Trump nominees squeezed between ‘blue slips’ and blue obstruction
President Donald Trump has attacked the Senate for blocking his preferred nominees from being confirmed to key positions, but lawmakers and people familiar with the process say the Senate is not necessarily to blame. Trump has faulted the Senate’s “blue slip” tradition, an unwritten rule requiring nominees for judge, U.S. attorney and U.S. marshal to obtain home state senators’ approval prior to being confirmed. He said blue state senators will only greenlight “Democrats or maybe weak Republicans.” The president called on Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, to abolish the practice, and he threatened to sue over it. But Grassley and other Republicans are unbudging in their position that blue slips are an indispensable part of the confirmation process. Blue slips have been used for more than a century. Past presidents have gotten many nominees confirmed under the system, suggesting other factors are contributing to Trump’s struggle to secure blue slips from Democrats. TRUMP TELLS GRASSLEY TO TELL DEMOCRATS ‘GO TO HELL’ OVER BLOCKED JUDICIAL NOMINEES IN SENATE Trump and his allies escalated attacks on the blue slip process this week, accusing Grassley of blocking nominees by maintaining it. “This is because of an old and outdated ‘custom’ known as a BLUE SLIP, that Senator Chuck Grassley, of the Great State of Iowa, refuses to overturn,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The president threatened to sue over what he said was a “gentlemen’s agreement,” though it is unclear whom the government would sue and on what grounds. “It’s not based on law, and I think it’s unconstitutional, and I’ll probably be filing a suit on that pretty soon,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. Asked about the possible lawsuit and why Trump’s nominees in blue states are struggling with confirmation, the White House told Fox News Digital in a statement the holdup must be addressed. “Senate Democrats have led a campaign of historic obstruction against President Trump and his nominees,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said. “The left’s partisan, obstructionist agenda is only hurting the American people and it must end.” Trump appointed his former personal defense lawyer Alina Habba as “interim” U.S. attorney, which carries a 120-day term limit that federal judges have the ability to extend under federal vacancy laws if no one has been confirmed by the Senate to the position by then. Judges have opted to extend Trump’s nominees, like in Jay Clayton’s case in the Southern District of New York. But in an unusual move, the federal judges of New Jersey rejected Habba. The judges selected someone else, whom Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi promptly fired. Trump and Bondi then used a series of legal maneuvers to reinstall Habba to another temporary term, but a federal judge ruled the moves unconstitutional. The Trump administration is appealing that decision in a case that could now make its way to the Supreme Court and force the justices to weigh in on what has become a pattern of Trump end-running around the Senate. ALINA HABBA SAYS SHE ‘WON’T BE INTIMIDATED’ AFTER SENATE CUSTOM HINDERS US ATTORNEY NOMINATION John Sarcone in the Northern District of New York faced a situation similar to Habba’s, and he is now serving as “acting” U.S. attorney. Bill Essayli in the Central District of California, who has taken on a vocal pro-Trump stance amid high-profile deportation cases in his district, has also transitioned from “interim” to “acting” U.S. attorney. Acting U.S. attorneys also carry a temporary term of 210 days. It is unclear how Trump will proceed once those terms expire. Carl Tobias, University of Richmond law professor, said the workarounds defy the spirit of the Constitution, which says nominees must be confirmed “with the advice and consent” of the Senate. “It’s good to have that scrutiny from the Judiciary Committee and then on the floor, and so hopefully they could return to something like that, but I’m not sure that’s going to happen, and so I think it is troubling,” Tobias told Fox News Digital. The administration must engage with the Senate during the nomination process, including by consulting early on with home state senators about possible nominees. Former President Joe Biden secured blue slips from opposing parties for 49 nominees, including 27 U.S. attorneys, while Trump’s first administration was able to secure confirmations for nearly all the U.S. attorneys the president nominated. The blue slip, to senators, is a crucial negotiating tool, one that Article III Project founder Mike Davis said is not going away, despite Trump’s intensifying objections to it. Davis, a staunch Trump supporter, served as counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee and oversaw nominations under Grassley in the prior Trump administration. “It’s not going away. Why would it? Why would senators give up their power? They’re not going to do it,” Davis told Fox News Digital, adding that blue slips to the Senate are “the sacred china that’s never going to get broken.” Nominees must also