President Donald Trump is preparing to jump directly into the final six weeks of the 2026 midterm battle, as Republicans deploy a massive campaign war chest and an aggressive turnout operation in their fight to maintain control of Congress.

James Blair, Trump’s political director and one of the president’s top midterm strategists, laid out the Republican closing strategy during an interview with Breitbart News Saturday.

The plan combines a national political message, direct contrasts between candidates, a major push to reach less-frequent Republican voters and hundreds of millions of dollars potentially flowing into some of the country’s most consequential House and Senate contests.

Blair described the strategy as “twofold,” arguing that Republicans cannot treat congressional races as purely national elections or entirely local contests.

“Elections are not all national and they’re not all local,” Blair said. “It’s a little bit of both.”

Republicans plan to tie Democratic candidates to positions taken by the national Democratic Party while simultaneously forcing voters to compare the records and positions of the individual candidates running in their districts and states.

The strategy is designed in part to prevent Democrats competing in politically divided states and districts from distancing themselves from unpopular positions associated with their national party.

But perhaps the biggest weapon Republicans intend to deploy during the closing stretch is Trump himself.

Blair said the president will become “extremely active” during the final six weeks before Election Day, with Trump’s appearances and political activity increasingly coordinated with the beginning of early and mail voting across the country.

The GOP isn’t planning to wait until Election Day to mobilize its voters, either.

Republicans are encouraging supporters to cast ballots as soon as voting becomes available in their states, representing a continued shift from the party’s historical emphasis on Election Day voting.

“Vote now by mail if you want to. Vote in person early if that’s your preference. Don’t wait till Election Day,” Blair said.

A major target of that operation will be what Blair described as “low- and mid-propensity” Republican voters.

Those are voters who turned out for Trump during presidential elections but historically have been less reliable participants when his name isn’t directly on the ballot during midterm elections.

Trump’s political team believes the president has a unique ability to reach those voters, making his involvement a central piece of the Republican turnout operation.

The stakes could hardly be higher.

Republicans are fighting to maintain their congressional majorities in an intensely competitive political environment, particularly in the House.

The Cook Political Report’s September 11 ratings classified **21 House races as Toss Ups**, along with nine Lean Democratic and seven Lean Republican contests.

A Cook survey conducted September 8-11 among 1,052 likely voters across 37 competitive congressional districts found Democrats ahead 49% to 47% on the generic congressional ballot in those districts.

That makes the battle for turnout especially consequential.

But Republicans enter the closing stretch with another major advantage: money.

The National Republican Congressional Committee raised **$13.5 million in August** and finished the month with roughly a **$13 million cash advantage** over its Democratic counterpart.

Axios reported that it represented the largest cash advantage the NRCC has ever held at this stage of a midterm election cycle.

And considerably more money could soon enter the fight.

Earlier this month, Trump said his MAGA Inc. super PAC could direct between **$400 million and $500 million** toward helping Republican candidates during the midterms.

“I’m going to spend whatever amount o

Former Vice President Mike Pence is making his plans for 2028 clear — and another run for the White House apparently isn’t part of them.

After years of political upheaval, a failed 2024 presidential campaign and a dramatic break with President Donald Trump, Pence said this week that he currently has no plans to seek the presidency — or any other elected office — in 2028.

The former vice president addressed his political future during an appearance at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., where chairman David Rubenstein pressed him about whether voters could see his name on another presidential ballot.

“What I can tell you is that we have no plans,” Pence replied.

Rather than gearing up for another campaign, Pence said his attention is centered on his family and Advancing American Freedom, the conservative policy organization he founded after leaving the White House.

Pence said he intends to use his public platform to continue advocating for the conservative principles that have defined much of his career, including lower taxes, limited government, reduced regulation, traditional values and opposition to abortion.

“The calling of my life right now is to be a champion for these principles,” Pence said.

The comments put considerable distance between Pence and the emerging 2028 presidential contest, even as Republicans begin looking ahead to the next battle for the White House.

Pence has been down that road before.

In 2023, he launched a Republican presidential campaign that put him directly against Trump, his former running mate and the president he served alongside for four years. But Pence struggled to gain traction and suspended his campaign in October 2023, months before Republican voters began casting primary ballots.

He later declined to endorse Trump in the 2024 election.

Trump ultimately secured the Republican nomination and returned to the White House.

But the political split between the two men goes back much further.

Pence served as Trump’s vice president from 2017 until 2021 after previously serving as Indiana governor and a member of Congress. Their once-close political alliance fractured following the 2020 presidential election and the events surrounding Jan. 6, 2021.

Trump urged Pence, who was presiding over the congressional certification of the Electoral College vote, to reject or delay certification of Joe Biden’s victory.

Pence refused, concluding that the Constitution gave him no authority to do so.

Years later, he remains unapologetic about that decision.

“It was the easiest decision I’ve ever made,” Pence said. “By God’s grace I did my duty that day.”

