Politics and starvation: Gaza learns of Israel’s decision to ban UNRWA
Until this morning, 38-year-old Hussam Abu Ghaban had not heard of the Israeli Knesset’s decision to ban the UN agency responsible for his family’s welfare. Now, with the Israeli Knesset passing two bills banning the agency from Israel and choking off its ability to work in Gaza, the family does not know what to do. Someone in the nearby camp operated by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) had mentioned it, but Abu Ghaban had not known about what turned out to be an overwhelming Knesset vote in favour of the ban despite international outrage. ‘People would go hungry’ The concern on Abu Ghaban’s face was unavoidable as he weighed the news. He, his wife Ola and their eight children had fled Shati refugee camp in the north of the Gaza Strip in early November to the relatively safe vicinity of a camp at Deir el-Balah maintained by UNRWA. Hussam Abu Ghaban, 38, Deir el-Balah, Gaza [Hussein Owda/UNRWA] Overcrowded and painfully under-resourced as the camp is, it represents some small support to the 1.9 million displaced people in Gaza. “UNRWA ‘s support has been crucial,” Abu Ghaban told a translator. “They provide essential services such as health, education and food, as well as managing the camp,” he said, outlining how the family of 10, reduced to living in a tent, relied upon the UN agency for the dwindling number of essentials that make it through the Israeli checkpoints. Abu Ghaban did not know how the family would survive without the support the UN agency has given generations of them since they were uprooted from their village of Hiribya to make way for the new state of Israel in the 1948 Nakba (catastrophe). The Abu Ghaban family in Deir el-Balah displacement camp. As a family, they have been displaced since 1948 [Hussein Owda/UNRWA] Since then, barred by Israel from returning, their displacement has become generational. Abu Ghaban struggled to imagine life under Israel’s brutal assaults on Gaza without the support of the UN. “Refugees would struggle to survive,” he said. “People would go hungry, and that could lead to increased violence,” he said of an enclave he described as already gripped by hunger, fear and instability. Life is already difficult, he said. There had not been space in the official camp when they arrived. Now they exist on its periphery, though still under the care of the UN. Abu Ghaban pointed to the plastic sheet UNRWA had provided to cover their tent. He still had nothing to make the rough dirt floor safe for his children, the youngest just six. Life in Deir el-Balah is hard enough for the young, Abu Ghaban explained. “They’re now forced to focus just on survival, but I can see they still remember their previous life. UNRWA’s recreational activities help ease some of the strain. “The children still express their hopes through drawing,” he said, pointing to the rough childlike sketch on the tent’s wall of a family going home. Drawing on the tent where the Abu Ghaban family takes shelter, Deir el-Balah [Hussein Owda/UNRWA] The impotence of aid The legislation that may well stop much of the aid provided to the Abu Ghaban family will become law 90 days after Israel’s foreign minister informs the UN. Moreover, with no alternative humanitarian agency earmarked in the legislation to replace the UNRWA, the consequences for those trapped in Gaza stand to be catastrophic. Within the enclave, UNRWA acts as what its spokesperson Jonathan Fowler described as the “backbone” of the international humanitarian operation in Gaza. Without UNRWA, that aid operation in Gaza would unravel, he said. In Gaza, the situation has never been more desperate. In the northern reaches, with access strictly controlled by the Israeli military, famine looms over everyone as international concerns over a siege of the area, denied by the Israeli government, continue to grow. epa11581588 Internally displaced Palestinians attend a gathering to collect food donated by a charity, in Khan Younis camp on September 3, 2024 [Haitham Imad/EPA] Should UNRWA’s ability to operate within the territory be halted, the delivery of the limited assistance that still penetrates parts of Gaza would also grind to a halt, Fowler told Al Jazeera. “Such a move by a UN member state against a UN General Assembly-mandated organisation is unprecedented and dangerous,” Fowler said. “It … violates the State of Israel’s obligations under international law… [and it] would be a setback to sustainable peace efforts and to reaching a diplomatic solution to the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” he added. “Failing to push back against attempts to intimidate and undermine the United Nations in the occupied Palestinian territory will eventually compromise humanitarian and human rights work worldwide.” The politics of hunger Israel’s longstanding campaign against UNRWA has escalated during Israel’s war on Gaza and includes a list of as yet unevidenced accusations of supporting Hamas’s fighters. Throughout, UNWRA has strained to work on the ground in Gaza to help mitigate the effects of an Israeli military campaign deemed by the International Court of Justice in its January ruling a potential case of genocide. Nevertheless, in the face of international pressure, unparallelled during the 13 months of total war on Gaza, the Israeli Knesset voted overwhelmingly to ban the agency, potentially collapsing the entire fragile network of aid that has so far managed to sustain what remains of Gaza’s population. Even Israel’s closest ally the United States has recognised the seriousness of the situation. Speaking earlier this week, a State Department official acknowledged both the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, especially its north, and UNRWA’s role in mitigating it. One of the drafters of Israel’s legislation banning UNRWA, Yulia Malinovsky, dismissed the concerns of the US, which has provided Israel with unflinching diplomatic cover and weaponry throughout its war on Gaza, as representing unacceptable interference in Israel’s internal affairs. A screengrab shows Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir speaking at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem on July 17, 2024 [AFPTV/AFP] “I congratulate and thank the members of
