Texans face a bigger burden than ever to pay rent, study finds
More than half of the state’s 4.2 million renters spend at least 30% of their income on rent and utilities, according to a Harvard University report.
Fetterman rejects top Democrat’s attempted crackdown on Zyn: ‘On the side of more freedom’
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., dismissed Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s call for a federal crackdown on Zyn nicotine pouches, saying there are “bigger issues” to address Thursday. “I’m going to err on the side of more freedom and personal choices of those kinds of things,” Fetterman told reporters. “And I made that same argument when I wanted to legalize marijuana.” Fetterman added he doesn’t support “snuff or chewing tobacco,” but that substances should be available for adults to freely choose. “So, I don’t support it,” Fetterman said of Schumer’s campaign against the popular nicotine product. EX-LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS WARN BIDEN’S MENTHOL CIGARETTE BAN COULD ‘CREATE A VACUUM’ FOR MEXICAN CARTELS Schumer called for a federal crackdown on Zyn nicotine pouches and a “warning to parents” of its addictive effects on Sunday. Schumer wants the Federal Trade Commission and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate Zyn for its marketing tactics, which he said target young social media influencers, and its health effects. “It’s a pouch packed with problems – high levels of nicotine,” Schumer said at a press conference. “So, today, I’m delivering a warning to parents because these nicotine pouches seem to lock their sites on young kids, teenagers and even lower. And then use the social media to hook them.” A statement from Phillip Morris International, which is associated with Zyn’s manufacturing, pushed back on Schumer’s claims in a statement to the media. OHIO BANS ‘GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE’ FOR MINORS, RESTRICTS TRANSGENDER ATHLETES DESPITE GOP GOVERNOR VETO “Philip Morris International and its affiliates — including Swedish Match, the manufacturer of ZYN — fully meet and exceed the regulations governing the industry,” the statement said. “Our marketing practices — which prohibit the use of social media influencers — are focused on preventing underage access and set the benchmark for the industry. Real-world evidence shows this approach is working. The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FDA show oral nicotine pouch use by those under the legal age remains exceptionally low.” Zyn was crowned as the leading nicotine pouch brand worldwide in 2021 with sales volume exceeding 3 billion units.
Trump urges states to surge National Guard to Texas as Abbott standoff with Biden accelerates
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday gave his backing to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott amid the latter’s feud with the Biden administration over border security — urging states to send their National Guards to the border and promising to work “hand in hand” with the state to combat the “invasion” if he is inaugurated again in January 2025. In posts to Truth Social, Trump backed Abbott and accused President Biden of “fighting to tie the hands” of the Republican governor “so that the Invasion continues unchecked.” A feud that has been bubbling for months between Texas and the administration exploded in recent weeks after Texas seized the Shelby Park area of Eagle Pass and blocked Border Patrol from entering — sparking protests and threats of legal action from the administration. SPEAKER JOHNSON SAYS HOUSE ‘WILL DO EVERYTHING IN ITS POWER’ TO BACK TEXAS OVER BORDER FEUD The Supreme Court this week found in the administration’s favor when it granted an emergency appeal to allow agents to keep cutting border wire set up by Texas along the border, after a lower court had blocked the administration from doing so. The two sides have been feuding since 2021 when the migrant crisis escalated and Texas launched Operation Lone Star to surge resources to the border. The administration recently sued over an anti-illegal immigration law that allows state and local law enforcement to arrest illegal immigrants. It has also sued over the state’s setting up on buoys in the Rio Grande. The administration says immigration enforcement is up to the federal government and Texas is interfering. ABBOTT DECLARES TEXAS HAS ‘RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENSE’ FROM MIGRANT ‘INVASION AMID FEUD WITH BIDEN ADMIN “Whether it is leaving migrants on the side of the road in the dead of winter, installing razor wire to make Border Patrol’s job more dangerous, promoting extreme and unconstitutional laws like S.B. 4, or his latest actions in Eagle Pass, Governor Abbott has repeatedly proven that he is not interested in solutions and only seeks to politicize the border,” a recent White House statement said. “The President has been clear that we need adequate resources and policy changes, and that our immigration system is broken. That is why on his first day in office he presented Congress with a comprehensive immigration reform plan, and that is why he is working to find a bipartisan agreement with Congress that includes funding and meaningful reforms,” they added. Abbott this week cited a “right to self-defense” and noted he has already declared an “invasion” to invoke the authority, which he calls “the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary.” Trump said that Abbott must be given ‘full support” and encouraged “all willing states to deploy their guards to Texas to prevent the entry of illegals and to remove them back across the border.” TEXAS AG PAXTON PROMISES ‘FIGHT IS NOT OVER’ AFTER SCOTUS RULE ON BIDEN ADMIN’S RAZOR WIRE CUTTING “When I am President, on Day One, instead of fighting Texas, I will work hand in hand with Governor Abbott and other Border States to Stop the Invasion, Seal the Border, and Rapidly Begin the Largest Domestic Deportation Operation in History,” he said. “Those Biden has let in should not get comfortable because they will be going home,” he said. Abbott has also picked up the support of more than two dozen Republican states who have publicly expressed their support for the state. Meanwhile, some Democrats have urged the Biden administration to seize control of the National Guard. Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Democrats blast impeachment inquiry after GOP witness says he was ‘unaware’ of Joe Biden’s role in family biz
