Here's the Scoop

For decades, Texas has been the deep-red heart of the Republican Party. For Democrats, it’s the white whale.
But this midterm cycle, political observers think they may have a chance. In the Senate contest, most polls show Democratic State Rep. James Talarico ahead of Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton by a few points. And in the race for governor, Democratic State Rep. Gina Hinojosa is in surprisingly close competition with the incumbent, Republican Greg Abbott, despite being outspent by a mile.
For this episode of Here’s the Scoop, Election Edition, NBC News chief White House correspondent Garrett Haake headed to Austin to sit down with Hinojosa and Texas Tribune Editor-in-Chief Matthew Watkins to ask: Could this finally be Democrats’ year in Texas?

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President Trump is on a major campaign blitz to help Republicans hold on to their narrow majority in Congress. One of the first stops on his tour: Texas, where Attorney General Ken Paxton is locked in an unexpectedly close Senate race with Democrat James Talarico. Now, top Democrats are funding ads in support of Talarico. NBC News chief White House correspondent Garrett Haake explains why Democrats think they may be able to finally flip Texas.
Next, a Dateline investigation looks into how a 30-year-old sexual-assault cold case was solved - and still didn’t yield justice for the victim. Authorities were able to identify Dana Beatty’s attacker, but state statute of limitations kept them from prosecuting him. Dateline NBC correspondent Blayne Alexander explains the legal roadblocks for those seeking accountability for sexual violence and how they differ across the country.
Lastly, the price you’re being charged for concert tickets might depend on how much the ticket vendor knows about you. NBC News anchor and chief consumer investigative correspondent Vicky Nguyen explains how “price experiments” work and what consumers can do to protect themselves.

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Tennessee’s governor called off executions for the rest of the year after Christa Pike, the only woman on death row in the state, survived a lethal injection execution attempt Wednesday. It’s the second time this year that an execution in Tennessee has gone awry. NBC News senior reporter Erik Ortiz explains what happened inside the death chamber and what this means for future executions in the state.
Then, the family of Renee Good is suing the U.S. government, top Trump administration officials and the ICE officer who fatally shot her during the administration's immigration operations in Minnesota in January. With criminal investigations in limbo, her family is seeking accountability from the government, alleging wrongful death and excessive force. NBC News legal analyst Misty Marris explains the crux of the two federal civil suits and how steep that legal battle could be.
Finally, Big Tech companies like Meta, Anthropic and OpenAI are pitching AI assistants to help users do things like book flights and shop for groceries. But some of the largest online retailers are shutting them out. NBC News reporter David Ingram takes us inside the battle for your online shopping cart.

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A FlyDubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after a pilot was attacked by his co-pilot in the cockpit, sending the plane plummeting more than 14,000 feet in under 30 seconds. NBC international correspondent Matt Bradley takes us onboard Flight FZ1073 as the incident unfolded and explains why investigators are not ruling out terrorism.
Next, the Trump administration faces bipartisan criticism for new “public service announcements” that were funded by Customs and Border Protection and bear a striking resemblance to President Trump’s 2024 campaign ads. NBC News senior homeland security correspondent Julia Ainsley breaks down how the ads got made – and whether this use of taxpayer money is even legal.
Finally, exclusive NBC reporting revealed that incarcerated music producer Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has been living a life of luxury with alcohol, special meals and even a masseuse while serving a sentence for sex crimes. NBC News entertainment correspondent Chloe Melas delves into how Diddy has been able to get around prison restrictions and how this reporting could impact the remainder of his prison sentence.

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The Trump administration is pitching its new website, America.gov, as an AI-powered one-stop shop for tasks like renewing your passport and signing up for Medicare. White House correspondent Monica Alba walks us through how the new site works — and how it fits into the AI summit President Donald Trump held at the White House.
Then, former special counsel Jack Smith went head-on with Republican senators on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, defending the federal indictments against Trump in the 2020 election interference case and the classified documents case. NBC News White House and Capitol Hill correspondent Julie Tsirkin explains why Smith was in the hot seat and what could happen with these cases if Democrats retake control of Congress in the midterm elections.
Plus, Major League Baseball’s Wild Card Series kicks off Tuesday, with some big rivals going head-to-head, including the Phillies vs. the Braves and the Yankees vs. the Red Sox. But can any team beat the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers? NBC Sports analyst and former Chicago Cubs star Anthony Rizzo gives his take on what to watch out for this postseason.

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