NationalWatch

Midterms in Mind, Biden to Speak at Labor Day Events in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania President Joe Biden delivers remarks during an event in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 2. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Steve Holland Monday, 05 September 2022 06:51 AM EDT

President Joe Biden will champion unions on Monday in Labor Day visits to Wisconsin and Pennsylvania as he tries to ensure Democrats beat the odds and maintain control of the U.S. Congress in Nov. 8 midterm elections.

Biden will address union workers at the Laborfest event Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and members of the United Steelworkers of America in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It will be his third visit in a week to Pennsylvania.

The stops will provide Biden with a chance to hone his message on organized labor and urge workers to stay loyal to the Democratic Party, in two states that have races critical to the midterms.

In Wisconsin, Democrats are trying to reelect Democrat Gov. Tony Evers and help the state's Democrat lieutenant governor, Mandela Barnes, oust Republican Sen. Ron Johnson.

In Pennsylvania, Democrats are optimistic that the party's candidate for Senate, John Fetterman, will defeat the Republican, Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Republicans are favored to win control of the House of Representatives in November and perhaps even the Senate. The opposition party usually gains seats in the first elections after a new president takes over.

But Biden and his team are hopeful that a string of recent legislative successes, and voters' outrage at the Supreme Court's overturning of the 1973 ruling that recognized women's constitutional right to abortion, will generate strong turnout among Democrats.

As a result, some pundits see a path for Democrats to hang on to both houses of Congress. Biden in recent weeks has intensified his attack on former President Donald Trump and his far-right loyalists to try to drive up strong Democratic turnout and appeal to mainstream Republicans.

Unions have been increasing in popularity in recent years. A Gallup poll released last week found that 71% of Americans now approve of labor unions, the highest Gallup has recorded on this measure since 1965.

Original Article

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 4:48 PM PT – Sunday, September 4, 2022

The 45th President of the United States has held his first rally after his private residence was raided by Joe Biden’s FBI. On Saturday in Wilkes-Barre, Donald J. Trump laid out to Pennsylvanians just how high the stakes are in November.

“This election is a referendum on skyrocketing inflation, rampant crime, soaring murders, crushing gas prices, millions and millions of illegal aliens pouring across our border, race and gender indoctrination perverting our schools, and above all this election is a referendum on the corruption and extremism of Joe Biden and the radical Democrat Party,” Trump stated to a roaring crowd.

Donald Trump then proceeded to slam Joe Biden for visiting Philadelphia, where he declared that half of the voters in the Country are anti-American extremists. In a direct rebuke to Biden’s rhetoric, Trump said MAGA Republicans are not the threat to democracy but rather that they are the people who are trying to save it. He slammed the Democrats by saying they are the pre-eminent threat to democracy. Trump said the raid on his private residence in Florida put the US in third world nation territory.

“On a phony pretext, getting permission from a highly political magistrate, who they handpicked late in the evening just days before the break in and trampled upon my rights and civil liberties as if our Country that we love so much were a 3rd world nation,” the Republican said.

The 45th President held nothing back when telling the American people the real reason why Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) January’ sixth committee and why Fani Willis’s (D-Ga.) grand jury are allowed to continue. The media didn’t escape the President’s scorn either. Trump implicated them in the destruction of everything that made America great in the first place.

“But this battle is not about me,” Trump confessed. “This is a struggle for the very fate of our republic. Our movement is fighting against a corrupt group of unelected tyrants who believe they can wield absolute power over you with the help of a willing and very corrupt media.”

According to Trump, pollsters have revealed that if the FBI did not cover up the Hunter Biden laptop story, he would have remained in office.

“It made a 10-20 point difference, not even including all the other totally determinative evidence of illegality that was found, having to do with the 2020 Presidential election scam, including ballot stuffing and not adhering to the laws, rules, and regulations of state legislatures, which is totally illegal,” the President said.

He said that the MAGA movement is bigger than ever before, as evidenced by just how many more votes he gained between the 2016 and 2020 elections.

“And likewise getting many more votes than — think about it. There’s never been a President, a sitting President, get anywhere near — I think we got like 10 million more votes than Obama got, Obama,” Trump remarked. “Ya know? So popular.”

