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  • Trump, Harris out with new ads as both look to shape race

    Trump, Harris out with new ads as both look to shape race

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    Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump on Tuesday both released fresh TV advertisements as the competing campaigns look to find their footing in a dramatically changed — and bound to be contentious — presidential election in just 98 days. 

    The new ads from both sides focus on the vice president and come after President Joe Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid and endorse Harris, setting off a race to shape the narrative around the new candidate likely to be the Democratic presidential nominee. 

    What You Need To Know

    • Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump both released fresh TV advertisements on Tuesday
    • Harris’ ad accuses Trump of wanting to take the country backward, while the Republican hits the VP on immigration and the border
    • The Harris campaign ad is the first in a new $50 million battleground state paid media blitz ahead of the Democratic National Convention, set to kick off on Aug. 19
    • Trump’s team has spent $12 million to air ads through the beginning of August, according to AdImpact
    • Later Tuesday, Harris unveiled a new video ad taking Trump to task on immigration, accusing him of killing the bipartisan border bill crafted by the Senate 


    The ad from the Harris campaign, called “Fearless,” highlights the vice president’s history as a courtroom prosecutor and attorney general of California, noting she “put murderers and abusers behind bars” and took on big banks. 

    “Because Kamala Harris has always known who she represents,” the ad continues, before going on to accuse Trump of wanting to “take our country backward,” building on a theme Harris has sought to establish during her first week on the trail when she has often said the election is about a vision for the future versus the past. 

    “But we are not going back,” the ad concludes in Harris’ voice. 

    “Throughout her career as a courtroom prosecutor, Attorney General, United States Senator, and now as Vice President, Kamala Harris has always stood up to bullies, criminals and special interests on behalf of the American people – and she’s beaten them,” Harris’ campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement. “She’s uniquely suited to take on Donald Trump, a convicted felon who has spent his entire life ripping off working people, tearing away our rights, and fighting for himself.”

    The one-minute spot will run during the Olympics Games and other programming such as The Bachelorette, The Daily Show and Love & Hip Hop, according to Harris’ team. It’s the first ad in the Harris campaign’s new $50 million battleground state paid media blitz ahead of the Democratic National Convention, set to kick off on Aug. 19. 

    Trump’s team on Tuesday, on the other hand, released its first major TV ad targeting Harris just over a week since she became Democrats’ likely nominee. 

    The 30-second spot seeks to hit the vice president on immigration and the southern border, starting with a video of her dancing and referring to her as “America’s border czar,” a phrase Republicans have latched onto to criticize Harris and one Democrats have sought to aggressively push back against. Biden tasked Harris, his vice president, with leading the charge to tackle the root causes of migration. 

    The ad goes on to say that under the vice president, “over 10 million [are] illegally here” and “a quarter of a million Americans [are] dead from fentanyl.” 

    The spot then highlights an interview Harris did with NBC News’ Lester Holt three years ago in which the anchor pressed the vice president on criticism for not visiting the border. 

    “Kamala Harris. Failed. Weak. Dangerously liberal,” the ad concludes with the words appearing on the screen. 

    The ad is part of a $12 million reservation the Trump team has made through Aug. 12 across the six biggest swing states, according to AdImpact, a firm that tracks data on advertisements. 

    Both ads out on Tuesday build on storylies the campaigns have already sought to establish in just the first week since it appeared likely that it would be Trump and Harris facing off in November. 

    The vice president has pointed to her background as a prosecutor and contrasted it with Trump’s legal troubles, including the guilty verdict in his New York hush money trial in May. Trump has often pointed to the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the border as polls show the issue has surged in importance to voters. 

    Arrests for illegal border crossings hit all-time highs during Biden and Harris’ time in office. Encounters have significantly dropped in recent weeks after Biden took executive action to put restrictions on asylum. 

    Not to be outdone on the issue of immigration, later Tuesday, Harris unveiled a new video ad attacking Trump on the issue, accusing him of killing the bipartisan border bill crafted by the Senate earlier this year. The measure was crafted by Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford, a Republican, Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent, and Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat, but it was killed by Republicans after House Speaker Mike Johnson declared it “dead on arrival,” pressured by Trump who did not want to give Biden a win on the issue.

    The video highights Harris’ support for increasing the number of border patrol agents, investing in new technology to detect fentanyl and providing funding to stop human traffickers — all provisions of the bill — while painting Trump as the person who convinced Republicans to block the bill.

    It also highlights Trump’s felony conviction and criminal charges, with the narrator saying: “Kamala Harris prosecuted transnational gang members and got them sent to prison. Trump is trying to avoid being sentenced to prison.”

    “There’s two choices in this election: The one who will fix our broken immigration system, and the one who’s trying to stop her,” the narrator continues.

    “After killing the toughest border deal in decades, Donald Trump is running on his trademark lies because his own record and ‘plans’ are extreme and unpopular,” Harris campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa said in a statement. “As a former district attorney, attorney general, and now vice president, Kamala Harris has spent her career taking on and prosecuting violent criminals and making our communities safer. She’ll do the same as president.”

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    Maddie Gannon

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  • Doug Emhoff could become the country’s first first gentleman

    Doug Emhoff could become the country’s first first gentleman

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    When President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and propelled Vice President Kamala Harris into a political vortex, her husband was far from the first to find out.

    Doug Emhoff, in fact, was closer to the last.

    What You Need To Know

    • The nation’s first second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, would become its first first gentlemen if Kamala Harris wins the presidential election in November
    • He’s used to traveling the country championing his wife and the Biden administration’s accomplishments
    • And now that the vice president is the likely Democratic nominee, those efforts have gone into overdrive
    • Emhoff has visited 37 states and 14 countries as second gentlemen. He’s been to four states since Biden left the race and has three more teed up in the coming days



    At home in California, Emhoff had attended a Sunday morning SoulCycle class in West Hollywood and left his cellphone in the car while going for coffee and a chat with friends in a park.

    When Biden’s statement posted, Emhoff ultimately saw it on a borrowed phone, but he wasn’t sure it was authentic at first and skipped to the end — initially missing the key part. When he finally retrieved his phone, it was “self-immolating with the amount of messages and calls,” Emhoff said in an interview with The Associated Press.

    And after he reached Harris, “First, it was kinda like, ‘Where the … were you?’’ Emhoff laughed, before recalling that he told his wife, ”’I love you, I’m proud of you, I’m here for you, I kinda know what to do.”

    ‘We haven’t had time for the history’

    Emhoff has demonstrated a flair for defining the role of the nation’s first second gentleman over the past three-plus years. He would become the country’s first first gentlemen if his wife, the likely Democratic nominee, wins in November.

    In White House shorthand, Emhoff would elevate from SGOTUS — second gentleman of the United States — to FGOTUS.

    He’s already used to traveling the country championing his wife and the Biden administration’s accomplishments. With her now pursuing the nomination, those efforts have quickly gone into overdrive.

    “It happened so suddenly, the change,” Emhoff said, “we haven’t had time to really reflect on the history.”

    Emhoff, 59, has visited 37 states and 14 countries as second gentlemen. He’s already been to four states just since Biden bowed out, and he’ll be in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine from Monday to Wednesday.

    “I’ve picked up a lot more events,” Emhoff said, “and events are getting bigger.”

    He’s leading a delegation to the Paris Olympics closing ceremonies and will headline a fundraiser there, taking first lady Jill Biden’s place. The second gentleman is also filling in for Jill Biden, who is scaling back travel with her husband out of the race, at the upcoming fundraiser on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts featuring former late-night host David Letterman.

    Spreading Harris’ campaign message

    The vice president has built her early campaign around the theme of freedom, and Emhoff was one of the nascent campaign’s first surrogates to trumpet that message last week when he visited an abortion clinic in the Washington suburbs — an event planned before Biden’s announcement.

    There, Emhoff decried an environment “where freedoms are taken away. Where autonomy is taken away. Where they’re telling you that you can’t read this book. They’re telling you that you can’t learn these facts. They’re telling you that you can’t vote.”

    In the interview, Emhoff said of his wife, “I have my own way of communicating things and my own way of trying to authentically talk about her and her positions.”

    He’s also no stranger to Harris running for president, having campaigned for her when she ran unsuccessfully in 2020.

    “He’s like a Swiss Army knife of whatever is necessary,” said Deidre DeJear, who was Iowa chair for Harris’ last campaign. “If he needed to hold something for her, he would hold something. He’ll motivate the team, too. He’ll come and put some fire under you, and use his dad voice if he has to.”

    DeJear recalled how Harris and Emhoff moved to her state for months in late 2019, and even had Thanksgiving dinner in Des Moines. When Harris was describing how she would make collards and joked that “bacon is a spice,” Emhoff retorted that she had come up with an apt way to expand the campaign’s “for the people” mantra.

    “That could be our new campaign slogan: ‘For the people. Bacon is a spice,’” he said then.

    Today, though, Emhoff said he doesn’t see many parallels between that first presidential primary bid and taking on Republican Donald Trump in November.

    “She’s been vice president for almost four years, she’s been in the Oval Office, the Situation Room, she’s been on the world stage,” the second gentlemen said of Harris. “This is a Kamala Harris who is ready to lead us.”

    ‘Going to live openly as a Jew’

    Emhoff is the first Jewish person to serve as the spouse of a nationally elected U.S. leader. He affixed mezuzahs on the doorposts of the vice president’s residence, helped compile the first national strategy to combat antisemitism and has led White House Passover celebrations.

    The second gentleman also attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the memorial at the Tree of Life campus in Pittsburgh, where 11 worshipers were killed by a gunman driven by hatred of Jews.

    “I’m also going to live openly and proudly as a Jew and that will never change,” Emhoff said. “I’m going to fight antisemitism and that’s never going to change.”

    Trump, while addressing a Turning Point USA gathering in Florida on Friday night, claimed that Harris “doesn’t like Jewish people.”

    Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza has divided many in the United States who might otherwise be more enthusiastic about voting Democratic this fall and led to pro-Palestinian demonstrations over Biden’s strong backing of Israel.

    Harris is aligned with Biden’s policies but is trying to bridge the divide within the party by emphasizing Israel’s right to defend itself while also focusing on alleviating Palestinian suffering.

    The second gentlemen’s adult daughter, Ella, drew criticism from some corners when she briefly posted on a personal social media account a fundraising link to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees. Israel has moved to ban the group, suggesting it supports terrorists, a charge that European leaders says is baseless.

    Emhoff was born in Brooklyn, raised in New Jersey, graduated from California State University, Northridge, and attended law school at the University of Southern California. He gave up a lucrative position as an entertainment and intellectual property lawyer to avoid conflicts of interest once Harris became vice president, but served as a visiting law professor at Georgetown University after moving to Washington.

    Emhoff and Harris met on a blind date in 2013 and married the following year. It was her first marriage and his second. Harris’ stepchildren — Ella and her brother Cole Emhoff — are named for Ella Fitzgerald and John Coltrane. They were teenagers when their father remarried.

    Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance once criticized Harris and other Democratic leaders as a “bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable,” a quote that has resurfaced in the heat of the 2024 campaign. At an appearance for his wife in Wisconsin on Saturday, Emhoff did not mention Vance by name, but noted that Harris officiated at Cole’s wedding and flew cross-country through the night to make it to Ella’s graduation.

    “From Day 1, she’s been present, nurturing and fiercely protective of them,” Emhoff said.

    After he finally spoke with his wife on the Sunday when Biden bowed out of the race, Emhoff flew to Wilmington, Delaware, early the next morning and met her at what had been Biden campaign headquarters, helping to rally the staff of what was suddenly the Harris campaign.

