Join us Oct. 29 in Auston or online for a preview of the 2024 Election
We’ll discuss the important races to watch and what it could all mean for Texas.
Join us Nov. 7 in Austin or online for a breakdown of the 2024 Election
We’ll dig into the results of consequential races and what it all means for Texas.
Mayorkas doubles down, hammers ‘pernicious’ misinformation amid FEMA criticism
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Wednesday doubled down on his fierce criticism of those he accused of deliberately spreading false information about the work the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is doing during hurricane season. “There is so much false information being spread, and we cannot have people relying on that false information or actually deterred from seeking relief that’s available to them that they need because of that false information,” Mayorkas said on “Morning Joe” Wednesday before Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida Wednesday night. “It’s really pernicious.” Mayorkas, along with DHS and FEMA, have been under pressure over the handling of Hurricane Helene. The agency has been pushing back against claims online that it has diverted resources to illegal immigrants, that it is out of money, that it has been slow in responding and that it is blocking recovery flights. MAYORKAS RIPS ‘POLITICIZED’ ATMOSPHERE OVER FEMA DISASTER RESPONSE AMID GOP CRITICISM’ Focus on the agency was fueled when Mayorkas said last week that FEMA does “not have the funds to make it through the season” although he said it did have enough for “immediate needs.” The administration has pushed for Congress to return and pass a spending bill to provide additional funding for the hurricane season. But the questions over funding led critics to look at the $650 million provided for grants to help illegal immigrants in the Shelter and Services Program (SSP). It led to accusations, including from former President Trump, that money that could have gone to disaster relief was being diverted. The administration pointed to the fact that the funding is congressionally appropriated and is separate from the much larger Disaster Relief Fund. But Republicans have still expressed concern that an “entanglement” in the border crisis has had a knock-on effect. SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE: ‘ALARMED AND DISAPPOINTED’ Others have pointed to a possible political bias after an “equity” blueprint went vital, saying “Diversity, equity, and inclusion cannot be optional.” Republicans have accused the administration of mishandling the response more broadly, with House Speaker Mike Johnson accusing it of “egregious errors and mistakes” and a lack of leadership. But FEMA and DHS have been pushing back against numerous viral online claims that it says are false, including claims that FEMA grants must be repaid, that it is distributing aid based on demographic characteristics and that it is restricting airspace for recovery operations. President Biden has also slammed “reckless, irresponsible and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies that are disturbing people.” On Wednesday, Mayorkas warned that misinformation can stop recovery efforts. TRUMP TARGETS BIDEN, HARRIS OVER FEDERAL RESPONSE TO HURRICANE: ‘INCOMPETENTLY MANAGED’ “Historically, this country has come together as one in times of crisis, in times of disaster. We need that history to be lived today. We cannot have the irresponsible voices that actually wreak damage to individuals in need and prevent survivors from seeking the relief that is available to them,” he said. He had made a similar appeal on Tuesday night on MSNBC, speaking on the impact on the workforce and on the ability for individuals to get help. “It is extraordinarily damaging. Most of all, it is extraordinarily damaging to the survivors of Hurricane Helene, of natural disasters. Individuals lose trust in their government, they are reluctant to seek the assistance that they need to meet their immediate demands — food, water, shelter. They don’t seek it. They are entitled to it. They need it,” Mayorkas said. “We implore them to ignore the false information that is being spread and to seek the help that we have available to them. “It is also extremely demoralizing to our federal law, our emergency response personnel, the state and local emergency response personnel who are risking their lives in the service of those in need. When we reach into flooded zones, when we reach into a home that has been destroyed to assist another individual, we don’t ask about their party affiliation. We are there to help, and they need to understand that. They need to trust us. They can rely on us.” Earlier this week, Mayorkas warned that people “are not seeking that relief because of the disinformation, the intentionally false information they are receiving.”
