NationalWatch

Rep. Claudia Tenney to Newsmax: Far Left 'Doesn't Sell' in New York

(Newsmax/"Prime News")

By Eric Mack | Thursday, 20 October 2022 10:35 PM EDT

New Yorkers dealing with inflation, high gas prices, and rising crime are seeing the failure of "one-party rule," Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., told Newsmax.

"The Democrats have nowhere to go but the far left, and that just doesn't sell and people are starting to recognize they refused to actually come to the middle," Tenney told Thursday's "Prime News."

"The Republicans are in the middle and all this, 'they're extremists and the MAGA people are extremists': Not at all, and everybody knows that."

New Yorkers are tired of dangerous crime, Tenney told host Jenn Pellegrino.

"The Democrats don't want to talk about that: It's abortion 24/7 and smearing Republicans, calling anyone that cares about America First, make America great again, is somehow an extremist," Tenney said.

Tenney also praised former President Donald Trump's "populist ideas" for bringing Republicans to the middle.

"One of the interesting aspect of Trump's movement and make America great is he prioritized the American worker, a bastion that was once part of the Democrat platform," Tenney said.

"Trump moved in and said, 'no, let's re-empower our American workers; let's bring our supply chains back, let's bring back industry in places like New York state and upstate where I live, which is like a rust belt.

"Let's do that for American workers, the American people."

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Report: Judge Nixes Sen. Graham's Bid to Avoid Grand Jury Testimony in Ga.

(Newsmax/"Rob Schmitt Tonight")

By Jay Clemons | Thursday, 20 October 2022 08:28 PM EDT

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., reportedly has been rejected by a federal appeals court in his effort to avoid testifying before a Georgia state grand jury, regarding the probe into whether former President Donald Trump and his supporters violated the law in their alleged efforts to reverse the 2020 election results.

As Newsmax chronicled in August, Graham previously requested that a Georgia-based federal district court expedite the hearing to block grand jury subpoena.

In a court filing at the time, Graham's attorneys argued that federal lawmakers were protected constitutionally from being forced to testify in state court.

"A federal court would be ordering a U.S. Senator from a coequal branch of government to appear before a grand jury," the filing stated.

"And enforcement would pose an even larger problem: It would create a precedent that would allow other county officials in locales across the nation to impose similar burdens on federal officials, of whatever party, to the detriment of our federal government and the federalism that protects it from state and local interference. And to what end? There is no need for Senator Graham's testimony, far less 'extraordinary circumstances' compelling it," the filing continued.

On Thursday, according to CNN, prosecutors in Georgia also secured grand jury testimony from two prominent witnesses: former Trump White House Counsel Pat Cipollone and former Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.

Cipollone was the top White House lawyer at the end of the Trump administration, and he reportedly attended meetings regarding the disputed election results.

The former Trump counsel recently provided testimony to the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 unrest at the Capitol, along with the Justice Department's criminal investigation.

At the time, Cipollone invoked Trump's executive-privilege claims when fielding questions.

The report of Loeffler's testimony comes on the heels of Jan. 6-related text messages involving the former senator surfacing. In January 2021, Loeffler was embroiled in a special Senate election with then-challenger Raphael Warnock, who's now a sitting senator representing Georgia.

When speaking on the Senate floor in on Jan. 6, 2021, Loeffler said, "When I arrived in Washington this morning, I fully intended to object to the certification of the electoral votes. However, the events that have transpired have forced me to reconsider, and I cannot now in good conscience object to the certification of these electors."

During the same speech, Loeffler reportedly condemned the Capitol rally as "abhorrent."

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Loeffler received several messages from Congresswoman-elect Marjorie Taylor Greene in the weeks prior to Jan. 6, 2021, including one text regarding a "plan we are developing on how to vote on the electoral college votes on Jan 6th," sent a month before that date.

Also, on Dec. 20, 2020, Greene reportedly invited Loeffler to a White House meeting with then-President Trump, along with other members of Congress, who were going to "challenge the Electoral College votes for [Joe] Biden in several key swing states on January 6."

Original Article

Caitlin Sinclair – NY Political Correspondent
UPDATED 12:32 PM PT – Thursday, October 20, 2022

Republican Mehmet Oz is projected to win his Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race against Democrat Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, according to Real Clear Politics.

Oz, who has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, will win Pennsylvania by 2.7% of the vote, Real Clear Politics (RCP) showed Thursday.

This new polling comes as, Democratic Pennsylvania Senate candidate, John Fetterman, struggled to speak clearly two a reporter in a recent interview just months after suffering a stroke — and one weeks before a scheduled debate with Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Fetterman granted Dasha Burns of NBC News his first sit-down interview since his May medical episode, which forced him into a months-long absence from the campaign trail.

“We had a monitor set up so that he could read my questions,” Burns said, “because he still has lingering auditory processing issues as a result of the stroke, which means he has a hard time understanding what he’s hearing.”

