News On Tap For Wednesday, August 19, 2026

Democrats Assemble – 76 Days To Election

Today’s “News On Tap” is filled with Democratic winners of all types, as Democratic voters unite - contrary to the lazy & wrong framing of the mainstream media. We’ll go through last night’s big primary Winners & Losers, and check on other Campaigns & Politics. We’ve also got news on Trump’s Middle East Mess, The Failed Republican Economy, Trump’s Immigration Wars, & an update from Corruption Land. Plus we’ve got Media Matters, Movies, Music, & More, and Sports News too. And we’ve got one of our own bar ‘Avengers’ dropping by, Bob Cesca! Read up get informed, and we’ll see you here tonight.

First Round - Ready For The Showdown

Winner & Losers

• Former Republican David Jolly Wins Democratic Nomination For Florida Governor

• Five Things To Know About David Jolly, The Democratic Nominee For Florida Governor

• Trump-Backed Byron Donalds To Face Democrat David Jolly In Race To Succeed Florida Governor Desantis

• Democratic State Rep. Angie Nixon Scores Upset Win In Florida Senate Primary, Heads To General Election Against Republican Sen. Ashley Moody

• Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz Wins Primary In Newly Gerrymandered Majority Black District

• Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Pro-Israel Centrist Democrat From Florida, Beats Back Challenge From Left

• Democrat Mary Peltola Shows Strength In Crucial Alaska Senate Primary, Comes In First & Advances To General Election With Incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan

• Three Trump-Endorsed Candidates Go Down In Florida & Wyoming Primaries — Including Scandal-Plagued Rep. Cory Mills

• Two Democratic-Endorsed Candidates Win Seats On Sarasota School Board, Ousting Extremist ‘Moms For Liberty’ Right-Wing Majority

• Carolyn Fiddler: Massive Upset In Pennsylvania Special Elections Further Adds To Republicans’ Midterm Woes

Campaigns & Politics

• Sen Darline Graham, During Republican Debate In South Carolina Runoff Primary, Admits ‘I’m Not That Informed on National Security’ Says ‘National Security Is Not My Thing’

• New CNN Analysis Shows Voters Now Favor Democrats In 7 Of 8 Races Considered Most Likely To Determine Senate Control

• Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Facing Reelection This Fall, Takes A Hard Line Against ‘Predatory’ Data Center Developers With New Executive Order

Second Round - Trump's Many Foreign Failures

Trump’s Middle East Mess

• Trump Says No Talks Scheduled With Iran As He Lies Again, Claiming Falsely That The Strait Of Hormuz Is “Open And Operating”

• Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker Demands Answers From Sec. Def. Hegseth Over “Severe Breach” Of U.S. Navy Protocol Aboard USS Abraham Lincoln

• New Sources Confirm Trump Is Continuing To Repeatedly Contradict His Own Top Advisers On The Iran War

• UAE Severs Trade With Iran, Imposes Indefinite Trade Embargo Over Alleged Missile Attacks

Other Foreign Affairs

• Sec. Of State Marco Rubio & Trump Regime Sanctions Int.L Criminal Court President And Prosecutor Who Was Investigating Israeli War Crimes In Gaza

• Netherlands Slams New U.S. State Dept. Sanctions On Top Intl. Criminal Court Officials

• Moscow Region Hit By Almost 800 Drones As Russian Missiles Kill 10 In A Ukrainian Village

• Trump Pushing For New Meeting With North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un This Year

Third Round - Trump's Failed Administration

The Failed Republican Economy

• Trump Pauses 50% Scheduled Tariffs On Canada For Three Days, Says ‘Deal’ With Canada Is Near

• Treasury Dept. Moves To Double Debt Buybacks As Sec. Bessent Moves To Steady Bond Market, Worried About U.S. Long-Term Debt Problems

• David Lynch: The Bond Market Is Sounding An Alarm. It Means Many Things - Including That Interest Rates Could Be Going Even Higher Soon.

• Megan Cerullo: Pandemic-Era Inflation Left Millions Of Workers With A Lasting Pay Cut. As Inflation Rises, It’s Starting To Happen Again.

