NationalWatch

An incumbent Republican congressman from New York now holds a surprising lead over his progressive opponent, according to a new poll. 

The poll, which was conducted by PIX11, The Hill and Emerson College, found that Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., holds a 49%-44% lead over former Democratic U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones. The two are running in New York’s 17th congressional district, and the poll comes a week before the Nov. 5 election.

The survey, which was published on Tuesday, was conducted Oct. 24 through Oct. 26 and has a margin of error of +/- 4.4 percentage points. According to Emerson College, the data was collected via cell phone surveys.

Lawler gained a four-point increase in support, based on an earlier poll conducted by Emerson College. The other survey, conducted Oct. 1 to Oct. 3, found that Lawler had 45% of voters’ support and put Jones at 44%.

BATTLEGROUND STATE OFFICIALS SAY FOREIGN ENEMIES USING MISINFORMATION TO ‘UNDERMINE’ DEMOCRATIC PROCESS

Rep. Mike Lawler’s race against former Rep. Mondaire Jones is expected to be one of the closest in the country. (Getty Images)

The poll also found that 52% of voters have a favorable view of Lawler, compared to 44% of voters having a favorable view of Jones.

The district still leans blue in presidential election polls, and the survey found that half of voters support President Kamala Harris and 47% support former President Donald Trump.

“The top issue for voters in the 17th district is the economy, at 30%, followed by immigration (20%), housing affordability (15%), crime (11%), and threats to democracy (10%),” the findings read.

“Half (50%) of voters in the 17th district say they are worse off financially today than a year ago, while 32% say they are doing about the same, and 18% are better off.”

TRUMP MERCHANDISE OUTSELLS PRO-HARRIS MERCH BY STRIKING MARGIN, AS ELECTION DAY DRAWS NEAR

UNITED STATES – JUNE 4: Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., talks with reporters after a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, June 4, 2024.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said that the recent findings highlight a significant gender divide between voters.

“There is a stark gender divide in the 17th district, with men breaking for Lawler by 27 points, and women breaking by 16 for Jones, while men are more divided in the 18th district: 47% support Esposito and 46% support Ryan,” Kimball explained. “Women break for Ryan by 20 points.”

Earlier this month, Lawler was accused of dressing in blackface when photos of him dressed as Michael Jackson in October 2006 emerged. Lawler, a student at the time, said that his costume was intended to be complimentary and apologized for causing offense.

Former Rep. Mondaire Jones is now polling lower than his opponent. (Getty Images)

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Lawler and Jones campaigns for comments.

One of Puerto Rico’s two “shadow senators” endorsed former President Trump only days after comic “Kill Tony” Hinchcliffe delivered a widely-criticized set demeaning the island protectorate at the Republican’s New York City rally.

Shadow Sen. Zoraida Buxo, a Republican, said she was proud to be back in Allentown, Pennsylvania’s third-largest city, and the anchor of a key swing congressional district. Shadow Senators are elected officials who are not seated in the upper chamber, but are tasked with advocating for their territory and its statehood.

In a recent Fox News Digital interview, Allentown Democratic Mayor Matt Tuerk said that for the first time, the city – settled by English loyalist William Allen and historically Pennsylvania Dutch – is Latino-majority. Only Hazleton and Reading reportedly have a higher proportion as of 2022. 

Allentown’s population is estimated at 126,000, and about one-quarter is Puerto Rican.

JON STEWART DEFENDS COMEDIAN WHO JOKED ABOUT PUERTO RICO AT TRUMP RALLY: ‘I FIND THAT GUY VERY FUNNY’

The city of Allentown, PA – the Commonwealth’s third largest – is seen from the Tilghman Street Bridge. (Charles Creitz)

Buxo nodded to that development in her speech, about two hours prior to Trump’s estimated speaking time. The president had been delayed leaving another event in Delaware County earlier in the day.

Buxo said she is reminded of her home island’s “steadfast conservative values of community, family, faith and deep love of country.”

“That is home. That is Puerto Rico,” she said.

TRUMP CAMP RESPONDS TO BACKLASH OVER COMEDIAN’S PUERTO RICO JOKE AT RALLY

Without mentioning Hinchcliffe by name in her address, she appeared to reference the controversy, saying “we won’t get rattled, we won’t yield to ignorance [or] foolishness… we will remain focused on what is very important.”

“We all share a desire of change for the good,” she later added.

Buxo slammed the “failed policies” of the Biden-Harris administration, touching on border security, law enforcement and the economy.

Tony Hinchcliffe of “Kill Tony” speaks during a campaign rally for Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden. (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

She said there are nearly six million Puerto Ricans living stateside, and that about 500,000 reside in Pennsylvania.

“We Hispanics are part of the soul of this country. We have made a difference, and we will again make a difference in this coming election to bring about much-needed change,” she said.

“I urge you to watch out and stay focused on what is truly important when you go to cast your vote … We need change and Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are not the option to bring about the kind of change that you need and want.”

She closed her remarks with the endorsement:

“We need the leadership of Donald J. Trump as our Commander-in-Chief and Dave McCormick for a renewed leadership in the United States Senate,” she said.

THE LEFT TWISTS JOYFUL TRUMP RALLY! PLUS COMEDIAN TONY HINCHCLIFFE UNDER FIRE FOR JOKE

A Puerto Rican flag (AP Photo/Ricardo Arduengo)

“Pennsylvanians – Americans, all – a better future is in your hands – your vote is the most powerful tool you have to bring about change. And for Latinos: Dale a Trump la fuersa de ta voto (“Give Trump the force of your vote”).

“And for those reasons, I strongly and fully support and endorse Donald J. Trump to be our 47th president to Make America Great Again and to Make Puerto Rico Shine Again.”

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Meanwhile, outside the rally – held at the PPL Center hockey arena and entertainment venue home to the Flyers affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms — a billboard reportedly displayed the Washington Post’s headline following Trump’s Madison Square Garden Event.

Flipping between Spanish and English, according to the New York Times, the type read “Trump rally speakers lob racist insults, call Puerto Rico ‘island of garbage.”

Conversely, the prayer to kick off the event was recited by Roberto Albino, who called himself a “proud Puerto Rican” and complimented Trump.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz mocked former President Trump’s age during a Tuesday evening rally in Georgia.

