NationalWatch

Ohio Sen. JD Vance vowed that former President Trump would not impose a federal abortion ban if re-elected to the Oval Office, adding that he would veto such a measure if it were to come across his desk. 

“Democrats made the case this week, and beyond this week, that Donald Trump, if elected, will impose a federal ban on abortion if he wins. Now, Donald Trump says he won’t. But can you commit, senator, sitting right here with me today, that if you and Donald Trump are elected, that you will not impose a federal ban on abortion?” “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker asked Vance in an interview that aired Sunday. 

“I can absolutely commit to that, Kristen. Donald Trump has been as clear about that as possible. I think it’s important to step back and say, ‘What does Donald Trump actually said on the abortion question, and how is it different from what Kamala Harris and the Democrats have said?’ Donald Trump wants to end this culture war over this particular topic.”

“If… California wants to have a different abortion policy from Ohio, then Ohio has to respect California, and California has to respect Ohio. Donald Trump’s view is that we want the individual states and their individual cultures and their unique political sensibilities to make these decisions, because we don’t want to have a non-stop federal conflict over this issue. The federal government ought to be focused on getting food prices down, getting housing prices down. Issues, of course, where Kamala Harris has been a total disaster,” Vance continued. 

HARRIS REPEATS DEBUNKED CLAIM TRUMP WANTS TO ‘BAN’ ABORTION DURING FIRST CAMPAIGN RALLY SINCE BIDEN QUIT RACE

Former President Trump and Sen. JD Vance appear together on the first day of the Republican National Convention on July 15, 2024. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Welker pressed Vance about Republicans who say they will continue to lobby Trump for a federal abortion ban if the 45th president is re-elected, asking Vance if Trump would veto such legislation in that scenario. 

“I think we need to be very clear he would not support that,” Vance said. 

“But would he veto it?” Welker pressed. 

THREE HARRIS DNC ATTACK LINES AGAINST TRUMP THAT WERE INACCURATE OR FALSE

“If you’re not supporting it as the president of the United States, you fundamentally have to veto it,” Vance said. 

“So he would veto a federal abortion ban?” Welker again asked. 

“I think he would, he said that explicitly that he would,” Vance continued. 

A Planned Parenthood mobile van offers free vasectomies and medicinal abortions near the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. (Fox News Digital)

Vance’s interview followed Democrats holding their convention in Chicago last week, when Vice President Kamala Harris formally accepted her nomination for the presidential ticket. Democrats have increasingly campaigned against Trump by arguing he would impose a federal abortion ban if re-elected, which Harris cited in her acceptance speech on Thursday evening. 

TRUMP SAYS PROJECT 2025 ‘GOES WAY TOO FAR’ WITH ABORTION RESTRICTIONS

“Children who have survived sexual assault, potentially being forced to carry a pregnancy to term. This is what’s happening in our country because of Donald Trump. And understand, he is not done. As a part of his agenda, he and his allies would limit access to birth control, ban medication abortion and enact a nationwide abortion ban, with or without Congress,” Harris said. 

Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage during the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Aug. 22, 2024. (Reuters/Brendan Mcdermid)

Trump has denied that he would impose a federal abortion ban, instead advocating that abortion laws be left up to individual states. During his presidency, Trump had called on Congress to pass a 20-week ban on abortions. 

SOFTENED ABORTION LANGUAGE IN TRUMP-APPROVED GOP PLATFORM IRKS SOME SOCIAL CONSERVATIVES

The GOP’s 2024 platform notably only mentions abortion once, instead focusing on the preservation of life and returning power to the states when developing laws surrounding abortion.

Former President Trump points after speaking about national security during a campaign rally at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, Aug. 21, 2024. (Peter Zay/AFP via Getty Images)

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“We proudly stand for families and Life. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights. After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments). 5. will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments),” the platform states. 

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

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. responded to criticism he has faced from his wife and other members of the Kennedy family on Sunday after endorsing former President Trump.

Kennedy faced questions about the family drama during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” with host Shannon Bream. Bream referenced a letter from Kennedy’s siblings condemning his endorsement on Friday.

“You know, my family is at the center of the Democratic Party. I have members of my family that are working for the Biden administration. Biden has a bust of my father behind him at the Oval Office, and he’s been a family friend for many years,” Kennedy said.

“My family is – I understand that they’re troubled by my decisions. I love my family. I feel like we were raised in a milieu where we were encouraged to debate each other and debate ferociously and passionately about things and still love each other,” he added. “They’re free to take their positions on these issues. There are many, many members of my family working at my campaign and who are supporting me.”

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. LAMBASTS ‘DNC-ALIGNED MAINSTREAM MEDIA,’ ACCUSES THEM OF ENGINEERING HARRIS’ RISE

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. responded to criticism of his campaign by his wife and other members of the Kennedy family on Sunday after endorsing former President Trump. (Getty Images)

“I think we all need to be able to disagree with each other and still love each other,” he concluded.

KENNEDY FAMILY CHOOSES POLITICS OVER FAMILY WITH ENDORSEMENT IN 2024 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Kennedy had previously noted that his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, has not been totally on board. Hines posted on social media about the decision to withdraw, and Kennedy acknowledged that she was “very uncomfortable” with his decision.

Kennedy’s siblings reiterated their support for Vice President Kamala Harris in a public letter released shortly after Kennedy endorsed Trump, arguing he had “betrayed” their family’s values.

“We want an America filled with hope and bound together by a shared vision of a brighter future, a future defined by individual freedom, economic promise and national pride,” a statement signed by five of the former third-party presidential candidate’s siblings said.

RFK Jr. says President Biden has been a longtime friend of the Kennedy family. (Getty)

“We believe in Harris and Walz,” the statement continued. “Our brother Bobby’s decision to endorse Trump [Friday] is a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear. It is a sad ending to a sad story.”

TRUMP THANKS RFK JR FOR ENDORSEMENT AFTER THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE SUSPENDS HIS CAMPAIGN: ‘THAT’S BIG’

The statement, signed by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Courtney Kennedy, Kerry Kennedy, Chris Kennedy and Rory Kennedy, was shared by Joe Kennedy III, a grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, who wrote that it was “well said.”

RFK Jr.’s family members have expressed their support for Vice President Kamala Harris. (Reuters/Brendan Mcdermid)

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When announcing his endorsement of Trump, RFK Jr. said the Democratic National Committee “waged continued legal war” on both Trump and him. He also accused the DNC of running a “sham primary” that prevented a serious challenge to President Biden before he secured the Democratic nomination and dropped out in July and endorsed Harris.

Fox News’ Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report

Presidential candidate Cornel West must appear on voting ballots in Michigan, a state judge ruled on Saturday.

Judge James Robert Redford issued the ruling days after West and his running mate, activist Melina Abdullah, were kicked off the ballot earlier this month due to technical issues.

The Michigan Bureau of Elections had notified West’s campaign of the discrepancies in an August 16 letter. The campaign responded by arguing that the Michigan Democratic Party was weaponizing technicalities in an effort to remove West from the ballot.

