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Here’s what two undecided Wisconsin voters are holding out for in the 2024 election

Here’s what two undecided Wisconsin voters are holding out for in the 2024 election

WISCONSIN — With only one month until the presidential election, very few voters are still uncertain about their choice, but in a battleground state like Wisconsin that has flipped in the past two elections, those undecided voters could make the difference.  Estimates of still-undecided voters in Wisconsin are in the low single digits, with the latest Marquette Law School poll reporting that just 4% identified themselves as such.  Fox News Digital spoke with two such voters, who laid out why they are still holding out and what they need to seal the deal.  TRUMP ATTORNEYS ARGUE JACK SMITH’S OBSTRUCTION CHARGES BE DISMISSED, CITING SUPREME COURT’S ‘FISCHER’ DECISION “I got to make up my mind when I fill out the paper,” said 86-year-old Edgar Schiekiera of Waukesha, Wisconsin.  “I’m going to throw a dart,” he laughed.  Schiekiera is an immigrant from Germany who noted that he grew up during the Second World War. For him, former President Trump’s comments on foreign policy have been troubling, enough so to make him hesitate to support Trump for a third time.  “I voted for Trump the first year. I voted for him the second year. I don’t — this time, I don’t know,” he said.  “I’m from Germany, and things that he’s said about [the] NATO Alliance — he wants quit it, and he doesn’t know what to do,” he said of what’s making him unsure of Trump. “A real danger lives overseas.” BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN ENDORSES KAMALA HARRIS IN NEW INSTAGRAM VIDEO: ‘VISION OF AMERICA’ Schiekiera was also concerned about what Trump has said with relation to conflicts around the world, particularly involving Ukraine and Iran. “He can stop the war?” he asked, in reference to Trump’s own claims about the war between Ukraine and Russia. “He cannot stop the war.” However, he added that “Biden or Kamala Harris—she doesn’t know what’s going to happen,” either. According to him, he isn’t confident that either of the top candidates can effectively lead on the world stage in the current geopolitical climate.  There are other issues that Schiekiera is taking into consideration as well, such as abortion. “I got my own ideas,” he said.  He noted that Trump has appeared to change positions on “issues nationally [and] worldwide.” “Trump’s gone one way, and then he [goes] to another way. He’s undecided what he’s going to do, really.” DEMOCRATS WORRY ABOUT HARRIS’ CAUTIOUS MEDIA APPROACH IN TIGHT 2024 RACE: ‘VOTERS DESERVE BETTER’ In contrast, Keon Pierce of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, isn’t considering Trump at all. But he is not sold on Vice President Kamala Harris either.  “I’m leaning Kamala, but I have to see. She’s got to convince me a little more,” he told Fox News Digital. “I’m waiting to see who has the best — the best protection for different groups of people. You know, the best rights and best laws that can help all groups of people.” Pierce explained that he wanted to be sure the president would “help all people. Asian people, Indian people, Black people, everybody.” When Fox News Digital noted that Harris is both Black and Indian, he responded, “We had a Black president before, and it didn’t necessarily translate to helping the people,” in reference to former President Barack Obama.  TRUMP CAN WIN ON THESE THREE KEY ISSUES, MICHIGAN VOTERS TELL FOX He said he was “open to” Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who will appear on the Wisconsin ballot after a court challenge to see her ousted was denied.  “It’s possible that I wouldn’t vote as well,” he added.  As for the Milwaukee area, Pierce explained, “It’s bad here. It’s really segregated here, and opportunities are limited.” He said he needs to hear more about what will be done to bring more “opportunities, jobs, education, [and] a better school system in the inner city.” In the latest Marquette Law School poll, Harris beat Trump among Wisconsin registered voters, 49% to 44%, with third-party options included.  For the poll, 882 registered voters were interviewed between Sept. 18 and 26. It had a margin of error of +/-4.4 percentage points.  Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Kurdish official warns US: ‘now is not the time’ to pull forces out of Iraq’