Walz criticized Trump’s proposal to stop taxing Social Security checks while quipping that Trump himself would be eligible for the program, which is for Americans aged 62 and older.

“Now, Trump came out with a plan that if we execute his plan, Social Security will go broke in six years,” he said, referring to a recent analysis of the effect of Trump’s tax proposals on Social Security.

“Social Security might not be very important to a guy like that. If you’re a billionaire and your dad gave you $400 million – you pretty much squandered all that, but you can just limp along on $400 million…he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care that he gets a check.”

GEORGIA GOP CHAIR SHARES 2-PRONGED ELECTION STRATEGY AS TRUMP WORKS TO WIN BACK PEACH STATE

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz mocked former President Trump’s age during a Tuesday evening rally in Georgia (Getty Images)

The crowd whooped as Walz quipped, “Now he is nearly 80, so he does qualify for Social Security.”

“He does qualify, but he doesn’t give a damn. My mom cars who’s nearly 90. She uses her Social Security check,” Walz said. “[Democratic 2024 nominee Vice President Kamala Harris] and I will protect Social Security and Medicare and make it stronger.”

The former president’s age has been a favorite political cudgel for Harris allies since 81-year-old President Biden dropped out of the race.

The recent analysis from the Committee For a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), however, accused both Trump and Harris of a lack of sufficient answers on Social Security.

On her campaign website, Harris promised to “protect” Social Security “by making corporations and the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share in taxes,” though it does not elaborate much further.

GEORGIA DEMS CHAIR REVEALS MESSAGE TO UNDECIDED GOP VOTERS AS HARRIS WORKS TO BUILD BROAD BASE

Harris’ campaign website has few details about Social Security solvency plans (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“Unfortunately, neither candidate has presented plans to fix Social Security’s finances despite the looming $16,500 cut facing a typical couple retiring just before insolvency,” the CRFB analysis said.

It did project, however, that Trump’s stated tax and tariff policies would advance the program’s expected solvency from fiscal year 2034 to FY 2031.

The former president has vowed to protect Social Security and Medicare during numerous public appearances on the campaign trail. He told supporters as recently as Monday evening at his own Georgia event, “I’m the one that’s going to make Social Security strong again.”

The evening rally was Walz’s last public stop in Georgia on Tuesday after multiple public events.

Both the Harris and Trump campaigns have poured enormous amounts of time and resources into the Peach State, which Biden won by less than 1% in 2020.

‘ILLEGAL, UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND VOID’: GEORGIA JUDGE STRIKES DOWN NEW ELECTION RULES AFTER LEGAL FIGHTS

Both campaigns have poured significant resources into Georgia (Megan Varner/ Washington Post)

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The Trump campaign’s Georgia spokesperson Morgan Ackley said of Walz’s day-long swing, “Since Kamala Harris said she wouldn’t have done anything different from Joe Biden, Tim Walz is campaigning for another four years of unmanaged illegal immigration, skyhigh prices, and war abroad.”

“Georgia voters know President Trump will fix what Kamala Harris broke and flock to the ballot box for his America First Agenda on November 5th,” Ackley said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Trump campaign for comment on Walz’s specific remarks on Tuesday evening.

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

The U.S. Supreme Court has denied separate appeals by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to remove his name from the ballots in Wisconsin and Michigan – a move supported by former President Trump.

Kennedy, who was running as the independent presidential candidate, has been trying to get his name off ballots in key battleground states since he suspended his campaign in August and endorsed Trump.

“Minor party candidates cannot withdraw, so his name will remain on the ballot in the November election,” Cheri Hardmon, senior press secretary for Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, said in a previous statement to NBC News. 

Fox News’ Bill Mears learned that both Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett referred the cases to the full Court for a vote. While they could have decided them solo, it’s expected with all election-related litigation that the individual Justices will defer to the full Court. 

RFK JR SAYS TRUMP MOVE IS SOMETHING NO OTHER PRESIDENT’S DONE BEFORE

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announces he is suspending his presidential campaign at a news conference Friday, Aug 23, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Darryl Webb)

It is also not known how the votes went down, but the only public dissent is from Justice Neil Gorsuch – and only in the Michigan case. 

When he suspended his campaign, Kennedy said he planned to keep his name on the ballot in safe Democratic and Republican states, but didn’t want to be a spoiler in battleground states.

“In about 10 battleground states where my presence would be a spoiler, I’m going to remove my name, and I’ve already started that process and urge voters not to vote for me,” Kennedy previously said. “Our polling consistently showed by staying on the ballot in the battleground states, I would likely hand the election over to the Democrats, with whom I disagree on the most existential issues.” 

RFK JR URGES CATHOLICS TO VOTE FOR TRUMP IN NEW AD

Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during a rally in Glendale, Arizona, U.S., August 23, 2024. (REUTERS/Go Nakamura)

Republican members of the commission in Wisconsin pushed to grant Kennedy his wish to no longer be on the ballot after he suspended his campaign and endorsed Trump. The commission was deadlocked under opposition from Democrats, who pointed to Wisconsin state law that says once a candidate has filed for office, they must remain on the ballot unless they die.

RFK JR BLAMES ‘CENSORSHIP’ FOR FAILED CAMPAIGN, GIVES DETAILS OF TALKS WITH TRUMP

FILE – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks to reporters at the Nassau County Supreme Court in Mineola, N.Y. on Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, Pool) (Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, Pool)

“We know Trump and Kennedy are playing games,” Democratic elections commission member Mark Thomsen said, according to the Associated Press. “Whatever games they’re playing, they have to play them with Kennedy on the ballot.”

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The presence of independent and third party candidates on the ballot could be a key factor in a state where four of the last six presidential elections have been decided by between 5,700 votes and about 23,000 votes.

Fox News’ Bill Mears, Shannon Bream, Bradford Betz, Danielle Wallace, and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

George W. Bush’s daughter, Barbara Pierce Bush, 42, joined the Harris campaign last weekend in Pennsylvania to help knock on doors and campaign for the potential future Democratic president. 

Bush’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris came after her mother and father said they had no plans to endorse either candidate for office. They did not vote for either candidate in 2016, writing “None Of The Above” on their ballots. This cycle, a significant cohort of staffers from the administrations of former Presidents George W. and George H.W. Bush have thrown their weight behind Harris, including a former Cabinet member. 

