Latest news with #Democrat-heavy
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Barr, Rogers talk Trump, '26 Senate race at Lincoln Dinner
The Pulaski County Republican Party's Lincoln Dinner is named after the United States' 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. But it was the current GOP occupant of the White House who was mentioned most of all on Tuesday night. Speakers Kentucky Congressmen Hal Rogers of the Fifth District and Andy Barr of the Sixth District both took the opportunity to unequivocally throw their support behind President Donald Trump during the party event held at The Center for Rural Development. Barr's visit was not just as a guest speaker but a campaign stop, since he is in the running for the U.S. Senate Seat from Kentucky currently held by longtime Senator Mitch McConnell. That race will take place next year, but Barr, of Lexington, worked to build momentum Tuesday night by making his case as both someone who has successfully won in a Democrat-heavy area and who would back Trump in Washington. '(W)ith this great privilege of having represented central Kentucky, what an enormous blessing it would be to get a chance to represent the people of Pulaski County, eastern and southern Kentucky, western Kentucky and the rest of our commonwealth,' said Barr. 'Failure is not an option,' he later added. 'We must nominate someone who can make sure that this U.S. Senate seat stays in conservative American-first Republican hands. ... We have a governor who has shown how Democrats can win a statewide race in red Kentucky. ... The only way a Democrat can win statewide in the commonwealth of Kentucky, in 2023, '24, '25 or '26, is to win the Sixth District. That's how Andy Beshear did it. He did it twice. ... I pledge this to you: I will not lose the single swing purple district in Kentucky, my district (including Lexington).' Barr described himself as 'an America-first conservative' raised in the era of Ronald Reagan, and said that 'for the first time in our lifetime, our country is teetering on the brink, and thank God we've got President Trump to help us save our country.' Barr further connected himself to Trump and his tariff policies by saying, 'Finally, we have a president who is fighting for reciprocal and, yes, free trade, but free trade on level terms. We have been ripped off, even not just from our enemies, from our trading partners and allies, and we finally have a president who is trying to get us better, more reciprocal deals ... the turbulence that we've seen in the short term will lead to long-term stability and better access to markets.' Referencing his place on the House Financial Services Committee, Barr said that he is actively working to 'take politics out of your retirement accounts and your investment accounts and your college savings and your retirement savings,' and to 'unleash our capital markets and our community banks, because we know those are the American Dream makers. Those are the folks that provide those loans in our hometown communities to the farmers and to the mainstream businesses and the entrepreneurs. 'We believe in the Republican Party, in the power of the American Dream, the idea that in this country, regardless of where you come from, you can get ahead through the power of free markets,' he continued. '... We're about the American Dream through freedom, not government, because we believe that government should be the servant of the people, not the master of the people.' Barr also praised Trump's handling of the nation's border crisis — '(T)he border is closed,' he said. '(Former President) Joe Biden and the media, they said, 'Oh we just need a bipartisan immigration and comprehensive immigration reform bill.' No they didn't. They just needed a commander-in-chief who knew how to protect our country' — and said that lawmakers are working on a bill to 'surge resources to border patrol to build the wall ... (and) keep our communities safe.' In addition to Trump, Barr also had words of praise for Pulaski County, calling it 'a place near and dear to my heart' — he talked about camping at the Bee Rock area, which he did as a young boy as well as now with his own daughters; he also proposed to his late wife Carol there in 2007 — and for Rogers, saying, 'There is no better mentor in the U.S. House than Hal Rogers. ... Unlike most politicians in Washington who like to hear themselves talk, he is very selective about when he speaks up, but when he does, people listen because he is a man of wisdom, a man of influence, and a man who knows how to deliver.' Rogers did deliver his own address at Tuesday's Lincoln Club event, saying that he and Barr were 'having fun in Washington D.C., getting a lot of blisters on our hands,' and working to support the Trump administration's agenda. In particular, speaking about international trade, Rogers noted Trump has started the process of negotiating with China and is 'right to do so, because they've ripped us off, flooded our young people with fentanyl and threatened all sorts of activities worldwide' —and then urged people to 'have patience with this president' and his economic policies. 'Making America great again is alive and well,' said Rogers. 'This president has put forward some ... far-reaching policies and ideas, and it's going to take some time. This is not going to happen overnight. But it's beginning to happen, as we speak.' Speaking to the crowd of Republicans assembled at The Center, Rogers — who briefly spoke in front of his own portrait hanging in the facility's lobby — said, 'It's a new day, and it's your party. We're going to keep ahead of the curve, and we do that by doing what you're doing just now: supporting the party and helping in the election.' The dinner was the first to see Alex Wilson speak as the new chairman of the Pulaski County Republican Party, following Bill Turpen, who served in that role from 2017 until this past March. Wilson recognized a number of notable individuals present — as well as the late JC Tucker — and was sworn in as the new chair by Circuit Court Judge Teresa Whitaker, along with vice chair Cloyd Bumgardner, treasurer Debra Ruckel, secretary Maydell Greer, and youth chair Callie Thompson.
