Trump Looks to Shore Up Support for GOP Megabill
Republican concerns about the bill and trade tensions with China are expected to dominate the White House agenda this week.
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The Hill
7 minutes ago
- The Hill
Bannon: Graham giving Ukrainians ‘false hope'
Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, a key MAGA insider, doubled down late Monday on his criticism of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and the lawmaker's vocal support for Ukraine amid its war with Russia. In an interview on NewsNation's 'CUOMO,' Bannon said Graham was giving Ukrainians 'false hope' by meeting with the country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and by suggesting the U.S. support Kyiv's stunning drone attack on Russia's strategic bombing fleet. 'We can't have Lindsey Graham, and particularly Zelensky, leading us into a third world war with a deep strike into Russia,' Bannon told host Chris Cuomo. The comments come after the former Trump adviser called for the South Carolina Republican to be jailed for his pro-Ukraine stance. Cuomo repeatedly challenged Bannon to back up that request. 'I don't understand how you could want to jail a U.S. senator because he's saying something you don't like,' the NewsNation host said, adding, 'That sounds like the worst of the deep state and lawfare.' Bannon responded, 'No, it's absolutely — what he's doing over there right now is stirring it up. He's giving the Ukrainians false hope.' Cuomo cut in, 'But it's not illegal.' The Trumpy ally continued, 'He's giving Ukrainians false hope that we're there to support them on engaging Russia in a kinetic conflict. And we are not.' The host continued to press Bannon about why he thinks Graham should be detained. 'So maybe he's wrong, but why do you say throw him in jail?' he said. 'Two things ought to happen: Either cancel his passport and don't let him back in the country, or put him in jail if he comes back,' Bannon responded, adding, 'The attack was audacious.' 'It was brilliant. But the problem is it gets us involved in a conflict that no one in the United States wants to be part of,' he added. Cuomo noted that he didn't necessarily disagree with the former strategist's opinion. 'I'm just saying you can't be throwing people in jail because you don't like what they say. That's my only point,' he told Bannon. 'I'm not saying that you're wrong about where this might lead and how dangerous it is.'
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The prescription for discord? Discourse.
Former Montana lawmaker Dorothy Bradley and former Republican Gov. Marc Racicot embrace at a rally to stop the dozens of constitutional amendment proposals made in the 2023 legislative sessions. Both were keynote speakers at the Feb. 1, 2023, event. (Photo by Blair Miller, Daily Montanan) On June 22, at the Ellen Theater in Bozeman, Todd Wilkinson, the editor of Yellowstonian, a publication focused on the environmental issues in the Greater Yellowstone, hosted and moderated a discussion between two old political rivals. In 1992, Republican Marc Racicot and Dorothy Bradley campaigned all over the state, conducting more than 20 joint town halls, where they debated the issues of the day. Racicot won in a very close race, and went on to become one of the most popular governors in Montana, up until he made a fateful decision concerning the deregulation of utilities, a piece of legislation that had a long-term impact and has led many Montanans to never forgive him. But it's hard to overlook the fact that Racicot is a man who reflects on these things in a way that is not typical of most politicians, especially from his party. When Racicot endorsed Monica Tranel during the 2022 congressional race, the state Republican party decided to censure him, a particularly confounding decision considering that Racicot was, at one time, the chairman of the Republican National Committee after his term as governor. He also managed George Bush's campaign during the 2004 presidential race. But Racicot never classified himself as a full-on conservative, and he and Bradley both highlighted the fact that during their campaign against each other, they were able to maintain a strong feeling of respect and civility despite their differences. This was one of many issues they pointed to that are contributing to the current political situation. Another was the influx of money, and Bradley pointed out that the maximum donation during their campaign was $35 and they were meticulous about following that. But one of the most striking revelations during the evening for me was when someone asked Racicot whether any of the current Republican leadership in Montana ever reaches out to him for advice. 