“We are confident that these accusations will be seen for what they are—frivolous and unfounded attempts to stifle opposition and debate,” campaign spokesman Edwin DeJesus told the Michigan Public Radio Network.

HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’

Presidential candidate Cornel West must appear on voting ballots in Michigan, a state judge ruled on Saturday.

West responded to Saturday’s ruling with a statement on X, formerly Twitter.

DOES KENNEDY’S DEPARTURE FROM THE 2024 RACE HELP TRUMP MORE THAN HARRIS?

“Victory in Michigan! We brought thousands of voices to the table, and the court listened, rejecting the Democrats’ technical challenges. This is a win for democracy and for every person fighting for truth, justice, and love. Onward!” he wrote.

Black Lives Matter co-founder Melina Abdullah is running alongside Cornell West as an indepedent.

Despite the victory, West’s campaign is facing similar challenges in states across the country. A Pennsylvania judge ruled on Friday that we was not qualified to appear on ballots in that state.

ROBERT F KENNEDY JR. SUSPENDS CAMPAIGN, BACKS TRUMP FOR PRESIDENT

A similar legal battle in Maine also ended in victory for West, however, with the secretary of state declaring he is qualified to appear on the state’s ballots.

Democrats have tried to remove Cornell West from ballots across the country by citing technical issues. (Photographer: Nic Antaya/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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The ballot battle comes as Vice President Harris remains in a neck-and-neck battle with former President Trump. The other notable third-party candidate in the race, RFK Jr. withdrew and endorsed Trump on Friday.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. offered new details about his conversations with former president Trump in his first interview since dropping out of the race and endorsing him on Sunday.

Kennedy made the statement during an exclusive interview on “Fox News Sunday” with host Shannon Bream. He argued that his campaign had failed to gain ground due to “censorship” both by the media.

This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.

CHICAGO — The sole Democrat who ran against President Biden during the 2024 Democratic primary, Rep. Dean Phillips, said he would accept an invitation to serve in either a Democratic or Republican administration, telling Fox News Digital he aspires to “help this country in some way, shape or form.” 

Phillips, D-Minn., spoke to Fox News Digital on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. 

Phillips, a three-term congressman, launched an uphill challenge against Biden in the Democratic primary but suspended his campaign in March. 

“I didn’t want to run this cycle. I spent two years trying to call attention to something I was seeing clearly with my own eyes,” he said. “I remember my Republican buddies excoriating Donald Trump quietly behind closed doors and then praising him in front of cameras. I saw my Democratic colleagues doing the same thing about Joe Biden, who we knew was in decline, probably going to lose.” 

DEAN PHILLIPS ENDS LONG-SHOT PRIMARY CHALLENGE AGAINST BIDEN FOR DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION

Rep. Dean Phillips, right, said he would accept an invitation to serve in either a Democratic or Republican administration. (Getty Images)

Phillips said he “didn’t want to do it,” but told Fox News Digital “it became evident that our political culture punishes courage, rewards cowardice and silence.” 

“Someone had to do it. In two weeks, I put together a campaign to run for president,” he said. “But the message was to try to be a Paul Revere — not a George Washington. It took someone to hand over power, like Joe Biden did, to really make it happen.” 

He added, “I’m glad he did. And the rest may be history.” 

EMOTIONAL JOE BIDEN PASSES TORCH TO KAMALA HARRIS ENDING 5 DECADES IN ELECTED OFFICE

When asked if he had aspirations to run for president again in the future, Phillips said he just aspires “to help this country in some way, shape or form.” 

“This was not about running for president. This was about showing people that it is never too late, and you should sit up and stand up and do something when you feel that something is wrong. And I did that,” he said. 

“If there is a way to serve my country in a Democratic administration — in a Republican administration — my goodness, we should all stand up and accept that invitation whenever it is issued,” he told Fox News Digital. “So, you never know.”

However, Phillips told Fox News Digital that policy is critical.  

President Biden stands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and first lady Jill Biden during the first day of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

“Americans remember how they feel. They remember how they feel. They want to feel excited, safe, joyful, optimistic and a lot of that results from policy,” he said. 

“As it relates to policy, yeah, we have a border crisis. I’ve seen it twice with my own eyes. We also have to be a welcoming country, as Ronald Reagan would say,” Phillips said. “We have to be a country that has an economy that works for people. Sixty percent of people are living paycheck to paycheck. It doesn’t matter what party you are — we failed a lot of people. Our healthcare system is a mess. This is America.” 

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However, Phillips said politicians need to stop the infighting. 

“As long as we keep spending all of our time fighting, we’re never going to spend our time developing better ideas,” he said. “And that’s my call to action for my colleagues in Congress and for Americans. We’re not going to solve problems by beating ourselves up.” 

When giving a farewell speech at the Democratic National Convention on Monday, President Joe Biden referenced Vice President Kamala Harris’s role in the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.

“Guess who cast the tie-breaking vote? Vice President soon-to-be President Kamala Harris, and now it’s the law of the land,” Biden said of the $739 billion spending bill that passed the Senate by 51-50 thanks to the Harris vote in August 2022.

However, since Harris – now the Democratic presidential nominee – cast the tie-breaking vote as president of the Senate, the cost of rent has climbed 13%. In comparison, the cost of new mortgages climbed 36% in those two years, according to estimates assembled by Americans for Tax Reform.

Further, the cost of baby food shot up by 13%, while frozen vegetables increased by 14%. The ATR, a conservative-leaning group, crunched numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Federal Reserve. The cost of transportation, butter, bread, flour, and breakfast cereal all increased by single digits since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.  

HARRIS’ ECONOMIC PLAN PROPOSES TO FIX ‘PRICE GOUGING’ AND GO AFTER ‘EXCESSIVE PROFITS,’ BUT WHAT DEFINES THIS?

Baby food and frozen vegetables are two household grocery items seeing double-digit inflation under the Biden-Harris watch, critics say. (iStock)

Over the last two years, some prices such as gas, transportation, energy, chicken, and milk declined, according to the ATR’s numbers.

However, since Biden and Harris took office in January 2021, prices for every sector measured by ATR’s stats leaped by at least double digits. New mortgage rates since Biden-Harris came into office skyrocketed by 156% and rent shot up by 22%.

Gas has gone up by 35%, energy has gone up by 33%, and transportation increased by 28%.

The cost of eggs has increased by 53%, baby food has gone up by 30%, frozen vegetables are up 28%, bread is up by 24% and the cost of milk is up by 17%.

Shortly after becoming vice president in March 2021, Harris also cast the tie-breaking vote on the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which also led to printing more money amid rising inflation.

CONNECTICUT FAMILY FORCED TO LIVE IN A HOTEL DUE TO SURGING HOUSING COSTS

Both gasoline and energy prices have gone up significantly since January 2021. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

“Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking vote on the two biggest legislative drivers of inflation: the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act. She also supported the Biden-Harris regulatory regime which imposed additional costs on households,” Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, told Fox News Digital.

