Fox News 2024-07-02 18:27:07


VP Harris caught ‘lying’ about Trump’s position, Elon Musk immediately crushes her for it

X owner Elon Musk ripped Vice President Kamala Harris for “lying” on Monday about former President Trump’s position on a national abortion ban. 

Harris declared in a post on Musk’s site that “Donald Trump would ban abortion nationwide.” She added, “President @JoeBiden and I will do everything in our power to stop him and restore women’s reproductive freedom.”

The post was hit with a rejoinder from Community Notes, the platform’s way for readers to offer context to messages viewed as false or lacking context. In this case, users posted information from CNN, BBC, The Associated Press, The New York Times, and Trump’s own Truth Social account that went against Harris’ claim. 

TRUMP VOWS HE ‘WILL NOT BLOCK’ ABORTION PILLS OR MEDICATION IF ELECTED, SAYS HE BELIEVES IN ‘EXCEPTIONS’

Trump has said abortion limits should be left to the states, and he recently posted a video on Truth Social detailing his position. 

“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both. And whatever they decide must be the law of the land — in this case, the law of the state,” Trump said. 

The AP report used to fact-check Harris was bluntly headlined, “Trump declines to endorse a national abortion ban. He says limits should be left to the states.”

Musk scolded Harris for “lying” on his social media platform. 

“When will politicians, or at least the intern who runs their account, learn that lying on this platform doesn’t work anymore?” Musk asked.

During CNN’s Presidential Debate last week, Trump was asked about his stance on abortion, and whether he would block abortion medication for women. 

“First of all, the Supreme Court just approved the abortion pill and I agree with their decision to have done that, and I will not block it,” Trump said, referring to mifepristone. 

Trump applauded the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022 and return the decision on abortion access to the states. The landmark Dobbs decision did not make abortion illegal nationally but rather found that abortion was not a right guaranteed by the Constitution.

“I put three great Supreme Court justices on the court and they happened to vote in favor of killing Roe v. Wade and moving it back to the states. This is something that everybody wanted,” Trump said. “Now the states are working it out.” 

TRUMP SAYS HE ‘WILL NEVER ADVOCATE IMPOSING RESTRICTIONS ON BIRTH CONTROL’ OR OTHER CONTRACEPTIVES

Trump came in for criticism for claiming the decision was something “everyone wanted.” Polls have consistently shown a majority of Americans want abortion to be legal in some aspect, while differing as to how far into a pregnancy it should be.

A Gallup survey last year found 61 percent of Americans think overturning Roe was a “bad thing.”

Trump said every state is “making their own decisions right now.” 

“They’re all making their own decisions right now and right now the states control it,” Trump said. “That’s the vote of the people.” 

But Trump maintained that, like former President Ronald Reagan, he believes in “exceptions.” 

“I believe in the exceptions. I am a person that believes, and frankly, I think it is important to believe in the exceptions,” Trump said. “Some people, you have to follow your heart, some people don’t believe in that. But I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. I think it’s very important.” 

The Biden campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Mark Wahlberg is ‘living every guy’s fantasy’ with new onscreen romance

Mark Wahlberg is living the dream in more ways than one.

The “Boogie Nights” star is appearing alongside Halle Berry in a new Netflix movie next month titled “The Union” in which his character, a blue-collar worker, gets a second chance with his high school sweetheart who happens to be a secret agent superspy.

“… Halle, her and I have known each other for such a long time, and this movie is going to be so great because it’s every guy’s fantasy, to think that they got a shot with Halle Berry,” he told Fox News Digital.

Referring to the characters, he continued, “They were childhood sweethearts, and they come back together. He basically waited 25 years for her to come back, walk back through that door and into his life, and it happens, and there isn’t anything he wouldn’t do to prove himself to her if he got a second chance. For me, that was the whole motivation of the character: just do anything he could to not screw it up again.”

HALLE BERRY SUFFERS WARDROBE MALFUNCTION IN HILARIOUS BEHIND-THE-SCENES FOOTAGE

Wahlberg, happily married to his wife of 15 years, Rhea Durham, admitted that playing romantically opposite anyone is always “a little weird,” but the couple is secure in their relationship.

