Harris follows Oprah event with crucial swing state visit as Trump tries to dodge scandal-plagued Republican: Live

Kamala Harris made her pitch to swing state voters to keep Donald Trump out of the White House in Madison, Wisconsin following her event with Oprah Winfrey.

“In many ways, you’ve heard me say before, he is an unserious man,” Harris told the crowd on Friday.

“But the consequences of putting him back in the White House are extremely serious. Just Google Project 2025,” she added.

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign has released a new ad seeking to tie Trump to embattled North Carolina Lt Gov Mark Robinson, engulfed in a scandal relating to online posts on a porn forum.

There are reports that Robinson will not be attending a Trump rally organized in Wilmington, North Carolina, on Saturday, suggesting the former president’s campaign team may be trying to distance him from the scandal.

Harris told Oprah on Thursday night that she would shoot an intruder in her home as the vice president addressed gun violence, the cost of living, reproductive rights, and immigration in an event on Thursday.

Also on Friday, Harris held a rally focused on reproductive rights in Atlanta, Georgia. Trump is holding a fundraiser in Miami, Florida.

Key Points

• Trump ally Mark Robinson to stay in NC governor race after ‘Black Nazi’ claims in CNN report

• Harris tells Oprah that she’d shoot home intruder

• Trump claims that Jewish voters would have ‘a lot to do with’ election loss

• Springfield mayor seizes ‘emergency powers’ to deal with pet-eating migrant rumors

• Harris holds rallies in Atlanta, Georgia, and Madison, Wisconsin

• Trump to attend fundraiser in Miami on Friday

Trump hits out at former ally Howard Stern for ‘going woke’

03:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has gone after Howard Stern for turning on the former president in recent years, something Trump has blamed on the radio show host becoming “woke.”

Trump appeared on the Fox News late-night show Gutfeld! on Wednesday evening where he was shown a clip of the radio host and several other celebrities lambasting the former president.

“I don’t hate the guy,” Stern said of Trump. “I hate the people who vote for him. I think they’re stupid. I do. I’ll be honest with you, I have no respect for you.”

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

‘He’s changed’: Trump hits out at former ally Howard Stern for ‘going woke’

Supreme Court leaves Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein off Nevada ballot

02:00 , Oliver O'Connell

The Supreme Court has rejected an emergency appeal from Nevada’s Green Party seeking to include presidential candidate Jill Stein on the ballot in the battleground state.

The court’s order Friday, without any noted dissents, allows ballot preparation and printing to proceed in Nevada without Stein and other Green Party candidates included.

The outcome is a victory for Democrats who had challenged the Greens’ inclusion on the ballot in a state with a history of extremely close statewide races. In 2020, President Joe Biden outpaced former President Donald Trump by fewer than 35,000 votes in the state.

The state’s Democratic party had sued to kick Stein off the ballot after the Green party submitted enough signatures to include her. A lower state court ruled in her favor, but the state Supreme Court decided the petition forms were faulty.

The Green party was represented at the Supreme Court by Jay Sekulow, a Trump ally who was part of the president’s legal team during his first impeachment trial.

Across the country, a network of Republican political operatives, lawyers and their allies is trying to shape November’s election in ways that favor Trump. Their goal is to prop up third-party candidates, including Stein and Cornel West who offer liberal voters an alternative that could siphon away support from Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.

Trump once praised North Carolina’s self-proclaimed ‘Nazi’ candidate. Now he’s scrambling to distance himself

01:30 , Gustaf Kilander

The Trump campaign is increasingly worried that the scandals plaguing the campaign of North Carolina Republican gubernatorial nominee Mark Robinson might damage their prospects in the key battleground state.

The last Democrat to win the state on the presidential level was former President Barack Obama in 2008 and it’s likely a must-win for Trump if he wants to return to the White House in January next year.

CNN reported on Thursday that Robinson made a number of bizarre comments on a porn forum between 2008 and 2012, including calling himself a “perv,” a “Black NAZI!” and sharing his support for reinstating slavery, saying that he “would certainly buy a few.”

“This is an issue that has to do with Robinson’s campaign and not President Trump’s campaign,” a Trump official told Axios on Thursday.

READ MORE:

Trump distancing himself from North Carolina gubernatorial candidate after scandal

In pictures: Harris rallies supporters in Madison, Wisconsin

01:19 , Gustaf Kilander

‘Donald Trump is the architect’: Harris slams Trump on abortion rights

01:14 , Gustaf Kilander

Kamala Harris slammed Donald Trump on abortion rights, bringing up the example of a Georgia woman who died of sepsis after her care was delayed.

“Women are being denied care during miscarriages, some only being treated once they develop sepsis,” she said.

“And we know that women have died because of Trump abortion bans. I was with a mother and the two sisters of a woman who died because of Trump abortion bans just last night,” she said about the event on Thursday night hosted by Oprah Winfrey.

“Her mother said the worst thing among the pain that she's experiencing is when she heard and reflects on what she was told that it was preventable,” Harris said. “And you know when that decision came down just over two years ago. We predicted this would happen, and it's preventable.”

“You know, the young woman, she was a vibrant, 28-year-old young woman with a mother of a six-year-old son. Her name Amber Nicole Thurman – I promised her mother I will say her name every time,” Harris added.

The vice president went on to outline how Amber was a medical assistant who had just learned that she was accepted to nursing school.

“She had her whole future planned out, and her sisters and her mother were describing her to me, and they said, ‘you know, she had such light, and she had ambition and she had drive, and she was so proud that she had worked so hard, and she was finally gaining independence that she found an apartment in a safe community’,” the vice president said.