Voters in key battleground states give Trump an edge over Harris on this top tier issue: poll
A new poll released this week shows former President Trump with a strong lead over Vice President Kamala Harris on the subject of immigration – even after Harris has sought to present herself as the best candidate to secure the southern border. The Quinnipiac poll released Wednesday found Harris leading Trump in Pennsylvania, while Trump is ahead in Michigan and Wisconsin. The three Rust Belt states are being closely watched as they could determine which candidate is the next president. But on the question of who is best to handle immigration, Trump has the edge in all three states. He carries a four-point lead in Pennsylvania (50-46), a nine-point lead in Michigan (53-44) and an eight-point lead in Wisconsin (52-44). VANCE, WALZ SPAR ON IMMIGRATION DURING VP DEBATE: BEEN TO THE BORDER ‘MORE THAN OUR BORDER CZAR’ Trump was also preferred in all states on the economy and handling the conflict in the Middle East, while Harris was preferred on abortion and preserving democracy. Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, along with Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada, had razor-thin margins that decided President Biden’s 2020 White House victory over Trump. And the seven states are likely to determine if Trump or Harris wins the 2024 presidential election. Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin are also the three Rust Belt states that make up the Democrats’ so-called “Blue Wall.” The party reliably won all three states for a quarter-century before Trump narrowly captured them in the 2016 election to win the White House. A recent Marquette Law School poll found that 49% favor Trump while just 37% favor Harris on immigration, with 8% saying they’d be about the same, and 6% saying neither are good on the issue. Harris was tasked with tackling root causes of migration to the southern border in early 2021 as border numbers began to surge. She was eventually dubbed the “border czar” by media outlets and critics – although the White House rejected that title. HARRIS SHIFTS KEY POSITIONS ON BORDER, ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AS CAMPAIGN PROMISES ‘PRAGMATIC’ APPROACH Republicans have accused her of playing a key role in the border crisis and the policies they believe fueled it, including the rolling back of Trump-era policies. Trump has promised to launch a massive deportation operation if elected, restart border wall construction and end Biden-era parole policies. Critics have also highlighted her more left-wing policies as a senator and presidential candidate in 2019 – including her positions on immigration funding and the detention of illegal immigrants. Harris’ campaign says her views have changed since 2019 and have been shaped by her involvement in the administration. This year, her campaign has highlighted her past as a prosecutor and noted her backing of a bipartisan Senate bill to increase funding to the border. Her campaign has noted a recent sharp drop in border encounters since President Biden signed a presidential proclamation in June limiting asylum entries. She has accused Trump of scuppering the border bill for political purposes and of “playing political games.” Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub. Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Trump announces his daughter Tiffany is pregnant: ‘So that’s nice’
Former President Donald Trump shared on Thursday that his daughter Tiffany, 30, is pregnant. The announcement came as the Republican nominee was giving remarks at the Detroit Economic Club in Michigan on a campaign stop. Trump recognized businessman Massad Boulos, who is the father of his daughter’s husband, Michael Boulos. “He happens to be the father of Tiffany’s husband, Michael, who’s a very exceptional young guy. And she’s an exceptional young woman. And she’s going to have a baby. So that’s nice,” said Trump. Tiffany and Michael were married at Mar-a-Lago in Florida in 2022 after having dated since 2018. The couple were engaged in January 2021 after Trump left office. ALL IN THE FAMILY: 5 TRUMP KIN TO REPRESENT FLORIDA AT REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION Tiffany’s mother is Trump’s second wife, actress Marla Maples. TRUMP HAS 9-POINT LEAD ON MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE TO VOTERS: POLL Tiffany is Trump’s youngest daughter. She graduated from Georgetown Law in 2020 and works as an attorney. She also delivered remarks at the 2020 RNC in support of her father. “A vote for my father, Donald J. Trump, is a vote to uphold our American ideals. Be true to yourself. And stay true to the Dream of America,” said Tiffany at the time. While Tiffany has remained mostly private since her marriage in 2022, she took to social media in the wake of her father’s assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. “The outpouring of love and support for my dad is deeply appreciated,” she wrote. “Thank you God for keeping my father alive. Political violence is never the answer. God bless the secret service and law enforcement who fearlessly intervened. Please include the families of the victims in your prayers. As you saw today, my father is a fighter and he will continue to fight for you and the USA.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Neither Tiffany nor Michael has announced the pregnancy on social media at the time this article was published.
