Politics

(WILMINGTON, N.C.) — Former President Donald Trump is returning to the key battleground state of North Carolina on Saturday amid a major controversy revolving around North Carolina’s Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson, who the former president had previously supported and called “Martin Luther King on steroids.”

Robinson, the sitting Republican lieutenant governor of North Carolina, allegedly posted inflammatory comments on a message board of a pornography website more than a decade ago, according to a report out Thursday from CNN.

Robinson is not expected to attend Saturday’s rally, though sources caution plans could always change. Trump has not given any indication that he intends to pull his endorsement of Robinson.

The controversy has become a new headache for Trump in the final stretch of the 2024 election cycle.

Trump has campaigned for Robinson multiple times this election cycle, including inviting him to speak at his rallies in North Carolina this year and hosting him at his Mar-a-Lago estate for a fundraiser last year. Also, Trump’s advisers are keenly aware just how important battleground North Carolina is for the former president’s victory in November.

People close to the former president told ABC News that they were bracing for the Robinson story on Thursday. Sources said the campaign was planning to put more distance between Trump and Robinson, but initially did not have plans to call on him to drop out.

“President Trump’s campaign is focused on winning the White House and saving this country. North Carolina is a vital part of that plan,” Trump campaign’s National Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote in a statement to ABC News in response to allegations about Robinson.

When it comes to winning North Carolina, the Trump campaign “will not take our eye off the ball,” Leavitt said.

Trump has yet to make any direct comment on the Robinson controversy. His running mate Sen. JD Vance dodged reporters’ questions about it on Thursday, later, in a post on X, he repeated attacks on Harris as his “comment on Mark Robinson.”

Among the controversial comments Robinson allegedly made online many years ago, according to CNN’s reporting, is one comment where he allegedly referred to himself as a “black NAZI!” CNN reports the comments were made by Robinson between 2008-2012 under the username “minisoldr” on “Nude Africa,” a pornographic website that includes a message board.

ABC News has not confirmed this reporting or the online username alleged to be linked to him.

Robinson has denied he made the comments and claimed the allegations were “salacious tabloid lies.” Defending his character, Robinson vowed to stay in the race as the deadline to drop out as a candidate in North Carolina approached on Thursday.

While Robinson’s alleged past comments online have received a lot of attention, so too have Trump’s past comments in support of Robinson.

“This is Martin Luther King on steroids,” Trump said at a rally in March 2024 while campaigning in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Taking the stage after Robinson’s speech, Trump said, “I told that to Mark. I said, ‘I think you’re better than Martin Luther King. I think you are Martin Luther King times two.'”

Trump later said he was “outstanding” and set to “be the next governor” of North Carolina.

In December 2023, at a private Mar-a-Lago fundraiser supporting Robinson, Trump said people should “cherish” Robinson like a “fine wine.”

“We have to cherish Mark. We have to cherish him. It’s like a fine wine, because that’s what you have, you have a fine wine,” Trump said in a social media video posted by North Carolina politician Robert Ward, who attended the fundraiser.

Trump further called Robinson an “outstanding person” that he “got to know fairly quickly,” asking donors gathered at his property to donate to Robinson and to get out and vote because he has a “tough opponent.”

“You got to help him financially, because you all people that have a lot of money — I know, rich as hell. So anything you were going to do, quadruple it,” Trump said.

Trump campaigned with Robinson twice at his North Carolina rallies in August. In Asheville, on Aug. 14, Robinson was the final speaker of the pre-programming prior to Trump’s arrival, and Trump called him a “good man” and a “fighter” in a relatively short shout out.

“I want to thank a very good man, and he’s in there fighting,” Trump said about Robinson. “… We know he’s a fighter. The next governor of North Carolina, Mark Robinson. Thanks, Mark. This is Mrs. Robinson. Thank you. They’re a great, great couple. Thank you both.”

In Asheboro, on Aug. 21, Robinson did not speak on stage, but Trump gave him a shout out during his speech and briefly brought him on stage.

The Harris campaign has been capitalizing on Trump and Robinson’s relationship on social media, firing off a series of posts featuring Trump’s praising past comments on Robinson and calling them “best friends.”

On Friday, the Harris campaign released a new ad that seeks to tie Trump to Robinson, saying “they’re both wrong for North Carolina.”