“It had a little pool where her son could play, and she was so proud. She was so proud and so hopeful,” Harris said.

Thurman then found out that she was pregnant, and decided to have an abortion.

“But because of the Trump abortion ban in Georgia, she was forced to travel out of state to receive the health care that she needed,” Harris said on Friday.

The 28-year-old then discovered that she needed further care after coming back to Georgia, where she went to a hospital.

“But under the Trump abortion ban, her doctors could have faced up to a decade in prison for providing Amber the care she needed. And so she waited for 20 excruciating hours,” Harris recalled on Friday. “She waited as she deteriorated, then she reached such a critical state, that the doctors finally operated, and it was too late, and she died of sepsis.“

Medical experts have found that her death was preventable, Harris argued.

“So understand what a law like this means, these kinds of laws under Trump abortion bans, it means doctors may have to wait until the patient is at death's door before they take any action,” the vice president said.

“Nobody wants that. What is he talking about?” she said of Trump, who has claimed there was a clamor for abortion access decisions to be returned to the states.

“Are we saying we're going to craft public health policy so that doctors only kick in when you're about to die?” Harris asked. “This is one example of what is happening around our country right now, and this is a health care crisis, and Donald Trump is the architect.”

“When Congress passes the bill to restore reproductive freedom. As President of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law,” Harris concluded.

‘Pure’ Donald Trump endorsed by Lady Gaga’s father

01:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Joe Germanotta, the father of Lady Gaga, endorsed Donald Trump for president during an appearance on Fox News on Thursday morning.

The Upper West Side restaurateur, who owns Joanne Trattoria, said Trump and Kamala Harris “are two vastly different people, one of them is pure, and he’s a patriot.”

“And the other ... is just going to say whatever she needs to say to get elected,” he added. “That’s basically what I hear.”

A recent AP/NORC poll shows most Americans believe the opposite.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Lady Gaga’s father endorses ‘pure’ Donald Trump for president

Georgia’s GOP-led elections board OKs controversial voting change that local officials warned against

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:30 , Gustaf Kilander

The Republican-controlled Georgia State Election Board has given the green light to a controversial voting measure that local officials warned against.

The new rule requires local precincts to hand count the upcoming November election results and match them to the machine counts before certifying them.

Three Trump-backed Republican members have been the majority on the board since May. They passed the measure despite being told by Republican Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr that the board would illegally be seizing the power of the state legislature, board Chair John Fervier said, according to USA Today.

READ MORE:

Elections board OKs controversial voting change that local officials warned against

‘Let’s take care of him in November’

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:28 , Gustaf Kilander

Responding to a shout from the crowd, Harris said: “The courts will take care of that, let’s take care of him in November.”

“But if you look at what he's up to, Donald Trump will give billionaires and big corporations massive tax cuts,” she added. “He intends to cut Social Security and Medicare, and he wants to impose what I call a Trump sales tax. Because here's the thing, what he is proposing would be a 20 percent tax on everyday basic necessities, which economists estimate will cost most working families more than $4,000 a year extra.”

‘He is an unserious man’: Harris makes swing state pitch to keep Trump out of White House

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:25 , Gustaf Kilander

Kamala Harris called Donald Trump “an unserious man” as she made her pitch to the swing state of Wisconsin to keep him out of the White House.

“In many ways, you've heard me say before, he is an unserious man,” Harris told the crowd.

“But the consequences of putting him back in the White House are extremely serious. Just Google Project 2025,” she added.

“By the way, can you believe they put that thing in writing? I mean, they put it in writing, they had it bound, and they handed it out,” the vice president said.

‘It’s time to turn the page’

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:18 , Gustaf Kilander

Harris once again brought up her so far only debate with Donald Trump.

“So some of you might have seen the debate last week that I had with Donald Trump,” she said to cheers.

“And I talked about issues that matter to families across America, like bringing down the cost of living, investing in America's small businesses, protecting reproductive freedom,” she added.

The vice president said she aimed to keep “our nation safe and secure, but that is not what we heard from Donald Trump.”

“Instead, it was the same old tired show, the same old tired playbook we've heard for years with no plan on how he would address the needs of the American people. Well, folks, it's time to turn the page,” she said.

Harris takes the stage in Wisconsin: ‘Hard work is joyful work'

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:14 , Gustaf Kilander

Kamala Harris took the stage in Madison, Wisconsin on Friday night to a raucous crowd.

“We got work to do – 46 days until the election and what we know is this is going to be a tight race until the very end,” she said. “So let's not pay too much attention to the polls, because let's be clear, we are the underdog in this race, and we have some hard work ahead of us. But here's the thing, we like hard work. Hard work is good work. Hard work is joyful work.”

ICYMI: More voters say Harris is ‘tough enough’ to be president than Trump, new poll shows

Saturday 21 September 2024 00:00 , Oliver O'Connell

There are just 47 days until November’s presidential election and the latest AP/NORC poll shows Kamala Harris pulling ahead of Donald Trump as the candidate of which voters have a more positive view.

Specifically, the vice president scores higher on where she is “tough enough to be president”, “would change the country for the better”, and “would fight for people like you”.

The former president meanwhile scores highest on “will say anything to win the election”.

Capping the poll off, a larger share of registered voters believe Harris will win on November 5 (40 per cent) over Trump (28 per cent). One-fifth of respondents think both candidates have an equal shot at the White House.

Majorities of both Democratic registered voters and Republican registered voters think their respective candidate will win, while there independent registered voters favor Harris over Trump, but with almost a quarter saying they do not know enough.

