Trump enters midterms with $400 million war chest and sinking approval

As President Donald Trump’s final midterm election cycle approaches, an unusually volatile political landscape is being shaped by conflicts with Iran, disputes over the White House and Kennedy Center, controversies involving artificial-intelligence data centers, and other issues that have rapidly altered the national conversation. Congressional maps are shifting in Texas, California, Florida and Missouri, while Trump’s tariffs on Canada and proposed limits on mail voting could affect key races and voting procedures. Both parties are treating the midterms as a referendum on Trump, even as redistricting has reduced the number of genuinely competitive contests. Trump has more than $400 million available to influence the elections, while his reported $1.2 billion in crypto-related income contrasts with economic anxiety among many Americans; his approval rating has fallen to about one-third of U.S. adults, according to an AP-NORC poll.