Harris campaign officials open up about devastating loss, why they couldn’t make up ground
Top Democrats in Vice President Harris’ campaign say their efforts to sway voters simply weren’t enough in the face of a general dissatisfaction with the direction of the country among the electorate.
Officials who worked on the campaign offered a post-mortem to the Washington Post on Thursday, saying that former President Trump also took advantage of new media opportunities that Harris left mostly untouched.
“There are certain things we’re looking at to understand if we made the right call,” campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon told the Post. “But fundamentally, there wasn’t just one audience of voters that would have impacted this, or one program. The headwinds were just too great for us to overcome, especially in 107 days. But we came very close to what we anticipated, both in terms of turnout and in terms of support.”
Campaign officials said their own internal models going into Election Day had Harris with slim leads in Wisconsin and Michigan, and virtually tied in Pennsylvania, according to the Post. Their models had Trump leading in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and North Carolina.
PRESIDENT BIDEN ADMITS PRESSURE FROM DEMOCRATS CONTRIBUTED TO DECISION TO DROP OUT
“We are very focused on understanding what happened,” O’Malley Dillon said. “We were laser-focused on the battleground states. We knew it would be a margin-of-error race, but with the organization we had and the movement we saw, we thought it was possible.”
DEMOCRATS’ FUROR OVER ‘UNQUALIFIED’ TRUMP NOMINEES PUTS BIDEN’S STAFFING DECISIONS BACK IN SPOTLIGHT
Campaign officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, also credited the Trump campaign and GOP in general for increasing their outreach to young men across the U.S.
“I think what we have seen is that the folks on the other side, on Team Red, have been doing a lot of this work for years,” the official told the Post. “And there’s just, like, a lot of ground for us to make up in … where young men in particular are going to receive their information, particularly young men who are explicitly not looking for political content.”
During the campaign, Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, made regular appearances on wide-reaching podcasts with major personalities, many of them comedians like Theo Von and Tim Dillon. That culminated with Trump and Vance having near back-to-back appearances on the largest podcast in the world, the Joe Rogan Experience, just before Election Day.
Harris made an attempt at similar forms of media with her appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast, which appeals far more to young women.
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“We are not here to tell you everything was perfect,” O’Malley Dillon said. “We lost. But some of the ascribing the loss to singular things, like if we had just done [an interview with] Joe Rogan, then that would have solved the problem with young men. That is too simplistic and doesn’t solve anything and certainly doesn’t solve the path forward.”
FBI director, DHS secretary refuse to publicly testify on threats facing the US
Top members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee rebuked DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and FBI Director Christopher Wray for skipping an end-of-year public hearing on Thursday.
Committee Chairman Gary Peters said Mayorkas and Wray’s refusal to appear is a “shocking departure” from the 15-year tradition of holding the annual hearing on worldwide threats. In a statement to Fox News Digital, the FBI argued that Wray and other officials have already “testified extensively” in public about threats facing the U.S., and that the bureau “has repeatedly demonstrated our commitment to responding to Congressional oversight and being transparent with the American people.”
“FBI leaders…believe the Committee would benefit most from further substantive discussions and additional information that can only be provided in a classified setting,” the FBI said in a statement.
A DHS spokesperson offered a similar explanation when contacted by Fox Digital, noting that the DHS would prefer a classified briefing saying saying Mayorkas has “testified 30 times during his tenure.”
SENATE GOP INITIATES THUNE-ENGINEERED SLOWDOWN AS SCHUMER LOOKS TO STACK JUDICIAL VOTES
Peters rejected that explanation in a public statement, however, arguing that the lack of a public hearing “robs the American people of critical information.”
“Americans deserve transparent, public answers about the threats we face. Secretary Mayorkas and Director Wray’s refusal to speak publicly about their department’s work will only increase the concerns that many Americans have about our nation’s security at a challenging time, flout the Committee’s efforts to conduct responsible oversight, and will deal a serious blow to trust in our government. Their claims that they can only relay such information and respond to questions in a classified setting are entirely without merit,” Peters wrote.
SPRINT TO CONFIRM TRUMP NOMINEES KICKS OFF IN JANUARY
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., the ranking member of the committee, also bashed the officials, saying their refusal to testify publicly was “unacceptable.”
The postponed Senate hearing came just one day after a similar hearing before the House Homeland Security Committee was pushed back on Wednesday. Mayorkas and Wray were both scheduled to testify in that hearing as well.
SCHUMER NOW PLEADS FOR BI-PARTISANSHIP HAVING PROMISED TO RAILROAD DEMOCRAT AGENDA THROUGH
Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., who chairs the House committee, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday morning.
A source with the House Homeland Security Committee told Fox Digital that the committee had been planning a classified hearing “since early last week.” Those plans fell through, however, and Wednesday’s public hearing was tentatively scheduled instead.
“A few days ago, after further negotiation, we came to an agreement to postpone until December and to hold the hearing in a classified setting then,” the source said.
The pair of hearings would have been the first time Mayorkas and Wray have appeared before the House and Senate since President-elect Trump won re-election earlier this month.
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Trump has vowed to push extensive changes at both the DHS and the FBI.
GOP secures midnight deal with Dems to save four coveted judicial nominations for Trump
FIRST ON FOX: Senate Democrats and Republicans struck a late-night deal on judicial votes and confirmations on Wednesday, securing the ability for President-elect Trump to appoint four crucial appellate court judges in his second administration.
As Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., attempts to push through as many President Biden judicial picks as possible, Republicans in the upper chamber have worked to delay the process by using procedural floor maneuvers, causing several late nights.
Around midnight on Wednesday, the parties came to an agreement which would allow Democrats to hold votes on four district court judges in exchange for pulling four higher tier circuit court judicial nominees, a senior Senate source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital.
SENATE GOP INITIATES THUNE-ENGINEERED SLOWDOWN AS SCHUMER LOOKS TO STACK JUDICIAL VOTES
These four vacancies will now be Trump’s to fill, per the deal.
“The Senate has reached a time agreement to invoke cloture on four judicial nominations tonight and have three more votes tomorrow,” Schumer’s office said around 11 p.m.
The senior source told Fox News Digital that Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., were both key figures in securing the near-midnight deal.
Schumer’s office and the office of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital.
SPRINT TO CONFIRM TRUMP NOMINEES KICKS OFF IN JANUARY
The deal was primarily motivated by a Senate slowdown initiated by Republicans through procedural maneuvers on Monday night, which was spearheaded by Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., who was recently elected as the next Republican Senate leader. The delay tactic plan came in response to Schumer’s efforts to stack additional judicial confirmation votes on the calendar ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.
“If Sen. Schumer thought Senate Republicans would just roll over and allow him to quickly confirm multiple Biden-appointed judges to lifetime jobs in the final weeks of the Democrat majority, he thought wrong,” Thune told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement at the time.
By objecting to Democrats’ unanimous consent requests in order to file cloture on the Biden nominees, Republicans were adding additional votes to the schedule, taking up a substantial amount of time and forcing senators to spend all night at the Capitol.
The source noted to Fox News Digital that the new deal did not mean Republicans were going to allow the Biden district judges to sail through without opposition. GOP senators are still expected to fight and vote against the Democrat-nominated judges as they have done throughout Biden’s term.
SCHUMER NOW PLEADS FOR BI-PARTISANSHIP HAVING PROMISED TO RAILROAD DEMOCRAT AGENDA THROUGH
Ahead of Trump taking office and a new congressional term starting in January with Republicans in the Senate majority, Democrats are in a race to the finish line to push through as many of President Biden’s judicial nominations as possible. As of Wednesday night, Biden’s judicial confirmation count went up to 220 — still trailing behind Trump’s 234 confirmed Article III judges during his first term.
Schumer’s effort to push through Biden judges quickly during the lame duck session has already drawn the ire of Trump.
He recently took to social media to call for a halt to judicial confirmations for the remainder of the session, writing on social media on Wednesday, “The Democrats are trying to stack the Courts with Radical Left Judges on their way out the door. Republican Senators need to Show Up and Hold the Line — No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!”
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“In his first term, President Trump appointed constitutionalist judges who interpret the law as written. He will do so again,” Brian Hughes, Trump-Vance transition spokesperson, told Fox News Digital in a statement last week.
Trump’s incoming White House chief of staff facing scrutiny over past employment
In his first term, President-elect Donald Trump burned through four White House chiefs of staff who tried in vain to police who had access to the president.
Now, incoming chief of staff Susie Wiles, the “ice maiden,” will be tasked with guarding the president from special interests who seek to abuse the White House for their own personal gain. But progressives are calling out Wiles for her own history as a former corporate lobbyist and are raising concerns that her hire signals Trump does not intend to keep his promise to “drain the Swamp.”
“By putting a corporate lobbyist in charge of his administration with his first act as president-elect, Trump is hanging a ‘For Sale’ sign on the front door of the White House,” said Jon Golinger, the democracy advocate for Public Citizen, a non-profit, progressive consumer advocacy group. Public Citizen released a report authored by Golinger on Friday that details WIles’ lobbying disclosures and highlights her work on behalf of various special interests.