Kamala Harris’s pursuit of Republican voters may backfire
As the United States presidential election nears, Vice President Kamala Harris has escalated outreach to Republican voters. Over the past several weeks, she has been accompanied by former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney at campaign events in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin and more recently by former President George W Bush’s daughter, Barbara. On October 16 after Harris held an event with former Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania, she gave an interview to Fox News, saying: “I invite ideas, whether it be from the Republicans who are supporting me, who were just on stage with me minutes ago, and the business sector and others who can contribute to the decisions that I make.” Many prominent Republicans have endorsed Harris, including former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Congressman Adam Kinzinger, and late Senator John McCain’s son Jim. She has also gained the approval of 200 staffers of former Republican presidential nominees. Trying to encourage this momentum, Harris’s campaign even established Republicans for Harris chapters in several swing states. However, Harris’s pursuit of Republican voters may not bring the results she hopes. At the grassroots level, things remain hopelessly polarised. Prominent endorsements notwithstanding, few members of the opposition party will cross “enemy lines” to back Harris. In fact, her rightward sway may actually cost her more Democratic votes than the Republican ones she gains. In a poll released on October 25, just 4 percent of Republicans said they intended to vote for Harris. The same percentage of Democrats said they would vote for Republican candidate Donald Trump. In other words, Democrats for Trump are just as much of a thing as Republicans for Harris. This makes the prediction that “millions of Republicans” will cast a ballot for Kamala Harris utterly fanciful. Some may argue that Harris is trying to sway Republican voters specifically in swing states. But even there, the numbers do not differ dramatically. According to New York Times/Siena polls, Harris is winning 7 percent of registered Republicans in Arizona while 6 percent of the state’s Democrats back Trump. In Pennsylvania, these numbers are 12 percent and 10 percent respectively. In Nevada, Harris is getting 6 percent of registered Republicans and Trump is getting 10 percent of the Democrats. The margin of error for all these polls is 3 to 4 percent. While Harris is running after the few Republican voters who may flip, she is alienating many others on the progressive side. According to the Pew Research Center, progressives constitute roughly 12 percent of the Democratic base. The millions of votes who went for Senator Bernie Sanders, a prominent progressive, in the Democratic primaries in 2016 suggest this group may be even larger. Harris’s swing to the right is definitely not well received by progressives. Her promise to sign “the toughest bipartisan border” bill in decades has earned rebukes from immigration advocates. Likewise, her unequivocal support for Israeli aggression is a cold shoulder to proponents of peace and basic human rights. On healthcare, after endorsing universal coverage during her 2020 run, Harris has now stopped well short of that. Given their political commitments, progressive leftists won’t flip to Trump, but they may vote for a third party or stay home, which would hurt Harris, especially in the battleground states. Chasing Republicans is, therefore, unwise. And history proves it. Democrats pursued them hard in 2016 as well. Before that presidential election, Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer claimed that: “For every blue-collar Democrat we lose in western Pennsylvania, we will pick up two moderate Republicans in the suburbs in Philadelphia, and you can repeat that in Ohio and Illinois and Wisconsin.” Needless to say, Schumer was wrong. Democratic candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton lost to Trump in a historic, humiliating upset. The only state Schumer mentioned that Clinton won was Illinois, a Democratic stronghold that also happens to be where she was born. As the former secretary of state campaigned in deeply red states like Nebraska, her “blue wall” crumbled. No Democrat since Walter Mondale in 1984 had lost Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. And that was the biggest loss in American presidential history with Mondale only winning his home state of Minnesota. Harris would have had a higher chance of winning if she had not pursued voters whom she cannot win and instead focused on those whom she can: independents and progressives and key groups within them. A recent poll from AtlasIntel shows Trump ahead with independents by 8.5 points. The two most important issues for independents are the economy and crime, and Harris could have easily appealed to them on these points without swinging so far to the right and chasing after endorsements from neoconservatives and others on the hard right. Furthermore, independents also embrace positions that are more moderate. Independents overwhelmingly favour marriage equality, expansion of Medicare and marijuana legalisation – issues that progressives also care about. Harris could have also won back some progressives by walking back some of her right-wing rhetoric and changing her posture on US foreign policy and more specifically, Israel. Like her running mate, Tim Waltz, Harris has been fully in Israel’s corner. She has refused to distance herself from the complicity of President Joe Biden’s administration in Israeli militarism, occupation and terror. That complicity has only mounted in recent weeks as the White House, which she is part of, oversees Israel’s “General’s Plan” of ethnically cleansing northern Gaza through bombing, starvation and expulsion of civilians. Biden’s last-ditch effort to push for a short-term truce and release of Israeli-American captives would not change voters’ perceptions of where Harris stands. This aggressive posture has especially alienated Arab and Muslim Americans. The latter accounted for under 1.5 percent of registered voters in 2022, but their distribution gives them disproportionate power, which they already demonstrated with the uncommitted movement they led during the Democratic primaries. While people tend to focus on Michigan, Muslim voters are also a significant group in Georgia and Arizona. Their numbers far outstrip Biden’s razor-thin margin of victory in those states in 2020. Even
