The Evening: Trump’s money pledge

October 20, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

More money pours into midterm races
A.I. fortunes could upend global health
Plus, a new N.B.A. season begins

A crowd holding signs that read “Keep the Majority.”

The Republican National Midterm Convention in Dallas last month. Shelby Tauber for The New York Times

Trump vows to spend another $100 million by Election Day

With just two weeks before the midterm elections, the flow of cash into key races is not slowing down. President Trump said today that he had already spent more than $300 million in an effort to boost Republicans. He also announced that he — though more likely his super PAC, MAGA Inc. — will shell out $100 million more between now and Election Day.

The Trump-allied Republican National Committee also told The Times that they were sending tens of millions of dollars to candidates, in hopes of holding onto the levers of power in Congress. The Democratic National Committee is financially struggling, though its party’s candidates are doing better in the polls.

Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former mayor of New York, announced today that he was giving roughly $80 million to help Democrats.

For more on politics:

Amy Acton, the Democratic candidate for Ohio governor, has been estranged from her mother since she accused her stepfather of molestation. Now her mother appears in an attack ad against her.
At a rally defending the aggressive debt collection tactics of Senator Roger Marshall, who is facing a tough race for re-election in Kansas, Trump again invoked an antisemitic trope.
See the latest polls.

Volodymyr Zelensky at a podium with President Trump standing next to him.

President Trump with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine at Mar-a-Lago in December. Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times

Zelensky meets with Trump envoy amid deepening rift

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, met today with the U.S. envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Oslo as Trump ramps up the pressure on Kyiv to agree to a deal with Russia.

Zelensky avoided criticizing the Americans at a news conference afterward, but has recently become vocal in his criticisms of Trump. Ukrainian officials said that staying quiet had become riskier than speaking up once Trump started saying things they believe put Russia’s interests ahead of their own.

A woman dressed in black uses a piece of burning wood to cook.

A woman used a firewood oven on Monday amid a shortage of cooking gas in Taiz, Yemen. Anees Mahyoub/Reuters

A major Yemeni city is running out of food and water

For weeks, the Iranian-backed Houthi militia has besieged one of Yemen’s largest cities, Taiz, cutting off its access to food and other basic needs. Officials said the area was running out of clean drinking water, and that hospitals had nearly depleted their stocks of fuel and medical supplies. We talked to people there about what it’s like.

In other news from the Middle East:

Britain said it would send fighter jets to help defend Saudi cities from Houthi attacks.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unannounced visit to Israel yesterday, where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Iranian state media has been gleefully chronicling the high prices at American gas pumps.

Two people in lab coats at a wooden counter with medical supplies talking to patients.

Malaria medication was distributed in Maroua, Cameroon, last year. Arlette Bashizi for The New York Times

A.I. fortunes could upend global health

Some of the executives expecting windfalls from upcoming artificial intelligence I.P.O.s have committed to giving away large shares of their wealth. That has spurred a scramble among global health leaders to understand their priorities and make sure their organizations are in line to grab a share of the money. Our global health reporter explains how the industry is preparing.

In other health news:

Spurred on by the Trump administration’s embrace of psychedelic medicine, over a dozen companies are developing products based on ketamine.
For the first time, scientists say they have treated a human patient using A.I.-designed viruses.
In 2021, the actress Christina Applegate was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Five years later, she learned she doesn’t have it.

More top news

Cornell: The former student who said she was raped by seven men wrote in a letter to faculty leaders that she felt “disbelieved” by the school’s president.
Washington: Trump has pushed to move briefings out of the White House press room. Aides say he wants a swimming pool there instead.
Canada: By three-quarters of the vote, residents of oil-rich Alberta rejected an effort to secede.
Idaho: When the state banned abortions, OB-GYNs left in extraordinary numbers, and it became a more dangerous place to give birth. We spoke to doctors and patients who remain.
Haiti: The mayor of a town near Port-au-Prince vowed to stay after it was overrun by gang violence. His death is a symbol of how the state has effectively collapsed.
Mississippi: In June, an officer shot and killed a 1-year-old while chasing two women accused of shoplifting. Today, the state’s attorney general ruled that the shooting was justified.
Celebrity: Dolly Parton’s nephew, who served as her bodyguard, is in a legal battle with her longtime manager. Text messages unveiled by the lawsuit show how bitter it has become.
Your pick: The most clicked link in yesterday’s edition of The Evening was a story about Trump’s plan to overhaul a golf course in the nation’s capital.