“It was inspiring to join friends and meet voters with the Harris-Walz campaign in Pennsylvania this weekend,” Bush told People magazine Tuesday. “I’m hopeful they’ll move our country forward and protect women’s rights.” In a photo circulating online, Bush could be seen standing at the front stoop of a home with several others, while donning a “Kamala” hat.

OVER 200 FORMER BUSH, MCCAIN, ROMNEY STAFFERS ENDORSE HARRIS: ‘THE ALTERNATIVE … IS SIMPLY UNTENABLE’

In 2010, Bush, who also has a twin sister, told People that she does not identify with either major political party. But in the past, Bush has supported causes sympathetic to many in the Democratic Party, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. Her mother, Laura Bush, similarly broke with her family’s Republican roots in 2010 when she, too, came out in support of abortion and gay marriage.

“I am proud to stand with Planned Parenthood not only because women, regardless of where they are from, deserve to live dignified, healthy lives… because it’s a really good investment,” Bush said at the time, according to a report from The Texas Tribune. 

In 2009, Bush co-founded a nonprofit called Global Health Corps, which seeks to strengthen health systems through its network of qualified young leaders and health professionals. Today, Bush is a mother of two – Cora and Edward.

WHITE HOUSE LAWYERS WHO ADVISED REAGAN, BUSH ENDORSE HARRIS OVER TRUMP IN 2024 SHOWDOWN

Bush’s endorsement follows other GOP endorsements for Harris, including former Vice President Dick Cheney; Liz Cheney, former Wyoming congresswoman and daughter of Dick Cheney; Susan Ford Bales, the daughter of former President Gerald Ford; former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, as well as a handful of former Trump staffers.     

“Thank you, Barbara Bush, for standing for truth, decency, and freedom,” Cheney said, following news of the endorsement.

The Harris campaign has frequently touted support from Republicans, including running advertisements with former Trump administration officials, urging Americans not to vote for their former boss because he is unfit for the presidency.

Earlier this month, Harris rallied with prominent Republicans in the swing state of Pennsylvania. 

The Oct. 16 rally was attended by Kinzinger and former Reps. Barbara Comstock, R-Va., Jim Greenwood, R-Pa., Mickey Edwards, R-Okla., Denver Riggleman, R-Va., Chris Shays, R-Conn., and David Trott, R-Mich. Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman were also present, alongside a handful of former Trump aides.

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“The Vice President is bringing together voters from across the political spectrum by running a campaign about freedom, democracy, and opportunity,” Austin Weatherford, the Harris campaign’s national director for Republican engagement, said in advance of the Oct. 16 rally. “Our Republicans for Harris program is taking that unifying, inspiring message to anti-Trump Republicans, moderates, and independents.”

The Trump campaign similarly insisted that it is building a “diverse political movement,” when reached for comment on this story.

“President Trump is building the largest, most diverse political movement in history because his winning message of putting America first again resonates with Americans of all backgrounds,” said Trump Campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Kamala Harris is weak, failed, and dangerously liberal and a vote for her is a vote for higher taxes, inflation, open borders, and war.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the Harris campaign for comment but did not receive a response.

Vice President Kamala Harris gave a puzzling and often meandering answer when asked how she would respond to people who accuse her of pandering — eventually admitting that what she’s doing now is “not new,” but if she were president she would take a “new approach” to that job.

Harris was interviewed by Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast this week.

Sharpe expressed frustration with what he claimed was a disparity in how Black candidates are treated when they lay out their policies. He said they are often accused of “pandering.”

“The problem that I have with that is it just seems like only Black people pander,” Sharpe said.

NEWT GINGRICH SOUNDS OFF ON KAMALA HARRIS’ ‘WORD SALAD’ INTERVIEWS, ‘INSANE’ POSITION ON ISRAEL-HAMAS

Vice President Harris shared her “new” approach to the presidency, which she told Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, was “not new.” (Credit: Club Shay Shay)

He said when other candidates go on shows and lay out their “elaborate plan of what they’re going to do,” they’re not pandering. He said, when Harris lays out what she is going to do if she’s elected president, she’s accused of pandering.

Sharpe asked how she plans to “get through to those” that accuse her of pandering and how she can make it clear what she intends to do if she’s elected.

Harris told the host if people look at facts instead of misinformation, they will see that almost everything she has done is based on a foundation she built for years. For instance, she said she has worked on the economic empowerment of Black communities for years, and as vice president, she has been responsible for getting billions of dollars into community banks to increase access to capital for minorities and other small business owners. 

JUDGE REJECTS GOP BID TO RESTRICT OVERSEAS BALLOTS IN PENNSYLVANIA

Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a CNN Presidential Town Hall at Sun Center Studios on October 23, 2024, in Aston, Pennsylvania. (Getty images)

“What I’m talking about doing right now is based on long-standing work,” Harris said. “It’s not new. But as president of the United States, part of why it is important is it is a new approach to that job.

“It is about a new way that is based on a new generation of leadership that is based on new ideas and, frankly, a different experience that brings my commitment to the work I am talking about into being,” she added.

The Trump campaign seized on the puzzling answer — sharing a clip on X. The clip triggered a flurry of responses from users.

“Did anyone understand what she just said?” one user asked.

HARRIS CAMPAIGN PLEDGES MORE MEDIA INTERVIEWS AS VOTERS STILL HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT HER POLICIES

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a service at the Church of Christian Compassion, Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024, in Philadelphia.  (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

“So, it’s [not] new…but it’s new…but it’s the same…but it’s new. OK, got it. Thanks for clearing that up, Kamalaladingdong,” another user wrote.

Still, one more user wrote, “She fails again to explain anything.”

The Democratic presidential nominee has continued to storm through battleground states in her bid to become the leader of the free world. Critics have accused her of serving up a series of “word salad” answers to questions that lack any real substance.

Last month, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich issued a warning about Harris during an appearance on “Hannity.”

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“Part of this may be psychological, and she may not be capable of uttering a clear, coherent policy position,” Gingrich said. “But whatever the reason, the more we get these word salads, the more obvious it is that she either doesn’t know what she’s saying or she can’t articulate it, or she’s trying to hide. These things all hurt her.”