In July, after the Republican convention but before Harris was officially designated as the Democratic nominee, the public was more likely to think Trump would prevail over Harris.

While registered voters are divided on whether Harris would make a good president (47 per cent to 41 per cent), a majority think Trump would not (59 per cent to 36 per cent). These views are heavily influenced by partisanship, with about 8 in 10 Democratic voters and Republican voters believing their respective party’s nominees would make a good president.

Registered voters also have more positive views of Harris than Trump as a candidate. While Harris narrowly beats Trump on whether they are each tough enough to be president (43 per cent versus 42 per cent), slightly more think Harris would fight for people like them and would change the country for the better compared with Trump. And six in 10 think Trump will say anything to win the election compared with four in 10 who think the same about Harris.

Currently, about half of registered voters have a favorable opinion of Harris compared with 37% who have a favorable opinion of Trump. The candidates’ favorability ratings are currently similar to August. Last month, the August 2024 AP-NORC Poll found that 48 per cent of the public had a favorable opinion of Harris and 41 per cent had a favorable opinion of Trump.

The latest poll found that 88 per cent of Democratic voters have a favorable view of Harris, while 77 per cent of Republican voters have a positive opinion of Trump.

The nationwide poll was conducted between September 12-16, 2024 using the AmeriSpeak? Panel, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 2,028 adults, including 1,771 self-reported registered voters. The overall margin of sampling error is +/- 3.1 percentage points; +/- 3.5 percentage points for registered voters.

Wisconsin governor says Trump and Vance ‘are a dangerous threat to our country and our democracy'

Friday 20 September 2024 23:48 , Gustaf Kilander

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers went after Donald Trump and JD Vance during the rally in Madison.

“Donald Trump and JD Vance are a dangerous threat to our country and our democracy. They're not running to help others,” he said, adding that they’re running to “serve themselves.”

“They're not capable of being honest or telling the truth, and their radical Project 2025 agenda won't help Wisconsin families. It's going to hurt them,” Evers said.

Tammy Baldwin slams Eric Hovde: ‘Celebrated when Roe was overturned’

Friday 20 September 2024 23:43 , Gustaf Kilander

Wisconsin Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin slammed her opponent in her race for re-election, Republican Eric Hovde, calling him a “self-funding multi-millionaire.”

Baldwin was speaking ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris at a rally in Madison, Wisconsin.

“Eric Hovde owns a $3bn California Bank and a $7m ocean view home in Laguna Beach, and he has been named one of the most influential residents of Orange County three years in a row. Folks, we have a Green County, we have a Brown County, but Wisconsin does not have an Orange County,” she said.

“We may laugh at that, but the stakes in this race are incredibly high. Eric Hovde celebrated when Roe was overturned,” she added. “He says he's 100 percent anti-choice. Meanwhile, I'm leading the effort to restore reproductive freedoms with my Women's Health Protection Act.”

Supreme Court: Alaska man charged with threatening to torture and kill six justices and their families

Friday 20 September 2024 23:30 , Oliver O'Connell

An Alaska man has been arrested after he threatened to torture and kill six Supreme Court justices and their families, federal authorities say.

Panos Anastasiou, 76, is accused of sending more than 456 messages through the Supreme Court’s online portal between March 2023 and July 2024, according to the indictment.

He now faces 22 charges including 13 counts of making threats in interstate commerce and nine counts of making threats against a federal judge.

It is not clear which six justices that Anastasiou is charged with threatening.

Katie Hawkinson reports.

Alaska man charged with threatening to torture and kill six Supreme Court justices

After Fed cuts interest rates, Biden makes ‘declaration of progress’ on economy

Friday 20 September 2024 23:00 , Oliver O'Connell

With the Federal Reserve trimming interest rates for the first time since before the Covid-19 pandemic and inflation rates slipping to pre-Covid levels, President Joe Biden is taking a moment to savor the victory with a speech to the Economic Club of Washington on Thursday.

Biden said the decision by the Fed to cut rates after years of post-pandemic inflation led them to raise them from the near-zero levels they were at during the worst days of Covid represented a “good day for the country” and “good news for consumers” because borrowing costs will come down.

Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, DC.

Biden makes ‘declaration of progress’ on economy after Fed cuts interest rates

Ohio’s governor supports Trump but condemns his attacks on Haitian migrants in emotional op-ed

Friday 20 September 2024 22:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Ohio’s Republican governor, Mike DeWine, denounced in a heartfelt op-ed the onslaught of attacks by Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, against Haitian migrants in Springfield that have made the city the “epicenter of vitriol over America’s immigration policy.”

This month, Trump and Vance perpetuated groundless claims that Haitian migrants to Springfield, Ohio, were stealing and eating residents’ cats and dogs. Despite city officials and police officers calling the claims unsubstantiated, the allegations spread like wildfire and Springfield endured a barrage of threats, while the city’s migrant community faced racist remarks.

In an emotional op-ed in The New York Times on Friday, DeWine said it was “disappointing” that the 58,000-person city “has become the epicenter of vitriol over America’s immigration policy, because it has long been a community of great diversity.”

Kelly Rissman reports.

Ohio governor condemns Trump’s attacks on Haitian migrants in emotional op-ed

Tim Walz is out to teach Trump a lesson as he trials election attack lines on the road

Friday 20 September 2024 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Andrew Feinberg writes:

Comfortable in khakis and an open collar, Walz couldn’t be more different from JD Vance, the awkward man in a boxy suit and an overly long tie. Instead of talking about ‘threats to democracy’, Harris’s running-mate made a football analogy about January 6th — and it went down a storm.

