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Tag: Trump

  • Our readers have a lot to say about the Border Patrol in North Carolina

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    A Border Patrol agent searches a neighborhood in Southeast Raleigh, Nov. 18, 2025.

    A Border Patrol agent searches a neighborhood in Southeast Raleigh, Nov. 18, 2025.


    Scott Sharpe

    ssharpe@newsobserver.com

    I personally never saw the federal agents patrolling North Carolina, looking for brown people to harass and detain, but I felt their presence. Fear permeated our community this week. I sensed it from the time I received a text from my son on Monday morning saying that his high school’s Culture Fest scheduled for that night was canceled because of “ice” and families being afraid to go out, and it took me a minute to realize he wasn’t talking about the weather.

    President Trump can tell us this was all about our safety, to protect us from “violent criminals,” but astute North Carolinians know better. Violent criminals who present a threat to public safety can and should be arrested – by law enforcement officers willing to show their faces, with judicial warrants bearing the suspects’ names. This was not about public safety. This was an indiscriminate roundup of brown people, designed to instill fear.

    The Trump administration underestimated how much we love our neighbors in North Carolina. I am proud of the way our community came together to protect each other. My guess is that the operation fell short of its quotas because of who we are. I hope and pray that memories of this week influence voters in 2026 and 2028. This cannot continue.

    Elizabeth Barrett Lippincott, Chapel Hill

    Hard but necessary

    There is definitely disruption within the illegal immigrant community. The outrage among the (mostly) liberal and immigrant community is loud and disruptive to law enforcement and borderline violent on occasion. Where was the outrage during the Biden Administration when illegal migrants crossed our southern border and were dispersed into our country from coast to coast?

    The tough stand and tactics of ICE are a result of lax law enforcement by the prior administration, and the lack of resolve by both parties in Congress to fix our immigration laws. Hard to watch, but necessary.

    Jerry Doliner, Raleigh

    There are an estimated 10 million to 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. Their “crime” was entering the country without following legal steps. “Hardened criminals” the vast majority of them are not. A large number of them come from Central America, where for decades repressive military dictatorships — backed by U.S. government officials obsessed with what they perceived as a looming “Communist threat” — kidnapped, tortured, executed and “disappeared” thousands.

    If the administration was truly concerned about “criminality,” it would take an honest look at the way successive U.S. administrations supported cruel military dictatorships for decades in Central America, which in turn led people to flee violence and poverty in their countries. Then it would instruct legislators to stop dithering and craft an immigration bill to address a flawed system that’s not been reformed in 40 years. The bill should include fair and humane avenues for decent and law-abiding undocumented families to remain.

    Until Congress acts, the mobilization of masked forces in battle gear, cruising our neighborhoods to round up brown, Latino “illegals,” whose heinous crime was bringing their fleeing families across our border, is nothing but shallow and immoral political theatrics.

    Joe Moran, Durham

    Fear from citizens, too

    My wife and I are in our late 80s and still live in our house but require weekly cleaning help. We have been using a couple from Mexico to help us with this task. They have been helping us for over ten years. We always look forward to their presence. This morning they called saying they would be unable to make it because they were afraid to leave their house for fear of being rounded up by ICE with no due process, no warrant with nothing other than they speak with an accent. They are in the US legally, pay their taxes, obey the law, and do what all good citizens do. Now, they are afraid. Why?

    Ed Eggers, Raleigh

    How to respond

    I‘m appalled at the actions of Border Patrol and ICE in NC. They’re targeting and abusing people on suspicion of what? Most of the people arrested aren’t violent offenders; some are citizens. Not having papers doesn’t deprive you of the right to due process, to respect and to dignity.

    The billions of tax dollars we’re spending on brutalizing people could be spent on building community rather than destroying it.

    Separating families, brutally manhandling people, and terrorizing communities do not align with my values or my vision of America. We need to change course. Be sure you’re registered to vote!

    Helen Wolfson, Durham

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  • Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of JFK, reveals terminal cancer diagnosis

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    Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of slain President John F. Kennedy, is battling a rare form of leukemia and may have less than a year to live.

    In an essay published Saturday in the New Yorker, the 35-year-old environmental journalist wrote her illness was discovered in May 2024 after she gave birth to her daughter. She was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia with a rare mutation known as Inversion 3 and has undergone several treatments, including chemotherapy and bone marrow transplants.

    Schlossberg is a daughter of former U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, the former president’s daughter, and Edwin Schlossberg. They live in New York.

    In her essay, Schlossberg acknowledged that her terminal illness adds to a string of tragedies that has befallen the famous political family. Her grandfather was assassinated in Dallas in 1963. Nearly five years later, his brother, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, was fatally shot in Los Angeles after giving a victory speech at the Ambassador Hotel following his California presidential primary win. Her uncle, John F. Kennedy Jr., died in 1999 when his small plane crashed.

    “For my whole life, I have tried to be good, to be a good student and a good sister and a good daughter, and to protect my mother and never make her upset or angry,” Schlossberg wrote.

    “Now I have added a new tragedy to her life, to our family’s life, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”

    She wrote her diagnosis was stunning. She had just turned 34, didn’t feel sick and was physically active, including swimming a mile one day before she gave birth to her second child at Columbia-Presbyterian hospital in New York.

    After the delivery, her doctor became alarmed by her high white blood cell count.

    At first, medical professionals figured the test result might be tied to her pregnancy. However, doctors soon concluded she had myeloid leukemia, a condition mostly observed in older patients. She ended up spending weeks in the hospital.

    “Every doctor I saw asked me if I had spent a lot of time at Ground Zero, given how common blood cancers are among first responders,” Schlossberg wrote. “I was in New York on 9/11, in the sixth grade, but I didn’t visit the site until years later.”

    She has endured various treatments. Her older sister, Rose, was one of her bone marrow donors.

    In the article, Schlossberg mentioned the Kennedy family’s dilemma over controversial positions taken by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., her mother’s cousin. Schlossberg wrote that while she was in the hospital in mid-2024, Kennedy suspended his long-shot campaign for president to throw his weight behind then-Republican candidate Donald Trump.

    Trump went on to name Kennedy to his Cabinet as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    In one of his early moves, Trump demanded a cut in government money to Columbia University, which employs her husband, George Moran.

    “Doctors and scientists at Columbia, including George, didn’t know if they would be able to continue their research, or even have jobs,” she wrote. “Suddenly, the health-care system on which I relied felt strained, shaky.”

    On Saturday, her brother Jack Schlossberg, who recently announced his bid for Congress in a New York district, shared on Instagram a link to her New Yorker essay, “A Battle with My Blood.”

    He added: “Life is short — let it rip.”

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    Meg James

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  • The Right Reaping the Moral Decline of Embracing Trump | RealClearPolitics

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    The Right Reaping the Moral Decline of Embracing Trump

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    Peter Wehner, The Atlantic

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  • News Analysis: How the Saudi crown prince went from pariah to feted White House guest

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    BEIRUT  — Seven years ago, he was virtually persona non grata, any link to him considered kryptonite among U.S. political and business elite for his alleged role in the killing of a Washington Post columnist and Saudi critic.

    But when Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman came to Washington this week, he cemented a remarkable comeback, positioning himself as the linchpin of a new regional order in the Middle East, and his country as an essential partner in America’s AI-driven future.

    During what amounted to a state visit, the crown prince — Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader — was given the literal red carpet treatment: A Marine band, flag-bearing horsemen and a squadron of F-35s in the skies above; a black-tie dinner attended by a raft of business leaders in the prince’s honor; a U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum at the Kennedy Center the next day.

    Throughout, Bin Salman (or MBS, as many call him) proved himself a keen practitioner of the brand of transactional politics favored by President Trump.

    President Trump and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman walk down the Colonnade on the way to the Oval Office of the White House on Tuesday.

    (Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images)

    He fulfilled Trump’s ask, first floated back in May during the Riyadh edition of the U.S.-Saudi Forum, to raise the kingdom’s U.S. investment commitments from $600 million to almost $1 trillion.

    And the prince managed to mollify Trump in his oft-repeated call for Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, the normalization pacts with Israel brokered during the president’s first term, even while changing nothing of his long-stated position: That establishing ties with Israel be accompanied by steps toward Palestinian statehood — an outcome many in Israel’s political class reject.

    “We believe having a good relation with all Middle Eastern countries is a good thing, and we want to be part of the Abraham Accords. But we want also to be sure that we secure a clear path [to a] two-state solution,” Bin Salman said.

    “We want peace with the Israelis. We want peace with the Palestinians, we want them to coexist peacefully,” he added.

    President Trump greets Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, at the White House.

    President Trump greets Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, at the White House on Tuesday.