provide the Senate Judiciary Committee with a questionnaire, an FBI background check and financial disclosures. A source familiar with the process told Fox News Digital the committee did not receive Habba’s paperwork to begin vetting her. Habba has said she could not begin the process because Democratic Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim of New Jersey, would not give blue slip approval. It is unclear if and when the Trump administration approached the pair of senators about Habba. Habba, like Trump, blamed Grassley. “The blue slip TRADITION prevents a nominee from getting to the point of making that case to the committee and Senate floor. You know who can get rid of it? YOU @ChuckGrassley,” Habba wrote on X. She told Grassley “this is a time for leadership, not deflection” and that the chairman should not be “doing the dirty work of Thom Tillis, Corey Booker and Andy Kim.” Booker’s and Kim’s offices did not respond to a request for comment. Grassley went on a tear on social media this week, defending his decision to maintain
Chicago police will not collaborate with National Guard, federal agents if Trump moves on deployment: mayor
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, a Democrat, signed an executive order on Saturday prohibiting city police officers from collaborating with National Guard troops or federal agents if President Donald Trump follows through on his threats to deploy them to the Windy City. “This executive order makes it emphatically clear that this president is not going to come in and deputize our police department,” Johnson said at a news conference with other city leaders. The mayor’s order affirms that Chicago police officers will continue to enforce state and local laws, but will not work with the National Guard or federal agents on patrols, arrests, immigration enforcement or other law enforcement actions. “We will protect our Constitution, we will protect our city, and we will protect our people,” he said. “We do not want to see tanks in our streets. We do not want to see families ripped apart. We do not want grandmothers thrown into the back of unmarked vans. We don’t want to see homeless Chicagoans harassed or disappeared by federal agents.” PRITZKER SAYS ‘ACTION WILL BE MET WITH A RESPONSE’ AFTER TRUMP THREATENS TO SEND NATIONAL GUARD TO CHICAGO The order also instructs city police to wear their official police uniforms, continue to identify themselves, follow body camera procedures and to not wear masks so they can be clearly distinguished from any federal operations. “The Chicago Police Department will not collaborate with military personnel on police patrols or civil immigration enforcement,” Johnson said. “We will not have our police officers who are working hard every single day to drive down crime deputized to do traffic stops and checkpoints for the president.” The order states that the deployment of federal military forces in Chicago without the consent of local authorities “undermines democratic norms, violates the City’s sovereignty, threatens civil liberties, and risks escalating violence rather than securing the peace.” This order comes as Johnson and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker have been feuding with Trump over the potential of National Guard troops being deployed to Chicago to address crime in the city. Johnson has cited data showing that violent crime has declined in the last year, including homicides and robberies dipping by more than 30%, and shootings dropping by nearly 40%. Pritzker has also warned Trump that “action will be met with a response” and that a federal deployment without the state’s request would be “unconstitutional” and “un-American.” CHICAGO MAYOR CALLS TRUMP’S NATIONAL GUARD PLAN ‘MOST FLAGRANT VIOLATION OF OUR CONSTITUTION’ Trump responded to the Democratic leaders last week by saying that Pritzker is “incompetent” and Johnson “no better.” The White House dismissed Johnson’s order on Saturday, claiming that Democrats were attempting to make efforts to reduce crime a partisan issue. “If these Democrats focused on fixing crime in their own cities instead of doing publicity stunts to criticize the President, their communities would be much safer,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement to Reuters. Johnson said on Saturday that he was considering any legal and legislative measures to stop the federal government, including possible lawsuits. “We will use the courts if that’s necessary,” Johnson said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Previous deployments of the National Guard to Chicago were coordinated with local officials, according to Reuters. The president’s authority to deploy troops is limited under U.S. law, although there are no restrictions on sending ICE agents or other federal law enforcement officers. Trump’s threat to deploy troops to the Windy City comes after he boosted the presence of federal law enforcement in Washington, D.C., in an attempt to cut down on crime. Hundreds of federal agents and National Guard troops have been deployed to the streets of D.C. as part of the federal takeover of the district. Reuters contributed to this report.