The Harris-Walz campaign rolled out a new TV and digital ad on Saturday invoking the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and other acts of anti-Asian hate, comparing them to former President Donald Trump.

In the 30-second ad, titled “Our America,” the Harris campaign accuses Trump of having an “outdated vision of America” that “has no place” for Asian Americans. 

The ad features symbols of American freedom, including the Constitution, purportedly “under attack by Trump and his extremist allies,” the Harris campaign said in a news release.

The Harris-Walz campaign rolled out a new TV and digital ad on Saturday invoking the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and other acts of anti-Asian hate. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images, left, Harris-Walz campaign, center, Amil Krzaczynski/AFP right.)

TRUMP CAMPAIGN’S CLOSING MESSAGE TO VOTERS: ‘HARRIS BROKE IT, TRUMP WILL FIX IT’

The ad “alludes to moments when Asian Americans were denied their civil rights – such as the mass incarceration of Japanese-Americans during World War II and the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin in Detroit,” the campaign said. 

“We have a choice between someone who wants unchecked power and has an outdated vision of America that has no place for us… Or a president who will respect all Americans, who will never view us as ‘others,’” the narrator says. 

“Protect our democracy and our communities. Vote.”

The ad features men, women and children of Asian descent, including a purported Iraq War veteran giving a salute. The video is appearing on television in battleground states as well as across an array of digital channels like Meta, Snap, YouTube and radio, the Harris-Walz campaign says.

POLLSTER DISSECTS TRUMP’S LATEST AD MOCKING KAMALA HARRIS AS ONE OF HIS ‘MOST SIGNIFICANT’

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a rally in Houston on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

In 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, sent around 117,000 people of Japanese descent to internment camps, the majority of whom were American citizens. 

Roosevelt issued an executive order on Feb. 19 of that year, coming two months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. When the internees were taken to the camps, they could bring only what they could carry.

Nine of the camps were shut down by the end of 1945 following a Supreme Court decision, with the final camp closing in March 1946. 

Chin, 27, was an American draftsman of Chinese descent who was fatally assaulted in San Francisco in a racially motivated assault by two White men following a fight at a strip club. Federal authorities said two autoworkers blamed Chin for layoffs at car factories due to Japanese imports. 

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After Chin left the club, the two men tracked him down at a fast-food eatery and attacked him, authorities said. Chin later died at a hospital.

There was a sharp increase nationwide in anti-Asian hate crimes with the onset of the pandemic and the ad seeks to link these attacks to Trump with #StopAsianHate posters being broadcast behind a group of children.

The new ad comes as Vice President Kamala Harris ramps up her attacks on former President Donald Trump, calling him “increasingly unhinged and unstable” as well as a “fascist” earlier this week. (Photo by Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)

“The choice for Asian American voters in this election couldn’t be clearer. While Trump surrounds himself with loyalists to emulate the dictators he admires and intends to wield unchecked power to serve himself, Vice President Kamala Harris has only ever had one client: the people,” Andrew Peng, the Harris-Walz 2024 Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander spokesperson said in the release.

The new ad comes as Harris ramps up her attacks on the former president, calling him “increasingly unhinged and unstable” as well as a “fascist” last week.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Monday told voters in Pennsylvania that the “little secret” former President Trump mentioned at his Madison Square Garden rally is a get-out-the-vote strategy, not something “diabolical.” 

Democrats have been in panic since Trump teased Sunday that his “little secret” with Johnson would help Republicans keep the House of Representatives come Election Day. A New York Times article suggested that in the worst case scenario, Democrats feared Johnson would work with Trump to steal the election and stop the certification of results on Jan. 6. 2025, should Vice President Harris win.

“It’s nothing scandalous, but we’re having a ball with this. The media, their heads are exploding. ‘What is the secret?’” Johnson said Monday at an event for GOP congressional candidate Ryan Mackenzie, according to The Hill. 

“It’s a thing we have about — it’s a get-out-the-vote. It’s one of our tactics on get-out-the-vote,” Johnson said in response to a voter’s question about Trump’s comment.

HARRIS BREAKS SILENCE AFTER GOP LEADERS SAY ANTI-TRUMP RHETORIC ‘RISKS INVITING’ ANOTHER ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, speaks during a campaign event with former President Donald Trump, not pictured, at Madison Square Garden in New York on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024.  (Getty Images)

“But they are convinced,” the speaker added, jokingly rubbing his hands together like he had an evil plan. 

On Sunday, Trump said his “little secret” with Johnson would help Republicans win congressional elections, but he otherwise kept tight-lipped about it. 

“I think with our little secret we’re going to do really well with the House, right?” Trump said, directing his remarks at Johnson. “Our little secret is having a big impact. He and I have a little secret — we will tell you what it is when the race is over.”

His comments, delivered with a chuckle, set off a reported wave of fear and panic among Democrats who speculated that Trump could have been referring to attempts to steal the election.

MIKE JOHNSON KICKS OFF SWING-STATE TOUR AS GOP CLINGS TO HOUSE CONTROL

Trump waves goodbye after a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 27, 2024 in New York City. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., told the Times he took Trump to mean he had a “backup plan” in case Republicans lose the election.

“There’s a lot of ability for a bad actor to mess with the Electoral College if he’s the speaker of the House,” he said. “If I’m wrong, they should say so. Trump has a lot of secrets: His medical records are secret, his taxes are secret, his phone calls with Vladimir Putin are secret. Clearly he hides a lot from the American people. Now he’s openly stated that he’s hiding something from the electorate.”

In comments to The Hill, Johnson called the rampant speculation that he and Trump were planning to break the law after the election “absolute, utter nonsense.” 

FIRST ON FOX: TOP OUTSIDE GROUP BACKING HOUSE REPUBLICANS SETS FUNDRAISING RECORD

Johnson said that Trump was joking about a GOP get out the vote strategy when he discussed their “little secret” at a rally at Madison Square Garden.  (Getty Images)

“I’m a lifelong constitutional law attorney. We’re going to respect the law. We’re going to follow the constitution to a T,” Johnson told the outlet. “I’ve proven that over and over and over. So all this conjecture is actually hilarious to us, that people are apoplectic about this. It’s a — it’s one of our get out the vote strategies. That’s what we’re talking about. And it’s almost a tongue-in-cheek thing.”

