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Minnesota Supreme Court Dismisses Challenge To Keep Trump Off 2024 Ballot

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The Minnesota Supreme Court has dismissed a lawsuit seeking to bar former President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 primary ballot.

Left-wing group Free Speech For People argued that Trump violated the 14th Amendment during the Jan. 6th, 2020 Capitol riot.

The 14th Amendment disqualifies anyone from running for office who had previously taken an oath of office who then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.”

The Daily Wire has more:

“There is no state statute that prohibits a major political party from placing on the presidential nomination primary ballot, or sending delegates to the national convention supporting, a candidate who is ineligible to hold office,” Chief Justice Natalie Hudson ruled.

However, the court’s ruling only applies to the state’s primary ballot and left open the possibility that the plaintiffs could make another attempt to block Trump from appearing on the general election ballot in November 2024.

Trump celebrated the ruling in a series of Truth Social posts on Wednesday.

“Ridiculous 14th Amendment lawsuit just thrown out by Minnesota Supreme Court,” Trump said. “Congratulations to all who fought this HOAX!”

In response to the ruling, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in part: “Today’s decision in Minnesota, like New Hampshire before it, is further validation of the Trump Campaign’s consistent argument that the 14th Amendment ballot challenges are nothing more than strategic, un-Constitutional attempts to interfere with the election by desperate Democrats who see the writing on the wall: President Trump is dominating the polls and has never been in a stronger position to end the failed Biden presidency next November.”

House GOP Elects New Vice Chair

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On Wednesday, House Republicans elected a new vice chair of the House Republican conference after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) rose up from the position to grasp the gavel.

House Republicans voted Utah Rep. Blake Moore to become the new vice chair of the GOP conference.

Speaking to the press after winning the position, Moore praised the House GOP’s “Commitment to America” platform from the 2022 midterm elections, and the passage of its H.R. 1 energy bill and H.R. 2 border and immigration bill earlier this year.

“It’s tough environment in Washington right now. It’s a split government type of thing, and we’re making — creating — as many ways as we possibly can as we move forward with this,” Moore said.

According to reports from The Hill, Moore beat out six other candidates for the spot.

The field included: Rep. Mark Alford (R-Mo.), Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga), Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), Rep. Michelle Fishbach (R-Minn.), and Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas). Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) was in the running as well.

The election process took more than two hours as the House GOP cycled through multiple ballots, dropping the lowest vote-getter each time. Van Duyne had led in the ballots until Moore took the lead when the field was down to three candidates, with Alford coming in third place.

Rep. Julia Letlow (R-La.) formally nominated Moore for the vice chair position in the election on Wednesday.

Trump Reacts As Daughter Takes Stand In Fraud Trial

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Former President Trump is not happy that his oldest daughter, Ivanka, is being forced to take the stand in his business fraud trial.

The night before Ivanka was set to testify Trump fired off a number of Truth Social posts criticizing the move.

“Tomorrow my wonderful and beautiful daughter, Ivanka, is going to the Lower Manhattan Courthouse, at the direction of Letitia Peekaboo James, the Corrupt and Racist New York State Attorney General, who has allowed Murder and Violent Crime in New York to flourish, and a Trump Hating, out of control Clubhouse appointed Judge, Arthur Engoron, who viciously ruled against me before the trial even started, wouldn’t even consider a Jury, and said that Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida, is worth $18,000,000 when, in fact, it is worth 50 to 100 times that amount,” the former president wrote on Truth Social.

“Now they are trying to bring Ivanka into the case, despite the Court of Appeals ruling that she cannot be charged. Sad!” he added.

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ case accuses Trump, his two adult sons, the Trump Organization, and top executives of falsely inflating the values of Trump’s real estate properties and other assets in order to get tax benefits and better loan terms.

James seeks around $250 million in damages, and she wants to bar Trump and his co-defendants from running another business in New York.

Ivanka was dismissed from the case in June, however, the judge ruled that the dismissal did not prevent her from testifying. Ivanka appealed the decision, but an appeals court denied her request.

In emails to her counsel, the attorney general’s office said Ivanka’s household staffing, credit cards, taxes, and New York housing were still being paid for or managed by the Trump Organization.

“Ms. Trump, even after her formal resignation, has remained intertwined with the Trump Organization and we believe that she is still amenable to service through that enterprise,” Assistant Attorney General Sherief Gaber wrote in a Sept. 26 email.