The recent Real Clear politics-produced average of recent polls puts Fetterman ahead by 3.2 percentage points. However, the RCP polling averages for past elections have understated Republican support by a mean of 5.2 points.

Therefore, going based on the past averages of undercounting of Republican support, RCP forecasts an Oz victory in the key battleground state.

Oz has blasted Fetterman for dodging debates and has accused him of “hiding” from voters after his stroke. The two campaigns have agreed to hold one debate on Oct. 25.

Original Article Oann

Doug Mastriano to Newsmax: Governor Plan Aids Education, Not Indoctrination (Newsmax/"The Chris Salcedo Show")

By Jay Clemons | Thursday, 20 October 2022 07:01 PM EDT

Pennsylvania Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano doesn't believe Democrat challenger Josh Shapiro will get much voter empathy from Pennsylvanians regarding his weekend tweet decrying high crime in the Keystone State — since Shapiro has been the state's attorney general for the last six years.

"When I read that tweet from a few days ago, I thought, 'Dude, where have you been for the last six years?'" Mastriano rhetorically asked on Newsmax Thursday afternoon, while appearing on "The Chris Salcedo Show."

"[AG Shapiro] has one job — and that's to enforce law and order [in Pennsylvania]," Mastriano added. "Where you've been, Josh?"

From Mastriano's perspective, Shapiro's essentially playing a game of defending-the-indefensible, since crime has gone up 40% on Shapiro's watch, according to the Republican.

There have also been 430 homicides in Pennsylvania this year — putting the state on track for more than 600 murders, added Mastriano.

Plus, fentanyl deaths in the state are higher than ever, says Mastriano.

"Instead of doing his job [as attorney general], Josh Shapiro has been busy suing [Pennsylvania] parents to keep their kids masked, suing to allow guys to go into girls' bathrooms," said Mastriano, before emphatically adding, "Do your job, Josh."

Mastriano, who's currently a state senator in Pennsylvania, also cannot fathom the AG office's legal battle with the Little Sisters of the Poor.

"Are you kidding me? Who sues nuns for a living?" asked Mastriano.

If he gets elected governor, Mastriano's Day One agenda with education would involve eliminating "pronoun games" and "gender confusion" with students, and dropping critical race theory from curriculums.

"It's time to educate — not indoctrinate," says Mastriano.

In the Keystone State, Mastriano is ostensibly fighting opponents on three different levels:

On the main stage, Mastriano's competing against Shapiro to become Pennsylvania's next governor.

On one side stage, Mastriano is working to overcome President Joe Biden's litany of energy-related "broken promises" to Pennsylvanians, regarding fossil fuels and oil production.

Mastriano's Day One plan as governor involves rolling back Biden and Shapiro's carbon-tax initiatives, and putting Pennsylvania back on the pathway toward energy independence.

And for the other side stage, Mastriano must field questions regarding Democrat Senate candidate John Fetterman, who's apparently losing steam in his U.S. Senate campaign … and not showing up for meetings or votes at the state senate level.

"Can you imagine the [media] outrage if I blew off the [state] senate? … Can you imagine the outrage if Fetterman was a Republican?" asked Mastriano.

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Original Article

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 11:38 AM PT – Thursday, October 20, 2022

Donald J. Trump is taking aim at a federal judge over his allegations about the 2020 election.

In a Truth Social Post on Thursday, Trump said that Clinton-appointed District Judge David Carter is making “very nasty, wrong, and ill-informed” statements about him.

During a ruling on Wednesday, Carter accused the 45th President of engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the United States. As a result, attorney John Eastman was ordered to turn over dozens of documents. In addition, the judge ordered four emails between Eastman and Trump to be sent to the January 6th Committee.

“The emails show that President Trump knew that the specific numbers of voter fraud were wrong but continued to tout those numbers, both in court and to the public,” Carter said. “The Court finds that these emails are sufficiently related to and in furtherance of a conspiracy to defraud the United States.”

Trump claims that he knows nothing about the case and is not being represented in the matter. He then went on to call Carter a “Partisan Hack” who doesn’t understand the facts.

Original Article Oann

Kari Lake to Newsmax: 'We're Going to Finish' the Border Wall (Newsmax/"The Chris Salcedo Show")

By Luca Cacciatore | Thursday, 20 October 2022 05:42 PM EDT

Kari Lake told Newsmax that she would issue a "declaration of invasion" on the southern border if she wins the Arizona governor's race and finish former President Donald Trump's wall.

During a Thursday appearance on "The Chris Salcedo Show," the Republican nominee said she agreed with incumbent Gov. Doug Ducey's rejection of Biden administration calls to remove shipping containers placed along weak border spots.

President Joe Biden "can come down and try to move them," Lake said of the containers. "We are not going to allow the flow of people coming here illegally, the flow of drugs coming through these gaps in the border.

