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Stacey Abrams’ Group Gave Millions to Law Firm Run by Her Campaign Chair

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Office of U.S. House Speaker, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is in hot water once again.

New reports indicate Abrams’ voting rights group Fair Fight Action has funneled millions of dollars to a law firm led by the chairwoman for Abrams’s gubernatorial campaign.

According to The Washington Examiner, Fair Fight Action spent $9.4 million in 2019 and 2020 with Lawrence & Bundy, a boutique Atlanta law firm that counts Abrams’s campaign Chairwoman Allegra Lawrence-Hardy, a close friend of the candidate, as one of its two partners, according to the nonprofit group’s 2019 and 2020 IRS tax filings.

There are no definitive reports to show how much Lawrence-Hardy’s firm has received from Fair Fight Action in 2021 and 2022. The organization has been involved in a legal fight against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) for the past years. Fair Fight Action filed the lawsuit after Abrams lost her 2018 gubernatorial bid toย Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, whom she is currently running against, claiming the secretary of state engaged in voter suppression. In September, U.S. district judge Steve Jones ruled against Abrams and found no evidence of voter suppression.

โ€œThis is a win for all Georgia election officials who dedicate their lives to safe, secure and accessible elections,โ€ Raffensperger said at the time. โ€œStolen election and voter suppression claims by Stacey Abrams were nothing but poll-tested rhetoric not supported by facts and evidence.โ€

โ€œJudge Jonesโ€™ ruling exposes this legal effort for what it really is: a tool wielded by a politician hoping to wrongfully weaponize the legal system to further her own political goals,โ€ Kemp said in a statement celebrating the ruling.

The $9.4 million that Lawrence & Bundy received accounts for over 37% of the roughly $25 million in legal fees that Fair Fight Action has racked up in the past two years, according to Politico, which first reported on the payments to Lawrence-Hardy’s law firm.

Fair Fight Action raised over $61 million in 2019 and 2020 after being founded in 2018. At least one-third of that money has gone toward the lawsuit against Raffensperger, while $20 million has been put in cash reserves, tax records show. While there are eight separate law firms that worked on the case against the secretary of state, Lawrence & Bundy has earned the most in fees.

Abrams and Lawrence-Hardy were classmates together at Georgia’s Spelman College, and Abrams graduated from Yale Law School three years after Lawrence-Hardy.

Craig Holman, a government affairs lobbyist for the left-wing think tank Public Citizen, says that Abrams’s years-long friendship with Lawrence-Hardy represents a clear conflict of interest.

Despite Abrams’s accusations of rampant voter suppression in the Peach State early voting data reports Georgians to have already broken records for early turnout. According to The Hill, Saturday’s turnout surpassed the 2020 electionโ€™s sixth day of early voting by 20 percent.

The 79,682 voters who cast ballots on Saturday also marked a 159 percent increase from the first Saturday of early voting in the 2018 midterm elections, according to the Georgia secretary of stateโ€™s office.

Georgia also smashed early voting on the first day polls opened last week, when 131,318 ballots were cast in-person, far above the 70,849 reported in 2018 and close to the 136,739 mark in 2020.

โ€œEarly Voting is strong because Georgiaโ€™s voter registration system is strong,โ€ said Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in a statement. โ€œEvery eligible Georgian who wants to be registered to vote is registered to vote.โ€

However, despite the record-breaking data Abrams is still claiming voter suppression is underway in Georgia.

โ€œIn 2018, we had record turnout,โ€ Abrams said in a press conference Monday. โ€œWe had record turnout that shattered records for Democrats among communities of color and in that same election โ€ฆ we know that 85,000 Georgians were denied their right to vote due to voter suppression tactics that shut down their precincts. We know that 50,000 voters had their right to vote held hostage by the exact match process which was proven to be voter suppression tactics. We know that thousands of people stood in lines for hours because of voter suppression tactics.โ€

GOP Governor Stops Short of Endorsing Donald Trump

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Despite Donald Trump’s early entrance to the 2024 presidential campaign, some Republicans are dedicated to taking the “wait and see” approach to the next election.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who also previously served as Trump’s press secretary, told Fox News’s Shannon Bream that she isn’t focused on 2024 yet and declined to endorse her old boss publicly.