“I think it’s a little weird anyway when you’re portraying some sort of romance onscreen, it’s not normal, but my wife knows that she is my everything,” he said. “She is the most special woman in the world.”

WATCH: MARK WAHLBERG SAYS WORKING WITH HALLE BERRY IS ‘EVERY GUY’S FANTASY’

The couple share four children: Ella, 20, Michael, 18, Brendan, 15, and Grace, 14. 

Last week, Wahlberg shared photos of himself accompanying Ella on a shopping trip near Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina, where she attends college.

MARK WAHLBERG ADMITS HE ALWAYS FALLS ASLEEP DURING A CERTAIN BEDTIME ROUTINE WITH WIFE

The “Family Plan” star posted a photo of him sitting in a chair next to racks of clothes and wrote in the caption, “When you go visit your daughter at college and end up in Love Shack Fancy #family #girldad.”

He and Ella also posed together with big smiles on their faces in a photo Wahlberg shared on Instagram, writing, “So proud of this young lady.”

“Dad has only a few purposes in life, to do what they want when they want me to do it. And I don’t mind doing that, we had an amazing time down in Charleston,” he told Fox News Digital.

The 53-year-old added, “Only for her, her sister, her mom, will I go into a store like that.”

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More in line with his own taste, Wahlberg continues to expand his own brand, Municipal, which just opened its Pro Shop on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood, California.

“Everything that we do is aspirational. It doesn’t matter where you come from, where you start, there isn’t anything you can’t accomplish if you’re willing to do the work. It’s how I live my life every day. Everyone who’s a part of Municipal …for us, it’s all about the dream, the plan and the hustle, making things happen,” he said of the brand.

WATCH: MARK WAHLBERG REVEALS ONE THING HE’LL ONLY DO FOR THE WOMEN IN HIS FAMILY

Municipal was co-founded in 2019 by Wahlberg and Harry Arnett.

Arnett told Fox News Digital, “I mean, this has been 15 years in the making. The very first time that Mark and I ever met, we started talking about the need to do a brand that was going to totally change the game with fashion, cool-factor style, but also the stuff you just wear everywhere.”

MARK WAHLBERG REVEALS TEQUILA DOESN’T JEOPARDIZE EXTREME EXERCISE REGIME

He continued, joking that he and the noted fitness devotee “have very similar lifestyles,” adding, “But in a weird way, Mark’s constantly multitasking, in the gym, outside of the gym, everywhere you go, stuff that goes seamlessly and performs better than anything else, and that was kind of our dream for Municipal. And here we are 15 years later, standing in the Municipal store, it’s pretty surreal.”

Wahlberg explained that the goal for the brand is simple, “To create the most amazing athleisure brand on the planet for the everyman. … We want to create something that is very, very special. If you’re going to spend a little extra money, you’re going to spend it on quality. And everything that we do is quality, first, second and third.” 

He’s also dedicated to giving back to the community through the brand, revealing they have plans for golf courses and basketball courts, among other projects.

“When we build our first Municipal golf course, you know who’s going to get a free membership or access to the club and to the fitness component of it? All the people that work for the city and the state and work for municipalities, people who serve their community, it’s always about giving back. Those are the real heroes,” he said.

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The devout Catholic marked the opening of the store with a blessing by a priest, who told the crowd, “Mark has been my great friend for many years. I’m so grateful for him, thank you very much.”

Wahlberg had Diocese of Orange Christ Cathedral Bishop Kevin W. Vann bless his recently opened restaurant, Flecha, as well. 

WATCH: MARK WAHLBERG REVEALS NEW PLANS FOR HIS CLOTHING BRAND TO GIVE BACK

Wahlberg told Fox News Digital at the grand opening in June that he credits his success to, “my faith and my family and just finding good balance. But I have to attribute all my success to my faith.”

The Boston-born and raised star shares his Catholic faith with his upcoming co-star Mel Gibson.

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The pair stars in the new film “Flight Risk,” and Wahlberg plays a wilderness pilot who becomes a crazed hit man.

Wahlberg said he has no intention of taking charge in the air but is excited for the challenge presented by the role.

