Aquí te decimos cómo puedes votar en las elecciones presidenciales del 5 de noviembre en Texas
La fecha límite para registrarse para votar es el 7 de octubre. El último día para solicitar una boleta para votar por correo es el 25 de octubre. El periodo de votación anticipada será del 21 de octubre al 1 de noviembre.
Republicans who want to oust Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan unanimously back state Rep. David Cook
Four GOP state representatives suspended their bids to challenge Phelan and 48 Republicans backed Cook, which could threaten Phelan’s shot at a third term.
Republicans demand weekly updates on election meddling after bomb threat ‘hoaxes’ in Springfield, Ohio
FIRST ON FOX: A group of Republicans wrote to national law enforcement and intelligence heads Friday requesting weekly updates on foreign election interference after bomb threats in Springfield, Ohio, turned out to be “hoaxes” originating overseas. Ten House Republicans wrote to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, FBI Director Chris Wray and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas demanding to know which country was involved in the 33 “hoax” bomb threats that went out to Springfield and what actions they’d taken to combat social media campaigns, cyberespionage and threats of physical harm perpetrated by foreign actors. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine revealed Monday that local law enforcement had responded to 33 fake bomb threats in Springfield made against hospitals, schools and government offices. “Thirty-three threats. Thirty-three hoaxes,” DeWine said during a press conference in Springfield. “I want to make that very, very clear. None of these had any validity at all.” HAITIAN REFUGEES ‘DON’T UNDERSTAND THE LAWS,’ FORMER LAWMAKER SAYS AMID FATAL WRECK, CULTURAL CLASHES The governor said many of the threats came from “one particular country,” which he declined to name. “We have people, unfortunately, overseas, who are taking these actions,” DeWine said. “Some of them are coming from one particular country.” “The American people and Congress deserve to know which of our foreign adversaries are intentionally spreading misinformation to elicit fear and confusion. I stand ready to assist you in any way possible as we work to ensure the security and integrity of the 2024 elections,” Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, wrote in the letter. Springfield found itself front and center on the national stage after viral social media posts about Haitian migrants eating pets, claims that turned out to be unverifiable. Former President Trump amplified the unsubstantiated claim during a debate with Vice President Kamala Harris Sept. 10. “In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” he said. CLICK HERE FOR MORE U.S. NEWS “These bomb threats have caused closures, evacuations of municipal buildings as well as schools. This placed additional strain on police and social services already overburdened by the community’s influx of Haitian migrants,” the letter, signed by Republican Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio, Mike Carey of Ohio, Gooden and others, said. “The purpose of these hoaxes is clear: our foreign adversaries aim to stoke the flames of division.” But the 60,000-person town’s Republican leadership says it has been overwhelmed by the influx of 15,000 to 20,000 Haitian migrants. Many have come to the U.S. under temporary protected status, allowing them to live and work in the U.S. for a limited time. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost told Fox News Digital the federal government has not properly coordinated resettling those migrants with the town, and it is therefore “stressing the schools, the health care system and the safety net.” He said at least 4,000 of the migrants were receiving government assistance. Russia and Iran have been accused of meddling in U.S. elections. Earlier this month, the Justice Department seized websites and indicted Russian media employees it accused the Kremlin of using to spread misinformation and sow discord. “We think that this is one more opportunity to mess with the United States,” DeWine said of the foreign actors making the threats. “And they’re continuing to do that.” “We cannot let the bad guys win. Our schools must remain open,” he added, noting additional law enforcement resources will be deployed in Springfield amid the flurry of threats. “The people who are doing this are doing this to sow discord in our community,” Andy Wilson, director of the Ohio Department of Public Safety, said. “We just can’t let them do that. We have to keep providing the services that the citizens of Springfield and Clark County expect.” Springfield city Manager Bryan Heck has said there are “no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.” The town canceled its upcoming annual celebration of diversity, arts and culture amid the increase in threats, officials said Monday.
