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The recent congressional hearing was a masterclass in political confrontation, featuring GOP Congressman\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eli Crane<\/strong>\u00a0absolutely torching Democrat Governor\u00a0Tim Walz<\/strong>\u00a0on a variety of issues, ranging from immigration policy to incendiary rhetoric. Crane didn\u2019t just ask questions; he delivered an execution via the Governor\u2019s own words, showcasing a perceived disconnect between Walz\u2019s statements and the hard realities of his state\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n The exchange began with a direct challenge to the Governor\u2019s opening statement, where Walz claimed that \u201cnothing Minnesota has done stands in the way of federal government managing its border security policy.\u201d Crane immediately called him out, asking,\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are you lying to this committee?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The core of Crane\u2019s attack was the public stance of Minnesota\u2019s Attorney General,\u00a0Keith Ellison<\/strong>, the state\u2019s top law enforcement official. Crane submitted an article stating that AG Ellison \u201cwill not enforce federal immigration laws,\u201d even as the DOJ threatens prosecution for officials who resist. Walz\u2019s defense\u2014claiming state law requires officials to ask for immigration status of convicted felons\u2014was swiftly dismissed by Crane as a misrepresentation, insisting that the AG\u2019s public defiance stands as a clear contradiction to the Governor\u2019s assurance of non-interference.<\/p>\n Crane then moved to the argument that Minnesota\u2019s policies actively create a border magnet, citing a list of state benefits:\u00a0free healthcare, food assistance, free college tuition, driver\u2019s licenses, and cash assistance.<\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0In Crane\u2019s judgment, these policies are not \u201chelping\u201d border security but are rather creating an irresistible incentive, effectively making Minnesota a\u00a0\u201csanctuary state\u201d<\/strong> in practice, regardless of official designation.<\/p>\n The scrutiny intensified as Crane addressed the Governor\u2019s rhetoric, particularly Walz\u2019s past characterization of\u00a0ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)<\/strong>\u00a0agents.<\/p>\n Crane grilled Walz on his decision to call federal law enforcement agents\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cmodern-day Gustapo,\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0a deeply offensive historical parallel. Crane challenged the Governor directly: \u201cYou think that calling them Gustapo is helping?\u201d Walz attempted to pivot to a defense of \u201cdue process\u201d and \u201cbest practice in law enforcement,\u201d but Crane hammered the point that such inflammatory language from a state executive actively hurts the federal government\u2019s ability to carry out its mandated enforcement.<\/p>\n Further damaging the Governor\u2019s credibility was an unverified quote where Walz allegedly told\u00a0Anderson Cooper<\/strong>, regarding the border wall, \u201cIf it\u2019s 25 ft, then I\u2019ll invest in a 30-foot ladder factory.\u201d Walz claimed not to remember the comment, which Crane seized upon as evidence of \u201cso many outlandish things that you can\u2019t even keep track of them.\u201d<\/p>\n Crane saved his most powerful and judgmental rebuke for the end, focusing on what he labeled Walz\u2019s\u00a0\u201cradical left-wing agenda.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0He dismissed Walz\u2019s previous podcast boast that he scares MAGA voters \u201cbecause they know I can fix a truck\u201d and could \u201ckick most of their asses,\u201d countering that the fear stems purely from his policies.<\/p>\n Crane\u2019s list of \u201cradical\u201d policies included:<\/p>\n Supporting\u00a0tampons in boys\u2019 bathrooms<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Advocating for\u00a0disarming Americans<\/strong>\u00a0of their Second Amendment rights.<\/p>\n Being\u00a0pro-sanctuary city<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Claiming there is\u00a0\u201cno guarantee to free speech\u201d<\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0when it comes to misinformation and hate speech\u2014a view Crane acidly suggested Walz may have picked up during one of his alleged trips to\u00a0\u201ccommunist China.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Finally, Crane weaponized Walz\u2019s political aspirations against him, referencing a quote where Walz allegedly said Kamala Harris picked him for Vice President to \u201ccode talk to white guys.