“I’m not interested in being a pilot. I don’t like flying at all, but I was very interested in playing a villain again,” he said. “I hadn’t done that since ‘Fear’ 30 years ago.”

In “Fear,” Wahlberg played a young Reese Witherspoon’s obsessive and abusive boyfriend, who terrorizes her and her family once she rejects him. 

“To be able to go back there and play somebody who is [a villain] … it’s an amazing character. I think people are going to be shocked when they see the movie. It’s going to be a good one this summer.”

GOP chair says blue stronghold is ripe for Trump’s taking, Biden facing 1980-Carter moment

New York has not favored a Republican presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan’s 1980 and 1984 upsets, but that trend is likely to change, state Republican Party Chair Ed Cox told Fox News Digital in a Monday interview.

President Biden’s tenure is increasingly showing parallels to that of then-President Carter, Cox said, adding that while the Empire State is a blue state, it is truly “blue-collar blue, not West-Side-Manhattan blue.”

In that regard, Cox said, while the state has high-profile pockets of progressive strongholds, New Yorkers overall are “pragmatic” and are truly having déjà vu from the run-up to the last time the state shocked the country on Election Day.

“We have a lot of independents here in New York. And they’re the ones who are going to take a look, and they’re going to say, ‘Are we going to risk [it]?’” Cox said, underlining his belief Trump can win its 28 electoral votes.

OLBERMANN LEADS LIBERAL MELTDOWN AGAINST CNN CALLING TO ‘BURN IT DOWN’ AFTER BIDEN’S DEBATE PERFORMANCE

“New Yorkers take a look at what’s going on in the foreign arena and the weakness of [Biden].”

Cox said he had come to his conclusion prior to Biden’s disastrous debate performance, but added the forum did underline his case.

“It just shows again that Biden is just out of touch with what the American people want, probably because of his infirmities, whatever you want to say. But Carter was out of touch, too, if you take a look at his malaise speech,” Cox said.

“It’s not quite the same, but it still shows they’re out of touch with where the American people are while President Trump is in touch. It leads to other very interesting analogies.”

STATE DEMOCRATIC OFFICIALS RALLY BEHIND BIDEN AS A DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIR SUGGESTS REPUBLICANS PULL TRUMP

Cox noted that Reagan’s “Are you better off than you were four years ago” remark was a game-changer against Carter, drawing a parallel to Trump’s rally reminders of his four-year record and saying that messaging will again resonate in New York.

Cox noted that Hispanic and African-American voting blocs in the state are shifting in Trump’s favor. He said he attended the former president’s recent Bronx rally and saw that assertion personified in the massive crowd at Crotona Park.

In 1980, New Yorkers were feeling the weight of “stagflation” under Carter and a floundering GDP in what was and is the business capital of the world, Cox said. The chair is also the son-in-law of another president from that era: Richard Nixon.

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“It was ‘It’s the economy, stupid’ then, and it’s ‘It’s the economy, stupid’ now,” Cox said.

While former Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., came very close by New York standards to defeating Gov. Kathy Hochul, he still fell short. 

Zeldin, too, was buoyed by a tough-on-crime message, while unlike the state’s last Republican governor, George Pataki, he had to prematurely expend resources in a costly primary.

When asked why 2024 would look different from 2020 in that respect, when Biden won New York by double digits, Cox returned to the pragmatism he sees in New Yorkers.

Democrats within New York also tend to support more populist candidates, he said, pointing to how New York Mayor Eric Adams trounced more progressive opponents in his primary before defeating GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa.

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In making the case for Trump’s chances, Cox pointed to the state’s beginnings in present-day New York City:

“Go back to New Amsterdam. Why did people leave the Netherlands to come to the United States? Because Amsterdam was a wide-open city that judged people on their merit. Yeah, they smoked too much, they drank too much, this and that. But by golly, they were an energetic international city where people were judged on their merit,” he said.

“New York inherited that.”

In that way, New Yorkers are likely to judge Trump and Biden on their merits now that they have lived through four years of each, giving the former a better shot, Cox added.

A Republican has not held statewide federal office there since Sen. Al D’Amato preceded Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., in 1998.

