‘Massive and professional’ effort boosts GOP’s confidence about ground game in pivotal swing state
Republican operatives in Michigan have signaled optimism about the party’s prospects in the state despite reports the GOP’s ground game has fallen behind its Democratic rivals just weeks before the election. “I am very optimistic about Michigan… in terms of the ground game, I’ve never seen this type of ground game in Michigan for a long time,” Michigan GOP Chair Pete Hoekstra told Fox News Digital. The comment comes as the election enters the critical homestretch, with the state of Michigan being at the center of not only the presidential race but also control of both the House and Senate. Polls show a razor tight race on the presidential side, with former President Trump leading Vice President Kamala Harris by just one point as of Wednesday, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average. According to the Fox News Power Rankings, the race remains a tossup. FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: HARRIS LOSES HER LEAD AND A NEW ELECTORATE EMERGES The Senate race in the state between former Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., and Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., has also tightened significantly in recent weeks, the Real Clear Politics polling average shows, with Slotkin’s lead of 5.1 points on Sept. 23 falling to just 2.7 points as of Wednesday. According to the Fox News Power rankings, the seat currently is in the “Lean Democrat” category. Meanwhile, Michigan features two House races that are rated as “toss ups” by the Cook Political Report; the 7th Congressional District battle between former Democratic state Sen. Curtis Hertel and former Republican state Sen. Tom Barrett, and the 8th District race between Democratic state Sen. Kristen McDonald Rivet and Republican businessman Paul Junge. But some have begun to question the Republican ground game in the state despite its importance to the ultimate outcome of the election, including a Politico report at the end of September that declared some within the GOP were starting to “raise alarms” about the Trump campaign’s operation. “They are out-matching us in money, in enthusiasm and in the ground game,” one Michigan-based GOP strategist, who was granted anonymity, told the outlet. GOP opponents in the state have made similar observations, with Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Aiden Johnson noting that Republicans have outsourced much of their campaign ground work. “Republicans’ decision to outsource their field operation to a billionaire sycophant has left them with an unmitigated disaster,” Johnson told Fox News Digital. “Michigan Democrats have had dedicated organizers on the ground for over a year, actively persuading voters and mobilizing record turnout. It’s not hyperbole to say organizing wins elections.” VP KAMALA HARRIS TO SIT DOWN WITH CHIEF POLITICAL ANCHOR BRET BAIER FOR FIRST FORMAL FOX NEWS INTERVIEW Hoekstra, however, disagreed, telling Fox News Digital he sees the outside organization help as just one pillar in an overall winning strategy. “You’ve got Trump Force 47, they’re going after a specific targeted bloc of voters. You’ve got the Musk PAC, they’re going after a different set. You’ve got county parties and the state party going after a different set of folks. And when you put it all together, I think multiple individuals are going to be contacted by multiple different groups… I think it’s a strength,” Hoekstra said. Republican operatives working in the field echoed Hoekstra’s sentiment, telling Fox News Digital that the party’s operation in the state is better than it’s ever been, pointing to Republican efforts to turn out low-propensity voters and the robust base of volunteers behind that effort. “They can’t see the forest through the trees,” one GOP operative, who was granted anonymity to speak freely, told Fox News Digital of some within the party who have expressed worry about the GOP operation in Michigan. “Your typical hardline Republican is not seeing these field efforts, they’re not having people go to their door, simply because we are chasing these lower-propensity Republican voters and these swing voters that we can win over,” the source added, noting that this effort is similar for down ballot races in the state as well. Jason Roe, a GOP strategist working with the Barrett campaign, told Fox News Digital that the cooperation between the Trump campaign, down ballot campaigns, RNC and outside organizations has been robust, something that he believes is helping drive results in the state. FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: SENATE REPUBLICANS TAKE CHARGE “When you look at the totality of all the organizations, we’ve got a lot more bodies out there working than we have had in a long time,” Roe said. Roe said much of the GOP effort at this point has been “chasing absentee ballots,” arguing that doing so has allowed operatives on the ground the ability to target lower-propensity voters to get out and vote for Republican candidates. “I think there is a more qualitative approach to how campaigns are doing it than in the past, which was more quantitative, when Election Day voting was way more