Fox News Politics: An Empire State ‘Power Grab’
Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest political news from Washington, D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. Here’s what’s happening… – Experts warn US ‘sleepwalking’ into World War III… – House passes bill increasing Secret Service protections for presidential, VP candidates – Anti-Israel agitators rock UNC, vandalize building, pull down U.S. flag A new requirement in New York that will take effect this weekend is set to grant Democratic New York Attorney General Letitia James widespread power over the state’s election process, a New York election attorney said. “Nobody is really talking about it or what a big effect it’s going to have,” election attorney Joseph T. Burns, partner at the law firm Holtzman Vogel, told Fox News Digital in a phone interview this week. “But it’s interesting because, look, there’s a lot of bad stuff that happens in New York when it comes to the elections and everything else, but this strikes me as being particularly bad. And it’s certainly quite a power grab by the attorney general as well.” Under the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of New York, which Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law in 2022, a preclearance requirement is set to take effect on Sept. 22. The new rule requires certain jurisdictions in the Empire State to request preclearance from the attorney general or a designated court to make election-related decisions, which range from changing the hours of early voting to culling deceased residents from a voter list, Burns said. Burns published an op-ed in the New York Post this week, warning that the new law hands James “unprecedented power over election processes in some of the most hotly contested congressional districts in the nation, including those on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley.” The upcoming requirement has flown under the radar, Burns said, telling Fox Digital, “Nobody’s talking about. It’s pretty remarkable.” “The new rule upends the system of constitutionally mandated, bipartisan election administration that has served New York’s voters ably for generations,” Burns wrote in his op-ed, which was published on Sunday. “The law requires certain counties, cities, towns, villages and school districts to get the blessing of the AG or a designated court before making election-related or voting-related changes.” …Read more ‘CAT AND MOUSE’: Trump assassination attempt suspect played game with police, expert says …Read more 405-0: Secret Service protection bill passes House unanimously after Trump assassination attempts …Read more EPA BLOCKED: House passes bill blocking Biden admin attempt to require two-thirds of new cars to be electric within years …Read more BORDER BUCKS: Mayorkas, top border officials in Biden-Harris admin worth millions: report …Read more NOT PREPARED: US ‘sleepwalking’ into World War III, experts warn nation underprepared …Read more ‘SO NECESSARY’: Dem lawmakers push bill to restore funding to UN agency with alleged ties to Hamas: ‘So necessary’ …Read more THE ELECTION IS HERE: Virginia’s in-person early voting begins as election season picks up steam …Read more EMPIRE STATEMENT: NY rallygoers plead for Trump’s return to restore future of blue state, cite migrant crisis as major concern …Read more MARGIN-OF-ERROR: Razor-thin race in battle to succeed popular swing state Republican governor …Read more SWING STATE BATTLE: Harris, Trump hit key battleground states as November nears …Read more LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO: Trump has higher favorability than Taylor Swift: poll …Read more SHORE THING: Down the shore: New Jersey lawmakers seek to undo sunscreen prohibition for kids …Read more DEEPFAKE WOES: Newsom’s deepfake election laws are already being challenged in federal court …Read more ‘FALSE INFORMATION’: Issa rips State Department for spreading ‘knowingly false’ info on funding migrant counseling to enter U.S. …Read more US FLAG REMOVED: Anti-Israel agitators rock UNC, vandalize building and remove Old Glory …Read more TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT: Vulnerable Sen. Tammy Baldwin loses ground to GOP candidate in Wisconsin, consecutive polls show …Read more Subscribe now to get the Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.
