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    DeSantis inches closer to presidential run announcement with California speech – as it happened

    That’s it from our live blog today. Here’s how the day unfolded in US politics:
    Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis appears to be moving toward announcing his presidential campaign after delivering a speech yesterday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. In the speech, DeSantis’ condemned other states’ responses to the coronavirus pandemic and celebrated Florida as a “citadel of freedom”. DeSantis is expected to formally enter the GOP primary in the next couple of months.
    The DC city council will withdraw its bill revising the local criminal code from congressional consideration, the panel’s chairperson announced. The news comes after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican measure to overturn the DC bill. Despite the council’s move to withdraw the bill, the Senate still plans to vote on the matter this week, according to CNN.
    Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake won the vice-presidential straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend. Lake defeated other contenders with 20% of the vote, while DeSantis came in second place at 14% and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley trailed with 10%. Lake is best known for losing the Arizona gubernatorial race last year and peddling the lie that her election was tainted by widespread fraud.
    Biden reportedly plans to travel to the west coast next week to fundraise, as the president is widely expected to formally launch his reelection campaign in the next several weeks. Biden is expected to make stops in California and Nevada as he meets with donors.
    Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat of Pennsylvania, is “well on his way to recovery” after being hospitalized to receive treatment for depression, his top adviser said. Fetterman’s chair of staff, Adam Jentleson, shared photos of a morning meeting with the senator and said he continues to weigh in on legislation as he recovers.
    The live blog will be back tomorrow morning with more updates and analysis of US politics. See you then.Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat of Pennsylvania, is “well on his way to recovery” after being hospitalized to receive treatment for depression, his top adviser said.Fetterman’s chair of staff, Adam Jentleson, shared photos of a meeting this morning with the senator and said he continues to weigh in on legislation as he recovers.“Productive morning with Senator Fetterman at Walter Reed discussing the rail safety legislation, Farm Bill and other Senate business,” Jentleson said on Twitter. “John is well on his way to recovery and wanted me to say how grateful he is for all the well wishes. He’s laser focused on PA & will be back soon.”Productive morning with Senator Fetterman at Walter Reed discussing the rail safety legislation, Farm Bill and other Senate business. John is well on his way to recovery and wanted me to say how grateful he is for all the well wishes. He’s laser focused on PA & will be back soon. pic.twitter.com/143uAhoQRx— Adam Jentleson (@AJentleson) March 6, 2023
    Fetterman checked himself into Walter Reed last month, following an evaluation by Dr Brian P Monahan, the attending physician of the US Congress. Fetterman’s office said he has “experienced depression off and on throughout his life,” and his symptoms had becaome severe in the weeks leading up to his hospitalization.Fetterman has received praise for publicly acknowledging his mental health struggles, as advocates have expressed hope that it will encourage others to seek help.“Asking for help is important, but it’s not always easy,” said Dr Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general. “I hope Senator Fetterman’s courage will serve as an example for others.”Joe Biden reportedly plans to travel to the west coast next week to fundraise, as the president is widely expected to formally launch his reelection campaign in the next several weeks.Politico reports:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}Biden’s trip west will take him to Rancho Santa Fe, a wealthy enclave of sprawling estates north of San Diego, two of the people told POLITICO. He also will have likely stops in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Nev. The trip is planned for Monday and Tuesday, though the two people stressed Biden’s itinerary is still being finalized and specifics remain fluid.
    Biden and Democrats are gearing up an expected reelection campaign, including by dispatching Vice President Kamala Harris to fundraisers of her own in her home state. On Friday, she headlined a midday event in the San Francisco suburb of Hillsborough at the home of longtime fundraiser Stefanie Roumeliotes and her husband, John Costouros.
    Despite feeling no pressure to formally announce his re-election campaign, Biden has already held a handful of fundraisers out east to benefit the Democratic National Committee. Earlier this year, he gave a speech to DNC members in Philadelphia that aides described as a soft launch of sorts.The news comes as the Republican presidential primary is already in full swing, with Donald Trump and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley having both launched their campaigns. Other Republican candidates, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, are expected to announce in the next few months.As of now, Democratic leaders appear to be rather unified around Biden’s candidacy. No Democratic lawmaker has yet stepped forward to challenge Biden, indicating that the president will likely have a smooth path to the nomination.When asked about self-help author Marianne Williamson announcing she will challenge Joe Biden for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, Karine Jean-Pierre said the White House is “not tracking that”.Jean-Pierre joked that she would perhaps have more to say on Williamson “if I could feel her aura,” eliciting laughter from reporters in the briefing room.The comment appeared to be a dig at Williamson, a self-described spiritual leader who ran for president in 2020 and said that she struggled to push back against the perception that she was a “crystal woo-woo lady”.The White House will be represented at King Charles III’s coronation in May, but Karine Jean-Pierre would not commit to Joe Biden himself attending the event.Reports indicate that Biden does not plan to attend the coronation, but other senior members of the administration may travel to the UK for the event.Jean-Pierre rejected any suggestion that Biden’s lack of attendance should be interpreted as a snub of the British monarchy if the president does decide to skip the coronation.Karine Jean-Pierre would not comment on Donald Trump’s speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, in which the former president vowed “retribution” against his political enemies.Jean-Pierre said she could not speak to Trump’s remarks because of the Hatch Act, which prohibits employees of the federal government from engaging in some political activities.A reporter asked Karine Jean-Pierre why Joe Biden believes DC should be a state if he disagrees with the city council’s judgment on altering the local criminal code.Despite his refusal to veto the proposal overturning DC’s crime bill, Biden still believes that Congress should pass a bill granting DC statehood, and he would sign that legislation, Jean-Pierre said.“He believes that cities and states should be able to govern for themselves,” Jean-Pierre said.Karine Jean-Pierre sidestepped questions about the news that the DC city council is withdrawing its crime bill after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican motion to overturn the policy.“The president expressed concerns on certain provisions of the DC crime bill,” Jean-Pierre said. “As we can see, the DC council’s process is still ongoing, so we won’t comment on that any further.”A reporter noted that the White House has cited DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s opposition to the crime bill to justify Biden’s stance, but Bowser herself has said that Congress should not be “meddling” in local policy matters.Jean-Pierre deflected that question, instead saying the White House has been in “constant communication” with Bowser’s team.