Continue reading...

I went on the road with Tim Walz as he trialed his new attack lines against Trump

Despite warning from local officials, Georgia’s GOP-led elections board OKs controversial voting change

Friday 20 September 2024 21:52 , Oliver O'Connell

The Republican-controlled Georgia State Election Board has given the green light to a controversial voting measure that local officials warned against.

The new rule requires local precincts to hand count the upcoming November election results and match them to the machine counts before certifying them.

Gustaf Kilander has the details.

Elections board OKs controversial voting change that local officials warned against

Jimmy Kimmel heckles Trump over crowd sizes

Friday 20 September 2024 21:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Jimmy Kimmel has ridiculed Donald Trump over his obsession with crowd sizes.

During his latest rally in Uniondale, Long Island, the former president boasted that he draws bigger crowds than Elvis Presley.

“So I call up my wife, and I’d say, ‘Baby, who can draw crowds like me’,” Trump told attendees. “Nobody, nobody can. I’m the greatest of all time, maybe greater even than Elivs. Elvis had a guitar. I don’t have the privilege of a guitar.”

Finishing Trump’s thought on the latest episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the late-night host joked: “Thanks to my tiny baby hands, I am unable to play the guitar.”

Inga Parkel has more.

Jimmy Kimmel heckles Trump over crowd sizes and ‘tiny baby hands’

Watch: Crowd cheers Harris as she mentions debate — and says she’s trying to get another one

Friday 20 September 2024 21:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Rep Jasmine Crockett is back at it with her famous one-liners

Friday 20 September 2024 21:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Texas Democrat Jasmine Crockett defended Kamala Harris after the head of the Federal Communications Commission criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

Kelly Rissman reports on what she had to say.

‘Simple-minded, underqualified white man’: Rep Crockett fires off another one-liners

Watch: Harris notes multiple ironies about Republicans blocking bill guaranteeing access to IVF

Friday 20 September 2024 21:10 , Oliver O'Connell

ICYMI: Stunning report details North Carolina Republican candidate’s posts about self on porn forum

Friday 20 September 2024 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

North Carolina’s Republican candidate for governor, Mark Robinson, referred to himself as a “black Nazi” and said “slavery is good,” among other shocking remarks, on a porn forum, according to reporting from CNN’s KFile.

Earlier on Thursday, independent journalist Bryan Anderson had said that Robinson’s campaign was bearing down a negative story about to break. A few hours later, CNN’s KFile reported that he had an account on a porn site called “Nude Africa” where the anti-transgender conservative admitted that “I like watching tranny on girl porn!”

The social conservative, who has taken a stance against promiscuity in the past, wrote: “yeah, I’m a perv too,” and reportedly said on the same site when told that a celebrity had had an abortion: “I don’t care. I just wanna see the tape!”

Robinson denies the allegations and told CNN that the account they had found on the porn site was not his.

Eric Garcia and John Bowden report.

‘Black Nazi’ and ‘perv’: Republican candidate’s stunning posts about self on forum

Harris calls out hypocrites over care for women and children in remarks on reproductive rights

Friday 20 September 2024 20:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Citing a lack of resources of prenatal resources for women in southern states, Harris says: “These hypocrites want to start talking about this is in the best interest of women and children. Well, where have you been? Where have you been when it comes to taking care of the women and children of America?”

Matt Gaetz: New court filings accuse congressman of attending drug-fueled sex party with teen

Friday 20 September 2024 20:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Rep. Matt Gaetz, the MAGA-fied Florida Republican, attended a drugged-up sex party with a 17-year-old girl he has long claimed not to know, according to three eyewitnesses cited in court papers filed late Thursday night.

They said the underage teen showed up in her mom’s car for the July 15, 2017, gathering, which was held at lobbyist Chris Dorworth’s Lake Mary home, NOTUS reported. A high school junior at the time, the girl was provided for the enjoyment of Gaetz and the other attendees who were there to “engage in sexual activities,” while indulging in “alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy … and marijuana,” the court filings said.

Justin Rohrlich reports.

Matt Gaetz accused in new court filings of attending drug-fueled sex party with teen

‘Amber was not a statistic’: Mother of woman who died after delayed abortion care speaks out at Harris-Oprah event

Friday 20 September 2024 20:20 , Oliver O'Connell

The mother of a woman who died after waiting 20 hours for emergency medical care for an infection caused by an abortion pill complication shared her daughter’s heartbreaking final moments at a Thursday evening rally for Vice President Kamala Harris in Michigan.

“Initially I did not want the public to know my pain,” Amber Nicole Thurman’s mother, Shanette Williams, told the audience at the Unite America rally, where Harris was joined by Oprah Winfrey. “I wanted to go through it in silence, but I realized that it was selfish.

Madeline Sherratt reports.

Mother of woman who died after abortion care delay speaks out at Harris rally

Watch LIVE: Harris delivers remarks at a campaign event in Atlanta

Friday 20 September 2024 20:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump Media plummets to new low on the first trading day former president can sell his shares

Friday 20 September 2024 20:05 , AP

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group slumped to their lowest level ever at the opening bell Friday, the first trading day that its biggest shareholder, former President Donald Trump, is free to sell his stake in the company behind the Truth Social platform.

Shares of Trump Media, commonly called TMTG, tumbled almost 7% to $13.73, putting the value of the company at less than $3 billion. Trump owns more than half of it.