    (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images)

    At home in Saudi Arabia, the trip was touted as an unequivocal triumph for the prince. Saudi state media boasted the country’s emergence as a major non-NATO ally for the U.S., and the signing of a so-called Strategic Defense Agreement as demonstrating Riyadh’s centrality to American strategic thinking.

    This touting came despite little clarity on what that agreement actually entails: Its text wasn’t published, and it was mentioned only in passing in a White House “fact sheet,” which emphasized Saudi Arabia would “buy American” with significant purchases of tanks, missiles and F-35s; the latter would be the first time the U.S.’ most advanced jet is sold to an Arab country.

    Saudi Arabia will also be given access to top-line AI chips, enabling it to leverage plentiful land and energy resources to build data centers while “protecting U.S. technology from foreign influence,” according to the White House.

    Talks over Riyadh’s civilian nuclear program, stalled for a decade over concerns from previous administrations, yielded a framework that in theory allows Saudi Arabia to build a nuclear plant. Uranium enrichment, which in theory would allow weaponization, isn’t part of the agreement, U.S. officials say.

    Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud and President Trump watch a flyover.

    Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and President Trump watch a flyover of F-15 and F-35 fighters before meeting at the White House.

    (Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images)

    On the regional politics front, Bin Salman got a pledge from Trump to help broker an end to the war in Sudan.

    The visit capped Bin Salman’s stunning redemption arc from the nadir of his reputation seven years ago.

    Back then, his image as a dauntless reformer — reversing bans on women driving, neutering the country’s notorious religious police — was already crumbling after he sought to silence not only foreign opponents, but anyone domestically who questioned Vision 2030, his far-reaching (and hugely expensive) plan for transforming Saudi Arabia.

    Then came the 2018 strangulation and dismemberment in Turkey of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi insider-turned-mild-critic and Washington Post columnist.

    Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seen inside a vehicle.

    Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seen inside a vehicle while leaving the White House after a meeting in the Oval Office with President Trump.

    (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images)

    Trump appeared more inclined to side with the prince, who denied any involvement in the killing, but the CIA said in a leaked report it had high confidence the prince ordered Khashoggi’s assassination.

    Association with Bin Salman, once Washington’s Middle East darling, became toxic. International companies rushed to pull out of the kingdom. Politicians made it clear he was unwelcome. Then-candidate Joe Biden vowed to make the Saudi government “a pariah.”

    In time, the prince stepped back from his more pugilistic policies, while geopolitics, energy concerns and a turbulent Middle East forced Biden to moderate his rejectionist stance.

    In 2022, Biden visited the prince — giving him a tepid fist bump — to coax him into lowering energy prices.

    That same year, Riyadh helped broker a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine. Later, a China-brokered agreement saw the prince calm his country’s stormy diplomatic relations with Iran. Just last month, he reportedly worked behind the scenes to push through a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

    His White House visit seemed to cement his comeback, but little of what was promised is a done deal.

    For one, whether Saudi Arabia can pony up $1 trillion — a figure amounting to 80% of its annual GDP and more than twice its foreign exchange reserves — is an open question.

    Crucially, the prince didn’t specify when the money would be invested.

    Though the investment pledge is big, “how much and over what period of time is completely unclear,” said Tim Callen, an economist and former International Monetary Fund mission chief to Saudi Arabia.

    Saudi Arabia is also pulling back on its government spending, with deflated oil prices forcing it to downsize many of its gigaprojects, Callen added.

    “The pot of money available to push out all these projects and investments has shrunk, relative to 2022 and 2023,” he said.

    “My take on it is that things are going to advance both on the investment and trade side [between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia] because there are mutual economic interests between the two countries,” he said. But in the short term, he added, $1 trillion “is too big a number for the economy of Saudi Arabia.”

    As for F-35s, seeing them on Saudi runways is likely to take years. Congress has to approve F-35 sales, and some opposition could arise if they’re seen to jeopardize Israel’s qualitative military edge.

    Israel, the only nation in the F-35 program allowed to use certain specialized technology, would expect Saudi Arabia to receive “planes of reduced caliber,” Trump said on Tuesday, with the prince on his side.

    “I don’t think that makes you too happy,” he said to the prince.

    “As far as I’m concerned,” Trump added, “I think [Israel and Saudi Arabia] are both at a level where they should get top of the line.”

    But the bigger obstacle may be Saudi Arabia’s links to China, said Richard Aboulafia, managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory and an aviation analyst.

    Saudi security forces stand at attention beneath a portrait of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman.

    Saudi security forces stand at attention beneath a portrait of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, during a military parade as pilgrims arrive for the annual pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca on May 31.

    (AFP via Getty Images)

    In recent years, Saudi Arabia has run military exercises with the Chinese navy and fielded Chinese-made weapons in its armed forces. Ensuring it doesn’t get a look at the aircraft’s capabilities presents “a different set of challenges,” Aboulafia said. Similar concerns scuttled the United Arab Emirates’ attempts to acquire the jet, he added.

    Another issue is that a backlog in aircraft delivery means another recipient would need to give up their production slots in Saudi Arabia’s favor.

    Also key to Bin Salman’s return to the U.S.’ full embrace was his treatment by Trump at the White House.

    When a reporter asked the prince about the Khashoggi killing, it was Trump who put up a vociferous defense, and called Khashoggi “extremely controversial.”

    “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about. Whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen, but he knew nothing about it,” Trump said, pointing to the crown prince.

    President Trump, right, and Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's crown prince, shake hands.

    President Trump, right, and Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, shake hands during their meeting in the Oval Office.

    (Nathan Howard / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

    Trump also took a swing at Biden’s fist bump, engaging in an awkward hand-grabbing game with Bin Salman.

    “I grabbed that hand,” Trump said. “I don’t give a hell where that hand’s been.”

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    Nabih Bulos

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  • DeSantis says Trump’s oil drilling could ‘weaken’ environment, military training

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    Credit: Shutterstock

    Gov. Ron DeSantis warned Friday that President Donald Trump’s push to drill off the Florida coast could “weaken” environmental protections and interfere with military training.

    DeSantis referred to the U.S. Department of the Interior’s plan to reinvigorate oil drilling off of Florida and Southern California for the first time in decades. The federal government has not allowed drilling in federal waters in the eastern Gulf since 1995 because of oil spill concerns, the AP reported.

    “We supported the 2020 decision that the Trump administration made at the time, we worked very closely with them. I thought it was very thoughtful policy in 2020,” DeSantis said during an unrelated Crystal River press conference Friday morning.

    “Now what the Interior Department is proposing to do is really to go back off that policy, and I think that would weaken protections that we worked very hard to establish offshore.”

    Those protections reflect environmental fears of damaging Florida’s coastlines and marine life and the military’s ability to train in the Panhandle. Florida has multiple military bases in Panama City and Pensacola.

    “[The military says] it’s really important to be able to have that access to be able to do key training,” the governor continued. “We hope that they double down on the 2020 policy and not push ahead with what Interior wants to do now.”

    This is one of the rarer instances of DeSantis breaking with Trump since the 2024 elections. The tension between the two ahead of and throughout the presidential primary had been replaced with a quieter complacency. Both Trump and DeSantis have been tightly aligned on most conservative issues, especially immigration, while public disagreement has stayed at a muted minimum.

    ‘Dead on arrival’

    According to the Associated Press, the proposal targets six offshore lease sales between 2027 and 2030 along the California coast. It would also spur drilling at least 100 miles offshore of Florida in South-Central Gulf region and compel more than 20 lease sales off the Alaskan coast.

    Backlash has been swift in all targeted states. In Florida, DeSantis became the latest Republican to add his voice to join a bipartisan outcry at the plan, joining lawmakers like U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody and U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis. U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, a leading Trump ally, helped persuade the president in 2018 to drop a similar offshore plan when he served as governor.

    Trump agreed at the time to maintain a drilling moratorium until 2032. Earlier this month, Scott and Moody co-sponsored legislation to codify that moratorium.

    In 2010, the Gulf was rocked by a massive oil spill caused by an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform. Eleven men were killed, the rig began to sink, and a catastrophic oil leak sprouted from the well, NOAA reported. It would take three months to cap the spill, allowing roughly 134 million gallons of oil to seep into the ocean in the largest such spill in the nation’s history.

    Politicos aren’t the only ones concerned about the new proposal.

    Sierra Club Florida called the plan “unacceptable” and potentially detrimental to both the state’s environment and the economy.

    “President Trump and his administration may be eager to hand out blank checks to oil and gas companies, but it will not be at Florida’s expense,” Javier Estevez, the group’s political and legislative director, said in a written statement. “We refuse to allow our coastal economies, quality of life, and irreplaceable natural resources to be sacrificed for corporate profit.