The ad, which will air in North Carolina, features past clips of Trump praising Robinson. The 30-second spot also highlights Robinson’s hard-line comments on abortion.

The ad does not include the alleged comments and conduct outlined in CNN’s article.

ABC News’ Fritz Farrow, Gabriella Abdul-Hakim and Will McDuffie contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — First lady Jill Biden welcomed the cast of “The West Wing” to the White House Friday, in celebration of the television show’s 25th anniversary.

“Your work inspired so many to step forward and serve our country, maybe even some of the people here today working in Congress, at nonprofits, or on political campaigns, or at the White House,” the first lady said, calling that effect the “power of storytelling.”

“The West Wing” creator Aaron Sorkin explained how they would occasionally hear about someone who was inspired to enter public service because of the show.

“That’s something that 25 years ago this week, none of us could have foreseen or even dared to hope for,” he said.

He also referred to Biden withdrawing from the presidential race in July as a “’West Wing’ moment.”

“Over the years, I’ve noticed that during times of peak political tension, pundits will warn us not to expect a ‘West Wing’ moment. They mean not to expect a selfless act of statesmanship, not to expect anyone to put country first,” Sorkin said. “But the fact is, ‘West Wing’ moments do happen, and Dr. Biden, we saw proof of that on the morning of July 21.”

Sorkin was also joined at Friday’s event by the show’s cast members, including actor Martin Sheen, who referred to his character of President Jed Bartlet as a “wonderful character that changed [his] life.”

“The West Wing” debuted on Sept. 22, 1999 and ran for seven seasons. The political drama’s many accolades include 26 Emmy Awards out of 95 nominations, as well as two Golden Globe Awards and two consecutive Peabody Awards.

Bradley Whitford, who played White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman on the show, was absent from Friday’s event but expressed his regret in a lengthy social media post for missing it, as well as Monday’s Emmy Awards, during which “The West Wing” stars Martin Sheen, Allison Janney, Dulé Hill, Janel Moloney and Richard Schiff present the Emmy for Best Drama Series.

“I’m in Budapest on another White House set pretending to work for another administration. (I know. I need to work on my range),” Whitford quipped on X.

“So what’s next? To celebrate our anniversary, I hope you will check your voter registration and make a plan to vote!!!” he concluded.

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(NEW YORK) — Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine delivered his strongest condemnation yet of former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, for their continued false claims regarding Haitian migrants in Springfield.

“As a supporter of former President Donald Trump and Senator JD Vance, I am saddened by how they and others continue to repeat claims that lack evidence and disparage the legal migrants living in Springfield. This rhetoric hurts the city and its people, and it hurts those who have spent their lives there,” DeWine wrote in an op-ed in the New York Times published Friday morning.

DeWine said Trump and Vance’s rhetoric was a distraction, diminishing immigration policy conversations that “dilute and cloud what should be a winning argument about the border.”

DeWine has previously shot down the false claims from Trump and Vance that the Haitian migrants were eating neighborhood pets.

On ABC’s “This Week,” DeWine said the stories were baseless and “a piece of garbage.”

“This idea that we have hate groups coming in, this discussion just has to stop. We need to focus on moving forward and not dogs and cats being eaten. It’s just ridiculous,” he said on the program.

Earlier this week, DeWine revealed the city of Springfield has received at least 33 separate bomb threats in the last few days.

Asked for comment on the op-ed, the Trump campaign referred ABC News to a statement from vice presidential nominee JD Vance’s spokesperson.

“Senator Vance is glad that Governor DeWine supports the Trump-Vance ticket for president,” said Vance spokesperson Will Martin. “They’re not always going to agree on every issue. When Kamala Harris abuses our immigration system to bring thousands of illegal immigrants into this country, small Ohio towns like Springfield bear the brunt of the burden. President Trump and Senator Vance will secure our border and put a stop to this chaos.”

Vance chose to continue to share the claim about pets after an aide was told by a city official that it was categorically untrue.

The aide to Vance was informed by a top Springfield official earlier this month that claims about Haitian migrants eating cats and dogs were false, but the vice presidential nominee went ahead with spreading the rumor anyway the day before the presidential debate in which Trump repeated the claim, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal and confirmed by ABC News.

