THE SHOW NOTES: Stenographers Revolt, Kamala's Employment Data Problem, & What Is Happening at CNN?

Welcome! The White House stenographers are revolting.

CONFIRMED: The guy who shot the Orthodox Jew in Chicago was an illegal alien who was caught and released in California. - X

LOL: Hugh Hewitt blasts The Washington Post on a Washington Post video.

NEW: Cook Political Report confirms the GOP will control the Senate.

MUST READ: The Republican Marriage Advantage: Partisanship, Marriage, and Family Stability in the Trump Era - IFS

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Employment Data

US job growth slowed sharply in October according to fresh data released four days before the presidential election.

Details: Only 12K jobs were added to the US economy missing analysts’ expectations of 100K. Compounding the problem was the additional downward revision of the August and September jobs reports by 112K positions.

Why this matters: The anemic report is the slowest rate of employment growth since the height of the pandemic in 2020. To make matters worse, the total number of jobs added would be negative if not for new government positions.

Bottom line: The Harris campaign has to be worried that an unusually poor jobs report released four days before the presidential election could undercut her economic message.

Altered Transcript

President Biden’s communications team altered the official White House transcript of Joe Biden calling Trump supporters garbage to the objection of the federal stenographer’s office.

The White House demanded the change after it was approved by President Biden himself. The head stenographer told the Associated Press in an email that the move was “a breach of protocol and spoliation of transcript integrity between the Stenography and Press Offices.” He went on to say:

“If there is a difference in interpretation, the Press Office may choose to withhold the transcript but cannot edit it independently… Our Stenography Office transcript — released to our distro, which includes the National Archives — is now different than the version edited and released to the public by Press Office staff.”

Notably, The Associated Press and Politico are both rejecting the White House’s characterization of Biden’s controversial comments.

What Is Happening at CNN?

CNN allowed a guest to remain on a panel after claiming that JD Vance had mommy issues as his co-panelists giggled.

Context: JD’s mom struggled with substance abuse in his early life and is now a regular attendee of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in Middletown, Ohio. The story of JD’s family overcoming addiction and adversity spurred the creation of his best-selling novel, Hillbilly Elegy. Watch:

The New York Times (paywall - we tried to find a free link but couldn’t) published a great profile of Beverly Vance that chronicled her journey from addition to sobriety along with JD’s creation of Hillbilly Elegy.

It was nine years ago that her son (JD) first told her about his memoir. They were at a Waffle House. “He said, ‘Mom, I wrote a book, and there’s probably some things in it that aren’t very favorable,’” Ms. Aikins recalled. “I just said, ‘Will it help you heal?’ He said, ‘I think it will.’”

She remembered reading it for the first time. “It was heartbreaking in some parts,” she said. “But it helped us grow as a family, and it opened up a line of communication that we never really had. Addiction in our house was like the elephant in the room. Nobody ever said anything about it. We do now.”

LOL: Governor Stacey Abrams claims Georiga voters are still being oppressed despite record turnout.

Bloomberg: 11,000 Political Groups Spent $14.7 Billion to Influence the 2024 Election

The US political system runs on money – and lots of it. With no legal limits on how much money can go into electing candidates to the White House and Congress, voters are deluged with ads, text messages and mailers as Republicans and Democrats battle to influence a deeply divided electorate.

That flood of TV commercials, frantic fundraising appeals and litany of door knockers is the result of $14.7 billion worth of spending from candidates, parties and political action committees, about 92% of the total that OpenSecrets projects will be shelled out through the election cycle.

More than 11,000 political groups — ranging from political action committees backed by billionaire Elon Musk to niche interest groups — spent money in the 2024 election cycle, according to filings with the Federal Election Committee. This is every single entity that spent more than $100,000, which accounts for 99% of all political spending, with less than a week left before Election Day.

Full story at Bloomberg (paywall)

Jets Being Jets

New York Jets receiver Malachi Corley celebrated a touchdown by dropping the ball before crossing the goal line.

Trending news:

• Why the Polls Might Be Wrong — in Kamala Harris’ Favor - Politico

• The Democrats have produced another vile ad - X

• More Than Half of U.S. Votes Likely Cast Before Election Day - Gallup

• Supermarket Trends: "Pocketbook Pressure" Increases Chicken Demand As Consumers Seek Savings - ZeroHedge

• Scoop: What Trump is being told - Axios

• Joe Scarborough Demands Producers Keep Drudge Report’s Liz Cheney ‘Execution’ Take On Screen - Mediaite

• Tech Giants See AI Bets Starting to Pay Off - WSJ (paywall)

• I Replied ‘Stop’ to a Political Text Message. I Got 100 More. - WSJ (paywall)

Market snapshot: