Speaker Johnson drops video with pointed message to Biden hours before State of the Union
FIRST ON FOX: House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is putting out a prebuttal to President Biden’s State of the Union address hours before the commander in chief heads to Capitol Hill. Johnson released a new video Thursday morning, which runs for about a minute and a half, highlighting the crises that have plagued the U.S. through much of Biden’s time in the White House. The House speaker also took a shot at Biden in a statement to Fox News Digital, calling for a “real leader” in the White House. “The State of the Union address will offer the American people an opportunity to hear directly from the president – a rare occurrence during his tenure in office,” Johnson said. BIDEN’S STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS: BRET BAIER, MARTHA MACCALLUM TO LEAD FOX NEWS CHANNEL’S SPECIAL COVERAGE “In just three years, President Biden’s policies have rapidly accelerated American decline on every issue from the economy to national security and foreign policy. The American people don’t need empty words on a page for a reset. We need better policies and a real leader,” he added. The video is a collection of news clips and sound bites that begins with Biden declaring that “the state of the union is strong.” It then flits through anchors and pundits describing the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border, both with the swell of asylum seekers straining state and local resources and the flow of illegal fentanyl that’s killing Americans daily. ALABAMA SEN KATIE BRITT TO DELIVER REPUBLICAN RESPONSE TO BIDEN STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS: ‘TRULY HONORED’ The video also covers Biden’s championing of “Bidenomics” despite the previous two years’ high inflation rates and rising prices at the grocery store, as well as China’s increased aggression against Taiwan and on the world stage. It’s part of Republicans’ counterprogramming efforts against Biden’s big Thursday night speech before a joint session of Congress at 9 p.m. ET. Johnson announced on Wednesday that Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-Texas, will deliver the Spanish-language rebuttal to Biden’s State of the Union. It comes as the GOP eyes significant gains among Hispanic and Latino voters. JIM BANKS CALLS ON BIDEN TO ‘PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGE’ LAKEN RILEY AT SOTU “As the first Latina and first Republican to represent her district, Congresswoman De La Cruz’s journey to Congress is nothing short of inspirational and encapsulates the very essence of what it means to live the American dream. Sadly, that dream is slipping away after three years of an open border, runaway inflation and a nation inviting aggression and projecting weakness on the world stage,” Johnson said. The formal rebuttal will be given by freshman Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala.
PM Modi launches Rs 5,000 crore project for Jammu and Kashmir’s agri-economy
The Centre-led by Prime Minister Modi abrogated the provisions of Article 370 on August 5, 2019 and bifurcated the erstwhile state into the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Maine considers bill that would establish ‘legal right’ to abortion, transgender surgical procedures
Maine is considering a bill that would establish “a legal right” to abortion and surgical sex changes, blocking clinicians who carry out the procedures from facing legal penalties. On Tuesday afternoon, opponents and supporters of the bill packed into the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Health Coverage, Insurance, and Financial Services hearing room to give their public comments. The hearing lasted more than six hours, and the bill is expected to go through more hurdles before potentially reaching a floor vote in the coming weeks. The bill, known as LD 227, would prohibit “interference” with abortion or sex change procedures, legally protect medical workers from facing lawsuits, and could potentially permit concealment of medical records from plaintiffs seeking legal action against a provider. 16 AGS SLAM YOUTUBE FOR ADDING ‘OBJECTIVELY UNTRUTHFUL’ CONTEXT DISCLAIMER ON ABORTION VIDEO Republicans opposing the bill caution that it might inadvertently allow for the “kidnapping” of adolescents in states that have heavier restrictions to undergo these procedures if they are taken across state borders to Maine. “Interference with that right is against state policy, and so that means interference, no matter who that interference might be — even a parent interfering — they don’t have a right to interfere because access to these services are legal,” Republican Rep. Laurel Libby told Fox News Digital in an interview Wednesday. If litigation in another state deters individuals from accessing their rightful services or assisting others in doing so, it’s deemed hostile and can prompt legal action, Libby added. “So, the idea is that Maine would essentially be a sanctuary state right for all abortion and transgender medical care. And so, yes, there would be no recourse through the courts,” she said. FRANCE ENSHRINES ABORTION AS A CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT IN WAKE