干燥天气也为野火创造了条件。西班牙7月遭遇近年最严重野火灾害之一，马德里附近数十公里处有数万人被迫疏散。预计本周西班牙还将遭遇异常高温，南部和西部部分地区气温可能超过40摄氏度。

US refusals of crucial newborn vitamin spike, raising risk of dangerous bleeding

2026-09-01T10:02:36.738Z / Reuters

CHICAGO, Sept 1 (Reuters) – The percentage of parents and caregivers in the United States refusing a standard vitamin K shot for infants at birth has accelerated sharply this year, an ​exclusive data analysis for Reuters found, putting more newborns at risk of life-threatening bleeding episodes.

The data confirms what a dozen pediatricians, neonatologists and pediatric critical care specialists told Reuters is a top concern: rising refusals of a ‌life-protective shot and a growing wave of mistrust toward vaccines and other newborn interventions.

For decades, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has stoked that mistrust, sowing doubt about vaccines and other established medicines. The acceleration in vitamin K refusals this year aligns with his January announcement dropping recommendations for the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine, and five other standard childhood vaccines, from routine use.

The rate of newborns not receiving the vitamin K shot within a day of birth in hospitals jumped more than 57% from January through June, a review of health records for more than 1 million births nationwide by health data and analytics ​company Truveta revealed.

While vitamin K refusals have been on the rise for years, the Truveta analysis shows that in the first half of 2026, the rate of non-receipt was 2.5 times higher than the average rate from 2019 to 2024. It ​was 1.4 times higher than in 2025.

Babies are born with very low levels of vitamin K, which helps blood to clot, and are unprotected up until about six months of age, according to ⁠the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which still recommends the shot. Without the injection, they are 81 times more likely in those first six months to have life-threatening bleeding in the brain or gut, the CDC says.

One out of five infants who experience serious ​bleeding will die. Without the shot, such bleeding occurs in one out of 59 births.

“It’s really terrifying. It’s like we’re going backwards,” Dr. Nia Heard-Garris, pediatric physician scientist at Lurie Children’s Hospital, Chicago, said of growing refusals. “We’re trying really hard to keep little babies alive.”

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION MESSAGES

Pediatricians ​like Heard-Garris are on the frontlines, caring for children as parents digest changes in U.S. health policy to align with Kennedy’s and President Donald Trump’s views, which are often at odds with the medical community.

When Kennedy dropped recommendations for the six childhood vaccines, he said American children got too many shots and suggested they were linked to chronic illness, for which there is no evidence.

Those changes are on hold due to a court ruling, but Trump called for them again in an August 10 executive order. Experts say the mixed messages have raised doubts among many parents about routine newborn treatments, including vitamin K.

When asked about declining support ​for vitamin K relative to those policies in an April Congressional hearing, Kennedy denied any role.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Grace Davis Jamison said the agency and the CDC are evaluating available data and surveillance related to vitamin K refusal and associated ​bleeding events. It continues to provide parents and health care providers with information about vitamin K, she said.

“Concerns about vitamin K and declining trust in public health institutions predate this administration and grew during the COVID-19 pandemic amid heavy-handed mandates during the Biden administration,” she said, adding that the ‌agency is working to ⁠rebuild trust including through respect for individual choice.

GROWING PROBLEM

The percentage of U.S. infants not receiving vitamin K at birth climbed to 8.1% at the end of June, from 5.2% six months earlier, according to the Truveta study, which reviewed health records from more than 140 million people. It identified 1,026,375 infants born to 825,599 mothers between January 2019 and June 2026.

Dr. Amanda Furr, chief medical officer of Zarminali Pediatrics, which operates 45 pediatric practices in 13 states, sees patients at a clinic in Rockville, Indiana, a town of 2,600 residents.

