‘Given clean chit to itself’: Congress writes counter response to ECI over alleged irregularities in Haryana polls
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has dismissed allegations by the Congress party regarding irregularities in the recent Haryana elections. In response, the Congress submitted a “counter response” to the ECI on Friday, describing its initial reply as “generic” and focused on dismissing the comp
Harris slammed for hiring advisor with ties to dark money group pushing gas stove ban: ‘Par for the course’
Energy advocates are knocking Vice President Kamala Harris for bringing on a top campaign advisor with ties to a controversial environmental group behind the effort to ban gas stoves. O.H. Skinner, executive director of the nonprofit Alliance for Consumers, told Fox News Digital that “this is sadly par for the course.” “For years the left has been focused on assaulting consumers and the things in their homes. That has included a litany of Biden-Harris regulations and mandates,” he said. “From ‘green’ regulations on dishwashers and washing machines to EV mandates and bans on gas stoves, a Harris-Walz administration will no doubt continue to eviscerate consumer choice and force Americans to pay more for everyday products and household appliances that do a worse job.” American energy production is a critical issue this election, especially in the largest swing state, Pennsylvania. The Harris campaign has made overtures to energy producers and consumers, saying that her administration would not ban fracking but would reduce energy production costs while investing in clean energy solutions. BIDEN ADMIN’S REGULATIONS WOULD BAN 96% OF GAS STOVES, REPUBLICAN WARNS However, conservatives are knocking her for hiring Camila Thorndike, who previously worked for the dark money climate activist group Rewiring America as the campaign’s “climate engagement director.” Before joining the campaign in September, Updike worked in multiple positions at Rewiring America between late 2022 and last month, according to her Legistorm profile. Rewiring America is an environmental advocacy group that made headlines in 2022 for its push to ban gas stoves. The group does not file federal tax forms since it is sponsored by the Windward Fund, a nonprofit that is part of the billion-dollar dark money network managed by the Washington, D.C.-based Arabella Advisors. The only public contribution to Rewiring America is a 2020 grant worth $300,000 from the left-wing nonprofit Rockefeller Brothers Fund. The group was founded by Alex Laskey, Saul Griffith and Ari Matusiak in 2020. The three founders have all pursued various wind, solar, electrification and energy efficiency ventures, some of which have netted them millions of dollars in buyouts or received significant federal funding. They have simultaneously advocated for policies benefiting those ventures through the nonprofit. BIDEN-HARRIS STILL HATE YOUR GAS STOVE, YOU WON’T BELIEVE HOW MUCH Among its key objectives, Rewiring America has maintained that Americans must broadly electrify their homes to combat climate change and has advocated for massive spending on climate programs. In an October interview with Politico, Thorndike indicated that Hurricanes Helene and Milton were caused by climate change. She told Politico that Harris is “not promoting expansion [of fossil fuel drilling]. She’s just said that they wouldn’t ban fracking,” despite Harris repeatedly supporting a fracking ban during her failed 2019 presidential campaign. The climate advisor has a long history of controversial comments, including accusing the oil and gas industry of “ecoterrorism” and calling for Americans in the fossil fuel industry to “consider putting their talents elsewhere” and stop “continuing to cook the planet,” according to a recent Washington Free Beacon report. She also previously said she is hesitant to have children because of climate change threats, saying it’s an “ethical question that keeps me up at night.” Jason Isaac, a former Texas representative and CEO of the American Energy Institute, told Fox News Digital that Harris’ decision to bring on Thorndike “underscores her administration’s hostility towards American energy sources that power our economy and support millions of jobs.” “If her campaign’s staff is any indication, we can expect Harris to continue pushing policies that harm American energy independence and target the livelihoods of countless workers,” he said. “This isn’t just about gas stoves. It’s a coordinated effort to undermine affordable, reliable energy that Americans depend on.” Rewiring America did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News’ Thomas Catenacci and Aubrie Spady contributed to this report. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