City manager Bryan Heck, in a Sept. 9 phone call, told a Vance staffer the “claims were baseless” when asked if they were true. A city spokesperson confirmed to ABC News the accuracy of the Wall Street Journal’s reporting about the call.

Even still, Ohio is not quite a swing state — Trump beat Biden by 8 points in 2020 and Clinton by 9 points in 2016. It’s ultimately unclear if his and Vance’s continued push of this narrative moves the needle electorally.

ABC News’ Soorin Kim, Hannah Demissie, Kelsey Walsh, Lalee Ibssa, Armando Garcia, and Jeremy Edwards contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — New York Magazine placed its Washington correspondent, Olivia Nuzzi, on leave this week after it learned she allegedly “had engaged in a personal relationship with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign while she was reporting on the campaign,” the outlet said in a statement.

According to the news outlet Status, the relationship was allegedly with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent candidate who suspended his campaign last month and endorsed former President Donald Trump.

In its statement, New York Magazine did not name Kennedy, and a spokeswoman for the outlet did not respond to an ABC News request to confirm that he is in fact the subject in question.

But in statements, neither Nuzzi nor a Kennedy representative denied Status’ reporting that Kennedy was involved.

“Earlier this year, the nature of some communication between myself and a former reporting subject turned personal,” Nuzzi said in a statement. “During that time, I did not directly report on the subject nor use them as a source. The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict. I deeply regret not doing so immediately and apologize to those I’ve disappointed, especially my colleagues at New York.”

Stefanie Spear, a Kennedy spokeswoman, told ABC News in a statement, “Mr. Kennedy only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece.”

Spear did not respond to a follow-up question about whether Kennedy denies the allegation of a romantic relationship.

A profile by Nuzzi of Kennedy, in which she hiked with the candidate near his southern California home, published in November.

At the time, Kennedy had recently dropped his Democratic presidential bid to run as an independent and was polling promisingly in swing states.

But a cash shortage and a wave of unflattering headlines blunted his campaign.

Kennedy is married to the actress Cheryl Hines, who has not commented publicly on the alleged relationship.

Nuzzi’s ex-fiancée, Ryan Lizza, Politico’s Chief Washington Correspondent, wrote in the Friday’s “Playbook” newsletter, “Because of my connection to this story through my ex-fiancee, my editors and I have agreed that I won’t be involved in any coverage of Kennedy in Playbook or elsewhere at POLITICO.”

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(ATLANTA) — The Republican-led Georgia State Election Board on Friday passed a major rule change just a few weeks before the November election requiring the hand-counting of all ballots, prompting fears from both sides of the aisle of potential long delays in the reporting of election results.

The rule, passed 3-2 with the Republican members leading the way, now requires the hand counting of ballots at each precinct in addition to the customary machine count.

Under the new rule, poll workers would need to unseal and remove ballots from the machine scanners and three poll officers would need to independently hand count the total number of ballots in stacks, arriving at the same total.

Proponents of the rule change downplayed fears of delays and concerns about breaks in chains of custody, during a heating hearing and argued the change would bring more integrity and transparency to the state’s election procedures.

“You’re pulling them out of a pile and you’re strictly going to go to the corner and you’re just going to count those ballots. Now, how difficult is that? That is not a big deal. I mean, in my opinion, that’s not a big deal,” Sharlene Alexander, who helped present the measure to the board, said.

Former President Donald Trump has publicly praised the push from the Republican members to implement additional measures. He continues to claim fraud in the 2020 election and that he won Georgia without any legitimate evidence.

During an Atlanta rally in August, Trump called the Republican board members who have pushed the changes “pit bulls fighting for victory.”

He also specifically praised the proposal that would require the independent verification of ballots from three different election workers, asking the crowd, “Who could be against that? Who could be against it?”

“My last comment is this vote, this board voted to have on the record that we’ll be going against the advice of our legal counsel by voting in the affirmative. We will have no further discussion,” Chairman John Fervier, who was appointed Chair by Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, said Friday as he strongly criticized the board’s decision.

Many state officials have already raised concerns about the feasibility and legality of the last-minute changes, and during the meeting election workers spoke up about the burdens this rule change would have on election workers.

“What I do in my county is not what my neighboring county does. They do not have the resources to do that. So, to say that it would not cause delays on election night is not true or accurate. It will cause delays for certain counties,” Rebecca England, an election worker from Greene County, said during a discussion about the burden the change would put on election officials.