“This is not something that we put forward,” Jean-Pierre said. “This is a decision that was brought to [Biden], and he wants to be very clear and communicate with the people of DC and with all of you.”According to reports, the Senate plans to move forward with its vote to overturn the crime bill, even after the council announced it was withdrawing the proposal from congressional consideration.The White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, is now holding her daily briefing with reporters, and she kicked off her comments by discussing “junk fees”.The Biden administration has pushed airlines to limit fees for customers, and Jean-Pierre said several airlines are now working toward fee-free family seating to “guarantee that parents can sit with their young children without getting nickeled and dimed”.The Department of Transportation is also launching a new family seating dashboard to help customers compare fees across airlines, Jean-Pierre noted.In his State of the Union address last month, Joe Biden pledged to crack down on junk fees, saying, “Junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy, but they matter to most folks in homes like the one I grew up in. … I know how unfair it feels when a company overcharges you and gets away with it. Not anymore.”The Guardian’s Chris McGreal reports on Evangelical Christians flocking to the Republican party over support for Israel:When Israel’s former ambassador to the US said his country should worry less about what American Jews think and concentrate on Christian evangelicals as the “backbone” of support for the Jewish state, he had in mind the Texas megachurch pastor John Hagee.Hagee founded Christians United for Israel (CUFI), a group that claims 11 million members, who have had a significant influence on Republican party politics and in hardening Washington’s already strong support for Israel.Donald Trump, while president, made no secret of his desire to keep Hagee and Christian Zionist voters happy as a key part of his base by abandoning even the pretense that the US was a neutral player in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Former South Carolina governor and current White House hopeful Nikki Haley recognised Hagee’s power within the most important religious bloc of Republican voters and their influence over political priorities, from anti-abortion laws to Israel policy, when she invited him to give the invocation at her presidential campaign launch last month.“Pastor Hagee, I still say I want to be you when I grow up,” she enthused.Left largely unmentioned by Haley and Hagee’s Israeli allies were his antisemitic views, including calling Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler a “half-breed Jew” who was sent by God to drive the Jewish people to Israel. He has also suggested that Jews brought centuries of persecution on themselves by disobeying God.Read Chris’ full report:Evangelical Christians flock to Republicans over support for Israel Read moreHere’s where the day stands so far:
    Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis appears to be moving toward announcing his presidential campaign after delivering a speech yesterday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California. In the speech, DeSantis’ condemned other states’ responses to the coronavirus pandemic and celebrated Florida as a “citadel of freedom”. DeSantis is expected to formally enter the GOP primary in the next couple of months.
    The DC city council will withdraw its bill revising the local criminal code from congressional consideration, the panel’s chairperson announced. The news comes after Joe Biden said he would not veto a Republican measure to overturn the DC bill. Despite the council’s move to withdraw the bill, the Senate still plans to vote on the matter this week, according to CNN.
    Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake won the vice-presidential straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend. Lake defeated other contenders with 20% of the vote, while DeSantis came in second place at 14% and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley trailed with 10%. Lake is best known for losing the Arizona gubernatorial race last year and peddling the lie that her election was tainted by widespread fraud.
    The blog will have more coming up, so stay tuned.The Senate still plans to vote on overturning the DC bill revising the local criminal code, even after the council announced it would withdraw the proposal from congressional consideration.Two Senate aides told CNN’s Manu Raju that they still expect the vote to occur:Senate will STILL vote this week to halt DC criminal code rewrite despite the last-ditch attempt by the DC Council’s chairman to withdraw the legislation from Hill review, two aides said— Manu Raju (@mkraju) March 6, 2023
    Now that Joe Biden has said he would not veto the proposal to overturn the DC bill, more Senate Democrats are expected to join Republicans in supporting the motion.The chair of the DC Council, Phil Mendelson, said this morning, “If the Republicans want to proceed with a vote … it will be a hollow vote because the bill isn’t there before them.”Carlisa N Johnson reports on how Republican legislators are attempting to restrict voting access:In the final few days of this year’s Georgia assembly legislative session, Republican lawmakers raced to propose laws seeking to restrict voting access, and make it easier for citizens to challenge and subvert normal election processes.Senate bill 221, house bill 422 and house bill 426 are just a few of the newly proposed election laws, which come after state Republicans, including the secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, praised election officials for smooth elections in the past two years.They include measures to eradicate absentee ballot drop boxes, allow citizens to more easily challenge voter registrations – which Republican conspiracy theorists had already done with little backing evidence during the midterms – and even unseal ballots for review.While some of the elements of these proposed laws offer expanded flexibility and resources for elections, including the popular bipartisan effort to eradicate runoff elections in the state, other aspects are grounded in unfounded claims and conspiracy theories surrounding mass election fraud stemming from the 2020 election.Read Carlisa’s full report:Georgia Republicans race to pass laws to restrict and challenge votesRead moreBefore the DC Council announced it would withdraw the crime bill, Joe Biden faced criticism from a number of Democrats for saying that he would sign a Republican measure to reverse the policy.“It’s disappointing to all of us who believe in home rule,” Congressman Pete Aguilar, chair of the House Democratic caucus, said Thursday.“I’m deeply disappointed to see the President announce he will allow Congress to overturn a DC law for the first time in decades,” Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said. “This is simple: The District of Columbia must be allowed to govern itself.”Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi added Friday, “If he was going to do it, I wish he would’ve told us first because this was a hard vote for the House members.”The Guardian’s Chris Stein has more details on the DC Council’s decision to withdraw a bill revising the local criminal code:The chair of the DC council, Democrat Phil Mendelson, criticized the Republican opponents of the crime bill, saying Congress was more focused on winning political points rather than carefully considering the policy.“It’s quite clear to me that the headwinds that have prevailed in Congress are about the politics of next year’s election and not about what’s the substance in this criminal code,” Mendelson said at a press conference this morning.“The fact is is that the criminal code has hit these headwinds, which is why I pulled it back.”Mendelson acknowledged that Senate Republicans may still push for a vote to overturn the bill, but he said such a maneuver would be “hollow” because the council has withdrawn the proposal from congressional consideration.Mendelson blamed the criticism of the crime bill on misinformation about the content of the proposal, saying, “What people were hearing was we were decriminalizing or that we were reducing sentences and the messaging just got out of our control.”Asked why he believed Joe Biden indicated he would sign the Republican reversal measure, Mendelson said he thought the president was trying to protect Democratic lawmakers.“The reality is that if we’re to get statehood, it’s going to be the Democrats who help us with it,” Mendelson said. “So if we have any hope for statehood, we have to want to protect our Democratic friends in Congress. And that’s where I think the president is.” More

