This live coverage is ending for the day. Thanks for following along.
Trump’s speech ends and he receives warm applause from the crowd. We will end our coverage of this event now.
Updated
Trump says he will bring back the SALT tax deduction. Some context from NBC’s Sahlil Kapur:
Bizarro World —> At the Al Smith dinner in New York, Trump calls for bringing back the SALT deduction that he capped in his signature tax law with the support of nearly every Republican, a deduction that Democratic leaders are pushing to restore but can’t due to GOP opposition.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) October 18, 2024
Trump makes another transphobic joke.
Trump repeats claims that he has been treated worse than any other president.
He takes a jab at Gaffigan, saying that hopefully his role as Tim Walz will be short-lived.
Trump makes a joke to boos, then says, “That’s nasty. I told the idiots who gave me this stuff.”
The joke was about Harris’s support for childcare and was directed at her husband, Dough Emhoff and paid child care workers.
“Last time I did this I was wondering against crooked Hillary…I had the meanest guy you’d ever seen write stuff up and man was the room angry,” Trump says.
They said “It’s too much, but I did it anyway.”
Trump jokes that he is meant to make self-depracating jokes, then says, “So here goes. Nope! I got nothing”.
“Chuck Schumer is here looking very glum, Trump says. “But look on the bright side chuck, considering how woke your party has become, if Kamala loses you still have the chance to become the first woman president,” Trump says – it is a transphobic joke.
Trump again refers to Harris not appearing in person, and says she is “receiving communion from Gretchen Whitmer,” to claps and cheers.
“If the Democrats really wanted someone to not be with us this evening, they would have just sent Joe Biden,” Trump says.
Trump claims – not clear if joking – that Biden is having second thoughts and wants to come back. There is no evidence of this.
Trump says the term “fake news” is no longer in vogue.
He refers to President Barack Obama as “Barack Hussein Obama” – dog whistling for the baseless ‘birther’ conspiracy theory that Obama is secretly a Muslim born in Kenya.
Updated
Trump says of Harris, “I like her a lot, but now I can’t stand her.”
“Catholics you gotta vote for me,” Trump says. “I’m here and she’s not.”
Trump lists good deeds done by Catholics.
“If you wanted Harris to accept your invitation you should have told her the funds were going to bail out the rioters and looters in Minneapolis,” Trump says, to loud whoops and cheers.
Trump is referring to the George Floyd protests that took place in the historically Catholic city of Minneapolis in 2020.
“The last Democrat not to attend this important event was Walter Mondale,” Trump says, “And it did not go very well for him. He lost 49 states and he won one: Minnesota. So I said there’s no way I’m missing it.”
Mondale “was expected to do well, then it didn’t work out,” Trump jokes. “It shows you there is a god.”
Trump then says that Harris is weird and it is weird that Harris isn’t here tonight – saying the word several times, referring to the insult Harris and Tim Walz direct at Trump and his supporters.
“Always: It’s a rule, you gotta go to the dinner, you gotta do it, otherwise bad things are going to happen to you from up there,” Trump jokes, getting a laugh – he is referring to God.
“But my opponent feels that she does not have to be here which is disrespectful to the event and in particular to our Catholic community,” Trump says. The crowd claps.
“They’ve gone after me. Mr Mayor, you’re peanuts compared to what they did to me,” Trump says.
“Mayor Adams, good luck with everything, they went after you,” Trump says to a big laugh.
More on New York Mayor Eric Adams, the first mayor in city history to be indicted on federal corruption charges:
Trump is receiving a warm response from the crowd.
“They told me under no circumstances are you allowed to use a teleprompter and I get up here and see there is a beautiful teleprompter,” he says.
Unclear if that is a joke or more of Trump’s obsession with whether Harris is using teleprompters or not.
“You know, here’s the thing that’s so amazing about Donald Trump. It is impossible not to have a strong opinion about Donald Trump. You either think he is endearingly outspoken and brash. Or you think he is a sociopath and you’d like to be his running mate,” Gaffigan jokes. “Donald Trump and I have a lot in common. We both have five children and we both have a lush mane of golden hair. And we both try to travel as much possible to get away from our families.”
Gaffigan then turns to Trump: “I want you to know if you are re-elected, I always liked you. And I’m not saying that because I don’t want to be sent to a labour camp. Well, I guess that’s the reason, sir,” Gaffigan says.
He invites Trump to the stage.
The crowd boos that joke. Someone to Gaffigan’s right said, “We talked about leaving that out.”
“I was gonna leave that out,” Gaffigan says, to laughter.
Updated
“As I watched that I couldn’t help but think now I know how my kids felt when I face-timed into a piano recital they were at,” Gaffigan says.
The crowd cheered – not hugely enthusiastically, but more than just politely – following Harris’s appearance.
Gaffigan says, “Shortly I will introduce President Trump, who will likely talk about how vice president Harris’s absence likely proves she hates Catholics, Americans, and babies. Then CNN and MSNBC will say he went to far, and Elon Musk and Fox News will say he was pitch perfect.”
Gaffigan turns to Trump’s baseless claims about immigrants eating cats and dogs. “You know this is the second time grabbing a kitty has been a campaign issue,” he says.
He is referring to Trump’s – much talked about in the 2016 election – “grab em by the pussy” comments.
As Harris turns to face the screen, she says the dinner “provides a rare opportunity to set aside politics”.
She lists various philanthropic activities achieved by the church.
“In the spirit of tonight’s dinner, let us commit to reaching across the divide,” Harris says.
“It is a very important dinner, and an important tradition to be a part of,” Harris says in her video.
Actress and former SNL cast member Molly Shannon appears, playing her fictional Catholic school pupil character Mary Katherine Gallagher.
She makes a speech from House of Dragons, about the need for a woman leader.
Harris asks for advice: Shannon-as-Gallahgher suggests she doesn’t lie, as it is a sin.
Harris says you shouldn’t lie, especially, about “thy neighbour’s election results”.
She would never insult Catholics, Harris says – taking another jibe at Trump: “that would be like insulting Detroiters when you’re in Detroit.”
Kamala Harris's virtual appearance at the Al Smith charity dinner – video
Harris’s video appearance is being played now at the dinner. Here it is:
Updated
“The Democrats have been telling us Trump’s re-election is a threat to democracy. In fact, they were so concerned of this threat, they staged a coup, ousted their democratically elected incumbent, and installed Kamala Harris. In other words, all her dreams have come true. It really makes me consider the power of prayer, right Cardinal. Sometimes prayers takes three and a half years and a George Clooney op-ed,” Gaffigan jokes.
“This is of course a historic race for many reasons. If vice-president Harris wins this election, not only would she be the first female president – a Black woman would be occupying the White House, a former Trump residence,” Gaffigan says.
Addressing Trump, he adds, “Obviously, you wouldn’t be renting to her. I mean that would never happen anyway.”