Iraqi Kurdistan’s ruling KDP wins delayed elections
Disputes between the major parties – KDP and PUK – could complicate the formation of a new government. The ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) has come first in parliamentary elections in the semiautonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq. The KDP won 39 seats in the 100-seat parliament, the election commission said on Wednesday, putting it at the helm of the next regional government. The KDP’s historical rival and junior coalition partner in government, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), came second in the October 20 elections with 23 seats, the commission said at a news conference. The largest Kurdish opposition party, New Generation, came a distant third with 15 seats. The commission said voter turnout was 72 percent, up from the 59 percent reported in the previous election in 2018. The elections were originally planned for 2022, but the polls were repeatedly delayed by disputes between the KDP and the PUK. Ongoing disputes between the rivals could complicate the formation of a new government. The KDP and PUK, which have been sharing power since 1992, are likely to continue governing together, but the results suggest that former Kurdistan Regional Government President Masoud Barzani’s KDP will take a dominant position. The new parliament must elect a president and prime minister, posts that are now held by KDP figures Nechirvan Barzani and his cousin Masrour Barzani, respectively. Adblock test (Why?)
Biden says he wants to take pro-Trump comedian who made Puerto Rico joke ‘for a swim’
President Biden says he wants to take pro-Trump comedian Tony Hinchliffe ‘for a swim’ following the comic’s controversial remarks at Sunday’s Trump campaign rally at Madison Square Garden. Biden made the off-the-cuff comment at Baltimore’s harbor in Maryland on Tuesday while promoting the effects of large spending bills under his administration. “I’m proud to announce more than $3 billion in funding from my Inflation Reduction Act to help clean up and modernize ports in 27 different states and territories from Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan and beyond — including, yes, Puerto Rico,” Biden said to the applauding crowd before making the throwaway comment. KAMALA HARRIS CAMPAIGN SILENT AFTER BIDEN’S ‘GARBAGE’ GAFFE REFERRING TO TRUMP SUPPORTERS “I’d like to take that guy for a swim out there, anyway,” Biden added, referring to Hinchliffe, as the audience chuckled. “Steny’s looking at me, ‘Don’t get going Joe, don’t get going Joe, slow up,’” Biden said, referring to Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md, before getting back to his speech. Biden did not elaborate about what he might do on the swim. After a wry smile and brief pause, Biden got back on script and continued his speech. Biden’s taunt at Hinchliffe mirrored the 46th president’s jabs at former President Trump in 2016 when Biden said, “I wish we were in high school — I could take him behind the gym.” Hinchiffe made jokes at Sunday’s massive rally mocking different ethnic groups, with one joke referring to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean.” The controversy has swirled for days with Democrats pouncing on the joke targeting Puerto Rico voters to get out and vote for Vice President Harris. The Trump campaign quickly distanced itself from the joke after it was made. Biden’s remarks about Hinchliffe came hours before he appeared to disparage Trump supporters during a virtual Harris campaign call with Voto Latino, a non-profit group which encourages young Hispanic and Latino voters to register to vote and become more politically involved. “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters,” Biden said. “His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable and it is un-American.” The comment quickly went viral and sparked swift condemnation from critics. “This is disgusting,” Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance reacted. “Kamala Harris and her boss Joe Biden are attacking half of the country. There’s no excuse for this. I hope [Americans] reject it.” The White House tried to clean up the comment by sending out a transcript adding an apostrophe to indicate Biden was only speaking about one supporter, not all: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporter’s — his — his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American.” Biden attempted to clarify his comments on social media as only directed at one supporter. “Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump’s supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage—which is the only word I can think of to describe it,” Biden wrote on X. “His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That’s all I meant to say. The comments at that rally don’t reflect who we are as a nation.” Trump himself reacted to the “terrible” comment while speaking at a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania. “Remember Hillary? She said ‘deplorable’ and then said ‘irredeemable,’ right? But she said ‘deplorable.’ That didn’t work out. ‘Garbage’ I think is worse,” Trump said to his supporters. “But he doesn’t know — you have to please forgive him. Please forgive him. For he not knoweth what he said.” “And I’m convinced he likes me more than he likes Kamala,” Trump quipped. Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.