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    DeSantis lambasts California’s ‘woke ideology’ in Reagan library speech

    DeSantis lambasts California’s ‘woke ideology’ in Reagan library speechFlorida governor, expected to announce presidential run, says Democrats have been infected with a ‘woke mind virus’Florida’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, took his fight against liberalism deep into the Democratic territory of California on Sunday, part of a national roadshow as he lays the ground for an expected White House bid.DeSantis has been meeting with wealthy donors in recent days and burnishing his national credentials in a series of speeches boasting about his achievements in Florida while lambasting the “woke ideology” of leaders in Democratic strongholds including California and New York.DeSantis, who is expected to announce a presidential run in the next few months, has made a war on liberalism a central theme of his governorship and a way to appeal to the Republican base.While he has not yet announced a White House bid, one candidate who has – former Republican president Donald Trump – clearly views DeSantis as a major potential threat as the GOP nominating contest kicks into gear. Trump has already launched personal and political attacks on DeSantis as the race for the Republican party’s 2024 presidential nomination begins to heat up.DeSantis, speaking at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library about 50 miles north of Los Angeles, made a veiled reference to the chaos of Trump’s presidency and his defeat to Joe Biden in 2020.“You don’t see drama and palace intrigue,” DeSantis said of his governorship in Florida. “You see surgical precision and execution.”DeSantis, who narrowly won election to the governor’s mansion in 2018, touted his landslide re-election in November.He attacked Democratic governors and leaders as being infected with a “woke mind virus”. The term “woke” has become shorthand among opponents as leftwing ideology run amok.He decried their policies on tax, vaccine mandates and classroom “indoctrination”.DeSantis also took aim at Disney, which opposes a Florida law that restricts classroom instruction of gender and sexual orientation.Last month he signed a bill that takes control of a special tax district surrounding Walt Disney World that for half a century allowed it to operate with a high degree of autonomy.“There’s a new sheriff in town,” DeSantis declared, referring to what he has called the end of Disney’s “corporate kingdom”.Other candidates expected to jump into the Republican primary race include former vice-president Mike Pence and ex-secretary of state Mike Pompeo. Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, declared her candidacy last month.TopicsRon DeSantisRepublicansUS politicsUS elections 2024CaliforniaFloridanewsReuse this content More

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    Georgia Republicans race to pass laws to restrict and challenge votes