House Democrats blasted the impeachment inquiry on Thursday after a witness testified he was “unaware” of any involvement President Biden may have had in his son’s business dealings. Hunter Biden’s business associate, Mervyn Yan, testified behind closed-doors before the House Oversight and Judiciary committees Thursday after receiving a subpoena. House Republicans, on the other hand, said Yan’s testimony raised many questions about the nature of the Biden family’s business dealings in China. A source with direct knowledge of Yan’s testimony told Fox News Digital Yan told congressional investigators he is “unaware of any involvement President Biden may have had with his son’s business pursuits.” HUNTER BIDEN BUSINESS ASSOCIATE TO TESTIFY ON BIDEN’S ALLEGED ROLE IN CHINA DEALS AMID IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY Yan, despite interacting with Hunter Biden and James Biden, “never met, spoke to, did business with or had any personal or professional communication with President Biden,” the source said. The source also said Yan testified he “does not possess any materials or information bearing on President Biden’s alleged involvement in his family’s business dealings.” “Just like every other witness in Chairman Comer’s ‘clueless investigation’ — that even House Republicans are calling a ‘parade of embarrassments’ and ‘a disaster’— Mervyn Yan testified to the committee today that he has no evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden and that, to his knowledge, President Biden was not involved in, did not profit from and took no official actions in relation to his family’s business dealings,” the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, ranking member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said Thursday. JOE BIDEN RECEIVED $40K IN ‘LAUNDERED CHINA MONEY’ FROM BROTHER IN 2017, COMER SAYS “Further undercutting Republicans’ lies about President Biden, Mr. Yan testified that he never once did business with or had any personal or professional communication with President Biden.” But House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Thursday he plans to release the transcript of Yan’s interview. Comer said Yan’s testimony raised more questions for the committee’s investigation regarding the Biden family’s interactions with China. “Mervyn Yan admitted on the record the Bidens had no experience in the energy and infrastructure sectors and was not sure what they brought to the table,” Comer said Thursday. “His testimony raises many questions about the Bidens’ dealings with the Chinese government-linked energy firm, and we hope to learn more tomorrow from Rob Walker, another Biden family associate.” HUNTER DEMANDED $10M FROM CHINESE ENERGY FIRM BECAUSE ‘BIDENS ARE THE BEST,’ HAVE ‘CONNECTIONS’ The committee is expected to hear testimony from Rob Walker Friday. Walker is scheduled to appear at 10 a.m. Friday on Capitol Hill after being subpoenaed by both House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan in November. In notifying Walker of the subpoena, Comer and Jordan note that his Robinson Walker, LLC received a payment of $3 million from State Energy HK Limited, a Chinese company, less than two months after Biden left the Obama administration. Comer and Jordan said that in the three months following that payment, Robinson Walker, LLC made “incremental payments totaling over $1 million to Biden family members and their companies, including Hallie Biden and entities associated with Hunter Biden and James Biden.” Comer and Jordan have stressed that evidence collected by congressional investigators reveals that President Biden “was at least aware of some of his family’s business ventures and sought to influence potential business deals that financially benefited his family.” FLASHBACK: HUNTER BIDEN IN 2017 SENT ‘BEST WISHES’ FROM ‘ENTIRE BIDEN FAMILY’ TO CHINA FIRM CHAIRMAN, REQUESTED $10M WIRE Comer and Jordan believe Walker can provide information related to whether Joe Biden, as vice president and/or president “took any official action or effected any change in government policy because of money or other things of value provided to himself or his family, including whether concerns that Chinese sources may release additional evidence about their business relationships with the Biden family have had any impact on official acts performed by President Biden or U.S. foreign policy; abused his office of public trust by providing foreign interests with access to him and his office in exchange for payments to his family or him; or abused his office of public trust by knowingly participating in a scheme to enrich himself or his family by giving foreign interests the impression that they would receive access to him and his office in exchange for payments to his family or him.” Yan’s testimony and Walker’s expected testimony come before Hunter Biden is scheduled to appear for a deposition as part of the impeachment inquiry against his father. Hunter Biden defied his subpoena to appear for a deposition Dec. 13 and was at risk of being held in contempt of Congress. His attorneys and the committees came to an agreement last week that the first son will appear for a closed-door deposition Feb. 28.