Major pro-life group knocks on 4 million doors in 2024 swing states
FIRST ON FOX: Susan B. Anthony Pro-life America, a group that seeks to “end abortion” in the United States, has knocked on 4 million doors in swing states to reach voters they say can be persuaded to oppose candidates and ballot initiatives that would expand abortion access. Earlier this year, the group set out an ambitious goal of raising and spending $92 million to boost candidates for office who advocate for laws restricting abortion. Now, Susan B. Anthony Pro-life America representatives say they have met that goal and have a strong ground game in key battleground states, where volunteers are making the case that Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is too extreme on abortion. Rachel Schroder, a Hillsdale College senior who volunteered as a canvasser and deployed to Milwaukee, Wisc., for three days, told Fox News Digital in an interview that voters were open to changing who they support when engaged conversationally, face-to-face. “We know that Kamala Harris and [Wisconsin Democratic Senator] Tammy Baldwin both have refused to set any sort of limits on when abortions can be done in pregnancy, even when a baby is fully developed, can live outside the womb and can see and hear its mom’s voice,” said Schroder, adding that Baldwin voted against a GOP-backed bill to require medical care for babies who survive an attempted abortion. MAJOR PRO-LIFE GROUP LAYS OUT AGRESSIVE PLANS FOR 2024 ELECTIONS: LARGEST GROUND GAME YET’ “This is way too extreme for Wisconsin. This is way too extreme for America. And we’re just here to inform voters so that they can make the commonsense choice when they go to the ballots in November.” Reached for comment, Baldwin spokesman Andrew Mamo said the Wisconsin senator is “proud to champion the Women’s Health Protection Act which would restore the protections afforded by Roe v Wade ensuring women, not politicians like Eric Hovde, can make their own decisions about their health care.” More than one million students like Schroder participated in Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America’s voter contact program, the group’s largest ever. National Field Team Director Patricia Miles said the group has reached more than 10 million low-turnout and persuadable voters in eight battleground states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and the aforementioned Wisconsin. Similar to that of other advocacy groups throughout the United States, SBA Pro-Life America has reached voters through a variety of means like digital, messaging, mail and phones. Abortion was tied with immigration for second-place as the most important issue for voters in the 2024 cycle, according to a recent New York Times/Siena College survey. Twenty-seven percent of voters said the economy ranked as their chief concern, and immigration and abortion followed at 15 percent each. 2024 SHOWDOWN: HARRIS, TRUMP HOLD DUELING TEXAS RALLIES TO HAMMER HOME THESE KEY ISSUES The stakes are high this November since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, permitting states to enact their own laws governing abortion. Republican lawmakers have sought to restrict the procedure, calling it immoral to kill an unborn baby. Several Democratic states have expanded abortion access, arguing that the government should not exert control over women’s bodies and that the decision to terminate a pregnancy rests solely with women and their doctors. Ten states have abortion-related ballot measures this year, including Arizona and Florida, where voters will decide if the right to terminate a pregnancy should be constitutionally protected. Support for expanding abortion rights has crossed party lines. Voters in red states including Kansas and Ohio have previously given majority approval to ballot measures that enshrined abortion rights, dealing stinging blows to the pro-life movement. TRUMP, HARRIS DEAD EVEN IN NATIONAL POLL, WITH JUST ONE IN FOUR SAYING COUNTRY HEADED IN RIGHT DIRECTION “When we see states like Kansas who are supporting abortion in their state constitutions, it’s deeply troubling because we know that every baby cradled in their mother’s womb deserves to be cradled in their parent’s arms,” said Schroder. But she remains hopeful that when women in crisis pregnancies are shown the resources available to them through groups like SBA Pro Life America, they will choose not to abort. “I see a pro-life future because I see so many other students like myself who are willing to sacrifice their school breaks to defend life. I see my community. I see my friends. I see my family saying this is important to us and it’s not just important to us, but this is an issue the American people are paying attention to. And I think the American people is a deeply compassionate people.” The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Six in 10 Democrats say Israel bears ‘a lot’ of responsibility for Gaza war: AP poll