important than absentee voting,” he said, adding that in the past “it was about knocking on the most doors, and now it’s very targeted on the most important doors where we can bank votes now.” Another GOP source on the ground in Michigan, speaking to Fox News Digital anonymously, echoed a similar sentiment, noting the cooperation between the Rogers and Trump campaigns. “The Rogers campaign and Trump campaign have teamed up and are crushing doors, including 40,000 on this past Saturday alone,” the source said. “It’s a massive, professional and volunteer effort and I’m not concerned about the ground at all. Democrats? Haven’t really seen them aside from press releases.” Another GOP operative who spoke to Fox News Digital anonymously also touted the way all facets of the Republican effort have worked together, noting that Michigan “is a battleground at all levels.” “It’s a must-win state on the presidential race, has its highly competitive Senate race, and is ground zero for House Republicans to grow their majority in Congress,” the operative said. “Republicans up and down the ballot have deployed a very robust
Bangladesh court seeks arrest of ex-PM Hasina for ‘crimes against humanity’
Toppled leader is in India, which has bilateral extradition treaty with Bangladesh – though loophole could prevent her return. A Bangladeshi court has ordered the arrest of self-exiled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India more than two months ago after being toppled in a student-led uprising. Mohammad Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), said on Thursday the court had issued arrest warrants for Hasina and 45 others, ordering that they attend court by November 18, according to The Daily Star local newspaper. “Sheikh Hasina was at the helm of those who committed massacres, killings and crimes against humanity in July to August,” Islam said, referring to a crackdown on student protests, which killed more than 1,000 people, according to the interim Health Ministry. The student-led movement began with demonstrations demanding the government abolish its practice of reserving a third of civil service jobs for relatives of war veterans, before spiralling into wider protests calling for Hasina’s resignation. Human rights groups accused the prime minister of using excessive force against protesters, a charge she denied. After weeks of nationwide unrest, Hasina resigned and fled to India in early August. She was replaced by Nobel Peace Prize-winning economist Muhammad Yunus, who is currently leading the country’s interim government. Hasina has not been seen in public since leaving Bangladesh. The 77-year-old’s last official whereabouts is a military airbase near India’s capital, New Delhi. Her presence in India has infuriated Bangladesh, which has revoked Hasina’s diplomatic passport. The two countries have a bilateral extradition treaty which could theoretically compel her to return to face criminal trial. However, a clause in the treaty says extradition might be refused if the offence is of a “political character”. It is not clear whether the former pro-democracy icon, who critics say had become increasingly autocratic during her 15-year reign, will remain in India or head elsewhere. It was Hasina’s government that created the deeply contentious ICT in 2010 to probe atrocities during the 1971 independence war from Pakistan. The United Nations and rights groups have criticised its procedural shortcomings, with the court often seen as a means for Hasina to eliminate political opponents. Several cases accusing Hasina of orchestrating the “mass murder” of protesters are being investigated by the court. Adblock test (Why?)
Fuel tanker explosion kills more than 150 people in Nigeria
More than 150 people, including children, were killed and dozens of others wounded after an overturned fuel tanker exploded in northwestern Nigeria. The crash took place on an expressway in Jigawa State. People then rushed to the vehicle to collect the fuel, police spokesman Lawan Shiisu Adam said. Deadly tanker accidents are common in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, which lacks an efficient railway system to transport cargo. People often salvage fuel with cups and buckets – especially because of soaring fuel prices, which have tripled since the government ended costly gas subsidies last year. The latest accident occurred at midnight on Tuesday in Majiya town when the driver lost control of the vehicle on a highway, Adam said on Wednesday. Residents rushed to the scene before the “massive inferno.” Most of the bodies were unrecognisable, emergency services said. As mass burials were held on Wednesday and Thursday, Dr Haruna Mairiga, head of the Jigawa emergency services, said most of the victims were “burned to ashes” at the scene. More than 1,500 accidents involving fuel tankers occurred in Nigeria in 2020, resulting in 535 deaths, according to Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety Corps. At least 48 people were killed in September when a fuel tanker collided with another truck in north-central Nigeria. The latest accident revived questions about the implementation of safety measures and traffic regulations in the country. Adblock test (Why?)
