Harris’ rhetoric risks ‘inviting’ another Trump assassination attempt, GOP leaders say
In a rare joint statement weighing in on the presidential election, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called on Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris to stop calling GOP nominee former President Trump a “fascist.”
“This summer, after the first attempted assassination of a presidential candidate in more than a century, President Biden insisted that ‘we can’t allow this violence to be normalized.’ In September, after President Trump escaped yet another close call, Vice President Harris acknowledged that ‘we all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence,'” the Republican legislative leaders wrote together.
“These words have proven hollow. In the weeks since that second sobering reminder, the Democratic nominee for President of the United States has only fanned the flames beneath a boiling cauldron of political animus. Her most recent and most reckless invocations of the darkest evil of the 20th century seem to dare it to boil over. The Vice President’s words more closely resemble those of President Trump’s second would-be assassin than her own earlier appeal to civility.”
Johnson and McConnell said that by calling Trump a “fascist,” Democrats were inviting another would-be assassin to take a shot at Trump before Election Day.
“Vice President Harris may want the American people to entrust her with the sacred duty of executive authority. But first, she must abandon the base and irresponsible rhetoric that endangers both American lives and institutions. We have both been briefed on the ongoing and persistent threats to former President Donald Trump by adversaries to the United States, and we call on the Vice President to take these threats seriously, stop escalating the threat environment, and help ensure President Trump has the necessary resources to be protected from those threats.”
Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin promised to swiftly fight a federal judge’s ruling that requires the state to place more than 1,600 individuals believed to be noncitizens back on the voter rolls.
U.S. District Court Judge Patricia Giles issued a preliminary injunction Friday blocking Virginia from declaring these voters ineligible because the judge said there was reason to believe some were U.S. citizens.
“This is a stunning ruling by a federal judge who is ordering Virginia to reinstate individuals who have self-identified as noncitizens back on the voter rolls,” Youngkin told Fox News in a phone interview.
“What’s even more astounding is the vast majority of these folks have presented immigration documents confirming they were noncitizens, and we recently had that verified by federal authorities.”
Youngkin expressed astonishment that the judge would hand down this decision just 11 days before Election Day.
“Common sense says noncitizens aren’t on the voter rolls, but the Constitution and the law say it as well,” the governor said, adding that Virginia would “immediately” petition for an injunction to block the judge’s order.
Youngkin said Virginia will appeal the case all the way to the Supreme Court if need be.
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction Friday ordering Virginia to reinstate the voting rights of over 1600 voters who had been declared ineligible because officials suspected they were non-citizens.
U.S. District Court Judge Patricia Giles said there was reason to believe that some of the people who had been impacted were indeed US citizens.
“This process has resulted in eligible voters having their voting registration flagged,” said Judge Giles.
The judge went on to point out that it is, “Undoubtedly in the public interest for ineligible voters to be removed,” but that it is also in the public interest, “For states to comply with federal law particularly the right to vote.”
At issue is an executive order issued by Republican Gov. Glen Youngkin on Aug. 7 which aimed at removing non-citizens from voter rolls in the commonwealth of Virginia.
The Department of Justice and voters rights groups argued that Youngkin’s order was a violation of the 90 day quiet period before Election Day.
Judge Giles agreed, calling the order, “A clear violation of the 90-day quiet period.”
Judge Giles ordered Virginia to inform the 1600 plus voters that their voter registration had been reinstated within five days.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares said the state will appeal the decision.
Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo contributed to this update.
Actor and filmmaker Mel Gibson revealed he’s backing former President Trump in the 2024 election and took a swipe at the intelligence of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Video obtained by TMZ shows the “Braveheart” star being asked about the presidential race during an exchange at LAX.
“I don’t think it’s gonna surprise anyone who I vote for,” Gibson said.
After the cameraman asked whether Trump was a “bad guess,” Gibson replied “I think that’s a pretty good guess.”
The “Lethal Weapon” icon was then asked what he thought “the world would be like” with Trump serving a second term in the Oval Office.
“I know what it’ll be like if we let her in,” Gibson said, referring to Harris. “That ain’t good.”
“A miserable track record, an appalling track record, no policies to speak of, and she’s got the IQ of a fence post,” he added.
Gibson’s political alliance is not a total surprise. The “Hacksaw Ridge” director was spotted chatting with the former president at a UFC fight in Las Vegas last year.
This is an excerpt from an article by Joseph A. Wulfsohn.
The Supreme Court’s conservative majority
will be maintained regardless of the Nov. 5 election results, constitutional law experts tell Fox News Digital.
With the anticipation of either another former President Donald Trump presidency or a Vice President Kamala Harris presidency, whether the country’s high court remains in its current state is a topic of debate that has yet to be formally broached by either candidate this past election cycle.
Over the years, both politicians and media personalities have called for the resignation of particular justices, including Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, over concerns about their ages and ethical controversies. However, experts say that while the individuals on the court may change, the power balance itself will remain intact no matter who wins the Oval Office in November.