Fox News Digital reached out to several New York Democrats for comment, while Hochul’s office could not be immediately reached.

Analyst warns stocks could plunge 30% as US heads for painful recession

There may be trouble looming on the horizon for the U.S. stock market, according to BCA Research.

In a note to clients last week, BCA Research chief global strategist Peter Berezin warned that, contrary to popular belief, the economy will fall into a recession either this year or in early 2025. 

Should that happen, the S&P 500 could tumble to 3,750, which marks a 30% drop from current levels.

Berezin’s prediction hinges on the belief that the labor market will slow notably in coming months, which will weigh heavily on consumer spending – a major driver of economic growth. The relationship between inflation and unemployment is measured by something called the “Phillips curve.”

SMALL BUSINESSES FACE NEW THREAT: BALLOONING RENTS

“The reason the U.S. avoided a recession in 2022 and 2023 was because the economy was operating along the steep side of the Phillips curve,” he wrote. “When the labor supply curve is nearly vertical, weaker labor demand will mainly lead to lower wage growth and falling job openings. In other words, an immaculate disinflation.”

Berezin also foresees widespread economic pain, with growth slowing sharply in Europe and China. This scenario could further weaken global growth and weigh heavily on international stocks.

WEALTHY AMERICANS ARE ANXIOUS ABOUT MAKING ENDS MEET

Stocks notched a new record in mid-May, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average topping 40,000 for the first time ever, but they have since fallen from those highs. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 39169.52 +50.66 +0.13%
I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 17879.299559 +146.70 +0.83%
SP500 S&P 500 5475.09 +14.61 +0.27%

The indexes opened slipped Monday morning as investors await key jobs data from the Labor Department. The S&P benchmark was down about 12 points as of mid-morning.

The forecast from BCA Research – one of the gloomiest on Wall Street – comes after a volatile year for the market.

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All three indexes tumbled in mid-2023 amid fears the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates higher than previously expected – and hold them at peak levels for longer. However, they have recouped those losses and more, with the S&P 500 up more than 29% since it hit bottom at the end of October. 

Since the start of the year, the benchmark index is up about 15%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has climbed 3.7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, meanwhile, has increased about 20% year to date.

New social media trend could be symptomatic of ‘concerning’ issues

The latest social media trend, “sadfishing,” is igniting plenty of conversations as users become increasingly drawn to “attention seekers.”

The habit of “sadfishing” is defined as “the tendency of social media users to publish exaggerations of their personality to generate sympathy,” according to a 2021 research paper published in the Journal of American College.

The research found that many “sadfishers” display anxious attachment. It concluded that this “may not be triggered by an acute perceived lack of social support, but rather, may be more strongly related to the persistent trait of anxious attachment.”

PSYCHOLOGISTS REVEAL 7 WAYS PARENTS CAN DRIVE HAPPINESS BY HELPING KIDS FIND THEIR PURPOSE

Don Grant, PhD, national adviser for Healthy Device Management of Newport Healthcare in Los Angeles, California, told Fox News Digital that the phenomenon is nothing new.

The award-winning media psychologist, speaker and published researcher said the trend came to national attention with a campaign featuring Kendall Jenner in 2019, when she posted about her struggle with acne as part of her partnership with Proactiv.

“This person is putting something, you know, that’s kind of vague or sounds, frankly, a little ominous or something sad,” he said about today’s “sadfishing.” 

Grant said that at the beginning and end of his presentations, he proposes questions.

My friends who are close to me know what’s going on with me. They know what my daily life is,” he said.

“If you are putting anything on social media, what is your motivation for what you need or want people to know who are not in your close circle? What is your reason for posting? What’s your motivation for posting something for the whole world [to see]?”

GEN Z TIKTOKER GOES VIRAL FOR TAKING RESUME DOOR TO DOOR DURING JOB HUNT

Grant said that for “sadfishers,” it is case-dependent and can be concerning.

“If it’s chronic, then absolutely. I couldn’t pretend to know or guess what it is for everybody,” he said. 

“But I would say it’s definitely a cry for something.” 

He said the manifestation could be a real diagnosis. On other occasions, it could be a one-off and be fueled by drinking or being under the influence, which wouldn’t draw too much concern, he said. 

