Politics

Home Politics

This Democrat Governor is Planning to Run for President in 2024 Under One Condition

11
Casa Rosada (Argentina Presidency of the Nation), CC BY 2.5 AR via Wikimedia Commons

Democrats are chomping at the bit to announce their campaign for president but there seems to be one obstacle, President Joe Biden.

Biden, who is currently the oldest president in history, will be 81 years old when the next election occurs and some Democrats say he isn’t the best candidate to lead the country or stand a chance of defeating Trump who has all-but-confirmed his own 2024 plans. (RELATED: New Report Indicates Trump Will Postpone 2024 Campaign Announcement)

One Democrat desperately vying for the presidency is none other than California Governor Gavin Newsom. According to sources close to the politician, Newsom is “absolutely” planning to run for president in 2024 if Biden opts out.

According to The Washington Examiner:

“After this midterm election is over, he absolutely is going to announce that he is running for the presidency once Biden announces that he is not running,” a top California fundraiser close to the Newsom family told the Wrap. “No ifs, ands or buts. He will run if Biden does not.”

Governor Newsom’s political ambitions have been the subject of scrutiny over the past few months as he has sought to distinguish himself early on as a presidential contender by meeting with prominent donors, sparring with Republican lawmakers, and calling out his party’s inaction on hot-button issues like abortion and climate change.

One of the Wrap’s sources, a Los Angeles philanthropist who backed Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential bid in 2020 and supported her during her time as district attorney in San Francisco, said some in the party have questioned whether she will be the automatic forerunner if Biden chooses to step aside.

“There’s going to be a ton of people coming out against Kamala if Biden doesn’t run,” the source said.

President Biden recently called his own 2024 campaign into question during an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” when he declined to say if he absolutely planned to run for a second term.

“In terms of election laws,” Biden said, “it’s much too early to make that kind of decision.”

“Look, my intention, as I said to begin with, is that I would run again,” Biden responded to CBS anchor Scott Pelley. “But it’s just an intention. But is it a firm decision that I run again? That remains to be seen.”

Kari Lake’s Office In Lockdown After Receiving Suspicious Package

1
Image via Pixabay images

The situation is still developing…

A campaign spokesperson told Fox News Digital that an intern at the campaign’s Phoenix office opened an envelope with a suspicious substance and a note that said, “caution anthrax.” 

The campaign called authorities, prompting a response from multiple law enforcement agencies and a hazmat team. 

Authorities have not confirmed if the substance was anthrax. The campaign spokesperson said the substance is now being tested. 

“The radical left, with help from the mainstream media, has escalated its attacks against me from baseless smears and legal harassment to physical threats. Today, my office received a suspicious envelope, potentially containing anthrax — an attempt to intimidate and silence me,” Lake said in a statement. “This isn’t just about me; it’s an attack on our movement. I won’t be intimidated, and those responsible must be brought to justice. The time to unite against these dangerous, un-American tactics is now.” 

This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

Former Biden Official Demands Media Stop ‘Gaslighting’ Americans About Biden

3
Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

On Sunday, a former Biden official made it clear he can’t defend the President anymore.

The shocking remarks come after Biden stunned Americans with his debate performance last week. Throughout the live event, Biden could be seen stumbling over his words and seemed to struggle with hearing responses from Donald Trump and moderators.

Michael LaRosa, who previously served as press secretary to First Lady Jill Biden, lashed out at the White House’s former communications director Kate Bedingfield over her appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” — and argued that she was gaslighting the American people.

Watch:

Bedingfield conceded that debate night had not been “great” for the president — but she then claimed, “The reality is that the race has not fundamentally changed.”

“What we see in all the data that has emerged since Thursday is the fundamental head-to-head hasn’t shifted,” she added.

But LaRosa wasn’t buying it, and said so in an X post.

“The data!? If there is data that counters the impact of what we all saw then WHERE THE HELL IS IT??? WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR?? SHOW US!” he demanded. “Jesus Christ with the gaslighting, the talking points, and the damn spinning. Enough already.”

“Show your supporters or the media this data so we can help you help him! You’ve told us for A YEAR that data and polling can’t be trusted … no one is paying attention … and all of the polling and data are unreliable,” he continued. “Are we NOW supposed to believe it? You’ve been undermining all of the public data and polling and attacking news outlets and their independent data for a year! Is it now safe to trust the data? Should we believe your data instead of independent media data and polling??? Ok, cool. WHERE THE HELL IS IT?”