The election board rejected a proposal that would have required hand-counting during early voting, which begins on Oct. 15.

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, a Republican, opposed the rule changes and his office issued a warning to the board ahead of today’s meeting, specifically laying out how approving the hand-counting proposal likely violates state law warned the board that it may not be lawful.

“There are thus no provisions in the statutes cited in support of these proposed rules that permit counting the number of ballots by hand at the precinct level prior to delivery to the election superintendent for tabulation,” his office wrote in a letter to the election board Thursday.

“Accordingly, these proposed rules are not tethered to any statute- — and are, therefore, likely the precise type of impermissible legislation that agencies cannot do,” the letter continued.

An attorney for Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s secretary of state, who was allegedly pressured by Former President Donald Trump not to certify the 2020 election, also sent a letter to the board warning the board not to go through with the changes at such a late stage.

While raising concerns about potential delays, Raffensperger assured voters that he “fully anticipate[s]” election results will be certified by Nov. 12, in compliance with state law.

Vice President Kamala Harris and other groups have filed lawsuits against the changes contending that they will cause disruptions to the certification process.

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(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign and Jewish advocacy groups on Friday forcefully criticized what they called former President Donald Trump’s “dangerous” and “antisemitic” comments saying Jewish voters would be to blame if he lost the presidential election.

“I’ll put it to you very simply and as gently as I can: I wasn’t treated properly by the voters who happen to be Jewish,” Trump said at an event Thursday night in Washington that was meant to highlight antisemitism. “I don’t know. Do they know what the hell is happening if I don’t win this election? And the Jewish people would really have a lot to do with that if that happens, because at 40% that means 60% of the people are voting for the enemy.”

The backlash was fierce.

“Donald Trump is resorting to the oldest antisemitic tropes in the book because he’s weak and can’t stand the fact that the majority of America is going to reject him in November. But we know that words like these can have dangerous consequences,” Harris campaign national security spokesperson Morgan Finkelstein said in a statement. “As Trump has proven, including over the past few weeks with his lies about Springfield, Ohio, he will cling to fearmongering and intimidation, no matter the cost.”

Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, have in recent days pushed the baseless claim that Haitian migrants in Springfield, most of whom are legally there, of stealing and eating neighbors’ pets — an accusation roundly refuted by local officials.

“When Donald Trump loses this election, it will be because Americans from all faiths, ethnicities, and backgrounds came together to turn the page on the divisiveness he demonstrates every day,” Finkelstein added.

Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who is Jewish himself, wrote on X Friday that Jewish Americans would not be “intimidated” by Trump’s attacks. “Last night, Donald Trump once again fanned the flames of antisemitism by trafficking in tropes blaming and scapegoating Jews. He even did it at an event purporting to fight antisemitism, no less,” Emhoff wrote. “This is dangerous and must be condemned. We will not be intimidated and will continue to live openly, proudly, and without fear as Jews.”

Non-partisan Jewish advocacy organizations also vocalized their strong opposition to Trump’s comment.

“Whoever a majority of the Jewish community votes for, Jews — roughly 2 percent of the U.S. population — cannot and should not be blamed for the outcome of the election,” the American Jewish Committee wrote in a statement. “Setting up anyone to say, ‘we lost because of the Jews’ is outrageous and dangerous. Thousands of years of history have shown that scapegoating Jews can lead to antisemitic hate and violence.”

Some Jewish voters will vote for Harris, and some will vote for Trump, the AJC said, adding that “None of us, by supporting the candidate we choose, is ‘voting for the enemy.'”

Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblat wrote on social media that Trump’s comments contradicted the message of the antisemitic event at which he was speaking and can make it worse for Jewish Americans.

“Preemptively blaming American Jews for your potential election loss does zero to help American Jews. It increases their sense of alienation in a moment of vulnerability when right-wing extremists and left-wing antizionists continually demonize and slander Jews,” Greenblat wrote “Let’s be clear, this speech likely will spark more hostility and further inflame an already bad situation.”

Amy Spitalnick, who leads the progressive-leaning Jewish Council for Public Affairs, encouraged more people to join growing chorus slamming Trump’s comment.

