Donald Trump held a rally and speech in North Carolina on Wednesday that his campaign billed as a significant economic address, though the former president spent much of his time airing grievances against his rivals and veering toward familiar topics like the U.S.-Mexico border. Set in a Democratic city surrounded by staunchly Republican mountain counties, the event carried both national and local implications for the former president.
Meanwhile, presidential campaign is launching a over the next three weeks to introduce the Democrat to voters and sharpen the contrast with Trump. The media buy marks her campaign鈥檚 largest-yet investment in messaging to voters with just 2 1/2 months until Election Day in November.
Follow the AP鈥檚 Election 2024 coverage at: .
Here鈥檚 the Latest:
Walz says country is 'ready for hopefulness鈥 at Boston fundraiser
Democratic Gov. Tim Walz attended a fundraiser in downtown Boston Wednesday evening, hauling in more than $1.2 million, according to his campaign, and painting what he called a more hopeful vision of the country than his GOP counterpart, Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance.
Walz said the race is going to be hard fought but said the sense of optimism around the Democratic ticket is palpable.
鈥淭his energy that鈥檚 out there is real,鈥 Walz told the gathering of about 50 supporters in a hotel ballroom. Notables included Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey.
鈥淧eople are pouring their literal souls into this because they know what鈥檚 at stake,鈥 Walz said.
Walz also criticized the top of the Republican ticket.
鈥淒onald Trump is out there today making an economic speech and saying 鈥業鈥檒l lower energy prices by 70 percent by drilling,鈥欌 Walz said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 nonsense.鈥
Walz said he was also looking forward to debating Vance on Oct. 1 in New York City, should Vance accept.
鈥淲e have very different visions of America,鈥 Walz told the gathering.
鈥淭his country is ready for hopefulness,鈥 he added. 鈥淲e鈥檝e always been believers in the future. We鈥檝e never been fearful of the future. At our heart we are not angry people.鈥
Vance will 鈥榟opefully鈥 debate Walz 鈥 if his stipulations are met
Sen. JD Vance hasn鈥檛 committed to debating his Democratic foil, Gov. Tim Walz, on Oct. 1, but he sounds open to doing it, with certain parameters.
Trump鈥檚 running mate said Wednesday on Fox News that he only learned of CBS News鈥 debate invitation several hours earlier, as he was landing following a campaign event in Michigan.
Earlier Wednesday, CBS News posted on its X feed that the network had invited both Vance and Walz to debate in New York City, presenting four possible dates 鈥 Sept. 17, Sept. 24, Oct. 1 and Oct. 8 鈥 as options.
Walz reposted that message from his own campaign account, 鈥淪ee you on October 1, JD.鈥 The Harris-Walz campaign followed up with a message of its own, saying Walz 鈥渓ooks forward to debating JD Vance 鈥 if he shows up.鈥
Vance said Wednesday that 鈥渉opefully鈥 he would debate Walz on that date, adding, 鈥淚 strongly suspect that we鈥檙e going to be there on Oct. 1,鈥 but made no firm commitment, saying he wanted to see specifics on debate moderators and whether an audience would be present.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to walk into a fake news media garbage debate. We鈥檙e going to do a real debate, and if CBS agrees to it, then certainly we鈥檒l do it,鈥 Vance said.
Trump veers off message again: Do voters care about the economy or about Harris鈥 laugh?
Trump sought to recalibrate his presidential comeback bid with a North Carolina rally focused on the economy, but he struggled to stay focused on a topic that voters identify as a .
Trump opened his speech with off-script attacks on the media and aired his grievances over the Democrats swapping Vice President Harris for President Biden atop their ticket. He referred to San Francisco, where Harris was once the district attorney, as 鈥渦nlivable鈥 and went after his rival in deeply personal terms, questioning her intelligence and saying she has 鈥渢he laugh of a crazy person.鈥
鈥淵ou know why she hasn鈥檛 done an interview? She鈥檚 not smart. She鈥檚 not intelligent. And we鈥檝e gone through enough of that with this guy, crooked Joe,鈥 Trump said.
