Greetings everyone. Here are the events we have scheduled so far this week:
Today, 1215pm ET -Dr.Robert Shapirojoins us live to talk about failed wars, failed trade wars, and the danger of the bond market’s rising yieldsTue, Aug 25, Noon ET -Our good friendTom Bonierjoins us live to talk about the growing influence of manipulated and partisan pollingWed, Aug 26, 115pm ET -WI ChairDevin Remikerjoins us live to give us an update on the quest for a Wisconsin trifecta (Gov, both states houses) this November
There are also two opportunities to catch me live:
Wed, Aug 26, 11am -I’ll be joining joinsSusan Demasat Lincoln Square live to talk about the 2026 elections
**Wed, Aug 26, 7pm ET -**Our weekly Hopium Paid Subscriber Get Together (register here)
Links to all our events can be found on our Events page. To watch a live event simply head to the main Hopium site at the start of each event and watch it live on our home page. Learn how to change your settings to receive dedicated notices of our upcoming live events on our Housekeeping page. All of our live events will be shared with the Hopium community soon after the conclusion of the event in case you miss it.
We are still taking applications for our Fall intern slot. Send good prospects our way!
In Kyiv Global Leader Celebrate Ukraine’s Independence From The Soviet Union The US Is Absent - Global leaders have gathered in Kyiv today to celebrate Ukraine’s independence from Russia/The Soviet Union in 1991:
Here is an excerpt of a speech from the new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnhan in Kyiv. Today he speaks for us:
The US did not send a representative to the event. Kushner and Witkoff have still never visited Ukraine:
Meanwhile Russia’s “hybrid war” against Europe itself is escalating. In January, when we regain power, we must make it clear to the world where Democrats stand in Russia’s ongoing war against the West:
Here’s the lead story in the NYT right now (gift link):
Here’s how the story begins:
The young woman ran for her life, but it was too late.
A small Russian drone resembling a model airplane swooped down from the sky last month in the city of Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine. As it tried to navigate toward a gas station, it crashed into a wall and exploded in a hail of shrapnel, killing Tetiana Bubynets, 19, a university student, and two others.
They were among the thousands of Ukrainian civilians who have died in Russian airstrikes, but the circumstances of their deaths came with an ominous twist. The drone that killed them was guided by an experimental artificial intelligence system, not a human pilot, according to drone experts, Ukrainian military commanders and the forensic team that examined wreckage from the deadly strike and others in the city.
The drone was programmed by human operators to travel toward a particular gas station, but once it got close, it chose its exact target — most likely propane tanks — on its own, based on its training to recognize such tanks and strike them, the experts and military officials said.
It is a development long watched for in the war in Ukraine, presaging a dystopian future in which killer robots roam the skies making life-or-death decisions that reduce targets to data points.
“This is a risk for the whole world,” said Col. Serhiy Minaiev, the commander of air defenses in Zaporizhzhia. “In a few years, we will be living in a ‘Terminator’ movie. It’s no joke. Machines are making decisions to strike.”
There can be very little question that the battlefield of the fight between autocracy and liberalism is changing, evolving, and so must we…..
Dems Embrace A Raucous Pluralism - Revisiting this post from a few weeks ago:
A Black gubernatorial nominee in Wisconsin. A native woman is now our Senate nominee in Minnesota. A Muslim man is our Senate nominee in Michigan. A moderate, “Establishment Democrat” is our nominee for Governor in Minnesota. A younger mayor unseated an incumbent House Member in Connecticut. Party backed candidates won House primaries all across the country……
My big takeaway from the last few weeks is that Democrats are “embracing the rainbow,” a phrase we use here that describes an approach to pluralistic politics that welcomes - and embraces - the broad diversity of our coalition, and of our nation. For a coalition to be healthy over time every part of the coalition needs to get wins, and boy oh boy has every part of our coalition had wins in recent months.
My hope is that whatever type of Democrat you are you can see yourself in the Democratic leaders who have emerged in the past year, giving you a reason to enthusiastically vote this November. We’ve talked here about the need for the Democratic Party to evolve, grow, improve, and to build our next thing. I think we can say now looking back at the elections over the past 19 months that we are seeing a new Democratic Party emerging, something that feels fresh, different, younger, more dynamic, and just better.
In a change election it has become important that Democrats be seen as changing too. And we are. And this perception that we are changing will make us more appealing, and more likely to win this November.
Our enthusiastic embrace of vigorous primaries, respectful internal debate, and the broad diversity of this country is also providing a very powerful alternative to the dangerous illiberalism and rancid white supremacy of team Trump/GOP today. People are not happy with Trump and the Republicans.
We are clearly offering something different, and better…….
This week we will be updating our candidate and state party recommendations for the home stretch. We should be optimistic about what we can do together this fall as we see data like this from across the country:
We have a terrific and timely new set of Hopium pods…..
