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Trump denies wrongdoing, criticizes lawyers in press conference after E Jean Carroll hearing

Former President Donald Trump held a nearly hourlong press conference on Friday, when he denied wrongdoing in any of the cases against him and briefly criticized his legal team, who were lined up behind him. Trump, in particular, went after his three separate cases in New York, and the Georgia elections probe being conducted by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. He accused the Department of Justice (DOJ) of, in many cases, working with officials prosecuting him. The former president and 2024 Republican nominee is in his hometown to appeal a jury’s verdict in writer E. Jean Carroll’s civil case that found Trump liable of sexual abuse and defamation – and levied a $5 million penalty. “This is a disgraceful case, and disgraceful in particular, because it’s about a former President of the United States who is now leading in the polls to be the president again,” Trump said. “And this is being worked with the DOJ, Department of Justice – as are all of these cases.” FEDERAL JUDGE REJECTS TRUMP REQUEST FOR NEW TRIAL IN E. JEAN CARROLL SUIT, SAYS HE MUST PAY $83.3 MILLION “They all come out – Atlanta, Fani, that is all Department of Justice. Nobody knew that. The case with Judge Engoron, most over-turned judge in [New York] – that is very close because they sent their team from the DOJ to help him. The [Manhattan District Attorney], Alvin Bragg, that was all worked with, again, they sent a top operative from the department, from the DOJ, department of— I called the Department of Injustice, because they’re using the Department of Justice to rig the campaign. These cases are disgraceful.” At another point, he accused judges of acting with partisanship to block certain evidence from his trials. “I have all this legal talent, but legal talent cannot overcome rigged judges. They can’t overcome a 4% Republican area,” Trump said in reference to trials being held in Democratic strongholds. “And I’m disappointed in my legal talent, I’ll be honest with you. They’re good. They’re good people. They’re talented people,” he added, with his lawyers standing behind him. TRUMP DEFENDS HIMSELF ON THE STAND, BLASTS E JEAN CARROLL TRIAL: ‘THIS IS NOT AMERICA’ Trump has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in all civil and criminal cases he has faced since leaving office. In addition to his hearing in the Carroll case, Trump was also in New York for a decision from New York State Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan on whether to delay sentencing in his criminal trial about hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election. A jury convicted him on 34 counts linked to falsifying business records earlier this year. He was scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 18, but Trump’s lawyers successfully petitioned him on Friday to delay until after the November election. TRUMP AND HARRIS IN TOSS-UP RACES IN KEY SWING STATES PENNSYLVANIA, GEORGIA, NEVADA: POLL While criticizing judges in several of his cases, Trump also praised Florida federal Judge Aileen Cannon for her handling of special counsel Jack Smith’s classified documents case. “I think she’s a brilliant woman. I think she handled a scam. It’s a scam case,” Trump said. “We won that trial.”

Newsom vetoes controversial bill that would have given housing loans to illegal immigrants

FIRST ON FOX: Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a controversial bill that would have given hundreds of thousands of dollars in housing loans to illegal immigrants.  Last month, the California legislature advanced AB 1840 – known as the “California Dream for All” loan program – which would have given illegal immigrants up to $150,000 in first-time homeownership loans — a bill that if signed into law, would have given first-time homebuyers up to 20% of a home’s value or up to $150,000 as down payment assistance. “This bill seeks to prohibit the disqualification of applicants from one of California Housing Finance Agency’s (CalHFA) home purchase assistance programs based solely on their immigration status. Given the finite funding available for CalHFA programs, expanding program eligibility must be carefully considered within the broader context of the annual state budget to ensure we manage our resources effectively,” Newsom said in the veto letter.  “For this reason, I am unable to sign this bill.” CALIFORNIA CLOSE TO APPROVING $150K LOANS FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO HELP PURCHASE HOMES However, Democratic lawmakers in the state have defended the legislation, arguing that it is simply designed to give illegal immigrants the same benefits afforded to everyone else in the state. “It isn’t given out willy nilly to just anybody,” Democratic Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes said during a June hearing on the bill. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP This is a developing story, please check back for updates. Fox News Digital’s Michael Lee contributed to this report. 