“And now she vows to make matters worse by imposing a long list of tax increases,” Norquist continued. “She has endorsed a carbon tax, a 44.6% capital gains tax, and a 28% federal corporate tax rate, higher than China’s 25% and the EU [European Union] average of 21%. Americans will have even less take-home pay.”

The Harris campaign didn’t respond to inquiries for this story, but the Democratic National Committee responded by pointing to former President Donald Trump’s economic record during his last year in office during the COVID-19 pandemic.

DNC spokesperson Alex Floyd said Trump would give a tax cut to billionaires if elected, and said he “left office with the worst jobs record since Herbert Hoover.”

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Floyd referred to a statement in June by 16 Nobel economists that endorsed then candidate Biden’s economic plan, and argued Trump’s proposals would lead to inflation.

“Economists have called Donald Trump’s plan an inflation bomb that would sell out working families to double down on tax giveaways for the ultra-wealthy,” Floyd told Fox News Digital.

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

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s family denounced him for “betraying” their family values after the former presidential candidate gave his full-throated support Friday to former President Trump. 

“We want an America filled with hope and bound together by a shared vision of a brighter future, a future defined by individual freedom, economic promise and national pride,” a statement signed by five of the former third-party presidential candidate’s siblings said.

“We believe in Harris and Walz,” the statement continued. “Our brother Bobby’s decision to endorse Trump [Friday] is a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear. It is a sad ending to a sad story.”

The statement, signed by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Courtney Kennedy, Kerry Kennedy, Chris Kennedy and Rory Kennedy, was shared by Joe Kennedy III, a grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, who wrote that it was “well said.”

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. LAMBASTS ‘DNC-ALIGNED MAINSTREAM MEDIA,’ ACCUSES THEM OF ENGINEERING HARRIS’ RISE

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. shakes hands with former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, during a rally Friday in Glendale, Ariz. (Reuters/Go Nakamura)

Jack Schlossberg, RFK Jr.’s cousin, wrote that his relative was “for sale” and now “works” for Trump.

“Never been less surprised in my life. Been saying it for over a year — RFK Jr. is for sale, works for Trump. Bedfellows and loving it,” Schlossberg wrote in an X post. “Kamala Harris is for the people — the easiest decision of all time just got easier.”

Jack Schlossberg, grandson of former President John F. Kennedy, speaks on the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago Tuesday.  (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

President Biden walks with the Kennedy family during a campaign event in Philadelphia in April. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Schlossberg, the son of Caroline Kennedy and the grandson of JFK, has been a vocal critic of his cousin’s campaign. 

When RFK Jr. first announced his candidacy, Schlossberg called him an “embarrassment.”

The 31-year-old has been an ardent supporter of Harris and recently spoke at the Democratic National Convention.

KENNEDY FAMILY CHOOSES POLITICS OVER FAMILY WITH ENDORSEMENT IN 2024 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. waves to the crowd at a campaign rally for former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, Friday, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

The Independent presidential candidate on Friday dropped his White House bid and announced support for Trump.

TRUMP THANKS RFK JR FOR ENDORSEMENT AFTER THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE SUSPENDS HIS CAMPAIGN: ‘THAT’S BIG’

“I’ve made the heart-wrenching decision to suspend my campaign and to support President Trump. This decision is agonizing for me because of the difficulties it causes me and my children and my friends,” he said during an event in Phoenix, Arizona. 

WATCH:

Hours later, Kennedy joined Trump onstage at an Arizona rally, where the crowd burst into resounding “Bobby!” chants.

“Three causes drove me to enter this race in the first place. And these are the principal causes that persuaded me to leave the Democratic Party and run as an independent and now to throw my support at President Trump,” RFK Jr. said. “The causes were free speech, war in Ukraine and the war on our children.” 

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RFK Jr. said the Democratic National Committee “waged continued legal war” on both Trump and him, while also accusing the DNC of running a “sham primary” that prevented a serious primary challenge to President Biden before he secured the Democratic nomination and dropped out in July and endorsed Harris.

Fox News Digital’s Brie Stimson contributed to this report.

“Abandon Biden” is now “Abandon Harris.”

The pro-Palestinian group opposing the Democratic Party announced on Friday that its members were “now mobilizing under the banner of ‘Abandon Harris.'”

“While we will keep the registered name of Abandon Biden, our mission is now laser-focused on exposing and opposing Kamala Harris and her complicity in genocide,” the statement from the group explained. “We call on all people of conscience to join us in holding the Democratic Party accountable for the bloodshed in Gaza.”

HARRIS TRIES TO THREAD ISRAEL, GAZA NEEDLE WITH ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS A CONSTANT PRESENCE AT DNC

Demonstrators with the group “Abandon Biden” hold signs during a news conference prior to President Joe Biden’s visit in Saginaw, Michigan, US.  (Photographer: Nic Antaya/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“The DNC’s recent actions have only confirmed what we’ve been saying all along: the Democratic Party has no interest in ending the genocide in Gaza,” the group continued. “They are not mere bystanders; they are active participants in this brutal, unforgivable violence.”

Abandon Harris is part of a larger movement on the left opposing the Democratic Party due to its continued support of Israel in the Jewish state’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

Anti-Israel demonstrators expressed their discontent with Harris’ campaign throughout this week’s Democratic National Convention with marches, protests, and demonstrations against speakers.

CHICAGO DNC: ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS ERUPT AS KAMALA HARRIS SPEAKS ON FINAL NIGHT OF CONVENTION

Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. (REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid)

The Democratic presidential nominee attempted to extend an olive branch to the anti-Israel protesters during her speech at the convention, telling the crowd that President Biden’s administration is “working around the clock because now is the time to get a hostage deal and a cease-fire deal done.”

“And let me be clear – I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself, and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself, because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on Oct. 7.”

At the same time, Harris said, “what has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating,” referring to the war casualties of innocent Palestinian people.

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Professor Hassan Abdel Salam, founder of Abandon Biden, speaks to a few dozen fellow pro Palestinian activists gathering outside of the Biden campaign rally at the A. Phillip Randolph Vocational Technical Center in Detroit, Michigan. (Adam J. Dewey/Anadolu via Getty Images)

In July, Harris met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reiterate the administration’s support for Israel, while also expressing her “serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there.” There was an apparent cease-fire deal also discussed at the time. 

Fox News Digital’s Jamie Joseph contributed to this report.

Vice President Kamala Harris, urged her supporters to “get out there, let’s fight for it,” as she concluded her presidential nomination acceptance speech at this week’s Democratic National Convention.

With both major party national nominating conventions now in the books, the 2024 edition of the race for the White House enters the final sprint.

Both Harris and former President Trump, the Republican Party’s nominee, will be back on the campaign trail in the upcoming week, along with their running mates, making stops across some of the seven crucial battleground states that will likely determine the outcome of the November election.

HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’

Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 22, 2024.  (REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid)

It’s a process that will be repeated each and every week until Election Day.

