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Republicans tighten screws on Sherrill as noncitizen voter probe enters new phase

Republicans tighten screws on Sherrill as noncitizen voter probe enters new phase

A coalition of House Republicans is escalating its push for answers after lawmakers said New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill failed to address most of their questions about the state’s noncitizen voter-registration scandal and instead directed criticism at President Donald Trump. Republican Study Committee member Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., told Fox News Digital there will be consequences after Sherrill sent a response that he characterized as “snarky” and politicized and said largely sidestepped the lawmakers’ questions. “The response that we got from the governor was almost like she took a political mailer and embossed it upon her official letterhead,” Van Drew said. “As governor of the state of New Jersey, it was beneath her, it was beneath me, and it was unfortunate.” SHERRILL ESCALATES TRUMP FIGHT OVER VOTER FIASCO DAY AFTER MULLIN PRAISES NJ COOPERATION “I state the obvious,” Van Drew said. “If you are an American, you should be voting in an American election. If you’re not an American, you shouldn’t be voting in an American election.” Lawmakers focused their original inquiry on how the registration failure occurred, its potential consequences and how New Jersey would prevent another breakdown. The July 24 letter from dozens of RSC members, led by Van Drew and Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, posed 12 specific questions about the registration failure and its potential impact. Sherrill replied that affected residents have been mailed notifications, but Van Drew said the overall response failed to address Congress’ concerns. “We’re not done with this,” Van Drew pledged. Van Drew said he is planning a hearing as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee’s Oversight Subcommittee, with expert witnesses expected to testify. Van Drew said he is working with the full committee under Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to get the requested information from Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell, the state’s elections chief. ‘TIP OF THE ICEBERG’: NJ ILLEGAL VOTING SCANDAL EXPLODES WITH MORE KEY SYSTEMS AT RISK “If there’s a complete lack of cooperation after we build up a case, there is a possibility, it’s not definite,” Van Drew said. “But if they’re not, we do, in my opinion, have to look at subpoenas as well.” Sherrill defended her administration while criticizing Congress, Trump and the Republican-backed SAVE America Act. SHERRILL DROPS HEAD-TURNING VOTER ID DECLARATION IN WAKE OF REGISTRATION FIASCO: ‘SIGNIFICANT SHIFT’ “Washington Republicans … seem much more concerned with using the issue for political gain than they are with protecting our elections,” Sherrill wrote, accusing several signatories of supporting Trump’s efforts to “undermine our election system” and noting that seven had challenged electoral votes after the 2020 election. Sherrill also disputed Republicans’ contention that the SAVE America Act would have prevented the error, writing, “I encourage you to become more familiar with the legislation you have cosponsored.” She also raised privacy and abuse-of-power concerns about proposals to expand the federal government’s role in voter registration, including through a centralized voter registry. Van Drew told Fox that “when you have a motor-voter law, [via which] people basically are automatically registered to vote – First of all, New Jersey is a sanctuary state… Illegal criminals shouldn’t be even in the state. But now we find out that illegals were also obviously having the ability to register to vote and were being registered and some of them actually were voting.” The White House also rebuked Sherrill’s response, calling it “laughable” that she would criticize the Trump administration on election integrity. “[This] after she and her fellow Democrats have denied for years that non-citizens are registering and voting in our elections,” said White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis. Sherrill spokesperson Sean Higgins hit back at the criticisms, telling Fox News Digital the governor’s reply detailed how Trenton “moved with transparency and accountability to remediate this error from 2023.” “But Republicans are more interested in playing political games. Considering that Jeff Van Drew’s campaign employed an operative convicted of voter fraud, bribery and blackmail, he might not be the best voice on what is too ‘political’ on this topic,” Higgins said, pointing to a 2020 Politico report about ex-Atlantic City council president Craig Callaway. Pfluger told Fox News Digital that Sherrill spent “three pages on political theater and barely a sentence answering our questions,” adding that she “dodged” whether any elections were decided by fewer votes than the number of illegal ballots cast. “We are not letting this story get buried. It is high time we pass the SAVE America Act to make sure our elections are secure, transparent, and worthy of the public’s trust,” he said. Rep. Christopher Smith, R-N.J., the state delegation’s most senior member and an RSC colleague, said Trenton must give Congress “complete transparency” and a corrective path forward. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “Secure elections are the bedrock of democracy; we must take all steps necessary to ensure that votes are cast only by those who have a right to vote,” Smith said. The inquiry will continue on several tracks. Van Drew’s subcommittee is preparing a hearing, the Judiciary Committee is seeking additional state records and lawmakers are weighing further compulsory action as separate executive branch scrutiny continues.