    “I got to see her for a minute or two and gave her a big hug,” Emhoff said. “And they said, ‘Well, sir, you need to jump out on that stage.’”

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    Justin Tasolides

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  • Harris launching weekend campaign blitz to mark 100 days until election

    Harris launching weekend campaign blitz to mark 100 days until election

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    Believe it or not, the 2024 presidential election — which kicked off in November 2022 when former President Donald Trump announced his third White House bid — is almost 100 days away.

    To mark the centennial milestone this weekend, the campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris — the newest person to enter the presidential race — is launching a blitz of campaign events across the country, kicking off with an event in the crucial battleground state of Pennsylvania featuring Gov. Josh Shapiro.

    What You Need To Know

    • Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is launching a blitz of events this weekend to mark the milestone of 100 days until the election

    • The blitz is kicking off with an event in the crucial battleground state of Pennsylvania featuring Gov. Josh Shapiro, a potential running mate pick for Harris

    • Harris herself is set to attend a fundraiser in Massachusetts headlined by musicians Yo-Yo Ma and James Taylor and deliver a virtual address at the Voters of Tomorrow Summit Saturday in Atlanta; she’s also set to make a pre-taped appearance on the finale of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” on Friday
    • All told, the campaign says it will hold 2,300 events across the country with more than 170,000 volunteers



    Shapiro, a potential running mate pick for Harris, is widely viewed as a rising star in the Democratic Party who could help the vice president carry a must-win state for both candidates.

    Trump won Pennsylvania, along with two other reliably Democratic “blue wall” states, Michigan and Wisconsin, as part of his successful White House campaign in 2016, but Joe Biden flipped all three states back in 2020. The three states are all rated in the “toss up” category by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

    Pennsylvania is also the site of a key U.S. Senate race in November which could determine control of the chamber next year. Sen. Bob Casey, a Democrat, is seeking a fourth term against Dave McCormick, a businessman and former member of George W. Bush’s administration who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination in 2022 to television personality Mehmet Oz.

    Shapiro will rally with Harris campaign volunteers in Carlisle, Pa., outside of Harrisburg, the state capital. The Harris campaign touted that more than 8,000 Pennsylvanians have signed up to volunteer, which they say signals newfound enthusiasm. The campaign has seen tens of thousands of volunteers across the country sign up in the days since Harris launched her White House bid, in addition to racking up endorsements and record financial donations.

    In addition to Shapiro, Harris advocates across the country, including the vice president herself, will take part in events to mobilize voters and rally volunteers.

    Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, will be in the battleground state of Wisconsin, giving remarks in Wausau before holding a canvassing event for downballot Democrats in Stevens Point.

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Rep. Betty McCollum and other local leaders will be holding a canvassing event in the state ahead of Trump’s planned rally, which is set to take place Saturday evening in St. Cloud.

    Former Rep. Gabby Giffords, a gun safety advocate and the wife of potential Harris running mate Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, will stump for the vice president in Michigan, in addition to several other events across the state this weekend.

    Other Democratic power players, like Sen. Jacky Rosen, Maggie Hassan and Gary Peters and Reps. Maxwell Frost, Pramila Jayapal and Debbie Dingell, are also set to host events in several battleground states, including North Carolina, Florida, Nevada and Arizona.

    All told, the campaign says it will hold 2,300 events across the country with more than 170,000 volunteers.

    “One hundred days before Election Day, Team Harris is leveraging the historic grassroots enthusiasm we’ve seen for our campaign and putting it to work,” Harris battleground states director Dan Kanninen said in a statement. “For over a year, our team has been building the battleground infrastructure needed to reach and persuade the voters who will decide this election — and now, we’re kicking it into overdrive.”

    Harris herself is set to attend a fundraiser in Massachusetts headlined by musicians Yo-Yo Ma and James Taylor and deliver a virtual address at the Voters of Tomorrow Summit on Saturday, which is taking place in Atlanta.

    On Friday, Harris is set to make a pre-taped appearance on the season finale of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars,” where she encourages viewers to make sure they’re registered to vote.

    “Each day we are seeing our rights and freedoms under attack, including the right of everyone to be who they are, love who they love, openly and with pride,” Harris says in the appearance, joined by comedian Leslie Jones, judge Michelle Visage, choreographer Jamal Sims, actor Cheyenne Jackson and former NSYNC member Lance Bass.

    “So as we fight back against these attacks, let’s all remember no one is alone,” Harris says. We are all in this together, and your vote is your power. So please make sure your voice is heard this November, and register to vote.”

    “And remember: You better vote!” Jones adds, a nod to RuPaul’s iconic “You Better Work” slogan.

    She heads into the weekend buoyed by a number of prominent endorsements, including the backing of former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, as well as the support of a coalition of youth voter groups.

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    Justin Tasolides

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  • Elon Musk denies reports of him contributing $45M monthly to Trump campaign

    Elon Musk denies reports of him contributing $45M monthly to Trump campaign

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    One week after the Wall Street Journal reported that Elon Musk planned to contribute about $45 million a month to a new political action committee supporting former President Donald Trump, the billionaire owner of X, SpaceX and Tesla denied the claim.

    What You Need To Know

    • Elon Musk said Tuesday that he is not contributing $45 million monthly to former President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign

    • On July 16, the Wall Street Journal reported that the world’s richest man planned to contribute the sum through a super PAC he helped create

    • Musk told ABC News reporter Arthur Jones that the report “was a fiction made up by the Wall Street Journal”

    • He confirmed he helped create a Super PAC called the America PAC focused on meritocracy and individual freedom, to which he is contributing “at a much lower level”


    “At no point did I say that I was donating $45 million a month to Trump,” he told ABC News on Wednesday. “That was a fiction made up by the Wall Street Journal.”

    The Wall Street Journal has neither retracted nor clarified its report.

    On Tuesday, Musk told media commentator Jordan Peterson the claim was “simply not true.”

    He confirmed he created a so-called Super PAC called the America PAC and posted on X Tuesday that he is making contributions “at a much lower level.”

    The key values of America PAC “are supporting a meritocracy and individual freedom,” he wrote. “Republicans are mostly, but not entirely, on the side of merit and freedom.”

    America PAC is reportedly backed by venture capitalist and Palantir Technologies co-founder Joe Lonsdale, who formerly backed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the GOP nomination, and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, cryptocurrency entrepreneurs who sued Mark Zuckerberg over claims he stole their idea to create social media giant Facebook.

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    Susan Carpenter

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  • Poll: Majority of Democrats think Kamala Harris would make a good president

    Poll: Majority of Democrats think Kamala Harris would make a good president

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    As President Joe Biden faces a growing drumbeat of pressure to drop his reelection bid, a majority of Democrats think his vice president would make a good president herself.

    What You Need To Know

    • As President Joe Biden faces a growing drumbeat of pressure to drop his reelection bid, most Democrats think his vice president would make a good president herself

    • The new poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about 6 in 10 Democrats believe Kamala Harris would do a good job in the top slot

    • About 2 in 10 Democrats don’t believe she would, and another 2 in 10 say they don’t know enough to say

    • Since Biden’s massive debate debacle on June 27, many Democrats have privately and even openly looked to Harris to step in and succeed Biden as the party’s presidential nominee

    A new poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about 6 in 10 Democrats believe Kamala Harris would do a good job in the top slot. About 2 in 10 Democrats don’t believe she would, and another 2 in 10 say they don’t know enough to say.

    Since Biden’s debate debacle on June 27, many Democrats have privately and even openly looked to Harris to step in and succeed Biden as the party’s presidential nominee, believing she has a better chance against GOP nominee Donald Trump. For her part, Harris has remained completely loyal to Biden, being one of his toughest defenders in the aftermath of the disastrous debate performance.

    Oakley Graham, a Democrat in Greenwood, Missouri, said while he is “pretty happy” with Biden’s accomplishments in office, he felt that he would be more excited to support Harris at the top of the ticket and that it was “about time” a woman becomes president.

    “I know he’s got unfinished business,” Graham, 30, said of Biden. “But it would be nice to see a person of color, a woman, somebody younger to step up and to lead that charge. I would hope that that would inspire a younger generation to be more engaged.”

    Black adults –- a key contingent of the Democrats’ coalition and a group that remains relatively more favorable to Biden than others — are more likely than Americans overall to say that Harris would do well.

    As for Americans more broadly, they are more skeptical of how Harris would perform in the Oval Office. Only about 3 in 10 U.S. adults overall say Harris would do well as president. About half say Harris would not do a good job in the role, and 2 in 10 say they don’t know enough to say.

    Harris’ favorability rating is similar to Biden’s, but the share of Americans who have an unfavorable opinion of her is somewhat lower. The poll showed that about 4 in 10 U.S. adults have a favorable opinion of Harris, while about half have an unfavorable opinion. There are more Americans with a negative view of Biden: approximately 6 in 10. About 1 in 10 Americans say they don’t know enough to have an opinion of Harris, whereas nearly everyone has an opinion on Biden.

    About three-quarters of Democrats have a positive view of Harris, which is in line with how Democrats view Biden. Seven in 10 have a favorable view of him.

    Shannon Bailey, a Democrat who lives in Tampa, praised Biden’s accomplishments as president –- particularly with his infrastructure law and efforts to tame inflation — and said he’ll be “remembered fondly.” But she had a more favorable view of Harris than she does the incumbent president because, in Bailey’s view, the vice president appears more “capable of handling the taxing nature of the job.”

    “It’s not just the physical stamina part, but also the cognitive reasoning part right now,” said Bailey, 34. “It’s important to be able to concisely and persuasively get the message across that is the Democratic platform right now.”

    Bailey said the Democratic Party needs Harris and a running mate “who can really motivate people to go out to the polls” — a task that she’s skeptical Biden can do as effectively.

    Harris’s position as the administration’s lead messenger on abortion also has endeared her to many Democrats.

    “I think she would be a very strong advocate for abortion, has been and would continue to be,” said Thomas Mattman, a Democrat from Chico, California. “The Republicans have gone with white men as their ticket, and both of them have said some pretty specific things about being opposed to abortion so I think that would be a very strong argument.”

    Mattman, 59, said he believes Biden will not be able to defeat Republican nominee Donald Trump — a prospect that leaves Mattman “very distraught.” Harris would be a much more effective candidate because Biden is unable to “put pressure” on his opponent and exploit his weaknesses, Mattman said.

    Harris is more popular among Black Americans than she is among white or Hispanic adults. She is more disliked by men than she is by women.

    Other prominent Democrats who have been floated as potential replacements are less known than Harris is. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults don’t have an opinion of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and half are unfamiliar with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Newsom is seen, overall, slightly more negatively than positively. Americans are divided about evenly on Whitmer: 24% have a favorable view and 22% have an unfavorable view.

    More Democrats see Harris rather than Newsom or Whitmer as someone who would make a good president, though that’s partly because they’re relative unknowns. About one-third of Democrats say Newsom would make a good president, and half don’t know enough to say. About one-quarter of Democrats say Whitmer would do well, and about two-thirds don’t know enough to say.

    Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, is unknown to most Americans. In the AP-NORC poll, which was conducted before Trump made Vance his vice presidential choice, 6 in 10 Americans don’t know enough about him to form an opinion. About 2 in 10 U.S. adults have a favorable view of Vance, and about 2 in 10 view him negatively. Among Republicans, 61% don’t know enough to have an opinion of Vance. About one-quarter have a positive view of him, and roughly 1 in 10 have a negative view.