Reached for comment, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told Fox News Digital, “President Trump has done countless telerallies reaching millions of Americans across the country in key regions that also helps bolster Republicans in congressional races.” 

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In Pennsylvania, Johnson said Trump refers to this get-out-the-vote effort as their “secret.” 

“It’s not diabolical,” he said, per The Hill. “It’s actually very good. It’s going to help us with the turnout. All this is blowing their minds. They just can’t — They cannot fathom that Trump and Vance have the support that they do around the country like they do from — from new demographics of people.”

LOCKLAND, Ohio — The mayor of a small village near Cincinnati says he needs help from the federal government after a surge of illegal immigration primarily from Mauritania that nearly exceeds the local population and that he says is “unsustainable.”

“Our county officials estimate that we have around 3,000 of those that have come to a village of 3,420 residents. And our complaint is, if the federal government is going to have an open borders policy, with that they need to have a policy directing these immigrants to communities that can absorb that kind of population increase,” Lockland Mayor Mark Mason told Fox News Digital.

Officials want to be focused on revitalizing the village and its economy, which was downgraded from a city due to its shrinking population, but they instead find themselves strained by the stress of the enormous number of illegal immigrants.

HAITIAN MIGRANTS OVERWHELMING SMALL INDIANA TOWN: ‘IT’S JUST OVERRUN’ 

This image shows the town of Lockland, Ohio. (Fox News Digital)

There are multiple apartment blocks that officials and residents say are taken over by Mauritanians, who are said to be packed beyond capacity in apartments.

Village Administrator Doug Wehmeyer told Fox News Digital recently that it is leading to around $150,000 in losses for the village, as the illegal immigrants do not pay taxes and are displacing local residents who are moving out of those apartments. It is an assessment shared by the mayor.

“Our fire and paramedic services have been stressed. Since they moved into these apartment complexes, a lot of the longtime residents have moved out because of multiple fires. It’s been caused by their not understanding how to cook on stoves, and they use high levels of grease in their cooking, which have caused multiple fires,” Mason said.

“And so a lot of people don’t want to subject their families to unsafe conditions in these apartment complexes. So, therefore, they’ve moved out – the working residents – and they have moved in. And most don’t have jobs, they don’t contribute to society. They don’t contribute to your earnings tax base. And it’s a real concern,” he said.

Border Patrol picks up a group of asylum seekers from an aid camp at the U.S.-Mexico border near Sasabe, Arizona, on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. (Justin Hamel/Getty Images)

Other concerns include littering throughout the village. The mayor also says a number of female residents have complained about how they are treated by the Mauritanians. 

“If you’re going to let immigrants just come over freely, you’ve got to educate them on the cultural differences in how things operate here and make them understand that some of the things that maybe you’re used to in Mauritania [isn’t] necessarily acceptable here in the United States,” he said.

Ultimately, one of the biggest issues is numbers.

SWING STATE OFFICIAL WARNS VILLAGE STRUGGLING WITH FINANCIAL LOSSES AFTER INFLUX OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS 

“A village of 1.2 square miles can just not absorb almost a doubling in their population. It’s unsustainable,” he said.

He argued that it is up to the federal government to help small communities and to direct migrants to communities, including those that are sanctuary communities.

Lockland’s case echoes towns and cities like Springfield, Ohio, which saw a surge in Haitian migration in recent years, and Charleroi, Pennsylvania, which has also been overwhelmed by Haitian migration.

Meanwhile, cities like Chicago and New York City have struggled to handle the waves of immigration they have seen move to their sanctuary jurisdictions as the border crisis has moved north.

HAITIAN MIGRATION ROILS TOWN IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE WITH SIGNS OF PRO-TRUMP SUPPORT ON THE RISE 

Recently, officials and residents in Logansport, Indiana, say they have struggled with an influx of Haitians.

“And shame on the federal government for allowing this to happen to small communities like ours. It’s happening throughout the country,” Mason said. 

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“Pick a state, pick a small community, and you can read about it. It may not be Mauritanians, but immigration has affected small town USA. And it’s just not fair that this is dropped on local governments, local residents to have to deal with these situations,” he said.

Fox News’ Emma Woodhead contributed to this report.

Election swing state Michigan will be decided by which campaigns can get the most voters out to the polls in the final week of the race, according to multiple experts.

“The campaign’s No. 1 priority and the party’s priority right now is getting our people out to vote,” Jimmy Keady, the founder and president of Republican consulting firm JLK Political Strategies, told Fox News Digital.

The comments come with just one week to go in a dramatic election season, with just a handful of battleground states in play that will decide the fate of the race.

MICHIGAN CAMPAIGN STOPS FROM PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES ALREADY DOUBLE THAT OF 2020, 2016

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are a week from the 2024 presidential election. (Fox News photo illustration)

Perhaps the most important of those states is Michigan, a swing state that narrowly went to Donald Trump in 2016 before flipping back to Joe Biden in another close race in the 2020 election.

Polls indicate yet another tight race brewing in the state, with the RealClearPolitics polling average showing a razor-thin 0.1 point lead for Trump as of Monday. Meanwhile, the latest Fox News Power Rankings lists Michigan as a toss-up, and Trump is only a slight betting favorite in the state, with ElectionBettingOdds.com showing the former president with a 53.2% chance of carrying the state as of Monday.

According to Keady, the part of the race in which candidates attempt to persuade voters is mostly over, with Michigan coming down to who has the ground game to get the numbers out between now and next Tuesday. Republicans will also be focused on turning out low propensity voters, Keady said, a demographic the party has targeted in the hopes the group could potentially push them over the top.

“A lot of these campaigns are going to be focused a lot on low propensity voters … voters that are voting in like one out of four elections, making sure that they’re hit several times, making sure we’re dragging people out to the polls to vote,” Keady said.

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Jason Roe, a GOP strategist working in Michigan, echoed a similar sentiment, telling Fox News Digital that the time to persuade undecided voters is mostly over.

“There’s not a lot of undecided voters left, but there’s untapped voters who’ve never heard from a Republican campaign,” Roe said. “In addition to getting mail-in ballots returned and people to vote early, finding and mobilizing low propensity voters and getting them to the polls is everyone’s focus.”

Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at the Dort Financial Center in Flint, Mich., on Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Keady also believes that such a strategy could help down-ballot Republicans in Michigan, where races such as the Senate campaign between former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers and Democrat Rep. Elissa Slotkin will help determine which party controls the Senate.

“Michigan and Nevada are one of two of the seven swing states on the map that basically have straight ticket voting,” Keady said. “Getting low prop voters out to vote that are Republican and conservative means it’s going to help down-ballot.”

POLITICAL ROCK STARS AND ENTERTAINMENT CELEBRITIES HIT THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

That optimism is shared by Rogers himself, who told Fox News Digital that issues such as the “open border, job-killing EV mandates and rising gas and grocery prices” will help motivate voters out to the polls in hopes of avoiding “more of the same.”

“Over the next week, Team Rogers will be burning the shoe leather to earn every vote,” Rogers said. “We will be hosting numerous rallies and stops across Michigan sharing our message of getting America back on track.”

Keady also noted another opportunity unique to Michigan in the battle to get blue-collar and union voters out to the polls with just a week to go.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, right, stands alongside local Muslim leaders during a campaign rally at the Suburban Collection Showplace, Oct. 26, 2024, in Novi, Mich. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

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“We are seeing a lot of union members move to the Republican side because of their economic policies … particularly when it comes to manufacturing jobs,” Keady said. “The campaigns absolutely have to be moving through their microtargets and talking to these union voters.”

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

Steve Bannon, a former White House aide and longtime ally of former President Trump, was released from prison Tuesday after completing a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress.

Bannon left the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut, federal Bureau of Prisons spokesperson Kristie Breshears told the Associated Press. He is expected to hold a news conference later in the day in Manhattan, according to his representatives. He will also resume his “War Room” podcast on Tuesday.

Bannon, 70, was jailed in July after the Supreme Court rejected his attempt to delay the prison sentence while he appeals his conviction.

JUDGE ORDERS STEVE BANNON TO REPORT TO PRISON

Steve Bannon appears in court in New York on Jan. 12, 2023. (Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP)

A jury found Bannon guilty in 2022 of two counts of contempt of Congress: one for refusing to sit for a deposition with the Jan. 6 House Committee and a second for refusing to provide documents related to his involvement in Trump’s reported efforts to overturn his loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential race.

Bannon told reporters in July he was “proud” to begin his prison sentence and described himself as a “political prisoner.” 

STEVE BANNON ‘PROUD’ TO BEGIN PRISON SENTENCE FOR CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS

Steve Bannon speaks outside Danbury Federal Correctional Institution, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Danbury, Conn. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., left, listens.  (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

“I am going to prison. I’m proud to go to prison. I am proud of going to prison today,” Bannon said at a press conference held with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., outside the prison. “I am proud to go to prison. If this is what it takes to stand up to tyranny. If this is what it takes to stand up to the Garland corrupt, criminal DOJ. If this is what it takes to stand up to Nancy Pelosi, if this is what it takes to stand up to Joe Biden, I’m proud to do it.”

Bannon’s release comes one week before Election Day, when Trump, a Republican, will seek to defeat Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and return to the White House.

TRUMP ALLY STEVE BANNON FILES EMERGENCY MOTION SEEKING TO STAY OUT OF PRISON

Former White House strategist Steve Bannon arrives at the Manhattan district attorney’s office to surrender himself to New York authorities, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)

A federal appeals court panel upheld Bannon’s convictions in May. Bannon is now asking the full appeals court to hear his case. His legal team had argued that the congressional subpoena was invalid because Trump had asserted executive privilege. Prosecutors, though, say Bannon had left the White House years before and Trump had never invoked executive privilege in front of the committee.

Bannon also faces criminal charges in New York state court, where prosecutors allege he duped donors who gave money to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Banon has pleaded not guilty to money laundering, conspiracy, fraud and other charges. He is set to go to trial in December. 

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Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

ANN ARBOR, MI – For a second straight day, Vice President Kamala Harris made a trio of stops in a key battleground state as the clock quickly ticks towards Election Day in her race against former President Donald Trump.

One day after campaigning in Philadelphia, swing state Pennsylvania’s largest city, the vice president made three stops in Michigan, another crucially contested Rust Belt battleground.

With Harris and Trump locked in a margin-of-error race in both the national and swing state polls and eight days to go until Election Day, Harris is kicking off a fast-paced final week of campaigning.

WHY TRUMP IS MAKING LAST MINUTE STOPS IN BLUE-LEANING STATES

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, depart after speaking during a campaign rally at Burns Park in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

For the first time in two months, the vice president teamed up at a large rally with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as they spoke in front of what their campaign said was a crowd of roughly 21,000 gathered on a brisk autumn evening.

On the eve of what is being touted as her closing argument in an address in the nation’s capital, Harris gave a preview, saying “we have an opportunity to turn the page [from Trump] and chart a new and joyful way forward.”

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The vice president, who has spent parts of the past couple of weeks courting Republican voters disaffected with Trump, interjected into her Monday night speech appeals to the progressive base of the Democratic Party.

She spotlighted that health care insurance “should be a right, and not just a privilege for those who can afford it.”

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event in Burns Park on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

When interrupted by demonstrators protesting U.S. support for Israel in its war with Hamas in Gaza, she responded “I hear you on the subject of Gaza.”

“We all want this war to end as soon as possible and to get the hostages out,” the vice president said. “I will do everything in my power to make it so.”

Ann Abor, a Democratic-dominated city that is also home to Michigan’s flagship state university, has also seen plenty of protests over the war in Gaza.

WHAT THE MOST RECENT FOX NEWS POLLS SHOW IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN

Walz, speaking before Harris, made a passionate pitch on gun violence, emphasizing that freedom includes being “free to send your kids to school without them being shot dead in the halls.”

“I’ll take no crap on this. I know guns, I’m a veteran. I’m a hunter. Kamala and I are both gun owners. We know that you can uphold the Second Amendment, but also uphold our first responsibility – protecting our children,” the governor added.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a campaign rally at Burns Park in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Monday, Oct. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Harris, after delivering her closing address on Tuesday, returns to the battleground states on Wednesday, with stops in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

Those three states, along with Michigan, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada, had razor-thin margins that decided President Biden’s 2020 White House victory over Trump. Additionally, the seven states are likely to determine if Trump or Harris wins this year.

