President Donald Trump spent Thursday, Oct. 29, flying to Rock Hill, S.C., to rally for Sen. Darline Graham, then hosting Halloween at the White House, five days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. On Friday morning he phoned in to a Kansas City radio show. This edition covers 7:13 a.m. PT Thursday to 7:13 a.m. PT Friday, quotes him from his posts, a transcript, wire reports and video, ranks topics by policy weight and then by coverage, and pairs each claim with the record and with reactions from both sides. Video follows at the end.

Highlights. He predicted the Iran war “is going to get wrapped up soon” and said, “We need a guarantee there’ll never be a nuclear weapon” (Reuters), as Al Jazeera, citing The Wall Street Journal, reports that the head of Central Command briefed him Thursday on options for renewed strikes (Al Jazeera). He called Alaska’s two-Dan-Sullivan ballot “voter fraud” and said Peltola should face prosecution (transcript; AP via CBS News). And he hailed third-quarter growth of 3.4%, a figure the Commerce Department’s BEA confirms (BEA).

1. Iran. On KCMO’s Pete Mundo show Friday, a call he announced in a post at 4:15 a.m. PT (), he said, “It’s going to get wrapped up soon,” and “We need a guarantee there’ll never be a nuclear weapon” (Reuters). Reuters notes he did not say how the war would end and that he has said the United States would not strike Iran before the elections. At the Rock Hill rally Thursday he said, “Everybody knows we had to attack Iran. We had to make sure they never have a nuclear weapon,” and “it’s going to be over very, very soon,” per a transcript by independent writer Tommy Christopher, a critic of the president (Tommy Christopher). The record: Al Jazeera reports, citing the Journal, that Adm. Brad Cooper briefed him on options for renewed attacks, and that Qatari mediators returned to Tehran on Friday for talks coordinated with Washington (Al Jazeera). Iran’s navy said Friday that two tankers “were damaged and caught fire after striking naval mines” near the Strait of Hormuz (CBS News). Reactions: he reposted Republican pollster John McLaughlin’s claim that a strong majority backs stopping Iran from getting nuclear arms (); Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) wrote that “Republicans in Congress let Trump start a war” (). The desk found no Democratic leadership response to the KCMO remark by publication.

2. Alaska, California and “honest” elections. Before leaving the White House he called the second Dan Sullivan on Alaska’s ballot “Total election fraud at the highest level, criminal level” and said, “It’s an absolute -- it’s called voter fraud. It should not have been allowed to happen.” Asked what counts as an honest election, he said, “if they don’t correct this, it would be certainly a dishonest election.” Asked whether Republicans should refuse to seat Peltola if she wins: “Well, you’re going to have to see what happens. It’s hard to believe that she could even be allowed to run” (transcript). At the rally he said she “actually should be removed from the ballot and prosecuted” (AP via CBS News). On California, where, according to a post that @RapidResponse47 quoted, a federal judge rejected a Justice Department request to block the count of mail ballots linked to alleged noncitizen voters (), he said, “California is very corrupt; the elections are extremely corrupt,” and claimed “millions” of bad ballots, a number with no public support (transcript). The record: AP reports the Justice Department issued new grand jury subpoenas in its Alaska probe after a New York Times report on how the second Sullivan entered the race, and notes that “Political parties often support extra candidates on ballots” (AP via CBS News). Reactions: Peltola said, “I knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent,” and “I am not interested in tricking voters” (Alaska’s News Source); Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) ordered a state investigation into her (AP via CBS News).

3. The economy. He wrote that “the U.S. Economy is BOOMING at 3.4 PERCENT — A Historic Level of Economic Growth,” that “Investment in new Equipment EXPLODED by 21%,” and that “if the Dumocrats win the Midterms, they will burn it all down” (). Overnight he added, “INFLATION IS WAY DOWN UNDER “TRUMP.”” (). The record: BEA reports real GDP “increased at an annual rate of 3.4 percent in the third quarter,” up from 2.2 percent, and the PCE price index rose 2.1 percent after 5.0 percent in the second quarter (BEA). RBC’s Carrie Freestone called the investment surge “an AI story” but warned that “broad inflation pressures are not going away anytime soon” (RBC). His “almost double some projections” remark at the gaggle and the post’s “72% of economists’ forecasts” claim carry no public source the desk could find.