More than 70 killed in Mali attack: What happened, why it matters
An estimated 77 people have been killed in an attack on Mali’s capital, Bamako, according to the AFP news agency. About 200 others were injured in the attack, which took place on Tuesday and caused hospitals to be overwhelmed with wounded patients, a diplomat who asked to remain anonymous told the news agency. It’s unclear how the victims were wounded; however, residents reported gunshots and explosions. There was also smoke from apparent fires coming from buildings. Malian authorities closed Modibo Keita International Airport after the attack. Mali’s military government downplayed the incident with officials stating the situation was “under control” and the attack had been repelled. Officials later admitted the military had suffered casualties. State TV station ORTM showed images of about 20 suspects believed to have been involved in the attack wearing blindfolds and with their hands tied. It was reported they had been captured by the military. “The sweep continues,” army Chief of General Staff Oumar Diarra said. What happened in the attack? Malian authorities said an armed group attacked an elite military police training school in the Faladie district of Bamako as well as a military base close to the airport early on Tuesday. Gunshots rang out in the city centre, and smoke billowed into the sky from what appeared to be fires the fighters had lit in buildings and other infrastructure, according to some accounts. Responsibility for the attack has been claimed by the al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM). The group’s stated aims include to “remove oppression” and expel non-Muslim “occupiers”, referring to Western influence in the country, such as foreign troops stationed in Mali. It also operates in Burkina Faso and Niger. https://x.com/ali_naka/status/1835949989522190422 JNIM members appeared to have killed scores of Malian soldiers and Russian fighters from the Wagner mercenary group during the nine hours the attack is believed to have lasted for. The Wagner Group, now called Africa Corps, is deployed in the country to assist the government in repelling armed groups. JNIM posted videos of the assault on social media sites. The clips showed fighters setting fire to a government airplane and firing on an plane owned by a United Nations aid organisation, the World Food Programme (WFP). Videos also showed dozens of apparently dead soldiers, including white soldiers presumed to be Russians. https://x.com/YoroDIA18/status/1836391875340591559 While JNIM claimed to have taken control of the airport and the surrounding area on Tuesday, the Malian authorities said on state broadcasting networks later in the day that the attack had been repelled. JNIM claimed a few dozen of its members were killed during the assault and it had been able to wound hundreds of Malian soldiers and Russian fighters. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and confirmed that one UN staff member had been injured. The African Union, Senegal, France and the United Kingdom denounced the violence. WFP spokesperson Djaounsede Madjiangar confirmed the damage to the aircraft he said was used to “transport aid workers and provide emergency humanitarian aid in remote areas of Mali”. The airplane was on the ground at the time and had no personnel in it. Madjiangar said the attack “reduces our humanitarian response capacity”. #Mali / #Bamako: Les terro-ristes au milieu des avions à l’aéroport Bamako Sénou. #SahelLeaks pic.twitter.com/jPniwYnoBM — SahelLeaks (@SahelLeaks) September 17, 2024 Why is this attack significant? The attack happened in Bamako, the capital and seat of the military government, and specifically targeted military bases. Such a high-profile attack on Bamako has not happened in years. While Mali has been beset by violence from several armed groups since 2012, including JNIM and the ISIL (ISIS) affiliate in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), it has been concentrated in the northern and central parts of the country, hundreds of kilometres from the southwestern capital. The last time a high-profile attack was carried out in the city was in 2015 when fighters targeted foreigners at a nightclub in March and again at the Radisson Blu Hotel in November. A civilian government was in power at the time, and French forces were assisting the army. Five people were killed and nine injured in the nightclub attack. Twenty people were killed in the Radisson Blu attack. Both attacks were carried out by the al-Mourabitoun armed group, which has now merged with the Ansar Dine and Macina Liberation Front groups to form JNIM. A guest leaves the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bamako on November 21, 2015, after retrieving his belongings one day after a deadly attack [Issoufo Sanogo/AFP] The groups have seized large swaths of land in central and northern parts of the country and tax civilians in occupied communities. Groups like JNIM also launch incursions into neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger. Like Mali, the two countries have been ruled by their militaries since 2021. How has violence by armed groups been countered before now? France, a former ally of Bamako, deployed thousands of soldiers to Mali in 2013 and to neighbouring countries. In addition, the UN deployed the 11,000-man peacekeeping force MINUSMA (UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali). The forces together were able to seize territories from the armed groups and hold them, but attacks like those in 2015 persisted, causing general dissatisfaction among Malians. In 2020, forces led by Colonel Assimi Goita seized power in a military coup while blaming the civilian government of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita for not doing enough to ease the worsening insecurity caused by the armed groups. When anti-French sentiment began to rise in the region around 2015, partly due to continued attacks by armed groups, Goita ordered French forces and MINUSMA to leave. The troops started withdrawing in 2022 and completed their exit by December last year. Goita’s government has instead turned to Russia’s Wagner forces for support. There are now about 2,000 Wagner fighters in the country. Although the Russians, along with Malian soldiers, have been accused of human rights violations, the collaboration has seen Mali regain some territory from armed groups, especially in the north, analysts said. What other major losses have