"When I'm governor, we're going to work to finish the construction of President Trump's wall using the abandoned federal property that we, the people, paid for with our tax money. But in the meantime, any barrier is better than no barrier."

Lake emphasized her decision to push for a declaration of invasion at the border is motivated by the federal government's failure to provide adequate border security as of late, stating that Biden "is showing he is on the side of the cartels."

"Joe Biden is proving he is on the side of the narco-terrorists, and he is on the side of the child traffickers and human smugglers," the candidate proclaimed. "We're going to take care of our own border here in Arizona starting in January of '23."

Her comments arrive as Customs and Border Protection numbers indicate 3,588,877 illegal migrants have been encountered at the southern border in Biden's first 19 months as president. That's up from 951,568 under Trump in his final 19 months.

According to a RealClearPolitics average of polls conducted so far, Lake currently leads Democrat opponent Katie Hobbs by 1.6 percentage points, 47.8% to 46.2%. Hobbs is Arizona's current secretary of state.

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Original Article

America First Republicans Question Ukraine Military Aid Package (Newsmax)

By Brian Pfail | Thursday, 20 October 2022 05:37 PM EDT

Lawmakers for both parties are looking to seize the opportunity for Ukrainian military aid before newly elected members are sworn in.

This week House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is likely to take over as speaker if the GOP wins a majority in the House in the midterms, warned Republicans are "not going to write a blank check to Ukraine."

Last month, Congress approved $12 billion in military and economic aid to Ukraine. Congress has already allocated a total of $65 billion in aid since Russia's attack in February. Sources believe the next package will be dramatically larger. A Republican senator told NBC News, "It'll make the $12 billion look like pocket change."

The package would likely be part of an omnibus spending bill within the range of $50 billion, according to congressional aides.

America First Republicans argue that such aid is not the top priority and that Americans are already dealing with many domestic problems. They also say Ukraine's fate is not directly tied to the U.S., and its European allies should be stepping up.

"You need to put your own oxygen mask on before helping others," said Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla., to NBC News. "I just don't think as a legislator that I could, in good conscience, support billions and billions of funding going overseas when we have such dire needs here."

Republicans are split over the Ukraine issue. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Tenn., a member of the Appropriations Committee that controls spending, said it is absolutely necessary to provide weapons and other aid to prevent Russia's advancement.

Former Vice President Mike Pence referred to those against the aid as Russian "apologists" in an event with The Heritage Foundation on Wednesday.

He said, "There can be no room in the conservative movement for apologists to Putin." The former vice president is in company with others such as Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

A Democrat congressional aide said, "We are incredibly concerned that the MAGA wing of the party is planning to block lifesaving aid to Ukraine if Republicans take over the House."

Ukraine relies heavily on other nations for support. A cease in American aid could help the Russian front. Defense officials claim Ukraine burns through thousands of artillery rounds each day.

Original Article

Arizona Rejects Federal Government's Demands to Remove Containers Supporting the Border (Newsmax)

By Brian Pfail | Thursday, 20 October 2022 04:09 PM EDT

Arizona has refused to dismantle a makeshift border wall of more than 100 double-stacked containers. The state placed them to fill in the gaps along the U.S.-Mexico border, saying it won't remove them until the government finishes the barrier.

In an Oct. 18 letter to the Bureau of Reclamation, the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs stood its ground, saying, "the containers will remain in place until specific details regarding construction are provided." The letter signed by the department's director, Allen Clark, was not well received.

The Bureau of Reclamation told Arizona officials in a letter last week that the containers violated U.S. law. The federal agency demanded no new containers be placed at the site, saying it does not want to interfere with two existing federal contracts and two pending to fill the gaps at the border near the Morelos Dam in Yuma, Arizona.

Arizona's governor, Doug Ducey, originally ordered the double-stacking of containers at the border. He says he couldn't wait for Customs and Border Protection to follow through with its contracts.

Migrants have continued to avoid barriers at the border, including through the Cocopah Indian Reservation. The Cocopah Indian Tribe has complained Arizona is acting against its wishes by utilizing these 42 double stacks on its land.

The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice of intent to sue Gov. Ducey, claiming the containers would obstruct a critical jaguar and ocelot migration corridor.

Former President Donald Trump pressed on border security in his past administration. President Joe Biden has done much of the opposite, halting wall construction on his first day in office, leaving billions of unfinished work still under contract. The current administration made exceptions, closing small portions deemed unsafe for people to cross, like in Yuma.

Original Article

Rich Little to Newsmax: Favorite Impressions Were of Reagan, Not Nixon

(Newsmax/"American Agenda")

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Thursday, 20 October 2022 04:08 PM EDT

Comedian, voice actor and impressionist Rich Little impersonated the voices of hundreds of celebrities and politicians through the years; and while some of his best-known impressions were of late President Richard Nixon, he told Newsmax his favorite person to imitate was another president.

