Current Affairs Of Pakistan & World: Zacharia out

Zacharia out

Oct 16, 2026

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THE CATCH-UP

White House press secretary Katie Zacharia arrives on Air Force One, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

White House press secretary Katie Zacharia's tenure is looking short-lived. | Alex Brandon/AP

THAT WAS FAST: Katie Zacharia is out as White House press secretary after only five days in the role, having received tough notices for her early performance and questions about her legal credentials, POLITICO’s Ben Johansen and Daniel Lippman report.

The news dropped just minutes after President Donald Trump indicated Zacharia could be on her way out: “She’s been treated, I would say, pretty nastily,” Trump told reporters this afternoon. “I said, ‘Katie, you know, you don’t have to do this if you don’t want.’” Trump also said she might move to a different, “more pleasant” role in the administration.

“Records are made to be broken,” posted Anthony Scaramucci. “But I take no pleasure in other people’s pain.”

But there’s “zero chance” Trump replaces chief of staff Susie Wiles, the president said. “Susie is here and she’s going to be here for a long time.”

President Donald Trump listens as Republican U.S. Senate candidate Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a campaign rally at the Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

A new $3 million advertising campaign is coming after Texas AG Ken Paxton’s Senate campaign. | Eric Gay/AP

GRAB A SURFBOARD: With fewer than three weeks to go, the national environment keeps deteriorating for Republicans, and some Democrats are starting to dream of a big blue wave — even as warning signs remain that some GOP backlash may not translate to Democratic conversion.

Last night’s eye-popping third-quarter fundraising reports made clear that the campaign cash dash comprises two powerful opposing forces: Democratic candidates who are largely trouncing GOP rivals in key Senate races, and Republican outside groups rolling in largesse from billionaires and megadonors. The latter could keep Republicans competitive in a difficult year, while the former goes further in buying TV airtime.

Ad it up: The deluge of campaign spending is now hitting its peak, as candidates scramble to deliver a closing message to late-deciding voters only just tuning in. Today, the League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund is kicking off a new $3 million advertising drive to attack Texas AG Ken Paxton’s Senate campaign, shared first with Playbook.

The spot, which will run on digital and streaming TV in the Houston and Dallas areas, lays into Paxton with allegations of corruption and personally profiting off his government role. “Ken Paxton is for sale, not for Texas,” the narrator says. Watch the spot here

It drops as corruption has increasingly bubbled up as a salient top issue in the midterms — outweighing even inflation and high prices atop some voters’ list of concerns in the latest Fox News poll. The narrative has surged late with Democrats on the campaign trail, who spy an opening to link what they call GOP corruption with affordability woes.

Race raters continue to see the political landscape tilting bluer, with changes that can sometimes sound near-fanciful. The Cook Political Report’s Erin Covey today moved 11 House races toward Democrats: Montana’s 1st District shifted to toss-up, Florida’s 25th moved out of toss-up into leaning Democratic, and Florida’s 16th, Kansas’ 2nd and Nebraska’s 1st all stepped onto the competitive board for the first time. Inside Elections moved Wyoming out of solid Republican territory yesterday. A larger map also means Democrats run the risk of stretching their resources too thin.

Progressives are bullish: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) transferred $1 million to bolster Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, NYT’s Shane Goldmacher reports from Detroit. (Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-Vt.) leadership PAC has given El-Sayed just two $5,000 transfers.)

Democrats have welcomed some unlikely converts: In New Hampshire, 2022 Republican Senate nominee Don Bolduc today backed Democrat Stefany Shaheen for the House, on top of his endorsement yesterday of Rep. Chris Pappas’ Senate bid.

And in the fight for state legislative control, Republicans have been outspent by Democrats roughly 4 to 1, NBC’s Adam Edelman reports. Dems are hopeful they have opportunities to create new trifectas in Arizona, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Vermont and even New Hampshire — and break GOP trifectas or supermajorities in several more. If Democrats can break through, it could represent a real opportunity to start building power in a realm that Republicans dominated going back to the Obama era.