Immigration Wars

• Trump Regime Quietly Deporting Mexican Migrants To Guatemala And Honduras, Angering Mexico

• Liberia Agrees To Take 1,200 Deportees From U.S. In One Of Largest Known Deportation Deals Struck By Trump Regime

• Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison Sues Texas Governor To Compel Extradition Of Ice Agent For Trial In Shooting A Man, Then Lying About It

• New Results From Politico Polling Show Half Of Americans, Including Nearly A Quarter Of His 2024 Voters, Say Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign Is Too Aggressive.

• Greg Sargent: Trump’s Dhs & Ice ‘Secret Police’ Were Spying On Americans - And It’s Worse Than We Knew

Corruption Land

• Whistleblower To Trump’s Corrupt DOJ Confirms Trump Regime’s Personal Politics Drove Antisemitism Probes Against Ivy League Schools

• We’re Gonna Knock It Down Anyway: Trump’s Ballroom Is Rising At Breakneck Speed - 20 Hours A Day, 7 Days A Week

Fourth Round - More News To Drink About

War Over Democracy

• Trump’s DOJ Now Plans To Deploy A ‘Historic Number’ Of Midterm Election Monitors

• In New Letters, Sen. Elisa Slotkin Formally Demands Hegseth & Joint Chiefs Caine Confirm U.S. Military Troops Will Not Be Sent To Polling Places

The Fight For Health

• New Moderna Vaccine In Combination With Merck’s Immunotherapy Significantly Cuts Recurrence And Spread Of High-Risk Melanoma (Cancer), Raising New Treatment Hope

• CDC Reports Rates Of Covid Are Now ‘Growing’ In Nearly Every State.

Miscellaneous But Important

• Texas Tech’s New Right-Wing Extremist Admin. Is Now Using A.I. To Ferret-Out Anything They Claim Is Left-Leaning Content On Campus, Creating A Dystopian Nightmare

• Trump Regime Moving To Allow Logging In Pristine National Forests Across The U.S.

Fifth Round - Media, Entertainment & More

Media Matters

• Stars & Stripes Publisher Announces Sudden Retirement After 3 Decades, Saying It Had Become Clear His Leadership Is Drastically Different Than The Defense Dept. Wants To Go

• New Study Finds If Paramount-Wb Deal Is Allowed, It Could Cost L.A. 4,500 Film And Tv Jobs And $2.8 Billion Loss To Local Economy

Movies, Music, & More

• ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Becomes Fastest Movie to Hit $800M at U.S. Domestic Box Office

• Industry pros say Streamers’ poor decisions may have helped save movie theaters this year

• Rest In Peace: Frank Beard, Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Drummer Of Legendary Rock Trio ZZ Top, Dies At 77

• Robin Williams’ Kids Have Revived His Instagram Account to Combat ‘Rampant AI Abuse’ of Late Actor’s Image

Sports Entertainment

• Milwaukee Brewers Stomp Seattle Mariners In MLB Record-Matching 22-0 Win

• Ohtani Reaches 30 Hrs For 6th Straight Season As L.A. Dodgers Beat Colorado Rockies In Denver, 7-6

• Howard Scores 23 & Resse 21 As Atlanta Dream Beat Las Vegas Aces 97-82, After Las Vegas Coach Becky Hammon Ejected In 1st Half

• Kelsey Mitchell Scores 29 Points Before Sitting Out 4th Quarter, As Caitlin Clark Leads Indiana Fever To A 101-95 Win Over Toronto Tempo

• Former Wimbledon Finalist Nick Kyrgios Suspended After Positive Test For Cocaine

Your Bar Regular Tonight

Bob Cesca, podcaster, broadcaster, journalist, artist, & host of The Bob Cesca Show, as well as co-host of the award-winning Trek Politics is back at the bar tonight. We’ll talk about Bob’s latest piece for The Banter, “Donald Trump Is Stealing Your Land” one of many stories the mainstream news media isn’t focused on much. We’ll also talk about Tuesday’s primary elections, Trump’s Middle East Mess, & more. Join us tonight!

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