To close out his speech the 45th President said that the US belongs to the citizenry and not to powerful leftists in government.

“We will never allow anyone to forget that this nation does not belong to them,” he promised. “This nation belongs to you…” “And we will make America Great Again! Thank you very much, God bless you all! Thank you Pennsylvania, thank you.”

MORE NEWS: Biden Continues To Accuse Republicans Of ‘Extremism’

Original Article Oann

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 4:48 PM PT – Sunday, September 4, 2022

The 45th President of the United States has held his first rally after his private residence was raided by Joe Biden’s FBI. On Saturday in Wilkes-Barre, Donald J. Trump laid out to Pennsylvanians just how high the stakes are in November.

“This election is a referendum on skyrocketing inflation, rampant crime, soaring murders, crushing gas prices, millions and millions of illegal aliens pouring across our border, race and gender indoctrination perverting our schools, and above all this election is a referendum on the corruption and extremism of Joe Biden and the radical Democrat Party,” Trump stated to a roaring crowd.

Donald Trump then proceeded to slam Joe Biden for visiting Philadelphia, where he declared that half of the voters in the Country are anti-American extremists. In a direct rebuke to Biden’s rhetoric, Trump said MAGA Republicans are not the threat to democracy but rather that they are the people who are trying to save it. He slammed the Democrats by saying they are the pre-eminent threat to democracy. Trump said the raid on his private residence in Florida put the US in third world nation territory.

“On a phony pretext, getting permission from a highly political magistrate, who they handpicked late in the evening just days before the break in and trampled upon my rights and civil liberties as if our Country that we love so much were a 3rd world nation,” the Republican said.

The 45th President held nothing back when telling the American people the real reason why Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) January’ sixth committee and why Fani Willis’s (D-Ga.) grand jury are allowed to continue. The media didn’t escape the President’s scorn either. Trump implicated them in the destruction of everything that made America great in the first place.

“But this battle is not about me,” Trump confessed. “This is a struggle for the very fate of our republic. Our movement is fighting against a corrupt group of unelected tyrants who believe they can wield absolute power over you with the help of a willing and very corrupt media.”

According to Trump, pollsters have revealed that if the FBI did not cover up the Hunter Biden laptop story, he would have remained in office.

“It made a 10-20 point difference, not even including all the other totally determinative evidence of illegality that was found, having to do with the 2020 Presidential election scam, including ballot stuffing and not adhering to the laws, rules, and regulations of state legislatures, which is totally illegal,” the President said.

He said that the MAGA movement is bigger than ever before, as evidenced by just how many more votes he gained between the 2016 and 2020 elections.

“And likewise getting many more votes than — think about it. There’s never been a President, a sitting President, get anywhere near — I think we got like 10 million more votes than Obama got, Obama,” Trump remarked. “Ya know? So popular.”

To close out his speech the 45th President said that the US belongs to the citizenry and not to powerful leftists in government.

“We will never allow anyone to forget that this nation does not belong to them,” he promised. “This nation belongs to you…” “And we will make America Great Again! Thank you very much, God bless you all! Thank you Pennsylvania, thank you.”

Original Article Oann

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 4:10 PM PT – Sunday, September 4, 2022

A message posted on Biden’s Twitter account on Sunday proposed that people who are a part of the Make America Great Again movement are ‘a threat’ to the soul of America.

A separate tweet claimed the Make America Great Again movement is an extremist agenda that contradicts the statement of the rule of law.

Biden is facing harsh criticism over his attacks on supporters of Donald J. Trump. Observers are saying that the claims Biden made during his speech are inflammatory and divisive. During his Save America Rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. on Saturday, the 45th President said Biden’s claims are vicious and hateful.

“Vilifying 75 million citizens, plus another probably 75 to 150, if we want to be accurate about it, as threats to democracy and as enemies of the state,” Trump stated. “You’re all enemies of the state. He’s an enemy of the state if you want to know the truth. The enemy of the state is him and the group that controls him, which is circling around him. ‘Do this. Do that, Joe. You got to do this, Joe’. Right.”

Biden also claimed the MAGA agenda violates the US Constitution and it doesn’t respect the will of the people.

