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Year: 2026

Michigan Democrat Mallory McMorrow drops out of Senate race weeks before primary

Michigan Democrat Mallory McMorrow drops out of Senate race weeks before primary

Mallory McMorrow announced Sunday that she is suspending her campaign for the U.S. Senate in battleground Michigan. The Michigan state senator’s decision leaves her party’s primary as a two-way race between moderate Rep. Haley Stevens, who is backed by longtime Senate Democratic leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and the establishment, and former Wayne County Health Department Director Abdul El-Sayed, a left-wing candidate endorsed by progressive champions Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York McMorrow’s name will remain on the ballot for the Aug. 4 primary as ballots have already been printed and distributed to absentee voters, according to Bridge Michigan. The eventual Democratic nominee will face off in the midterm elections with former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers, who is on a glide path to the GOP nomination, in a crucial race to succeed retiring Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat.  MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE ABDUL EL-SAYED TAKES HEAT FOR KHAMENEI COMMENTS, HASAN PIKER EVENT The seat is a top Republican target and is a must-hold for the Democrats as they aim to win back the Senate majority from the GOP, which currently controls the chamber 53-47. The leading nonpartisan political handicappers rate the Senate race in Michigan as a toss-up. In a video posted on X announcing her decision, McMorrow did not provide a specific reason for ending her campaign. She instead thanked her staff and supporters for helping build what she described as a campaign powered by small-dollar donations and no corporate PAC money. But McMorrow, who has seen her national profile expand in recent years and was running as a progressive in an ideological space between El-Sayed and Stevens, suspended her campaign amid faltering poll numbers and fundraising that weren’t keeping pace with her two main rivals. McMorrow also pledged to fully support whichever Democrat wins the primary and faces off with Rogers, who is running for the Senate for a second straight cycle and lost in 2024 to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin by a razor-thin margin. “So here’s what we do next. Every day through November 3rd. We win this Senate seat and send Mike Rogers back to Florida for good,” she said. “Whoever wins this primary on August 4th will have my full support.” MICHIGAN DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE CLAIMS ISRAEL ‘JUST AS EVIL’ AS HAMAS Following McMorrow’s announcement, Stevens praised her fellow Democrat by calling her an “important voice” for policies that benefit Michigan families.  Stevens then argued that she is the strongest Democratic candidate to win the primary and defeat Rogers in November.  “As we enter the final month of the primary election, I’m excited to continue to make my case to Michiganders why I’m the strongest Democrat to defeat Mike Rogers this November, lower costs, protect manufacturing jobs, and stand up to Trump’s abuses of power,” she added. As she runs for the nomination, Stevens has been backed by millions in super PAC spending, including big bucks from Israel-aligned groups. MAMDANI-BACKED SOCIALISTS LOOK TO TAKE NEW YORK PLAYBOOK NATIONWIDE AFTER PRIMARY VICTORIES In his statement, El-Sayed praised McMorrow for having the “courage” to challenge what he described as a rigged political system, accusing Democratic Party insiders of spending millions to influence the primary. While he did not name specific groups, the remarks appeared to reference corporate PACs and party leaders such as Schumer. He then invited McMorrow’s supporters to join his progressive movement to combat big money in politics and defeat the political establishment.  “Throughout this campaign, Senator McMorrow showed what it looks like to fight back against politics that rigs the system against too many of us. While we have policy disagreements, I never questioned whether Senator McMorrow would fight for a better America for my daughters and hers,” he said.  “The same party insiders she had the courage to challenge have been bullying anyone who opposes their chosen candidate. After spending $30 million to drown Senator McMorrow and me out, they’re now spending even more to attack me. It’s everything we are standing up against.” “I welcome her supporters to our movement to stand up against money in politics, to put money back in pockets, and pass Medicare for All. We cannot allow the establishment to decide our nominee for us.”  El-Sayed, who, if elected would make history as the nation’s first Muslim senator, is an epidemiologist who unsuccessfully ran for governor as an insurgent candidate in 2018. He has made support for “Medicare-for-all” a major component of his campaign. El-Sayed also calls for abolishing ICE, and he’s a vocal critic of Israel in its war with Hamas. He has characterized Israel’s actions in Gaza as “genocide” against Palestinians. And El-Sayed, who served as a top surrogate on Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign, has also vowed not to accept PAC donations. Schumer and the party establishment view Stevens as more electable than El-Sayed, who has sparked controversy with his past comments. They worry that El-Sayed as the party’s nominee would jeopardize the Democrat-controlled Senate seat by pushing the party too far to the left in a state that President Donald Trump carried two years ago by just over one percentage point. AOC JOINS BERNIE SANDERS IN BACKING SENATE CANDIDATE OPPOSED BY SCHUMER The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), in a statement reacting to McMorrow’s move, pointed to the burgeoning battle between the far left and the establishment for the future of the Democratic Party. “Bernie Sanders’ radical socialist flank is completely taking over the Democrat Party. It is now up to Chuck Schumer to combat Abdul El-Sayed’s clear momentum and get Haley Stevens over the finish line in their messy primary,” NRSC Regional Press Secretary Samantha Cantrell argued in a statement. Greg Manz, the Michigan GOP senior communications adviser, said in a statement that “Michigan’s Senate Democrat primary has shifted from a three-car pileup to a head-on collision.”