Report: Trump Won’t Rule Out Hunter Biden Pardon If Elected

1
President Joe Biden hugs his family during the 59th Presidential Inauguration ceremony in Washington, Jan. 20, 2021. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris took the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. (DOD Photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II)

Former President Trump said Thursday that he would not rule out pardoning Hunter Biden if he wins November’s election.

“I wouldn’t take it off the books. See, unlike Joe Biden, despite what they’ve done to me, where they’ve gone after me so viciously, despite what — and Hunter’s a bad boy. There’s no question about it. He’s been a bad boy,” Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.

Hunter Biden, the son of President Biden, was found guilty in June of lying about his use of illicit drugs when applying to purchase a gun six years ago and unlawfully possessing it thereafter, marking the first criminal conviction of a sitting president’s child.

A federal judge agreed to push back Hunter Biden’s sentencing to Dec. 4. 

Hunter Biden in September pleaded guilty to all nine federal tax charges he faced, staving off his second criminal trial this year, just before it was set to begin.

President Biden has repeatedly said he would not pardon his son before leaving office.

Trump Impeachment Star Witness Makes Longshot Run For Senate

0
Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Retired Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a former National Security Council official best known for his role in President Donald Trump’s first impeachment, announced Tuesday that he is entering Florida’s 2026 U.S. Senate race as a Democrat, challenging Republican Sen. Ashley Moody.

Vindman rose to national prominence in 2019 after testifying against President Trump over a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—testimony that became central to Democrats’ first impeachment effort. That impeachment ultimately failed, with the Senate acquitting Trump in a 52–48 vote largely along party lines.

In his campaign launch video, Vindman leaned heavily on footage from the impeachment proceedings, framing his candidacy as an extension of his opposition to Trump. “The last time you saw me was here,” Vindman said, referring to the impeachment hearing. “Swearing an oath to tell the truth about a president who broke his.”

Vindman went on to describe Trump as a “wannabe tyrant” and claimed the former president unleashed a “reign of terror and retribution” against him and his family—language that underscores how central anti-Trump activism is likely to be to his campaign pitch.

A political newcomer with no prior electoral experience, Vindman faces steep odds in Florida, a state that has moved decisively to the right in recent election cycles. Trump carried the Sunshine State by 13 points in November 2024, and Republicans currently hold every statewide elected office. Florida has not elected a Democratic senator since Bill Nelson’s narrow reelection victory in 2012.

Vindman, an Iraq War veteran, retired from the Army in 2020 after a decades-long military career. He later filed a lawsuit against Trump and several former aides, alleging “intimidation and retaliation,” but the suit was unsuccessful. His wife, Rachel Vindman, publicly criticized former President Joe Biden for declining to issue pardons to the couple at the end of his term.

“Whatever happens to my family, know this: No pardons were offered or discussed,” Rachel Vindman wrote in a post on Bluesky. She added that she “cannot begin to describe the level of betrayal and hurt” she felt toward the Biden administration.

Sen. Ashley Moody, a Republican and former Florida attorney general, was appointed to the Senate by Gov. Ron DeSantis to fill the seat vacated by Marco Rubio after Rubio became secretary of state. Moody is running for reelection with the backing of President Trump and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, giving her a significant institutional and fundraising advantage.

The Cook Political Report currently rates the race as “solid Republican,” its strongest rating for GOP-held seats—reflecting Florida’s recent political realignment and Democrats’ continued struggles to remain competitive statewide.

The 2026 contest is a special election to serve the final two years of Rubio’s term. The winner will need to run again in 2028 to secure a full six-year term.

Vindman has lived in Broward County since 2023, a Democratic stronghold in South Florida. His twin brother, Eugene Vindman, represents a safely Democratic House district in northern Virginia, further highlighting the family’s close ties to Democratic politics.

Nationally, Democrats face a difficult map in 2026 as they attempt a longshot effort to retake control of the Senate. To do so, they would need to defend vulnerable seats in states like Michigan and Georgia while flipping at least four Republican-held seats—an outcome most analysts consider unlikely.

Pelosi Slams Trump’s Mental Fitness—Admits She Didn’t Watch the Speech

6
Nancy Pelosi via Gage Skidmore flickr

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., accused President Donald Trump of “mental incapacity” during a recent interview with ABC News—despite admitting she did not actually watch his speech to the nation.

“I didn’t even think about his speech, but I did see some of it in the news afterward, and I think it was a demonstration of his mental incapacity,” Pelosi told ABC’s Jonathan Karl in a clip that aired Sunday on This Week.

Pelosi said she chose not to watch the address, explaining that she had “had enough” of the president. Still, she did not hesitate to publicly criticize Trump, continuing a pattern of weighing in on his presidency even when acknowledging she lacked firsthand exposure to the event in question.

