Political Headlines
Harrisâ blitz to define herself as Trumpâs team races to beat her to it
Montinique Monroe/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Since getting thrust into the race for president after President Joe Biden announced on Sunday he would step aside, Vice President Kamala Harris and her team have been racing to define her to the American people as their attention turns to the newly energized campaign before Donald Trump could beat her to the punch.In a shift, the vice president, who has served as San Francisco's district attorney and California's attorney general, is leaning heavily into that part of her resume -- which was largely a liability during her 2020 bid for the presidency, a campaign she abandoned before the first voters were cast in that primary."In those roles, I took on perpetrators of all kinds," Harris ... Read More
Vance responds to ‘childless cat ladies’ backlash, claims Democrats are ‘anti-family’
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance went on the "Megyn Kelly Show" podcast Friday to defend his past remarks where he questioned Democratic leaders, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, for not having biological children, referring to them as "childless cat ladies."Vance made the comments in 2021, but they have recently resurfaced after former first lady Hillary Clinton shared a clip of the comments on X earlier this week -- a little more than a week after Trump picked Vance as his running mate. Harris -- who was among those Vance attacked -- has secured commitments from enough delegates to become the presumptive Democratic nominee if they all honor ... Read More
Johnson ramps up attacks on VP Harris during visit to southern border in California
Joe Raedle/Getty Images(SAN DIEGO) -- During a visit to the southern border shared with California and Mexico on Thursday, Speaker Mike Johnson ramped up attacks on the Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her a "San Francisco radical" who "bears responsibility for this disaster" as "border czar."The visit included a press conference along a border fence called "Whiskey 8" in San Ysidro, California -- south of San Diego -- with California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa as well as a tour of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities at the San Ysidro Port of Entry and Imperial Beach locations, Johnson's office told ABC News."We've had a very interesting tour here at the San Diego sector. This has become in many ways ... Read More
Kamala Harris to take over for Biden after support from Pelosi, Obama
ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President Kamala Harris' emergence as the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination is a historic moment for the United States, as she seems poised to become the first Black woman and Asian American to lead a major party ticket.The 2024 general election will be the first since 1976 that does not include someone named Bush, Clinton or Biden on the ticket.Harris quickly garnered support from influential Democrats and raised a record $81 million within 24 hours of President Joe Biden's withdrawal from the presidential race. From Sunday to Tuesday evening, Team Harris raised $126 million since the endorsement.She is preparing for her most significant moment yet, as she hits the ground running and makes the case ... Read More
As Harris weighs VP pick, climate groups say they’re ‘all in’ on campaign
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential campaign gains momentum, many environmental advocacy groups say they're "all in" to help her win the White House.Groups like the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), Sierra Club, and NRDC Action Fund have already endorsed her campaign.Tiernan Sittenfeld, senior vice president for government affairs for the LCV, told ABC News that her organization is eager to support the Harris campaign and said she thinks the goal now should be "building on the progress" of the current administration."I think it's more about building on the progress -- the progress of the Biden-Harris Administration on climate and on conservation has been truly historic, and there's clearly more progress to make," Sittenfeld said. "And ... Read More
Trump attacks FBI director Wray for saying ‘some question’ over whether struck by bullet
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former President Donald Trump is railing against FBI director Christopher Wray for testifying earlier this week that it was still unclear whether Trump was hit with a bullet -- or something else -- at his Pennsylvania rally on July 13."FBI Director Christopher Wray told Congress yesterday that he wasn't sure if I was hit by shrapnel, glass, or a bullet (the FBI never even checked!) ... " Trump posted in part Thursday night on his Truth Social account.Trump was reacting to Wray telling House lawmakers on Wednesday that the bureau still hasn't reached a determination as to whether Trump's ear was hit by an actual bullet."I think with respect to former President Trump, there's some question ... Read More
Trump mocks Kamala Harris’ name but her campaign is putting it front and center
Brandon Bell/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As Donald Trump pivots his focus to Vice President Kamala Harris, one point of attack toward his new 2024 opponent is an old ploy: mispronouncing and mocking her name.Earlier this week, at his first rally since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Trump bungled Harris's name dozens of times in the span of his nearly 90-minute stump speech. He told his supporters he wasn't going to be "nice" anymore.For years, Harris has been referred to by Trump, Republicans and conservative media like Fox News by only her first name rather than "vice president" or even "Harris" -- and they they say it incorrectly."It's one thing to mispronounce someone's name on the first try, right? ... Read More
Harris’ candidacy has led to surge in Black voter enthusiasm. It could make a difference in swing states
Brandon Bell/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- When Jotaka Eaddy, the founder of Black women's leadership network Win With Black Women, heard Sunday that President Joe Biden had decided he wouldn't run for reelection, clearing the way for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic Party's first Black woman presidential nominee, her first thought was "Oh my God, what a time to be alive."Her second? "Oh, our Zoom call tonight -- I'm gonna have to shift the agenda."Formed in 2020, Win With Black Women has met by Zoom most Sundays for almost four years, drawing hundreds of attendees and support from names like Oprah Winfrey and Dionne Warwick. But Eaddy said they had never had a call anything like this past Sunday's, ... Read More
Potential VP pick Tim Walz emerges as popular candidate among labor unions, sources say