Original Article Oann

Trump Lashes Out at Fox News for 'Pushing' a 'Democrat Agenda' Former President Donald Trump returned to the Save America rally circuit Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in a rally aired live on Newsmax. (Ed Jones/Getty Images)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 10:33 PM EDT

Former President Donald Trump continued his rebuke of Fox News, saying the conservative network is opening the door for competition by turning to share the "Democrat agenda."

"Wow! Fox News is really pushing the Democrats and the Democrat agenda," Trump wrote Sunday night on Truth Social. "Gets worse every single day. So many Dems interviewed with only softball questions, then Republican counterparts get creamed."

Among the specific Fox News targets was a frequent foil, Karl Rove, who was a former White House deputy chief of staff in President George W. Bush's administration – a regime that frequent draws rebukes from Trump on foreign policy.

"RINO Karl Rove is unwatchable, very negative, and on all the time – has a big record of losing!" Trump's statement added.

Trump's remarks come one night after Newsmax aired his Save America rally speech in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in its entirety.

Trump also hit Fox News for airing Lincoln Project television ads. The Lincoln Project has come under fire in recent years because of lurid allegations levied against some of its founders.

"Not an easy place to be as a Republican, especially with all of the 'pervert' purchased ads," Trump's statement continued.

Trump even vowed to help the struggling CNN network – with he has often called the "Clinton News Network" – to become more conservative.

"If 'low ratings' CNN ever went conservative, they would be an absolute gold mine, and I would help them to do so!" Trump concluded.

Original Article

Trump Lashes Out at Fox News for 'Pushing' a 'Democrat Agenda' Former President Donald Trump returned to the Save America rally circuit Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in a rally aired live on Newsmax. (Ed Jones/Getty Images)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 10:33 PM EDT

Former President Donald Trump continued his rebuke of Fox News, saying the conservative network is opening the door for competition by turning to share the "Democrat agenda."

"Wow! Fox News is really pushing the Democrats and the Democrat agenda," Trump wrote Sunday night on Truth Social. "Gets worse every single day. So many Dems interviewed with only softball questions, then Republican counterparts get creamed."

Among the specific Fox News targets was a frequent foil, Karl Rove, who was a former White House deputy chief of staff in President George W. Bush's administration – a regime that frequent draws rebukes from Trump on foreign policy.

"RINO Karl Rove is unwatchable, very negative, and on all the time – has a big record of losing!" Trump's statement added.

Trump's remarks come one night after Newsmax aired his Save America rally speech in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in its entirety.

Trump also hit Fox News for airing Lincoln Project television ads. The Lincoln Project has come under fire in recent years because of lurid allegations levied against some of its founders.

"Not an easy place to be as a Republican, especially with all of the 'pervert' purchased ads," Trump's statement continued.

Trump even vowed to help the struggling CNN network – with he has often called the "Clinton News Network" – to become more conservative.

"If 'low ratings' CNN ever went conservative, they would be an absolute gold mine, and I would help them to do so!" Trump concluded.

Trump Says Those Seeking to 'Destroy' Him Will Fail Again (Newsmax/YouTube)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 10:10 PM EDT

Denouncing the relentless attacks from Democrats and Republicans in name only (RINOs), former President Donald Trump predicted the latest round of "hoaxes and scams" will only ultimately prove he "did nothing wrong."

"So much talk, back and forth, including from my many patriotic 'defenders & supporters,' about our federal government working every seldom (or never used) rule and regulation in order to get and destroy, at any cost, President Donald J. Trump," the former president wrote on Truth Social on Sunday night.

"Same concepts, anger, and radical left maniacs and RINOs who have been working the system of hoaxes and scams ever since I came down the "golden escalator" in Trump Tower seven years ago.

"They also have the same problem, however – I DID NOTHING WRONG!!!"

Trump's remarks came one night after he returned to the Save America rally circuit, blasting President Joe Biden and his Justice Department for raiding the "hopes and dreams" of Make America Great Again Republicans in addition to his private residence at Mar-a-Lago.

