Alex Roarty

Dozens of Kids Entered Foster Care After Immigration Agents Detained Their Parents States are taking custody of kids separated from their parents in Trump's push for mass deportations. No one knows exactly how many.

At least 32 kids entered foster care in 2025 after immigration agents detained their parents.

That includes four toddlers ages 1-3 in Vermont.

Here’s my story on the patchy tracking of family separations through the foster care system.
www.notus.org/immigration/...

Republicans Want Nothing to Do With Conservative Efforts to Ban Gay Marriage Trump has moved the Republican Party away from its decades-old opposition to same-sex marriage, and public support remains high.

NEW: Prominent conservative groups created a campaign to overturn Obergefell, the SCOTUS ruling that legalized gay marriage

Republicans don’t want anything to do with it

“I don’t think it’s a viable effort, legally, politically or otherwise,” one House R said
www.notus.org/republicans/...

Alex Roarty on X: "Crockett’s fundraising surge never came. She has been outspent roughly 19-to-1 on ads. And some Dems talking w/her campaign aren’t sure who exactly is running it. On the congresswoman’s unconventional campaign in Texas, and how it’s making allies anxious. https://t.co/T1xgmJMItO" / X Crockett’s fundraising surge never came. She has been outspent roughly 19-to-1 on ads. And some Dems talking w/her campaign aren’t sure who exactly is running it. On the congresswoman’s unconventional campaign in Texas, and how it’s making allies anxious. https://t.co/T1xgmJMItO

Crockett’s fundraising surge never came. She has been outspent roughly 19-to-1 on ads. And some Dems talking w/her campaign aren’t sure who exactly is running it.

On the congresswoman’s unconventional campaign in Texas, and how it’s making allies anxious

x.com/alex_roarty/...

The Complicated Politics of Jasmine Crockett’s Campaign Donations The liberal candidate in the Senate race in Texas received donations in the past from figures in the Trump-aligned crypto and defense industries.

new, with @daniellamicaela.bsky.social!

Since winning in 2022, the Crockett has won national acclaim among liberals for her critical commentary of Republicans. But her record, affiliations and campaign contributors tell a different story about her ideological POV

www.notus.org/2026-electio...

NEW with @alexroarty.bsky.social:

Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s affiliations and campaign contributors tell a unique story about her ideological point of view, one now under scrutiny in her closely watched primary with Texas state Rep. James Talarico.

www.notus.org/2026-electio...

U.S.-Backed West African Vaccine Study Draws Scrutiny From WHO, UNICEF Researchers said news reports about the study sparked concerns among international public health groups. “I’m not doing political research,” one researcher told NOTUS.

NEWS: The WHO and UNICEF are scrutinizing a CDC-backed study on the effects of the hepatitis B vaccine in Africa, researchers running the study told NOTUS. www.notus.org/health-scien...

Republicans Are Pushing Back on Trump’s Venezuela Plans Behind Closed Doors At a classified briefing last week, Republican lawmakers broke with the president.

SCOOP: Trump officials faced pushback from some House Republicans at last week's classified briefing on Venezuela

Huizenga said he has "no confidence" in Delcy Rodríguez

Baumgartner asked when the U.S. will work with opposition leaders, who Trump has sidelined
www.notus.org/republicans/...

I feel like "attention hacking" is most of politics now. The Minnesota aid fraud story is becoming a perfect example.

Recap: In 2022, the Biden DOJ filed the first charges against dozens of fraudsters, many of them Somali-American, who'd fleeced a state food aid program. (1/x)

New Democratic candidate poised to enter Maine’s ultra-competitive 2nd District congressional race Joe Baldacci’s entrance to the race will likely please some national Democrats, who have struggled to recruit a competitive candidate for the right-leaning district.

Maine's ultra-competitive 2nd Congressional District race is about to get a new competitor with a very familiar name — scoop from @alexroarty.bsky.social of @notus.com www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Sarah McBride Lobbied Some Republicans to Vote Against an Anti-Trans Bill When House Democrats suspected a few members in their caucus would support a bill criminalizing gender-affirming care for trans youth, McBride reached out to some Republicans who went on to oppose the...