Grant said he’s had firsthand experience in seeing posts by people that can cause alarm.

PARENTS ARE SMASHING EGGS ON THEIR KIDS’ HEADS AS PART OF TIKTOK TREND: HERE’S WHAT PSYCHOLOGISTS HAVE TO SAY

“We’ve seen [sadfishing posts] that we’ve actually had to make calls and do welfare checks [about],” he said. “Those of us who know the person or their colleague — we do a welfare check on that because it’s so concerning.”

Grant said he has seen “sadfishing” occur across many age groups and platforms, but that there is variety in the intensity of it, depending on the platform used.

On some platforms, it’s “more static, meaning it’s just a post as opposed to something like TikTok, where you can [post] videos. Some of the videos are even more chilling. If you just see a post and it’s a phrase or two with pictures, or it’s someone saying they’re sad …that’s hard enough,” he said. 

“But when you have a video-based social media platform, you can see them, you can hear the cadence of the [person’s] voice. It’s very dramatic. That’s more impacting.”

Pew Research Center found that the youngest U.S. adults are far more likely to use Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok as opposed to other platforms.

“I would propose that those would be more skewed toward younger generations because the older generations and certainly the digital immigrants aren’t really creators, prolifically on TikTok or even on Instagram,” he said.

WARNING FOR MOMS AND DADS ABOUT POPULAR ‘SHARENTING’ TREND

Sixty-two percent of 18- to 29-year-olds say they use TikTok. That’s much higher than the share among adults ages 65 years and older at 10%, according to the Pew Research Center survey.

Some social media users took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their impressions of the trend.

“It’s attention-seeking behavior, but may come from real anxiety or depression,” one woman surmised.

“I know a number of people who do this,” said another user.

“‘Sadfishing’? That’s basically being a teenager/young adult, lol,” one user posted.

“People don’t have real-life friends … and come here for fake attention from sob stories,” another person commented.

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Grant said social media “can be a great connector,” but he doesn’t think it should be “the primary connector.”

He said rebuilding social relationships in person and speaking with mental health professionals are the smartest alternatives to publicly sharing “sob stories.”

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If you see a post that makes you worried about a loved one, pick up the phone and give the person a call, Grant suggested.

“Real-life connection to me is the antidote for just about any problem,” he said. 

‘Rust’ armorer serving sentence makes ‘bombshell’ accusation before Alec Baldwin trial

Hannah Gutierrez Reed is requesting immediate release from prison as the “Rust” armorer prepares to seek a new trial.

Gutierrez Reed’s lawyer accused the prosecution of withholding “bombshell exculpatory evidence,” which would have led to a “fundamentally different trial and likely a different outcome,” according to court documents filed June 27 and obtained by Fox News Digital.

The armorer’s team claimed the state did not disclose a report that found “unexplained toolmarks on critical surfaces of the trigger and sear” of the Pietta 45 Colt revolver replica used on the Western film set. Gutierrez Reed’s attorney, Jason Bowles, pointed out that the marks were not “the result of the damage incurred during the FBI’s impact testing.” The marks also “do not appear to be original manufacturing marks or use and abuse toolmarks based on [their] irregular orientation,” according to the report.

The state “buried this information” and it was “never disclosed” to Gutierrez Reed or her legal team, Bowles wrote.

ALEC BALDWIN’S ‘RUST’ ARMORER SENTENCED TO MAXIMUM TIME IN FATAL ON-SET SHOOTING

Additionally, Bowles claimed the state then “called the expert at trial and sat idly by as he perjured himself during cross-examination.”

The report showing the “unexplained” toolmarks would likely have “bolstered” Gutierrez Reed’s defense, according to the court documents.

“Ms. Gutierrez Reed’s principal defense theory was that no one had committed a crime and that this was a tragic accident, and if there was any negligence, it was on the part of producers, as found by OSHA,” court docs read. “This defense would have been imminently bolstered by a legally unforeseeable intervening cause – such as a firearm malfunction – that caused Ms. Hutchins’ death.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to special prosecutors in the case for comment.

