Republican Don Bacon projected to win Nebraska race as GOP nears House majority
Moderate Republican Rep. Don Bacon is projected to survive a close re-election race in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District.
The Associated Press projected on Friday that Bacon, a retired military general, who ran against Democratic state lawmaker Tony Vargas, won.
The race was one of the most closely watched races of the 2024 election cycle. It was a key win for House GOP leaders fighting to keep the chamber majority.
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In a testament to the district’s battleground status, both Bacon and Vargas emphasized their bipartisan work in the closing days of the campaign.
Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District is the least red House seat in the state. It includes all of Omaha, the state’s largest city, as well as the city of Papillion.
Bacon was one of 16 House Republicans who won seats in 2022 in areas that had voted for President Biden in 2020, making it one of the most competitive races from the get-go.
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The moderate GOP lawmaker made a name for himself for speaking his mind, even when it came to criticizing plans and measures levied by fellow Republicans and House Republican leadership.
He retired from the Air Force as a brigadier general in 2014.
Bacon won the seat in 2016 by defeating incumbent Democratic Rep. Brad Ashford by roughly 1%.
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His three subsequent elections saw him narrowly hold on to power by roughly 2% or less.
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Vargas had previously challenged Bacon in the 2022 midterms and lost by about 2.2%.
A former teacher and Omaha Public Schools Board member, Vargas joined the Nebraska Legislature in 2017. Like Bacon, he defeated an incumbent of the opposite party to win his seat.
Pelosi throws both Biden and Harris under the bus after Trump’s sweeping election win
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., pointed the finger at President Biden for not dropping out of the race earlier in an election post-mortem with The New York Times on Thursday.
Pelosi told host Lulu Garcia-Navarro on the Times’ “The Interview” podcast, “Had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race.”
As the former speaker told it, “The anticipation was that, if the president were to step aside, that there would be an open primary.” Pelosi had been a key player in pushing Biden out after his infamous debate performance.
Instead, within an hour of announcing he was stepping aside on July 21, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. Less than 36 hours later, she announced she had locked up the nomination, getting commitments of backing from a majority of Democratic National Committee delegates.
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“And as I say, Kamala may have, I think she would have done well in [a primary] and been stronger going forward. But we don’t know that. That didn’t happen. We live with what happened,” Pelosi told the Times. “And because the president endorsed Kamala Harris immediately, that really made it almost impossible to have a primary at that time. If it had been much earlier, it would have been different.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Biden and the Harris campaign for comment.
Pelosi had insisted multiple times after Harris secured the nomination that there had been an open process but nobody else had put their hat in the ring to seize the opportunity.
“Many of us who were concerned about the election wanted to have an open process. It was an open process, anyone could have gotten in,” Pelosi said during an interview with The Wall Street Journal in August.
“[Harris] had the endorsement of the president, and she, politically astutely, took advantage of it and shut down — not shut down, but won the nomination. But anybody else could have gotten in,” Pelosi continued.
She reiterated those comments on “The View” in September and added, “I was one of the earlier endorsers of any of the leaders, right? Within 24 hours.”
‘ANYBODY COULD HAVE GOTTEN IN:’ PELOSI INSISTS HARRIS WON DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION IN AN ‘OPEN PROCESS’
Pressed again that month, Pelosi expressed satisfaction that it had happened so quickly.
“No, I didn’t change my mind. We had an open primary and [Harris] won it. Nobody else got in the race,” Pelosi said. “Yes people could have jumped in — there were some people who were sort of preparing, but she just took off with it, and actually it was a blessing because there was not that much time between then and the election and it sort of saved time.”
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The “Interview” podcast with Pelosi will be released Saturday.
ABC’s “The View” has been having a difficult time grappling with President-elect Trump’s victory in the days following the presidential election.
At least four of the co-hosts walked onto Wednesday’s show wearing black as if they were attending a funeral. And after some expressed their respect for the democratic process, it didn’t take long for anger to be unleashed.
“I’m profoundly disturbed,” co-host Sunny Hostin said. “I think if you look at the New York Times this morning, the headline was ‘America makes a perilous choice.’ I think that in 2016, we didn’t know what we would get from a Trump administration, but we know now. And we know now that he will have almost unfettered power.”
“I’m profoundly disturbed that the 14th Amendment of the Constitution did not prevent someone who participated in an insurrection from becoming President of the United States,” Hostin later went on. “I’m surprised at the results, but I’m not surprised as a woman of color, I was so hopeful that a mixed race woman married to a Jewish guy could be elected president of this country, and I think that it had nothing to do with policy. I think this was a referendum of cultural resentment in this country.”
Hostin also said she was worried about “mass deportations and internment camps.”
‘The View’ co-host Sunny Hostin worries about ‘internment camps’ after Trump victory:
“I’m still not gonna say his name,” Whoopi Goldberg said, maintaining her vow not to utter Trump’s name on the program.
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On Thursday, Joy Behar complained about how not only has Trump won the White House but Republicans are poised to hold onto the House and take over the Senate and conservatives maintain a majority on the Supreme Court.
