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Friday News: Electing Trump Likely to Harm Earth “for millennia”; “Harris Taunts ‘Chicken Man’ Trump After He Dodges New Debate”; “Far-right activist Laura Loomer’s access to Trump reveals a crisis in his campaign”; “Cat ladies and dog-eating: MAGA can’t quit the weird talk about pets”

By
lowkell
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14

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, September 13.

NEW: Trump’s Golf Club TWICE Hosted Convicted January 6 Rioter and White Nationalist Neo-Nazi

By
Blue Virginia
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5

From the DNC War Room:

NEW: Trump’s Golf Club TWICE Hosted Convicted January 6 Rioter and White Nationalist Neo-Nazi
In response to new reporting on Donald Trump’s golf club twice hosting a convicted January 6 rioter and alleged Nazi sympathizer, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement:

“Donald Trump already disqualified himself when he rallied a mob on January 6 to storm the Capitol – injuring over 140 police officers – and now he’s continuing to show he is unfit for office by tying himself to violent extremists and white nationalists. Trump is a sore loser who has shown no remorse for his attacks on our democracy – instead, he’s doubling down with promises to pardon violent insurrectionists, threats to go after his political opponents, and never-ending election denial lies. Trump lost in 2020 because of his MAGA extremism, and he will lose again this November when the American people choose to stand with democracy and freedom.”

NEW: Donald Trump’s golf club hosted a convicted January 6 rioter and alleged Nazi sympathizer at two events this summer – including an event that was personally endorsed by Trump himself.

NPR: “Trump’s Bedminster club hosted an alleged Nazi sympathizer who stormed the Capitol”

“Twice this past summer, Donald Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, N.J. has featured speeches from a rioter convicted of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, who has a well-documented history of extreme antisemitic and racist rants.

“One of those events — a fundraiser for a controversial nonprofit group that supports Capitol riot defendants — was personally endorsed by Trump himself in a video message that was played for the room.

“‘All of the people there, you’re amazing patriots,’ Trump said in the video.

“As part of his criminal case over Jan. 6, federal prosecutors described the rioter, Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, as a ‘white supremacist and Nazi sympathizer,’ who told his coworkers at a naval weapons station that ‘Hitler should have finished the job’ and ‘babies born with any deformities or disabilities should be shot in the forehead.’

“Court filings featured multiple pictures of Hale-Cusanelli at work with a ‘Hitler mustache.’ A lengthy online video he posted in 2020 attacked what he called a ‘Hasidic Jewish invasion’ of New Jersey and compared orthodox Jews to a ‘plague of locusts.’

“Trump has repeatedly endorsed the nonprofit Patriot Freedom Project, a group founded in direct response to Hale-Cusanelli’s arrest. The group’s founder, Cynthia Hughes, calls herself an ‘adoptive aunt’ to Hale-Cusanelli and spoke about his case at a Trump campaign rally. In 2023, Trump spoke at another Patriot Freedom Project event at Bedminster alongside Hughes.

“Trump has been linked to antisemitic extremists before. In 2022, the former president had dinner at his Mar-a-Lago estate with Nick Fuentes, a white nationalist and Holocaust denier, who used a bullhorn to urge Trump supporters on Jan. 6 to ‘break down the barriers and disregard the police’ … Trump told the extremist group the Proud Boys, whose founder has a history of antisemitic remarks, to ‘stand back and stand by’ at a 2020 presidential debate. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump initially declined to disavow an endorsement from David Duke, a former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

“Trump has made support for the Jan. 6 defendants a central plank of his 2024 presidential campaign. His first official campaign rally opened with a rendition of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ sung by Jan. 6 defendants in jail. He has referred to the defendants as ‘patriots’ and ‘hostages,’ and promised to issue pardons to convicted rioters, including those who assaulted police officers. Approximately 140 officers were injured in the attack on the Capitol.”

Trump continues to celebrate and promise pardons for January 6 insurrectionists, who he calls “hostages” and “patriots”…

MSNBC: “Trump vows to pardon Jan. 6 defendants on ‘Day One’ if he wins the presidential election”

Washington Post: “Trump vows pardons, government apology to Capitol rioters if elected”

Rachel Scott, ABC News: “140 police officers were assaulted [on January 6]. Their injuries included broken bones, at least one officer lost an eye, one had two cracked ribs, two smashed spinal discs, another had a stroke. Were the people who assaulted those 140 officers, including those I just mentioned, ‘patriots’ who deserve pardons?”