Senate GOP in ‘quandary’ over border security, Ukraine aid package: ‘Designed not to solve the problem’
Senate Republicans face a “quandary” with regard to linking a potential border security measure with Ukraine in the national security supplemental package, fueled by confusion about Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell‘s comments in a closed-door meeting on Wednesday night. Some GOP lawmakers reportedly interpreted McConnell’s assessment of current border negotiations as stepping back from securing an agreement and bowing to Trump’s demands to refuse a border deal with Democrats. But on Thursday, other lawmakers told reporters that McConnell was “laying out the quandary.” “I think he was just kind of laying out the quandary we’re in,” said Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., “and laying out kind of what the field looks like. And so we got to see the text before we do anything else.” Lead Republican negotiator Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., agreed with Ricketts. ILLEGAL MIGRANTS ARE SLEEPING IN TERMINALS OF BOSTON AIRPORT ON ‘DAILY BASIS’ AS CRISIS OVERWHELMS SHELTERS “I think he’s laying out the politics,” Lankford told Fox News. “Definitely didn’t get that he was backing away at all. I think he was just expressing what’s the reality on the ground.” Lankford added that Trump is not involved in the negotiations and that he doesn’t agree with putting off dealing with the crisis at the border for the sake of keeping it a prime election issue for conservatives to tout against Biden. “I don’t doubt that he wants a perfect deal,” Lankford said of Trump. “So do I on it. But we’ve got to be able to figure out how to be able to do something right now to get as much done as we can possibly get done.” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told reporters Thursday that he doesn’t think improving conditions at the border “changes the 2024 outcome.” “Presidentially, I think, it is what we’re expected to do,” Graham said. “So, I think the best thing for the Republican Party to do right now is try to work with Democrats where you can to make the country safer and stronger.” According to Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., a “faction” of Republicans want to hold off on addressing the border, which has become a key election issue especially for GOP voters. “I know there’s a faction that thinks it’s better to do nothing on the border for political gain, but I still think there is a big group of Republicans that wants to help solve the problem at the border,” Murphy said. Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., said he doesn’t think splitting up Ukraine and border security should be “taken off the table” in an election year. BORDER BATTLE LINES: DEMS CALL ON BIDEN TO SEIZE CONTROL OF TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD AS GOP ALLIES BACK ABBOTT “I don’t believe we should take this off the table,” Young said of splitting the issues up. “Certainly not to clear the way for a clean, campaign, debate season. Let’s get something consequential done for the American people. That’s how you instill trust in government in your elected representatives, rather than paying fealty to short-term considerations.” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, however, believes the potential border deal would fail to stop the flow of migrants crossing the border. He told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham on Wednesday that “it’s a terrible deal.” “There’s a lot of the D.C. establishment that wants this deal, but it’s designed not to solve the problem,” he said. “I’m telling my colleagues: Do not do any deal that fails to secure the border. We got to fix the problem or give up on it.” A bipartisan group of lawmakers has been trying to secure a deal for months with White House officials to unlock $60 billion of aid to assist Ukraine’s war with Russia that’s included in the national