    “Any such proposal is dead on arrival, and we will work tirelessly to ensure our coasts are protected.”

    Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Contact Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on Facebook and Twitter.

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    U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted for allegedly stealing $5M and laundering it toward her 2021 congressional campaign

    This is one of the rarer instances of DeSantis breaking with Trump since the 2024 elections

    In Florida, maliciously disturbing a religious gathering is a first-degree misdemeanor, or a third-degree felony with hate crime enhancement



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    Livia Caputo, Florida Phoenix
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  • Montana’s ‘Pedophile bonfire’ to burn MAGA merch isn’t real

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    A Montana town’s “pedophile bonfire” sounds like a headline-making event, but it isn’t in the state’s local news. There is a good reason for that: It isn’t real.

    After the House Oversight Committee’s Nov. 12 release of about 20,000 pages of documents involving convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, social media users speculated about the files’ mentions of President Donald Trump. It was in that context that social media users spread news of disappointed former Trump supporters staging a fiery small-town demonstration..

    “BREAKING: A Montana town that voted 89% for Donald Trump a year ago is holding a ‘Pedophile Bonfire’ event in their public park tonight for anyone who wants to come burn their Trump flags and MAGA hats,” read a Nov. 15 X post by left-leaning commentator Brian Krassenstein. It attracted 918.2K views as of Nov. 21.

    Other liberal influencers and groups shared the same claim on Facebook and Instagram. 

    But this faux memorabilia-burning demonstration news originated Nov. 13 from a satirical X account and website called The Halfway Post, which describes itself as posting “halfway true comedy and satire.” 

    There are no credible news reports from Montana, which supported Trump in 2024, about such a bonfire. 

    Although we found some social media videos and news stories showing people burning MAGA hats in response to the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files in recent months and weeks, we did not find news of a bonfire.

    We rate the claim that a Montana town held a “pedophile bonfire” in a public park in November to burn Trump merchandise Pants on Fire!

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  • Trump Says He Wants Ukraine’s Answer on Peace Plan by Thursday

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    President Trump said he wants Ukraine to accept a sweeping U.S. deal to end its nearly four-year-old war with Russia by Thanksgiving, giving Kyiv less than a week to decide whether to agree to a draft plan that would make major concessions to Russia.

    “Thursday is, we think, an appropriate time,” Trump told Fox News Radio’s Brian Kilmeade in response to a question about whether he has given Ukraine a Thanksgiving deadline to agree to the plan. “We’re in it for one thing. We want the killing to stop.”

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

    [ad_2] Ian Lovett
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  • Race for California governor continues to heat up, with Trump critic Rep. Eric Swalwell jumping in

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    San Francisco Bay Area Democrat Eric Swalwell, a nettlesome foil and frequent target of President Trump and Republicans, on Thursday announced his bid for California governor.

    The congressman declared his bid during an appearance on the ABC late-night show hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, adding a little Hollywood flourish to a crowded, somewhat sleepy race filled with candidates looking for ways to catch fire in the 2026 election.

    Voter interest in the race remains relatively moribund, especially after two of California’s most prominent Democrats — former Vice President Kamala Harris and current U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla — opted to skip the race after months of speculation. About 44% of registered voters said in late October that they had not picked a preferred candidate to lead California, which is the most populous state in the union and has the fourth-largest economy in the world.

    The lack of a blockbuster candidate in the race, however, continues to entice others to jump in. Earlier this week, billionaire hedge fund founder Tom Steyer announced his bid, and other well-known Democrats are exploring a possible run.

    Swalwell, a 45-year-old former Republican and former prosecutor who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2020, said his decision was driven by the serious problems facing California and the threats posed to the state and nation with Trump in the White House.

    “People are scared and prices are high, and I see the next governor of California having two jobs — one to keep the worst president ever out of our homes, streets and lives,” Swalwell said in an interview with The Times. “The second job is to bring what I call a new California, and that’s especially and most poignantly on housing and affordability in a state where we have the highest unemployment rate in the country, and the average age for a first-time homebuyer is 40 years old, and so we need to bring that down.”

    Gov. Gavin Newsom cannot run for reelection because of term limits, and he is currently weighing a 2028 presidential bid.

    None of the candidates in the race, including Swalwell, possess the statewide notoriety, success or fundraising prowess of California’s most recent governors: Newsom, California political icon Jerry Brown and movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger.

    “If you look at the past three governors, they’ve all had personalities,” said Jim DeBoo, Newsom’s former chief of staff, at a political conference at USC on Tuesday. “When you’re looking at the field right now, most people don’t know” much about the candidates in the crowded race despite their political bona fides.

    Nearly a dozen prominent Democrats and Republicans are running for governor next year, including: former Rep. Katie Porter of Irvine, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa: Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond; former Controller Betty Yee and conservative commentator Steve Hilton. And speculation continues to swirl about billionaire real estate developer Rick Caruso and Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta possibly entering the race.

    On Thursday, Thurmond proposed a tax on the wealthy to fund education, healthcare, firefighting and construction. The proposal was seen in part as a subtle dig at Steyer and Caruso, both of whom have used their wealth to fund previous runs for office.

    “The naysayers say California’s ultra wealthy already pay enough, and that taxing billionaires will stifle innovation and force companies to leave our state,” he said in an online video. “I don’t buy it.”

    Steyer painted his decision to leave the hedge fund he created in California as an example of his desire to give back to the state’s residents in an ad that will begin airing on Friday.

    “It’s really goddamn simple. Tackle the cost-of-living crises or get the hell out of the way. Californians are the hardest-working people in the country. But the question is who’s getting the benefit of this,” he says in the ad, arguing that he took on corporations that refused to pay state taxes as well as oil and tobacco companies. “Let’s get down to brass tacks: It’s too expensive to live here.”

    Porter also went after Steyer, another sign that the intensity of the race is heating up as the June primary fast approaches.

    “A new billionaire in our race claims he’ll fight the very industries he got rich helping grow — fossil fuel companies, tobacco and private immigration detention facilities — at great cost to Californians,” she wrote on X on Wednesday.

    The former congresswoman was the subject of recent attacks from Democratic rivals in the governor’s race after videos emerged of her scolding a reporter and swearing at an aide. Yee said she should drop out of the race and Villaraigosa blistered her in ads.

    Villaraigosa also attacked Becerra for his connection to the scandal that rocked Sacramento last week, involving money from one of his campaign accounts being funneled to his former chief of staff while Becerra served in the Biden administration.

    “We don’t have a strong or robust opposition party in California, so you end up like seeing a lot of this action on the dance floor in the primary, obviously, between Democrats, which is going to be interesting,” said Elizabeth Ashford, who worked for Schwarzenegger, Brown and Harris and currently advises Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas. “There’s obviously a lot of longtime relationships and longtime loyalties and interactions between these folks. And so what’s going to happen? Big question mark.”

    The ability to protect California from Trump’s policies and political vindictiveness and deal with the state’s affordability, housing and homelessness crisis will be pivotal to Swalwell’s potential path to the governor’s mansion. His choice to announce his decision on Kimmel’s show was telling — the host’s show was briefly suspended by Walt Disney-owned ABC under pressure from Trump after Kimmel made comments about the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

    Kimmel thanked Swalwell for his support during that period, which included the congressman handing out pro-Kimmel merchandise to his colleagues in Washington, D.C., before the two discussed the future of the state.

    “I love California, it’s the greatest country in the world. Country,” Swalwell said. “But that’s why it pisses me off to see Californians running through the fields where they work from ICE agents or troops in our streets. It’s horrifying. Cancer research being canceled. It’s awful to look at. And our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector, someone who will bring prices down, lift wages up.”

    There is a history of Californians announcing campaigns on late-night television. Schwarzenegger launched his 2003 gubernatorial bid on “The Tonight Show,” hosted by Jay Leno; Swalwell announced his unsuccessful presidential bid on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”

    As a member of the House Intelligence Committee, Swalwell said, he traveled to nearly 40 countries, and he would try to leverage the relationships he formed by creating an ambassador program to find global research money for California given the cuts the Trump administration has made to cancer research and other programs.

    The congressman is perhaps best known for criticizing Trump on cable news programs. But he’s faced ample attacks as well.

    In 2020, Swalwell came under scrutiny because of his association with Chinese spy Fang Fang, who raised money for his congressional campaign. He cut off ties with her in 2015 after intelligence officials briefed him and other members of Congress about Chinese efforts to infiltrate the legislative body. He was not accused of impropriety.

    He is also being investigated by the Department of Justice over mortgage fraud allegations, which he dismissed as retribution for him being a full-throated critic of Trump.

    Swalwell served on the City Council of the East Bay city of Dublin before being elected to Congress in 2012 by defeating Rep. Pete Stark, a fellow Democrat.

