Nevada Dem dumps $14M into ads as critical Senate race shifts to ‘toss up’
Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen revealed a whopping $14 million ad reservation for the general election season as she braces for a tough challenge from Republicans. The multimillion-dollar reservation was made for ads that will run from July through Election Day in November. It is also the largest such reservation ever made in Nevada by a Senate candidate. The ad buy will include media markets in Las Vegas and Reno. MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT TRIAL POISED TO PRESSURE THESE VULNERABLE SENATE DEMS Rosen’s latest move comes one day after the Nevada Senate race was shifted from “Lean Democrat” to “Toss Up” by the nonpartisan elections analyst, the Cook Political Report. The matchup joins Senate races in Ohio, Arizona and Montana in the category. “While her extreme Republican opponents are busy trying to out-MAGA each other, Jacky Rosen is reaching Nevada voters for the general election and sharing her record as one of the most bipartisan and effective senators,” said Stewart Boss, Rosen’s campaign manager, in a press release. The Republicans vying for her Senate seat are in the midst of a crowded primary that won’t be determined until the election on June 11. VULNERABLE NEVADA DEMOCRAT TOUTS BIPARTISANSHIP DESPITE VOTING WITH BIDEN 99% OF TIME The $14 million reservation is larger than a similar one made by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., during her 2022 re-election bid. The senator reserved $10 million worth of ad space on the airwaves between Labor Day and Election Day during the campaign. This was the largest such reservation at the time. Cortez Masto ultimately narrowly defeated her Republican opponent, Adam Laxalt. GOP SENATE HOPEFUL RAKES IN $2.2 MILLION TO TAKE ON DEM INCUMBENT IN SWING-STATE NEVADA “She’s going to need it,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesperson Mike Berg, referencing the recent ratings change. He said she was in “a dangerous spot” for an incumbent. “Jacky Rosen is scrambling to cover up her record of being in lockstep with Joe Biden,” remarked Nevada Republican strategist Jeremy Hughes. After Rosen released an ad this week touting herself as bipartisan, critics pointed out that she voted in alignment with President Biden nearly 99% of the time in 2023. TRUMP RAKES IN HEFTY MARCH FUNDRAISING HAUL AS CAMPAIGN AIMS TO CLOSE CASH GAP WITH BIDEN While her $14 million ad reservation is the largest of its kind in a Nevada Senate race, political advertising spending is notorious for being high in the state. In the 2022 Senate race, $161 million was spent by candidates and related groups on political advertising for the general election, per AdImpact. This included $32 million from Cortez Masto, $30 million from the Democratic-aligned Senate Majority PAC, $28 million from the Republican-aligned Senate Leadership Fund, $12 million from the conservative Club for Growth Action, $11 million from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, $9 million from the conservative One Nation, $3 million from Laxalt, and $6 million in a coordinated buy from Laxalt and the NRSC. The 2022 Senate race was a component of what made Nevada’s general election the third most expensive in the country, according to AdImpact. Rosen could face a slate of possible Republican opponents. However, former U.S. Army Capt. Sam Brown has proven to be the frontrunner, garnering national media attention and high-profile endorsements. Former Trump official Jeff Gunter, veteran Air Force pilot Tony Grady and former state Assemblyman Jim Marchant are other prominent Republican candidates seeking the Senate nomination.