Kurdish official warns US: ‘now is not the time’ to pull forces out of Iraq’

As the U.S. mulls over a plan to withdraw troops from Iraq, its Kurdish allies have a message: Don’t forget us.  “This is not the time to reduce coalition forces in Iraq,” Treefa Aziz, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s special representative to the U.S., told Fox News Digital.  “Extremist groups like ISIS and armed militias continue to pose a serious threat to the people of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.” The U.S. announced plans to shrink the U.S. “footprint” in Iraq and end the current mission of coalition forces – including the Kurds – to fight ISIS, but declined to say how many of the 2,500 troops currently stationed there would remain.  “A decade ago, Kurdish Peshmerga forces worked alongside U.S. troops to defeat ISIS and continue to actively combat ISIS remnants to prevent a resurgence of terror today,” Aziz said. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) “has been a reliable security partner for the United States and remains ready to enhance cooperation.” But now, if Baghdad is pushing the U.S. out of Iraq, the U.S. could feel it must honor that request or risk making another enemy in the Middle East. The KRG says it would be “willing and able” to host U.S. coalition forces in its territory.  The current mission is now set to end by September 2025, with a plan to keep the number of forces on the Iraqi side to back up the 900 U.S. troops in Syria until at least 2026.  News of a plan that could amount to a significant drawdown of U.S. forces called to mind 2019, when former President Donald Trump announced plans to pull out of Syria and the Kurds felt abandoned by a partner they had fought alongside for years – leaving them open to an attack by Turkish forces.   PENTAGON PLANS TO SHRINK US ‘FOOTPRINT’ IN IRAQ Trump, at the time, left the Kurds with a warning to their longtime enemies: “I have told Turkey that if they do anything outside of what we would think is humane . . . they could suffer the wrath of an extremely decimated economy.” The U.S. relationship with the Kurds – an indigenous group of daring fighters whose quest for their own formal state has been unsuccessful – spans back decades.  When the Turks denied the U.S. passage into Iraq for the invasion in 2003, Iraqi Kurds helped the U.S. overthrow Saddam Hussein.  The Kurds have fought with U.S. coalition forces since they reentered Iraq in 2014 to fight ISIS, and the U.S. pledged arms support and humanitarian aid.  The group faces attacks from terror groups on all sides. And as Iran increasingly encroaches on the Iraqi government, Baghdad has the KRG in a choke-hold, officials say.  US, IRAQ TEAM UP TO KILL 15 ISIS OPERATIVES “There is growing concern regarding efforts to weaken the federal system in Iraq. The constitutional framework, which is designed to ensure shared governance, is disregarded,” one Kurdish official said. “The continued suspension of oil exports from the Kurdistan region has placed significant economic strain. More than a year and half later, we have yet to see the resumption of these exports.”  The KRG has been trying to work with the Iraqis on a power-sharing agreement with no real results. “Some of these actions appear to align with external influences rather than the broader national interest,” the official said, referring to Iranian influence. “With the assistance of our allies, we believe these issues can be resolvable through constructive dialogue and cooperation.” The KRG is also asking the U.S. government to “honor its commitment” included in the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to “provide the KRG with a comprehensive air defense system.  The law required the Department of Defense to submit and implement a plan for providing the Iraqi security forces and  Kurdistan Region with air defenses by July 2024.  “As a steadfast U.S. ally that is regularly targeted by extremist violence, the KRG requires assurances that it will be protected from all threats, both internal and external,” said Aziz.  Gen. Michael Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, told the House Armed Services Committee in March that ISIS-K, which launched a horrific attack in Moscow earlier this year, “retains the capability and the will to attack U.S. and Western interests abroad in as little as six months with little to no warning.”