One Direction’s Liam Payne dead in Buenos Aires: What we know
Liam Payne, a former member of the hit band, One Direction, has died at the age 31 in an incident in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Payne is understood to have fallen from his third-storey balcony of CasaSur Hotel in the Palermo neighbourhood of the city. According to authorities, it is as yet unknown whether Payne’s death was accidental, down to foul play or suicide. Local emergency services confirmed his death, which has left fans and fellow artists in shock. One Direction, which disbanded in 2015, had 29 hits on Billboard’s Hot 100 and, as of 2020, had sold more than 70 million records worldwide, making it one of the best-selling “boy bands” in history. Who were Liam Payne and One Direction? Payne, the youngest of three siblings, was born in Wolverhampton in the West Midlands area of the United Kingdom. He studied music technology at the City of Wolverhampton College, laying the foundation for his future career in the music industry. At the age of 14, Payne made his debut on the reality music competition TV show, The X Factor, in the UK in 2008 but did not make it past the initial stages. Undeterred, he returned two years later, delivering a powerful rendition of “Cry Me A River” that won the judges over. One Direction was formed on that X Factor show in July 2010, brought together by one of the judges, Simon Cowell, later famous for being a ruthlessly critical judge on the TV reality show, American Idol. All the group members had initially auditioned for The X Factor as solo artists, with the group consisting of Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik. Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik from Group One Direction X factor finalists are seen leaving ITV Studios on October 7, 2010, in London, UK [Danny Martindale/FilmMagic via Getty Images] Their achievements solidified their position as one of the most commercially successful boy bands in music history, known for hits like “What Makes You Beautiful” and “Story of My Life”. The band’s debut album, Up All Night, released in 2011, made history by becoming the first album by a UK-based group to debut at number one on the US Billboard 200. First-week sales hit 500,000 digital copies. In 2013, they released their third album, Midnight Memories, which became one of their most successful albums, selling 4 million copies in less than two months. Their “Where We Are” tour in 2014 was one of the highest-grossing tours for a vocal group, earning revenues of $290m. Following the announcement of an indefinite hiatus in 2015, the members of One Direction have since primarily focused on developing individual solo careers. [embedded content] Payne released his debut solo single “Strip That Down” featuring US rapper Quavo in 2017. His solo debut album, LPI, released in December 2019, peaked at number 17 on the UK Albums Chart. Payne has a seven-year-old son named Bear Grey Payne with his former British girlfriend, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, who goes by the musician name Cheryl. Fernandez-Versini, 41, first met Payne in 2008 when he auditioned on The X Factor. Cheryl was a judge at the time alongside Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh. Fernandez-Versini was also an X Factor judge at One Direction’s appearance on the show in 2010. After her split from ex-husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, Cheryl reconnected with Payne in 2016. In 2017, they had their son, Bear Grey Payne, but split the following year. Payne had openly addressed his struggle with alcohol addiction. In a July 2023 video, he shared his progress, stating that he had maintained sobriety for six months following a period of rehabilitation. In March 2024, Payne released his last single, Tearsdrop, on which he collaborated with Jamie Scott and JC Chasez of N*SYNC. He shared footage of some emotional moments during the development of Tearsdrop on TikTok. Hours before his death, Payne posted a Snapchat video in which he can be seen having breakfast with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy. He begins the video saying: “Morning everybody, lovely day here in Argentina.” He continues with light banter with Cassidy, smiling at times, as he talks about riding horses, playing polo and returning home to see his dog, Stan. He closes the video with: “So, it’s going to be a nice day.” Liam Payne had posted on Snapchat in the hours before his death, sharing photos of himself with his partner Kate Cassidy as well as videos in which he said it was a “lovely day here in Argentina”. Full story: https://t.co/0WBug7BvAp pic.twitter.com/Wbn7LrE4xt — Sky News (@SkyNews) October 17, 2024 Last month, Netflix announced it had signed up Payne to be a judge for its new reality TV competition, Building the Band. Other judges include Destiny’s Child alum Kelly Rowland, Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls, and Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean as the host. Payne is survived by his parents, Geoff and Karen Payne, and his two older sisters, Ruth and Nicola. Why did he go to Argentina? Payne travelled to Buenos Aires at the end of September to support his former One Direction bandmate, Niall Horan, at a concert that formed part of his tour, The Show Live On Tour, and featured his third studio album, The Show, which was released in June 2023. This visit came after Payne’s appearance at Horan’s show at the Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires on October 2, where he watched the performance with fans in attendance. How did Payne die? According to local authorities, Payne fell from the third-storey balcony of CasaSur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. According to the recording of a 911 call to police obtained by The Associated Press news agency, the manager of CasaSur Hotel told police that there was “a guest who is overwhelmed with drugs and alcohol”. Referring to Payne’s hotel room, the manager said: “He’s destroying the entire room and, well, we need you to send someone, please.” On Wednesday, Buenos Aires emergency medical services (SAME) chief Alberto
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