Trump and other insiders in the company have been unable to cash in on the highly volatile stock due standard lock-up agreements that prevent big stakeholders from selling stakes for a set period after a company becomes publicly traded. TMTG began trading publicly in March.

Trump owns nearly 115 million shares of the company, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Based on TMTG’s share price early Friday, Trump’s holdings are worth, at least on paper, about $1.6 billion. It’s usually not in the best interest of big stakeholders to even attempt to sell large tranches of their stock because it could risk a broader sell-off.

Since going public, shares in Trump Media have gyrated wildly, often depending on news related to Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.

One week ago, the company’s shares jumped nearly 12% after Trump said he wouldn’t sell shares when the lock-up period lifted. The stock dipped more than 10% following the debate earlier this month between Trump and the Democrats’ nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. In mid-July, shares climbed more than 31% in the first day of trading following the first assassination attempt on Trump.

Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. is now worth considerably less than several months ago. When the company made its debut on the Nasdaq in March, shares hit a high of $79.38.

Truth Social came into existence after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Based in Sarasota, Florida, Trump Media has been losing money and struggling to raise revenue. It lost nearly $58.2 million last year while generating only $4.1 million in revenue, according to regulatory filings.

Here’s The Independent’s Kelly Rissman with more:

Donald Trump can start selling his $2billion share of his media company. But will he?

Watch: ‘This was a failure on the part of the US Secret Service'

Friday 20 September 2024 20:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Harris tells Oprah that if someone breaks into her house ‘they’re getting shot’

Friday 20 September 2024 19:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Kamala Harris yet again brought up her Second Amendment credentials during a live event with Oprah Winfrey on Thursday night in Farmington Hills, Michigan.

During a discussion about gun violence, Winfrey brought up the fact that Harris revealed herself to be a gun owner during the debate against former President Donald Trump on September 10.

“I did not know that,” Winfrey said to laughter from the in-studio audience at the event entitled “Unite for America.”

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Harris tells Oprah that if someone breaks into her house ‘they’re getting shot’

Trump vows to ‘save Vaping again!'

Friday 20 September 2024 19:31 , Oliver O'Connell

The border, the economy... vaping?

Here’s a major policy proposal from former president Donald Trump (or the concept of a plan for one):

I saved Flavored Vaping in 2019, and it greatly helped people get off smoking. I raised the age to 21, keeping it away from the “kids.” Kamala and Joe want everything banned, killing small businesses all over the Country. I’ll save Vaping again!

It’s what America’s been crying out for. Not health care or anything like that.

After falsely accusing Haitian migrants of ‘eating the pets’, Trump now says they’re ‘destroying America’

Friday 20 September 2024 19:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump is doubled down on his bizarre and aggressive rhetoric against Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, saying that they’re “destroying” the country.

The former president promised his rally crowd in Uniondale, New York on Long Island that he would visit the small city which suddenly found itself in the midst of a vicious news cycle as Trump and his running mate JD Vance pushed false claims circulated online that Haitian migrants were stealing and eating domestic pets.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Trump says Haitian migrants are ‘destroying’ US as he vows to visit Springfield

Pollster calls for more Harris interviews: ‘Voters feel they know Harris better with every clip'

Friday 20 September 2024 19:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump reshaped the North Carolina Republican Party in his image. It could cost him the state

Friday 20 September 2024 18:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Garcia explains how Donald Trump’s remaking of the Republican Party allowed for untested and inflammatory candidates to run for office – which might now lead to electoral disaster in key battleground states.

Trump reshaped the North Carolina Republican Party — it could cost him the state

Watch: Harris campaign seeks to tie Trump to Robinson

Friday 20 September 2024 18:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Jesse Watters claims he’s ‘never heard of’ Mark Robinson

Friday 20 September 2024 18:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Fox News host Jesse Watters claimed he’s never heard of Mark Robinson, despite interviewing him earlier this year.

Robinson, North Carolina’s Republican candidate for governor, is fighting for his political career after a bombshell report by CNN’s KFile said he referred to himself as a “black Nazi” and said “slavery is good,” among other shocking remarks, on a porn forum.

Rhian Lubin reports.

Fox News host claims he’s ‘never heard of’ Mark Robinson — despite interviewing him

‘The Number One song, across all charts, about me'

Friday 20 September 2024 18:00 , Oliver O'Connell

This morning, Donald Trump posted on Truth Social about John Kahn’s “The Fighter”:

This is now the Number One song, across all charts, about me. Such an unexpected honor!

After a quick investigation, it’s number one on iTunes (remember that?), not the Billboard Hot 100, Apple Music, or Spotify.

Anyway, here it is, for your listening pleasure...

Full story: Harris dings Trump’s ‘concept of a plan’

Friday 20 September 2024 17:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Vice President Kamala Harris took a jab at Donald Trump’s “concepts of a plan” debate remark and used it to promote her own economic policy.

The Democratic presidential nominee spoke to Oprah Winfrey at the “Unite for America” live-streamed rally in Michigan on Thursday evening about a wide range of topics, including her small business plan, should she be elected in November.

Kelly Rissman reports.

Harris dings Trump’s ‘concept of a plan’ evasion during campaign event with Oprah

Second gentleman continues to pushback on Huckabee Sanders’s comments

Friday 20 September 2024 17:20 , Oliver O'Connell

In an interview with ABC News broadcast on Good Morning America, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff told anchor Michael Strahan that comments made about Vice President Kamala Harris by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders we “appalling”, “repulsive”, and “so out of touch”.

