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No Labels reaches out to a former GOP presidential candidate regarding their pending third-party ticket

As they vet candidates for a potential third-party presidential ticket, No Labels is reaching out to former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. A source in the two-time Republican presidential candidate’s political orbit told Fox News on Thursday that the centrist group has made outreach to Christie in recent days. Christie, who ended his 2024 GOP nomination campaign in mid-January, appeared to leave the door open to a possible third party run in an interview with former Obama adviser David Axelrod that was released earlier in the day.  Asked on Axelrod’s popular podcast if he’s considering a third-party presidential bid, Christie said “I think the way I would look at it is, I will do whatever I can to try to make sure that the country doesn’t go through what I think will be the misery of a second Trump term.” NO LABELS TAKES ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS LAUNCHING A THIRD-PARTY PRESIDENTIAL TICKET Christie, a one-time Donald Trump supporter, ally, and adviser, broke with him over the then-president’s attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Biden. Christie became an extremely vocal GOP critic of the former president and made his opposition to Trump a centerpiece of his 2024 White House run. Christie emphasized that “I wouldn’t preclude anything at this point.” But he also added, “I would just say that there are a number of hurdles to get over before I would actually consider running as a third-party.” TRAILING BIDEN IN FUNDRAISING FIGHT, TRUMP AIMS TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD Asked in an interview last summer soon after he launched his second presidential campaign if he’d consider joining a possible No Labels ticket, Christie shot down the idea, saying, “I think it’s a fool’s errand.” “I’m not in this for showtime. I’m not in this for making a point. I’m in this to get elected President of the United States, and there are only two people who will get elected President of the United States: the Republican nominee for president and the Democratic nominee for president,” Christie said at the time in an interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week.”  But former Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the party’s 2000 vice presidential nominee who later became an independent and was a No Labels founding co-chair, said in a radio interview in January after Christie ended his White House bid that he “could be a very strong candidate” on the group’s proposed unity ticket.” “I’d like to reach out to him and see if he, Gov. Christie, is at all interested in being on a bipartisan No Labels Unity ticket this year. He could be a very strong candidate,” Lieberman added in a Sirius XM conversation with Michael Smerconish. No Labels last week took another step toward forming a bipartisan presidential ticket in November’s general election, as it announced the formation of a committee to vet candidates for the potential bipartisan ticket. The announcement of the committee came a week after roughly 800 No Labels delegates who took part in a virtual meeting voted to give a thumbs up to fielding a presidential ticket. For over a year, No Labels has mulled a third-party ticket, as it pointed to poll after poll suggesting that many Americans were anything but enthused about a 2024 election rematch between President Biden and former President Donald Trump. REMATCH: TRUMP, BIDEN, CLINCH GOP AND DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATIONS And No Labels had long said that it would decide whether to launch a presidential ticket following Super Tuesday, when 16 states from coast to coast held nominating primaries and caucuses. The latest move by No Labels came right after Biden and Trump clinched the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations, becoming the two major parties’ 2024 presumptive nominees. The moves by No Labels also came after former two-term Republican Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, a former leader of the group who was considered a potential contender for the “unity” ticket, recently took his name out of contention as he announced a run this year for an open Senate seat in his home state. And moderate Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, another former No Labels leader who is not seeking re-election this year and who flirted with a White House run, has also said he won’t launch a presidential bid. There was also plenty of speculation that former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who was the final 2024 GOP presidential nomination rival to Trump before she ended her White House run earlier this month, would consider running on a No Labels ticket. No Labels had expressed interest in her earlier this year. But Haley repeatedly nixed joining a No Labels ticket, most recently in an interview on “FOX and Friends” earlier this month. No Labels this month was holding conversations with former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan of Georgia, a former health care executive and minor league baseball player who served three terms in the Georgia House of Representatives before winning election as lieutenant governor in 2018. Duncan, another very vocal anti-Trump Republican, took his name out of contention earlier this week. No Labels said this week that it is already on the ballot in 18 states and currently working in 16 other states to obtain access.  There’s been a chorus of calls from Democrats warning that a No Labels ticket would pave a path to victory for Trump in November, but the group dismisses that criticism. “That’s not our goal here,” Lieberman told Fox News Digital late last year. “We’re not about electing either President Trump or President Biden.” Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