Trump said that his aides wanted him to focus on economic concerns but that he was 鈥渘ot sure鈥 he agreed the economy is the most important issue of the election.
鈥楧o you think he knows you?鈥
Walz pointed out that Kamala Harris worked at a McDonald鈥檚 growing up and drew laughs when he asked the crowd if they could imagine Donald Trump working at the fast food chain, challenging his populism.
鈥淒o you think he knows you? You think he knows who you are? You think he knows your family?鈥 he said.
Google reports an Iranian group targeted Biden and Trump affiliates in a cyberattack
An Iranian group linked to the country鈥檚 Revolutionary Guard has tried to infiltrate the personal email accounts of roughly a dozen people linked to President Biden and former President Trump since May, according to Google. The company said the group is still targeting people associated with Biden, Trump and Vice President Harris. It said the recipients include current and former government officials, as well as presidential campaign affiliates.
The new from Google鈥檚 threat-intelligence arm affirms and expands on a Microsoft released Friday that revealed the suspected Iranian cyber intrusion in the U.S. election.
Google also said it observed the group gain access to one high-profile political consultant鈥檚 personal Gmail account and reported the incident to law enforcement in July. Microsoft鈥檚 report shared similar information, noting that the email account of a former senior adviser to a presidential campaign had been compromised.
The new report from Google notes that the same Iranian group targeted both the Biden and Trump campaigns with phishing attacks during the 2020 cycle, as early as June of that year.
The report also notes that the group is active in other cyber espionage activity, including email-phishing campaigns targeted at Israeli diplomats, academics, NGOs and military affiliates.
Trump meanders off message
Throughout his speech, Trump has ping-ponged between his prepared remarks and familiar attacks 鈥 often deviating from the teleprompter in the middle of explaining a new economic promise when something triggered another thought for him. He ticked through prepared remarks crisply and quickly. The rest was his more haphazard, sing-song style, punctuated with hand gestures and hyperbole.
He repeatedly digressed from discussing a policy contrast with Harris to swiping at her hometown of San Francisco. He noted several times that it was Biden, not Harris, who earned votes from Democratic primary voters. During a section of his speech on energy, he slipped seemingly at random in an apparent dig at Hunter Biden, the president鈥檚 son, and his 鈥渓aptop from hell.鈥
As soon as Trump had committed to slashing energy prices by 鈥渉alf, at least half鈥 within 12 months or 鈥渁 maximum of 18鈥 of his potential presidency, he hedged, seemingly off script: 鈥淚f it doesn鈥檛 work out, you鈥檒l say, oh well, I voted for him and he still got it down a lot.鈥
Walz stumps at Colorado fundraiser
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz praised the economies of his home state and Colorado during a fundraiser in Denver on Wednesday, noting that Minnesota recently edged Texas out of CNBC鈥檚 top five state economies, drawing cheers.
Walz said the 鈥渓ibertarian westernism鈥 found in both Colorado and Minnesota includes supporting reproductive rights, adding that Texas can鈥檛 make the same promise to protect the rights of women-leading companies.
鈥淐ome live in states that are free. Come live in states that let you make your own choices,鈥 Walz said, speaking in the midday heat on the grounds of a historic mansion owned by Tim Gill, a former software entrepreneur and a supporter of LGBTQ+ rights credited with helping shift Colorado to Democratic control.
The former teacher and football coach criticized vouchers allowing students to attend private schools, saying that鈥渃annibalizes the public schools,鈥 and also spoke out against book bans, drawing more cheers.
鈥淒on鈥檛 read it if you don鈥檛 want to,鈥 Walz said.
Trump takes the stage at North Carolina campaign rally
Former President Donald Trump is opening what was pitched as an economic speech with his usual off-script attacks on Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, the 鈥渇ake news media鈥 and President Joe Biden.
Trump鈥檚 speech in Asheville, North Carolina, is billed as the latest attempt for the GOP nominee to reset his campaign since Biden ended his reelection bid and endorsed his vice president.