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    Associated Press

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  • Conflicting conspiracy theories emerge from Trump rally shooting

    Conflicting conspiracy theories emerge from Trump rally shooting

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    A former president is wounded in a shooting, the gunman quickly neutralized, and all of it is caught on camera. But for those who don’t believe their eyes, that’s just the start of the story.

    What You Need To Know

    • Two very different conspiracy theories are spreading in the days following former President Donald Trump’s attempted assassination at a Pennsylvania rally

    • For some Trump supporters, the failure of the Secret Service to stop the shooter before he fired at the Republican ex-president suggests a conspiracy orchestrated by Democratic President Joe Biden

    • But for some Trump critics the same video footage is being used to suggest Trump staged the shooting

    • There’s no evidence to support either claim

    For some supporters of Donald Trump, the failure of the Secret Service to prevent the attempted assassination of the Republican former president points to a conspiracy orchestrated by Democratic President Joe Biden. For some of Trump’s critics, however, the details of the shooting don’t add up. They wonder if Trump staged the whole thing.

    Two dueling conspiracy theories are taking root online following Trump’s attempted assassination, one for each end of America’s polarized political spectrum. In this split-screen republic, Americans are increasingly choosing their own reality, at the expense of a shared understanding of the facts.

    “One screen, two movies,” is how Ron Bassilian describes the online reaction to Saturday’s shooting at a Pennsylvania rally. Bassilian is a prolific user of social media and has used X to broadcast his conjecture about the shooting. “People have their beliefs, and they’re going to come up with theories that fit their beliefs.”

    Bassilian is one of many Republicans now questioning how the shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was able to climb to the roof of a building providing a clear shot at Trump and whether law enforcement looked the other way to allow the attempt. Bassilian acknowledged that he doesn’t have proof to back up his conjecture. But the Culver City, California, resident said many people will be distrustful of explanations until an independent review of the facts is completed.

    “It seems highly suspicious,” Bassilian said of the attack on Trump and the law enforcement response. “Something was going on that was more than a slip-up.”

    Authorities have released no information about Crooks’ possible motive, though they have said they believe he acted alone. But a lack of details from law enforcement and mounting questions about the Secret Service’s performance have led online sleuths to speculate — often in ways that reveal their own ideological leanings.

    Some of the claims about the shooting have already been debunked. Despite claims that the Secret Service refused to give Trump extra security before the rally, the agency says it actually increased staffing. A post from someone claiming to be a law enforcement sniper at the rally — who said they were ordered not to fire on the shooter — was discredited after it turned out no sharpshooter by his name was working on Saturday. And a photo that supposedly showed an uninjured Trump after the rally turned out to be a picture from 2022.

    Humans have an inherent drive to share information and conjecture following big events like disasters, political assassinations or seemingly inexplicable events — a process experts call “collective sensemaking.” Often, experts say, we look for information that makes us feel safe or in control of uncertainty. Trump’s attempted assassination is only the most recent example on a list that also includes the JFK assassination, the moon landing, the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the Sandy Hook school shooting, COVID-19 and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

    Many of the claims about the Trump assassination attempt emerged first on fringe social media platforms like 4chan before migrating to larger sites like X or TikTok, where they were seen by far more people.

    “Rumoring under these conditions is a normal thing that humans do,” said Kate Starbird, a University of Washington professor who studies misinformation and how people use the internet following crises. Attempts to put the shooting in a political context began within minutes of the shooting, Starbird said: “People tried almost from the beginning to frame the event in a way that benefits their political goals.”

    Many of those rumors may contain exaggerations, missing context or outright falsehoods that generate conspiracy theories. The misleading information is then amplified by online trolls, politicians, internet influencers and online merchants trying to hawk merchandise tied to the assassination attempt. With few guardrails in place to combat bad information online, such claims can quickly spread, impacting the election in 2024 and potentially persisting for years to come.

    The flood of false or misleading information about the shooting will only make it harder for voters to find trustworthy information ahead of the 2024 election, according to Imran Ahmed, the CEO and founder of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a nonprofit that tracks online misinformation and hate speech. Ahmed blames social media platforms for not enforcing basic content moderation policies and for making the spread of misinformation and hate speech into a lucrative business model.

    Social media platforms have recently pulled back from content moderation efforts designed to prevent the spread of misinformation. While some sites like Facebook and Instagram still prohibit information that could interfere with the operations of an election, others like X rely on other users to correct falsehoods.

    Ahmed’s group analyzed 100 posts about the shooting that were recommended to users on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, and found that many contained conspiracy theories. Only about 1 in 20 false posts had been flagged for inaccuracies or missing context using X’s “community note” feature to add needed information. In two days, the posts had been seen more than 215 million times. Some of the viral posts also contained hate speech, such as those suggesting Saturday’s shooting was a plot by Jewish people.

    “The algorithms take the most outlandish content and amplify it exponentially until the entire digital world is flooded with conspiracism, disinformation and hate,” Ahmed said. As a result, he said, “People seem to feel that they can only fight lies with more lies.”

    Russian state media and some pro-Kremlin influencers are already seizing on the shooting with content blaming Democrats for what happened or questioning authorities’ explanations, based on recent posts from users with ties to Russia.

    “Almost makes you think they let it happen and then got rid of the guy because dead men tell no tales,” wrote John Mark Dougan, a former Florida sheriff’s deputy turned online influencer who now writes pro-Kremlin content.

    Russia, as well as China and Iran, have used social media disinformation in the past in efforts to undermine Americans’ trust in government and democracy and increase polarization ahead of elections. The goal is to exploit the understandable confusion, anger and concern that many Americans feel following the attempted assassination. Federal officials say they expect Russia and other adversaries to expand their disinformation campaigns targeting the U.S. as November nears.

    Conspiracy theories have played an outsize role in recent American politics, and much of the attention has focused on right-leaning theories like QAnon, a movement that claims without evidence that Democrats are involved in a global ring of Satanic, child molesting cannibals. But the onslaught of misinformation and conspiracy theories following the attempted assassination show conspiracy theories know no party.

    “They target the left and right, and the same goes for homegrown domestic sources of misinformation,” said David Salvo, a senior fellow and managing director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy, a Washington-based group that tracks foreign disinformation. He has this advice for anyone interested in finding reliable, trustworthy information about the shooting: “Check your sources, and check the agenda behind those sources.”

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  • Takeaways from Day 1 of the Republican National Convention

    Takeaways from Day 1 of the Republican National Convention

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    The first day of the Republican National Convention was, perhaps, one of the most dizzying days in recent memory — coming on the heels of an already tumultuous weekend after the attack on former President Donald Trump’s Pennsylvania rally.

    One shockwave came before the convention even formally started, when U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the classified documents case against Trump, calling the appointment of Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith — who also brought the federal election subversion case against Trump — unlawful. Despite the Justice Department vowing to appeal the decision, which could result in it being overturned, the judge’s order is a massive victory for Trump.

    Hours later, Trump named Ohio Sen. JD Vance — a fierce critic-turned-convert and staunch ally — as his running mate, ending months of speculation as to which Republican loyalist would join his ticket as he looks to win back the White House from President Joe Biden.

    And both Trump and Vance were formally nominated as the Republican candidates for president and vice president, setting up a showdown with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris with 113 days to go until Election Day.

    Trump made an appearance toward the end of the night, with rally attendees seeing him for the first time with a bandage on his right ear after it was grazed by a would-be-assassin’s bullet.

    Serenaded by Lee Greenwood singing his seminal patriotic hit “God Bless the U.S.A.,” Trump stood with Vance, House Speaker Mike Johnson and other top Republican officials, as well as family members like Donald Trump Jr. and his fiancée Kimberly Guilfoyle and allies like former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

    The crowd showered him with cheers of “USA! USA!” and “fight, fight, fight,” echoing comments he made after the shooting on Saturday.

    Despite outward calls for unity from Trump and other officials, including Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley, in the wake of Saturday’s assassination attempt, that courtesy did not extend to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, with numerous speakers using incendiary rhetoric to attack the Democratic administration.

    As Republicans gathered in Milwaukee, Biden, meanwhile, sat for a wide-ranging interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt at the White House, which included questions about his “bullseye” comment about Trump from earlier this month, which Republicans criticized in the wake of Trump’s shooting.

    Here are some takeaways from the first day of the Republican National Convention:

    Classified documents case dismissed

     

    This image, contained in the indictment against former President Donald Trump, shows boxes of records stored in a bathroom and shower in the Lake Room at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. (Justice Department via AP)

    While not a part of the RNC per se, the ruling in the classified documents case no doubt helped lead to the jubilant mood in Milwaukee on Monday.

    The decision by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, is a massive victory for the former president, who faced dozens of felony charges accusing him of mishandling classified documents after leaving office and hampering the federal government’s efforts to retrieve them. Trump pleaded not guilty last year and has denied any wrongdoing.

    “The Framers gave Congress a pivotal role in the appointment of principal and inferior officers,” Cannon wrote in her ruling. “That role cannot be usurped by the Executive Branch or diffused elsewhere — whether in this case or in another case, whether in times of heightened national need or not.”

    “Upon careful study of the foundational challenges raised in the Motion, the Court is convinced that Special Counsel’s Smith’s prosecution of this action breaches two structural cornerstones of our constitutional scheme–the role of Congress in the appointment of constitutional officers, and the role of Congress in authorizing expenditures by law,” she added.

    Cannon faced widespread scrutiny for delays in bringing the case against Trump. The case was set to go to trial in May, but it was indefinitely delayed as she reviewed motion after motion put forth by Trump’s attorneys.

    “Both the Appointments and Appropriations challenges as framed in the Motion raise the following threshold question: is there a statute in the United States Code that authorizes the appointment of Special Counsel Smith to conduct this prosecution?” Cannon wrote. “After careful study of this seminal issue, the answer is no.”

    “In the end, it seems the Executive’s growing comfort in appointing ‘regulatory’ special counsels in the more recent era has followed an ad hoc pattern with little judicial scrutiny,” she added.

    In a statement, Peter Carr, a spokesperson for the special counsel, confirmed the Justice Department authorized an appeal, which could result in Cannon’s decision being overruled by a higher court.

    “The dismissal of the case deviates from the uniform conclusion of all previous courts to have considered the issue that the Attorney General is statutorily authorized to appoint a special counsel,” Carr said.

    In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the ” dismissal of the Lawless Indictment in Florida should be just the first step” in moving to dismiss all the cases against him, which he baselessly called “Witch Hunts.”

    “The Democrat Justice Department coordinated ALL of these Political Attacks, which are an Election Interference conspiracy against Joe Biden’s Political Opponent, ME,” Trump charged. “Let us come together to END all Weaponization of our Justice System, and Make America Great Again!”

    Read more about the ruling here

    The pick is in: Ohio Sen. JD Vance

    Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, nominates Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, during the Republican National Convention Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

    Former President Donald Trump selected Ohio Sen. JD Vance, a Trump critic-turned-convert, to be his running mate in November’s election, succeeding former Vice President Mike Pence as Trump’s No. 2.

    “After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Monday afternoon. “J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond.”

    Trump called Vance about 20 minutes before he made his social media post to let him know his selection, sources confirmed to Spectrum News.

    Shortly after Trump announced his pick, Vance was officially selected by delegates at the Republican National Convention to be the party’s nominee for vice president. He was approved by a voice vote without opposition.

    Moments earlier, Vance entered the convention floor at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum to cheers, hugs and handshakes alongside his wife, Usha Vance, an attorney who he met while both attending Yale Law School.