"That was Ronald Reagan," Little, who is now 83 years old, said on Newsmax's "American Agenda." "I thought he was a pretty great guy. Ronald Reagan had a marvelous sense of humor … he was my favorite of all the people I've met in my life because he had a great sense of humor and he had that little twinkle in his eye."

Reagan, he added, always seemed like a "loveable grandfather who lived next door," rather than the president of the United States.

Little said that Reagan once did some impressions for him, doing voices for Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne and the writer Truman Capote.

"Jimmy Stewart was fair and John Wayne was not that great, but his Truman Capote was great," he recalled. "I remember him standing there at the White House, and I thought to myself, 'This is absurd.' But he was doing Truman Capote and he said, 'You know, a lot of people think that I wrote "In Cold Blood," but that's not true. I wrote in ink.'"

Little's latest book, "People I've Known and Been," gives an in-depth view of the relationships he's formed over the years and the interesting people he's met.

Little said his book isn't a biography, but it's about "funny things that have happened with me and celebrities through the years."

"I've met so many great people, people that I admire. And a lot of funny things happened, and they are in the book," he said.

The comedian came to fame with political humor, and he said he doesn't think it's any harder to get his act across now than it was in years past.

"There are always people in your audience who have no sense of humor and are a little sensitive," he said. "I do Joe Biden. And if you take [offense] to what I'm doing, it's only because he wrote me so much great material."

He also recalled that at first, he was an impressionist, but he learned that adding jokes helped his act a lot.

"You can't just start talking as somebody without saying something funny, so you have to be a comedian," said Little. "When I started doing impressions when I was a teenager, I didn't know I had to become a comedian."

And, yes, Little does an impression of former President Donald Trump, who he said is difficult to do.

"A lot of people exaggerate him and make him into a cartoon. But you know, I do a very simple one of Donald Trump."

Little still performs at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas, and he admitted that younger audience members may not know who he's imitating, but they still laugh.

"A 15-year-old kid sat down front the other night, and he was laughing his head off. And I thought, 'He doesn't know anybody I'm doing,'" said Little. "When the show was over, I called him over and I said, 'You seemed to really enjoy my performance.' And he said, 'Well, I did, Mr. Little, but I was confused.' I said, "What were you confused about?' He said, 'I just kept wondering why you kept changing your voice.'"

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Original Article

Rep. Fallon to Newsmax: Mayorkas Will Likely Resign After Midterms Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX). (Jason Andrew-Pool/Getty)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Thursday, 20 October 2022 01:31 PM EDT

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will likely resign after the midterm elections because Republicans in the U.S. House will be impeaching him not only for his lies about Border Patrol guards whipping Haitian refugees but because he did not tell the truth about the border being secure, Rep. Pat Fallon said on Newsmax Thursday.

"Our office plans to file articles of impeachment on Sec. Mayorkas come Nov. 9," the Texas Republican, who is part of the House Oversight Committee, said on Newsmax's "Wake Up America."

"I suspect what he'll do is he'll resign after the midterms because if he doesn't, he's going to have a parking space right outside the building where our committee meets because he's going to be in front of us so often."

Mayorkas, who has been under fire from Republicans for months because of the situation at the border, reportedly learned that the narrative that Border Patrol agents on horses whipped a group of Haitian migrants was false but still denounced the officials just three hours after he was told in an email the photographer who took the viral pictures said the immigrants weren't whipped.

Fallon also noted that Mayorkas last year testified in a hearing that the border was secure, "but then he got caught on a hot mic shortly thereafter saying that the border was in chaos, so clearly he was lying then as well."

The congressman also commented on reports that the Biden administration pressured the mayor of El Paso, Texas, against declaring that there was a migrant crisis.

"That demonstrates that Joe Biden is putting the political agenda of his administration over that of protecting Americans," said Fallon.

Meanwhile, even though numbers for September haven't been released, Fallon said he thinks that at least 3 million immigrants have crossed the border illegally this year.

"April was the worst month we've ever had, with a record 234,000 illegal border crossers, or 1,258% worse than the last April that President [Donald] Trump was in office, and then only to be eclipsed by May, which was 241,000 illegal border crossers, 930% worse than the last May," said Fallon.

"When you include the known got aways you're looking at almost 1.5 million illegal border crossings. We've never had anything like that. And I think when the September numbers come in, adding known got aways, plus the illegal border crossers we're looking at three million."

Fallon also accused the administration of ignoring the hundreds of thousands of immigrants who are trying to enter the United States legally, because they won't necessarily vote as Democrats.

Further, he said that the left tries to inject arguments about race into the matter of immigration, but "95% of those folks" who want to enter the country legally "are people of color."

"Any time somebody on the left tries to inject race into immigration and border security, it's absurd," said Fallon. "It's immaterial and it's quite frankly disgusting."

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Original Article

Trump Rips Clinton-Appointed Judge Carter as 'Partisan Hack' (Newsmax)

By Solange Reyner | Thursday, 20 October 2022 11:49 AM EDT

Former President Donald Trump on Thursday ripped Clinton-appointed judge David Carter, who earlier this week said Trump signed legal documents describing evidence of election fraud that was false.