The governor said earlier this week: “My kids keep me humble. ... Unfortunately, Kamala Harris doesn't have anything keeping her humble.”

Said Emhoff: “Yeah, it's appalling for somebody who is in a position of leadership, like governor, to say something so repulsive and so out of touch -- not only on the 1 -- mispronouncing her name, which is disrespectful. She knows what her name is. And then, 2 -- as if you need to have your own biological children to be humble.”

He added: “But then -- then to say as if women should be humble. And you can see the pushback — even from ... within her own party, because it's a repulsive thing to say.”

You can watch Emhoff’s response below at the 2:10 mark:

Emhoff’s ex-wife Kersten Emhoff, mother to their children Ella and Cole, Harris’s stepchildren, hit out at the governor earlier in the week to in response to her comments.

Here’s Katie Hawkinson’s report on what she had to say:

Emhoff’s ex-wife defends Harris after Huckabee ‘childless’ attack

Secret Service head to give briefing on first Trump assassination attempt

Friday 20 September 2024 17:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Coming up at 1pm ET, Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe will brief the American people on the conclusions of the Mission Assurance investigation into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

Here’s an excerpt of his remarks:

"In today's hyperdynamic threat environment, the mission of the Secret Service is clear: we cannot afford to fail.

After a review of the planning, event details, and coordination with partner agencies regarding the attempted assassination of former President Trump on July 13th, our Mission Assurance investigation is nearing completion. As I have said, this was a failure on the part of the United States Secret Service.

It's important that we hold ourselves to account for the failures of July 13th and that we use the lessons learned to make sure that we do not have another mission failure like this again.

The Mission Assurance investigation findings have prompted the Secret Service to move into the accountability phase of this process. The Office of Professional Responsibility and the Office of Integrity are reviewing the findings. This agency has among the most robust table of penalties in the federal government, and violations of policy will result in disciplinary action.

As a result of these failures, what has become clear to me is we need a shift in paradigm in how we conduct our operations. As was demonstrated on Sunday in West Palm Beach, the threat level is evolving and requires this paradigm shift."

Art of the Deal co-writer says Trump has ‘lost a great deal mentally’

Friday 20 September 2024 17:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s mental faculties are being questioned yet again, this time by his former nemesis Nancy Pelosi and the ghostwriter for his memoir and advice bookTrump: The Art of the Deal.

Speculation surrounding the Republican presidential candidate’s mental sharpness is not exactly new, but it has heightened since President Joe Biden pulled out of the 2024 race after struggling to give coherent answers during the June 27 debate, clearing the way for Vice President Kamala Harris to be nominated for the Democrat ticket.

Journalist and author Tony Schwartz told MSNBC’s Ari Melber, “This is a man who’s lost a great deal mentally,” on Thursday.

Myriam Page reports on what else Schwartz had to say.

Trump has ‘lost a great deal mentally’ says Art of the Deal co-writer

On the campaign trail today...

Friday 20 September 2024 16:41 , Oliver O'Connell

Following her much-hyped appearance with Oprah Winfrey last night in Michigan, Vice President Kamala Harris will hold rallies in Marietta, Georgia, and Madison, Wisconsin, today — both key battlegrounds in this year’s election.

In Georgia, Harris is expected to focus on “Trump abortion bans” and will address the death of Amber Nicole Thurman, whose family was at the Michigan event (watch the clip below).

She will round out the day in Madison before returning to Washington, DC, in the evening.

Former President Donald Trump meanwhile will attend a fundraiser in Miami, Florida. ON Saturday, he heads to Wilmington, North Carolina, for a rally.

As Haley says she and Trump are ‘united’, her Iowa co-chair backs Harris

Friday 20 September 2024 16:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Latest poll updates: Can Kamala Harris beat Donald Trump?

Friday 20 September 2024 16:20 , Oliver O'Connell

In less than 46 days, Vice President Kamala Harris will go head-to-head with Donald Trump as Americans cast their votes in the 2024 election.

A new poll from The New York Times/Siena College shows the two candidates in a national deadlock; though Harris has improved her lead among young people and white, college-educated voters following the debate.

Alicja Hagopian looks at the latest numbers.

Can Kamala Harris beat Donald Trump? Latest poll updates from the 2024 election

North Carolina Lt Gov to miss Wilmington Trump rally this weekend, report says

Friday 20 September 2024 16:09 , Oliver O'Connell

In the wake of the outrageous revelations concerning North Carolina Lt Gov Mark Robinson’s online activities and comments calling himself a “Black Nazi” and “perv”, NBC News reports that he will not attend former president Donald Trump’s rally in the state on Saturday.

The network cites a person familiar with planning for the event. Election forecasts showed the North Carolina gubernatorial race slipping away from the Republican Party and trending toward the Democratic Party candidate Attorney General Josh Stein, even before the scandal erupted, based on Robinson’s public comments.

The Kamala Harris campaign hopes this will help influence the presidential vote in the state too — which has not been won by Democrats since 2008 — and bring them its 16 Electoral College votes.

Here’s our coverage of what was uncovered about Robinson by CNN’s K-File yesterday:

‘Black Nazi’ and ‘perv’: Republican candidate’s stunning posts about self on forum

‘Infested countries’: Trump vows to restore Muslim ban

Friday 20 September 2024 16:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has said he won’t take refugees from “infested countries” and promised to restore the controversial “Muslim travel ban” from his first term as president.

Trump made the terrifying pledge while speaking on Thursday at a Washington event focused on combating antisemitism, in an apparent effort to sway more Jewish voters in the upcoming election on November 5.

Myriam Page has the story.