California Democrat tied with challenger in wild congressional primary
A rare tied primary election result is set to put three candidates on the November ballot in California’s 16th Congressional District. Nearly one month after the March 5 election, unofficial results show that two Democratic candidates have tied for second place in the nonpartisan “jungle” primary. State Assemblyman Evan Low and Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian each have 30,249 votes, behind first-place finisher Sam Liccardo, the former mayor of San Jose, who earned 38,489 votes. “It’s a special ‘Tie’ day!” Low posted on X after all precincts finished reporting vote totals on Wednesday. 2024 CALIFORNIA PRIMARY RESULTS If the primary results are certified by the California secretary of state, the outcome means Liccardo and both of his challengers will all appear on the November ballot, according to state law. “If only one candidate receives the highest number of votes cast but there is a tie vote among two or more candidates receiving the second-highest number of votes cast, each of those second-place candidates shall be a candidate at the ensuing general election along with the candidate receiving the highest number of votes cast, regardless of whether there are more candidates at the general election than prescribed by this article,” California elections code states. “In no case shall the tie be determined by lot.” TEXAS ARMY VET CHANGES NAME, RUNS FOR PRESIDENT AS ‘LITERALLY ANYBODY ELSE’ Jim Irizarry, assistant assessor-county clerk-recorder of San Mateo County, told local news station KPIX that a vote for Simitian received by the county Tuesday tied the election. Officials in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties are scheduled to issue their official results by 5 p.m. local time Thursday. “It’s in the ballpark of the candidates. At this point in time, the campaigns need to decide whether they are satisfied with the results. If they are not, they have five days to file for a recount,” Irizarry told KPIX. “At this juncture, because there is a tie, state law basically says that when there is a tie for the two positions that we’re talking about right now, the two will go to the November election, so they will be at three-way race for the congressional seat.” TRUMP SWEEPS MARCH 19 REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARIES California election officials have an April 12 deadline to certify the results, according to the secretary of state’s website. The election will determine who will replace Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., who announced her retirement in November after serving more than three decades in Congress. “I’m choosing this beautiful season of Thanksgiving to announce that I will not seek re-election,” Eshoo, 80, said in a video accompanying the announcement. “And I do so with a heart filled with unending gratitude to you, my magnificent constituents.” Representatives for the Low and Simitian campaigns did not immediately respond to requests for comment asking whether they intended to challenge the results of the election or seek a recount. Fox News Digital’s Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report.
Texas wind energy firms need more technicians. Can they drum up student interest without state support?
The wind industry promises attractive salaries. But a lack of training programs and waning political support make it difficult to find new recruits.
Media hit DeSantis for migrant flights to Martha’s Vineyard, mum on influx to Florida under Biden parole
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis faced a firestorm of controversy and media coverage when in 2022 his office flew 50 Venezuelans to Martha’s Vineyard. However, a broader Biden administration program that has led to hundreds of thousands of migrants reportedly being flown into Florida is not attracting the same attention. DeSantis’ office had the migrants flown into the Massachusetts vacation spot, popular with rich liberal politicians, in 2022 amid a then-record surge of migrants across the southern border. While the numbers being flown to Martha’s Vineyard were relatively small, Democrats accused DeSantis of using migrants as political pawns. As Fox News Digital noted at the time, multiple media outlets and networks erupted in anger, calling the move a “stunt” and detailing how their treatment was “inhumane” – something DeSantis’ office denied. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Other TV personalities accused DeSantis of engaging in human trafficking and asked whether a crime was being committed. Local officials complained that they had been given no notice of the migrants’ arrival. But there has not been anything close to the level of outrage from media outlets this week after a report that over 326,000 migrants have flown into the state of Florida via a Biden parole program which, while different in many aspects, has led to a significant number of new arrivals in the Sunshine State that vastly outweigh the 50 migrants flown to the tony Massachusetts island. The parole processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CHNV) was introduced first for Venezuelans in October 2022 and expanded for the other nationalities in January 2023. The program allows migrants who have not entered illegally to apply for parole in other countries and then travel or fly directly into the U.S. if they have a sponsor and are fully vetted. The program does not itself facilitate flights, and