Harris interview?

The former president, his running mate Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, and their campaign and allied Republicans have repeatedly criticized Harris for not holding a major news conference or sitting for an interview since replacing Biden atop their party’s 2024 ticket over a month ago.

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So all eyes will be on Harris to see if she lives up to her promise to do a national news media interview in the week left in the month of August.

Fundraising fight

There’s just one week left in August, and the end of the month will bring anticipation of the latest fundraising figures from both the Trump and Harris campaigns.

President Biden enjoyed the fundraising lead over Trump earlier this year, but the former president saw his fundraising soar in the late spring and early summer.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, looks on as Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. Kennedy endorsed Trump after suspending his campaign. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

But after Biden’s blockbuster move to end his re-election bid and Harris replacing him as the Democrats’ standard-bearer, the campaign and the party’s fundraising surged and Harris walloped Trump in fundraising during July. 

The August numbers, which the campaigns could release as early as September 1, will be closely watched and scrutinized, as fundraising along with polling is a crucial metric.

Debate clash

The first and possibly the only presidential debate between Harris and Trump is scheduled for Sept. 10 in Philadelphia.

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The face-off could be the most important evening in the 2024 presidential election, with the power to potentially shift or transform the current margin-of-error race between the vice president and the former president.

Former President Trump live posted on Truth Social during VP Harris’ DNC speech (Getty Images)

Need proof – just look back to the late June debate between Biden and Trump. The president’s disastrous performance fueled questions about whether the 81-year-old president had the mental and physical stamina to handle another four years in the White House. And it sparked calls from within his own party for Biden to drop out of the race. 

Less than a month after the clash in Atlanta, the president was out of the race.

Early voting 

There are 73 days to go until Election Day, but some voters will start casting ballots next month. 

In swing state North Carolina, mail-in voting begins on Sept. 6. And early voting begins on Sept. 16 in Pennsylvania and Sept. 26 in Michigan, two other crucial electoral battlegrounds.

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

FIRST ON FOX: Sixteen Republican-led states are suing the Biden administration to block a controversial parole program that gives protection from deportation to illegal immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens.

The states, led by Texas and America First Legal, are suing over the “parole in place” rule announced in June by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The rule allows for humanitarian parole and a path to permanent residency for certain illegal immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens without them having to leave the country.

The states argue that the rule violates federal law, which prohibits illegal immigrants from obtaining immigration benefits, including permanent status, without first having left the country and being readmitted. They argue it does that by an unlawful use of parole, which is limited to use on a “case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.”

GOP LAWMAKERS WARN BIDEN PAROLE SCHEME COULD LEAD TO MASSIVE SPIKE IN MARRIAGE FRAUD

“Claiming that it has ‘unfettered discretion,’ Implementation of Keeping Families Together…DHS has announced the creation of a program that effectively provides a new pathway to a green card and eventual citizenship; announcing that it would allow more than 1.3 million aliens who are unlawfully present in the United States—more than 200,000 of whom live in Texas—to circumvent the processes established by Congress to apply for permanent residency,” the states argue in the filing, obtained by Fox News Digital.

A reporter raises his hand to ask a question of Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas during a press briefing, Monday, July 15, 2024 at the White House in Washington, D.C.  (AP)

The new process applies to noncitizen spouses who have lived in the U.S. for 10 years as of June and are judged not to pose a threat to public safety or national security, allowing them to apply for permanent residency. It argued that families live in fear and “face deep uncertainty about their future” due to the requirement that they depart and be processed abroad.

“In addition, individuals must have no disqualifying criminal history or otherwise constitute a threat to national security or public safety and should otherwise merit a favorable exercise of discretion,” a fact sheet said.

The DHS estimates that it will affect approximately 500,000 illegal immigrants. The process would not be eligible for new arrivals, as they must be in the U.S. for more than 10 years by June 2024.

TOP HOUSE COMMITTEE DEMANDS MAYORKAS FORK OVER DOCS AFTER BIDEN ADMIN FREEZES MIGRANT FLIGHT PROGRAM o

However, the coalition of states says that it would allow more than 1.3 million illegal immigrants to benefit. They argue it would also violate laws created by Congress that restrict the use of parole to a case-by-case determination.

“Under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the federal government is actively working to turn the United States into a nation without borders and a country without laws. I will not let this happen,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement. “Biden’s new parole workaround unilaterally grants the opportunity for citizenship to unvetted aliens whose first act on American soil was to break our laws. This violates the Constitution and actively worsens the illegal immigration disaster that is hurting Texas and our country while the Administration denies any responsibility for the border crisis.”

The states in the lawsuit are Texas, Idaho, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wyoming.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton arrives with former President Donald Trump at his criminal trial in New York on April 30, 2024. (Justin Lane/Reuters)

Stephen Miller, president of America First Legal, called the rule “brazenly unlawful.”

“Since our founding over three years ago, America First Legal has led the courtroom fight against the open borders agenda of Biden and Harris. We have sued time and again to fight their catastrophic policies. Today, we are proud to represent a coalition of 16 states in filing a lawsuit to block an unconstitutional Biden-Harris amnesty program,” he said. “This executive amnesty gives over one million illegals legal status, work permits, and a path to voting citizenship. It is brazenly unlawful, a deadly accelerant to the ruinous border invasion, and we will use every lawful tool to stop it.”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS

DHS responded to the lawsuit with a statement promising to defend the policy in court.

“The Department of Homeland Security is committed to Keeping Families Together. Keeping Families Together is grounded in well-established legal authority, and its purpose – enabling the families of U.S. Citizens to live without fear of separation – is consistent with fundamental American values. We will defend it in court. DHS is continuing to process already filed applications, and to accept and process new applications,” a spokesperson said.

The White House, in a separate statement, accused Republican officials of being “more focused on playing politics than helping American families or fixing our broken immigration system.”

“This lawsuit is seeking to force U.S. citizens and their families, people who have lived in the United States for more than ten years, to continue to live in the shadows. The lawsuit aims to separate American citizens from their spouses and stepchildren who are already eligible for lawful permanent residency and could remain together through this process,” spokesperson Angelo Fernández Hernández said. “This lawsuit goes against our nation’s values, and we will vigorously defend Keeping Families Together and our ability to make the immigration system more fair and more just. We will also continue securing our border and enforcing our laws, something Congressional Republicans have refused to do time and time again.” 

“Since President Biden announced new, decisive executive actions to secure the border, encounters between ports of entry have dropped significantly – encounters in July 2024 were the lowest since September 2020 and lower than at this point in 2019,” he added.

The Biden administration’s use of parole has caused controversy with Republicans. The administration is paroling up to 1,450 a day at ports of entry via the CBP One app and is allowing an additional 30,000 nationals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela to enter into the U.S. a month via a separate program.

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The CHNV program was halted last month after an internal report discovered a significant amount of fraud among those applying to be supporters for migrants entering the U.S.

FIRST ON FOX: A dozen Republican White House lawyers who served in the administrations of then-Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush are endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris in her race against GOP nominee former President Donald Trump.

