Trump reinstates weekend rallies amid record-low approval before midterms

Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail with the US midterm elections days away, Sky News reported. The channel said he had reinstated rallies for the weekend after the White House had announced he would not hold two events in Kansas and Ohio, then reversed that decision. Sky News US correspondent Mark Stone said Trump had been on the road a remarkable amount for an 80-year-old man. Stone said the vote would set the stage for the next two years of Trump's presidency, including how far he becomes a lame-duck president and whether Republicans lose both houses of Congress.

According to Sky News, Trump's approval rating is at a record low and the cost of living is the main issue. Stone said every one of the 435 House seats is up for election, along with 35 Senate seats. Republicans currently hold the House and the Senate, Sky News reported. Stone said Republicans appeared "a bit fed up" with Trump and that "the orange glow is fading a little bit", but he said it was unclear how that would affect turnout.

Sky News aired a clip of Trump responding angrily when asked about the cancelled rallies. He called a reporter "a sick guy" and "Reuters is terrible", and told the reporter: "You are disgusting put yourself in shape. You look like hell." In the same exchange, Trump said he did not have to go to Kansas and would hold a rally in Florida tomorrow.

Sky News also aired comments from US political analyst Eric Ham, who said the president was "not happy at all" and was "throwing temper tantrums" across the White House. Ham said people were staying out of Trump's way and that there was growing concern. He said major changes could follow if Democrats took back Congress. He also said Pete Hegseth, the defence secretary, was trying to angle for a Senate seat to get away from scrutiny and investigations.

Sky News reported that former President Bill Clinton had been drumming up support for the Democrats in the closing days of the campaign.