Archive for the ‘Mike Pence’ Category

2024 Watch: Pence, Pompeo, Cruz, heading to New Hampshire this month – Fox News

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Two potential contenders for the next race for the Republican presidential nomination return this month to New Hampshire, the state that for a century held the first primary in the race for the White House.

And another possible GOP presidential contender is making his first stop in the early voting state this cycle.

Former Vice President Mike Pence will headline a fundraiser in Wilton, New Hampshire, on Sept. 14 the day after primary day in the crucial battleground state for whoever wins the GOP Senate nomination in the race to challenge former governor and first-term Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan. The race in New Hampshire is one of a handful across the country that may determine if the Republicans win back the Senate majority in Novembers midterm elections.

And six days later on Sept. 20, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will headline the latest edition of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics "Politics and Eggs." The speaking series at St. Anselm College, just west of Manchester, has been a must-stop for nearly a quarter-century for actual and potential White House hopefuls of both major parties. Fox News last week was the first to report word of both the Pence and Pompeo trips.

PENCE MAKING HIGH-PROFILE STOPS IN IOWA AND NEW HAMPSHIRE

Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks at "Politics and Eggs" at St. Anselm College's New Hampshire Institute of Politics, on Aug. 17, 2022, in Goffstown, New Hampshire. (Fox News)

Pence is no stranger to New Hampshire. Hes already made four trips to the state since the end of former President Donald Trumps administration early last year. During his last visit to the Granite State, he headlined "Politics and Eggs," which kicked off a jam-packed day that ended north of the notches at two gatherings in New Hampshires North Country for local Republican lawmakers, candidates and officials.

Two days after his August stop in New Hampshire, Pence made a busy two-day swing through Iowa, whose caucuses have led off the presidential nominating calendar for half a century. The former vice presidents itinerary included another must-stop for White House hopefuls: a visit to the Iowa State Fair.

Pence has also made multiple stops over the past year and a half in South Carolina, which holds the third contest and first southern primary in the Republican presidential nominating calendar.

Pompeo, the former congressman from Kansas who served as CIA director and later Americas top diplomat during the Trump administration, has also been a frequent visitor to the early voting primary and caucus states. And both have told Fox News and other organizations that theyll make their decisions regarding 2024 after the midterm elections.

2024 WATCH: POMPEO GOES UP WITH ADS IN IOWA AND SOUTH CAROLINA

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo keynotes the Hillsborough County GOP's annual Lincoln-Reagan fundraising dinner, in Manchester, New Hampshire, on April 7, 2022. (Fox News)

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, hasn't made as many trips to early voting states as Pence and Pompeo, but the conservative firebrand heads this week to New Hampshire on a 2022 mission that will also spark more speculation about his national ambitions in 2024.

Cruz will travel to the crucial general election battleground state to campaign with Republican candidate Karoline Leavitt at a get-out-the-vote rally on Thusday, which was first reported by Fox News this weekend.

Leavitt, a 25-year-old veteran of the Trump White House press shop, is currently one of the co-front-runners in the Sept. 13 Republican primary in New Hampshires First Congressional District, which has long been a highly contested swing House district.

Cruz, who was runner-up to Trump in the race for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, last month made stops in Iowa to headline a fundraiser for longtime GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, whos running for re-election this year. And he also traveled to Nevada, which votes fourth in the GOP primary and caucus schedule, where Cruz spoke in support of former state Attorney General Adam Laxalt, the 2022 Senate nominee in the key battleground state.

FIRST ON FOX: CRUZ HEADED TO NEW HAMPSHIRE ON THURSDAY

GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas speaks at the annual Basque Fry hosted by former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, the 2022 Republican Senate nominee, on Aug. 13, 2022, in Gardnerville, Nevada. (Sen. Ted Cruz)

Cruz, like Pence, Pompeo and other potential White House hopefuls, has been crisscrossing the country this year on behalf of fellow Republicans running in the midterms.

While the official starting gun in the next White House race doesnt fire until after Novembers elections, early visits by Pence, Pompeo and a slew of other potential GOP presidential contenders have been underway since early last year.

"I think the race is already on," New Hampshire Institute of Politics executive director Neil Levesque told Fox News. "The race to replace to Joe Biden is full steam ahead."

"Theyre coming up and their themes and messages are getting out there," Levesque noted. "Its not a game changer overnight. Its a slow process where people gain activists, friends, earned media, and it all ties in and pays off during those early primaries" in 2024.

CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS 2022 MIDTERMS POWER RANKINGS

Hogan back in New Hampshire

Gov. Larry Hogan, R-Md., stopped in New Hampshire last week, his second visit this summer.

