(WASHINGTON) — Embattled former Rep. George Santos, who was expelled from Congress in December, has announced that he’s once again running for the House — but, Republican leadership in the Long Island district he’s eyeing told ABC News on Friday that there is “no appetite” for Santos.
Santos announced on X that he would run again after joining his former colleagues in the House for President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. Despite being ousted from the job, Santos maintains the ability to appear on the floor as any prior member does.
“After a lot of prayer and conversation with my friends and family, I have made a very important decision that will shake things up. Tonight, I want to announce that I will be returning to the arena of politics and challenging Nick for the battle over #NY1. I look forward to debating him on the issues and on his weak record as a Republican. The fight for our majority is imperative for the survival of the country,” Santos wrote Thursday.
A corresponding candidacy filing with the Federal Elections Commission was submitted Thursday as well. There are no rules prohibiting an ousted member of Congress from running again.
This time, Santos will challenge Republican Rep. Nick LaLota in New York’s 1st District, which neighbors the congressional district he previously represented, New York’s 3rd District.
The leader of the Suffolk County GOP, the arm of the Republican Party in the congressional district where Santos is running, told ABC News that the embattled congressman won’t be taken seriously.
“The people have no appetite for this bad comedy show to continue,” Suffolk County GOP Chairman Jesse Garcia said in a statement to ABC News.
“His candidacy and whatever petitions he might file will have the same level of credibility as the degree he said he claimed to have received from Baruch College,” Garcia said.
Garcia said LaLota is a better candidate for the district, he added.
“Nick LaLota is a common sense conservative and naval veteran who continues to fight for the hard-working families of Long Island,” Garcia said. “I’m confident the people of the First District will continue to overwhelmingly support him at the ballot box.”
In his announcement, Santos called LaLota an “empty suit.”
“New York hasn’t had a real conservative represent them since I left office arbitrarily, thanks to RINO, empty suits like @nicklalota. He is a [sic] willing to risk the future of our majority and the future of this country for his own political gain,” Santos wrote.
LaLota responded via X, quickly dismissing Santos’ credibility while vowing to take him on.
“To raise the standard in Congress, and to hold a pathological liar who stole an election accountable, I led the charge to expel George Santos. If finishing the job requires beating him in a primary, count me in,” LaLota said in a post on X Thursday night.
Part of the same freshman class of representatives as Santos, LaLota was one of the first Republicans to call for a House Ethics Committee investigation into the embattled former congressman, which ultimately led to Santos’ historic expulsion from the chamber. Santos was the first House member to be expelled in more than 20 years.
Santos has pleaded not guilty to 23 federal charges. Before his ouster, he called the bipartisan report from the House Ethics Committee that alleged the New York congressman “placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles” a “politicized smear.”
Democrat Rep. Tom Suozzi recently won back the seat left vacant by Santos’ departure. Suozzi previously represented New York’s 1st District for three terms before stepping away to launch a failed bid for governor.
ABC News’ Nicolas Kerr contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris, in a post-State of the Union interview with ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce on Friday, praised President Joe Biden’s “passionate” performance but was noncommittal on whether he will debate rival Donald Trump.
“We’ll get to that at some point and we’ll deal with that. But the point is right now on this day after the State of the Union, I think the president laid down the facts for the American people in terms of what’s at stake and I thought he did an extraordinary job,” Harris said.
As questions about Biden’s age and stamina continue to be a concern for most Americans, Republicans have framed the election as not only about Biden but also a potential President Harris.
“What do you say to voters who are sold on the president but may not be sold on you about this potential possibility?” Bruce asked the vice president.
“Well, first of all, I think what we saw in President Joe Biden is somebody who’s prepared to take on a second term, and do it with passion and do it with vigor,” she responded.
“And as it relates to, you know, the various tactics that our opponents are using, they’re going to attack a myriad of issues,” she continued. “But here’s the bottom line, if necessary, which will not be the case, I am ready. But the bottom line is our president is full of vigor and passion and perspective to take on another term. And I’m standing right with him.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — U.S. job gains far exceeded expectations in February, a defiant show of strength that keeps the economy humming but signals a cooldown from the breakneck start to 2024, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on Friday showed.
The economy added 275,000 jobs last month, blowing past economist expectations of about 200,000 jobs added but marking a substantial decline from the hiring of roughly 350,000 workers in January, BLS data showed.