“People might change. So, for example, if Harris were to win, Justice Sotomayor might retire. Or if a Republican were to win, then you could imagine Justice Alito retiring, perhaps,” John Yoo, the Emanuel Heller Professor of Law at the University of California at Berkeley, told Fox News Digital.
“The makeup of the individuals of the Court would change possibly, but the ideological balance wouldn’t change.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Haley Chi-Sing.
The New York Post Editorial Board endorsed former President Trump for a second term in the White House on Friday, calling him the “right choice” for America.
Comparing the records of the Trump administration to the incumbent Biden-Harris administration, the Post declared Trump to be the candidate of secure borders, safe cities, a growing economy, parental rights and “an America that’s respected on the world stage.”
“To borrow from Ronald Reagan’s famous ‘Are you better off now than you were four years ago?’: Voters should ask themselves if they were better off under Trump or Joe Biden and Kamala Harris,” the editorial board wrote.
“His opponents focus on how Trump’s administration was marked by a relentless soap opera of high drama and chaos — much of which they fueled.
“And yes, many find him offensive — and we say fair enough: He can be ridiculously hyperbolic.
“But before COVID wreaked havoc across the globe, Trump’s first-term results were paychecks that grew markedly faster than inflation, the lowest unemployment in 50 years, a secure border and peace overseas.”
Fox News Media and the New York Post share common ownership.
The 2024 Montana Senate race has shattered spending records with $309 spent per registered voter, a Fox News Digital breakdown of election finance records found.
All eyes are on Montana this cycle, and whether Democratic Sen. Jon Tester can survive his re-election bid against Republican challenger Tim Sheehy in a red state won by former President Trump in 2016 and 2020.
Tester has outspent his Republican opponent this cycle, spending $69.6 million with about $7.4 million cash on hand, according to the latest filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) from September.
Filings show Sheehy, a Navy SEAL and first-time Senate candidate, reported spending about $19.7 million during the same period this cycle.
Super PACs and outside groups have played a significant role in Montana advertising as Democrats pour money into a state where their majority in the Senate hangs in the balance.
Outside spending on the race totals about $154 million, according to a Fox News Digital review of FEC filings. Breaking down the numbers per candidate, outside groups spent about $61.1 million against Tester, while $15.8 million was dropped in support of his re-election bid.
Sheehy has faced $59.5 million in spending against his campaign, while $17.7 million was spent to help him unseat the three-term Democrat.
Total spending on the campaign, including contributions from outside groups, has reached approximately $243.3 million to date. There are 786,365 registered voters in Montana, according to the Montana Secretary of State, meaning the average spent per vote on the Senate race is about $309 per registered voter.
This is an excerpt from an article by Aubrie Spady.
The Pentagon released an unusual statement Thursday debunking a rumor spread online that falsely claims U.S. troops have been authorized to use force against American citizens during the election.
Former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others have spread inaccurate information that suggests a Defense Department policy revision in late September was timed to interfere with the Nov. 5 presidential election.
“… Biden/Harris have just pushed through DoD Directive 5240.01 giving the Pentagon power — for the first time in history — to use lethal force to kill Americans on U.S. soil who protest government policies,” Kennedy posted on X, to his four million followers.
U.S. law prohibits federal troops on American soil from using force against U.S. civilians, except in cases of self-defense as outlined in the Posse Comitatus Act.
The cited revision, Department of Defense Directive 5240.01, does not allow troops to use force on U.S. citizens. The timing of its release was not related to the election, Pentagon spokeswoman Sue Gough told the Associated Press.
“The policies concerning the use of force by DOD addressed in DoDD 5240.01 are not new, and do not authorize the DOD to use lethal force against U.S. citizens or people located inside the United States, contrary to rumors and rhetoric circulating on social media,” Gough said in a statement.
The Pentagon regularly updates its directives. This update was intended to align the language on use of force from other policies into 5240.01, which only applies to defense intelligence personnel.
It describes what sort of support those personnel can provide to civilian law enforcement in situations where a confrontation or lethal use of force is likely.
Defense intelligence personnel are permitted to supply intelligence, analysis, training, equipment and weapons to civilian authorities. But they cannot use force themselves.
The Associated Press contributed to this update.
CNN data expert Harry Enten said that despite being a close race on the surface, there is a high chance that the election will actually end with the winner receiving over 300 Electoral College votes.
CNN news host
John Berman noted that the election seems “historically close,” but asked, “What if it’s not?” He then turned to CNN senior political data reporter Enten to break down the numbers and observed, “As close as it is, and we do believe it‘s super close right now, that also means that if things change, even just a little bit, it‘s not really close.”
“It isn’t,” Enten agreed. “So we have been talking about the idea that there‘s going to be a historically close election. I think I might have said it on this particular program, but in fact- will the winner get at least 300 electoral votes? The answer is, majority [chance] yes.”
He then broke down how there may be a “relative blowout” in store for the 2024 election.
“There is a…60% chance that the winner of this election gets at least 300 electoral votes versus just a 40% chance that the winner ends up getting less than 300 electoral votes,” he said. “So for all the talk that we had about this election being historically close, which it is, chances are the winner will still actually score a relative blowout in the Electoral College.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Alexander Hall.