security supplemental bill. The Department of Defense has already depleted its available funds earmarked for Ukraine without needing approval from Congress. The Biden administration is seeking over $100 billion in funding, including $14 billion for the border. But Republicans have demanded limits on migrant releases into the interior, including the use of parole, and negotiators have been attempting to find a compromise. DEM GOVERNOR COMPLAINS AS MIGRANT SURGE STRAINS HER ‘RIGHT-TO-SHELTER’ STATE’S RESOURCES Multiple sources familiar with a portion of the proposal told Fox News Digital this week that a part of the deal would tighten the language of the initial credible fear standard for asylum screenings. One source said that those briefing lawmakers had predicted it could lead to the majority of migrants going through the screenings being removed. While the provisions of the bill are still fluid, negotiators have said they are hoping to have a bill text soon — indicating that the provisions, while fluid, are close to being finalized. GOP lawmakers are growing restless to see the bill text, with some arguing the “secret” negotiations will sidestep conservatives and produce a heavier immigration policy win for Democrats. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP But even if the Senate passes the supplemental, it will be dead on arrival in the GOP-controlled House. GOP lawmakers in the lower chamber want nothing short of H.R. 2, which the House passed last year and includes Trump administration-era border policies like “Remain in Mexico” and construction of a border wall. It’s unclear when the border deal will be reached or when the supplemental package will be brought to the floor for a vote. Senators are expected to recess on Feb. 9. Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Conservative firebrand praises Matt Rosendale ahead of potential Senate bid: ‘Shock to the system’
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida is traveling to Montana for a weekend of campaigning for Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., amid rumors he is soon launching a Senate bid in the Big Sky State. Rosendale has confirmed that he is considering a run for the Montana Senate in 2024, but has not yet made any official announcements. Gaetz amplified the chatter Wednesday, telling Fox News Digital that he is campaigning in Montana because he believes Rosendale is what “the Senate needs.” “I’m going to campaign for Matt Rosendale because he’s exactly the shock to the system the Senate needs. Also I hear Montana is lovely in January,” Gaetz told Fox. REP ROSENDALE VOWS TO RESTORE TRUMP-ERA POLICIES WITH IMMIGRATION PACKAGE: ‘BIDEN IS DESTROYING OUR COUNTRY’ The two not only share the same name, but have aligned on issues over the year, notably joining forces to unseat former Rep. Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House. ‘TOUGHEST UPHILL CLIMB’: RACE FORECASTER REVEALS SHIFT TOWARD GOP IN TOP 2024 SENATE RACE The weekend will begin with a campaign event on Friday in Bozeman, Montana, followed by back-to-back events in Helena and Joliet on Saturday. “Matt Gaetz has been my reliable ally as we battle the uniparty in Washington,” Rosendale told Fox News Digital. “Whether it’s fighting out-of-control spending, securing our border, or restoring regular order to Congress, Matt Gaetz has always been with me in the fight for our nation. It is an honor to have him join me in the Treasure State tomorrow” All eyes are on the Montana Senate race, as Democrats rally behind Democrat Sen. Jon Tester who is seeking to hold onto the only statewide blue seat in the Big Sky State. If Rosendale jumps into the race, he would face a primary challenge from former Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy who launched a bid for the seat in June and since gained endorsements from various prominent political figures – including Montana’s very own GOP Sen. Steve Daines.
