Democrats flood DOJ with election-interference demands three weeks before midterms

Padilla, Durbin, and Whitehouse pressed Blanche to reaffirm DOJ's longstanding election non-interference policy, citing what they described as an unprecedented demand sent to the California Secretary of State and Los Angeles County to withhold and segregate ballots from a DOJ-supplied USB thumb drive less than three weeks before Election Day. "Mail and absentee ballots have already been sent out to millions of voters, and early voting has begun in several states," the senators wrote. "However, the Department has failed to affirm its election non-interference policy against a backdrop of the recent weakening of DOJ policies, upheaval in the agency's workforce, DOJ's seizure of 2020 election materials in Georgia and Arizona, personal calls by President Trump directly to DOJ attorneys to influence election-related investigations in California and elsewhere, as well as unprecedented partisan political activity by DOJ leadership."

Padilla noted he had already secured a commitment under oath from FBI Director Patel that the FBI would not seize ballots or voting equipment before an election is certified. The senators also flagged DOJ's quiet removal of the most recent Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses manual from its website. "Removing ballots from the officials legally charged with maintaining their custody could prevent election officials from satisfying statutory deadlines, interfere with recount or contest procedures, and even prevent lawful votes from being counted or an election from being certified," they continued.

The Warner-Durbin-Padilla-Peters letter to both Blanche and Patel broadened the scope, laying out what the senators called "a disturbing, whole-of-government campaign." They wrote that Director Patel "has reportedly urged the FBI to persist in these fishing expeditions by exhorting agents to 'look harder' because 'this is a push from 47,' and senior DOJ officials have threatened to fire or override prosecutors who choose not to pursue election fraud cases that FBI or DHS agents bring them, in contravention of longstanding DOJ rules for prosecutors." They also flagged the then-Director of National Intelligence's attendance at the January Fulton County raid and her subsequent call with President Trump on behalf of the agents who conducted it.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., co-chairs of the Senate NATO Observer Group, led a bipartisan group of seven senators in demanding the Defense Department Inspector General investigate disruptions to U.S.-maintained Starshield systems used by Ukrainian partners. The letter — signed by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Susan Collins, R-Maine, Jack Reed, D-R.I., John Cornyn, R-Texas, Chris Coons, D-Del., Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. — cited specific incidents in which American personnel couldn't reach bunkers during Russian air raids.

"We are particularly alarmed by incidents in which U.S. diplomatic, military, and security personnel were unable to reach designated bunkers during Russian air raids, amid reported disruptions to intelligence-sharing and early-warning capabilities," the senators wrote. "The United States government has a fundamental obligation to protect American personnel serving overseas. Disruptions to critical intelligence-sharing, threat-warning, or communications capabilities in an active war zone can have life-threatening consequences. The possibility that American personnel were endangered by preventable disruptions, inadequate coordination, or decisions made by their own government demands immediate scrutiny and accountability."

The letter also raised contract oversight questions. "Any restrictions on these capabilities, particularly without advance notification, raise serious questions about the Department of Defense's contractual oversight and its responsibility to ensure continuity of essential services," the senators wrote. The seven-senator, cross-party coalition represents one of the day's more structurally unusual releases — a SNOG-led letter with both Republican conference leaders and Democratic ranking members as co-signatories.

Two separate JEC Minority report rollouts landed Friday, one from Sen. Warner and Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and one from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., each citing state-specific cost figures for their constituents since President Trump took office. Warner and Kaine put the figure for Virginia families at more than $3,900 in additional spending. "Despite repeated promises from President Trump and Republicans to 'end inflation' and lower costs, Virginia families continue to get squeezed from every direction," the senators said. "Between the president's reckless war with Iran and his disastrous tariffs, families are paying more for everything from gas and groceries to housing and utilities."

Gillibrand's release put the New York figure above $6,000 per household, citing a record heating oil price of $6.21 per gallon — a 67 percent increase from a year ago. "President Trump and congressional Republicans promised to lower costs and end inflation. Instead, they've made life $6,000 more expensive for New Yorkers," Gillibrand said. "Look at what they have done: they gutted Medicaid and cut Medicare and healthcare subsidies to fund tax breaks for billionaires, launched a war that increased gas prices, and supported tariffs to make groceries and essentials more expensive."

The LIHEAP funding release from Gillibrand added a separate data point: New York heating oil now runs $6.21 per gallon, and the state is slated to receive an estimated $356 million in released federal heating assistance funds. "I am relieved that the federal government has released heating assistance funding, allowing New York State to make these funds available to help New Yorkers heat their homes," Gillibrand said.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led the entire Massachusetts House and Senate delegation in requesting an independent DHS OIG inspection of the Burlington, Mass., ICE facility, citing a pattern of individuals held for days and weeks at a site not designed for overnight detention. The letter described a woman who spent approximately four days at the facility after a recent miscarriage and was denied adequate care — a detail surfaced on the same day Warren and Rep. Lori Trahan conducted an unannounced oversight visit in September. "Congress and the public deserve immediate transparency about ICE's practices and the secretive use of this Massachusetts building as an unmonitored detention site," the lawmakers wrote.