    Georgia Republicans race to pass laws to restrict and challenge votesIn the final days of the legislative session, there’s also a push to create a mechanism to unseat county election board membersIn the final few days of this year’s Georgia assembly legislative session, Republican lawmakers raced to propose laws seeking to restrict voting access, and make it easier for citizens to challenge and subvert normal election processes.‘We will prosecute death threats’: Arizona’s new attorney general fights to protect election workersRead moreSenate bill 221, house bill 422 and house bill 426 are just a few of the newly proposed election laws, which come after state Republicans, including the secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, praised election officials for smooth elections in the past two years. They include measures to eradicate absentee ballot drop boxes, allow citizens to more easily challenge voter registrations – which Republican conspiracy theorists had already done with little backing evidence during the midterms – and even unseal ballots for review.While some of the elements of these proposed laws offer expanded flexibility and resources for elections, including the popular bipartisan effort to eradicate runoff elections in the state, other aspects are grounded in unfounded claims and conspiracy theories surrounding mass election fraud stemming from the 2020 election.Cynthia Battles, policy and engagement director of the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, a civil rights advocacy organization, recently raised her concerns at a hearing for house bill 426. “We continue relitigating the 2020 election, and the Georgia assembly is making legislation to try and appease some conspiracy theories,” she said.SB221: ‘weaponizing voter challenges’SB221, the most controversial law, allows voter eligibility challenges to proceed without adequate due diligence. Last year, the number of challenges statewide was nearly 100,000, yielding many unfounded claims from apparent election deniers, and clogging up the process for overwhelmed election officials during a critical time. Under SB221, voters could be purged from rolls simply based on allegations that include “a sworn statement by any person with relevant information”.“We have seen a lot of organized and weaponized groups that have been weaponizing voter challenges for partisan gain,” said Isabel Otero, Georgia policy director at the Southern Poverty Law Center. “That causes a lot of concern for us.”In addition, the bill proposes using the National Change of Address (NCOA) database to determine a voter’s eligibility to vote in elections. However, according to Otero, this could directly violate federal law.“That program is not very reliable as a tool for establishing the eligibility of a voter,” said Otero. “And there are federal laws that provide for safe harbor provisions when removing voters from the rolls using the NCOA data because the NCOA data is known to be inaccurate.”The proposed changes under SB221 don’t end at voter eligibility. In a last-minute change during a senate committee on ethics meeting, Republican senators amended the proposed legislation to include language that completely eliminates the use of drop boxes throughout the state. This comes after previous legislation slashed the number of drop boxes available by more than half after the 2020 election when record numbers of voters returned their absentee ballots via drop boxes. There is no evidence that drop boxes increase voter fraud.HB422: an assault on members of the election boardMeanwhile, house bill 422, which is specific to Ware county, would allow the political party that receives the most votes in the preceding election – in this case, the Republican party – to unseat current election board members and appoint replacements of their choosing. If this law is passed, it will unseat the county’s three Black board of elections members. This is in direct contrast to other counties in the state that hold spaces for members of both parties.Shawn Taylor, the current co-chair of the Ware county board of elections, is concerned that without safeguards in place, those nominated to the board will not properly represent the population of the county.“The board currently has three Black members,” said Taylor. “We believe that this legislation is an assault on not only the members of the board but on the Black and brown members of the community.”Fallon McClure, deputy director of the ACLU of Georgia, said HB422 is part of an alarming and growing pattern of legislation that allows biased political motivations to rule in local election boards.“We must take partisanship out of elections administration and make it a fair process where everyone can have their voice heard,” said McClure.Some south Georgia residents are concerned that even though this law currently only affects Ware county and does say that Democrats can submit nominations for the election boards, stark partisan divides make this just a formality that will give way to Democrats losing their voice.“We are very concerned that the fair process will fail,” said former state house candidate Lethia Kittrell. “Our major concern is that this is already feeding down into other areas.”HB426: removing a ‘check against partisanship’Though the proposed law’s connection to election conspiracy theories is not as direct, another proposed bill has a much clearer connection. HB426 aims to remove the court seal on paper ballot verifications. As it stands, a lawsuit must be filed to access physical copies of election documentation. However, under HB426, only a request would need to be made for public access of ballots.While the bill’s sponsor, Representative Shaw Blackmon, says it will improve transparency and help guarantee a truly “citizen-run election”, those opposed to the bill maintain that this is another tool that can disenfranchise voters and burden election officials.“The court seal provides a check against partisanship,” said Phil Olaleye, a Democratic state representative. “I would not want to lower the barrier for potentially inundating our local officials and staff with an endless stream of requests coming from folks who are upset at the politics of the day.”Anne Gray Herring of Common Cause Georgia echoed Olaleye’s sentiments. “Consider the real risks of an unmanageable quantity of review requests, including those that are made in bad faith and the limits of time and resources for county officials,” she said.Controversial election legislation is nothing new for Georgia. Like the contentious SB202 in 2021 – which overhauled the state’s voting system – these newly proposed laws will significantly affect election officials and voters.“Right now in our election system, we see an enormous amount of burnout and an enormous amount of turnover,” said Vasu Abhiraman of the ACLU of Georgia. “This should be an emergency to try to make the lives of local election officials easier.”Voting advocates like Abhiraman agree that this type of sweeping legislation each session is a direct result of election lies and conspiracy theories.“[This is] nothing more than continued political appeasement of the folks who have ripped so many lives apart and who have suppressed the vote in Georgia,” said Abhiraman.“Underlying it is the perpetuation of a false narrative and an attempt to disenfranchise a subset of voters.”TopicsUS newsThe fight for democracyGeorgiaUS voting rightsRepublicansUS politicsnewsReuse this content More

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    How Trump’s big lie played out on the CPAC stage