When pressed by Karl to explain her remarks, Pelosi added, “Well, that was a ridiculous speech. Of course, we were all offended because of what he said about Rob Reiner… and Michele just a few days before, after the tragedy. Something’s wrong there, and something’s wrong with the people around him that they don’t stop him from his ridiculousness.”

During the speech, Trump said he had brought the nation back from “the brink of ruin” in less than a year back in office, sharply criticized Democrats, and touted that he had made America the “hottest country” in the world. As expected, reactions to the politically charged address largely fell along partisan lines, as Trump continues to face negative polling on the nation’s economic outlook.

Pelosi’s attack on Trump’s mental capacity comes with notable irony, given her role in 2024 in pressuring President Joe Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee—a move that fractured their long-standing political relationship.

Before Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Trump last June, Pelosi had been one of the most vocal defenders of Biden’s mental sharpness. She publicly dismissed concerns about his cognitive decline and criticized a Wall Street Journal report detailing issues behind the scenes.

Earlier that year, Pelosi praised Biden as “very sharp” and “always on the ball.”

However, according to a book by Chris Whipple, Pelosi privately told a friend that Biden had “lost a step” last year. After Biden’s debate struggles became impossible to ignore, Pelosi’s carefully worded comments on Morning Joe—which avoided endorsing his insistence on staying in the race—signaled that her confidence had waned.

Biden ultimately dropped out of the race, but the fallout with Pelosi has lingered. The two longtime allies have not spoken since.

Pelosi has consistently maintained that she did not push Biden to withdraw, claiming instead that she merely urged him to look honestly at polling data showing the steep odds he faced.

Still, her latest remarks underscore a familiar dynamic: Pelosi distancing herself from accountability for her years of Democratic leadership failures while remaining eager to criticize President Trump—this time without even watching the speech she condemned.

Latino District Flips To Trump As Democrats Confess ‘Massive Shift’ On Border Policy

Some Democrats are finally acknowledging they need to course correct on their immigration stance.

A new report from The New York Times revealed some leading Democrat lawmakers have admitted that open borders and immigration are costing the party and

“When you have the most Latino district in the country outside of Puerto Rico vote for Trump, that should be a wake-up call for the Democratic Party,” said Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas).

The report highlighted that Gonzalez witnessed President Donald Trump “win every county in his district along the border with Mexico.” Gonzalez’s 34th district in Texas has swung dramatically from voting heavily Democratic in recent presidential elections to going in favor of Trump in 2024.

“This is a Democratic district that’s been blue for over a century,” Gonzalez told the Times.

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said the Democrat Party “got led astray by the 2016 and the 2020 elections, and we just never moved back.” 

“We looked feckless, we weren’t decisive, we weren’t listening to voters, and the voters decided that we weren’t in the right when it comes to what was happening with the border,” Gallego told the Times. 

In May, Gallego released a border security plan that would speed up asylum seekers’ claims and make other countries do their “fair share” in receiving asylum seekers, as well as take action against cartel violence.

The New York Times reported that various Democrats “are pushing for a course correction they see as overdue,” noting a new proposal from the Democratic policy shop and left-wing think tank Center for American Progress. The organization is calling for expanding legal immigration but also for ramping up border security and clamping down on abuse of the nation’s asylum system, the latter two of which are longtime Republican priorities.

Neera Tanden, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, admitted to the Times that Democrats will have to adopt some level of border security policy.

“I’m happy to argue with Stephen Miller or anyone else about why they are wrong,” Tanden told the New York Times. “But the way we’re going to be able to do that is to also honestly assess that the border has been too insecure, that it allowed too many people to come through and that we need to fix that.”

The Trump administration has ramped up efforts to deport illegal immigrants as well as increase security at the U.S. border. The administration’s efforts have been criticized by progressives and violent anti-ICE protests recently prompted Trump to deploy the National Guard to California.

Impeachment Republican Launches Longshot Senate Bid

2

Former Michigan Congressman Peter Meijer (R) announced his campaign for U.S. Senate on Monday.

“We are in dark and uncertain times, but we have made it through worse,” he said in a statement, posted on X. “The challenges are great, but so is our country. If we are to see another great American century, we need leaders who aren’t afraid to be bold, will do the work, and can’t be bought.”

Meijer lost his House seat last cycle after a Trump-backed candidate defeated him in the Republican primary — a challenge brought on after Meijer joined nine other House Republicans in voting to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

The Michigan Republican already faces a challenge to win the seat left open by Se. Debbie Stabenow (D) as former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), who was sought after by the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and former Detroit Police Chief James Craig are among some of the names seeking the GOP endorsement. 