At least three killed in suicide bombing in Afghan city of Kandahar

At least 12 others wounded in blast that targeted a group of people waiting outside a bank in city centre. At least three people have been killed and 12 others wounded in a suicide bombing in front of a bank in Afghanistan’s Kandahar city, according to local police and officials. The ISIL (ISIS) group claimed responsibility for Thursday’s attack on its Telegram channel. The explosion at around 8:00am (03:30 GMT) targeted a group of people waiting outside the New Kabul Bank branch in central Kandahar city. Local police and Taliban officials said three people were killed and 12 were wounded. A source at a major hospital in the southern city said the toll was much higher, the AFP news agency reported. “Mirwais Hospital has received 20 people killed since this morning from the explosion,” the source told AFP on condition of anonymity out of fear of reprisal for speaking to the media. Inamullah Samangani, director of information and culture of Kandahar province, said the bank was busy with people collecting their salaries when the explosion went off. “Commonly our compatriots gather there to collect their salaries,” he said, adding that the “victims were civilians”. One of the victims, Khalil Ahmad, a father of eight in his 40s, had gone to the bank to get his salary, his nephew said at his funeral later Thursday. “He was just an ordinary, simple guy; he used to work as a painter,” Mohammad Shafiq Saraaj said, as Ahmad’s relatives gathered around his body wrapped in a white cloth for burial. “Such incidents used to happen under the previous government … and now it is happening as well,” Saraaj said. “We beg for security to be properly maintained in the country and especially in crowded places, and that our nation be saved from this kind of tragedy.” ‘Under control’ In the aftermath of the explosion, Taliban authorities surrounded the area outside the bank and did not allow media workers to approach the site. Samangani said on Thursday morning that “the situation is under control” at one of the city’s hospitals where the wounded were transported, denying there was an urgent need for blood donations as had been circulated on social media. “There is no such issue, and the wounded people are not in serious condition; they have superficial injuries,” he said in a message to journalists. Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada lives in Kandahar, the second-largest city in the country. The number of bomb blasts and suicide attacks in Afghanistan has markedly declined since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, ousting the United States-backed government. However, a number of armed groups – including the regional chapter of ISIL – remain a threat. Several explosions have been reported around Afghanistan since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on March 11, but few have been confirmed by Taliban officials. The US Charge d’Affaires for Afghanistan, Karen Decker, condemned “all acts of terror” in a post on X, offering condolences to the families of the victims. “Afghans should be able to observe Ramadan peacefully & without fear,” she said. The regional chapter of ISIL has a history of targeting Shia Muslims who it considers heretics, but is also a rival of the Taliban. Adblock test (Why?)

Why has Vietnam’s president resigned after just a year?

Vo Van Thuong is the latest high-profile figure to resign amid a corruption crackdown. Vietnam’s president has resigned after only a year in office. Vo Van Thuong is the latest high-profile figure to resign amid a corruption crackdown in a country important to both China and the West. So, why has he gone? And what are the international implications? Presenter: Rob Matheson Guests: Hai Hong Nguyen – Senior lecturer at VinUniversity in Hanoi Carlyle Thayer – Professor emeritus at the University of New South Wales – Canberra Nguyen Khac Giang – Visiting Fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, a think tank in Singapore Adblock test (Why?)

Blinken: Clear consensus for immediate, sustained ceasefire in Gaza

NewsFeed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a ceasefire is the best way to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. He spoke in Cairo following a meeting with Arab leaders that focused on a truce deal between Israel and Hamas as well as the release of captives. Published On 21 Mar 202421 Mar 2024 Adblock test (Why?)

Conservative lawmakers slam $1.2T government funding bill as ‘swamp omnibus’

