Trump Revenge Race In Virginia Too Close To Call

David Kurtz
·8 min read
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A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

Not Looking Good

In the VA-05 grudge match over who is Trumpy enough, House Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good (R) is trailing state Sen. John J. McGuire III (R) by a mere 327 votes in the GOP primary, with 97.8% of the votes counted.

With today’s holiday, the final tally may not be known until tomorrow at the earliest.

You know the backstory here, but to recap briefly: Good is as far to the right as anyone in the House GOP conference. You don’t get to be Freedom Caucus chair otherwise. But he endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in the GOP primary over Donald Trump and is now paying the piper. Good made it clear he would return the Trump fold as soon as DeSantis withdrew from the race and then did exactly that, but McGuire seized on the opening and attacked Good from the farther right in a seat that is safely Republican.

The coverage going into Election Day had largely come to see Good as doomed by Trump’s endorsement of McGuire. But as the results came in last night, it became clear that Good, while in trouble, was putting up a real fight.

Even once the final official tally comes in, a recount is likely in this very close race. I’m not sure it changes the underlying narrative though. Good was seen as safely ensconced in his seat until he crossed Trump, Trump is making him pay a price for it, and it’s a steep price, even if Good pulls out a win in the end.

Message sent. Message received.

In Other Election News …

  • VA-07: In an important swing district, Trump whisteblower Yevgeny “Eugene” Vindman won the Democratic primary and will face former Army Green Beret Derrick Anderson (R). Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D) is giving up the seat to run for governor.

  • VA-10: The race to succeed retiring Rep. Jennifer Wexton looks like it will match state Sen. Suhas Subramanyam (D) against tech exec Mike Clancy (R) in a seat that is still generally considered safe for Democrats.

  • OK-04: Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, easily held off a primary challenge from the right by businessman Paul Bondar.

Oh Hey, It’s More Matt Gaetz Ethics News

A new report out this morning from ABC News alleges that one woman told the House Ethics Committee that Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) paid her to have sex with him. The ABC News report comes a day after the Ethics Committee issued a written update on the Gaetz case that suggested its investigation had expanded to include obstruction of government investigations.

The allegations the committee is still investigating in the Gaetz matter, according to its statement, are that he:

  • engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use;

  • accepted improper gifts;

  • dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship; and

  • sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.

The committee has deemed it not worth pursuing further allegations that Gaetz:

  • may have shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor;

  • misused state identification records;

  • converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe or improper gratuity.

Gaetz has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

‘I Made A Stupid Phone Call’

An Alabama man pleaded guilty to making threatening phone calls to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Sheriff Patrick Labat over the criminal investigation into Donald Trump.

Trump Loses Gag Order Appeal

New York’s highest court dismissed Donald Trump’s appeal of the gag order imposed on him in his Manhattan hush money trial.

Rotten Indeed

Leah Litman: Something’s Rotten About the Justices Taking So Long on Trump’s Immunity Case

Bezos Tries To Calm WaPo Crisis

In his first public comments about the upheaval at the WaPo, owner Jeff Bezos sent an email to newsroom leaders that was obtained by Politico:

Team — I know you’ve already heard this from Will, but I wanted to also weigh in directly: the journalistic standards and ethics at The Post will not change. … You have my full commitment on maintaining the quality, ethics, and standards we all believe in.

For The Record …

Nvidia, the 31-year-old company that has exploded in value on the back of its AI chips, became the largest company in the world Tuesday, measured by market capitalization.

“It marks the first time a company other than Microsoft or Apple has held the title of largest company since February 2019 when Amazon.com briefly topped the list, the WSJ reported.

Nvidia’s recent run has been astonishing: It wasn’t among the top 20 largest companies even five years ago.

Willie Mays, 1931-2024

NEW YORK, NY – MAY, 1951: Outfielder Willie Mays #24 of the New York Giants poses for a portrait prior to a game in May, 1951 at the Polo Grounds in New York, New York. (Photo by: 1951 Kidwiler Collection/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – MAY, 1951: Outfielder Willie Mays #24 of the New York Giants poses for a portrait prior to a game in May, 1951 at the Polo Grounds in New York, New York. (Photo by: 1951 Kidwiler Collection/Diamond Images via Getty Images)

If you’re not a baseball fan, it’s hard to convey how outsized Willie Mays was. He connected the ancient and modern versions of the game. He spanned both coasts at a time that meant something, playing for the Giants in New York and San Francisco. His death yesterday at 93 warranted two curse words in a George Will column.

The above photo was taken of the eventual all-time great in May 1951, his first month in the majors. It was one of the earliest dated photos I could find of Mays in our archive. The other thing I found in sifting through the old photos were some angles on the The Catch, the most famous play in baseball history, that I had never seen before. You can easily find the video on YouTube and you’ll probably see it a dozen times this week as the memorials for Mays flood in, but there’s something about these stills that make it feel even more legendary:

(Original Caption) Here’s a photo-diagram of the Polo Grounds Diamond as Willie Mays made his sensational 8th inning catch on Vic Wertz’s 450 foot fly to centerfield. Wertz, rounding first, watches Mays make the plate grab. Willie had to run and run to get it. Rosen, midway between first and second, heads back to first. Doby goes back to second to tag up. He made third on the throw. Wertz was the only batter relief hurler Liddle faced. Giant Manager Durocher pulled him out, replacing him with Marv Grissom who retired the next two Indian batters, ending the inning. Giants beat Cleveland in the series opener, 5-2, on Dusty Rhode’s pinch 3-run homer in the 10th.
(Original Caption) New York: The Catch Of The Season. Willie Mays – The Amazing One – is shown as he made one of the most spectacular catches in World Series history in the 8th inning of today’s opener between the Giants and the Cleveland Indians. Running with his back to the plate, Mays made the sensational one handed catch up against the bleacher wall. He raced all the way back to the distant center field bleachers to take Wertz’ long fly over his head. It saved at least two runs since first and second were occupied with nobody out. The Giants won, 5-2, in ten innings of play.
(Original Caption) New York: The Catch Of The Season. Willie Mays – The Amazing One – is shown as he made one of the most spectacular catches in World Series history in the 8th inning of today’s opener between the Giants and the Cleveland Indians. Running with his back to the plate, Mays made the sensational one handed catch up against the bleacher wall. He raced all the way back to the distant center field bleachers to take Wertz’ long fly over his head. It saved at least two runs since first and second were occupied with nobody out. The Giants won, 5-2, in ten innings of play.
(Original Caption) New York: The Catch Of The Season. Willie Mays – The Amazing One – is shown as he made one of the most spectacular catches in World Series history in the 8th inning of today’s opener between the Giants and the Cleveland Indians. Running with his back to the plate, Mays made the sensational one handed catch up against the bleacher wall. He raced all the way back to the distant center field bleachers to take Wertz’ long fly over his head. It saved at least two runs since first and second were occupied with nobody out. The Giants won, 5-2, in ten innings of play.
(Original Caption) This is a bleacher view of Giant Willie Mays’ game-saving eighth-inning catch of Cleveland’s Vic Wertz’ 450- foot drive to right center field at the Polo Grounds, September 29th, during the first game of the 1954 World Series. With the score tied 2-2 and one out, Mays ran tot he wall with his back to the plate and caught the ball over his head. The
NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 29: Willie Mays #24 of the New York Giants goes back to catch the batted ball by Vic Wertz #23 (not pictured) of the Cleveland Indians during Game 1 of the 1954 World Series on September 29, 1954 at the Polo Ground V in New York, New York. The Mays catch is known as “The Catch”. (Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios via Getty Images Studios/Getty Images)

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