\u201d Crane closed the interrogation with a decisive blow, stating Walz\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201clost by 22 points to white guys\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0and promising: \u201cIf you want to continue that rhetoric, go on, brother. Keep doing it.\u00a0We\u2019ll keep destroying you in election.<\/strong>\u201c<\/p>\n The entire spectacle, as the transcript concludes, was a decisive, one-sided clash where Congressman Crane used facts, undeniable quotes, and logic to demonstrate, in his judgment, the severe consequences of Governor Walz\u2019s radical ideology and inflammatory rhetoric.<\/p>\n Mr. Kennedy appeared onstage briefly with Mr. Trump at a rally in Arizona hours after Mr. Kennedy announced, in a news conference nearby, that he was pausing his troubled independent presidential bid.<\/p>\n Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, and former President Donald J. Trump at a Trump campaign rally in Glendale, Ariz., on Friday.<\/span>Credit…<\/span>Evan Vucci\/Associated Press<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n One of the most attention-grabbing days of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s independent presidential bid was also its last.<\/p>\n After toiling for months as an electoral afterthought, Mr. Kennedy suspended his long-shot campaign on Friday and endorsed former President Donald J. Trump in a speech in Phoenix carried live by television networks. Then, he traveled across town to speak in front of the largest rally audience since he began his third-party run last year: an audience of 17,000 at a Trump event at an arena in Glendale, Ariz.<\/p>\n As he shook hands with Mr. Trump amid bursts of fireworks, Mr. Kennedy was, briefly, the star of the show, a new attraction for the Trump campaign. But it was unclear what impact, if any, Mr. Kennedy\u2019s endorsement of Mr. Trump would have on the 2024 race.<\/p>\n Framing his third-party bid as an outsider movement and a breath of fresh air for Americans fed up with partisan politics, Mr. Kennedy initially attracted significant support \u2014 more than 20 percent in some early polls \u2014 and was especially popular with Hispanic voters. Many voters had said they were frustrated with the lack of choice between two unpopular and familiar candidates: Mr. Trump and President Biden.<\/p>\n But Mr. Kennedy had been falling recently in polls, and plummeted further after Vice President Kamala Harris took the mantle of Democratic nominee from Mr. Biden, luring some wayward Democrats back home. Even those supporters who have remained steadfast to Mr. Kennedy are less likely than others to say they will vote in November, and\u00a0polls have not provided a consistent answer\u00a0as to whether Mr. Kennedy\u2019s supporters would prefer Ms. Harris or Mr. Trump.<\/p>\n Still, Mr. Trump and his allies on Friday relished the fact that the former president had won the backing of a member of America\u2019s most storied Democratic family, albeit one who has had many of his relatives denounce him and his endorsement of Mr. Trump. Of all the outlandish political news stories of the summer, mused Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, which helped organize the rally, \u201cmaybe most remarkable of all: A Kennedy has endorsed a Republican.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Trump predicted that Mr. Kennedy was \u201cgoing to have a huge influence on this campaign,\u201d promising that \u201cBobby and I will fight together to defeat the corrupt political establishment.\u201d<\/p>\n But it is hard to know whether he will make a dent in the larger problem Mr. Trump has newly faced: regaining the spotlight and the narrative after several weeks of momentum for Ms. Harris.<\/p>\n As the vice president has surged ahead in fund-raising and tightened the race, according to polls, Mr. Trump has bemoaned the ouster of Mr. Biden, whom his allies viewed as an easier opponent, held a series of rambling news conferences and offered a freewheeling rebuttal on Fox News to Ms. Harris\u2019s acceptance speech on Thursday night.<\/p>\n Mr. Trump has traded barbs with Mr. Kennedy in the past, but they have similar grievances that they could easily weave together on the campaign trail. They both blame a shadowy, bureaucratic deep state for many of the nation\u2019s ills, and they argue that technology companies and Democrats want to suppress free speech.<\/p>\n \u201cWe talked not about the things that separated us \u2014 because we don\u2019t agree on everything \u2014 but on the values and the issues that bind us together,\u201d Mr. Kennedy told the crowd in Glendale, recalling a previous conversation he had with Mr. Trump. \u201cDon\u2019t you want a president that\u2019s going to make America healthy again?