The unemployment rate climbed to 3.9% in February, rising from 3.7% in the month prior, according to the data.
While the job market remains hot, its easing temperature could allow the Federal Reserve to go forward with interest rate cuts expected in the coming months, some analysts told ABC News on Friday.
In other words, the fresh jobs report aligns with the central bank’s path toward a soft landing, in which inflation returns to normal levels while the economy averts a recession, they said.
A solid job market exemplifies the continued strength of the U.S. economy, since profits driven by strong demand lead to growth and additional hiring. However, excess demand risks driving up prices and rekindling inflation.
“For those worried about signs of unwelcome heat in the market after the past few months, this report is a welcome cooling breeze. And if you’re concerned about a labor market on unsteady ground, you shouldn’t be too frightened,” Nick Bunker, economic research director for North America at Indeed Hiring Lab, told ABC News in a statement.
Inflation has fallen significantly from a peak of 9.1% but it remains roughly a percentage point higher than the Fed’s target rate of 2%.
While job growth remains robust, the performance last month keeps the central bank on track for interest rate cuts this year, Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate, told ABC News in a statement.
The Fed “isn’t in a hurry to cut rates, but it is setting the stage,” Hamrick said.
When weighing an interest rate cut, the Fed closely watches wage growth, since a rise in worker pay could prompt businesses to offset the added costs by raising prices.
Wages climbed 4.3% in February compared to a year ago, the BLS data on Friday showed. That rate exceeds the inflation rate of 3.1%, effectively giving the typical worker a pay bump.
However, the wage growth falls short of expectations, putting the central bank on track to achieve its goal of moderate inflation and continued economic expansion, Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, told ABC News in a statement.
“If the economy can continue to add jobs but without triggering a resurgence in wage growth, the Fed will achieve its soft landing,” Shah said.
(WASHINGTON) — After flirting with a third-party presidential bid over the past year, No Labels is set to hold a meeting Friday where its members intend to make a decision on whether the movement will enter the 2024 presidential election.
The meeting will be held virtually on Friday and will include all 800 delegates from 50 states to deliberate if a “unity ticket” — consisting of one Republican and one Democrat — is a viable option. The meeting is just the first phase of a longer process, and at the end of the meeting No Labels will not name its presidential and vice presidential picks, according to sources familiar with the meeting details.
Super Tuesday set up the inevitable rematch No Labels foreshadowed for months. Previously, the bipartisan group indicated that they would enter the 2024 election following Super Tuesday if the presumptive nominees are President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. According to several supporters including No Labels state co-chairs who plan to join the call, they believe Americans want a different option.
It’s not likely that Biden’s fiery State of the Union address on Thursday night changed their minds.
“Two thirds of voters don’t want a rematch of the 2020 election. I mean, they have different reasons for not wanting Biden or Trump to run, but most Americans badly want better choices,” No Labels Chief Strategist Ryan Clancy said in October.
There is a strong appetite to move forward with selecting a ticket as well, No Labels co-chairs and supporters said.
Nancy Jacobson, chief executive and founder of No Labels, published an op-ed in the Dallas Morning News last week suggesting an independent ticket could win in 2024.
“A once-in-a-generation opportunity exists for an extraordinary leader to rise up and guide our nation toward unity and healing,” Jacobson wrote.
She said she believes that finding that candidate is the last piece needed.
If the delegates decide to proceed, No Labels will enter a second phase of their process and spend the next few weeks finalizing the group’s candidate selection process. As a final step, No Labels will reconvene and present its candidate to the group for approval.
However, there is a chance No Labels could decide to scrap all plans. Some supporters indicated they are worried their decision on Friday could lead the group to spoil the 2024 election.
In conversations with ABC News, supporters repeated that they are “as anti-Trump as they come” and don’t view their efforts as helping the former president be reelected. No Labels supporters classify themselves as disenfranchised Republican voters or moderate independent voters.
No Labels leadership has reiterated claims that they will not spoil the 2024 election.
“We will never fuel a spoiler candidate,” No Labels Chief Strategist Ryan Clancy said. “We don’t want to fuel any sort of candidacy that’s pulling more votes from one side.”
“We at No Labels have been clear from the beginning that we will not introduce a spoiler into the race.