OF DOBBS RULING, ACTIVISTS DECLARE ‘A VICTORY’ There are currently at least 23 states that restrict or ban transgender surgical procedures for minors. Proponents of the bill in Maine, including Planned Parenthood, argue it will provide much needed protection for medical providers in the state. “This bill is fundamentally about access to health care,” Lisa Margulies, a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood said during Tuesday’s hearing. “And resisting the devastating impacts of health care restrictions enacted by other states, and those are enacted not for medical reasons, but for political reasons.” Margulies went on to describe actions taken by lawmakers to restrict abortion care in other states “extremists.” “We can provide our own legal standards of care, we can do our own criminal prosecutions,” she said. Patience Crozier, a director for the LGBTQ+ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) organization, suggested restrictive laws in other states against the procedures are “really horrible attacks on transgender people.” “I think, in Maine, where reproductive and transgender health care is legal, this bill is really important to state the values of Maine and make sure that we’re protecting our providers from those attacks from other states,” Crozier said. PRO-CHOICE OBGYNS CRITICIZE FETAL DEVELOPMENT VIDEO FOR SEX ED CLASSES: ‘LAST THING KIDS NEED TO BE WATCHING’ But several Republicans remain concerned the 21-page bill provides a loophole for kids seeking these procedures to get a ride from someone else other than their parents if they do not approve of the child’s decision and repeatedly brought it up during the hearing. “It is extreme in its assault on family values,” Republican state Rep. Josh Morris said. “It sanctions kidnapping and shields doctors from any consequences.” This month, the American Psychological Association (APA) urged licensed psychologists to support “unobstructed access to evidence-based clinical care for transgender, gender-diverse, and nonbinary children, adolescents, and adults” in a resolution. “Evidence-based clinical care, including gender-affirming care, should be noncoercive, adaptive to and centered on the needs of the individual receiving care, and rooted in psychological and clinical science, including recognition of gender diversity as a part of normal human diversity as well as recognition of limits in the current state of scientific knowledge,” the policy read. The APA also encouraged all licensed psychologists to “unite” against the spread of “misinformation” about surgical and non-surgical transgender treatments.
What President Biden needs to say about his age and Trump in his State of the Union address
Grappling with negative approval ratings and trailing former President Trump in the latest polling average of their general election rematch, President Biden has a golden opportunity to try and turn the narrative around with eight months to go until the November showdown. That high-stakes primetime moment comes Thursday evening, when the president will deliver a greatly anticipated and closely watched State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress. “It’s going to be a moment that’s incredibly important to him,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday. “He’s looking forward to … talking about the accomplishments that he’s made the last three years and also the vision that he has for this country.” With it far from certain that the president and Trump will face off in general election debates in the autumn, the speech may deliver Biden his largest national audience between now and the November election. HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING AND ANALYSIS ON THE STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS It’s not clear whether Biden will directly mention his Republican challenger in an address that will be repeatedly edited and fine-tuned until the moment the president arrives on Capitol Hill. But Biden re-election campaign communications director Michael Tyler, pointing to the rematch with Trump, emphasized Tuesday that “I think the State of the Union Address is going to serve as another moment to further cement the choice in this election for the American electorate writ large.” At 81, Biden is the oldest president in the nation’s history. And polls indicate a majority of Americans harbor serious questions about his physical and mental ability to handle another four years in the White House. THIS FIRST-TERM GOP SENATOR WILL DELIVER THE REPUBLICAN RESPONSE Longtime Republican strategist Colin Reed, pointing to “a series of misguided decisions,” including “the decision [by the president] not to conduct a Super Bowl interview when you’ve got the largest built-in audience you’re ever going to get, the pressure is mounting on President Biden to demonstrate that voters’ concerns about his age are somehow not as bad as people think. “The stakes are high going into a speech which normally washes out in the next day’s news cycle,” Reed emphasized. “But because people view President Biden as this creaky, rickety, frail human being and voters have deep concerns and reservations (about his ability) to perform the job, this event has taken on heightened importance