Dem Senate hopeful pivots on data centers as rising power costs collide with campaign

Dem Senate hopeful pivots on data centers as rising power costs collide with campaign

Despite having once applauded the growth of data centers during his tenure as North Carolina governor, Democratic Senate nominee Roy Cooper is now pitching voters with ways to reel in their expansion as he wages a bid for U.S. Senate. He has framed his stance as a part of his “make stuff cost less” campaign. “We need to make sure data centers pay for their own power and we need to encourage them to build their own energy sources because right now that’s causing rates to go up for consumers and we can’t have that,” Cooper said in an interview with local media. Cooper’s shift in position makes him the latest Democrat to fold the data center issue into affordability concerns — efforts to position themselves as the champions of bringing costs down by getting companies to shoulder the brunt of their utility usage. AI’S MASSIVE APPETITE FOR POWER, WATER IGNITES FIGHT IN HIGH-STAKES TEXAS SENATE RACE Notably, the bulk of North Carolina’s tax breaks already existed by the time Cooper came into office as governor in 2017. The year before, in 2016, the state had implemented statute G.S.105-164.13. Under that provision, lawmakers had expanded data center tax exemptions on taxes for sales, servers, storage and networking. To qualify, companies would have to invest at least $75 million in projects over five years. According to research from CBRE, a commercial real estate firm, the investments have paid off, bringing a 15x jump in data center construction that largely began to spur growth during Cooper’s term as governor. “Several trends are influencing the data center industry, including emerging markets for development due to tax incentives, advancements in renewable energy, power availability and a need for accelerated construction completion timelines,” the group said in its report. In one especially notable case, Cooper’s administration went further. Unlike most companies that qualified for the state’s general tax breaks, Apple received more incentives from North Carolina in 2019 in the form of a Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG). The grant aimed to further the company’s data center development in Maiden, North Carolina, according to the tech giant’s 2019 annual report. Through the JDIG agreement, the company secured an $845 million grant over a period of 39 years alongside another $112.4 million that would go to an industrial development fund to build out rural infrastructure. At the time, Cooper celebrated the announcement, touting in a press release that the project was estimated to create 3,000 jobs. ONE OF THE WORLD’S HOTTEST INDUSTRIES IS SPARKING A BLUE-COLLAR JOBS BOOM “Innovation has long been North Carolina’s calling card and Apple’s decision to build this new campus in the Research Triangle showcases the importance of our state’s favorable business climate, world-class universities, our tech-ready workforce, and the welcoming and diverse communities that make so many people want to call North Carolina home,” Cooper said. “This announcement will benefit communities across our state, and we are proud to work together to continue to grow our economy and bring transformational industries and good-paying jobs to North Carolina.” Also during Cooper’s time as governor, companies like Meta, Corvid Technologies, GIGA, Microsoft, Segra and Google all either completed projects or announced new data center expansion in North Carolina. State reporting found that between 2015 and 2025, 37 companies had secured state tax exemptions. Like Apple, Corvid Technologies also received a JDIG: a $9 million reimbursement from the state spread over 12 years that would facilitate the construction of two, three-story data centers, according to a press release. The company also was set to partner with local groups like Duke Energy, a utility company. Cooper praised that development, although he didn’t mention the data centers themselves. “North Carolina is the perfect choice for Corvid, thanks to our world-class universities, major military installations, and highly skilled workers,” Gov. Cooper said. “I’m pleased Corvid decided to keep growing right here by bringing more, good-paying engineering jobs and its headquarters to Mooresville,” Cooper said. A few years later, developments like the one with Corvid have flipped on their heads as figures like Cooper’s successor, Gov. Josh Stein, have pointed to data centers as a driver of rising utility costs through providers like Duke. “Duke Energy’s proposed rate hike is simply too high and comes as the company is also retreating on more affordable clean energy. At a time when families are struggling to make ends meet, we should be doing everything we can to make life more affordable, not less,” Stein said at a press conference earlier this year. “I will continue to fight on behalf of every North Carolinian to lower costs and grow the economy.” Cooper has also joined those calls, touting his work in pushing back against rising utility pricing. “As Governor and Attorney General, I put aside party politics to fight utility cost increases for North Carolinians. I vetoed a Senate bill that prioritized higher profits for utility companies over more cost-effective energy solutions. And I battled Duke Energy in court to get their profit margin lowered,” Cooper said in a press release last month. Notably, Cooper hasn’t called for an outright ban on data centers, but has strongly advocated that they be required to pay more directly for their energy consumption. TEXAS GOV. GREG ABBOTT EFFECTIVELY PAUSES NEW DATA CENTER PROJECTS PENDING STATEWIDE GRID AUDIT “The companies that build these data centers must pull their own weight, pay for the power they use and completely remove this burden from North Carolina families and small businesses. We must encourage companies that build data centers to also build their own power sources, which will help reduce utility costs for consumers,” Cooper added. Asked about his shifting rhetoric around data centers, the Cooper campaign stressed that he believes local communities should set the bar for how they want to approach data center expansion restrictions. “Roy believes local communities must have the final say on new projects coming to their area which includes local moratoriums, and data centers must pay for all of the energy