[Trump refuses to answer]

Scott: “But sir, my question is on those rioters who assaulted officers. Would you pardon those people?”

Donald Trump: “Oh absolutely I would. If they’re innocent, I would pardon them.”

Scott: “They’ve been convicted.”

Trump: “Those people were treated very harshly … nobody was killed on January 6. But I think that the people of January 6 were treated very unfairly … they were there to complain about an election, and you know it’s very interesting, the biggest crowd I’ve ever spoken to.”

The Hill: “Trump describes imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters as ‘hostages’”

TIME: “Trump has sought to recast the insurrectionist riot as an act of patriotism. ‘I call them the J-6 patriots,’ Trump tells TIME. When asked whether he would consider pardoning every one of them, he says: ‘Yes, absolutely.’”

NBC News: “Former President Donald Trump promised Wednesday night that if he is elected he will pardon a ‘large portion’ of the people convicted of federal offenses for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.”

Trump: “January 6, it was the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken to. And they were there proud, they were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable — and it was a beautiful day.”

… while his running mate JD Vance downplays the violence on January 6.

The Hill: “JD Vance says he is ‘skeptical’ Pence’s life was in danger on Jan. 6”

Politico: “[Vance] downplayed the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, when Pence was forced to evacuate the building as rioters called for his hanging.”

Trump is still pushing lies about his loss by over 7 million votes in the 2020 election. Vance is right there with him – they are both casting doubt on this November’s results.

New York Times: “[Trump] has baselessly and publicly cast doubt about the fairness of the 2024 election about once a day, on average, since he announced his candidacy for president.”

Associated Press: “[Trump] is flooding the airwaves and his social media platform with distortions, misinformation and unfounded conspiracy theories about his defeat.”

NBC News: “Re-litigating the 2020 election, repeating false claims it was stolen and casting aspersions on the security of mail voting remain major fixtures for [Trump] on the stump. … He regularly refers to the 2020 election as ‘rigged’ on his social media channels.”

HuffPost: “[Vance] said he would accept a Biden win only if he considered the election to be legitimate. … Vance’s comments illustrate a new tactic by Republican lawmakers, who are now placing conditions on accepting election results.”

New York Times: “J.D. Vance Says He Would Accept the Election Results, With a Caveat”

Vance: “I think the entire post-2020 thing would have gone a lot better if there had actually been an effort to provide alternative slates of electors, and to force us to have that debate. I think it would’ve been a much better thing for the country. … [Trump] was trying to take a constitutional process to its natural conclusion.

“I think it would’ve been extraordinarily disappointing to a whole host of people that I care a lot about if Trump had just taken it [and conceded the 2020 election before January 6].”

Vance: “No real Republican with any credibility in the party is still blaming [Trump for January 6].”

ABC News: “JD Vance says [he] wouldn’t have certified 2020 race until states submitted pro-Trump electors”

New York Times: “[Vance] has said that, unlike Vice President Mike Pence in 2020, he would have helped Mr. Trump overturn the results, by accepting Trump electors that had not been elected by voters.”

Trump is seeking power to go after his opponents — as he is vowing to be a dictator on “day one,” won’t stop echoing dictators, and has warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November.

Washington Post: “Trump pledges to jail opponents, baselessly suggests election will be stolen from him”

Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN: “Many people have lost American presidential elections over the last 230 years – Trump is the only one to say about violence if he loses ‘it depends.’”

NBC News: “Trump says there will be a ‘bloodbath’ if he loses the election”

The Atlantic: “Trump Says He’ll Be a Dictator on ‘Day One’”

Trump: “You won’t have to do it anymore. Four more years, you know what – it will be fixed, it will be fine. You won’t have to vote anymore.”

Vance: “I think what Donald Trump is simply saying is we ought to investigate the prior administration.”

Associated Press: “Trump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House”

Washington Post: “Trump calls political enemies ‘vermin,’ echoing dictators Hitler, Mussolini”

The Guardian: “Donald Trump vows to lock up his political enemies if he is president again.”