    How Trump’s big lie played out on the CPAC stageMost speakers focused on issues other than election integrity, but prominent election deniers were still given top billingIn the exhibit hall, vendors displayed various styles of hats declaring “Trump won” and attendees referred to former president Donald Trump as the rightful winner of the 2020 election.But on the event stage, most prominent Republican lawmakers at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) didn’t bring up Trump’s big lie. Instead they largely chose not to repeat his common talking point that rampant voter fraud cost him his re-election.A diminished but loyal Trump Maga at CPAC: ‘There’s one choice’Read moreCPAC this year was seen as a crucial barometer of the likely contours of the 2024 fight. In that regard the majority of conservatives here aligned themselves closely with the former president. But they also chose not to relitigate the 2020 election and looked ahead to the 2024 contest, repeatedly calling Trump the former and future president.Attendees said they noticed the absence of a talking point that has in the past, including at last year’s CPAC, been pervasive.“There’s a lot of gaps in the topic list,” said Suzzanne Monk, a DC resident who donned a Maga hat and a T-shirt reading: “Don’t blame me, I voted for Trump.” “The election integrity issues are kind of soft. We could be hitting a lot harder.”While most speakers focused on issues other than election integrity, prominent election deniers were still given top billing. Kari Lake, a former TV news anchor who unsuccessfully ran for Arizona governor in 2022 and who continues to challenge both the results of her own election and the 2020 presidential election, was the keynote speaker at Friday night’s Ronald Reagan dinner.Though Lake didn’t bring up claims that Trump’s election was stolen, she dedicated many minutes to describing how her own election last November was rigged.“They stole that election,” she said, referring to Democrats. “The crime was committed in broad daylight on November 8. They sabotaged election day.”She claimed that Democrats “had to pump in hundreds of thousands of phony ballots” and specifically jammed tabulators in Republican precincts to cause long lines at the polls.“I will not stand by and let these bastards get away with it,” she said.The big lie also snuck its way into other mainstage speeches in small mentions and asides.Kimberly Guilfoyle, former Trump adviser and fiancee to Donald Trump Jr, declared that conservatives must “never let another election be stolen in this country”. Steve Bannon called out Fox News for “illegitimately calling” the race in November 2020 against Trump.In the event hallways, Bannon interviewed conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell, who was promoting an “election crime bureau”. Bannon said that some conservatives view election denialism as a losing issue, to which Lindell replied: “If you give it up, you lose your country.”On Saturday, Hogan Gidley, former press secretary under Trump and now vice-chair of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for Election Integrity, moderated a panel called They Stole it From Us Legally, which he said would focus on how to “make it easy to vote but hard to cheat”.Abe Hamadeh, an election denier who lost the race for Arizona attorney general in November, claimed that incompetence cost him the election.“What happened on election day is a disgrace to democracy,” he said, calling out what he said were major issues in Maricopa county. “But it ain’t over yet.”Hamadeh, like Lake, has challenged his loss in court and continues to claim that voters were disfranchised. “We need to make sure that there’s competency and people are held accountable,” he said.On the same panel, former Republican representative Lee Zeldin said that if Democrats are going to “ballot harvest”, conservatives need to lean in and do the same.“We’ve got to get out there and ballot harvest the heck out of the next election and they’re going to want to change that policy,” Gidley said, agreeing with Zeldin.Ahead of the panel on Saturday, Monk lamented that too many CPAC discussions focused on topics not as relevant to the conservative audience. “Look, I’m opposed to big tech censorship too, but I don’t think that’s the most pressing issue facing conservatives right now and I think the topics we’re listening to right now demonstrate kind of a soft pedaling rather than where I think these attendees are,” she said.Monk said she thinks Matt Schlapp, the chairman of CPAC who was recently accused of sexual misconduct by a Republican campaign staffer, “might be a little off the pulse”.“Long before Donald Trump and the 2020 election, we’ve had election integrity issues,” she added. “It’s very hard to prosecute election fraud, so we need to start. We need to fix that before we have elections.”But others were less concerned about the readiness to move on from 2020. “I’m not the type of person who thinks it was, per se, stolen,” said Orlando resident Luis Marrero.TopicsCPACUS politicsDonald TrumpRepublicansUS elections 2020US elections 2024featuresReuse this content More

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    Larry Hogan won’t run against Trump but warns party of ‘cult of personality’

    Larry Hogan won’t run against Trump but warns party of ‘cult of personality’Former Maryland governor says in op-ed he won’t be entering 2024 race and warns Republicans of putting Trump back in White HouseA top Republican figure has warned that the party under Donald Trump has become a “cult of personality” and it could not afford to try and put the former US president back in the White House in 2024.Larry Hogan, a former Maryland governor, had been widely tipped to enter the party’s nomination race but instead used an op-ed in the New York Times on Sunday to announce he would not be running and to warn against Trump’s own 2024 campaign.A diminished but loyal Trump Maga at CPAC: ‘There’s one choice’Read more“I would never run for president to sell books or position myself for a cabinet role. I have long said that I care more about ensuring a future for the Republican party than securing my own future in the Republican party,” Hogan wrote.He went on to warn that the Republican party cannot be successful if it puts “personality before principle, if our elected officials are afraid to say publicly what they freely admit behind closed doors, and if we can’t learn from our mistakes because of the political cost of admitting facts to be true”.“For too long, Republican voters have been denied a real debate about what our party stands for beyond loyalty to Mr Trump. A cult of personality is no substitute for a party of principle,” Hogan continued.He added: “I am deeply concerned about this next election. We cannot afford to have Mr Trump as our nominee and suffer defeat for the fourth consecutive election cycle. To once again be a successful governing party, we must move on from Mr Trump.”Hogan explained that his decision not to run for president is due to stakes that are “too high for [him] to be part of another multicar pileup” which could potentially help Trump secure the Republican nomination once more.Hogan echoed similar sentiments last month, telling NBC in an interview that if he believed his candidacy was going to contribute to inadvertently helping Trump, then “that would be a pretty good reason to consider not running”.Seven years ago, when asked by reporters whether he was going to vote for Trump in the 2016 presidential election, Hogan replied: “No, I don’t plan to.”In 2020, then president Trump lashed out at Hogan after Maryland purchased a batch of flawed Covid-19 tests from a South Korean company.“This RINO will never make the grade,” Trump wrote on Twitter, using a disparaging acronym for “Republican in Name Only” coined by far-right Republicans. “Hogan is just as bad as the flawed tests he paid big money for!”In response, Hogan wrote: “If you had done your job, America’s governors wouldn’t have been forced to fend for themselves to find tests in the middle of a pandemic, as we successfully did in Maryland.”“Stop golfing and concede,” Hogan added, calling on Trump to accept the 2020 presidential election results.Meanwhile, another top Republican who chimed in on the presidential race discussion on Sunday was Chris Sununu, the governor of New Hampshire.During an interview with NBC host Chuck Todd, Todd asked Sununu if he would be comfortable signing a “loyalty pledge” as a presidential candidate that would ensure his support for whoever ends up securing the Republican nomination, even if it were Trump.“I’m a lifelong Republican. I’m going to support the Republican nominee. When you look at what’s coming out of the White House, it isn’t Democrat policies. It’s real leftwing extreme agenda type stuff that is not in the best interest of this country and I have no doubt that any solid Republican … would be better than … what comes out,” Sununu said.Nevertheless, Sununu said that he does not think that Trump will secure the nomination.“As far as former president Trump, I think he’s going to run – obviously he’s in the race. He’s not going to be the nominee. That’s just not going to happen,” he said.Sununu has not officially announced his run for presidency but hinted last month that a run would be “an opportunity to change things”.TopicsUS elections 2024MarylandDonald TrumpUS politicsRepublicansnewsReuse this content More

