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Trump calls for death penalty for anyone who kills a cop as he visits Michigan in latest campaign stop: Live

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are both speaking in Michigan this evening as former president Barack Obama campaigns for the vice president in Arizona

Oliver O'Connell,Joe Sommerlad
Friday 18 October 2024 19:26
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Kamala Harris speaks in Grand Rapids, Michigan, October 18, 2024

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Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are both holding rallies in Michigan this evening as they try to win voters in the key swing state.

Trump is speaking in Detroit after a town hall event earlier today, while Harris will appear in Oakland County. The latest Emerson College poll shows the two candidates are tied in Michigan.

Also tonight, former President Barack Obama is campaigning on the vice president’s behalf in Tuscon, Arizona.

Ahead of tonight’s rally, the former president called Judge Tanya Chutkan “the most evil person” and labeled special counsel Jack Smith a “sick puppy” after new evidence was released in the January 6 case against him.

Trump has called the case against him “a terrible thing” and “election interference” as he navigates indictments in Washington and Georgia for his efforts to subvert his 2020 loss.

Meanwhile, the ratings for the latest Fox News appearances by Harris and Trump were released. More than 7.8 million people tuned in to Harris’s interview with Bret Baier, more than double the 3.1 million who tuned in to Trump’s town hall event.

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Jim Gaffigan joked about Melania Trump’s memoir and made a jab at her husband while speaking at the Al Smith charity dinner on Thursday evening.

“Can we have a round of applause for First Lady, Melania Trump? She presently has the number one book in America,” Gaffigan said as the room erupted in applause.

“Jesus taught us to forgive…70 times seven,” he quipped. “And Melania, you may be the first person to actually reach that.”

Comedian Jim Gaffigan speaks at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City
Comedian Jim Gaffigan speaks at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City (REUTERS)
Katie Hawkinson18 October 2024 02:23
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Jim Gaffigan kicks off Al Smith dinner

Comedian Jim Gaffigan, host of this year’s Al Smith dinner, kicked off the event with a series of political zingers.

Gaffigan began with a quip about Kamala Harris’s decision not to attend, telling attendees he wanted to address the notable absence: “Of course, I’m talking about the middle class,” he went on to joke.

“You know, this event has been referred to as the Catholic Met Gala, 22% of Americans identified as Catholic,” Gaffigan later added. “Catholics will be a key demographic in every battle throughout the state. I’m sorry - why is Vice President Harris not here?”

This isn’t Gaffigan’s first foray into politics in recent months - the comedian has also been tapped to play vice presidential candidate Tim Walz on Saturday Night Live.

“But seriously, this is the special night people,” Gaffigan said. “This is the one night when Republicans and Democrats and Democrats who used to be Republican and Republicans who used to be Democrats and independents and whatever Michael Bloomberg is now...we can [come together].”

Katie Hawkinson18 October 2024 02:17
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Full story: Melania and Donald are all smiles as they make rare public outing together at Al Smith dinner in NYC

Donald Trump and Melania Trump were all smiles as they made a rare public appearance together at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City.

The former president and former first lady appeared at the dinner both dressed in black-tie outfits Thursday night. Trump smiled, raised his fist and shook hands as he made his way to his seat.

Trump is set to speak at the event later on Thursday evening.

Melania has been notably absent from the campaign trail. Over the last year, she has attended only a handful of rallies and events, often avoiding the spotlight while there. She also broke a long-running tradition by attending but not speaking at the Republican National Convention in July.

Katie Hawkinson18 October 2024 02:15
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In pictures: Donald and Melania attend Al Smith dinner

Donald and Melania Trump smile and clap at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City on Thursday night
Donald and Melania Trump smile and clap at the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City on Thursday night (REUTERS)
Melania Trump has been largely absent from the campaign trail this year, making tonight a rare public appearance beside her husband
Melania Trump has been largely absent from the campaign trail this year, making tonight a rare public appearance beside her husband (REUTERS)
Trump is set to give the keynote address at the Al Smith charity dinner later this evening
Trump is set to give the keynote address at the Al Smith charity dinner later this evening (REUTERS)
Katie Hawkinson18 October 2024 01:42
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Donald and Melania attend Al Smith dinner

Donald and Melania Trump are attending tonight’s Al Smith charity dinner in New York City, an annual event to raise money for Catholic charities.

Attending the dinner has been a tradition among major party presidential candidates since the 1960s.

But, Kamala Harris’s team confirmed last month that the vice president will not be attending. This makes her the first presidential candidate for a major party to do so in decades.

