Page 16 - Us Elections

US elections: Harris to shore up Arab American, union voters in Michigan

Her success in Michigan depends on running up vote totals in its major cities and immediate suburbs, especially in and around Detroit

Don't know if Israel delaying peace deal to influence 2024 election: Biden

President Joe Biden had terse words for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, and said he did not know whether the Israeli leader was holding up a Mideast peace deal in order to influence the outcome of the 2024 US presidential election. "No administration has helped Israel more than I have, none. None, none. And I think Bibi should remember that," he said, referring to the Israeli leader by his nickname. "And whether he is trying to influence the election, I do not know but I am not counting on that." Biden, in a rare appearance in the White House press briefing room, was responding to comments made by one of his allies, Senator Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who told CNN this week that he was concerned Netanyahu had little interest in a peace deal in part because of US politics. "I do not think you have to be a hopeless cynic to read some of Israel's actions, some of Prime Minister Netanyahu's actions, as connected to the American election," Murphy said. Biden and Netanyahu have l

US Presidential polls: Kamala Harris walking a tightrope few women survive

One of the clearest markers of her evolution as a candidate has been her ability to convey both strength and sympathy, and in ways that come across as authentic

Elon Musk quietly spends millions backing conservative causes, says report

Elon Musk, who publicly endorsed Donald Trump earlier this year, has emerged as a prominent supporter of the former president's re-election campaig

Musk to attend Trump rally in Pennsylvania at July assassination bid site

Musk, the CEO of Tesla and owner of X, called Republican presidential candidate Trump "tough" and officially endorsed him after he survived an assassination attempt in Butler on July 13

Melania Trump's support for abortion rights puts her at odds with GOP

Melania Trump revealed her support for abortion rights on Thursday, ahead of the release of her upcoming memoir, exposing a stark contrast with her husband, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on the crucial election issue. In a video posted to her X account on Thursday morning, the former first lady defended women's "individual freedoms" to do what they want with their bodies -- a position at odds with much of the Republican Party and her own husband, who has struggled to find a consistent message on abortion while wedged between anti-abortion supporters within his base and the majority of Americans who support abortion rights. "Individual freedom is a fundamental principle that I safeguard," Melania Trump said in the video. "Without a doubt, there is no room for compromise when it comes to this essential right that all women possess from birth: individual freedom. What does 'my body, my choice' really mean?" The video appears to confirm excerpts of her self-titled memoir

Hurricane Helene brings climate change to forefront of US election campaign

A trio of new trials -- a devastating hurricane, expanding conflict in the Mideast and a dockworkers strike that threatens the US economy -- are looming over the final weeks of the presidential campaign and could help shape the public mood as voters decide between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump. How events shake out -- and how the candidates respond -- could be decisive as they claw for votes in battleground states. The president, Joe Biden, is still the steward of the US economy and foreign policy at this tumultuous moment and may well bear ultimate responsibility for how they play out. But how Harris and Trump approach the three disparate issues could have a rippling impact on how Americans perceive their two choices this November. "Unfortunately, there are going to be events like this, and this is where you see the leadership of a president show up," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Tuesday. "I think this should send a message t

How Donald Trump credits an immigration chart for saving his life

Ever since the assassination attempt at his rally in Pennsylvania, Donald Trump has professed a unique fondness for a bar chart he credits for saving his life. Trump was addressing the crowd in Butler about illegal immigration and reviewing a chart that detailed U.S.-Mexico border crossings during his administration and President Joe Biden's term. He had his head turned to the right to review the graphic on a projection screen when the gunfire began. One bullet nicked his right ear, coming millimeters from maiming or killing him. He has said having his head turned probably saved my life, adding at times that he loves the chart more than I even love the police and saying he will sleep with that chart for the rest of my life. He has made it a recurring campaign prop and is likely to show it again when he returns to Butler on Saturday. The chart helps the Republican presidential nominee connect an iconic moment from his 2024 campaign to his signature issue since he entered politics. It

Anti-abortion leaders undeterred as Trump says he would veto abortion ban

Anti-abortion leaders said on Wednesday that they're undeterred after Donald Trump said he would veto a federal abortion ban, the first time he has explicitly said so after previously refusing to answer questions on the subject. During Tuesday night's vice-presidential debate, the Republican presidential nominee posted on his social media platform Truth Social that "everyone knows I would not support a federal abortion ban, under any circumstances, and would, in fact, veto it". He then said that abortion rights should be left up to the states -- his most common response to questions about the issue since Roe v Wade was overturned by a conservative majority that included three of Trump's own appointees to the Supreme Court. In the two years since the ruling, abortion rights have emerged as a major vulnerability for the GOP, which has struggled to find a consistent message on the path forward, while driving turnout for Democrats. With the election less than five weeks away, Trump has

