Bad blood in Texas Senate race and errors with Flock license plate readers: Morning Rundown

Why some of Ken Paxton’s allies think he’s being sabotaged in the Texas Senate race. Errors by Flock license plate readers are leading police to pull over the wrong people. And Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers redeems himself in a win over the Colts.

Here’s what to know today.

Bad blood spills over in the Texas Senate race

It’s been a brutal stretch for Republican Texas Senate candidate Ken Paxton.

Damaging leaks of his private conversations. Details of his past romantic affairs. Jabs at his physical appearance. And at least some of his allies are convinced the sabotage is coming from within his own party.

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Wounds haven’t healed from the contentious primary in which Paxton defeated Sen. John Cornyn. Many in Paxton’s corner are convinced those aligned with Cornyn are trying to tank his chances. Others in the GOP say Paxton’s negatives are so high that few want to associate with him.

Interviews with more than a dozen Texas Republicans involved in the crossfire make it clear there’s no hope for a truce before Election Day — or perhaps ever. Some say the fissures threaten to sideline GOP efforts ahead of a critical election.

Read more about the bad blood.

Meanwhile, Paxton’s Democratic rival James Talarico addressed his recent absence from the campaign trail yesterday, saying it was nothing but a “nasty case of the flu.”

More election news:

• Analysis: Trump’s rallies are designed to pump enthusiasm into a base showing signs of fatigue and dissatisfaction. While the president can still bring a crowd like no one else in the Republican Party, he’s speaking in smaller venues — and often staring out at empty seats. Some say he may not be getting as much bang for his buck as he once did.

• Republican Sen. Darline Graham of South Carolina and Democratic challenger Annie Andrews clashed over Iran, AI and Trump in their first debate.

• Abortion isn’t top of mind for voters, but Democrats are betting it could motivate their base.

• Across both parties, Black candidates look to make history in governor’s races.

Flock ‘false flags’ lead to frightening motorist encounters with police

Danny Brooks, an electrician in Indiana, was sitting in his company truck when police officers surrounded the vehicle, guns drawn. They handcuffed him and said the truck was reported stolen — but they had the wrong man.

An error by a Flock license plate reader caused the mix up.

These readers indiscriminately capture a photo of each car that passes its cameras. If one of the plates Flock photographs is on a “hotlist,” a law enforcement registry containing plate numbers suspected of connections to a crime, police are notified. But the system isn’t perfect.

NBC News spoke with five people who have been pulled over or detained after Flock’s system raised false flags, including one who was jailed for nearly two weeks.

We also analyzed logs showing officers searching and adding license plates to a system containing hotlists. Some officers intentionally added the wrong plate numbers to compensate for Flock mistakes.

Read the full story here.

NFL Week 5 recap: Don’t count out Aaron Rodgers just yet

Week 5 of the NFL season featured the latest chapter of a storied rivalry and a resurgent performance from a 42-year-old quarterback. Here’s what you missed yesterday:

• After having looked like one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL to begin the season, Steelers starter Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes for the third straight game, this time in a 34-22 win over the Colts.
• The Packers restored some balance in their rivalry with the Bears, defeating the Caleb Williams-less squad 31-7.
• The Commanders had seconds left to secure a win — and blew it. They tied with the Giants 27-27 after Jayden Daniels’ poor decision to run the ball left the entire NFL in disbelief.
• In one of the craziest endings, the Eagles lost 19-17 to the Jaguars.

Read the full recap here.

Staff Pick: Frustrated by a slowing economy, young Chinese turn to Mao Zedong for guidance

Fifty years after his death, China’s former leader Mao Zedong is finding renewed appeal among young Chinese people, who are flocking to his old residences and monuments to learn about his past and turning to his books for inspiration. They are drawing from his ideas to manage everyday challenges, from work and study to even video games.

Some believe that the tightly controlled history textbooks and heavily censored internet in China might lead to an incomplete understanding of him, but this is not the only nor the primary reason behind the appeal.

We travelled to Mao’s hometown of Shaoshan in southern China to speak with young visitors to find out how they felt seeing the site in person. We also spoke with two Chinese history experts to explore why Mao strikes a chord with a younger generation facing a slowing economy and growing social pressures.

— Erin Tan and Dawn Liu, researchers based in Beijing

Read All About It

• Kelly Clarkson says a Brooklyn store snubbed her. The shop says the item she wanted wasn’t for sale.
• American-born economists Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford won the Nobel memorial prize in economics for their work on models that have helped governments and central banks manage economic shocks.
• A man whose toddler was among eight people killed in a mass shooting in Erie, Pennsylvania, said that the gunman was a grandfather who never seemed distressed or out of the ordinary.

• To counteract a spooky economy, America prepares to spend on Halloween candy.

NBC Selected: Online Shopping, Simplified

We don’t always have time to brew a fresh cup of coffee every morning, which is exactly why we’ve turned to coffee concentrates. Not only are they stronger and more potent, but they take half the time and effort to make. But which ones are actually worth your money? We tried more than a dozen to find out.

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