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    Florida Republicans seek new abortion restrictions amid broad rightwing push

    Florida Republicans seek new abortion restrictions amid broad rightwing pushProposals include restrictions on gender identification, diversity programs, press freedoms, and relax concealed weapons lawsFlorida Republicans are planning a broad rightwing legislative push, including new restrictions on gender identification, diversity and equity programs, abortion and press freedoms, and further relaxation of concealed weapons laws and the ability of courts to impose death sentences.The basket of proposed legislation comes five months after the state’s rightwing Republican governor Ron DeSantis won re-election by a decisive margin and the Republicans established a convincing majority in the state legislature.The broad push is seen by many as following the Republican governor’s ideological wish-list as DeSantis positions himself for a likely 2024 White House and an attempt to wrest the Republican party from out of the shadow of Donald Trump.Last week, Republican lawmakers moved to expand the state’s controversial “Parental Rights in Education/Don’t Say Gay” law with proposed legislation limiting the use of gender pronouns within parts of the public and charter school education system.The legislation, known as House Bill 1223, is aimed at establishing a requirement that “personal titles and pronouns” used in schools for kindergarten through 12th grade match the identity assigned at birth.The bill says that “a person’s sex is an immutable biological trait and that it is false to ascribe to a person a pronoun” that does not match their sex and expands bans on sexual orientation and gender identity topics in schools by five years, from third to eighth grade.The legislation, introduced last week, also releases employees, contractors, or students in Florida K-12 schools from referring to others using their preferred personal title or pronoun if it does not match their sex.Seeking to suppress trans rights has become a political tactic for Republicans in recent months across the US amid a broad right-wing backlash against LGBTQ communities, that has included proposed book bans, attacks on drag shows and the promotion of conspiracy theories.Other laws set to be pushed in Florida include allowing concealed weapons without a permit or training, a ban on diversity and equity programs at state universities, new abortion restrictions, rolling back press freedoms and allowing courts to pass a death sentence without a unanimous jury verdict.Republican lawmakers in Florid have indicated that they are guided by DeSantis. “We’re going to get his agenda across the finish line,” Republican Senate president Kathleen Passidomo said last month.The governor summoned lawmakers to a special session last month that would expand his power to transport migrants solely from Florida to transport from anywhere in the US. Lawmakers also gave state prosecutors expanded powers over voting-related crimes.The legislative slate follows DeSantis’s 19% margin in his re-election in November and appears to have little effective Democrat opposition. HB 1223 builds on 2021’s Parents Bill of Rights and HB 1557 Parental Rights in Education better known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which triggered widespread outrage but has been copied by other Republican-controlled state legislatures.Under the proposed legislation, both private providers or public schools would also be blocked from providing instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity.Equality Florida Public Policy director Jon Harris Maurer said in a statement that the legislation “is about a fake moral panic, cooked up by Governor DeSantis to demonize LGBTQ people for his own political career”.“Governor DeSantis and the lawmakers following him are hellbent on policing language, curriculum, and culture. Free states don’t ban books or people,” Maurer added.TopicsFloridaRon DeSantisRepublicansUS politicsnewsReuse this content More

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    A diminished but loyal Trump Maga at CPAC: ‘There’s one choice’