that otherwise would not exist.” Reed is a presidential campaign veteran who most recently was a top adviser to a super PAC supporting former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s 2024 nomination challenge against Trump. “My suspicion is [Biden] will take it on because he can’t avoid it,” Reed said. “It’s become the overriding factor in the conversation.” Asked what the president needs to say in his speech regarding concerns about his age, veteran Democratic consultant Maria Cardona told Fox News Biden “does need to do it in a way that unequivocally transmits a dynamic and robust vibe.” “He has to vibe that age is not an issue. He has to vibe that he might not be young in years but is young at heart and importantly young and modern in ideas and vision for the future,” added Cardona, a Democratic National Committee member who did tours of duty on multiple presidential campaigns. She added that Biden needs to make the point that the “American electorate will be better off with him because of his wisdom, because of his experience, because of his understanding of what’s at stake than the other guy, who is a dangerous, existential threat not just to our democracy but to our rights and freedoms.” While Biden will paint contrasts with his GOP challenger, Cardona said, “I suspect that he’s not going to mention Trump by name, because I think that will give Trump too much importance.” “But there’s no question Trump will be in the room,” she emphasized. “And, more importantly, Trump’s past policies and future intentions will be in the room as well as President Biden will make it clear without a shadow of a doubt this is who he’s running against.” Reed agreed that Biden will spotlight Trump, even if he doesn’t mention his name. “If this election is about Joe Biden, that’s bad news for Joe Biden,” Reed said. “If this election’s about Donald Trump, that’s Biden’s only path forward. …. [Biden] has to lay out clear contrasts with what he’s proposing and wants to do and what his opponent does.” Plenty of top Trump supporters who are Republican members of Congress will be in the audience as the president gives his address. And there’s the chance Biden will be interrupted, as he was a handful of times when he delivered last year’s speech. Democratic strategist and communicator Chris Moyer said that “more important than what [Biden] says is how he comes across. Will he be sharp and mixing it up like he did with Republicans during last year’s State of the Union? A repeat performance would be a home run for him and his campaign.” “Most voters will remember how they felt watching him, not necessarily the specific agenda items he shares. That’s what will stick,” emphasized Moyer, who’s served on a handful of Democratic presidential campaigns. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Biden to use State of the Union to stress ‘historic achievements’ and importance of ‘saving our democracy’
President Biden is expected to lay out his administration’s “historic achievements” during his third State of the Union address Thursday night, the White House said, while stressing the importance of “uniting the country” and “saving our democracy.” The president is expected to deliver his State of the Union address Thursday at 9 p.m. ET. A White House official told Fox News Digital the president will “lay out the historic achievements he has delivered on for the American people and his vision for the future.” “President Biden got more done in the first three years than most presidents have accomplished in two terms,” a White House official told Fox News Digital. JIM BANKS CALLS ON BIDEN TO ‘PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGE’ LAKEN RILEY AT SOTU The president is expected to discuss “protecting and implementing his agenda” during the last year of his term and in what he hopes will be a second term. The official said Biden will discuss infrastructure and investment in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, lowering drug prices and “getting rid of junk fees.” But, at the heart of the speech, the president is expected to discuss “whose side he is on,” the official said, and “the work ahead to make life better for every American.” The president will discuss lowering costs, lowering health care premiums and “taking on the drug companies to lower the cost of prescription drugs.” Biden is also set to discuss ways he intends to put the middle class “first.” The official said Biden will also lay out strategies for “saving our democracy” and “protecting women’s reproductive health.” While the State of the Union cannot be viewed as a campaign speech, the president, who is running for re-election, will likely try to draw a contrast between his policies and Republican policies. “Rights and freedoms are on the ballot,” the White House official said, adding that Biden will discuss “uniting the country” and his “unity agenda.” That “unity agenda,” according to the official, will touch on privacy and big tech, ways to curb fentanyl, helping veterans and ending cancer. “We want to get as much done as we can as soon as we can,” the official said. “We’re going to be pedal to the metal this year, and there’s much more to come in a second term.” BIDEN’S STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS: BRET BAIER, MARTHA MACCALLUM TO LEAD FOX NEWS CHANNEL’S SPECIAL COVERAGE But the White House did not offer any insight into how the president will address the crisis at the southern border during his Thursday night address. The ongoing border crisis has become a top political issue in the days leading up to the address, with Biden expected to renew his calls for the Senate to pass a border agreement unveiled earlier this year. Republicans have blamed the crisis on the policies of the administration. The address comes after a historic year for illegal immigration, with more than 2.4 million migrant encounters in fiscal year 2023. Fiscal 2024 has been similarly overwhelming, with over 300,000 encounters in December. The president visited the southern border last week, traveling to Brownsville, Texas. His visit came on the same day as his GOP opponent, former President Trump. Biden met with Border Patrol, law enforcement and local leaders and urged Republicans to back a bipartisan Senate bill to address the crisis. “It’s real simple. It’s time to act. It is long past time to act,” the president said last week. “It’s time for us to move on this. We can’t wait any longer.” The president’s visit came just days after the murder of 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley. Jose Antonio Ibarra, an illegal migrant from Venezuela, was arrested and charged in Riley’s murder. ALABAMA SEN. KATIE BRITT TO DELIVER REPUBLICAN RESPONSE TO BIDEN STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS: ‘TRULY HONORED’ Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed the Venezuelan national entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and had previously been arrested in New York City and later released. Biden has not yet mentioned Riley’s name. The president’s address also comes at a time of global uncertainty, amid ongoing wars between Israel and Hamas and Russia and Ukraine and tensions rising in the Indo-Pacific. Last month, White House officials acknowledged a national security threat related to Russian abilities in space that could impact U.S. and global military telecommunications. RUSSIAN NUCLEAR CAPABILITIES IN SPACE COULD THREATEN INTERNATIONAL SATELLITES, US MILITARY COMMS: SOURCES Also, last month, the United States conducted retaliatory strikes on more than 85 targets in Iraq and Syria against Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and affiliated militia groups and proxies. The strikes came in response to the deaths of three U.S. service members on a U.S. base in Jordan. There have been at least 160 attacks on U.S. troops in the Middle East since mid-October. The president’s address also comes as the House of Representatives conducts an impeachment inquiry against him. GOP lawmakers are investigating whether he was involved or benefited from his family’s overseas business dealings, something they say could impact U.S. national security. US ‘NOT LOOKING FOR A WAR WITH IRAN,’ WHITE HOUSE SAYS, STRIKES DESIGNED TO ‘PUT AN END’ TO ATTACKS ON TROOPS His speech to the nation also comes just weeks after special counsel Robert Hur released his highly anticipated report following his months-long investigation into Biden’s improper retention of classified records. Hur, in his report, described the president as a “sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” and did not bring charges against him. SPECIAL COUNSEL CALLS BIDEN ‘SYMPATHETIC, WELL-MEANING, ELDERLY MAN WITH A POOR MEMORY,’ BRINGS NO CHARGES Opponents of the president have raised concerns about his mental fitness for the presidency and a potential second term. Meanwhile, White House communications director Ben LaBolt said the president, in his address, “will make the case to continue to build the economy from the bottom up and the middle out,” saying his policies have “led to record job creation, the strongest economy in the world, increased wages and household wealth and lower prescription
Biden to address the American hostages in Gaza during SOTU; who are the 6 U.S. citizens still held by Hamas?
Family members of six remaining American hostages in Gaza will be guests of lawmakers at President Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday. Thursday will mark five months since the attacks in Israel by Hamas terrorists that killed at least 1,200 people, including 32 Americans. At least six American hostages remain in Gaza as the war between Hamas terrorists and Israeli forces continues. Several of the hostages’ family members will be in attendance at the Capitol Thursday night as Biden has seemingly put pressure on Israel to accept an immediate six-week cease-fire with Hamas in exchange for the release of more than 134 hostages. Hamas has so far turned down all offers. BIDEN UNDER FIRE FOR MIDDLE EAST POLICY; CRITICS CHARGE HE’S PREVENTING ‘ISRAEL FROM WINNING’ Among the attendees will be the parents of Edan Alexander. Born in Tel Aviv, Alexander grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Tenafly High School in 2022. Edan went to Israel to volunteer for the Israel Defense Forces, serving in the Golani Brigade’s 51st Division. He was texting with his mother, who was visiting Israel, on the morning of the attack, telling her he was