Speaker Johnson says House ‘will do everything in its power’ to back Texas over border feud
House Speaker Mike Johnson says the Republican-controlled House “will do everything in its power” to support Texas over its ongoing feud with the Biden administration over border security — after the Lone Star State said it has a “right to self-defense.” “I stand with Governor Abbott. The House will do everything in its power to back him up,” he said on X, formerly known as Twitter. “The next step: holding [DHS] Secretary [Alejandro] Mayorkas accountable.” Abbott on Tuesday declared the state has a right to “self-defense” from a migrant “invasion” as it faces significant pushback over its border security policies from the Biden administration. ABBOTT DECLARES TEXAS HAS ‘RIGHT TO SELF-DEFENSE’ FROM MIGRANT ‘INVASION’ AMID FEUD WITH BIDEN ADMIN The Supreme Court this week found in the administration’s favor when it granted an emergency appeal to allow agents to keep cutting border wire set up by Texas along the border. Texas this week published images of it strengthening physical barriers along Eagle Pass in response. There is a separate threat of a lawsuit related to the seizure of Shelby Park along Eagle Pass by Texas authorities. Meanwhile, the administration has sued over the establishment of buoys in the Rio Grande River by Texas, and the recently signed law that allows Texas state and local officials to arrest illegal immigrants. The administration has accused Texas of interfering with federal control over immigration and border security, and has said it is putting agents and migrants in danger. Abbott, however, cited constitutional language that demands the federal government “protect each [State] against invasion” and the right of states to protect their own borders. Abbott argues that “the failure of the Biden administration” to fulfill those duties triggers a clause in Article 1 that “reserves to this State the right of self-defense.” He notes he has already declared an “invasion” to invoke the authority, which he calls “the supreme law of the land and supersedes any federal statutes to the contrary.” The administration has said that the federal government is in control of immigration enforcement and has defended its record — pointing to removals since May that outpaced the entirety of FY 2019. Instead, it says it needs more funding from Congress and comprehensive immigration reform to fix what it says is a “broken” system. TEXAS AG PAXTON PROMISES ‘FIGHT IS NOT OVER’ AFTER SCOTUS RULE ON BIDEN ADMIN’S RAZOR WIRE CUTTING “Whether it is leaving migrants on the side of the road in the dead of winter, installing razor wire to make Border Patrol’s job more dangerous, promoting extreme and unconstitutional laws like S.B. 4, or his latest actions in Eagle Pass, Governor Abbott has repeatedly proven that he is not interested in solutions and only seeks to politicize the border,” a recent White House statement said. However, a number of governors have come to Texas’ side, with at least 14 Republican-led states, including Florida, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee expressing support for the governor’s position. Some Democrats, however, have urged tougher action against Texas from the Biden administration. “Greg Abbott has continued to use political stunts and inflammatory language to advance his own agenda, violating the Constitution and endangering both U.S. citizens and asylum seekers,” Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, posted on X. “Abbott is following the Donald Trump playbook: making immigration harder and more dangerous, so asylum seekers are pushed into the hands of cartels and the system remains broken.” Casar continued with a string of posts, saying he agreed with Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, who on Tuesday tweeted Biden should seize control of the Texas National Guard. Meanwhile, there were over 302,000 migrant encounters in December, after a record 2.4 million encounters in FY 23.
Haley rakes in campaign cash after Trump warned her donors would be ‘barred’ from MAGA
FIRST ON FOX – Nikki Haley’s 2024 campaign says it hauled in $1 million in donations since the Republican presidential candidate responded on social media to a warning former President Donald Trump directed to GOP donors to stop contributing to Haley. Trump, taking to his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, warned: “Anybody that makes a ‘Contribution’ to Birdbrain, from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA camp. We don’t want them, and will not accept them, because we Put America First, and ALWAYS WILL!” “Birdbrain” is a derogatory nickname Trump repeatedly uses to refer to Haley. RNC CHAIR MCDANIEL SAYS IT’S TIME FOR GOP TO RALLY AROUND TRUMP Haley, a former two-term South Carolina governor who later served as United Nations ambassador in the Trump administration, quickly responded on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Well in that case… donate here. Let’s Go!” Haley wrote, as she added a link to her online fundraising page. TRUMP ALIGNED SUPER PAC SEES SURGE IN FUNDRAISING Haley is Trump’s last remaining major rival for the 2024 GOP nomination. She lost to the former president by 11 points in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, which was seen as one of her best shots at slowing down Trump’s march to the nomination. Haley vowed in a primary night speech to continue her campaign, arguing “this race is far from over.” The race now moves to her home state, with South Carolina’s Feb. 24 Republican primary the next major contest in the GOP nominating calendar. Haley, on Wednesday night