Harris, Walz will have a joint bus tour ahead of the DNC
Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tm Walz, are gearing up for the Democratic 春色直播 Convention with a joint bus tour.
Harris, Walz and their spouses, second gentleman Doug Emhoff and Minnesota first lady Gwen Walz, will start the tour in Pittsburgh on Sunday. That follows Harris introducing Walz as her running mate at a Philadelphia rally last week, underscoring just how important a swing sate Pennsylvania will be.
The bus tour will begin a day after Walz makes a solo campaign stop in Omaha, Nebraska, the state where he was born.
Nebraska overall is reliably Republican, but awards its electoral votes by congressional district -- meaning Omaha鈥檚 single delegate is competitive.
Both Walz and Harris will later in the week address their party鈥檚 convention, which opens on Monday in Chicago.
Senate intelligence committee leaders warn against meddling in US elections
The leaders of the Senate intelligence committee are warning Iran and other adversaries not to meddle in the election after former President Donald Trump鈥檚 campaign said it was hacked and blamed groups linked to Tehran.
Committee chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said the alleged infiltration of the campaign鈥檚 systems is a reminder that 鈥渙ur foreign adversaries are intently interested in disrupting our democratic process.鈥
The two lawmakers called on law enforcement and the intelligence community to investigate and deter attempts to influence the election. They said the U.S. would respond to any nation that tries to hack into campaigns or spread disinformation in an effort to meddle with the election.
鈥淭here will be consequences to interfering in the American democratic process, and the Administration and both political parties must make that clear,鈥 Warner and Rubio wrote.
The Trump campaign said Saturday that someone illegally accessed its network and obtained access to internal documents. Trump has blamed Iran, citing a Microsoft report stating Iran had sought to hack into a presidential campaign. Iran has denied involvement.
The FBI on Monday confirmed that it鈥檚 investigating the intrusion of the Trump campaign. Two people familiar with the matter said the FBI also is investigating attempts to gain access to the Biden-Harris campaign.
Vance: Harris responsible for policies that have been 鈥榙ecimating the American auto industry鈥
Ohio Sen. JD Vance is arguing to Rust Belt voters in Michigan that Vice President Kamala Harris is responsible for policy decisions he says have been 鈥渄ecimating the American auto industry.鈥
During a campaign stop in Byron Center, Michigan, on Wednesday, Vance told a crowd gathered outside a family-owned trucking company that Harris only 鈥減retends to stand for normal Americans,鈥 arguing that policies she supports on immigration result in 鈥渇looding this country with millions of illegal day laborers.鈥
Vance has been ping-ponging among the Rust Belt states where margins between Harris and former President Donald Trump are anticipated to be slim in November鈥檚 election.
As he hits the road, Vance has been targeting Harris directly, along with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Last week in Wisconsin, as both Vance and Harris ended up landing at the same airport around the same time, Vance exited his plane and walked across the tarmac over to the government plane on which Harris had flown, holding a gaggle with the reporters traveling with her, and criticizing Harris for not sitting for an interview since her ascent to the top of Democrats鈥 ticket.
On Wednesday, Vance again levied that criticism, saying Harris 鈥渄oesn鈥檛 talk to the media, she just talks behind a teleprompter.鈥
He also took issue with the way in which Democrats subbed Harris in for Joe Biden after the president shuttered his 2024 campaign last month.
鈥淓verything about her campaign is fake,鈥 Vane said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a fake ticket that never earned a single Democratic primary vote.鈥
Trump casts early vote in Florida state primaries before heading to North Carolina for rally
Former President Donald Trump cast his early vote in the Florida state primaries Wednesday before traveling to Asheville, North Carolina, for a campaign rally. Tuesday is election day for the Florida primaries and some nonpartisan races.
The GOP presidential nominee told reporters he would be focusing his speech at the rally on the economy. He's criticized the Biden administration for the rampant inflation, but a report Wednesday showed continuing signs that inflation is slowing down.
When asked about the FBI鈥檚 investigation into the alleged hacking of his campaign, Trump accused Iran of being behind it.