GOP lawmakers sound alarm on military voting ‘deficiencies’ ahead of Election Day
FIRST ON FOX: With just four days to go until Election Day, Republican lawmakers are demanding answers from the Pentagon after receiving complaints about inadequate resources to help military service members vote. Active duty service members claim the Pentagon has not allocated enough resources to let them cast their ballot on time and that the stockpile of write-in absentee ballots on at least one military base is depleted and has not been replenished, according to three GOP congressmen. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Mich., Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich. and Mike Walz, R-Fla., penned a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Wednesday, writing “with grave concern” about “deficiencies in the Defense Department’s protocols,” which also includes not making service members aware of their options on how to vote. “Our nation’s brave men and women in uniform brought to our attention that there has been inadequate education at the administrative level on how to register to vote, request an absentee ballot, and fill in a federal write-in absentee ballot if their state-issued ballot does not arrive in time,” the lawmakers write. MAJORITY OF VETERANS POLLED SUPPORT RE-ELECTION OF DONALD TRUMP: ‘WE WANT TRUMP BACK’ “Other service members also stated that when a request for a federal write-in absentee ballot was made, they were told the base’s stockpile of such ballots was depleted and had not been replenished.” The lawmakers say it is imperative that the Pentagon does everything in its power so the nation’s “elite warriors” have every opportunity to vote and that the Department of Defense (DOD) “mobilize all the necessary resources over the next seven days” so that military personnel are given that opportunity. They also requested that Austin clarify what training or guidance is given to service members so that they can vote and what training is given to each unit’s Voting Assistance Office (VAO). The Republicans also asked if there is a sufficient stockpile of federal write-in absentee ballots for service members nationwide to vote if their state-issued absentee ballot does not arrive on time. Additionally, the lawmakers want to know if military personnel have been given sufficient time to review a sample ballot electronically, so they know their voting options ahead of the election or if they have to fill in a federal write-in absentee ballot. BRIAN MAST: I’M A WOUNDED WARRIOR. I’VE SEEN DONALD TRUMP CARE FOR VETERANS. THAT’S WHY I’M VOTING FOR HIM Fox News Digital requested comment from the DOD regarding the letter but did not receive a response prior to publication. “Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have mobilized federal manpower, resources, and tax dollars to block state-level election integrity measures, including in Georgia and Virginia, through lawsuits and smears,” Mast, a miliary veteran who lost both his legs while serving in Afghanistan in 2010, tells Fox News Digital. “They claim to care about democracy and the right to vote, yet they’ve failed to plan accordingly to facilitate the right to vote for every single one of our nation’s brave men and women in uniform. This is absolutely unacceptable. Our nation’s elite warriors deserve to have every opportunity to vote for the next commander-in-chief, especially since that person will be making life-and-death decisions for our troops.” Waltz, who served 27 years in the U.S. Army and National Guard, echoed those sentiments. “Both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have dismissed our warfighters serving in combat zones by either falsely claiming the U.S. has suffered no casualties under this administration or by claiming thousands of these service members aren’t in active combat zones,” Walz tells Fox News Digital. “We need assurances these service members who are putting their lives on the line for our country have the information and tools they need to cast their ballot to vote.” Huizenga too said the situation “is completely unacceptable.” “Sadly, this is the latest example of the Biden-Harris Administration failing to stand up for our servicemembers,” Huizenga tells Fox News Digital.
These Texans could join or influence a second Trump administration
Donald Trump has built close ties to many Texas Republicans, from judges to elected officials to policy experts.
Terlingua’s tourist season has started. Here’s why and how you can help conserve water on your visit.
It’s unclear how much water resides underneath this booming West Texas tourist haven. That makes conservation critical.