safe. His family was informed Edan had been taken hostage the following week, according to reports. His parents are guests of Rep. Donald Norcross, D-N.J., and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J. The parents and aunt of Itay Chen will also attend as guests of Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa. Chen is a 19-year-old Israeli American. He was on active duty in a tank unit Oct. 7. The Times of Israel reported that Chen was last heard from at 6:40 a.m. the morning of the attack. Omer Neutra, a 22-year-old Israeli American and a grandson of Holocaust survivors, also remains a hostage in Gaza. Growing up on Long Island, Neutra is a New York Knicks fan and was the captain of his high school basketball team, volleyball team and soccer team for a time. NEW YORK STUDENT CAPTURED BY HAMAS TERRORISTS WHILE ‘SERVING AND PROTECTING THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL,’ FAMILY SAYS Neutra put off plans to go to college in the U.S. to study in Israel as a gap year before enrolling at Binghamton University and joined the IDF. He was serving as a tank commander near Gaza when Hamas attacked. His mother and brother will be guests of Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. His father is a guest of Rep. Tom Suozzi, R-N.Y. Sagui Dekel-Chen, the 35-year-old son of a U.S.-born Hebrew University professor, lived in Nir Oz with his two young daughters and his wife Avital, who was pregnant when her husband was taken hostage. She gave birth to their third child while Sagui was held by Hamas terrorists. His father and stepmother are guests of Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., respectively. “My wife, Gillian Kaye, and I are honored to be attending President Biden’s State of the Union address,” Jonathan Dekel-Chen told Fox News Digital. “We are among the seven families of Israeli-American hostages held by Hamas in Gaza to be invited to the State of the Union.” “This solidarity in support of our families is particularly meaningful to us and reflects the wall-to-wall commitment in Congress and the Biden Administration to free all of the hostages from Hamas captivity,” he added. Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, was taken hostage at the Supernova music festival. He reportedly lost an arm in the attack and had to apply his own tourniquet, witnesses have said. Hersh is the son of Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, both originally from the Chicago area. He was born in Berkeley, California, and then lived in Richmond, Virginia, before immigrating to Israel. During the attack, Hersh, his best friend Aner Shapira and others took refuge in a concrete field shelter. Hamas terrorists repeatedly threw grenades at the shelter. Shapira managed to throw seven of the grenades back out before being killed. Hersh had only recently returned to Israel after several months traveling across Europe by himself, occasionally meeting up with his boyhood friends. His aunt is attending as the guest of Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill. Keith Samuel Siegel, 64, and Adrienne (Aviva) Siegel, 62, woke up to the sound of sirens on the morning of Oct. 7 at Kfar Aza, a kibbutz close to the frontier with Gaza, where they had lived for almost 40 years. Grabbing a phone, they rushed to their safe room in their pajamas, expecting to be there for only a few minutes. Instead, they were taken hostage in Gaza by terrorists driving the Siegels’ car. Aviva, who is from South Africa, is a kindergarten teacher. Keith, who is from the United States, works for a pharmaceutical company. The two are close to their four children and five grandchildren and were spending a quiet weekend at home in Kfar Aza, according to family reports. Aviva was later released as a part of the first deal, and she awaits Keith’s return. SURVIVOR OF HAMAS TERROR ATTACK ON ISRAEL RECOUNTS PAIN, GRIEF OF LOSING ‘ANGEL’ BOYFRIEND ON OCT. 7 His niece and sister are attending as guests of Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. and Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., respectively. In late December, it was announced Gad Haggai and Judy Weinstein, two Israeli American peace activists, were murdered Oct. 7, and Hamas is holding their bodies. Gad, 73, a retired chef and talented musician, and his wife, Judith, 70, an English teacher originally from Toronto, Canada, were on their regular early morning walk in the fields near Nir Oz kibbutz when they messaged relatives to say they were under attack. They were shot and badly wounded but were able to call the kibbutz’s paramedic to ask for help, which never came. Andrea Weinstein, the sister of Judy Weinstein, will attend as the guest of Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. Fox News Digital’s Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.
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Evolutyz Revolutionizes Corporate Appreciation with Unmaze 2023
Tech Giant Evolutyz creating a new benchmark with EMPLOYEE FIRST policy and honouring employees with rewards.
Altairo forays into European luxury furniture segment
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What does the end of Nikki Haley’s campaign mean for the Republican Party?