The report found that Wiles was a registered lobbyist for 42 different clients between November 2017 and April 2024. Some of her more controversial clients, according to Public Citizen, include Republic Services, a waste management company that has yet to clean radioactive nuclear waste from its dump; The Pebble Partnership, a Canadian copper and gold mining company that wants to build a mine opponents say would harm the environment in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska; and Swisher International, a tobacco company that opposed federal regulations of candy-flavored cigars.
TRUMP NAMES SUSIE WILES AS FIRST FEMALE WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF IN HISTORY
“A lobbyist with this record of controversial representation and a minefield of potential conflicts of interest should not go near the Oval Office, much less be White House Chief of Staff,” Golinger said.
In a statement to the Associated Press, Trump transition spokesman Brian Hughes defended Wiles from claims that her past work as a lobbyist would impact how Trump runs the White House.
“Susie Wiles has an undeniable reputation of the highest integrity and steadfast commitment to service both inside and outside government,” Hughes said. “She will bring this same integrity and commitment as she serves President Trump in the White House, and that is exactly why she was selected.”
Wiles, a longtime GOP operative and advisor to Trump, will be the first woman to serve as White House chief of staff in American history. She is the daughter of the late legendary NFL broadcaster Pat Summerall.
The 67-year-old veteran political strategist co-led the president-elect’s 2024 campaign and is widely credited with running a far more disciplined operation than his two previous efforts. Trump has praised her as “tough, smart, innovative and universally admired and respected.”
A longtime Florida-based Republican strategist who ran Trump’s campaign in the state in 2016 and 2020, Wiles’ decades-long political career stretches back to working as former President Reagan’s campaign scheduler for his 1980 presidential bid.
Wiles also ran Rick Scott’s 2010 campaign for Florida governor and briefly served as the manager of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman’s 2012 presidential campaign.
WHO IS SUSIE WILES, TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF? 5 THINGS TO KNOW
After Trump’s 2016 victory, Wiles became a partner at Ballard Partners, a Florida-based lobbying firm founded by Brian Ballard. The firm opened an office in Washington, D.C. and quickly became successful, earning more than $70 million in lobbying fees during Trump’s first term in office by representing various corporate clients, federal disclosures show.
Some of Wiles’ anodyne clients included General Motors, a trade group for children’s hospitals, home builders, and the City of Jacksonville, Florida.
However, she also represented foreign clients, including Globovisión, a Venezuelan TV network owned by Raúl Gorrín, a businessman charged in Miami with money laundering.
Gorrín bought the broadcast company in 2013 and immediately softened its anti-government coverage. He hired Ballard to advise on “general government policies and regulations,” lobbying disclosures show. But according to the Associated Press, Gorrín sought to influence the White House to ease ties between the U.S. and the socialist government of Venezuela.
While Gorrín was Wiles’ client, he sought to curry Trump’s favor towards Nicolás Maduro’s government. “He was a fraud and as soon as we learned he was a fraud, we fired him,” Ballard told the Associated Press in an interview. “He would ask us to set up a lot of things, in LA and D.C., and then nothing would happen. It was all a fantasy. He just wanted to use our firm.”
A few days after Ballard dropped Gorrín in 2018, federal prosecutors unsealed charges against the businessman for allegedly using the U.S. finance system to supply Venezuelan officials with private jets, a yacht and champion show-jumping horses as part of a fake loan scheme perpetrated by insiders to pilfer the state’s coffers. Last month, he was charged a second time, also based in Miami, in another scheme to siphon $1 billion from the state oil company, PDVSA.
TRUMP CHIEF OF STAFF SUSIE WILES ONCE HELPED NFL BROADCAST LEGEND FATHER PAT SUMMERALL BEAT ALCOHOLISM
Ballard told the AP that Wiles did not manage the firm’s relationship with Gorrín and called her a highly organized “straight shooter” who is “tough as nails.”
“She’s the type of person who you want in a foxhole,” he said. “She will serve the president well.”
Any effort by Venezuela to win over the Trump administration proved unsuccessful. In 2019, Trump ordered crushing oil sanctions against the OPEC Nation, closed the U.S. embassy in Caracas and recognized the head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly as the country’s legitimate head of government. Maduro was then indicted in 2020 by the U.S. Justice Department on federal drug trafficking charges out of New York.
Wiles lobbied for other foreign clients.
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In 2019, she registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent working for one of Nigeria’s main political parties for two months. She also lobbied for an auto dealership owned by international businessman Shafik Gabr, who the AP reported was involved in a financial dispute over selling cars in Egypt with a subsidiary of the German automaker Volkswagen.