According to The Daily Wire, Bream asked the newly sworn-in governor, โ€œYour bio, on your official page as Governor, describes you as a โ€˜trusted confidant of President Trump. Have you talked to him about his โ€™24 run? Will you endorse him in that?โ€

โ€œI love the president, have a great relationship with him,โ€ Sanders responded. โ€œI know our country would be infinitely better off if he was in office right now instead of Joe Biden. But right now, my focus isnโ€™t 2024. Itโ€™s focusing here in Arkansas and doing what we can to empower the people of this state, and make sure that Iโ€™m delivering on the promises that I laid out over the course of the last two years.โ€

โ€œMy focus isnโ€™t on 2024,โ€ Sanders answered. โ€œItโ€™s on what we can deliver in this legislative session. Iโ€™m not going to set an arbitrary timeline. Iโ€™m not really focused on that at all.โ€

Bream also pressed Sanders on her own ambitions.

โ€œI feel the pressure of delivering this legislative session,โ€ Sanders said. โ€œThatโ€™s the only thing that our team, and that I am focused on, is delivering on what we laid out to do.โ€

Sander’s refusal to outwardly endorse Trump underscores speculation that Republicans are preparing to steer away from the former president and support another candidate in the 2024 election. Numerous polls have reported Trump trailing behind other potential contenders such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

Gavin Newsom Attacks ‘Ruthless’ Fox News Hosts

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Casa Rosada (Argentina Presidency of the Nation), CC BY 2.5 AR via Wikimedia Commons

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) is attacking Fox News prime-time hosts for their “ruthless” approach to media.

The Democrat governor, who has been floated as a possible 2024 contender, remarked over the weekend that Democrats are getting “crushed” by Fox News hosts. Newsom cited his Father-in-law as an example of someone for whom he has great respect, but at the same time, is often confused about his conservative narratives, which he blamed Fox News prime-time hosts for.ย 

According to Mediaite, a portion of Newsomโ€™s remarks aired Monday morning on CNNโ€™sย New Dayย for discussion.

โ€œThese guys are ruthless on the other side. Ruthless on the other side,โ€ Newsom reiterated. โ€œThat prime time line up by Fox, they are ruthless. They dominate the most important thing in American politics today, and thatโ€™s the narrative. Facts become secondary to narrative. They dominate with illusion. We are getting crushed.โ€

Panelistsย Margaret Hooverย andย John Avlon didn’t refute Newsom’s allegation that hosts for the top-rated cable news program are consistently lying.

Coming out of the clip,ย Erica Hillย noted, โ€œwhen it comes to messaging in terms of getting crushed, this is something that has been an Achilles heel for Democrats in terms of having a united message across the party.โ€ This may be a shock to any conservative viewer who watched years of Russian interference narratives that, for reasons good and bad, never amounted to anything other than breathless media analysis.

Hoover also noted a media narrative favorable to Democrats seemed a pretty well-oiled machine during past Democrat-led administrations.

โ€œI donโ€™t think necessarily Democrats suffer from lack of a narrative,โ€ Hoover continued. โ€œThey own the presidency right now and have control of the Senate. I worry about what heโ€™s pointing to,โ€ which she summarized as getting away from the Michelle Obama rhetorical ethos of โ€œwhen they go low, we go high.โ€ She ultimately landed on the real issue as she saw it, which was the impact Donald Trump has on political discourse.

โ€œ[Newsom] is right in saying Democrats want a fighter right now. He has a good point about the unified narrative of Republicans that tends to put Democrats on defense because they are saying โ€˜Gosh, look at all those lies.โ€

Former GOP Senator Jumps Into Race In Battleground State

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Former U.S. Senator John E. Sununu officially entered the 2026 race in New Hampshire, campaigning to succeed retiring Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen. In his launch video, Sununu told voters: โ€œCongress just seems loud, dysfunctional, even angry. I want to return to the Senate to help calm the waters.โ€

Sununu served three terms in the House before defeating then-Governor Shaheen in 2002 to win the New Hampshire Senate seat; he lost the rematch in 2008. His return comes nearly two decades after leaving public office for the private sector.

