Trump says in Aurora that migrants have 'invaded and conquered' the Colorado city
During a campaign rally in Aurora, Colorado, Trump used charged rhetoric saying he would "rescue" the city which he characterized as "invaded and conquered" by migrants who entered the country illegally.
"I will rescue Aurora and every town that has been invaded and conquered," Trump said.
"These towns have been conquered. Explain that to your governor, he doesn’t have a clue," he added, referring to Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that Aurora is overrun by by gang members from Venezuela, accusing Harris during his remarks today of permitting "an army of illegal alien gang members and migrant criminals" to enter the U.S. "from the dungeons of the third world."
Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman, a Republican, pushed back on such claims, saying last month that he wanted to show the former president "that the narrative is not accurate by any stretch of the imagination.”
In Nevada, Democrats hedge their bets on Senate control
As union workers prepared to knock on doors to support Sen. Jacky Rosen on a sunny Thursday afternoon, the Nevada Democrat assured them that their hard work would pay off.
“Those gym shoes are going to be worn out over the next 26 days … and on election night, you have helped me, and whoever else you’re helping, return the Democratic majority in the United States Senate!” Rosen said, eliciting cheers from the workers packed into the Culinary Union hall in Reno.
Democrats have to win Nevada, and hold onto their seats in other perennial battlegrounds, to keep their slim Senate majority, as they also try to stem losses or pick up a GOP-held seat in redder states.
Mayor criticizes Trump ahead of rally in Coachella
The mayor of Coachella, California, issued a statement condemning Trump ahead of his scheduled visit to the city for a rally tomorrow.
“Trump’s attacks on immigrants, women, the LQBTQ community and the most vulnerable among us don’t align with the values of our community,” Steven A. Hernandez said. “We don’t know why Trump is visiting near Coachella, but we know he wasn’t invited by the people who live here. He ain’t like us.”
Hernandez added that Coachella was “proud” to welcome Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during the 2020 primary election.
North Carolina governor shoots down Trump's baseless claim that Democrats blocked aid to state
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper shot down Trump's baseless claim this afternoon that Democrats are blocking aid to victims of Hurricane Helene in the state.
"This is a flat out lie," Cooper, a Democrat, wrote in a post on X.
North Carolina is working "with all partners around the clock to get help to people," Cooper said.
"Trump’s lies and conspiracy theories have hurt the morale of first responders and people who lost everything, helped scam artists and put government and rescue workers in danger," he added.
Trump to participate in a town hall focusing on women's issues
On Tuesday, Trump will take part in a town hall with Fox News' Harris Faulkner in Georgia focusing on women's issues. In the press release, Faulkner said the town hall is focused on women's rights because of the number of women voting in this year's election.
“Women constitute the largest group of registered and active voters in the United States, so it is paramount that female voters understand where the presidential candidates stand on the issues that matter to them most," she said. "I am looking forward to providing our viewers with an opportunity to learn more about where former President Trump stands on these topics.”
The town hall will air Wednesday on Fox News in the 11 a.m. ET hour.
Biden warns that people spreading lies about response to hurricanes will 'pay a price'
Biden warned this afternoon that people who knowingly spread false rumors about the disaster responses to Hurricanes Helene and Milton will "pay a price."
“I think those who have been spreading these lies to try to undermine the opposition are going to pay a price for it,” he said at the White House when asked if misinformation is a permanent state of being in the country.
Biden met with some of his top Cabinet offiicals, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, on the storm response.
The president said that the administration is breaking through the misinformation "with the truth." He referred to conservative governors and mayors saying that the misinformation needs to stop.
Asked if Trump is the main person to blame, he said, “No, but he’s got the biggest mouth.”
Trump again makes evidence-free claim that Democrats are blocking aid to North Carolina
Trump today again repeated his claims, without citing evidence, that Democrats and the Biden administration are blocking aid to victims of the recent hurricanes.
In a post on Truth Social, the former president said, "Democrats in Washington and the Democrat Governor’s Office of North Carolina (Roy Cooper) were blocking people and money from coming into North Carolina to help people in desperate need."
"Biden knew about it, and so did Kamala! It’s all over the place — A HORRIBLE SITUATION. I will make it up to everyone when we take Office on January 20th. HOLD ON, I’M COMING!" he wrote.
NBC News reached out for comment to the White House, FEMA, the Trump and Harris campaigns, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s office.
There is no evidence that Democrats have blocked aid to North Carolina.
Last week, tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has endorsed Trump, said in a post on X that FEMA was actively blocking people who were trying to help in North Carolina, including his deliveries of Starlink equipment to provide internet access.
FEMA’s director of public affairs, Jaclyn Rothenberg, said last week that the claims "about FEMA confiscating or taking commodities, supplies or resources in North Carolina, Tennessee, or any state impacted by Helene are false.
"FEMA has helped provide Starlink terminals to the state of North Carolina, including to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Nation and critical lifeline locations as determined by the state," Rothenberg added. "These units are supporting state and local municipalities, Urban Search and Rescue and disaster coordination. Starlink units have been sent to multiple states in support of Hurricane Helene response efforts.”
Trump has continued to spread false claims about the federal government's response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton despite calls by Democrats and other leaders to stop. For example, he said FEMA was diverting disaster funds from victims of the hurricane to undocumented immigrants. He also said that FEMA would only provide $750 to disaster survivors. FEMA has debunked those and other rumors.
Meanwhile, some Republican officials, including Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, have praised Biden and his administration's response to the deadly storms over the last two weeks. Democrats have said the rumors are hurting hurricane victims, and Biden has rebuked Trump over his false claims, calling them "ridiculous" and saying he's being "un-American."
This Pennsylvania House race could predict who wins the presidency
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Big-name politicians are descending on Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley in the closing weeks of the 2024 election, where voters in the swingy 7th Congressional District could determine which party controls the House next year — if not the White House.
On Wednesday, House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., joined Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa., here on a tour of Latino-owned small businesses. The next day, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., stumped for her GOP opponent, state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in Hellertown, while House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., participated in a voting rights discussion with Wild in nearby Easton.
Biden to visit Florida in aftermath of Hurricane Milton
Biden is traveling to Florida on Sunday to visit areas damaged by Hurricane Milton, the White House announced today.
More than 2 million people have been left without power and at least 16 people have been confirmed dead since Milton made landfall Wednesday evening as a Category 3 storm.
DNC launches TV ad attacking Jill Stein as Trump booster
The Democratic National Committee today launched a new TV ad that it says will run in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin portraying Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein as a Trump stalking horse.
“A vote for Stein is really a vote for Trump,” the narrator says as an image of Stein morphs into one of Trump.
The ad notes that Trump has praised Stein for taking votes away from Democrats and that she has accepted the help of Republican operatives and Trump-aligned lawyers, even after she and other third-party candidates helped Trump get elected in 2016 by winning more votes than Hillary Clinton lost by in key states like Michigan.
By directly engaging third-party candidates this year, Democrats have taken a radically different approach to how they’ve handled them in the past, which was to ignore them almost entirely. But in a tight race that could be determined by tiny margins, Democrats say they can’t afford to ignore them.
“Just like in 2016, Jill Stein can’t win the presidency, but she will help decide who does,” DNC senior advisor Mary Beth Cahill said on the ad. "The DNC will make sure voters know that a vote for anyone other than Kamala Harris is a vote for Donald Trump.”