President Trump is not sounding like a man worried about November. Speaking to the press before departing the White House on Monday afternoon, he insisted he is "feeling good" about the upcoming midterms as he headed to Wichita, Kansas, to campaign for Sen. Roger Marshall — the first stop of a seven-state rally sprint in the final stretch before the November 3 elections.
"Feeling good."
Tonight's rally is at the Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, just outside Wichita, with doors at 2:30 p.m., the program at 4:30 and Trump's remarks scheduled for 6 p.m. Central. It is his first visit to Kansas in eight years, and supporters were already lining up before sunrise for an arena that holds about 6,500. This morning, he told those supporters exactly where to watch: in a Truth Social post torching Fox News, he directed them to RSBN's coverage of "my big Kansas Rally today."
Kansas was not supposed to need a presidential rescue. The state has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate in more than 90 years, but Marshall's reelection bid against Democrat Adam Hamilton, a pastor, has tightened enough to put reliably Republican Kansas on the national battleground map — tight enough that the Senate Leadership Fund recently shifted money from North Carolina to Kansas. Marshall and Hamilton meet Wednesday for their second and likely final debate, and control of the Senate could run through races exactly like this one.
Wichita is only the opening night. The sprint continues through Greenville, North Carolina on Tuesday, Clemson, South Carolina on Wednesday, Sioux City, Iowa on Thursday, Fort Myers, Florida on Friday, Macon, Georgia on Saturday and St. Clair County, Michigan on Sunday — seven rallies in seven states in seven days, with the president putting his own political capital behind Republican candidates while his name is not on the ballot. Democrats, who need to flip seats in both chambers to take Congress, are betting the map is widening; the White House is betting on the man and the crowds. On his way out the door Monday, Trump gave his own read on how it ends: he is "feeling good" about the midterms.
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