Updated
“Harris’s trajectory has been astounding. In the course of just a couple of months, she went from a mediocre vice-president to everyone’s mamala,” Gaffigan says, to a very muted response.
Updated
Harris will be the first to (virtually) address the room, he says.
“You have to admit, the Democrats have done an amazing job rebranding vice-president Harris. The term joyful warrior was used so many times at the Democratic convention I felt like I was at a yoga retreat,” Gaffigan jokes.
“Let’s start off in a joyful warrior pose, and go straight into a downward-facing Doug Emhoff pose. Now laugh uncontrollably.”
Updated
“We live in divided times, and I hope whoever is elected in November, they establish an initiative to heal the divide that exists in this country. And I have a great name for this. It could be called, ‘Project 2025’,” Gaffigan jokes.
The media has begun discussing the phenomenon of secret Trump voters. I don’t know if you’ve heard about this: people who publicly say they would never vote for Trump, but when they go in the booth, they do. It’s a small group, it’s called the Biden family,” Gaffigan jokes. That one gets a pretty big laugh, including from Trump.
Updated
This election is “being left up to American voters and four billionaires”, Gaffigan jokes.
“There is one group that baffles me. And I think it baffles most everyone in this country. And I’m talking about the undecided voter. Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me? You don’t know who you’re voting for?” Gaffigan says.
“You don’t see a difference between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Like nobody has ever thought, ‘Wait, is that a Trump quote or a Harris quote?’”
Here is Gaffigan, with Trump and Melania Trump seated to his left.
Updated
“I feel like Donald Trump would probably be less loyal to RFK [Jr] than he would be to KFC,” Gaffigan says.
Updated
Harris’s virtual appearance tonight will feature a cameo from actress and former SNL cast member Molly Shannon, playing her fictional Catholic school pupil character Mary Katherine Gallagher.
The Alfred E Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner is named for the former New York governor, a Democrat who was the first Catholic to receive a major party nomination for president when he unsuccessfully ran for the White House in 1928.
The event has become a tradition for presidential candidates since Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy appeared together in 1960. In 1996, the archdiocese of New York decided not to invite then president Bill Clinton and his Republican challenger, Bob Dole, reportedly because Clinton vetoed a late-term abortion ban.
Updated
A brief history of Trump’s appearances at this event, from the Associated Press:
In 2016, Trump was booed when he appeared at the dinner with his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, and unleashed a particularly nasty speech, calling her “corrupt” and accusing her of “pretending not to hate Catholics.”
Both Trump and President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, spoke at a virtual version of the fundraiser in 2020, which was moved online due to concerns over large gatherings at the height of the pandemic.
Both candidates used their speeches not to tell jokes, but to appeal to Catholic voters, with Biden speaking about how his faith had guided him through moments of tragedy and Trump emphasizing his nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.
Updated
Gaffigan takes aim at Harris for not appearing: “I’m sorry, why is vice-president Harris not here? Consider this, this is a room full of Catholics and Jews from New York City, this is a lay-up for vice-president Harris.”
Updated
“President Biden couldn’t be here tonight, the DNC made sure of that,” Gaffigan jokes.
Harris will not be appearing in person at the event, but will appear virtually. Trump has criticised her for this, saying, “They didn’t give me the option of a video message, nor would I have done it. This is very disrespectful to everyone involved”.
American comedian Jim Gaffigan, the actor who, among other things, plays Tim Walz on SNL, is speaking now at the Al Smith charity dinner, where Trump is also expected to speak.
Gaffigan promises to be balanced, joking that the will make jokes about both Trump and his running mate, JD Vance.
In comments to reporters after landing in Germany, the US president Joe Biden said he had congratulated the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s death and that ‘now was the time to move on’. He called the killing an opportunity to free Israeli hostages held by Hamas and end the yearlong war in Gaza. US officials have expressed measured optimism that Sinwar’s death might breathe new life into ceasefire talks that have so far failed to produce a breakthrough:
Updated
Here are the clips Harris played at the rally of Trump talking about women and their reproductive rights:
Kamala Harris in Green Bay plays clips of Trump claiming he'll be a protector of women, taking credit for overturning Roe, and claiming he's "the father of IVF." pic.twitter.com/jX8fcgsfRf
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 18, 2024
Here are Harris’s comments on Trump declaring himself “the father of IVF” on a Fox News town hall.
“I mean it just gets more unbelievable sometimes. And now the man calls himself ‘the father of IVF,” Harris said, to laughter from the crowd. “I mean what does that even mean,” she said, laughing. “And all of that while he is the one who by the way is responsible for it being at risk in the first place,” she said.
“What is sadly interesting, I think, when you listen to Donald Trump talk, it becomes increasingly clear, I think, he has no idea what he’s talking about when it comes to the healthcare of women in America.”
Trump is expected to speak in 45 minutes’ time.
Trump will headline the annual Al Smith charity dinner on Thursday night.
Eight years ago, he was jeered by attendees while delivering an especially pointed speech.
Harris is skipping attending the event in person as she campaigns in battleground states, breaking with presidential tradition. But she will appear on screen in a recorded video, organisers said.
The white-tie dinner in New York raises millions of dollars for Catholic charities and has traditionally offered candidates from both parties the chance to trade light-hearted barbs and show that they can get along – or at least pretend to – for one night in the election’s final stretch.
It’s often the last time the two nominees share a stage before election day.
Trump will be joined at the dinner by his wife, Melania, who has been an infrequent presence on the campaign trail, according to a seating chart shared by organizers.
He is expected to speak at 9.15pm ET – in about 45 minutes.
Updated
Harris’s speech has ended.
“Remember, Wisconsin has same-day voter registration,” Harris says. “You can vote early.”
“Your vote is your voice, and your voice is your power,” she says. “Each individual has the power to weigh in on this.”
Updated
Here is the clip of Harris talking about Trump’s “father of IVF” comments:
Harris: Now the man calls himself 'the father of IVF.' What does that even mean? He's the one responsible for it being at risk in the first place! What's sadly interesting is that when you listen to Trump talk it becomes increasingly clear he doesn't know what he's talking about pic.twitter.com/4UYV6xMTmJ
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 18, 2024
“Someone who suggests we should terminate the constitution of the United States should never again stand behind the seal of the president of the United States,” Harris says.
“Never again. Never again.”
“So much is on the line in this election,” Harris says.
She brings up the supreme court immunity ruling: “Now just imagine Trump with no guard rails.”
Updated
'The man calls himself the father of IVF? I mean what does that even mean?' Harris says of Trump
Women “did not want this”, Harris says, explaining that they are dying of sepsis and having fertility treatment cut off.
“I mean it just gets more unbelievable sometimes. And now the man calls himself the father of IVF? I mean, what does that even mean?” she says.
“When you listen to Donald Trump talk, it becomes increasingly clear, I think, he has no idea what he’s talking about when it comes to the healthcare of women in America.”
Updated
Harris plays a series of clips of Trump saying things including: “So the women thing, I did a great thing, long term, on the Roe v Wade, and I think they’ll understand.”