“Ms. Trump has clearly availed herself of the privilege of doing business in New York,” Engoron said while handing down his decision.

Poll: Third-Party Candidate Leading In 6 Battleground States

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

This is unexpected…

The poll from The New York Times and Siena College shows Robert F. Kennedy Jr. beating both Trump and Biden among voters under 45 in six swing states.

Mediaite reports:

The polling shows that in an average of data gathered from Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Wisconsin, Kennedy has 34 percent support base with voters aged between 18-29, and he also has 31 percent with 30-44 year old voters. Trump’s numbers stand at 29 percent with 18-29 year olds, and 30 percent with 30-44 year olds. Biden stands at 30 percent in both categories.

And in some states, Kennedy is winning younger voters by enormous margins. In Arizona,  Kennedy has 39 percent of the 18-29-year-old vote to Trump’s 26 — and in Georgia, Kennedy leads Trump 35 to 28 in the same demographic. Biden still has some sway with younger voters in several states — pulling in 37 percent of the 18-29 year old vote in both Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Kennedy originally entered the 2024 contest as a Democratic primary challenger to Biden, but it was about a month ago when he dropped that bid and reinvented his campaign as a third party independent run. Much of the media focus on Kennedy’s run has focused on his numerous bizarre and misinformation statements, though recent polls have shown that his independent bid could be cutting into Trump’s base more than Biden’s.

Iowa Governor Reveals Reasoning Behind Unexpected Endorsement

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Photo via Gage Skidmore

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds is explaining why she broke tradition and decided to endorse Florida Governor Ron DeSantis during the 2024 Republican presidential primaries.

The popular Republican governor told NBC News’ Dasha Burns that she broke with Iowa’s tradition of governors remaining neutral through the primaries because the country has “too much at stake.”

“I just felt like I couldn’t sit on the sidelines any longer,” she said. “We have too much at stake. I truly believe that he is the right person to get this country back on track.”

NBC News noted that the endorsement was the “biggest endorsement of the primary” season so far and that it was a significant boost for the DeSantis campaign.

When asked why she endorsed DeSantis, who is in second place in the race, she said: “I don’t base my decision on polls. I take a look at who I believe is the right person for the right job. I believe that Ron is the right person for the right job. And I believe he’s going to win.”

Burns later asked about her relationship with former President Donald Trump who has fired off repeated attacks against Reynolds, often accusing her of being disloyal to the former President.

When asked when the last time she spoke to Trump, she said, “Probably the last time he called to ask if I would endorse him, and I said I wasn’t at this point.”

5 Republican State Legislators Switch Endorsements

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    Ron DeSantis via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Five Florida legislators flipped their endorsements from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to former President Donald Trump in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. 

    The five who flipped from DeSantis to Trump include State Reps. Jessica Baker, Webster Barnaby, Alina Garcia, Kevin Steele, and State Sen. Debbie Mayfield.

    “As instability grows around the world and economic uncertainty takes root here at home, folks across my district tell me constantly they want to see President Donald Trump back in the White House and Gov. Ron DeSantis back on the job here in Florida, finishing the work he promised to do less than a year ago,” Baker said in a statement to The Messenger, the news outlet that first reported the endorsements. 

    DeSantis’s team said his detractors didn’t mean much in the race and touted his endorsements in Iowa. 

    “Ron DeSantis is dominating the field — including the former president — in supportive state legislative endorsements from across the country,” spokesman Bryan Griffin told The Messenger. “In Iowa, DeSantis holds a historic count of 41 state legislative endorsements, which far surpasses Trump … And, in Florida, DeSantis has nearly 100 state legislators endorsing his run for president. That, too, is a number that significantly outpaces Trump.”

    The seven endorsements follow another DeSantis defector, State Rep. Randy Fine, who endorsed Trump two weeks ago. 

    Trump also has the support of the majority of Florida’s congressional delegation, including Reps. Byron Donalds, Matt Gaetz, and Anna Paulina Luna. Fourteen of Florida’s Republican congress members have endorsed the former president, while one has endorsed DeSantis, according to The Messenger. 

    Impeachment Republican Launches Longshot Senate Bid

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    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.

    Former Obama Adviser Suggests Biden Drop Out Of 2024 Race

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    Political strategist David Axelrod joined Friends of the LBJ Library members to speak about his memoir, "Believer: My Forty Years in Politics," at the LBJ Presidential Library on February 25, 2015. The discussion was moderated by director Mark Updegrove and introduced by Elizabeth Christian. Photo by Lauren Gerson.