But but but: Some of the crucial groups moving away from Trump’s Republican Party aren’t sure bets for the other side. MS NOW’s Elise Jordan observed focus groups with 20 reluctant Trump voters in Iowa, among whom six may vote for Rep. Ashley Hinson, seven may flip to Josh Turek, and seven may sit out the Senate race entirely. And among young voters who surged for Trump, NYT’s Sabrina Tavernise and Ruth Igielnik find a wide variety of frustrated paths forward, from skipping the midterms to swinging all the way to democratic socialism.

Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at eokun@politico.com.

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8 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. MIDDLE EAST LATEST: WaPo photographer Heidi Levine was attacked by Israeli settlers in the West Bank and taken to a hospital, part of their broader attack on Palestinians harvesting olives, WaPo’s Suheir Hashimeh and Steve Hendrix report from Abu Falah. Witnesses and videos said the coordinated burst of Israeli settler violence included Levine being kicked and beaten; one journalist said Israeli soldiers at the scene did nothing. The Israeli military said it would investigate, while PM Benjamin Netanyanhu’s office raised questions about the eyewitness accounts and news reports.

2. WAR REPORT: Iran said today it’s prepared for a potential resumption of U.S. attacks with fortified air defenses. An Army spokesperson said they’ve worked to repair damage from this year’s American and Israeli strikes, along with “new equipment” to bolster their defense. More from Bloomberg

3. DISINFORMATION DIGEST: A Russian operation has plastered U.S. social media with lies and fake AI videos to attack Democratic candidates ahead of the election, Bloomberg’s Stephanie Baker and Priyanjana Bengani report. Bots elevate the videos’ view counts. The stories have gone after dozens of Dems running for Senate and governor with false corruption allegations, especially Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) and Texas state Rep. James Talarico.

To Russia, with fury: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today excoriated Trump’s diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite Trump increasingly blaming Zelenskyy for Putin’s war: “This diesel deal will never be enough to offset the impact of the Strait of Hormuz on global markets,” Zelenskyy said, per Reuters. “But it will put more money straight into Putin’s pocket to fund this war.”

4. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Nebraska independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn privately disparaged Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), who he ran against in 2024, calling her a “bitch” in a vulgar remark that offended at least one campaign volunteer, according to an audio recording obtained by POLITICO’s Daniel Lippman.

At a campaign-related event this summer in the Omaha area, during a discussion of the 2024 Senate race and after playing one of his ads against Fischer, Osborn yelled: “And I fucking lost to that bitch.” Listen to the audio here

A campaign volunteer secretly recorded the conversation, although POLITICO received it from a separate person. They were both granted anonymity because of their concerns of retaliation. The volunteer, who no longer helps the campaign, told POLITICO they were stunned after Osborn criticized Fischer in such crude terms.

Osborn, who’s receiving backing from Democrats, faces GOP Sen. Pete Ricketts in November, and polls have shown a competitive race.

Osborn apologized for his Fischer comment in a statement to POLITICO. “I’m a sailor, and sometimes I swear like one and make stupid jokes. I was wrong to speak that way about Senator Fischer,” he said. Asked about Osborn’s comment about her, Fischer said in a statement, “Of course he lost and he will lose again. Pete will win this.”

5. BATTLE FOR THE BALLOT: “GOP-controlled local boards restrict voting on Sundays and find other ways to make voting harder,” by CNN’s Bob Ortega: “Republican lawmakers and officials around the country have taken steps at the state and local level to make it harder to vote this November, from enacting stricter registration requirements to adding ID restrictions to dramatically reducing early voting sites, polling places and ballot drop-boxes. … The new restrictions, all passed since the last midterm election in 2022, could affect highly competitive Senate races in states including Iowa, Ohio, North Carolina and Texas.”