The ‘garbage’ campaign: Why mistakes and distractions could tilt the outcome
If there’s one image that captures the craziness of this campaign, it’s got to be Donald Trump driving around in a garbage truck. He put on the orange vest and talked to reporters after a Joe Biden blunder put Kamala Harris on the defensive. And this was after a Trump rally filled with profane insults, including a comic who mocked Puerto Rico as an island of floating garbage. And that, in turn, followed the spectacle of the former president cooking up some fries at McDonald’s, where he actually likes to eat. THE FATAL FLAW IN KAMALA HARRIS’ SPEECH, MARRED BY BIDEN’S ‘GARBAGE’ COMMENT But all this is unfolding against the backdrop of the ugliest and perhaps most divisive race in American history, with each side accusing the other of being a danger to democracy. And the tightness of the polls–assuming they’re not off again–has created an almost apocalyptic sense of drama, with many voters worried about post-election violence if Trump loses. Trump, after all, has survived two impeachments, the Jan. 6 riot, four criminal indictments, one conviction and two assassination attempts. He has spent the last four years insisting, despite numerous failed lawsuits, that the last election was stolen from him. Can there be more than 500 voters in the six or seven swing states who don’t have a rock-solid opinion of him, positive or negative? As for Harris, she was a relatively unpopular vice president thrust into a 100-day sprint when Democrats pressured Biden into stepping aside. She soared through the convention but hid from the media – that’s now changed – yet kept sticking to talking points and didn’t make much news. What’s more, Harris would be the first female president–and, of course, woman of color–to win the presidency in a country where some men, especially Black men, are reluctant to take that step. BACKLASH BUILDS AGAINST BEZOS AS NON-ENDORSEMENT SPARKS HUGE SURGE IN CANCELLATIONS I have never witnessed such a chasm in coverage as in 2024, not even when Barack Obama first ran for the White House. The Kamala coverage ranges from glowing to gushing, with minimal scrutiny even when she makes false claims. The Donald coverage is overwhelmingly negative, right down to the Hitler comparisons–which the press has pushed for years, even before John Kelly went on the record with his accusations. It’s not hard to sense the frustration in the press that the improving economy isn’t helping Harris, especially with the news that inflation has dropped to 2.1 percent. The New York Times says voters feel “relatively glum” about the economy, with the “lingering pessimism…The job market has been chugging along, although more slowly, overall growth has been healthy and even inflation is more or less back to normal.” A Wall Street Journal columnist said yesterday the next president will inherit a “remarkable economy,” but that 62 percent of those in its poll rated it “not so good” or “poor.” There is generally a lag in public perception, as when George H.W. Bush found when he talked up economic improvements in 1992 but lost to Bill Clinton. In this supercharged environment, every mistake counts. JAKE PAUL ENDORSES TRUMP IN FIERY VIDEO TORCHING BIDEN-HARRIS ADMINISTRATION: ‘CAN’T SIT BACK AND WATCH THIS’ Trump, speaking about criminals who cross the border illegally, said “I told women I will be their protector. They [his advisers] said, ‘Sir, please don’t say that.’ Well, I’m going to do it whether the women like it or not.” That has an unfortunate ring to it, and Harris said yesterday it is “very offensive to women,” including on controlling “their own bodies.” All of which brings us back to the last few days. When every hour counts, every distraction is costly. If you’re explaining, you’re losing. If you’re playing defense, you can’t put points on the board. Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally was marred by racist and misogynist talk, the coverage of which totally overshadowed his speech. What drew the most attention was comedian Tony Hinchcliffe and his ridicule of Puerto Rico. Podcaster Joe Rogan said he heard the joke the day before and told the comic there would be a big backlash. But the Trump camp hadn’t vetted the speakers. When Harris naturally denounced the “garbage” language, Trump hopped on the sanitation truck emblazoned with his name. Biden has been hurting his VP’s candidacy with a series of screwups. First he said of Trump, “Lock him up.” Then the president blurted out that “the only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters.” He stumbled before adding that this was about the “demonization of Latinos.” Castigating the other side’s voters is about the worst thing you can do, as Hillary Clinton learned eight years ago. That choked off the favorable coverage of her speech on the Ellipse–itself designed to mirror Trump’s Jan. 6 speech–and was the focus of reporters’ questions the next morning. Harris distanced herself, saying Biden had clarified his remarks and she would never criticize voters who don’t support her. An NBC reporter asked her about it again yesterday. Trump’s brief stint at McDonald’s was meant to highlight his contention that Harris never worked at one during college, as she has insisted. It was a brilliant tactic and one her side should have conjured up first. National Review writer Noah Rothman says the candidates are just “trolling” each other, presenting voters with “a choice between two gratingly flip campaigns that are consumed with frivolities.” I would differ on the main point. The whole point of a campaign is for voters to size up how the candidates perform under pressure, since no one knows what crises may arise. How they react to attacks, stunts and interviews gives us a sense of their rapid-response abilities that go beyond policy positions–especially in such a razor-thin election.
A pregnant teenager died after trying to get care in three visits to Texas emergency rooms
It took 20 hours and three ER visits before doctors admitted the pregnant 18-year-old to the hospital as her condition worsened. She’s one of at least two women who died under Texas’ abortion ban.