It also includes Trump saying he is the “father of IVF”.
During a Fox News town hall taped Tuesday, Trump declared that he is “the father of IVF”, despite acknowledging during his answer that he had needed an explanation of IVF in February, after the Alabama supreme court ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law.
Trump said he instructed the Alabama senator Katie Britt, a Republican, to “explain IVF very quickly” to him in the aftermath of the ruling.
Updated
Harris turns to abortion, saying: “One in three women live in a state with an abortion ban. And you’ve heard the stories. Painful stories.”
Updated
“I come from the middle class, and I will never forget where I come from,” Harris says.
Special counsel Jack Smith to unseal new dossier on Trump tomorrow - report
Just stepping away from the rally for a moment: Politico reports that a judge has denied Donald Trump’s effort to block a new dossier of Jack Smith’s evidence from becoming public, as the special counsel seeks to argues that the former US president is not entitled to immunity from prosecution, in the wake of a July supreme court ruling:
BREAKING: Judge Chutkan has denied Trump's effort to block a new dossier of Jack Smith's evidence from becoming public.
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) October 17, 2024
She says she will unseal it tomorrow.
The decision comes as federal prosecutors said in a court filing that Donald Trump “resorted to crimes” in a failed bid to cling to power after losing the 2020 election.
The filing unsealed in early October argued that the former US president is not entitled to immunity from prosecution.
It was submitted by Smith’s team following a supreme court opinion that conferred broad immunity on former presidents and narrowed the scope of the prosecution.
Updated
Here is the press pool report from the rally:
Motorcade pulled into Green Bay rally site at 6.22pm CT. Uneventful ride, though poolers note a beautiful moon on the horizon leaving the airport.
Rally is at the Resch Expo, which is adjacent to Lambeau Field.
Signs around the interior include “A NEW WAY FORWARD FOR WISCONSIN,” “GREEN BAY” and “vote.” Stage podium features fall colored mums and pumpkins.
Handheld signs include references such as “CHEESEHEADS” and “WISCONSIN” for “HARRIS WALZ.” Also some of the camo “Harris Walz” signs, and the blue version.
Speakers haven’t started as of 6.40pm CT.
“Last night you may have seen that I went on Fox News. Meanwhile Trump joined the Univision town hall…where a voter asked him about January 6th.”
She says, “As we all know, January 6th was a tragic day… and what did Dobald Trump say about January 6th? He called it, quote: ‘a day of love’.”
Americans are “sick of his gaslighting”, she says. “We are ready to turn the page”.
The crowd chants “We’re not going back! We’re not going back!”
“So Green Bay, we have 19 days until the election. 19 days. So we are entering the home stretch,” Harris says.
“So many of you may know, when I was five years old we lived in Wisconsin,” Harris says. Every time she lands in the state the governor, Tony Evers, says “Welcome home”, she says.
Updated
Wisconsin is a swing state with 10 electoral college votes. Democrats call it the “land of the nail-biter”.
Kamala Harris is walking onto the stage in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
On Wednesday, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin has called on the Department of Justice to investigate text messages they say targeted and threatened to discourage young people from voting in the November election.
The League of Women Voters says it initially learned of the alleged text campaign on 10 October, when the group received numerous complaints from voters who had received the text. Two people in their 20s who work with the League of Women Voters also received the message, which reads: “WARNING: Violating WI Statutes 12.13 & 6.18 may result in fines up to $10,000 or 3.5 years in prison. Don’t vote in a state where you’re not eligible.”
The rules governing voter eligibility for college students are no different than for any other Wisconsin residents, who are required to have lived at their current address for at least 28 days before the election to vote there.
Here is the crowd in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where Harris is expected to speak shortly:
📍I’m in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where Kamala Harris is hosting a rally with just 19 days to go before Election Day. pic.twitter.com/kjYS3kodB1
— Dan Shafer (@DanRShafer) October 17, 2024
Trump will headline the annual Al Smith charity dinner, on Thursday night.
Eight years ago he was jeered by attendees while delivering an especially pointed speech.
Harris is skipping attending the event in person as she campaigns in battleground states, breaking with presidential tradition. But she will appear on screen in a recorded video, organisers said.
The white tie dinner in New York raises millions of dollars for Catholic charities and has traditionally offered candidates from both parties the chance to trade light-hearted barbs and show that they can get along – or at least pretend to – for one night in the election’s final stretch.
It’s often the last time the two nominees share a stage before Election Day.
Trump will be joined at the dinner by his wife, Melania, who has been an infrequent presence on the campaign trail, according to a seating chart shared by organizers.
He is expected to speak at 9.15pm EDT – in about an hour and a half’s time.
ICYMI: Trump called himself the 'father of IVF'
In case you missed those comments from Trump: during a Fox News town hall taped Tuesday, Trump declared that he is “the father of IVF”, despite acknowledging during his answer that he needed an explanation of IVF in February, after the Alabama supreme court ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law.
Trump said he instructed Katie Britt, a Republican senator from Alabama, to “explain IVF very quickly” to him in the aftermath of the ruling.
As concerns over access to fertility treatments rose, Trump pledged to promote IVF by requiring health insurance companies or the federal government to pay for it. Such a move would be at odds with the actions of much of his own party.
Even as the Republican party has tried to create a national narrative that it is receptive to IVF, these messaging efforts have been undercut by GOP state lawmakers, Republican-dominated courts and anti-abortion leaders within the party’s ranks, as well as opposition to legislative attempts to protect IVF access.
Updated
Harris to play clips of Trump talking about abortion at Green Bay, Wisconsin rally
Tonight in Green Bay, Kamala Harris plans to spotlight reproductive rights, including showing the Wisconsin voters what Trump has been saying about women on the campaign trail.
She will respond to Trump’s baffling comments calling himself the “father of IVF”.
That event is expected to start any minute – we will bring it to you live.
Updated
A former funeral home owner from Long Island, New York, pleaded guilty today to spraying wasp killer at police officers and assaulting two journalists, including an Associated Press photographer, during the riot at the US Capitol almost four years ago.
Peter Moloney, 60, of Bayport, is now scheduled to be sentenced on February 11 by US district judge Carl Nichols, AP reports.
Moloney answered the judge’s routine questions as he pleaded guilty to two assault charges stemming from the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress by a mob of supporters of Donald Trump as they aspired to overturn his loss to Joe Biden in the presidential election the previous November.
A former co-owner of Moloney Family Funeral Homes pleaded guilty to a pair of assault charges related to his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced.
— Newsday (@Newsday) October 17, 2024
Peter Moloney, 60, of Bayport, admitted to… pic.twitter.com/POF4HIlPW9
Moloney, who co-owned Moloney Family Funeral Homes, was arrested in June 2023. Moloney appears to have come to the Capitol “prepared for violence,” equipped with protective eyewear, a helmet and a can of insecticide, according to an FBI agent’s affidavit. Video shows him spraying the insecticide at officers, the agent wrote.