House conservatives are balking at the term “minibus” being used to describe the $1.2 trillion government funding bill congressional leaders unveiled in the early hours of Thursday morning. “It’s not too ‘mini,’ is it?” Republican Study Committee Chair Kevin Hern, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital. “A ‘mini’ today is much different than a ‘mini’ five years ago. … Certainly, it’s smaller than an omnibus.” A “minibus” is the colloquial term on Capitol Hill for a spending package that combines several of Congress’ annual 12 government appropriations bills. It comes from the term “omnibus” being used when all 12 bills are rolled into a single massive spending package, plus the inclusion of unrelated priorities. SPEAKER JOHNSON FLOATS STAND-ALONE ISRAEL AID PLAN AFTER SCHUMER’S COMMENTS MADE SITUATION ‘EVEN MORE URGENT’ “Omnibus” spending bills are opposed by large swaths of the GOP, and some Democrats, for being too broad and lacking the transparency that smaller funding packages would have. That’s why congressional leaders divided them into two packages of six and have touted wins in keeping those packages largely free of irrelevant priorities. The first package, roughly amounting to $460 billion, passed the House and Senate earlier this month. But opponents of the bipartisan deal are claiming the entire deal is just an omnibus split in two. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., a member of the House Freedom Caucus, agreed when asked if the term “minibus” was misleading. HOUSE PASSES $460 BILLION GOVERNMENT FUNDING BILL BLASTED BY GOP HARDLINERS “Once you glue it together with the last one, you’ve got an omnibus. The first shoe of the omnibus fell last week. This is the second shoe falling this week,” Biggs told Fox News Digital. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., generally has not referred to the deal as a “minibus,” referring to it normally as a spending agreement or the appropriations process. But the term has been widely used by lawmakers and the media despite the package accounting for roughly 70% of discretionary federal government spending. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, posted several times to X, calling the deal a “swamp omnibus” and “an embarrassment.” CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS STRIKE SHORT-TERM DEAL TO AVOID GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN The $1.2 trillion spending bill includes funding for defense, the Department of Homeland Security, education and the legislative branch, among other offices. “It doesn’t matter what you call it. … If you have a bad process, you end up with a bad product. And that’s what we’ve had,” Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., told Fox News Digital.

Massachusetts Senate passes bill criminalizing ‘revenge porn’

A Massachusetts bill that bars someone from sharing explicit images or videos without consent was approved Thursday by the Massachusetts Senate. The bill, which now goes to conference committee to hash out differences with the House, means only South Carolina has not banned “revenge porn.” “With passage of this bill today we take another step towards closing a loophole in our laws that has caused pain, anguish, embarrassment, and a sense of helplessness to those survivors who for so long suffered in silence, without justice,” Democratic Sen. John Keenan, the sponsor of the Senate bill, said in a statement. MASSACHUSETTS GOV HEALEY’S ‘THINGS WILL HAPPEN’ COMMENT ON MIGRANT RAPE CASE SPILLS INTO NH GOV RACE “I am deeply grateful to the those who shared their stories and advocated for change to ensure others would not have to suffer as they have,” he said. “For every case we know of, countless others remain hidden, so I hope passage of this legislation by the Senate will soon lead to the bill being signed into law by the Governor.” Sen. Paul Feeney, who recognized that several victims were the gallery during the debate, said the bill addresses the “embarrassment, helplessness and shame” that comes from learning that your explicit images were on a website and that there was nothing you could do legally to address it. “Although it pains me that we even have to deal with this, I am thrilled that we are here sending a message and showing residents of the commonwealth that we will no longer stand by as people are victimized and abused” he said. “Make no mistake about it, it is emotional and sexual abuse, and we are taking steps here today to send a message that we hear you.” Minors who possess, purchase, or share explicit photos of themselves or other minors can currently be charged with violating the state’s child pornography laws and are required to register as sex offenders. The bill would instead authorize commitment to the Department of Youth Services, but it also allows minors to be diverted to an educational program instead of criminal punishment. The diversion program would teach teenagers about the legal and nonlegal consequences of sexting and would be available to school districts. The legislation would also address the nonconsensual distribution of explicit images by adults by establishing a penalty in the existing criminal harassment statute, including up to 2 1/2 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The criminal ban would also extend to what are known as deep fake pornography, which use computer-generated images. Coercive control, which advocates describe as a pattern of deliberate behavior by an abuser that substantially restricts another person’s safety and autonomy, would also be added to the definition of abuse under the bill. Examples of coercive control include threatening to share explicit images, regulating or monitoring a family or household member’s communications and access to services, and isolating a family or household member from friends or relatives. The legislation would also extend the statute of limitations for assault and battery on a family or household member or against someone with an active protective order from six years to 15 years. This change would bring the Massachusetts statute of limitations for the domestic violence offenses in line with the statute of limitations for rape, assault with intent to commit rape and sex trafficking.

Energy agency announces $475M in funding for clean energy projects on mine land sites