鈥淭hey are looking at it, and they are doing it very professionally,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t looks like it鈥檚 Iran doing it. And the reason is because I was strong in Iran, and I was protecting people in the Middle East, and maybe they aren鈥檛 so happy about that.鈥
Trump said he did not want to say whether the information came from the FBI.
Pro-Trump lawyer removed from Dominion case after leaking documents to cast doubt on 2020 election
A pro-Trump lawyer who is facing in Michigan of improperly following the 2020 presidential election has been disqualified from representing a prominent funder who is being sued by Dominion Voting Systems.
Michigan lawyer Stefanie Lambert has been representing Patrick Byrne, the founder of , in a defamation lawsuit brought against him by Dominion, one of the main targets of conspiracy theories over former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss.
Lambert was disqualified from the case on Tuesday after admitting to releasing thousands of confidential discovery documents that she had agreed to keep private.
Due to Lambert鈥檚 actions, the documents that all parties 鈥渉ad agreed to keep confidential, have now been shared widely in the public domain,鈥 U.S. District Court Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya wrote in a 62-page opinion.
Contenders in key Wisconsin Senate race come out swinging after primaries
Republican millionaire businessman Eric Hovde and Democratic are wasting no time going after one another.
Hovde easily Tuesday, officially setting the field in Wisconsin鈥檚 closely watched Senate race. The seat in battleground Wisconsin is seen as essential for Democrats, who know they must win there if they hope to maintain majority control of the Senate. A win there for Republicans would dramatically increase their chances of gaining the upper hand in an election landscape that has Democrats defending far more Senate seats this year.
Hovde is banking on his deep pockets and an endorsement from former President Donald Trump to knock off Baldwin, a liberal Democrat who's honed her ability to appeal to key independent and moderate voters.
Baldwin launched a rural Wisconsin tour Wednesday with a stop at a farm in Merrill before a brewery tour in Chippewa Falls in a of western Wisconsin. Hovde aired two new positive ads featuring his wife and others touting his and his .
Judge rejects Donald Trump鈥檚 latest demand to step aside from hush money criminal case
has lost his latest bid in his New York as it heads toward a key ruling and potential sentencing next month.
In a , Judge Juan M. Merchan declined to step aside and said Trump鈥檚 demand was a rehash 鈥渞ife with inaccuracies and unsubstantiated claims鈥 about his ability to remain impartial.
It's the third time Merchan has rejected such a request from lawyers for the former president and current Republican nominee. They contend the judge has a conflict of interest because his daughter works as a political consultant for prominent Democrats, including when she sought the Democrats鈥 2020 presidential nomination. Harris is now the party鈥檚 nominee against Trump.
The judge鈥檚 daughter, Loren Merchan, met Harris occasionally in 2019 but never 鈥渄eveloped an individual relationship鈥 with her, consulting firm founder Mike Nellis told the chairman of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, in a letter Tuesday. The firm, Authentic Campaigns Inc., has not worked for Harris鈥 campaign, President Joe Biden鈥檚 now-ended reelection bid or the Democratic 春色直播 Committee in the 2024 election cycle, Nellis said.
Turnout in Wisconsin election tops 26%, highest in 60 years for fall primary in presidential year
Turnout in Wisconsin鈥檚 election Tuesday was the highest in 60 years for a presidential year partisan primary, with over 26% of the state鈥檚 voting-age population casting ballots, based on unofficial results.
The by voters rejecting two constitutional amendments that sought to limit the governor鈥檚 power to spend money and deciding a pair of hotly contested congressional primaries. The election was also the first under newly drawn legislative maps, creating dozens of competitive races in addition to other hot contests for local office.
The city of Madison, a Democratic stronghold, had 45% turnout 鈥 the highest for a fall partisan turnout in at least 40 years, the farthest back the clerk鈥檚 office has records.
A proposed New York amendment lacks 1 word that could drive voter turnout: 鈥榓bortion鈥
A proposed amendment to New York鈥檚 constitution meant to protect abortion access is a crucial part of Democrats鈥 plans to drive voter turnout in the state this fall and potentially flip vital congressional districts.