at a large rally in North Charleston, South Carolina, highlighted that she hauled in $1 million in online donations in the 24 hours since her speech in New Hampshire. “We have had 200 thousand donors from all 50 states,” she added. “Ninety-five percent of those donations are $200 or less.” And Haley said “this is real, Americans. So if you join with me, if you join this movement, if you join us in this fight, I promise you I will do exactly what I did for you when I was governor of South Carolina. And I will spend every single day trying to make you proud.” But veteran Republican strategist Ryan Williams argued that Haley is “trying to manufacture momentum to keep the race going. She needed a win in New Hampshire and she didn’t get it. This race is all but decided. Raising a million dollars in the first 24 hours after New Hampshire is a nice talking point, but it really doesn’t amount to much. The race has essentially been won by Trump at this point.” HALEY LIVES TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY, BUT FACES A ‘CHALLENGING’ ROAD AHEAD Haley’s announcement came a day after she told Fox News Digital that she brought in $1.5 million in fundraising in the day and a half after Republican presidential campaign rival and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dropped out of the race on Sunday afternoon. Once a long shot for the nomination, Haley grabbed momentum and saw her poll numbers surge in the late summer and autumn thanks in part to well-regarded performances in the first three Republican primary debates. As Fox News first reported earlier this month, Haley hauled in $24 million during the October-December fourth quarter of 2023 fundraising, more than doubling what she raked in during the previous three months. Nikki Haley heads to New York City early next week, to meet with some top Republican donors as she faces a steep uphill climb against former President Donald Trump in the GOP nomination race. Sources in Haley’s political orbit tell Fox News that a fundraiser on Jan. 30 co-hosted by billionaires Leonard Stern, Cliff Asness, Stanley Druckenmiller, Ken Langone and Henry Kravis remains on her schedule. It’s one of roughly 10 fundraisers with major Republican donors on Haley’s itinerary over the next couple of weeks. Asked about Trump’s warning to donors, a major Republican contributor and bundler told Fox News on Thursday, “Trump is being very aggressive about trying to dissuade people from hosting events for Haley,” and predicted that “Trump is only going to get more aggressive against her.” “The word is out among the donor class – you’re either with Trump or you’re not,” added the donor, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely. “There’s a lot of interest for Haley, but there’s also real concern for people that don’t want to be on the wrong side of things when the dust settles.” Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Iowa secretary of state introduces bill that could limit 14th Amendment ballot challenges against Trump
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate introduced a bill that reportedly could limit challenges to former President Trump’s eligibility for the 2024 ballot. The legislative proposal comes amid efforts in several states to challenge Trump’s eligibility under Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which prevents individuals from holding office again if they “have engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the United States. “The Iowa Secretary of State’s Office accepts the recognized political parties’ certifications of their candidates for president and vice president in good faith. This is a technical bill that clarifies which objections the objection panel has jurisdiction to consider but does not prevent anyone from taking legal action or pursuing challenges in court,” Ashley Hunt, a spokesperson for Pate’s office, said in a statement to Fox News Digital on Thursday. Asked directly if the bill could limit challenges to Trump’s eligibility under the 14th Amendment, Hunt said the bill would not bar lawsuits in court that aim to block candidates from the ballot. Rather, the bill places restrictions on Iowans who object to the eligibility of presidential and vice presidential candidates through petitioning the state commissioner of elections. “This bill does not limit someone’s ability from taking legal action or pursuing challenges in court. It simply clarifies the process for the objection panel,” Hunt wrote. According to the pre-filed bill’s text, which has been visible on the Iowa state legislature’s website since Jan. 18, Pate’s proposal seeks to limit the grounds for challenging all federal candidates, including those running for president and Congress, to questions about age, residency, citizenship and whether their nominating papers meet all the legal requirements. HAWAII DEMOCRAT INTRODUCES BILL TO BAN TRUMP FROM BALLOT In Iowa, political parties must submit a certificate with the names of their presidential and vice presidential candidates to the secretary of state’s office 81 days before the general election. “The bill limits objections to the eligibility of a candidate for a federal office that may be filled with the state commissioner of elections to objections to the legal sufficiency of the nomination petition or certificate of election, or to the residency, age, or citizenship requirements as described in the Constitution of the United States,” according to the proposal text. “With respect to nominations for president or vice president of the United States, the bill allows objections only to the legal sufficiency of the certification of