A new poll has found former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris in a dead heat among voters with only one in four saying that the country is heading in the right direction.
Both candidates are tied with 48% of the popular vote in the New York Times/Siena College survey of 2,516 likely voters nationwide between Oct. 20 to Oct. 23, which has a 2.5% margin of error.
Harris led Trump nationally 49-46% the last time this poll was conducted in early October.
Just 28% of those who responded feel the U.S. is heading in the right direction with President Biden and Harris in the White House, compared to 61% who believe it’s heading in the wrong direction.
Twenty-seven percent of voters said the economy – including jobs and the stock market – is their most important issue in deciding their vote in November, followed by abortion and immigration, each at 15%.
When the likely voters were asked who would do a better job handling the economy, voters preferred Trump by 6%.
That is down from the 13-point advantage Trump had over Harris the last time this poll was conducted, the New York Times reported.
Harris maintains a 16% lead over Trump when it comes to protecting abortion access, while Trump holds an 11% advantage on the topic of immigration, the poll also found.
This is an excerpt from an article by Greg Norman.
The Trump campaign released a statement Friday responding after former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused former President Trump of “reenacting” an infamous Nazi rally with his planned event at Madison Square Garden.
“Hillary Clinton is so messed up from her raging 8-year-long case of anti-Trump derangement syndrome that she forgot SHE did an event at Madison Square Garden when she was a senator, and her husband Bill accepted the Democrat nomination there,” Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
“Putting aside her hypocrisy, Hillary’s rhetoric about half of the country is disgusting.“
The Trump rally at New York City’s Madison Square Garden is scheduled for Oct. 27, just nine days before Election Day.
The event is expected to be first-come, first-serve, and campaign officials are expecting massive attendance.
“Like Coachella and others to come, MSG is because we are adding some very big venues because we are seeing very high interest in attending events,” a campaign source told Fox News Digital.
MSG is a 19,500-seat venue.
Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this update.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton linked former President Trump’s upcoming rally at New York City’s Madison Square Garden to the infamous Nazi rally that took place in the arena in 1939.
“One other thing that you’ll see next week, Kaitlan, is Trump actually reenacting the Madison Square Garden rally in 1939. I write about this in my book,” Clinton told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Thursday night. “President Franklin Roosevelt was appalled that neo-Nazis, fascists in America were lining up to essentially pledge their support for the kind of government that they were seeing in Germany. So I don’t think we can ignore it.”
“Now, it may be a leap for some people and a lot of others may think, ‘I don’t want to go there. I don’t want to say that.’ But please open your eyes to the danger that this man poses to our country, because I think it is clear and present for anybody paying attention,” Clinton continued.
Moments earlier, Clinton told Collins she agreed with both Vice President Kamala Harris and former Trump chief of staff Gen. John Kelly who have both called Trump a “fascist.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Joseph. A. Wulfsohn.
Energy industry leaders are pushing for Vice President Kamala Harris to clarify her stance on fossil fuel production in the final days of the presidential race, citing fears that she would restrict production and add on to four years of confusing policy under President Biden.
These concerns reached a fever pitch last week after senior campaign climate adviser Camila Thorndike said in an interview that Harris has no plans to promote fracking in office. The remarks, since walked back, sparked backlash and criticism from Republicans and industry groups, who re-upped their calls for clarity from the vice president.
Many viewed the now-retracted comment as a sign she would crack down on fracking. This could cost Harris big time in Pennsylvania – the second-largest U.S. natural gas producer behind Texas, and a key swing state with 19 electoral votes out for offer in the presidential race.
Instead, one statewide industry group said, her remarks have only inspired “more fracking confusion.”
Harris did little to assuage voters in her town hall event Wednesday night. She denied that she had previously endorsed a fracking ban while seeking the presidency in 2019 – when she said there was “no question” she is in favor of banning fracking – and instead pointed to her recent endorsement of the practice.
She has also repeatedly noted her tie-breaking vote for the Inflation Reduction Act, or the Democratic-led legislation that opened new lease sales for fracking.
However, even in the Keystone State, gas groups remain skeptical as industry leaders note that with just days left before the election, Harris has done little to spell out how she would lead on oil and gas issues, especially when it comes to issues of fracking – a necessary technology to extract natural gas in Pennsylvania.
This is an excerpt from an article by Breanne Deppisch.
With two weeks left until Election Day, the latest Fox News survey finds majorities of Vice President Kamala Harris’ supporters think votes will be counted accurately and say they will accept the results whatever the outcome.
The opposite is true among supporters of former President Donald Trump.
Most voters backing Harris (83%) are extremely or very confident votes will be counted accurately nationwide, compared to just over a third of Trump supporters (35%). Among voters overall, 58% are extremely or very confident.
Two-thirds of Harris supporters (63%) say they will accept the results of the election if she loses. Less than half of those backing Trump (42%) say they will accept the results if he loses.
This is an excerpt from an article by Victoria Balara.