But there could be a problem: The ballot question 鈥渁产辞谤迟颈辞苍.鈥
Arguments began Wednesday over a lawsuit Democrats hope will force election officials to include the term in an explanation of the amendment that voters will see when casting their ballots.
The unusual legal effort begins weeks after the state Board of Elections chose late last month to use the measure鈥檚 technical language verbatim rather than interpret it in its explanation to voters.
Democrats plan 鈥淒emPalooza鈥 during the party鈥檚 convention in Chicago next week
The Democratic 春色直播 Committee will offer a schedule of trainings, panels and other programming it鈥檚 calling 鈥淒emPalooza鈥 during the party鈥檚 convention in Chicago next week. The name is a play on the Lollapalooza music festival Chicago plays hosts to every year.
The DNC said Wednesday that the 鈥淒emPalooza鈥 events will be held daily at McCormick Place. The convention itself will take place at the United Center.
鈥淒emPalooza鈥 events will range from trainings on how to use organizing tools to polling briefings and skills workshops. The DNC says these programs are part of its and the Harris campaign鈥檚 efforts to organize and reach voters in an evolving media environment and provide opportunities for Democrats to take what they鈥檝e learned back to the communities that will decide the November presidential election.
鈥淒emPalooza鈥 will also feature an expo with vendor booths and interactive spaces for participants to make friendship bracelets, get a 鈥淜amala Harris鈥 manicure, listen to podcasts or watch performances by local artists.
Americans give Harris an advantage over Trump on honesty and discipline, an AP-NORC poll finds
Vice President has a perceived advantage over former President on several leadership qualities such as honesty, a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds, although Americans are slightly more likely to trust Trump on the economy and immigration.
Nearly half of Americans say that 鈥渃ommitted to democracy鈥 and 鈥渄isciplined鈥 are attributes that better describe Harris. About 3 in 10 say these qualities better describe Trump.
About 4 in 10 say Harris is someone who 鈥渃ares about people like you鈥 while about 3 in 10 say that about Trump. About 4 in 10 say 鈥渉onest鈥 better describes Harris and 24% say that quality better describes Trump.
Both parties are racing to define Harris as she at the party鈥檚 convention next week. The poll suggests she carries some of the same baggage that weighed down President Joe Biden before he ended his reelection bid but has advantages over Trump when they鈥檙e compared to each other. And Democrats about her candidacy than they were about Biden鈥檚.
Harris campaign鈥檚 new $90 million in battleground ads in August aims to sharpen contrast with Trump
presidential campaign is launching a $90 million advertising effort over the next three weeks to introduce the Democrat to voters and sharpen the contrast with Republican Donald Trump.
The media buy marks her campaign鈥檚 largest-yet investment in messaging to voters with just 2 1/2 months until Election Day in November. It comes on the heels of a worth of ads booked last month shortly after Harris replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the party鈥檚 ticket.
Harris鈥 campaign is buoyed by a of fundraising since the switch, and is now moving to spend the money in an effort to counter what had been spending by Trump and his allies in the days after Biden dropped out.
Harris鈥 team said the ad campaign will focus on the vice president鈥檚 personal narrative, her career as a prosecutor in California, her commitment to standing up to powerful interests, and a contrast with what it termed Trump鈥檚 鈥渄angerous, extreme agenda.鈥
Trump is going to North Carolina for an economic speech. Can he stick to a clear message?
will have another opportunity Wednesday to recalibrate his presidential comeback bid, this time with a rally and speech in North Carolina that his campaign is billing as a significant economic address.
Set in a Democratic city surrounded by staunchly Republican mountain counties, the event carries both national and local implications for the former president.
Republicans are looking for Trump to focus the scattershot arguments and attacks he's made on Vice President since Democrats elevated her as their presidential nominee. Twice in the last week, Trump has fumbled such an opportunity, first in an at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, then in a with CEO Elon Musk.
The latest attempt comes in the state that delivered Trump his closest statewide margin of victory four years ago and that is once again expected to be a battleground in 2024.