"It was not just my home that was raided last month — it was the hopes and dreams of every citizen who I have been fighting for since the moment I came down the golden escalator in 2015, wanting to represent the people, wanting to stop the massive corruption in this country," Trump told the Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania rally, which aired lived on Newsmax.

"The radical Democrats are engaging in a desperate attempt to keep me from returning to the White House, where they know I will clean this mess up again," Trump added. "They want to stop us from completing our mission to bring back American values."

Trump noted the raid was conducted "on a phony pretext" in order to deflect from Biden's struggles and the impending midterm elections.

"The Biden administration invaded the home of their chief political opponent, who is absolutely destroying him and everyone else in the polls — I hate to say it — even including the Republicans, but we love the Republicans," Trump said, noting the raid began only after "getting permission from a highly political magistrate, who they handpicked late in the evening, just days before the break in and trampled upon my rights and civil liberties."

Trump spoke to a raucous Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, crowd, stumping for his endorsed candidates Dr. Mehmet Oz for Senate and Doug Mastriano for governor in the state.

"It's impossible to explain how great the people last night were in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania," Trump wrote in a Save America PAC statement earlier Sunday on Truth Social. "The level of love they have for our country is both unbelievable and highly impressive — it is more than anyone would ever know.

"If the radical left lunatics that work so hard to destroy our country could just get a little bit of the love, energy, enthusiasm, spirit and patriotism that we witnessed last night, our country would go to the top of every list like a rocket ship."

Original Article

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 2:26 PM PT – Sunday, September 4, 2022

For the first time in half a century, a Democrat is representing Alaska’s at-large seat in Washington, D.C.. In August’s special election to fill the remainder of the late Don Young’s (R-Alaska) term, Democrat Mary Peltola pulled about 40-percent of first preference votes compared to former Governor Sarah Palin’s (R-Alaska) 31-percent and Republican Nick Begich’s 29-percent.

Begich was dropped in the subsequent round of counting preferences. Those who chose him as their first preference had their second preferences redistributed to the remaining candidates. About half of Begich’s voters chose Palin as their second choice and over a quarter chose Peltola. However, due to the distribution of Begich voters second choice and how well Peltola did with first preferences, she was able to eke out a less than three-point victory over second place Palin.

Under Alaska’s ranked choice voting, all candidates run in an open primary. The top four performing candidates go on to fight in the ranked choice general election. At the general election, voters are given the option to rank those four candidates by preference. If a majority votes for one candidate in the first round, then the winner is declared without preferences being counted. However, if nobody can hit that 50-percent plus one margin then the poorest performing candidate is dropped and their voters second preferences are redistributed to the remaining candidates. These rounds of counting go on until someone wins a majority.

Alaska is the second state to adopt ranked choice for federal elections. It was first done in Maine back in 2018. 45th President Donald Trump won one of the States electoral votes under the system during the 2020 election.

With Alaska’s general election fast approaching, many in Conservative media fear that the State’s voting system could very well hand Democrats another victory for a full term in the House and give anti-Trump Republican Lisa Murkowski another term in the Senate. Jack Posobiec, Senior Editor at Human Events spoke on the topic.

“You will always see Democrats or soft conservatives, soft Republicans, your one of fours, or even your four of fours who are more establishment types, they will put Murkowski as their second choice so she’ll pick up a larger swathe of voters,” Posobiec said. “Meanwhile, a MAGA Conservative is never going to say they want a Democrat as their second choice.”

While a quarter of moderate Begich supporters did give their preference to Peltola over Palin, the 11,000 who failed to rank further candidates preferenced about two-to-one for Palin like the rest did. However, Palin can still be headed to Washington with a slim majority of the vote. The system was originally pushed for by Murkowski donors and staffers. They assumed it would save the unpopular Senator once again from the wrath of Conservative Alaskans. While that could still prove true, if Republicans take full advantage of the system in November by ranking their preferences instead of exhausting their ballots, not only could Murkowski be defeated but Palin could wrangle the seat out of Democrat hands.

Murkowski’s top opponent, Trump endorsed Kelly Tshibaka, believes that the majority of Alaskans have never supported the Senator. In fact, Murkowski has never won a majority of the votes in any election she’s been in. According to Tshibaka, this combined with ranked choice voting could prove to be Murkowski’s ultimate undoing.