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Gutierrez Reed was responsible for the firearms on the Western film set where cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on Oct. 21, 2021. Hutchins had been preparing a close-up shot when a gun Alec Baldwin was holding discharged.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer sentenced Gutierrez Reed to 18 months in prison after she was convicted in March.

“I find that what you did constitutes a serious, violent offense,” Sommer said after handing down the sentence. “It was committed in a physically violent manner. A fatal gunshot done with your recklessness in the face of knowledge that your acts were reasonably likely to result in serious harm.”

“You were the armorer, the one that’s to be between a safe weapon and a weapon that could kill someone. You alone turned a safe weapon into a lethal weapon. But for you, Mrs. Hutchins would be alive, a husband would have his partner and a little boy would have his mother. Please take her.”

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Gutierrez Reed’s trial, which began Feb. 21, saw testimony from weapons experts, FBI and Santa Fe County authorities, and crew members who witnessed the fatal shooting. The prosecution largely focused on Gutierrez Reed’s behavior as an armorer, alleging she didn’t do her job correctly.

“Hannah Gutierrez knew that Baldwin was loose. She knew it,” special prosecutor Kari Morrissey said during closing arguments. “She didn’t do anything about it, even though it was her job. It was her job. It is her job to say to an A-list actor, if, in fact, that’s what you want to call him, ‘Hey, you can’t behave that way with those firearms.’ That is her job. That is what they pay her for. That is the job that she applied for. That is the job that she accepted.”

Gutierrez Reed’s legal team had told the jury that the prosecution hadn’t presented enough evidence to convict the armorer of involuntary manslaughter.

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Former President Donald Trump accepted the first debate without any conditions. Turns out the conditions laid down by President Joe Biden’s team and CNN did nothing to help the infirm and failing incumbent president. Nor did a week of rest and debate prep. Nothing can help a very old man who is declining from infirmity to incoherence and then to incapacity before our eyes.  

(Monday’s decision by the Supreme Court effectively halts Special Counsel Jack Smith in his tracks for months at least, derailing Democrats’ “fail-safe” option. The highest court’s decision should also lead to the reversal of the convictions of the former president in New York as that prosecution proceeded without the black letter law guidance the Supreme Court provided yesterday. Manhattan trial Judge Juan Merchan botched the entire proceeding on many levels, and it should be begun again, if ever, with an assessment of whether the acts of then-President Trump for which he was prosecuted by Alvin Bragg are absolutely immune from scrutiny.) 

If Biden stays the Democrats’ nominee, or if he consents to be replaced, whether by Vice President Kamala Harris or via an “open convention,” Trump will be within his rights to reject a do-over debate with either the tottering Biden or anybody else. Trump demonstrates energy and capacity to be president every day. His policy choices are well known. A second series of questions about abortion and January 6th and not about China, Iran, the skyrocketing of antisemitism in the United States? Nah, he doesn’t need to do that.  

NY TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER DEFENDS CALL FOR PRESIDENT TO DROP OUT: ‘NOT THE SAME JOE BIDEN’

I have no beef with Dana Bash and Jake Tapper and the job they did as moderators. As written here and said repeatedly on my program and any program I was invited to appear on, Dana and Jake are professionals. I co-moderated four debates of GOP presidential candidates in the 2015-2016 cycle with Bash, two of which featured Tapper and two of which featured anchor Wolf Blitzer. I know the CNN debate process just as I know the NBC debate process from the GOP presidential candidate debate this past November, which I moderated with anchor Lester Holt and “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker.  

It is a long and complicated process that produces the final debate questions, and that process inevitably reflects the biases, good and bad, of the entire networks involved and most especially of the moderators.  

When Salem Media nominated me as a moderator eight years ago and again last year, it did so because I have been a center-right Republican with a bias towards national security issues and questions related to those issues. Because I controlled my questions in the five debates I have helped moderate, my questions were overwhelmingly on issues related to national security.  

The Achilles heel of every network, including every radio, legacy television network and the cable news channel, is that the culture of every such organization, no matter the platform(s) on which they operate, impacts the choice of priorities of questions for debates. When a news organization is on the left, the question set inevitably is left-leaning.  