Trump rallies in Butler, Pennsylvania, site of attempted assassination

Trump rallies in Butler, Pennsylvania, site of attempted assassination

Former United States President Donald Trump – the Republican candidate in the presidential election – has returned to Butler, Pennsylvania, where he survived an assassination attempt in July. Supporters on Saturday gathered for the rally, which came just a month before the November 5 election as Trump remains neck-and-neck with Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. “Exactly 12 weeks ago this evening, on this very ground, a cold-blooded assassin aimed to silence me and to silence the greatest movement – MAGA – in the history of our country,” Trump told the crowd, referring to his Make America Great Again movement. He said he returned to Butler to show his supporters “stand stronger, prouder, united, more determined and nearer to victory than ever before”. He then praised Corey Comperatore, a rally attendee who was fatally shot in the July 13 attack. Comperatore’s family were among those in attendance on Saturday, as were other victims injured in the shooting, Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance, and billionaire Elon Musk, who endorsed Trump moments after the assassination attempt. During the July attack, Trump narrowly avoided a bullet fired by a man perched on a nearby roof. The former president briefly went to the floor as Secret Service agents rushed towards him. He then stood up, his ear bloodied, and pumped his fist in the air chanting “fight, fight, fight” as he was moved off stage. The shooting transformed the election season, briefly giving Trump a bump in support as his campaign portrayed the incident as a showcase of Trump’s resiliency. Still, the close call was largely overshadowed by US President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the race in July and make way for Harris’s rise. Speaking during the rally, Lara Trump, the co-chair of the Republican National Committee and Trump’s daughter-in-law, sought to again harness the post attack momentum. She framed Trump’s survival as divine intervention. “If you had any question whether God exists and performs miracles we got our answer here July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania,” she said. “He spared Donald Trump’s life because he wasn’t finished with Donald Trump.” The assassination attempt also raised the spectre of political violence in the US, with Trump briefly pledging to take a more unifying approach before returning to the charged rhetoric that has defined his political career. In September, Trump had another brush with an attempted assassin as he golfed at his resort in Florida, further charging the political climate. Trump has broadly blamed the violence on Democrats’ claims that he poses an existential threat to US democracy. The former president had pushed a series of falsehoods surrounding the 2020 election. His supporters later stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn Biden’s victory. Experts have warned Trump is laying the groundwork to repeat the effort if he loses this time around. Speaking at the rally, vice presidential candidate Vance decried Democrats – and Harris – for arguing the former president could again undermine Democratic norms. “I think you all will join me in saying to Kamala Harris, how dare you call [Trump] a threat to Democracy?” Vance said to cheers. “Donald Trump took a bullet for Democracy.” ‘Strength and resiliency’ For his part, Trump’s son, Eric Trump, lumped the assassination attempts with the legal actions and criminal indictments Trump has faced since leaving office, as well as attempts by lawmakers to impeach Trump while he was in the White House. The younger Trump claimed, baselessly, that Trump has been the subject over a wider coordinated effort to bring him down. “They tried to get my father every second since he went down that golden escalator,” he said, referring to his father’s 2016 campaign launch. The rally came as the US Secret Service continues to face questions over the security breach that allowed 20-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks to escape detection ahead of the July attack. Crooks was able to take a position on a roof with a direct line of sight on Trump. He was fatally shot at the scene after opening fire. The head of the Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, stepped down in the days after the attack, which prompted both internal investigations and a Congressional probe. Anthony Guglielmi, the Secret Service’s chief spokesman, told NBC News that “our people are being pushed to the limit” as they have sought to assure another attack does not happen. “We recognise that this is not sustainable, and we cannot risk another mission failure,” he said. Adblock test (Why?)