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a potential vice presidential contender, has emerged among labor unions as a popular pick to join Kamala Harris on the Democratic ticket, four union officials and a political consultant told ABC News.Walz, a former public school teacher and union member, has drawn support for his record of pro-labor legislation in a blue-leaning state and his potential appeal with voters in nearby Midwest battlegrounds Wisconsin and Michigan, they said.Still, some added, labor unions lack a consensus choice in part because it is difficult to determine which candidate will deliver the best chance of a Democratic victory in the November election."People are high on Walz," Steve Rosenthal, president of political consulting firm The Organizing ... Read More
Before Mark Kelly became a senator, he made millions speaking and consulting, records show
Kent Nishimura/Getty Images(PHOENIX) -- Before Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly emerged as one of the lead contenders for vice president on the Democratic ticket, the former NASA astronaut earned more than a million dollars on the speaking circuit by regaling companies and colleges with tales of his triumphs in space.Kelly, who was a U.S. Navy attack pilot before spending a decade as a NASA Space Shuttle pilot, earned more than $1.7 million in speaking fees over the two years before he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2020, financial disclosures show.The senator, who has been floated as one of the possible candidates to be Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate, earned additional income from book deals and business consulting, according ... Read More
Barack Obama officially endorses Kamala Harris
Vice President Kamala Harris and Former President Barack Obama attend an event to mark the 2010 passage of the Affordable Care Act in the East Room of the White House, Apr. 5, 2022, in Washington. -- Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former President Barack Obama officially endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday to be the Democratic Party's 2024 nominee.Obama was one of the only high-profile Democrats who had yet to endorse Harris, who quickly secured enough delegate support to clinch the nomination so long as the delegates do not change their mind before the Democratic National Convention's virtual roll next month.When President Joe Biden announced Sunday he was exiting the 2024 race, he quickly endorsed Harris to take his place.In ... Read More
In replacing Biden, Harris could keep blue states in the Democratic fold
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the American Federation of Teachers' 88th National Convention on July 25, 2024 in Houston, Texas. -- Montinique Monroe/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President Kamala Harris' replacement of President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket could keep the electoral battlefield confined to the typical handful of swing states after the electoral map appeared to be mushrooming in Republicans' favor.After Biden's ruinous debate performance last month, Republicans boasted and Democrats feared that blue and blue-leaning states like New Hampshire, New Mexico, Virginia and even New Jersey were suddenly in play. But now, operatives in both parties predicted that having a Democratic nominee who's not dogged by such weighty baggage takes those states back off the table, recalibrating ... Read More
Vance argued for higher tax rate on childless Americans in 2021 interview
Republican vice-presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Radford University, July 22, 2024, in Radford, Virginia. -- Alex Wong/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- As former President Donald Trump's new running mate, JD Vance, faces renewed scrutiny over his previous comments criticizing childless individuals, an unearthed 2021 interview shows the Ohio senator advocating for higher taxes on Americans without children.The comments came in a 2021 episode of The Charlie Kirk Show podcast, where Kirk, the CEO of the conservative student organization Turning Point USA, was discussing how Republicans could shift public perception of certain conservative ideas from "unthinkable" to accepted policy."So JD ... what are you going to do to change this conversation? Everything we have to do ... Read More
JD Vance slammed for ‘childless cat ladies’ comment
Alex Wong/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- A Fox News interview from 2021, in which Sen. JD Vance smeared Vice President Kamala Harris as a "childless cat lady," has resurfaced since he became the Republican vice presidential nominee, sparking widespread anger.In the clip, Vance questioned Democrats -- including Harris, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez -- for not having biological children.âWe are effectively run in this country via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that theyâve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too,â Vance said.âHow does it make any sense that we've turned our country over ... Read More
Election 2024 updates: ‘Let’s go’: Harris says she’s ready to debate Trump
Justice Sonia Sotomayor swears in Vice President-elect Kamala Harris during the Presidential Inauguration, Jan. 20, 2021, in Washington. (Gabrielle Lurie/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)(WASHINGTON) -- Vice President Kamala Harris is pushing ahead with campaigning for president days after President Joe Biden's decision to leave the 2024 race -- a decision he explained during an Oval Office address to the nation on Wednesday night.On Thursday, Harris spoke to the American Federation of Teachers convention in Houston, Texas. She heads back to Washington, D.C., where she will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- a day after he spoke at a joint meeting of Congress.Harris has secured commitments from enough delegates to become the presumptive nominee if they all ... Read More
What we know about the shooter
WASHINGTON (AP) â The man identified as the shooter in the apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump was a 20-year-old from a Pittsburgh suburb not far from the campaign rally where one attendee was killed. Investigators were working Sunday to gather more information about Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who they say opened fire at the rally before being killed by Secret Service days before Trump was to accept the Republican nomination for a third time. An FBI official said late Saturday that investigators had not yet determined a motive. Two spectators were critically injured, authorities said. Relatives of Crooks didnât immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press. His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late ... Read MorePrayers for Trump also pour in from political rivals
Prayers for the former president are also coming from his political opponents. âI am horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe. Political violence has no place in our country,â said Sen. Chuck Schumer in a statement. âWe should all condemn what happened today and I am hoping for the health of the former president and everyone else at the rally,â Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy posted on the social platform X. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a post on X that his âthoughts and prayers are with former President Trumpâ and expressed thanks âfor the decisive law enforcement response.â ... Read MoreTop of page