Video also captured Moloney participating in a vicious attack on an AP photographer who was documenting the unfolding situation. Moloney pleaded guilty to charges including a felony assault. Congress returned to session and certified Biden’s victory in the early hours of January 7, 2021.
The overwhelming majority of young Americans worry about the climate crisis, and more than half say their concerns about the environment will affect where they decide to live and whether to have children, new research finds.
The study comes just weeks after back-to-back hurricanes, Helene and Milton, pummeled the south-eastern US. Flooding from Helene caused more than 600 miles of destruction, from Florida’s west coast to the mountains of North Carolina, while Milton raked across the Florida peninsula less than two weeks later.
“One of the most striking findings of the survey was that this was across the political spectrum,” said the lead author, Eric Lewandowski, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. “There was no state sample where the endorsement of climate anxiety came in less than 75%.”
The study was published in the Lancet Planetary Health, and follows a 2021 study covering 10 countries. Both the previous and current study were paid for by Avaaz, an advocacy group.
Harris says death of Yahya Sinwar is chance to finally end Israel-Gaza war
Kamala Harris has hailed the death of Yahya Sinwar as an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza and prepare for “the day after” when Hamas no longer dominated the territory.
The US vice-president and Democratic nominee said “justice has been served” with the death of the Hamas leader, adding that the US, Israel and the wider world were “better off as a result”.
Locked in a titanic election contest with Donald Trump to win the battleground state of Michigan, home to a large Arab-American voting bloc sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, Harris also pressed for an end to the year-long hostilities that have killed more than 42,000 people in Gaza and left a trail of destruction in the territory.
“Hamas is decimated and its leadership is eliminated,” she said. “This moment gives us an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza.” The end of the conflict had to be accompanied by security for Israel, the release of the remaining hostages and an end to suffering in Gaza, she said.
She also hinted at her support for Palestinian statehood by saying it should herald Palestinians’ rights to “dignity, security, freedom and self-determination”.
Her comments chimed with those of Joe Biden, who has been criticised by progressives for unstinting support for Israel even while Netanyahu had ignored his entreaties to avoid civilian casualties and ease humanitarian suffering in the tiny coastal territory.
“Israel has had every right to eliminate the leadership and military structure of Hamas,” Biden said in comments that appeared designed to answer criticisms of his support.
Trump has said he received a call from the Apple CEO Tim Cook over concerns about the financial penalties that have been imposed by the European Union on the iPhone maker, Reuters reports.
Apple did not respond to the agency’s request seeking confirmation of the authenticity of the phone call.
European regulators have launched a series of investigations into big tech firms in recent years, with the aim of curbing their power and ensuring a level playing field for smaller rivals.
“Two hours ago, three hours ago, he (Cook) called me,” Trump said, while speaking with podcaster Patrick Bet-David in a program that was released on Thursday. “He said the European Union has just fined us $15bn … then on top of that they got fined by the European Union another $2bn,” Trump added, quoting his call with Cook.
Updated
At a rally earlier in Wisconsin Kamala Harris responded to hecklers in the crowd, saying: “Oh you guys are at the wrong rally. I think you meant to go to the smaller one down the street.”
Here is that clip:
Kamala Harris: Oh, you guys are at the wrong rally. I think you meant to go to the smaller one down the street pic.twitter.com/tjhbDB9m3R
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 17, 2024
Today so far
Joe Biden has released a statement on Israel’s killing of Hamas’s chief Yahya Sinwar. In his statement, Biden called the killing a “good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world”, adding that he planned to speak to Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders.
Kamala Harris also commented on Israel’s killing of Sinwar while on the campaign trail in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “This moment gives us an opportunity to end the war in Gaza,” the US vice-president and Democratic nominee for president in this election, said.
Donald Trump told the audience at the Univision town hall last night that “we can’t destroy our country” in order to save the planet from the climate crisis. Answering a question from a veteran construction worker, who had seen first-hand “the devastating impacts of climate change”, whether he still believed global warming was a hoax, Trump launched into a lengthy tirade.
At a rally in Durham, North Carolina, Tim Walz delivered a fiery criticism of Donald Trump.“When Trump is talking about bringing back stop-and-frisk policies, those are harassment that went on to the Black community, specifically Black males, and put a disproportionate number of them into incarceration,” he told supporters.
Biden announced today further student debt relief for public servants – amounting to about $4.5bn. The action affects about 60,000 borrowers across the country, said the White House, touting the efforts of the US president and Harris to improve loan forgiveness since taking office.
Updated
Surrogates for the Harris-Walz campaign, meanwhile, are questioning Trump’s cognitive abilities, pointing to his recent 40-minute musical interlude at a town hall where he was meant to be answering voters’ questions.
Here’s Mark Cuban, the billionaire executive and TV personality who appeared alongside Harris in Wisconsin:
"I don't know what happened to him" -- Cuban highlights Trump's decline from the 1990s to today pic.twitter.com/vshjjS9pQb
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 17, 2024
Bill Clinton, who appeared with Tim Walz in North Carolina, quipped: “Heck, I’m only two months younger than Donald Trump. But the good news for you is I will not spend 30 minutes swaying back and forth to music.”
Updated
Harris says Americans done with Trump's 'gaslighting' as she criticizes January 6 remarks
Meanwhile, in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, Kamala Harris slammed Trump’s performance at the Univision town hall yesterday, when he referred to 6 January 2021, when rioters stormed the capitol and injured over 140 police officers, “a day of love”.
“The American people are exhausted with his gaslighting. Enough. We are ready to turn the page. We’re done,” she said.
During the Univision town hall, a Republican voter told Trump the former president had lost his vote due to his response to the January 6 riots and the coronavirus pandemic. Trump responded: “Nothing done wrong at all.”
“There were no guns down there. We didn’t have guns. The others had guns, but we didn’t have guns,” he said. “And when I say we, these are people that walked down – this was a tiny percentage of the overall which nobody sees and nobody, nobody shows. But that was a day of love.”
Updated
Tim Walz condemnds Trump's stop-and-frisk pledge at campaign rally in North Carolina
At a rally in Durham, North Carolina, Tim Walz delivered a fiery criticism of Donald Trump.
“When Trump is talking about bringing back stop-and-frisk policies, those are harassment that went on to the Black community, specifically Black males, and put a disproportionate number of them into incarceration,” he told supporters.
Walz also slammed the idea that Trump “understood” the needs of voters. “If any of our relatives … tells us ‘Donald Trump understands us’, that’s bullshit. He does not understand us. He does not understand you,” Walz said, noting that the former president didn’t “give a damn” if social security checks cleared.
He appeared at the rally alongside former president Bill Clinton.