With few — almost none, actually — conservatives, moderate Republicans or genuine “independents” working for legacy “news organizations,” their collective view of what matters to the electorate is always skewed left and sometimes radically so (as with MSNBC.) Only Fox News among the major television networks has anything like a staff that represents all of America, including “red America.” 

The questions asked at debates reflect the collective culture of the hosting organization(s) and that means legitimate, indeed pressing or even urgent questions get left out of the discussions that swirl through the networks if those networks are left-of-center. If everyone on your team is liberal-to-left leaning, then all of the questions will reflect that disposition.  

A second-order consequence of systemic bias in a news organization is that the questions asked at a debate will avoid all but the most obvious questions on the minds of the half of America that is loosely defined as “red America.” 

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That “abortion” and “January 6” got many questions on Thursday night was fine. Those are big issues for many Americans. But where were the questions about the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party? Where was the question about the threat posed by the theocrats of Iran who are within days reaching “breakout” and having a nuke (or six or more)? What about the virulent antisemitism on our campuses and on our streets? Where was the discussion of our defense spending, now below 3% of GDP, or about our Navy, struggling to get our existing submarines the maintenance they need much less constructing the new “Columbia class” nuclear submarines on time to replace the Ohio class submarines that are aging out soon? 

Liberals ask about issues of concern to liberals and leftists. That is to be expected. Conservatives ask about issues of concern to moderates and conservatives. Not once in the modern era has a presidential debate featured a declared center-right moderator, one who is probably if not openly a Republican. That needs to change. If it doesn’t, Trump should blow off another debate.  

Trump won hands down on Thursday night, and in such a decisive fashion that Democrats panicked and said everything out loud. Law students learn the probative value of “excited utterances,” which do have value in judicial proceedings. (An explanation is here.). On Thursday night after the debate and throughout the weekend, we were treated to an avalanche of “excited utterances” from panicked Democrats — both official and unofficial — on the post-debate programs on all the networks that carried them.  

“When everybody says you are drunk, you’d better sit down,” is an old saying, often attributed to the Irish but one that applies across cultures and peoples everywhere. Nearly everyone not named Biden said the same thing Thursday night: Biden is too old for a second term.  

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In truth, they know the president should resign now as he clearly has extended periods of time when he’s not thinking clearly. All of our enemies probably already knew that, but not the extent of the problem. Now they do. President Kamala Harris would be (shudder) a better president for the next seven months. Trump will restore a measure of deterrence as soon as he is sworn in again.  

Let’s not deny reality. It’s time for Joe to go. And not because he lost a debate, but because he lost the confidence of the American people to do the hardest job in the world.  

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Jewish prosecutors in blue city blow whistle on alleged antisemitism in DA’s office

A growing number of deputy district attorneys in Los Angeles say they have concerns about antisemitism in the office after months of silence on the issue from their boss, which culminated in clashes between anti-Israel agitators and counterprotesters outside a synagogue in a heavily Jewish neighborhood in the city.

Violence erupted outside the Adas Torah synagogue on Pico Boulevard last week, prompting condemnations from a range of prominent Democrats, including President Biden, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.

But according to a number of Los Angeles prosecutors, there was notable silence from the district attorney tasked with prosecuting criminal acts in connection to the clashes: George Gascon.

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“I hate going to work and entering a building where I feel like my boss will treat me differently simply because I’m Jewish, and that’s how I feel and many others feel,” said Brian Schirn, a veteran prosecutor helming the DA’s narcotics division.

Key issues Schirn and other deputy district attorneys brought up were Gascon’s slow response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel; his endorsements from local political groups accused of antisemitism, including the People’s City Council, a group dubbed “blatantly antisemitic” by the American Jewish Council’s Los Angeles chapter; and the fact that between a third and half of the nearly two dozen whistleblower retaliation lawsuits filed by fellow deputy district attorneys come from Jewish plaintiffs.

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They say he took an aggressive posture after pro-Israel counterprotesters joined the Adas Torah clashes, but not against the antisemitic mob that kicked things off. They say Jewish prosecutors have been passed over for more than a dozen promotions to prominent head deputy positions. And they say Gascon only addressed Hamas’ bloody Oct. 7 rampage in Israel after a letter from more than 130 employees asked him to do so.