nomination. The certificate of nomination shall be presumed valid.” The bill also removes the requirement for federal candidates to sign a statement that they are aware they are disqualified from holding office if convicted of a felony. Under current state law, all candidates running for office – local, state and federal – must do so. Currently, Trump is facing 91 felony charges spanning four criminal cases. “It would pretty clearly foreclose any challenge to a presidential candidate for being not qualified under the United States Constitution,” Derek Muller, an election law professor at the University of Notre Dame Law School, told the Des Moines Register of the proposal. “So, it would be designed to foreclose a challenge like those filed in Colorado in Maine.” Hunt told the Register that current law presumes the paperwork candidates file to run for office is valid and provides limitations to what issues are eligible for objection. The new bill, she explained, would further clarify Iowa’s process for objections. “This simply extends that same standard to all candidates explicitly,” Hunt told the newspaper. “To the best of our knowledge, in 2015, Mr. Trump met the Constitutional requirements to be president and continues to do so,” Hunt said. “Mr. Trump has not been convicted of anything that disqualifies him to be president. This bill simply helps clarify the objection process for Iowa.” MAINE OFFICIAL APPEALS HER REMOVAL OF TRUMP FROM VOTING BALLOTS TO STATE’S TOP COURT “The U.S. Constitution sets eligibility requirements for Congress and POTUS,” Hunt added. “This update ensures affidavits comply with those requirements.” Trump swept the Iowa caucuses and then won the New Hampshire primaries this month as the presidential nominating contest turns its focus on the South Carolina primary next month. The Colorado Supreme Court, in a split decision, and Maine’s Democrat secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, cited the 14th Amendment in barring Trump from the ballot in their respective states for allegedly inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. More recently, a Hawaii Democrat senator introduced a bill that also aimed to block candidates, citing the insurrection clause. The timelines are tight as Super Tuesday approaches on March 5. The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments in the Colorado case on Feb. 8, which likely means there would not be enough time to meet statutory deadlines for Bellows to reissue a ruling on Trump’s ballot status and for additional appeals to be filed before Election Day. Lawsuits in Minnesota, Michigan, Arizona and Oregon aiming to block Trump from the 2024 ballot have already been dismissed on procedural grounds, Newsweek reported. The Illinois State Board of Elections is also reportedly weighing a challenge to Trump’s eligibility. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
California bill would mandate all new cars have device to ‘automatically limit’ speed to 10 mph over limit
A California Democratic lawmaker has introduced a bill he calls “groundbreaking” that would require all new cars sold in the Golden State to be equipped with a device preventing them from traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit. CA State Senator Scott Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco, introduced the Speeding and Fatality Emergency Reduction on California Streets Package this week that includes a provision that would require “new vehicles sold in California” to “install speed governors, smart devices that automatically limit the vehicle’s speed to 10 miles above the legal limit.” “These changes are a head-on attempt to tackle vehicle fatalities, which are surging across the U.S.—and especially in California—amid a rise in reckless driving since the onset of the pandemic,” a press release from Wiener’s office explained. “A recent report from TRIP, a national transportation research group, found that traffic fatalities in California have increased by 22% from 2019 to 2022, compared to 19% for the U.S. overall. In 2022, 4,400 Californians died in car crashes.” The bill package also “requires side underride guards on trucks, to reduce the risk of cars and bikes being pulled underneath the truck during a crash” and “physical improvements like new crosswalks and curb extensions on state-owned surface streets to better accommodate pedestrians, cyclists, the disability community, and transit users.” WHY SELF-DRIVING CARS ARE ABLE TO COMPLETELY BREAK THE RULES IN THIS CALIFORNIA CITY The press release argues that these changes are meant to “slash” the “California road deaths epidemic.” “The alarming surge in road deaths is unbearable and demands an urgent response,” Wiener said. “There is no reason for anyone to be going over 100 miles per hour on a public road, yet in 2020, California Highway Patrol issued over 3,000 tickets for just that offense. Preventing reckless speeding is a commonsense approach to prevent these utterly needless and heartbreaking crashes.” WALL STREET JOURNAL BASHES CALIFORNIA FOR GAS CAR BAN, ASKS WHY AMERICANS CAN’T BUY THE CARS ‘THEY WANT’ Not everyone is on board with the legislation including social media users who expressed frustration with the plan. “Imagine an empty highway in the middle of the night and you can only go 65,” author Richard Hanania posted on X. “Just when you thought California couldn’t possibly get any crazier, former San Diego County Board of Supervisors candidate Amy Reichert posted on X. A spokesperson for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told Fox News Digital the agency “does not comment on pending legislation.”