Democrats acting more worried than they're sounding about midterms: The Note

The TAKE with Rick Klein

You can measure Democrats' confidence in their own midterm prospects by Twitter jubilation over polls that show tied Senate races, excitement over scattered early voting numbers or hype around late-breaking storylines that could impact a small handful of Senate races.

Or you can look at where they're spending and what they're doing in the final stretch of voting -- and, in some cases, even what they're saying about how things look.

Sandwiched between stops in Florida on Tuesday and weekend campaigning in Pennsylvania, President Joe Biden is campaigning in New Mexico and San Diego this week, where he hopes to help a gubernatorial candidate and a House incumbent in jurisdictions he carried by double digits two years ago.

Biden will spend election eve in deep-blue Maryland, where he can celebrate a Democratic rising star in a race for governor, but where he is unlikely to move any congressional needles. Vice President Kamala Harris is also boosting a likely gubernatorial winner Wednesday in Massachusetts before heading to New York City on Thursday to help save another blue-state governor who is suddenly endangered.

Former President Barack Obama is hitting a range of battlegrounds with specific hopes of juicing turnout among Black and Latino voters. Meanwhile, former President Bill Clinton has popped up down the stretch primarily in his adopted home state of New York, for his former White House aide, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney -- the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee -- and with more travel planned upstate on Wednesday.

Biden has adjusted his messaging a touch in the last few days. He said after voting over the weekend that the election should rightfully be a choice and "not a referendum."

That's a common refrain for the party in power -- but also one that points to the messaging difficulties in running on accomplishments that voters aren't necessarily feeling.

The RUNDOWN with Averi Harper

As House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband, Paul, recovers from a brutal attack by a hammer-wielding individual, some Republicans have made light of the incident.

"Nancy Pelosi, well, she's got protection when she's in D.C. -- apparently her house doesn't have a lot of protection," Kari Lake said at an event in North Scottsdale on Monday night.

"There's no room for violence anywhere, but we're going to send [Nancy Pelosi] back to be with him in California," Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin told a crowd last week while campaigning for Virginia congressional candidate Yesli Vega.

Donald Trump Jr. retweeted a picture Sunday of a hammer and underwear with the message, "Got my Paul Pelosi Halloween costume ready."

The insensitive remarks about the attack are in addition to false conspiracy theories floated by conservative figures including former president Donald Trump, who claimed on a conservative radio show Tuesday that Pelosi's attacker didn't break into the home. Law enforcement officials have denounced these claims.

Both Democrats and Republicans have been on the receiving end of political threats and violence, but it's impossible to ignore the escalation of the rhetoric from the right that has fueled threats and attacks by extremists.

Speaker Pelosi issued a statement Monday that her husband is "making steady progress on what will be a long recovery process." Paul Pelosi's accused attacker, David DePape, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to state charges stemming from the incident. He was expected to be arraigned Wednesday on federal charges he's facing.

Many Republicans have condemned the attack of Paul Pelosi. In an interview with ABC News Live Prime anchor Linsey Davis, Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said, "We do have to lower the temperature, and words have meaning. Words sometimes mean someone might come after you and take action."

The TIP with Alisa Wiersema

The number of independent candidates threatening the possibility of upending statewide races fell slightly on Tuesday, as libertarian Marc Victor announced he is dropping out of Arizona's Senate race. As he ended his candidacy, Victor gave his endorsement to Republican Blake Masters, who is facing off with incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly.

Victor told ABC News' Libby Cathey in a written statement that Masters approached him and agreed to a public conversation, which ultimately pushed Victor to end his candidacy and give him support.

"I publicly offered to meet with either Mark Kelly or Blake Masters to have an unscripted discussion about why it was in the interests of freedom, peace and civility for me to step down and endorse either of them," Victor said. "Blake Masters availed himself of that opportunity yesterday, and we had a public conversation where I asked him whatever I wanted. I was impressed with Blake Masters and his commitment to being a Live and Let Live senator from Arizona."

Despite dropping out of the race a week out from Election Day, Victor's name will still appear on the ballot in Arizona, and he has already had ballots cast in his favor. According to a spokesperson with Arizona's secretary of state's office, any votes cast for him will not be tabulated.

Third-party candidates in Oregon and Utah could still impact their respective races. In Oregon, Democrats are at risk of losing supporters to independent gubernatorial candidate Betsy Johnson, a former state legislator who served for nearly two decades as a Democrat and is attracting support by presenting herself as a median between her opponents. In Utah, incumbent Sen. Mike Lee is in a tough contest against independent Evan McMullin, who is getting a boost from Democrats who chose not to advance a candidate from their own party.

THE PLAYLIST

ABC News' "Start Here" podcast. "Start Here" begins Wednesday morning with ABC's Juju Chang, who spoke exclusively with the woman who accused Herschel Walker of pressuring her into having an abortion. Then, ABC's Sony Salzman discusses the dangerous respiratory virus spreading among children. And, ABC's James Longman reports from Ukraine as Russia expands its evacuation orders in occupied Kherson. http://apple.co/2HPocUL

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Download the ABC News app and select "The Note" as an item of interest to receive the day's sharpest political analysis.

The Note is a daily ABC News feature that highlights the day's top stories in politics. Please check back tomorrow for the latest.