    He was nominated by Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, who described Vance as “a man who loves America and will represent our people with moral courage, strength and honor.”

    “JD is a living embodiment of the American Dream,” Husted said. “He came from humble beginnings and even as his life took him to places he might never have imagined, he never forgot where he came from. Ohio values are in his blood.”

    In an interview with Fox News’ “Hannity” on Monday night, his first since becoming Trump’s running mate, Vance said the call from Trump was “a moment I’ll never forget.”

    The Biden campaign immediately slammed the pick, labeling Vance as the favored choice of billionaires and corporations and as a Trump loyalist who will “bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means breaking the law and no matter the harm to the American people,” as Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said on a press call on Monday afternoon.

    “A clone of Trump on the issues,” President Joe Biden said at Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews before boarding Air Force One for a campaign trip to Las Vegas. “I don’t see any difference.”

    On the press call, Reproductive Freedom for All president Mini Timmaraju called Vance an “extreme anti-abortion politician” and O’Malley Dillon warned that Vance’s addition to the Republican ticket makes it “more clear than ever that our rights, our freedoms and our democracy are on the line.”

    Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump and Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, appear during the Republican National Convention Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

    Vance, a Trump critic-turned-convert, has emerged as a leader on the Republican Party’s rightmost reaches and a favorite among some of the more radical figures in Trump’s world. Prior to winning his Senate race in 2022, Vance was a Marine and venture capitalist who wrote a bestselling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” that garnered bipartisan praise for its depiction of his tumultuous upbringing in Middletown, Ohio, and path to Yale University Law School.

    “I was a convert in 2019 to the cause of Trump’s America First agenda,” Vance said in a speech at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington last week. “I was cognizant of the fact that, because I was a convert, Trump had not yet taken over the Republican Party, even in Washington, D.C., even in 2019 even though he was the president of the United States.”

    “There were people who were aggressively pushing back against his influence, who were already planning a return to basically reimplementing the Wall Street Journal editorial page’s preferred positions in 2019. I think that’s over now.”

    In 2016, Vance notably called Trump an “idiot,” “noxious” and “reprehensible,” labeling himself as “a Never Trump guy” and telling a friend that Trump could be “America’s Hitler” as the then-businessman made his first run for president. Now, as Trump is just days away from receiving the Republican nomination for the first time, he has chosen the man who has become one of his most loyal supporters in Washington as his running mate.

    “I always wish his memory was as bad as Joe Biden’s, because he would forget about what I said about him in 2016,” Vance said in his speech last week.

    Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, right, points toward Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

    Republicans were quick to praise Trump’s pick, with House Speaker Mike Johnson saying in a statement that Vance “possesses a profound understanding of the anxieties of working families and has both the lived experience and the policy expertise to help President Trump deliver a government worthy of the people it is supposed to serve.” New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a member of House leadership and a vice presidential contender herself, said Trump “made a strong VP choice” and called Vance “a strong America First leader and proven conservative.”

    If elected, Vance would be the youngest vice president since Richard Nixon, who was just a few months younger when he took office in 1953 as part of the Eisenhower administration. Vance has three children with his wife, Usha Vance. She previously clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts and for now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh when he served on a lower court.

    The Ohio senator, who turns 40 in August, will now be pitted against Vice President Kamala Harris as both junior partners will attempt to make the case to the American people that they are fit to assume the presidency if the 78-year-old Trump or the 81-year-old Biden can no longer serve. Both campaigns have agreed to a CBS News debate later this summer.

    Trump officially becomes GOP nominee

    While not a surprise in the slightest, Trump received enough delegates on Monday to formally become the Republican presidential nominee.

    The delegation from Florida, led by his son, Eric Trump, gave him enough votes to put him over the top.

    Speakers invoke Trump’s shooting…

    Sen. Tim Scott, R-SC, speaking during the first day of the Republican National Convention, Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    The assassination attempt on Donald Trump was top of mind for many of the speakers at Monday night’s event.

    Few of the speeches Monday electrified the crowd as much as the one delivered by South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott — a former 2024 presidential hopeful-turned-staunch Trump backer — got the crowd on their feet by invoking shooting at Trump’s rally on Saturday.

    “If you didn’t believe in miracles before Saturday, you better be believing right now!” he told the crowd in an exchange heavily laden with his Christian faith. “And our God still saves, he still delivers, and he still sets free. Because on Saturday the devil came to Pennsylvania holding a rifle, but an American lion got back up on his feet and he roared!”

    “Oh yeah, he roared!” Scott said to cheers from the crowd of “fight, fight, fight,” echoing Trump’s comments — a cheer that RNC attendees used throughout the day.

    Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right firebrand and staunch ally of Trump, opened her speech at the RNC by calling it a “somber moment” for the country in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump.

    “Evil came for the man that we love and admire so much,” Greene said, adding: “I thank God that his hand was on President Trump.

    She also paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, the ex-fire chief and Trump supporter who was killed in the attack, saying he “embodied the spirit of America First” and said Republicans should “honor Corey’s memory by building the country he wanted.”

    …but unity was hard to come by for Biden and Democrats

    Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA., speaking on the first day of the Republican National Convention, Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    As he kicked off the evening session of the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley called for unity in the aftermath of the “horrifying assassination attempt” against former President Donald Trump.

    “We are praying for President Trump. We are praying for the injured. We are praying for the family of Corey Comperatore,” he said. “We must unite as a party and we must unite as a nation. We must show the same strength and resilience as President Trump and lead this nation to a greater future world.”

    But that courtesy did not extend to Biden and the Democrats, clearly.

    The very next speaker, the next speaker, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, did not appear to have gotten the memo on the greater “unity” message of the convention, quickly calling Democratic policies a “clear and present danger to America,” accusing his opposition party of having a “fringe agenda” that includes “biological males competing against girls and the sexualization and indoctrination of our children.”

    “Democrats have forgotten American families, they have abandoned the working-class,” Johnson charged, adding that under Trump, those forgotten Americans are forgotten no more.”

    (Speaking to PBS News later Monday, Johnson later blamed the teleprompter loading a previous version of his speech.)

    Johnson wasn’t the only Republican to invoke anti-trans rhetoric for cheers from the crowd. Greene shifted gears after her comments about Trump’s shooting to condemn the “establishment in Washington,” which she said has “sold us out.”

    “They promised unity and delivered division,” Greene said. They promised peace and delivered war. They promised normalcy, and they gave us Transgender Visibility Day on Easter Sunday.” (President Joe Biden’s proclamation marking Transgender Day of Visibility on Easter Sunday was not intentional; the holiday is marked on March 31 every year, and Easter Sunday falls on different days each year, it just happened to fall on the same day in 2024.)

    “And let me state this clearly: There are only two genders,” she said to cheers.

    Sen. Katie Britt, R-AL., speaks on the first day of the Republican National Convention, Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, who delivered the Republican rebuttal to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech earlier this year, charged that the Democratic incumbent is “in decline” and “Donald Trump is the change we need.”

    “We see how Biden and Harris keep making things worse,” she said. “And we know the current president is not capable of turning things around.”

    “His weakness is costing us. Our opportunity, our prosperity, our security, our safety — each diminished, all in decline,” Britt said. “Just like the man in the Oval Office.”

    Scott said that President Joe Biden is “asleep at the wheel and we’re heading over a cliff,” blaming him for a number of issues, including “weakness” that “has invited world wars all around our world.”

    “America is not a racist country,” Scott later said to cheers, adding: “But if you are looking for racism today, you’d find it in cities run by Democrats.”

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  • In interview, RNC chair distances party from Project 2025

    In interview, RNC chair distances party from Project 2025

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    Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley distanced his party from the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 — an administration-in-waiting crafted by the right-wing think tank — telling Spectrum News in Milwaukee on Monday that “we have absolutely nothing to do with Project 2025.”

    What You Need To Know

    • In an interview with Spectrum News in Milwaukee on Monday, Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley distanced his party from the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025

    • Whatley’s comments come as Trump, in a separate interview taped last week and released Monday, named one of the report’s authors, Tom Homan, as someone he would appoint in a second term to help oversee his immigration policies

    • According to a CNN analysis, at least 140 veterans of the Trump administration, including six former Cabinet secretaries, helped craft Project 2025’s “Mandate for Leadership” report

    • Whatley also discussed the impact the assassination attempt on Trump over the weekend will have on the convention



    “That project is a complete standalone entity. It has nothing to do with the RNC. It has nothing to do with the Trump campaign,” Whatley said. “There may or may not be some good ideas in there, but right now, we’re focused on our platform, which we adopted at the RNC and is going to be taken up by the convention.”

    The RNC’s platform committee approved a 16-page policy document last week, far shorter than previous iterations of the party’s platform and a fraction of the size of Project 2025’s 922-page planning document — which was authored by dozens of Trump allies and former administration and campaign officials. Trump has also distanced himself from the project and some of the hard-right policies it proposes that have become a focal point of the Biden campaign.

    But in an interview taped last week and that aired on Monday morning, Trump named one of the report’s authors, Tom Homan, as someone he would appoint in a second term to help oversee his immigration policies. Homan is a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation and served as acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the first Trump administration, when he was a key figure behind the policy of separating migrant children from their parents.

    “I have Tom Homan lined up, we have the greatest people,” Trump told Fox News host Harris Faulkner when discussing Vice President Kamala Harris and border policy. Trump also said “we’re bringing back Tom Homan” at a Florida rally last week.

    According to a CNN analysis, at least 140 veterans of the Trump administration, including six former Cabinet secretaries, helped craft Project 2025’s “Mandate for Leadership” report.

    In his interview with Spectrum News, Whatley also discussed the impact the assassination attempt on Trump over the weekend will have on the convention.

    “I think obviously the president has said that he intends to write a new speech and have a different conversation with the voters, but our conversation with all American families really doesn’t change, because this entire convention is about speaking directly to the American people about the issues that they’re worried about, right?” Whatley said. “This is about jobs and the economy. It’s about safety. It’s about security. And certainly safety takes on a whole other connotation in light of an event like this.”

    When asked if Americans would hear from Trump each of the four nights of the convention, which runs through Thursday, Whatley said “stay tuned.”

    Whatley, who was handpicked by Trump to run the party after the former president successfully beat back his primary rivals, spoke of the importance of his home state North Carolina, whose state Republican Party he ran. 

    “We’re very proud of the role that North Carolina is playing in this convention. Both [RNC vice chair] Lara Trump and I, coming from North Carolina, obviously, have a very soft spot in our heart for it,” Whatley said. “North Carolina is a very, very critical, important battleground state and the state party down there, led by Jason Simmons, is doing a fantastic job of making sure that we’re in a position to be able to carry it for the third time in a row for Donald Trump.”

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  • Facebook lifts restrictions on Trump, giving him equal footing with Biden

    Facebook lifts restrictions on Trump, giving him equal footing with Biden

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, placing the former president on an equal footing on the platform with President Joe Biden just days before the Republican National Convention.

    What You Need To Know

    • Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on former President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, placing him on equal footing on the platform with President Joe Biden days before the Republican National Convention

    • Meta, Facebook’s parent company reasoned that while they were put in place following the “extreme and extraordinary circumstances” of the Capitol attack, Trump had not done anything to run afoul of them

    • Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs. wrote in a statement posted to the company’s website Friday that both Presient Joe Biden and Trump are still subject to the same “community standards” that apply to all other users of the company’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram

    • Trump has been posting frequently on his own Truth Social site, which he launched after Facebook and others suspended him

    The social media giant had initially banned the former president from using its platforms in 2021 after his supporters stormed the Capitol. Meta, Facebook’s parent company, lifted that ban last year but announced Trump would be subject to “guardrails” such as “heightened suspension penalties” if posts violated its standards.