'They don't even return my calls,' Racicot answered. And although it wasn't exactly a surprise, I still found myself kind of amazed that these people would completely dismiss the years of experience of someone like Racicot. It's not hard to imagine that the same holds true for most of the other former office-holders in our state—people like former governors Brian Schweitzer and Steve Bullock, or former congressman Pat Williams, and especially Jon Tester. It's obviously a product of our current political culture, which values winning over all else, that would produce the kind of arrogance that completely dismisses an entire sector of our population without a thought. But how shortsighted is it to believe that only you and those who think like you have all the answers you need? Or, that asking for advice or feedback is some kind of weakness? People can say that Donald Trump is to blame, but this started way before he descended that golden escalator, back when Newt Gingrich and his cadre of icy collaborators decided that winning at all costs was way more important than worrying about what is important to the voters. This attitude has slowly poisoned the Republican party to the point where they feel completely justified in disowning one of the people who was considered a shining star. And the most maddening part about it is how gleefully and smugly they continue down this path. It's not hard to imagine why. Because so far, it's working. Because of Project 2025, they are no longer relying on Trump to drive the train, and it puts him in the perfect position as someone who just has to keep yelling 'All aboard' and blowing his own horn. He doesn't even have to worry about steering. So where does that leave us? I think Bradley said it best when she pointed out that we are all responsible for where we are, and that we are also responsible for figuring out what to do next. 'Trump is eventually going away,' she pointed out. 'And it's hard to imagine anyone else in his circle having the same sway over the public. So we have to figure out how to proceed once he's gone, and how to repair the damage he's done.' The same holds true for our state. Greg Gianforte is serving his last term, and there's no question that people are becoming disillusioned by the lack of access to our political leaders. Our current office-holders have made it their policy to avoid as much contact with the public as possible, and it's not hard to imagine why. Each time they do that, someone tries to hold them accountable for the many decisions they've made that have done untold damage to the citizens of Montana, with the most outrageous being the (still unexplained) increase in property taxes. Todd Wilkinson and I are starting a new podcast soon, affiliated with Yellowstonian, and one of our first episodes is going to be a discussion about this conversation between Bradley and Racicot. But as a brief preview, I can tell you that most of the solutions they offered were ones we've heard before, and that we will certainly hear again. We need to continue to speak up, gather, make our voices heard, and of course vote. But it was nice to see people with different views coming together to discuss how we got here. And I suspect we will see more of that.
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump front-and-center in Republican primary for governor as early voting kicks off
PINE HILL, N.J.– One week to go until primary day in New Jersey, and Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli was getting a shoutout from the most powerful and influential politician in the GOP. "I'm asking you to get out and vote for a true champion for the people of your state – Jack Ciattarelli. He's been a friend of mine, and he's been a real success story," President Donald Trump told supporters as he dialed into a tele-rally on the eve of Tuesday's kickoff of early voting in New Jersey. Trump's praise came two weeks after he endorsed Ciattarelli for the Republican nomination in a primary race that turned into a battle for the president's support. "It's a really big deal," Ciattarelli said in a Monday interview with Fox News Digital after meeting with local GOP politicians and leaders at the Trump National Golf Club-Philadelphia in this South Jersey borough, when asked about the significance of Trump's endorsement. "The president's doing very, very well in New Jersey." New York Gov. Kathy Hochul Facing Democratic Primary Challenge From Her Own Lt. Governor Ciattarelli, a former state lawmaker, is making his third bid for governor. He ran unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination in 2017. Four years later, in 2021, as the Republican nominee, Ciattarelli overperformed and came close to ousting Democratic incumbent Gov. Phil Murphy, losing by just three points. Read On The Fox News App In the showdown to succeed Murphy, who is term-limited and prevented from running for re-election, polls suggest that Ciattarelli is the front-runner in a Republican nomination race that includes two other prominent candidates – former businessman and popular conservative talk radio host Bill Spadea and state Sen. Jon Bramnick, a lawyer who served for a decade as state Assembly GOP leader. New Jersey Primary An Early Test Of Trump's Second Administration And Ciattarelli and Spadea spent months trading fire over which of them was a bigger Trump supporter. "It was certainly disappointing," Spadea said of Trump's endorsement of Ciattarelli. "I mean, we made no bones about this. We