NYC mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdami addresses Midtown mass shooting from Uganda compound
'I'm heartbroken to learn of the horrific shooting in midtown and I am holding the victims, their families, and the NYPD officer in critical condition in my thoughts,' Mamdani wrote in a post to X.
'Grateful for all of our first responders on the ground,' he concluded.
Mamdani is currently in Uganda celebrating his nuptials at a heavily-guarded private compound in the wealthy Buziga Hill area outside the capital city Kampala.
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San Francisco Chronicle
26 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Texas Democrats plea for donations to extend their walkout and block Trump's redistricting plan
After leaving Texas for Illinois to prevent a legislative vote on a Republican redistricting plan, state House Democratic leader Gene Wu needed a means to project his voice — and viewpoints — to a national audience. So he tapped his campaign account to buy a microphone for news conferences. When it came to covering the hefty hotel bill for Wu and his roughly 50 colleagues, the lawmaker said he relied on money from his chamber's Democratic Caucus. Now Texas Democrats are pleading for donations to help finance what could be a walkout of weeks — if not months — in a high-stakes attempt to prevent the Republican majority from passing a plan sought by President Donald Trump. The president is urging Texas and other GOP-controlled states to redraw their congressional districts to help Republicans maintain control of the U.S. House in next year's midterm elections. 'We're getting a lot of small-dollar donations,' Wu told The Associated Press, "and that's going to be used to help keep this thing going.' A political group led by Beto O'Rourke, a former Texas congressman who ran unsuccessfully for governor and Senate, gave money to the Texas House Democratic Caucus to help cover the up-front costs, according to a spokesperson for the group, Powered by People. O'Rourke this week has been holding events in red states to fire up Democrats and encourage donations. Powered by People has not disclosed how much it contributed. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, said Wednesday he's launching an investigation into whether O'Rourke's group has committed bribery by a 'financial influence scheme' benefiting Democrats who left Texas. In response, O'Rourke said he would be undeterred by the threat of an investigation and used it as a fundraising opportunity. Lawmakers face travel costs and potentially huge fines By departing the state, Democratic lawmakers have prevented Republicans from obtaining the quorum needed to conduct business. Democrats hope to run out the clock on a special legislative session that ends Aug. 19. But Republican Gov. Greg Abbott could immediately call another session, raising the prospect of a prolonged and an expensive holdout. Not only could Texas Democrats face thousands of dollars in out-of-state lodging and dining costs, they also could eventually face fines of $500 for each day they are absent, which under House rules cannot be paid from their office budgets or political contributions. Texas has a part-time Legislature where lawmakers receive $600 a month, plus an additional $221 for expenses each day they are in session. On Wednesday, state Sen. Jose Menendez joined Democrats from other states at a rally in Boston, where he noted that the potential daily fine for quorum-breaking lawmakers is nearly as large as their entire monthly legislative salary. 'They need your prayers, they need your thoughts and they need you to get behind them,' he said. Some Democrats in the Texas Senate have traveled out of state this week to support their House colleagues, but lawmakers in that chamber are not leaving the state to hold up legislative business. 'This fight is for the people' Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat and billionaire, has welcomed the Texas lawmakers to his state but said he has not financially supported them. Texas state Rep. James Talarico, who has built a national following in recent weeks, said the lawmakers told Pritzker they didn't want him to fund their trip. 'We've already been inundated with donations from across the state of Texas, from across the country, just regular people donating $5, $10, $15,' Talarico said this week. 'And that's appropriate, because this fight is for the people and it should be funded by the people. We don't have billionaires who are funding this operation.' The House Democratic Caucus has set up a website seeking donations of between $25 and $2,500 — with a default amount of $250. Earlier this week, Abbott asked the state's highest court to remove Wu from office and ordered the Texas Rangers to investigate possible bribery charges related to how Democrats are paying for the walkout, alleging anyone who financially helped them could be culpable. Wu, a former prosecutor from Houston, said the bribery suggestion is 'monstrously stupid.' 