Video: Sen. Mark Warner Rips House GOP’s “Kamikaze Drive”/”Height of Irresponsibility” and Donald Trump for Encouraging Them to Shut Down the Government

By
lowkell
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2

See below for video and a few highlights from Sen. Mark Warner’s press availability this week:

  • “We are clearly starting with a rerun as we see the House  Republican leadership once again go on what appears to be a potential kamakazi drive in terms of government funding and threatening once again a potential government shutdown, which would have – as I’ve said time and time again – a more draconian effect on Virginia and Virginians than any other state in the nation. It would be the height of irresponsibility. The approach that the Speaker put out at first of a so-called continuing resolution, CR, until March…Democrats, Republicans alike have said makes no sense, a CR that undermines the military, a continuing resolution that literally would have veterans across the country be hit disproportionately hard.”
  • “And then if that wasn’t bad enough, they’ve saddled on again a right-wing extremist bill that would basically reiterate what is already law – that if you’re a foreign national, you don’t vote in elections in America. That is the law of the land. But the kind of crazy bill that was put up would have even said that to prove citizenship, if you happen to be a spouse that changed your name…with getting married, you’d have to go back and go through a whole process again. The good news I guess is that more reasonable heads on the Republican side  said that was a crazy approach. But as we are now 19 days away from a government shutdown, we will go through the kabuki theater one more time of some other proposal maybe bubbling up next week, when at the end of the day what we ought to do is adhere to the agreed upon totals that the Speaker himself agreed upon…the notion of this crazy approach now coming with the end of the fiscal year, September 30th, is even the House Republicans have agreed that the Speaker’s plan was inadequate on a host of levels. So stay tuned, but if you feel like you’ve seen this show before and it’s a rerun, you’re right. End of the day on this issue, again, no state in the country is more disproportionately hit than Virginia with a government shutdown, with the number of our federal employees, with the number of our government contractors, with the number of our military installations, it would be a disaster for Virginia. And again I think we will avoid it, but it’s a little sad that we have to go through this whole process one more time.”
  • “As we go to 2024…on the misinformation, disinformation… we’ve made  progress, but there’s challenges. One, there’s the willingness of Americans to believe crazy theories just because they read it on the internet. We even see presidential candidates spouting off crazy theories that have no basis in fact. We’ve got artificial intelligence tools that can be used as deep fakes and manipulating images and voices – we’ve seen a little of, I’m actually surprised we’ve not seen more. We had a six-month period where there was no communication between social media companies and the government, that stopped because a case thank goodness the Supreme Court struck down about voluntary communication. And we’ve had these actions by the Russians, but we’ve seen other nation states – Iran, China, Russia and others – realize that it is cheap and easy to try to put out misinformation in an internet-connected world. It’s a lot cheaper to spread false stories than it is to buy a tank or a truck. So we’ve got to be on guard. I do worry that the closer we get to the election, the more possibility of Russia or Iran or other nation states trying to spread more false information, because we start voting in just a few weeks, and I am enormously concerned. And I feel like the level of public attention to this issue has dissipated a little bit; that’s one of the goals we have in our hearing next week to kind of again realert the public that don’t just believe everything because you read it on the internet, and to make sure if you see something or hear something particularly about voting itself that you contact your election officials…”
  • “In terms of the disinformation sometimes coming from the Republican presidential candidate himself about the security of our elections or about the sanctity of mail-in ballots and absentee ballots, it is a real problem. And I think probably all of us have known an election worker at some point or another, usually folks who’ve been very active in the community, usually folks that are seniors that do it out of a commitment to community and country. The fact that they’re taking the level of abuse that they are is reprehensible. I think those who interfere in the process, those who abuse our election officials ought to be pursued to the full extent of the law. And I’m going to be following this very closely in Virginia and… try to make sure we get law enforcement involved. Because you’ve got a right to have your opinion, you’ve got a right to vote for whoever you want, you don’t have a right to threaten or intimidate people who provide what I think is…the…epitome of public service. These folks don’t do it for money, they do it because they believe in community they believe in our democracy. And when you undermine that trust and when that undermining goes to the level of threats, you’ve got to be held accountable.”
  • “I think if you’re going to use mail-in – and I think it is safe and secure – do it early. What you can’t [do is] wait until that last three or four days before the election, or postmark it on the last day. You’ve got to be willing to go ahead and vote a little bit early…September 20 is when early voting starts in Virginia…we’ve made it easy to vote in Virginia, and I think that’s a good thing…I would not discourage people from voting by mail, I would simply say if you’re going to vote by mail, get it in early.”