Instead, Harris spent the day campaigning in Wisconsin, a key swing state.

Donald Trump and Melania Trump attend the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City
Donald Trump and Melania Trump attend the Al Smith charity dinner in New York City (Alfred E Smith Foundation)
Katie Hawkinson18 October 2024 01:15
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Trump tries to strike another hush money deal with Stormy Daniels ahead of election, says report

Donald Trump has tried to strike yet another hush money deal with adult film star Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence ahead of the 2024 presidential election, according to a report.

The former president’s attorneys allegedly sent Daniels an offer where the amount she owed him over a defamation suit would be lowered if she agreed not to make “defamatory or disparaging statements” about him.

The details were revealed in a special report by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, who obtained calls, documents and emails about the deal.

Read more:

Trump accused of trying to cut another hush money deal with Stormy Daniels

Former president’s attorneys allegedly sent adult film star an offer where the amount she owed him over a defamation suit would be lowered if she agreed not to make ‘defamatory or disparaging statements’ about him

James Liddell 18 October 2024 01:00
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WWE star Dave Bautista tears into Trump over ‘tough guy’ pose: ‘Weak, tubby toddler’

Dave Bautista has mocked Donald Trump’s “tough guy” pose, calling the presidential candidate “a weak, tubby toddler.”

Bautista, 55, rose to fame as a WWE wrestler before building a career as an action star in movies including Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, the James Bond film Spectre and both instalments of Dune.

On last night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, late-night host Kimmel quoted a recent New York Times poll that found Trump is leading rival candidate Kamala Harris by 17 points among male voters. “But is he the strong, alpha man these men believe him to be?” asked Kimmel. “Not according to one of the toughest guys I know, he isn’t.”

Read on:

WWE star Dave Bautista tears into Trump over ‘tough guy’ pose

‘A lot of men seem to think that Donald Trump is some kind of tough guy,’ said the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ star. ‘He’s not’

Kevin EG Perry18 October 2024 00:48
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Harris and Biden each respond to death of ‘terrorist’ Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar

US leaders denounced Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar after reports of his death were confirmed by the Israeli military on Thursday, calling him a “terrorist”.

President Joe Biden said that he was informed early Thursday morning that Sinwar had likely been killed in a targeted operation the day earlier, and described his killing in the Gaza Strip as an opportunity for diplomacy to begin again.

“DNA tests have now confirmed that Sinwar is dead. This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world,” said the president.

Read more:

Harris and Biden each respond to death of ‘terrorist’ Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar

Biden says Hamas leader guilty of ‘unspeakable savagery’ as State Department promises to ‘redouble’ ceasefire talk efforts

John Bowden18 October 2024 00:31
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NRA take a dig at Tim Walz and it totally backfires

The National Rifle Association, the influential firearms lobbying group, was mocked online for allegedly getting the facts wrong on a video claiming vice presidential candidate Tim Walz doesn’t know how to use a shotgun.

“Tim Walz previously claimed he kept a shotgun in his car so he could hunt pheasants after football practice,” the group wrote introducing the video, posted on X on Tuesday. “This is Tim Walz attempting to load his shotgun this past weekend.⁩”

The clip then features a video of Walz using a shotgun over circus-like music, and captions that claim “that dog don’t hunt” and urging viewers to defeat “confiscation Kamala.”

X users quickly added a community note to the post, linking to a video suggesting Walz was in fact unloading the shotgun.

“Clearly unloading and checking the action,” one user, a Colorado cattle rancher, commented.

Keep reading:

NRA take a dig at Tim Walz and it totally backfires

Spat comes as both campaigns try to win over gun-owners

Josh Marcus18 October 2024 00:19
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Full story: Harris and Biden each respond to death of ‘terrorist’ Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar

US leaders denounced Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar after reports of his death were confirmed by the Israeli military on Thursday, calling him a “terrorist”.

President Joe Biden said that he was informed early Thursday morning that Sinwar had likely been killed in a targeted operation the day earlier, and described his killing in the Gaza Strip as an opportunity for diplomacy to begin again.

“DNA tests have now confirmed that Sinwar is dead. This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world,” said the president.

John Bowden reports from Washington, DC.

Harris and Biden each respond to death of ‘terrorist’ Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar

Biden says Hamas leader guilty of ‘unspeakable savagery’ as State Department promises to ‘redouble’ ceasefire talk efforts

Oliver O'Connell17 October 2024 23:20

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