Early in-person voting ending Friday in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and 5 other states
Early in-person voting ends in eight states Friday, including three major battleground states, as the nation sits just four days away from Election Day. The states ending early voting include the battleground states Arizona, Georgia and Nevada, along with Idaho, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Texas and Utah. Here is everything you need to know to cast a last-minute ballot during early voting. President Biden scored a crucial victory in Arizona in the last presidential election, flipping the state to the Democrats for the first time since 1996. Four years later, the state remains highly competitive. In late September, a Fox News Poll put Republican former President Trump at 50% and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris at 47% among likely voters; an AARP survey around the same time had Trump two points ahead of Harris at 49% to 47%. Maricopa County remains the most important battleground in the state. It is the fourth-highest populated county in the United States, represents more than 60% of Arizona’s registered voters and has a large suburban population, particularly in Mesa. Arizona is also home to a higher proportion of Hispanic voters than the rest of the country, and while they favored Biden by 19 points in the last election, they have shown signs of shifting toward Trump. Republicans are strongest in sparsely populated rural areas, particularly Mohave County (Trump plus-51) and Graham County (Trump plus-45), but they run up the margin most in the outer suburbs and exurban areas in Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties. Arizona is a Toss-Up on the Fox News Power Rankings. The Grand Canyon State will also vote for a new senator after independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema decided not to run for re-election this year. The Republican candidate is Kari Lake, a former TV news host who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2022. The Democrats have fielded Rep. Ruben Gallego, a former Marine who represents Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District. The Senate race is ranked Lean D. ‘ADMIRES DICTATORS’: HARRIS CONTINUES COMPARING TRUMP TO HITLER DURING BATTLEGROUND STATE TOWN HALL Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Georgia has voted Republican in all but two elections in the last four decades. The first was former President Clinton’s landslide win in 1992, and the second was 2020, when Biden brought the state back to the Democrats by 11,779 votes. A win for either candidate here would make their path to victory easier. The Peach State has 16 electoral votes to offer, and with recent polls showing a tight race, it’s ranked a Toss-Up on the Fox News Power Rankings. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. TRUMP, HARRIS MAKE FINAL PITCHES TO VOTERS IN HIGH-STAKES BATTLEGROUND STATE IN FINAL DAYS OF CYCLE Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. EDITOR’S NOTE: This report has been updated to remove references to North Carolina, where early in-person voting ends Saturday.
Early in-person voting ending Friday in Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina and 5 other states
Early in-person voting ends in nine states Friday, including four major battleground states, as the nation sits just four days away from Election Day. The states ending early voting include the battleground states Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and North Carolina, along with Idaho, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Texas and Utah. Here is everything you need to know to cast a last-minute ballot during early voting. President Biden scored a crucial victory in Arizona in the last presidential election, flipping the state to the Democrats for the first time since 1996. Four years later, the state remains highly competitive. In late September, a Fox News Poll put Republican former President Trump at 50% and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris at 47% among likely voters; an AARP survey around the same time had Trump two points ahead of Harris at 49% to 47%. Maricopa County remains the most important battleground in the state. It is the fourth-highest populated county in the United States, represents more than 60% of Arizona’s registered voters and has a large suburban population, particularly in Mesa. Arizona is also home to a higher proportion of Hispanic voters than the rest of the country, and while they favored Biden by 19 points in the last election, they have shown signs of shifting toward Trump. Republicans are strongest in sparsely populated rural areas, particularly Mohave County (Trump plus-51) and Graham County (Trump plus-45), but they run up the margin most in the outer suburbs and exurban areas in Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties. Arizona is a Toss-Up on the Fox News Power Rankings. The Grand Canyon State will also vote for a new senator after independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema decided not to run for re-election this year. The Republican candidate is Kari Lake, a former TV news host who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2022. The Democrats have fielded Rep. Ruben Gallego, a former Marine who represents Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District. The Senate race is ranked Lean D. ‘ADMIRES DICTATORS’: HARRIS CONTINUES COMPARING TRUMP TO HITLER DURING BATTLEGROUND STATE TOWN HALL Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Georgia has voted Republican in all but two elections in the last four decades. The first was former President Clinton’s landslide win in 1992, and the second was 2020, when Biden brought the state back to the Democrats by 11,779 votes. A win for either candidate here would make their path to victory easier. The Peach State has 16 electoral votes to offer, and with recent polls showing a tight race, it’s ranked a Toss-Up on the Fox News Power Rankings. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. North Carolina last voted for a Democratic president in 2008, when Sen. Barack Obama won the state by 0.3 points, or 14,177 votes. Trump pulled out a convincing 3.7-point win in 2016, but that margin shrank to 1.3 points against Biden in 2020. ‘PULLING AN ALVIN BRAGG’: LEFT-WING DA’S ‘FLIMSY’ SUIT AGAINST ELON MUSK’S $1M GIVEAWAY SLAMMED BY EXPERT Late last month, the Fox News Poll had the two 2024 presidential candidates just a point apart, with Democratic nominee Vice President Harris at 49% and former President Trump at 50%. North Carolina is ranked a Toss-Up on the Fox News Power Rankings. The state has become more competitive as its population has grown. Over the last full decade, North Carolina added roughly 1.1 million people, the fourth-largest gain among all states. Much of that growth has been in urban and suburban areas like those in solidly blue Mecklenburg and Wake counties. The pandemic brought more wealthy, urban Americans from surrounding states, and there are pockets of college voters as well. Rural areas have experienced some population decline, but they remain a powerful part of the state’s overall vote, and they vote overwhelmingly Republican. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. TRUMP, HARRIS MAKE FINAL PITCHES TO VOTERS IN HIGH-STAKES BATTLEGROUND STATE IN FINAL DAYS OF CYCLE Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting. Voters who have received their mail-in ballots have until Nov. 5 to deliver them to state officials. Friday is the final day for early in-person voting.
