{
  "id": 7089838,
  "title": "The White House’s Midterm-Travel Sweepstakes",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/the-white-houses-midterm-travel-sweepstakes",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-13T10:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Atlantic",
    "slug": "the-atlantic",
    "url": "https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/09/trump-cabinet-travel-midterms/688560/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "At nearly every moment, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles collaborates with Meghan Bauer, a presidential assistant, to monitor the travel patterns of Cabinet members. The unofficial Cabinet Travel Competition, overseen by Bauer, motivates Cabinet secretaries to travel across the country to promote President Trump's agenda, with a focus on key congressional districts or states during the midterm elections. This competition became known to the public when a Cabinet secretary mentioned their decision to decline an event in Manhattan due to potential points deductions for visiting a solidly blue area. Despite assurances that no one loses points and a trip to New York for a cable-news appearance would still count, Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, noted that there were seven or eight Cabinet members on the road in targeted districts on a given day. The official competition lasted from Memorial Day to Labor Day, although secretaries are expected to continue through November. Although there were rumors of a prize, such as a dinner with the president for the winning Cabinet secretary, White House officials insisted the competition is for bragging rights only, and they spoke anonymously to discuss internal matters. Contestants are encouraged to travel to key congressional districts, engage with Congress members, and participate in local media interviews, believing that local press coverage is more valuable than talking with national outlets in Washington. Any midterm-related travel must be approved by the White House, and while taxpayers cover the cost for official duties, officials pay for personal political trips themselves. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. used a military jet for some trips, and in February, Wiles advised limiting international travel for Cabinet secretaries to focus on midterm elections. Punishment for noncompliance was swift, with examples like Kristi Noem being pushed out as Homeland Security secretary due to images of her in Bahrain and Argentina. The White House did not provide a tally of each Cabinet member's political travel, but they did share the number of visits made to at least 13 states over the summer. Texas led with 46 visits, followed by Pennsylvania with 42 and New York with 40. The lowest numbers were in New Jersey, North Carolina, Alaska, and Nevada. In three months, Cabinet members made a total of 265 visits to those states. After tracking public domestic travel by members of Trump's Cabinet from Memorial Day to August 31, the tally found Kelly Loeffler, the head of the Small Business Administration, with at least 18 trips, including multiple stops in Georgia, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. Brooke Rollins, the Agriculture Secretary, had at least 17 trips, followed by Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling at least 15, and Kennedy and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy at least 10 each. The competition mainly involved members whose jobs require regular national travel, with only a few visiting competitive areas since Memorial Day. Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not have any midterm-related trips, as his confirmed tenure had primarily been overseas.",
  "summary": "Cabinet members were rewarded points and praise for appearing in congressional districts and states with competitive midterm elections.",
  "key_points": [
    "White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Meghan Bauer oversee Cabinet travel competition.",
    "Seven to eight Cabinet members on the road in targeted districts daily during competition.",
    "Texas led with 46 visits, followed by Pennsylvania with 42 and New York with 40."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}