“We endorse Kamala Harris and support her election as President because we believe that returning former President Trump to office would threaten American democracy and undermine the rule of law in our country,” the lawyers wrote in a letter that the signatories shared first with Fox News Digital.

The letter was released on Friday, the day after Harris delivered her nomination acceptance speech in the culminating moment of the Democratic National Convention, which was held in Chicago.

HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’

Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 22, 2024.  (REUTERS/Mike Segar)

The signatories added that “we urge all patriotic Republicans, former Republicans, conservative and center-right citizens, and independent voters to place love of country above party and ideology and join us in supporting Kamala Harris.”

The list includes Michael Luttig, the prominent right-of-center legal scholar and retired federal appeals court judge who previously served as assistant counsel to the president in the Reagan White House. Luttig made headlines at the start of the week by endorsing Harris as the Democrats’ convention kicked off.

WATCH: TRUMP JOINS FOX NEWS FOLLOWING HARRIS ADDRESS 

The letter notes, “Donald Trump’s own Vice President and multiple members of his Administration and White House Staff at the most senior levels – as well as former Republican nominees for President and Vice President – have already declined to endorse his reelection.”

Those signing the letter pointed to what they called “the profound risks presented by his [Trump’s] potential return to public office. Indeed, Trump’s own Attorney General and National Security Adviser have said unequivocally that Donald Trump is unfit for office, dangerous, and detached from reality.”

Former President and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump points after speaking about national security during a campaign rally in Asheboro, North Carolina, August 21, 2024. (Photo by PETER ZAY/AFP via Getty Images)

And pointing to the then-president’s attempts to reverse the results of his 2020 election loss to President Biden, the Republican lawyers argued that “Trump’s attempt to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after losing the election proved beyond any reasonable doubt his willingness to place his personal interests above the law and values of our constitutional democracy.”

“We cannot go along with other former Republican officials who have condemned Trump with these devastating judgments but are still not willing to vote for Harris,” they added. “We believe this election presents a binary choice, and Trump is utterly disqualified.”

And they charged that Trump “was guilty of grave wrongdoing to our Constitution, democracy, and rule of law, and who remains unfit, dangerous, and detached from reality.”

Trump’s numerous indictments in four different legal cases dating back to the spring fueled support for him among Republicans as he fended off over a dozen challengers for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination.

His fundraising skyrocketed this spring after he was found guilty of all 34 felony counts in the first criminal trial of a former or current president in the nation’s history.

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While Trump easily captured the Republican nomination as he cruised through the GOP’s primaries and caucuses, his final rival – former ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley – continued to win up to 20% of the vote in Republican contests long after she dropped out of the race.

President Biden’s campaign – which transformed into the Harris campaign after the president’s blockbuster announcement last month that he was ending his re-election bid – has made efforts for months to court Republican voters disaffected with Trump.

The Harris campaign during the four-day convention in Chicago this week showcased Republicans who are supporting the vice president.

Among them were former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and former Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois.

Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois speaks at the Democratic National Convention, on Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois.  (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )

Trump has dramatically transformed the Republican Party since he first won the GOP nomination and the White House in 2016, turning it from a conservative-dominated party to one where the populist wing of MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters and followers dominate. 

The list of signatories to the letter, besides Luttig, includes (in alphabetical order) John B. Bellinger III, Senior Associate Counsel to the President and Legal Adviser to the NSC under George W. Bush, Phillip D. Brady, Deputy Counsel to the President under Reagan, Benedict S. Cohen, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, Peter D. Keisler, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, and Robert M. Kruger, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan.

Also included are John M. Mitnick, Associate Counsel to the President and Deputy Counsel, White House Homeland Security Council under George W. Bush, Alan Charles Raul, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan and General Counsel, OMB under Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Nicholas Rostow, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and Legal Adviser to the NSC under Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Peter J. Rusthoven, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, David B. Waller, Senior Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, and Wendell L. Willkie II, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan.

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

FIRST ON FOX: The Republican National Committee (RNC) is suing the Election Commission of the City of Detroit over allegations they violated state law by hiring more than seven times more Democratic poll workers than Republicans for the 2024 election.

Michigan requires that the board of election commissioners “shall appoint an equal number, as nearly as possible, of election inspectors in each election precinct from each major political party,” according to Section 168.74 of the state’s election law.

However, the city of Detroit hired about 2,300 Democratic poll workers and only about 300 Republican election inspectors for the state’s 2024 primary election, according to the Detroit Election Commission Report cited in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed by the RNC, Michigan GOP, and chairs of Wayne County Republican committees late Thursday, charged that the City of Detroit’s Election Commission violated state law and, moreover, has a legal duty to appoint an equal number of GOP and Democratic poll workers before the November election.

OHIO STATE SECRETARY SAYS 100 NON-US CITIZENS VOTED IN RECENT ELECTIONS, BEGINS PROCESS TO PROSECUTE

Poll workers help voters at an early voting site on February 17, 2024. in Battle Creek, Michigan. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) (Scott Olson)

“Detroit’s failure to hire Republican poll workers is the kind of bad-faith Democrat interference that drives down faith in elections,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley and Co-Chair Lara Trump said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital. 

Section 674(2) of the Election Law also requires the commission to “appoint at least 1 election inspector from each major political party,” but according to the lawsuit obtained by Fox News Digital, 200 of the 335 precincts did not have a single Republican election inspector.

A booth for registering poll workers stands near where people line up to see Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump speak on July 31, 2024, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (Stephanie Keith)

“The RNC is bringing suit to remedy this completely unacceptable breach of public trust and our unprecedented election integrity campaign will continue to fight in Michigan and nationwide to protect the rights of every voter to have fair, accurate, secure and transparent elections,” Whatley and Trump said in a joint statement.

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The lawsuit asked that the commission use “appropriate practices and procedures to ensure the appointment of an equal number, as nearly as possible, of Republican and Democrat election inspectors,” and comply with state law by Oct. 15.

The Detroit Election Commission did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. joined former President Trump on stage at his Friday rally in Glendale, Arizona, hours after the third-party candidate announced he was suspending his presidential campaign and endorsing the Republican nominee. 

“We are both in this to do what’s right for the country,” Trump told the large crowd inside the Desert Diamond Arena with RFK Jr. standing beside him, adding that if he wins the presidency, he would establish an independent presidential commission on assassination attempts that would also be tasked with releasing all the remaining documents related to the assassination of former President John F. Kennedy, RFK Jr.’s uncle, who was killed in 1963. 

“He is a phenomenal person, a phenomenal man who loves the people of this country,” Trump added of RFK Jr.

The former long-shot candidate said he had more than one meeting with Trump starting last month, in which they “talked not about the things that separate us because we don’t agree on everything, but on the values and the issues that bind us together. And one of the issues that he talked about was having safe food and ending the chronic disease epidemic.” 