For Republicans, this is a golden opportunity. New Hampshire is the regionโ€™s only true swing state, and with Shaheen stepping aside, the seat opens up in a cycle where the GOP seeks not just to defend but expand its Senate majority. National Republicans believe Sununu brings strong name recognition and credibility in the Granite State.

Still, the path is not automatic. Sununu must first secure the GOP nomination. His strongest competition comes from former Senator and Ambassador Scott Brown. Brown has leaned into the Trump-era base, emphasizing his alignment with President Trumpโ€™s agenda and fundraising heavily. Heโ€™s already called out Sununuโ€™s past independent streak, pointing to his backing of John Kasich in 2016 and Nikki Haley in 2024, as well as his published op-ed branding Trump a โ€œloser.โ€

President Trump has remained officially neutral so far. While that leaves Sununu without an immediate endorsement booster, it also leaves room for maneuver. Reports suggest national Republican strategists view Sununu as the strongest candidate to flip the seat โ€” a flip that would not only return it to the GOP column, but help lock in and expand the Senate majority Republicans are aiming for.

Sununu emphasized the campaign will focus on Granite State issues such as healthcare affordability, energy costs, housing and border security, rather than Washington partisan squabbling. He said: โ€œMaybe youโ€™re surprised that Iโ€™m running for the Senate again. Iโ€™m a bit surprised myself. Why would anyone subject themselves to everything going on right now? Well, somebody has to step up and lower the temperature. Somebody has to get things done.โ€

In short: the Republican field now features a heavy-hitter with deep state roots, strong ties to New Hampshire, and a credible path to winning in 2026. The GOP has the chance to turn this open seat into a win โ€” but Sununu will have to navigate primary politics, reconcile his past positions with todayโ€™s Republican base, and secure key endorsements to prevail.


Sununu & Trump: A Complicated Relationship

Understanding Sununuโ€™s past interaction with Trump helps clarify the dynamics at play in this race.

Background of Sununuโ€™s past opposition

  • In 2016, John E. Sununu served as a national co-chair for John Kasichโ€™s presidential campaign. He did not support Trumpโ€™s 2016 bid.
  • In the 2024 Republican primaries, Sununu backed Nikki Haley rather than Trump.
  • He authored an op-ed published just ahead of the New Hampshire presidential primary with the blunt headline โ€œDonald Trump is a loser.โ€

Why this history matters

  • That record means Sununu begins the 2026 Senate contest with baggage in the Trump-aligned wing of the party. Some voters will view him skeptically if they believe loyalty to Trump is a key litmus test.
  • On the other hand, his independence also offers advantages: he can appeal to moderate Republicans, independents and swing voters in New Hampshire who may have turned off by raw partisan rhetoric. Because New Hampshire is a swing state, that broader appeal could be a strategic asset.

Where Trump stands (so far)

  • Trump has not yet endorsed in the New Hampshire GOP Senate primary, leaving the field open.
  • While Trump once publicly signaled support for Sununuโ€™s brother (former Governor Chris Sununu) in a possible Senate run, John E. Sununu must still make his case to the President and his base.
  • Some Republican strategists believe that Trump may be pragmatic โ€” if Sununu emerges as the strongest candidate to flip the seat, the president could be willing to support him despite the earlier friction. As one adviser put it: โ€œPresident Trump appreciates winners โ€ฆ and understands that John E. Sununu puts this race on the map for Republicans.โ€

What Sununu must do

  • He needs to demonstrate to GOP primary voters that, despite his past, he is committed to key Republican priorities (border security, low taxes, energy independence, etc.).
  • He may need to secure Trumpโ€™s endorsement โ€” or at least neutralize opposition from the pro-Trump base.
  • He needs to keep the campaign message centered on winning the seat back for Republicans, rather than internal Republican feuds.

