A co-pilot's attempt to bring down a Dubai–Tel Aviv flight is being treated as terrorism, and the political mood in the US is getting uglier as the midterms approach.

• UAE investigators say the FlyDubai co-pilot attacked the captain with an emergency crash axe and tried to seize the controls before the plane landed safely.
• The attacker is an Omani national who had already been banned from flying at home over radical views; no motive has been confirmed yet.
• Trump is now promising seniors $100 checks for Medicare premiums, down from earlier talk of $500 and $5,000, with the bigger payout dangled only if Republicans win the midterms.
• Republicans are campaigning hard in Texas, Alabama and Oklahoma — states that should be safe — while approval numbers slip and the jobs picture weakens.
• Chinese officials asked for unusual rest breaks for Xi Jinping during his September summit with Trump, cancelling a working lunch and leaving hours of empty schedule, fueling questions about his health.

Outlook: Expect more fear-based campaign messaging and more leaks from the FlyDubai probe as investigators look for links behind the attack.