Jacobson said No Labels will “either give our ballot line to a ticket with a clear path to victory, or we’ll step aside.”
No Labels suggests that they have been talking to “exceptional leaders,” although that list of potential contenders has dwindled as Election Day nears.
In recent weeks, several donors threw their support behind former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley — who exited the race earlier this week — and said they believed she was the unicorn candidate for the third-party run. However, No Labels put that to rest, releasing a statement after Haley’s campaign suspension saying they will take “at her word” that she “isn’t interested in pursuing another route to the presidency.”
Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat, once speculated to be a candidate on the ticket, said last month that he would not run for president.
“I wish them the best with whatever,” Manchin said during an “Americans Together” listening tour stop in Manchester, New Hampshire, in January.
Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan was also once speculated to be on the ticket, but announced last month that he would run for U.S. Senate instead.
Other names that have been floated by the bipartisan group include: former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu.
The group is on the ballot in 16 states — including three swing states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota and Utah.
No Labels previously claimed that it would be on the ballot in 34 states by the end of 2023. Now, the group says it will attempt to get on the ballot in 33 states by the time a candidate is announced. The ticket would be responsible for the remainder of the states, its leaders said.
(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump has secured a $91,630,000 bond for the judgment in his defamation case brought by the writer E. Jean Carroll.
The former president obtained an appeals bond from the Federal Insurance Company totaling $91,630,000 to cover the $83 million judgment in the case plus interest, according to a court filing Friday morning.
“President Trump respectfully requests that this Court recognize the supersedeas bond obtained by President Trump in the sum of $91,630,000.00 and approve it as adequate and sufficient to stay the enforcement of the Judgment, to the extent that the Judgment awards damages, pending the ultimate disposition of President Trump’s appeal,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said in the filing.
Trump on Friday also filed a notice of appeal of the judgment to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Either paying the judgment or posting a bond for the judgment’s full amount was required for him to move ahead with the appeal.
In a statement to ABC News, Habba said they are confident that their appeal will result in the judgment being overturned.
“Due to the numerous prejudicial errors made at the lower level, we are highly confident that the Second Circuit will overturn this egregious judgment,” Habba said.
The former president in January was ordered to pay $83.3 million in damages to Carroll, a former Elle magazine columnist, for defaming her in 2019 when he denied her allegation that he sexually abused her in the dressing room of a Manhattan department store in the 1990s. Trump, who said Carroll was “totally lying” and that she was “not my type,” has denied all wrongdoing.
On Thursday, the judge overseeing the case denied Trump’s request for a temporary delay of the penalties.
“Mr. Trump’s current situation is a result of his own dilatory actions,” Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote in his order Thursday. “He has had since January 26 to organize his finances with the knowledge that he might need to bond this judgment, yet he waited until 25 days after the jury verdict … to file his prior motion for an unsecured or partially secured stay pending resolution of post-trial motions.”
Kaplan said that Trump failed to show how the judgment constitutes an “irreparable injury” or demonstrate the expenses he faces by posting a bond in the case.
“The expense of ongoing litigation in the absence of a stay does not constitute ‘irreparable injury’ in the relevant sense of that term,” Kaplan wrote.
US Vice President Kamala Harris, from left, President Joe Biden, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, during a State of the Union address at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, March 7, 2024. — Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden delivered his third State of the Union address in the House chamber Thursday night, making a number of key proposals, from taxes for the wealthy to mortgage relief and abortion rights.
The speech also reiterated a commitment to a two-state solution for Israel, restoring Roe v. Wade, expanding border security and taxing billionaires living in the U.S.
Israel-Hamas war
With family members of American hostages being held by Hamas sitting in the chamber, Biden pledged to the families, “We will not rest until we bring their loved ones home.”
Biden addressed the “gut-wrenching” months since the Oct. 7 attack in Israel and expressed sympathy for the Israelis, Palestinians and Americans affected by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Biden called for a two-state solution — as he has in the past — and said it was the only “real resolution” to guarantee Israel’s security and democracy.
During his speech, Biden said he directed the U.S. military to lead “an emergency mission” to establish a temporary pier off the coast of the Gaza Strip that “can receive large ships carrying food, water, medicine and temporary shelters.”
The pier would enable a massive increase in humanitarian assistance, the president said, signaling to Israel that humanitarian aid cannot be a “secondary consideration or a bargaining chip.”