migrants are responsible for their own travel. They are given work permits and two-year authorization to live in the U.S. ‘ILLEGAL PROGRAM’: GOVERNOR VOWS TO FIGHT BIDEN FLYING MIGRANTS INTO US The program has caused controversy in some quarters. It was hit by a lawsuit from 20 states, who say it is an abuse of the parole system. That lawsuit was struck down, but Florida says it intends to keep fighting the program. “It’s an illegal program. They’re bringing people in who don’t have a right to be in this country from foreign countries,” DeSantis said on Wednesday in reaction to a Center for Immigration Studies report which found that 326,000 migrants have arrived via Miami. DHS says that more than 386,000 nationals have arrived overall so far. “The federal government is encouraging illegal immigration and even aiding these individuals to enter the country,” DeSantis communications director Bryan Griffin said. “They’ve cloaked these secretive flights as a lawful parole program.” DeSantis noted the recent case of a Haitian migrant who had been flown in via CHNV and was now charged with the rape of a 15-year-old girl. “That is something that would have been prevented if they’d just followed the law,” DeSantis said. DHS has rejected the criticisms against it, also rejecting claims that it is a “secret” program, noting that details of the program have been made public. MAYORKAS CALLS POLICY TO LET 30K MIGRANTS FLY IN EACH MONTH A ‘KEY ELEMENT’ OF BORDER AFTER LEGAL WIN “More than 14 months ago, on January 5, 2023, DHS announced processes providing certain Cubans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans who have a supporter in the United States, undergo and clear robust security vetting, and meet other eligibility criteria, to come to the United States in a safe, orderly, and lawful way,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement on Wednesday. “These processes were built on the success of the process for Venezuelans. These processes are publicly available online, and DHS has been providing regular updates on their use to the public. These processes are part of the Administration’s strategy to combine expanded lawful pathways with stronger consequences to reduce irregular migration, and have kept hundreds of thousands of people from migrating irregularly.” But DeSantis, noting his administration’s prior victories in the courts over Biden parole policies, is hoping he will get this one shut down too. “We’ve been after them on this parole for a long time, we’ve actually won in court, and it’s our hope we’re going to be able to get that shut down,” DeSantis said. Meanwhile, DeSantis’ name was dropped from a lawsuit over the Martha’s Vineyard flights this week, although a judge ruled that migrants can sue the aviation company that transported them. Fox News’ Nikolas Lanum contributed to this report.
Biden admin issues energy efficiency restrictions on key power grid technology
The Biden administration finalized energy efficiency regulations targeting distribution transformers, which are vital for managing the flow of electricity from power stations to consumers. In an announcement Thursday morning, the Department of Energy said the regulations would help accelerate the development of green energy nationwide and are part of the Biden administration’s “commitment to tackling the climate crisis.” Overall, the agency projected that requiring more efficient transformers will save utilities and businesses $824 million a year in electricity costs. “These standards are going to make America’s power grid more resilient,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told reporters. “They’ll support good-paying, high-quality manufacturing jobs, and they’ll help us deploy more affordable and reliable and clean electricity more quickly across the country.” “It’s going to provide critical, long-term certainty for domestic manufacturing and production investments – it’s going to strengthen energy and economic supply chain security,” she continued. “And it’ll position American producers and workers to capture an evolving and growing market.” TRUCKERS CHALLENGE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION OVER CLIMATE CRACKDOWN ON ELECTRIC BIG RIGS Granholm also emphasized that the energy efficiency standards will slash nearly 85 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of the combined annual emissions of 11 million U.S. homes. Under DOE’s regulations, energy efficiency gains will be achieved with 75% of the transformers on the market being manufactured with grain-oriented electrical steel (GOES) and another 25% being manufactured with amorphous alloy, a lesser-used electric steel core material. Manufacturers will be given five years to ensure total compliance with the regulations. FEDERAL COURT STRIKES DOWN BIDEN’S CLIMATE RULE FOR STATES While the new standards require transformers to be more energy efficient, they also represent a scaled-down version of the regulations DOE first proposed in January 2023. Under the original plan, 95% of distribution transformers would have been required to be made with amorphous alloy and manufacturers would have three years to comply. That proposal was widely criticized by power providers and utility companies that characterized it as unrealistic. It also led to bipartisan legislation, introduced in January by Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, which would require DOE to issue standards at levels that preserve market opportunities for transformer