“It’s pathetic,” a downtrodden Behar said. “There are no checks and balances. A completely intelligent, qualified woman lost to a guy who was simulating sex with a microphone. I mean, come on, America.”
Joy Behar fumes over Trump’s election: ‘Come on, America:’
Hostin clashed with co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin, who argued that Democrats “missed the moment” and misread what the electorate wanted.
“Do you think Republicans missed the moment? What about a post-mortem on the Republican Party, the Trump Party right now?” Hostin asked.
“But they just swept though,” Griffin responded.
“They won but they’re morally bankrupt,” Hostin shot back.
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After Griffin highlighted a Texas district that was 97% Latino that was overwhelming won by Trump, Hostin blamed it on “misogyny” and “sexism,” not the border crisis.
Sunny Hostin blames Latinos moving to Trump on sexism and misogyny:
Goldberg appeared to parrot Vice President Kamala Harris’ suggestion that high prices are not due to inflation fueled by Biden-Harris policies but rather price gouging from grocery stores.
“Your pocketbook is bad, not because the Bidens did anything. Not because the economy is bad. Your grocery bills are what they are because the folks that own the groceries are pigs,” Goldberg insisted.
Those comments reportedly sparked outrage among grocers.
Things got even uglier on Friday when Hostin went on a diatribe about the country.
“I think the more relevant question actually is what is wrong with America?” Hostin said. “I think what is wrong with our country that the Republican Party would choose as a candidate and support a candidate who is an insurrectionist, who is an election denier, someone who is twice impeached, 34 time convicted felon, someone who has been accused of alleged sexual misconduct by 26 women, found liable for sexual abuse. What is wrong with this country that they would choose a message of divisiveness, of xenophobia, of racism, of misogyny over a message of inclusiveness, a message for the people, by the people of the people.”
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Sara Haines chimed in, insisting there was a “condescending” tone that came from Democrats that ultimately alienated voters.
“That message of joy and inclusiveness?” Hostin sniped at Haines.
“No,” Haines responded. “The message of not being educated, being dumb and what’s wrong with America.”
“The bigger question should be yes Sunny, why did they vote for him?” Haines told her bitter co-host.
“Yes, so [Republicans] need to be introspective,” Hostin responded.
“No! We need to be introspective!” Haines shouted back. “If we voted for Kamala Harris, we need to say what didn’t resonate with the voters. Do you know what didn’t resonate with the voters? When they were saying we don’t feel safe and the left focus on defund the police and bail reform.”
“My point is they screamed and screamed and screamed. They didn’t vote for him because he’s a racist or a misogynist. They voted because they needed help in their everyday lives,” Haines later added.
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Behar jokingly suggested Trump voters would admit to being “racists” and “misogynists” in the exit polls.
“Do you really think 74 million people are racist?!” Griffin fired back.
Ana Navarro appeared to shame women and minority voters for backing Trump.
“Black people voted for somebody they know is a racist,” Navarro said. “Latinos voted for somebody they know is going to deport their abuela. Puerto Ricans voted for somebody they know treats them like trash… White women voted for somebody they know took away their reproductive rights. So all of those things are hard for people like me to understand.”
The over-the-top hostility particularly coming from Hostin may stem from the consequential exchange she had with Vice President Kamala Harris last month when she appeared on “The View.”
Kamala Harris admits there’s ‘not a thing’ she’d do differently than Biden on ‘The View:’
Hostin lobbed a softball question to the Democratic nominee, asking, “Would you have done something differently than President Biden during the past four years?”
“There is not a thing that comes to mind in terms of — and I’ve been a part of most of the decisions that have had impact,” Harris responded.
That response immediately exploded on social media and was seized on by the Trump campaign, making the case that Harris wasn’t the candidate of change and would only continue President Biden’s policies. The Hostin-Harris exchange was featured in countless political ads, likely swaying thousands of undecided voters across the country.
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Dana Walden, a senior Disney executive whose portfolio includes ABC News, which “The View”‘s production company falls under, is one of Harris’ “extraordinary friends,” according to a report in the New York Times. Walden and Harris have known each other since 1994, while their husbands, Matt Walden and Doug Emhoff, have known each other since the 1980s.
ABC told the New York Times that Walden, who is Disney’s highest-ranking television executive, does not weigh in on editorial decisions. She has donated to dozens of Democrats and has contributed to Harris’ political campaigns since at least 2003.
President-elect’s team contacts congressman about potential role as defense secretary
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., is being considered to serve as secretary of defense in a second Trump administration.
A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital Rogers has been contacted by the Trump transition team.
Fox News Digital reached out to a spokesperson for comment.
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Rogers was re-elected to a third term Tuesday after running unopposed.
Another potential candidate for defense secretary is Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Green Beret. In addition to serving in the military before joining Congress, Waltz was an adviser to defense secretaries Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld and spent time in the private sector as CEO of defense contractor Metis Solutions.
He sits on the House Armed Services and Intelligence committees, in addition to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
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Republicans are bullish about keeping the House majority after victories in the Senate and the White House on election night.
Replacing a House member, even one from a district that heavily favors one party or the other, generally takes at least several weeks. Republican leaders have already signaled they would not want to waste any time in using their majorities in Congress to forward Trump’s agenda.