Former President Donald Trump traveled to Las Vegas on Thursday evening for a Turning Point Action rally where he declared that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is “imploding” in a speech that focused on his tax cut plans.
“[Harris is] actually imploding, if you take a look. Because, look, I’m not supposed to say it, but we are leading by so much,” Trump said Thursday evening in Las Vegas to cheers from the crowd.
“Now, we’re leading by a lot in Nevada. We’re leading by a lot in Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin. Even states that are typically never in play for 50, 60, 70 years … But the fact is that states, other states too, big states, are all in play and they like us. But you know what? They think she is grossly incompetent. Let’s face it, she is not doing well,” Trump continued.
The 45th president joined the Turning Point Action rally at an arena on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ campus, where supporters such as Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Vivek Ramaswamy, and former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard also addressed the crowd. Trump said during the rally that 29,000 people were inside the arena, and another “29,000 outside to fill the place up twice.”
Nevada is another key battleground state, and where Trump first announced earlier in the campaign cycle that he would eliminate taxes on tips. He again focused his Thursday speech on tax cuts, slamming the Biden-Harris for spiraling inflation while criticizing Harris for also saying she would end taxes on tips after Trump’s June announcement.
This is an excerpt from an article by Emma Colton.
CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., how to talk to Democrats still “terrified” about Vice President Kamala Harris’ chances in the race.
“I hear from Democratic friends who are, frankly, terrified that Vice President Harris is not closing the deal. I’m sure you have even more Democratic friends than I do. What do you tell them if they reach out to you and say that they’re worried about this election?” Tapper asked.
“I would tell people that it’s important that we get to work. The days of the hand-wringing are gone. And one thing we’ve seen is that the vice president continues to make her — make her point and deliver her message. She is converting people. I mean, and think about it. I think the other thing is we need to tell people you cannot sit on the sidelines on this one,” Moore said.
He added, “You cannot be either/or on this situation and you cannot sit on the sidelines. So when people, especially people, and I would say this to both Democrats and Republicans, for people who are saying that I don’t like Donald Trump and I think he is a danger to society, but you do not have the political courage to endorse the only other person that can be the President of the United States, that actually says more about you than it does about the campaign that we’re running.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Lindsay Kornick.
As of Thursday evening, more than 30 million ballots have been cast nationwide in the 2024 presidential election. Recent polling suggests a razor-thin margin in the race between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, and the results are expected to come down to each candidate’s performance in seven swing states: Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada and North Carolina.
States have long allowed at least some Americans to vote early
, like members of the military and people with illnesses unable to get to the polls. Many states expanded eligibility in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the last presidential election, mail ballots tended to skew Democratic. In 2020, 60% of Democrats reported voting by mail, compared to 32% of Republicans, according to a 2021 study from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab.
It is important to note that while early ballots demonstrate voter enthusiasm, they do not reliably determine which candidate is winning the race, because fewer voters are expected to cast early votes than in the previous presidential election.
In 2020, the Fox News Voter Analysis found that 71% of voters cast their ballots before Election Day, with 30% voting early in-person and 41% voting by mail. This time, polls suggest that around four in 10 voters will show up before Nov. 5, according to Gallup polling.
Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips and Rémy Numa contributed to this update.
Several Republican volunteers in one of Ohio’s most critical swing districts spoke out about what issues matter most to them and why they believe that former President Trump will continue his recent success in the swing state.
“What really gets me motivated is sitting around hearing all this stuff that’s going on with our country, with the economy, with inflation being real bad, with our wages being eroded like 20% last four years,” Charlie Pengov, a lifelong Toledo resident volunteering for GOP House candidate Derek Merrin told Fox News Digital. “So instead, I’ve been taught that if you have anxiety about this, these kind of things, get involved and do something.”
Although Ohio’s long history of being a swing state has been eroded recently after former President Trump won the state by 8 points in 2020 and is expected to do even better in 2024, the race between Merrin and incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur in Toledo takes place in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, which is considered a key swing district.
“Biggest thing I hear from like family members is the economy, that’s number one,” Pengov said. “Inflation has just kind of stolen anyone’s savings that they’ve had or even, you know, sometimes it’s even hard to buy groceries from week to week for some people. You know, that’s just really the biggest issue.”
“For sure the economy,” Kelly, a Merrin volunteer who was born and raised in Toledo before moving to Arizona to escape “Democrat policies”, told Fox News Digital.
“Things like groceries, grocery prices, gas prices, housing, everything has gone up so much in the past few years and it’s just really becoming unaffordable for everyone.”
This is an excerpt from an article by Andrew Mark Miller.
Former President Trump will record an interview Friday with podcasting giant
Joe Rogan, according to a campaign official.
“The Joe Rogan Experience” boasts the largest podcast audience in the United States and gives Trump another chance to court younger, male voters, which makes up the majority of Rogan’s audience. Rogan’s show has 17.5 million subscribers on YouTube and more than 14 million followers on Spotify.
According to Politico, which first reported the story, Trump will tape the interview at Rogan’s studio in Austin, Texas.