Hogan, who is term-limited and cannot run for re-election in blue state Maryland, has been crisscrossing the country in recent months on behalf of fellow Republicans on the ballot in November. He stopped in the Granite State to headline a fundraiser for GOP state lawmakers.

GOP Govs. Larry Hogan of Maryland, right, and Chris Sununu of New Hampshire at a fundraiser for Republican state representatives, on Aug. 30, 2022, in Manchester. (An America United)

The governors latest trip to New Hampshire came two weeks after he stopped in Iowa, on a two-day swing that included a visit to the state fair.

Hogan told Fox News last month that he would potentially launch a 2024 Republican presidential campaign if he sees "theres a possible road to victory, that theres a lane and I have an opportunity."

On Tuesday, asked about his latest visits to the early voting states, the governor said, "We've been to probably 15 different states. Sure, Iowa and New Hampshire are obviously very important states in the 2024 race."

HOGAN KNOWS WHY BIDEN KEEPS BLASTING MAGA REPUBLICANS

"But I really am out here in New Hampshire trying to help the House Republican caucus and make sure that the Republicans can maintain their state legislative control," he said. "Ive been traveling around helping gubernatorial candidates and Senate candidates and congressional candidates where I think I can make a difference."

Hogan told Fox News that he looks forward to returning to New Hampshire in the autumn to help campaign for the GOPs nominees in the general election.

Biden vs. Trump

If you need more proof that Americans arent looking forward to a potential rematch of the 2020 presidential election between President Biden and Trump in 2024, check out the Quinnipiac national poll released this past week.

President Biden and former President Trump (Getty Images)

By a 62%-33% margin, those questioned in the survey said they didnt want to see Trump run in 2024. And by a 67%-26% margin, the public didnt want the president to seek re-election.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The one difference more than seven in ten Republicans surveyed said theyd like to see Trump launch another presidential campaign, while Democrats by a narrow 47%-43% wanted Biden to run for a second term.

If they do run, a Wall Street Journal poll released Thursday suggested Biden holding the advantage in the hypothetical matchup with 50% of registered voters nationwide saying they would definitely or probably vote for the president, and 44% saying the same of Trump.

Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in New Hampshire.

More:
2024 Watch: Pence, Pompeo, Cruz, heading to New Hampshire this month - Fox News

New ‘The View’ co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin wants to be ‘voice’ of Trump voters – Fox News

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

New "The View" co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said Monday she hopes to represent former President Trump's voters in the ABC show's Republican seat, although she has become one of his staunchest critics and hopes he never returns to the White House.

"I'm a millennial and I worked in the Trump administration," she said on ABC's "Good Morning America" in a segment previewing the show's upcoming season. "I've also since criticized the former president, but I still want to be a voice for the 74 million Americans who voted for him, and kind of tell them, from my experience, here's why I won't support him again, but here's what a future Republican Party can and should look like. So that's really what I'm hoping to meet the audience with."

Griffin held a number of key positions in the Trump administration, including Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary, Pentagon press secretary and White House communications director. Griffin resigned in December 2020, expressing pride in her time in the administration in her departing letter. Since Trump left office, Griffin has spoken out strongly against his stolen 2020 election rhetoric and become one of many Republican critics of Trump with lofty media perches.

Alyssa Farah Griffin previewed the upcoming season of "The View" on Monday. (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)

Earlier this year, she said, "As somebody who regrettably worked for Donald Trump, I do not want to see that man ever be president again." She has said some family members, including her father, skipped her wedding over her stance against Trump. Some liberals like MSNBC's Tiffany Cross have fumed at her selection by ABC due to ever being in the Trump orbit.

THE VIEW ANNOUNCES ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, ANA NAVARRO AS NEW CO-HOSTS

"The View" kicks off its new season Tuesday. Griffin noted Hillary and Chelsea Clinton would be among the guests this week to promote their docu-series, calling the younger Clinton "fabulous" and adding "as a Republican," she was excited to question the elder Clinton.

"The View" may have two Republican spots now, but they are hardly reflective of their fellow party members, which polls show remain broadly supportive of Trump.

The other new "View" position announced last month went to Ana Navarro, who, while nominally a Republican, espouses liberal positions nearly across the board and openly supports President Biden and Democrats. She even worked for Biden's Latino outreach in Florida in 2020.

"There's a whole host of nuance in between both of the parties," Griffin said of her and Navarro, who are also both CNN commentators.

New "The View" co-hosts Alyssa Farah Griffin and Ana Navarro are strongly anti-Trump Republicans.

