NationalWatch

New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking a December deadline for a judicial response to former President Trump’s motion for a mistrial in his highly publicized civil fraud case. 

Trump’s team filed the motion for a mistrial Wednesday, citing Judge Arthur Engoron’s past social posts on an alumni page for Wheatley School. In the posts, the judge appears to reference the case, as well as Trump and members of the former president’s family. 

“In this case, the evidence of apparent and actual bias is tangible and overwhelming,” wrote Trump lawyers Clifford Robert and Alina Habba. 

TRUMP TAKES THE STAND IN CIVIL TRIAL STEMMING FROM NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL LETITIA JAMES LAWSUIT

“Such evidence, coupled with an unprecedented departure from standard judicial procedure, has tainted these proceedings and a mistrial is warranted,” the pair added.

James filed a letter to Engoron on Thursday requesting the judge reply to the Trump legal team’s motion by Dec. 8.

James called the claims in the Trump team’s letter “spurious allegations.”

NY AG LETITIA JAMES CAUGHT SMIRKING AS DON JR. TAKES THE STAND AT TRUMP CIVIL TRIAL

Over the past several weeks, Trump has made many appearances in court defending the Trump Organization, which has its New York business license in jeopardy as James has leveled fraud charges against him and his two adult sons, who were named co-defendants in the case. 

Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly said his assets were actually undervalued. 

The former president has also repeatedly said his financial statements had disclaimers, requesting that the numbers be evaluated by the banks.

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James has been vocal in her opposition to Trump and repeatedly campaigned on prosecuting the former president before becoming attorney general. 

She has denied her charges against him are politically motivated.

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn, Brooke Singman, and Maria Paronich contributed to this report.

EXCLUSIVE: The Biden-Harris campaign is using former President Donald Trump’s own words against him in a bid to recapture one major voting block that helped secure his 2016 election victory, as well as boosted him in certain states during the 2020 election.

Union workers, who were largely traditional Democrat voters prior to Trump’s rise, were a big factor in pushing states like Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan toward the former president, and are being viewed as major players ahead of the 2024 elections amid the grip of labor disputes and their effects on the economy.

In partnership with the Democratic National Committee, the Biden-Harris campaign on Friday launched the opening salvo in a strategy that it hopes will win back those workers and propel President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to another four-year term.

NEW YORK JUDGE LIFTS TRUMP GAG ORDER IN CIVIL FRAUD TRIAL OVER FREE SPEECH CONCERNS

That first shot appeared in the form of a video on “Biden HQ,” the campaign’s social media rapid response network, which highlights Trump’s past statements about unions, including describing them as “dues-sucking people.” The descriptor is one he is known to have used on occasion, including once in 2019 when referring to a firefighters union that endorsed Biden’s 2020 campaign.

“[Unions] get their little 5%, they get another 2%, they get another 3%, 4%. Then, all of a sudden, they’re making more money than the people that own the company,” another audio clip of Trump says in the video, followed by what appears to be him calling wage negotiations a “terrible thing.”

“Donald Trump: Anti-union. Anti-worker,” the video adds.

JUDGE IN TRUMP’S GEORGIA ELECTION INTERFERENCE CASE ORDERS ‘SENSITIVE’ EVIDENCE WITHHELD FROM PUBLIC

Biden-Harris campaign Rapid Response Director Ammar Moussa told Fox News Digital that “Donald Trump sees the world from Park Avenue, not an assembly plant floor, and it shows.”

“While Trump looks down on workers and gives handouts to big corporations and his rich friends, Joe Biden isn’t just saying that he’ll always have workers’ backs – he’s proving it. After President Biden made history by standing with striking autoworkers, unions have notched historic wins and even non-unionized auto companies are taking note, increasing workers’ wages,” Moussa said. 

“This is what happens when you have a president who cares about working people: Workers win,” he added.

KARI LAKE GETS ANOTHER BIG BOOST WHILE GOP INCREASINGLY SEES HER AS STANDARD-BEARER FOR MAJOR SENATE SEAT FLIP

According to Fox News exit poll data from the 2016 presidential election, Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton won union households by eight points. That was a 10-point drop from former President Obama’s total in his 2012 election victory, and the lowest union support for a Democrat in two decades.

In 2020, Fox News exit poll data showed Biden winning back some of that support, garnering 56% of union households to Trump’s 42%, but the latter still outperformed in some states. The percentages were the same for voters who said they were union members.

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Polls have largely shown a hypothetical rematch between Trump and Biden to be in a dead heat as both face the threat of primary challenges and third-party presidential bids.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

With less than two months to go until the Iowa caucuses, former President Donald Trump remains the commanding front-runner in the state that leads off the Republican presidential nomination calendar.

But a prominent social conservative leader in Iowa — a state where evangelical voters play an outsized role in Republican politics — said he believes Trump is still beatable.

“You’re seeing the field naturally coalesce. It’s getting smaller and smaller,” Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of The Family Leader, a politically active and influential social conservative group, told Fox News Digital as he pointed to the winnowing of the 2024 GOP presidential field.

Noting that the former president’s under 50% support in the latest polls in Iowa, Vander Plaats predicted that Trump’s backing might be as low as 35% by the time of the Jan. 15 caucuses.

TRUMP, DESANTIS OR HALEY – WHO BENEFITS AS TIM SCOTT DROPS OUT OF THE RACE?

“There’s definitely a shot that the former president can be beat here,” he argued.

Vander Plaats, who’s likely to endorse one of Trump’s rivals in the coming weeks, was interviewed on the eve of Friday’s Family Leader presidential Thanksgiving forum. 

Joining Vander Plaats for what’s being described as a “family discussion” will be Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramawamy. Haley and DeSantis are currently battling for a distant second place behind Trump.

WITH NINE WEEKS TO GO UNTIL THE FIRST VOTES IN THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION RACE, THIS CANDIDATE REMAINS IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT

Trump was also invited to Friday’s forum, but is not attending. He also skipped the Family Leader’s summit in July, which attracted nearly the entire field of presidential contenders.

Vander Plaats, who’s long had a rocky relationship with Trump and who has argued that it’s time for new conservative leadership, said that the former president’s “absence communicates a lot to our base.”

“It’s a forum he’d want to take advantage of and remind our base of all the good things he did while he was president,” he said.

Vander Plaats reiterated that his likely endorsement “will be sometime after the forum and before Christmas.”

While there’s the possibility that the endorsement could come from the Family Leader, Vander Plaats said “my guess is…it’s a personal endorsement and not a ministry endorsement.”

And he said that his support would be much more than a one-day announcement, emphasizing that “I’ll do whatever I can to make the endorsement stick and see what happens.”

FORMER GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE URGES SOME REMAINING CONTENDERS TO FOLLOW HIS FOOTSTEPS

In a major boost for DeSantis, who has staked his campaign on winning in Iowa, the Florida governor landed the endorsement earlier this month of Gov. Kim Reynolds, who’s very popular among Hawkeye State Republicans. Reynolds’ backing helped DeSantis alter a negative narrative.

Vander Plaats, who has repeatedly showed praise for DeSantis this year, said the Reynolds endorsement of the Florida governor “will weigh in on my discernment. But that won’t make my endorsement.” 