Israeli forces kill dozens across Gaza as tanks advance deeper into Rafah
At least 13 people, including children, were killed in Israeli attacks on two homes in Rafah, medical sources say. Israeli forces have killed at least 27 Palestinians in tank and air attacks across Gaza, as tanks advanced further into northwest Rafah near the border with Egypt. The unrelenting Israeli attacks in the enclave continued on Friday, even as a parallel conflict in the Lebanon-Israel border area involving Hamas’s allies Hezbollah intensified. In the southern city of Rafah, at least 13 Palestinians, including three children, were killed in Israeli air raids on two residential properties in the Mesbah area, medical sources told Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, said the two properties were completely destroyed in the attack. “Civil defence crews are scrambling to reach the scene of the attack as fighting between Hamas and Israel rages in the area,” he said. “There are still people buried in the debris.” Tanks advanced further to the northwest area of Rafah backed by aircraft, residents told the Reuters news agency. Heavy fire and explosions echoed in the eastern areas of the city, where Israeli forces blew up several houses, according to residents and Hamas media. “Our fighters are engaged in fierce gun battles against Israeli forces, who advanced into Tanour neighbourhood in Rafah,” Hamas’s armed wing said in a statement. Separately, Palestinian health officials said shelling by Israeli tanks killed eight people and wounded several others in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central area of Gaza, and six others were killed in an air raid on a house in Gaza City. In the northern town of Beit Hanoon, an Israeli attack on a car killed and wounded several Palestinians, medics said. The Israeli military has said that forces operating in Rafah have killed hundreds of Palestinian fighters, located tunnels and explosives and destroyed military infrastructure in the last few weeks. The United States and mediators Qatar and Egypt have attempted to secure a truce between Israel and Hamas for months, but have failed to bring about a final agreement. Two obstacles have been especially difficult – Israel’s demand that it keep forces in the Philadelphi Corridor between Gaza and Egypt, and the specifics of an exchange of Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Israel’s latest war on Gaza began after October 7, when Hamas fighters entered Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 captives, according to Israeli tallies. Since then Israel has been relentlessly attacking the enclave, killing more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry, while displacing nearly the entire population of 2.3 million, causing a hunger crisis and leading to allegations of genocide at the World Court, which Israel has denied. Adblock test (Why?)
Israel strikes Beirut suburb in latest attack in Lebanon
NewsFeed At least 12 people were killed and dozens injured in an Israeli strike in a Beirut suburb on Friday, with the Israeli military claiming to have a killed a senior Hezbollah commander. Published On 20 Sep 202420 Sep 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Dems roundly condemn death threats against Supreme Court they’ve repeatedly disparaged
Democrats roundly condemned political violence after news that a suspect had been arrested for threatening to hurt and kill six of the Supreme Court’s nine Justices and some of their family members. “Threats and acts of violence are unacceptable. Period,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told the Washington Post. “As President Biden and Vice President Harris have always said, violence has absolutely no place in our country. Violent rhetoric and threats are unacceptable,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates said. “There’s absolutely no place for political violence in this country – full stop,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. It remains unknown exactly which justices 76-year-old Alaska resident Panos Anastasiou intended to attack. However, a complaint filed against him Wednesday indicated that his threats included anti-Black slurs, and there is only one Black Supreme Court Justice – Clarence Thomas, who typically votes with the Court’s conservative majority. Additionally, the complaint laid out that Anastasiou’s threats included extreme remarks about a former president described by Anastasiou as a “convicted criminal.” Former President Donald Trump became the first former president to be convicted of a felony, earlier this year. ALASKA MAN ARRESTED FOR THREATS AGAINST SIX SUPREME COURT JUSTICES Democrats have repeatedly slammed the Supreme Court as illegitimate. In a foretelling speech from Duke Law School on Monday, Kannon Shanmugam, who is widely considered one of the nation’s top appellate litigators and has argued 35 cases in front of the Supreme Court, said that “attacks on the legitimacy of the courts are contributing to the threat of violence against judges in general.” “Enough is enough. When will the media press Democrats like Sen. Schumer, Sen. Durbin, Sen. Whitehouse, VP Harris and others to stop their baseless attacks on the Supreme Court that have created actual threats to the safety of our Justices?” questioned