SCOOP: House Democrats suspected a few in their caucus would support a bill criminalizing gender-affirming care for trans youth

So Sarah McBride reached out to Republicans

Four Rs — Fitzpatrick, Lawler, Kennedy, Evans — joined Dems in opposing the bill
www.notus.org/congress/mcb...

Former Sportscaster Michele Tafoya Considering Run for Senate in Minnesota Tafoya met with officials from the National Republican Senatorial Committee last week in Minnesota, according to a source.

Former Sportscaster Michele Tafoya Considering Run for Senate in Minnesota

www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Democrats Seize on Andy Ogles’ Posts that Forced Local Courthouse to Increase Security Ogles posted “we are at war” after blaming judges for the rape of a Nashville woman.

Vulnerable GOP Rep. Andy Ogles blamed local judges for a rape in Nashville and posted their names and photos online. The courthouse had to increase its security in response given the risk of violent reprisals.

The full story at @notus.com.

Stephen Miller Scored a Big Cash Bonus Before Joining Trump 2.0 America First Legal, a pro-Trump nonprofit, spent an extra $175,000 on Miller and more on fellow departing executive Gene Hamilton.

NEW: White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller scored a big cash bonus from America First Legal before joining the second Trump administration. www.notus.org/money/stephe...

Republican Matt Van Epps Wins Tennessee House Seat by Slim Margin His narrow victory means Republicans avoided a political catastrophe, staving off a defeat that would likely have sent panic through the House GOP.

New: Republican Matt Van Epps Wins Tennessee House Seat by Slim Margin

Bottom line: GOP avoids catastrophe, can be happy about late effort to juice turnout, but still eyeing a ~15-point shift from DT's in '24, which should further concerns about '26

www.notus.org/campaigns/re...

CDC Quietly Turned Off Its Vaccine Search Tool. It’s Not Clear When It’s Coming Back. “I have heard that they are planning to ‘update it’ and shudder to think what that will mean,” Demetre Daskalakis, a former member of CDC leadership, told NOTUS.

Vaccines.gov, the CDC's vaccination site search engine, got a MAHA makeover in June. Then it stopped working altogether.

New from me:

www.notus.org/health-scien...

A Year Out From the Midterms, Democrats Aren't Certain of a 2018 Repeat Trump’s approval ratings are low, and voters are frustrated. That doesn’t guarantee an easy election for Democrats.

Is 2026 going to be a 2018 redux? There's a raging debate about whether the current Trump midterm is going to be like the last one www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Haley Stevens' Campaign Is Underwhelming Democrats Democrats say the establishment favorite’s Michigan Senate campaign isn’t ready for primetime — and it could cost the party the general election.

Haley Stevens’ Campaign Is Underwhelming Democrats

Democrats say the establishment favorite’s Michigan Senate campaign isn’t ready for primetime — and it could cost the party the general election.

w/@daniellamicaela.bsky.social www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Democrats Say Federal Workers Don't Want Them to Cave. Their Union Says Otherwise. The largest union representing federal workers called for an end to the shutdown. It did little to convince Senate Democrats to support Republicans’ short-term funding bill.

New: The largest union of federal workers says Senate Democrats should support the GOP funding bill to end the shutdown

But Democrats say they don't *actually* mean that

"I work very closely with them," Sen. Tim Kaine said, "the AFGE would not want us to cut a deal"
www.notus.org/democrats/de...

Arizona Sues the House Over Johnson’s Failure to Swear In Adelita Grijalva The state’s attorney general, Kris Mayes, argued that Johnson is breaking the precedent he set in April when he swore in two Republican congressmen during a pro forma session.

BREAKING: Arizona has officially sued the House of Representatives over Mike Johnson's decision to not swear in Adelita Grijalva, who was elected in a special election one month ago
www.notus.org/house/adelit...

Republicans Go All In on Anti-Trans Messaging More than half of Republican ads in Virginia are focused on trans issues. Not everyone in the party thinks it’s the right political play.