manufacturers. According to Brown, GOES currently accounts for more than 95% of the domestic distribution transformer market and the U.S. has just one small producer of amorphous steel, which relies on foreign materials and has a market share of less than 5%. Therefore, Brown said, rapidly ramping up reliance on amorphous steel could make the U.S. power grid vulnerable. “The final rule provides stability for most of the market, while affording a more gradual shift toward tighter efficiency standards for transformers used to meet larger commercial and certain electrification loads,” Louis Finkel, the senior vice president of government relations for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), said in a statement. INTERNATIONAL CODE COUNCIL REJECTS AGGRESSIVE GREEN ENERGY HOME BUILDING CODE MANDATE Finkel, whose group represents companies that provide service to 42 million residents across 47 states, said the regulations are “much improved” compared to DOE’s initial proposal, a plan he said would have “upended the entire market.” “The revised rule helps to preserve the availability of both GOES and amorphous steel, and it provides the additional time needed to protect and expand domestic manufacturing capacity,” said Scott Aaronson, senior vice president of security and preparedness at Edison Electric Institute. “While this is a positive step forward, electric companies today still are facing unprecedented lead times for transformers.” Overall, distribution transformers are an essential component of the power grid, and will be in higher demand as existing infrastructure deteriorates and electricity demand increases with heavier reliance on green energy. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory recently projected distribution transformer installations will need to triple by 2050. The firm AK Steel is the sole producer of GOES in North America and manufactures the product at a plant in Butler, Pennsylvania. It’s then finished at a facility in Zanesville, Ohio.
‘PM sleeping after taking opium’: Mallikarjun Kharge on India-China border issue
Mallikarjun Kharge, attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi harshly on Thursday in response to the ongoing border dispute with China.
IAF launches emergency landing facility in J-K, also plans..
The ministry said that a large number of troops were airlifted and subsequently air landed utilising Chinook, Mi-17 V5 and ALH Mk-III helicopters by night.
Michigan Republican grills Biden on taxpayer-funded rent subsidies going to asylum-seekers
FIRST ON FOX: A House Republican from Michigan is demanding to know whether federal tax dollars are going toward subsidizing housing for people who come to the U.S. illegally. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., wrote directly to President Biden on Wednesday regarding the federal government’s Office of Refugee Resettlement, arguing that its grant process “raises a number of troubling questions.” Money awarded by the agency is being used for Michigan’s Newcomer Rental Subsidy program, which gives eligible refugees and asylum-seekers up to $500 in rental assistance per month. But critics of the program have argued that it’s vulnerable to abuse by illegal immigrants. TRUMP DECLARES BORDER A ‘WARZONE,’ DINGS NEWSOM FOR ‘TERRIBLE JOB’ AS MIGRANTS FLOOD CALIF “With your failure to secure our borders, and the yearly number of border encounters increasing from 859,501 in [fiscal year 2019] to 1,151,448 in only the first five months of FY 2024, the Refugee Resettlement Program will only burden the U.S. taxpayer with higher costs,” McClain wrote to Biden. To be eligible, migrants must be refugees, asylum-seekers, special immigration visa holders, victims of human trafficking, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Afghan nationals or Ukrainian humanitarian parolees. Migrants who have an asylum claim that is merely pending are also eligible. TEXAS SQUARES OFF WITH DOJ AFTER CIRCUIT COURT BLOCKED ANTI-ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION LAW GOP critics say this means that migrants who illegally crossed the border and claimed asylum to avoid deportation could potentially benefit from the subsidy. If a migrant cannot provide verification of income – such as a paycheck or bank statement – the applicant must submit a written explanation of why there is no documentation. One of the options available to them is a “cash payment.” In her letter, McClain questioned Biden directly on whether U.S. tax dollars are going toward housing assistance for people who entered the country illegally, and if not, she asked, “what is your administration doing to ensure U.S. tax dollars do not go toward housing assistance for those who have broken our laws and come across our borders illegally?” WATCH: DASHCAM FOOTAGE SHOWS TEXAS NATIONAL GUARDSMAN’S ARREST FOR ALLEGEDLY SMUGGLING MIGRANT She also asked whether it’s possible, given the record number of people crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, that U.S. federal refugee resettlement aid “could be viewed as yet another incentive by your Administration to roll out the red carpet and invite more people to illegally pour across our borders.” A Fox News analysis found last month that nearly 7.3 million migrants illegally crossed the southwest border under Biden, a number greater than the population of 36 individual states. Fox News Digital reached out to both Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office as well as the White House for comment.