Walz: "Let's us start saying the quiet part out loud about Trump... when Trump is talking about bringing back stop and frisk policies, those are harassment that went on to the Black community, specifically Black males, and put a disproportionate number of them into incarceration" pic.twitter.com/aEOF2hRmBN
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 17, 2024
Updated
The stakes: US cities are preparing to defend themselves if Trump wins
Senior Democrats in US cities are preparing to defend their communities in the event of Donald Trump’s return to the White House after the former president has repeated threats that he would use presidential powers to seize control of major urban centers.
Trump has proposed deploying the military inside major cities largely run by Democrats to deal with protesters or to crush criminal gangs. He has threatened to dispatch large numbers of federal immigration agents to carry out mass deportations of undocumented people in so-called “sanctuary” cities.
He also aims to obliterate the progressive criminal justice policies of left-leaning prosecutors.
“In cities where there has been a complete breakdown of law and order … I will not hesitate to send in federal assets including the national guard until safety is restored,” Trump says in the campaign platform for his bid to become the 47th US president, Agenda47.
Trump provoked uproar earlier this week when he called for US armed forces to be deployed against his political rivals – “the enemy within” – on election day next month. But his plans to use national guard troops and military personnel as a means to attack those he sees as his opponents go much wider than that, spanning entire cities with Democratic leadership.
Mayors and prosecutors in several US cities are collaborating over strategies to minimize the fallout. Levar Stoney, the Democratic mayor of Richmond, Virginia, a city of more than 220,000, said he was aware how difficult it would be to resist Trump given the enormous powers at a president’s disposal.
“It’s very difficult to autocrat-proof your city,” he said. “But you have to have backstops, and mayors are working in coalition to ensure they can be a backstop against these divisive policies.”
Read more:
Updated
Newly unsealed divorce records show Arizona congressman Ruben Gallego, the Democratic nominee for an open Senate seat, petitioned a court to end his marriage with Kate Gallego, Phoenix’s mayor, just before she gave birth to their son. But it contained none of the potentially damaging details conservatives had hoped to uncover.
Gallego’s opponent, Kari Lake, has long alluded to the filings, making insinuations that their contents would tarnish his public persona. Ahead of the release, one of her advisers sought to distance the campaign from the effort to unseal the documents, an effort brought by the conservative outlet, Washington Free Beacon.
The couple split in 2016 after six years of marriage. The congressman has previously said that his post-traumatic stress disorder from serving in Iraq contributed to the demise of their marriage.
The Gallegos had fought the release, expressing concern that the public disclosure could endanger their son, Michael. The effort to keep the records sealed fanned rightwing speculation about what was in them.
Kate Gallego has endorsed her husband’s Senate bid.
In June, Yavapai superior court judge John Napper, who originally presided over the Free Beacon’s case, tempered expectations well in advance, according to a video obtained by 12 News.
UPDATE 'One of the most garden variety divorce files I've ever seen': At June hearing, Yavapai County Judge John Napper saw nothing striking in court files for Congressman Ruben Gallego & Mayor Kate Gallego's 2017 divorce. @12News has learned unsealed docs do redact info on son. pic.twitter.com/nRUsq1UtWD
— Brahm Resnik (@brahmresnik) October 17, 2024
“Everyone’s going to be rather deflated with the results of it,” Napper said, adding: “I’m not a politician, and maybe this will be very, very important information but this looks to me like one of the most garden-variety divorce files I have ever seen.”
Updated
The US has granted temporary protected status to Lebanese nationals amid Israel’s deadly war on the country.
The Guardian’s Michael Sainato reports:
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a new “temporary protected status” allowing Lebanese nationals in the US to remain in the country and apply for work permits, as the “ongoing armed conflict” in Lebanon continues with Israel expanding its invasion and its attacks on Hezbollah.
As of July 2024, around 11,500 Lebanese nationals were believed to be in the US on nonimmigrant visas for business, tourism, temporary work or other opportunities, with California and Michigan hosting the most. About 11,000 of them will probably now be eligible to apply for temporary protected status, as well as for deferred enforced departure – in other words, protection from deportation. An additional 1,740 students from Lebanon may also be eligible for special student relief.
For the full story, click here:
The Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, has also weighed in on Israel’s killing of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, saying in a statement on Thursday:
Sinwar has the blood of countless innocents in Israel and Gaza on his hands and the world is a much better place without him …
Sinwar in his beliefs and actions have caused so much pain to the Israeli and Palestinian people; and I pray that his elimination from the scene will clear a path to urgently and immediately bring home all the hostages – including the seven Americans – and negotiate an end to hostilities that will ensure the security of the Israeli people and provide full humanitarian relief and a new path forward for the people of Gaza.
Schumer made no mention of Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
Updated
The US will try to push forward a ceasefire and hostage-release proposal following Israel’s killing of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, Reuters reports.
Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday, state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said: “Over the past few weeks, there have been no negotiations for an end to the war because Sinwar has refused to negotiate.”
Updated
Biden hails Sinwar death as 'good day for Israel'
Joe Biden has released a statement on Israel’s killing of Hamas’s Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar.
In his statement, Biden called the killing a “good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world”.
Biden went on to add, “As the leader of the terrorist group Hamas, Sinwar was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Israelis, Palestinians, Americans, and citizens from over 30 countries.”
“Over 1,200 people were killed on that day, the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, including 46 Americans. More than 250 were taken hostage, with 101 still missing. That number includes seven Americans, four of whom are believed to still be alive and held by Hamas terrorists. Sinwar is the man most responsible for this, and for so much of what followed,” Biden continued in his statement.
He added that he will be speaking soon with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to “discuss the pathway for bringing the hostages home to their families, and for ending this war once and for all, which has caused so much devastation to innocent people.”
Notably, Biden made no mention of the 42,400 Palestinians – including healthcare workers and journalists – that Israeli forces killed since October or the nearly 2 million survivors who Israeli forces have forcibly displaced across the narrow strip.
Updated
Harris says 'justice has been served' over death of Hamas leader Sinwar
Moments ago, Kamala Harris stepped up to a podium while on the election trail in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and commented on Israel’s stating that it killed Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, in a battle in Gaza today.
“This moment gives us an opportunity to end the war in Gaza,” the US vice-president and Democratic nominee for president in this election, said.
She said “justice has been served” over the reported killing of the leader of the Islamist militants that control Gaza.
Harris reiterated the administration’s stance that “Israel has the right to defend itself and called for the remaining hostages held by Hamas since it led an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, to be released.
But she added that “the suffering must end” in Gaza and said it was “time for the day after to begin without Hamas in power”. Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not pledged a ceasefire.
We are live blogging all the developments in Gaza, Lebanon and Israel, here.
Updated
In the Middle East, the government of Israel has announced its military forces have killed Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, in a battle in Gaza. This comes less than three weeks after Israel also killed Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, during air strikes on the outskirts of Beirut in Lebanon.
Confirmation on Sinwar’s death is awaited from the Palestinian side. If verified that means the heads of Iran’s two most powerful proxy forces opposed to Israel have been wiped out. We are following all the developments on this live in our international blog and you can find all that news here.