4. A fired general. Asked whether Lt. Gen. Brett Sylvia leaked classified information, he said, “She’s got problems. She’s going to have big problems. She did -- we’re very much looking for leakers” (transcript). The record: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Sylvia as the Joint Chiefs’ head of strategy, plans and policy; an anonymous Pentagon official said Sylvia faces investigation over sharing classified information, and Sylvia did not respond to requests for comment (Los Angeles Times/AP). The Joint Chiefs withdrew a statement that had thanked Sylvia for “32 years of distinguished service,” the Times reports. No court or tribunal has made any finding. He also defended Hegseth against Democratic impeachment talk: “He’s doing a great job. He’s a great warrior” (transcript).

5. Brazil. Asked whether he recognizes President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s reelection, he said, “I’ll talk to him. I think the election was a disgrace in Brazil,” and later, “I don’t want to comment right now” on who won (transcript). The record: Reuters reports that Lula won by 3.5 percentage points and that, according to a U.S. official and another person familiar with the matter, the administration “does not plan to back Flavio Bolsonaro’s claim to be Brazil’s rightful leader” (Reuters). The Brazilian government did not respond to Reuters.

6. Rock Hill and the Senate map. At the rally for Darline Graham, appointed after the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, he said, “our economy is roaring” and “If you want to keep this growth going, you must vote Republican,” and he called Democratic nominee Annie Andrews “a radical left lunatic” (Roll Call). Roll Call and The Post and Courier report that he again used an anti-transgender slur for Andrews, a pediatrician; Roll Call notes she said in 2022, “I do not support gender-affirming surgery on minors. I never have” (Roll Call; Post and Courier). He opened by attacking North Carolina Democrat Roy Cooper, who “tries to pretend he’s a moderate, and he’s not” (Roll Call). Reactions: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) called Graham “a powerhouse”; former Republican Gov. David Beasley recorded a video backing Andrews (Roll Call).

7. Endorsements and reposts. He urged Kentucky voters to “GO VOTE at the Polls RIGHT NOW” (), posted endorsements for nine Pennsylvania House Republicans, including Scott Perry (), backed David Stumbo for South Carolina attorney general () and Montana’s Kurt Alme, whom he contrasted with “a Radical Left Democrat named Alani Bankhead” (). He shared Fox News opinion columns by Gregg Jarrett on Rep. Ilhan Omar and the Russia inquiry () and a poll link from conservativebrief.com, a partisan site ().

8. Kansas, a reporter and Halloween. Back at Joint Base Andrews, asked whether skipping a Kansas rally meant he felt “sick of traveling,” he said, “Oh, you’re sick to ask that question. You are sick,” then, “You’ve been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell” (PBS NewsHour/AP). He also said, “You are a sick guy. Reuters is terrible, by the way,” per TheWrap, which reports a Reuters representative did not immediately respond (TheWrap). He said Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) “is doing well” (NBC News). At 7:12 a.m. PT Friday the White House told the Daily Mail, “Rallies are back on!” with back-to-back Kansas and Iowa rallies on Sunday (Daily Mail). On Thursday evening he and the first lady welcomed trick-or-treaters to the White House ().

Deep dive: “honest” elections, five days out. Across the gaggle and the rally, one theme tied the day together: whether he will accept results he dislikes. Roll Call reports that earlier this week he said he would respect only outcomes he deems “honest,” without a definition, and that “Democratic lawmakers and pro-voter groups worry” about challenges to races Republicans lose (Roll Call). Thursday supplied a partial definition for one race: if Alaska does not “correct” the ballot, “it would be certainly a dishonest election” (transcript). On Peltola’s seating he said, “you’re going to have to see what happens.” On California he promised, “we’ll appeal that, of course,” and on Brazil he called a foreign result “a disgrace” while saying he took no side (transcript). Supporters, among them Attorney General Todd Blanche, frame the Alaska case as cheating: “They are trying to take votes away from the incumbent,” Blanche told Fox News (AP via CBS News). Critics, including Peltola, call it intimidation: “They can’t win on their record so they’re trying to intimidate me into backing down” (AP via CBS News). AP adds that legal experts say the federal government has no role challenging results “If state courts allow it.”

What the record shows. The 3.4% growth figure matches BEA (BEA). The Iran timeline rests on his word; Reuters notes he gave no mechanism (Reuters). The Alaska fraud claim remains an allegation under federal investigation, which Peltola denies (Alaska’s News Source). No public evidence supports “millions” of bad California ballots, his “99 percent favorable” figure, or the claim that Sylvia leaked; the Pentagon’s case rests on an anonymous official (Los Angeles Times/AP).

Responses. Supportive: Blanche on Alaska (AP via CBS News), Tim Scott on Graham (Roll Call), and McLaughlin’s Iran poll, which he reposted (). Critical: Peltola (Alaska’s News Source), Massie on the war (), and Beasley on Andrews’ behalf (Roll Call). A Reuters representative did not immediately respond to TheWrap (TheWrap).