Why a Sununu Win Matters for Republicans

  • Seat flip potential. With Sen. Shaheen retiring, this is a rare open seat โ€” and Republicans have a strong opportunity to convert it. Flipping a Democratic seat in a swing state is a direct path to expanding the GOP Senate majority.
  • Midterm dynamics favoring Republicans. Holding a 53-47 majority after the next election would give Republicans greater flexibility on legislation, confirmations, and oversight. A successful 2026 campaign in New Hampshire would contribute meaningfully to that goal.
  • Messaging advantage. A win in a northern swing state helps buck the narrative that Republicans can only win in deep red states. Demonstrating competitiveness in a place like New Hampshire strengthens the GOPโ€™s appeal to independent and moderate voters.
  • National momentum. Winning this seat could provide momentum going into 2028 and reinforce the partyโ€™s strategy of targeting vulnerable Democratic seats. It also signals to donors and activists that the GOP has a winning blueprint beyond the usual battlegrounds.

Bottom Line

John E. Sununuโ€™s entry into the 2026 Senate race is a major development for Republicans. He brings name recognition, prior Senate experience, and a base in a state that is both competitive and critical to national Senate math. The complications with his past stance toward Trump are real โ€” but not necessarily insurmountable

‘Sopranos’ Star Admits There Are Lots Of ‘Quiet’ Trump Voters

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By Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America - Drea de Matteo, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=132661983

Sopranosย actressย Drea de Matteoย told Fox News hostย Jesse Wattersย there are โ€œa lotโ€ of โ€œquietโ€ย Donald Trumpย supporters in Hollywood despite liberal media’s portrayal otherwise.

The actress, who playedย Adriana La Cervaย on the critically acclaimedย Sopranos, joined Watters on Monday and reacted to Presidentย Joe Bidenโ€™sย recent Hollywoodย fundraiserย where he raised $30 million and celebrities likeย Jack Blackย andย Jimmy Kimmelย took to the stage. Watters aired footage from the event, as well as a clip ofย Robert De Niroย rantingย againstย Donald Trumpย outside hisย hush money trialย in Manhattan.

Watch:

โ€œIs there a quiet Trump voter out there in Hollywood?โ€ Watters asked.

โ€œHello there, first of all. And I think there is a lot of them. I think there are a lot of โ€” that was a hard intro to watch. Iโ€™m sorry,โ€ de Matteo said.

โ€œWas it Jack Blackโ€™s legs?โ€ Watters asked.

โ€œNo, itโ€™s the Italian, man. Weโ€™re talking aboutย [Anthony] Fauci, weโ€™re talking about De Niro. I am mortified right now by my people,โ€ de Matteo said. โ€œI donโ€™t understand what weโ€™re doing here.โ€

โ€œThere are a lot of quiet Trump supporters, there are a lot of Kennedy supporters. And wow, I wonder how much the actors got paid to endorse Biden at this point. Iโ€™m curious, because that seems โ€” I wonder if De Niro got paid a locations fee because he had to travel to the courtroom to do that,โ€ she said.

The actress appeared to be joking as she said doesnโ€™t know the specifics of celebrities working with campaigns, calling herself and other Sopranos actors โ€œoutcasts.โ€

โ€œI donโ€™t really maneuver inside that industry. I never have. First of all,ย Sopranos, we were the outcasts, even though we were critically acclaimed, we still were outcasts. So Iโ€™m still an outcast, here I am. Theyโ€™re going to take me out into the woods and shoot me for not endorsing Biden,โ€ she said.

Don Bacon Hints At 2028 Presidential Run After Leaving Congress

Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

An outgoing Republican Congressman signaled he could mount a future bid for the White House.

โ€œI got asked the other day, โ€˜You say youโ€™re interested in being an executive โ€” is that governor or president?โ€™ I go, โ€˜Yes,โ€™โ€ Nebraska Rep.ย Don Baconย told NBC News in an interviewย last week in his office.