Updated
Interim summary
Hello, US politics blog readers, it’s another lively day on the campaign trail with less than three weeks to go before the election. There’s a lot more news to come and we’ll keep up with developments as they happen.
Here’s where things stand:
Donald Trump told the audience at the Univision town hall last night that “we can’t destroy our country” in order to save the planet from the climate crisis. Answering a question from a veteran construction worker, who had seen first-hand “the devastating impacts of climate change”, whether he still believed global warming was a hoax, Trump launched into a lengthy tirade.
Kamala Harris posted that “Donald Trump incited an attack on our nation’s democracy because he didn’t like the outcome of the election. If January 6 [2021] was a bridge too far, there is a place for you in our campaign.” This is further outreach from the Democratic nominee for president herself, including to hammer home facts about the insurrection at the US Capitol that day. It came a day after she did an interview with rightwing Fox News and led a rally attended by more than 100 prominent Republicans.
Tim Walz, Harris’s running mate, will campaign in Durham and Winston-Salem in North Carolina with Common today, to mark the first day of early voting in that important swing state. The Emmy-winning rapper and voting rights activist is to join Walz in Winston-Salem, in a push to get out the vote.
Harris is on a swing through two vital “blue wall” states today, with campaign stops including Milwaukee, La Crosse and Green Bay in Wisconsin, then heading to Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Joe Biden announced today further student debt relief for public servants – amounting to about $4.5bn. The action affects about 60,000 borrowers across the country, said the White House, touting the efforts of the US president and Harris, his vice-president and successor as presidential nominee, to improve loan forgiveness since taking office.
Updated
Donald Trump’s campaign has released some details about his rally schedule for the coming days.
On Sunday, Trump will hold a town hall in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, at 5pm.
On Monday, he will deliver remarks at a rally in Greenville, North Carolina, at 3pm.
Updated
In another state hit hard by hurricanes recently, early voting is underway.
Many voters had to relocate after Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina, where Tim Walz is making a campaign stop. But the state’s board of elections is ensuring those displaced or who live in an area under the federal disaster declaration can still vote via an absentee ballot.
“If you had to relocate due to the storm, you do not have to return to your county to vote. You can request to have your ballot delivered to your temporary housing location or wherever you can receive mail,” the website of North Carolina state board of election reads.
Absentee ballots can be requested at a local county board of elections office during business hours, or online at the North Carolina absentee ballot portal until 5pm on 29 October and must be received no later than 7.30pm on 5 November.
Updated
Hurricanes like Milton and Helene, which recently battered US states in the south, is top of mind for many voters. Those who live in natural disaster-prone areas increasingly at risk due to the climate crisis have even more at stake.
Despite this, many of these residents are still choosing to back Donald Trump, a vocal climate denier. The Guardian’s Oliver Laughland and Tom Silverstone travelled to south-west Louisiana to speak to some of these communities.
Updated
Trump told town hall: 'We can't destroy our country' to save climate
During Donald Trump’s Univision town hall, the former president pushed back on the climate crisis, telling an audience member at one point: “We can’t destroy our country” in order to save the climate.
Answering a question from a veteran construction worker who had seen first-hand “the devastating impacts of climate change” on whether he still believed global warming was a hoax, Trump launched into a lengthy tirade, saying:
I get awards, environmental awards, for the way I build it for the water, the way I use the water, the sand, the mixing of the sand and the water, I mean, many different, but I’ve had many awards over the years for environmental, the way I’ve built because you know about building, that’s what you do … ”
Q: Given the amount of the mounting evidence of climate change, do you still believe it's a hoax?
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 17, 2024
Trump: I get awards environmental awards for the way I build it for the water, the way I use the water, the sand, the mixing of the sand and the water, I mean, many different, but… pic.twitter.com/CPEBBdxXFl
Updated
Donald Trump’s team will ban Project 2025 affiliates from a future administration, according to Politico.
Robert Tait reports for the Guardian:
Donald Trump’s transition team is reportedly preparing a blacklist of potential officials to be banned from a future administration, with special emphasis being placed on those with links to the radical Project 2025 plan to overhaul the US government.
The former president’s eldest son, Donald Jr, is spearheading the drive to compile the list of barred staffers, according to Politico, citing a former official in the first Trump administration.
“Clearly people working on Project 2025 are blacklisted,” another ex-official told the site.
The Republican nominee publicly disowned the 922-page document, prepared by the Heritage Foundation thinktank, after polls showed that its ideologically driven prescriptions – including mass firings of civil servants and plans to outlaw abortion – were an electoral liability.
For the full story, click here:
Harris hits out at Trump's 'day of love' comment
In response to a video of Donald Trump answering a question from an audience member during a Univision town hall in which he said the January 6 riot was a “day of love”, Kamala Harris wrote on X:
Donald Trump incited an attack on our nation’s democracy because he didn’t like the outcome of the election.
If January 6 was a bridge too far, there is a place for you in our campaign.
Donald Trump incited an attack on our nation’s democracy because he didn’t like the outcome of the election.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 17, 2024
If January 6 was a bridge too far, there is a place for you in our campaign. https://t.co/YWmubEBHkg
Trump has repeatedly said that he did not lose the 2020 election – a baseless claim which his running mate JD Vance doubled down on this week, saying: “Did Donald Trump lose the election? Not by the words that I would use.”
Updated
Kamala Harris will travel to Atlanta, Georgia, this weekend for a campaign rally.
According to her campaign, Harris will use the rally to encourage Georgians to vote early.
The US vice-president has visited the crucial battleground state at least 8 times this year. Her upcoming visit to Atlanta will follow a rally that Donald Trump held in the city on Wednesday.
Updated
Walz to campaign in North Carolina with the rapper Common
Tim Walz will campaign in Durham and Winston-Salem in North Carolina today to mark the first day of early voting.
The Emmy-winning rapper and voting rights activist Common will join Walz in Winston-Salem where the two will speak to North Carolinians about the importance of voting, according to the Harris-Walz campaign.
Updated
When Lauren Miller found out she was pregnant with twins in the summer of 2022, she was shocked and excited. But an early scan revealed that one of the twins was not developing at the same pace as the other. He had severe abnormalities, and a rare chromosomal disorder called trisomy 18.
Lauren lives in Dallas, Texas, where abortion is illegal unless the pregnancy places the woman at risk of death or “substantial impairment of a major bodily function”. Carter Sherman, the Guardian US reproductive health and justice reporter, explains why this exception does not necessarily reassure women wanting treatment:
Updated
Harris to campaign in three Wisconsin cities today
Kamala Harris is set to travel through Wisconsin today, Politico reports.
Her stops include Milwaukee, La Crosse and Green Bay, as well as a college business class. The US vice-president will also hold two rallies before heading to Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Updated
Here are some key takeaways from Kamala Harris’s Fox News interview, the Guardian’s Helen Sullivan reports:
1. Immigration
Harris was asked about the Biden administration’s efforts to tackle a surge in illegal immigration at the southern border, and laid the blame on Republicans for failing to pass a border bill.