Trump appointee exits US foreign aid agency after four-month sprint: ‘Mission accomplished’
Dr. Sohan Dasgupta, appointed earlier this year as the political head of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), told Fox News Digital he is stepping down after a four-month sprint, declaring his mission to preserve and reposition the U.S. agency as a strategic foreign policy tool as “accomplished.” Created by Congress in 2004, MCC delivers five-year infrastructure and energy compacts to developing nations that meet strict governance standards. Unlike traditional aid, its investments are structured to drive long-term economic growth and open markets for U.S. companies. Since its creation under President George W. Bush, MCC has often been grouped with other U.S. aid programs. Career staff have long emphasized development goals like poverty reduction, education, and infrastructure, but unlike USAID, MCC was established as a corporate body with a fiduciary duty to ensure effectiveness. CDC OFFICIAL WHO BLASTED TRUMP’S ‘WEAK SCIENCE’ LED POLITICIZED BIDEN-ERA MONKEYPOX RESPONSE A White House official, speaking on background to Fox News Digital, argued the agency too often presented itself as aid rather than investment before President Donald Trump took office. Dasgupta pushed staff to adopt a different lens, pressing them to evaluate projects based on the return on investment for the United States, the degree of strategic alignment with partner countries, and whether MCC compacts could be used to strengthen U.S. leverage in negotiations. A Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) report this spring argued that MCC is not a traditional aid agency but an “investment” tool uniquely suited for an “America First” agenda. The authors warned shuttering it would hand China “diplomatic and economic wins” while leaving half-built projects abroad, and noted Trump-era partner selections, from Nepal to Côte d’Ivoire to the Pacific Islands, were strategically chosen to counter Chinese influence. “The United States and the world are safer, stronger, and more prosperous with the MCC model than without it,” the report concluded. OBAMA OFFICIAL SAYS DEMOCRATIC PARTY ‘AFRAID OF ITS OWN FUTURE,’ WANTS IT TO EMBRACE MAMDANI STRATEGY MCC’s current portfolio under Trump includes some of its largest-ever compacts: a $500 million deal in Nepal funding nearly 200 miles of transmission lines, a $480 million compact in Sierra Leone expanding electricity access and a $202 million program in Kosovo focused on grid-scale battery storage. Other investments include $536 million in Côte d’Ivoire, $537 million in Mozambique and a water compact in Mongolia. Dasgupta told Fox News Digital that his role was to press MCC staff to think in terms of U.S. national security and economic benefits. “Reforming MCC into a vital national security and foreign policy asset” was how he described his “mission accomplished” moment. A May 9 email from the White House Liaison to MCC staff, obtained by Fox News Digital, shows Dasgupta was appointed as a Schedule C senior advisor “assuming political leadership for the agency.” MCC’s Fiscal Year 2026 Candidate Country Report, released this month, lists Kosovo, Nepal, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Mongolia, Solomon Islands, Fiji and Tonga among its eligible partner nations. “Service has many forms. My goal was to carry out particular projects and missions, then make way for others,” Dasgupta said. On China, he added: “Critical minerals and rare earth elements are a vital part of American strength… MCC has really understood that.” Kosovo’s ambassador to the U.S., Ilir Dugolli, praised Dasgupta’s responsiveness. “We worked closely soon after he arrived at MCC… I respect him enormously for the way he handled his portfolio and how professional he was,” Dugolli told Fox News Digital. On energy security, Dugolli said: “Kosovo fully aligns with U.S. foreign policy… Batteries are extremely important, especially after last year’s terrorist attack on the Iber-Lepenc canal. The compact is the single most critical investment for our country’s energy security and economic resilience.” Dasgupta’s departure also comes as the Trump administration pursues cuts to traditional U.S. foreign aid programs and seeks to reframe America’s global engagement under its “America First” policy. While agencies such as USAID have faced reductions and restructuring, Dasgupta argues the MCC has been preserved as a leaner, investment-driven tool aligned with the administration’s emphasis on strategic deals and competition with China. Analysts estimate China controls about 70% of global rare earth mining and nearly 90% of processing capacity, according to the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. Between 2023 and 2025, China imposed export restrictions on strategic minerals, according to CSIS. Dasgupta argues MCC’s work in allied nations can help diversify supply chains and strengthen resilience, though MCC has not publicly described critical minerals as a formal focus of its work. “We want independence in every sense of the word… these are the premises and predicates of American strength,” Dasgupta said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Quick wins” like Kosovo’s battery project and Nepal’s power lines, Dasgupta said, show how American aid can advance prosperity abroad while reinforcing security at home. With his departure, MCC continues compacts in dozens of countries worldwide. The MCC did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Amid Trump’s tariffs, Union Minister Hardeep Puri makes BIG remark: ‘Just matter of months before…’
Puri also said that India’s USD 4.3 trillion dollar economy and its rising GDP growth rate are answer enough to questions being raised over the country’s economic health. The minister’s comment came as India recorded a higher-than-expected growth rate of 7.8% in June quarter. Read on to know more.