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Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are also the three Rust Belt states that make up the Democrats’ so-called “Blue Wall.”

The party reliably won all three states for a quarter-century before Trump narrowly captured them in the 2016 election to win the White House.

Four years later, in 2020, Biden carried all three states by razor-thin margins to put them back in the Democrats’ column and defeat Trump.

Both the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees, as well as their running mates, have made repeated stops in the three states this summer and autumn.

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

With one week to go until Election Day, it remains a coin-flip White House race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump.

Facing a margin-of-error race in both the national polls and the swing state surveys, both the vice president and the former president, their running mates, and top surrogates continue to fan out across the seven crucial battleground states that will likely decide the 2024 presidential election.

On the trail

The Republican presidential nominee starts Tuesday from his home base in Palm Beach, Florida, where his campaign says Trump will deliver remarks to the press.

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Former President Trump holds a rally in New York City’s Madison Square Garden, on Oct. 27, 2024. (AP)

The former president then holds two events in Pennsylvania, which, with 19 electoral votes at stake, is the largest prize among the key swing states.

Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, campaigns with two stops in battleground Michigan.

WHY TRUMP IS MAKING LAST MINUTE STOPS IN BLUE-LEANING STATES

The Democratic nominee is in the nation’s capital, taking a break from swing state travel for a day, as she delivers what the Harris campaign touts as her closing argument, in an address from the Ellipse, with the White House as a backdrop.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event in Burns Park Monday, Oct. 28, 2024, in Ann Arbor, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, makes three stops in the crucial southeastern battleground of Georgia.

Casting ballots

Early voting turnout has been brisk, with swing states such as Georgia, Michigan and North Carolina breaking records.

And with Trump apparently fully on board, the GOP’s efforts to convince Republicans to vote early appear to be working. 

WHAT THE MOST RECENT FOX NEWS POLLS SHOW IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN

The GOP hopes this surge in early voting will help the party rebound from setbacks in the 2020 and 2022 elections, when Democrats dominated early in-person voting and absentee balloting.

Poll position

A handful of national polls point to a dead heat between Harris and Trump, while others indicate the vice president with the slight advantage or the former president with the edge.

But getting past the top lines, there are warning signs for both candidates.

Harris has lost her favorability advantage over Trump in some of the most recent surveys.

After replacing President Biden atop the Democrats’ 2024 ticket in July, the vice president’s favorable ratings soared. But they’ve steadily eroded over the past month.

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Another red flag for Harris are polls indicating her support among Black voters is below Biden’s levels in the 2020 election.

For Trump, his support among White voters is on par with his standing in the 2020 election, when he lost the White House to Biden.

And the former president still faces a healthy deficit to the vice president when it comes to being trustworthy and caring about people.

The latest Fox News national poll.

While national polls are closely watched, the race for the White House is not based on the national popular vote. It’s a battle for the states and their electoral votes.

And the latest surveys in the seven crucial battleground states whose razor-thin margins decided Biden’s 2020 victory over Trump and will likely determine whether Harris or Trump wins the 2024 election, are mostly within the margin of error.

The most recent Fox News national poll indicated Trump had a two-point edge, but Harris had a 6-point advantage among respondents questioned in all seven battleground states.

Cash dash 

While there’s a margin of error in the polls, there is a clear frontrunner in the battle for campaign cash, another important indicator in presidential politics. And it’s Harris.

According to the latest figures the two major party presidential campaigns filed with the Federal Election Commission, Harris hauled in $97 million during the first half of October.

That far outpaced the $16 million the Trump campaign said it raised during the first half of this month.

Both campaigns use a number of affiliated fundraisings committees to raise money. And when those are included, Trump narrowed the gap, but trailed $176 million to $97 million during the first two weeks of this month.

During the first 16 days of October, the Democratic presidential nominee’s campaign outspent Trump $166 million to $99 million, with paid media the top expenditure for both campaigns.

However, Harris finished the reporting period with more cash in her coffers. As of Oct. 16, she had $119 million cash on hand, while Trump had $36 million. When joint fundraising committees are also included, Harris holds a $240 million to $168 million cash-on-hand advantage.

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

It was a revealing moment for Donald Trump.

“When I say ‘the enemy from within,’ the other side goes crazy,” he said Sunday. 

He’s right about that. I raised the subject in our Trump Tower interview last weekend, saying that phrase seemed ominous, and his response – that Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff are indeed enemies, not just opponents, was picked up across the media universe.

But driving the other side nuts is a Trump specialty. When he told the rally at Madison Square Garden that the media are “the real enemy, the enemy of the people,” there were loud cheers from a party that already despises and distrusts the press.

BAD BUNNY ENDORSES HARRIS AFTER TRUMP RALLY COMEDIAN JOKES PUERTO RICO IS ‘FLOATING ISLAND OF GARBAGE’

A slight digression: The argument that Trump shouldn’t have been at the Garden because the Nazis held a rally there in 1939 is ludicrous. FDR held an event there two years later, and the Democrats have held nominating conventions there. It’s the place where I’ve watched many Knicks games and a George Harrison concert. And Billy Joel has been selling out the arena for years.)

Trump knows how to rile up the media, rekindling the debate over whether they must cover his more over-the-top rhetoric or are just normalizing him.  

In our Mar-a-Lago interview a few months ago, the former president acknowledged to me that at times he deliberately uses incendiary language to drive news coverage. Remember, even negative coverage helps him dominate the headlines.

Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump waves goodbye after a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden on October 27, 2024 in New York City. Trump closed out his weekend of campaigning in New York City with a guest list of speakers that includes his running mate Republican Vice Presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), Tesla CEO Elon Musk, UFC CEO Dana White, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, among others, nine days before Election Day. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

And if you think media companies aren’t intimidated by him, look at the disingenuous decisions by Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos and Los Angeles Times owner Patrrick Soon-Shiong to kill Kamala Harris endorsements in favor of a no-endorsement stance that obviously helps Trump. Two columnists, including Michelle Norris, have resigned from the Post, three top editors have quit the Times, and thousands of subscriptions have been canceled at both papers.

Trump’s speech at the Garden was almost completely overshadowed by what came before it. A comedian, Tony Hinchcliffe, called Puerto Rico “a floating pile of garbage.” He joked about Jewish people being cheap, and he and a Black buddy folks “carving watermelons.”