Harris was asked to defend the administration’s early decision to reverse some of her Republican rival Donald Trump’s restrictive policies, and to respond to a mother who testified in Congress about the loss of her child at the hands of an illegal immigrant.
2. The Biden-Harris record
Harris was questioned over her recent comment that there was “not a thing” she would change about the actions of the Biden administration, responding: “let me be very clear, my presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency,” but she did not elaborate.
Harris was asked when she first noticed that Biden’s “mental faculties appeared diminished”, but the vice-president responded by saying that the president had the judgment and experience to do what needs to be done on behalf of the American people.
For the full story, click here:
Updated
The US president, Joe Biden, said Tuesday that Kamala Harris would “cut her own path” if elected, as the Democratic nominee tries to convince voters she would bring change to the White House.
Agence France-Presse reports:
Harris came under fire from her Republican rival, Donald Trump, last week after saying there was “not a thing comes to mind” when asked what she would have done differently from Biden.
“Every president has to cut their own path. That’s what I did. I was loyal to Barack Obama but I cut my own path as president,” Biden told a Democratic party dinner in Philadelphia.
“That’s what Kamala’s going to do. She’s been loyal so far but she’ll cut her own path.”
Biden added: “Kamala’s perspective on our problems will be fresh and new. Donald Trump’s perspective is old and failed and quite frankly thoroughly totally dishonest.”
Updated
Senior Democrats in US cities are preparing to defend their communities in the event of Donald Trump’s return to the White House after the former president has repeated threats that he would use presidential powers to seize control of major urban centers.
Trump has proposed deploying the military inside major cities largely run by Democrats to deal with protesters or to crush criminal gangs. He has threatened to dispatch large numbers of federal immigration agents to carry out mass deportations of undocumented people in so-called “sanctuary” cities.
He also aims to obliterate the progressive criminal justice policies of left-leaning prosecutors.
“In cities where there has been a complete breakdown of law and order … I will not hesitate to send in federal assets including the national guard until safety is restored,” Trump says in the campaign platform for his bid to become the 47th US president, Agenda47.
Trump provoked uproar earlier this week when he called for US armed forces to be deployed against his political rivals – “the enemy within” – on election day next month. But his plans to use national guard troops and military personnel as a means to attack those he sees as his opponents go much wider than that, spanning entire cities with Democratic leadership.
Mayors and prosecutors in several US cities are collaborating over strategies to minimize the fallout. Levar Stoney, the Democratic mayor of Richmond, Virginia, a city of over 220,000, said he was aware how difficult it would be to resist Trump given the enormous powers at a president’s disposal.
“It’s very difficult to autocrat-proof your city,” he said. “But you have to have backstops, and mayors are working in coalition to ensure they can be a backstop against these divisive policies.”
You can read more of Ed Pilkington’s news feature here:
Updated
The US Republican candidate, Donald Trump, on Tuesday said that companies will drop plans to build factories overseas when faced with the threat of high tariffs on shipping goods to the US, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
“The higher the tariff, the more likely it is that the company will come into the United States,” the former president told an audience at the Economic Club of Chicago.
“You make it so high, so horrible, so obnoxious” companies will “come right away,” he added.
The economy has emerged as one of the main issues ahead of the 5 November US election, where Trump is in a dead heat with Kamala Harris, according to polls.
The former president has vowed a 10% to 20% across-the-board tariff on imports and a 60% rate on Chinese goods – and more recently threatened a 200% levy on vehicles made in Mexico.
AFP reports that during the hour-long interview, Trump pushed back at arguments that tariffs would hike costs for consumers and punish businesses faced with higher-priced imports. “To me, the most beautiful word in the dictionary is tariff,” Trump said.
Updated
Biden approves $4.5 bn in student debt relief as vote nears
The US president, Joe Biden, announced on Thursday further student debt relief for public servants – amounting to about $4.5bn – with just over two weeks to go until the presidential election, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The action affects about 60,000 borrowers across the country, said the White House, touting Biden and Kamala Harris’s efforts to improve loan forgiveness since taking office.
AFP reports that the announcement comes as US households feel the weight of higher costs of living since the Covid-19 pandemic, with voters citing the economy as a crucial concern in polls.
Biden said in a statement that with the latest move, more than one million people have had their debt cancelled under Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
The promise of the programme – supporting teachers, nurses and others – involved student debt forgiveness after 10 years of public service and 10 years of payments.
“But for too long, the government failed to live up to its commitments, and only 7,000 people had ever received forgiveness,” Biden said. “I will never stop working to make higher education affordable,” he added.
Biden has embarked on efforts to cancel student debt for millions of Americans, after a student loan payment freeze instituted by Donald Trump during the coronavirus pandemic.
Americans hold $1.6tn in student loans, and some end up repaying them over decades as they start jobs and families.
Updated
The US president, Joe Biden, will spend Friday in Berlin with the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, reports the Associated Press (AP).
There is also a planned meeting with other leaders in the “European quad”, a group that in addition to Biden and Scholz includes the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer.
The White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, described Biden as having a “close relationship” with Scholz, who early this year helped broker a multi-country prisoner swap that brought back to the US the journalist Evan Gershkovich and former marine Paul Whelan. The German leader told Biden before the deal in words to the effect: “For you, I will do this,” reports Reuters.
“We have worked together closely to strengthen our economies for both our people and provide critical support for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against Russian aggression,” Jean-Pierre said at Wednesday’s White House briefing. “The president really wanted to make sure to go to Germany to thank chancellor Scholz directly.”
The US and Germany have been the largest two sources of aid to Ukraine as it fights to repel a Russian invasion. And with less than three weeks before the US presidential election, Biden also feels obliged to ready allies for the possible return to the White House of the Republican Trump, who has antagonized US friends while displaying an appreciation for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, reports the AP.
The administration said Biden has no plans while in Europe to meet with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but the two spoke on Wednesday about additional military aid, with the White House announcing $425m in assistance, bringing the total support to more than $64bn over two and a half years.
In addition to Ukraine, Biden and Scholz plan to discuss EU relations, democratic values, trade and technology issues, global supply chains, tensions in the Middle East and security issues in the Indo-Pacific region, reports the AP. While in Germany, Biden will also meet with its president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Earlier this month, Biden delayed a trip planned to Germany and Angola in order to oversee relief efforts ahead of Hurricane Milton making landfall in Florida. He now plans to go to Angola in December.
Updated
At Wednesday’s Miami town hall, Donald Trump sidestepped a question on immigration, reports Reuters.
One town hall participant, a Mexican-born California farm worker who spoke of picking strawberries and broccoli for years, asked who would do hard farm labor if Trump goes through with his plans to deport millions of people who are in the US illegally, and how that would impact food prices.