    A diminished but loyal Trump Maga crowd at CPAC: ‘There’s one choice’Trump might have lost some ground in the Republican party, but his core support is holding fast, even as some attendees expressed doubtIt fell to Steve Bannon, far-right podcaster and political pugilist, to wake up the crowd with a jolt.“Don’t fall for the primary stuff,” he urged in a fiery speech. “It’s not relevant. We don’t have time for on-the-job training [instead of] a man that gave us four years of peace and prosperity.”Trump’s war with DeSantis heats up with details of 2024 battle planRead moreWhat had been a low energy Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) erupted in cheers. It did so again when Bannon – who is facing four months in prison for contempt of Congress – assured them that “Donald J Trump” would win both the Republican nomination and US presidency in 2024. Finally, here was someone who was speaking the language of CPAC.But a glance at the convention centre ballroom revealed row upon row of empty seats. The “Make America Great Again” (Maga) movement, while vociferous as ever, appeared diminished in size. There was no doubt that former president Trump remained the big fish at the National Harbor in Maryland – but in a smaller pond.CPAC, which bills itself as the biggest and most influential gathering of conservatives in the world, has been taking place for nearly half a century. After a pandemic-enforced move to Florida and Texas, it returned to the Washington area this week. But proximity to the capital was no guarantee of relevance. The list of Republicans who decided to stay away was as striking as those who showed up.CPAC impresario Matt Schlapp, who is battling a lawsuit over a sexual assault allegation, acknowledged on Thursday: “There’s a lot of chatter in the media about who’s here and not here.”The absentees included potential 2024 contenders such as Florida governor Ron DeSantis, Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin, former vice-president Mike Pence and Senator Tim Scott. Republican Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell and Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel were also missing.Even Fox News, once Trump’s loudest cheerleader, appeared to have given up the ghost and been supplanted by the more extreme and fringy Newsmax. Bannon railed against Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch, vowing: “Murdoch, you’ve deemed Trump’s not going to be president. Well, we’ve deemed that you’re not going to have a network. Because we’re going to fight you every step of the way.”Fox News reportedly imposes ‘soft ban’ on Donald TrumpRead moreIt was a far cry from the days when CPAC commanded national headlines as the rehearsal dinner for Republican primary candidates. In 2015, the year before the last competitive Republican primary, the marquee event heard from nearly all the major candidates, including Jeb Bush.Nevertheless Nikki Haley, who launched her campaign last month, did venture into the lion’s den on Friday. Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations diplomatically avoided direct criticism of her old boss, though she did offer coded jabs.Noting that Republicans have lost the popular vote in seven of the last eight presidential elections, Haley said: “Our cause is right but we have failed to win the confidence of a majority of Americans. That ends now. If you’re tired of losing, put your trust in a new generation.”Although she received polite applause throughout her speech, there were numerous empty seats in the ballroom. And later several attendees chanted “Trump! Trump! Trump!” as she walked through the venue.Mike Pompeo, a former secretary of state who is also expected to launch a White House bid, was similarly oblique and subdued in taking on Trump. He said: “We can’t become the left, following celebrity leaders with their own brand of identity politics, those with fragile egos who refuse to acknowledge reality.”Both appearances underscored how no Republican has yet shown willingness to step into the ring and go toe to toe with Trump for fear of alienating his voter base. DeSantis has so far refused to engage while, in a recent interview, Scott admitted that he could not think of any policy differences with the former president.Meanwhile Trump, whom no one ever accused of being tormented by self-doubt, has forged ahead with campaign events, policy announcements and a visit to the scene of a toxic rail disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, that showed his populist touch has not entirely deserted him. Last month’s opinion polls showed him building momentum.‘You’re not forgotten‘: how the right racialized the Ohio train disasterRead moreCPAC, in effect a four-day Trump rally, is likely to provide a further sugar rush. He cruised to victory in its unscientific straw poll of more than 2,000 attendees with 62% of the vote, well clear of DeSantis on 20%. His speech drew by far the biggest crowd of the conference.A walk through the corridors revealed a plethora of “Make America great again” caps, “Bikers for Trump” vests and “Trump 45” sports jerseys, clustering around Maga podcasters such as Bannon, Sebastian Gorka and Mike Lindell. Trump’s son Don Jr spent hours broadcasting against the backdrop of a White House image.Downstairs, at the CPAC trade show, there was no escape from pro-Trump bobbleheads, caps, coins, dollar bills, dresses, flags, jewelry, sparkly purses, T-shirts and other products. A “DeSantis” cap with the Stars and Stripes sat beside a “Trump won” cap. A mock-up of the Oval Office featured a Trump photo, Maga cap and “Trump was right” sign sitting on a resolute desk ready made for photo ops.Interviews with more than a dozen attendees appeared to confirm the notion that, while Trump might have lost some ground in the Republican party, his core support is holding fast. Several expressed doubts over the validity of the 2020 election and none said the January 6 2021 insurrection was a deal breaker. Some spoke of nostalgia for the Trump economy.Theresa McManus, 67, a horse trainer and organic farmer from rural Virginia, said: “I liked my grocery bill. I’ve had to cut my herd of cows. I have a lot of friends who are pissed off because I can’t feed them anymore. My $30 bag of feed is now $75 a bag. This is ridiculous. My grocery bill: two little bags that were $10 or $20 are now $50 to $100.“Let’s just look at the economy. Look at the gas prices. Look at the food prices. He knew how to run this country. People didn’t like him because he was crass, because he was loud. You know what? I identify with that. I speak my mind, too, and it’s like, get out of my way.”Others continue to back the former president with a near religious zeal that will be difficult for primary opponents to penetrate. Asked why he likes Trump, Jason Jisa, from Dallas, Texas, corrected: “I love Trump. He puts America first. He puts the people of America first. He doesn’t sell us out to the globalists. He takes on the big dogs and he wins.”Jisa, 41, selling Trump merchandise, dismissed the potential threat from DeSantis. “Stay in Florida, stay in your lane. You can do it at a later time. He’s not the man for the job. He’s not up for it. I wouldn’t vote for him. If it’s not Trump, I won’t vote. There is no second choice. There’s one choice and that’s it. You can look at it as a spiritual thing: years ago, this situation we’re in now, has been foretold. We’re living out a prophecy and he’s the guy.”He was not alone in offering a scathing verdict of DeSantis that could foreshadow an ugly and divisive primary.Antwon Williams, 40, another merchandise trader from Columbia, South Carolina, said: “He’s being bought off. He was a Trumper and clearly now he has his own agenda. It’s like he used President Trump to get his name to where he needed to be and now all of a sudden he’s onto his own agenda now and that’s not cool.“Put it this way, DeSantis is to me is what Pence is to me: a traitor. Either you’re with us or you’re against us. Clearly Pence didn’t know the difference between that line and DeSantis is not understanding the difference between that line right now. I have nothing positive to say about him as long as he’s trying to run against us.”But others were more forgiving. A 40-year-old truck driver from Nashville, Tennessee, who gave his name only as James, said: “I love what DeSantis stands for. He is doing fantastic for the state of Florida. If there were not a Donald Trump in existence, I would be for Ron DeSantis as number one. Donald Trump is the man, the myth, the legend, the bomb. He is fantastic. I would love to see Trump-DeSantis on the ‘24 ticket.”Yet even in this Trump stronghold there were dissenting voices. Some argued that, while they admire his record as president, his myriad legal troubles, poor midterm election performance and boorish behaviour make him an electoral liability.Hylton Phillips-Page, 67, a retired investment manager from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, wants DeSantis to be the nominee. “He’s Trump without the circus,” he said. “I like Trump policies. I respect everything he’s done for us but there are too many people who will not vote for him.”Phillips-Page, who protested outside the US Capitol on 6 January, added: “I’m involved with the Republican party in a big way and I can tell you when I’m campaigning I meet lots of Republicans who tell me, ‘I’m not voting for Trump’.“It’s just a problem and I feel we really can’t afford to take that risk, quite frankly. I have no problem with Trump being president but, once he gets through the primary, DeSantis will have a much better shot at winning the general.”Kathleen Smero, 62, a supply chain analyst, favours Haley and Pompeo. “Nikki Haley has governor experience now as well as international experience of being ambassador. Mike Pompeo, of course, being secretary of state – the international defence skills are really important for being president.”But the 62-year-old from Baltimore, Maryland, added: “If Trump gets the nomination, I would vote for him. I believe in his policies. The rhetoric has been tiresome but I always support my candidate and I’ll always support President Trump if he gets the nomination.”Others are still undecided about their choice of Republican standard bearer. Wes Gregory, 34, a US marine veteran who is African American, said: “It will have to be a cross between DeSantis and Trump. They both care more about the people than themselves. They’re all about making America a better place.“Trump did it on the national level. DeSantis did it on the state level. Everyone’s moving down to Florida – everyone likes it. Trump did a lot of good stuff for the Black community, way more than any other president I can think of in my lifetime.”But if he had to choose between Trump and DeSantis? “Honestly, it would have to be a coin flip,” said Gregory, from Brunswick, Maryland. “They both have a proven track record of excellence.”TopicsCPACUS politicsDonald TrumpRon DeSantisRepublicansfeaturesReuse this content More