She raised concerns about his age. His mental state. His capacity for leadership when faced with 91 criminal charges. And yet, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley could not overcome former President Donald Trump in the race for the United States presidency. On Wednesday, she announced she was suspending her campaign, clearing the way for Trump to receive the Republican Party nomination. Analysts, however, say her long-shot bid reflects how ironclad Trump’s hold over the party has become. Nevertheless, her campaign gave voice to the anxieties some Republicans harbour. “There is some angst in elite Republican circles that Trump comes with a lot of baggage and that they could do better with someone else,” Osita Nwanevu, a writer on US politics, told Al Jazeera. “Haley was the candidate who embodied that concern, that sticking with Trump could hurt the party.” But that message failed to resonate beyond pockets of moderate voters. Haley announced her campaign’s suspension in the aftermath of the Super Tuesday primary votes. With 15 states up for grabs, she only managed to secure one: left-leaning Vermont. Haley ultimately finished the race on Wednesday with just 89 party delegates to Trump’s 995. Delegates ultimately decide who receives the party nomination. “In all likelihood, Donald Trump will be the Republican nominee when our party convention meets in July. I congratulate him and wish him well,” Haley said in her announcement on Wednesday. However, Haley stopped short of endorsing Trump, instead calling on him to win over voters who may have doubts about his candidacy. “It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond who did not support him,” she said. Last woman standing A former governor of South Carolina, Haley outlasted all other major Republican opponents, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, to face Trump one-on-one in the primaries. But even her exit speech reflected the difficult balancing act she was forced to walk. Experts say she tried to appeal to moderates without alienating party voters for whom loyalty to Trump has become an article of faith. Throughout the race, Trump pilloried Haley — a former member of his administration — as a “birdbrain” and a “Republican in name only”, or RINO. He celebrated her Super Tuesday losses with a post on social media, revisiting a frequent accusation that she represented Democratic interests. “Nikki Haley got TROUNCED last night, in record setting fashion, despite the fact that Democrats, for reasons unknown, are allowed to vote in Vermont, and various other Republican Primaries,” Trump wrote. “Much of her money came from Radical Left Democrats.” Experts have observed that Trump’s rhetoric towards Haley has been echoed among his base of supporters, who have questioned her political credentials — and even her citizenship as an American of Indian heritage. Trump, for example, raised doubts about whether she was even born in the United States, a conspiracy theory he also pushed during the presidency of Democrat Barack Obama. “The level of negativity towards her from Trump and his supporters is usually reserved for members of opposing political parties,” Thad Kousser, a professor of political science at the University of California at San Diego, told Al Jazeera. “Her challenge to Trump was met with real vitriol.” Conservative bona fides But while Haley has been able to project herself as a moderate alternative to Trump, she has consistently staked out right-wing positions on issues such as immigration, abortion and foreign policy. During a Republican primary debate earlier this year, Haley leaned into far-right talking points. “You have to deport them,” she said at one point of the roughly 10 million undocumented immigrants in the US. She has also pushed to raise the country’s retirement age and called Democratic legislation addressing climate change a “communist manifesto”. Her unconditional support for Israel — even amid its deadly campaign in Gaza — has also been a hallmark of her campaign. In a recent interview, she said that displaced Palestinians in Gaza should be resettled in Arab countries. Still, she did stake out positions that put her at odds with some members of her party, particularly Trump. Her firm support for Ukraine, for example, drew ire from the party’s right flank, and she has criticised Trump’s actions on January 6, 2021, when his supporters stormed the US Capitol to overturn the 2020 election results. “I think he should have stopped it when it started,” she told NBC’s Meet the Press. But Haley acknowledged the political costs of making those kinds of criticisms. Speaking to reporters in 2015, she addressed the backlash she and others faced from Trump. “Every time someone criticises him, he goes and makes a political attack back,” Haley said. “That’s not who we are as Republicans. That’s not what we do.” What happens to Haley voters? With Haley now out of the presidential race, President Joe Biden, the Democratic incumbent, has already made a play for the moderate voters who backed her campaign. In a statement on Wednesday, Biden praised Haley for being willing to “speak the truth about Donald Trump”. He also courted her supporters, saying there is “a place for them in my campaign”. A recent Quinnipiac poll found that, of the Republicans who voted for Haley, only 37 percent said they would cast their ballot for Biden if she dropped out. Nearly half, however, pledged to back Trump. Nwanevu, the political writer, said that reflected Trump’s steadfast dominance in the Republican field. Since emerging as an outsider candidate in 2016 with no political experience, Trump has exerted increasing dominance over the Republican Party — and voters have rallied behind him. “Trump is tremendously popular among Republican voters, more so than when he ran in 2016 when he won most primaries without a majority of the vote,” Nwanevu told Al Jazeera. Recent poll numbers have also buoyed Trump’s campaign. A March poll from the New York Times and Siena College showed that Trump had a lead over Biden of 48 percent to 43 percent. Biden’s