\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Trump\u2019s campaign stop in Glendale was his final event in a five-day swing through battleground states, timed to coincide with the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in an attempt to avoid ceding the spotlight to Ms. Harris.<\/p>\n For decades, Arizona was a reliably conservative state, but Democrats have taken advantage of Republican infighting in recent years to capture statewide offices, including for governor and both U.S. Senate seats. Joseph R. Biden Jr., then a presidential candidate, turned Arizona blue in 2020, but the state appeared to be trending back toward Mr. Trump earlier this year, as voters expressed concern about Mr. Biden\u2019s age and the direction of the country.<\/p>\n Ms. Harris, though, has revitalized the Democratic base and made the state competitive again. Recent polls suggest a deadlocked race, and the party showcased its deep bench of prominent Arizona supporters at its convention, with speeches by Senator Mark Kelly, former Representative Gabrielle Giffords and others.<\/p>\n Republicans offered a rebuttal of sorts at Mr. Trump\u2019s rally on Friday, featuring a litany of big names of their own, including Representatives Paul Gosar, Eli Crane and Andy Biggs. Another speaker was Kari Lake, a prominent Trump ally who is running for Senate and who became a leading proponent of his false stolen-election claims.<\/p>\n The choice of venue was another retort to Democrats. Ms. Harris rallied at the same location, Desert Diamond Arena, several weeks ago, and her campaign said the crowd numbered 15,000 people. Turning Point said the crowd in the arena on Friday was 17,000. Mr. Trump has flinched at Ms. Harris\u2019s crowd sizes and falsely claimed that she was using artificial intelligence to inflate them in photos.<\/p>\n In his speech, Mr. Trump again broke with advisers who have urged him to focus on policy rather than veering into personal attacks. In recent weeks, he has taken events billed as opportunities to discuss components of his platform and set off on wide-ranging tangents filled with insults of Democrats.<\/p>\n \u201cYou say, \u2018Don\u2019t get personal.\u2019 I have to get personal,\u201d Mr. Trump said on Friday, proceeding to launch insults against the Obamas, Ms. Harris, Mr. Biden and Representative Ruben Gallego of Arizona, now a U.S. Senate candidate, whom he called a \u201cmaniac\u201d and a \u201closer.\u201d In fact, the only non-Republican he praised was Mr. Kennedy, whom he had once called a \u201cDemocrat plant\u201d and a \u201cradical left liberal\u201d \u2014 to which Mr. Kennedy had responded that Mr. Trump was a \u201cfrightened\u201d man who sounded \u201cunhinged.\u201d<\/p>\n But when Mr. Trump shared the stage with his former rival, those spars went unmentioned.<\/p>\n In welcoming his endorsement on the rally stage, the Trump campaign is betting that Mr. Kennedy can bring his supporters with him. In a memo earlier on Friday, the Trump campaign\u2019s lead pollster, Tony Fabrizio, described the end of Mr. Kennedy\u2019s candidacy as a clear benefit to the Republican nominee.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is good news for President Trump and his campaign \u2014 plain and simple,\u201d Mr. Fabrizio wrote, describing a majority of Mr. Kennedy\u2019s voters as overwhelmingly breaking in Mr. Trump\u2019s favor.<\/p>\n Just how significant those percentages will be remains to be seen. The polling that exists about where Mr. Kennedy\u2019s voters might go is based on the hypothetical scenario of his leaving the race. The actual impact of his departure will not be clear for many days or weeks.<\/p>\n Onstage on Friday, Mr. Trump renewed, \u201cin honor of Bobby,\u201d an unfinished pledge from his first term to create a commission that would release the remaining sealed files related to the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Mr. Kennedy\u2019s uncle. Less than 1 percent of the records remain sealed, according to the Central Intelligence Agency.<\/p>\n Mr. Trump, who has said he would pardon those who rioted at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, suggested at the rally that his supporters needed to take the country back from Democrats. \u201cWe have to take our country away from these people that are going to destroy our country,\u201d he told the audience.<\/p>\n Earlier in the day in Phoenix, at his speech announcing the suspension of his campaign, Mr. Kennedy said Mr. Trump had offered him a role in a second Trump administration, dealing with health care and food and drug policy. In Glendale, Mr. Trump said that, if elected to a second term, a panel of experts \u201cworking with Bobby\u201d would investigate obesity rates and other chronic health issues in the United States.