Carter wrote the claim on Wednesday in an 18-page opinion ordering that emails from former Trump attorney John Eastman needed to be turned over to the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol incident.

"Who's this Clinton appointed 'Judge' David Carter, who keeps saying, and sending to all, very nasty, wrong, and ill informed statements about me on rulings, or a case (whatever!), currently going on in California, that I know nothing about — nor am I represented," Trump said in a Truth Social statement. "With that being said, please explain to this partisan hack that the Presidential Election of 2020 was Rigged and Stolen.

"Also, he shouldn't be making statements about me until he understands the facts, which he doesn't!"

The emails in question, according to Carter's ruling, "show that President Trump knew that the specific numbers of voter fraud were wrong but continued to tout those numbers, both in court and to the public."

Carter also added in a footnote that the suit contained language saying Trump was relying on information provided to him by others.

Trump in 2021 signed a document swearing under oath that information in a Georgia lawsuit he filed challenging the 2020 election results was true even though his own lawyers told him it was false, Carter wrote.

Original Article

Republican Bailey, Illinois Gov. Pritzker in Toss-Up Race: Poll Republican gubernatorial candidate, state Sen. Darren Bailey speaks at an election-night party on June 28, 2022 in Effingham, Illinois. Former President Donald Trump-endorsed Bailey beat out a field of six candidates for the nomination. (Jim Vondruska/Getty)

By Charlie McCarthy | Thursday, 20 October 2022 11:32 AM EDT

Republican Darren Bailey has moved into a virtual tie with Democrat Gov. J.B. Pritzker in the race for Illinois chief executive, according to new survey.

Bailey received 42% and Pritzker 44% among likely voters, with a plus-minus 4% margin of error, in the new Osage Research poll. Libertarian Scott Schluter received 4%.

Pritzker also had a larger unfavorable rating than Bailey, 47% to 40%.

A total of 62% of likely Illinois voters said they either would consider another candidate other than Pritzker (27%), or would vote to replace the governor regardless of who ran against him (35%).

The survey also found that 56% said Illinois generally was on the wrong track, with 35% saying the state was headed in the right direction. Another 10% did not know or refused to choose.

When asked to agree or disagree with the statement they were "personally better off after four-years of J.B. Pritzker as our governor," 45% agreed, 48% disagreed, and 8% were undecided or refused to answer.

Presented with the statement, "Darren Bailey will keep us safer than J.B. Pritzker," 45% agreed and 44% disagreed, with 12% undecided or refusing to answer.

Asked to which party they thought of themselves belonging, 39% said Democrat, 25% said Republican, and 28% said they were independent.

In a somewhat surprising result, when asked whether they were conservative, moderate, or liberal, the responses were 32% conservative, 26% liberal, and 31% moderate. Another 10% were undecided or refused to answer.

The Osage survey was conducted among 600 likely voters Oct. 13-15.

The candidates on Tuesday night participated in their second and final debate.

Bailey accused Pritzker of pushing "woke ideology" in Illinois schools.

"His gender issues are so extreme," Bailey said, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. "Gov. Pritzker is perfectly fine injecting his gender curriculum, the first of its kind in the nation, into our schools. Woke ideology. I think that’s extreme."

Pritzker slammed Bailey for being an "extremist" and a "threat to democracy."

With increased crime seen in Chicago in recent years, Bailey referred to the Windy City as "Pritzkerville."

"I want to call it Pritzkerville because every one of Gov. Pritzker’s extreme policies are destroying the city, out of control crime, devastated education, the fact that corporations are packing up and leaving every day," Bailey said, the Sun-Times reported.

Illinois earlier this week was among the states reporting heavy early voting turnout, according to the University of Florida.

Original Article

Mehmet Oz Predicted to Triumph Over John Fetterman in RCP Senate Forecast (Newsmax)

By Charlie McCarthy | Thursday, 20 October 2022 10:27 AM EDT

Republican Mehmet Oz is projected to win his Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race against Democrat Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, according to Real Clear Politics.

Oz, who has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, will win Pennsylvania by 1.9% of the vote, Real Clear Politics (RCP) showed Thursday.

RCP is based on opinion polling adjusted to take account of past inaccuracies.

The recent RCP-produced average of recent polls puts Fetterman ahead by 3.2 percentage points. However, the RCP polling averages for past elections have understated Republican support by a mean of 5.2 points.

Therefore, adjusted for past undercounting of Republican support, RCP forecasts an Oz victory in the key battleground state.

Voters will go to the polls Nov. 8, when the GOP hopes to regain control of the U.S. House and Senate.

Recent surveys show that Republicans are favored to win a majority in the House, with control of the Senate becoming a more realistic possibility.

Oz and Fetterman have been engaged in a hotly contested race in the Keystone State.