Israel will cease to exist if Harris becomes president, Trump claims

Republican presidential nominee tells Jewish donors that his Democratic rival would ‘totally abandon’ Israel. Israel will cease to exist if United States Vice President Kamala is elected to the White House in November, former President Donald Trump has claimed. Addressing Jewish donors in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Thursday, the Republican nominee claimed that Harris would “totally abandon” Israel as president and that “terrorist armies” would wage war to “drive Jews out of the Holy Land”. “You are going to be abandoned if she becomes president, and I think you have to explain that to your people. Because they don’t know it. They have no idea what they are getting into,” Trump said in a remote address to the Republican Jewish Coalition. “You are not going to have an Israel … if she becomes president. Israel will no longer exist.” Trump said he would ban refugees from “terror-infested areas” including Gaza, arrest “pro-Hamas thugs” who vandalise government property, and cancel funding and accreditation for universities that spread “anti-Semitic propaganda” if elected to a second term. US university campuses earlier this year were rocked by protests over Israel’s war in Gaza, triggering claims of anti-Semitism along with counterclaims that accusations of bigotry were being used to silence legitimate criticism of Israeli policy. Trump, who claimed Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel would not have happened if he was president, also took aim at Jewish people who vote for Democratic candidates, claiming he had done more for Israel than any other US president. “Who are the 50 percent of Jewish people that are voting for these people that hate Israel and don’t like the Jewish people?” he said. “Why are they, why are they voting? How do they exist?” In response to Trump’s remarks, Harris campaign spokesperson Morgan Finkelstein said the vice president “stands steadfastly against anti-Semitism” and has been a “lifelong supporter of the State of Israel as a secure, democratic homeland for the Jewish people”. Finkelstein also said Trump had a history of demeaning Jewish people and associating with far-right figures, including holding a private dinner with white supremacist and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes. “He has said the only people he wants counting his money are ‘short guys wearing yarmulkes’, and praised neo-Nazis who chanted ‘Jews will not replace us’ as ‘very fine people’,” Finkelstein said. Harris has largely echoed President Joe Biden’s staunch support of Israel, resisting pressure from the progressive wing of her party to halt shipments of weapons being used by Israeli forces in Gaza. The Democratic nominee has, however, placed greater emphasis on the plight of Palestinians in public statements, saying she will not be “silent” about the suffering in Gaza and that “far too many” innocent civilians have been killed in the war. Adblock test (Why?)