Warren also joined Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., in introducing the Epstein Wall Street Records Act, a bipartisan bill that would require federal financial regulators to disclose supervisory records related to Jeffrey Epstein and mandate industry bars and civil penalties for executives who assisted his financial operations. "I have spent the last year calling on Donald Trump's financial regulators to launch investigations into the big banks and executives who may have enabled Jeffrey Epstein's horrific crimes," Warren said. "Since they have failed to act, Congress must." Luján, the bill's original Senate sponsor on related transparency legislation, said: "For too long, powerful banks and financial institutions have dodged accountability in their potential role in enabling Epstein's abuse and crimes."

Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., is leading congressional efforts to secure a Major Emergency Disaster Declaration for Florida following Hurricane Isaias's damage to the state's Panhandle and Gulf Coast. Moody said she has been in direct contact with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and made multiple ground-assessment trips with Governor Ron DeSantis. "Hurricane Isaias wreaked havoc on Florida's Panhandle and Gulf Coast, and we are working to get those affected relief as quickly as possible," Moody said. "I will continue to work with the governor and have been in constant contact with Sec. Mullin to make sure disaster assistance gets to those in need."

The declaration, if approved, would provide both public and individual assistance. Moody's office noted she has secured more than $2.4 billion for Florida since taking office and that the TRACK Act — legislation she sponsored to mandate a FEMA claims status tracker — has already been signed into law.

Three Republican senators used the recess period to announce locally targeted deliverables. Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, secured $43,550,000 through the CRISI program to rehabilitate the Toledo Swing Bridge over the Maumee River. "Ohio's rail infrastructure plays a critical role in moving goods, supporting businesses and keeping our economy strong," Husted said. "This investment will make the Toledo Swing Bridge safer and more reliable, allowing goods to move more efficiently and strengthening Toledo's position as a major transportation hub."

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., announced that USDA Under Secretary Richard Fordyce confirmed no Farm Service Agency offices in Missouri face closures or service reductions, including the Ralls County office that had been flagged for possible changes. Fordyce wrote: "As it stands, there are no Missouri field offices which are being transitioned to a part-time or appointment-only status. This includes the Ralls County office, which I am pleased to share, will remain fully operational."

Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., toured NioCorp's Elk Creek Critical Minerals project alongside Energy Secretary Chris Wright and a bipartisan state delegation, framing the project as a domestic supply chain priority. "Advanced minerals needed for key sectors like defense and energy will be made in Elk Creek," Ricketts said. In a separate roundtable with the Nebraska Farm Bureau, Ricketts and Wright discussed year-round E15 fuel sales — a priority also raised in an op-ed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., who called passage of a farm bill containing a permanent E15 provision an active Senate priority.

In an op-ed republished as a press release, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., called on Congress to pass the Campus Accountability and Safety Act in the wake of gang rape allegations at a Cornell University fraternity house. Gillibrand argued that Congress spent two weeks on college sports regulations while campus sexual assault went unaddressed. "There is no question: the system has failed Jane Doe. This is not just a problem with one case, one fraternity, or one university," Gillibrand wrote. "Jane Doe's story echoes a heartbreaking reality on campuses across the country."

Gillibrand's legislation would require a trained, confidential advocate to be available to survivors of sexual assault on every campus. She cited data that one in four undergraduate women nationally report being sexually assaulted at school, with the Cornell figure exceeding one in three. The Campus Accountability and Safety Act is described as bipartisan in the release.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., released the latest installment of his "Rescuing America" video series, calling on both parties to address the national debt. "Republicans and Democrats put us in this position, spending billions of taxpayer dollars on wasteful earmarks year after year," Scott said. "Our federal debt is the leading reason why everything costs you so much more." Scott framed the debt in personal terms: "If an American spent $1 million every single day since the birth of Jesus Christ, they would still have spent less than two percent of our national debt."

Sens. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., and James Lankford, R-Okla., introduced the Best Practices for Military Child Care Homes Act, which would direct the Pentagon to develop a best practices guide for on-base family child care homes. "Military families shouldn't have to navigate unnecessary hurdles to find reliable child care," Lankford said. "Our servicemembers need to know their children are cared for so they can focus on their mission."

Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., used a SiriusXM radio appearance to outline an economic policy platform that includes raising the federal minimum wage to $20 an hour and a New Deal-style jobs program to address AI-driven displacement. On the Trump administration's diesel deal with Russia, Gallego said: "It's a corrupt deal. Number one, it's not in the best interest of this country for us to actually help Russia. The diesel deal is bad to begin with, just on paper."

Signals

• volumeFriday release count of 23 runs 46.7 percent below the Friday baseline of 43.1, consistent with the pre-election state work period recess.
• coordinatedFour Democratic senators — Warner, Durbin, Padilla, and Peters — issued overlapping election-interference letters to both DOJ and FBI within a two-hour window, with Durbin and Padilla appearing as co-signatories on both letters.
• coordinatedGillibrand issued four separate releases today — on LIHEAP funding, lithium-ion battery regulation, the JEC cost report, and a campus sexual assault op-ed — the highest single-senator output in the input set.
• recessSenate is in pre-election state work period recess with no scheduled floor votes; member activity is concentrated on constituent-facing deliverables and oversight letters.
• silent breaksSen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has issued no public communications in 94 days — the longest silence in the tracked cohort — with 21 days remaining until the midterm elections.

Quiet desks

Senators with no release in two weeks or more.

• Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-SC94d
• Sen. Alan Armstrong, R-OK92d
• Sen. Roger F. Wicker, R-MS86d
• Sen. Peter Welch, D-VT52d
• Sen. John Kennedy, R-LA29d