Original Article Oann

Trafalgar Poll: Rep. Lee Zeldin Closing Ground on Dem Gov. Hochul Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 08:54 PM EDT

In one of the more promings poll results for the Republican Party in New York to date, Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., is just percentage points outside the margin of error against incumbent Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul in the latest poll by The Trafalgar Group.

Hochul has led by more than double digits in most previous polls, but her lead is just 4.4 points in the latest Trafalgar poll. Trafalgar has been regarded as one of the most accurate pollsters in recent elections since 2016.

Former Trump administration Amb. Richard Grenell hailed the poll result as promising for the GOP in the historically Democrat-led state.

"Lee Zeldin is within striking distance to be Governor of New York," Grenell tweeted. "Get to work New Yorkers! You can flip this seat and save the state."

Hochul drew 47.8% support to Zeldin's 43.4% among likely midterm election voters in New York. Trafalgar's poll surveyed 53.6% Democrats and 27.5% Republicans in a state long dominated by the left.

The poll also surveyed more female likely voters (54.3%) compared to men (45.7%). New York is a state Democrats have campaigned heavily on the abortion issue after the Supreme Court overruled the Roe v. Wade precedent, kicking abortion law back to the states.

The Trafalgar Group polled 1,091 likely general election voters Aug. 31-Sept. 1. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.

Original Article

Reporter Confronts WH: Has Biden 'Given Up' on 70M Voters?

Reporter Martha Raddatz (Jim Spellman/Getty Images)

By Nick Koutsobinas | Sunday, 04 September 2022 08:08 PM EDT

On Sunday, ABC News reporter Martha Raddatz confronted White House adviser Keisha Lance Bottoms on whether President Joe Biden has "given up" on 70 million Republican voters.

Raddatz's question comes as Biden on Thursday decried "MAGA Republicans" during a speech at Philadelphia's Independence Hall. In the speech, Biden stated: "Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our Republic."

Biden, who ran as a unifier, qualified that "not every Republican, not even the majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans. Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology. I know because I've been able to work with these mainstream Republicans.

"But," the president added, "there's no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans. And that is a threat to this country. These are hard things."

Speaking on ABC News "This Week," Bottoms, who is the White House's Office of Public Engagement director, defended Biden.

During the interview, Raddatz pressed Bottoms, questioning if the president's speech was overly divisive. Bottoms maintained that the president was simply "calling out" to Americans regardless of who they voted for.

"What I see in this speech — I see words of encouragement. I see optimism. I see a commander in chief who is calling out to all of us, no matter our political affiliation," Bottoms stated.

"All of us?" Raddatz asked. "He wasn't calling out to the MAGA supporters, certainly. He mentioned them more than a dozen times as a threat to democracy. Has the president essentially given up on those MAGA Republicans — some 70 million people?"

Bottoms replied, "What the president has done is said that he will continue to work with mainstream Republicans, that he will work with Democrats, that he will work with independents to get things done in our country."

The White House adviser then extrapolated the thousands of rioters who showed up at the Capitol on Jan. 6 to the roughly 74 million voters of Trump in 2020. "But this MAGA Republican agenda," Bottoms continued, "this hate-fueled agenda that we saw incite violence on our nation's Capitol has no place in a democracy. And if we are not intentional about calling it out, which is what the president did, then our country — everything that our country is built upon is in danger."

On Friday, Biden defended his speech, according to Newsweek, stating that he wasn't referring to "any Trump voter" as a threat to American democracy — only those who advocate violence.

"I don't consider any Trump supporter to be a threat to the country," the president stated. "I do think anyone who calls for the use of violence, fails to condemn violence when it's used, refuses to acknowledge an election has been won, insists upon changing the way in which we rule and count votes, that is a threat to democracy."

But after Biden's speech was said and done, both liberals and conservatives came out critical of it.

"Seventy-four million people voted for Trump in 2020," Matt Taibbi wrote. "It's beyond delusional to think they are all violent extremists. A smart politician would recognize the overwhelming majority are just people who pay taxes, work crap jobs, raise kids, obey the law and give at most a tiny share of attention to politics."