    Now, the company has removed those restrictions, reasoning that while they were put in place following the “extreme and extraordinary circumstances” of the Capitol attack, Trump had not done anything to run afoul of them.

    “In assessing our responsibility to allow political expression, we believe that the American people should be able to hear from the nominees for President on the same basis,” Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs wrote in a statement posted to the company’s website Friday.

    Clegg added that both Biden and Trump are still subject to the same “community standards” that apply to all other users of the company’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram.

    Facebook, the world’s largest social media site, had been both a publicity tool and a crucial place to tap donations from supporters for both of Trump’s previous campaigns.

    These days, however, he has been posting frequently on his own Truth Social site, which he launched after Facebook and others suspended him.

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  • Facebook lifts restrictions on Trump, giving him equal footing with Biden

    Facebook lifts restrictions on Trump, giving him equal footing with Biden

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, placing the former president on an equal footing on the platform with President Joe Biden just days before the Republican National Convention.

    What You Need To Know

    • Facebook has lifted restrictions imposed on former President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, placing him on equal footing on the platform with President Joe Biden days before the Republican National Convention

    • Meta, Facebook’s parent company reasoned that while they were put in place following the “extreme and extraordinary circumstances” of the Capitol attack, Trump had not done anything to run afoul of them

    • Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs wrote in a statement posted to the company’s website Friday that both Presient Joe Biden and Trump are still subject to the same “community standards” that apply to all other users of the company’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram

    • Trump has been posting frequently on his own Truth Social site, which he launched after Facebook and others suspended him

    The social media giant had initially banned the former president from using its platforms in 2021 after his supporters stormed the Capitol. Meta, Facebook’s parent company, lifted that ban last year but announced Trump would be subject to “guardrails” such as “heightened suspension penalties” if posts violated its standards.

    Now, the company has removed those restrictions, reasoning that while they were put in place following the “extreme and extraordinary circumstances” of the Capitol attack, Trump had not done anything to run afoul of them.

    “In assessing our responsibility to allow political expression, we believe that the American people should be able to hear from the nominees for President on the same basis,” Nick Clegg, Meta’s president of global affairs wrote in a statement posted to the company’s website Friday.

    Clegg added that both Biden and Trump are still subject to the same “community standards” that apply to all other users of the company’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram.

    Facebook, the world’s largest social media site, had been both a publicity tool and a crucial place to tap donations from supporters for both of Trump’s previous campaigns.

    These days, however, he has been posting frequently on his own Truth Social site, which he launched after Facebook and others suspended him.

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  • Full list of congressional Democrats calling on Biden to leave presidential race

    Full list of congressional Democrats calling on Biden to leave presidential race

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    On Monday, Biden sent a letter to Democratic lawmakers saying he is “firmly committed to staying in this race” and calling for an “end” to speculation within the party about the future of his candidacy.

    Here is a look at the 20 known congressional Democrats — 19 in the House, one in the Senate — who have said either publicly or privately they’d like to see Biden step aside.

    Rep. Earl Blumenauer

    The Oregon lawmaker, who is retiring in January, on Wednesday joined the chorus of Democrats urging Biden to withdraw. 

    “It is a painful and difficult conclusion but there is no question in my mind that we will all be better served if the president steps aside as the Democratic nominee and manages a transition under his terms,” Blumenauer said. “He has earned that right.”

    Rep. Ed Case

    Case, a longtime fixture in Hawaii politics, said in a statement Thursday that his “guidepost is what is the best way forward for our country.”

    “I do not believe President Biden should continue his candidacy for re-election as President,” Case said, adding that his decision has nothing to do with the incumbent’s “character and record” as president. “If it did, there would be no decision to make.”

    Rep. Angie Craig

    The Minnesota congresswoman issued a statement Saturday saying she has “great respect for President Biden’s decades of service to our nation and his steadfast commitment to making our country a better place,” but, “given what I saw and heard from the President during last week’s debate in Atlanta, coupled with the lack of a forceful response from the President himself following that debate, I do not believe that the President can effectively campaign and win against Donald Trump.”

    Craig called for “an open, fair, and transparent Democratic process to select a new nominee to inspire and unite our great nation.”

    “If we truly believe that Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans must be stopped, there is only a small window left to make sure we have a candidate best equipped to make the case and win,” she said.

    Rep. Lloyd Doggett

    On July 2, the Texas lawmaker became the first congressional Democrat to urge Biden to drop out the race, citing his performance in the presidential debate and the need to defeat former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee. 

    “Instead of reassuring voters [during the debate], the President failed to effectively defend his many accomplishments and expose Trump’s many lies,” Doggett said in a statement.

    “Our overriding consideration must be who has the best hope of saving our democracy from an authoritarian takeover by a criminal and his gang,” he continued. “Too much is at stake to risk a Trump victory.”  

    In an interview with Spectrum News after his announcement, Doggett said that he came to the decision to ask Biden to withdraw “reluctantly and sadly” because of his accomplishments as president.

    “I’ve watched the polls and what’s happened over the last year,” he said. “We’ve been running behind, hoping that we get some momentum out of this debate. Instead, we got disappointment.”

    “I watched it with my wife, we were alarmed by his inability to counter the Trump lies and to really defend an admirable effort that the president’s made these last few years,” he continued, detailing that he discussed his position about wanting to replace Biden as the nominee with colleagues in Congress and his constituents in Texas.

    He also said the Supreme Court’s ruling in Trump’s immunity case last week underscored the importance of defeating the Republican ex-president at the ballot box in November.

    “There is so much at risk in having a criminal and his gang take over our government, that I just think we have to have a stronger candidate than President Biden has happened to be,” Doggett added.

    Rep. Raúl Grijalva

    Grijalva, a progressive Democrat from Arizona, was the second member of Congress to call on Biden to step aside, telling The New York Times on July 3: “What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race.”

    Grijalva said a second Trump presidency would be “very, very dangerous,” describing the former president as an “anti-democratic, authoritarian despot.”

    Rep. Jim Himes

    The Connecticut lawmaker was one of at least four House Democrats who said during a private call Sunday that Biden should step aside. Himes is the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee.

    According to Politico, Himes said he has received several hundred texts and emails about Biden’s age, all from people who wanted the president to leave the race. Himes also reportedly expressed concerns about Democrats losing both chambers of Congress if Biden presses on.

    On Thursday, after Biden’s NATO press conference, Himes went public with his call for Biden to exit the race.

    “Joe Biden’s record of public service is unrivaled. His accomplishments are immense. His legacy as a great president is secure,” Himes wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “He must not risk that legacy, those accomplishments and American democracy to soldier on in the face of the horrors promised by Donald Trump.”

    Rep. Seth Moulton

    Moulton, of Massachusetts, told radio station WBUR on July 4 that he does not believe Biden can defeat Trump and should bow out.

    “President Biden has done enormous service to our country, but now is the time for him to follow in one of our Founding Fathers — George Washington’s — footsteps and step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump,” Moulton said.

    On Sunday, Moulton told WCVB-TV: “There are a lot of colleagues who share my concern, but have not gone public. We should be cleaning up and down the ballot, and that’s just not the case right now. So, we need to ask, ‘What do we need to do differently?’”

    Rep. Jerry Nadler

    The New York Democrat and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee was on the same call Sunday with Himes. 

    Nadler, as one of the more senior members on the call, was the first person to say that Biden should step aside, according a person familiar with the call who was granted anonymity to discuss it with The Associated Press. He did so aware of his seniority and that it would allow others to join him.

    However, on Tuesday Nadler told CNN of Biden: “He said he’s going to remain in, he’s our candidate, and we’re going to support him.”

    Rep. Scott Peters

    Shortly after Himes’ post-debate detraction, Peters, a California Democrat, expressed that in a “high stakes” election, Democrats “are on a losing course” with Biden at the helm.

    While praising his accomplishments as president, Peters said in a statement that Biden’s debate performance “was not a blip.”

    “Today I ask President Biden to withdraw from the presidential campaign,” Peters said. “The stakes are high, and we are on a losing course. My conscience requires me to speak up and put loyalty to the country and to democracy ahead of my great affection for, and loyalty to, the President and those around him.”

    Rep. Brittany Pettersen

    On Friday, the day after Biden’s NATO press conference, Pettersen, a Colorado Democrat, urged Biden to “please pass the torch” to a new generation of Democratic leaders in a statement posted to social media.

    Pettersen, an organizer for the incumbent Democrat’s 2008 campaign, expressed “deep admiration for Joe Biden and all he has done for this country,” which she said makes her decision to ask him to stand aside “more painful.”

    “Please pass the torch to one of our many capable Democratic leaders so we have the best chance to defeat Donald Trump,” she added.

    Rep. Mike Quigley

    In an appearance on MSNBC’s “All In With Chris Hayes” on Friday, Quigley, of Illinois, had a direct message for Biden: “Your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude, the only thing you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this.”

    Quigley doubled down on his opinion Monday, saying Biden’s Friday interview with ABC News did nothing to change his mind. 

    “He looks very frail,” Quigley told CNN. “His voice is very soft. It’s not robust. And again, it is not how I perceive that. It’s how the American people perceive it.”

    Rep. Pat Ryan

    A Democrat representing a frontline New York district, Ryan called on Biden to step aside Wednesday, telling The New York Times, “I’d be doing a grave disservice if I said he was the best candidate to serve this fall.”

    “For the good of our country, for my two young kids, I’m asking Joe Biden to step aside in the upcoming election and deliver on the promise to be a bridge to a new generation of leaders,” Ryan told the outlet. “I really hope, with all my heart, that he will listen.”

    In a subsequent post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Ryan doubled down on his comments.

    “Trump is an existential threat to American democracy; it is our duty to put forward the strongest candidate against him,” he wrote. “Joe Biden is a patriot but is no longer the best candidate to defeat Trump.”

    In an interview with Spectrum News on Thursday, Ryan called the debate “a wake-up call” for Democrats.

    Trump “is unfit for office and has to be stopped, he cannot go anywhere near the White House again. And so I believe it’s our patriotic duty as a party to put forward the strongest candidate to defeat him,” he added.

    Rep. Brad Schneider

    Schneider, an Illinois Democrat and prominent member of the New Democrat Coalition in the House, said in a statement Thursday that “the time has come … for President Biden to heroically pass the torch to a new generation of leadership to guide us to the future he has enabled and empowered us to pursue.” 

    Schneider hailed Biden’s accomplishments in office, notably leading the country through the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic recovery in its aftermath, and said that the incumbent “now has the opportunity to secure his legacy and boldly deliver the nation to a new generation of leadership.”

    “The stakes in this election could not be higher,” he said. “Donald Trump and the administration he would install are an absolute threat to the very core of our nation.”

    Rep. Hillary Scholten

    Scholten, who represents a district in western Michigan once held by Gerald Ford, joined the chorus calling for Biden to step aside Thursday, hailing his “incredible” legacy but expressing concern that Americans cannot “unsee” his performance at last week’s debate.

    “We just have too much at stake in this election to sit on the sidelines and be silent while we still have time to do something,” Scholten, a frontline Democrat in a battleground state, said in an interview with The Detroit News on Thursday.

    She said she will continue to support Biden over Trump should she stay in the race but urged him to “allow a new leader to step up.”

    “But the people of Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District elected me to represent them with integrity,” Scholten said. “They elected a Congresswoman they trust to speak the truth, even when it’s hard. They voted for someone who would put America’s future first and stand up for what is right. That’s what I am doing now.”