Vander Plaats backed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in 2008, former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania in 2012, and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in 2016 — all three of whom went on to win the Iowa caucuses, but failed to capture the GOP presidential nomination.

Ahead of Friday’s forum, Trump’s political allies have dismissed the importance of a Vander Plaats endorsement.

A recent memo from veteran Republican pollster Tony Fabrizio, who among other things conducts surveys for the Trump-aligned super PAC Make America Great Again Inc., argued that a Vander Plaats endorsement would have “no significant impact” on the caucuses.

Pointing to polling he conducted in September, Fabrizio charged that “while the DeSantis camp will try and spin that a Vander Plaats endorsement will revive their sputtering and shrinking campaign, cold hard data tells a much different story.” 

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Asked about the criticism, Vander Plaats told Fox News “my endorsement means one vote. Beyond that, we’ll see what happens.”

But he added “I think their obsession with my endorsement probably would indicate that they’re more fearful of it than they should be.”

Trump’s allies also call into question $95,000 in payments earlier this year from the DeSantis campaign, and a super PAC and nonprofit group aligned with the Florida governor, to the Family Leader. 

The funds paid for three pages of ads for the campaign and the aligned groups in a booklet distributed by the Family Leader at their July presidential forum, which drew some 2,000 social conservative Iowans.

The big question going forward is whether the Reynolds backing of DeSantis and the pending endorsement by Vander Plaats can make a dent in Trump’s commanding lead over the rest of the field.

Nicole Schlinger, a longtime Iowa-based strategist with close ties to evangelicals, argued that endorsements only go so far.

“I think what matters more to Iowa caucus goers than anything is meeting with the candidates and getting their questions answered about their policy positions,” she told Fox News. “Endorsements, whether it’s the Governor or Bob Vander Plaats, can shine a light on the campaign, and then it’s up to the candidate to seal the deal.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

The U.S. Department of Justice accused a man, whom prosecutors have painted as a left-wing, anti-establishment activist, of inciting supporters of former President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021. 

At the conclusion of the trial against 29-year-old John Earle Sullivan in Washington, D.C., federal prosecutors outlined how he allegedly incited the mob of rioters inside the U.S. Capitol. 

Sullivan claimed to have been a journalist who only followed the crowd to record the historic event. He captured video of the shooting of Ashli Babbitt, an Air Force veteran, who was fatally struck trying to enter the House Speaker’s lobby by a bullet fired by Capitol Police officer ​​Lt. Michael Byrd.

“It does not matter whether Sullivan was holding a camera to record his crimes. He incited the mob at every step. He knew why he was there that day. He wanted to tear it all down,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barclay told jurors during closing arguments Wednesday, according to NBC News. 

Prosecutors also presented a call that Sullivan – the leader of an organization called Insurgence USA, through which he organizes protests – had with members of his Discord channel after January 6 during which he bragged about his actions. “I brought my megaphone to instigate s—,” Sullivan said on the call, added that he wanted to “make those Trump supporters f— s— up.”

LEFT-WING ACTIVIST CHARGED IN CAPITOL RIOT AFTER SAYING HE WAS JUST THERE TO ‘DOCUMENT’

On January 6, 2021, Sullivan, who is from Utah, said he was in D.C. again to film the “Stop the Steal” march. He has claimed that he was at the U.S. Capitol only to document and report it, telling federal agents he was an activist and journalist who filmed protests and riots, but admitted that he did not have any press credentials. 

“Everything that came out of his mouth was a ploy,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebekah Lederer told jurors. 

Of Sullivan’s own testimony, she said the only thing more offensive was his “request for you to believe it.” 

“He came to engage in chaos,” Lederer told the courtroom. 

The jury also saw multiple videos of Sullivan’s actions at the Capitol that day. 

Federal prosecutors said that Sullivan was captured in one video from inside the Capitol on January 6, telling the crowd, “We gotta get this sh** burned.” Among other things, Sullivan is heard saying, “it’s our house mother***ers” and “we are getting this shi**” More footage showed Sullivan, who had a ballistic vest and gas masks, join a crowd trying to open doors to another part of the Capitol guarded by law enforcement officers. According to the indictment, Sullivan can be heard on the video telling other individuals in the crowd, “There’s officers at the door.” 

Less than two minutes later, while officers are still at the doors and as others yell to break the glass windows in them with various objects, Sullivan, also known as Jayden X, can be heard saying, “Hey guys, I have a knife. I have a knife. Let me up,” according to federal prosecutors. However, Sullivan never made it to the door. 

FEDS SEIZE $90K FROM SUPPOSED LEFT-WING ACTIVIST WHO SOLD FOOTAGE OF CAPITOL RIOT

“I was only observing,” Sullivan testified in court. “I followed the crowd. I’m there to document.”

“I don’t remember bringing a knife specifically,” he said of the video. “I’m not sure if that’s a knife.”

His defense lawyer, Steven Kiersh, categorized Sullivan’s remarks as “just words,” noting that he had not been in possession of any matches or lighter fluid. 

“His intent was not to burn the place down,” Kiersh told jurors. “His intent was to film.”

Sullivan was arrested in Utah on January 14, 2021, and charged through a federal complaint with one count of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, one count of violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and one count of interfering with law enforcement engaged in the lawful performance of their official duties incident to and during the commission of civil disorder. 

Jurors were expected to start deliberating as soon as Thursday. 

Prosecutors are also seeking the forfeiture of more than $90,000 that Sullivan made from selling video of the January 6 riot, WUSA reported. 

Sullivan is said to have also attended Black Lives Matter and Proud Boys events in the past. 

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The indictment says that Sullivan was captured on video shared to YouTube in July 2020 – following the death of George Floyd – telling protesters over a microphone in Washington, D.C., “We need to burn this sh** down,” “We got to rip Trump out of office… f***ing pull him our of that sh**… we ain’t waiting until the next election…we’re about to go get that mother***er,” according to federal prosecutors. The indictment says that Sullivan is then seen leading the crowd in a chant of “It’s time for a revolution.” 

A New York judge has lifted the gag order imposed on former President Donald Trump in his civil fraud trial stemming from state Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit against him and the Trump Organization.

Citing concerns over free speech, appeals court Judge David Friedman issued a stay on the order Thursday, which was put in place by Judge Arthur Engoran in October.

Engoron, who is overseeing Trump’s trial, imposed the partial gag order to block all parties from making derogatory statements about his court staff. He fined Trump $5,000 for violating the order on social media on Oct. 20, and did so again on Oct. 25 for another $10,000 before threatening imprisonment if further violations were committed.

JUDGE IN TRUMP’S GEORGIA ELECTION INTERFERENCE CASE ORDERS ‘SENSITIVE’ EVIDENCE WITHHELD FROM PUBLIC

At Thursday’s emergency hearing, Friedman questioned Engoron’s authority to limit Trump’s speech outside the courtroom, and argued gag orders were used more in criminal trials where there is a fear of swaying a jury. The ruling also applies to Trump’s lawyers, who say they have no plans to inhibit the former president’s First Amendment rights.

Trump celebrated the ruling in a post on Truth Social, in which he railed against Engoran.

“Judge Arthur Engoron has just been overturned (stayed!) by the New York State Appellate Division (Appeals Court), for the 4th TIME (on the same case!). His Ridiculous and Unconstitutional Gag Order, not allowing me to defend myself against him and his politically biased and out of control, Trump Hating Clerk, who is sinking him and his Court to new levels of LOW, is a disgrace,” he wrote.