On Friday, Matt Schlapp, the chairman of the American Conservative Union, told Newsmax that Biden showed in his speech he "hates half of America."

Original Article

Biden's Federal Oil Leases a Record Low for First 19 Months (State Land Commission/AP)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 07:43 PM EDT

After former President Donald Trump's push for energy independence, President Joe Biden has slowed federal oil leases to a record low for the early days of the administration, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Biden administration has leased fewer acres for offshore oil and gas drilling and on federal lands – as Biden promised during his campaign – than any administration at this stage since the end of the World War II, according to analysis of Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management data.

Because it was still new then, President Harry Truman was the last president to lease out fewer acres (65,658) than the Biden Interior Department did (126,228) in the first 19 months of his administration. Only President Richard Nixon in 1969-70 had leased fewer than 4.4 million acres at this stage of a first presidential term since Truman.

"The president said he was going to stop leasing, and he's been remarkably successful," Trump administration Interior Secretary David Bernhardt told the Journal.

Leasing is down 97% from the first 19 months of the Trump administration, the Journal reported.

"No more drilling on federal lands, no more drilling including offshore — no ability for the oil industry to continue to drill — period," Biden said during his campaign.

While the leasing is down, the Interior Department issued a record number of drilling permits for existing leases last year, and spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz told the paper the industry has moved more toward private and state-owned lands.

Also, she said, only 60% of the 35 million acres leased from the federal government is actively producing currently.

"There is no shortage of opportunity to produce oil from federal lands," Schwartz told the Journal.

White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan maintains the U.S. is producing near-record amounts of oil, while "making America a magnet for clean energy manufacturing investment, securing America's clean energy future, and putting us on track to meet our climate goals."

The Interior – which held 35 onshore oil and gas lease sales under former President Barack Obama in 2010 – had none in the Biden administration's first year, according to the report.

"Stepping up domestic production has been a priority of every president from Nixon right up through Obama and of course Trump," S&P Global Vice Chair Daniel Yergin told the Journal. "Whether Democrats or Republicans, presidents have wanted to embrace the idea of energy independence and production."

The Inflation Reduction Act law signed by Biden in August, requires the Interior to offer at least 2 million acres of federal land and 60 million offshore acres to oil and gas producers every year for the next decade.

The Department told the Journal it is committed to abiding by terms of the law, "including direction regarding the federal oil and gas programs."

Original Article

Biden's Federal Oil Leases a Record Low for First 19 Months (State Land Commission/AP)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 07:43 PM EDT

After former President Donald Trump's push for energy independence, President Joe Biden has slowed federal oil leases to a record low for the early days of the administration, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Biden administration has leased fewer acres for offshore oil and gas drilling and on federal lands – as Biden promised during his campaign – than any administration at this stage since the end of the World War II, according to analysis of Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management data.

Because it was still new then, President Harry Truman was the last president to lease out fewer acres (65,658) than the Biden Interior Department did (126,228) in the first 19 months of his administration. Only President Richard Nixon in 1969-70 had leased fewer than 4.4 million acres at this stage of a first presidential term since Truman.

"The president said he was going to stop leasing, and he's been remarkably successful," Trump administration Interior Secretary David Bernhardt told the Journal.

Leasing is down 97% from the first 19 months of the Trump administration, the Journal reported.

"No more drilling on federal lands, no more drilling including offshore — no ability for the oil industry to continue to drill — period," Biden said during his campaign.

While the leasing is down, the Interior Department issued a record number of drilling permits for existing leases last year, and spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz told the paper the industry has moved more toward private and state-owned lands.

Also, she said, only 60% of the 35 million acres leased from the federal government is actively producing currently.

"There is no shortage of opportunity to produce oil from federal lands," Schwartz told the Journal.

White House spokesman Abdullah Hasan maintains the U.S. is producing near-record amounts of oil, while "making America a magnet for clean energy manufacturing investment, securing America's clean energy future, and putting us on track to meet our climate goals."

The Interior – which held 35 onshore oil and gas lease sales under former President Barack Obama in 2010 – had none in the Biden administration's first year, according to the report.

