Ex-Kamala Harris Aide Shreds Jesse Watters Using 1 Not-So-'Good' GOP Headline
Watters questioned Nellis over whether he thinks it's 'smart for all the headlines' to read that Texas Democrats 'ran away from the job,' a reference to dozens of the party's lawmakers leaving the state to break quorum in an effort to block the GOP-majority House from proceeding with the Trump-backed plan.
'Well, let's take a step back from that for a second,' Nellis replied.
'Do you think it's a good headline for all the headlines to say Republicans are so worried about losing the midterms that they decided to rig the maps?'
The GOP-majority House has since issued civil arrest warrants against the Democrats, an effort that legal experts have dismissed as unenforceable outside the Lone Star State.
After several seconds of crosstalk, Watters claimed that 'both sides redistrict and it's not the end of the world.' He went on to argue that most Americans don't like lawmakers running 'away from work' like the Democrats in Texas.
Nellis hit back, 'Well, most Americans don't like politicians drawing up their own maps. They don't like the fact that Republicans are scared they're going to lose the midterms so they're trying to rig the game like they always do.'
He continued, 'Look, Texas Republicans could be, right now, trying to do something to help the American people, help the people with Texas with floods, they're not doing that right now.'
Nellis — a Democratic strategist credited as one of the organizers of the 'White Dudes for Harris' group — pointed out that Republicans in Congress are also on recess while the president is playing golf.
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NBC News
a few seconds ago
- NBC News
A Republican got jeered at a townhall. He plans to hold more.
Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., faced off with a raucous crowd that hurled boos, jeers and middle fingers at him at a town hall in Lincoln on Monday. The conservative Republican said he has no regrets and would do it all over again. 'I don't regret it at all,' Flood said in a phone interview on Tuesday. 'Every member of Congress has to do it the way they see fit. But for me, this comes with the territory. And I feel like you got to put yourself in the town square if you want to be a member of Congress for your district.' 'And if you feel strongly about how you're voting and the choices you're making,' he added, 'you should be able to stand on the town square and be accountable for those votes and tell people why you did it and take their input.' In this polarized political climate, the vast majority of lawmakers, in both parties, are opting not to hold town halls this August recess. Last spring, after a series of GOP town halls went off the rails, Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., the GOP campaign chief for the 2026 election cycle, urged his Republican colleagues not to hold in-person town halls, calling them 'no longer effective' due to Democratic disruptions. And violent threats against politicians have seen a steady uptick in recent years. But Flood, the chairman of the Republican Main Street Caucus, whose members call themselves 'pragmatic conservatives,' didn't heed Hudson's advice. He held a town hall in Columbus in March and another in Seward in May before Monday's event on the University of Nebraska campus in liberal-leaning Lincoln, the largest city in his district. 'As elected officials, we have to put ourselves in environments that are not comfortable,' he said, though he made clear he was not judging colleagues in either party who have chosen not to hold town halls. House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McLain, R-Mich., called him Tuesday morning and commended him for hanging tough, Flood said. His next town hall will likely be held in the spring. Flood said concerns about cuts to Medicaid in the GOP's 'big, beautiful bill' dominated Monday night's 87-minute town hall, which was carried live by public television. 'Medicaid, Medicaid, Medicaid, Medicaid — that was the No. 1 issue and something I started out with, just because I'm looking at the calls my office gets,' Flood said, adding that he spent time during the town hall addressing confusion in the audience about how the bill would affect them and reassuring seniors that they wouldn't lose their Medicare coverage. The Trump law does require recipients of Medicaid — the health care program for low-income people and those with disabilities — to work 80 hours per month if they are able-bodied adults under age 65, with some exceptions. 'If you're 28 years old and you don't want to work, you shouldn't expect free health care, if you can work,' Flood said. 'And that resonates with like 70% of people, that you'd have some work requirements.' Democrats believe the Trump law will cost Republicans the House majority in 2026, and they say Flood's hostile town hall is evidence of just how unpopular it is with voters. 'Every single vulnerable House Republican should follow Mike Flood's example and be brave enough to face their constituents in-person to see firsthand how unpopular and hated the Big, Ugly Law is,' said Viet Shelton, spokesman for the House Democrats' campaign committee. Flood, 50, the former speaker of the Nebraska House who was elected to Congress in 2022, also fielded tough questions about Trump's recent firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner and whether he backs releasing more information from the Jeffrey Epstein probe. He said he'll sign onto a resolution by House Rules Committee members on Wednesday to release the Epstein files. 'As long as it protects the victims and doesn't re-victimize those folks,' Flood said, 'I'm for its release.' But he opposes a bipartisan effort led by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., to bypass GOP leadership and force a vote on the floor in September to compel the Justice Department to release the files. 'I don't sign discharge petitions,' he said, 'and it goes back to my day as a speaker of the legislature, where I wouldn't do the same thing.' Nebraska is a red state that went for Trump by more than 20 points in 2024, but the university's Kimball Recital Hall on Monday evening was mostly packed with Democrats, said Flood, who recounted how he recognized some individuals who had attended all three of his town halls this year. A former attorney, Flood said he prepared for about five to six hours for the town hall, anticipating what questions he might get and how he'd respond. Before the event got started, he told the university police officers on hand he didn't want anyone kicked out of the town hall for exercising their First Amendment rights. Only one individual was told to leave after protesting the situation in Gaza, Flood said, and he left peacefully. 