Trump and Vice President Harris have made numerous stops at influential podcasts during the campaign season. Harris recently appeared on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, which has the largest female American audience, to discuss women’s issues. Trump has been a guest on such shows as Barstool Sports’ “Bussin with the Boys,” “Full Send” and Patrick Bet-David’s podcast.
Rogan’s show has reportedly been in talks about an interview with Harris, although no conversation has been set with two weeks to go before Election Day.
This is an excerpt from an article by David Rutz.
Singer Beyoncé is expected
to join Vice President Kamala Harris during a rally in Houston on Friday, The Associated Press reported Thursday.
Harris will head to the Republican state of Texas on Friday, when she will hold a rally spotlighting the state’s abortion laws following the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022. The Associated Press reported Thursday morning that Harris will be joined by Beyoncé, citing three people familiar with the event.
Beyoncé, who is from Houston, has not yet endorsed Harris for president, but her song “Freedom” has become a hallmark of Harris’ rallies, including using it as Harris’ walk-up song before she addresses supporters.
Speculation mounted in August during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) that Beyoncé would perform for the crowds on the convention’s final night. The singer ultimately did not perform or attend the DNC.
Though Beyoncé has not yet endorsed Harris this cycle, she has a long history of supporting Democrats, including singing the national anthem during former President Barack Obama’s second presidential inauguration in 2013.
Beyoncé’s mother in July issued a full endorsement of Harris following President Biden dropping out of the race as concern mounted surrounding Biden’s mental acuity and age.
This is an excerpt from an article by Emma Colton.
Hillary Clinton makes heinous accusation about Trump, his supporters ahead of key rally
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton linked former President Trump‘s upcoming rally at New York City’s Madison Square Garden to the infamous Nazi rally that took place in the arena in 1939.
“One other thing that you’ll see next week, Kaitlan, is Trump actually reenacting the Madison Square Garden rally in 1939. I write about this in my book,” Clinton told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Thursday night. “President Franklin Roosevelt was appalled that neo-Nazis, fascists in America were lining up to essentially pledge their support for the kind of government that they were seeing in Germany. So I don’t think we can ignore it.”
“Now, it may be a leap for some people and a lot of others may think, ‘I don’t want to go there. I don’t want to say that.’ But please open your eyes to the danger that this man poses to our country, because I think it is clear and present for anybody paying attention,” Clinton continued.
TRUMP RESPONDS TO EX-CHIEF OF STAFF AFTER HE’S LABELED ‘AUTHORITARIAN’ AND THE ‘GENERAL DEFINITION OF A FASCIST’
Moments earlier, Clinton told Collins she agreed with both Vice President Kamala Harris and former Trump chief of staff Gen. John Kelly who have both called Trump a “fascist.”
But the 2016 Democratic nominee was hesitant to say whether that line of attack will resonate with voters Harris needs to win over ahead of Election Day.
“I think that’s a fair question, Kaitlan. And I can’t wholly answer it,” Clinton said. “But I think number one, you have a duty when you’re running for president- You know, I tried to sound the alarm about him back in 2016 but it was really an uphill climb, because people could not literally imagine that he posed a danger or that his character was so lacking when it came to the responsibility of being president, so I totally understand that, but now there’s just too much evidence about what he wants to do, what he is saying he wants to do. So number one, I think that someone running for president, like Vice President Harris, really has a duty to sound the alarm.”
‘THE VIEW’ CO-HOSTS WHOOPI GOLDBERG, JOY BEHAR EXASPERATED WITH UNDECIDED VOTERS AS ELECTION DAY APPROACHES
“And secondly, I think that there are people who are still paying attention, you know, maybe they’re, you know, leaning one way or the other, and they hear John Kelly, or they hear General Milley, or they hear President Obama or Vice President Harris, and it causes them to think really hard, ‘Why would we take that risk?'” she said.
“Sometimes, in politics, you’ve got to do what is not only right, but important. And it is important to make a case as well as we can before this election about what kind of man this is and what kind of president he is promising to be,” she added.
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Kelly, who has been an outspoken critic of the former president ever since he left the Trump administration, told The New York Times that Trump fits the “general definition of a fascist.”
When asked at Wednesday’s CNN town hall whether she agreed with Kelly’s conclusion, Harris replied, “Yes I do.”
Community leaders in blue city admit defunding the police was a ‘mistake’: ‘Need them now’
Community leaders in Burlington, Vermont, a town currently dealing with troubling levels of homelessness, drug addiction and crime, are urgently looking to boost the city’s police presence after the force was partially defunded in 2020.
Pomerleau Real Estate CEO and President Ernie Pomerleau, as well as Burlington City Council President Ben Traverse, spoke to Fox News Digital last week about the city’s need to bolster its police department after it was defunded in the wake of the George Floyd riots and racial justice movement of 2020. The Burlington Police Department has since struggled with recruitment.
“And so, they allowed attrition to take down the police force – that was a mistake,” Pomerleau told the outlet, adding, “We need to support the police.”