“Last night, Trump preemptively blamed the Jews for his possible electoral loss, after spending months calling Jews who don’t support him ‘crazy’ & ‘disloyal.’ Speaking out against this isn’t about partisan politics — it’s about fundamental Jewish safety,” Spitalnick wrote. “We need everyone to do so.”

Trump did receive backing from some on the political right. The Republican Jewish Coalition, a major Jewish political group that has endorsed Trump, praised Trump for his remarks on combatting antisemitism.

Matt Brooks, the CEO of the organization, told ABC News in a phone interview that he thought the comments about Jewish voters and the election were about motivating Jewish voters, and that Democratic claims otherwise are a deflection.

“I think what it was is the president trying to motivate the Jewish community,” Brooks said, adding that Trump “realizes what’s at stake” for American Jews, who feel unsafe in America due to a rise in antisemitism. (Brooks pointed to intimidation faced by Jewish students on college campuses as one example.)

“This is an absolute distraction, to deflect that [Trump] made many significant and important contributions to the Jewish community,” Brooks said.

He added that Trump was also indicating how close of an election it may be in battleground states, where given the likely slim margin, “if the Jewish vote doesn’t move in his favor, it may cost him the election.”

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(WASHINGTON) — Issues with a host of communications and technical difficulties with drone capabilities plagued the U.S. Secret Service at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where an assassin took a shot at former President Donald Trump, according to a new report released Friday by the agency.

The Secret Service said it failed to secure the line of sight to the former president, by not securing the roof of the AGR building near the Butler Fair Grounds and law enforcement did not communicate to all personnel involved that there was a threat to the former president, the report said.

The report also revealed there was no discussion with the Secret Service advance staff about positioning a local sniper team on top of the AGR roof and the “lack of due diligence” in the construction of the secure perimeter should have been focused on more acutely.

“It’s important that we hold ourselves accountable for the failures of July 13, and that we use the lessons learned to make sure that we do not have another failure like this,” U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe said Friday.

The report was an effort from the Secret Service to be transparent about the failures that occurred on July 13, when Thomas Matthew Crooks allegedly climbed on top of a neighboring building and opened fire on Trump, striking him in the ear before being killed by a Secret Service sniper.

“We’re in a pivotal moment in the history of the Secret Service, and at a pivotal moment in history of our country, and I’ve directed that the Secret Service embark on a significant paradigm shift that will redefine how we conduct protective operations,” Rowe said Friday. “What occurred on Sunday demonstrates that the threat environment in which the Secret Service operates is tremendous and under constant threat, and we’ve been in this heightened and increasingly dynamic threat environment since July 13.”

“A consistent theme gathered from state and local law enforcement personnel who helped secure the Butler rally was the presence of communications deficiencies,” according to an executive summary of the report released on Friday.

The “deficiencies” included a lack of resources to share information, a “variety” of communications channels used by different law enforcement agencies, and the agency’s inability to convey the Secret Service’s “protective needs.”

“Some local police entities supporting the Butler venue had no knowledge that there were two separate communications centers on site (i.e., the Secret Service security room and the Butler County Emergency Services Mobile Command Post),” the executive summary said. “As a result, those entities were operating under a misimpression that the Secret Service was directly receiving their radio transmissions.”

Federal personnel on the scene were not informed through the radio of a description of the assailant, or vital information received from local law enforcement regarding a suspicious individual on the roof of the AGR complex, the report said.

The information was being passed through mobile devices in a “fragmented fashion” instead of being relayed through the Secret Service’s radio network, the report said.

“This failure was especially acute in terms of the [Former President’s] protective detail, who were not apprised of how focused state and local law enforcement were in the minutes leading up to the attack on locating the suspicious subject,” the executive summary said. “If this information was passed over Secret Service radio frequencies it would have allowed [Former President’s] protective detail to determine whether to move their protectee while the search for the suspicious suspect was in progress.”

The Secret Service was not made aware that a local agency was providing support to the Secret Service, according to the report.

“Neither the Secret Service’s Pittsburgh Field Office leadership nor anyone on the agency’s advance team were aware of this outreach for support,” the report said. “This led to a situation where the local tactical team operating on the second floor of the AGR building—a team that was providing mutual aid support—had no prior contact with Secret Service personnel before the rally.”

There was “no discussion” with the Secret Service about positioning that local team on the roof of the AGR building, according to the report’s executive summary.