GEORGIA REPUBLICANS DUNK ON VOTING LAW CRITICS AFTER MLB ALL-STAR GAME RETURNS TO ATLANTA

“They are defending the Worst and Least Respected Attorney General in the United States, Letitia James, who is a Worldwide disgrace, as is her illegal Witch Hunt against me. The Radical and Unprecedented actions of Judge Engoron will keep BUSINESSES and JOBS forever out of New York State,” he said.

Trump reiterated that he did “nothing wrong,” and again accused James of having run on a “Get Trump” platform during her campaign.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

A new national poll released Wednesday showed President Biden trailing all three lead GOP presidential candidates: former President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley.

According to the survey, conducted this month by Marquette Law School, Trump has an advantage of 52% to 48% over Biden among registered voters, while DeSantis holds a 51% to 49% advantage in a head-to-head matchup with the president. And Haley, who also previously served as governor of South Carolina, holds a 55% to 45% edge over Biden, the largest lead among Republican candidates.

The survey showed that Trump’s edge over Biden has grown considerably since July, when Marquette’s poll showed the pair tied at 50%. It further showed DeSantis’ lead over Biden has remained consistent in that same time span.

And while all three of the top Republican candidates lead Biden, Trump is the only one who leads among Independent voters. Haley, meanwhile, has the largest support among Democrat voters compared to Trump and DeSantis.

FOX NEWS POLL: SUPPORT FOR TRUMP HITS 62% IN GOP PRIMARY

Trump has an edge of 54% to 46% over Biden among independents. Biden leads DeSantis 53% to 47% and Haley 51% to 49% among Independents.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

At the same time, Haley draws the support of 15% of Democrat voters, while Trump gets 11% and DeSantis gets 8%.

In addition, the Marquette poll showed Trump, for the first time this year, has taken a lead among registered voters who report being reluctant to choose either him or Biden. Trump leads Biden in that category by a margin of 53% to 47%, a big shift from Biden’s 55% to 42% lead as recently as September.

The most recent poll comes as the White House continues to claim it is not concerned about polling, which continues to show Biden’s approval rating falling and his 2024 prospects waning.

JAMES CARVILLE WARNS DEMOCRATS OF DANGER LOOMING WITH SINKING BLACK TURNOUT IN 2024: ‘ABYSMALLY LOW’ IN 2022

“I mean, look, I spoke to this yesterday,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters earlier this month. “And what I said is you have to take these polls… with a grain of salt, right? And I talked about 2020… and what we saw in 2020 and what was being reported then. And what we saw is a president that was… able to bring an incredibly strong, diverse coalition to win in 2020. We saw the same thing in 2022.”

“So, look, we don’t put much stock in… polls,” she continued. “The president is going to focus on delivering for the American people. He has an agenda that is incredibly popular, and that matters. And that’s going to be what the president is going to focus on: How do we continue to deliver for the American people? And that’s the focus.”

Democrat strategists, though, warned that Biden’s poor polling performance shouldn’t be overlooked.

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“I want [Biden] to consider what is best in terms of the goal that I know he is committed to, which is defeating Donald Trump,” David Axelrod, a former senior Obama campaign adviser, told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Nov. 6.

“And if he believes, based on not just what [is] in his heart but what’s in the data and what he’s being told, that he has the best chance to do it, then he should run. But you know, the thing that irritates me a little bit, Wolf, is this notion that people who are concerned are ‘bedwetters.'”

Georgia Republicans are taking a victory lap after the MLB named Atlanta as the site of the 2025 All-Star Game, which it moved from the state in 2021 following the passage of a voting law dubbed by left-wing critics as racist and akin to Jim Crow laws.

The law, which is still on the books in Georgia, aimed to ensure election integrity by placing certain restrictions on absentee and mail-in voting, expanding voter ID requirements and prohibiting non-poll workers from providing food and drink to voters waiting in line at polling centers.

MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred said at the time that the decision to move the game was “the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport,” citing concerns the Republican-backed legislation could limit voting access. However, turnout across Georgia increased in the 2022 midterm elections.

JUDGE IN TRUMP’S GEORGIA ELECTION INTERFERENCE CASE ORDERS ‘SENSITIVE’ EVIDENCE WITHHELD FROM PUBLIC

“Georgia’s voting laws haven’t changed, but it’s good to see the MLB’s misguided understanding of them has. We look forward to welcoming the All-Star Game to Georgia. Go Braves!” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp wrote in a post on X after news of the move back to Atlanta broke.

Georgia Lt Gov. Burt Jones took aim at the state’s two-time Democrat gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, one of the biggest critics of the voting law, and blamed her for the millions in economic benefits he said were lost due to the game being moved.

“Stacey Abrams cost Georgians over $100M due to her lies about Georgia’s common-sense election reform law. Four years delayed, I’m happy to see the MLB seeing through her lies and bringing the All Star Game back to Georgia. I’ll hold my breath waiting on an apology,” he wrote.

KARI LAKE GETS ANOTHER BIG BOOST WHILE GOP INCREASINGLY SEES HER AS STANDARD-BEARER FOR MAJOR SENATE SEAT FLIP

“[The MLB] realized that ‘voter suppression’ is as much a myth as Stacey Abrams winning the Governor’s race. Vindication – for Georgia voters, small businesses, and sports fans!” former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler said, referencing Abrams’ refusal to concede the 2018 gubernatorial election, the first of two elections she lost to Kemp.

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger called the decision the “longest instant replay review of all time,” and celebrated the overturning of “a bad call.” 

“Georgia’s elections are safe, secure, and accessible to serve our voters,” he added.

BIDEN’S APPROVAL RATING SINKS OVER ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR; SUPPORT FOR TRUMP IN 2024 RISES: POLL

Democrat Sen. Raphael Warnock joined in with Republicans in celebrating the move, saying it was “great news” for the state’s economy, and a “wise choice.” He was one of the few Democrats to scrutinize the MLB for its decision to move the game in the first place, while calling for them to stay and fight “voter suppression head on.”

Georgia’s other Democrat senator, Jon Ossoff, told Fox News Digital, “This is great news for the State of Georgia. We are prepared and excited to host the All-Star Game.”

However, he did not respond to questions concerning why the MLB was moving the game back to Atlanta despite Georgia’s unchanged voting law remaining in place after railing against Republicans in 2021 over the law amid the MLB’s decision to pull the game.

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“The leadership of Georgia’s Republican Party is out of control and Georgia is hemorrhaging business and jobs because of their disastrous new Jim Crow voting law. The Governor and the legislature are deliberately making it harder for Black voters to vote. They know it. Everybody knows it and this egregious and immoral assault on voting rights has also put our state’s economy at grave risk,” he said at the time.

With less than two months to go until the first votes in the Republican presidential nomination race, former President Donald Trump remains the dominant front-runner.

But a new public opinion survey in New Hampshire, the state that holds the first primary and second overall contest in the GOP’s nominating calendar, is the latest to indicate a surge by former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who served as ambassador to the United Nations in the Trump administration.

Trump enjoys the backing of 42% of likely Republican presidential primary voters in a poll from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Survey Center and CNN that was released Thursday, relatively unchanged from the previous UNH survey in September.