Roe v. Wade and in vitro fertilization
Biden also highlighted abortion in his speech. Without naming former President Trump, Biden said his predecessor came into office wanting to see Roe v. Wade overturned, saying, “In fact, he brags about it.”
Biden vowed if he were to take office again, he would restore Roe v. Wade as the “law of the land.”
He called on Congress to pass a bill that would legalize abortion services nationwide, as he has for nearly two years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, and called Republicans out for blocking a vote that would’ve implemented national protections for IVF.
“To my friends across the aisle, don’t keep this waiting any longer. Guarantee the right to IVF! Guarantee it nationwide,” Biden said.
Cost of housing, taxes and inflation
While outlining his plan for economic growth and tax policy goals for his second term, President Biden called out the tax breaks the wealthy and corporations received under the prior administration.
He vowed to tax American billionaires 25%, claiming it would “raise $500 billion over the next 10 years.” And he vowed to raise the corporate tax rate to 21%.
Under his proposal, he claimed that any American making under $400,000 will not pay any new federal taxes.
Biden also proposed a tax credit to give some Americans $400 a month to put toward their mortgage for two years. The credit would apply to those buying their first homes and those who “trade up for a little more space.”
He also said his administration was working to eliminate title insurance fees for federally backed mortgages.
Border security
Biden used his speech to call on Congress to send him the border bill that has been stalled, “We can fight about the border, or we can fix it. I’m ready to fix it.”
The bill would allow 1,500 border security agents and officers to be hired as well as 4,300 asylum officers.
The legislation, he said, would allow asylum cases to be resolved within six months instead of six years.
Under the bill, Biden said he could stem the tide of fentanyl by deploying 100 high-tech drug detection machines to increase the ability to screen and stop vehicles.
President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address in the House Chamber in Washington, Mar. 7, 2024. — Shawn Thew/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden delivered an alternately fiery and forceful State of the Union address on Thursday night under what may have been the brightest spotlight of the year so far — just as he gears up for a general election campaign against former President Donald Trump.
Biden, whose time in office has been increasingly clouded by public concerns over his age and fitness, offered a vociferous defense of his record and a new spin on the value of his 81 years.
He also took congressional Republicans and Trump — though, in the latter’s case, conspicuously not by name — to task over their opposition to his administration and their own policies on abortion, the border, democracy, taxes and more.
Biden specifically hit on several foreign policy flashpoints, including Israel’s war with Hamas and Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion, while pushing for action on domestic issues like reproductive health care and high immigration.
“Above all, I see a future for all Americans,” he said. “I see a country for all Americans.”
Meanwhile, Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, a rising GOP star, gave the Republican response to Biden’s address, which was dismissed by House Speaker Mike Johnson as “a campaign speech — and a pretty vitriolic one.”
Here are seven takeaways from Thursday night’s remarks:
Biden seemed eager to tangle with Republicans
Thursday’s State of the Union was the source of much anticipation — and Democratic hand-wringing — as polling shows that even many Democrats think that Biden is not up for four more years in the White House.
The president’s speech sought to put those worries to bed.
Across roughly 70 minutes before Congress, Biden kept his well-known habit for verbal stumbles to a minimum while at times virtually shouting, despite Republicans’ attacks painting him as a “diminished” leader.
Biden also goaded conservatives in the crowd and appeared ready to parry boos from the rowdy members of the other party.
After drawing outcry for claiming Republicans would “gut” Social Security and cut taxes for the ultra-wealthy, Biden, in a flashback from the 2023 State of the Union said, “Oh, no? You guys don’t want another $2 trillion tax cut? I kinda thought that’s what your plan was. You’re not gonna cut another $2 trillion for the super wealthy? Well, that’s good to hear.”
He also engaged with Republicans in the crowd when he lambasted them for tanking a bill that would have combined aid to Israel, Taiwan and Ukraine with an overhaul of border reforms that was stricter than Democrats have previously backed.
“Oh, you don’t like that bill, huh, that conservatives got together and said was a good bill?” he said when lawmakers booed. “I’ll be darned, that’s amazing.”
Toward the end of his speech, Biden also directly addressed his age to cast himself as wise.
“I know I may not look like it, but I’ve been around a while,” he joked. “And when you get to my age, certain things become clearer than ever before.”