โ€œIf thereโ€™s an opportunity, and I can make a difference, a unique difference, I would like to keep serving. I just donโ€™t want to do two-year elections,โ€ he continued in the interview, which was published on Sunday.

Bacon announced last week he would not seek reelection in the vulnerable swing district, which includes Omaha and rural areas of Nebraska. In 2024, Bacon was one of three Republicans elected in districts that voted for former Vice President Harris over President Trump.

Bacon, a five-term congressman and retiredย Air Forceย brigadier general, has represented the 2nd District since 2017. Known for his relatively moderate approach and clashes with Presidentย Donald Trump, Bacon has occasionally broke with his party on major issues. He voted to certify the 2020 election and co-sponsoredย bipartisanย legislation like the โ€œImproving Reporting to Prevent Hate Actโ€ with Rep.ย Don Beyerย (D-Va.), aimed at improving the accuracy of hateย crimeย reporting.

Bacon acknowledged it would be difficult to win a White House bid, particularly as a House member and as a Republican who still embraces Reaganism and a hawkish view of foreign policy.

โ€œI donโ€™t think it would be very easily done,โ€ he said. โ€œAll I know is I have a heart to serve our country, and I have a vision.โ€

Bacon suggested heโ€™d be interested in serving asย Defense Secretaryย โ€œif God opens up that door,โ€ but acknowledged his doubt that a Republican president would tap him for the post.

Bacon also said that he would not run for governor against Nebraska Gov.ย Jim Pillenย (R), who was elected in 2023 and who, NBC News reported, is a โ€œclose friendโ€ of Baconโ€™s.

Baconโ€™s exit opens one of the most competitive House seats in the country. The 2nd District โ€” which includes Omaha and parts of Douglas, Sarpy, and Saunders counties โ€” has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+3. Once a Republican stronghold, the district has been trending leftward thanks to shifting demographics and political realignment, particularly during the Trump era.ย (RELATED:ย Rep. Don Bacon To Retire, Opening Key Battleground In Omahaโ€™s 2nd District)

Before Trump, the GOP had a lock on the district. George W. Bush carried it handily in 2000 and 2004. Even Mitt Romney won it by 7 points in 2012. But the tide began to shift in 2008, when Barack Obama flipped the seat โ€” marking the first Democratic presidential win there since 1964.

Trump won it narrowly in 2016, but Joe Biden carried the district by about 6 points in 2020, and Democrats held it again in 2024. These wins came despite Nebraska remaining solidly red overall.

READ NEXT: Report: Marco Rubio Impostor Is Using AI Voice To Call High-level Officials

NYC Mayor Ditches Democrats – Announces Re-election Bid As An Independent

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via Wikimedia Commons

Shaking things up…

New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced his re-election campaign but with a big caveat: he’s running as an Independent.

Adams told Politico on Monday that he wants to “mount a real independent campaign,” saying that the federal bribery charges, which have been dismissed, “handcuffed him.” The New York City Mayor said he’d be “uninhibited” while campaigning.

“Iโ€™m in the race to the end. Iโ€™m not running on the Democratic line. Itโ€™s just not realistic to turn around my numbers and to run a good campaign (from) where we are right now,” Adams said. “It hurts like hell.”

Adams faces an uphill battle in his re-election campaign. Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on March 1 that he’d be running for New York City mayor.

U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho on Wednesday dismissed federal charges against Adams, which alleged he used his position to receive luxury travel and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish foreign nationals.

Adams has maintained his innocence and argued that the caseย was politically motivatedย by hisย criticismย of the Biden administrationโ€™s immigration policy.ย 

Quinnipac University survey that was conducted just before and just after Cuomo announced his run for mayor found the former governor enjoying 31% support among New York City Democrats, while Adams garnered 11%.

During the interview, the incumbent New York City Mayor slammed Cuomo for signing bail reform measures into law which he says led to a rise in crime during the coronavirus era.