absolutely wanted the president's endorsement. Unfortunately, the president endorsed a poll and not a plan." And in a Fox News Digital interview, Spadea emphasized that "I have been a supporter of President Trump since he came down the escalator," as he referenced Trump's announcement in 2015 of his first presidential campaign. "There is no question that I am the common-sense conservative. I am the actual Republican in this primary," Spadea claimed. And Spadea questioned Ciattarelli's support for Trump, claiming that his rival "has disrespected him for the better part of the last eight years…We thought that that endorsement would have been better served with me." Four years ago, after he won the GOP gubernatorial nomination, Ciattarelli, when asked if he was seeking the then-former president's endorsement, told Fox News Digital "there's only one endorsement I seek, and that's the endorsement of the voters of New Jersey. That's the only one that matters." Fast forward to 2025, and Ciattarelli emphasized that "people really appreciate what he [Trump] is doing for New Jerseyans. He's put a temporary hold on the wind farms off the Jersey Shore. He's beating up on the New York Democrats over congestion pricing. He supports a quadrupling of the SALT [state and local tax] deduction on our federal tax returns. Those are big deals to New Jersey, and that's why he's got so much great support here. And I'm honored to have his endorsement." Republican Governors Chair, Pointing To Campaign Battles Ahead, Touts 'Our Policies Are Better' While he lost out on Trump's endorsement, Spadea said there's been a silver lining. "Our supporters are galvanized. Matter of fact, the Tuesday and Wednesday after Trump endorsed Jack, we had a surge, our two best days ever in low-dollar fundraising," Spadea said. "So it actually has had the opposite effect, our low-dollar surge, our volunteer surge, we're now knocking on more than 3,000 doors a week, and we're getting an unbelievable response from the grassroots." Spadea said that "almost every Trump supporter that we've talked to face-to-face on the ground thinks that Donald Trump made a huge mistake" in endorsing Ciattarelli. And Spadea, who was interviewed in downtown Princeton, New Jersey, added that "Trump supporters believe in common-sense policies, populism, patriotism. It's not about being told who to vote for." Asked why Trump endorsed him rather than Spadea, Ciattarelli said that "the president wants to win. He knows that I provide the best opportunity to win in November." "He knows we're going to raise the necessary money. We've raised more money than the other five Republican gubernatorial candidates combined," added Ciattarelli, a certified public accountant who started a medical publishing company before getting into politics. The fundraising advantage has allowed Ciattarelli to dominate the ad wars, although Spadea said that "in the last couple of weeks we've actually outspent my opponent on the air" and predicted that "we're going to win." And Spadea, pointing to his media career, touted that "I built the largest audience in the state, a third Democrat, a third independent, a third Republican. So my appeal is not just that conservative base in the Republican Party. I'm the only candidate running for the Republican nomination that can pull in Democrats and independents." While the Democrats are also experiencing a competitive primary for governor, the Democratic Governors Association has long described the 2025 Republican showdown as a "MAGA battle" and argued that there's "extremism in the GOP primary." New Jersey has long been a blue-leaning state, but Republicans have had success in gubernatorial elections. "It's not a blue state when it comes to Governor races, Republicans have won six of the last 11. That's better than 50%," Ciattarelli said. And Trump, who spends summer weekends at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, held a very large rally last year in Wildwood, N.J. And he improved from a 16-point loss in the state in the 2020 election to a 6-point deficit last November. "The president's doing very, very well in New Jersey. He performed well here last election day," Ciattarelli said. And Ciattarelli, looking ahead to the general election campaign, said he's "really looking forward" to Trump's "active participation…I think New Jerseyans are anxious to have him on the campaign trail with me and help deliver a win for us in November." New Jersey's governor's race will likely grab plenty of national attention as Election Day nears, as it's one of just two states, along with Virginia, to hold gubernatorial contests in the year after a presidential election. Ciattarelli, pointing to his ballot box performance against Murphy four years ago, said that "we were the spark that lit the fuse in '21 with that very close race. The president before performed well here last November." "The country is watching and I think we're gonna deliver a very loud and clear message that New Jersey's going Republican this year," he article source: Trump front-and-center in Republican primary for governor as early voting kicks off