“My lifetime has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy,” he said. “A future based on the core values that have defined America: Honesty. Decency. Dignity. Equality. To respect everyone. To give everyone a fair shot. To give hate no safe harbor.”
The performance soon had some Democrats jubilant ahead of an election that is likely to be in part determined by perceptions of Biden’s stamina and fitness compared to Trump, with Tim Lim, a Biden fundraiser, telling ABC News it “should calm down the anxious chattering class.”
“Republicans made the floor for this speech so low, but Joe Biden showed up dancing on the ceiling,” said Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist working with pro-Biden outside groups this election cycle.
Biden touts his own agenda — with little push for bipartisanship
Biden also rolled out a full-throated defense of his own agenda that left little room for cooperation with Republicans — leaving behind a hallmark of bipartisanship that he frequently promised during his 2020 campaign.
Speaker Johnson, reacting later Thursday, criticized that.
“The country needs to be united. This commander in chief is unwilling or incapable of doing that. And I think that’s what the American people saw tonight,” Johnson told reporters. “And, you know, it was unfortunate, I really regretted the way they went down.”
But rather than pitch areas of future compromise, the president touted how his administration has focused on kitchen-table issues, including tackling so-called consumer junk fees, protecting and expanding the Affordable Care Act and focusing on middle-class jobs and investment.
Gone were the pronouncements of lawmakers working together on Capitol Hill, replaced instead with election-year suggestions that Republicans would roll back progress on many issues dear to Americans.
“Folks, Obamacare, known as the Affordable Care Act is still a very big deal. Over 100 million of you can no longer be denied health insurance because of pre-existing conditions. But my predecessor and many in this chamber want to take that protection away by repealing the Affordable Care Act. I won’t let that happen. We stopped you 50 times before and we will stop you again,” he said.
Beyond parrying Republicans’ boos on policy, the president also went straight back at the GOP on an issue that is sure to animate his campaign: democracy itself.
“My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth of Jan. 6. I will not do that,” he said, in one of the repeated instances in which he cited Trump without naming him. “This is a moment to speak the truth and bury the lies. And here’s the simplest truth: You can’t love your country only when you win.”
Democratic observers relished that approach.
“Biden did exactly what he needed to do, it was a great speech, and he delivered it with force and compassion,” said Karen Finney, who worked on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign. “He also made it clear he is not going to shrink from tough fights, either political or policy. And honestly his realistic optimism is such a strong contrast with Trump. Also, framing the GOP agenda as old ideas is very effective.”
Ukraine a top priority
Biden started his speech by drawing parallels to then-President Franklin Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union, delivered less than a year before the U.S. entered World War II.
The comparison was clear, in Biden’s words: U.S. military assistance to Ukraine, under current funding, is nearly at an end amid Republican skepticism of its importance and without more help, Kyiv’s defenses against Russia could crumble.
“President Roosevelt’s purpose was to wake up the Congress and alert the American people that this was no ordinary moment. Freedom and democracy were under assault in the world,” Biden said.
He warned of issues both at home and abroad.
“Overseas, [President Vladimir] Putin of Russia is on the march, invading Ukraine and sowing chaos throughout Europe and beyond,” he went on to say. “But Ukraine can stop Putin if we stand with Ukraine and provide the weapons it needs to defend itself. That is all Ukraine is asking … But now assistance for Ukraine is being blocked by those who want us to walk away from our leadership in the world.”
He also posed a stark contrast to his response to the war with that of Trump, who recently floated that he would not come to NATO allies’ defense if they too were invaded, citing frustrations with their contributions to shared defense.
“My message to President Putin … is simple: We will not walk away. We will not bow down!” Biden said. “I will not bow down!”
Biden tries to walk the line on Israel, Gaza
Biden walked a narrower tightrope on Israel, as he looked to voice support for Jerusalem while urging it to provide more aid for Palestinians civilians caught in the middle of fighting with Hamas in Gaza, where tens of thousands have been killed, according to Hamas health authorities.
The president promoted himself as a “lifelong supporter of Israel and the only American president to visit Israel in wartime” while insisting that the country has “has a right to go after Hamas.”
However, he noted that Israel “also has a fundamental responsibility to protect innocent civilians in Gaza,” urging leaders there to not view humanitarian aid to Gaza as a “secondary consideration or a bargaining chip.”