Fetterman, 53, suffered a stroke five months ago that has had lingering effects on his speech and hearing. His doctor says the candidate has no work restrictions and can "work full duty in public office."

However, it was reported Wednesday that Dr. Clifford Chen was a Fetterman campaign donor.

Oz also has hammered Fetterman for his stance on crime. The lieutenant governor once voted to release a man sentenced to life in prison for killing a man with garden shears in a parking garage.

The convict, Charles "Zeke" Goldblum, also attempted to hire a hitman to kill his accomplice in the brutal murder. Fetterman said he was "happy" after the killer left prison last year.

Fetterman also was the lone member of the state Pardon Board who voted to release convicted murderer John Brookins, currently serving a life sentence for murdering his then-girlfriend's mother with a pair of scissors.

Oz, though, said he supports President Joe Biden's decision to pardon thousands of Americans convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal law.

The Pennsylvania race has become so competitive that Fetterman's campaign last week said that it planned to put up two billboards before the Sunday's NFL game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys (won by the Eagles) that call out Oz as a fake Pennsylvanian.

"Dr. Oz is a Cowboys fan," the billboard reads. "Elect a real Pennsylvanian. Vote Fetterman for Senate on Nov. 8th."

Original Article

Former FERC Chairman Chatterjee to Newsmax: Biden's Playing Politics on Oil Former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Neil Chatterjee (AP)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Thursday, 20 October 2022 08:47 AM EDT

President Joe Biden's plan to release 15 million more barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is "political strategy," not an energy policy, former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Neil Chatterjee tells Newsmax.

"He is trying to do anything he can to try and affect the price at the pump ahead of the midterms," Chatterjee commented on Newsmax's "Wake Up America." "By releasing these barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, he's compromising our security to shave maybe a penny of the price at the pump ahead of the midterms."

Biden on Wednesday, while announcing the release, called for U.S. oil companies to ramp up production and offered them a guaranteed price of $70 per barrel to sell oil back to the U.S. government to refill the reserves when demand falls and the price drops back down to below $70 per barrel.

Chatterjee, though, said Biden is trying to "scapegoat" not only oil companies because of the rising cost of fuel, but "anyone and everyone but his own policies."

"He is caught between an economy that is suffering and Americans who are feeling the pain at the pump in their grocery bills and their electricity bills, and his environmental agenda," said Chatterjee. "If he would focus on clean American domestic energy production, not only would it help the economy, it would help the environment as well because we do it cleaner than anyone else."

Instead, he continued, "he's pursuing policies that are sending the wrong signals to investors that are inhibiting what we need to do to ramp up domestic energy production."

Chatterjee also called Biden's plan to buy oil at $70 a barrel from the oil companies "fuzzy math," considering the cost was much lower than that when former President Donald Trump was in office.

"It's playing politics," he said. "It's trying to make the case to the American people that 'hey, look, I'm doing everything I can to bring down the price at the pump.'"

Instead, Biden must send a clear signal to oil producers and the industry that they will not be under attack and weigh on their future investments because "they're sending mixed signals at a time when Americans need to see increased energy production and so do our allies overseas."

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Original Article

Former FERC Chairman Chatterjee to Newsmax: Biden's Playing Politics on Oil Former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Neil Chatterjee (AP)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Thursday, 20 October 2022 09:18 AM EDT

President Joe Biden's plan to release 15 million more barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is "political strategy," not an energy policy, former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Neil Chatterjee tells Newsmax.

"He is trying to do anything he can to try and affect the price at the pump ahead of the midterms," Chatterjee commented on Newsmax's "Wake Up America." "By releasing these barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, he's compromising our security to shave maybe a penny of the price at the pump ahead of the midterms."

Biden on Wednesday, while announcing the release, called for U.S. oil companies to ramp up production and offered them a guaranteed price of $70 per barrel to sell oil back to the U.S. government to refill the reserves when demand falls and the price drops back down to below $70 per barrel.

Chatterjee, though, said Biden is trying to "scapegoat" not only oil companies because of the rising cost of fuel, but "anyone and everyone but his own policies."

"He is caught between an economy that is suffering, and Americans who are feeling the pain at the pump, in their grocery bills and their electricity bills, and his environmental agenda," said Chatterjee. "If he would focus on clean, American domestic energy production, not only would it help the economy, it would help the environment as well because we do it cleaner than anyone else."

Instead, he continued, "he's pursuing policies that are sending the wrong signals to investors that are inhibiting what we need to do to ramp up domestic energy production."

Chatterjee also called Biden's plan to buy oil at $70 a barrel from the oil companies "fuzzy math," considering the cost was much lower than that when former President Donald Trump was in office.

"It's playing politics," he said. "It's trying to make the case to the American people that 'hey, look, I'm doing everything I can to bring down the price at the pump.'"