Disclosures show Wiles also registered as a lobbyist for a multinational gaming company and for Waterton Global Resource Management Inc., a Canadian private equity firm that sought approval to construct a gold mine on public and private land near Las Vegas, Nevada.
Her lobbying work continued during Trump’s 2024 campaign. Federal disclosures filed in April show she worked to influence Congress on “FDA regulations” on behalf of Swisher International, a tobacco company.
Wiles most recently worked as the co-chair for the Florida and Washington, D.C., offices of Mercury Public Affairs, a lobbying firm whose clients include AirBnB, AT&T, eBay, Pfizer, Tesla, and the Embassy of Qatar, although she is not a registered lobbyist for any of those clients.
Vivek’s back-to-the-office mandate could finally eradicate the deep state
The recent proposal to require federal employees to return to the office full-time has sparked debate about how best to streamline government operations while ensuring effective public service.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the entrepreneur and head of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has argued that mandating in-office attendance could encourage voluntary departures among federal workers, potentially reducing what he sees as bureaucratic inefficiencies. In an interview, he described his proposal as a way to address what he characterized as a bloated federal bureaucracy.
While this plan is bold and disruptive, it also poses significant risks that merit careful consideration by the administration.
Federal employees are responsible for managing a $6.1 trillion budget, with payroll costs totaling $110 billion annually, representing just 1.8% of the total budget. Ramaswamy believes a return-to-office mandate would lead to about 550,000 resignations, potentially saving $27.5 billion annually.
ELON MUSK, VIVEK RAMASWAMY TO LEAD TRUMP’S DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY
However, these numbers fail to account for the high costs of recruiting and training replacements, the loss of institutional knowledge, and the operational delays that would result from a sudden mass exodus of skilled employees.
Federal jobs often require specialized expertise, meaning it could take years to rebuild the workforce effectively, further delaying critical services.
President-elect Trump, a proven advocate for reducing inefficiencies and promoting accountability within government, is uniquely positioned to shape this discussion. As he considers Ramaswamy’s recommendations, it is vital to ensure that any actions taken strengthen – not weaken – the government’s ability to serve the public effectively. A poorly executed plan could lead to skill shortages, service disruptions and inefficiencies that ultimately waste taxpayer dollars.
Ramaswamy’s vision also raises questions about the value of remote work, which has proven its effectiveness in the federal sector. During the COVID-19 pandemic, telework enabled federal agencies to maintain productivity while reducing costs associated with physical office spaces.
MORNING GLORY: DON’T DOGE THE DEADLINE!
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has documented that flexible work arrangements often enhance operational efficiency, particularly for roles that do not require physical presence. A broad return-to-office mandate would reverse these gains and require substantial reinvestments in office infrastructure, such as utilities, maintenance and security, potentially negating the intended savings.
The broader goal of reducing bureaucracy is a valid and important one. Ramaswamy has tied his proposal to regulatory reform, arguing that reducing the workforce could lead to a rollback of unnecessary regulations.
While regulatory streamlining can benefit the economy, it must be done thoughtfully to avoid unintended consequences. Federal employees are not merely bureaucrats; they implement policies passed by Congress and administer programs that millions of Americans depend on, from Social Security to disaster relief. Simplistic cuts risk undermining these essential services, creating more problems than they solve.
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Trump has demonstrated a keen ability to challenge the status quo, but this is an opportunity to pair bold ideas with pragmatic leadership. By focusing on targeted reforms, such as modernizing outdated systems, leveraging technology, and identifying specific inefficiencies, the administration can achieve meaningful cost reductions without jeopardizing essential functions.
Additionally, expanding the use of remote work where appropriate could help attract top talent, reduce overhead and improve morale among federal employees.
A more tailored approach would also mitigate potential ripple effects on industries reliant on federal oversight. Sudden workforce reductions could lead to delays in permitting, inspections and regulatory processes, imposing costs on businesses and state governments. These disruptions could ultimately harm the very taxpayers the policy aims to protect.
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This moment presents an opportunity for the administration to reinforce its commitment to fiscal responsibility and effective governance. By carefully evaluating the implications of Ramaswamy’s proposal and considering alternative strategies, Trump can ensure that efforts to streamline government operations are both efficient and sustainable.
Thoughtful leadership can strike a balance between reducing bureaucracy and preserving the capacity to meet the nation’s needs, setting a model for how to address long-standing challenges within the federal government.
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ICC issues arrest warrants for Israeli PM Netanyahu and ex-official
The International Criminal Court (ICC) rejected challenges from Israel and issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday.