    An Iowa native, Swalwell grew up in Dublin, which he said was “a town of low-income expectations” that was smeared as “Scrublin” at the time. He said that after graduating from law school, he served on the local planning commission that helped transform Dublin. The town increased housing, attracted Fortune 500 employers, exponentially improved the number of students going to college and leveraged developers to improve schools, resources for senior citizens, and police and fire services.

    “We have a Whole Foods, which no one can afford to shop at,” he said.

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    Seema Mehta

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  • The Web of Venezuelan Generals Accused of Fueling the Cocaine Trade

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    For more than two decades, a loose-knit group of Venezuelan generals and senior officials has enabled the shipment of thousands of tons of cocaine to the U.S. and Europe, American and Colombian officials say.

    While nearly all cocaine is produced in neighboring Colombia, Venezuela plays an important role in allowing the drug to move through its territory and then onto ships and planes that traffic it to Europe, the Caribbean and the U.S., the officials have said. 

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

    [ad_2] José de Córdoba
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  • Trump calls Democrats ‘traitors’ for urging military to ‘refuse illegal orders’

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    WASHINGTON — President Trump on Thursday said he believed Democratic lawmakers who publicly urged active service members to “refuse illegal orders” amounted to seditious behavior, which he said should be punishable by death.

    “It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand — We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET,” Trump said in a social media post.

    Trump went on to amplify more than a dozen social media posts from other people, who in reaction to Trump’s post called for the Democrats to be arrested, charged and in one instance hanged. Trump then continued: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

    The president’s remarks were in reaction to a joint video released by six Democrat lawmakers in which they urged military and intelligence personnel to “refuse illegal orders.”

    The Democratic lawmakers who released the video — Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Michigan Sen. Alyssa Slotkin, Pennsylvania Rep. Chris Deluzio, New Hampshire Rep. Maggie Goodlander, Pennsylvania Rep. Chrissy Houlahan and Colorado Rep. Jason Crow — served in the military or as intelligence officers.

    They did not specify which orders they were referring to. But they said the Trump administration was “pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professional against American citizens” and that threats to the Constitution were coming “from right here at home.”

    The video, which was posted on Tuesday, quickly drew criticism from Republicans, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth who characterized it as “Stage 4 [Trump Derangement Syndrome].” But Trump, who first reacted to the video on Thursday, saw the video as more than partisan speech.

    “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???” Trump said in another post.

    When asked Thursday if the president wanted to execute members of Congress, as suggested in one of his social media posts, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said “no.”

    But, Leavitt said, the president does want to see them be “held accountable.”

    “That is a very, very dangerous message and it is perhaps punishable by law,” Leavitt said. “I’ll leave that to the Department of justice and the Department of War to decide.”

    What the law says

    Under a federal law known as “seditious conspiracy,” it is a crime for two or more individuals to “conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States” or to “prevent, hinder or delay the execution of any law of the United States” by force.

    A seditious conspiracy charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

    Federal courts and legal scholars have long emphasized that seditious conspiracy charges apply only to coordinated efforts to use force against the government, rather than political dissent.

    The last time federal prosecutors pursued seditious conspiracy charges was in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers were convicted of seditious conspiracy and other charges for plotting to prevent by force the transfer of presidential power to Joe Biden.

    Among the convicted individuals was former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, whose 22-year sentence was the stiffest of any of the Jan. 6 rioters. Trump pardoned him earlier this year.

    Hours after the president’s posts, the six Democratic lawmakers issued a joint statement, calling on Americans to “unite and condemn the President’s calls for our murder and political violence.”

    “What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law,” the lawmakers said in a statement posted to X. “Our service members should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders.”

    Democratic leaders in Washington and across the country denounced Trump’s post.

    House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in a statement with other Democratic leaders that Trump’s comments were “disgusting and dangerous death threats against members of Congress.” They added that they had been in contact with U.S. Capitol Police to ensure the safety of the Democrat lawmakers and their families.

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom reacted to the posts by saying Trump “is sick in the head” for calling for the death of Democratic lawmakers.

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    Ana Ceballos

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  • Cheney to be honored during funeral at Washington National Cathedral

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    Past presidents and politicians of both parties will gather Thursday in Washington, D.C., for former Vice President Dick Cheney’s funeral.Neither President Donald Trump nor Vice President JD Vance were invited to Cheney’s funeral, according to a source familiar with the matter.Cheney will receive full military honors at the memorial service, which is expected to be a bipartisan who’s who of Washington dignitaries.More than 1,000 guests are expected at the invitation-only funeral Thursday morning at Washington’s National Cathedral — including all four living former vice presidents and two former presidents.Former Presidents George W. Bush and Joe Biden will pay their respects, along with former Vice Presidents Kamala Harris, Mike Pence, Al Gore and Dan Quayle. There are also expected to be a number of Supreme Court Justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Elena Kagan. A large number of past and present Cabinet members from both Republican and Democratic administrations will also attend, as well as congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle.Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is expected to attend along with Senate Majority Leader John Thune and former leader Mitch McConnell.CNN has reached out to the White House for comment. Axios was first to report that Trump was not invited to the funeral.The funeral’s guest list itself is a nod to a time when Washington was not so polarized and politicians from both sides of the aisle paid their respects when a dignitary passed away.Cheney’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. ET. Speakers will include Bush, Cheney’s daughter former Rep. Liz Cheney and some of his grandchildren.Cheney, who served as Bush’s vice president from 2001 to 2009, died on November 3 at the age of 84. Prior to being elected vice president, Cheney served as defense secretary, White House chief of staff and as a congressman representing Wyoming.He was considered one of the most powerful and influential vice presidents in history, but his role as the architect of the Iraq War saw him leave office deeply unpopular and cemented a polarizing legacy.While official Washington funerals usually include invites to the White House, excluding Trump should not be a surprise.Cheney was a lifetime hardline conservative who endorsed Trump’s 2016 campaign. But he spent the last years of his life speaking out against Trump, particularly after his daughter then-Rep. Liz Cheney drew the president’s ire for her prominent role in a congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol.In 2022, Cheney described Trump as a coward and said no one was a “greater threat to our republic.”Trump has not publicly expressed his condolences or commented on Cheney’s death.The White House offered a muted reaction after Cheney’s death with press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters that Trump was “aware” the former vice president had died and noting that flags had been lowered to half-staff.Honorary pallbearers at Cheney’s funeral will include members of his Secret Service detail; his former chiefs of staff, David Addington and Scooter Libby; and photographer David Hume Kennerly.On one of the last pages of the service leaflet is a quote from the writer and naturalist John Muir, saying: “The mountains are calling and I must go.”

    WASHINGTON —

    Past presidents and politicians of both parties will gather Thursday in Washington, D.C., for former Vice President Dick Cheney’s funeral.

    Neither President Donald Trump nor Vice President JD Vance were invited to Cheney’s funeral, according to a source familiar with the matter.

    Cheney will receive full military honors at the memorial service, which is expected to be a bipartisan who’s who of Washington dignitaries.

    More than 1,000 guests are expected at the invitation-only funeral Thursday morning at Washington’s National Cathedral — including all four living former vice presidents and two former presidents.

    Former Presidents George W. Bush and Joe Biden will pay their respects, along with former Vice Presidents Kamala Harris, Mike Pence, Al Gore and Dan Quayle. There are also expected to be a number of Supreme Court Justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Elena Kagan. A large number of past and present Cabinet members from both Republican and Democratic administrations will also attend, as well as congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle.

    Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is expected to attend along with Senate Majority Leader John Thune and former leader Mitch McConnell.

    CNN has reached out to the White House for comment. Axios was first to report that Trump was not invited to the funeral.

    The funeral’s guest list itself is a nod to a time when Washington was not so polarized and politicians from both sides of the aisle paid their respects when a dignitary passed away.

    Cheney’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. ET. Speakers will include Bush, Cheney’s daughter former Rep. Liz Cheney and some of his grandchildren.

    Cheney, who served as Bush’s vice president from 2001 to 2009, died on November 3 at the age of 84. Prior to being elected vice president, Cheney served as defense secretary, White House chief of staff and as a congressman representing Wyoming.

    He was considered one of the most powerful and influential vice presidents in history, but his role as the architect of the Iraq War saw him leave office deeply unpopular and cemented a polarizing legacy.

    While official Washington funerals usually include invites to the White House, excluding Trump should not be a surprise.

    Cheney was a lifetime hardline conservative who endorsed Trump’s 2016 campaign. But he spent the last years of his life speaking out against Trump, particularly after his daughter then-Rep. Liz Cheney drew the president’s ire for her prominent role in a congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol.