For Wisconsin Dems, a 2024 win in the battleground state is years in the making
MADISON, Wis. — Democrats in the state believe they have been laying the groundwork for winning the 2024 presidential election for roughly seven years. Wisconsin Democrats Chair Ben Wikler told Fox News Digital in an interview that their “everything, everywhere, all at once” and neighbor-to-neighbor organizing has been building the infrastructure for Democrat nominee Vice President Harris to win the critical battleground state. He said Democrats in Wisconsin have been “building teams of neighbors to take responsibility for talking to folks in their surrounding area” continuously “for the last seven years.” SEE IT: WISCONSIN DAIRY FARMER SAYS ‘NO QUESTION’ TRUMP ADMIN WAS ‘MUCH BETTER’ THAN BIDEN-HARRIS The Harris campaign is then building off the groundwork they have spent years laying for Democrats, he said. Wikler attributed recent statewide electoral wins for Democrats in the last six years to this organizing strategy. “What we know is that a trusted messenger matters almost as much as the message,” Wikler said. “And there are Democrats in rural areas talking to other rural voters, in suburbs talking to other suburban voters, in cities talking to other city-dwellers about their votes.” WISCONSIN SENATE RACE SHIFTS TO ‘TOSS UP’ BY HANDICAPPER AS TAMMY BALDWIN FIGHTS FOR RE-ELECTION “We think that the messages that Harris and Walz are carrying, they can resonate with everybody,” he said. “And having a messenger who can actually start that conversation and have it not at the talking-point level but at ‘what’s actually happening in our lives and communities’ level makes all the difference. “ Wikler noted that “Wisconsin is the perennial tipping-point state,” referencing its past electoral shifts from going for former President Trump in 2016 to President Biden in 2020. TRUMP, REPUBLICANS VENTURE TO BLUE AREAS IN WISCONSIN TO BOOST GOP TURNOUT “On the Democratic side, we have a real ground organizing volunteer operation, and we have 16,000 people who’ve done their first volunteer shift with Democrats” since Harris became the nominee late in the campaign. He hit Republicans and allied organizations for using “paid canvassers, people who are hired to go knock on doors but don’t necessarily have a connection to the community where they’re having those conversations.” HERE’S WHAT 2 UNDECIDED WISCONSIN VOTERS ARE HOLDING OUT FOR IN 2024 ELECTION “I think we’ll see at the end of the day which of these strategies has a bigger effect,” Wikler added. This week, Fox News Power Rankings rated Wisconsin as a “Toss Up” going into the presidential election. On the ground, Republicans and Democrats alike are expecting the state to come down to just tens of thousands of votes, as it did in 2016 and 2020. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
VP Harris ripped by victim of illegal immigrant released under her program over resurfaced speech
FIRST ON FOX: A woman whose skull was fractured by an illegal immigrant let out of jail as part of a program launched by then San Francisco DA Kamala Harris is blasting the vice president over a resurfaced speech where Harris discusses the matter as being the result of a “glitch” in the system. “That ‘glitch’ certainly had a negative impact on my life,” Amanda Kiefer, who suffered a brutal attack at the hands of an illegal immigrant in 2008 while she walked down the street with friends, said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “It would be easier to believe it was a mistake if Democrats in San Francisco didn’t have a long history of enabling illegal immigration, choosing not to prosecute illegal immigrant criminals and refusal to deport anyone.” “It wasn’t a “glitch” that the Biden Harris administration has let in millions of illegal immigrants, including tens of thousands of known, convicted criminals and those on the terror watch list. At a certain point, it can’t be incompetence, it’s intentional. Harris doesn’t care about Americans’ safety.” Then San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, in a resurfaced speech, blamed a “glitch” in the system while discussing the attack on Kiefer. CBS ’60 MINUTES’ AIRS TWO DIFFERENT ANSWERS FROM VP HARRIS TO THE SAME QUESTION “But whenever you’re rolling out something new, there will at some point become apparent that there is a mistake or a glitch in the design, and when you’re in these kinds of positions, that mistake or glitch is on the front page of the paper,” Harris said during a 2010 Women in Leadership conference at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business while discussing the “Back on Track” program she launched that allowed non-violent offenders to avoid jail and instead enter job training and eventually have their records expunged. “And so you have to take a knock for that,” Harris said in the speech. “When I rolled out Back on Track, I took a big political hit, when a couple of years later, it turned out, especially in criminal law, because when you’re taking, when you’re doing innovation in the criminal justice system, let me tell you what that means. That means I’m doing something differently with somebody who’s on my radar. Why are they on my radar? Because they committed a crime.” Kiefer was brutally attacked by 20-year-old Alexander Izaguirre, an illegal immigrant, while she walked with friends down a San Francisco street in 2008. Izaguirre stole her purse and then attempted to run her down in a waiting SUV, fracturing her skull. Izaguirre had been arrested a few months prior to the attack on drug charges but was able to roam free, thanks to the program launched by Harris. Harris continued in the speech, “Now, remember, I’m focused on the non-violent offender with these innovative programs, right? The fear will always be that guy will go out and kill a baby and a grandmother tomorrow, and then everyone will look backwards and say, ‘Why didn’t you do it the way it’s always been done? Why did you try something new?’ It’s a big risk. And so when I rolled out Back on Track, couple years in, we learned that there was basically, there was a participant who went out, during the time he was in the program, committed a robbery, there was a horrible injury to the victim. And turned out that this individual is an undocumented immigrant.” In her speech, Harris went on to mention an article written about her at the time that said, “‘Kamala Harris has created a program to shield illegal aliens.’” “Right?” Harris said. “And that’s when my friends came really in handy to just say it’s, you know, because I was upset about the unfairness and the mischaracterization and . . . ‘Don’t people want these things fixed? Don’t they understand what innovation requires?’ And, and that’s when you have to rely on your friends who understand what you do and care about you and will support you without judgment, but also give you critical feedback when you need it.” KAMALA HARRIS STRUGGLING TO SAY HOW SHE’S DIFFERENT THAN BIDEN ON ‘THE VIEW’ SURPRISES CNN PANEL In 2009, Harris told the press that Izaguirre is “being prosecuted” and “will be deported with my full encouragement and support.” Harris also said at the time that Izaguirre’s release was a “flaw in the design” that was fixed. Kiefer also spoke out about her experience earlier this year, Fox News Digital reported. She said that the experience was a “red pill moment” for her, leading her to abandon what she said were her liberal political views from the time and embrace candidates such as former President Trump. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Kiefer appeared alongside Trump when he visited the Arizona border earlier this year and spoke along with other victims of illegal immigrant crime. “I moved out of San Francisco because I didn’t feel safe there and I don’t think our country is going to be safe under Kamala Harris,” Kiefer said. Fox News Digital reached out to the Harris campaign, which did not provide a comment. Fox News Digital’s Michael Lee contributed to this report.
Abu Dhabi wave pool added as new venue on World Surf League 2025 tour
League to stage an event in the Middle East for the first time at Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi. The world’s biggest artificial wave in Abu Dhabi has been added to surfing’s 11-stop world tour for 2025, the World Surf League (WSL) says, with Fiji confirmed to host the finals to crown the world champions at the tour’s conclusion. The tour will again start at Hawaii’s dangerous Banzai Pipeline in late January before heading to the Surf Abu Dhabi wave pool in the United Arab Emirates for the first time. The 75,000sq-metre (807,300sq-foot) pool uses the same technology as California’s Surf Ranch, developed with 11-time world champion Kelly Slater, which has hosted several world tour surfing events to mixed reviews. “We’ve built this schedule to include more events and feature a variety of breaks,” Ryan Crosby, WSL CEO, said on Thursday. “We’ve brought back some of the tour’s most desirable locations while aligning dates with favourable swell windows to open up more opportunity for quality surf. “We’ll see a great mix of locations from heavy-water barrels to high-performance waves and pristine point breaks.” Back on the schedule are the reeling right-hand point breaks of Jeffreys Bay in South Africa, which was skipped to accommodate the Olympics last year, and Snapper Rocks in Australia, which returns to the championship tour after a five-year hiatus. The tour’s controversial mid-season cut, which reduces both the men’s and women’s fields by one-third, remains in place after stop number seven at Margaret River in Western Australia. The change in the season-ending WSL finals to the heaving barrels and long walls of Fiji’s Cloudbreak reef was widely praised by surfers and fans after championships were decided for the past four years at the fun but soft waves of Lower Trestles in California. 2025 WSL world championship tour schedule: Banzai Pipeline, Hawaii, United States: January 27 to February 8 Surf Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: February 14-16 Peniche, Portugal: March 15-25 Punta Roca, El Salvador: April 2-12 Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia: April 18-28 Snapper Rocks, Queensland, Australia: May 3-13 Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia: May 17-27 (mid-season cut) Lower Trestles, San Clemente, California, US: June 9-17 Saquarema, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: June 21-29 Jeffreys Bay, South Africa: July 11-20 Teahupo’o, Tahiti, French Polynesia: August 7-16 WSL finals – Cloudbreak, Fiji: August 27 to September 4 Adblock test (Why?)