Another challenge impacting the Secret Service on July 13 was its drone system was experiencing “technical difficulties,” the agency said.

The FBI director testified to Congress that Crooks flew a drone outside of the secure perimeter before the rally started.

“It is possible that if this element of the advance had functioned properly, the shooter may have been detected as he flew his drone near the Butler Farm Show venue earlier in the day,” the executive summary said.

The report also found that the Butler Farm Show site “as seen by the Secret Service and our local law enforcement partners as a challenge.”

It was selected by the campaign and local officials “because it was the better venue to accommodate the large number of desired attendees.”

“Advance personnel and multiple supervisors with oversight of the security plan at the Butler Farm Show venue recognized line of site concerns,” the report found. “However, the security measures to alleviate these concerns were not carried out on July 13, 2024 as intended. There was a lack of detailed knowledge by Secret Service personnel regarding the state or local law enforcement presence that would be present in and around the AGR complex.”

ABC News’ Jack Date contributed to this report

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(WASHINGTON) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s preparation for the Oct. 1 vice presidential debate with Sen. JD Vance is well underway, sources familiar with the process have confirmed to ABC News.

He’s already held some mock debates, sources said, with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, in his personal capacity, acting as a Vance stand-in, and held policy sessions with his own longtime aides, Biden White House alumni and members of the Harris-Walz campaign team.

Buttigieg was in Minneapolis as recently as Wednesday to help him prepare. Walz has also been practicing on the road as he campaigns.

Biden White House alumni Rob Friedlander and Zayn Siddique are running the preparations. Siddique, who is currently an attorney at the firm Paul Weiss and served as senior adviser to Bruce Reed, the White House deputy chief of staff under President Joe Biden, has also been part of the vice president’s debate preparations.

Friedlander was chief of staff for the White House National Economic Council and senior adviser for communications.

Friedlander and Siddique are being supported by a larger team that includes Liz Allen, a veteran political operative who stepped down from her role as head the State Department’s public diplomacy office in August to become chief of staff on Harris’ running mate team. Chris Schmitter, Walz’s longtime aide who led his gubernatorial races and debate, is also helping along with Harris-Walz communications director Michael Tyler, sources say.

The vice presidential debate hosted by CBS News is set to be in New York City, the network has announced, with both Walz and Vance agreeing to participate. The debate will be moderated by “CBS Evening News” anchor and managing editor Norah O’Donnell and “Face the Nation” moderator and CBS News chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Brennan.

The sources stress that the vice presidential debate won’t be the “end all be all” for Walz, who has acknowledged himself that he’s “working hard” to “try and learn the issues” but is up against Vance, who “as a United States senator, a Yale Law guy” will come prepared.

“You’ll hear me talk like I have about things that impact Americans, making sure they have the opportunity to thrive, making sure that we’re being factual in how we talk about that. And so I’m looking forward to it. I’ll work hard. That’s what I do,” Walz said about the VP debate on MSNBC in the aftermath of the presidential debate between Harris and former President Donald Trump. “I fully expect that Senator Vance, as a United States Senator, a Yale Law guy, he’ll come well prepared.”

“Debates and VP Debates don’t matter all that much in polling — this will be one of many data points for voters,” sources said about the significance of the debate, also stressing that “Vance is a skilled debater.”

The campaign sees the debate as one of “many” opportunities for Walz to present Harris’ agenda to Americans. He’ll also use the debate to introduce himself and highlight the Democratic ticket’s vision for the future.

“This debate will serve as another clear opportunity for Governor Walz to present Vice President Harris’ winning vision of a New Way Forward to the American people who are ready to turn the page on Donald Trump,” Emily Soong, a spokesperson for the Harris-Walz campaign said in a statement to ABC News.

Vance’s team has not commented to ABC News on how he’s preparing for the debate. The Washington Post was first to report the details of Walz’s preparations.

ABC News’ Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — As many key battleground states prepare to send out mail-in ballots to voters for the November general election, former President Donald Trump has been escalating his false and unsubstantiated rhetoric on mail-in voting, most recently even floating possible court action in what could be a repeat of the onslaught of legal battles on election results that followed the 2020 presidential election.