An illustration photo shows Phytonadione, a synthetic version of vitamin K, at a pediatrics clinic in Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S., August 6, 2026. REUTERS/Emily Elconin

Vitamin K refusals in hospitals have become so common that Zarminali has started stocking the shot in all primary care practices, Furr said. Two other doctors told Reuters they were also now providing the shots.

EARLY SIGN OF TROUBLE

When Dr. Sarah Coggins was a medical student at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in 2013, ​Nashville experienced an unusual cluster of babies with severe bleeding from ​vitamin K deficiency.

Their parents believed the shot was unnecessary, and ⁠potentially toxic or carcinogenic, according to an account published by the CDC. Coggins cared for one of these infants.

“The baby had long-term brain damage,” said Coggins, now a neonatologist with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “I’ve always carried that with me. I think most pediatricians have a story like that.”

Vitamin K refusals soon began to rise, a previous nationwide study showed.

Coggins is fighting mistrust of the shot in her own practice, ​which requires parents who refuse to sign a form saying they understand the risks.

She and others have noticed a difference, however, in parents who oppose the shots but want their boy babies ​circumcised. Many hospitals prohibit circumcision in boys ⁠who have not received vitamin K because of the bleeding risk of such procedures.

Coggins and colleagues studied medical records at three hospitals affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania health system in Philadelphia and found being born a girl was associated with twice the risk of vitamin K refusal.

Truveta’s national analysis confirms that finding, showing that baby girls are disproportionately impacted by the rising rates of vitamin K refusals. In June of 2026, 8.9% of girls and 7.3% of boys had not received the shot within a day of birth.

That raises the question of whether vitamin K deficiency —and bleeding ⁠events — will start ​to affect more girl babies.

“It’s not a theoretical risk. It keeps me up at night,” said Coggins, who is working with colleagues to design a study to ​answer that question.

TAKING A HARD LINE

The desire to have male children circumcised often overrides parents’ concerns, several pediatricians said.

About half of U.S. boys are circumcised in hospitals.

“We have an absolute hard line: no vitamin K, no circumcision,” said Dr. Brad Scoggins of San Juan Health Partners’ Pediatrics in Farmington, New Mexico.

Scoggins agrees with studies by Coggins ​and others linking increasing vitamin K refusals with rejection of other key newborn interventions, including the hepatitis B vaccine and an often important antibiotic eye ointment.

“That just gets put in the same bucket,” he said.

Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; Editing by Caroline Humer and Bill Berkrot

以色列攻击加沙地带造成四人死亡

2026年9月1日 17:39 / 联合早报

图为加沙市里马勒区遭以色列空袭后被毁的车辆。 （法新社）

以色列军方再对加沙地带发起袭击，造成至少四人死亡，其中包括三名儿童。

路透社报道，以色列军方星期二（9月1日）说，攻击了加沙地带多个目标，旨在清除对以色列部队的威胁。当地医疗人员随后说，袭击共造成至少四人死亡，其中包括三名儿童。

其中一场袭击发生在加沙城以西的卡提巴（Katiba）地区，有目击者看到以色列军机发射至少12发导弹。

这个区域安置着大量难民家庭，袭击造成至少两名儿童和一名妇女丧生，另有多人受伤。

加沙政府媒体办公室主任塔瓦布塔（Ismail Al-Thawabta）透露，以色列一支特种部队企图在加沙市执行任务过程中，暴露了行踪，以色列随后出动了10多架战机发动猛烈空袭，造成多人死伤。