 

New Harris Ad Features Decisive Debate Moment When Harris Held Trump Accountable for Overturning Roe v. Wade

By
Blue Virginia
-
4

From the Kamala Harris for President campaign:

New Harris Ad Features Decisive Debate Moment When Harris Held Trump Accountable for Overturning Roe v. Wade

Ad Launches as Trump Campaigns in Arizona and Nevada, Two States With Abortion Referendums on the Ballot

Abortion was the Most-Searched Topic During the Debate and the Exchange the Key Takeaway Moment for Voters

In its second ad featuring moments from this week’s presidential debate, the Harris campaign zeroes in on the moment during the debate when things started to go bad for Donald Trump where Vice President Kamala Harris held Trump accountable for overturning Roe v. Wade – and explained to the nearly 70 million Americans watching at home the horrific consequences of that action. While Trump bragged about ripping away women’s reproductive rights, saying, “I did a great service in doing it. It took courage to do it, and the Supreme Court had great courage in doing it,” Vice President Harris delivered a powerful rebuke, citing the devastating health effects that Trump abortion bans are having all over the country.

The ad, called “Wanted,” comes as Trump heads to Arizona and Nevada to campaign. These two states both face referendum votes to enshrine reproductive freedom in their state constitutions this November – emphasizing the stakes in this election on this issue.

Tuesday’s exchange between Vice President Harris and Donald Trump on reproductive freedom was the key takeaway moment for voters and according to Google was the most-searched topic in 49 of 50 states. In our campaign’s dial focus groups of battleground state undecided voters, Trump’s refusal to say he would veto a national abortion ban was one of his worst answers of the night. In contrast, those same voters rated Harris’ statement that “the government and Trump should not be telling a woman what to do with her body” highly.

“Trump’s disastrous abortion bans are denying women basic health care and forcing survivors of rape and incest to carry their pregnancies to term, and Vice President Harris held Donald Trump’s feet to the fire on the debate stage,” said Harris-Walz Campaign Manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez. “The Vice President made it clear that Trump’s cruel bans are not what the American people ‘wanted,’ and that she believes ‘the freedom to make decisions about one’s own body should not be made by the government.’ This is one of the top issues in this election, and the difference between the candidates could not be clearer.”

Following the first ad released Wednesday, “Leadership,” this second ad continues the campaign’s aggressive strategy to highlight key moments from Harris’ commanding debate win directly to voters.

“Wanted” comes as Vice President Harris heads to North Carolina to kick off her New Way Forward tour, an aggressive travel swing across the battleground states that will decide this election. The Vice President’s visit coincides with the Fighting for Reproductive Freedom Bus Tour, which has hosted events across North Carolina this week – a state where women are currently living under a Trump abortion ban.

This new ad will show voters across the battlegrounds what is at stake in November. While Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will restore the protections of Roe when Congress passes a bill to do so, Donald Trump and JD Vance will enact their dangerous Project 2025 agenda to ban abortion nationwide, restrict access to birth control, create a national anti-abortion coordinator, force states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions, and jeopardize access to IVF.

Part of Team Harris-Walz’s historic $370 million in digital and television advertising reservations between Labor Day and Election Day, “Wanted” will air on broadcast and cable TV across the battleground states.

WATCH

LINSEY DAVIS: I want to turn to the issue of abortion.

DONALD TRUMP: For 52 years, they’ve been trying to get Roe v. Wade into the states.

I did a great service in doing it. It took courage to do it, and the Supreme Court had great courage in doing it.

VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS: I have talked with women around our country. You want to talk about “this is what people wanted.”

Pregnant women who want to carry a pregnancy to term, suffering from a miscarriage, being denied care in an emergency room, because the health care providers are afraid they might go to jail. And she’s bleeding out in a car in the parking lot.

She didn’t want that. Her husband didn’t want that.

A 12 or 13-year-old survivor of incest being forced to carry a pregnancy to term, they don’t want that.

I think the American people believe that certain freedoms, in particular the freedom to make decisions about one’s own body, should not be made by the government.

I’m Kamala Harris, and I approve this message.

