The Note
Follow the latest The Note news, videos, and analysis from ABC News.
- Nov 20
The Note: Pelosi fight offers hints of Democratic division ahead
The letter from current and future House members vowing not to back her will not be enough to block her path to the speakership.
Nov 20
- Nov 19
The Note: Mississippi runoff tests Democrats’ momentum
There are a few reasons to think that the Mississippi Senate runoff would offer the right mix of circumstances for a Democratic upset.
Nov 19
- Nov 16
The Note: Uneasy questions settle over post-election Washington
The elections settled plenty of small arguments. But the big ones — which have long dominated both parties — remain.
Nov 16
- Nov 15
The Note: Unfinished counting risks faith in elections
GOP candidates are likely to prevail in Florida races despite Republican political leaders suggesting voter fraud and questioning the election outcomes.
Nov 15
- Nov 14
The Note: Decision time for diminished GOP in House
Before Republicans surrender their majority, Trump could test his allies on Capitol Hill with a possible government shutdown over border-wall funding.
Nov 14
- Nov 13
The Note: House Dems face political tumult
Democrats face big questions as they take back control of the House.
Nov 13
- Nov 12
The Note: Oversight questions won’t wait for new Congress
Trump's powers are set to be reined in as never before in his presidency.
Nov 12
- Nov 9
The Note: Political warfare escalates in election’s wake
Democrats are set to take control of the House, while the remaining House Republicans and the larger Republican majority in the Senate will be Trumpier than ever.
Nov 9 - Nov 8
The Note: Pelosi is central figure for newly empowered Democrats
The California representative could again become Speaker.
Nov 8 - Nov 7
The Note: Democrats win big, but aim to start small
Democrats wake up to a new dawn. Enter a new generation of leaders.
Nov 7
- Nov 6
The Note: History already made in midterm elections
More than 100 million Americans are expected to vote by the end of the day Tuesday -- a record for midterms.
Nov 6 - Nov 5
The Note: Trump keeps choices simple as campaign heads for hectic close
In outlining the choices this simply, Trump motivated both parties to engage.
Nov 5 - Nov 2
The Note: Trump, Obama bring dueling styles and disparate messages
The Note: Trump, Obama bring dueling styles and disparate messages in the final days of the midterm campaign.
Nov 2 - Nov 1
The Note: GOP closing with feuds and mixed messaging
Trump is leading his party into a scattershot closing stretch.
Nov 1 - Oct 31
The Note: Red swirls with blue in races that will define midterms
It’s not all that simple in many of the races.
Oct 31 - Oct 30
The Note: Trump plays to fears at tense moment
The Republican Party’s scramble to keep the Senate runs through Trump country.
Oct 30 - Oct 29
The Note: Trump bets on divisions in angry midterm climate
Trump rallies seem out of step with a national moment of mourning, and of debate over the proper bounds of political rhetoric.
Oct 29 - Oct 26
The Note: Obamacare central to midterm races
Attention can be drawn to the Supreme Court, to a migrant caravan and even towards tax cuts, but races across the country keep coming back to one big issue: health care.
Oct 26 - Oct 25
The Note: Near-tragedies crash through campaign fantasies
"We have to come together," Trump said in his first public comments after suspicious packages were sent to the Clintons and the Obamas, Rep. Maxine Waters and CNN.
Oct 25 - Oct 24
The Note: Ballot access becoming defining issue for 2018 elections
Access to the ballot, and voter-security efforts that could restrict it across a range of states, is itself becoming a major campaign issue.
Oct 24 - Oct 23
The Note: Parties campaign past each other amid midterm uncertainties
Democrats and Republicans are campaigning past each other.
Oct 23 - Oct 22
The Note: Trump takes rhetoric back to lonely comfort zone
When President Donald Trump goes low … he can always go lower.
Oct 22 - Oct 22
The Note: Parties turn to bases as potential split decision looms
Talk of waves might be missing the meteorological mark.
Oct 22 - Oct 19
The Note: Trump showing midterm worries
As for President Trump, real worries are coming through about the races that — whether he accepts it or not — will be viewed as a referendum on his presidency.
Oct 19 - Oct 18
The Note: Democrats see blue in Midwestern Trump country
Something is rumbling in the states that delivered Trump the presidency, suggesting blue spots for Democrats in places they once saw as red states.