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. LAMBASTS ‘DNC-ALIGNED MAINSTREAM MEDIA,’ ACCUSES THEM OF ENGINEERING HARRIS’ RISE

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, looks on as Republican presidential nominee former Trump speaks at a campaign rally Friday, in Glendale, Ariz.  (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

He added of Trump: “Don’t you want a president who’s going to protect America’s freedoms and who is going to protect us against totalitarianism? … Don’t you want a safe environment for your children? Don’t you want to know that the food that you’re feeding them is not filled with chemicals that are going to give them cancer and chronic disease? And don’t you want a president that’s going to make America healthy again?” 

Trump added that RFK Jr. “did well in the polls” but the two-party system made it “very tough” for his candidacy. 

He also pitched to RFK Jr.’s supporters. 

“And all who supported Bobby’s campaign, I very simply ask you to join us in building this coalition,” Trump said. “It’s a beautiful coalition in defense of liberty and safety, prosperity and peace. It’s going to be an incredible coalition, and the relationship has been so good for so long. I have no doubt it’s going to work and work well, but we have to win. We have to take our country away from these people that are going to destroy our country.” 

Trump and RFK Jr. rallied a capacity crowd in the same arena where Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate Gov. Tim Walz held a rally earlier this month. 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, shakes hands with Republican presidential nominee former President Trump at a campaign rally in Glendale, Ariz., Friday. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

RFK Jr. endorsed Trump earlier Friday, saying that he planned to stay off the ballot in red and blue states, so people could vote for him there, but remove his name from battleground states.

“Three causes drove me to enter this race in the first place. And these are the principal causes that persuaded me to leave the Democratic Party and run as an independent and now to throw my support at President Trump,” RFK said. “The causes were free speech, war in Ukraine and the war on our children.” 

Kennedy said that the Democratic National Committee “waged continued legal war” on both Trump and himself while also accusing the DNC of running a “sham primary” that prevented a serious primary challenge to President Biden before he secured the Democratic nomination and dropped out in July, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris. 

TRUMP THANKS RFK JR FOR ENDORSEMENT AFTER THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE SUSPENDS HIS CAMPAIGN: ‘THAT’S BIG’

Harris’ campaign reached out to RFK Jr. supporters in a statement to Fox News on Friday. 

“For any American out there who is tired of Donald Trump and looking for a new way forward, ours is a campaign for you. In order to deliver for working people and those who feel left behind, we need a leader who will fight for you, not just for themselves, and bring us together, not tear us apart. Vice President Harris wants to earn your support. Even if we do not agree on every issue, Kamala Harris knows there is more that unites us than divides us: respect for our rights, public safety, protecting our freedoms, and opportunity for all.”

DNC senior advisor Mary Beth Cahill said “good riddance.” 

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“The more voters learned about RFK Jr. the less they liked him. Donald Trump isn’t earning an endorsement that’s going to help build support, he’s inheriting the baggage of a failed fringe candidate. Good riddance,” she said. 

EXCLUSIVE: Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign manager dodged questions about whether the Democratic presidential nominee would hold a press conference as her presidential bid recently passed one month since being launched. 

Campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez ducked questions from Fox News Digital on Thursday at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, keeping her head down and speeding away when pressed about Harris speaking to the press, which she has been avoiding. 

“Will Kamala talk to the press? Will she do a press conference?” Fox News Digital asked Chávez Rodríguez, who is also the granddaughter of labor activist Cesar Chavez. 

TRUMP TAUNTED OVER SPECULATED RFK JR ENDORSEMENT: ‘WEIRD AS HELL’

Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign manager, Julie Chávez Rodríguez, inset, avoided questions about if and when Harris would hold a press conference. (Getty Images)

“Will Kamala do a press conference? Will she do a press conference?” she was asked a total of four times. 

Chávez Rodríguez looked away and rushed to an open door without responding to the queries. 

Harris officially announced her campaign on July 21, following President Biden’s decision to drop out and endorse her as his successor. Since then, 33 days have passed without Harris holding a press conference or sitting down for a news interview. 

BIDEN-HARRIS HHS SECRETARY SIDESTEPS BACKING ANY LIMIT ON LATE-TERM ABORTION

Vice President Kamala Harris gave her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Thursday. (Reuters/Mike Segar)

Her campaign has remained silent on whether she will hold a press conference prior to the presidential election in 74 days. Early voting begins even sooner, kicking off in just 14 days, meaning there are just two weeks before some voters can cast their ballots without hearing Harris answer difficult questions about her record and policy positions. 

DEM LAWMAKERS’ VOTING RECORDS WITH BIDEN-HARRIS IN SPOTLIGHT AHEAD OF TIGHT RACES

Early voting will begin in two weeks. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Harris’ campaign website is also devoid of any policy positions. She recently released an economic agenda, which featured a proposal for price controls in the food industry, which was heavily scrutinized. However, no new policy prescriptions were introduced during the DNC this week. 

NEWSOM DODGES QUESTION ON HARRIS PRICE CONTROLS: ‘SHE HASN’T PUT OUT THE DETAILS’

After being continuously pressed on when she would sit down for an interview, Harris told reporters earlier this month that she wants to get an interview on the schedule by the end of August. A campaign spokesperson repeated this on CNN, claiming last week that they would be doing a sit-down interview by the end of the month. 

Vice President Kamala Harris has not shared her policy positions on her website. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

However, no such interviews have been announced.

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The lack of access to Harris on her presidential campaign could foreshadow what can be expected in terms of transparency out of a Harris and Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., administration. 

Former President Trump’s campaign has used Harris’ avoidance of the press as an opportunity to show contrast, holding frequent press conferences and taking questions from reporters. He has further challenged Harris to speak to the press herself. 

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

Former President Trump on Friday, while speaking at a restaurant in Las Vegas, thanked Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for his endorsement minutes after the third-party candidate said he was suspending his campaign because he didn’t want to “be a spoiler.” 

“We just had a very nice endorsement from RFK Jr, Bobby,” Trump said at Il Toro E La Capra eatery just off the Vegas Strip, where he addressed restaurant workers and other supporters.

The Republican presidential nominee said that he would be speaking more about RFK Jr.’s endorsement at a rally in Glendale, Arizona, on Friday evening, the same venue where Vice President Harris held a large rally earlier this month, and where Trump teased a “surprise guest.” 

He continued, “But I just want to thank everybody, and I want to thank Bobby. That was very nice. That was really, that’s big. He’s a great guy, respected by everybody.” 

ROBERT F KENNEDY JR. SUSPENDS CAMPAIGN, BACKS TRUMP FOR PRESIDENT

Former President Trump on Friday, while speaking at a restaurant in Las Vegas, thanked Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for his endorsement after the third party candidate said he was suspending his campaign because he didn’t want to “be a spoiler.”  (Getty)

RFK Jr. endorsed Trump just minutes before the former president began speaking in Las Vegas, saying during a scheduled press conference in Glendale that he planned to stay off the ballot in red and blue states, so people could vote for him there, but remove his name from battleground states.