Instead, Biden must send a clear signal to oil producers and the industry that they will not be under attack and weigh on their future investments because "they're sending mixed signals at a time when Americans need to see increased energy production and so do our allies overseas."

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Pence Hints at 2024 Presidential Run Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks during an event to promote his new book at the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 19. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By Charlie McCarthy | Thursday, 20 October 2022 09:04 AM EDT

Former Vice President Mike Pence offered the strongest hint yet that he's considering a 2024 presidential run.

Pence, speaking Wednesday night at a Georgetown University event, was asked whether he would vote for Donald Trump if the former president is the Republican nominee in '24.

"Well, there might be somebody else I'd prefer more," answered Pence, who then smiled and shrugged as audience members laughed and applauded.

"What I can tell you is, I have every confidence that the Republican Party's going to sort out leadership. All my focus has been on the midterm elections, and it'll stay that way for the next 20 days, but after that, we'll be thinking about the future — ours and the nations, and I'll keep you posted, OK?"

Trump, at a fundraiser last week, said an announcement about his 2024 plans will be coming "very soon." He has indicated that he plans to make another run for office, saying that supporters will be "very happy" with his decision.

While Trump and Pence enjoyed a strong relationship during most of their four years in office, things changed when the then-vice president certified the Electoral College results hours after protesters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Trump and allies insisted that Joe Biden won the 2020 election due to voter fraud in several swing states, and wanted the electoral results returned to the states for investigation.

"Mike committed political suicide by not taking votes that he knew were wrong," Trump said, The Washington Post reported.

Pence disagreed.

"President Trump is wrong," the former vice president said in February in Florida. "I had no right to overturn the election."

Pence spoke and answered questions during his appearance Wednesday night before Georgetown's Institute of Politics and Public Service.

He has been traveling to support GOP candidates running in the Nov. 8 midterms election, and also has visited early 2024 primary and caucus states, particularly South Carolina and Iowa.

So far, Pence has stressed the Republican Party's overall vision going forward rather than to focus on Trump's role.

Earlier Wednesday, while appearing before The Heritage Foundation, Pence warned conservatives against straying too far toward "unprincipled populism."

"Conservatism is bigger than any one moment, any one election, any one person. It's about ideas," Pence said. "I truly do believe it's absolutely essential that we articulate a vision for the path ahead."

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OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 3:02 PM PT – Wednesday, October 19, 2022

Vice President Kamala Harris has hired her third Chief Speech Writer.

According to reports, Harris hired Dave Cavell to be her new Chief Speech Writer. Cavell previously worked in the Obama administration as well as for special presidential envoy for climate, John Kerry.

The Vice President’s office has seen high turnover since Harris took the role. The first Chief Speech Writer, Kate Childs Graham, announced her departure in February. Whilst her second, Meghan Groob, left this summer after only a few months in the role.

This comes as it’s been reported that Harris has given her staff some headaches with questionable statements, such as people impacted by Hurricane Ian should receive equity-based aid.

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Trump Deposed in Defamation Suit Filed by E. Jean Carroll (Dreamstime)

Wednesday, 19 October 2022 07:22 PM EDT

Former President Donald Trump answered questions under oath Wednesday in a lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll, a magazine columnist who says the Republican raped her in the mid-1990s in a department store dressing room.

The deposition gave Carroll's lawyers a chance to interrogate Trump about the assault allegations as well as statements he made in 2019 when she told her story publicly for the first time.

Details on how the deposition went weren't immediately disclosed.

“We’re pleased that on behalf of our client, E. Jean Carroll, we were able to take Donald Trump’s deposition today. We are not able to comment further," said a spokesperson for the law firm representing her, Kaplan Hecker & Fink.

Trump has said Carroll's rape allegation is “a hoax and a lie.”

His legal team worked for years to delay his deposition in the lawsuit, which was filed when he was still president. A federal judge last week rejected Trump’s request for another delay, saying he couldn't “run the clock out on plaintiff’s attempt to gain a remedy for what allegedly was a serious wrong.”

Trump’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment about the deposition.

Carroll was to have been questioned by Trump's lawyers last Friday. Neither her attorneys and nor Trump's have responded to questions about how that deposition went.

The lawyers haven't disclosed whether the deposition was done in person or remotely, over video. Trump was in Florida on Wednesday. The lawsuit is being handled in a court in New York City.

Anything Trump said during his deposition could potentially be used as evidence in an upcoming civil trial. He hasn't faced any criminal charges related to Carroll's allegations and any prosecution is unlikely. The deadline for criminal charges over sexual assaults that occurred in the 1990s has long expired.

Similar legal deadlines also applied to civil lawsuits over sexual assault. As a result, Carroll chose to sue Trump for defamation over comments he made in 2019 when he denied any wrongdoing. She maintains his denials and attacks on her credibility and character damaged her reputation.

However, New York lawmakers recently gave survivors of sexual violence a one-year window to sue their attackers over old assaults. Carroll's lawyer has told the court she intends to file such a suit against Trump after that window opens in late November.