Supporters of jailed ex-PM rally in Pakistan despite police crackdown

Supporters of jailed ex-PM rally in Pakistan despite police crackdown

Demonstrators rally, demanding Imran Khan be released from jail despite a ban on protests and police crackdown. Supporters of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan have rallied in Islamabad to push for Khan’s release as the police blocked roads, cut off mobile internet and fired tear gas to deter the protesters. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Saturday claimed that the party leader from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Province, Ali Amin Gandapur, has been abducted and unlawfully detained. But Al Jazeera could not independently verify the claim. Gandapur, the chief minister of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was leading thousands of protesters who camped on Islamabad-Peshwar highway on Friday overnight. Police used teas gas as they attempted to enter the city. This is the latest in a series of protests held by supporters of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which has faced a crackdown from authorities. The PTI, which says the Islamabad protest is just for one day, also held a gathering in the eastern city of Lahore on Saturday, where a lockdown of roads was in place. “I am so proud of all our people,” said a message from Khan posted on the social media site X on Saturday afternoon. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi accused the protesters of clashing with police. “Over 80 police officers have been injured in the clashes,” he said. Naqvi had previously called on the PTI to delay any gathering until after diplomatic engagements in the city, including a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting on October 15-16 which will be attended by delegations, including from China, Russia and India. PTI activists began driving to Islamabad on Friday from his powerbase in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, but encountered shipping container roadblocks and volleys of tear gas. Naqvi said the authorities had intelligence that the protesters planned to disrupt the SCO conference in a bid to gain attention. “We can’t allow this. I will say to them again, to not cross more red lines – don’t make us take extreme steps,” Naqvi said. ‘Worrying clampdown’ Amnesty International said the communications cuts and road blockades “infringe on people’s right to freedom of expression, access to information, peaceful assembly and movement”. “These restrictions are part of a worrying clampdown on the right to protest in Pakistan,” the rights group said. The social media site X has also been blocked across Pakistan since after the election in February, when mobile internet was likewise cut on polling day and PTI has alleged widespread vote-tampering took place. The 72-year-old Khan served as prime minister from 2018 to 2022, when he was deposed in a parliamentary no-confidence vote after falling out with the powerful military establishment, widely considered Pakistan’s political kingmakers. He was imprisoned in August last year on several charges. Though his conviction in most cases has either been overturned or suspended, he continues to remain in jail, facing trial in other cases he claims have been orchestrated to prevent his return to power. Khan was barred from standing in the February elections, which the PTI alleges were rigged. Several other countries had raised “serious concerns” about the fairness of the vote, but election authorities in Pakistan have denied the charges. Last month, several PTI lawmakers were arrested on the premises of Pakistan’s parliament. Adblock test (Why?)

DRC launches first mpox vaccination drive in efforts to curb outbreak

DRC launches first mpox vaccination drive in efforts to curb outbreak

The vaccine will first be given to health workers and those with existing health issues. The Democratic Republic of Congo has launched its first vaccination campaign against mpox in the eastern city of Goma, which was hit the hardest by an outbreak. Vaccines were first administered to hospital staff on Saturday, with the wider vaccine drive due to start on Monday in the east of the country, where the current outbreak began last year. On Friday, the DRC Ministry of Public Health warned that the vaccine campaign would be limited due to few resources. So far, only 265,000 doses are available. “As you can imagine, in a country of 100 million people, we’re not going to solve the problem with 265,000 doses,” Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba told a news conference on Friday. He added that the aim of the drive was to target priority groups, including those with existing health issues and health workers. More doses of the vaccine are expected to arrive from France, Japan and the United States. Last month, US President Joe Biden said Washington plans to donate one million doses of the mpox vaccine to African nations. World Health Organization’s Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti said in a statement that the vaccine rollout marks “an important step in limiting the spread of the virus and ensuring the safety of families and communities”. Since the start of 2024, the DRC has reported more than 30,000 suspected and confirmed cases of mpox, and 900 deaths, the World Health Organization said. The virus can spread through close contact with an infected person or animal. Once contracted, the virus typically causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body. In August, the WHO declared mpox a public health emergency after discovering a new, more infectious variant, named clade Ib. According to the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, mpox has been detected in 16 African countries so far this year. On Friday, the WHO announced that it had approved a PCR test to detect mpox by swabbing skin lesions. Kamba said the WHO pledged about 4,500 tests for the DRC but did not provide an arrival date. Adblock test (Why?)