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    ‘I am your retribution’: Trump rules supreme at CPAC as he relaunches bid for White House

    ‘I am your retribution’: Trump rules supreme at CPAC as he relaunches bid for White HouseFormer president claims Biden is leading America into ‘oblivion’ and that he could end the war between Russia and UkraineDonald Trump turned back the clock to the darkest elements of his presidency on Saturday with a fiery address that showed the threat to American democracy is far from over.After a lacklustre start to his campaign, Trump appeared to launch his White House bid in earnest with a vintage display of demagoguery that framed the 2024 election as “the final battle” for America.The former president, wearing dark suit, white shirt and trademark red tie, also declared war on his own Republican party to the delight of ardent fans in the crowd chanting “Trump! Trump! Trump!” and “USA! USA! USA!” Trump rival Nikki Haley seeks support from Republicans ‘tired of losing’Read moreOpinion polls suggest that Trump’s grip on the party is slipping in the wake of the 6 January 2021, insurrection and a disappointing midterm performance. But he continues to rule supreme at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), billed as the biggest annual gathering of grassroots conservatives.Feeding off the energy of a crowd that wore “Make America great again” (Maga) caps, and watched by Brazil’s far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro, Trump returned to the authoritarian language that characterised his political rise seven years ago.“In 2016, I declared: I am your voice,” he said, speaking for just over 100 minutes from a bright blue and red stage in a cavernous ballroom at the closing speech of the CPAC event in Maryland. “Today, I add: I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed: I am your retribution,” he said.Trump left office in disgrace after two impeachments and a failed attempt to overturn his defeat by Joe Biden in the 2020 election, culminating in a deadly riot at the US Capitol. He faces an array of criminal investigations yet announced another run for president last November at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.The subdued launch failed to deter rival Republicans rivals such as Nikki Haley, former ambassador to the UN, who has thrown her hat in the ring. Florida governor Ron DeSantis, seen as the most serious threat to Trump, opted out of CPAC and is instead meeting potential backers in California.The mood at CPAC, held at a convention centre at the National Harbor in Maryland, was sluggish for much of the week but on Saturday night the 45th president drew by far the biggest and noisiest crowd. “I didn’t know this was a rally, Matt,” Trump said at one point to CPAC impresario Matt Schlapp. “It really is a rally.”Perhaps stung by critics who say Trump has lost the swagger of his first campaign, Trump seemed determined to tap into supporters’ nostalgia and make the case that, together, they could rekindle the old magic. “For seven years you and I have been engaged in an epic struggle to rescue our country from the people who hate it and want to absolutely destroy it,” he said.“We are going to finish what we started. We started something that was a miracle. We’re going to complete the mission, we’re going to see this battle through to ultimate victory. We’re going to make America great again.”As the crowd erupted in cheers and chants of “Four more years!”, Trump cast the upcoming election in Manichean terms, returning to his us-versus-them rhetoric of old.“With you at my side, we will demolish the deep state. We will expel the war mongers… We will drive out the globalists. We will cast out the communists. We will throw off the political class that hates our country … We will beat the Democrats. We will rout the fake news media. We will expose and appropriately deal with the Rinos [Republicans in name only]. We will evict Joe Biden from the White House. And we will liberate America from these villains and scoundrels once and for all,” he said.Trump then sent a warning to the party that he has shaped in his own image in an effort to crush dissent. “We had a Republican party that was ruled by freaks, neocons, globalists, open border zealots and fools but we are never going back to the party of Paul Ryan, Karl Rove and Jeb Bush.”In a zigzagging speech, Trump avoided references to DeSantis but repeatedly turned his fire on Biden. “This is the most dangerous time in our country’s history, and Joe Biden is leading us into oblivion,” he said.Trump insisted that Russian’s Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine because of the US’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021. “And you’re going to have world war three, by the way. We’re going to have world war three if something doesn’t happen fast. I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent world war three.”He made the unlikely boast: “Before I arrive in the Oval Office, I will have the disastrous war between Russia and Ukraine ended… I know what to say.”Trump threw red meat to the base: additional border wall construction and a massive increase in border patrols to stop the flow of illegal drugs, one day voting with paper ballots, a crackdown on trans rights and gender affirmation surgeries. He repeated his false claim that he won the 2020 election “by a lot” when in fact Biden beat him by 7m votes.But before a cult-like crowd, Saturday’s event was a warning against Democratic complacency, an indicator that Trump is down but not out and that, just as in 2016, history could take a perilous turn. “We have no choice,” he said in a startling contrast to Biden’s pleas for unity, warning “this is the final battle.”He concluded: “If we don’t do this, our country will be lost forever.”TopicsDonald TrumpCPACUS politicsRepublicansUS elections 2024newsReuse this content More