GOP Florida Sen. Rick Scott following news of Anastasiou’s arrest. “Hey, look, someone who took Chuck Schumer seriously,” said Trent England, the founder and executive director of conservative nonprofit Save Our States. Other critics pointed to how Anastasiou was a frequent donor to Democrats. ROE V. WADE ABORTION DECISION: DEMOCRATS CALL SUPREME COURT ‘ILLEGITIMATE’ Trump’s ability to shakeup the Supreme Court with new Justices has not sat well with Democrats. In a fiery speech in front of the Supreme Court after a preliminary draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked in spring 2020, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., put conservative Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch, both nominated by Trump, in his crosshairs: “I want to tell you, Gorsuch. I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price,” Schumer exclaimed outside the steps of the Supreme Court in 2020. “You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.” “The Supreme Court is not well. And the people know it,” a cohort of Democratic senators said in an August 2019 brief after the High Court took up a case about the constitutionality of a New York City law restricting legal gun owners from transporting their firearms. In 2020, during the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s final Supreme Court nomination that would eventually make it to the bench, then-Sen. Kamala Harris called the confirmation “illegitimate” and “reckless.” Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Harris warned that there is “a national movement afoot to attack hard-won and hard-fought freedoms.” “I don’t want to, at this point, use my voice in a way that is alarmist,” she added earlier this year in an interview with the New York Times. “But this court has made it very clear that they are willing to undo recognized rights.” HARRIS WAS ‘OPEN’ TO PACKING SUPREME COURT DURING 2019 PRESIDENTIAL BID Meanwhile, in July, Sen. Ed Markey said: “Donald Trump and his MAGA partners” were to blame for the fact that “Our most fundamental freedoms are under attack from an illegitimate, extremist U.S. Supreme Court majority.” “They started by breaking the rules for confirming justices and ended up breaking the Supreme Court itself,” Markey said. The DOJ indicated Wednesday that Anastasiou was charged with nine counts of making threats against a federal judge and 13 counts of making threats in interstate commerce. He faces up to 10 years in jail. “Our justice system depends on the ability of judges to make their decisions based on the law, and not on fear,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday. “Our democracy depends on the ability of public officials to do their jobs without fearing for their lives or the safety of their families.”
Election board in crucial swing state issues controversial ruling requiring hand counting of ballots
The election board in one of the most crucial swing states in the 2024 presidential election approved a controversial new rule that will require the hand counting of ballots on election night. The Georgia State Election Board voted 3-2 to approve a rule that requires poll workers to count the number of paper ballots by hand after voting is completed in a decision that was opposed by the state attorney general’s office, the secretary of state’s office and an association of county election officials but supported by many conservatives. Three board members who were praised by former President Donald Trump during a rally last month in Atlanta voted to approve the measure. Critics of the move say that the measures came at the last minute and will delay reporting results in the state. TRUMP LEADS HARRIS WITHIN MARGIN OF ERROR IN TIGHT GEORGIA RACE, POLL FINDS In a memo sent to election board members Thursday, the office of state Attorney General Chris Carr said no provision in state law allows counting the number of ballots by hand at the precinct level before the ballots are brought to county election superintendent for vote tallying. As a result, the memo says, the rule is “not tethered to any statute” and is “likely the precise kind of impermissible legislation that agencies cannot do.” The new rule, according to the Associated Press, requires that the number of paper ballots — not the number of votes — be counted at each polling place by three separate poll workers until all three counts are the same. If a scanner has more than 750 ballots inside at the end of voting, the poll manager can decide to begin the count the following day. The board’s chair, John Fervier, a Republican, voted against the rule, saying the “overwhelming number of election officials” who reached out to him were opposed to the change. NEW TRUMP VOTER FRAUD SQUADS BEGIN GEARING UP FOR ‘ELECTION INTEGRITY’ FIGHT “I do think it’s too close to the election,” Fervier said. “It’s too late to train a lot of poll workers.” Other conservatives on social media praised the move as a step in the right direction to avoid voter fraud including former Trump spokesperson Liz Harrington who posted on X that the decision was “great news.” “YES!!!” Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X. “Way to go GA State Election Board!! Thank you for taking every step to fight for election integrity!!” In 2020, approximately five million votes were cast in the presidential race statewide, more than half in early voting. Recent polling shows that Harris and Trump are neck-and-neck in Georgia with approximately 46.9% of voters currently saying they would vote for Trump, compared to 44.4% of voters who say they would cast their vote for Harris. Fox News Digital’s Timothy HJ Nerozzi, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
After repeated promises from Biden administration that a cease-fire is close, war in Middle East is escalating