###

Paid for by Harris for President

RNC Chair Michael Whatley: Donald Trump “Absolutely” Overturned Roe v. Wade

By
Blue Virginia
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2

From the DNC War Room:

RNC Chair Michael Whatley: Donald Trump “Absolutely” Overturned Roe v. Wade
In response to RNC Chair Michael Whatley crediting Donald Trump with overturning Roe v. Wade, DNC Rapid Response Spokesperson Aida Ross released the following statement: 

“Donald Trump handpicked an RNC chair in his own image: an anti-choice MAGA extremist who credits Trump with overturning Roe v. Wade. Michael Whatley knows Trump is ‘absolutely’ the reason for draconian abortion bans across the country, and is all-in on helping him regain power and continue to push his dangerous anti-choice agenda. The contrast was clearer than ever at last night’s debate: Vice President Harris will protect the reproductive freedoms that Trump and his MAGA minions are so hellbent on ripping away.”

RNC Chair Michael Whatley credited Donald Trump for “absolutely” overturning Roe v. Wade.

Blake Burman, NewsNation: “So when Kamala Harris tonight potentially looks at Donald Trump and says you are the reason for the overturning of Roe, what does he say?”

Whatley: “Absolutely right.”

Trump loves to brag about how he overturned Roe, paving the way for extreme abortion bans across the country and attacks on IVF access.

Trump: “I was proudly the person responsible for the ending of … Roe v. Wade.”

Trump: “We broke Roe v. Wade and we did something that nobody thought was possible. We gave it back to the states, and the states are working very brilliantly … But they’re working, and it’s working the way it’s supposed to.”

Trump: “For 54 years they were trying to get Roe v. Wade terminated, and I did it, and I’m proud to have done it. … Nobody else was going to get that done but me, and we did it, and we did something that was a miracle.”

Trump: “After 50 years of failure, with nobody coming even close, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade, much to the ‘shock’ of everyone … Without me there would be no 6 weeks, 10 weeks, 15 weeks, or whatever is finally agreed to. Without me the pro Life movement would have just kept losing. Thank you President TRUMP!!!”

Trump: “I’m the one that got rid of Roe v. Wade, and everybody said that was an impossible thing to do. I put on three Supreme Court justices. Very few people have had that privilege or honor.”

Trump: “Getting rid of Roe v. Wade was an incredible thing for pro-life because it gave pro-life something to negotiate with. Pro-life had absolutely nothing, being stuck in Roe v. Wade, to negotiate with. … And look, everybody that was president wanted to get rid and tried to get rid of Roe v. Wade … For fifty years, this has been going on. I was able to do it, and I was very honored to do it.”

New York Times: 22 states across the country currently have abortion bans.

New York Times: “[The Alabama Supreme Court ruling on IVF was] made possible by the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in its 2022 Dobbs decision, which was a result of Mr. Trump’s appointment of three justices.”

The 19th: “RNC approves platform that would give rights to fetuses, endangering abortion, IVF”

Rolling Stone: “Trump Claims Credit for All Abortion Bans”

Fox News: “Trump says he’s ‘proud to be the most pro-life president’ in US history on anniversary of Roe v. Wade overturn”

Business Insider: “Trump boasts he’s ‘proud’ about his role in overturning Roe v. Wade, the issue that has become ballot-box poison for Republicans”

Rolling Stone: “Trump Says He’s ‘Proud’ to Have ‘Terminated’ Abortion Rights”

Trump campaign radio ad: “And Trump nominated conservative judges, leading to Roe v. Wade being overturned.”

Whatley is an anti-choice extremist who celebrated the overturning of Roe, called North Carolina’s cruel abortion ban “responsible,” and supported a MAGA platform that could threaten IVF access. 

Raleigh News & Observer: “Michael Whatley, chairman of the N.C. GOP, said he was proud of activism on the part of the anti-abortion movement” [after Roe v. Wade was overturned]

Whatley on North Carolina’s extreme abortion ban: “Well I think it’s a responsible bill, I think that this is a legislative package that is well within the mainstream of North Carolina political thought, it’s going to be supported, these are positions that are widely supported across the state.”