“These Latinos, they love making babies, too. Just know that they do,” Hinchcliffe said. “There’s no pulling out. They don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country.”

CNN PUNDITS ADMIT THEY WEREN’T IMPRESSED WITH KAMALA HARRIS’ TOWN HALL: ‘WORD SALAD CITY’

It reached the point that Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Fox yesterday morning: “Look, it was a comedian who made a joke in poor taste. Obviously, that joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or our campaign.”

The Trump camp soon put out word that it hadn’t vetted what Hinchcliffe was going to say. That, if true, was a big mistake.

But it wasn’t just the comedian. Conservative New York radio host Sid Rosenberg told the rally about “f****** illegals, and also called Hillary Clinton a “sick son of a bitch” and a “Jew hater.” A friend of Trump called Kamala Harris “the anti-Christ.”

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump waves at a campaign rally at Greensboro Coliseum on Tuesday, Oct. 22, in Greensboro, N.C.  (AP/Alex Brandon)

Now Trump didn’t say any of this, but made no attempt to distance himself by saying, for instance, that he didn’t agree with everything that had been said.

A New York Times news story was headlined “Trump at the Garden: A Closing Carnival of Grievances, Misogyny and Racism.”

PLAYING THE HITLER CARD: WILL TRUMP BACKERS DISMISS JOHN KELLY’S ATTACK?

And that gave Kamala Harris an opening. She said the rally “highlighted a point I’ve been making…He is focused and actually fixated on his grievances, and himself and on dividing our country.”

Meanwhile, Trump scored an absolute coup with a three-hour sitdown with Joe Rogan.

Sure, he rambled at times, talking about whales and extraterrestrial aliens. But the podcast racked up 33 million views, with an audience of mostly men, and mainly young men. That’s far more than a candidate would reach going on several top-rated cable news shows.

Podcast host Joe Rogan told former President Trump he has gotten so popular with Americans due to the “wild s—” he says.  (Screenshots/The Joe Rogan Experience)

Many believe the sitdown helped humanize Trump, and Rogan told him he gets endless publicity because he says “weird s***.” It was a clearly sympathetic conversation, and Rogan said the media are “the propaganda arm of the Democratic Party.”

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Harris was also in talks to do Rogan’s Spotify podcast, and he said she was welcome there, but if he wanted her, she’d be taping the show today. To save face, she then announced that she had scheduling issues. Instead, Harris did Brene Brown’s prodcast, who obviously appeals to women. The vice president needs to improve her gender gap among men.

With one week till the election, every message and misstep counts. And every day you’re playing defense is a lost opportunity.

New York City is buying tickets for thousands of migrants to travel to Texas via bus or plane, from where many of them originally traveled to the sanctuary city in the first place, amid an ongoing battle between officials over how to handle the migrant crisis.

New York City, which has been overwhelmed by more than 200,000 migrant arrivals since 2022, has been providing settlement options to migrants since that time. Last year, it opened a reticketing center to offer one-way plane tickets to migrants.

Fox News confirms that 4,500 migrants have been sent to Texas using bus or plane tickets bought by the city. The figure was first reported by Bloomberg News.

NYC PURSUING THOUSANDS OF HOTEL ROOMS TO HOUSE MIGRANTS AMID MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR COSTS: REPORT 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images/File)

According to Mayor Eric Adams’ office, the top five destinations for migrants leaving the Big Apple are Texas, Illinois, Florida, New York State and Colorado.

In total, they have issued more than 4,700 tickets and the majority, roughly 4,500, have gone to Texas. It was not clear how many of those migrants had come from buses sent to NYC from Texas. 

Between February and July there were 2,297 tickets purchased to Texas, with the top three cities being Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Fox is told that spending through to July 2024 on reticketing has been $13.8 million. 

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began bussing migrants to New York City and other sanctuary cities in 2022 in what he said was an effort to relieve pressure on the overwhelmed border communities. He chose sanctuary cities – cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement – because he said they encouraged the crisis. An NYC spokesperson told Fox that the influx was exacerbated by Abbott and that resources have been exhausted in part due to his efforts.

When asked how the program works, the mayor’s office said, “Whenever they have a desire where they want to go back to somewhere else, we buy their tickets. It is mostly planes, but we also buy bus tickets.”

Abbott’s office slammed the handling of the crisis by the Biden administration and accused Adams of hypocrisy.

NEW YORK CITY MIGRANT CRISIS COSTS EXPECTED TO EXCEED $5B IN 2-YEAR PERIOD – DOUBLE TO $10B BY 2025

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (Reuters/Callaghan O’hare/File)

“Border Czar Kamala Harris and the federal government continues to refuse to enforce federal immigration laws already on the books and do their jobs to secure the border, allowing record-high levels of illegal immigrants, deadly drugs like fentanyl, and weapons to surge into our state and country,” spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris told Fox News in a statement.

“Hypocritical Mayor Adams said busing migrants is ‘morally bankrupt,’ while Harris called transporting migrants ‘political theater’ and they’re doing the same thing themselves. Until Border Czar Harris steps up and does her job to secure the border, Texas will continue utilizing every tool and strategy to respond to the Biden-Harris border crisis,” he said.

New York City has struggled with the influx of migrants, which has put a strain on social services and led to scenes of migrants lining up outside the Roosevelt Hotel.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE

Spending on the migrant crisis is expected to exceed $5 billion, and Adams has previously said costs could balloon to over $10 billion by the end of next fiscal year. Previous estimates had put that number even higher.

At the peak of the crisis, the city was taking in an average of 4,000 migrants per week. But that dropped into the hundreds in recent months as the crisis at the border abated after a presidential proclamation from President Biden that limited asylum claims. 

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Recently, the city announced it would be closing a massive tent shelter on Randall’s Island. Officials said the number of asylum seekers in shelters has dropped for 14 straight weeks and is now at the lowest point in over a year.

“We’re not out of the woods yet, but make no mistake, thanks in large part to our smart management strategies and successful advocacy, we have turned the corner on this crisis,” Adams said in a statement this month. “We’re not scrambling every day to open new shelters. We’re talking about closing them. We’re not talking about how much we’re spending. We’re talking about how much we’ve saved.”