"Stepping up domestic production has been a priority of every president from Nixon right up through Obama and of course Trump," S&P Global Vice Chair Daniel Yergin told the Journal. "Whether Democrats or Republicans, presidents have wanted to embrace the idea of energy independence and production."

The Inflation Reduction Act law signed by Biden in August, requires the Interior to offer at least 2 million acres of federal land and 60 million offshore acres to oil and gas producers every year for the next decade.

The Department told the Journal it is committed to abiding by terms of the law, "including direction regarding the federal oil and gas programs."

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 12:06 PM PT – Sunday, September 4, 2022

Ohio Republican Senate nominee J.D. Vance is hoping to best Democrat Representative Tim Ryan for the coveted seat to go to Capitol Hill. The seat that the two men are fighting for is being vacated by Republican Senator Rob Portman. Portman announced his retirement in January.

The Hillbilly Elegy author rose to fame when his best-selling book hit the top in 2016. Analysts say his book was a window into rural Americans. The novel also explained why Ohio swung for Trump in 2016 and 2020. Since then, the venture capitalist has been a thought leader. Vance speaks on the long-forgotten working class American and he has appeared on multiple news outlets sharing his commentary.

During the highly contested primary election this cycle, the Republican was able to win over former President Trump. Vance’s opponent on the other hand acts in lock-step with the Democrat party despite claiming he wants to fight for the working class.

Reports have revealed that Ryan has voted with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Joe Biden 100-percent of the time. Vance on the other hand not only wants to hold his Democrat opponent’s feet to the fire, but he also wants to reform the Republican party.
The Senate hopeful shared with One America’s Dan Ball the biggest issue he has with Ryan’s political evolution.

“They pretend that they believe one thing when it’s like look the video clip is right there of you saying something two years ago,” Vance said. “For example, Tim Ryan, who I’m now running against, is trying to claim that he’s really supportive of Trump’s tariffs on the Chinese yet two, three years ago he was one of the biggest fighters against those tariffs. Look, you can have a change of opinion but at least be honest and admit that you believe something different and that the facts made you change your mind. I think when people try to pretend that they’re something they’re not, that’s when politicians get into trouble.”

The Republican is capitalizing on this area of opportunity because he doesn’t think Ryan can represent the best interests of Ohio.

Original Article Oann

DOJ: Trump Must Comply With Subpoena; His Declassifying of Docs Doesn't Matter

This image contained in a court filing by the Department of Justice on Aug. 30, 2022, and redacted by in part by the FBI, shows a photo of documents seized during the Aug. 8 search by the FBI of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. (Department of Justice via AP)

By Nick Koutsobinas | Sunday, 04 September 2022 06:17 PM EDT

Former President Donald Trump was asked to return all documents marked as classified as part of a grand jury subpoena issued in May, regardless of whether the former president believed he declassified the documents, the Department of Justice wrote in a court filing made public Friday.

According to Axios, since the raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump has put out several reasons for holding documents marked "top secret" and "confidential."

In mid-August, Just the News founder and journalist John Solomon, during an appearance on Fox News, read a statement from Trump's team indicating that the former president "had a standing order that documents removed from the Oval Office and taken to the residence were deemed to be declassified the moment he removed them."

But former Attorney General Bill Barr and former national security adviser John Bolton have thrown water on the "standing order" claim.

While Trump and his team have alluded to such documents being declassified, they have been careful not to make the assertion in legal proceedings, according to The Washington Post.

On May 11, a grand jury issued a subpoena demanding all documents "bearing classification markings."

But per an "exchange of correspondence" with the DOJ, Trump's team sought a deadline extension to respond to the subpoena. They asked, according to a filing, that the Justice Department "consider a few 'principles,' including the claim that a president has absolute authority to declassify documents (although counsel did not actually assert that FPOTUS had done so)."

In return, the Justice Department stated, "The government notes that the subpoena sought documents 'bearing classification markings,' and therefore a complete response would not turn on whether or not responsive documents had been purportedly declassified."

As Bloomberg reported, even in Trump declassified the documents, they would still have to go to the National Archives.