CRISIS IN KENSINGTON: IF ‘GOOD OLD FASHION HEROIN’ WAS BACK, LIFE WOULD BE BETTER RECOVERING, ADDICT SAYS
Pomerleau’s concerns have been driven by a serious uptick in homelessness, drug addiction and crime that has gripped the picturesque New England town that sits on the edge of Lake Champlain.
Significant numbers of homeless people congregate downtown, among them are people addicted to hard drugs like fentanyl, which has led to a 1,000 percent increase in overdoses – leaving first responders strained.
Additionally, violent crime is up significantly in Burlington, with crime data showing that aggravated assault has increased 40 percent and gunfire has gone up nearly 300 percent. Some local residents told Fox they find it “dangerous” to be out in public at night.
Both the real estate leader and city council president stressed that the city is looking to replenish the police department that had been depleted in recent years to combat these growing issues.
Inspired by the racial justice movement in 2020, the city council approved a resolution that year to support the reduction of the police force by 30% through attrition. In addition, the resolution declared that racism was a citywide public health crisis. As a result, the previous cap of 105 officers was lowered to only 74.
In the wake of increasing homelessness and crime, the city has voted multiple times to boost police numbers. In 2022, the council raised the cap to 87 officers, and in 2024 voted to increase the police budget by $2.47 million, providing funding for “10 additional armed cops, 5 lesser-armed cops (Community Service Officers), and allocated $100,000 toward recruiting efforts that have been a complete failure to date,” Vermont progressive outlet “The Rake” reported.
Still, the Burlington Police Department has struggled to fill the roles. Currently, there are only 68 officers in the department.
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Pomerleau, whose father is the namesake for the police department’s administrative building, said that he disagreed with the initial decision to defund the police four years ago and expressed that adding more police is an urgent need.
“But look, everything is 2020 looking backwards. At the time, there were people that defended that and thought it was the right choice, so I’m not going to double guess everything at the moment, but right now I’m saying we need 20 more people and we need them now,” he said.
The real estate business owner also admitted that the city is not being tough enough on criminals, telling Fox, “We have to address some of the legislative changes that occurred that diminish the consequences of some serious crimes.”
Pomerleau outlined the city of Burlington’s recent initiatives to promote “Community Safety with Human Dignity” in a conversation with Fox News Digital.
The plan, which includes authorization to staff an additional 20 officers, also includes a Division of Community Service Officer that assists with Social Services. Burlington Fire and Rescue has also dedicated personnel to deal with the addicted population. The City of Burlington has also created a new position, known as the Officer for Community Safety.
The Urgent Care Mental Health Clinic in the area is expected to open this week and will deal with those suffering from psychological illnesses. The BB Downtown Ambassador Program has also cultivated a new program to support retailers with ongoing issues and help the addicted population find help.
Organizations including the Downtown Health Project and Johnson Health Clinic, Vermonters for Criminal Justice Reform, Howard Center, Turning Point Center, COTS and Champlain Housing Trust are also part of the initiative to tackle homelessness, addiction and mental health concerns in the city.
Traverse acknowledged the struggles the city has had in recent years with having enough police around to deal with drug usage and “some increased criminality that we’ve been seeing.”
“I think like a lot of police departments around the country, Burlington is working to address recruitment and retention within our police department. But we’re working through these issues, and I trust that things are getting better.”
Describing some of the crimes that have been occurring in Burlington, he said, “I think we’ve seen increased drug trafficking and drug use. You’ve seen increased circumstances of retail theft as well, and a lot of crimes that revolve around that – increased gun-related crimes and other violence that comes with an increase in drug trafficking. Those are the kinds of issues that we’ve been dealing with here.”
The city council president stressed to Fox that the council has “really been working to support our police department” in light of these circumstances.
“You know, we love our police here in Burlington,” Traverse said. “Burlington is a great place to live and raise a family. It’s where I’ve chosen to live and raise my family. And we’re working to address recruitment retention challenges through things like increased pay, hiring, bonuses, great benefits. We’re looking at a new police station here in Burlington and other supports.”
“You know, if you have folks that are out there that are looking for a career in policing, Burlington’s a great place to be and we could use you,” he added.
PHILADELPHIA POLICE, OFFICIALS WARN OF A ‘VICIOUS CYCLE’ INCREASING VIOLENCE IN THE CITY
Not all community leaders in Burlington believe that increasing police or relying on traditional law enforcement measures is the way to deal with increased drug addiction and related crimes in the city.
Ed Baker, a harm reduction activist and former addict, told Fox News that “these types of control measures just don’t work.”
“The jails are full of people. On any one given day you could rush out in here into downtown Burlington and arrest 200 people. What good does it do? It just doesn’t work. It’s not going to work over the short term and it’s not going to work over the long term. It’s a response that doesn’t work and it’s very expensive.”
He explained how harm reduction is a much better approach in dealing with addicts, saying it’s about reaching “people who are using drugs while they’re using drugs and not pressure them to stop using drugs, but to keep them alive while they’re using drugs.” He noted that community members should “engage them in helping relationships and try to help them to see how in their life they can be motivated to harm themselves and the community less.”
