Netanyahu Faces Political Reckoning as GOP Congress Slips Away

WHO:

Vox - Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel’s six-term prime minister and leader of Likud.

Vox - Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief, leads the Yashar party.

The Bulwark - Yair Golan of the Democrats party was the subject of an apparent assassination attempt at an election-day campaign stop.

The Bulwark - William Kristol wrote “Rubbing a Rabbit’s Foot”; Andrew Egger wrote “Third Time’s the Charge.”

The Bulwark - James Comey is a former FBI director; his daughter, Maurene Comey, is a former federal prosecutor.

The Bulwark - President Trump said he did not know much about the new case against Comey and said, “I know nothing about it.”

WHAT:

Vox - Israel’s election presents Netanyahu with a significant political challenge.

The Bulwark - Polls showed Netanyahu’s Likud-led bloc and Eisenkot’s Yashar-led bloc neck and neck; voter turnout was reported at levels not seen in Israel for half a century.

The Bulwark - More than 30 million Americans—roughly a quarter of likely overall turnout—had voted early.

The Bulwark - Reuters/Ipsos measured President Trump’s approval among registered voters at 35 percent and disapproval at 65 percent; 15 percent strongly approved and 53 percent strongly disapproved.

The Bulwark - Democrats led Republicans by 9 points on the generic congressional ballot among registered and likely voters. The FiftyPlusOne average showed Democrats ahead by 9.2 points, compared with 7.7 at the beginning of October and 6.3 at the beginning of September.

The Bulwark - Kristol wrote that the House was almost certain to change party control and the Senate was likely to do so. The article said both chambers had changed hands in a midterm only twice since 1954: 1994 and 2006.

The Bulwark - The Justice Department filed criminal charges against Comey concerning allegations that he directed staff to leak information to a reporter while FBI director. Comey said the case was “an appalling abuse of the Department of Justice”; his lawyers asked a judge to dismiss it.

The Bulwark - Judge Jesse Furman ruled Maurene Comey’s firing unlawful, ordered retroactive reinstatement and back pay for the period described in the article, and found violations of her Fifth Amendment due-process rights and other laws.

WHERE:

Vox - The election discussed is in Israel.

The Bulwark - Golan’s campaign stop was in Israel.

WHY:

The Bulwark - The Justice Department’s “criminal information” was described as an attempt to get around the statute-of-limitations deadline for the alleged offense.

HOW:

The Bulwark - The article explains that a criminal information is not an indictment; indictments typically require grand-jury approval. Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig said an information generally must be agreed to by the defendant and that it likely could not extend the limitations period without Comey’s consent.

The Bulwark - The article said the offense’s ten-year statute of limitations had expired earlier in the month.

(UPDATED October 27, 2026 22:14 UTC)

Israel’s election is a major challenge for six-term Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with his Likud-led bloc neck and neck with Gadi Eisenkot’s bloc as turnout reached its highest level in half a century; an apparent assassination attempt also targeted Democrat Yair Golan at a campaign stop. In the United States, the Justice Department charged former FBI director James Comey over allegations that he directed staff to leak information, while Comey called the case an abuse of power and his lawyers asked a judge to dismiss it; the filing came after the alleged offense’s 10-year statute of limitations had expired, and legal experts said the procedure may require Comey’s consent. Separately, Judge Jesse Furman ruled that Maurene Comey’s firing was unlawful and ordered her reinstatement and back pay, while polling showed President Trump with 35 percent approval and Democrats leading Republicans by 9 points on the generic congressional ballot.