In his response to the petition, he did not mention Hamas or use the term “antisemitism,” but in a statement to Fox News Digital, Gascon’s office condemned antisemitism by name and “all forms of hatred.”

“The District Attorney’s Office condemns all forms of hatred, including antisemitism and takes allegations of discrimination seriously,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “Any suggestion that the DA’s Office is sympathetic to organizations that promote hatred, discrimination, violence, or terrorism is unfounded. Our approach to prosecuting demonstrations and counterprotests is driven solely by the principles of law and justice, without any bias toward any group.”

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According to one of the retaliation lawsuits, Deputy District Attorney Amy Pentz, who is Jewish, was invited to join the office’s “Equity Action Team.” After just one meeting, in which she thanked the panel for including her and said she was concerned about antisemitism, she was kicked out of the group “under the pretext that there were too many lawyers” on the panel, according to court documents.

Another deputy DA suing over alleged retaliation is John Lewin, a veteran cold case prosecutor who recently came home from leave early to help with a murder trial.

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“I have no idea what George Gascon personally believes, but from what I can tell, he doesn’t personally believe anything other than what will further his political ambition,” said Lewin, who is Jewish. “Whether he is antisemitic in his heart, I have no idea. But the people around him and the groups that support him absolutely are.”

He said he takes issue with Gascon seeming to dismiss allegations against anti-Israel protesters who camped out at UCLA before allegedly saying he’d go after counterprotesters “to the fullest extent of the law.”

Video of the synagogue standoff shows anti-Israel protesters and counterprotesters brawling. At one point, a woman could be seen on the ground curled up in a fetal position as a mob kicks her while she’s down.

“The fact that he would outwardly say that he would treat cases with Jewish suspects with the full force of the law, and on the other hand talk about how he wasn’t going to do anything to protesters, is shameful and an overt sign of antisemitism,” Schirn said. “And everything he’s done from the endorsements he’s accepted with people that are so vocally full of Jewish hate through his actions as district attorney are appalling, and the public needs to know so that when they vote, they’re informed as to what this district attorney will and will not do.” 

Gascon’s challenger in the upcoming election, Nathan Hochman, argued that the incumbent’s silence on antisemitic protests on college campuses and outside the Adas Torah synagogue sends the wrong signal to people behind them.

“Vile and reprehensible” speech is protected by the First Amendment, he said, but rioting, violence and hate crimes are not.

And when words transition into illegal conduct, it’s the DA’s responsibility to do something about it, he added.

“You had President Biden weighing in on the Adas Torah synagogue Sunday, Gov. Newsom calling it appalling, Mayor Bass calling it abhorrent,” Hochman told Fox News Digital. “But one person was missing, the person in charge of all prosecutions, all felony prosecutions – the district attorney. His staying silent in the background, not just in connection with this incident, emboldens criminals,” Hochman said.

Gascon’s office denied allegations of antisemitism and said it was working to expand the Equity Action Team once again.

“Regarding promotions and representation within our office, we are dedicated to a fair and transparent process that values the qualifications and contributions of all our employees,” the statement continued. “We are actively working to ensure that our equity and diversity panel reflects the broad spectrum of our community, including Jewish representation.”

Hochman countered that the highest levels of the DA’s office are filled with unqualified personnel.

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Gascon’s No. 2 is Chief Deputy DA Joseph Iniguez, who can be seen in recently released video footage arguing with police as they tried to conduct a field sobriety test on this then-fiance. His former No. 3, Diana Teran, is facing 11 felony charges. And his chief of staff, Tiffiny Blacknell, is a former public defender who has been criticized for calling for an end to prisons, calling police “barbarians” and claiming to have been a looter during the 1992 Rodney King riots while bashing “Westside White liberals.”

“The fact that these three people who lead the DA’s office under Gascon are either unqualified, underqualified or right now being charged with criminal conduct is an indication of the catastrophic incompetence by which Gascon has run that office,” Hochman told Fox News Digital. “And if you add in the 20-plus lawsuits of people he has retaliated against, it just helps cement the truth that Gascon does not deserve to be the DA and can’t actually function as an effective DA.”