<\/p>\n Mr. Kennedy later said he was \u201cchoosing to believe\u201d that \u201cthis time\u201d Mr. Trump would honor the agreement. During the transition period before Mr. Trump took office in 2017, Mr. Kennedy\u00a0said Mr. Trump had\u00a0offered him a spot on a vaccine safety commission, only to have the president-elect\u2019s team distance itself from such claims hours later.<\/p>\n Mr. Kennedy\u2019s remarks on Friday sought to cement what he saw as a legacy: pitching his policies on food, health and the environment and railing against the Democratic Party, which he believed treated him unfairly.<\/p>\n Maggie Haberman and Chris Cameron contributed reporting.<\/p>\n Trump has handed the podium over to Kennedy, who acknowledged their ideological differences but said their values overlap in \u201chaving safe food and ending the chronic disease epidemic.\u201d<\/p>\n Governor Greg Abbott sent social media into overdrive this week after jokingly warning that he would impose a \u201c100 percent tariff\u201d on anyone fleeing New York City for Texas if progressive candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the mayor\u2019s race.<\/p>\n Abbott\u2019s post on X (formerly Twitter) captured the mood of many Texans frustrated by what they view as the consequences of liberal policies\u2014high taxes, crime, and economic decline\u2014driving residents away from blue states.<\/p>\n While the governor\u2019s remark drew headlines, supporters say it underscores a serious message: Texas\u2019s economic strength and public safety record did not happen by accident.<\/p>\n Abbott\u2019s office clarified that the statement was tongue-in-cheek but reflected the governor\u2019s growing concern over the influx of residents from Democrat-run cities who then vote for the same policies they left behind.<\/p>\n \u201cTexas has become America\u2019s economic engine because we protect freedom, keep taxes low, and back the blue,\u201d Abbott said in a follow-up statement.<\/p>\n \u201cIf people want to enjoy that success, they should embrace the principles that built it.\u201d<\/p>\n Texas continues to lead the nation in job creation and business relocations, even as cities like New York and San Francisco struggle with population losses and rising costs of living.<\/p>\n Economists credit the state\u2019s balanced budgets, energy independence, and pro-growth regulations as key to its stability during national downturns.<\/p>\n Conservatives argue that liberal leaders have undermined once-thriving cities with soft-on-crime policies and aggressive tax hikes, prompting families and businesses to seek refuge in Republican-led states.<\/p>\n Abbott\u2019s playful \u201ctariff\u201d line resonated widely across social media, where thousands of users echoed the sentiment that Texas should protect its way of life.<\/p>\n \u201cTexans built something worth preserving,\u201d wrote one supporter. \u201cWe just don\u2019t want outsiders bringing failed ideas with them.\u201d<\/p>\n Democratic critics seized on the governor\u2019s remark, calling it divisive. But Republicans counter that Abbott\u2019s record\u2014on border security, energy independence, and job creation\u2014speaks for itself.<\/p>\n The governor has repeatedly urged new arrivals to respect local laws and values, emphasizing Texas\u2019s unique blend of liberty and responsibility.<\/p>\n Under Abbott\u2019s leadership, the state has attracted major employers such as Tesla, Oracle, and Samsung, while maintaining some of the nation\u2019s lowest overall tax burdens.<\/p>\n Supporters say those achievements validate conservative governance in action and justify Abbott\u2019s defense of Texas\u2019s model.<\/p>\n \u201cTexas doesn\u2019t need to import New York\u2019s problems,\u201d said state Senator Bryan Hughes. \u201cWe need to keep exporting our solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n The exchange comes amid growing national debate over population shifts from blue states to red, with U-Haul reporting record demand for one-way moves to Texas and Florida.<\/p>\n Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old democratic socialist who narrowly won New York City\u2019s mayoral race this week, will face steep challenges when he takes office on Jan. 1, 2026, political strategists told the Daily Caller News Foundation.