This is the Sept. 17, 2026, edition of “The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe” newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.

“‘Give us another chance’ might be the worst political messaging I’ve heard in a very long time. This is what your ex says after they cheat: ‘Just give us another chance.’”

—

 Jim Messina, on Vice President JD Vance’s plea to voters ahead of November.

Ronald Reagan asked voters in 1980 whether they were better off than they were four years ago. 

Republicans do not want voters to answer that question today. So they try to change the subject and twist the facts. 

JD Vance told voters this week they shouldn’t give power to the people who “caused the problems that we’re fixing.” 

The statement begs a simple question: How stupid does the vice president think we are?

Joe Biden has been out of office for 18 months. Republicans have had a monopoly on power in Washington since then.

As The Wall Street Journal wrote, Donald Trump owns the economy. He’s also tied to the lies he told on the campaign trail. 

Trump promised no more “forever wars.” He then blundered his way into an unwinnable war with Iran.

He pledged to end the war in Ukraine on Day 1. Instead that bloody war drags on because Trump regularly provides comfort to the enemy. 

He said he would bring down prices. But Americans are getting crushed by costs at gas stations, grocery stores, and the doctor’s office. 

Trump vowed to secure the border by going after the “worst of the worst.” But too often it’s been hardworking immigrants and American citizens who have been stopped, dragged from their cars, kicked, and beaten. Alex Pretti and Renee Good were gunned down in Minneapolis by thugs hired by Kristi Noem.

Vance knows all of this. That’s probably why he is trying to change the subject by calling Democrats crazy.

The logic seems to be that Republicans have failed miserably at their jobs but Democrats are out of their minds. To prove their point, the GOP will find old quotes from current candidates and put them in commercials.  

James Talarico is having none of it. 

Asked about an old claim that there were six sexes, Talarico acknowledged he’d “missed the mark” on that loopy remark and told the reporter Republicans wanted to talk about six sexes because they didn’t want to talk about $6 diesel.

The Gipper would have loved that line. My bet is that voters will as well, and give no second chance to Vance. 

CHARTS OF THE DAY

Source: New York Times/Siena poll of 614 likely Texas voters conducted Sept. 8-11, 2026. Margin of error: +/- 4.3%. Images: Getty Images

WHAT THEY SAID

Jonathan Lemire on voters

“The White House’s one signature piece of legislation helped the rich. Working Americans are out — whether they live in the Midwest, West Coast, Northeast — and they’re hurting. They’re struggling to pay their bills, and they see the president, his family, and his top advisers’ families profiting in this corrupt way. That’s an easy contrast to make.”

Jon Meacham on Trump and the GOP

“The one thing President Trump can’t do is repeal the clock. Every day, his political interest and self-interest become separated from that of any other Republican who’s ever going to be on a ballot again — whether it’s in 47 days or two years and 47 days going forward.”

Sen. Chris Murphy on AI regulation

“Trump and Mike Johnson have both said, in effect, ‘Congress has no role here. The industry just needs to take care of it themselves.’ But the industry has one overriding incentive: to get this technology to market as quickly as possible. We need clear rules that force these companies to be much more careful about how they commercialize this technology. And right now, with Trump and Johnson opposed to congressional action, there appears to be a blockade against passing any commonsense regulation.”

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