Griffin was selected for a seat on "The View" after making dozens of guest appearances over the past year as the show lacked a permanent right-leaning co-host. Former conservative co-host Meghan McCain quit the show last July, citing in part the toxic treatment she says she endured from figures like liberal co-host Joy Behar.

DESANTIS DIDN'T KNOW STAFF DECLINED THE VIEW INVITE, HAS NO INTEREST IN PARTISAN CORPORATE MEDIA

Griffin joked Monday she was sometimes scared of her but added Behar was good at cracking jokes to lighten the mood. McCain has said Behar's treatment of her contributed to her leaving the show.

In her guest appearances to date, while sitting in the token conservative chair, Griffin has been far more deferential to her liberal colleagues than McCain, who regularly irked left-leaning viewers as she clashed with Behar, Whoopi Goldberg and others.

Griffin, who describes herself as a national security conservative, suggested Monday the show will be more genial with her at the table.

Alyssa Farah Griffin joked Monday she's sometimes frightened of "The View" co-host Joy Behar. (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"As a Republican, the table skews to the left. I'm not going in trying to change everyone's mind," she said. "Merely to show the other viewpoint, show how nearly half the country sees some of these issues."

Gabriel Hays is an associate editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter at @gabrieljhays.

Originally posted here:
New 'The View' co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin wants to be 'voice' of Trump voters - Fox News

Election denial activist behind Pence Card theory tells QAnon show he contacted multiple members of Congress to push plan – Media Matters for America

IVAN RAIKLIN: Let me give you a little context. So back in so that you understand how deep I was in this. And the radical left media is going to hear this for the first time. On November 5, I happened to go up to Philadelphia to kind of observe what the campaign was doing in terms of their legal strategy. And theres a video out there where I bumped into one of the poll observers that were on the inside that was kicked out, one of the Trump campaign poll observers. And he said that there were a lot of people coming in with backpacks, youve probably seen that video, it went kind of viral a few weeks ago. Im the guy taking the video and theyre listening to this guy kind of testify. So I went up there, observed whats going on legally. Thats where I met Dan Cox, he was working it. Hes now the candidate for governor in Maryland, America First guy. And a couple of other people. You know, Corey Lewandowski was up there, Pam Bondi was up there, [Rudy] Giuliani was up there.

So I came in kind of, I think the next day or so, to try to assess whats going on. And I noticed that there wasnt the campaign nor the presidency was really putting out the message of how an election occurs. We all know now, but there wasnt this counter-narrative to, Oh, this elections over. Instead, it was just no one was putting it out. So thats when I took to Twitter and started really doing a deep dive on how we can still remedy this going into January 6. I get the retweet by general, the president, etc. Thankfully, I get a bigger voice.

So now Im putting out these paths to be able to fix it. And I dont know how much I think, Zak, you said you saw, like, some of that strategy?

ZAK PAINE (HOST): I did, yes.

RAIKLIN: What needs to be done in the Congress, at the executive branch, etc., etc. One of the components, one of the biggest components in everything we do in this ecosystem, is the court of public opinion. When the court of public opinion, via the mainstream media, says that an election is over, most of your staff in the White House, most of your campaign staff, believe it, and now they give up. And we saw that. And so you had outside people like me, you guys, everybody basically saying, This aint over. The election ends on January 6, if its done, you know, legitimately, theres other remedies afterwards. So, I was going day by day, giving all the different components. I was on X22 [Report] and I kind of laid all of that stuff out.

And then as we approach January 6, the last lawful way to apply pressure on the Congress at that point was to convince them that they are now under a duty to object. And the way that I was doing it is that memo clearly articulated it not only to the president or Vice President Pence in December. When he failed to do that, in my opinion, he now is complicit in the constitutional violations, along with those at the precinct, county, and secretary of state level for certifying those illegal elections. And now it rests on the courts are not supposed to be involved in this entire process. This is not a legal construct. Its a legislative state process and a congressional process. So by the time it got to the Congress, I was contacting everybody I knew in Congress. Hey, Congressman So-And-So. You want me to name names?

PAINE: Sure. Feel free.

RAIKLIN: Hey, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, incoming. Hey, Congressman Mo Brooks. Hey, Congressman Ben Cline. Hey, Congressman Mike Waltz. Hey, Congressman Jim Jordan. And so on and so on. I told them, You dont have to you dont have to know anything about fraud, illegal machines, the networks, the Chinese, this and that. All you have to convince yourself of is that the states conducted their election not according to their election law. Hey, Congressman whats his name? From North Carolina. In the wheelchair.