According to Reuters, Trump did not answer directly and instead claimed African Americans and Hispanic Americans were losing their jobs because of illegal immigration. He also repeated baseless claims that Latin American countries were emptying out mental institutions and jails to send people to the US.
Trump has previously used dehumanizing terminology to describe immigrants in the US illegally, calling them “animals” when talking about alleged criminal acts, and saying they are “poisoning the blood of our country”, a phrase that has drawn criticism as xenophobic and echoing Nazi rhetoric.
Updated
In the final weeks before the 5 November election, the Republican candidate, Donald Trump, is increasingly resorting to darker and more violent language about illegal immigration, an issue that opinion polls show resonates with many voters, especially Republicans, reports Reuters.
He is competing against the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris, for key votes from the growing Latino population. Latino voters have typically backed Democrats, but the Trump campaign is hoping to win over more, especially men, on the back of economic discontent.
Harris led Trump by eight percentage points – 47% to 39% – among Hispanic voters in Reuters/Ipsos polling conducted between 11 September and 7 October.
Harris held her own Latino town hall last week in Nevada, a battleground state with a significant Hispanic population.
Updated
'Just saying what was reported' - Trump stands by debunked Ohio immigrants eating pets claims
The Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, on Wednesday stood by debunked claims that immigrants in Ohio were eating pets, telling Latino voters during a town hall he was “just saying what was reported”, according to Reuters.
Trump in recent weeks has amplified a false claim that has gone viral that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were stealing residents’ pets or taking wildlife from parks for food.
There have been no credible reports of Haitians eating pets, and officials in Ohio – including Republicans – have repeatedly said the story is untrue.
At a town hall hosted by the Spanish-language television network Univision, an undecided Mexican-born Latino Republican voter from Arizona, a battleground state, asked Trump in Spanish whether he truly believed that immigrants were eating pets.
“I was just saying what was reported … And eating other things too that they’re not supposed to be. All I do is report,” Trump replied during the event held in Miami. “I was there, I’m going to be there and we’re going to take a look.”
According to Reuters, Trump added that “newspapers” had also reported on the claim, without naming any or providing any details.
Trump, who has not yet traveled to Springfield, has previously said he would conduct mass deportations of Haitian immigrants from the Ohio city, even though the majority of them are in the US legally.
The city has faced bomb threats since Trump began repeating the false accusations about Haitians.
Updated
Donald Trump describes 6 January Capitol riots as 'day of love' during Miami town hall
The Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, on Wednesday described 6 January 2021, when thousands of his supporters attacked the Capitol in Washington DC in a bid to stop formal certification of Trump’s election defeat, as a “day of love”.
During a town hall with a Latino audience, hosted by Spanish-language television network Univision yesterday, Trump was told by a participant that he wanted to give the former US president a chance to “win back his vote” given his concerns over the 6 January 2021 Capitol riot, reports Reuters.
Thousands of Trump supporters attacked the Capitol in Washington DC that day causing millions of dollars in damage. Four people died on the day of the attack, and one Capitol police officer who fought against the rioters died the next day.
At the town hall in Miami, Trump gave a lengthy response in which he described 6 January 2021 as a “day of love” and said former administration officials who had turned against him were angry about having been fired.
“I hope someday maybe we’ll get your vote,” Trump said as he wrapped up. “Sounds like maybe I won’t, but that’s OK too.”
Trump also stood by debunked claims that immigrants in Ohio were eating pets, telling Latino voters during a town hall he was “just saying what was reported”.
Trump in recent weeks has amplified a false claim that has gone viral that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were stealing residents’ pets or taking wildlife from parks for food.
There have been no credible reports of Haitians eating pets, and officials in Ohio – including Republicans – have repeatedly said the story is untrue.
More on this story in a moment, but first, here are the latest updates:
Surrounded by more than 100 former Republican officeholders and officials, Kamala Harris urged GOP voters on Wednesday to put “country first” and abandon Trump. Trump is “unstable” and “unhinged” and would eviscerate democratic norms if given a second White House term, she said. “America must heed this warning”.
In her interview on Fox News, Harris was asked about the Biden administration’s efforts to tackle illegal immigration at the southern border, and laid the blame on Republicans for failing to pass a border bill. Harris said Trump told Republicans to reject the bill because “he preferred to run on a problem instead of fixing a problem.”
In the Fox interview, Harris singled out Iran when asked which foreign country she considers to be America’s greatest adversary. The interviewer, Bret Baier, questioned whether the Biden-Harris administration was “acting like Iran is the number one threat”.
Trump’s running mate, JD Vance answered “no” when asked if Trump lost the 2020 election, at a Pennsylvania rally. “What message do you think it sends to independent voters when you do not directly answer the question ‘Did Donald Trump lose in 2020?’” the reporter asked, eliciting boos from the crowd. Vance said, “No. I think there were serious problems in 2020”.
Trump doubled down on his controversial comments about “the enemy from within” made over the weekend. Before an all-female audience in Cumming, Georgia, Trump mocked Harris and her allies as “sick”, “evil” and “a party of soundbites”. He told the Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner: “They’re very dangerous. They’re Marxists and communists and fascists. They’re the threat to democracy.”
In Trump’s Univision town hall he was asked to name three virtues possessed by Harris, which he did, before again attacking her. He said that “she seems to have an ability to survive,” that “she seems to have some pretty longtime friendships” and that “she seems to have a nice way about her.” “I mean, I like the way some of her statements, some of her – the way she behaves, in a certain way. But in another way, I think it’s very bad for our country,” he said.
A Georgia judge has declared that seven new election rules recently passed by the state election board are “illegal, unconstitutional and void”. The Fulton county superior court judge, Thomas Cox, issued the order on Wednesday after holding a hearing on challenges to the rules. The rules that Cox invalidated included three that had garnered a lot of attention: one that required that the number of ballots be hand-counted after the close of polls and two that had to do with the certification of election results.
Jimmy Carter, the centenarian former Democratic president, has voted in the 2024 presidential election, his representatives confirmed on Wednesday. A statement from the Carter Center did not reveal who he voted for, but it is assumed the 100-year-old, who is in hospice care, cast his ballot for the Democratic candidate Harris.
Alabama cannot remove thousands of people from its voter rolls on the eve of the presidential election, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. The US district judge Anna Manasco, an appointee of Trump, issued a preliminary injunction halting an effort by Alabama’s top election official to try to remove more than 3,200 people from the voter rolls who it suspected of being non-citizens until at least after the presidential election.
The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin has called on the Department of Justice to investigate text messages they say targeted and tried to discourage young people from voting in the November election. The League of Women Voters says it initially learned of the alleged text campaign on 10 October, when the group received numerous complaints from voters who had received the text. Two people in their 20s who work with the League of Women Voters also received the message, which reads: “WARNING: Violating WI Statutes 12.13 & 6.18 may result in fines up to $10,000 or 3.5 years in prison. Don’t vote in a state where you’re not eligible.”
Updated