    In 2022, Cheney described Trump as a coward and said no one was a “greater threat to our republic.”

    Trump has not publicly expressed his condolences or commented on Cheney’s death.

    The White House offered a muted reaction after Cheney’s death with press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters that Trump was “aware” the former vice president had died and noting that flags had been lowered to half-staff.

    Honorary pallbearers at Cheney’s funeral will include members of his Secret Service detail; his former chiefs of staff, David Addington and Scooter Libby; and photographer David Hume Kennerly.

    On one of the last pages of the service leaflet is a quote from the writer and naturalist John Muir, saying: “The mountains are calling and I must go.”

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  • Commentary: Trump and Saudi crown prince bond over their contempt — and fear — of a free press

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    In October of 2018, U.S.-based journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Istanbul, Turkey. The CIA concluded that the assassination was carried out by Saudi operatives, on order of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The prince denied the accusations, although other U.S. intelligence agencies later made the same formal assessment.

    Tuesday, President Trump showered the Saudi leader with praise during his first invitation to the White House since the killing. “We’ve been really good friends for a long period of time,” said Trump. “We’ve always been on the same side of every issue.”

    Clearly. Their shared disdain — and fear — of a free press was evident, from downplaying the killing of Khashoggi to snapping at ABC News reporter Mary Bruce when she asked about his murder.

    “You don’t have to embarrass our guest by asking a question like that,” Trump said, then he proceeded to debase a journalist who wasn’t there to report on the event because he’d been silenced, forever. Referring to Khashoggi, he said, “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about. Whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen.”

    Mohammed bin Salman, left, and Jamal Khashoggi.

    (Associated Press / Tribune News Service)

    Fender-benders happen. Spilled milk happens. But the orchestrated assassination of a journalist by a regime that he covers is not one of those “things” that just happen. It’s an orchestrated hit meant to silence critics, control the narrative and bury whatever corruption, human rights abuses or malfeasance that a healthy free press is meant to expose.

    Bruce did what a competent reporter is supposed to do. She deviated from Tuesday’s up-with-Saudi-Arabia! agenda to ask the hard questions of powerful men not used to being questioned about anything, let alone murder. The meeting was meant to highlight the oil-rich country’s investment in the U.S. economy, and at Trump’s prompting, Prince Mohammed said those investments could total $1 trillion.

    Prince Mohammed addressed the death of Khashoggi by saying his country hopes to do better in the future, whatever that means. “It’s painful and it’s a huge mistake, and we are doing our best that this doesn’t happen again.”

    And just in case the two men hadn’t made clear how little they cared about the slain journalist, and how much they disdain the news media, Trump drove those points home when he referred to Bruce’s query as “a horrible, insubordinate, and just a terrible question.” He suggesting that ABC should lose its broadcasting license.

    Trump confirmed Tuesday that he intends to sell “top of the line” F-35 stealth fighter jets to Riyadh. It’s worth noting that the team of 15 Saudi agents allegedly involved in Khashoggi’s murder flew to Istanbul on government aircraft. The reporter was lured to the Saudi embassy to pick up documents that were needed for his planned marriage to a Turkish woman.

    The prince knew nothing about it, said Trump on Tuesday, despite the findings of a 2021 report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that cited “the direct involvement of a key adviser and members of Mohammad bin Salman’s protective detail.” It concluded that it was “highly unlikely that Saudi officials would have carried out an operation of this nature without the Crown Prince’s authorization.”

    To no one’s surprise, the Saudi government had tried to dodge the issue before claiming Khashoggi had been killed by rogue officials, insisting that the slaying and dismemberment was not premeditated. They offered no explanation of how a bonesaw just happened to be available inside the embassy.

    President Trump shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House in 2018.

    President Trump shakes hands with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House in 2018.

    (MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

    Five men were sentenced to death, but one of Khashoggi’s sons later announced that the family had forgiven the killers, which, in accordance with Islamic law, spared them from execution.

    The president’s castigation of ABC’s Bruce was the second time in a week that he has ripped into a female journalist when she asked a “tough” question (i.e. anything Newsmax won’t ask). Trump was speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One last Friday when Bloomberg News’ Catherine Lucey asked him follow-up question about the Epstein files. The president replied, “Quiet. Quiet, piggy.”

    Trump’s contempt for the press was clear, but so was something else he shares with the crown prince, Hungary’s Victor Orban and Vladimir Putin: The president doesn’t just hate the press. He fears it.

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    Lorraine Ali

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  • Trump signs bill demanding his administration release the Epstein files

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    WASHINGTON — President Trump on Wednesday night signed into law legislation demanding that the Justice Department release all documents related to its investigation into sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

    With little fanfare, the president announced the action in a lengthy social media post that attacked Democrats who have been linked to the late financier, a line of attack that he has often deployed while ignoring his and other Republicans’ ties to the scandal.

    “Perhaps the truth about these Democrats and their associations with Jeffrey Epstein, will soon be revealed, but I HAVE JUST SIGNED THE BILL TO RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES!” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

    Now the focus turns to Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi, whom the legislation compels to make available “all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials” in the Department of Justice’s possession no later than 30 days after the legislation becoming law.

    The action on the bill marks a dramatic shift for Trump, who worked for months to thwart release of the Epstein files — until Sunday, when he reversed course under pressure from his party and called on Republican lawmakers to back the measure. Within days, the Senate and House overwhelmingly voted for the bill and sent it to Trump’s desk.

    Although Trump has now signed the bill into law, his resistance to releasing the files has led to skepticism among some lawmakers on Capitol Hill who question whether the Justice Department may try to conceal information.

    “The real test will be, will the Department of Justice release the files or will it all remain tied up in investigations?” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said at a news conference Tuesday before the House and Senate passed the bill. Greene was among a small group of GOP defectors who joined Democrats in forcing the legislation to the floor over Trump’s objections.

    The legislation prohibits the attorney general from withholding, delaying or redacting the publication of “any record, document, communication, or investigative material on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

    Carve-outs in the bill could allow Trump and Bondi to withhold documents that include identifying information of victims or depictions of child sexual abuse materials.

    The law also would allow them to conceal information that would “jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary.”

    Trump directed the Justice Department last week to investigate Epstein’s links with major banks and several prominent Democrats, including former President Clinton.

    Bondi abided, and appointed a top federal prosecutor to pursue the investigation with “urgency and integrity.” In July, the Justice Department determined after an extensive review that there was not enough evidence that “could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties” in the Epstein case.

    At a news conference Wednesday, Bondi said the department had opened another case into Epstein after “new information” emerged.

    Bondi did not say how the new investigation could affect the release of the files.

    Asked if the Epstein documents would be released within 30 days, as the law states, Bondi said her department would “follow the law.”

    “We will continue to follow the law with maximum transparency while protecting victims,” Bondi said.

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    Ana Ceballos

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  • Commentary: Justice has no expiration date. That’s why 2020 election fraud still matters

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    In the days and weeks after the 2020 election, partisans across the country used lies and deceit to try to defraud the American people and steal the White House.

    Although Joe Biden was the clear and unequivocal winner, racking up big margins in the popular vote and electoral college, 84 fake electors signed statements certifying that Donald Trump had carried their seven battleground states.

    He did not.

    The electoral votes at issue constituted nearly a third of the number needed to win the presidency and would have been more than enough to reverse Biden’s victory, granting Trump a second term against the wishes of most voters.

    To some, the attempted election theft is old (and eagerly buried) news.

    The events that culminated in the violent assault on the Capitol and attempt to block Biden from taking office occurred half a decade ago, the shovel wielders might say, making them as relevant as those faded social-distancing stickers you still see in some stores. Besides, Trump was given a second turn in the White House by a plurality of voters in 2024.

    But it’s only old news if you believe that justice and integrity carry an expiration date, wrongdoing is fine with the passage of enough time and the foundational values of our country and its democracy — starting with fair and honest elections — matter only to the extent they help your political side prevail.

    It bears repeating: “What we’re talking about here is an attempt to overturn the outcome of a presidential election,” said Sean Morales-Doyle, who heads the Voting Rights and Elections Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, a law and policy think tank at New York University. “If people can engage in that kind of conduct without consequence or accountability, then we have to worry about it happening again.”

    Which is why punishment and deterrence are so important.

    Last week, the Nevada Supreme Court unanimously reinstated the criminal case against six Republicans who signed certificates falsely claiming Trump had won the state’s electoral votes. Those charged include Nevada’s GOP chairman, Michael McDonald, and the state’s representative on the Republican National Committee, Jim DeGraffenreid.