PAINE: Im drawing a blank. Yeah. The young guy who they kicked out. Madison Cawthorn.

RAIKLIN: Madison Cawthorn. Good, I got it first.

So were getting this out. The left realizes it, that we now have the momentum. And so what do they do? They start to block, cancel, tackle. LinkedIn blocks my analysis of the Electoral Count Act in the Constitution. I get blocked. I get blocked on Instagram. I get blocked on Twitter, right? Because they used to say they say that, Oh no, the elections over. Those are thats false information. And then I say, No, thats not false. I'm actually just citing the Electoral Count Act.

Anyhow, we move forward into January 6. On January 5, we had like 100-and-almost-50 Congress members that were going to object, 12 senators. And so were in this predicament on January 6 at 1:02 p.m. Pence puts out a tweet saying that, Oh, I cant unilaterally do anything. Well, no one argued you could do it unilaterally. At least, I mean, I didnt. No one in my circles. And he went ahead and what did he do instead? He unilaterally denied 90% of Congress from participating in the objections.

Read this article:
Election denial activist behind Pence Card theory tells QAnon show he contacted multiple members of Congress to push plan - Media Matters for America

Trump lawyer John Eastman takes Fifth before Georgia grand jury in election-interference probe – CNBC

John Eastman, the University of Colorado Boulders visiting scholar of conservative thought and policy, speaks about his plans to sue the university at a news conference outside of CU Boulder on Thursday, April 29, 2021.

Andy Cross | Denver Post | Getty Images

A lawyer who had pushed to overturn the 2020 election loss of then-President Donald Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in refusing to answer questions during an appearance Wednesday before a grand jury in Georgia, his attorneys said.

John Eastman also invoked protections under attorney-client privilege in refusing to answer at least some questions he was asked before the grand jury, which was convened as part of a criminal probe into the possibility of illegal interference in Georgia's presidential election contest, his attorneys said.

Eastman is one of a group of Trump allies who were subpoenaed by that panel, which is hearing testimony in Atlanta. A second ally, Trump's former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, has been named a target in that investigation and recently testified before the same grand jury.

Eastman wrote a series of memos after the 2020 election calling on then-Vice President Mike Pence to effectively undo President Joe Biden's win by refusing to certify the Electoral College results.

"In his appearance before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury, we advised our client John Eastman to assert attorney-client privilege and the constitutional right to remain silent where appropriate," Eastman's lawyers, Charles Burnham and Harvey Silverglate, said in a statement.

"Out of respect for grand jury secrecy we will not disclose the substance of the questions or testimony. We wish to thank the grand jurors for their service," the attorneys said.

The statement also blasted Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for the probe itself.

"By all indications, the District Attorney's Office has set itself on an unprecedented path of criminalizing controversial or disfavored legal theories, possibly in hopes that the federal government will follow its lead," the lawyers said.

Read more of CNBC's politics coverage:

"Criminalization of unpopular legal theories is against every American tradition and would have ended the careers of John Adams, Ruth Ginsburg, Thurgood Marshall and many other now-celebrated American lawyers," the statement said. Adams was the second president of the United States, while Ginsburg and Marshall were Supreme Court justices who helped establish new legal precedents with their work during the civil rights movement.

"We ask all interested observers of any political persuasion to join us in decrying this troubling development," Burnham and Silverglate wrote.

Eastman last month revealed that his cellphone was seized by federal agents who stopped him in New Mexico and forced him to unlock it.

That seizure was done as part of an investigation by the Justice Department's internal watchdog, the Office of the Inspector General.

The IG's office is probing the role of the Justice Department and its components in "preparing for and responding to" the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters, according to the office's website. That riot occurred as a joint session of Congress was convened to certify Biden's victory, with Pence presiding over the proceedings.

A former Justice Department official, Jeffrey Clark, had electronics seized from his Virginia home on the same day that Eastman's phone was seized.

Clark also backed Trump's effort to overturn the election.

Trump considered installing Clark as attorney general in the days leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, but dropped the idea after a group of top Justice officials said they would resign in protest if that happened.

Continue reading here:
Trump lawyer John Eastman takes Fifth before Georgia grand jury in election-interference probe - CNBC

Trumps Dirty Dozen 12 Republican candidates to keep an eye on – The Hill

Donald Trump demonstrated exceptional political clout in the Republican primaries, with scores of candidates succeeding because they had the endorsement of the former president.

The general election will indicate whether that clout extends beyond the hard core. Ive picked a dozen races thatll test that.