“Look at bail reform โ€” thatโ€™s Andrew,” Adams said. “He canโ€™t say, โ€˜Iโ€™m going to save the city from the far leftโ€™ when he surrendered to the far left.”

Adams told the outlet that he would submit the required 3,750 signatures on May 27, which would put him on the ballot for November’s election.

“Now I need this runway until November to redefine and remind people: This is why you elected me in the first place,” Adams said.

Republican Congresswoman Reverses Retirement Decision

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On Monday, Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz (R) announced she would seek another term in Congress after all.

โ€œDeciding where your duty lies โ€” family, work, or country, is never an easy task. Earlier last year, I decided to take some time off from running for public office to recharge and spend more time in Indiana with my family,โ€ Spartzย said in a statement.ย ย 

โ€œHowever, looking where we are today, and urged by many of my constituents, I do not believe I would be able to deliver this Congress, with the current failed leadership in Washington, D.C., on the important issues for our nation that I have worked very hard on,โ€ she continued. 

Last year, Spartz announced that she would not be running for another term,ย saying in a statementย at the time โ€œbeing a working mom is toughโ€ and that she wanted to spend more time with her daughters.

However Spartz seemed to signal she would reconsider her decision in recent months,ย saying on NewsNationโ€™s โ€œThe Hillโ€ in September, โ€œI do need to regroup because I think my party is failing the people.โ€ย 

The solidly red district in Indianaโ€™s Fifth Congressional District went for former President Trump in 2020 by 16 points. ย 

Former Trump Adviser Sued by Biden’s Justice Department

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[Photo Cred: Office of the President of the United States, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons]

President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro.

The lawsuit alleges Navarro used personal email accounts to conduct official White House business, “constituting presidential records.” The DOJ also accused the former Trump adviser of violating federal record-keeping laws when he didn’t copy the emails into an official government account or respond to the National Archives requests for the messages.

“Mr. Navarro is wrongfully retaining Presidential records that are the property of the United States, and which constitute part of the permanent historical record of the prior administration,” the lawsuit states. “Mr. Navarroโ€™s wrongful retention of Presidential records violates District of Columbia law, federal common law, and the [Presidential Records Act].”

The Justice Department said officials initially approached Navarro about handing over the missing emails, but he refused โ€œabsent a grant of immunity for the act of returning such documents.”

Navarro’s attorneys, John Irving and John Rowley denied withholding the messages.

โ€œAs detailed in our recent letter to the Archives, Mr. Navarro instructed his lawyers to preserve all such records, and he expects the government to follow standard processes in good faith to allow him to produce records,โ€ Navarroโ€™s lawyers told POLITICO. โ€œInstead, the government chose to file its lawsuit today.โ€

The civil lawsuit was assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton.

The lawsuit marks the latest in a string of public battles between the former Trump adviser and the U.S. government. In June, Navarro was charged with contempt of Congress after he refused to comply with the January 6th panel’s subpoena requests.

Kristi Noem Addresses 2024 Speculation

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem isn’t rushing toward the presidential debate stage anytime soon.

Despite the Republican’s rising national profile, Gov. Noem told CBS News reporter Robert Costa that she’s “not convinced” she should pursue the Oval Office.

โ€œโ€™Iโ€™m not convinced that I need to run for president,โ€ Noem said according to The Hill.

Costa continued to press the Governor if she is looking ahead to future elections. Noem has been floated as a potential presidential contender or even as a potential VP choice for Trump’s campaign.

โ€œDo you not feel a rush, governor, to make a decision on 2024?โ€ he asked.

โ€œI donโ€™t, Bob, at all. No, I think itโ€™s important that people focus on governing rather than going out and making big, broad statements and going out and taking action for their own political futures,โ€ Noem said. ย 

Noem wasย endorsed in her reelection bidย by former President Trump and said last summer thatย sheโ€™d supportย Trumpโ€™s latest White House campaign. However, after the midterms, the South Dakota lawmaker said that the former president does notย โ€œoffer the best chanceโ€ย for the GOP.ย