1/ The Biden administration threatened to suspend military assistance if Israel doesn’t improve the “increasingly dire” humanitarian crisis in Gaza – but then sent Israel an advanced missile defense system and the American troops needed to operate it. In a letter to senior Israeli officials, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin blamed Israel for “directly or indirectly” impeding the transport of humanitarian aid to Gaza that has contributed to the starvation and widespread suffering. Israel closed crossings into Gaza earlier this month, and the amount of aid delivered to Gaza “has dropped by more than 50%” since the spring. The U.S. officials gave Israel 30 days to “reverse the downward humanitarian trajectory” or else it “may have implications” for future U.S. weapons transfers and funding. The deadline to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, however, falls after the presidential election. Nevertheless, Biden ordered the Pentagon to send the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system — known as THAAD — to Israel to help fend off potential Iranian missile attacks. Israel, meanwhile, is preparing a military response to Iran’s Oct. 1 attack when it fired roughly 180 missiles into Israel. “We listen to the opinions of the United States, but we will make our final decisions based on our national interests,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. (Associated Press / Washington Post / Bloomberg / CNN / New York Times / NBC News / Politico / Axios / Wall Street Journal)

2/ Trump called for the National Guard or U.S. military to be deployed on American soil to handle what he called “the enemy from within” on Election Day, claiming that “radical left lunatics” are more dangerous than foreign adversaries like Russia and China. “I always say, we have two enemies,” Trump said. “We have the outside enemy, and then we have the enemy from within, and the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia and all these countries.” Trump added that a “smart president” could handle foreign adversaries “pretty easily,” but “the thing that’s tougher to handle are these lunatics that we have inside, like Adam Schiff.” In a statement, the Harris campaign said Trump “is suggesting that his fellow Americans are worse ‘enemies’ than foreign adversaries, and he is saying he would use the military against them. Taken with his vow to be a dictator on ‘day one,’ calls for the ‘termination’ of the Constitution, and plans to surround himself with sycophants who will give him unchecked, unprecedented power if he returns to office, this should alarm every American who cares about their freedom and security. What Donald Trump is promising is dangerous, and returning him to office is simply a risk Americans cannot afford.” Later, at a campaign rally in Erie, Pennsylvania, Harris said “A second Trump term would be a huge risk for America, and dangerous. Donald Trump is increasingly unstable and unhinged.” (CNN / NBC News / Washington Post / Reuters / The Guardian / Axios / Associated Press / Washington Post / CNN)

3/ JD Vance refused five times to acknowledge that Biden won the 2020 election and that Trump lost. Vance was given five opportunities to acknowledge that Trump didn’t win in 2020. Instead, Vance repeated the response he used during his debate against Tim Walz, saying he was “focused on the future” and criticizing an “obsession here with focusing on 2020.” During his debate with Walz, Vance twice refused to answer a direct question about whether Trump had lost the 2020 election. Walz called Vance’s response a “damning non-answer.” (New York Times / Los Angeles Times / Washington Post)

4/ Kamala Harris agreed to an interview with Fox News. The interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier will air Wednesday during the host’s Special Report at 6 pm Eastern. Trump, meanwhile, complained that “FoxNews has totally lost its way!” and “has grown weak and soft on Democrats.” After declining to participate in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” earlier this month, Trump canceled a planned interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” (New York Times / Politico)

5/ Kamala Harris released her medical report, which says she’s in “excellent health” and “possesses the physical and mental resiliency” required to serve as president. Harris dared Trump to provide a similar update. “He refuses to release his medical records,” Harris said. “I’ve done it. Every other presidential candidate in the modern era has done it.” More than 230 doctors, nurses, and health care professionals, called on Trump to release his medical records, arguing that he should be transparent about his health “given his advancing age.” If Trump wins, he would be the oldest president ever inaugurated. Meanwhile, at 1:12 am Trump challenged Harris to take a cognitive test. (CNN / Bloomberg / New York Times / Associated Press / Wall Street Journal / NBC News / Axios)

6/ Trump ended his town hall with voters early to listen to music for 39 minutes on stage. The event in Pennsylvania was supposed to be as an hour-long opportunity to hear Trump answer questions from voters in the must-win swing state, but after two medical incidents Trump ended the question-and-answer session after five questions and held an impromptu listening party instead. Trump requested “Ave Maria” be played while everyone waited for medical personnel to respond to the first incident. An instrumental version of the song was played. When a second person needed medical attention, Trump re-requested “Ave Maria,” but asked for the Luciano Pavarotti version this time. After it played one more time, Trump decided to end the event saying: “Let’s not do any more questions. Let’s just listen to music. Let’s make it into a music fest. Who the hell wants to hear questions right? Isn’t that beautiful?” Trump then stood on stage swaying and bobbing to the music, while the crowd appeared unsure if the event was over. Trump then called for the Village People’s “YMCA,” which celebrates gay cruising culture. “Nobody’s leaving,” Trump said. “What’s going on? There’s nobody leaving. Keep going,” as Rufus Wainwright’s version of “Hallelujah” played next. “All right, turn that music up! Turn that up. Great song!” As “November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses played, Trump walked off the stage and spoke to attendees on his way out, as “Memory” from the musical “Cats” played in the background. The Harris campaign, meanwhile, said “Voters are just starting to tune in, and objectively they are seeing a diminished Trump, one who rambles for hours at end, makes no sense, freezes for 30 minutes and forces people to listen to his Spotify playlist. It’s bizarre and raises more and more concerns for voters.” (New York Times / Washington Post / Associated Press / Axios / NPR / NBC News)

  • 📅 The WTFJHT Calendar: Now until then.

  • 📺 Oct. 16: Harris Fox News interview.
    📺 Oct. 23: Harris CNN town hall
    🗳️ Nov. 5: Election Day.
    ⚖️ Nov. 26: Trump is sentenced.
  • ✅ Get election ready: Register to vote, update your address, or request an absentee ballot at Vote.org, TurboVote.org, RocktheVote.org, or VoteFromAbroad.org.

  • 📈 Election Polling Tracker

  • Harris +2.0 points (New York Times)
    Harris +2.4 points (538)
    Harris +2.8 points (Nate Silver)
    Harris +3.3 points (The Economist)
    Harris +1.3 points (RealClearPolitics)
    Trump +12.1 points (Election Betting Odds)

  • 🔮 Election Forecast Tracker

  • Harris wins 54 times out of 100. Trump wins 45 times out of 100. (538)
    Harris wins 50 times out of 100. Trump wins 50 times out of 100. (Nate Silver)
    Harris wins 50 times out of 100. Trump wins 50 times out of 100. (The Economist)