Putting a finer point on that argument, Biden announced an emergency mission to build a port on Gaza’s Mediterranean coast to get aid to civilians — a significant escalation of America’s humanitarian contributions that also brings the military closer but not directly involved in the conflict.
“This temporary pier would enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day. But Israel must also do its part,” he said.
The push came as liberal and pro-Palestinian critics of his response to the war have made their voices heard with protest votes in some early Democratic primary states, chiefly in Michigan, where more than 100,000 people who voted in the nominating race there backed “uncommitted.”
Reproductive rights still a top issue for Democrats
Reproductive rights have been a top issue for Democrats since the U.S. Supreme Court scraped constitutional protections for abortion in 2022 — and Thursday’s speech indicated that dynamic won’t change before November.
Biden took Republicans to task for not codifying abortion protections or access to in vitro fertilization into federal law after Alabama’s Supreme Court threw that procedure into jeopardy in the state by ruling that embryos are children.
The point was also made in a White House guest list that included Kate Cox, a Texas woman who had to go to New Mexico for an abortion to end what she called a life-threatening pregnancy, and Latorya Beasley, a social worker from Birmingham, Alabama, trying to have a second child via IVF.
“What her family has gone through should never have happened as well. But it is happening to so many others. There are state laws banning the right to choose, criminalizing doctors and forcing survivors of rape and incest to leave their states as well to get the care they need,” Biden said, referencing Cox’s story.
“Many of you in this chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive freedom. My God, what freedoms will you take away next?” he said.
Biden mixes it up with Republicans on immigration
Beyond Biden’s age, immigration is one of the top issues Republicans are looking to tie around the president’s neck this year — as polls also show it is a major problem for him — and they came in on the offensive Thursday night.
Many GOP lawmakers had pins honoring Laken Riley, the nursing student who was killed in Georgia last month, allegedly by an immigrant who entered the U.S. illegally. Some conservatives have blamed Biden’s policies for her death.
When heckled by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., to say Riley’s name during his speech, Biden picked up one of the buttons, calling her an “innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal” (a remark that drew its own criticsim from Democrats).
He then looked to her parents, saying, “My heart goes out to you having lost children myself.”
Biden used the opportunity to pivot to the bipartisan bill combining foreign aid and border restrictions, saying the legislation would curtail the incentives for people to illegally cross the border.
Britt paints dark picture of the country
Britt, who first won her seat in 2022 as the youngest Republican woman elected to the Senate, used the Republicans’ official response to the Statue of the Union to paint a bleak picture of the country under Biden.
“Right now, the American dream has turned into a nightmare for so many,” she said.
“Tonight, the American family needs to have a tough conversation because the truth is we are all worried about the future of our nation. The country we know and love seems to be slipping away, and it feels like the next generation will have fewer opportunities and less freedoms then we did,” she said. “I worry my own children may not even get a shot at living their American dream.”
Despite Biden’s animated speech, Britt raised worries over the president’s fitness and jabbed at him as “not in command.”
“The free world deserves better than a dithering and diminished leader. America deserves leaders who recognize that secure borders, stable prices, safe streets and a strong defense are the cornerstones of a great nation,” she said.
Addressing “moms and dads” who were watching, Britt said, “You are why I believe with every fiber of my being that despite the current state of our union our best days are still ahead.”
Other Republicans also cast the speech as one of hope, noting that voters will be presented with a choice this November.
“While Biden ignored his role in rising crime, the border crisis, and Bidenflation, Senator Britt delivered a message to American families that was full of hope, reminding a new generation of Americans that our country can be saved with commonsense, conservative leadership,” said outgoing Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel.
(WASHINGTON) — A week after Hunter Biden testified in closed-door proceeding before the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees, Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has invited the president’s son to return to Capitol Hill later this month, fulfilling Comer’s pledge to have him testify in public as the next phase of his impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden.
On Wednesday, Comer called on Hunter Biden to appear for a public hearing on March 20 alongside three of his former business associates who expressed varying degrees of contempt for the first family in recent closed-door depositions before the committee.
Referring to Hunter Biden’s overseas business pursuits, Comer said in a statement Wednesday, “During our deposition and interview phase of the investigation, Hunter Biden confirmed evidence about Joe Biden’s involvement, yet his testimony conflicts with other witnesses’ testimonies.”