'I said, 'I don't want people kicked out or removed just for voicing an opinion, no matter how they voice it. If somebody is fighting somebody else, yes, do what you got to do,'' Flood said. 'When you look at the video, it looks pretty hardcore. People are literally screaming, flipping me off. They are jumping up and down. They are standing with their back to me,' he recounted. 'None of those folks get asked to leave. They don't. I don't even say, 'Please stop.'' Just a handful of lawmakers are choosing to hold town halls during the weekslong August recess. For many, there are few upsides. On the same night as the Flood town hall, veteran Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., had to abruptly cancel his town hall midway through after a group of protesters 'took over the stage' and disrupted the gathering, local police said. Three individuals were arrested on trespassing charges. Things were much tamer at a separate town hall hosted by freshman Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin in Michigan. At one point at his town hall, someone asked Flood: 'How are you helping the working class?' He talked about how the Trump law included no tax on tips, an expanded child tax credit and other provisions. Then he said something that infuriated many attendees: 'Today's Republican Party is comprised of the heart and soul of the working class.' 'That brought the house down. They were very upset that I said that," Flood told NBC News. "But that's the reality. ... Every day Americans recognize that something's changed in our country, where, as a Republican, we have won the hearts and minds of the working class. And that was very hard for the crowd to accept. But I think, to an objective person, if we haven't won their hearts and minds, we're darn close to it.'
Politico
a few seconds ago
- Politico
California's war with Texas gets real
STATE STANDOFF: The longstanding tension between California and Texas has gone from a dull hum to an all-out conflagration. Lone Star State Republicans' efforts to redraw their congressional map at the behest of President Donald Trump prompted Democratic lawmakers to abscond to New York, Illinois and Massachusetts in a last-ditch attempt to resist the maneuver. But it's California where Gov. Gavin Newsom's pledge to reconfigure districts to pick up Democratic seats could have a significant impact on the balance of power in Congress in the midterms. It's perhaps the biggest moment in the modern political battle between California and Texas, whose long-running feud has for years served mostly as a symbolic proxy war for Democrats and Republicans. Now, things are getting real. 'I'm not going to sit back any longer in the fetal position, a position of weakness, when in fact California can demonstrably advance strength,' Newsom said at a recent news conference. Things were less serious in 2014, when then-Texas Gov. Rick Perry drove through Sacramento in a Tesla to needle then-California Gov. Jerry Brown as the two were competing to host the company's battery plant. Perry had already run California radio ads promoting Texas' business-friendly climate, which Brown waved away as 'barely a fart.' Before Perry's L Street cruise, former GOP Assemblymember Chuck DeVore praised tax policies in Texas — a place he's since made his home. And he was hardly alone. Democratic leaders rail against Texas gun and abortion policies, while Republicans portray California as an overregulated nanny state plagued by crime and homelessness. 'Texas is an easy punching bag for liberals. California is an easy punching bag for conservatives,' Kevin Shuvalov, a Houston-based strategist, told POLITICO way back in 2017. Newsom is no stranger to this rhetoric. In 2022, he spent campaign money on billboard and newspaper ads touting California's abortion rights and denouncing Texas' gun-friendly politics. The same year, the governor signed legislation allowing Californians to sue people and companies that dispense banned guns — an answer to Texas' 'bounty'-style anti-abortion law that employed a similar legal mechanism. This time, Newsom's offensive could affect national politics far more than a billboard showing a woman in handcuffs. If he succeeds, California could pick up five Democratic congressional seats, a change the governor and House members say is necessary to combat GOP tactics. 'When Trump actually says he's at war, and the war's with Democrats, we're not bringing a butter knife to a gun fight,' San Diego Rep. Scott Peters told Playbook. IT'S TUESDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to lholden@ WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY KICK 'EM OUT: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced he's moving forward with plans to remove absent state Democrats from office, our Andrew Howard reports. Paxton said he would begin asking Texas courts on Friday to remove the Democrats if they do not return to Austin. 'Democrats have abandoned their offices by fleeing Texas, and a failure to respond to a call of the House constitutes a dereliction of their duty as elected officials,' Paxton said in a statement. 'Starting Friday, any rogue lawmakers refusing to return to the House will be held accountable for vacating their office. The people of Texas elected lawmakers, not jet-setting runaways looking for headlines. If you don't show up to work, you get fired.' The legal process to remove the lawmakers will likely take time. First, Paxton must file a case against each individual absent Democrat in various district courts, a process that would surely lead to appeals and could drag out long beyond the end of the special session on Aug. 19. IN OTHER NEWS CLOSING TIME: Newsom's administration yesterday announced it will close a Riverside County prison by fall 2026, following through on the governor's pledge to shutter a fourth state-owned facility. The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation will shut down the California Rehabilitation Center in Norco, which the agency estimates will save $150 million per year. Newsom has closed three state-owned prisons and a leased facility staffed by state corrections employees during his time in office. The governor announced plans to close another prison as a cost-cutting measure during his revised budget presentation in May. FOX'S ELEX-IT: Longtime Fox 11 Los Angeles anchor Elex Michaelson announced today he's leaving the station to 'pursue an exciting new opportunity.' Michaelson, who hosts the California politics show 'The Issue Is,' said in an X post that his last day will be Aug. 15. He said he's not allowed to share information about his next move 'just yet.' 