Original Article

McConnell PAC Pumps $23M Into New Hampshire Senate Race (Newsmax Special Debate Coverage)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 05:41 PM EDT

Showing the importance of flipping the seat of Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's super PAC is placing $23 million worth of television campaign ads to run from the day of the state primary until the general election Nov. 8.

The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), tied to McConnell, announced the $23 million TV ad buy Friday. Notably the SLF mentions Hassan as a target, but it does not mention the GOP primary candidates vying to challenge the incumbent Democrat.

"Maggie Hassan's weak record of rubber-stamping Joe Biden's inflationary spending and taxes has hurt Granite Staters, and they know it," SLF President Steven Law wrote in a statement. "This is a top-tier pickup opportunity for us, putting the Senate majority within reach."

The Senate currently has 50 Republicans, but the 48 Democrats hold the majority with the two independents that caucus with them and the tiebreaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris.

The SLF ads will be the first in New Hampshire for the 2022 cycle, but it does not name a Republican candidate before the Sept. 13 final primary vote. Former President Donald Trump has not made an endorsement in the race.

Retired Army Gen. Don Bolduc holds a double-digit lead in polling, according to RealClearPolitics. Bolduc appeared with opponents Bruce Fenton, Kevin Smith, and state Sen. Chuck Morse in August debate moderated by Newsmax host John Bachman at Saint Anselm College's Koonz Theatre in Manchester, New Hampshire.

"Maggie Hassan is going to do the same old things, the same old ways, and that has been hurting our country," Bolduc told Bachman. "She has supported Biden 100% of the time and all his policies that are ruining this country.

"Republicans, independent, Democrats, libertarians — whatever you call yourself, it should not matter. The future of our children is at stake here. The future of our grandchildren is at stake here, and she's at fault for 5½ years. She has not done anything to help Granite Staters.

"And I've been around the Granite State in every town and city for two years, and that is the complaint: We can't figure out one thing that she's done for the Granite State."

Bolduc stressed Trump-era policies during his allotted time during the debate.

"Listen, green energy renewables — that's good stuff, but we need our fossil fuels in order to have green energy," he said. "We cannot divest ourselves from fossil fuels. It is the bread and butter, the heart and soul of our energy independence. And if we don't have it, we're going to be energy-dependent.

"And look what it's done to us: It's made us weak. We are weak. China, Russia, North Korea, Iran are now having their way with us. Our homeland is weak. We are in trouble. And if we don't reverse the energy policies that Biden put in place, that reversed what President Trump had in place, and if we don't get Maggie Hassan out of there, we're gonna be in big trouble."

Original Article

Trump Blasts 'Radical Left Lunatics' for Lacking 'Love' of MAGA (Newsmax/YouTube)

By Eric Mack | Sunday, 04 September 2022 04:07 PM EDT

After a raucous rally in his return to Pennsylvania, former President Donald Trump praised the revelers for having the "love, energy, enthusiasm, spirit and patriotism" that the "radical left lunatics" lack.

"It's impossible to explain how great the people last night were in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania," Trump wrote in a Save America PAC statement posted Sunday on Truth Social. "The level of love they have for our country is both unbelievable and highly impressive — it is more than anyone would ever know.

"If the radical left lunatics that work so hard to destroy our country could just get a little bit of the love, energy, enthusiasm, spirit and patriotism that we witnessed last night, our country would go to the top of every list like a rocket ship."

Trump, who made his first rally appearance after the FBI raid of his private residence at Mar-a-Lago, spoke at length, contrasting the struggles of President Joe Biden's administration, the weaponization of the Justice Department, and why Republicans should get behind his endorsed Pennsylvania candidates Dr. Mehmet Oz for Senate and Doug Mastriano for governor.

"Thank you to everyone who attended the rally last night," Trump's statement concluded. "It was a two-hour speech, and the only disappointment was that they were screaming, 'Please, please, go longer.'

"They love our country, and I love them!"

Trump does not have a rally scheduled in the final two months before the midterms yet, but there are four states yet to hold their primaries:

• Massachusetts on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
• New Hampshire on Tuesday, Sept. 13.
• Delaware on Tuesday, Sept. 13.
• Rhode Island on Tuesday, Sept. 13.

Original Article