American voters worry that the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas will escalate into a larger regional conflict in the Middle East, a new poll finds. While Democrats and Republicans both agree that the ongoing war is a problem and both are wary of U.S. involvement in the Middle East, there’s a stark partisan divide over who is to blame for escalating the conflict, according to the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey. The poll was conducted before Israel launched airstrikes on military bases in Iran on Friday. About 6 in 10 voters overall say the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, the Iranian government and the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah share “a lot” of responsibility for escalating the war. Roughly 4 in 10 assign blame to the Israeli government and only about 2 in 10 say the U.S. government has “a lot” of responsibility, the Associated Press reported. But breaking the numbers down by party affiliation reveals a big gap between the left and right. About 6 in 10 Democrats say the Israeli government bears “a lot” of responsibility for escalating the conflict in Gaza – a similar number of Democrats say Hamas bears “a lot” of responsibility – while only about 1 in 4 Republicans assign “a lot” of blame to Israel. ISRAEL’S STRIKE ON IRAN TOOK OUT MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEMS, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC ‘IS ESSENTIALLY NAKED’ The conflict in the Middle East has become a major campaign issue as former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris attempt to win over Muslim and Jewish voters in battleground states like Michigan and Pennsylvania. About half of voters are “extremely” or “very” worried about a wider war in the Middle East. Though fewer voters – 4 in 10 – are concerned that the U.S. will be drawn into the conflict. The poll finds that a majority of voters (55%) support economic sanctions on Iran, which U.S. officials recognize as the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the Middle East. However, Americans are evenly divided on whether the U.S. should supply Israel’s military with weapons and voters are more likely to oppose sending U.S. aid to Israel’s military, according to the AP. ISRAEL BEGINS RETALIATORY STRIKES AGAINST IRAN FOLLOWING MISSILE BARRAGE TARGETING ISRAELIS There is bipartisan opposition to deploying U.S. troops in the Middle East to assist Israel. Nearly half of voters oppose putting American boots on the ground in Gaza, while just 2 in 10 voters favor sending soldiers to fight with Israel. About another 2 in 10 had a neutral view, the AP reported. The Biden-Harris administration has continued to apply pressure on Israel and Hamas for a cease-fire for more than a year now, with little success. IT WAS ‘WISE’ FOR ISRAEL TO NOT STRIKE IRANIAN OIL, NUCLEAR FACILITIES, SAYS FORMER USS COLE COMMANDER About half of American voters think the U.S. is “doing as much as it can” to broker a cease-fire deal between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah. Three in 10 say the U.S. could be doing more, while roughly 2 in 10 voters say the U.S. should be doing less. Again, there is a partisan split on how the U.S. should approach the conflict. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say the U.S. should be less involved in cease-fire negotiations. About 3 in 10 GOP voters say the U.S. should do less, but just 1 in 10 Democrats say the same. About 6 in 10 Democrats say the U.S. is doing what it can, compared to about 4 in 10 Republicans. Democrats, Republicans and independents are about equally likely to say the U.S. could be doing more. The AP-NORC poll of 1,072 adults was conducted Oct. 11-14, 2024 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump, Harris dead even in battleground Michigan 6 days from Election Day, poll finds