The ICC charged Netanyahu and Gallant with “crimes against humanity and war crimes,” including using starvation as a method of warfare and targeting civilians. Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned the move in a statement on Thursday.
“Taken in bad faith, the outrageous decision at the ICC has turned universal justice into a universal laughingstock. It makes a mockery of the sacrifice of all those who fight for justice – from the Allied victory over the Nazis till today,” Herzog wrote.
Herzog argued that the ICC’s decision ignores Hamas’ use of human shields and its Oct. 7, 2023 terror attacks that started the war, as well as the Israeli hostages remaining in Gaza.
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“Indeed, the decision has chosen the side of terror and evil over democracy and freedom, and turned the very system of justice into a human shield for Hamas’ crimes against humanity,” he added. “This cynical exploitation of the international legal institutions reminds us once again of the need for true moral clarity in the face of an Iranian empire of evil that seeks to destabilize our region and the world, and destroy the very institutions of the free world.”
BIDEN REVERSES TRUMP, LIFTS SANCTIONS ON INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT
Israel made several efforts to block the ICC from approving the arrest warrants. They first argued that the ICC has no jurisdiction over Israel, but the court said it could issue the arrest warrants as part of the “territorial jurisdication of Palestine.”
Israel also made other procedural challenges, but they were rejected.
The ICC’s move comes just days after Senate Majority Leader-elect John Thune threatened to hit the court with sanctions if it moved forward with the arrest warrants.
Thune – who was selected last week to be the next Senate majority leader once the GOP takes the upper chamber come January 2025 – warned that if the current Democratic leader does not take on the international court, he will.
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“If the ICC and its prosecutor do not reverse their outrageous and unlawful actions to pursue arrest warrants against Israeli officials, the Senate should immediately pass sanctions legislation, as the House has already done on a bipartisan basis,” Thune wrote on X. “If Majority Leader Schumer does not act, the Senate Republican majority will stand with our key ally Israel and make this – and other supportive legislation – a top priority in the next Congress.”
The U.S. does not officially recognize the ICC’s authority, but it is not the first time Washington has looked to halt the court’s actions.
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In 2020, the Trump administration opposed attempts by the ICC to investigate U.S. soldiers and the CIA involved in alleged war crimes between 2003-2004 “in secret detention facilities in Afghanistan,” and issued sanctions against ICC prosecutors.
President Biden’s administration undid those sanctions shortly after entering office.
Trump Cabinet pick goes viral after wrestling giants share epic WWE bodyslam clips
President-elect Donald Trump’s new secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, is not exactly the school librarian type.
As the wife of WWE founder Vince McMahon, Linda has been heavily involved in the wrestling entertainment product for decades, much like Trump himself. She even led the WWE organization as CEO.
The new executive branch Cabinet member was even the recipient of violent wrestling moves during WWE events decades ago.
Clips of McMahon’s body slams have resurfaced across social media in the days since the announcement of her appointment.
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In one event, Glenn Thomas Jacobs, also known as “Kane,” hit the new Education secretary with a tombstone piledriver that knocked her, apparently, unconscious on an episode of “Monday Night Raw” in the early 2000s.
In one of WWE’s more infamous sagas of the era, she was featured in a series of skits that saw her hit her children, Stephanie and Shane McMahon. In some of those skits, her children hit back.
McMahon served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009. She told lawmakers at the time that she had a lifelong interest in education and once planned to become a teacher.
She attempted two runs at the Senate as a Connecticut Republican, losing the 2010 race to Richard Blumenthal and the 2012 race to Chris Murphy.
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McMahon then provided $6 million to help Trump’s candidacy after he secured the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
McMahon served as administrator of the Small Business Administration under Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2019. When she resigned, she wrote that the role had been “immensely rewarding.”
When McMahon was chosen for that role, she was praised by Blumenthal and Murphy, the two Connecticut Democrats who defeated her in Senate campaigns. Blumenthal called her “a person of serious accomplishment and ability,” while Murphy said she was a “talented and experienced businessperson.”
McMahon then chaired America First Action, a super PAC that backed Trump’s re-election campaign in 2020. When Trump lost to Biden, McMahon then helped start the America First Policy Institute to continue advocating for Trump’s agenda and prepare for a potential return to the White House.
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When Trump ran for president this year, McMahon was the co-chair of his transition team along with Howard Lutnick, the chief executive of financial services company Cantor Fitzgerald. As part of that role, McMahon has been helping to plan Trump’s new administration.
“As Secretary of Education, Linda will fight tirelessly to expand “Choice” to every State in America, and empower parents to make the best Education decision for families,” Trump said in a statement announcing her appointment.