Pomerleau explained to Fox that, while he believes the city needs more police and to be tougher on crime, it must be compassionate to those suffering homelessness and addiction.
“It’s a balance. It really has to come together… In the middle, everybody agrees that these are human beings that we have to address. But there are safety issues that have to be addressed.”
Pomerleau stressed that the city is taking these problems very seriously.
“None of it’s easy,” he said. “But I think this is sort of a call to action. We agree that we have some challenges that we need to overcome for the economics of the city as well as the social fabric of the city. And people are awake to that and want to change. And we’re working hard on getting that.”
Traverse said he believes that the city would overcome its “significant challenges.”
“Burlington has a ton going for it,” he said. “It’s still an amazing city. I’m convinced that our best days are ahead of us. We have our challenges right now, but we’re working to address them.”
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Caravan heading toward border could preview migrant rush if Trump wins, expert says
A group of 2,000 migrants making its way to the U.S. border could be the start of a wave of attempted crossings as the presidential election nears, according to one expert.
“I think whatever deal we struck with the government of Mexico to slow the flow leading up to the election to make the numbers look better for Harris’ campaign ends the day after the election,” Lora Ries, director of the Heritage Foundation’s Border Security and Immigration Center, told Fox News Digital, referring to the Biden administration’s coordination with the Mexican government earlier this year on executive action that allowed the president to temporarily suspend entry into the country.
The comments come roughly 2,000 migrants departed from Mexico’s border on Sunday, according to a report from CBS Austin, with some admitting that they are making the journey now over fears about the result of the presidential election.
BIDEN ADMIN FACES SCRUTINY OVER RESPONSE TO ‘SIGNIFICANT RISE’ OF ASSAULTS ON BORDER PATROL AGENTS
“Whoever wins (in the United States election) should not close the doors to us, [they] should give us the support we need, because we are all really going through a bad time,” one of the migrants told the Associated Press.
Ries expects that flow to intensify between election day and the inauguration if former President Donald Trump defeats Vice President Kamala Harris, noting that migrants will fear Trump will do more to close off the southern border.
“We saw this for Trump’s first term, when numbers of people tried to get in before he came into office, because they knew he would be enforcement-minded,” Ries said, adding that a Trump victory this time would result in “quite the jump in numbers” for illegal crossings.
WHAT VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS LEFT OUT ABOUT BIDEN ADMIN’S ROLE IN BORDER CRISIS: A TIMELINE
Border security has been at the top of mind for voters ahead of this year’s election after a record-setting three years of illegal crossings under President Biden, an issue Harris has also had to confront after being appointed by Biden to help solve the root causes of migration in 2021.
Republicans have continued to hammer Harris for her role as “border czar” since she took over at the top of the ticket, while she has vowed stricter enforcement measures on the campaign trail.
“Those who cross our borders unlawfully will be apprehended and removed and barred from re-entering for five years,” Harris said during a September event in the border swing state of Arizona.
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Trump, meanwhile, has made border security and immigration a centerpiece of his campaign, which has included promises of the “largest mass deportation in the history of our country.”
Neither the White House nor the Harris campaign responded to a Fox News Digital requests for comment.
Socialist group in AOC’s ‘Red Light’ district blasts police crackdown in crime-ridden area
More police in crime-ridden neighborhood in Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s district actually makes the area “less safe,” according to a prominent socialist group in Queens.
The Queens chapter of the New York City Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), made the claims while blasting a major police crackdown on crime in the borough which was launched to tackle out of control prostitution and illegal street vending.
The socialist group released a scathing statement Wednesday panning what it calls the “militarized violence” against migrant workers on Roosevelt Avenue, a two-mile commercial strip which has become a hotbed for open-air prostitution and illegal vendors who clog the streets selling food and other merchandise without permits.
The statement was released 24 hours after a Democrat politician was accosted in the area by demonstrators after he publicly supported the police operation which has seen more than 200 police officers – including state troopers – descend on Roosevelt Avenue.
DEMOCRAT POL CHASED AWAY IN AOC’S ‘RED LIGHT’ DISTRICT AFTER BACKING POLICE CRACKDOWN ON OPEN-AIR PROSTITUTION
“Queens DSA condemns Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams’ violent tactics to surveil, destroy and steal the livelihoods of immigrant workers along Roosevelt Avenue, Queens,” the statement reads. “With rollbacks to New York City’s right to shelter and continued scapegoating of immigrants to justify Mayor Adams austerity politics, this escalation of militarized violence against immigrant workers must end.”
The group claims that more police boots on the ground makes the community “less safe” and claims the NYPD has “stolen from street vendors, harassed community members” and “destroyed their livelihoods” by shutting them down.
The chapter did not specifically say it opposes police clamping down on prostitution in the area, which has become so rampant it’s widely known as a “Red Light” district, garnering the nickname, the “Avenue of the Sweethearts.” Over the last week, the NYPD has raided several brothels in the area.
Fox News Digital reached out to the DSA for comment on its position on prostitution in the area but did not immediately receive a response for publication.