Popular Information: “Trump’s pick for chair of the Republican Party opposes ‘the destruction of human embryos’”

“Under [Whatley’s] leadership, the North Carolina Republican Party has consistently opposed scientific procedures that involve discarding human embryos, saying such actions violate ‘the sanctity of all human life.’ The most recent version of the North Carolina Republican Party Platform, approved in 2022, states that ‘[u]nborn children have constitutional rights to life and liberty and, the government must respect and protect all innocent human life from conception to natural death.’ Specifically, the party opposes ‘the destruction of human embryos.’ A previous version of the platform under Whatley, approved by the North Carolina Republican Party in 2020, contains identical language. … The position of the North Carolina GOP under Whatley on embryos mirrors a recent decision by the Alabama Supreme Court.”
###

Video: Vindman’s First TV Ad “Prosecution” Highlights Derrick Anderson’s Desire to Ban Abortions and Punish Women

By
Blue Virginia
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1

From the Eugene Vindman for Congress (VA07) campaign:

Vindman’s First TV Ad “Prosecution” Highlights Derrick Anderson’s Desire to Ban Abortions and Punish Women

Dale City, VA – Today, the Vindman for Congress Campaign released its first TV ad of the general election, entitled “Prosecution.”

Derrick Anderson celebrated the overturning of Roe V. Wade and now women are facing criminal prosecution and rape victims are being forced to give birth. His MAGA cronies who are funding his campaign will go even further – starting with banning abortion nationwide.

Fortunately, Mr. Anderson has four upcoming Debates and Forums where he can set his record straight and pledge to codify Roe. V. Wade into Federal Law. Mr. Vindman has already challenged him to do so, and time will tell.

This advertisement will start airing today and will be the start of a flight the Vindman campaign will run through election day and will total 7-figures on DC Broadcast and in other markets in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District.

The advertisement and transcript are below:

“Prosecution”

Transcript

Narrator: When Roe V. Wade Was Overturned, Derrick Anderson said the Supreme Court got it Right

He’s wrong.

Because now, women face criminal prosecution and life threatening complications. Rape victims forced to give birth.

And the MAGA Extremists backing Anderson have a plan to go further, to ban abortions nationwide, track pregnancies, and limit access to birth control even in Virginia.

On abortion rights, Derrick Anderson couldn’t be more wrong.

###

 

Colonel (fmr.) Eugene Vindman, U.S. Army (ret.), was born in Soviet Ukraine. His family arrived as refugees with less than $800 in their pockets and worked hard to achieve the American dream. Vindman joined the U.S. Army after college, serving around the world including a combat tour in Iraq. In 2019, while serving on the White House National Security Council as the senior ethics attorney, he blew the whistle on the infamous phone call in which President Trump attempted to extort Ukraine unless it investigated Joe Biden. Trump’s vengeance cost him his career. Now, Colonel Vindman is running to represent Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, to preserve democracy and advocate for Virginia voters.

House Majority PAC Polling Shows Democrats Poised to Take Back the House – and Possibly Win VA02

By
lowkell
-
4

From the House Majority PAC; note that it’s basically a toss-up race in VA02 – go Missy Cotter Smasal! (Also, the bigger Harris and Kaine win VA02, the better shot Smasal has – so push for huge Harris and Kaine wins on 11/5!)

TO: Interested Parties
FROM: House Majority PAC
DATE: September 12, 2024
RE: HMP Polling Shows Democrats Poised to Take Back the House 

With less than two months until Election Day and unprecedented chaos coming from House Republicans, battleground and district polling conducted by HMP continues to indicate that Democrats are poised to take back the House in November.

With House Republicans calling on their donors to step up, it is vital that we have the resources we need in this final sprint to Election Day.

Recent district polling conducted by HMP shows, Democratic challengers virtually tied or running ahead of their GOP incumbents:

District

Date

Democratic Candidate

Republican Candidate

Pollster

AZ-01

8/8 – 8/13

48%

47%

GBAO

CA-22

8/25 – 8/27

46%

44%

Normington Petts

NE-02

7/16 – 7/21

49%

45%

GQR

NY-04

8/26 – 8/30

50%

47%

GQR

NY-22

7/9 – 7/15

50%

43%

GQR

VA-02

8/20 – 8/25

47%

48%

Impact Research

 

Additional battleground polling from HMP continues to show that Project 2025 is incredibly unpopular. 