另一场袭击则发生在加沙中部迪尔巴拉赫（Deir Al-Balah）以东地区，袭击导致一名女童丧生，另有两人受伤。

去年10月，在美方斡旋下达成的一项停火协议正式生效，暂时平息了此前重创加沙地带的大规模战事，但以色列的空袭并未就此完全停止。

以色列攻击加沙地带造成四人死亡

2026年9月1日 17:39 / 联合早报

图为加沙市里马勒区遭以色列空袭后被毁的车辆。 （法新社）

以色列军方再对加沙地带发起袭击，造成至少四人死亡，其中包括三名儿童。

路透社报道，以色列军方星期二（9月1日）说，攻击了加沙地带多个目标，旨在清除对以色列部队的威胁。当地医疗人员随后说，袭击共造成至少四人死亡，其中包括三名儿童。

其中一场袭击发生在加沙城以西的卡提巴（Katiba）地区，有目击者看到以色列军机发射至少12发导弹。

这个区域安置着大量难民家庭，袭击造成至少两名儿童和一名妇女丧生，另有多人受伤。

加沙政府媒体办公室主任塔瓦布塔（Ismail Al-Thawabta）透露，以色列一支特种部队企图在加沙市执行任务过程中，暴露了行踪，以色列随后出动了10多架战机发动猛烈空袭，造成多人死伤。

另一场袭击则发生在加沙中部迪尔巴拉赫（Deir Al-Balah）以东地区，袭击导致一名女童丧生，另有两人受伤。

去年10月，在美方斡旋下达成的一项停火协议正式生效，暂时平息了此前重创加沙地带的大规模战事，但以色列的空袭并未就此完全停止。

In 2020 forum, James Talarico said Texas oil was ‘not gonna last,’ called capitalism ‘oppressive’

2026-09-01T10:00:29.178Z / CNN

Six years before becoming Texas Democrats’ US Senate nominee, James Talarico described capitalism as an “oppressive system” during a Sierra Club event, grouping it with White supremacy and climate change and saying ending the ways all three worked together was necessary to begin the process of “dismantling them.”

During the Sierra Club event from September 2020, Talarico participated in a virtual climate candidate forum in which he also compared Texas’ leadership in the oil and gas industry to “being the leader in cassette tapes in the 1980s,” declaring “that industry is not gonna last.”

The previously unreported comments come at a time when Talarico is trying to broaden his appeal as he’s faced attacks from Republicans trying to paint him as too progressive for Texas. Talarico has raised significantly more money than his GOP opponent Ken Paxton, but remains locked in a tight race against the scandal-plagued Texas attorney general.

Talarico’s remarks offer a window into the more explicitly progressive language he used before launching a statewide campaign built around affordability, faith and taking on wealthy interests.

At the time, Talarico was a 31-year-old state representative seeking reelection for a second term in the Texas House. The forum was hosted by the Austin chapter of the Sierra Club, which featured four other candidates running for the Texas House.

When asked what lawmakers could do to address the disproportionate effects of climate change on communities of color, Talarico thanked the moderator for the question and the young activists at the club for the way they had framed the issue.

“I am so thankful that you asked this question and also thankful that young activists have really drawn the link between climate change and White supremacy and capitalism in our country,” Talarico said. “And I think only ending the ways that all three of those oppressive systems work together are we gonna be able to begin the process of dismantling them.”

Later, when asked how he explains climate policy to voters in a district President Donald Trump carried in 2016, Talarico said he focused on values, jobs and whether Texas would lead the industries of the future — a future he suggested would not include oil and gas.

“We all know that Texas has been a leader in oil and gas, but in many ways that’s like being the leader in cassette tapes in the 1980s,” Talarico later said responding to another question. “That industry is not gonna last. And if we wanna ensure we have an economy that’s gonna work for our children and our children’s children, we gotta be ahead of the curve and Texas has to lead instead of follow on this issue.”

On his current campaign website, Talarico says Texas is “the energy leader of the world — and as senator, I will work tirelessly to ensure our state not only maintains, but extends that innovative leadership for generations to come so that Texans always have access to reliable, affordable energy.”

JT Ennis, a spokesperson for the campaign, told CNN that Talarico has already acknowledged some of his past comments “missed the mark” and attacked Paxton, Talarico’s opponent.

“James is a proud capitalist and agrees with the majority of Texans that racism, natural disasters, and a billionaire-controlled economy are all problems we need to address,” said Ennis in a statement. “James supports the oil and gas industry and believes in an all of the above energy strategy that protects Texas oil and gas jobs.”