But the former president’s messaging on mail-in voting has been anything but consistent with his allies at the Republican National Committee often cleaning up Trump’s attacks on mail-in voting and urging voters to embrace different voting methods as the party attempts to expand voter turnout for November.

Trump, during campaign rallies and interviews throughout this election cycle, often speaks about the need to “protect the vote,” repeating false and unsubstantiated claims that “cheating” or “fraud” occurs every time mail-in voting is involved.

“The elections are so screwed up. We have to get back in and we have to change it all,” Trump falsely said during a campaign rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, last month. “We want to go to paper ballots. We want to go to same-day voting. We want to go to citizenship papers. And we want to go to voter ID. It’s very simple. We want to get rid of mail-in voting.”

In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in July, he said, “the mail-in voting isn’t working. It’s corrupt. But until then, Republicans must win.”

At those very rallies, however, and at many other rallies over the last few months, his campaign has been actively promoting mail-in voting with staffers helping supporters register for mail-in ballots on site. Additionally, large screens at rallies show messages urging supporters to request mail-in ballots, update their voter registration or “pledge” to vote early in-person as a part of their voter registration effort.

He has also pushed mixed messaging on other forms of voting, sometimes urging voters to go out to vote during early-voting periods, while other times saying he wants to enforce same-day voting.

Trump himself voted early in the Florida Republican primary last month, casting his ballot at a polling location near his home in Palm Beach.

Most recently, Trump has more specifically directed his attacks on the United States Postal Service, making baseless statements that the agency is in a “bad shape” and is unable to process mail-in ballots ahead of Election Day in November.

“They are saying they’re in very bad shape, that they cannot deliver the mail well, and we’re relying on them,” Trump falsely claimed during an interview with a far-right outlet last week.

“We ought to go to court, bring a lawsuit, because they’re going to lose hundreds of thousands of ballots, maybe purposely, or maybe just through incompetence,” he continued.

On Thursday, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy dismissed claims from the man who appointed him to the job: “My response is like my response to everyone who says that we’re not prepared for the election — it’s that they’re wrong.

“We recognize that election officials are under an extreme amount of pressure, and will remain so for at least the next two months,” DeJoy said. “We also recognize that the American public will become increasingly alarmed if there is ongoing dialogue that continues to question the reliability of the Postal Service for the upcoming elections.”

“Let me be clear,” DeJoy continued. “The Postal Service is ready to deliver the nation’s mail-in ballots.”

DeJoy, who reiterated that the agency had been delivering ballots since 1864, said the Postal Service delivered 99.89% of ballots from voters to election officials in the 2020 election, which he called a “highly sensitive, sensationalized environment.”

At times, Trump himself has urged his supporters to go out and vote regardless of the voting method, including earlier this month, ahead of what was originally supposed to be the start of North Carolina’s mail-in voting.

“This will be the most important election in the history of our country. So whether it’s mail-in ballots, early voting, voting on the day, you got to get out and vote,” Trump told his followers in a social media video earlier this month, stressing the importance of this election.

Days later, Trump on his social media platform made a baseless claim that “20% of the Mail-In Ballots in Pennsylvania are fraudulent.” Without evidence, he also accused Democrats of cheating and called on the attorney general and the FBI to launch an investigation.

Lara Trump, the RNC co-chair and Trump’s daughter-in-law, the next day attempted to clean up his comments on CNN, saying he was referring to the 2020 election — while still not providing evidence of such fraud in 2020.

She then stressed that for this election, the party is focused on making sure voters can participate in any way they can, whether it’s by mail, early voting or in-person voting on Election Day.

“What I can tell you is we worked very hard on the ground at the RNC to make sure every voter in this country feels like when you cast a ballot, whether it’s via mail, whether it’s early voting in-person, or whether it’s on Election Day in an election office, around the country, your vote matters, and your vote counts,” Lara Trump said.

“And Donald Trump very much wants every Republican voter to vote however they feel most comfortable,” she continued.

But Republicans aren’t giving a carte-blanche blessing of the process, already launching a series of legal actions in key battleground states.

On Sept. 5, the RNC filed a lawsuit against North Carolina’s Board of Elections over a state law that governs mail-in ballot curing, claiming the state election board’s rules are “inconsistent with state law and diminishes protections for absentee ballots.”

“We have filed suit to uphold election integrity and ballot safeguards. State law lays out clear requirements, and the NCSBE must follow them — we will continue to fight for election integrity in the Old North State,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley wrote in a statement.