WHERE TRUMP  STANDS IN THE LATEST FOX NEWS NATIONAL POLL IN THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Haley stands at 20% support, up eight points from the September poll. 

“While Trump continues to lead as the GOP field narrows, Nikki Haley seems to be consolidating her position as the alternative to Trump among New Hampshire Republicans,” UNH Survey Center Director Andrew Smith told Fox News. “Importantly, Haley does not have the negative drag on her campaign compared with other Republican candidates.”

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who’s concentrating most of his time and resources in New Hampshire as he runs a second time for the White House, captures 14% support, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 9%, and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy at 8%. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum registers at 2%, with former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson at zero.

THIS KEY STATE DEFIES THE DEMOCRATS – WILL BIDEN PAY A PRICE COME NEXT NOVEMBER?

As he makes his third straight White House run, Trump saw his lead in the GOP nomination race expand over the spring and summer as he made history as the first former or current president in American history to be indicted for a crime. Trump’s four indictments — including in federal court in Washington D.C. and in Fulton County court in Georgia on charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss — have only fueled his support among Republican voters.

Trump enjoys a massive lead in national polling — including 62% support in a Fox News survey released on Wednesday. But his margins — while extremely formidable — are smaller in the crucial early voting states.

Haley, thanks to well regarded performances in the first three GOP presidential primary debates this summer and autumn, has seen her support among primary voters rise. Haley has tied DeSantis for second place in some of the latest polls in Iowa — whose caucuses kick off the Republican nominating calendar on Jan. 15. 

WITH 9 WEEKS TO GO UNTIL THE FIRST VOTES, TRUMP REMAINS COMMANDING FRONT-RUNNER AS GOP FIELD KEEPS SHRINKING

The UNH/CNN poll is the latest to indicate Haley in second place in New Hampshire, which will hold its presidential primary Jan. 23. She’s also moved ahead of DeSantis for second place in her home state, which votes Feb. 24 and holds the first southern contest.

The new survey indicates that Trump enjoys the backing of 55% of registered Republicans in New Hampshire. Support among independents who say they’ll cast a ballot in the GOP primary is evenly split among Trump, Haley and Christie.

Independents, known in New Hampshire as undeclared voters, make up slightly more than 40% of the state’s electorate.

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The poll also indicates that more than half of those questioned said they’ve made up their minds in the primary race, with self-described Trump voters more likely than those backing the former president’s rivals to say their choice for the GOP nomination is definite.

The survey was conducted Nov. 10-14, entirely after the third Republican debate, which was held Nov. 8 in Miami. 

“Few likely Republican primary voters paid close attention to the November Republican debate and only about half are interested in further debates taking place,” the release from the UNH Survey Center spotlighted.

And UNH also noted that when it comes to the issues, the survey indicates that “foreign policy has become far more important since September, while support for a 15-week abortion ban has declined.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

The judge overseeing former President Donald Trump’s election interference case in Georgia has issued a protective order that certain “sensitive” evidence in the case be withheld from the public.

The order, issued Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, came after the video recordings of interviews with some of Trump’s co-defendants were leaked to the media earlier this week.

It specifies that prosecutors can deem certain evidence turned over to the defense as “sensitive material” unfit for public release, and provides that the defense can challenge such a designation within 14 days.

DESANTIS TROLLS NIKKI HALEY WITH NEW CAMPAIGN MERCH MOCKING HER COMMENTS ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA VERIFICATION

District Attorney Fani Willis had requested a broader version of the order following the leaking of the video interviews, citing potential harassment, witness intimidation, or jury pool tainting.

Defense attorney Jonathan Miller, who represents former Coffee County election supervisor Misty Hampton, admitted to leaking the video evidence, which included excerpts from prosecutor interviews with former Trump attorneys Jenna Ellis and Sidney Powell, as well as pro-Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro and Atlanta bail bondsman Scott Hall.

All four have pleaded guilty to charges in the case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors as they pursue charges against the remaining 15 defendants.

BIDEN’S APPROVAL RATING SINKS OVER ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR; SUPPORT FOR TRUMP IN 2024 RISES: POLL

Trump was indicted by Willis in August, and pleaded not guilty to charges related to allegedly attempting to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, including violation Georgia’s anti-racketeering law.

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The Georgia case is one of four pending against the former president, as he also faces charges in New York City, Florida and Washington, D.C.

President Biden told a group of world leaders that California Gov. Gavin Newsom “could have the job I’m looking for” if he wanted, amid a low approval rating and discontent within his own party.

“I want to talk about Governor Newsom. I want to thank him. He’s been one hell of a governor, man,” Biden said Wednesday during a welcome reception for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders in San Francisco. “Matter of fact, he could be anything he wants. He could have the job I’m looking for.”

Biden’s eyebrow-raising comment was made at “the most significant event with world leaders in San Francisco in recent history,” according to the APEC 2023 website for the event.

Newsom recently elevated rumors of running a “shadow campaign” amid trips to Israel amid its war with Hamas, before heading to China late last month to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

LIBERAL COLUMNISTS, DEMS PILE ON BIDEN, SUGGEST DEMOCRATS EMBRACE NEW CANDIDATE AMID DISMAL POLLS

“The track record is not good for him to be gallivanting around the world doing basically a shadow campaign for president, just waiting for the moment when they finally decide to throw Biden under the bus,” Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., told Fox News Digital amid Newsom’s travels.

LaMalfa added that Biden is the “starter” and Newsom is the “backup quarterback” in the 2024 race, as more Democrats vocalize their concern over the strength of a Biden nomination.

“I don’t think the president should run,” former Democrat Rep. Tim Ryan recently told CNN. “I don’t think [Donald] Trump should run; I don’t think President Biden should run.”

David Axelrod, a former President Obama adviser, also questioned whether a Biden nomination would be the wisest choice for the Democratic Party next cycle.

“Only @JoeBiden can make this decision,” Axelrod posted on social media. “If he continues to run, he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party. What he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it’s in HIS best interest or the country’s?” 

FETTERMAN HITS NEWSOM FOR NOT HAVING ‘GUTS’ TO ADMIT HE’S RUNNING SHADOW CAMPAIGN AGAINST BIDEN

An anonymous former state lawmaker in Michigan suggested Biden is a “transitional president.”

“It feels like he was the perfect person for 2020. But not for 2024,” a former Democratic state lawmaker, whose name was not revealed, told The Wall Street Journal. “He’s a transitional president, and you have to know when to transition, and it is now.”

While some Democrats are calling for Biden to step aside, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., accused Newsom of running a shadow campaign and not having the “guts to announce it.”

“Let me say something that might be uncomfortable,” Fetterman said at a Democratic Party dinner in Iowa. “Right now there are two additional Democrats running for Pennsylvania, excuse me, running for president right now. One, one is a congressman from Minnesota. The other one is the governor of California. They’re both running for president, but only one had the guts to announce it.”

Biden campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez told reporters on the eve of the second Republican presidential nomination debate in September that Newsom has been a “tremendous asset to the campaign, and we’re really grateful to have him as part of our national advisory board.”

Newsom has said he would not run against Biden in 2024, but should the president drop out of the race, Axios predicts potential Democratic alternatives are positioning themselves to jump in the race.