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On Thursday, Trump announced his campaign manager, Susie Wiles, will serve as his White House chief of staff.
House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., is being discussed as a potential candidate for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, two people familiar with such discussions told Fox News Digital.
Charlamagne points out how Democrats’ dire messaging changed right after election
Radio host Charlamagne Tha God observed the widespread change of tone among many of President-elect Donald Trump’s critics, who have gone from warning he would end democracy to respecting his legitimate victory.
“I’m glad everybody’s having a sense of optimism, because the reality is we have no choice, because we’re here now. Donald J. Trump is going to be the 47th President of the United States of America, like it or not, and we all hope for the best for this country,” Charlamagne tha God said.
“Don’t y’all find it strange that now that he’s won, they’re not calling him a threat to democracy? They’re not calling him a fascist. I mean, damn, on Monday, they was just calling him that,” Charlamagne added.
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“I would think that, you know, if you really believe that, then somebody’s speech would be about how America effed up and how things are about to be really bad. It just makes you wonder how much of it did they really believe, or how much of it was just politics. That’s all,” he said.
In brief remarks Thursday, Biden said he congratulated Trump on his victory and assured that his entire administration would work “to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition.” He emphasized unity and spoke about political campaigns as a “contest of competing visions” that the country chooses between.
This was a stark departure from Biden’s rhetoric about Trump and his supporters being a threat to democracy or “garbage.” As he campaigned in the final weeks of the election for Harris, Biden had also called for Trump to be locked up “politically.”
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On Thursday, Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich questioned White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre about this change in rhetoric from Biden, recalling that “this administration messaged to millions of Americans that they’re going to wake up the day after the election if Trump won and have their rights stripped away, that democracy would crumble. And the president said today, ‘We’re going to be OK,’ So how do you square that?”
After being pressed repeatedly by the reporter, Jean-Pierre eventually bristled and said, “Well, now you’re just twisting everything around, and that’s really unfair. No it is, no, no, no, Jackie, it’s unfair because I’ve been standing here trying to be very respectful to what happened the last two nights, two nights ago. Being respectful.”
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Two battleground Senate races still too close to call — but one party appears to have slim lead
Three days after Election Day on Nov. 5, the U.S. Senate races in the western states of Arizona and Nevada remain undecided.
Democratic candidates in both races have maintained a slight lead, offering hope for Democratic leader Chuck Schumer that his incoming minority might not shrink further. Republicans have flipped four senate seats so far and are set to start next year in the majority.
As of Friday morning, incumbent Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., leads her Republican challenger Ret. Army Capt. Sam Brown by more than 17,500 votes, or 1.2 percentage points. The deadline for mail-in ballots to arrive and be counted in Nevada is Saturday. With tens of thousands of ballots potentially outstanding, The Associated Press said on Thursday that the race is still too close to call.
So far, Rosen has 665,840 votes, or 47.76%. Brown has earned 648,292 votes, or 46.50%. Nearly 96% of Nevada precincts have reported their results.
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“There are still tens of thousands of uncounted ballots in the race for U.S. Senate, and the candidates are separated by less than one percent,” the Brown campaign said on Thursday. “There are also thousands of ballots which need to be cured. Sam Brown is committed to ensuring every legally cast, valid vote is counted.”
On Wednesday, Rosen said, “We feel good about the results we’re seeing, but there are still thousands of votes to be counted. Our democracy takes time, and I’m confident that we will win as more votes come in.”
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In neighboring Arizona, only 76.05% of precincts are reporting. Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego, a Marine, currently leads Republican Kari Lake, a former TV news anchor, by more than 43,000 votes. The winner of this contest will succeed retiring Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent who formerly was a Democrat. She left the party after clashing with its far-left element and decided against running for re-election as an independent when it became clear there was no path for her to do so.
The Arizona results are pouring in slowly, mostly because of how the state counts votes and the complexity of this year’s ballot. The delays were expected to be most pronounced in Maricopa County, the state’s largest county.
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“For the first time since 2006 here in Maricopa County, we have a two-page ballot, and we have races on both sides of those,” Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates told Fox 10 Phoenix last month. “We’re talking about four different sides of contests, seventy-nine contests on average. We anticipate that it will take people a little bit longer.”
Officials said a GOP-backed state law that adds extra steps to verify ballots might also cause delays.
The law requires poll workers to wait for the polls to close before counting begins. Then, all green envelope ballots that were dropped off need to be hand counted before they are delivered to the elections center, where the signatures are verified, and the votes are counted.
If the election office finds an error on a voter’s ballot, the voter is permitted five days to fix it. Election workers say it could take up to two weeks for every ballot to be cured and counted.
Mail ballots also need to be scanned, sorted and signature-verified before they can be counted. And voters may return mail ballots at any time before polls close on Election Day.
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“The most important thing you can be doing for the next few days is helping [Turning Point Action] cure these ballots and make sure every vote counts in Arizona,” Lake posted on X on Thursday.
The AP reported there are still hundred of thousands of ballots left to count in Arizona, including nearly half a million in Maricopa County. Officials are currently counting early votes that arrived in October. Until more ballots are counted, the race remains too early to call.