House Democratic Leader
Hakeem JeffriesRep.
Greg Meeks, Ranking Member Of The House Foreign Affairs CommitteeSherrod Brown(Ohio Senate),Troy Jackson(Maine Senate),David Jolly(Florida Governor)Marni von Wilpert(CA-48),Randy Villegas(CA-22),Jo Mendoza(AZ-06),Christina Bohannan(IA-01),Rebecca Bennett(NJ-07)
Let us close with Hopium’s daily mantra:
There is nothing Trump and MAGA wants more than for us to be fighting with each other and not with him. We have one job now - elect as many of these wonderful candidates running for the House and Senate as we can. It’s where our focus must be. It’s a year of opportunity for us across the country. We must seize it, together.
Yes, my friends, it is that time…….
**Our Winning The House Campaign **- Donate | $1,117,100 raised, $1,250,000 goal (new stretch goal) | Donate to all twelve of our initial wave of House challengers with a single contribution split twelve ways | Get to know Jamie Ager (NC-11), Christina Bohannan (IA-01), Paige Cognetti (PA-08), Rebecca Cooke (WI-03), Elaine Luria (VA-02), Sean McCann (MI-04), Jo Mendoza (AZ-06), Chaz Molder (TN-05), Jonathan Nez (AZ-02), Janelle Stelson (PA-10), Shannon Taylor (VA-01), and Sarah Trone Garriott (IA-03) by watching our recently recorded Hopium interviews.
Friends, if these twelve courageous candidates win, the House will flip, even with Callais and their rancid mid-decade redistricting. So eyes on the prize here everyone!
**Winning The House - The Second Wave Fund **- Donate | $322,100 raised, $500,000 goal - We’ve launched a second House fund, one supporting candidates who’ve emerged from late, recent primaries and need a bit more help.
Our newly expanded list now features Rebecca Bennett (NJ-07), Bob Brooks (PA-07), Cait Conley (NY-17), Johnny Garcia (TX-35), Bob Harvie (PA-01), Dr. Richard Pan (CA-06), Denise Powell (NE-02), Bobby Pulido (TX-15), Manny Rutinel (CO-8), Dr. Amish Shah (AZ-01), Randy Villegas (CA-22), and Marni von Wilpert (CA-48).
A donation to the Second Wave Fund is split evenly among these twelve, and more as other worthy candidates emerge from their primaries. Our total above includes money we’ve raised for directly for each candidate. You can watch interviews with those who’ve interviewed so far here.
Winning The House - The Third Wave Fund - Donate | $19,100 raised, $500,000 goal | We’ve launched this new fund for candidates who have emerged even later from primaries and need a bit more help as we work to expand our map and go deeper into tough terrain. Our initial list - and it may grow - is Christina Hines (MI-10), Lindsay James (IA-02), Jake Johnson (MN-01), Jessica Killin (CO-5), Nancy Lacore (SC-01), and Brian Poindexter (OH-7).
Winning The Senate - $750,100 raised, $1,000,000 goal - Donate | This new fund splits a single donation to our six candidates must likely to flip a Senate seat this November - Sherrod Brown (OH), Roy Cooper (NC), Troy Jackson (ME), Mary Peltola (AK), James Talarico (TX), and Josh Turek (IA).
Our working total includes what we’ve raised for these six so far through direct donations to their campaigns. You can watch our interviews with each of these great candidates and/or contribute directly to any of them directly here.
**Winning Georgia ***- *$31,500 raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | This new fund splits a contribution three ways among Senator Jon Ossoff, gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, and the Georgia Democratic Party
Winning Iowa - $33,500 raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Our Winning Iowa fund splits a contribution three ways - to Josh Turek for Senate, to our gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand, and to the Iowa Democratic Party
**Winning Maine **- $81,100 raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Our Winning Maine fund splits a contribution evenly among Troy Jackson for Senate, Hannah Pingree for Governor, and the Maine Democratic Party and its Chair Charlie Dingman
Winning Ohio - $190,100 raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Our campaign splits contributions evenly among Sherrod Brown, the Acton-Pepper ticket, and the Ohio Democratic Party and its terrific Chair, Kathleen Clyde
Hopium’s Audacious Expansion Fund - $652,100 raised, $1,000,000 goal - Donate | Join our campaign that has helped expand our map by investing in the Democratic Parties of Alaska, Florida, Iowa, Maine, and Texas, all now central battlegrounds in the 2026 election | Contribute to all five state parties with one contribution split evenly among these five critical battlegrounds | Catch interviews with the five intrepid state chairs leading their troops into battle this year - will get you fired up!
Learn more about the New Battlefield Project we’ve helped launch with the Democratic state parties from across the country…….
Keep working hard all. We have a country to save, and elections to win all across the country, together! - Simon