“Democratic governors and senators are quietly moving to boost their national profiles and position themselves to run for president in 2028 — or in 2024, if President Biden unexpectedly drops out,” Axios reported in a recent story.

As many Democrats and strategists express concern over a 2024 Biden campaign, Fox News and Quinnipiac University surveys, both dropped Wednesday, reveal 59% of voters currently disapprove of Biden’s job performance as president.

A recent CNN poll also found Biden trailing Trump by four percentage points, 49%-45%, among registered voters in a hypothetical 2024 matchup.

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Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., and spiritual guru Marianne Williamson are both running in the primary against Biden, who will turn 81 years old on Monday and continue making history as the oldest American president to-date.

Fox News’ Nikolas Lanum and Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX: A pro-Palestinian Democrat seeking to represent Michigan in the U.S. Senate is calling for President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race for the White House, claiming his “handling of the Israel-Gaza conflict has thrown his Presidency into a tailspin.”

Nasser Beydoun, who declared in April his candidacy for the Michigan Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow, told Fox News Digital that Biden’s incessant support for Israel amid its war with Hamas terrorists has alienated a large portion of his base.

“As a Democratic Candidate for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, given the current environment, I can not support this president as my party’s nominee,” Beydoun, the former chairman and executive director of the Arab American Civil Rights League, said in a statement to Fox.

Biden’s willingness to support Israel’s efforts inside Gaza, Beydoun insisted, has resulted in the alienation and loss of “key voting blocks” that previously supported him in the 2020 presidential election.

AOC LEADS TWO DOZEN DEMOCRATS CALLING FOR ISRAEL CEASEFIRE OVER ‘VIOLATIONS AGAINST CHILDREN’ IN GAZA

“President Biden’s handling of the Israel-Gaza conflict has thrown his Presidency into a tailspin,” he said. “He has alienated not just Arab Americans but Muslims, Christians, Jews, and others in a way that far surpasses our sentiments following President Trump’s Muslim travel ban. These key voting blocks in swing states like mine overwhelmingly supported him in the last election and now find themselves politically homeless.”

“Joe Biden has blood on his hands, and we are disgusted by his support of rampant violence in Gaza,” Beydoun added.

Beydoun — who has donated thousands of dollars to Democrats in the past, including pro-Palestinian Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib — insisted that “every elected official has a job to represent the needs of their community” and that “Michiganders need a voice in Washington that listens to and understands their needs.”

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which Palestinian officials said last week had resulted in the deaths of more than 10,000 people in Gaza, has caused friction within the Democratic Party as several elected members call for a cease-fire.

Biden and other Western leaders have pushed back on calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, arguing it would only serve to benefit Hamas terrorists. Biden’s administration has instead pushed for humanitarian pauses in the fighting, which Israel has agreed to.

Earlier this week, 400 government officials from 40 departments and agencies within the Biden administration signed a letter opposing the president’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war and demanded a cease-fire.

BIDEN SAYS ISRAEL WILL STOP FIGHTING IN GAZA WHEN HAMAS ‘NO LONGER MAINTAINS THE CAPACITY TO MURDER’

Tuesday’s letter, first reported by the New York Times, includes officials from the State Department, White House, National Security Council and the Justice Department. The signatories of the letter remained anonymous to protect against professional retaliation.

“We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the letter reads in part.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is also leading renewed calls for Biden to support a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas over the “grave violations” being committed against children in the war.

Along with 23 other progressive lawmakers, Ocasio-Cortez wrote to Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday asking for details on the U.S. plan to de-escalate tension in the region.

“We write to you to express deep concern about the intensifying war in Gaza, particularly grave violations against children, and our fear that without an immediate cessation of hostilities and the establishment of a robust bilateral ceasefire, this war will lead to a further loss of civilian life and risk dragging the United States into dangerous and unwise conflict with armed groups across the Middle East,” the progressive lawmakers noted in their letter.

The ongoing tension among Democrats over their support for Israel led to a protest Wednesday evening outside the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee as pro-Palestinian demonstrators grew violent while calling for an immediate cease-fire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

U.S. Capitol Police said about 150 people were “illegally and violently protesting” near the DNC headquarters building in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington.

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Biden and his administration have remained steadfast in support of Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas. U.S. officials have strongly condemned the Oct. 7 terror attacks on Israel, in which Hamas terrorists infiltrated the Jewish state and massacred as many as 1,200 people, taking some 240 back to Gaza as hostages.

Israel has responded by bombarding Gaza with rocket fire and a ground invasion.

Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

The House Intelligence Committee is unveiling a series of proposals to reform a key surveillance tool that’s been both credited with preventing terror attacks on U.S. soil as well as accused of being a vehicle for spying on U.S. citizens. 

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) lets the U.S. government keep tabs on specific foreign nationals outside the country without first obtaining a warrant to do so.

The 73-page report by Republicans on the committee’s bipartisan FISA Working Group was led by Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill. It defends section 702, added to FISA in 2008, as a critical part of U.S. defense in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001. 

“[I]t is hard to find an adjective that adequately describes a tool that has done as much to safeguard American lives and liberty as it has,” the report said. “We are unable to calculate just how many lives it has saved. It is worth noting that there has not been another 9/11 since Section 702’s inception, despite the persistent threat of terrorism.”

PUBLIC TRUST IN FBI HAS REACHED ‘THE RED ZONE,’ US INCHING CLOSER TO ‘MAYHEM, CHAOS, ANARCHY:’ WSJ COLUMNIST

However, the report also acknowledges, “Section 702 has a number of problems requiring significant reform — from the need for increased penalties, compliance, and oversight, to the querying abuses by the FBI.”

Section 702 is set to expire at the end of this year, and is already facing an uphill battle for renewal. 

Critics of the program have accused it of being overbroad and susceptible to abuse. Members of Congress on both the extreme right and left have claimed it encroaches on Americans’ civil liberties, specifically if the FBI conducts warrantless surveillance on communications between Americans and foreign nationals.

Allies of former President Donald Trump, like Reps. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., have claimed the program was used to improperly spy on the Trump 2016 campaign, including ex-aide Carter Page.

FBI PAINTS GRIM PICTURE OF AI AS A TOOL FOR CRIMINALS: ‘FORCE MULTIPLIER’ FOR BAD ACTORS

But the Friday report sought to beat back those accusations. Lawmakers disputed the notion that Section 702 allows the intelligence community to access all of a U.S. citizen’s correspondence if they communicate with a foreign national.

“If a U.S. person communicates with a target of Section 702 collection, only the specific correspondence in which the foreign target is a party is collected —  this is referred to as ‘incidental collection.’ The government can never target U.S. persons whose communications are incidentally collected under Section 702,” it said. 

The report also calls Section 702 “individualized and extremely limited” to foreigners “who possess or communicate specific types of foreign intelligence information.”

And while lawmakers acknowledge that FBI abuses were found to have occurred in the FBI’s surveillance of Page and the 2016 Trump campaign, they maintained that those were separate from Section 702. 

GARLAND SAYS INCENDIARY MEMO DIRECTING FBI TO USE COUNTERTERRORISM TOOLS ON PARENTS NEVER RESCINDED

Among the specific reforms to the FISA tool that the House Republican report offered were proposals to drastically limit the number of FBI personnel who can authorize specific instances of Section 702’s use, and strengthening warrant requirements on some instances of surveillance.