“Three causes drove me to enter this race in the first place. And these are the principal causes that persuaded me to leave the Democratic Party and run as an independent and now to throw my support at President Trump,” RFK Jr. said. “The causes were free speech, war in Ukraine and the war on our children.” 

RFK Jr. said that the Democratic National Committee “waged continued legal war” on both Trump and himself, while also accusing the DNC of running a “sham primary” that prevented a serious primary challenge to President Biden before he secured the Democratic nomination, then dropped out in July, endorsing Harris.

WILL ROBERT F KENNEDY’S LIKELY EXIT FROM 2024 RACE BOOT TRUMP OVER HARRIS?

Harris’ campaign reached out to RFK Jr. supporters in a statement to Fox News on Friday. 

“For any American out there who is tired of Donald Trump and looking for a new way forward, ours is a campaign for you. In order to deliver for working people and those who feel left behind, we need a leader who will fight for you, not just for themselves, and bring us together, not tear us apart. Vice President Harris wants to earn your support. Even if we do not agree on every issue, Kamala Harris knows there is more that unites us than divides us: respect for our rights, public safety, protecting our freedoms, and opportunity for all.”

DNC senior advisor Mary Beth Cahill said “good riddance.” 

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“The more voters learned about RFK Jr. the less they liked him. Donald Trump isn’t earning an endorsement that’s going to help build support, he’s inheriting the baggage of a failed fringe candidate. Good riddance,” she said. 

The Trump campaign blasted Vice President Kamala Harris as a “liar” and “desperate” after her campaign released a TV ad claiming former President Trump’s policies brought in a “violent crime wave,” telling Fox News Digital Harris is an “open border, weak-on-crime liberal.” 

The Harris campaign, just a day after the vice president accepted the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago, released a television ad focused on crime. The ad claims on Harris’ watch, “violent crime went down.” 

“Her record as district attorney and attorney general — locking up child abusers, online predators and violent offenders and shutting down international drug cartels,” the ad says. “Under Donald Trump? A violent crime wave. And Trump ordered MAGA extremists to kill the bipartisan border security deal.

“Trump just talks tough. Kamala Harris is tough.”

NEW HARRIS BORDER SECURITY ADS MARK 180 FROM YEARS OF LIBERAL IMMIGRATION ADVOCACY

Former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris (Getty Images)

Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt called Harris “a liar.” 

“The truth is Kamala and Biden reversed every single one of President Trump’s effective immigration policies immediately upon taking office and opened the border to criminals, terrorists and drug cartels,” Leavitt told Fox News Digital. “If Ms. Border Czar Harris really wanted to secure the border, why doesn’t she go back to Washington and do it today?

“She won’t, because she’s an open border, weak-on-crime liberal.”

Meanwhile, the Trump campaign took to X, formerly Twitter, and wrote that violent crime “isn’t down, it’s up almost 25% across 66 major U.S. cities while Kamala has presided over three of the four most murderous years in the last 25 years.”

DNC ATTENDEES WEIGH IN: ARE KAMALA HARRIS’ AND JOE BIDEN’S RECORDS ONE AND THE SAME?

“Under Kamala, illegals she let into the country are brutally raping and murdering our citizens,” the campaign continued, adding that, as district attorney, Harris “was known for being soft on crime, while San Francisco had the highest murder rate in a decade.”

The campaign said Harris became “the model” for “Soros-backed prosecutors across the country.” 

“Drug cartels haven’t been ‘shut down,’ they’ve ravaged our communities with deadly drugs flowing across the border in unprecedented numbers,” the campaign continued. “The Sinaloa Cartel has made record profit under Kamala.” 

As for the bipartisan border bill, the Trump campaign said it would have “put millions of illegals on the fast track to citizenship.”

Trump visited the border in Arizona Thursday. 

Trump’s campaign has referenced Americans like Jocelyn Nungaray, Laken Riley and Rachel Morin, who were all allegedly killed by illegal immigrants.

Former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, comforts Patty Morin, mother of Rachel Morin, Aug. 22, 2024, south of Sierra Vista, Ariz. Rachel was allegedly murdered by an illegal immigrant at the U.S.-Mexico border. (Rebecca Noble)

Two Venezuelan nationals — 21-year-old Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel and 26-year-old Franklin Jose Peña Ramos — have been charged with capital murder in the death of 12-year-old Nungaray. The two men crossed illegally into the U.S. earlier this year and are accused of strangling the pre-teen to death in June.

Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan illegal immigrant, was charged with 22-year-old Riley’s murder. Ibarra entered the U.S. through El Paso, Texas, in 2022 and was freed on border parole. He initially lived in New York City, where he was arrested for allegedly endangering a child prior to his move to Athens, Georgia.

Ibarra has been charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another in connection to Riley’s murder.

The El Salvadoran national allegedly responsible for Morin’s death, 23-year-old Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, was also in the country illegally, and, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), was caught by Border Patrol three times within a matter of days in January 2023 and February 2023 and sent back to Mexico under Title 42 each time. 

Former President Trump, the Republican candidate for president, speaks at the U.S.-Mexico border Aug. 22, 2024, south of Sierra Vista, Ariz. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)

He then successfully entered the U.S. as a gotaway, meaning he entered without being inspected, admitted or paroled by a U.S. immigration officer, in February 2023 near El Paso, Texas.

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During his visit to Arizona Thursday, Trump invited Angel Moms to share stories about victims of illegal migrant crime. 

“We’ve done a lot of trips to the border over the years and told a lot of stories about border victims, including the stories of the amazing Angel Moms,” Trump said. “Time doesn’t heal all wounds, but we have never seen anything in terms of the volume and viciousness like what we are seeing now in our country.

“It is an onslaught of violence.” 

A Trump campaign official told Fox News Digital the campaign’s strategy will be to “continue to hammer home immigration and Kamala’s dereliction of duty at the border.” 

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

What’s happening…

-Biden-Harris quietly role out new amnesty proposal during the DNC

-Harris toes thin line with Israel-Gaza in DNC speech

-Hamas to receive new peace fire proposals

Multiple Agents on Leave

At least five members of the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) have been placed on administrative leave following the July 13 assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump in Butler, Penn., Fox News has confirmed.