The campaign also said Talarico “has taken many votes” to support the oil and gas industry.

Considered one of the best fundraisers in the Democratic Party this cycle, Talarico has raised $72 million for his campaign compared to $16.8 million by Paxton. But polls show the two are in a dead heat for the general election and the prediction market Kalshi lists each candidate having a near 50% chance of winning.

Talarico’s history of progressive comments has drawn mocking attacks from Republicans. After a 2022 clip resurfaced in which Talarico suggested Americans reduce their meat consumption for climate reasons, his opponent Paxton called him “Tofu Talarico” and falsely labelled Talarico a “vegan.”

Talarico responded that as an “eighth-generation Texan,” he’s been “eating barbecue since before Ken Paxton’s first indictment” – referring to Paxton’s 2015 felony securities fraud indictment.

Previously, in 2021, Talarico suggested during a legislative session that modern science asserts there are six biological sexes – which spurred the nickname “Six-Gender Jimmy” from Paxton and his supporters.

Talarico has since addressed some of his past comments, calling them “cringey.” He said that he knows there are two sexes, men and women, and “a very small percentage of people who have these chromosomal abnormalities” who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

After the state’s massive power grid failure in 2021 killed hundreds of Texans, Talarico introduced a bill in the state house to combat climate change by requiring the state to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 90 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 and at least 50 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. The bill died in committee.

Republicans have likened the bill to the progressive Green New Deal, which his campaign has denied.

Texas oil and gas production has increased since Talarico’s 2020 remarks and meets or exceeds pre-pandemic levels.

As a college student at the University of Texas at Austin in 2009, Talarico was part of a group of students who lobbied the city of Austin as a student government representative to divest from a coal-powered power plant.

At a press conference for the event, Talarico said the student government passed a resolution supporting the divestment. “It was a great success for environmentalists on campus, and also students who want to pay less for their energy bills and who want a sustainable economy and a green-collar economy when they come out of college.”

https://climatediscovery.org/September1CliCC.mp4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Eec65jUzgc
https://house.texas.gov/videos/7069
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4qinQ_6dPg

Whistleblower warns Postal Service’s new mail ballot system has “potentially catastrophic problems”

September 1, 2026 / 6:00 AM EDT / CBS News

Washington — A whistleblower is warning of “potentially catastrophic problems” with the U.S. Postal Service’s new system for handling mail ballots. The whistleblower is accusing the agency of flouting court rulings by continuing to work on implementing a Trump executive order to tighten mail voting rules before the November midterm elections.

Described by lawyers as a federal official, the anonymous whistleblower revealed the information about the Postal Service’s mail-voting procedures in a disclosure provided to Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. In response, Blumenthal is now questioning Postmaster General David Steiner about the Postal Service’s development of a new online portal to house information about voters and their mail ballots.

“The main takeaway for me is that the Postal Service has designed a system to disenfranchise millions of Americans,” Blumenthal told reporters. “One third of all Americans cast their ballots by mail, and the USPS puts all of their votes at risk.”

Mr. Trump has sought to exert more federal control over U.S. elections ahead of the November midterms, including through his executive order imposing new restrictions on mail ballots. The president has also pushed Congress to approve a package of voting regulations that would outlaw mail voting — with some exceptions — and impose new proof-of-citizenship requirements to register to vote.

As Mr. Trump signed his executive order in March,he claimed that “the cheating on mail-in voting is legendary,” and said new mail voting rules were needed to ensure the integrity of federal elections. But his administration has not put forth evidence of widespread voter fraud, and the president himself has cast ballots in Florida’s elections by mail.

As part of its implementation of the president’s directive, the Postal Service published a final rule last month laying out its new requirements for mail voting. A federal judge temporarily blocked its enforcement last week, and the Justice Department has appealed that decision.