Biden-Harris administration failed to recoup $200B in fraudulent COVID loans, House committee says
FIRST ON FOX: A new report from the House of Representatives is accusing the Biden administration of failing to recover some $200 billion in fraudulent COVID-19 pandemic loans. The House Small Business Committee, led by Chairman Roger Williams, R-Texas, has been conducting a years-long investigation into how the Small Business Administration (SBA) has handled the emergency financial aid programs that sprung up when state governments shut down businesses across the country during the pandemic. “In creating the COVID Lending Programs, Congress understood that the relief funds needed to be issued quickly to help businesses cope with the economic strain of the pandemic,” a new report released by the committee said. “The rush to get pandemic relief funding out quickly resulted in shortcuts being taken to deliver aid quickly to small businesses in hopes of recouping improper disbursements on the back end.” BIDEN CALLS TRUMP SUPPORTERS ‘GARBAGE’ DURING HARRIS CAMPAIGN EVENT AS VP PROMISES UNITY AT ELLIPSE RALLY The report also accused the SBA of making “numerous decisions that decreased the likelihood” the government would be able to recoup any money given under false pretenses. “In total, it is likely that $200 billion from the COVID Lending Programs were disbursed to fraudulent recipients,” the report said. Out of roughly $5.5 trillion Congress approved for aid during the pandemic, roughly $1.2 trillion went to the SBA. It was largely disbursed by two major pieces of legislation, the CARES Act, signed by former President Trump, and the American Rescue Plan, signed by President Biden. TRUMP CALLS FOR SUPPORTERS TO ‘FORGIVE’ BIDEN IN SHOW OF UNITY AFTER PRESIDENT CALLS SUPPORTERS ‘GARBAGE’ While making recommendations for reform across the entire COVID loan system, the report accused Democrats of devoting disproportionate attention to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which accounted for roughly $64 billion in fraudulent loans, rather than the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), which the report said saw $136 billion in fraud. Written by staff for the committee’s Republican majority, the report acknowledged that the additional responsibility given by the Trump administration in 2020 strained its comparatively smaller federal agency infrastructure. “In the days after Congress passed the initial COVID relief legislation, SBA employees worked night and day to craft the rules and policies for its new lending programs,” the report said. The SBA had already issued more money in the first 14 days of these programs than it had in the previous 14 years combined, the report said. WHITE HOUSE DENIES THAT BIDEN REFERRED TO TRUMP SUPPORTERS AS ‘GARBAGE’ It said SBA staff “did a remarkable job” setting them up, “but under the circumstances, these SBA employees did not have adequate support, staff, or time to design these programs to be fraud resistant.” The report accused the Biden administration of not doing enough to put in anti-fraud guardrails and failing to recover the funds lost after taking over the White House in January 2021. The report also knocked the previous Democratic majority Congress for focusing on PPP, while the “fraud rate” for EIDL “was approximately four times higher.” It accused Democrats of focusing on PPP because of the involvement of private sector partners. “It is likely that this misplaced focus by Congressional Democrats, and their surrogates in the media, obscured the realities of fraud in these programs, at least to some degree,” the report said. “While there should be investigations to ensure private companies are following the rules, Members of Congress and their staff should be careful to direct their efforts toward oversight that is beneficial to the American people, and not just part of a broader messaging push against an emerging industry.” Republicans noted that PPP needed “substantial changes” to be made more effective and less vulnerable to fraud. Fox News Digital reached out to the SBA and the House Small Business Committee’s Democratic minority for comment.