After a delay over Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s legal battle to remove his name from the ballot, absentee ballots are finally set to go out in North Carolina next week.

The RNC this week also launched a petition to the state Supreme Court against Pennsylvania’s Secretary of State Al Schmidt, saying the state’s instructions for voters to cast a provisional ballot if they do not follow the instructions for completing and returning mail ballots is illegal.

Under the current Pennsylvania law, some counties have created procedures to notify voters if there’s any issue with their mail-in ballot to provide them the opportunity to fix that ballot or to cast a provisional ballot in person on Election Day.

“Secretary Schmidt’s policy ignores the law and has caused great confusion to Pennsylvania voters,” Whatley wrote in a statement. “This clearly undermines election integrity, diminishes fairness for voters, and threatens to erode public confidence in our elections. We have filed suit to force election officials to follow the law in the Keystone State.”

The RNC also recently sued the city of Racine, Wisconsin, claiming a lack of Republican election inspectors hired by the city, signaling a general election full of legal battles, as Trump and his allies continue to stress the importance of “protecting the vote.”

“As the president has said, it is great to vote early, it’s great to vote by mail, absentee, and it’s great to vote on Election Day,” Whatley said in June when asked about Trump’s disparaging comments on mail-in voting. “The key is you got to make a plan.”

“We are spending a very significant amount of our time protecting the vote,” Whatley said. “We are recruiting hundreds of thousands of volunteers that we’re going to recruit and train and make sure that we deploy to serve as observers, poll workers and full judges all across the country.”

“And we want people to have a comfort level knowing that their vote is going to be preserved and it’s going to be. We protect the sanctity of the vote,” he continued. “So when people have comfort that we’re going to have election integrity, they’ll feel more comfortable voting.”

Asked for a comment, Trump’s campaign pushed early voting.

“This election cycle, President Trump, the RNC, and our campaign have been consistent and clear: vote early,” Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said.

ABC News’ Lucien Bruggeman and Brittany Shepherd contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — The House unanimously on Friday approved a bill that would require the Secret Service to apply equal standards of protection to major presidential candidates and sitting presidents, a move that comes in the wake of two assassination attempts on former President Trump.

The final tally was 405-0 in favor of the bill. Only two-thirds majority was required for the measure to pass.

The bill was first introduced following the first assassination attempt in July by Reps. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y.

It now heads to the Senate where its fate is uncertain. The Senate would likely not be able to take it up until after the 2024 election.

The House also officially expanded the jurisdiction of the Task Force investigating the Butler, PA assassination attempt against former President Trump to also include the second assassination attempt at Trump’s golf course in Florida.

Speaker Johnson said earlier this week the House would take this step and it was just approved by unanimous consent.

On Wednesday, the Secret Service told the House task force investigating the assassination attempts against Trump that the former president has an increased level of security.

“President Biden ordered the Secret Service to provide the same level of security to both Vice President Harris and to former President Trump, that would be a presidential level security commensurate with what the president would receive, and that that security is being provided, that’s our understanding,” Ranking Member Jason Crow, D-CO, said following a USSS virtual briefing.

The USSS insists that Donald Trump is now receiving protection at what one official calls “the highest levels the Secret Service provides.”

In addition to counter assault, counter surveillance, counter sniper, protective intelligence and drone teams for Trump, an agency official says the security plan at Mar-a-Lago now includes emergency tactical response functions and a protective platoon from Palm Beach County.

The protective package around a candidate – even one who’s now repeatedly come under physical threat – could never be the same as that of a sitting president or vice president, the official said.

Acting Director of the Secret Service said Monday that Congress’ commitment to providing the resources the agency needs has been “fantastic.”

He also praised DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas “ whose support in making sure that we’re getting what we need has been phenomenal.”

Rowe said that right now they need to hire more people because they are currently “redlining” agents.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise touted the bill during the GOP weekly leadership press conference earlier this week.

“Every year since 2017, Congress has added more money to the Secret Service’s budget than they even requested in their budget,” Scalise said Wednesday. “And so, it is not an issue of money. What they are doing with the money we’ve had a lot of serious questions about before the first assassination attempt.”

ABC News’ Luke Barr and Steven Portnoy contributed to this report.

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