What killing of Hindu teen by India cow vigilantes tells us about Modi 3.0

At about 1am on August 24, Aryan Mishra, a 19-year-old 12th-grade student received a phone call. Two of his friends, both sons of Mishra’s landlord, wanted him to join them for a late-night snack – noodles, according to reports. Mishra soon joined them, grabbing the passenger seat in the landlord’s red SUV in a middle-class neighbourhood in Faridabad, a city in Haryana state on the outskirts of the national capital, New Delhi. One of the brothers, Harshit Gulati, was at the wheel, while his elder sibling, Shankey Gulati, 26, was in the rear with their mother Sujata Gulati and her friend Kirti Sharma, according to Indian media reports. As they drove along the largely empty streets of Faridabad, a car with a flashing red and blue beacon on top of it tried to stop them, local media reports said. Such beacons are usually allowed only on government vehicles. But the illegal use of these beacons by private vehicles remains rampant – especially when the owner is politically influential. Details of what happened next are hazy and are being investigated by the police. But according to most reports, the car that Aryan and his friends were in tried to speed away from the chasing vehicle. Was that because they were just scared of being followed by an unknown car? Was it because Shankey, according to some reports, was accused in a separate attempted murder case, and his family thought they were being pursued by a police vehicle? What is known is that a 40-kilometre (25-mile) chase followed. During the chase, a gunshot fired from the car behind hit Mishra on the shoulder. Harshit stopped the car. The men behind pulled up. One of them walked up to the car and pumped another bullet into Mishra’s neck from close range. The teenager was rushed to a local hospital, where he died. Though the killing took place almost two weeks ago, its details are emerging only now, shocking and outraging the country. Mishra had been killed in cold blood. But it is not that alone that has caused the outrage. It is the fact that Mishra was Hindu, killed by another Hindu – who thought he was Muslim. The suspects were cow vigilantes, members of a nationwide right-wing Hindu militia, Gau Raksha Dal (GRD or Cow Protection Association), that claims to protect cows – considered holy by many Hindus – from slaughter, mainly by Muslim cattle traders. Cow slaughter is banned or regulated in most Indian states. The vigilantes have rarely faced the brunt of the law. Instead, it is their victims and their families who have often faced police cases and scrutiny over whether they were actually in possession of beef. Against that backdrop, global and Indian rights groups believe these vigilantes operate under the patronage and protection of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since the Hindu nationalist leader came to power a decade ago. The BJP has denied that it is linked to these attacks, and in 2016, Modi publicly criticised vigilantes. But a cow vigilante in the southern state of Karnataka has received an election ticket from the BJP. Eight vigilantes convicted of lynching a 45-year-old Muslim meat trader were garlanded by a BJP minister in 2018. And the funeral of one of the men accused of lynching a Muslim man in 2015 was attended by another BJP minister. The Gau Raksha Dal has chapters in almost half of the Indian states, mostly in the north. Their logo depicts the head of a cow, flanked by two automated rifles or a pair of daggers. The vigilantes are armed with guns and sticks and patrol the streets through a large network of WhatsApp groups. They are the judge, jury and executioner, delivering their deadly justice on the streets of India. The vigilantes also share information about alleged incidents of cow slaughter or cattle smuggling with the police and are reported to have even joined police officers in conducting raids or arrests. Since 2014, when Modi first came to power, nearly 50 cow-related lynchings of Muslim men have been reported – most victims are poor farmers or daily wage workers, who left behind grieving families staring at an uncertain future. In nearly all such incidents, no cow meat was found, only the battered and tortured – and often lifeless – bodies of the victims. ‘We killed our brother’ According to a report on The Print website, when the local police told Mishra’s father Siyanand they suspected the involvement of cow vigilantes in his son’s killing, he did not believe they could kill “one of their own” and asked to meet the alleged shooter, Anil Kaushik, who was in judicial custody. During the meeting, Kaushik confessed to the distraught father that he regretted killing “a brother”, thinking he was a Muslim, and sought forgiveness. The report added that Kaushik did not know Mishra was a Brahmin, the most privileged class in India’s complicated caste hierarchy. “This incident is a blot for us. This is the first time in a decade that such an incident has happened. It’s a sad truth that we killed our brother,” Shailendra Hindu, a member of Bajrang Dal, a far-right militia that runs the cow vigilante groups, told The Print. Many Indian media outlets, meanwhile, called it a case of “mistaken” killing. This is India’s new normal: that the act of killing in itself is not a mistake, killing a Hindu is. Only three days after Mishra was shot dead, a 26-year-old Muslim ragpicker, Sabir Malik, was lynched by a mob on August 27 in Charkhi Dadri, a town in Haryana, about 130km (80 miles) from Faridabad, over suspicions he had consumed beef. Malik was a migrant worker from the eastern state of West Bengal. He lived in Charkhi Dadri with his wife and two-year-old daughter, according to media reports. News reports cite the police as saying that there was a rumour in the area where Malik lived that some migrant workers had consumed beef. A group

Father of Georgia high school shooting suspect Colt Gray arrested

Two students and two teachers were killed and nine people injured in Wednesday’s high school shooting. The father of the 14-year-old boy suspected of shooting dead four people and injuring nine more in a Georgia school has been arrested. State officials said Colin Gray knowingly allowed his son Colt to have the weapon he used in Wednesday’s attack. Gray, 54, was charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said. “These charges stem from Mr Gray knowingly allowing his son Colt to possess a weapon,” Chris Hosey, director of the GBI, told a news conference. Colt Gray has been charged with four counts of murder and officials have said he will be tried as an adult. He is due to appear in court by video camera on Friday morning. Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed in the attack on the Apalachee High School in Winder, northeast of Atlanta, reviving a long-running US debate on gun control. Investigators say the younger Gray used an “AR platform style weapon”, or semiautomatic rifle, to carry out the shooting. It remained unclear exactly how the teenager came into possession of the weapon. Citing unnamed sources, CNN reported that the gun, which it described as an AR 15-style assault rifle, had been bought for the teenager by his father as a holiday gift. “The investigation into the shooting at Apalachee HS is still active [and] ongoing,” the GBI said in a post on social media platform X. Parental responsibility Officials identified the two students killed as Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo. The two teachers were Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53. Nine people were injured, seven of them students. All are expected to make a full recovery. Parental responsibility in mass shootings, particularly those carried out by minors, has come increasingly under the spotlight in recent months. “How could you have an assault rifle, a weapon in a house, not locked up and knowing your kid knows where it is?” President Joe Biden told reporters on Thursday. “You’ve got to hold parents accountable if they let their child have access to these guns.” In April, the mother and father of a Michigan teen were sentenced to between 10 and 15 years in prison when a jury convicted them of manslaughter after their son shot and killed four classmates. It was believed to be the first time parents had been held legally responsible for their child’s actions in a school shooting. Experts and gun safety advocates said the Michigan case was an important step in holding gun-owning parents more accountable for gun violence carried out by their children. Studies by the US Department of Homeland Security have shown that about 75 percent of all school attackers got their weapons from home. The United States has seen hundreds of shootings inside schools and colleges in the past two decades. The carnage has intensified the debate over gun laws and the US Constitution’s Second Amendment “to keep and bear arms”. Adblock test (Why?)