In his closed-door deposition last week, Hunter Biden acknowledged making mistakes in his personal and professional life and spoke openly about his years’ of addiction, but vehemently and repeatedly denied that his father had any involvement in his business life.
Comer added that “given the president son’s repeated calls for a public hearing,” he “fully expects” him to attend.
A representative from Hunter Biden’s legal team told ABC News Wednesday that they had “received Rep. Comer’s letter late Thursday and will respond in writing.” Prior to his closed-door appearance, the younger Biden had expressed a willingness to testify in public.
Republicans also suffered an embarrassing setback with the indictment of ex-FBI informant Alexander Smirnov, after prosecutors allege that his bribery allegation against Joe and Hunter Biden, which had served as a central tenet of House Republicans’ claims of impropriety, was a lie.
Comer’s overture comes at a turbulent time for Republicans as their faltering impeachment inquiry into the president faces renewed criticism. After more than a year of investigation, Comer and his colleagues have yet to uncover firm evidence to substantiate claims that the president behaved improperly or illegally to benefit his family’s business endeavors. Republicans also suffered an embarrassing setback with the indictment of ex-FBI informant Alexander Smirnov, after prosecutors allege that his bribery allegation against Joe and Hunter Biden, which had served as a central tenet of House Republicans’ claims of impropriety, was a lie.
As part of the committee’s planned March 20 hearing, which Comer has dubbed “Influence Peddling: Examining Joe Biden’s Abuse of Public Office,” Republicans invited former Hunter Biden business associates Devon Archer, Jason Galanis, and Tony Bobulinski — each of whom has since turned into a critic of Hunter Biden and the Biden family.
Matthew Schwartz, an attorney for Archer — who is preparing to report to prison for defrauding a Native American tribe — said that, “If and when representatives of the committee contact Mr. Archer, we will be happy to discuss the parameters of his continued cooperation.”
Mark Paoletta, an attorney for Galanis — who is currently serving a 14-year prison sentence in Alabama for securities fraud — said his client “is willing to testify at this hearing to provide his firsthand knowledge of then-Vice President Joe Biden helping his son Hunter Biden in his business dealings.”
A representative for Bobulinski did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, on the House floor of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden is expected to spend a large part of Thursday’s State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. addressing the economy as he renews his calls for increased taxes on corporations and billionaires, eliminating student debt and highlighting the economic rebound the U.S. has had since he became president.
Biden is also expected to tout other aspects of the economic recovery such as adding nearly 15 million jobs, rising wages, an unemployment rate below 4% for the past two years and an inflation rate that is steadily dropping.
“We were in the midst of a raging pandemic. Tens of millions of Americans were unemployed, hundreds of thousands of small businesses were at risk of closing and supply chains were badly broken,” National Economic Advisor Lael Brainard said on a call previewing the SOTU.
The president is also expected to highlight his administration’s efforts to crackdown on “junk fees” across a number of sectors — from air travel, to concerts, banks, credit cards and health care and call out companies for “shrinkflation.”
Biden will also push his plans to change the tax system by repeating his call to raise the corporate minimum tax to 28% and propose a 25% minimum tax for billionaires. He will argue that the GOP plan would add more than $3 trillion to deficits over 10 years if they make the Trump tax cuts permanent, while providing tax cuts for those making over $4.5 million.
In this Sept. 21, 2023, file photo, President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden welcome President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena Zelenska to the White House in Washington, D.C. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The White House on Wednesday confirmed that Ukraine’s first lady and Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s widow were invited to the State of the Union but declined to attend.
Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to provide details.
The Washington Post reported that the White House intended to seat Olena Zelenska and Yulia Navalnaya near first lady Jill Biden but that the presence of Navalny’s widow caused discomfort for the Ukrainians because of his reported past statements suggesting that Crimea, which Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed in 2014, belonged to Russia, even while condemning Putin’s aggression.
When asked how President Joe Biden is going to address foreign policy issues in Thursday’s State of the Union address and whether he’s going to press House Republicans to support more Ukraine aid, she said: “The president’s going to continue to make his case that House Republicans need to move forward. The speaker needs to put the national security supplemental on the floor.
“We know that it would get overwhelming support … we can’t let politics get in the way of our national security, so, the president is going to make that clear,” she said.