  • About 7-in-10 voters are familiar with the agenda and those who know it view it unfavorably (13% favorable / 57% unfavorable).
  • A majority of voters who are familiar with Project 2025 believe that Trump (68%) and Republicans in Congress (66%) support these ideas and will try to put them in place. 

Messaging on abortion, the economy, and health care raises concerns – especially when incorporating Project 2025. 

  • Our top hits against Republicans highlight that they’re aligned with Project 2025 which would ban all abortions (54% very serious concerns), that Project 2025 would hurt working people (53% very serious concerns), and that Project 2025 would gut healthcare coverage (52% very serious concerns).
  • An ad that emphasizes that Congressional Republicans will be a rubber stamp for Trump and enact Project 2025 also raises concerns (52% very serious concerns).

###

With Three New Polls Showing Kamala Harris Leading in Virginia by Wide Margins (8, 10, 13 points), FiveThirtyEight Now Has Harris with an 84% Chance of Winning Here

By
lowkell
-
4

With early voting in Virginia starting in just 9 days (on 9/20), we’ve now gotten three Virginia polls in September – WaPo/Schar School, Morning Consult and VCU. The results of those polls are as follows:

  • WaPo/Schar: “Harris draws support from 50 percent of likely Virginia voters compared to 42 percent choosing the former president and 2 percent supporting third-party candidates.” (Harris + 8 points)
  • Morning Consult: Harris 52%-Trump 42% (Harris +10 points)
  • VCU: Harris 49%-Trump 36% among registered voters (Harris +13 points); Harris 46%-Trump 36% among likely voters (Harris +10 points)

So with those polls factored in, Trump’s now down to just a 16% chance of winning Virginia, per FiveThirtyEight’s model, down from a 20% chance as of September 1. So clearly,we’re headed in the right direction. Also clearly, the Harris-Walz campaign is MASSIVELY outworking/outhustling Trump-Vance here in the Commonwealth, with at least one recent report that Trump’s campaign “has diverted resources away from Minnesota, Virginia and New Hampshire – states Trump was boasting he could win while Joe Biden was the Democratic candidate – to focus instead on a small number of battleground states.” Per that article:

“In Virginia – the site of Vance’s first solo rally after being appointed to the ticket – Trump has not staged a rally for six weeks and the campaign has stopped citing memos claiming it can flip the state. Its apparent slide down the priority list is a far cry from 28 June, when the former president staged a rally in Chesapeake a day after his ultimately race-changing debate with Biden.”

Also, somewhat anecdotally, it seems like Democrats have a lot more enthusiasm/energy right now in Virginia, as evidenced by large, enthusiastic Democratic turnout at events across Virginia, even in red areas like Buena Vista.

So that’s all good news, of course. But as always, let’s take nothing for granted. Instead, let’s make sure we: a) “run through the tape” and make absolutely sure we do indeed win this thing!; and b) do so by a HUGE margin, which will help downballot races (e.g., replacing Jen Kiggans with Missy Cotter Smasal).

Thursday News: “Trump Brought a 9/11 Conspiracy Theorist to a 9/11 Memorial Event”; Karl Rove Says Debate Was “Catastrophic” for “angry and fixated on the past” Trump; “Taylor Swift Drove Nearly 338,000 People to Vote.gov With Kamala Harris Endorsement Post”; “Kamala Harris Broke Donald Trump”

By
lowkell
-
22

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, September 12.

CPI Report Shows Biden-Harris Admin is Turning the Page on Inflation While Recent Report From Trump’s Alma Mater Calls Out MAGAnomics Agenda

By
lowkell
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Good news from the DNC:

NEW: CPI Report Shows Biden-Harris Admin is Turning the Page on Inflation While Recent Report From Trump’s Alma Mater Calls Out MAGAnomics Agenda
During last night’s debate, Harris called out Trump for a new analysis from the Wharton School – his alma mater – estimating that the Trump campaign tax and spending proposals would increase primary deficits by $5.8 trillion over 10 years
Today’s strong CPI report continues to show annual inflation at an over three-year low as the Biden-Harris administration continues to work tirelessly to lower costs, bolster the economy, and turn the page on inflation. Under their leadership, annual inflation is down to 2.5% —  the lowest in more than three years – wages have risen faster than prices 18 months in a row, Americans are seeing gas prices are down almost 60 cents from last year, and nearly 16 million jobs have been created, with 44 months of consecutive job growth.