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The Biden administration pumped more money into clean energy projects Thursday, announcing up to $475 million in federal funding for projects in five states — including the political battleground states of Pennsylvania, Arizona and Nevada. The projects will accelerate clean energy development on current and former mine lands, the U.S. Department of Energy announced. The other states benefiting — Kentucky and West Virginia — are solidly Republican and have been hit hard by the downturn in the coal sector. BIDEN ADMIN SET TO FINALIZE MAJOR GAS CAR CRACKDOWN OVER WARNINGS FROM AUTOMAKERS, ENERGY INDUSTRY The funding comes from the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law — one of President Joe Biden’s hallmark legislative victories. The projects in Kentucky, West Virginia and Pennsylvania advance efforts to transition away from coal to solar and hydropower. The administration said the clean energy projects will strengthen the country’s energy security while helping ensure mining communities continue playing a role in the energy economy. “Workers and communities that powered our country for the last 100 years deserve the chance to power us for the next 100 and beyond,” Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk said in a press call Wednesday. Energy and climate policies have emerged as flash points in this year’s presidential race between Biden and Republican former President Donald Trump. Trump has indicated he’ll try to roll back Biden’s clean energy investments and expand drilling for oil and natural gas if he returns to office. Biden’s administration said the latest round of funding reinforced his commitment to building an “inclusive and equitable clean energy future that creates healthier, more resilient communities.” In Kentucky, a $1.3 billion pumped storage hydroelectric facility will be built on a former coal mine site, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear said. The project has been approved for a federal grant totaling up to $81 million to assist with construction of the plant in Bell County in southeastern Kentucky, Beshear said. “The mountains in this area provide the perfect landscape for moving water from one elevation to another, creating electricity when we need it,” Turk said. Coal employment numbers in Kentucky have fallen sharply over the last decade as demand for coal has declined. Kentucky employed about 4,700 mine workers at the end of 2023, including about 2,700 in underground mines, compared to nearly 12,000 total miners in 2013, according to numbers provided by the state. The Lewis Ridge Pumped Storage Project by Rye Development in Kentucky will create about 1,500 construction jobs to build what officials described as a first-of-its-kind coal-to-pumped storage hydropower facility, Beshear said. “We believe … this is the largest investment ever in eastern Kentucky,” he said. Once built, the facility will create 30 operations jobs and generate enough energy to power nearly 67,000 homes, he said. The federal funding also will support: —A project in southeast Arizona to deploy direct-use, geothermal, clean heat combined with a battery energy storage system at two active copper mines. It will help decrease the mines’ reliance on thermal backup generators while supporting the annual extraction of 25 million pounds (11.3 million kilograms) of copper. Kathleen Quirk, president of Freeport Minerals Corp., said the copper the project plans to extract from already-mined material was previously considered unrecoverable. The project aims to create 121 construction jobs and 12 permanent operations jobs. —A project in Nevada’s Elko, Humboldt and Eureka counties to develop a solar facility and accompanying battery energy storage system across three active gold mines. By shifting to clean energy, the project could demonstrate a replicable way for the mining industry to reach net-zero operations while meeting growing demands for minerals, the Energy Department said. Project construction is estimated to create about 300 jobs. —A project in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, to repurpose nearly 2,700 acres (1,090 hectares) of former coal mining land to create a utility-scale solar facility. The project will generate enough clean energy to power more than 70,000 homes. It will increase regional access to clean energy and fill a critical electricity-generation gap following the closure of the Homer City coal plant, the department said. More than 750 construction jobs and six operations jobs are expected to be created by the project. The project owner, Boston-based Swift Current Energy, has said construction could begin as early as summer 2024 and is scheduled to be online by the second half of 2026. In November, it announced that it had a 20-year contract to supply power to New York’s grid. —A project in Nicholas County, West Virginia, to repurpose two former coal mines with a utility-scale solar system that would power about 39,000 homes. The two inactive mine sites provide land and access to existing energy infrastructure that will transmit the solar energy the project generates to the grid. The project is projected to create about 400 construction jobs and four operations jobs.

National security hawks warn Congress throwing Pentagon ‘under the bus’ with ‘inadequate’ spending bump