Oct 18 - Oct 16
The Note: Old-school scare tactics haunt campaign messaging
GOP ads decry Democrats as Washington insiders, pro-Nancy-Pelosi-and-Hillary-Clinton liberals, sexual predators, tax-hiking big spenders, “radical” or “dangerous"
Oct 16 - Oct 15
The Note: Poll reveals tale of 2 Americas as midterms draw close
Trump has a 41 percent approval rating, and Democrats have a 53-42 percent edge in the generic ballot for the House.
Oct 15 - Oct 12
The Note: October surprises threaten GOP ‘peace and prosperity’ messages
A faltering stock market and tension with Saudi Arabia could command attention.
Oct 12 - Oct 11
The Note: Melania Trump speaks out, as anger animates midterms
“You always need to watch your back,” First Lady Melania Trump said.
Oct 11 - Oct 10
The Note: Ahead of 2018, Trump’s path to 2020 opens wider
Trump can count on relative peace inside his party in the run-up to the midterms
Oct 10 - Oct 9
The Note: GOP gets Trumpier in Kavanaugh’s wake
Trump is shaping the direction of his party through his "Make America Great Again" rallies.
Oct 9 - Oct 8
The Note: Kavanaugh confirmation scrambles political expectations
We now resume the regularly scheduled campaign. But nothing looks quite like it did a few weeks ago.
Oct 8 - Oct 5
The Note: Winners could be losers in politics around Kavanaugh
Ronan Farrow, who broke the New Yorker story on Kavanaugh accuser Deborah Ramirez with Jane Mayer, speaks at 10 p.m. Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, also speaks at 10 p.m. Candidates in Iowa’s 1st Congressional District face off in their first debate Friday night at 6 p.m. EDT when Republican Rep. Rod Blum goes up against Democratic challenger state Rep. Abby Finkenauer.
Oct 5 - Oct 4
- Oct 3
The Note: Trump uses Kavanaugh to start political gender war
Kavanaugh, Sen. Lindsey Graham argues, should be on the midterm ballot. A whole lot of Democrats like that idea.
Oct 3 - Oct 2
The Note: 2020 pace picks up with Kavanaugh nomination
The buildup to the 2020 election is picking up speed.
Oct 2 - Oct 1
The Note: FBI’s Kavanaugh inquiry still controlled by political forces
This phase of the Trump presidency is in the hands of … the FBI. Sort of.
Oct 1 - Sep 28
The Note: Broken Senate picks up pieces of Kavanaugh nomination
If it’s all over but the voting now, the damage is already severe.
Sep 28 - Sep 27
The Note: On Kavanaugh, Trump’s 'dangerous' roadmap for GOP
Deny, deflect, attack. Then, contradict and confuse.
Sep 27 - Sep 26
The Note: Kavanaugh’s fate rests on vanishing middle
Of the 100 senators, easily 90 – perhaps upwards of 95 – know how they'll vote.
Sep 26 - Sep 25
The Note: GOP fears what Trump can’t control -- and what he can
What can Trump control? What can he not?
Sep 25 - Sep 24
The Note: Defense of Kavanaugh could backfire on GOP
Standing behind Brett Kavanaugh is carrying costs that grow by the hour.
Sep 24 - Sep 21
The Note: Kavanaugh fight takes politics a step backward
Amid the hyperspeed of politics these days, this week inched by slowly – even seeming to move backward at times.
Sep 21 - Sep 19
The Note: Uncertainties cloud Kavanaugh fight
“There shouldn’t even be a little doubt,” President Trump declared Tuesday.
Sep 19 - Sep 18
The Note: Kavanaugh fight raises stakes for midterms
The storylines have converged to set up a defining couple of days.
Sep 18 - Sep 17
The Note: Kavanaugh allegation tests Washington on #MeToo
The politics of a smooth-sailing Supreme Court nomination have turned.
Sep 17 - Sep 14
The Note: Storm brews over Trump's death toll claims
President Trump's tweet did fresh damage to his credibility.
Sep 14 - Sep 13
The Note: Primary season highlights Democrats’ leftward march
It’s not all about who wins and who loses.
Sep 13 - Sep 12
The Note: As storm approaches, a self-imposed test for Trump
Trump has set up his own fresh tests for his administration.
Sep 12 - Sep 11
The Note: Left’s squabbles play out in final primaries
The campaign worries for this fall reside mainly on the right. But much of the remaining primary action is on the left.
Sep 11