The commonalities these dirty dozen share: They are in competitive contests in a year that should tilt Republican, were chosen over the preferences of establishment officials, are all election deniers (reiterating the Big Lie that the 2020 election where Joe Biden won by 7 million votes was fraudulent) and are embracing what were once considered fringe views.

J.D. Vance, author of the best-selling memoir, Hillybilly Elegy, leapt to the top of the Ohio GOP primary after Trumps endorsement. Once a harsh Trump critic, Vance has done a full 180. He charges the Biden administrations support for Ukraine grows out of its opposition to Vladimir Putin, who doesnt believe in transgender rights.

Herschel Walker, a former football star, had a professional sports relationship with Trump. Walker hadnt lived in Georgia in decades, but cleared the field when Trump embraced him. Not conversant with issues, Walker explained the fallacy of the Democrats climate change initiatives, saying Our good air decided to float over to Chinas bad air. So when China gets our good air their bad air got to move. So it moves over to our good air space.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, the TV doctor who peddled dubious medicinal cures, won the Pennsylvania Senate nomination over hedge funds executive David McCormick with Trumps surprise endorsement. A New Jersey resident who moved to Pennsylvania earlier this year, Oz, in a social media video, said he was shopping at Wegners. There is no such store in Pennsylvania; he explained that sometimes he gets his childrens names wrong.

A fourth first-time candidate backed by Trump is Blake Masters, a protege of venture capitalist Peter Thiel running for John McCains old Senate seat in Arizona. He disassociates from the late GOP icon, declaring, Its not his Republican Party in Arizona anymore. Masters has called for privatizing Social Security and a total abortion ban with no exceptions; for the general election, he slightly modified his stances.

Ted Budd was an obscure North Carolina congressman until Trumps endorsement; then, he blew past former Gov. Pat McCrory. A gun store owner, Budd voted against the modest gun control bill that was supported by the states two GOP Senators. Budd has said the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol really was nothing. It was just patriots standing up.

In Maryland, Trumpite Dan Cox trounced the candidate supported by the states popular outgoing GOP Gov. Larry Hogan. Cox attended the Jan. 6 Capitol rally; when Vice President Mike Pence refused to alter the electoral college count, Cox tweeted, Mike Pence is a traitor.

Kari Lake, a longtime Phoenix TV anchor and once an Obama voter, went full MAGA and beat the establishment candidate supported by the governor and Mike Pence. She is a favorite of the radical right, appearing with people linked to the Q-Anon conspiracy and thanking a Nazi sympathizer for support.

Tim Michels, with Trumps backing, defeated the once-favored former Wisconsin lieutenant governor, even though he has only lived in the state part-time. Michels, a businessman, said he might decertify the states 2020 election results Biden won Wisconsin by more than 20,000 votes even though thats constitutionally impermissible.

Doug Mastriano, to the shock of Pennsylvanias GOP establishment, easily won the nomination. The former Army officer attended the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol, but didnt enter the building apparently. He campaigns as a Christian nationalist and espouses right-wing conspiracy theories.

Donald Trumps obsession to drive out of office the ten Republicans who voted to impeach him at best only two will return boosted decorated veteran Joe Kent, who defeated Jaime Herrera Beutler in Washington State. Although Nathan Gonzaless Inside Politics rates this a solidly Republican seat, Kents hard right views and associations with white nationalists and the Proud Boys, a violence-prone hate group, could put it in play.

In Michigan, John Gibbs with Trumps backing defeated another Republican who voted for impeachment. Gibbs has promoted crazy fringe conspiracies, like claiming that Hillary Clintons 2016 campaign engaged in satanic rituals.

Bo Hines, a former college football player fueled by Trumps backing, scored an upset in a primary for an open North Carolina seat.The 27-year-old newcomer has called for defunding the FBI and for a federal ban on abortion with no exceptions.

Whatever happens to the runner-up in the last presidential election, Trumpism will remain the dominant force in the Republican party. If at least nine or ten of these candidates win in November, it will only tighten his hold.

If, however, most of the dirty dozen lose in what is supposed to be good GOP year, it will cause consternation and maybe even some rethinking in the party ranks.

Al Hunt is the former executive editor of Bloomberg News. He previously served as reporter, bureau chief and Washington editor for The Wall Street Journal. For almost a quarter century he wrote a column on politics for The Wall Street Journal, then The International New York Times and Bloomberg View. He hostsPolitics War Roomwith James Carville. Follow him on Twitter@AlHuntDC.

View original post here:
Trumps Dirty Dozen 12 Republican candidates to keep an eye on - The Hill