Lawmakers also proposed barring the FBI from getting Section 702 information that is not specifically related to a specific existing national security case.

Details on suggested heightened penalties for abuse of FISA and Section 702 were also included. 

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They sought to give Congress greater oversight over the FISA courts as well, including allowing members of Congress to attend sessions as well as requiring court hearings to be transcribed and made available to lawmakers.

The report also included ways to expand Section 702 for what lawmakers argue is more effective use – such as “to expand the ability for the NSA to target international drug trafficking operations, including those distributing fentanyl and precursor chemicals, by including counternarcotics in the definition of Foreign Intelligence.”

CONCORD, N.H. – Republican Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire has a warning for President Biden and Democrats.

“Skip New Hampshire at your own peril,” Sununu told Fox News Digital.

The governor spoke minutes after the date of New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary was set for January 23.

The announcement by New Hampshire Secretary of State Dave Scanlan on Wednesday puts the Granite State at odds with the Democratic National Committee (DNC), as their primary is now in non-compliance with the DNC’s 2024 nominating calendar. The state now faces sanctions, which could result in the loss of half of New Hampshire’s delegates to next summer’s Democratic presidential nominating convention. 

THIS CRUCIAL PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY STATE AND KEY GENERAL ELECTION BATTLEGROUND BUCKS BIDEN AND THE DEMOCRATS

Holding an unsanctioned primary has led President Biden to keep his name off the New Hampshire ballot. That triggered leading Granite State Democrats to launch a write-in campaign in an attempt to prevent an electoral embarrassment for the president as he runs for a second term in the White House.

But Sununu, a vocal critic of the move by Biden and the DNC to upend the Granite State’s cherished century-old role in holding the first presidential primary, warns that a price will be paid by the president and his party next November in New Hampshire – the only general election battleground state in New England.

“There’s no doubt that citizens all across New Hampshire, especially independents and Democrats, are taking notice that they’re being pushed aside by a national party. No one takes very kindly to that — especially in politics, being told that their voice doesn’t matter like it used to,” the governor emphasized. “I have no doubt it will have a lot of effect come November of ’24.”

And Sununu argued that “the precedent that President Biden has potentially set is no Democrat will ever dare try to skip New Hampshire again. Because I think it’s really going to hurt President Biden. It’s going to hurt his chances. It hurts the Democratic Party as a whole.”

National Democrats for years knocked both Iowa — whose caucuses for half a century led off the party’s nominating calendar — and New Hampshire as unrepresentative of the party as a whole because the states have largely White populations with few major urban areas. Nevada and South Carolina, which in recent cycles have voted third and fourth on the calendar, are much more diverse than either Iowa or New Hampshire. 

While Republicans aren’t making major changes to their schedule, the DNC earlier this year overwhelmingly approved a calendar proposed late last year by Biden to move South Carolina to the lead position on Feb. 3. New Hampshire and Nevada were scheduled to hold primaries three days later, with Iowa entirely losing its early state position. The president and supporters of the new calendar argued that it would empower minority voters, upon whom Democrats have long relied but have at times taken for granted.

To comply with the DNC, New Hampshire would have needed to scrap its 50-year-old state law protecting its first-in-the-nation primary status and expand access to early voting. However, with Republicans in control of the governor’s office and both houses of the state legislature, Democrats repeatedly argued that was a non-starter.

Scanlan noted that the date he set “complies with our state statute requiring our presidential primary be at least seven days before any similar event.”

New Hampshire’s Secretary of State made his announcement in front of a crowd of national and local reporters, state officials and lawmakers, the Democratic and Republican state party chairs, other political leaders and dignitaries, who were crowded into the Hall of Flags at the Statehouse in Concord.

There are plenty of Democrats in Iowa and New Hampshire who see the upending of their lead-off positions as sour grapes from Biden, who finished a disappointing fourth in the 2020 Iowa caucuses and fifth in the New Hampshire primary — before a second-place finish in Nevada and a landslide victory in South Carolina propelled him toward the nomination and eventually the White House.

PHILLIPS TARGETS BIDEN, FELLOW DEMOCRATS OVER BORDER POLICIES AS HE LAUNCHES PRIMARY CHALLENGE AGAINST PRESIDENT

Fast-forward to the 2024 cycle and the president faces long-shot primary challenges from two Democrats who will be on the ballot in New Hampshire.

Three-term Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, one of the wealthiest members of Congress, formally announced his presidential bid as he filed at the State House on Oct. 27 to place his name on the state’s ballot. Also on the Granite State ballot is the other challenger, bestselling author and spiritual adviser Marianne Williamson, who is making her second straight White House run.

While the president, who turns 81 next week, is the commanding front-runner for the nomination, polls indicate Biden faces mounting concerns from Democrats over his age. Those surveys also suggest that many Americans, including plenty of Democrats, don’t want the president to seek a second term in the White House.

There are concerns among Granite Staters that the move by the president and the DNC to revamp the nominating calendar, and his absence from the primary ballot, could lead to a ballot box setback for Biden in New Hampshire.

“Personally, I believe that the president is making a mistake by not putting his name on the ballot here,” Scanlan told reporters.

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Looking ahead to next year’s general election, New Hampshire GOP chair Chris Ager promised that “we’re going to remind people that Joe Biden doesn’t care about New Hampshire. The Republican candidate, whoever it is, will have been here multiple times appealing to people. So reminding people of that fact will help us.”

“But whether he’s here or not campaigning, it’s his polices that are going to be his demise, because they’re just not good for the people of New Hampshire,” Ager argued.

Democrats disagree with the GOP argument that the battle over the primary date will impact them next November.

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“We fully expect that once the primary is over, Joe Biden will invest and campaign here, and be even more successful than the polls have already shown. Every indication that we’re getting is that New Hampshire Democrats are going to have a very good year in 2024,” longtime state Democratic Party chair Ray Buckley told Fox News in a statement.

Biden topped Trump by nearly eight points in New Hampshire three years ago, the largest margin of victory in the swing state in a presidential contest in a dozen years.

Buckley touted that “as every poll out of New Hampshire has shown —including the latest, post-municipal election polls — Joe Biden is beating Donald Trump in the Granite State by a considerable margin. The numbers don’t lie.”

And longtime New Hampshire based Democrat consultant Jim Demers — a top Biden supporter in the Granite State who’s helping to lead the primary ballot write-in effort on behalf of the president — predicted that “once the nomination is locked up, the convention takes place, Joe Biden will be back in New Hampshire campaigning.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

EXCLUSIVE: Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis rubbed salt on the wound Wednesday by trolling his opponent, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, over her heavily scrutinized vow to require all social media users be verified.

DeSantis’ campaign announced new merchandise mocking Haley’s comments, including a t-shirt with the phrase, “Always Watching,” and a quote from Haley saying that “every person on social media should be verified by their name.”

Another item is a dystopian-themed “Official Internet Identification Card” fashioned after something that might be required by a science-fiction authoritarian regime.

CRITICS RIP NIKKI HALEY OVER VOW TO REQUIRE ALL SOCIA MEDIA USERS BE VERIFIED: ‘BLATANTLY UNCONSTITUTIONAL’

Haley’s comments came during a Tuesday appearance on Fox News when she said the first things she would do if elected president would be to force social media companies to show their algorithms, in addition to the verification requirement.