Photos: 3 million lose power as Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida
Hurricane Milton is barreling into the Atlantic Ocean after ploughing across Florida. Milton caused at least five deaths and compounded the misery wrought by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago, while sparing the city of Tampa a direct hit. The storm weakened in the final hours, making landfall late Wednesday as a Category 3 storm in Siesta Key, about 70 miles (113km) south of Tampa. The storm knocked out power to more than three million customers and whipped up a barrage of tornadoes. While it caused a lot of damage and water levels may continue to rise for days, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said it was not “the worst-case scenario.” Jennifer Francis, senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Centre, told Al Jazeera that the powerful storms experienced by the US southeast in recent years are partly a result of man-made climate change. “By putting so many greenhouse gases, carbon-containing gases, into the atmosphere that trap more heat by the surface, most of that heat goes into the ocean,” said Francis. “And we know that heat in the ocean is the fuel that these storms feed off of. What this extra energy does to these storms is make them stronger, it makes them intensify more rapidly, [and] the evaporation from the extra warm water provides more moisture for them to use as rain – and we’ve seen the very heavy rain totals coming out of these storms,” she added. Adblock test (Why?)
TD Bank pleads guilty to US charges, faces business restrictions
Federal authorities began probing TD’s internal controls after agents discovered a Chinese criminal operation bribed employees and brought large bags of cash into branches to launder millions of dollars. Two TD Bank units have pleaded guilty to United States criminal charges and agreed to pay $3bn in combined penalties to resolve federal government probes into money laundering, US authorities have said. The plea deal includes imposition of an asset cap and other limitations to its business, authorities said on Thursday. The bank has pleaded guilty to conspiring to launder money and conspiring to fail to file accurate reports or maintain a compliant anti-money laundering programme, the US Department of Justice said. The cap on its asset expansion in the US, imposed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, is a rare step typically reserved for severe cases. It would deal a major blow to TD’s hopes to expand further in the US, which accounts for about a third of the bank’s income. TD also agreed to pay $3bn in combined penalties to US banking regulators, the Justice Department and the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The deal resolved investigations by the Justice Department, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. It also included the imposition of independent monitoring. An asset cap is “worst-case scenario” for TD, said Cormark Securities analyst Lemar Persaud, prior to the details of the plea deal being announced. The bank had already set aside $3bn for the fine. Persaud drew a parallel with Wells Fargo, which has a $1.95 trillion asset cap in place following a fake accounts scandal, which has constrained its earnings. An asset cap would also constrain TD’s profits, but to a lesser extent than it did for Wells Fargo, he said. The TD probe has led to “significant underperformance of the stock and, we believe, the retirement of the current CEO Bharat Masrani,” Persaud said. TD is Canada’s second-biggest bank and the 10th-largest in the US. The lender first revealed it was responding to inquiries from regulators and law enforcement last year, just months after it terminated a $13bn acquisition of regional lender First Horizon. Federal authorities began probing TD’s internal controls after agents discovered a Chinese criminal operation bribed employees and brought large bags of cash into branches to launder millions of dollars in fentanyl sales through TD branches in New York and New Jersey, a source confirmed. TD has spent millions to strengthen its compliance programmes, fired dozens of staff at its US branches and named its Canadian personal banking head Ray Chun as its new CEO, distancing its new chief from the money laundering scandal. CEO Masrani, who has been at the helm for nearly a decade and previously led its US operations, will retire next year. Masrani has said he takes full responsibility for the money laundering issues that have plagued the bank. Adblock test (Why?)