Trump shares news of ‘crystal clear’ Reflecting Pool, calls for vandalism suspect’s arrest

Trump shares news of ‘crystal clear’ Reflecting Pool, calls for vandalism suspect’s arrest

President Donald Trump and his Interior Department are declaring an America 250 victory over algae in the Lincoln Reflecting Pool. Trump shared photos on Truth Social on Sunday showing the pool and the reflection of the Washington Monument appearing clear and blue, and made a call out with a “Wanted” poster for vandals. “The U.S. Park Police is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the individual in the notice below in connection with a Destruction of Government Property investigation related to the Reflecting Pool,” Trump wrote Sunday on Truth Social. Trump also shared an Interior Department statement crediting “advanced nanobubbler technology” and National Park Service cleanup work. FORMER US OLYMPIAN DAVID HEARN INDICTED IN ALLEGED REFLECTING POOL VANDALISM “The advanced nanobubbler technology very effectively killed the algae that has plagued every Lincoln Reflecting Pool reopening — most infamously Obama’s reopening — since 1922,” Dei Gratia Minerals founder Greg Wischer, Interior’s deputy assistant secretary for land and minerals management, wrote in a letter shared with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Trump. “The Reflecting Pool water is crystal clear, and our National Park Service team is now vacuuming up the dead algae resting on the bottom of some parts of the Reflecting Pool — just like the destroyed Iranian Navy resting on the bottom of the Persian Gulf.” The photos shared by Trump show the Reflecting Pool stretching toward the Washington Monument under blue skies. One image appears to show the pool from the Lincoln Memorial end, while a second closer view shows the Washington Monument reflected in the water. Trump also shared a U.S. Interior Press social media post hailing the technological success, quoting that Wischer memo. YOSEMITE, GRAND CANYON LEAD NOTABLE LIST OF NATIONAL PARK CAMPGROUNDS FOR AMERICA’S 250TH “The vacuuming is the final maintenance step after refilling the pool, and it will be complete in a few days,” his memo continued. “Already, the section of the Reflecting Pool closest to the Lincoln Memorial has been vacuumed up, and the beautiful American Flag Blue coating on the bottom of the pool can be seen clearly.” Trump’s Interior Department has praised the technology for overcoming past challenges in keeping the pool clear, including dunking on former President Barack Obama. “Previous administrations — most notably under Obama — failed to maintain the Reflecting Pool, and after refilling the pool, the water would quickly become murky and thick with massive clumps of algae floating on the surface,” the memo concluded. INTERNAL EMAILS EXPOSE HOW JULY 4TH BASH IS BEING DERAILED BY DEM-RUN COUNTY: ‘OFFENSIVE’ “The photos below show how the nanobubbler technology and vacuuming have been incredibly effective, making the water crystal clear with the American Flag Blue coating shining brightly on the bottom of the pool. “As our National Park Service team noted, the Reflecting Pool is now so ‘blue’ that the Fake News Media, which has been staked out at the Reflecting Pool for weeks, has fled!” The 6.75 million-gallon pool has been targeted by Trump critics and leftist anti-Trump activists for attacks both verbally and physical, Burgum discussed with ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “The Reflecting Pool has been a big success,” he said. “And we’ve got 340 million people in this country that are celebrating 250. We did have a few vandals, but all that’s going to be repairable, and that’ll all be fixed in the coming weeks as we go forward.” Burgum now believes that the pool might not require a full draining after its “multiple gashes that add up to 350 feet,” he added. “We don’t know if we need to drain the whole thing or not because, you know, the cutting happened on the edge, and, of course, it slopes from the edge,” according to Burgum. “We may be able to partially drain it and do the repair. To be able to fix it, we may not have to drain the whole thing, but it could go very quickly.” While the media and Trump critics are pointing to added costs of the reflecting pool refurbishment, Burgum pointed to the vandalism causing that. “We weren’t expecting that we were going to have a small group of people that wanted to try to destroy effectively what is part of the Lincoln Memorial,” Burgum told ABC. “There’s plenty of cameras around the Lincoln statue and around the memorial, but the Reflecting Pool had gone for, you know, decades without vandalism.”