“First of all, it’s a national security threat. When you do that, all of a sudden people have to stand by what they say. And it gets rid of the Russian bots, the Iranian bots and the Chinese bots. And then you’re going to get some civility when people know their name is next to what they say, and they know their pastor and their family members are going to see it,” she said.

DeSantis was quick to rip Haley for the proposal, joining a wave of critics blasting it as “unconstitutional.”

KARI LAKE GETS ANOTHER BIG BOOST WHILE GOP INCREASINGLY SEES HER AS STANDARD-BEARER FOR MAJOR SENATE FLIP

“You know who were anonymous writers back in the day? Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison when they wrote the Federalist Papers. They were not ‘national security threats,’ nor are the many conservative Americans across the country who exercise their Constitutional right to voice their opinions without fear of being harassed or canceled by the school they go to or the company they work for,” DeSantis wrote.

He went on to call her proposal “dangerous,” and said it would be “dead on arrival” in a DeSantis administration.

Haley walked back those comments on Wednesday, telling CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that while she didn’t mind “anonymous American” free speech, she didn’t support anonymous free speech for actors in Russia, Iran and China.

BIDEN’S APPROVAL RATING SINKS OVER ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR; SUPPORT FOR TRUMP IN 2024 RISES: POLL

“What I know, what anyone in intelligence [knows]… Russia, Iran and China, North Korea too, know that the cheapest form of warfare is to spread misinformation. Look at what happened with Israel. You want to know where all this pro-Hamas information is coming from? It is coming from foreign actors that are sowing chaos and division,” she said. 

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“I want freedom of speech for Americans. I don’t want freedom of speech for Russia and Hamas, and that’s what’s happening right now. So the way you fix that is we need our social media companies to verify everybody,” she said.

Fox News’ Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas may endorse former President Donald Trump for the 2024 GOP nomination when the two team up Sunday near the U.S.-Mexico border.

The former president will join the governor on Sunday in Edinburg, Texas, for Abbott’s annual pre-Thanksgiving tradition of serving tamales to Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and Texas National Guardsmen deployed along the southern border under the governor’s Operation Lone Star program, multiple sources confirmed to Fox News.

Those sources also say an Abbott endorsement of Trump this weekend for the GOP presidential nomination is possible.

WITH NINE WEEKS TO GO UNTIL THE FIRST VOTES IN THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION RACE, THIS CANDIDATE REMAINS IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT

Trump endorsed Abbott in 2021, as the conservative governor was gearing up for re-election and faced multiple primary challenges from the right. Abbott overwhelmingly won renomination in March of last year before comfortably defeating Democratic challenger former Rep. Beto O’Rourke last November to secure a third term steering Texas.

Abbott was grateful for Trump’s early endorsement last cycle, according to those in the governor’s political orbit, and it’s possible he’ll return the favor.

DESANTIS, HALEY, OR TRUMP – WHICH CANDIDATE BENEFITS FROM TIM SCOTT’S DEPARTURE FROM THE 2024 RACE?

Trump, who’s making his third straight White House run, is the commanding front-runner for the Republican 2024 nomination, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley currently vying for a distant second place in the polls.

Trump’s lead expanded over the spring and summer as he made history as the first former or current president in American history to be indicted for a crime. Trump’s four indictments – including in federal court in Washington D.C. and in Fulton County court in Georgia on charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss – have only fueled his support among Republican voters.

The former president’s trip to Texas to meet with Abbott near the border will spotlight the combustible issue of illegal immigration and border security. The issue’s long been top of mind for Republican voters, and GOP leaders and politicians for two and a half years have heavily criticized President Biden’s administration over the surge in border crossings by migrants.

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Trump has pledged if he wins back the White House to launch the largest mass deportation effort in American history, would reinstate travel bans as well as his 2019 “Remain in Mexico” program, which forced non-Mexican asylum-seekers aiming to enter the U.S. at the southern border to wait in Mexico for the resolution of their cases. Trump’s also said he’d seek to end automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. to immigrants who entered the country illegally, an idea he proposed during his administration.

Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign has slammed Trump’s “scary” proposals, arguing that it would violate the U.S. Constitution, the nation’s values, and the rights of immigrants.

Border security has also long been a top issue for Abbott, who’s sparred repeatedly with the Biden administration.

The Texas legislature, during a special session called by the governor, this week passed a controversial measure allowing state law enforcement officials to arrest suspected undocumented migrants. Democrats have pilloried the strict immigration bill.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

A San Francisco jury will decide the fate of the man accused of brutally attacking the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with a hammer in their home last year following closing arguments from both sides this week. 

The jury began deliberations in the case of David DePape, 43, on Wednesday, following closing arguments. 

DePape has pleaded not guilty to attempted kidnapping of a federal official and assault on the immediate family member of a federal official with intent to retaliate against the official for performance of their duties.

He delivered a tearful apology on the witness stand Tuesday to Paul Pelosi for the Oct. 28, 2022 attack. 

PAUL PELOSI’S ACCUSED ATTACKER DAVID DEPAPE APPEARS IN CALIFORNIA COURT AS TRIAL JURY SELECTION KICKS OFF

Prosecutors allege DePape broke into the Pelosi home during the evening hours of Oct. 28, 2022, in an attempt to find Nancy Pelosi. On Monday, Paul Pelosi testified that DePape repeatedly asked where his wife was. 

“The door opened and a very large man came in with a hammer in one hand and some ties in the other and he said, ‘Where’s Nancy?’ and I think that woke me up,” Pelosi said. “I’m asleep, and he bursts in the door and that woke me up.”

“It was a tremendous shock to recognize that somebody had broken into the house and looking at him and looking at the hammer and the ties, I recognized that I was in serious danger, so I tried to stay as calm as possible,” he said. 

DePape said he went to the Pelosis’ home to talk to Nancy Pelosi about Russian involvement in the 2016 election, and that he planned to wear an inflatable unicorn costume and upload his interrogation of her online.

PAUL PELOSI TESTIFIES IN TRIAL OF MAN ACCUSED OF BRUTALLY ATTACKING HIM WITH HAMMER INSIDE HOME 

Paul Pelosi said he didn’t set his security alarm before he went to bed but called the police during the home intrusion but DePape struck him with a hammer when officers arrived. 

“He was never my target and I’m sorry that he got hurt,” DePape said. “I reacted because my plan was basically ruined,” he said when asked why he hit Pelosi.

He said he believed various online conspiracy theories about former President Donald Trump and had other targets, including a women’s and queer studies professor at the University of Michigan, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and actor Tom Hanks.

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If convicted, DePape faces life in prison. 

In addition to the federal charges, DePape has pleaded not guilty to state charges of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, residential burglary and other felonies. A trial has not been set in state court. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.

What’s happening:

-President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet in San Francisco 

-Randi Weingarten questions presence of only men at all male Jewish service

-Republicans struggle to hold President Biden accountable on border crisis

Rashida’s Receipts 

Rep. Rashida Tlaib was caught being part of a secret social media group in which its members have glamorized Hamas in its war against Israel. 

The Michigan Democrat is a member of the Palestinian American Congress group on Facebook. The group is hidden from non-members and does not appear on the platform’s search engine, though Fox News Digital was able to gain access to it.