Congress releases first list of candidates for Haryana elections, fields Vinesh Phogat from Julana

The party fielded wrestler Vinesh Phogat from Julana hours after she joined the party along with Bajrang Punia.

Judge Merchan delays Trump sentencing until after election

Judge Juan Merchan decided to postpone former President Trump’s sentencing in New York v. Trump until after the November presidential election.  Trump’s sentencing date is now scheduled for Nov. 26. The original date was set for Sept. 18. “There should be no sentencing in the Manhattan DA’s Election Interference Witch Hunt. As mandated by the United States Supreme Court, this case, along with all of the other Harris-Biden Hoaxes, should be dismissed,” Steven Cheung, Trump campaign spokesperson told Fox News Digital.  Trump was found guilty in an unprecedented criminal trial on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, following a six-week trial stemming from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation.  Trump’s initial sentencing was set for July 11 — just days before the Republican National Convention, where he was set to be formally nominated as the 2024 GOP presidential nominee, but Judge Juan Merchan agreed to delay that until Sept. 18.  ‘ELECTION INTERFERENCE’: TRUMP LAWYERS CALL FOR DELAYED SENTENCING IN BRAGG CASE Trump lawyers then requested his sentencing be delayed until after the November presidential election, citing “naked election-interference objectives.”  Trump has appealed the verdict, after pleading not guilty to all charges. Trump attorney Todd Blanche said the verdict should be overturned based on the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity.  Blanche also pointed to Merchan’s daughter’s work at Authentic Campaigns, which represents top Democratic candidates.  TRUMP ASKS FEDERAL COURT TO TAKE OVER BRAGG CASE WEEKS BEFORE SENTENCING In his arguments for dismissal, Blanche argued that Bragg offered official acts as evidence during the six-week-long unprecedented criminal trial. Blanche said that included official White House communications with staffers like Hope Hicks, Madeleine Westerhout and others.  The Supreme Court ruled in Trump v. United States that a former president has substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts in office but not for unofficial acts. The high court said Trump is immune from criminal prosecution for “official acts” but left it to the lower court to determine exactly where the line between official and unofficial is. Meanwhile, last week, Trump asked a federal court to seize the New York criminal trial from the state and argued he has become a victim of “Constitutional violations” in proceedings that conflicted with the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on presidential immunity.  U.S. District Court Judge Alvin Hellerstein denied that request, saying there was nothing in the high court’s presidential immunity ruling that alters his view that private payments to an adult film star are not related to a president’s official acts.  He previously said that Trump’s reimbursement to Michael Cohen, his former lawyer who facilitated hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, were not official acts he made as president.  “My holding of a hush money reimbursement remains true regardless of who has the burden, whether the People or Mr. Trump,” Hellerstein wrote in his decision. “Nothing in the Supreme Court’s decision affects my previous conclusion that the hush money payments were private, unofficial acts, outside the bounds of executive authority.”