THE REHEARSAL

Footage of a fire truck driving past a jet plane.

The New York Times

U.S. airports are required to hold a full-scale disaster drill every three years. At Kennedy International Airport, they prepare with cloth dummies and dozens of howling volunteer victims. Here’s how they do it.

TIME TO UNWIND

Jalen Brunson drives past a much taller Victor Wembanyama.

Jalen Brunson of the Knicks, left, with Victor Wembanyama of the Spurs last year. Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

A new N.B.A. season begins

Can the Knicks go back-to-back? Will LeBron James be a difference maker in Philadelphia? Can anyone in the West compete with the Spurs and the Thunder? Those are some of the big questions The Athletic’s basketball writers are debating as a new N.B.A. season begins today.

Just don’t expect to get a cheap last-minute ticket to the Knicks game tonight against LeBron and the 76ers. The average price for a seat was hovering around $1,900.

For more basketball: The W.N.B.A. finals have been all about defense.

A photo of a woman swimming in a pearlescent swimsuit, cap and goggles, blurred by motion.

Catherine Breed in Half Moon Bay. Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

A woman just swam the length of California

In June, I wrote about Catherine Breed, a 33-year-old swimmer who was attempting to become the first human to swim the entire length of California. This week, she completed the 890-mile voyage, celebrating the astounding feat aboard the 52-foot sailboat that had been providing her with food and a place to sleep.

Along the way Breed encountered powerful storms, water that was 48 degrees Fahrenheit, unpredictable currents and at least one Mako shark. “It feels surreal being done, this has been my entire life for nearly four months,” she said. Read about her swim.

A black-and-white close-up image of Gloria Steinem in aviator glasses. She’s wearing a black turtleneck with a large cuff around her wrist.

Paola Kudacki

Dinner table topics

In Gloria Steinem’s final months, she decided to do a photo shoot, in part to show the world what 92 looked like. See the images.
Mike Love has been onstage for 7,500 Beach Boys concerts. Health concerns have fans wondering what’s next.
Once you know about the T-skirt styling trend, you will see it everywhere.
A couple built a 10,000 square foot residence in the California desert that they hoped would compel their adult children to visit. Check it out.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

A blue bowl filled with red chili, which is sprinkled with bits of tortilla chip and green onion.

Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: LIza Jernow.

Make this richly spiced slow-cooker chili.

Watch “Phony,” a dark new comedy inspired by the creator’s odd childhood fear.

Find your next great read with help from our Book Review editors.

Prepare for colder temperatures with one of Wirecutter’s favorite fleeces.

Take our quiz to see if you can recognize objects from popular novels.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

A black-and-white photograph of a young boy balancing a camera on a pile of books.

“Self-Portrait With Agifold,” by Robert Cooper, from “Snap Happy!” at the Photographers’ Gallery in London. Robert Cooper

Don't delete your child’s blurry selfies

We all know the kinds of images to expect when a young child starts snapping photographs. Blurry, off-kilter scenes; close-up shots of favorite toys; and wild angles that capture an arm or a leg but rarely an entire person. Some people simply delete them.

But a new London exhibition argues that these kinds of juvenile experiments are worth reconsidering, even showcasing. Unconfined by the traditional rules of photography, children can reveal unique perspectives. For example, the show displays a family portrait with a couple heads out of frame (but not the dog’s). “Maybe that tells you about a child’s priorities,” the exhibition’s curator said. “Mistakes are often revelations.” Take a look.

Have an incomparable evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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