    The ruling focused on a procedural matter: whether the charges should have been brought in Douglas County, where the fake certificates were signed in the state capital — Carson City — or in Clark County, where they were submitted at a courthouse in Las Vegas. A lower court ruled the charges should have been brought in Douglas County and dismissed the case. The high court reversed the decision, allowing the prosecution on forgery charges to proceed.

    As well it should. Let a jury decide.

    Of course, the Nevada Six and other phony electors are but small fry. The ringleader and attempted-larcenist-in-chief — Donald “Find Me 11,780 Votes” Trump — escaped liability by winning the 2024 election.

    This month, he pardoned scores of fake electors and others involved in the attempted election heist — including his bumbling ex-attorney, Rudolph W. Giuliani — for any potential federal crimes. The move was purely symbolic; Trump’s pardoning power does not extend to cases brought in state courts.

    But it was further evidence of his abundant contempt for the rule of law. (Just hours after taking office, Trump pardoned nearly 1,600 defendants — including some who brutalized cops with pepper spray and wooden and metal poles — who were involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.)

    Efforts around the country to prosecute even those low-level schemers, cheaters and 2020 election miscreants have produced mixed results.

    In Michigan, a judge threw out the criminal case against 15 phony electors, ruling the government failed to present sufficient evidence that they intended to commit fraud.

    In New Mexico and Pennsylvania, fake electors avoided prosecution because their certification came with a caveat. It said the documentation was submitted in the event they were recognized as legitimate electors. The issue was moot once Trump lost his fight to overturn the election, though some in Trump’s orbit hoped the phony certifications would help pressure Pence.

    Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor, looks askance at many of the cases that prosecutors have brought, suggesting the ballot box — rather than a courtroom — may be the better venue to litigate the matter.

    “There’s a fine line between what’s distasteful conduct and what’s criminal conduct,” Muller said. “I don’t have easy answers about which kinds of things should or shouldn’t be prosecuted in a particular moment, except to say if it’s something novel” — like these 2020 cases — “having a pretty iron-clad legal theory is pretty essential if you’re going to be prosecuting people for engaging in this sort of political protest activity.”

    Other cases grind on.

    Three fake electors are scheduled for a preliminary hearing on forgery charges next month in Wisconsin. Fourteen defendants — including Giuliani and former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows — face charges in Georgia. In Arizona, the state attorney general must decide this week whether to move forward with a case against 11 people after a judge tossed out an indictment because of how the case was presented to grand jurors.

    Justice in the case of the 2020 election has been far from sure and swift. But that’s no reason to relent.

    The penalty for hijacking a plane is a minimum of 20 years in federal prison. That seems excessive for the fake electors.

    But dozens of bad actors tried to hijack an election. They shouldn’t be let off scot-free.

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    Mark Z. Barabak

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  • Congress Acts Swiftly To Force Release Of Epstein Files, Sending Bill To Trump – KXL

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    WASHINGTON (AP) — Both the House and Senate acted decisively Tuesday to pass a bill to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a remarkable display of approval for an effort that had struggled for months to overcome opposition from President Donald Trump and Republican leadership.

    When a small, bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced a petition in July to maneuver around House Speaker Mike Johnson’s control of which bills reach the House floor, it appeared a longshot effort — especially as Trump urged his supporters to dismiss the matter as a “hoax.”

    But both Trump and Johnson failed in their efforts to prevent the vote. Now the president has bowed to the growing momentum behind the bill and even said he will sign it. Just hours after the House passed the bill, the Senate agreed to pass the bill with unanimous consent once it is sent to the Senate.

    The bill passed the House 427-1, with the only no vote coming from Rep. Clay Higgins, a Louisiana Republican who is a fervent supporter of Trump. He said in a statement that he opposed the bill because it could release information on innocent people mentioned in the federal investigation.

    The decisive, bipartisan work in Congress Tuesday further showed the pressure mounting on lawmakers and the Trump administration to meet long-held demands that the Justice Department release its case files on Epstein, a well-connected financier who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019 on charges he sexually abused and trafficked underage girls.

    “These women have fought the most horrific fight that no woman should have to fight. And they did it by banding together and never giving up,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene as she stood with some of the abuse survivors outside the Capitol Tuesday morning.

    “That’s what we did by fighting so hard against the most powerful people in the world, even the president of the United States, in order to make this vote happen today,” added Greene, a Georgia Republican and longtime Trump loyalist.

    The bill’s passage would be a pivotal moment in a yearslong push by the survivors for accountability for Epstein’s abuse and reckoning over how law enforcement officials failed to act under multiple presidential administrations.

    A separate investigation conducted by the House Oversight Committee has released thousands of pages of emails and other documents from Epstein’s estate, showing his connections to global leaders, Wall Street powerbrokers, influential political figures and Trump himself. In the United Kingdom, King Charles III stripped his disgraced brother Prince Andrew of his remaining titles and evicted him from his royal residence after pressure to act over his relationship with Epstein.

    The bill forces the release within 30 days of all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. It would allow the Justice Department to redact information about Epstein’s victims or continuing federal investigations, but not information due to “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.”

    Trump’s reversal on the Epstein files
    Trump has said he cut ties with Epstein years ago, but tried for months to move past the demands for disclosure.

    Still, many in the Republican base have continued to demand the release of the files. Adding to that pressure, survivors of Epstein’s abuse rallied outside the Capitol Tuesday morning. Bundled in jackets against the November chill and holding photos of themselves as teenagers, they recounted their stories of abuse.

    “We are exhausted from surviving the trauma and then surviving the politics that swirl around it,” said one of the survivors.

    Another, Jena-Lisa Jones, said she had voted for Trump and had a message for the president: “I beg you Donald Trump, please stop making this political.”

    The group of women also met with Johnson and rallied outside the Capitol in September, but have had to wait months for the vote.

    That’s because Johnson kept the House closed for legislative business for nearly two months and refused to swear-in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona during the government shutdown. After winning a special election on Sept. 23, Grijalva had pledged to provide the crucial 218th vote to the petition for the Epstein files bill. But only after she was sworn into office last week could she sign her name to the discharge petition to give it majority support in the 435-member House.

    It quickly became obvious the bill would pass, and both Johnson and Trump began to fold. Trump on Sunday said Republicans should vote for the bill.

    Yet Greene told reporters that Trump’s decision to fight the bill had betrayed his Make America Great Again political movement.

    “Watching this turn into a fight has ripped MAGA apart,” she said.

    How Johnson is handling the bill
    Rather than waiting until next week for the discharge position to officially take effect, Johnson held the vote under a procedure that requires a two-thirds majority.

    But Johnson also spent a morning news conference listing off problems that he sees with the legislation. He argued that the bill could have unintended consequences by disclosing parts of federal investigations that are usually kept private, including information on victims.

    “This is a raw and obvious political exercise,” Johnson said.

    Still, he voted for the bill. “None of us want to go on record and in any way be accused of not being for maximum transparency,” he explained.

    Meanwhile, House Democrats celebrated the vote as a rare win. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries described it as “a complete and total surrender.”

    Senate plans to act quickly
    Even as the bill cleared his chamber, Johnson pressed for the Senate to amend the bill to protect the information of “victims and whistleblowers.” But Senate Majority Leader John Thune showed little interest in that notion, saying he doubted that “amending it is going to be in the cards.”

    Thune said he would quickly assess senators’ views on the bill to see if there were any objections. He said the bill could be brought forward in the Senate as soon as Tuesday evening and almost certainly by the end of the week.

    Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer also indicated he would attempt to pass the bill Tuesday.

    “The American people have waited long enough,” he said.

    Meanwhile, the bipartisan pair who sponsored the bill, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., warned senators against doing anything that would “muck it up,” saying they would face the same public uproar that forced both Trump and Johnson to back down.

    “We’ve needlessly dragged this out for four months,” Massie said, adding that those raising problems with the bill “are afraid that people will be embarrassed. Well, that’s the whole point here.”

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    Jon Eric Smith

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  • House set to vote to release Epstein files following months of pressure

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    WASHINGTON — The House is poised to vote overwhelmingly on Tuesday to demand the Justice Department release all documents tied to its investigation of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

    President Trump, who initially worked to thwart the vote before reversing course on Sunday night, has said he will sign the measure if it reaches his desk. For that to happen, the bill will also need to pass the Senate, which could consider the measure as soon as Tuesday night.

    Republicans for months pushed back on the release of the Epstein files, joining Trump in claiming the Epstein issue was being brought up by Democrats as a way to distract from Republicans’ legislative successes.

    But that all seismically shifted Sunday when Trump had a drastic reversal and urged Republicans to vote to release the documents, saying there was “nothing to hide.”

    “It’s time to move on from this Democrat Hoax perpetrated by Radical Left Lunatics in order to deflect from the Great Success of the Republican Party,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

    The reversal came days after 20,000 documents from Epstein’s private estate were released by lawmakers in the House Oversight Committee. The files referenced Trump more than 1,000 times.