Since leaving office, Pence has remained active in Republican politics, but increasingly as a voice arguing for a more traditional strain of conservatism as parts of the GOP have embraced populist policies.

Through Advancing American Freedom and his public appearances, Pence has continued promoting free markets, limited government, a strong American role overseas and socially conservative policies.

Earlier this year, he argued that Republicans should determine what principles they want their party to stand for before becoming consumed with the question of who should carry the GOP banner in 2028.

Now Pence appears to be taking himself out of that conversation — at least for the time being.

Notably, he stopped short of declaring that he would never seek public office again. His wording was narrower: He has “no plans” to run in 2028.

For the foreseeable future, however, Pence says his focus is on advancing his political philosophy rather than launching another campaign.

And his willingness to publicly challenge Trump hasn’t disappeared.

Earlier this year, Pence broke with the president over the possibility that people involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot could receive taxpayer-funded compensation.

Speaking with Axios while discussing his book *What Conservatives Believe*, Pence described Jan. 6 as a “tragic day” and drew a firm line when it came to people who committed violence against law enforcement.

“I didn’t agree with the President when he pardoned people who engaged in violence against law enforcement officials,” Pence said.

Then he went further.

“And it would be my hope that anyone who engaged in violence against law enforcement or at the Capitol building would never be rewarded with taxpayers’ money.”

The comments underscored a political divide that has persisted years after Pence left the vice presidency.

For now, Pence appears prepared to remain part of the conservative debate — just not as a candidate in 2028.

Vice President JD Vance delivered a pointed message about one of America’s closest Middle Eastern partners this week, arguing that even longstanding alliances have limits when another country’s priorities diverge from those of the United States.

Speaking by video at the All-In Summit in Los Angeles, Vance said Israel remains an important American partner — particularly in military technology and intelligence — but made clear that partnership does not require Washington to follow the Israeli government’s position on every issue.

“Obviously Israel has been an important partner when it comes to military technology, when it comes to intelligence sharing, but also sometimes the United States doesn’t always agree with Israel,” Vance said.

He then laid out what he described as the guiding principle for the relationship.

“Rooting this relationship, like all relationships, in America’s interest is the way to actually have a rational conversation here.”

Let’s all take a moment to actually watch this exchange in full, where the VP was specifically asked about Israel.

Q: JD, before we wrap here, I want to ask you another hard question. This one about our relationship with the state of Israel and the president’s relationship… https://t.co/mvGI0RFc8A pic.twitter.com/tbHwS0XHpq

— Taylor Van Kirk (@VPCommsDir) September 16, 2026

The vice president’s comments came during a discussion with All-In Podcast co-host Jason Calacanis that touched on the U.S.-Israel alliance, President Donald Trump’s relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and concerns among some on the political right about the degree of American alignment with Israel.

Vance argued that Trump has demonstrated a greater willingness than other recent presidents to break with Netanyahu when the two governments’ interests conflict.

“I think that more than frankly any president in the last 40 years, he has shown a willingness to actually part ways with Bibi Netanyahu when he feels like the interests of the American people are different from the interests of the government of Israel,” the vice president continued.

Vance expanded on that argument, portraying Trump’s approach as one in which cooperation with Israel remains important but does not override decisions the administration believes should be made in America’s interests.

“Donald Trump is the one president of the last 40 years who’s been willing to say, ‘You know what? Yeah, Bibi’s a good partner, but also Bibi and I have a different opinion on this, or Bibi’s wrong about this, or maybe Bibi’s right about this from the perspective of Israel, but the American people need us to go in a different direction.’”

Vance also called it “a little ironic” that some Democrats have criticized Trump’s relationship with Netanyahu, given what Vance characterized as Trump’s willingness to disagree with the Israeli leader.

But Vance’s most striking remarks came when he broadened the discussion beyond Israel and compared the relationship to America’s alliances within NATO.

His argument was straightforward: having an important ally does not mean allowing that ally to determine U.S. foreign policy.

“There are obviously a lot of important relationships, a lot of important partnerships in NATO, but that doesn’t mean that we’re going to completely make our European foreign policy subservient to NATO in the same way that we cannot let our Middle Eastern foreign policy be subservient to the State of Israel,” Vance said.

He then summarized the administration’s approach in unmistakable terms.

“We’re going to work with people when we work with them. We’re going to disagree when we disagree, and we’re going to pursue America’s interests. That’s the only way to have a rational foreign policy.”

The remarks draw a distinction between maintaining the U.S.-Israel alliance and automatically aligning American policy with the Israeli government’s position.

Vance did not argue for ending or downgrading the partnership. Instead, he specifically cited military technology and intelligence sharing as areas in which Israel remains an important U.S. partner.

At the same time, his comments emphasized that disagreements between Washington and Jerusalem are possible — and, in his view, should not be avoided when American and Israeli priorities diverge.

That approach was at the center of Vance’s message throughout the discussion: alliances remain valuable, but decisions made in Washington should ultimately be based on what the administration determines serves American interests.