Trump vows to restore Muslim ban and not take refugees from ‘infested countries’

Friday 20 September 2024 15:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Meryl Streep sparks laughter at Oprah fundraiser by mistitling vice president

Friday 20 September 2024 15:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Meryl Streep made a little slip when she addressed Vice President Kamala Harris at a live-streamed event – hosted by Oprah Winfrey – in Michigan on Thursday night.

Addressing Harris with an array of A-list celebrities, Streep opened her monologue by stating: “Oh hello President Harris – oh – (gasped).”

“Forty-seven days,” Harris laughed in response.

Madeline Sherrat reports.

‘Hello President Harris’: Meryl Streep endorses Harris at Oprah fundraiser

Jill Stein off ballot in key swing state Nevada

Friday 20 September 2024 15:16 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump campaign attack ad claims Harris supports funding prisoner sex changes: 'Harris is for they/them, Trump is for you’

Friday 20 September 2024 15:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump says if he loses election, Jewish voters will bear ‘a lot’ of blame

Friday 20 September 2024 14:39 , James Liddell

Donald Trump said Jewish voters will be partly to blame if he loses the 2024 presidential election, as he complained about their lack of support for him.

The Republican presidential nominee was speaking at two events in Washington, DC, on Thursday night — one at a summit about tackling antisemitism and another at the Israeli-American Council — where he repeatedly claimed he is backed by 40 percent of American Jewish voters.

Rhian Lubin has the details.

Trump says Jewish voters will bear ‘a lot’ of blame if he loses election

New York magazine suspends star reporter over claims of romantic relationship with RFK Jr

Friday 20 September 2024 14:20 , James Liddell

New York magazine has revealed that it has placed its Washington Correspondent Olivia Nuzzi on leave amid claims that she had a romantic relationship with Robert F Kennedy Jr.

A spokesperson for the publication told Status that Nuzzi recently “acknowledged to the magazine’s editors that she had engaged in a personal relationship with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign while she was reporting on the campaign, a violation of the magazine’s standards around conflicts of interest and disclosures.”

“Had the magazine been aware of this relationship, she would not have continued to cover the presidential campaign,” the spokesperson told Status. “An internal review of her published work has found no inaccuracies nor evidence of bias. She is currently on leave from the magazine, and the magazine is conducting a more thorough third-party review. We regret this violation of our readers’ trust.”

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

New York magazine suspends reporter over claims of romantic relationship with RFK Jr

Watch: Trump again claims he bested Harris on debate stage: ‘Man did I beat her!’

Friday 20 September 2024 14:00 , James Liddell

JD Vance mild-mannered, quiet and self-effacing under tough exterior, friend says

Friday 20 September 2024 13:40 , James Liddell

Despite peddling outlandish conspiracy theories and branding female Democrats as “childless cat ladies,” JD Vance is “mild” and “self-effacing,” according to close friend James Orr.

The British Cambridge professor met the Republican vice presidential candidate five years ago and “hit it off immediately,” he said. Now, Orr has publicly passed judgement on his companion in a told Politico podcast on Thursday.

“I’m struck watching him in the media, in speeches: He’s remarkably articulate, but he takes no prisoners,” he said.

“He’s extremely consistent, but he’s got that sharp edge — which is frankly needed these days in in presidential politics and when stakes are as high as they are.”

Orr continued: “But there’s definitely a gap between that and how he is in private, where he’s very mild, very self-effacing, not somebody who makes much of himself at all, very reflective, very quiet — an intellectual.”

Watch: Melania Trump reveals her role in White House renovation in latest memoir ad

Friday 20 September 2024 13:20 , James Liddell

Watch: Trump declares that he won’t take migrants from ‘infested countries'

Friday 20 September 2024 13:00 , James Liddell

Kamala Harris tells Oprah Winfrey that if someone breaks into her house ‘they’re getting shot’

Friday 20 September 2024 12:40 , James Liddell

Kamala Harris yet again brought up her Second Amendment credentials during a live event with Oprah Winfrey on Thursday night in Farmington Hills, Michigan.

During a discussion about gun violence, Winfrey brought up the fact that Harris revealed herself to be a gun owner during the debate against former President Donald Trump on September 10.

“I did not know that,” Winfrey said to laughter from the in-studio audience at the event entitled “Unite for America.”

“If somebody breaks into my house they’re getting shot,” Harris said, laughing, and added: “I probably should not have said that... my staff will deal with that later.”

Read more below.

Harris tells Oprah that if someone breaks into her house ‘they’re getting shot’

‘Is she on death’s door before you actually decide to give her help?’: Harris and Oprah discuss abortion bans

Friday 20 September 2024 12:20 , James Liddell

Pelosi casts doubts over Trump’s sanity: ‘His thinking is not straight’

Friday 20 September 2024 12:00 , James Liddell

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Donald Trump doesn’t have the “sanity” required to be president.

“It takes vision, knowledge, judgment, strategic thinking, a heart full of love for the American people, and sanity to be president of the United States,” Pelosi told The Atlantic on Thursday.

“To be sane is probably an important characteristic to have if you’re going to have control over our nuclear weapons. Don’t you think?”

“I don’t think he’s on the level,” she emphasized. “His thinking is not straight. Not on the level.”

Ramaswamy sidesteps pet-eating migrant claims during Springfield town hall

Friday 20 September 2024 11:40 , James Liddell

Upon visiting Springfield, Ohio, Vivek Ramaswamy sidestepped questioning about a baseless conspiracy theory that Donald Trump continues to push: that Haitian immigrants are abducting and eating the city’s pets and waterfowl.