57% of the ads from Republicans in the Virginia governor's race have focused on transgender issues.

Sign of things to come from the GOP in 2026. W/ @oriana.bsky.social www.notus.org/2025-electio...

Republicans Go All In on Anti-Trans Messaging More than half of Republican ads in Virginia are focused on trans issues. Not everyone in the party thinks it’s the right political play.

NEW: Republicans are going all in on anti-trans messaging in Virginia’s governor race, even more than Trump did in 2024

57% of their ads have focused on trans issues

It’s a blueprint for 2026 — but not all Republicans think it’s a good idea

w/ @alexroarty.bsky.social
www.notus.org/2025-electio...

Maine State Auditor Defies National Democrats, Launches Primary Against Moderate Jared Golden Officials at the DCCC warned that if the incumbent loses the primary, Democrats will lose a seat in the general election.

Dunlap defies national Democrats, makes primary bid against Golden official in Maine’s right-leaning 2nd district.

The dccc is threatening to pull ad $$$ in the battleground district if Golden loses his primary, saying the race might be unwinable in a general election www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Bipartisan Funding Deals Are Hard to Do. The Supreme Court Might Have Made Them Impossible. “What’s the point of passing a bill if they just do whatever the hell they want to do anyway?” one Senate Democrat said.

New: The Supreme Court tentatively green-lit Trump's pocket rescissions, which will make ending a shutdown hard — and the *entire* approps process harder

"What’s the point of passing a bill if they just do whatever the hell they want to do anyway?," one Senate Dem said
www.notus.org/courts/scotu...

Iowa Democrats Look for Their Senate Star State lawmaker Josh Turek’s buzzy campaign announcement has caught Democrats’ attention.

New from @alexroarty.bsky.social at @notus.com on the D primary for #IASen:

"In interviews with NOTUS, several Iowa Democratic insiders said they believed that [state Rep. Josh] Turek has the tacit backing of Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee."

Democrats Are Desperate for Mary Peltola to Run for Something, Anything in Alaska A Peltola Senate campaign would mark the latest recruiting win for Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Senate Democrats desperately want Mary Peltola to run for Senate. But a gubernatorial bid, according to just about everybody, would offer a much easier pathway back to elected office

On the Peltola dilemma, the talk of Alaska politics w/
@riley-rogerson.bsky.social

www.notus.org/2026-electio...

‘We Trudge On’: CDC Employees Return to Work With Bullet Holes Still in the Windows “I was thinking they would have at least enhanced security going into campus,” one CDC employee told NOTUS.

"A CDC employee sent NOTUS photographs of windows still pockmarked with bullet holes on Monday afternoon. Handwritten signs taped to chairs warned employees to avoid glass on the carpet."

www.notus.org/health-scien...

Oyster Farmer Announces Democratic Senate Bid in Maine Graham Platner doesn’t have any real political experience, but he’s the latest Democrat to argue that’s a strength.

A new Senate candidate in Maine is going to test the appetite of Democratic voters for someone new, previously apolitical, and decidedly progressive www.notus.org/2026-electio...

Rep. LaMonica McIver is urging a federal court to dismiss the federal charges against her — and using the dismissed cases of over 160 Jan. 6 rioters as the reason why

www.notus.org/courts/mcive...

‘A Serious Misuse of My Research’: Climate Scientists Say New Trump Energy Report Botches Their Work “Our work has no relevance,” an astrobiologist whose research was cited in the administration’s climate change report said.

🚨 At least 10 scientists, all cited in the Trump admin's new climate change report, told me that the report completely mischaracterizes their research.

I also found five citations with significant errors, and a paragraph missing an important citation.

‘They Have To Figure Out If They Can Trust The Software’: Inside the FDA’s AI Push The AI rollout at the FDA has been rocky. But even critics are optimistic.

“I love and loved my job, we did good work with some of the smartest people, and they’re being routinely disrespected and lied to."

Inside the FDA's AI push, w/ @taylorgiorno_ www.notus.org/health-scien...