The nonpartisan election prognosticator Cook Political Report rates Stabenow’s seat as “lean Democrat.” 

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) is the most prominent Democrat running for the position.

Another Democrat Joins Call Pushing to Replace Party Leadership

0
Gage Skidmore Flickr

Are Democrat leaders like Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer’s days in office numbered? Now even their own party hopes so.

The two Democrats, 82 and 71 respectively, have been experiencing an increase in calls to retire over the past months, not just from Republican critics but from members of their own party as well.

More and more Democrats have been calling for “new blood” in the party and for senior leaders to step down to make it happen. The calls come as the party continues to trend leftward and experiences a surge in success for more progressive candidates.

Now, Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) has joined the handful of outspoken Democrats calling for new candidates in both Congress and the White House, according to The Washington Examiner.

“I have been very vocal, including with my own leadership in the House, that we need a new generation,” Slotkin told NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday. “We need new blood, period, across the Democratic Party — in the House, the Senate, and the White House. I think that the country has been saying that

Rep. Slotkin’s comments follow similar remarks by Democrats yearning for new faces in the party.

President Joe Biden’s age, 79, has been of increasing concern over the past months as his blunders continue to attract negative attention. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have called on the president not to seek another term in the White House, but so far Biden has yet to officially make an announcement. However, the continued chatter surrounding Biden’s age has invited speculation about whether Democrats will support the President’s next campaign.

Over the summer, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) said he wouldn’t back Biden for a reelection bid, making him one of the first sitting Democrat members of Congress to say directly that he wouldn’t back a second term for the president.

“I have respect for Joe Biden. I think he has — despite some mistakes and missteps, despite his age — I think he’s a man of decency, of good principle, of compassion, of empathy, and of strength. But to answer your question directly, which I know is quite rare, no, I don’t,” Phillips told WCCO in July.

Federal Judge Appointed By Trump Quits Prominent Judicial Group

1
Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

He’s had enough…

A federal judge who was appointed by President Donald Trump recently resigned from the largest association of federal judges, decrying how the group issued a rare statement last week condemning recent alleged threats against judges but stayed quiet for years while conservative members of the judiciary faced scrutiny and attack.

Judge James C. Ho, of the New Orleans-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, announced his departure from the Federal Judges Association during a speaking event Saturday hosted by the conservative Federalist Society at the University of Michigan Law School. It comes in response to the 1,100-member group issuing a statement on March 5 saying in part that “judges must be permitted to do their jobs without fear of violence or intimidation of any kind.” Trump and his allies have grown increasingly critical of judges who have blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and other aspects of the administration’s agenda, while DOGE leader Elon Musk last month called for an “immediate wave of judicial impeachments.” 

“I was very surprised by that statement. And the next morning, I sent an email to the organization saying that I wanted to resign,” Ho said of the Federal Judges Association. “I researched for myself, and I also asked the association if they ever issued any such statements when Justice Thomas received attacks, or Justice Alito. Justice Kavanaugh dealt with an assassination attempt. We’ve had federal district judges in Texas and in Florida – as well as, I’m sure, other states, but those are the ones that come to mind immediately – all faced the kinds of things that that statement was complaining about and more. Did we see these statements in 2024 or 2023 or 2022? From what I can tell, no.” 

“You can’t say that you’re in favor of judicial independence only when it comes to decisions that you like. That’s not protecting the judiciary, that’s politicizing the judiciary,” Ho said, arguing that such statements actually harm the cause they try to further. “Because one of two things turns out to be true when you’re selective in this way. And either of these options, I think, is a bad thing. Option number one is that you’re basically lying, that you actually don’t care about this principle because you didn’t stand up for it when the shoe was on the other foot, and so you’re telling the world essentially we’re not seriously committed to judicial independence.” 

“The alternative is perhaps even worse, which is that you are telling the truth – you do care about this, this principle, whether it’s judicial independence or free speech. I think this concept applies to a lot of things,” Ho continued. “If you’re telling the truth, you really care about this principle, but there are just some people who have views that are so anathema to you that you don’t think they are worthy of this principle that you expound on.” 

“And so what you may think is a statement born of righteousness I think is perceived by a lot of people as merely sanctimonious,” he concluded. 

The president of the Federal Judges Association, U.S. Circuit Judge J. Michelle Childs, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, wrote in an email to members last week that the “judiciary faces growing threats, including violence, intimidation, disinformation, and unprecedented impeachments that challenge its independence,” according to Reuters. 

The Federal Judges Association then released a lengthier public statement the next day that did not elaborate on specific threats against specific judges.