    Rep. Mikie Sherrill

    The New Jersey congresswoman said in a statement Tuesday she is asking Biden to “declare that he won’t run for reelection and will help lead us through a process toward a new nominee.”

    Sherrill praised Biden for his more than 50 years serving the country and working to pass “remarkable legislation that will reverberate for generations.” She said her constituents “want a leader who can continue to build on our successes but is also able to turn the nation’s attention to the urgent threat that Trump presents to our democracy, to our freedoms, to our country.”

    The “stakes are too high — and the threat is too real — to stay silent,” Sherrill said.

    Rep. Adam Smith

    On Monday, Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, urged Biden to “take a step back” from the ticket and called for Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place.

    “I think it’s become clear that he’s not the best person to carry the Democratic message,” the Washington state Democrat said on CNN, before praising the Democrats’ platform and record and acknowledging Biden’s role in the country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

    He went on to call a second Trump presidency a “complete disaster,” condenming the far-right Project 2025 agenda, which the ex-president attempted to distance himself from last week, and his economic proposals.

    “We’ve got a good message,” said Smith, who also made his opinion known at Sunday’s call of top Democratic committee members. “The president has shown he is not capable of delivering that message in an effective way.”

    Rep. Eric Sorensen

    The Illinois Democrat became the third Democratic lawmaker following Biden’s NATO press conference to call for his departure from the race.

    “In 2020, Joe Biden ran for President with the purpose of putting country over party,” Sorensen said in a statement posted to social media. “Today, I am asking him to do that again.”

    Rep. Greg Stanton

    Arizona’s Stanton, who called himself “one of President Biden’s earliest supporters in 2020” in a statement Thursday, hailed the president’s record in delivering for his state, but argued that Trump “poses an existential threat” to the U.S. Constitution and American democracy and the party needs a nominee who can make a case against him.

    “For the sake of American democracy … I believe it is time for the President to step aside as our nominee,” he said.

    “The stakes in this election could not be higher,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “For our country’s sake, it is time for the President to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders.

    Rep. Mark Takano

    The California lawmaker, too, said during Sunday’s private call that Biden should withdraw, a source told the AP. Takano is the ranking member of the the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

    Many others on the call raised concerns about Biden’s capability and chance of winning reelection, even if they stopped short of saying Biden should step out of the race.

    Sen. Peter Welch

    The Vermont politician on Wednesday became the first Senate Democrat to call for Biden to leave the race.

    “I understand why President Biden wants to run,” Welch said in an opinion piece in The Washington Post. “He saved us from Donald Trump once and wants to do it again. But he needs to reassess whether he is the best candidate to do so. In my view, he is not. For the good of the country, I’m calling on President Biden to withdraw from the race.”

    Welch cited recent polling analysis from the Cook Political Report that found that six battleground states have shifted toward Trump after Biden’s disastrous debate performance. Some states, like Minnesota and New Hampshire, are still expected to lean Democratic, while Nevada, Arizona and Georgia have moved from “toss up” to “lean Republican.”

    Spectrum News’ Kevin Frey and The Associated Press contributed to this report

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    Ryan Chatelain

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  • House GOP subpoenas top White House aides over Biden’s health

    House GOP subpoenas top White House aides over Biden’s health

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    James Comer, R-Ky., the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, is demanding that three top White House aides appear before his panel later this month to discuss President Joe Biden’s mental fitness. 

    What You Need To Know

    • The chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer, R-Ky., is demanding that three top White House aides appear before his panel later this month to discuss President Joe Biden’s mental fitness
    • Comer, who is leading an impeachment inquiry into Biden that has yet to yield any evidence of wrongdoing, issued subpoenas on Wednesday to Anthony Bernal, a top adviser tp first lady Jill Biden, Annie Tomasini, White House deputy chief of staff, and Ashley Williams, a senior adviser to the president
    • White House spokesperson Ian Sams told multiple outlets the move was a “baseless political stunt”
    • The president’s health and cognitive fitness have been in the spotlight since last month’s debate, which sparked concern within the Democratic party about Biden’s ability to defeat former President Donald Trump in November


    Comer, who is leading an impeachment inquiry into Biden that has yet to yield any evidence of wrongdoing, issued subpoenas on Wednesday to Anthony Bernal, a top adviser to first lady Jill Biden, Annie Tomasini, White House deputy chief of staff, and Ashley Williams, a senior adviser to the president requesting they sit for depositions.

    In letters sent to the three staff members, the GOP committee chair claimed that the aides may be “running interference on behalf of the President and perhaps doing some of the President’s job for him.”

    “President Biden is clearly unfit for office, yet his staff are trying to hide the truth from the American people,” Comer charged in a separate statement. “Key White House staff must come before our committee so we can provide the transparency and accountability that Americans deserve.” 

    News of the subpoenas was first reported by Axios. In a statement, White House spokesperson Ian Sams told Axios: “Like everything Congressman Comer has done over the past year, these subpoenas are a baseless political stunt intended for him to get media attention instead of engage in legitimate oversight.”

    The letters ask the staff to respond to the subpoenas by July 17. 

    The president’s health and cognitive fitness have been in the spotlight since last month’s debate, in which Biden, 81, appeared to be low energy and at times stumble and lose his train of thought. His performance sparked concern within the Democratic party about Biden’s ability to defeat former President Donald Trump in November and led to calls from some for the president to drop his bid. 

    As of Thursday, nearly a dozen sitting Democratic members from both chambers of Congress have publicly called on Biden to exit the 2024 race. The president has been steadfast in his intent to stay the course and has been on a campaign to shore up support, recently speaking with Democratic mayors, governors, the Congressional Black Caucus, union leaders, top donors and more. 

    Biden faces what is seen as a key test Thursday evening, when he is set to hold a rare solo press conference at the conclusion of the NATO summit in Washington. 

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    Maddie Gannon

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  • Pelosi says Democrats want answer soon on Biden’s candidacy

    Pelosi says Democrats want answer soon on Biden’s candidacy

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    Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday congressional Democrats are encouraging President Joe Biden to make a decision soon about whether he’s remaining in the race for the White House, despite that Biden said earlier this week he’s committed to his candidacy.

    What You Need To Know

    • Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday congressional Democrats are encouraging President Joe Biden to make a decision soon about whether he’s remaining in the race for the White House, despite that Biden said earlier this week he’s committed to his candidacy

    • “It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run,” Pelosi, D-Calif., told MSNBC, adding that “time is running short”

    •  Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., confirmed Tuesday he told colleagues in a closed-door meeting that he does not believe Biden can win in November

    • Democratic Sens. Jon Tester of Montana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio also said in Tuesday’s private meeting they do not believe Biden can beat Trump, Axios reported
    • While not a lawmaker, actor George Clooney, a high-profile Democratic backer who recently hosted a star-studded Hollywood fundraiser for Biden last month, urged the incumbent to step aside in an opinion piece for The New York Times on Wednesday

    “It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run,” Pelosi, D-Calif., said during an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “We’re all encouraging him to to make that decision because time is running short.”

    Pelosi’s comments came nearly two weeks after Biden’s devastating debate performance against former President Donald Trump, in which Biden, 81, struggled to articulate some of his answers. 

    “I want him to do whatever he decides to do,” said Pelosi, who praised Biden for his NATO speech Tuesday and for legislation he signed as president.

    Last week, Pelosi, who continues to serve in Congress, said she thought it was a “legitimate question” to ask whether Biden’s debate performance was an episode or a condition. 

    In a statement to Spectrum News following her interview on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Pelosi said the California Democrat “fully supports whatever President Biden decides to do.”

    “We must turn our attention to why this race is so important: Donald Trump would be a disaster for our country and our democracy,” Pelosi’s spokesperson said.

    On Monday, Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats saying he is “firmly committed to staying in this race” and called for an “end” to talk within the party of him stepping aside.

    Seven House Democrats have publicly called for Biden to drop out the race. No Senate Democrats have done so yet, but Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., confirmed Tuesday he told colleagues in a closed-door meeting that he does not believe Biden can win in November.

    “Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election, and maybe win it by a landslide, and take with him the Senate and the House,” Bennet told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.

    Bennet, who stopped short of calling for Biden to withdraw, cited polling showing the incumbent trailing even before the debate and said he’s heard from constituents concerned about the president’s age and mental acuity. 

    “These are my voters who said to me, ‘I have been through this with my mom. I’ve been through this with my dad. I’m terrified about what it will mean if Donald Trump is elected president again in this country,” Bennet said.

    The Colorado lawmaker, who ran against Biden for the Democratic nomination in 2020, said he thinks Biden “has been a really good president” but added, “We have to defeat the malignant figure that is Donald Trump.”

    “I believe those of us that are in these elected office have a moral obligation to the people that we represent and the future of our country … to do everything we can to make sure their future is as bright as it could be,” Bennet said. “And if we just sit on our hands, if we say we’re going to disregard what is plainly in front of us and plainly in front of the American people and we end up electing Donald Trump again as president of the United States, that’s going to be a huge tragedy beyond epic proportion.”

    Democratic Sens. Jon Tester of Montana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio also said in Tuesday’s private meeting they do not believe Biden can beat Trump, Axios reported. Both are seeking reelection this year in states Trump won in 2020.

    Tester issued a statement Monday saying Biden “has got to prove to the American people—including me—that he’s up to the job for another four years.”

    Also this week, two top Democrats indicated they have doubts about Biden’s electability. 

    Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois told reporters Monday that Biden’s debate performance “raised a lot of questions” about the president. 

    And Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state, the longest serving Democrat in the chamber, said in a statement that “after talking with my constituents, I believe President Biden must do more to demonstrate he can campaign strong enough to beat Donald Trump.”

    Another prominent figure loaned his voice to the chorus of those urging Biden to step aside, though not one belonging to a lawmaker: Actor George Clooney, a high-profile backer of Democrats who hosted a star-studded Hollywood fundraiser for the incumbent last month.

    “We are not going to win in November with this president,” Clooney said in an op-ed for The New York Times on Wednesday. “On top of that, we won’t win the House, and we’re going to lose the Senate. This isn’t only my opinion; this is the opinion of every senator and congress member and governor that I’ve spoken with in private. Every single one, irrespective of what he or she is saying publicly.”

    He urged the party to pick a new candidate ahead of next month’s Democratic National Convention.

    “Let’s hear from Wes Moore and Kamala Harris and Gretchen Whitmer and Gavin Newsom and Andy Beshear and J.B. Pritzker and others,” Clooney wrote. Let’s agree that the candidates not attack one another but, in the short time we have, focus on what will make this country soar. Then we could go into the Democratic convention next month and figure it out.

    “Would it be messy? Yes. Democracy is messy. But would it enliven our party and wake up voters who, long before the June debate, had already checked out? It sure would. The short ramp to Election Day would be a benefit for us, not a danger,” Clooney said, later concluding: “Joe Biden is a hero; he saved democracy in 2020. We need him to do it again in 2024.”

    Spectrum News’ Cassie Semyon contributed to this report.

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    Ryan Chatelain

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  • Judge rules protesters can’t march through RNC security zone

    Judge rules protesters can’t march through RNC security zone

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    A federal judge ruled Monday that protesters can’t march through a security zone at the Republican National Convention, handing a defeat to liberals who had pushed to have closer access to where delegates will be gathering next week in Milwaukee.