According to Carroll's account, she bumped into Trump as the two were shopping at the Bergdorf Goodman store across Fifth Avenue from Trump Tower. At the time, Carroll was on television as the host of an advice program, “Ask E. Jean.”

She said the two engaged in friendly banter as she tried to help him pick out a gift. But when they were briefly alone in a dressing room, she said he pulled down her tights and raped her.

In a recent statement, Trump called that story “a complete con job.”

“I don’t know this woman, have no idea who she is, other than it seems she got a picture of me many years ago, with her husband, shaking my hand on a reception line at a celebrity charity event,” Trump said.

Rep. Burgess to Newsmax: GOP Must Stop Cartels' 'Flow of Money' at Border

Rep. Michael Burgess (AP)

By Jay Clemons | Wednesday, 19 October 2022 06:24 PM EDT

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas, has some advice for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas if the Republicans reclaim the House majority in the upcoming midterm elections: Clear your schedule for January.

"Secretary Mayorkas will likely find himself in front of [multiple] congressional committees" in 2023, if the GOP leadership takes back control, Burgess told Newsmax Wednesday afternoon, while appearing on "The Chris Salcedo Show."

"I hope [Mayorkas] is prepared for" Republican oversight, added Burgess.

From the Texas congressman's perspective, Mayorkas' inconsistent leadership with DHS has played an integral role in more than 5 million migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border during President Joe Biden's tenure in office.

Burgess also believes that Mayorkas' indifference to illegal immigration has empowered the cartels to seize control of the border, knowing the Biden administration and Mexican officials likely won't put up much resistance.

Control of the southern border has been "extremely lucrative" for the cartels, Burgess said, whether it involves charging migrants exorbitant fees to cross the border, conducting various sex/human trafficking operations or pushing lethal drugs, including fentanyl, across the southern border.

Next year's Republican majority will "have to stop that flow of money," said Burgess. "We have to go after the [money sources] of the cartels and coyotes. Otherwise, it's just moving pieces around on the board."

The congressman then added, "The cartels wouldn't do [all the sex/human/drug trafficking], if they weren't making money" or if they were fearing reprisal from police officials.

Burgess, who says he has visited the southern border many times in recent months, likened the temporary housing the Trump administration created to the so-called "tent cities" being pitched by New York City Mayor Eric Adams, in terms of accommodating migrants.

"The irony here is significant," said Burgess, calling the 2019 images of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., crying outside the temporary southern border housing during Donald Trump's White House tenure a possible show for the media cameras.

Back then, Burgess said, the "Democrats were having prayer vigils" on-site. "But where is that same activity going outside of Mayor Adams' tent city in New York?"

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Obama to Campaign for Group of Vulnerable Nevada Incumbents Former U.S. President Barack Obama goes to cast his vote at an early voting venue on October 17, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. (Jim Vondruska/Getty)

Associated Press Wednesday, 19 October 2022 05:03 PM EDT

Former President Barack Obama plans to visit southern Nevada on Nov. 1 to rally for vulnerable Democratic incumbents in the state who are seeking to fend off a potential red wave.

Early voting will be a major focus of the visit that Nevada Democrats hope will inject enthusiasm into reelection efforts by Gov. Steve Sisolak, U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, as well as secretary of state candidate Cisco Aguilar's campaign and two swing House races.

Sisolak and Cortez Masto plan to speak at the event.

Wednesday's announcement came on the same day that Sisolak's campaign released a video with the former president endorsing the governor.

"While some folks are trying to roll back voting rights and a woman’s right to choose, Steve has protected them in Nevada," Obama said in the ad.

"Steve Sisolak has been there for you. And now you need to be there for him."

Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has made two stops in Nevada to campaign for Republican Senate candidate Adam Laxalt and GOP gubernatorial candidate Joe Lombardo. Earlier this month, Trump campaigned in rural northern Nevada in a rally that featured Republican candidates up and down the ballot. In July, he campaigned with Laxalt and Lombardo in Las Vegas.

The final stretch of the midterm cycle marks a foray back into campaigning for Obama, who has mostly remained away from the political spotlight nearly six years after his presidency. He has ramped up his campaign schedule, including in the days leading up to the Nevada visit with stops planned in Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Democrats are hoping to gain back steam in races marked by high inflation, abortion rights, President Joe Biden’s low approval rating and the courting of the state’s working class and Latino voters whose turnout may end up deciding pivotal races.

Some Democrats nationwide have been tepid on whether they want to campaign with Biden as Republican challengers have attempted to tie their opponents to the president. Recently, Biden made campaign stops in western states including Colorado, Oregon and California.

During a governor’s debate this month, Sisolak called Biden a "very good" president and said that he inherited problems from Trump that he’s blamed for today. He said he had not asked Biden to campaign with him but said the president was "welcome to come to the state of Nevada."

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