The former Republican presidential candidate hosted a town hall in the city just 10 days after Trump peddled the bizarre rumor at his presidential debate against Vice President Kamala Harris last Tuesday.

“I’m not here to talk about the issues that the media has really loved to obsess over — okay? — cats and dogs,” he said, ducking and waving to avoid directly answering questions about the conspiracy. “We’re not talking about that time. We’re talking about human beings,”

He continued: “I think the reality is, whether residents of this community are lying or not, that’s, I think, for other people to adjudicate.

“But I do think that residents of this community have been raising their hand pleading for help and have not gotten attention at the federal level. And yet that’s sad, because this is an embodiment of, I think, failed federal policies.”

Trump claims that Jewish voters would have ‘a lot to do with’ election loss

Friday 20 September 2024 11:04 , James Liddell

Donald Trump declared that Jewish American voters will bear “a lot” of blame if he isn’t re-elected to the White House.

The former president made the announcement in front of an audience of Jewish donors at the Israeli-American Council National Summit in Washington on Thursday.

He also claimed that Israel would cease to exist within to years of Vice President Kamala Harris defeats him come November 5 and declared that he should have 100 per cent of the Jewish American vote after gushing about his “love” for the Jewish people.

“If I don’t win this election – and the Jewish people would really have a lot to do with that if that happens because if 40 per cent, I mean, 60 per cent of the people are voting for the enemy – Israel, in my opinion, will cease to exist within two years,” he said.

Trump also told Jewish donors that the Democratic party has a “curse on you”.

Watch: White Dudes for Harris releases scathing new ad in $10m swing state campaign

Friday 20 September 2024 10:45 , James Liddell

Watch: Trump says he’ll be ‘best friend’ to Jewish Americans

Friday 20 September 2024 10:20 , James Liddell

Former US President Donald Trump made the promise while speaking at the Fighting Anti-Semitism in America event in Washington on Thursday.

Lucy Leeson has brought you the video below.

Trump says he’ll be the ‘best friend’ Jewish Americans have ever had

US no longer expects Israel-Hamas ceasefire before Biden leaves office

Friday 20 September 2024 09:55 , James Liddell

After nearly a year of conflict, senior US officials reportedly have lost hope that Israel and Hamas will reach a ceasefire deal before Joe Biden leaves office.

“No deal is imminent,” an unnamed official told The Wall Street Journal. “I’m not sure it ever gets done.”

“There’s no chance now of it happening,” another official, from an Arab country, added in the same report. “Everyone is in a wait-and-see mode until after the election. The outcome will determine what can happen in the next administration.”

Read more:

US no longer expects Israel-Hamas ceasefire before Biden leaves office

‘Pure’ Donald Trump endorsed for president by Lady Gaga’s father

Friday 20 September 2024 09:35 , James Liddell

Joe Germanotta, the father of Lady Gaga, endorsed Donald Trump for president during an appearance on Fox News on Thursday morning.

The Upper West Side restaurateur, who owns Joanne Trattoria, said Trump and Kamala Harris “are two vastly different people, one of them is pure, and he’s a patriot.”

“And the other ... is just going to say whatever she needs to say to get elected,” he added. “That’s basically what I hear.”

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

Lady Gaga’s father endorses ‘pure’ Donald Trump for president

After Trump’s false claims about migrants, Springfield mayor seizes ‘emergency powers’ to help deal with threats

Friday 20 September 2024 09:15 , James Liddell

The mayor of Springfield, Ohio, issued a proclamation Thursday giving himself temporary “emergency powers” as the city faces multiple threats of violence following false claims about Haitian immigrants in the community.

“We are addressing these threats with the seriousness they warrant and are taking immediate steps to ensure the security of both our community and our employees,” Mayor Rob Rue said in a statement. “Our commitment to preventing harm is unwavering.”

Ariana Baio has the details.

Springfield mayor seizes ‘emergency powers’ to help deal with threats

Walz meets with families of US hostages held by Hamas

Friday 20 September 2024 08:55 , James Liddell

Mark Robinson vows to stay in North Carolina governor’s race after damning CNN report

Friday 20 September 2024 08:36 , James Liddell

North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson declared that he’s staying in the gubernatorial race following CNN’s bombshell report that he had an account on a adult website site called “Nude Africa” ten years ago.

On the site, the MAGA ally allegedly referred to himself as a “Black Nazi,” said “some people need to be slaves” and allegedly admitted “I like watching tranny on girl porn!”

Robinson declared that Democratic nominee Josh Stein’s campaign leaked the story to the outlet, shortly before the article’s publication. He said that the details in the report are false.

“Let me assure you, the things you will see in that story, those are not the words of Mark Robinson,” Robinson said. “You know my words. You know my character, and you know that I have been completely transparent in this race and before.”

He continued: “We are staying in this race. We are in it to win it,” he said.

Watch the video below:

Trump hits out at former ally Howard Stern for ‘going woke’

Friday 20 September 2024 08:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has gone after Howard Stern for turning on the former president in recent years, something Trump has blamed on the radio show host becoming “woke.”

Trump appeared on the Fox News late-night show Gutfeld! on Wednesday evening where he was shown a clip of the radio host and several other celebrities lambasting the former president.

“I don’t hate the guy,” Stern said of Trump. “I hate the people who vote for him. I think they’re stupid. I do. I’ll be honest with you, I have no respect for you.”

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

‘He’s changed’: Trump hits out at former ally Howard Stern for ‘going woke’