“Republicans made their midterm convention all about red meat for their base. Their message on affordability, the issue voters are hungriest to hear about, was just a side dish,” Politico reports.“On stage at the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention, in private meetings just offsite in hotels around Dallas, and in TV ads airing in between live coverage of the unusual spectacle, the party’s main focus was painting Democrats as too extreme.”“But poll after poll shows that the cost of living is voters’ top concern by a wide margin. And while Republican leaders touted the Trump administration’s tax cuts and other economic policies in their speeches, few spent much time making an affirmative case for alleviating those concerns.”NPR: Empty seats, socialism and Trump dominate the Republican midterm convention.