Currently, six states conduct their elections entirely by mail. There are also four states, plus the District of Columbia, that have not yet eliminated in-person voting but also send ballots to all of their voters. In a CBS News poll in March, 77% of Democrats said anyone should be allowed to vote by mail, while just 25% of Republicans also felt that way. Independents were split, with 49% backing mail voting by anyone.

The new Postal Service rule imposes new design standards for outbound and return mail ballot envelopes, including the addition of a unique barcode. Under the new rule, state election officials must submit to an online “Federal Ballot Mail Portal” the names and addresses of voters receiving mail ballots, as well as the unique barcodes on the mail ballot envelopes.

Once that information is provided through the portal, those voters would be considered enrolled with the Postal Service on their state’s “Mail-In and Absentee Participation List.”

Most states led by Democrats oppose the rule, arguing that the Constitution gives states the authority to set election rules, not the federal government.

Blumenthal described the Postal Service’s actions as “sabotage.”

In a letter to Steiner dated Monday, Blumenthal said the agency’s implementation of Mr. Trump’s executive order has been “perilously rushed and potentially unlawful,” and he urged the Postal Service to walk back its new mail-voting plans for the upcoming elections.

He wrote that the whistleblower’s allegations show that “USPS lacks the technical or operational capability needed to effectively implement the EO’s provisions in a way that safeguards every citizen’s right to vote in the upcoming midterm elections.”

According to the whistleblower disclosure provided to Blumenthal by lawyers with Whistleblower Aid, the new portal is “untested” and will have “significant operating problems” when released, given its “rushed” development.

The federal official also warned that the new verification process could keep large numbers of mail ballots from being delivered to voters.

For instance, the Postal Service has what the whistleblower claims is a “zero percent failure rate.” Mail workers would scan a sample of a batch of mail ballots — about 400 out of a batch of 10,000 or more — to verify it matches what is in the federal mail ballot portal. Under the policy, if even one barcode on a single ballot in the batch doesn’t scan properly, the entire batch would be rejected and returned to state election officials so the problem ballot could be addressed, and then the verification process would have to be started again.

The whistleblower’s lawyers said that the way the process is designed is “entirely unforgiving.”

“It could delay ballots by the thousands in repeated verification cycles — and thus prevent states from mailing enormous numbers of ballots,” the lawyers said.

David Becker, executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, warned that the process raises “tremendous” concerns for disenfranchisement of voters.

“Are Americans clamoring for the Postal Service to have this added responsibility as they’re hoping that their ballots are just seamlessly sent to them?” Becker, a CBS News election law contributor, asked.

He also said that the new Postal Service rules “would undoubtedly create a tremendous number of hoops that are completely unnecessary and do nothing for election integrity.”

Publication of the final rule came days before the Supreme Court intervened last weekin a case brought by 23 Democratic-led states that challenged key provisions of Mr. Trump’s executive order. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani had blocked the Trump administration from implementing those portions of the directive in June, including plans for the Postal Service, but the Supreme Court lifted that lower court decision.

The high court’s order was procedural: The majority found that the states’ lawsuit was premature. The Supreme Court said its decision “does not mean that any measure taken by the Government to implement the Order will necessarily be lawful. On that score, time will tell.”

In addition to expressing concerns about the Postal Service’s new requirements for mail voting, the whistleblower’s disclosure also contends that the agency violated court orders by implementing Mr. Trump’s executive order.

After the district judge issued her order blocking implementation of the president’s directive, Postal Service workers resumed work on the portal, the official said, and work continued even after the judge’s latest ruling last week.

The Postal Service aims to have the portal ready to be rolled out to the public by Sept. 1, according to the disclosure.

“Our client, a lawful anonymous whistleblower, has come forward to flag a foreseeable catastrophic disruption to our coming nationwide elections based on the reckless pursuit of readying a new, insufficiently tested, poorly planned mail-in ballot screening system,” the whistleblower’s lawyers wrote.