Trump 'resorted to crimes' after losing 2020 elections: Prosecutors

Donald Trump laid the groundwork to try to overturn the 2020 election even before he lost, knowingly pushed false claims of voter fraud and "resorted to crimes" in his failed bid to cling to power, according to a newly unsealed court filing from prosecutors that lays out fresh details from the landmark criminal case against the former president. The filing from special counsel Jack Smith's team offers the most comprehensive view to date of what prosecutors intend to prove if the case charging Trump with conspiring to overturn the election reaches trial. Though a months-long congressional investigation and the indictment itself have chronicled in stark detail Trump's efforts to undo the election, the new filing cites previously unknown accounts offered by Trump's closest aides to paint a portrait of an "increasingly desperate" president who while losing his grip on the White House "used deceit to target every stage of the electoral process". "So what?" the filing quotes Trump as ...

No chance of foreign adversary to change US election results: CISA head

Security for America's election systems has become so robust that Russia, Iran or any other foreign adversary will not be able to alter the outcome of this year's presidential race, the head of the nation's cybersecurity agency said Wednesday. Jen Easterly told The Associated Press in an interview that voting, ballot-counting and other election infrastructure is more secure today than it's ever been. Malicious actors, even if they tried, could not have an impact at scale such that there would be a material effect on the outcome of the election, said Easterly, director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Federal agencies have warned of growing attempts by Russia and Iran in particular to influence voters before the November 5 election and election conspiracy theories have left millions of Americans doubting the validity of election results. Easterly said those efforts are primarily aimed at sowing discord among Americans and undermining faith in the security

Trumps assassination attempt ahead of his returns grapples Pennsylvania

Donald Trump is going back to Butler, where the world last saw him pump his fist and beseech followers to fight, even as blood streaked his face from a would-be assassin's bullet. In announcing his return, the former president and current Republican nominee said he planned to celebrate a unifying vision for America's future in an event like the world has never seen before. The question is: Is Butler ready? While many are predicting a large crowd to hear Trump speak back at the very Farm Show property where a bullet grazed his right ear on July 13, there is also apprehension in town, along with a sense that Butler is still healing. I've consulted with, at least, like 500 people since this has happened, said registered nurse Shanea Clancy, who runs a mental health consulting service in Butler County and has seen people more anxious since the shooting. Some show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. The big theme, if you will, is just, How did something like that happen in our ...

Walz, Vance argue their running mates would reduce Mideast instability

Tim Walz and JD Vance on Tuesday each pointed to the crises of the day as reasons for voters to choose their respective running mates for president, opening their vice-presidential debate by addressing the growing fears of a regional war in the Middle East and a natural disaster that has ravaged the southeastern US. Walz, answering a question on whether he would support a preemptive strike on Iran as it launched missiles into Israel, quickly pivoted to painting Donald Trump as too dangerous for the country and the world in an unstable moment. "What's fundamental here is that steady leadership is going to matter," said Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota. "And the world saw it on that debate stage a few weeks ago, a nearly 80-year-old Donald Trump talking about crowd sizes is not what we need in this moment." Vance, in his reply, argued that Trump is an intimidating figure whose presence on the international stage is its own deterrent. "Donald Trump actually delivered ...

US elections: Trump won't participate in interview for '60 Minutes' special

CBS News said on Tuesday that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has declined to participate in an interview with "60 Minutes" for its election special, which will go forward next Monday with Democratic opponent Kamala Harris alone. Television's top-rated news programme regularly invites the two presidential contenders for separate interviews that air back-to-back on a show near the election. This year, it is scheduled for Monday instead of its usual Sunday time slot. Asked for comment, the former president's campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said, "Fake news," adding that there were discussions but nothing was ever locked in. "60 Minutes" said Trump's campaign had initially agreed to an interview before telling CBS that the former president would not appear. The network said its invitation to sit for an interview still stands, and correspondent Scott Pelley will explain Trump's absence to viewers. Vice-President Harris will appear in a pretaped interview with Bill ...