    In private emails, Epstein wrote that Trump had “spent hours” at his house and “knew about the girls,” a revelation that reignited the push in Congress for further disclosures.

    Trump has continued to deny wrongdoing in the Epstein saga despite opposing the release of files from the federal probe into the conduct of his former friend, a convicted sex offender and alleged sex trafficker. He died by suicide while in federal custody in 2019.

    Many members of Trump’s MAGA base have demanded the files be released, convinced they contain revelations about powerful people involved in Epstein’s abuse of what is believed to be more than 200 women and girls. Tension among his base spiked when Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi said in July that an “Epstein client list” did not exist, after saying in February that the list was sitting on her desk awaiting review. She later said she was referring to the Epstein files more generally.

    Trump’s call to release the files now highlights how he is trying to prevent an embarrassing defeat as a growing number of Republicans in the House have joined Democrats to vote for the legislation in recent days.

    The Epstein files have been a hugely divisive congressional fight in recent months, with Democrats pushing the release, but Republican congressional leaders largely refusing to take the votes. The issue even led to a rift within the MAGA movement, and Trump to cut ties with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia who had long been an ardent support of the president.

    “Watching this actually turn into a fight has ripped MAGA apart,” Greene said at a news conference Tuesday in reference to the resistance to release the files.

    Democrats have accused Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) of delaying the swearing-in of Rep. Adelita Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat, because she promised to cast the final vote needed to move a so-called discharge petition, which would force a vote on the floor. Johnson has denied those claims.

    If the House and Senate do vote to release the files, all eyes will turn to the Department of Justice, and what exactly it will choose to publicly release.

    “The fight, the real fight, will happen after that,” Greene said. “The real test will be: Will the Department of Justice release the files? Or will it all remain tied up in an investigation?”

    Several Epstein survivors joined lawmakers at the news conference to talk about how important the vote was for them.

    Haley Robson, one of the survivors, questioned Trump’s resistance to the vote even now as he supports it.

    “While I do understand that your position has changed on the Epstein files, and I’m grateful that you have pledged to sign this bill, I can’t help to be skeptical of what the agenda is,” Robson said.

    If signed into law by Trump, the bill would prohibit the attorney general, Bondi, from withholding, delaying or redacting “any record, document, communication, or investigative material on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

    But caveats in the bill could provide Trump and Bondi with loopholes to keep records related to the president concealed.

    In the spring, FBI Director Kash Patel directed a Freedom of Information Act team to comb through the entire trove of files from the investigation, and ordered it to redact references to Trump, citing his status as a private citizen with privacy protections when the probe first launched in 2006, Bloomberg reported at the time.

    Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, said the Trump administration will be forced to release the files with an act of Congress.

    “They will be breaking the law if they do not release these files,” he said.

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  • Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Begin Visit Packed With Deals

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    WASHINGTON—President Trump on Tuesday welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman back to the White House for the first time since 2018, kicking off a two-day engagement to announce economic and defense deals.

    MBS, as the royal is commonly known, was greeted by Trump at the South Portico flanked by senior Saudi and U.S. officials. American troops rode horses and carried the flags of both nations before drums rolled and trumpets blared as the crown prince’s limousine rolled up to where Trump awaited with an outstretched hand. They stood to watch a formation of six jet fighters, three F-35s and three F-15s, before going inside to start their meetings.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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  • House expected to vote on bill forcing release of Jeffrey Epstein case files

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    The House is expected to vote Tuesday on legislation to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, the culmination of a monthslong effort that has overcome opposition from President Donald Trump and Republican leadership.When a small bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced a petition in July to maneuver around House Speaker Mike Johnson’s control of which bills see the House floor, it appeared a long-shot effort, especially as Trump urged his supporters to dismiss the matter as a “hoax.” But both Trump and Johnson failed in their efforts to prevent the vote.Now the president has bowed to the growing momentum behind the bill and even said Republicans should vote for it. His blessing all but ensures that the House will pass the bill with an overwhelming margin, putting further pressure on the Senate to take it up.Trump on Monday said he would sign the bill if it passes both chambers of Congress, adding, “Let the Senate look at it.”Tuesday’s vote also provides a further boost to the demands that the Justice Department release its case files on Epstein, a well-connected financier who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019 on charges he sexually abused and trafficked underage girls.A separate investigation conducted by the House Oversight Committee has released thousands of pages of emails and other documents from Epstein’s estate, showing his connections to global leaders, Wall Street powerbrokers, influential political figures and Trump himself.Trump’s reversal on the Epstein filesTrump has said he cut ties with Epstein years ago, but tried for months to move past the demands for disclosure. On Monday, he told reporters that Epstein was connected to more Democrats and that he didn’t want the Epstein files to “detract from the great success of the Republican Party.”Still, many in the Republican base have continued to demand the release of the files. Adding to that pressure, several survivors of Epstein’s abuse will appear on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning to push for release of the files. They also met with Johnson and rallied outside the Capitol in September, but have had to wait two months for the vote.That’s because Johnson kept the House closed for legislative business for nearly two months and also refused to swear-in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona during the government shutdown. After winning a special election on Sept. 23, Grijalva had pledged to provide the crucial 218th vote to the petition for the Epstein files bill. But only after she was sworn into office last week could she sign her name to the discharge petition to give it majority support in the 435-member House.It quickly became apparent the bill would pass, and both Johnson and Trump began to fold. Trump on Sunday said Republicans should vote for the bill.Rep. Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who sponsored the bill alongside Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, said Trump “got tired of me winning. He wanted to join.”How Johnson is handling the billRather than waiting until next week for the discharge position to officially take effect, Johnson is moving to hold the vote this week. He indicated the legislation will be brought to the House floor under a procedure that requires a two-thirds majority.“I think it’s going to be an important vote to continue to show the transparency that we’ve delivered,” House Republican leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said Monday night.House Democrats celebrated the vote as a rare win for the minority.“It’s a complete and total surrender, because as Democrats we made clear from the very beginning, the survivors and the American people deserve full and complete transparency as it relates to the lives that were ruined by Jeffrey Epstein,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries.What will the Senate do?Still, it’s not clear how the Senate will handle the bill.Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has previously been circumspect when asked about the legislation and instead said he trusted the Justice Department to release information on the Epstein investigation.But what the Justice Department has released so far under Trump was mostly already public. The bill would go further, forcing the release within 30 days of all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. Information about Epstein’s victims or continuing federal investigations would be allowed to be redacted, but not information due to “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”Johnson also suggested that he would like to see the Senate amend the bill to protect the information of “victims and whistleblowers.”But Massie said the Senate should take into account the public clamor that forced both Trump and Johnson to back down.“If it’s anything but a genuine effort to make it better and stronger, it’ll backfire on the senators if they muck it up,” Massie said.___Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Matt Brown contributed to this report.

    WASHINGTON —

    The House is expected to vote Tuesday on legislation to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, the culmination of a monthslong effort that has overcome opposition from President Donald Trump and Republican leadership.

    When a small bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced a petition in July to maneuver around House Speaker Mike Johnson’s control of which bills see the House floor, it appeared a long-shot effort, especially as Trump urged his supporters to dismiss the matter as a “hoax.” But both Trump and Johnson failed in their efforts to prevent the vote.

    Now the president has bowed to the growing momentum behind the bill and even said Republicans should vote for it. His blessing all but ensures that the House will pass the bill with an overwhelming margin, putting further pressure on the Senate to take it up.

    Trump on Monday said he would sign the bill if it passes both chambers of Congress, adding, “Let the Senate look at it.”

    Tuesday’s vote also provides a further boost to the demands that the Justice Department release its case files on Epstein, a well-connected financier who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019 on charges he sexually abused and trafficked underage girls.

    A separate investigation conducted by the House Oversight Committee has released thousands of pages of emails and other documents from Epstein’s estate, showing his connections to global leaders, Wall Street powerbrokers, influential political figures and Trump himself.

    Trump’s reversal on the Epstein files

    Trump has said he cut ties with Epstein years ago, but tried for months to move past the demands for disclosure. On Monday, he told reporters that Epstein was connected to more Democrats and that he didn’t want the Epstein files to “detract from the great success of the Republican Party.”

    Still, many in the Republican base have continued to demand the release of the files. Adding to that pressure, several survivors of Epstein’s abuse will appear on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning to push for release of the files. They also met with Johnson and rallied outside the Capitol in September, but have had to wait two months for the vote.