'No member is leaving because they might get a campaign contribution that might restore some of the money that they're spending,' he said. How left-leaning groups are helping Before Democrats decided to leave Texas, Wu said he called potential allies for assurance 'that there would be resources that would come to our assistance.' But he said that's no different from an aspiring candidate asking others for support before officially launching a campaign. Wu, who is chair of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, said he has participated in online sessions with representatives of dozens of Democratic, progressive and redistricting-oriented groups. Not all are financial supporters. Some are providing help in other ways, such as by coordinating publicity. The Democratic National Committee has helped with communications and organizing, as well as providing help from a data analytics team, Chair Ken Martin said. Texas Democrats aren't worried that they'll be forced to return home in the near future because of a lack of money, said Luke Warford, founder of Agave Democratic Infrastructure Fund, a Texas fundraising and organizing group. He said longtime Democratic funders understand the high cost of competing in tougher U.S. House races if Republicans succeed in redrawing the map. "Of course having most of the delegation out of the state is going to rack up a bill,' Warford said. But "when you think about it in the context of what Donald Trump has to gain and what Democrats might lose in the short term, it's just not even close to the cost of trying to win back either these races or a bunch of other races in the country.' The Democratic lawmakers have been holed up at a hotel and conference center outside Chicago that was evacuated Wednesday after an unfounded bomb threat. Many lawmakers have been dining and meeting together, and are prepared to keep doing so. Democratic state Rep. John Bucy III, speaking by phone from the hotel, said he isn't concerned about how the costs ultimately get covered. 'There's too much at stake here to be worried about those things,' Bucy said. "Our hotel bills seem so minor compared to what we're trying to do — to protect democracy.'
UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
Texas AG to investigate O'Rourke-linked group amid map row
Texas has launched an investigation into Beto O'Rourke's Powered by People group in connection to Democrats who fled the state over the weekend. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Wednesday launched an investigation into potential Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke over allegations that he "bribed" Democratic state lawmakers who fled the Lone Star State to prevent Republicans from passing GOP-favorable congressional maps that critics say strip power from voters of color. Paxton announced the investigation amid a deepening row between the state's Democrats and Republicans. The state's minority Democrats fled Texas over the weekend to deny Republicans the quorum needed to certify the controversial maps. The state's Republican leadership has responded with threats of arrest and to vacate their congressional seats if they don't return by Friday, as well as investigations into anyone who solicits funds to support their effort. Paxton said Wednesday that he is investigating the O'Rourke-led Powered by People, which is reportedly covering the costs of Texas Democrats who fled the state. He also said the Powered by People group may have violated bribery laws and state laws, such as those governing campaign or officeholder contributions and expenditures, coercion of a public servant and abuse of office. "Any Democrat coward breaking the law by taking a Beto Bribe will be held accountable," Paxton said in a statement announcing the investigation. "These jet-setting runaways have already lost public trust by abandoning our state, and Texans deserve to know if they received illegal bribes to do it." The new maps, if certified, are expected to give Republicans five additional seats in the U.S. House of Representatives ahead of next year's midterm elections. Critics and Democrats argue that the maps draw lines that dilute the voting power of Latino and Black people, while serving as a power grab by President Donald Trump through rigging the GOP representation in the House. Democrats have widely supported their Texan colleagues' actions to prevent quorum. Republicans have viewed the move as a shirking from their responsibilities. O'Rourke has been traveling throughout several swing states, including Missouri, Wisconsin, Indianapolis, Nebraska and others, trying to generate grassroots support for the Texas Democrats. In response to the investigation, O'Rourke accused Paxton of hypocrisy. "The guy impeached for bribery is going after the folks trying to stop the theft of five congressional seats," he said on X. Paxton was impeached by the state House but was acquitted of all corruption charges by the Senate. The Republican attorney general has vowed that he will seek "aggressive legal action" against any Democrat who is not present at the House on Friday, while Abbott has called for their arrests.
