Trump Cancels Weekend Iowa and Kansas Rallies, Will Hold Tele-Rallies Before Midterms

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he is canceling this weekend's rallies in Kansas and Iowa and will instead hold tele-rallies, four days before the U.S. midterm elections. The events were to have supported Republican candidates in competitive races as part of a planned blitz in which Trump said he would travel to 35 places. Trump has campaigned at 25 rallies in the past month. He said he did not "feel I have to go to Kansas" and that Republican Sen. Roger Marshall, in a tight race with Democrat Adam Hamilton, is doing well. The Republican National Committee said the last-minute change would let Trump reach more voters through virtual events. Trump said he felt "perfect" and rebuked a reporter who asked whether the Kansas cancellation was tied to his health. Democrats lead Republicans nationally 51.4 percent to 43.2 percent, according to RealClearPolling, and a legal dispute threatens to delay the Senate result in Alaska.

Left-leaning outlets NBC News and MS NOW center on the cancellations themselves. NBC News contrasts them with Trump's earlier claims that his rallies lift Republicans, quotes his Kansas remarks and his hoarse-voice comment about the toll of daily rallies, and details his exchange with a reporter on his health. It also ties the Kansas race becoming a toss-up to worries over the cost of the war in Iran. MS NOW's headline and excerpt call the cancellations abrupt and give the RNC's explanation of reaching more voters by phone. Alternative outlets differ in scope. Al Jazeera folds the cancellations into a four-days-out midterm overview, citing RealClearPolling's numbers, a Marquette Law School poll showing Trump at 37 percent approval, and a pollster's view that Democrats are more enthusiastic, plus an Arizona retiree on grocery costs. The Times of India headlines the move as skipping rallies in red states for a phone campaign. Right-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while left-leaning and alternative outlets had.