National security hawks are raising alarms that Congress’ defense spending plan could hamper U.S. military advancement and leave the country more vulnerable against adversaries like China.  The defense appropriations bill was unveiled as part of a larger $1.2 trillion spending package aimed at funding roughly 70% of the federal government. Defense spending accounts for $886 billion, about a 3% increase from fiscal year 2023. Lawmakers in both the House and Senate argued that the modest hike amounted to a spending cut when taking annual inflation into account and shared concerns that not enough is being allocated to military technology advancements. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News Digital, “I thought the budget deal threw the Defense Department under the bus.” BALLET IN UKRAINIAN BOMB SHELTER ALLOWS ESCAPE FROM THE HORRORS OF WAR “We’ve been clawing and scratching to get a little higher number… China’s up 7% year-over-year,” Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., a retired Navy pilot, told Fox News Digital. “We’re not doing what we need to do in terms of investment in our military. It begins with our troops, but it’s also things like hypersonic space programs.” He also bashed the White House for calling for just a 1% increase in President Biden’s annual budget proposal earlier this month, adding, “It feels like every other federal agency… keeps getting these higher numbers out of the White House in those requests, and [defense] is just getting neglected.” Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, similarly argued, “It’s not just the level of spending, but where it’s being allocated.” “These appropriations bills are ultimately a process of negotiation. And when the people in the majority here prioritize other things over the defense of our country and spending on it, you’re going to wind up with products such as this,” Rubio said. Another Navy veteran in Congress, Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., said, “The defense budget is always inadequate. I say that every day of the week, so I wish it was more.” REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS DEMAND ‘CONSEQUENCES’ FOR AUSTIN’S ‘FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP’ DURING MEDICAL SCARE “We are always a day late and a dollar short already. We don’t have the time. The time was yesterday to invest in our military. It’s something that was neglected for a while,” Kiggans said. She also directed criticism at Biden for his proposed 1% increase for the next year, telling Fox News Digital, “We’ve got to put our money where our mouth is. Again, it gets very frustrating to me – that top line number from the Biden administration.” According to a House Appropriations Committee summary of the bill text, the defense appropriations bill “doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan” and includes a 5.2% increase in basic military pay. It provides a $27 billion increase over the previous fiscal year’s enacted level. The bill also includes nearly $4 billion for Israel and $300 million for Ukraine.  FEMALE RECRUIT CONSIDERED RESIGNING AFTER BEING FORCED TO SHOWER WITH TRANS WOMEN WITH FULL MALE GENITALIA House China committee Chair Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., however, was concerned there would not be enough resources to counter Beijing’s aggression – particularly toward Taiwan. “We’re dealing with a bow wave of deferred modernization. We’re still living off the Reagan buildup right now. I mean, we just haven’t invested the requisite money and allocated resources accordingly, sufficient to deny a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, which remains the most pressing national security challenge we need to be thinking through,” Gallagher told Fox News Digital. A spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told Fox News Digital, “By rejecting misguided priorities and refocusing Pentagon spending toward its core mission, this legislation increases funding to strengthen our national security and invest in our military readiness, technology, and modernization.” The office of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., declined to comment.

Hillary Clinton wades into crucial battleground Senate race that could determine balance of power

Former Secretary of State and two-time failed Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Thursday waded into what is expected to be one of the most closely watched Senate races this year that could determine the balance of power in Congress. In an early morning post on X, Clinton offered her endorsement to Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, a Phoenix-area congressman and the likely Democrat nominee in the race, praising him as a “fighter” who would defend abortion “rights.” Gallego welcomed the endorsement, saying in a statement he was “proud” to have Clinton’s support. WEALTHY NIKKI HALEY DONORS LAUNCH EFFORT TO BOOST BIDEN OVER TRUMP: REPORT “She’s long been a leading advocate for social justice, an unyielding fighter for women’s rights, and a dedicated public servant who has spent decades working to better our nation. Now more than ever, we need to stand together in the face of the extremism that’s threatening Arizona and work to protect abortion rights, defend our democracy, and build a better future for families in every corner of our state,” Gallego said. Gallego’s likely opponent, former local news anchor and conservative firebrand Kari Lake, teased the endorsement in her own X post. “[Hillary Clinton] is all-in on [Ruben Gallego]. I’m not surprised. They have a lot in common. Ruben & Hillary have spent their careers defrauding hard-working Americans & enriching themselves at YOUR expense. I’m running to put you & your family first,” she wrote. DEMS FLIP SCRIPT ON GOP CRIME AGENDA, TARGETING RNC CONVENTION PLANS WITH SURPRISING NAME Gallego welcomed a second endorsement on Thursday from progressive veterans group Common Defense, which praised his support for President Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act as well as his support for abortion. Democrats currently hold a narrow 51-49 majority in the Senate, with the backing of independent Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Angus King of Maine. Sinema announced this month that she will not seek reelection. Recent polls of Arizona voters have shown a tight hypothetical matchup between Gallego and Lake, while former President Trump holds a slight advantage over President Biden, a factor that could have a major impact on the Senate race. Arizona’s Senate race is one of many that Republicans see as an opportunity to flip in their favor, including West Virginia, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. A win in just two of those would give Republicans a Senate majority, assuming they hold onto their other seats not considered as competitive. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Immigrant families on edge amid uncertainty over new Texas law

Advocates for immigrant rights say they worry the law could encourage racial profiling. The law’s authors say it won’t likely be enforced beyond the border.