    What You Need To Know

    • A federal judge has ruled that protesters can’t march through a security zone at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee

    • The American Civil Liberties Union and the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024 filed a lawsuit against the city of Milwaukee last month, alleging that the city’s plans for protesters violated their free speech rights

    • U.S. District Judge Brett Ludwig ruled Monday that protesters have a right to march in protest of the RNC, “but the First Amendment does not allow them to protest or parade in any way they choose”

    • Both sides have until Wednesday if they wish to pursue other legal options



    The American Civil Liberties Union and the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024 filed a lawsuit last month against the city of Milwaukee, alleging that the city’s plans for protesters violated their free speech rights. They had asked the judge to order that the city design a protest parade route that is within sight and hearing of the Fiserv Forum where thousands of Republicans will be gathering starting Monday to nominate Donald Trump for president.

    U.S. District Judge Brett Ludwig said in his order that protesters have a right to march in protest of the RNC, “but the First Amendment does not allow them to protest or parade in any way they choose.”

    Ludwig said that Milwaukee city officials and the U.S. Secret Service have worked to balance protesters’ right to express themselves and “legitimate security and other governmental interests.”

    “The vast majority of the resulting security plan is a reasonable and valid time, place, and manner regulation on speech,” the judge said in denying the protesters’ request for closer access to the convention site.

    The judge sided with the ACLU on one issue, ruling that the city and the Commissioner of Public Works Jerrel Kruschke could not approve speaker and demonstration applications on the basis of an applicant’s criminal history.

    Ludwig said the city “overstepped their authority in reserving their ability to deny protest permits based on” a past criminal conviction.

    Both sides have until Wednesday if they wish to pursue other legal options.

    Omar Flores, chairman of the March on the RNC Coalition, declined to comment on the ruling before the group holds a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

    Protesters have complained that the city is keeping them too far away from the convention site, which is inside a security perimeter where credentials are required to gain access. Protesters have wanted to march inside that security zone. However, the security plan establishes a parade route about five blocks from the arena, with a stage for speakers within the route.

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    Associated Press

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  • Judge rules protesters can’t march through RNC security zone

    Judge rules protesters can’t march through RNC security zone

    [ad_1]

    A federal judge ruled Monday that protesters can’t march through a security zone at the Republican National Convention, handing a defeat to liberals who had pushed to have closer access to where delegates will be gathering next week in Milwaukee.

    What You Need To Know

    • A federal judge has ruled that protesters can’t march through a security zone at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee

    • The American Civil Liberties Union and the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024 filed a lawsuit against the city of Milwaukee last month, alleging that the city’s plans for protesters violated their free speech rights

    • U.S. District Judge Brett Ludwig ruled Monday that protesters have a right to march in protest of the RNC, “but the First Amendment does not allow them to protest or parade in any way they choose”

    • Both sides have until Wednesday if they wish to pursue other legal options



    The American Civil Liberties Union and the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024 filed a lawsuit last month against the city of Milwaukee, alleging that the city’s plans for protesters violated their free speech rights. They had asked the judge to order that the city design a protest parade route that is within sight and hearing of the Fiserv Forum where thousands of Republicans will be gathering starting Monday to nominate Donald Trump for president.

    U.S. District Judge Brett Ludwig said in his order that protesters have a right to march in protest of the RNC, “but the First Amendment does not allow them to protest or parade in any way they choose.”

    Ludwig said that Milwaukee city officials and the U.S. Secret Service have worked to balance protesters’ right to express themselves and “legitimate security and other governmental interests.”

    “The vast majority of the resulting security plan is a reasonable and valid time, place, and manner regulation on speech,” the judge said in denying the protesters’ request for closer access to the convention site.

    The judge sided with the ACLU on one issue, ruling that the city and the Commissioner of Public Works Jerrel Kruschke could not approve speaker and demonstration applications on the basis of an applicant’s criminal history.

    Ludwig said the city “overstepped their authority in reserving their ability to deny protest permits based on” a past criminal conviction.

    Both sides have until Wednesday if they wish to pursue other legal options.

    Omar Flores, chairman of the March on the RNC Coalition, declined to comment on the ruling before the group holds a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

    Protesters have complained that the city is keeping them too far away from the convention site, which is inside a security perimeter where credentials are required to gain access. Protesters have wanted to march inside that security zone. However, the security plan establishes a parade route about five blocks from the arena, with a stage for speakers within the route.

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    Associated Press

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  • First lady Jill Biden launches veteran, military family initiative

    First lady Jill Biden launches veteran, military family initiative

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    First Lady Jill Biden on Monday is kicking off a new initiative aimed at boosting outreach among veterans and military families in an effort to boost her husband’s reelection bid.

    What You Need To Know

    • First Lady Jill Biden is kicking off a three-state tour on Monday to kick off a new Biden campaign initiative aimed at boosting outreach among veterans and military families

    • Dr. Biden — whose father was a Navy signalman in World War II — will travel to Wilmington, North Carolina, Tampa, Florida, and Columbus, Georgia, on Monday

    • News of the first lady’s barnstorming campaign trip comes amid calls from some Democrats for her husband to step aside as the party’s nominee after his shaky performance in last week’s presidential debate

    • President Biden has repeatedly insisted that he is staying in the race, most recently on Monday when he sent a letter to Democrats in Congress that he is “firmly committed to staying in the race” and called for the recent intraparty drama “to end”



    Dr. Biden is celebrating the launch of Veterans and Military Families for Biden-Harris with a one-day, three-state swing through Florida, North Carolina and Georgia — three states with large populations of veterans and military families, as well as three battlegrounds that could propel President Joe Biden to victory in November over former President Donald Trump.

    News of the first lady’s barnstorming campaign trip comes amid calls from some Democrats for her husband to step aside as the party’s nominee after his shaky performance in last week’s presidential debate. President Biden has repeatedly insisted that he is staying in the race, most recently on Monday when he sent a letter to Democrats in Congress that he is “firmly committed to staying in the race” and called for the recent intraparty drama “to end.”

    Dr. Biden — whose father was a Navy signalman in World War II — will travel to Wilmington, North Carolina, Tampa, Florida, and Columbus, Georgia, on Monday, the campaign said. The campaign also said it will hold events in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona, Nashua, New Hampshire, and Erie, Harrisburg and Pittston, Pennsylvania.

    “Our veterans and military families are the brave and the bold—who step forward for all of us,” Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement. “They deserve a commander in chief who respects their bravery and understands personally their sacrifice—not one who denigrates them for being willing to put their lives on the line for our democracy.”

    Rodriguez’s swipe at the president refers to reports that Trump repeatedly insulted wounded veterans, dead American soldiers who fought in World War I and U.S. service members killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. John Kelly, who served in Trump’s administration as his chief of staff, confirmed in an interview last year a report from The Atlantic that Trump in 2018 did not want to visit the graves of American soldiers buried in France because they were “losers.” Trump has repeatedly denied making those remarks.

    Biden’s campaign highlighted a number of pro-military and veteran initiatives that the Democratic president has undertaken during his first term, including signing into law the PACT Act, a landmark law that expands toxic exposure benefits for veterans, as well as efforts to reduce veteran homelessness and expanding VA health care eligibility.

    Rodriguez said that the new initiative — which the campaign said “will engage and mobilize millions of veterans and military families across the country through battleground state events, relational organizing and online engagement” — will help contrast the records of Biden and Trump when it comes to fighting for members of the military and veterans.

    “Donald Trump has no respect for our men and women in uniform, their families, or the freedoms many of them fought to defend, calling fallen soldiers suckers and losers,” she said. “Joe Biden is a military father who understands the importance of fighting for veterans every day to earn their support at the ballot box.”

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    Justin Tasolides

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  • Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

    Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

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    President Joe Biden could make a decision within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection, said Hawaii’s governor who participated in a recent meeting with Biden and other Democratic governors and whose family has known the president for years.

    And if Biden decides not to run, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that he believes the president will designate Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the ticket.

    What You Need To Know

    • Hawaii Gov. Josh Green says President Joe Biden could decide within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection
    • And Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that if Biden drops out, he expects Vice President Kamala Harris to replace Biden at the top of the ticket
    • Green says he thinks Biden will stay in the race unless he feels it’s not winnable or he feels that other voices in his inner circle say he shouldn’t run
    • He says ultimately Biden has to make the decision, and it shouldn’t come from anyone but his closest advisers and his heart



    “I think the president stays in this race unless he feels that it is not winnable, or he feels that he has to hear other voices in his inner circle that he shouldn’t run,” Green said. “If the president felt that he wasn’t up to it and truly not up to it, he would step down.

    “We’ll probably know in the next couple of days how the president feels about all this,” he said.

    Biden has repeatedly insisted that he will remain in the race against his likely Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. But questions about Biden’s mental acuity have swirled since his disastrous debate performance last month. As some of his fellow Democrats have encouraged Biden to exit the campaign, the president has pointed to support from other elected officials in the party, particularly governors.

    Green, who was a physician on Hawaii’s Big Island before he was elected governor, said everyone has parents or grandparents who have moments that aren’t that great or pauses in their ability to express themselves clearly. But, he added, they aren’t discarded because of their experience, wisdom and their role in the family.

    “That’s why I’m standing by the president until he tells me otherwise,” said Green.

    Green said the timeline of a few days for a decision anticipates pressure that might be placed on Biden after members of Congress return this week to Capitol Hill.

    “I really, honestly think that he has to make the decision. And it should not come from another governor. It should not come from anyone but the closest, closest advisers to him and his own heart,” Green said.

    Green was quick to point out that Trump is only three years younger than Biden and both will have bad days going forward. But he argued that temperament is more important than age.

    “For God’s sake, these two guys have to hold the nuclear codes,” Green said. “I don’t want someone who tweets in the middle of the night and rages at other countries. That is not good. That’s not the problem we have with President Biden.”

    If Biden were to leave the campaign, Green said the president should be allowed to say who he thinks should replace him on the ticket.

    “I think it’s very clear that the Democratic Party would be ecstatic overall to have the president designate his vice president if it came to that,” Green said.

    Harris “is a powerful person, she is also a thought-leading woman, she’s an African American who was (California’s) attorney general,” Green said. “There are no credentials that are better than what the current vice president has.”

    Green, whose wife’s uncle was Biden’s college roommate, also provided insight into last week’s meeting that governors had with the president. During the meeting, Green asked Biden about his health. Biden responded by saying everything was fine except for his brain.

    Green told the AP that the president was joking, and that context was lost when leaked by other people.

    “It was absolutely a joke, and in order to make a self-deprecating joke, you have to have intact cognitive function, period,” Green said.

    He also discounted any assertion that advisers crafted the meeting to have governors supportive of Biden speak first to quell any dissent. Instead, he said it was a very candid, unscripted conversation with 25 governors with differing opinions.

    “That call had just like you’d expect in a coffee shop, a few people mouthed off, a few people, you know, probably excessively praised the president, but almost everybody was just trying to see, ‘Are we OK?’” Green said.

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    Associated Press

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  • Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

    Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

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    President Joe Biden could make a decision within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection, said Hawaii’s governor who participated in a recent meeting with Biden and other Democratic governors and whose family has known the president for years.

    And if Biden decides not to run, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that he believes the president will designate Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the ticket.

    What You Need To Know

    • Hawaii Gov. Josh Green says President Joe Biden could decide within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection
    • And Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that if Biden drops out, he expects Vice President Kamala Harris to replace Biden at the top of the ticket
    • Green says he thinks Biden will stay in the race unless he feels it’s not winnable or he feels that other voices in his inner circle say he shouldn’t run
    • He says ultimately Biden has to make the decision, and it shouldn’t come from anyone but his closest advisers and his heart



    “I think the president stays in this race unless he feels that it is not winnable, or he feels that he has to hear other voices in his inner circle that he shouldn’t run,” Green said. “If the president felt that he wasn’t up to it and truly not up to it, he would step down.