One member of Trump’s personal protective team and four members of the Secret Service’s Pittsburgh Field Office, including the special agent in charge, have been sidelined nearly six weeks after the incident. The five are still employed but are teleworking and are no longer allowed in the field. They cannot do any investigative work….Read more

Members of the Secret Service stand watch as former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump holds a campaign rally at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Peter Zay / AFP) (Photo by PETER ZAY/AFP via Getty Images) (Photo by PETER ZAY/AFP via Getty Images)

White House

BORDER BACKLASH: Biden parole plan faces new challenge in the courts …Read more

THE REAL SURPRISE GUESTS: Biden-Harris admin quietly rolled out new ‘amnesty’ during DNC: critics …Read more

‘ABHORRENT’ RULE: ATF blasted for defining gun parts as firearms …Read more

Capitol Hill

‘NOT SCIENCE FICTION’: AOC declares that Harris will be ‘first woman president’ …Read more

IMMIGRANT MEDICAID TIFF: Grassley demands answers after CA promised to repay feds …Read more

Tales from the Trail

CEASE-FIRE DEAL: Harris toes thin line with Israel-Gaza conflict in DNC speech …Read more

TWO WEEKS TO GO: With 14 days until voting starts, ‘election season’ kicks off sooner than you think …Read more

MEDIA LACKEYS: MSNBC, CNN personalities get speaking roles at Democratic Convention …Read more

FACT-CHECKING KAMALA: 3 Harris DNC attack lines against Trump that were inaccurate or false …Read more

‘UNACCEPTABLE BREACH’: RNC sues Detroit Election Commission over allegations of ‘failure to hire Republican poll workers’ …Read more

Former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines is sworn in during a House Oversight Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services hearing on Capitol Hill Dec. 5, 2023 in Washington, DC.  (Drew Angerer)

Across America

‘PROTECTION OF WOMEN’S SPORTS’: Riley Gaines to testify in Georgia regarding 2022 NCAA matchup against biological male swimmer …Read more

GUN BAN UNDER FIRE: SCOTUS asked to rule on Maryland law …Read more

BE A MAN: Competing visions of being a man in America at center of Trump-Harris matchup …Read more

MOTHER’S PLEA: Family of mom murdered by illegal immigrant suspect has a message in Trump border meeting …Read more

FAILURE TO WARN: Trump team irate over Secret Service failing to warn them about Crooks after spotting him with a range finder …Read more

‘HOW IS THIS JUSTICE?’: Dozens of criminal defendants handed ‘get out of jail free card’ on a technicality …Read more

RAY OF HOPE: Hamas to receive new cease-fire proposal after ‘constructive’ talks in Egypt: report …Read more

BANNING WOMEN: Taliban government issues public ban on women’s voices, bare faces …Read more

TROUBLED WATERS: Civilian contractors to haul back Army boats used in Gaza pier mission …Read more

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

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

Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur appears to be changing her tune when it comes to working with President Biden during her close race for re-election.

Kaptur, one of the vulnerable Democrats who did not attend the Democratic National Convention (DNC), previously said she would be honored to work with Biden but now appears to be distancing herself from his presidency. 

The contrast was highlighted by the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF), a GOP SuperPAC that recently launched a website highlighting Kaptur’s own words from 2020 to now.

“It will be my honor to not just vote for Joe Biden, but to work for him and Sen. Kamala Harris,” Kaptur said in October 2020, a video on CLF’s new site shows.

‘MUST APOLOGIZE’: VULNERABLE HOUSE DEM FACES RENEWED BACKLASH OVER COMPARISON INVOLVING 9/11 TERRORIST

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, speaks at the VFW Post 2529 Annual Corn Roast in Sandusky, Ohio, Aug. 20, 2022. (Bill Clark)

As she seeks re-election in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, rated by the Cook Political Report as a “toss-up,” Kaptur recently shifted her rhetoric.

BATTLEGROUND DEMOCRATS LEAVE BIDEN HIGH AND DRY AFTER ‘DISTASTROUS’ DEBATE PERFORMANCE

“I don’t work for Donald Trump or Joe Biden,” Kaptur said in August 2024, just weeks after Biden withdrew from the presidential race.

CLF is also running a five-figure ad, which was streamed during the DNC, highlighting the contrast.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur is seeking re-election in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District. (Getty Images)

“Marcy Kaptur knows the Biden-Harris administration has hurt Ohioans, which is why she’s is trying to have them forget,” CLF spokeswoman Courtney Parella told Fox News Digital in a statement. “But voters know through Kaptur’s own words, she works for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, not Ohioans — period.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to Kaptur’s campaign for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said in a Friday court filing that he will endorse former President Donald Trump, The Associated Press reports.

The Kennedy campaign asked Pennsylvania to remove him from the ballot in the court filing, according to the AP. The filing didn’t say explicitly if he would be suspending his campaign.

The former Democrat is making an announcement in Phoenix a couple of hours before Trump was scheduled to hold a campaign event in nearby Glendale, Arizona. The Trump campaign on Thursday advertised that the former president would be joined by a “special guest,” which further sparked speculation of a Kennedy endorsement of the Republican 2024 presidential nominee.

The announcement is expected to end the presidential run by the longtime environmental activist and high-profile vaccine skeptic, who is the scion of the nation’s most storied political dynasty.

DOES KENNEDY’S DEPARTURE FROM THE 2024 RACE HELP TRUMP MORE THAN HARRIS?

Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announces an independent White House run, at a campaign event on October 9, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  ((Photo by Jessica Kourkounis/Getty Images))

Kennedy launched his long-shot campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in April of last year, but last October the 70-year-old candidate switched to an independent run for the White House.

HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’

While Kennedy had long identified as a Democrat and repeatedly invoked his late father Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and his uncle President John F. Kennedy, who were both assassinated in the 1960s, Kennedy in recent years built relationships with far-right leaders.

President Biden’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee for months repeatedly slammed Kennedy as a potential spoiler whose supporters could hand Trump a presidential election victory in November.

And the DNC battled Kennedy and his supporters at nearly every step as he worked to place his name on the ballot in all 50 states.

RFK JR.’S RUNNING MATE CHARGES DEMOCRATS ‘OBSTRUCTED A FAIR ELECTION,’ ‘FULLY SUPPORTS’ WORKING WITH TRUMP 

But Kennedy remained a thorn in Biden’s side from last year through the president’s announcement last month that he was ending his re-election bid and endorsing Harris.

The Trump campaign, which had cheered on Kennedy when he was running against Biden as a Democrat, also started taking aim at him after he switched to an independent run, labeling him a member of the “radical left,” and criticizing him for his environmental activism.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks at the Libertarian National Convention on May 24, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

But the relationship between Kennedy and Trump started warming earlier this year, and the two spoke last month after the assassination attempt against Trump and met in person the following day. 

Earlier this week, Kennedy running mate Nicole Shanahan sparked headlines by saying in a podcast interview that the campaign was considering whether to “join forces” with Trump to prevent the possibility of Vice President Kamala Harris winning the 2024 election.

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“If he endorsed me, I would be honored by it. I would be very honored by it. He really has his heart in the right place,” Trump said on Thursday in an interview on “Fox & Friends.”

And the former president’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, said Wednesday in an interview on “Fox & Friends” that he hoped Kennedy “endorses the president, gets on the team, because this is about saving the country.”

Kennedy’s departure from the race comes as his campaign was cratering.

The last public event put on by his campaign came on July 9, in Freeport, Maine. But even before that, his poll numbers – which once stood in the teens – had faded.

The most recent Fox News national poll, conducted August 9-12, indicated Kennedy at 6% support. 

His fundraising was also in a free fall, with campaign finance reports indicating he had just $3.9 million cash on hand as of the start of July, with nearly $3.5 million in debt.

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