After months of public optimism about the prospects of a ceasefire, Biden administration officials have soured on the prospects of an end to the war between Israel and Hamas. “We aren’t any closer to that now than we were even a week ago,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby admitted to reporters on Wednesday. He called the prospects of a completed deal “daunting.” “No deal is imminent,” one U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal. “I’m not sure it ever gets done.” Israelis point the finger at Hamas for killing six hostages earlier this month, including a U.S. citizen. Arab officials lay blame on Israel for explosive pagers and walkie-talkies and airstrikes aimed at killing Hezbollah fighters for making the prospect of a multi-front war more likely. “There’s no chance now of it happening,” an Arab official said after the recent campaign against Hezbollah. “Everyone is in a wait-and-see mode until after the election. The outcome will determine what can happen in the next administration.” For Biden, a former chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who ran on his diplomacy chops, failure to secure a deal would be a blow to his legacy. It would mean a presidency bookended by a chaotic pullout from Afghanistan at the start and the false hope that peace — and the return of some 250 hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 — was just around the corner after the outbreak of war in the Middle East. Along with the recent attacks on Hezbollah, officials cited another main reason for pessimism to the Journal: the number of Palestinian prisoners that Israel would be asked to release to bring home its hostages. Joel Rubin, former deputy assistant secretary of state, told Fox News Digital he’s less pessimistic about the potential for a deal. “Nobody’s walked away from the table. They haven’t stated they’re done. Qatar and Egypt are still partnering with us on these talks. The three-stage agreed-upon framework is still in place,” he said. “The hangups are on the implementation side, not the framework side,” he said, noting that negotiations as far as which prisoners will be released, how their safety will be guaranteed and what to do with Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar remain open-ended. ISRAEL STRIKES HEZBOLLAH TARGETS IN LEBANON “These implementation issues keep coming up,” he said. “That’s where you keep hearing Hamas growing its demands, adding new names, expecting more. And that’s where you hear Israel, you know, calling for the Philadelphia corridor, which suddenly has dropped out of the discussion, right? They both want more and more advantage and gains on their side, which is why negotiators are exasperated.” While the Biden administration continues to try to find ways forward on a deal, public comments that have strung along hope for months are now conflicted by some of the privately held sentiment that cease-fire efforts are futile. On July 19, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a cease-fire deal was within sight. “I believe we’re inside the 10-yard line and driving toward the goal line in getting an agreement that would produce a cease-fire, get the hostages home and put us on a better track to trying to build lasting peace and stability,” Blinken said. On Aug. 17, President Biden said he was “optimistic” a deal could be reached. “We are closer than we’ve ever been,” he said, adding that he was sending Blinken to Israel to continue “intensive efforts to conclude this agreement.” On Aug. 19, Blinken said that Israel had “accepted a proposal” and the next step was for Hamas to agree. “The next important statement is for Hamas to say ‘yes,’ and then, in the coming days, for all of the expert negotiators to get together to work on clear understandings on implementing the agreement,” Blinken said at a press conference in Tel Aviv. HOW DID THE HEZBOLLAH PAGER EXPLOSIONS HAPPEN? 5 THINGS TO KNOW “This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a cease-fire and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security.” But those comments came one day after Hamas had said it would not agree to that proposal. They objected to Israel having control of the Rafah and Philadelphia corridors, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had demanded. Then again on Sept. 2, Biden claimed the U.S. was “very close” to finalizing a cease-fire deal that would see the release of hostages. Asked why he was optimistic despite other deals having failed, he said, “Hope springs eternal.” Even this week, Blinken expressed optimism about a deal, though he warned after the pager blasts that “escalation” threatens to thwart progress. “It’s imperative that all parties refrain from any actions that could escalate the conflict,” Blinken said at a news conference in Egypt. He said he was focused on a deal that would bring calm on all fronts, including Israel’s northern border with Lebanon. Blinken said that 15 out of 18 paragraphs of a deal had been agreed by all sides. He blamed long wait times for messages to be passed between the parties for leaving space to disrupt the talks. “We’ve seen that in the intervening time, you might have an event, an incident — something that makes the process more difficult, that threatens to slow it, stop it, derail it — and anything of that nature, by definition, is probably not good in terms of achieving the result that we want, which is the cease-fire,” Blinken said. After Egypt, he went to Paris to discuss the prospects of a deal with his European counterparts. U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan met Wednesday with the relatives of the seven remaining U.S. hostages held in Gaza, where the families said they “expressed frustration with the lack of tangible progress” to Sullivan. On Thursday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a televised address called the pager attacks “a declaration of war” and that attacks against Israel would continue until the war