US key state faces poll uncertainty after storm ravages multiple counties

North Carolina election officials say they will do everything in their power to ensure that voters in the crucial presidential swing state will be able to cast their ballots despite the devastation of Hurricane Helene and the destruction of basic infrastructure only about a month before the November election. Karen Brinson Bell, the executive director of the state's election board, said on Tuesday that 12 county election offices in the hard-hit western part of the state remain closed after the storm unleashed "unprecedented" damage. Absentee ballots, some of which already have been mailed to voters who requested them, also face obstacles, from US Postal Service delays to road and residential damage that could render them undeliverable. The viability of early and Election Day voting sites remains unknown, she said. She described the storm as causing a "daunting" level of uncertainty, with early in-person voting scheduled to start in just over two weeks on October 17. Still, she said .

Trump rallies in Wisconsin's Democratic bastion ahead of vice prez debate

Former President Donald Trump spent more than an hour ahead of Tuesday night's vice-presidential debate campaigning in a Democratic county that is crucial to Kamala Harris' hopes for winning the key battleground state of Wisconsin. Republican Trump appeared at a manufacturing facility in Waunakee, a suburb of Wisconsin's capital city of Madison in the Democratic stronghold of Dane County. Trump had never campaigned in Dane County nor visited as president. In an event advertised as economic-themed, Trump bounced from subject to subject, also criticising Democratic nominee Harris on issues, including foreign policy, crime and immigration, while intermittently pivoting to outgoing President Joe Biden. "I'm asking every citizen to join me in launching sort of a new golden age for America," Trump told hundreds inside Dane Manufacturing, a metal fabricator that has a long history of hosting Republican candidates and officeholders. Later on Tuesday, Trump was to hold an event at a museum

Trump heads to Wisconsin's Democratic stronghold ahead of vice prez debate

Former President Donald Trump plans to spend the hours ahead of Tuesday night's vice-presidential debate campaigning in Wisconsin, stopping in a critical Democratic county that is crucial to Democrat Kamala Harris ' hopes for winning the key battleground state. Trump is scheduled to appear at a manufacturing facility in Waunakee, a suburb of Wisconsin's capital city of Madison in the Democratic stronghold of Dane County. Trump has never campaigned in Dane County before and didn't visit as president. Later on Tuesday, Trump is expected to hold an event at a museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin's largest city and home to the largest number of Democratic voters and second-largest number of Republicans. His appearance there will also give him reach into the city's conservative suburbs, a part of Wisconsin where his support has softened but where he must do well to win. Trump is expected to focus his comments on the economy. On Saturday, he held a rally in western Wisconsin where he blamed ...

Donald Trump makes false claims about federal response to Hurricane Helene

Donald Trump repeatedly spread falsehoods on Monday about the federal response to Hurricane Helene despite claiming not to be politicising the disaster as he toured hard-hit areas in south Georgia. The former president and Republican nominee claimed upon landing in Valdosta that President Joe Biden was "sleeping" and not responding to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, who he said was "calling the president and hasn't been able to get him". He repeated the claim at an event with reporters after being told Kemp said he had spoken to Biden. The White House previously announced that Biden spoke by phone on Sunday night with Kemp and North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, as well as Scott Matheson, mayor of Valdosta, Georgia, and Florida Emergency Management Director John Louk. And Kemp confirmed Monday morning that he spoke to Biden the night before. "The president just called me yesterday afternoon and I missed him and called him right back and he just said, 'Hey, what do you need?' And I tol

Tuesday's vice presidential debate may hold more significance than usual

Tim Walz and JD Vance might have the chance to reshape the political landscape on Tuesday in their first and only debate. Vice presidential picks have traditionally taken on the role of political attack dog, laying into opponents so that their running mate can appear above the political fray. That's generally been less true since former President Donald Trump scrambled political norms. But Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, made it to national prominence by labelling rival Republicans weird. Vance, the Republican junior senator from Ohio, has torn into Vice President Kamala Harris' party on immigration, notably by spreading a false story about Haitian immigrants in his home state that Trump then cited during his own debate with Harris. Here's a look at past vice presidential debates and the larger role of the office Walz and Vance are both seeking. What is the vice president's job? The vice president presides over the Senate and is empowered to break ties, as Harris has

Amid election fever, Trump launches diamond watches worth up to $1 lakh

Latest Trump bling unveiled: Former US President Donald Trump launched Official Trump Watch Collection, priced up to $100,000, just 40 days ahead of his election showdown with Kamala Harris