‘Orange Man’ Trump will jail protesters, Jane Fonda claims at Harris event for overseas voters

Actress and environmental activist Jane Fonda once again addressed an overseas audience, warning Democratic voters abroad that former President Donald Trump will “jail” anyone who protests his policies if he’s re-elected.  “If you are young out there abroad, you’re going to want to vote so that you have a livable future. And you’re going to want to vote so that you have a voice in a democracy. Now, with a Harris ticket, you will have a voice, if you want something to happen, or you want something to not happen, you can lobby. You can protest, demonstrate, you can do all kinds of things,” Fonda said during a Democrats Abroad campaign event for the Harris-Walz ticket Thursday afternoon.  “The Orange Man will not let that happen. He puts the people who don’t agree with him in jail, and he said he’s going to make their lives miserable,” Fonda continued before a moderator for the campaign event interjected that their next speaker, Sen. Ed Markey, was set to address the virtual event.  Democrats Abroad is the official arm of the Democratic Party for American citizens living overseas, including registering them to vote and keeping them apprised of key policy issues during election cycles. About three million U.S. citizens live abroad and vote overseas, according to the Federal Voting Assistance Program.  JANE FONDA CLAIMS SHE’S ONLY INTERESTED IN YOUNG LOVERS BECAUSE SHE DOESN’T ‘LIKE OLD SKIN’ The group held an hours-long campaign event Thursday afternoon on Zoom, where a bevy of elected Democratic officials and Hollywood elites spoke to those living overseas about why they are supporting the Harris-Walz ticket.  DONALD TRUMP PRAISED BY STARS AS ‘A WARRIOR,’ MAN ‘WILLING TO GIVE HIS LIFE’ AFTER ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT Hollywood stars such as Kyra Sedgewick, Rob Reiner, Alfre Woodard and Fonda, as well as elected officials including former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, former Attorney General Eric Holder and Rep. Adam Schiff, delivered short remarks to those watching, encouraging them to snub Trump at the ballot box.  “One of the main reasons … this particular election in this coming November is so utterly critical, is because one of the two top tickets – and I don’t think I need to mention the names – will take us in the absolutely wrong direction. I’m going to say the Orange Man. Okay, the Orange Man has let us know in no uncertain terms that on day one, if he is elected, it’s going to be ‘Drill, baby, drill.’ And as I said, the world cannot afford another four years of not paying attention to the climate crisis. It’s going to be too late to solve this existential crisis. We need a strong democracy. And the Orange Man has also let us know that he’s not crazy about democracy,” Fonda continued in her remarks.  JANE FONDA SAYS HARRIS-WALZ TICKET IS ‘ONLY HOPE’ TO BEAT ‘ORANGE MAN’ IN CAMPAIGN CALL WITH CLIMATE ACTIVISTS Pelosi also slammed Trump, while opting to call the 45th president “what’s his name” and arguing that “our democracy is at stake” this election cycle. She added that she’s grateful to God that she was serving as speaker of the House on Jan. 6, 2021, when supporters of Trump’s breached the U.S. Capitol, instead of a Republican House leader.  “I want to say this immodestly, but I was very glad that God placed me to be the speaker on January 6 of last time. Because if it had been a Republican speaker, the whole story would be different now. So, Hakeem Jeffries must be the Speaker of the House on January 6. That’s a must. It’s up to you. No burden, just up to you,” Pelosi said.  The former attorney general under the Obama administration, Eric Holder, also addressed those watching, arguing that Trump’s political statements and policies during the 2024 campaign cycle have been “chilling.”  “They’ve grown comfortable with everything from gerrymandering to voter suppression to outright intimidation. And this is profoundly, you know, un American. I mean, earlier this summer, Donald Trump asked a part of his MAGA base, talking to some Maga supporters, he told them that you just have to vote just this time. Vote just this time. And then he said you won’t have to do it anymore. That’s a pretty chilling thing,” Holder said.  Holder joined the Harris campaign earlier this year to lead the vetting process of her potential running mates before Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was announced as the candidate last month. September is a key month for American voters abroad, with federal law requiring absentee ballots to be sent to members of the military and voters overseas 45 days before the election. The ballots will be sent out by Sept. 21 during this election cycle.  Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Mumbai-Frankfurt Vistara flight diverted to Turkey due to bomb threat

According to the airline, the crew acted promptly, alerting the relevant authorities as per safety protocols.

Ken Paxton sues Travis County to block voter registration efforts

The Texas attorney general filed a similar lawsuit earlier this week against Bexar County, which includes San Antonio.