From taking on corporate greed, Big Pharma, and price gouging to slashing junk fees – the Biden-Harris administration has taken unprecedented action to make life more affordable for hardworking Americans. In stark contrast with Vice President Harris’ robust plans to hold price gougers accountable and lower costs for both families and small businesses, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans continue to push their Project 2025 agenda that would raise costs by nearly $4,000 a year for typical middle-class families and cost America 3.2 million jobs, after Trump left office with the worst jobs record since Herbert Hoover.

Moody’s Analytics projected that Trump’s economic plan would cause inflation to rise, costs to soar, and trigger a recession — and even Trump’s own alma mater, the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, issued a report estimating that the Trump campaign tax and spending proposals would increase primary deficits by $5.8 trillion over the next 10 years.

The Biden-Harris administration’s tireless work to to lower inflation and drive down costs for hardworking is paying off for Americans.

Heather Long, Washington Post: “JUST IN: More good news on inflation. The US inflation rate cooled to 2.5% (y/y) in August, the lowest since February 2021. This gives the Fed and everyone else more confidence the inflation battle has been won.

“Lower gas prices, lower electricity costs and lower used car prices helped bring down inflation in August. The monthly price growth was just 0.2% (as expected)

‘Core’ inflation remained at 3.2% —> lowest since April 2021”

Axios: “New CPI report shows another month of cooling inflation”

NEW: During last night’s debate, Trump took the bait after Harris brought up that the Penn-Wharton Budget Model projects Trump’s disastrous MAGAnomics agenda would increase the national deficit by an additional $5.8 trillion over the next 10 years while he gives tax cuts to his ultra-wealthy friends, leaving behind hardworking families.

CNN: “The Penn-Wharton Budget Model, which doesn’t take into account new proposals Trump made last week as well as ending taxes on tips, estimates that his proposals could cause the deficit to increase by an additional $5.8 trillion over the next 10 years…

“Meanwhile, the tax proposals Harris has put forth so far mostly involve imposing higher taxes, which would have a positive impact on the deficit. For instance, she’s endorsed raising the top individual income tax rate to 44.6% and the top long-term capital gains tax rate to 28% versus the current 20%. And on the corporate side, she’s in favor of raising the tax rate to 28%.”

CBS News: “Trump’s plan would result in tax cuts for all, but the results for Americans vastly differ from Harris’ proposal, according to an analysis by the Penn Wharton Budget Model. Under Trump, everyone would receive a tax cut, but the lowest earners — those making under $19,600 — would just see a $320 difference in take-home pay, while under Harris, that same income group would have another $2,355 after taxes. The very highest earners under Trump would receive a tax break of  $376,910, according to the Penn Wharton analysis.”

Reuters: “These changes would likely add $3.6 trillion to $6.6 trillion to primary U.S. deficits over 10 years, according to published individual and comprehensive estimates from four budget forecasters reviewed by Reuters: the Penn-Wharton Budget Model, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), the Tax Foundation and Oxford Economics.”

REMINDER: Trump’s economic agenda would jack up prices for hardworking families – costing typical middle-class families nearly $4,000 a year – trigger a recession by mid-2025, and send inflation skyrocketing.

CBS News: “Trump has pledged to end the “inflation nightmare.”  But his policies, which include adding tariffs to all imported goods, would likely fuel inflation and reverse some of the progress of the last two years, some economists say.”

Center for American Progress: “A typical family would, therefore, pay between $2,500 to $3,900 from Trump’s import taxes, depending on the precise tax rate between 10 percent and 20 percent that various countries’ goods could be taxed at.”

Axios: “Trump’s inflation bomb: How his second-term plans could make it worse”

Axios: “Trump plans would add $5.8 trillion to national debt”

Wall Street Journal: “Economists Say Inflation Would Be Worse Under Trump Than Biden”

USA Today: “According to a Moody’s study, Trump’s plan would trigger a recession by mid-2025 and an economy that grows an average 1.3% annually during his four-year term vs. 2.1% under Biden. (The latter is in line with average growth in the decade before the pandemic.)”

Vanity Fair: “Donald Trump Wants to Give His Favorite Corporations Another Giant Tax Cut in a Second Term: Report”
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