South Carolina mail-in voting law illegally discriminates, appeals court rules

South Carolina mail-in voting law illegally discriminates, appeals court rules

A federal court in South Carolina ruled that the state’s rules for mail-in-voting violated the constitution last week. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling relates to South Carolina’s mail-in ballot laws and certain allowances it makes for voters over the age of 65. Typically, voters looking to send mail-in ballots must meet certain criteria, such as being out of the country during the early voting period or being disabled. SUPREME COURT RULES ON MAIL-IN BALLOTS RECEIVED AFTER ELECTION DAY A state law removed those requirements for all voters over the age of 65, however, and the fourth circuit’s ruling found that provision to be unconstitutional. “By granting voters aged sixty-five and older unconditional access to absentee-by-mail voting while conditioning that same option for younger voters on eligibility categories, documentation, and a rigid deadline, the state allocates voting opportunities unequally based solely on age,” U.S. Circuit Chief Judge Roger Gregory wrote in the order. The case arose after a group of younger voters sued the South Carolina Elections Commission in 2023, arguing the rule violated the 26th Amendment. A lower court initially dismissed their argument, but the case continued on appeal until it appeared before the Fourth Circuit. FEDERAL APPEALS COURT REJECTS TRUMP BID TO ENFORCE MAIL BALLOT ORDER AHEAD OF MIDTERM ELECTIONS The new ruling sends the case back to lower courts with specific instructions on how to decide the case. Gregory wrote that either all South Carolina voters must be entitled to vote absentee without restrictions, or none of them can be. That is unlikely to be the end of the question, however, as representatives of South Carolina say they plan to appeal further, potentially reaching the Supreme Court. NEWSOM PROMISES NEW LEGAL FIGHT AFTER TRUMP GETS SUPREME COURT VICTORY ON MAIL-IN VOTING The order came the same week that the U.S. Supreme Court issued a largely favorable ruling for President Donald Trump’s effort to limit mail-in ballots across the country. Former White House deputy counsel Gene Hamilton said federal agencies such as the Postal Service can now move forward with parts of Trump’s election-integrity order, including new ballot-mail standards and efforts involving state citizenship lists, as opposing states wait to see which concrete federal actions could form the basis of new lawsuits. Further litigation is expected on that front as well.