PM Modi to meet China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin today amid Trump tariff strain, here’ what to expect
After a seven-year gap, PM Modi visited China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, where his meeting with President Xi Jinping takes on added importance amid India-US tensions over trade issues.
Delhi Rains: Yamuna river crosses danger mark, nears floods, evacuation situation level; authorities on high alert
Delhi authorities on high alert as water level of Yamuna river has crossed 204.50 metres, while the danger mark is 205.33 metres, and evacuation of people starts at 206 metres. What has IMD predicted?
Trump touts ‘worker-first’ economy on Labor Day as internet speculation of his whereabouts spirals
President Donald Trump used Labor Day weekend to tout “nearly $10 trillion” in new investments for American workers, a sweeping White House claim delivered as unfounded online rumors about his well-being and whereabouts spread over the holiday weekend. His appearance on his Trump National Virginia golf course with family on Saturday quickly put the speculation to rest. “President Trump believes that American workers are the heart and soul of our economy, which is why he’s championed an agenda that always puts them first — from signing the largest middle-class tax cuts in history to securing nearly $10 trillion in new investments to create high-paying jobs across our country,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told Fox News. Fact-checkers note the White House’s $10T claim includes previously announced projects. The White House describes its list as “non-comprehensive.” TRUMP CAPS OFF 29TH WEEK IN OFFICE WITH PEACE DEAL, CELEBRATING 200TH DAY OF SECOND PRESIDENCY The administration pitched what it calls a “Golden Age of Prosperity,” citing job growth, rising wages, new apprenticeship programs and regulatory rollbacks. White House officials pointed to more than 183,000 apprentices starting this year, $84 million in new training grants, and an AI Action Plan aimed at preparing workers for a tech-driven economy. The White House cites corporate pledges as evidence of momentum. At an “Investing in America” event in April, NVIDIA promised $500 billion for U.S. chipmaking, Apple pledged $500 billion to expand factories, and IBM committed $150 billion for AI research. SoftBank announced a $700 billion infrastructure project. In all, Trump said more than $8 trillion has been pledged since the election. They also touted half a million new jobs in 2025, $61 million for homeless and at-risk veterans and Labor Department efforts to lower health care costs through price transparency. TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CELEBRATES LATEST CHAPTER OF WINS AT 200-DAY MARK The rollout, however, was overshadowed by social media speculation about Trump’s well-being and whereabouts. On Friday night and Saturday morning, hashtags like #WhereIsTrump and #TrumpIsDead trended on X, fueled by a blank public schedule and recycled photos showing bruising. Account Buzzing Pop on X posted, “Donald Trump reportedly has not been seen in days, with no public appearances scheduled this weekend.” The rumors spread until Trump surfaced in public on Saturday. On Saturday, he was photographed with some of his grandchildren outside the White House and at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. He was spotted wearing a white polo shirt and red MAGA hat. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP While the White House hoped Labor Day would spotlight Trump’s economic record, the weekend may be remembered just as much for his golf outing and putting online speculation to rest.