    That’s because Johnson kept the House closed for legislative business for nearly two months and also refused to swear-in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona during the government shutdown. After winning a special election on Sept. 23, Grijalva had pledged to provide the crucial 218th vote to the petition for the Epstein files bill. But only after she was sworn into office last week could she sign her name to the discharge petition to give it majority support in the 435-member House.

    It quickly became apparent the bill would pass, and both Johnson and Trump began to fold. Trump on Sunday said Republicans should vote for the bill.

    Rep. Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who sponsored the bill alongside Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, said Trump “got tired of me winning. He wanted to join.”

    How Johnson is handling the bill

    Rather than waiting until next week for the discharge position to officially take effect, Johnson is moving to hold the vote this week. He indicated the legislation will be brought to the House floor under a procedure that requires a two-thirds majority.

    “I think it’s going to be an important vote to continue to show the transparency that we’ve delivered,” House Republican leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said Monday night.

    House Democrats celebrated the vote as a rare win for the minority.

    “It’s a complete and total surrender, because as Democrats we made clear from the very beginning, the survivors and the American people deserve full and complete transparency as it relates to the lives that were ruined by Jeffrey Epstein,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries.

    What will the Senate do?

    Still, it’s not clear how the Senate will handle the bill.

    Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has previously been circumspect when asked about the legislation and instead said he trusted the Justice Department to release information on the Epstein investigation.

    But what the Justice Department has released so far under Trump was mostly already public. The bill would go further, forcing the release within 30 days of all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. Information about Epstein’s victims or continuing federal investigations would be allowed to be redacted, but not information due to “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

    Johnson also suggested that he would like to see the Senate amend the bill to protect the information of “victims and whistleblowers.”

    But Massie said the Senate should take into account the public clamor that forced both Trump and Johnson to back down.

    “If it’s anything but a genuine effort to make it better and stronger, it’ll backfire on the senators if they muck it up,” Massie said.

    ___

    Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Matt Brown contributed to this report.

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  • After Gen Z march in Mexico, government and critics spar as Trump cites ‘big problems’ south of border

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    MEXICO CITY — A weekend protest march convened to highlight the concerns of Mexico’s Generation Z has instead dramatized deep political divisions extending well beyond the needs of young Mexicans.

    The mostly peaceful demonstration in downtown Mexico City on Saturday culminated in several hours of clashes when small groups of protesters battled with phalanxes of riot police deployed to protect the National Palace in Mexico City’s central square, or zócalo.

    In the aftermath of the protests, Mexico’s leftist President Claudia Sheinbaum accused right-wing opponents of hijacking the demonstration to provoke unrest and smear her government.

    “A march that was supposedly called against violence utilized violence,” Sheinbaum told reporters Monday.

    But opposition leaders and other critics said the march reflected deep concern about alleged cartel infiltration in the government and charged that police brutalized young protesters.

    Among those who noticed the chaotic scenes from Mexico was President Trump, who, in Oval Office comments to the press on Monday, again raised the provocative specter of U.S. strikes on cartel targets in Mexico. The country is a major production site for fentanyl, amphetamines and other synthetic drugs bound for the U.S. market, and a transport corridor for South American cocaine.

    “I looked at Mexico City over the weekend. There’s some big problems there,” Trump said. “Let me just put it this way: I am not happy with Mexico.”

    Asked if he would contemplate U.S. attacks on cartel targets in Mexico, Trump responded: “Would I launch strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? It’s OK with me. Whatever we have to do to stop drugs.”

    Trump has charged that Mexico is “run by the cartels,” though he has praised Sheinbaum as a “very brave woman.”

    Sheinbaum has denied that cartels control Mexico. She has maintained a cooperative attitude with Trump on two contentious binational issues — drug trafficking and tariffs — but has said Mexico would not yield its sovereignty and agree to U.S. strikes.

    Saturday’s march — one of many similar protests across Mexico on that day — was originally called in support of Generation Z, after related demonstrations in Nepal and Morocco. Young people worldwide have decried a lack of economic and educational opportunities.

    But the rally in Mexico City became mostly a march against what many participants labeled the leftist “narco-government” of Sheinbaum and her ruling Morena party

    Many protesters hoisted banners declaring: “I am Carlos Manzo,” after the mayor of the western city of Uruapan, who was assassinated this monthin a shooting that authorities have blamed on organized crime.

    Manzo had accused Sheinbaum’s government of coddling criminals. Supporters of his so-called “White Hat” movement — after the popular mayor’s signature sombrero — took to the streets of Uruapan and other cities in Michoacán state this month by the tens of thousands to demand a crackdown on organized crime. Backers of the growing movement were also major participants in Saturday’s march in Mexico City.

    In the aftermath of the march, Sheinbaum’s opponents accused her government of repressing dissent.

    “They brutalized young people who only want a better Mexico,” Alejandro Moreno, president of the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party, charged on X. “They beat them because they are scared. They know that the power of an organized people is stronger than a cowardly narco-regime.”

    Mexican authorities denied allegations of brutality and said that at least 60 police officers were injured.

    A small minority of protesters, many wearing ski masks, tossed stones, bottles, fireworks and other improvised weapons at police. Police used both physical force and volleys of tear gas to push them back. Each side blamed the other for igniting the melees.

    “They wanted to generate this idea: ‘Chaos in Mexico!’ “ charged Sheinbaum, noting how the images of the clashes received widespread domestic and international attention in the press and social media.

    The president called for an investigation of the violence, which, she said, was funded by her opponents. She vowed that authorities would also investigate any allegations of police brutality. The great majority of protesters, she said, were nonviolent.

    Authorities said 17,000 marchers took place in Saturday’s demonstration. The opposition said the number was much higher.

    Opponents of Sheinbaum’s government have vowed additional protests. But many experts doubt that a deeply fractured opposition could do much to loosen Morena’s stranglehold on power.

    Sheinbaum’s predecessor and mentor, ex-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, faced much larger street demonstrations during his time in office, along with allegations of ties of drug traffickers. But neither seemed to dent his widespread popularity.

    Polls have shown Sheinbaum, who just completed the first year of a six-year term, with 70%-plus approval ratings. Her Morena party, with strong backing from poor and working-class Mexicans who have benefited from minimum-wage increases and social welfare programs, retains firm control of congress, the courts and most statehouses across Mexico.

    Security remains the major concern of most Mexicans, polls show, even as the president has touted decreases in homicides and other violent crimes. Sheinbaum has launched a crackdown on organized crime that has seen thousands of suspects arrested — including dozens expelled to face justice in U.S. courts.

    Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal in Mexico City contributed to this report.

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    Patrick J. McDonnell, Kate Linthicum

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  • As Senate race looms, Cooper and Whatley weigh-in on Charlotte immigration crackdown

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    President Donald Trump’s deployment of immigration agents in Charlotte is becoming a centerpiece of debate in the battle for North Carolina’s open U.S. Senate seat. 

    The Department of Homeland Security last weekend launched “Operation Charlotte’s Web” in the Queen City against the objection of city officials who said the move was unnecessary. Border Patrol agents arrested more than 130 immigrants who are believed to be in the U.S. illegally, the department said Monday. 

    The move comes about a year prior to next year’s midterm elections, when North Carolinians will be asked to replace outgoing U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis. The two-term Republican isn’t seeking reelection.

    The frontrunners in the race weighed in on the crackdown Monday, underscoring the importance of immigration policy on the race.

    Former Gov. Roy Cooper, who is expected to win the Democratic nomination in March, is casting the operation as inefficient.

    He echoed the concern of other critics who have accused immigration agents of targeting nonviolent immigrants — sometimes U.S. citizens — based on their race or ethnicity.

    “I’ve prosecuted violent criminals and fought to keep them behind bars, so I know the importance of using federal resources to deport violent criminals and keep our borders strong,” Cooper said in a statement Monday. 

    He continued: “But randomly sweeping up people based on what they look like, including American citizens and those with no criminal records, risks leaving violent criminals at large while hurting families and the economy.”

    Meanwhile, Republican candidates are praising Border Patrol’s efforts. 

    Michael Whatley, the former Republican National Committee chairman who President Donald Trump endorsed in the race, said immigration agents are “taking criminal illegal aliens identified as murderers, rapists, and pedophiles off the streets of Charlotte.”

    Don Brown, another Republican in the race, claimed that local law enforcement doesn’t have the resources to crack down on immigration, saying: “I welcome the Border Patrol to Charlotte today as we take important steps toward a safer, stronger city.”

    Immigration and crime in recent years have been top issues for North Carolina voters, according to polling by WRAL and other groups. Republicans are expected to campaign heavily on the issue as they attempt to keep the U.S. Senate under GOP control. Democrats hope to flip four Senate seats and take a majority in the chamber. North Carolina is home to one of only two GOP-held seats that the nonpartisan Cook Political Report considers a toss up.

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