The New York Times: In the West, Independents See an Opening — and Veterans Are Leading the Charge

The paper of record covers the “fulcrum caucus”: four independent veterans who could reshape the United States Senate.

The New York Times published a major feature on the independent Senate campaigns sweeping the American West — and at its heart is something extraordinary: a group text. Todd Achilles of Idaho, Seth Bodnar of Montana, Brian Bengs of South Dakota, and Dan Osborn of Nebraska — all military veterans, all running as independents in Republican-dominated states — are in regular contact, coordinating a shared vision they call the fulcrum caucus: a bloc of independent senators large enough to force real change in a narrowly divided chamber.

The Times reports that these campaigns share a common platform born of common ground: the cost of healthcare and housing, the preservation of public lands, and the public’s exhaustion with the wealth, age, and insularity of the Senate. It’s coverage that treats independent veterans not as curiosities or spoilers, but as a coherent national force — because that’s exactly what they’ve become.

Four veterans. Four states. One oath, taken again. When IVA launched two years ago, we promised a wave that would crest powerfully in 2026. The New York Times just described that wave in detail. Now it’s on all of us to carry it to shore on November 3rd.

Read the full story at The New York Times.