Trump slams Pritzker on Chicago crime; governor’s reported weight loss fuels 2028 speculation
President Donald Trump is intensifying his feud with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker after another bloody weekend in Chicago, blasting the Democrat for rejecting federal help as six people were killed and more than two dozen shot. In a fiery Truth Social post Saturday, Trump called Pritzker “incompetent” and warned the governor to “straighten it out, fast, or we’re coming.” The broadside comes just weeks after Trump signed sweeping executive actions to restore law and order in Washington, D.C., federalizing the Metropolitan Police and mobilizing the National Guard in the nation’s capital. JB PRITZKER CLAIMS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PLANNING AN ‘INVASION’ WITH US TROOPS Now, Trump is warning Chicago could be next and pointing out that even Pritzker’s recent weight loss looks like a telltale sign of a possible 2028 presidential run. Trump also mocked Pritzker personally earlier in the week, saying he “ought to spend more time in the gym, actually.” “Six people were killed, and 24 people were shot, in Chicago last weekend, and JB Pritzker, the weak and pathetic Governor of Illinois, just said that he doesn’t need help in preventing CRIME,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “He is CRAZY!!! He better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming!” Pritzker is pushing back hard, calling Trump’s approach “unconstitutional” and “a dangerous power grab.” He also mocked Trump’s personal attacks on his physique, quipping that “it takes one to know one on the weight question.” Republican strategist Mark McKinnon told Politico Pritzker’s slimmer look “looks like he’s getting ready for a fight,” while consultant David Kochel noted weight loss is increasingly part of a political makeover: “If you want to look younger and healthier, it makes total sense.” PRITZKER SAYS ‘ACTION WILL BE MET WITH A RESPONSE’ AFTER TRUMP THREATENS TO SEND NATIONAL GUARD TO CHICAGO Figures like Chris Christie and Mike Pompeo have also shed pounds before mounting national campaigns. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed a sweeping executive order Friday rejecting Trump’s threat to deploy federal troops or the National Guard. “We do not need nor want an unconstitutional and illegal military occupation of our city,” Johnson said, vowing that Chicago would “do everything in our power to defend our democracy and protect our communities.” The feud benefits both men politically. Trump seizes on Chicago as a symbol of Democratic failure and bolsters his law-and-order brand with executive muscle, while Pritzker gets to portray himself as standing up to a president he calls a bully. Behind the two men’s political theater, Chicago has led the nation in total homicides for 13 straight years, according to the White House. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Pritzker’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Fox News’ Hanna Panreck and Landon Mion contributed to this report.
Sen. Bernie Sanders calls on RFK Jr. to resign following departure of CDC officials
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is demanding that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. resign after multiple senior officials at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention departed the agency. The Trump administration announced the removal of CDC Director Susan Monarez earlier this week, less than a month after she was confirmed, after she refused Kennedy’s directives to adopt new limitations on the availability of some vaccines, including for approvals for COVID-19 vaccines. Four other senior CDC officials resigned in protest after Monarez’s ouster, pointing, in part, to anti-vaccine policies pushed by Kennedy. Hundreds of workers at the agency also walked out of the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta in support of their former colleagues. In response to the departures, Sanders wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times that Kennedy is “endangering the health of the American people now and into the future” and accused the secretary of firing Monarez because she refused “to act as a rubber stamp for his dangerous policies.” BIPARTISAN FURY AT CDC: SENATORS DEMAND PROBE, REJECT VACCINE GUIDANCE AS ILLEGITIMATE “Despite the overwhelming opposition of the medical community, Secretary Kennedy has continued his longstanding crusade against vaccines and his advocacy of conspiracy theories that have been rejected repeatedly by scientific experts,” Sanders wrote in the piece published Saturday. “It is absurd to have to say this in 2025, but vaccines are safe and effective,” he added. “That, of course, is not just my view. Far more important, it is the overwhelming consensus of the medical and scientific communities.” Sanders also noted that vaccines for diseases like polio and COVID-19 have saved hundreds of millions of lives around the world. Sanders, the ranking member of the Senate’s health committee, opposed Kennedy’s confirmation earlier this year. The secretary was sworn in back in February. Deputy HHS Secretary Jim O’Neill was selected to be the acting director of the CDC after Monarez’s termination. CDC DIRECTOR SUSAN MONAREZ REFUSES TO BE FIRED AS OTHER OFFICIALS CALL IT QUITS The Trump administration has defended Monarez’s ouster, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying Thursday the president has the “authority to fire those who are not aligned with his mission.” “The president and Secretary Kennedy are committed to restoring trust and transparency and credibility to the CDC by ensuring their leadership and their decisions are more public-facing, more accountable, strengthening our public health system and restoring it to its core mission of protecting Americans from communicable diseases, investing in innovation to prevent, detect and respond to future threats,” Leavitt told reporters. Sanders earlier this week called for an investigation into Monarez’s ouster, criticizing the move as “reckless” and “dangerous.” In the op-ed, he wrote that Kennedy “has profited from and built a career on sowing mistrust in vaccines,” adding that the secretary is now “using his authority to launch a full-blown war on science, on public health and on truth itself.” He also said it will become harder for Americans to obtain “lifesaving vaccines” with Kennedy leading HHS. “The danger here is that diseases that have been virtually wiped out because of safe and effective vaccines will resurface and cause enormous harm,” Sanders wrote, stressing that the U.S. needs to be better prepared in the case of another pandemic. “Secretary Kennedy is putting Americans’ lives in danger, and he must resign,” Sanders wrote. “In his place, President Trump must listen to doctors and scientists and nominate a health secretary and a C.D.C. director who will protect the health and well-being of the American people, not carry out dangerous policies based on conspiracy theories.” Fox News Digital reached out to HHS for comment. Reuters contributed to this report.