The group’s founder, Maher Abdel-qader — who has extensive ties to Tlaib and has also been linked to other liberal politicians — has come under fire in the past for his antisemitic social media posts, including questioning if the Holocaust ever occurred.

White House

TARGETING TRUMP: Hunter Biden asks judge to subpoena former president in gun case …Read more

‘OUTRAGEOUS’ EXCEPTION: Biden admin blasted for extending waiver on $10 billion Iranian funds …Read more

‘INTENSE DIPLOMACY’: Biden, Xi to meet on sidelines of APEC Conference in Bay Area …Read more

‘FATAL MAULINGS’: Biden admin blasted for trying to release grizzly bears near local communities …Read more

BOMBS AWAY: DoD releases videos of 2 airstrikes Iranian proxies in Syria …Read more

‘AN IMPORTANT WIN’: Biden admin’s effort to block oil leasing struck down by federal appeals court …Read more

Capitol Hill

BIG LABOR ‘GIVEAWAY’?: Republicans call on DOL to reject farm worker rule …Read more

‘DYNAMIC’ THREATS: House Homeland Chair Green to warn US is at ‘one of the most dangerous times’ in history during threat hearing …Read more

COMING UP EMPTY: Republicans struggle to hold Biden admin accountable for ongoing border debacle …Read more

Tales from the Campaign Trail

ON THE BALLOT: Michigan judge tosses challenge to Trump eligibility …Read more

FIRST LADY SEEKS NEW ROLE: New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy announces Senate bid …Read more

TAKING SIDES: Senate showdown: East Palestine leaders take sides in Ohio’s Republican primary showdown …Read more

SNUBBED: New Hampshire to formally reject Biden, DNC primary schedule …Read more

‘COMPLETELY UNHINGED’: Critics rip Nikki Haley over vow to require all social media users be verified …Read more

300 VOTE DIFFERENCE: Controversial Soros-backed prosecutor ousted from office in Virginia …Read more

SECRET MILLIONS: Left-wing group funneled $150M in secret cash to progressive crusades in 2022, tax forms reveal …Read more

‘LEFT-WING MINDSET’: DeSantis digs up George Floyd tweet to blast Haley’s leadership resume …Read more

What else?

OH, RANDI: Randi Weingarten bashed online for comments on lack of women at an Orthodox Jewish prayer service …Read more

‘HONOR THEM’: Climate activist vandalizes DC exhibit honoring Black Civil War soldiers …Read more

PRO-LIFE ISSUE: March for Life president reacts to infant Indi Gregory’s mandated removal from life support in UK …Read more

‘FOR EVERY CHILD’: ‘March for Life’ reveals theme for 2024 event in post-Roe United States …Read more

POLICY CHANGE: Massachusetts town approves permit to fly Palestinian flag on public flagpole …Read more

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

A nominee for a district judgeship in Oklahoma struggled during her nomination hearing on Wednesday to define basic terms for orders issued regularly by judges.

Sara E. Hill, who is nominated by President Biden to be the district judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma, was grilled by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., on the Senate Judiciary Committee about basic legal and Constitutional terms and definitions – a practice that’s become usual for him in recent months after several nominees have struggled to pass his tests.

When Kennedy asked Hill the difference between a “stay” order and an “injunction” order – two orders frequently issued by federal courts – Hill stumbled through her answers. 

“A stay order would prohibit, um, sorry. An injunction would restrain the parties from taking action. A stay order … I’m not sure I can, actually can, can give you that,” she said.

‘DANGEROUS’ DEMOCRAT JUDICIAL ETHICS BILL WOULD ALLOW ANY ‘JACKALOON’ TO DEMAND RECUSAL, SEN KENNEDY SAYS

An injunction is an order from the court that prohibits a party in a case from performing or ordering a specified act as the case continues, either temporarily or permanently, sometimes referred to as a temporary restraining order.

A stay order is issued to stop the legal proceedings of a case in court.

BIDEN JUDICIAL NOMINEE NO LONGER BELIEVES CHRISTIAN COALITION MEMBERS ARE ‘BIGOTS’ WHEN PRESSED BY GOP

Carrie Severino, constitutional lawyer and president of the Judicial Crisis Network, commented on X (formerly Twitter) about the exchange by saying, “How can an individual who wants to be a federal judge possibly not know this?”

TOP DEMOCRAT TRIES TO SCHOOL JUSTICE ALITO IN GROWING TIFF OVER SUPREME COURT OVERSIGHT

“Stays and injunctions come before district judges all of the time. This is not a trick question,” she added.

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Severino noted that at the end of Kennedy’s probe, committee Chair Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., “even congratulated Hill afterward for ‘passing the Kennedy bar exam’ – talk about grading on a curve!”

EXCLUSIVE: Republican Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake got another big boost Wednesday with a major endorsement from GOP leadership, a sign the party is increasingly viewing her as the standard-bearer in its bid to flip what is expected to be one of 2024’s most contested seats.

“Kari Lake is a proven conservative fighter who will secure the border, reduce the cost of living, protect our values, and save America,” House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik told Fox News Digital.

“Control of the Senate and the fate of our Republic will be determined in Arizona. I am proud to fully endorse Kari Lake for Senate in Arizona, making her the first E-PAC Senate endorsement of the 2024 cycle,” she added.

KARI LAKE OFFERS SOLUTION TO REPUBLICAN ELECTION LOSSES, PREDICTS GOP VOTERS WILL ‘SHOW UP’ FOR ONE MAJOR NAME

Lake told Fox she was “humbled by the endorsement,” and praised Stefanik as “a proven conservative warrior and leader for the American people.”

“Elise has stood in the breach against the Radical Left, including exposing the sham impeachments against President Trump, and ending Andrew Cuomo’s corrupt career. I look forward to working with her in Congress to get our country back on track,” she said.

Stefanik’s endorsement follows a number of other high-profile Republicans to back Lake, including former President Donald Trump, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., Rep. Burgess Owens, R-Utah, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and a number of state and local elected officials in Arizona.

KARI LAKE BUILDS MOMENTUM WITH MORE BIG-NAME BACKING IN RACE TO FLIP ARIZONA SENATE SEAT

Through Elevate PAC, or “E-PAC,” Stefanik is leading a national effort to elect more conservative women to Congress, an effort that has lead to millions of dollars being raised and donated to women candidates since the group’s founding in 2018.

During the 2020 election cycle, the first cycle E-PAC was in operation, 228 Republican women ran for the House of Representatives, of which a record 94 won their primaries. That year, 11 of the 15 districts flipped by the GOP were won by E-PAC endorsed women.

With those wins, the number of Republican women in Congress doubled to the highest ever in U.S. history, a feat it later added to during the 2022 midterms when it recruited a record number of Republican Hispanic women to run.

KARI LAKE PICKS UP FIRST MAJOR ENDORSEMENT IN RACE TO FLIP ARIZONA SENATE SEAT RED

Lake’s only major challenger in the race for the Republican nomination so far is Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb.

Recent polls have shown Trump leading President Biden in a hypothetical 2024 matchup in Arizona, which, should it hold, would likely boost the Republican Senate nominee in a matchup with Phoenix-area Rep. Ruben Gallego, the likely Democrat nominee.

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Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who currently holds the seat, has not yet said whether she will run for re-election.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.