    “We’ll probably know in the next couple of days how the president feels about all this,” he said.

    Biden has repeatedly insisted that he will remain in the race against his likely Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. But questions about Biden’s mental acuity have swirled since his disastrous debate performance last month. As some of his fellow Democrats have encouraged Biden to exit the campaign, the president has pointed to support from other elected officials in the party, particularly governors.

    Green, who was a physician on Hawaii’s Big Island before he was elected governor, said everyone has parents or grandparents who have moments that aren’t that great or pauses in their ability to express themselves clearly. But, he added, they aren’t discarded because of their experience, wisdom and their role in the family.

    “That’s why I’m standing by the president until he tells me otherwise,” said Green.

    Green said the timeline of a few days for a decision anticipates pressure that might be placed on Biden after members of Congress return this week to Capitol Hill.

    “I really, honestly think that he has to make the decision. And it should not come from another governor. It should not come from anyone but the closest, closest advisers to him and his own heart,” Green said.

    Green was quick to point out that Trump is only three years younger than Biden and both will have bad days going forward. But he argued that temperament is more important than age.

    “For God’s sake, these two guys have to hold the nuclear codes,” Green said. “I don’t want someone who tweets in the middle of the night and rages at other countries. That is not good. That’s not the problem we have with President Biden.”

    If Biden were to leave the campaign, Green said the president should be allowed to say who he thinks should replace him on the ticket.

    “I think it’s very clear that the Democratic Party would be ecstatic overall to have the president designate his vice president if it came to that,” Green said.

    Harris “is a powerful person, she is also a thought-leading woman, she’s an African American who was (California’s) attorney general,” Green said. “There are no credentials that are better than what the current vice president has.”

    Green, whose wife’s uncle was Biden’s college roommate, also provided insight into last week’s meeting that governors had with the president. During the meeting, Green asked Biden about his health. Biden responded by saying everything was fine except for his brain.

    Green told the AP that the president was joking, and that context was lost when leaked by other people.

    “It was absolutely a joke, and in order to make a self-deprecating joke, you have to have intact cognitive function, period,” Green said.

    He also discounted any assertion that advisers crafted the meeting to have governors supportive of Biden speak first to quell any dissent. Instead, he said it was a very candid, unscripted conversation with 25 governors with differing opinions.

    “That call had just like you’d expect in a coffee shop, a few people mouthed off, a few people, you know, probably excessively praised the president, but almost everybody was just trying to see, ‘Are we OK?’” Green said.

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  • Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

    Hawaii governor says Biden could decide within days whether to remain in race

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    President Joe Biden could make a decision within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection, said Hawaii’s governor who participated in a recent meeting with Biden and other Democratic governors and whose family has known the president for years.

    And if Biden decides not to run, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that he believes the president will designate Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on the ticket.

    What You Need To Know

    • Hawaii Gov. Josh Green says President Joe Biden could decide within days whether to remain a candidate for reelection
    • And Green told The Associated Press on Saturday that if Biden drops out, he expects Vice President Kamala Harris to replace Biden at the top of the ticket
    • Green says he thinks Biden will stay in the race unless he feels it’s not winnable or he feels that other voices in his inner circle say he shouldn’t run
    • He says ultimately Biden has to make the decision, and it shouldn’t come from anyone but his closest advisers and his heart



    “I think the president stays in this race unless he feels that it is not winnable, or he feels that he has to hear other voices in his inner circle that he shouldn’t run,” Green said. “If the president felt that he wasn’t up to it and truly not up to it, he would step down.

    “We’ll probably know in the next couple of days how the president feels about all this,” he said.

    Biden has repeatedly insisted that he will remain in the race against his likely Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump. But questions about Biden’s mental acuity have swirled since his disastrous debate performance last month. As some of his fellow Democrats have encouraged Biden to exit the campaign, the president has pointed to support from other elected officials in the party, particularly governors.

    Green, who was a physician on Hawaii’s Big Island before he was elected governor, said everyone has parents or grandparents who have moments that aren’t that great or pauses in their ability to express themselves clearly. But, he added, they aren’t discarded because of their experience, wisdom and their role in the family.

    “That’s why I’m standing by the president until he tells me otherwise,” said Green.

    Green said the timeline of a few days for a decision anticipates pressure that might be placed on Biden after members of Congress return this week to Capitol Hill.

    “I really, honestly think that he has to make the decision. And it should not come from another governor. It should not come from anyone but the closest, closest advisers to him and his own heart,” Green said.

    Green was quick to point out that Trump is only three years younger than Biden and both will have bad days going forward. But he argued that temperament is more important than age.

    “For God’s sake, these two guys have to hold the nuclear codes,” Green said. “I don’t want someone who tweets in the middle of the night and rages at other countries. That is not good. That’s not the problem we have with President Biden.”

    If Biden were to leave the campaign, Green said the president should be allowed to say who he thinks should replace him on the ticket.

    “I think it’s very clear that the Democratic Party would be ecstatic overall to have the president designate his vice president if it came to that,” Green said.

    Harris “is a powerful person, she is also a thought-leading woman, she’s an African American who was (California’s) attorney general,” Green said. “There are no credentials that are better than what the current vice president has.”

    Green, whose wife’s uncle was Biden’s college roommate, also provided insight into last week’s meeting that governors had with the president. During the meeting, Green asked Biden about his health. Biden responded by saying everything was fine except for his brain.

    Green told the AP that the president was joking, and that context was lost when leaked by other people.

    “It was absolutely a joke, and in order to make a self-deprecating joke, you have to have intact cognitive function, period,” Green said.

    He also discounted any assertion that advisers crafted the meeting to have governors supportive of Biden speak first to quell any dissent. Instead, he said it was a very candid, unscripted conversation with 25 governors with differing opinions.

    “That call had just like you’d expect in a coffee shop, a few people mouthed off, a few people, you know, probably excessively praised the president, but almost everybody was just trying to see, ‘Are we OK?’” Green said.

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  • At Essence, Black Democrats rally behind Biden and talk up Kamala Harris

    At Essence, Black Democrats rally behind Biden and talk up Kamala Harris

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    As President Joe Biden tries to revive his embattled reelection bid, Vice President Kamala Harris led a parade of Black Democrats who warned Saturday that the threat of another Donald Trump presidency remains the most important calculation ahead of November.

    Yet in more than 20 minutes on stage at the Essence Festival of Culture, Harris did not acknowledge Biden’s dismal debate performance or calls for the 81-year-old president to end his reelection bid. In fact, she barely mentioned Biden at all – a stark contrast to the Congressional Black Caucus members who forcefully and repeatedly defended the president by name.

    What You Need To Know

    • Vice President Kamala Harris is leading a parade of Black Democrats who warn that the threat of another Donald Trump presidency is the most important calculation ahead of November
    • But in her appearance Saturday at the Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans, Harris did not mention President Joe Biden’s dismal debate performance or calls for the 81-year-old president to step down
    • It was a contrast to Congressional Black Caucus members who defended Biden forcefully
    • The dynamics reflect the difficult task for the White House and Biden’s campaign to handle the debate fallout. It’s especially tough for Harris. She’s Biden’s top lieutenant and defender
    • But if Biden steps aside, she is perhaps the favorite to replace him as Democratic nominee



    “This is probably the most significant election of our lifetime,” Harris said, before riffing on Trump musing about being a dictator, pushing the Supreme Court rightward and promising retribution on political enemies. “In 122 days, we each have the power to decide what kind of country we want to live in.”

    Harris’s appearance at the nation’s largest annual celebration of Black culture underscores what a difficult task it is for the White House and campaign to navigate questions about the president’s aptitude. The dynamics are especially fraught for Harris, the first Black woman and person of south Asian descent to be elected vice president, and for the Black Democrats who were so instrumental in electing Biden and her in 2020.

    On one hand, Harris fills the traditional role of loyal lieutenant, a job she did enthusiastically — and on the fly — in television appearances immediately after Biden’s lackluster debate ended. Yet should Biden ultimately decide to step aside as presumptive nominee, she would be among the favorites, if not the favorite, to carry the Democratic banner against Trump.

    Black leaders and voters who gathered in New Orleans, meanwhile, walked the line Saturday between backing Biden and insisting that, if he does end his campaign, the party should elevate the barrier-breaking vice president rather than consider governors like Gavin Newsom of California or Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, both of whom are white.

    “The purpose of a vice president is to be a No. 2, to be able to step in,” said Glynda Carr, who leads the Higher Heights political action organization that works to elect more Black women. “If this was an all-white male ticket, would we be talking about other people who have less experience, less qualifications?”

    Antjuan Seawright, a Black Democratic consultant who is close to House Rep. Jim Clyburn, a Biden ally, put it more plainly. “Joe Biden isn’t going anywhere,” he said. But if he does, “anyone other than Kamala would be malpractice — and it would tear the party apart.”

    Seawright argued that the pressure on Biden to step aside is coming from white Democrats or non-white minorities other than Black Democrats so far, at least publicly. He said that divide is mostly about Black voters’ trust in Biden and their recognition of his record. But he said it’s also about what’s good for the party as a whole, including Black politicians. Risking a contested convention, even one that nominates Harris, could ensure widespread losses, and in turn, make it less likely than ever to see Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries become Speaker or Harris or another Black woman sit in the Oval Office.

    Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and her colleagues echoed some of those sentiments.

    “People say Joe Biden’s too old. Hell, I’m older than Biden!” said the 85-year-old congresswoman. “It ain’t gonna be no other Democratic candidate, and we better know it.”

    Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, played up the power Harris already holds.

    “We got a Black vice president of the United States of America, a sister who came here to be with us today,” she said. “So, let’s not get it twisted. I know who I’m voting for. I’m with the Biden-Harris team, because we’re still going to have a sister in the White House fighting for us and making a difference.”

    Waters said Biden’s support of Black communities and the contrast with Trump should be enough. She called the former president “a no-good, lying, despicable human being” with a white nationalist agenda. “Who the hell do you think he’s going to come after?” Waters asked, noting Trump’s support from groups like the Proud Boys. “You know he means business.”

    In more than a dozen interviews with Essence attendees, opinions varied on Biden’s strength as a candidate and his abilities to serve another four years. But there was a clear consensus on several points: Only Biden can decide his fate; if he does step away, he should back Harris; and defeating Trump is the top priority.

    “I’m with him, absolutely,” said Erica Peterson of New Orleans. “He’s delivered, and one debate is not going to change my mind. … And if it’s not Joe Biden, I’m with her.”

    Star Robert, a 37-year-old nurse in New York City, said if there’s a shift, then Biden and Democrats could not credibly choose anyone other than Harris, given that the president, party and voters already chose her as second-in-line. Still, she was skeptical about Harris’s prospects.

    “I’m not sure that she’s done enough to generate the trust of enough voters,” Robert said. “I don’t know if that’s all her fault, I just haven’t seen enough of her, we haven’t. I don’t know what her angle is.”

    Regardless, Robert added, “I’m not sure the country is ready for another Black president, and if we were ready for a woman, Hillary Clinton would have beaten the clown (Trump) the first time he ran.”

    Harris, for her part, answered that kind of skepticism even as she studiously avoided the immediate campaign drama.

    “Ambition is a good thing. We do not need to step quietly,” she said of being a woman of color in powerful circles. “People in your life will tell you it’s not your time. It’s not your turn. Nobody like you has done it before. … I like to say that I eat ‘no’ for breakfast.”

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