Gov. Brian Kemp endorses former football coach Derek Dooley outside Georgia stadium for 2026 US Senate bid
Standing outside Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, Saturday, Gov. Brian Kemp endorsed former football coach Derek Dooley, a fellow Republican, to oust Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., in the state’s 2026 U.S. Senate race. Kemp made the announcement an hour before the Georgia Bulldogs kicked off their first game of the season, noting Dooley was the “one and only opportunity” to flip Ossoff’s seat. Dooley, who walked onto the University of Virginia football team and played four years as a receiver, later earned his law degree from the University of Georgia, where he started his 28-year coaching career as a graduate assistant. SENATE DEMOCRATS ARE FEVERISHLY RECRUITING TOP CANDIDATES TO WIN BACK MAJORITY IN 2026 MIDTERMS The former University of Tennessee coach and son of former UGA coach Vince Dooley coached in the NFL for almost a decade and in college football for nearly 20 years. He continues to work with Group of Five schools across the country. Following Dooley’s campaign launch, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson Maeve Coyle released a statement knocking his coaching career. “The latest addition to Georgia’s messy and chaotic GOP primary is a failed football coach who has only ever spoken out to cheerlead Medicaid cuts that hurt Georgians,” Coyle wrote. “As this primary gets even more crowded and devolves into a proxy war between President Trump and Governor Kemp, Senator Ossoff is fighting for working families in Georgia and will hold his seat in 2026.” REPUBLICAN DOOLEY JUMPS INTO GEORGIA’S SENATE RACE WHILE TOUTING SUPPORT FOR TRUMP AND TAKING AIM AT OSSOFF Dooley tackled the claims on Saturday, claiming “leadership matters,” FOX 5 Atlanta reported. “I could tell you in the locker room right now, right down the road, it doesn’t matter what your race is, what your income level is, what your politics [are], what your religion is,” Dooley said. “It was about bringing people together. Leadership matters. “I mean, look at our state. That’s what great leadership looks like. And you look at our country right now. You took a guy who was an outsider, President [Donald] Trump, who came in and didn’t accept business as usual.” TRUMP ALLY MIKE COLLINS LAUNCHES KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE BID TO FLIP DEMOCRAT-HELD SENATE SEAT Kemp, a two-term governor, described Dooley as a “true political outsider,” adding Ossoff’s voting record does not reflect the state’s values, leaving room for an upset. “You cannot run from that kind of record, and that is why I think we have an opportunity to win this race,” Kemp said. Dooley said in a statement to Fox News Digital he is deeply honored to have the governor’s support. “Governor Kemp has led this state with strong leadership, integrity, and achieved historic accomplishments during truly unprecedented times in our state and nation,” he wrote. “Georgians know him and trust him. I hope to bring that same leadership style focused on conservative results to the U.S. Senate by defeating Jon Ossoff next November. “The Governor’s support gives our campaign incredible momentum as we continue to earn support from hardworking Georgians all across our state.” Kemp’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.