Bill Clinton blasts Trump as Americans mark nation’s 250th anniversary

Bill Clinton blasts Trump as Americans mark nation’s 250th anniversary

Former President Bill Clinton took a swipe at President Donald Trump in a statement posted to X marking the nation’s 250th birthday, urging Americans to reject division and embrace the country’s founding ideals without mentioning Trump by name. In the statement, released Saturday, Clinton reflected on the nation’s founding and warned that the United States was experiencing another period of deep political division. TOP HIGHLIGHTS FROM TRUMP’S LATE NIGHT JULY 4 ADDRESS: ‘NO DREAM IN HISTORY IS BIGGER’ “Today, we celebrate this milestone amid another period of deep division, renewed questions about America’s future and role in the world, and serious threats to our own institutions and to our democracy itself,” the former president wrote. Clinton, whose wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was defeated by Trump in the 2016 presidential election, did not mention the president by name during his remarks. “The people in charge have unleashed masked agents on American communities to seize people from their homes, workplaces and the street,” Clinton said.  “They have started an unconstitutional war on a whim, with no clear objectives or exit strategy, and zero regard for the consequences to the lives of millions of people around the world,” he added. WE ASKED AMERICANS TO GRADE THE ECONOMY. THEN WE ASKED IF IT WOULD CHANGE THEIR VOTE The former president then broadened his criticism to the federal government and the courts. “With the help of lifetime appointees to the Supreme Court and a compliant Congress, they have weaponized government to settle personal scores, prosecute enemies, stamp out free speech and made the federal government a new profit center for themselves and their allies,” he added. Clinton’s statement came as Trump presided over separate America250 festivities in Washington, D.C., where he touted what he called America’s “Golden Age” and highlighted his administration’s accomplishments, the U.S. military and the country’s economic outlook. Clinton encouraged Americans to think about the nation’s future as it enters its next 250 years, arguing that preserving democratic institutions requires citizens to value common purpose over political grievance. Trump, meanwhile, used his Independence Day address to celebrate the nation’s founding while touting his administration’s achievements, criticizing progressive Democrats and promoting priorities, including election integrity measures, border security and a renewed emphasis on patriotism. While both men celebrated the nation’s founding, their messages highlighted vastly different views of the country’s current political climate.