New York Post
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- New York Post
Tesla's net income plunges 71% as Elon Musk confirms ‘major work' setting up DOGE is done
Elon Musk said Tuesday he would dial back his role as President Trump's cost-cutting czar — sending beaten-down Tesla shares surging despite the company reporting that its net income cratered 71% for the quarter. The embattled billionaire told analysts on a post-earnings call that his 'time allocation to DOGE will drop significantly,' referring to the polarizing Department of Government Efficiency. 'I will be allocating far more of my time to Tesla now that the major work of establishing the Department of Government Efficiency is done,' he said after the markets closed.. Advertisement Shares rose 4% in after-hours trading as Musk delivered the news to analysts, many of whom have attributed Tesla's struggles to public backlash from the mogul's close ties to Trump and tough overseas competition. Musk insisted he would continue to work with the administration to combat 'waste and fraud' and would 'spend a day or two per week on government matters for as long as the president would like me to do so.' As The Post has reported, Musk's exit was already in the works due to federal rules that mandate special government employees (SGEs) can only remain at their post for 130 consecutive days. That would place his last day on May 30. Advertisement 3 Elon Musk is working closely with President Trump. AP His return to fully focusing on Tesla can't come fast enough. Shares are down nearly 40% year-to-date. They closed at 237.97 on Tuesday, below the 242.84 the stock fetched the day before Trump won the election. It had soared to 479.86 in mid-December. The EV pioneer suffered significant sales declines in some of its biggest markets, including Democrat-heavy California, the nation's largest EV market, according to the California New Car Dealers Association. It's market share for all EV registrations in the Golden State dropped to 44%, compared with 56% the previous year, the trade group reported. Advertisement Sales have also plummeted in China because of Trump's trade war, as well as Europe after Musk voiced support for right-wing political candidates. The company has even had some of its cars, stores and charging stations vandalized or set on fire. Musk acknowledged on the earnings call that Tesla had faced 'some blowback' and said the protests the company has faced as 'very organized.' 'The actual reason for the protests is that those receiving the waste and fraud wish to continue receiving it,' Musk said on the earnings call. Advertisement The electric car maker reported adjusted earnings per share of 27 cents – below Wall Street's expectations of 39 cents per share, according to LSEG data. 3 Tesla dealerships have faced a wave of vandalism. Getty Images Overall revenue plunged 9% to $19.34 billion. While Tesla has earlier predicted a return to full-year sales growth, the company took a step back in its earnings release, noting that it will revisit 2025 guidance in its second-quarter update. 'It is difficult to measure the impacts of shifting global trade policy on the automotive and energy supply chains, our cost structure and demand for durable goods and related services,' Tesla said in an earnings release. Automotive revenue plunged 20% to $14 billion, down from $17.4 billion one year ago. Tesla's energy business was a bright spot, growing 67%. Gross margins for Tesla's auto business came in slightly better than expected, hitting 12.5%. Investors have been bracing for dismal results ever since Tesla revealed earlier this month that its first-quarter deliveries had plunged by 13% compared to the same quarter one year ago. Advertisement Total deliveries, which are seen as a close proxy for final sales, were 336,681 – far lower than Wall Street expected. 3 Tesla shipments fell 13% in the first quarter. Getty Images At the time, Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives described the delivery numbers as a 'disaster on every metric.' Advertisement The billionaire has scrambled to reassure Tesla employees during the recent rough patch in the company's performance, telling them during an all-hands meeting last month to 'hang on to your stock.' Elsewhere, Tesla and other automakers are set to be walloped by Trump's trade tariffs. 'Uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly evolving trade policy adversely impacts the global supply chain and cost structure of Tesla and our peers,' Tesla said. The president has imposed 25% tariffs on imported cars and car parts. While Tesla builds all its US-sold cars within the states, it still sources key car components from Mexico and China. Advertisement Earlier this week, Reuters reported that Tesla had halted shipments of parts needed for its upcoming Cybercab and Semi electric truck from China due to the tariffs. Chinese EV maker BYD recently surpassed Tesla with more than $100 billion in sales and is eyeing a major international expansion. With Post wires