The Roosevelt Avenue strip is represented by “Squad” member Ocasio-Cortez, who the New York City chapter of the DSA endorsed over the summer for re-election, and fellow Democrat Rep. Grace Meng. Ocasio-Cortez, and the DSA, have called for the police to be defunded several times following the death of George Floyd in 2020.
AOC DISTRICT NEIGHBORHOOD LABELED ‘THIRD WORLD’ AS MIGRANTS CLOG STREETS AND PROSTITUTES OVERRUN EVERY BLOCK
Illegal vendors often overrun sidewalks on Roosevelt cooking hot food out in the open devoid of any health certifications or inspections. The vendors, nearly all of whom are migrants, say they have no choice but to sell items on the street to survive, given they lack work permits or proficiency in English to secure legitimate work.
The DSA chapter in Queens maintains they should be left to operate there.
“Queens workers deserve investment, not policing. We need fully funded schools, affordable housing, libraries open seven days a week, resources for English-limited speakers, and reliable transit,” the statement continues. “Increased policing makes our streets and communities less safe. We stand in solidarity with workers and demand their livelihoods be returned and reimbursed.”
“Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul must withdraw New York State troopers and NYPD Officers along Roosevelt Avenue, end militarized violence, and invest in our communities.”
Last week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams launched “Operation Restore Roosevelt,” which aims to crack down on miscreant behavior over the next 90 days by deploying more than 200 extra police officers to the area, including state troopers.
WATCH: New York City street lined with prostitutes soliciting sex:
The statement came the day after Hiram Monserrate, a former New York state Senator who is running for state Assembly, was chased out of a public square in the neighborhood while speaking to the press praising the operation. Monserrate was set upon by protesters who had been holding a rally opposing the police crackdown.
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“Roosevelt Avenue has been under a crime wave, it’s an urban crime zone. And these police officers that we got from the city and the state troopers are incredibly necessary to just get a handle on the crime in this community, which has been unprecedented,” Monserrate told Fox News Digital following the fiery
“We have more brothels than bodegas. We have brothels in front of schools, next to churches, 24-hour sex workers walking the streets freely at all hours of the day while parents are taking their kids to school. It’s unacceptable,” Monserrate told Fox News Digital.
Parents sue school district for allowing student with alleged MS-13 ties to return to class
A group of parents is suing the Loudoun County School Board in northern Virginia, claiming they were silenced by the board when attempting to raise concerns about a student who was allowed to return to school despite alleged ties to the notorious MS-13 gang.
The group of parents at the center of the lawsuit claims that they were silenced by the board during a public meeting when trying to raise concerns about reports that a student who is allegedly in the country illegally and affiliated with MS-13 was allowed to return to school despite being arrested for carrying a gun and threatening to shoot another student.
“Time and time again, the Loudoun County School Board has demonstrated through its actions an unwillingness to respect those rights exercised by community members and parents commenting concerned with the actions of their public schools. This latest constitutional violation is even more pronounced, given that the topic was related to the safety of students,” America First Legal Senior Advisor Ian Prior, whose organization is representing the parents, said in a statement.
YOUNGKIN CONDEMNS LOUDOUN COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD DENYING DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MALES AND FEMALES
The parents, who are suing in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, claim that their First Amendment rights were violated during an Oct. 8 public school board meeting, where some of them attempted to raise concerns to the board about their decision to reinstate the student only for the board to cut off their microphones and end the public comment period.
In a press release after the incident, the board claimed that the parents violated the rules of the public comment period and that they were attempting to prevent the spread of “misinformation.”
“A number of individuals sought to discuss what was reported in the media and discuss a specific student despite repeated requests from the Board Chair not to do so. As a result, the Board Chair concluded public comment to restore order, in accordance with School Board public comment procedures,” the release said. “Misinformation is on the rise, and school divisions like LCPS must be vigilant in actively combating it. It is our responsibility to call out misinformation when allegations are incorrect, unsubstantiated, or deliberately used to create division within our community.”
YOUNGKIN AD DECLARES ‘PARENTS STILL MATTER’ AMID 2024 SPECULATION
The board also argued that the allegations against the student at the center of the controversy “are not facts,” and that naming the student or speaking about the student public would do a “disservice not just to the individuals involved” and “the entire community.”
“This is particularly dangerous when it involves our children and their safety,” the release read.
LOUDOUN COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS NAMES NEW SUPERINTENDENT AMID CONTROVERSY OVER RESPONSE TO SEXUAL ASSAULTS
The incident is not the first time the Loudoun County School Board has found themselves in the spotlight, having generated controversy over the last few years for its policies on transgender students and bathroom policies that allow transgender students and locker rooms based on their chosen, not biological, gender.
In the board’s latest controversy, the parents argue that they have a right to voice their concerns about the district’s policy during public hearings.
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“While Loudoun County Public Schools may believe that it can deprive First Amendment rights based on its claims of so-called ‘misinformation,’ the Bill of Rights makes clear that in the United States, the government is not the arbiter of truth,” Prior said.
The Loudoun County School Board did not respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.