6. THE BOAT STRIKES: Working with Ecuador, the U.S. has moved into a new phase of its campaign against alleged drug-trafficking boats in Latin America, WaPo’s Samantha Schmidt and Arturo Torres report from Manta. Rather than kill people in small boats, the U.S. military is now increasingly seizing larger refueling vessels — non-lethally — and then blowing them up. Authorities detained 160 crew members in a series of recent operations … but few of the criminal cases against them have managed to hold up in Ecuadorian court.

7. BLEEDING CUTS: “Malnutrition stalks the most vulnerable in Afghanistan as aid cuts leave millions helpless,” by AP’s Elena Becatoros and Abdul Qahar Afghan in Kabul: “Across Afghanistan, hunger and malnutrition are rising dramatically. … Even more worrying is that acute malnutrition, which kills if left untreated, is spiraling. … Funding cuts to humanitarian organizations, including the halting of U.S. aid to programs such as the WFP’s food distribution, have severed a lifeline for millions.”

8. FOR YOUR RADAR: A second round of secret talks between the U.S. and Myanmar took place last week in Japan, Reuters’ Simon Lewis and colleagues scooped. It’s the continuation of a shift toward greater engagement with Myanmar’s leaders, who took power in a military coup, as Washington eyes potential progress on shutting down scam operations or accessing rare earths.

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TALK OF THE TOWN

LIVING HISTORY — “How the White House Historical Association is trying to survive Trump,” by WaPo’s Dan Diamond: “When Vance Patterson learned last spring that President Donald Trump wanted to build a White House ballroom, he turned to the White House Historical Association to offer his help — $2.5 million to pay to demolish the East Wing and preserve its contents. … [But f]our donors collectively representing more than $500,000 in donations told The Post they have decided to stop giving to the association, and philanthropists who represent millions of dollars in additional pledges have said they are frustrated and weighing whether to halt or withdraw their gifts.”

HEADS UP — Russell Brand has gotten so close to leaders of the MAHA movement that Tony Lyons, leader of the MAHA PAC, went to London this week to support the actor as he faces trial for allegedly raping or sexually assaulting half a dozen women, POLITICO’s Carmen Paun reports. Brand and Lyons have called the allegations false.

OUT AND ABOUT — Bully Pulpit International welcomed its new German team and celebrated the acquisition of 365 Sherpas with a dinner Wednesday at Albi, focused on the political and economic outlook across the Europe and the U.S. SPOTTED: Scott Mulhauser, Jeff Nussbaum, Dan Watson, Cornelius Winter, Antonia Meyer-Özel, Charlotte Margit Sievers, Didem Nisanci, Kip Wainscott, Michael Steel, Eric Danko, Michael Zetts, Emily Mellencamp Smith, Jane Rhee and Edward Wong.

— Kate Seelye, Jeff Feltman, Tamara Cofman Wittes and Dana Milbank hosted a party yesterday for the launch of Kim Ghattas’ new book, “The Best Kind of American” ($32.99), at the home of Seelye and Andrew Tweedie. SPOTTED: UAE Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba, Jordanian Ambassador Dina Kawar, Reema Dodin, Tim Lenderking, Jim Malloy, Warren Bass, Firas Maksad, Jennifer Ludden, Gerry Holmes, E.J. Dionne, Ben Pauker, Daniella Cheslow, Alex Marquardt, Elizabeth Richard, Lisa Johnson, Yael Lempert, Elisa Catalano Ewers, Anne Dickerson and Kate Farrell.

TRANSITIONS — Dylan Laslovich will be chief of staff for Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), as Mark Libell departs. Josh Delaney is also being elevated to deputy chief of staff/legislative director. Laslovich previously has worked for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and is a Jon Tester alum. … Rob Yates is now comms director for the Libertarian National Committee. He previously worked for the Libertarian Party of North Carolina and OWL AI.

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