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Newsweek
JB Pritzker Reacts to Possibility of FBI Arresting Texas Democrats
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Illinois Democratic Governor JB Pritzker brushed off the possibility of the FBI coming into his state and arresting Texas Democrats who left the state and headed to Illinois and other Democratic-led states in a last-ditch effort to block Republicans' redistricting efforts in Texas. "They're grandstanding," the governor said when asked about President Donald Trump's suggestion that the FBI "may have to" get involved to bring the Texas Democrats back to their home state. Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment via email on Wednesday. Why It Matters The confrontation between Democratic and Republican state representatives in Texas highlights the national stakes of partisan redistricting battles ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Redistricting occurs once every 10 years following the census to adjust boundaries based on population changes. But when Texas Republicans began trying to redraw the congressional map mid-decade in a way that would give their party more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, Democratic legislators left the state to prevent formation of a quorum required to pass the plan. Under Texas law, the state House needs 100 representatives accounted for to conduct official business, but has only 88 Republicans, requiring Democrats' presence to revise the voting map. Republican U.S. Senator John Cornyn of Texas asked the FBI to help "locate and arrest" the Democrats who fled the Lone Star State. Trump also signaled his support for the request. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, left, looks on as Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu along with others speak about Texas Republican plans to redraw the House map, during a news conference at the Democratic... Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, left, looks on as Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu along with others speak about Texas Republican plans to redraw the House map, during a news conference at the Democratic Party of DuPage County office in Carol Stream, Illinois, on August 3. More Mark Black/AP What To Know Asked what he thought of Trump's remarks and the possibility of FBI involvement in the matter, Pritzker added, "There literally is no federal law applicable to this situation, none." Speaking on the News Not Noise podcast with Jessica Yellin, Pritzker added: "They can say that they're sending FBI. FBI agents might show up just to, I don't know, again, to put a show on. But the fact is that, you know, our local law enforcement protect everybody in Illinois." "Our state troopers protect everybody in Illinois and anybody who's here in Illinois," the Democratic governor said. "And so, whether it's federal agents coming to Illinois or state rangers from Texas, if you haven't broken federal law, you're basically unwelcome and there's no way that our state legislators here, the Texas state legislators, can be arrested." Pritzker's comments on Wednesday came amid an escalating legal battle between Republican officials in Texas and Democrats who left the state. Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Wednesday sought rare emergency relief from the state's Supreme Court to remove Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu and other absent legislators. Wu hit back at Abbott, saying the governor's move was "just purely insanity" and portrayed the ongoing legal and political pressure as "unconstitutional racial gerrymandering." More than 50 Texas Democrats have scattered to Illinois and other blue states like California and New York as part of their effort to block Republicans in their state from gerrymandering the congressional map to gain more U.S. House seats. Pritzker applauded their efforts during an appearance on CBS' The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, telling the host on Tuesday: "Donald Trump is trying to steal five seats from the people—frankly, of the country, not just the people of Texas—to disenfranchise people." "We're talking about violating the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution," he added. What People Are Saying Pritzker also told Colbert on Tuesday: "The great heroes of the Texas House Democratic Caucus decided the only thing they could do in order to stop it was, leave Texas. And where did they decide to come to? The safe haven of the state of Illinois, where we are going to protect them and take care of them." The governor added: "I'm very proud of them." Trump, referring to the 2024 presidential election, told CNBC on Tuesday: "I won Texas. I got the highest vote in the history of Texas, as you probably know, and we are entitled to five more seats." New York Governor Kathy Hochul said at a Monday news conference: "If Republicans are willing to rewrite these rules to give themselves an advantage, then they're leaving us no choice; we must do the same." What Happens Next Texas' redistricting efforts have kicked off a nationwide battle between blue and red states across the country, with the governors of New York and California pledging to redraw their own congressional maps to offset Republican efforts in Texas. In all, at least nine states have considered redrawing their maps, according to officials in those states and media reports: Texas, California, New York, Ohio, Florida, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin and Maryland.