'What I can talk my enormous gratitude to my incredibly talented FOX 11 colleagues, all the guests I've had the honor of interviewing, and so many of you for your support,' Michaelson said. WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY — Los Angeles County chief executive Fesia Davenport warned the Board of Supervisors that the county is grappling with financial pressures that will require program cuts, including the potential closure of a public hospital. (LAist) — Families in Central California have been preparing for potential ICE raids by planning who they will call and who will take care of their kids. (The Fresno Bee) — AT&T, which provides much of California's landline service, has taken its battle to drop landline service to California customers to the legislature after regulators blocked its bid last year. (The Mercury News) AROUND THE STATE — Religious leaders and volunteers can now accompany people to San Diego's immigration court under a pilot program that focuses on offering spiritual support to those who need it. (The San Diego Union-Tribune) — The city of San Diego will use more than $8 million in settlement funds from SeaWorld's unpaid rent lawsuit to improve public parks, but some South Bay residents expressed disappointment that their communities weren't included. (inewsource) — A Los Angeles college's culinary program had an uptick in enrollment last academic year even as other programs and hundreds of restaurants in the region have shuttered. (The Los Angeles Times) — compiled by Juliann Ventura
Fox News
17 minutes ago
- Fox News
WATCH: Trump says FBI 'may have to' help Texas round up AWOL Dem lawmakers
President Donald Trump saidTuesday evening that the FBI "may have to" round up a group of Democratic lawmakers who fled Texas to avoid voting on the state's proposed redistricting map. This comes as Texas Governor Greg Abbott and several Texas leaders, including Attorney General Ken Paxton, have demanded that the 50 Democratic members of the state legislature who fled the state return or face consequences. The Democrats fled the state in an effort to deny Republicans the necessary two-thirds quorum required to vote on the redistricting map, which would likely give the GOP an edge in elections and potentially add five House seats to the Texas Republican congressional delegation. National Democrats have praised the stunt. During a press conference on Sunday, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a leading Democratic figure, shared his support for the Texas Democrats, describing their departure as a "righteous act of courage," while claiming Republicans want to silence "millions of voices, especially Black and Latino voters." Abbott said the lawmakers' commitment to voting as elected state officials is a duty and is "not optional." The governor also said a legislator determined to have "forfeited his or her office due to abandonment" can be removed from office under the Texas Constitution, thereby creating a vacancy, which the governor can "swiftly fill" under Article III, Section 13. After the Democrats failed to meet Abbott's 4 p.m. CT Monday deadline to return, Texas Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows announced he would sign arrest warrants against any absent Democrat lawmakers if authorized by a vote of the chamber. Shortly thereafter, the House did approve the warrants and Gov. Greg Abbott then swiftly called on the Texas Department of Public Safety to arrest the "delinquent Texas House Democrats." The attorney general has stated that the lawmakers "should be found and arrested no matter where they go." Trump weighed in on the political intrigue Tuesday at the White House when he was asked by a reporter, "Do you want the federal government and the FBI to help locate and arrest these Texas Democrats who have left the state?" The president responded that it is a bad look for Democrats to "abandon" the state rather than fight it out in the legislature. "Well, I think they've abandoned the state," he said. "Nobody's seen anything like it, even though they've done it twice before. And, in a certain way, it almost looks like they've abandoned the state. Looks very bad." Pressed further on whether the FBI should get involved, Trump answered, "Well, they may have to." "They may have to," he repeated. "No, I know they want them back. Not only the attorney general, the governor wants them back. If you look, I mean the governor of Texas is demanding they come back. So, a lot of people are demanding they come back. You can't just sit it out. You have to go back. You have to fight it out. That's what elections are all about." Asked by Fox News Channel's Peter Doocy whether he thought Texas' redistricting plans were worth risking blue states similarly retaliating, Trump answered, "They'll do it anyway." "Why, if we stop over there, they would have done it anyway," he said. "Look, a lot of these states, you know, I watched this morning as Democrats are complaining and they're complaining from states where they've done it, like in Illinois, like in Massachusetts." "The Democrats have done it long before we started. They've done it all over the place. They did it in New York. They did it in a lot of different states," Trump went on. The president went on to praise Texas' redistricting plans, saying, "There's tremendous support for it." He also praised Abbott, saying the future of the plans depends on him. "Texas is a place that's done very well with a free enterprise kind of an attitude, with the exact opposite of what's happening in New York with a communist mayor. And they know what they're doing. And they're doing the right thing," he said. "So, we'll see what happens. We have a wonderful governor in Texas. He feels strongly about it. It's going to be up to him."