<\/p>\n Mamdani captured 50.4% of the vote Tuesday, edging out former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent and finished with 41.6%. The tight margin fell well below pre-election polls that showed Mamdani with leads of up to 25 points, The Daily Caller\u00a0<\/p>\n After the race was called, Mamdani delivered a fiery victory speech at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater that took aim at both Cuomo and President Donald Trump. The tone, political observers said, raised questions about his leadership style before he even begins his term.<\/p>\n \u201cLast night was an angry Mamdani, was a bitter Mamdani. He wasn\u2019t magnanimous,\u201d political strategist Adam Weiss told the outlet. \u201cHe was calling Trump all sorts of names. I don\u2019t know why he\u2019s going off on Trump, the sitting president of the United States. Be magnanimous, say, \u2018We\u2019d love to work together.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Weiss said the remarks showed poor political judgment and a lack of grace after a divisive campaign. \u201cIf anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him,\u201d Mamdani said in his speech, drawing cheers from his supporters.<\/p>\n The socialist also took a shot at Cuomo, saying, \u201cI wish Andrew Cuomo only the best in private life. But let tonight be the final time I utter his name.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not the way you treat people in our society, it\u2019s really a bad look,\u201d Weiss said. \u201cIf Trump or any Republican had done that, there would be wall-to-wall negative coverage.\u201d<\/p>\n Veteran Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf said Mamdani\u2019s rhetoric reflects his movement\u2019s confidence. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have to [moderate], because he doesn\u2019t have to do anything,\u201d Sheinkopf said. \u201cThe issue will be does he disappoint his constituency if he moderates his rhetoric?\u201d<\/p>\n Sheinkopf said Mamdani\u2019s far-left platform \u2014 which includes free citywide bus service, rent freezes, and city-run grocery stores \u2014 will likely hit hard limits once he takes office.<\/p>\n \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have the power at the MTA to get free buses, necessarily, because he\u2019s only got four votes on the board,\u201d Sheinkopf explained. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have all the power he thinks he has on the rent stabilization board either. It\u2019s not so simple.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Sheinkopf credited Mamdani\u2019s campaign strategy. Running as the Democratic nominee in deep-blue New York gave him a major advantage, while Cuomo\u2019s name appeared at the bottom right of the ballot on his independent \u201cFight and Deliver\u201d line.<\/p>\n \u201cAlso what advantaged Mamdani was the changing nature of the city\u2019s population,\u201d Sheinkopf said, pointing to growth in African, Muslim, and Chinese communities.<\/p>\n A Patriot Polling survey conducted two weeks before the election found 62% of foreign-born New Yorkers supported Mamdani, compared with just 31% of American-born voters.<\/p>\n Weiss said the mayor-elect\u2019s narrow victory leaves him with a divided city and a skeptical electorate. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t really have a crazy mandate,\u201d Weiss noted, pointing out that outgoing Mayor Eric Adams won in 2021 with nearly 70% of the vote.<\/p>\n Weiss added that Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) members like Mamdani are \u201cgreat at organizing\u201d and inspiring young, idealistic voters but struggle when it comes to governing.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it comes to governing, their ideas stink,\u201d Weiss said. \u201cYou can\u2019t just give away things, tax rich people, and think they\u2019ll just sit there and say, \u2018OK, tax me to death.\u2019 They\u2019re going to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n As Mamdani prepares to lead America\u2019s largest city, analysts say his success may depend on whether he can temper his rhetoric, build coalitions, and prove his socialist agenda can function in a capitalistic economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The recent congressional hearing was a masterclass in political confrontation, featuring GOP Congressman\u00a0 Eli Crane\u00a0absolutely torching Democrat Governor\u00a0Tim Walz\u00a0on a variety of issues, ranging from immigration policy to incendiary rhetoric. Crane didn\u2019t…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20125,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20126"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20126\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20126"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20126"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2.watchtowatch.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n