Former President Trump and Vice President Harris are in a deadlock tie in the battleground state of Michigan as the nation sits less than one week from Election Day. A Wednesday poll from USA Today found that Trump and Harris are both tied at 47% among likely voters in Michigan. The poll surveyed 500 likely voters from Oct. 24 to Oct. 27, advertising a margin of error of 4.4%. The poll also found Robert F. Kennedy Jr. receiving roughly 1% of the vote, despite him dropping out of the race and endorsing Trump. Kennedy’s efforts to get his name removed from ballots in Michigan have been unsuccessful, with the Michigan Supreme Court ruling against the move this fall. The poll comes as Harris’ lead in a Reuters national poll has shrunk to just one point, with the vice president sitting at 44% to Trump’s 43%. MILLIONS OF VOTERS HAVE ALREADY CAST BALLOTS FOR NOV. 5 ELECTION The Tuesday poll found Harris’s lead had shrunk compared to a poll conducted earlier in October that showed her with a two-point lead. The Reuters poll surveyed 1,150 U.S. adults across the country, including 975 registered voters. The poll also found Harris slipping on some of her key issues, such as voters’ concerns about extremism and threats to democracy. A Reuters poll earlier in October found that she had a 7-point lead over Trump on the issue, but the Tuesday poll found that lead shrank to just 2%. Wednesday’s poll comes after another USA Today poll found Harris and Trump locked in another dead heat in Wisconsin on Monday. That state poll of 500 likely voters had Trump at 48% compared to Harris’ 47%. BATTLEGROUND STATE OFFICIALS SAY FOREIGN ENEMIES USING MISINFORMATION TO ‘UNDERMINE’ DEMOCRATIC PROCESS Wisconsin is one of three Rust Belt states that voted for Trump in 2016, then flipped back to the Democrats in 2020. President Biden won the state by just 20,682 votes, or 0.7 points. As of Monday morning, early voters in Wisconsin cast 850,163 ballots, whereas nationwide more than 41 million votes have already been cast in the election. Fox News’ Stephen Sorace contributed to this report
Harris indicates she’s open to a cognitive test, commits to ousting unlawful migrants and prosecuting cartels
Vice President Kamala Harris, who has indicated that she would be willing to undergo a cognitive test, has also suggested that under a Harris administration, the U.S. would swiftly remove individuals who illegally enter the country, “prosecute the cartels,” and provide Border Patrol with needed support. “CBS Evening News” anchor and managing editor Norah O’Donnell confronted Harris about former President Donald Trump’s claim that the vice president is “a very low-IQ person” who should undergo a test. “Would you take a cognitive test?” O’Donnell asked. “Sure,” Harris responded, adding, “I would challenge him to take the same one.” She claimed that Trump “is increasingly unstable and unhinged.” HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN: THE VICE PRESIDENT GIVES CLOSING ARGUMENT WITH WHITE HOUSE AS BACKDROP During a lengthy interview on Joe Rogan’s podcast, Trump suggested that everyone who seeks the presidency should undergo testing. “I think you should take cognitive tests,” he said. “I think Kamala should have a test because there’s something missing, there’s something wrong with her.” Earlier this month in a post on Truth Social, Trump declared, “I believe it is very important that Kamala Harris pass a test on Cognitive Stamina and Agility. Her actions have led many to believe that there could be something very wrong with her.” FULL INTERVIEW: VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS SITS DOWN WITH BRET BAIER IN ‘SPECIAL REPORT’ EXCLUSIVE Republicans have been hammering Democrats over the border crisis throughout President Joe Biden’s White House tenure, and earlier this month the National Border Patrol Council, a union, endorsed Trump. But Harris is suggesting that as president, she would tackle the problem. “When I was attorney general of a border state, I saw the chaos and violence caused by transnational criminal organizations that I took on. And when I am president, we will quickly remove those who arrive here unlawfully, prosecute the cartels, and give Border Patrol the support they so desperately need,” Harris said during a speech at the Ellipse in Washington D.C. on Monday. GEORGE W BUSH’S DAUGHTER JOINS HARRIS ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: ‘IT WAS INSPIRING’ “At the same time, we must acknowledge we are a nation of immigrants. And I will work with Congress to pass immigration reform, including an earned path to citizenship for hard-working immigrants, like farmworkers and our dreamers,” she added.
India, China troops disengagement in eastern Ladakh taking place in ‘orderly’ manner, claims Chinese Foreign Ministry
Following the key agreement firmed up between India and China, the two countries began troop disengagement at the two friction points at Demchok and Depsang Plains in eastern Ladakh on October 2
Takeaways from our reporting on Texas’ housing affordability crisis
The Texas Tribune examined the state’s housing affordability crisis and why the state has struggled to build enough homes to meet demand.