Nebraska legislature rejects Trump-approved ‘winner-take-all’ electoral system bill
An attempt to make Nebraska’s elections into a “winner-take-all” system failed this week. State Sen. Julie Slama attached the proposed election overhaul to the unrelated bill LB1300 on Wednesday in an attempt to make the change before the end of the legislative session on April 18. It fell short of the 23 necessary votes, failing with a final 8-36 count. Nebraska is one of only two states in the U.S. that do not use the winner-take-all system, the other being Maine. TRUMP SUPPORTING NEBRASKA GOVERNOR SEEKING TO MAKE STATE ELECTIONS ‘WINNER-TAKE-ALL’ The two states assign votes in the Electoral College based on district, sometimes leading to Democrats snagging an extra delegate from the mostly red state. A change to winner-take-all would almost certainly benefit Republicans by allowing the red majority of Nebraska to dominate and prevent minority blue factions from capturing a single delegate, as has happened in the past. Slama criticized Republicans’ failure to pass the amendment, saying it showed a lack of “intestinal fortitude” despite holding a legislative majority. “This pretty well sums it up,” said Slama. “The ‘filibuster-proof’ majority doesn’t have the intestinal fortitude to make Nebraska a Winner-Take-All state in an election year. Wild.” NEBRASKA GOVERNOR TIGHTENS RESTRICTIONS ON GENDER TRANSITION TREATMENTS FOR MINORS State Sen. Loren Lippincott sponsored the initial winner-take-all bill LB764, but now does not see it passing before the legislature closes. “My staff and I are doing everything we can to seek options for getting this to the finish line,” said Lippincott, according to local outlet WOWT. “However, the harsh reality of a two-day time frame is limiting.” Lippincott’s bill boasts enthusiastic support from the state’s governor and even former President Donald Trump. “I am a strong supporter of Senator [Loren] Lippincott’s winner-take-all bill (LB 764) and have been from the start. It would bring Nebraska into line with 48 of our fellow states, better reflect the founders’ intent, and ensure our state speaks with one unified voice in presidential elections,” Gov. Jim Pillen said in a Tuesday statement. Trump published a copy of the governor’s statement to his proprietary social media platform, Truth Social, on the same day. This was followed by a separate post voicing support for changing Nebraska to a winner-take-all system. “Governor Jim Pillen of Nebraska, a very smart and popular Governor, who has done some really great things, came out today with a very strong letter in support of returning Nebraska’s Electoral Votes to a Winner-Take-All System,” Trump wrote via Truth Social on Tuesday. “Most Nebraskans have wanted to go back to this system for a very long time, because it’s what 48 other States do – It’s what the Founders intended, and it’s right for Nebraska,” Trump added.