    Maybe it’s time for Joe Biden to turn his hearing aids up…

    Former Obama adviser David Axelrod suggested it may be “wise” for President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race after a recent poll found Trump leading Biden in multiple battleground states. A New York Times and Siena College poll published Sunday found Trump leading Biden by 10 points in Nevada, six points in Georgia, five points in both Arizona and Michigan, and four points in Pennsylvania. In Wisconsin, Biden held a two point lead over Trump. The poll’s results are especially concerning for Democrats as Biden won all six states in the 2020 election.

    Arguing Biden is “justly proud of his accomplishments,” Axelrod said Biden’s poll numbers will “send tremors of doubt” through the Democrat Party.

    “Not ‘bed-wetting,’” but legitimate concern, Axelrod wrote.

    “Trump is a dangerous, unhinged demagogue whose brazen disdain for the rules, [norms], laws and institutions or democracy should be disqualifying,” Axelrod wrote in a separate post. “But the stakes of miscalculation here are too dramatic to ignore.”

    “Only @JoeBiden can make this decision,” he continued. “If he continues to run, he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party. What he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it’s in HIS best interest or the country’s?”

    Biden’s reelection campaign has faced concerns from voters within his own party over his age and policy actions on various issues, especially the economy.

    Axelrod called Biden’s age “his biggest liability” and something he cannot change.

    “Among all the unpredictables there is one thing that is sure: the age arrow only points in one direction,” Axelrod wrote.

    The former Obama adviser is hardly the first to encourage Biden to pause his reelection campaign in hopes a younger candidate will take on Donald Trump, the current frontrunner for the Republican nomination.

    Recently, Congressman Dean Phillips (D) officially kicked off his own presidential campaign, teeing up a primary challenge against the President.

    Trump Calls To Ban US Entry for Immigrants Against Israel

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    President Donald J. Trump is presented with a 10th Combat Aviation Brigade challenge coin following an air assault and gun rain demonstration at Fort Drum, New York, on August 13. The demonstration was part of President Trump's visit to the 10th Mountain Division (LI) to sign the National Defense Authorization Act of 2019, which increases the Army's authorized active-duty end strength by 4,000 enabling us to field critical capabilities in support of the National Defense Strategy. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Thomas Scaggs) 180813-A-TZ475-010

    Former President Trump said there is no room in America for those who want to abolish Israel.

    On Saturday, Trump told the crowd at the Florida Freedom Summit that he wants to ban entry into the United States for immigrants who support abolishing Israel, one of America’s strongest allies in the mid-East.

    Fox News has more:

    “If you hate America, if you want to abolish Israel, if you sympathize with jihadists, and then you don’t want your country to do well, you don’t want your country to be successful, you’re just not going to get in, you’re not getting in, you’re not coming into our country,” Trump said.

    Trump also proposed ideological screening for immigrants.

    “On day one, I will restore the Trump travel on entering from having people that like to blow up our shopping centers and kill our people and do lots of bad things. Entry from plagued countries. We will not allow people to come in and will implement strong ideological screening for all immigrants,” Trump said. 

    Trump called for ideological screening for immigrants during his 2016 campaign as well, stating that “extreme vetting” needs to be in place.

    Trump’s comments come after he promised to deport immigrants who are publicly supporting Hamas during an Iowa campaign speech in October.

    Must Watch: Trump Impersonates Biden Getting Lost On Stage

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      Gage Skidmore Flickr

      You have to see this…

      Former President Donald Trump mockingly impersonated President Joe Biden getting lost on stage during a campaign stop in Las Vegas over the weekend

      Addressing the crowd, Trump said, “He can’t put two sentences together and he’s in charge of nuclear warfare. Oh My!”

      Trump suggested he would be able to jump off the stage while Biden would be “driving in circles,” not knowing where to go following a speech.

      Shuffling to the back of the stage, Trump put on an act depicting Biden walking into the wall, throwing up his hands in frustration, and then apparently realizing the exit was to his side

      As Trump did his shtick, the crowd in Las Vegas cheered.

      The teasing didn’t stop there, as Trump asked the audience to judge his nicknames for Biden: “Sleepy Joe Biden” or “Crooked Joe Biden.” It seemed “Crooked” won the room.