GOP committee demands answers on Biden taxpayer push to register voters in key swing state: ‘Inconceivable”
FIRST ON FOX: A Republican-led House committee is demanding answers from the Biden administration over concerns that the Small Business Administration is funneling resources to a key swing state to register voters in a move they say could be unconstitutional. “On March 19, 2024, the SBA announced a new voter registration Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Michigan Department of State,” a letter from the Republican led Committee on Small Business wrote to Biden’s Small Business Administration this week. “The Committee is concerned about the lack of constitutional and statutory authority allowing the SBA to engage in activities beyond its mission, including voting access and registration activities. It appears that this is an attempt to improperly involve the federal government in America’s electoral processes. Elections are for the American people to engage in, not for federal agencies to interfere with during an election year.” The letter outlines concerns, following a 2021 executive order from Biden directing federal agencies to promote “access to voting,” that the administration is using the government agency to register votes in a swing state that many believe will be one of the states the November election hinges upon. BIDEN ADMIN ACCUSED OF USING TAXPAYER FUNDS TO HELP HIS OWN CAMPAIGN WITH STUDENT VOTER REGISTRATION SCHEME In March of this year, the SBA announced a memorandum of understanding with the Michigan Department of State to “promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan” that it called the “first-of-its-kind collaboration” and which will run through Jan. 1, 2036. In a press release, SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman said the partnership “will help connect Michiganders to vital voter registration information from the State of Michigan so that more small business owners can exercise their right to vote.” “The SBA was created to ‘to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small business concerns; preserve free competitive enterprise; and maintain and strengthen the overall economy of our nation,’” the committee wrote, adding that the MOU has “nothing to do with the SBA’s mission and the legal duties its charged to fulfill. Small businesses are suffering from crippling inflation, overburdensome regulations, and U.S. small business optimism is at the lowest level in months.” “It is unacceptable for the SBA to divert resources from serving small businesses so it can register voters in Michigan.” BEWARE OF WORK-STUDY PROGRAMS DISGUISED AS POLITICAL ACTIVITIES: GOP ATTORNEYS GENERAL LETTER TO DOE The letter goes on to say that multiple committee members have “serious concerns” about the timing of the Biden administration’s plan and the “political nature of this MOU.” “It is inconceivable why Michigan – a state with a registered voting population above the national average – is where SBA found a need to use taxpayer resources to register more Michigan voters,” the letter states. “Additionally, the timing of this MOU’s announcement is suspicious. The SBA made this announcement while President Biden’s campaign directs its attention toward Michigan, a key battleground state for his re-election efforts.” “The SBA involving itself in the election process of a battleground state during an election year is an insult to struggling small business owners across America. Perhaps this MOU is a ‘first of its kind collaboration for the SBA’ because it is inconsistent with federal law, has nothing to do with the SBA’s stated mission, and ignores the harsh realities small businesses face under the Biden Administration.” Congressman Roger Williams, R-Texas, chairman of the House Committee on Small Business, said in a statement that the SBA’s efforts could possibly violate the Constitution. POLL REVEALS BATTLEGROUND STATE VOTERS PREFER TRUMP OVER BIDEN IN HEATED 2024 CONTEST “The SBA’s MOU with the Michigan Department of State is improper, inappropriate, and perhaps, unconstitutional,” Williams said. “The SBA was created for one reason: to assist our nation’s small businesses. It has no reason whatsoever to involve itself in political and potentially electioneering activities. Moreover, the fact the SBA would divert resources away from Main Street so it can focus on voter registration in a battleground state is an affront to our job creators, especially for all they do for our communities and economy. Americans have a right to know what exactly is going on here, and this Committee plans on getting answers.” The letter argues that the “American people deserve to know” why the SBA is registering voters in Michigan rather than allocate all of its focus to the small businesses nationwide that currently “struggle to survive under the Biden administration’s policies.” Additionally, the committee is asking Guzman to provide documents and information related to a series of questions by April 18. JILL BIDEN SNAPS AT MENTION OF POLL WITH PRESIDENT TRAILING TRUMP IN SIX SWING STATES: ‘NO, HE’S NOT’ The letter asks for “all communications” between and among SBA personnel regarding the 2021 executive order and/or the MOU from March 10, 2021, to the present and all communications “between SBA personnel and third parties, including but not limited to small business owners, associations, non-profits, and SBA resource partners in the State of Michigan, regarding E.O. 14019, and/or the MOU, from March 10, 2021, to present.” The committee also seeks a “full” and “unredacted copy” of the MOU in question as well as an unredacted copy of implementation plans related to that MOU and drafts of those plans submitted to the White House. The Biden executive order in 2021 instructing federal agencies to register voters to combat racism has drawn criticism from states across the country, including recently in Mississippi. Last month, the state’s Republican Secretary of State Michael Watson sent a letter to Biden’s Department of Justice demanding they stop efforts to register voters in federal prisons due to concerns that illegal immigrants and ineligible felons are being registered. “This serves as another example of the Biden administration’s unconstitutional efforts to weaponize every federal agency into voter registration and GOTV arms of the Democratic Party,” Watson told Fox News Digital this week. “I applaud Chairman Williams’ efforts to dig in and get answers for the American people, and pledge to